Chapter 67: Chapter 68: Finally Arrived
Li Xiaohua nudged Liu Liu, who was behind her, with her foot. "Should we go over and help Mom?"
"No need," Liu Liu said without looking up. "Momâs no fool like the youngest son. That pair wonât be able to take advantage of her."
"What if they get physical?"
Liu Liu gestured with her chin toward the Gu Family Brothers nearby. "Take a look at the way theyâre watching. What do you think?"
Li Xiaohua, "..."
"Third Sister-in-law, if youâve really got nothing better to do, why donât you go comfort Eldest Sister-in-law? Sheâs been sitting there in a daze for a whole day now." Liu Liu glanced worriedly at Xie Ruyi. âEven though I complain about my own kids, Iâd be worried sick too if they actually went missing.â
Li Xiaohua, "..." âI donât dare. Right now, Eldest Sister-in-lawâs eyes are swollen like blisters. One wrong word and theyâll burst, and the tears will just pour out. I donât want to get a dirty look from Eldest Brother.â
The Lan mother and daughter-in-law argued at length but couldnât get a single thing out of Li Cuicui. Filled with resentment, they could only glare at her before turning around and storming back.
"Was that really necessary?" Gu Dashishi said once the women had left. "If the youngest comes back, the Lan Family will just make trouble for him again."
Li Cuicui shot him a look. "They say once the wound heals, the pain is forgotten. Donât you forget how recently you got those injuries. Are you taking the youngestâs side already?"
"Iâm not taking his side. But no matter what, heâs still our son. We have to leave him a way out."
"If he comes back and still canât break it off with that Lan girl, then as far as Iâm concerned, we can disown him." Li Cuicui stuffed all the cleaned roots into a sack, shot Gu Dashishi a look, then picked it up and walked over to Gu Yuanjin.
âThat damned old hag, whoâs she guarding it from?â Gu Dashishi muttered under his breath, but he didnât dare say anything more. After all, his survival in the coming days depended on Li Cuicui.
* * *
"Look! Ahead! Thatâs the peak we climbed before. I canât believe we actually made it out of there," Jin Qianqian said, her face alight with excitement as she brushed the beggar-ticks off her clothes.
Even though theyâd grown accustomed to walking long distances, mountain trails were a completely different beast from the main roads.
"Letâs fill up our water containers first," Jin Qianqian said, producing a large tub of water. It was all from the small lake theyâd found, and they had already filled all the plastic barrels and bottles they had emptied before.
This way, even if they ran into some unforeseen trouble, they could hold out for a while longer.
The two worked in sync, filling all the bamboo canteens they carried before quickening their pace toward the prominent mountain in the distance.
Carefully avoiding one group of refugees after another, all searching for water, the pair finally encountered some of their companions from Bainiao.
Ancient Wen Heng walked over and patted Gu Mingqiuâs shoulder. "Mingqiu, what brings you all the way out here today?"
"Brother Yuanyu? What are you and Sister-in-law doing here?" Gu Mingqiu stared at Gu Yuan Yu, rubbing his eyes in disbelief.
Aside from his tattered clothes, his healthy complexion and moist lips made him look more like he was returning from a mountain excursion than fleeing a disaster.
"We took a long detour and barely managed to get out of the city. By the way, donât we usually stay near our encampment? What are you all doing way out here?"
Gu Mingqiu replied, "We canât get into the city now, and we havenât found a new water source. All we can do is dig for roots around here to quench our thirst. At least it keeps us alive."
At this, Gu Mingqiu sized up the couple. "Since you two managed to get away, why come back? You know staying out here is a death sentence."
Seeing everyoneâs curious stares, Ancient Wen Hengâs expression turned somber. "We got pushed into the city with the crowd. But my father and mother are still out here. How could I just abandon them?
So, we had to navigate by landmarks, cross several mountains, and take a lot of detours just to find our way back."
Gu Mingqiu gave him a thumbs-up, full of admiration. "Brother Yuanyu, youâre a truly devoted son. A lot of people who left days ago never came back. They probably found a better way out for themselves."
Even the people with Gu Mingqiu began to look at the young couple differently. Gu Yuan Yu and his wife were truly good and filial people.
Having met up with acquaintances, Ancient Wen Heng and Jin Qianqian relaxed a little. Now, as long as they stayed with this group, others with ill intentions would have to keep their distance.
"By the way, Seventh of the Gu family," Liu Heizi began, his eyes repeatedly scanning the bamboo canteens at their waists, "you were in the mountains for so long. Did you happen to find any water?"
Ancient Wen Heng pulled Jin Qianqian to stand between him and Mingqiu. "We did find a source of water," he said. "Itâs just a bit far. Itâll depend on what everyone wants to do."
"Really? How far?" Many people cried out. "As long as itâs reachable by foot, no distance is too far for us!" âCould it be any farther than the several provinces theyâd already crossed?â
Hearing news of water, everyone forgot about searching for roots and wild vegetables. They crowded around Ancient Wen Heng, bombarding him with one question after another.
"Why donât we all head back first and see what the village chief and the others have to say?" Gu Mingqiu suggested, seeing that no oneâs heart was in their work anymore and that Ancient Wen Heng was struggling to field all the questions.
Jin Qianqian agreed. "Yes, talking about it here is pointless. This is something the whole of Bainiao needs to discuss together."
âWe can lead them there, but they have to be willing to make the journey.â
* * *
"I suppose the ones who havenât returned yet... arenât coming back," He Cao Gen said, looking at the chiefs of the other villages. He was the one who had to broach the heavy subject.
"Those bastards are truly not human, abandoning their elders and children like that just to save their own skins. What are the old and the young supposed to do now?" The village chief of Stone Village felt his head throb just thinking about the villagers who had been pestering him with questions for days.
"Tell me about it. Iâve been driven half-crazy these past few days," the chief from Tianhe Village complained. "Then there are the ones who were injured earlier. With the able-bodied people gone, there are fewer hands to dig for roots and vegetables. Theyâre just hanging on by a thread, and we can only spare a little from our own rations to keep them alive."
"..."
"..."
They went back and forth, complaining for what felt like an eternity, but in the end, they could only stare helplessly at the tightly shut city gates and let out a deep sigh.
"Have any of you noticed people snooping around our area these past few days? I donât think Iâve seen them today, though. Do you know what they were up to?" Village Chief Shi suddenly recalled his observations and wanted to see if the others had noticed too.
"Village Chief Shi, youâre a bit late to the party. We all have a good idea of whatâs going on." Seeing Village Chief Shiâs inquisitive look, Village Chief Li grinned mysteriously. "Want to know?"
Village Chief Shi, "...?" âIf I didnât want to know, would I have brought it up?â