Meanwhile, Ye Wenxue came to the bamboo house alone and was discussing their future with Xu Lin.

Regardless of whether living in the mountains would lead to being labeled a bandit, living in the mountains is ultimately unsafe.

Especially during the period when the local militia were suppressing bandits.

If you're unlucky enough to run into the government troops, it's not as easy to deal with as running into a bandit or thug.

If you're not careful, you might offend someone and be punished with caning or forced labor, or even be beheaded by a mob of bandits.

Xu Lin was literate and had dealt with the constables in Tanzhou City, so he knew better than Ye Wenxue that government soldiers were not easy to deal with.

He slowly blinked his eyes, which had finally recovered, glanced at Ye Wenxue who was in a daze, and then looked away:

“My father and Wang Chun went down the mountain a few days ago. With the five taels of silver you gave them, they brought a total of two hundred and sixty taels. Through Zhiwen’s introduction, they donated it to an official of excellent character.”

The man promised to spend all the silver on the people, especially the lonely elderly and orphaned children.

Ye Wenxue was still wondering why Dazhuang and the others didn't want to come to the bamboo house today, and even dragged Su Jiu to stay at home. Upon hearing this, she was taken aback:

Can I trust him/her?

It wasn't that she doubted the character of the lower-level officials; it was simply that there was so much money involved that anyone would be tempted.

Xu Lin nodded: "My father has been staying in town these past few days to gather information. He goes to places where there are many poor people from time to time and can see officials distributing porridge and charcoal for free, as well as distributing seeds."

Xu Lin did not ask his father to reveal his name, but did so in silence so that he could live with his conscience.

Ye Wenxue understood Xu Lin's desire not to show off. If it were anyone else, they wouldn't dare let others know that they had a lot of money and had donated more than two hundred taels of silver to provide porridge for the people.

She didn't want to talk about this anymore, so she changed the subject: "Don't you think Su Jiu has been acting a little strange lately?"

"A little," Xu Lin said, lowering his head to think for a moment. "I'm probably struggling with what to do next. After all..."

Inside the bamboo house, Wang Chun and Xu Lin became sworn brothers, practically family, and Wang Chun would be working with them from now on.

Dr. Chen's home is nearby. The loss of the mountain stronghold is just a loss of work. The only worry is that it will be difficult to find a second job with such a high monthly salary.

Xu Lin is the only one who can't return to the bamboo house or go to Tanzhou. He has some silver, but not much, and it's time for him to start worrying.

Ye Wenxue thought about it again and realized that Xu Lin's words made a lot of sense, so she put aside her worries and continued to ask Xu Lin about his plans:

"Do you want to continue living in the bamboo house, return to the village, or take your family to Tanzhou City?"

I'm afraid I can't go back to the thatched hut in the valley; it was all burned down.

Xu Lin didn't respond immediately, but instead smiled and looked at her: "And you? Where are you planning to take the children?"

Putting aside his friendship with Cheng Dingfang, Xu Lin also wanted to follow Ye Wenxue and Dazhuang over the past few months, so that they could lend a hand when needed.

Ye Wenxue was able to offer timely help to the Xu family during their most difficult time, for which Xu Lin was extremely grateful and trusted her character.

In a few months, once the entire court is stable, he will have to continue taking the imperial examinations to gain official rank.

He wouldn't be able to bring his whole family to Beijing, so he left his family next door to Ye Wenxue's family, which put his mind at ease.

Ye Wenxue hesitated for a moment, then quickly made up her mind: "It's time for Dazhuang to start school. These children are so smart, we can't let them be buried in these deep mountains."

Moreover, she had a vague sense of unease.

After winter set in, the He family, who had been blessed with good fortune, stopped causing trouble. Ye Wenxue worried that they were planning something big.

In the original book, apart from Sui Bao who was still an infant, there was not a single good person in the He family.

Ye Wenxue didn't believe that the He family was willing to suffer so much loss.

But it's impossible to go back to Shanqing Village... Ye Wenxue pondered for a moment: "In a few days, I will take the children down the mountain to Qingxu Town."

Xu Lin asked with some confusion, "Why not go directly to Tanzhou City?"

Ye Wenxue's gaze was deep and thoughtful: "Renting a house in Tanzhou City costs more than ten taels of silver. Getting into the official school depends on luck, and even private school admissions cost a lot of money."

She only had three or four hundred taels of silver on her, which was indeed a large sum of money in the eyes of peasants, but in Tanzhou City, it was not much.

After hearing what she said, Xu Lin lost much of his interest in going to Tanzhou City.

Although the capital city of a prefecture is more prosperous and bustling, Xu Lin knows better how hard it is to earn money.

...No, it should be said that for him, money was very hard to earn.

But for Ye Wenxue, it wasn't so difficult.

Xu Lin hesitated for a moment: "Let me go to Qingxu Town with you. I have many acquaintances in the town, and I know a few great scholars. Maybe I can put in a good word for Dazhuang and get him into the official school."

After deciding on their way out, the two hurriedly separated and packed their luggage.

Ye Wenxue slowly returned to the valley, sometimes recalling her disheveled appearance when she first arrived, and sometimes remembering the lively and adorable appearance of her children.

Looking at the wildfires that raged across the plains and the wildflowers and grasses that grew by the roadside after the winter snow melted, she realized that she had been here for almost half a year.

Ye Wenxue reflected on the past six months and found it more fulfilling and enjoyable than the days in modern times when she was idle and just took on missions to kill people.

The premise is that there are five children—Dazhuang, Shuangshuang, Sanyuan, Siwang, and Yuanyuan—by her side.

After the snow melts, the springs in the valley are full, and the lake below the cliff is also filled with snow water, so that the bottom of the lake cannot be seen at a glance.

Ye Wenxue walked around twice, but didn't see many children or Su Jiu. Her relaxed mind instantly became alert again.

She touched the dagger at her waist, carefully pressed her ear against the tightly closed door, and heard several panting sounds.

Ye Wenxue kicked open the door and was about to raise her dagger when the people who had been waiting inside stood up and spoke with smiles:

"Mom, today is your birthday! We've cooked this meal ourselves, so please eat it while it's hot."

Su Jiu stood in the corner, his foot being stepped on by a large goose, looking utterly dejected: "I've been busy with this all day, so even if my skills aren't great, don't complain about it in front of me."

Ye Wenxue was taken aback at first, then suddenly realized.

Today is indeed her birthday, and also the original owner's birthday.

The year she was born, it didn't snow all winter. It wasn't until a day when snowflakes began to fall softly in the approaching spring that Ye Wenxue was born, and her mother gave her an elegant name.

It's unclear whether the name of its predecessor came from this source.

Looking at the children with expectant eyes, Ye Wenxue suppressed the chaotic thoughts in her heart and pulled the children to sit at the table.

On the table was a bowl of longevity noodles and several... oddly shaped longevity peaches.

Ye Wenxue poked the ugliest peach and asked curiously, "Who made this?"

Siwang puffed out his cheeks and slowly squatted under the table.

Ye Wenxue quickly tried to salvage the situation: "Hmm...it's quite unique, I like it very much."

After she turned six, no one ever celebrated her birthday again.

Ye Wenxue really liked it and was very happy.