Upon seeing David and his son attempting to flee, the enraged villagers immediately surrounded them. David’s face turned deathly pale at the sight. Gritting his teeth, he exclaimed, “What do you think you’re doing? I am the venerable mayor of Jefferson Village. How dare you barge into my home? Are you seeking death?”
At that moment, Chris Shelby stepped forward from the crowd. With a cold stare, he addressed David: “David, you treat human lives like grass! So many miners have died because of you, and yet you still think to escape? Everyone, let’s go! We must not let David and his son get away!”
“Charge!”
“Charge!”
“Charge!”
Hearing Chris Shelby’s words, all the villagers of Jefferson Village were ignited with fury and rushed toward David and his son. Seeing the mob, David and his son turned ashen.
David urgently shouted, “Son, get in the car!” After saying this, the two hurriedly got into the vehicle.
Bang!
Bang!
Bang!
The angry villagers, wielding hoes and sickles, relentlessly smashed the car. David roared at Evan, “Drive the car!”
Evan, looking at the dense crowd ahead, hesitated and said, “Dad, how can I drive through so many people?”
David snapped, “You fool, just drive through them!”
At this point, David was beyond caring.
With a thunderous roar, Evan floored the accelerator, ready to plow through the crowd. Seeing this, Chris Shelby immediately rushed forward.
No one saw Chris Shelby’s exact movements, but a loud crash was heard.
Bang!
Then, the car’s windows shattered, and Chris Shelby was seen dragging David and his son out of the vehicle. Simultaneously, the luggage the two were carrying fell to the ground.
The suitcase burst open, scattering colorful bills all around. These bills were all money David had embezzled through the coal mine.
Seeing so much cash, the villagers of Jefferson Village were stunned. There must have been over a million dollars. Such an amount was unimaginable to the villagers of Jefferson Village.
After recovering from their initial shock, the angry villagers demanded, “David, where did you get all this money?”
“It’s obvious, he embezzled it!” one shouted.
“Beat this scoundrel to death! He dared to embezzle so much money from our Jefferson Village!”
“Kill him! Kill him!”
The villagers’ rage was fully unleashed. They swarmed David and his son, beating them mercilessly.
“Help! Help!” the pair cried out, but no one heeded their pleas.
Normally, the villagers might have feared David. But now, their family members were trapped in the mine, their fates unknown. Consumed by anger, they had lost all reason and feared nothing.
Seeing David and his son subdued, Chris Shelby returned to the coal mine. The mine had attracted a crowd, and to prevent accidents, Chris Shelby had Harold Jefferson organize a few people to keep others from entering the mine. Several villagers of Jefferson Village wanted to go in to rescue those trapped, but the mine had completely collapsed, and their attempts failed repeatedly.
Seeing no way to rescue the trapped miners, the villagers of Jefferson Village were frantic. Harold Jefferson looked at Chris Shelby anxiously and asked, “Mr. Shelby, what should we do now? Those people are trapped inside; we need to rescue them quickly!”
Chris Shelby replied with a grave expression, “Although those trapped miners should be safe for now, there isn’t much air inside. If we can’t rescue them soon, the consequences will be unthinkable!”
“What should we do?” Harold Jefferson asked with a somber face, “I’ve already called the police, but it will take at least an hour for them to arrive. Mr. Shelby, do you have any other way to save these miners?”
Over the time they had spent together, Harold Jefferson knew that Chris Shelby was a patriot who cared deeply for his people. With so many miners trapped inside, their lives hanging by a thread, Chris Shelby would certainly not stand by idly.
Squinting his eyes, Chris Shelby asked, “Are there any other entrances to the mine around here?”
Harold Jefferson shook his head and said, “I don’t know! But this mine was exploited before, and the entire mountain has almost been hollowed out.”
The coal mine in Jefferson Village had been mined before but was shut down by Peter Jefferson due to pollution. After David became the mayor of Jefferson Village, he had reopened it. Indeed, the entire mountain had been hollowed out, which likely led to this disaster.
Chris Shelby told Harold Jefferson, “Harold, arrange for some people to help me check if there are any other entrances to the mine.”
“Yes!” Harold Jefferson did not hesitate and immediately took a few people to start the search.
At that moment, a noisy commotion arose. Chris Shelby turned around and saw David and his son, their faces bloodied, being escorted by the villagers of Jefferson Village.
“Kill David!”
“Kill David!”
“Kill David!”
…
Seeing David, the miners’ relatives were furious. They clamored to kill David. If it weren’t for other villagers holding them back, David and his son might have been killed by the angry relatives. Even so, it was not easy for David and his son. They were beaten badly, their hands bound, looking utterly disheveled, a far cry from their former arrogant demeanor as village leaders.
Chris Shelby paid no attention to David and his son. For him, dealing with David was a minor issue. What was most important was to quickly find a way into the mine to rescue the trapped miners.
Half an hour later, Chris Shelby finally found a hidden cave. The cave was originally natural but had become accessible to the mine after the mountain was hollowed out.
“I’ll go down and see what the situation is like inside,” said Chris Shelby.
Seeing Chris Shelby about to descend, Harold Jefferson quickly said, “Mr. Shelby, it’s really too dangerous in there, maybe I should come with you?”
Chris Shelby shook his head and replied, “Harold, no, I can manage alone! Besides, I don’t yet know the situation inside. It would be too dangerous to take you with me.”
Hearing this, Harold Jefferson didn’t know what to say, but he knew Chris Shelby was right. Although Harold Jefferson was also a practitioner, he was not considered significant in Chris Shelby’s eyes.
Afterward, Chris Shelby cautiously entered the cave. Just as Chris Shelby descended, Harold Jefferson gritted his teeth and jumped down after him.
“Harold, you…”
Seeing Harold Jefferson come down, Chris Shelby was surprised.
Harold Jefferson smiled and said, “Mr. Shelby, let me come down! I’m a villager of Jefferson Village, and also Peter’s disciple. With such a big incident happening in Jefferson Village, I cannot shirk my responsibilities.”
Hearing this, Chris Shelby silently nodded, refraining from saying more. Together, they headed deeper into the mine.