Chapter 78

Chapter 78

At the crossroads, donkey carts, ox carts, and handcarts came and went in an endless stream.

The still somewhat damp ground was rutted with deep wheel tracks, mixed with footprints, turning it into a muddy mess.

This three-way junction led to Qinghe Town in one direction, Shilin Town in another, and Tongjiang Town in the third. Since the autumn harvest, this main road had been bustling daily, especially with peasants pushing handcarts or carrying grain sacks. Each group numbered one or two hundred people, with men shouldering the loads and women carrying tools. The sheer scale of their procession was such that not only would wandering refugees steer clear, but even small groups of a few dozen villagers would give them a wide berth.

Today was no different, with people coming and going, creating a lively scene.

Old Man Zhao and his daughter had been squatting in the woods by the crossroads for nearly half a day. They had even seen Li Laiyin and his group pass by on their way to town—a bunch of old folks trailing slowly at the tail end of the villagers, their faces flushed and panting heavily, their hands trembling as they pushed the carts, yet stubbornly refusing to fall behind the main group.

"We're almost there, everyone, hang in there a bit longer," Li Laiyin, leading the group, encouraged while cursing. "Damn it, this wretched road is no place for humans! It's exhausting! When we get back, we must have the villagers prepare two good feasts for us. We've suffered greatly this time!"

Old lady Zhou gritted her teeth, mustering all her strength to push the cart wheel out of a pothole. "Make it three feasts! I could eat one all by myself!"

"Dream on," someone retorted, making everyone laugh. But the laughter only made them feel more exhausted, so they quickly stifled it, summoning their strength to press on.

The first half of the journey had been manageable, but the second half was tough. It had rained here last night, making the narrow path muddy and slippery. To protect the grain, they had stumbled and fallen countless times along the way. Fortunately, the King of Hell hadn't taken a fancy to them. Despite their old bones and creaky joints, they had escaped unscathed from all those falls—nothing but a bit of pain, no real harm done.

Of course, they weren't hoping for anything to happen anyway.

Old Man Zhao listened to their grumbling complaints as he watched them disappear into the distance. He had spent the entire morning observing the comings and goings of the crowd. When squatting grew tiring, he and Xiaobao would retreat to the divine realm to lie down for a while. They had a warm meal in between before returning to continue their watch.

He hadn't gone to Tongjiang Town. He wasn't foolish—keeping watch didn't require being right under someone's nose. Besides, this trip was just to try their luck. With Xiaobao around, spending the night outdoors was no big deal. As long as they found a hidden, safe spot to conceal themselves and then slipped into the divine realm, well, it wasn't much different from being at home.

He simply wanted to test his theory. This road was close to Tongjiang Town. If the officials were transporting grain out of the city, they would definitely take this route.

If they took this route, it would confirm his guess: there must be a grain storage depot near Tongjiang Town.

Naturally, he and his daughter wouldn't dare to rob the grain—ha, they valued their lives too much. But besides robbery, there were other methods. After all, they had a Little Deity at home, and a Little Deity could work divine wonders.

Swatting mosquitoes and scratching their legs, half a day passed in a flash.

When they came, they carried sacks and pushed carts; when they returned, their hands were empty. Crouching in the dense thicket, Old Man Zhao watched the passing farmers, listening to their sighs and complaints about how the officials this year were even greedier than before, how the practice of "kicking the hu" had become more brazen, how the losses this year were greater than last, and how they would have to tighten their belts again to get by.

"Are you going to town to exchange grain?" one old man asked his companion. "I asked the shop assistant at the grain store. There isn't much stored grain this year. If you want to exchange, you'd better hurry. If you're late, you might not be able to. Us farming families don't deserve to eat polished rice. We still have to exchange it for stored grain or coarse rice. With over a dozen mouths to feed at home, we can't afford such expensive stuff."

"How could they run out? Those grain merchants lack everything except stored grain. That's just scare talk to hurry us into exchanging. Do you really believe it?" another old man snorted, clearly aware of the merchants' tricks. "Take merchants' words with a grain of salt. Don't take them to heart. Which grain merchant's warehouse isn't piled high with stored grain? Besides us peasants, just ask the common folks making a living in town—do they buy new rice or stored grain and coarse rice? They'd rather go hungry for a day than eat the bottom-of-the-barrel stuff! Why do you think the shop assistant didn't tell you to bring new grain to sell, but to exchange new for old? It's because they have too much stockpiled. Now, while we have new grain in hand, they want to exchange it quickly, lest we come to sell new grain and their old stock remains unsold, rotting in their warehouses!"

Seeing that no one believed him, he pursed his lips. "Don't look at me like that. Let me put it this way: if you delay for a year or two, and the stored grain in the warehouses gets damp and moldy, then it truly won't be worth a single coin."

As everyone suddenly understood, he continued with a cold snort. "If you don't believe me, just try it. Wait two months, then take your grain to town to exchange. I guarantee they'll exchange as much as you have. No stock? Ha! Trying to fool ghosts!"

Year after year, delay upon delay. He dared to swear on his chest that the stored grain they exchanged for their new grain wasn't from last year, but from the year before, or even the year before that. Merchants are cunning; how could they possibly run a losing business? Trading one *dou* of new grain for three, or even five *dou* of stored grain—you might think you're getting a good deal, but the merchant isn't losing a bit.

Crouching in the dense thicket and feeding mosquitoes, Old Man Zhao nodded repeatedly. This brother was a sensible man.

How could businesspeople possibly run a losing venture? His family went to town every year to exchange for stored grain and coarse rice. As farmers, how could they not tell how long grain had been stored? A sniff was enough to know. But even though they understood in their hearts, they still had to exchange. Polished rice was truly unaffordable; they weren't fated for it. With over a dozen mouths to feed at home, they could only eat stored grain, coarse rice, and bean meals. And even such staples weren't available for every meal; they had to be mixed with wild vegetables. During times of hunger, even stored grain was a precious thing.

That group gradually moved away.

"Dad, there are so many mosquitoes here," Zhao Xiaobao said, slapping her left hand with her right, leaving a bloody smear on the back of her right hand. She flicked away the mosquito corpse and casually grabbed some wild grass to rub the bitten spot.

"Sorry to make you suffer, Xiaobao. Let's endure it a bit longer. By Xu hour... at the latest by Xu hour, if no grain transport convoy passes by, we'll go sleep in the wooden house." Old Man Zhao felt heartache for her. He skillfully removed the stopper from the green ointment, stuck his thumb inside, scraped around to gather the last bit of residue, and then gently smeared it on his daughter's plump little hands, rubbing it over the mosquito bites. "We'll only stay for three days. If we don't spot anyone after three days, Dad will take you to Qinghe Town to buy more green ointment, and also get you green salt and a toothbrush. After that, we'll go home."

Zhao Xiaobao nodded obediently. Before leaving home, her parents had explained clearly what this trip was for, so she asked sensibly, "Dad, then aren't we going to get our family's grain back?"

"If we're lucky, we will. If not, then forget it," Old Man Zhao patted her head.

This was what he had promised his wife: to go out and try their luck. If luck was on their side, they would proceed with utmost caution. With Xiaobao around, even though they couldn't see the outside clearly from within the divine realm, they could hide in a concealed spot where they could enter the divine realm at any time. As long as they were careful, there wouldn't be too much danger. If things got really bad, they could just hide. Hide for ten days or half a month—he didn't believe anyone would guard the spot waiting for them indefinitely.

Even if someone did guard it, he wasn't afraid. He and his daughter were disguised—a big beggar with a little beggar, looking more like "grandfather and grandchild" from the outside. The rumor of two living people "vanishing on the spot" could be spun into something mysterious; he might even get labeled as an immortal or an old monster.

Even if word spread, people would think the person telling the tale had gone mad.

Anyway, with this kind of thing, it could be truly dangerous or truly safe—it all depended on how they handled it.

Old Man Zhao had a very good mindset, adhering to the principle of "taking" back what they could if possible, and accepting fate if they couldn't. He never considered taking risks. As for his wife's mention of robbing grain, ha, Old Man Zhao thought to himself, why should he go rob? It's too dangerous. He had no desire to fight officials. Although he disliked officials and had no good opinion of the court, having been a commoner all his life, he felt more awe toward petty officials and clerks than toward high-ranking ones.

Avoid if possible; only face it if unavoidable.

They saw Li Laiyin and his group again just before sunset. They had passed the crossroads at Si hour, and by the time they left Tongjiang Town, it was nearly evening. They had spent most of the day in town; it seemed they would have to travel back to the village at night.

Judging by their relaxed expressions, everything must have gone smoothly.

Old Man Zhao and his daughter crouched in the dense thicket, nibbling on flatbread. Li Laiyin and the others didn't take the mountain path back to the village; instead, they followed the Village Head and the others on a detour. With many people, even traveling at night was safer. Since they hadn't encountered any refugee robbers on the way here, it was unlikely anything would happen on the return trip.

"Old Lady Chun Ya and the others are having such a hard time," Zhao Xiaobao said, sitting cross-legged on the cool grass, taking small bites of her meat bun. "I wonder if they have enough flatbread to eat."

Although she didn't like the biased Old Lady Zhou, she still cared about whether they were hungry. Her mother had said that this time, Old Lady Zhou and the others were transporting grain for the entire village, including their family.

"This trip is indeed hard on them," Old Man Zhao said, sitting side by side with his daughter. His old eyes peered unblinkingly through the gaps in the thicket, fixed on the main road, like an old wolf hiding in the shadows, waiting for the right moment to strike. "I reckon they have enough. Three days' worth of dry rations should last them until tomorrow."

"Oh, okay," Zhao Xiaobao nodded. "That's good."

As they spoke, the sun hanging on the horizon gradually sank below it, and the sky began to darken. The mountain breeze grew noticeably cooler.

To avoid mosquitoes, Zhao Xiaobao was dressed warmly, so she didn't feel cold at all. However, crouching in the grass inevitably meant insects and ants crawling on her. Children are easily distracted. With wide eyes, she watched an ant crawl up her pant leg to her knee, showing signs of continuing upward. Zhao Xiaobao wasn't afraid. She remained motionless, watching until the ant reached her chest. Then she extended her chubby finger, slightly curled it, and gave a gentle flick—the ant instantly vanished.

By then, the sky had completely darkened, taking on a deep indigo hue.

On the road, people holding torches hurried past from time to time.

Finally, when the sky was pitch black and the bright moonlight illuminated the land, crisp chirping sounds emerged from the woods. A dazzling cluster of torchlight appeared in the distance, accompanied by the faint crunching sound of cart wheels rolling over gravel on the road, along with the unrestrained chatter of that group. This snapped Zhao Xiaobao out of her drowsy, nodding state. She jolted, instinctively grabbing her father's clothes.

Old Man Zhao tightened his hold on his daughter in his arms and let out a soft hiss: "Shh."

Zhao Xiaobao immediately stiffened her small body. Her little head held great cleverness; she knew the people her father was waiting for had arrived.

"After these few batches are transported, and we guard for another seven or eight days, this assignment will be pretty much done."

"How many villages haven't come yet?"

"The clerk in charge of money and grain said there are about twenty or so left. They're all in quite remote locations, always the last batch every year. This year is no different," one person said. "Tongjiang Town is almost done. Only Qinghe Town and Shilin Town remain. The most remote villages belong to Shilin Town. Really, I don't know what the higher-ups were thinking. Clearly, Shilin Town is closer to that side, yet they assigned it to Tongjiang Town, forcing us to stay a few more days."

"Isn't it good for you to get a few more kicks in?" another person laughed. "Among us brothers, you've practiced that footwork the best. With one kick from you, even the tip of the *hu* that rain from the sky couldn't reach gets showered with grain! 'Kicking the *hu* to shower the tip'—shower? More like drowning! The tip gets completely submerged!"

Over a dozen officials in government uniforms walked past the father and daughter, laughing heartily. Through the gaps in the dense thicket, only two pairs of gleaming eyes, one large and one small, were visible.

A cart wheel rolled over a small piece of gravel. The stone shot up and bounced off the dense thicket where the father and daughter were hiding.

"What was that sound?" an official walking at the very back suddenly turned his head to look.

Old Man Zhao's body stiffened instantly, and he instinctively held his breath.

"Damn it, you scared the hell out of me!" The official walking in front of him was nearly startled into jumping by the sudden noise. Ignoring the other's cursing, the man swiftly drew his saber, snatched a torch from a companion, and cautiously approached step by step toward where Old Man Zhao and his daughter were hiding.

"Qi Dalang, you're being too cautious. It was just a stone kicked up by the wheel. Is this really necessary?" The ignored official was somewhat displeased, unable to stand his dawdling nature. "Hurry up! After this transport run, we go back to change shifts. Old Ninth and the others are waiting to transport the next batch. We also have duty tomorrow, damn it! Are you listening or not?!"

The man called Qi Dalang swung his saber at the dense thicket, completely ignoring the other's endless nagging. Transporting grain was no trivial matter! He might be inferior to others in some aspects, but he had strong intuition since childhood. This innate ability had helped him avoid danger time and again. Ever since entering this area, he had felt something watching them.

When they reached this dense grove, the feeling grew particularly strong, making his heart beat faster.

A sharp glint flashed in his eyes. The sharp blade sliced through the dense thicket at waist height. Leaves and stems rustled to the ground. The patch of grass that had been flattened from being sat on all day was now completely covered by the fallen foliage.

Behind the thicket that had made the sound, there was no one.