Chapter 223

Chapter 223

Zhao Xiaobao crouched on the raft, pinching her nose, as the menfolk drifted around the village.

Niu Family Village was quite large, with houses built far apart; neighbors had to shout across to each other to be heard.

At the head of the village was only Wang Dalang's household, with the two adjacent courtyards unoccupied. From the quarreling villagers' words, it seemed these were Wang's storage for night soil—the smell was so pungent that the family dared not risk public outrage by placing the warehouses in the middle or end of the village, building them instead next to their own home.

Ordinarily, it wasn't too offensive; the containers were covered, and the old hands in the night soil trade had tricks to mask the odor. Plus, with plenty of outlets and no shortage of customers, the collected night soil never lingered long enough to cause much trouble. Villagers, benefiting from their fellow villager's business with some perks, had no complaints...

That was before the flood.

But now, the floodwaters had breached the courtyard walls, spilling filth throughout the village. Though the water flowed, the stench clung. Especially when the tide receded, the residue on the walls became painfully obvious—a layer of muck smeared on the plaster. This infuriated the villagers, who were anxiously waiting for the disaster to pass so they could clean their own yards.

"How can anyone live here? I'm asking you, how is my yard supposed to be livable!"

"The latrine is cleaner than the main hall! And the main hall—such an important space—how can it be stained with filth?!"

"Other villages just got flooded; after drying out, they can move back in. But our village has turned into a shit-and-piss village! Wang Kangquan, I'm telling you, you've got to answer for this!"

When Old Man Zhao and his group arrived, the villagers were arguing on the back slope, demanding compensation from the Wang family.

They were still at it now, making a huge racket. Zhao Ertian poled the raft, and since the menfolk didn't want to step off, they dropped Gan Lei and his sister, along with Shi Dalang and his wife, onto the slope before drifting aimlessly around the village.

It wasn't that they didn't want to hear the wealthy family's dark secrets, but the matter involved the deceased old lady's private affairs and Gan Lei's parentage. Being an outsider, Old Man Zhao felt it awkward to stay, so he took the initiative to keep his distance, not wanting to be a nuisance.

If they wanted him to know, Gan Lei or Shi Dalang would fill him in later.

If not, he'd act clueless and never ask.

"Dad," Zhao Xiaobao called out.

"Dad's here." The old man looked up at the sun; it was well past noon. "Hungry?"

"Yeah." Her stomach was growling, but she had no appetite. Listlessly, she tugged at the hood on her head. "It stinks. I don't want to eat."

"Want some, Dad? Second Brother? Third Brother?" She pulled out some steamed buns and offered them up. "Eat a bit; it's still early."

It was like setting a table in a latrine—the three of them had a rather agonizing lunch.

Perhaps because they were wearing suspicious hoods, the villagers were wary of them. They could feel eyes on them constantly, especially when they neared the flooded houses.

Zhao Ertian decided not to drift aimlessly anymore. He found a spot a little way from the slope but still within earshot of the talk, and anchored the raft to rest.

"Tch, protecting a couple of sticks of firewood? What am I going to do, pry off a brick or dig out a clod of mud? Sheesh." Zhao Sandi sat with his legs spread, chewing jerky with a bold posture. Since he was already eating, he didn't care about the taste anymore.

"Don't we have any self-awareness as strangers?" Old Man Zhao still had the heart to joke. "Strangers in the village are always watched, especially with us wearing hoods that don't inspire trust."

That got the three of them laughing.

Little Zhao Xiaobao joined in the silly laughter—of course, her dad couldn't see her grin behind the hood.

After the laughter subsided, they changed the subject, discussing what they needed to do in the county seat and what to watch out for.

Old Man Zhao planned to first take care of the grain and clothing before heading to the south side of the city to visit Er Niang's family. If he didn't get the important matters done first, they'd nag at him, and he wouldn't feel right doing anything else. He had originally worried that the county seat had been flooded—though the walls were high and the ground elevated, it sat right below Anyang County and was the first to be hit. On the way, they hadn't seen many intact villages, so it seemed impossible for it to have escaped unscathed.

But surprisingly, it had escaped.

Earlier, Gan Lei had asked his grandmother Xiu Zhu about it, and she said that while heavy rain had caused drainage issues and damaged some houses, the flood itself hadn't reached the city. Gan Lei sounded disappointed, but Old Man Zhao secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

"The north part of the city is chaotic, easy to fish in troubled waters. With the disaster and grain shortages, things should be straightforward if we're careful." Old Man Zhao felt he was really making work for himself. The grain, bedding, and clothes from the village were all untouched, ready to use, yet they had to resort to underhanded tricks to make them presentable. It was infuriating.

He almost wanted to ditch the rest of the village and go his own way; he was truly exhausted.

"Will the Wang family be willing to take us into the city? It's a hassle, right? We don't have travel permits. If something goes wrong, we'll bring trouble on them." Zhao Sandi thought that if he were in their shoes, he might not be willing to help. A bunch of unfamiliar refugees causing trouble could easily skip away, but the Wangs had their livelihood here—helping was too risky.

He was a bit worried, especially as the quarreling on the slope grew louder. It seemed the villagers had been harboring grievances, and now they had an outlet. The tone suggested they were ready to come to blows.

The Wang family themselves were still mired in muddy water, probably too preoccupied to help them.

Fortunately, they didn't have to wait long. After chewing on seven or eight strips of jerky, the quarreling finally subsided.

The reminiscing was done, and the old lady had likely clarified things. Gan Lei, along with Shi Dalang and his wife, all looked grim.

Forcing a smile, the old lady called from the slope, "Hey, Brother Da Gen, you can't move around on the raft? Why not come up and rest a while?"

The only high ground in the entire village was this small slope, which wasn't flooded. It was tiny, packed with people. Old Man Zhao figured the only reason they hadn't started a fight was that there was no room to maneuver—one kick and they'd be in the water.

"Oh, there's no space to set foot, right?" Old Man Zhao shouted back with a laugh, unsure if the invitation was genuine or just a polite gesture, since the slope was truly full.

But since she called him by name, he guessed Gan Lei had mentioned their journey. He didn't fully understand the master-servant relationship, but given how much Gan Lei trusted Grandmother Xiu Zhu, she must have been close to the late Old Lady Shi.

After all, she had saved the child; it was a life-saving favor. Helping out should be possible, right?

"It's quite cramped, so forget it." Grandmother Xiu Zhu's eyes were a bit red. She didn't insist and, holding back Gan Lei and Shi Dalang, she came down the slope with a man, wading straight through the sewage toward them.

Old Man Zhao glanced at Shi Dalang, who gave him a nod, and he immediately understood.

Zhao Ertian quickly poled the raft over. When they reached them, the old lady lifted her skirt and was pulled onto the raft by Zhao Sandi without a word. Being in the water was nowhere near as comfortable as on the raft, and she wasn't one to suffer needlessly.

They exchanged formal greetings. The old lady smiled and pulled forward the man behind her, saying, "This is my youngest son, Wang Kangming. In recent years, he's been managing the family business. He's traveled extensively and knows some people. Among the city guards at the north gate, he has a brother he's acquainted with. If he leads you, as long as you don't cause any trouble, you can slip into the city quietly, buy some things, and visit relatives—none of that will be a problem."

"No travel permit either," she added, as if already aware of their background.

Every path has its own ways. The network of favors maintained with considerable yearly expense was meant for critical moments.

For Old Man Zhao and the others, entering the county seat was hard without connections, but for the Wang family, who ferried night soil daily between city and village, it was no big deal.

Their trade might not sound pleasant, but they knew people from all walks of life. They couldn't get a word in with the southern garrison, but the north gate, which they'd used for decades, was like their own backyard—a little favor or silver could get them through.

When Ying Nu brought it up, she agreed without hesitation.

They might be a group of refugees on the run, potentially bringing trouble, but the mere title of "life-saver" was enough for her to grant any request without a second thought.

"Sister, we can't thank you enough!" Old Man Zhao didn't know what else to say. He discreetly pulled out the silver he'd prepared and, as he shook Wang Kangming's hand, pressed it into his palm. Since the other party wasn't putting on airs, he didn't want to worry them, so he quickly assured, "I swear we won't cause any trouble or make things difficult for you. We're just worried about some relatives and want to see them, and also pick up some provisions. There are lots of kids in the village, all skin and bones, with everything washed away. They're starving and waiting for rice and flour to cook. There's no hope out here; we can only rely on the city."

"Uncle, take it back, please." Wang Kangming hadn't expected this and felt the silver burning in his hand. He pushed it back firmly. "You've worked hard to bring Ying Nu here. Without your boy, Ying Nu might not have survived. We should be preparing a gift of thanks, not the other way around!"

"Oh, one thing at a time. The boy was just lucky; we were only helping." Old Man Zhao held Wang Kangming's hand tight, preventing him from returning the silver. Strictly speaking, the Gan siblings were saved by Qing Xuan, which was almost like their doing. If Gan Lei were the one leading them into the city, he wouldn't push the money, but with the Wang family being intermediaries, asking for a favor required more than just words—something concrete was needed.

He didn't like to take advantage of others.

"Brother Da Gen, it's not necessary! Please, put it away!" The old lady quickly signaled her son. Wang Kangming, though less strong than Old Man Zhao, was far more practiced at dodging silver and finding an opening to slip the money pouch back into his sleeve.

"Uncle, stop refusing. If we took this silver, what kind of people would we be? If you respect the Wang family, don't mention it again." Wang Kangming had a round face, and when he smiled, he looked very amiable. "Our trade is something we do under cover, mostly at night. If you're not in a hurry, we can go into the city tomorrow. If you're in a rush, we can pack up and go today."

Old Man Zhao was quite eager. He immediately said, "Nephew, if it's no trouble, I'd be grateful if we could go today."

It was still early, perfect timing for entering the city. If all went well, they could finish their business in a day or two.

So we can only stay in the city for two days? If we have to go in and out on the same day, what's the point? Might as well just go shopping in town.

"Can we stay a few more days after entering the city?" Old Man Zhao asked, a bit embarrassed. "We're not familiar with the city. We'll need to look around to find the best deals. If we're too rushed, we won't have enough time."

Speaking of this, the old lady suddenly remembered something and couldn't help warning, "The city is really short on grain right now. If you plan to buy grain there, it'll depend on luck and cost you a lot of money." You might not be able to buy any even if you have money. People will fight over those life-saving supplies even if they have to spend every last cent. Even if you get into the city, you might not get a chance.

"We know that. We've got it figured out." Old Man Zhao patted his chest as if to say they were well-prepared and not to worry.

The old lady couldn't help but glance at him a few more times, unsure if he really had a plan or just had enough resources. Her judgment of people was off with this bunch. He looked shabby, like someone without a single copper coin, yet his words and demeanor showed a certain confidence—quite contradictory.

But no matter what, he was Ying Nu's lifesaver. She didn't want to pry too much. Her family's duty was simply to take them into the city and then out again.

The rest was not her business, nor her place to interfere.

In all those years as a maid in the Xu family, the one thing she learned was not to be too curious—just do her own job well.