Chapter 160: Chapter 160: Is This Still Modern Society?

The young boys heard Xu Ying’s words, looked at one another, their eyes flickering.

Xu Ying immediately understood, these kids must’ve been skipping class.

She didn’t want to lecture them, as kids hate being lectured, after all.

Xu Ying spoke calmly, “Let’s go, back to the village first. Which village are you from?”

The young boys were surprised to see Xu Ying wasn’t scolding them, just chatting as if talking to friends, “We’re from East Village.”

“Around your village, have there been any incidents of chemical fertilizer pollution recently?” Xu Ying chatted with them as they walked, “Like the land having white particles, livestock getting sick for no reason, or boiled water having a weird taste?”

Hearing Xu Ying’s words, the boys widened their eyes, “How did you know, Little Xu Station Chief? You’re even more amazing than the Earth God summoner the village chief invited!”

“Everything you mentioned has happened to nearly every household in the village. My family’s cow has been walking like it’s drunk lately, with a strange gait, sometimes even trembling.”

…

Hearing about the “Earth God summoner,” Xu Ying was bewildered. Is this still a modern scientific society?

However, in such ancient villages, many villagers still believed in deities. Compulsory education had only reached one generation, and traditional, feudal views were deeply rooted in most villagers.

Curiously, Xu Ying asked, “The Earth God summoner? Who is this person, and did they come to perform rituals?”

“Yes, the village’s harvest is getting worse every year. The adults are saying it’s because of natural disasters, and the Earth God no longer protects our land.”

“So, they need to perform rituals to invite the Earth God back and offer sacrifices to seek forgiveness.”

“Oh, right!”

A boy wearing a gray jacket stepped forth, named Song Dongbai, the leader among the six.

Song Dongbai pointed at the Steamed Bun Frog in Xu Ying’s travel carrier, “The summoner also said that these Steamed Bun Frogs croaking in the village are an ominous sign. After the Earth God left, these chaotic creatures came to the village, and these frogs are evil stars. Their calls are curses.”

“We thought it was nonsense. I once read in a biology textbook that fertilizers could pollute the land, and these Steamed Bun Frogs might have moved from the fields to our village because of land pollution.”

Another boy chimed in, “But why do these Steamed Bun Frogs keep croaking? Isn’t their breeding season in the summer?”

This boy had a youthful face, eyes clear, a bit scared of the adults’ rumors.

Before arriving, Xu Ying had seen a weather forecast for Crescent Oasis, and lately, due to cold air from the Atlantic Ocean, combined with the nearby mountains, they formed orographic rain, causing occasional rain in Crescent Oasis.

After guessing the reason, Xu Ying explained to the boys, “They’re croaking because it has been raining intermittently lately.”

“Steamed Bun Frogs are very sensitive to rain. They usually start croaking 15 to 30 minutes after it starts raining. Think carefully, don’t they always start croaking after the rain?”

The boys recalled carefully, and it turned out to be true.

“These little frogs really took the blame for nothing!”

“That summoner said to exorcise the demons, they had to eradicate these disaster-bringing animals. We thought it was absurd and volunteered to catch the Steamed Bun Frogs and release them into the water.”

“The Steamed Bun Frogs came to the village clearly due to fertilizer pollution, and the declining harvest is also because of fertilizer pollution. It’s all explainable by science.”

The kids scratched their heads, puzzled, “But why do the adults say it’s because the Earth God left our Crescent Oasis?”

While talking, Xu Ying and her group reached the village entrance, where they met the village chief leading a group of teachers and families searching for the kids.

The village chief saw Song Dongbai and his group, quickly shouted to the group behind, “Found them, found them, the kids aren’t lost!”

Seeing the boys safe, the parents held sand thorn branches, slippers… ready to rush up to catch their children’s ears and scold them.

“You kids are something else, skipping classes again and running away!”

“Running off with a group of six, didn’t you think to inform your families?”

“Where did you run off to play this time?”

The villagers’ gazes fell on Xu Ying, “Who are you? Did you take our kids out of school to play?”

Song Dongbai and the others quickly explained, “No, no, big sister is an animal rescuer, she came to…”

At this moment, Xu Ying spoke out loud, showing her credentials to the villagers, “I was sent by the organization to check the village’s cattle, sheep, chickens, and other livestock.”

“On the way here, I saw the kids by the water, worried about them drowning, so I brought them back.”

Xu Ying took a stethoscope from her backpack, “If there are any animals with strange illnesses in the village, you can report the situation to me. I can go check right now.”

The villagers’ expressions softened hearing Xu Ying’s explanation. This young lady came to treat the village’s animals and even helped return the wandering kids. The first impression of her was good.

Song Dongbai and the six boys all turned to Xu Ying, blinking, realizing her words differed from what she told them earlier. However, the boys already considered Xu Ying their ally, so, of course, they wanted to help their ally defend the lie.

“This veterinarian sister is amazing, knows everything from astronomy to geography. She answered all our questions!”

“Big sis even told us to study well, join the army and take exams in the future.”

The teacher, frustrated, pointed at them, “Why aren’t you all coming back to school with me! Still lingering here!”

Xu Ying smiled and patted Song Dongbai’s shoulder, “Go back to school now, kids. I look forward to working with you as colleagues in the future.”

The boys were greatly inspired, though scolded, they cheerfully followed the teacher back.

The parents were surprised, this time these mischievous kids didn’t talk back, so well-behaved.

The village chief had been observing Xu Ying, this staff member seemed very impressive, but the higher-ups had briefed him about her.

“Hello young lady, I’m Miao Kangji, the village chief of Yueya East Village. Is there anything you need my cooperation with?”

The village chief was about fifty years old, not tall but sturdy, an honest man who looked like he worked the fields.

He wore a faded blue cap, the brim slouching over his gray sideburns, his coarse clothes with frayed cuffs washed clean, each button meticulously fastened.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep