Chapter 169

Chapter 169

What "Vice Minister"?

Vice Minister? A look of bewilderment flashed across Old Man Zhao's face. As an old farmer, the most impressive person he'd ever met was Jin Yu's aunt, the general's wife—a title that sounded incredibly impressive. He had met her too, and oh, her demeanor plainly showed she was nothing like them.

Then there was Jin Yu's grandfather, the Duke of Chen, even more formidable than the general's wife in title.

After that came Prefect He, and the Yu family of Tongjiang Town, the general's wife's own family—bigwigs recorded in the county records, the pride of Tongjiang Town's folk. Every father would tell his son, "Our town produced a high official too; study hard and you can make something of yourself. Look, the Yu family produced one."

But these were celestial beings known only by name, not seen in person—high-ranking officials and nobles far beyond their reach, even if they stood on tiptoes and piled on each other's shoulders.

Zhu Laicai had caught only half an earful, so he could only parrot a few words. He wasn't very clear on specifics. Common folk's sources of information about bigwigs were usually fragments overheard from others. How the bigwig's family got wiped out, who exactly it was—he couldn't say clearly, nor even understand. Whether "Vice Minister" was a surname, given name, or official title—it was too far removed from them. The title didn't even ring as loud as a county magistrate, a registrar, or the yamen runners of the six boards.

Words change as they get passed around. What reached the ears of common folk was only that something big happened in the capital, sparking chaos that spread throughout the realm.

Now, with natural and man-made disasters ongoing, countless refugees were fleeing. Even without knowing what happened, seeing everyone else flee, the human instinct to seek advantage and avoid harm kicked in. They followed suit, dragging along their families, swept up by the chaotic times and fleeing in all directions.

After leaving Tongjiang Town, Old Man Zhao and his group first took the desolate road through Xinping County, then crossed the vast Wuling Mountains, living almost in seclusion with no contact with the outside world. Naturally, they had no way of knowing what new strange events had occurred in the world or what the current state of affairs was.

Under natural disasters, northerners fled south. Under man-made calamities, southerners fled outward.

They had thought that no matter the turmoil, the capital should be stable. If they could just dodge the disasters and find a place to settle down, life would continue as before. But now, learning that even the capital was in chaos and a high official's family had been exterminated—extermination, not beheading—it was shocking.

Who would dare commit such treasonous acts right under the emperor's nose? Trampling the emperor's face into the dirt?

What about the emperor? Had the culprits been caught? Had the capital been pacified?

For a moment, Old Man Zhao felt a deep, bewildered feeling that there was nowhere to flee. The drought had spread so far that people were homeless, with no word of the court opening granaries for relief. Instead, news kept pouring in about bandits running rampant in the mountains, rebellions rising here, and rogue thieves causing havoc there.

The court is doomed.

His mind was filled with this thought. Especially since the people of Qingzhou Prefecture had been abandoned by the court for so long, this conviction only grew stronger, even unshakable.

This dynasty is truly finished.

A range of emotions flickered across Old Man Zhao's face. A hint of sadness mixed with his panic. He looked at the humble pig butcher before him—just another ordinary commoner trying to protect his family in this cruel world. What difference was there between them?

That the butcher had gotten out of that chaos without abandoning his paralyzed mother and his three daughters, not one missing—Old Man Zhao even felt a hint of admiration.

Back when the prefectural city was raided by rascals at night, Jin Yu's entire family was massacred. Da Gen and the others broke out of the city carrying Little Bao. That scene was just as the butcher had described: rivers of blood, people packed tight, trampling each other. Countless little children were crushed to death in their parents' arms. Every time Da Gen talked about that day, even as big and strong a man as he was, he would tremble all over, his lips trembling uncontrollably.

Without some skill and a bit of luck, you really couldn't get out or escape.

"I'll say this plainly first: if you want to travel with us, you have to follow our lead. Think it over. If you can do it, I'll take the money. Before we reach Fengchuan Prefecture, I can guarantee that as long as you don't cause trouble, follow instructions, and don't hold us back, no one will dare rob you on the road." Old Man Zhao patted his shoulder. "And of course, we won't either. All of us here are honest farming families. We wouldn't do anything as immoral as stealing from people. You can rest assured on that."

Without the slightest hesitation, Zhu Laicai pressed both the cured meat and the silver into his hands, saying urgently, "Brother, hearing that, I'm satisfied. My wife and kids aren't troublemakers. Our whole family is a bunch of honest folk. If anything comes up on the road, just give the word. I won't say a word otherwise."

That was his second "I won't say a word otherwise." Old Man Zhao smiled. This time he didn't refuse. He took the meat and silver, called over Man Cang, and handed Zhu Laicai over to him.

He carried the cured meat to where the village elders were, explained the matter, and handed over one piece of the meat and ten taels of silver, saying, "This goes to the communal fund. Put the meat with the two sacks of grain; stash the silver wherever you see fit. I'm not managing it."

Zhu Laicai was joining their group, not his household specifically. This money belonged to the village, same as the meat. He wasn't going to pocket it.

"Alright." Zhao Shanao didn't argue. Their communal fund now had grain, clothes, and now both meat and silver. They were all delighted and felt more secure.

The old men took turns feeling the small silver ingot. They had seen and spent bits of silver before, even owned some themselves. But a proper little ingot like this—in all their years, they could count on one hand the times they'd seen one, let alone touched it themselves. This was a first for all of them.

"Da Gen, can we trust him?" Li Laiyin glanced at the Zhu family, who were cheerfully pushing their cart over. That burly man didn't look like an ordinary farmer. He was a bit worried.

"What's there to fear? We've got a lot of people. If he causes trouble, we'll boot him out. The silver and meat are ours now." Old Man Zhao waved his hand. The butcher didn't seem stupid. And even if he was stupid enough to try something, he didn't believe a butcher knife could beat his big meat cleaver.

"Da Gen's right. The silver and cured meat are ours. Haha, what's in hand is real. We've got numbers; he can't cause any trouble." Zhou Fugui broke in with a grin, still handling the silver ingot, reluctant to let it go—it was truly delightful.

Old Man Zhao wasn't worried about them losing the ingot either. If not for his miraculous field, he wouldn't claim to be better at hiding money than them. Country folk had few ways to make money; they guarded every copper closely. Hiding money was a natural talent for them, men and women alike.

Learning that their group would be adding another large family, and that the newcomer was generous enough to offer a whole piece of cured meat and ten taels of silver, the folks from Wanxia Village were grinning from ear to ear. They warmly welcomed the Zhu family.

When the Shi brothers heard about the ten taels, their eyes nearly popped out. They had only given a few stalks of sugarcane back then! Heavens, thank heaven, thank earth, thank the ancestors—only by comparison did they realize what a huge bargain they'd gotten. Compared to the Zhu family, their few sugarcane stalks were practically a joke. Aiyo, they didn't even have the face to go near; their faces were burning.

"Big Brother!" Shi Erlang wanted to share his opinion on Zhu Laicai's stupid generosity.

He'd barely opened his mouth when Shi Dalang, who could read his brother like a book, shot him a sharp glare. "Shut up."

"But..."

"Got a bargain, don't be smug!"

Fine. Shi Erlang scratched his foot, craning his neck to watch the commotion. Money got them good treatment. Look how everyone's fawning over them! Tsk, they sure didn't get this treatment back then.

The newly arrived plump girls shyly asked if there were any extra straw coats to spare; they were willing to pay. The village women were already admiring their healthy bodies, muttering to each other about what lucky girls, three of them—how did the Zhu family raise their children? They looked so promising. Hearing this, Old Lady Wu stepped forward, smiling: "Straw coats? We've got them! We sure do! How many do you girls need? We can sell them!" She shouted the word "sell" extra loudly.

As they traveled, they'd been collecting rice straw. Even if they didn't have ready-made straw coats, they could still weave them!

Only a fool wouldn't make money. The Zhu girls were just as generous as their father, asking to buy straw coats. Hehe, Old Lady Wu thought: couldn't make money back in the village, but now fleeing famine, hey, someone wants to buy their wares! What a joy!

"There are seven of us in the family. We need seven straw coats." Zhu Erhua, the eldest sister, stepped forward to speak. Used to handling business at home, she carried herself with poise and seemed very straightforward. "Is one tael of silver enough?" She figured they would need the group's backing later, so she priced it high, hoping the aunties would be pleased and find them endearing, and then be kinder to them in return for smoother relations.

She was shrewd—first getting on good terms with the older women, then the aunties and sisters-in-law. Hey, in her experience, it was Grandma and Mom who ruled the roost. If she won them over first, even if the men had any complaints about her family, someone would speak up for them in the end.

"One tael of silver? Aiyo, deal! One tael it is!" Old Lady Wu was stunned at first, but once she realized it was one tael, she was so thrilled she slapped her thigh. Heavens, what a foolish girl—buying a straw coat for one tael of silver! Quick, seal the deal before her mother comes to her senses.

Old Lady Zhou alongside was also delighted. Other young wives' mouths dropped open. They nearly started squabbling over the deal.

Finally, the village elders stepped in and ruled that the earnings would go to the communal fund. That settled things.

Even if the silver wasn't for their own pockets, it wasn't going to another family either. They were all hard workers—some cut the rice stalks, others wove, helping each other, chatting, quarreling, and having a lively time. Even walking didn't feel so tiring.

They barely rested in the afternoon, pressing on under the sun. At last, just before sunset, they entered the borders of Hebo County.

Shi Dalang wasn't very familiar with this road. In previous years, when he went to Fengchuan Prefecture, he took a different route after leaving Wuling Mountain. This was actually a waterway, not really a proper official road. But Hebo County was well-connected and had money, so they had built this road along the river.

The riverbed was dry—even a horse could run on it. As they walked, they saw many refugees carrying bundles or baskets, also taking the river path.

With few people and few belongings, the best way to avoid bandits was to steer clear of them. The river path was wide, with no cover, offering excellent visibility. If someone tried to block their way up ahead, they could turn and flee in time.

As they walked, sudden exclamations rang out from ahead.

"What are they doing in the river?"

"Heavens! That's water! Real water! Hebo County has water! They're slogging through mud in the river!"

"Look, all of you, look! There's water in the river ahead! Not dried up! Heavens, so many people are wading in the river!"

At these words, the refugees who had been trudging along with their heads down all looked up at once, crowding forward.

Ahead on the riverbank, a dense crowd of people stood. The river itself was even livelier—countless figures, like fish gasping for water, were thrashing wildly in the mud.

On the endless dry riverbed, there was actually mud!!

There is water! There is really water in the river!

No one knew who laughed first, and no one knew who cried. Howls and roars filled the air. Some people were so overcome with emotion that they banged a water dipper against their forehead. Others trembled violently, staggering as if they might collapse at any moment. All around, people took a few steps forward, dragging their exhausted, trembling legs, craned their necks to look again and again in that direction, and when they were certain it wasn't a hallucination from fatigue, they flailed their arms and legs wildly with joy and yelled where they stood: "There's water in the river ahead! It hasn't dried up! Hebo County has water! We didn't come to the wrong place!"

"We didn't come to the wrong place, we didn't come to the wrong place! Hahaha, it was worth it! We didn't come to the wrong place!"

Voices choked with tears of joy came from all directions. Their weary bodies seemed to be infused with an invisible force. They pushed their carts and carried their baskets, racing forward. Adults and children, old men and women—all their faces were filled with joy and a feeling that everything had finally fallen into place. Yes, they were right to head to Hebo County, to Fengchuan Prefecture. This place truly hadn't completely dried up. There was water here!

"Da Gen!" Zhao Shanao squinted. With his poor eyesight, he could only vaguely make out the riverbank ahead crowded with people, both in the river and on the shore, as densely packed as a swarm of ants.

"That's right, there's water." Old Man Zhao took a deep breath and said with conviction.

"Ahahahaha!" Zhao Shanao was stunned for a moment, then began dancing and laughing hysterically, completely losing himself. He ran back and forth to spread the news, "Da Gen says there's water! Da Gen says there's water ahead! Da Gen doesn't lie! We didn't come to the wrong place! We didn't go the wrong way! Ahaha!"

"All the hardship of this journey wasn't in vain! We truly found a place with water! We didn't waste our efforts! We can survive!"

"Boom——"

No one's words carried more weight than Old Man Zhao's. The villagers of Wanxia Village had been walking dizzily, jolted awake by the commotion of people laughing and crying. They thought those people were mad. But as soon as they heard 'Da Gen says there's water ahead,' they finally reacted. Then came bursts of maniacal laughter. Hahahaha, they hadn't made a mistake! Haha, they had reached a place with water!

"What are we waiting for? Hurry up and grab the water!" The men shouted noisily. Seeing that the refugees who had been behind them were already running ahead, they grew anxious.

"Don't panic. If Hebo County has water, then it's not just that stretch of the river that's not dry. The downstream stretch toward Fengchuan Prefecture should also have water." Old Man Zhao felt a huge weight lift off his heart. He hadn't been sure if Hebo County was truly drought-stricken. Now seeing that this stretch of river outside Hebo hadn't completely dried up, even though the water wasn't quite drinkable, it at least meant they hadn't gone in the wrong direction. Fengchuan Prefecture might really be a good place.

"Let's go!" Seeing everyone craning their necks to look in that direction, he couldn't help but smile. He raised his arm, "Let's go join the fun and see what's going on!"

"Ha, let's go!"

With a new purpose, the team's morale became entirely different. Who cared about being tired now? No, they weren't tired at all. They could all run like the wind!

"Brother Qing Xuan, hurry up!" Zhao Xiaobao sat on the shaft of the cart. The sun had set, so she had come out again. Infected by the excitement around her, her face showed a hint of enthusiasm. She clenched her little fists and urged, "Make Xiao Hui run faster! Xiaobao wants to splash in the mud too!"

"You can't." In all directions, surging crowds of people streamed like insects drawn to light, all rushing toward the same place. The scene was overwhelming. "Not to mention the mud is dirty and children easily get sick from playing in it, but after you finish, the mud will cake on your skin and feel even more uncomfortable."

"Zhao Xiaobao." He leaned closer to her, their heads nearly touching. His eyes were fixed on the road to avoid hitting running refugees with the donkey cart. He lowered his voice as if afraid someone might overhear. "If you want to cool down, have your nephews take turns fanning you. If you want to beat the heat, eat some ice-cold raspberries and wild pears."

Zhao Xiaobao immediately recalled how, every time she went to the fields, her feet sinking into the soft, cool mud felt nice. But once she got out of the field, the mud quickly dried and clung tightly to her legs, making her feel uncomfortable. She felt Brother Qing Xuan's reasoning was good, so she nodded seriously, "Then Xiaobao won't go down to splash in the mud."

"Mm." Qing Xuan nodded with satisfaction, then gave her a sidelong glance, "Raspberries are one thing, but where did you get the wild pears?"

"..." Her eyes darted around, and Zhao Xiaobao bit her finger before turning to crawl back into the carriage. "Brother Qing Xuan, the setting sun is making Xiaobao so uncomfortable. Please don't talk, my head is spinning."

"As soon as I speak, your head spins?" Without turning around, he reached back and grabbed her ankle as she tried to climb inside. "Zhao Xiaobao, can't you stop throwing fruit pits around? If an outsider sees them, how will we explain... Hey, come back! Stop playing around!"