Chapter 716 A Strange Feeling
Clarissa did not know why he was so sarcastic.
Her request was not unreasonable and did not deserve such a response.
His sarcastic response added to her worries.
Up until now, she still had no idea who the assailants on the plane were.
Then, there was this lost-in-time village with its peculiar inhabitants, and perhaps assailants were lurking amongst them...
This horrible combination gave her no rest at all.
Thankfully, the man was a man of his words.
As he had promised, he proceeded with Clarissa to look for the mysterious Uncle Jasper.
They left without dinner to the village chief's house where Uncle Jasper was.
The village chief's house was not far, a mere twenty minutes walk.
From a distance, they could see the bright lights from the slightly bigger village chief's house.
There were people seated at tables around a campfire. A banquet was clearly in full swing.
Having spotted them approaching, someone raised his hand and greeted them, "Hey, Peter, you're here!"
Aunt Anne's husband, Peter, returned his greeting before leading Clarissa to the middle-aged man, whose skin was dark and glimmered with oil and had traces of grey in his hair.
"Hello, Uncle Jasper."
Peter greeted Uncle Jasper as he introduced Clarissa. "This is the woman whom my wife saved. She wants to go to your village to look for her friend. I'll leave this matter to you."
Uncle Jasper stared at her with a little surprise before asking,
"Oh, it's you. Is Nora your friend?"
Clarissa nodded enthusiastically.
Uncle Jasper smiled and gestured with his hand. "Don't worry. She's in good hands. Do you want to go and look for her?"
Immediately, Clarissa responded, "Yes, of course. Can you take me to meet her?"
Uncle Jasper rubbed his chin thoughtfully and nodded. "Sure. But, you have to be blindfolded if you want to come with me. You know that there is always a war somewhere. We don't want to be involved in any war. It is not easy for us to stay secluded and live peaceful lives here. So, we don't allow outsiders into our village."
He explained further, "We make an exception since both of you appear to be harmless ladies. But we still need to blindfold you. If you leak out our location, then our peaceful days are over."
Clarissa took a moment to understand his heavily accented explanation, then nodded in agreement.
"Okay, I agree with you."
Uncle Jasper laughed heartily at her reply and told her.
"In that case, you can have dinner here. I have to rush back tonight. You can come back with us after dinner."
Clarissa was puzzled and asked. "Since we are going at night, then I don't need to be blindfolded."
"No, you must."
Uncle Jasper dismissed her objection with a wave and explained, "I have an oxen cart here with me. You can ride in the oxen cart and don't need to walk. We'll arrive in an hour or two. It's very convenient."
Clarissa was satisfied with his answer and nodded.
It was clear that she would not be going back to Aunt Anne's house. She sat down at the side, took the bowl and the cutlery and had dinner.
Peter spoke with Uncle Jasper for a while then left.
Before he left, Clarissa managed to have a few words with him.
She thanked him profusely and had him convey her gratitude to Aunt Anne.
Perhaps she had been overly suspicious. Aunt Anne was the one who rescued her and had indeed treated her well these two days.
The plan was for her to go with Uncle Jasper after dinner, so she would not be going back to Aunt Anne's house.
Clarissa was embarrassed that she could not thank Aunt Anne in person.
However, Peter gave her a blank look.
He was unimpressed by her expression of thanks. Instead, he replied to her in an ironic voice.
"Miss Maxi, you don't have to thank me. As long as you don't regret it, it's okay. Anyway, it's not easy for us to live here. We hope that you will be safe and well."
Clarissa was shocked and had no idea what he was talking about.
He waved goodbye and left without giving her a chance to clarify.
After he left, Uncle Jasper called her over and consoled her.
"Missy, you don't need to be so courteous. We are all friends here and help each other whenever we can. When you are here longer, you will understand."
Clarissa smiled as she thought to herself that they would not stay here for long.
Nora was injured now. As soon as she recovered, they would find a way to leave.
The difficulties were there was no electricity and no means of communication. As for transport, even the well-respected Uncle Jasper had only an oxen cart.
These difficulties gave Clarissa a headache.
However, now was not the time to tackle these difficulties.
The priority now was to meet up with Nora.
From then on, they would decide as they went along.
Clarissa finished her meal shortly.
Uncle Jasper was eating, drinking and chatting merrily with those at his table.
There was no way that Clarissa could rush him, so she waited quietly.
It was about eight o'clock before he smiled and bade goodbye to the people at his table.
"Well, I'm leaving. You don't have to see me off. We'll meet again."
As he spoke, he waved his hand drunkenly.
A young man in the group put on a flattering smile as he supported Uncle Jasper and said, "Uncle Jasper, be careful. I'll help you out."
Uncle Jasper nodded as the rest of the people staggered away.
Clarissa followed them to the oxen cart. The much-talked-about oxen cart was a simple carriage pulled by a solitary ox.
It was something out of the history books.
The young man helped Uncle Jasper inside the carriage and instructed Clarissa, "You can sit in the carriage. Help me keep an eye on Uncle Jasper. He's drunk. I'll be driving the cart in front."
Clarissa nodded and thanked him out of courtesy. Then, she clambered inside the carriage.
The carriage was spacious, with a row of seats on each side.
Uncle Jasper had too much to drink and was in a drunken sleep on the left side.
Clarissa sat down on the right, and the oxen cart started to move.
The oxen ambled along the bumpy mountain road. The creaking from the wheels reminded those who could hear how slow it was.
It was both a novelty and an unpleasant experience for Clarissa in her first oxen cart ride.
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