Despite the pain, Shi Tou, along with Su's mother and Liu Huan, helped each other home and went into the next room with Liu Huan.

Mr. Su had been eagerly anticipating the news, thinking that no one would buy the tofu, and he waited anxiously in bed for his wife and children to bring good news.

Hearing the commotion outside, he finally spoke up: "Why are you so late today? Is the tofu not selling well?"

Mother Su smoothed her hair, straightened her clothes, and forced back her tears as she went inside. "It sold well, it's long sold out. We just ran into the county magistrate, who said he liked our tofu and asked a few more questions. He'll be coming to buy some more tomorrow."

Su's father believed it and his eyes welled up with tears. "This is wonderful! Once I'm healed, I'll work the millstone, and we'll make a living from now on."

After saying that, he realized that Shi Tou and the other person were not there: "Where are the two children?"

With her back to him, Su's mother suppressed the urge to cry and said, "She's next door. She said she got up too early and wanted to catch up on some sleep."

Father Su had no doubts and asked Mother Su to help him to a stool: "That's how it should be. The child is still small, and sleeping helps him grow taller. Bring the beans in, and I'll pick them out."

There would be a lot of pebbles and bad beans mixed in with the beans, which couldn't be washed out. After Su's father found out, this job became his.

Next door, Liu Huan followed Shi Tou and said in a serious tone, "Shi Tou, quickly take off your clothes, let me see where you're hurt."

Stone's face instantly turned red, and he said embarrassedly, "No need, I'm not injured."

Liu Huan didn't waste words with him. She took it upon herself to pull off his clothes and saw that he was covered in bruises on his back and clutching his mouth in pain. "Shitou, does it hurt?"

Shi Tou, who was initially shy, saw the tenderness in her eyes, and that shyness turned into warmth. "It doesn't hurt, don't worry, I'm a man, this little injury is nothing."

Liu Huan applied the medicine from last night to him and let it dry before dressing him. "Those beasts were really too ruthless. What kind of skill is it to bully the weak?"

Shi Tou took her hand and touched the red marks from when he helped her, saying sincerely, "When we grow up, we won't be bullied anymore."

If it were someone else, Liu Huan might think it was just empty promises, but she completely believed in Shi Tou.

In his memory, he was vengeful and harbored deep hatred for his enemies, including the original owner of this body. However, he was very tolerant of those around him, especially his wife, with whom he treated each other with respect and never took a concubine…

Wait, why think so much?

That's his business. My duty is to cling to his coattails. After he gets married, I'll leave and travel around the beautiful landscapes of Zhou Kingdom to see if I can reconnect with my past life.

Thinking of this, she changed the subject: "I didn't expect the magistrate to be so young and to give you a jade pendant. With this jade pendant, I believe we won't be bullied when we set up our stall in the future."

Shi Tou took out the jade pendant and examined it closely. It only had the character "Song" engraved on it.

The next day when I went to set up my stall, I heard the customers say:

"Master, you don't know, the people who bullied you yesterday have already been locked up in jail. I heard that the headman's whole family was arrested. The headman's cellar is full of gold."

Upon hearing this, Su's mother was overjoyed. "Really? Well, that's just reaping what you sow. How much do you want today?"

"Give me a pound, this stuff doesn't keep well, it tastes better fresh."

"Alright, here you go." Mrs. Su seemed completely unaffected, chatting and laughing with the customer.

It was harvest time, and Su's mother was thinking about the chili peppers and chickens at home, which were also important sources of income for the Su family. After much deliberation, she decided to go back home.

Liu Huan had no objections; she also missed her brother and sister.

The two made the tofu that day, and the next day Shi Tou carried it to the stall. Because of Su's father, he had to stay, so he was the one who sold the tofu.

After buying some more pork, Liu Huan also bought candied hawthorns before going to the city gate to wait for the villagers.

There were very few people at the market this time, and everyone looked worried. Su's mother hurriedly asked what had happened.

"I don't know what's wrong with this summer. It hasn't rained for two months in a row. The chili peppers that could have grown another crop have all dried up. It's so abnormal."

Liu Huan listened to Aunt Lian's words and tried hard to recall.

The original owner's memories of being six years old are faint, including the death of Su's father.

In the same year that Su's father was hit in the leg by a wild boar, from the end of summer until the following summer, there was no rain, so crops could not be planted. All the family's money had been spent on medicine, and there was no money left to buy expensive grain.

He felt guilty and remorseful every day, and in order not to be a burden on his family, he hanged himself.

Even after he died, the original owner said, "Since we were all going to die anyway, why didn't we just die sooner? We wouldn't have had the money to buy food."

The original owner was only six years old at that time. Sure enough, some people are born bad.

As the recollection ended, she continued listening to Aunt Lian speak:

"And you don't know, those things from deep in the mountains have been coming down frequently lately, several of them. No one can beat those things. I don't know what we'll do in the future."

Su's mother was also worried, and the two of them talked about what had happened in the past ten days or so.

Once they entered the deep mountains, the sounds abruptly ceased, and everyone unconsciously quickened their pace. Liu Huan heard the sound of wolves and instinctively turned around, only to see a gray wolf sitting on a hilltop, watching them from afar.

Startled, she quickly turned around, and for the first time, she hated that her eyesight was so good.

We didn't realize it while we were in town, but now that we're back, we find it's even more serious than Aunt Lian described.

Once inside Maocao Village, you can see that all the chili pepper leaves are withered, and even the roadside grass is wilted.

It was already afternoon, but the air was still muggy, and the water level in the only ditch in the village had dropped considerably.

No rain means that new seeds and vegetables cannot be planted, and wild boars and wolves in the deep mountains will come down to find water.

I remember that several people were eaten by wolves that winter.

The situation was even worse in the town than in the mountain village. Most people in the town did not grow crops and only bought a little bit each time. Later, when the price of grain rose, there was a frenzy of panic buying, and many people starved to death or were beaten to death for grabbing grain.

Many people have been displaced.

The Su family survived only because Shi Tou somehow obtained some black flour rations, which they ate once a day.

He was so thin he was practically skin and bones, and it took him several years to recover.

Because it's been so long, I don't remember much about what happened in between.

She kept thinking about this until Xiao Shi called her and brought her back to her senses.

"Huanhuan, what are you thinking about? I've been calling you for ages and you haven't heard me."

Liu Huan stepped forward and grabbed him, her gloom vanishing instantly. "Brother, I missed you so much. Did you miss me?"

Xiao Shi's eyes were clear and bright; Liu Huan could see herself through them. "I miss you so much, I can't even enjoy my meals."

Cao'er exposed him: "You don't eat well, but you still eat two bowls every day. It's only been a few days since we last met and you're already complaining. Come in and eat."