Chapter 87

By this time, the sky had begun to darken, and the man who had gone out returned. Hearing the noise, everyone turned to look in Sano's direction.

In just a second, the group of people knelt down, saying, "We are deeply grateful for the great kindness of the hostage and are willing to follow him to the death."

Sano turned around in surprise to look at his older brother and sister, only to see Zhou Yanqing calmly nod, indicating that he accepted everything.

Just now, Si Yanmo had planned to get a good night's sleep at the inn, but suddenly she thought that if Sano wanted to win over the disaster victims, in addition to providing food, it would be more important to help them find a place to stay.

These disaster victims, once they arrive here, probably won't be able to go anywhere except for the Yunji Temple, which can accommodate people.

After all, the temple couldn't let them stay in the fortune teller's meditation room. At most, they could only build a shed for them, but what good would a shed do in this freezing weather?

Si Yanmo and Zhou Yanqing then discussed whether they should find a place for the group of people to stay at the inn where they were staying.

Unfortunately, the housing prices are too high. Even the most basic shared room costs at least 200 coins a day just for burning charcoal.

They didn't have enough money for their journey.

Just then, Si Yanmo clapped her hands and asked Zhou Yanqing, "Are we in Meiyan City now?"

After receiving an affirmative answer, she hurriedly pulled Zhou Yanqing outside, asking around until they finally found their destination—Jasmine Garden.

She led Zhou Yanqing inside and handed the shopkeeper her most frequently used fork, which the shopkeeper immediately recognized.

"Master? Please take a seat."

The innkeeper found a private room for the two of them and was about to get them some food when Si Yanmo stopped him.

"Manager, does your Jasmine Garden have any rooms available for people to stay in? I'd like a larger one."

The shopkeeper thought for a moment, "No, that's not true, but the master bought you a house back then, and it was quite large. If it were for servants, it could house about a hundred people."

She was secretly delighted and told the shopkeeper to take her there in a moment.

This whole series of actions completely baffled Zhou Yanqing. He stared wide-eyed and asked, "Are you the owner here? Haven't you never been outside of Nandu before?"

Si Yanmo smiled and said, "My father runs a charitable business association, so it's not unusual for me to own a few shops."

She had always wanted to see snow since she was a child, but unfortunately, after falling from a horse, her parents didn't want to take her to such a far place anymore.

Si Jianwen always felt guilty towards her, so he opened a restaurant in the place closest to Sak and also bought her a house.

The original intention was to wait until she recovered, or until I was too tired to continue working, and then bring my wife and daughter here to retire. This would also fulfill my youngest daughter's wish, and even the manager here is an elderly person from my family.

Si Yanmo had only heard about this once by chance and knew that her hairpin was a token. She never expected it to come in handy now.

"Your father left you this house, are you really willing to let others live here?" Zhou Yanqing felt inexplicably stifled after hearing her explanation.

Her parents wanted to make their daughter happy so they could buy a house and open a restaurant in such a faraway place.

Where are his parents?

He didn't even have parents for a long time.

"Zhou Yanqing, Zhou Yanqing!" The woman's voice brought him back to his senses. "What's wrong?"

Meeting her concerned gaze, he suddenly felt that nothing was wrong.

He will never be like that man. He will be a good husband, and he wants to be with his wife for all eternity; she will always be his only one.

The man smiled, took her hand, and said, "Let's go check on Sano."

Si Yanmo still sensed that he was somewhat unhappy, but since he didn't say anything, she couldn't ask him, so she could only follow him out.

The shopkeeper, worried they might be cold, gave each of them a fox fur coat to wear.

It was indeed much warmer now, but Zhou Yanqing was somewhat dissatisfied.

Although the two of them were dressed warmly, they were still a bit cold. Si Yanmo would snuggle into his arms from time to time, and he was happy to hold his little princess.

The fox fur was warm but also a bit heavy, so Si Yanmo didn't even hold his hand anymore.

The puppy was unhappy, so it rubbed against her and reached out its paw to take her hand, looking pitiful.

"It's cold!" Si Yanmo patted his hand as he drove off, then silently hugged her hand warmer.

Zhou Yanqing lost the chance to openly be intimate with her sweetheart. She had no way to vent her resentment, so she could only come to Yunji Temple with her.

Seeing Chen Wu and Sa Yong busy at work, he asked about Sano's whereabouts and learned that the silly kid only tried to win people's hearts, not to win them over. He felt helpless.

When the men returned and asked questions, he revealed Sano's identity and emphasized that he had not only brought them food but also found them a place to stay.

Everyone now knows that their hostage has brought them a chance to live, and winning people's hearts means offering help in times of need.

He gestured to Sano with his eyes, indicating that now was the perfect time for him to declare his intention to overthrow the Sak king's rule.

Sano hesitated for a moment, knowing in his heart that what was bound to happen would happen eventually, so he came in front of everyone, coughed lightly, and covered up his nervousness.

"You are all members of the Sawa tribe, now forced to leave your homes and wander aimlessly. The culprit is not the frost, but the cruel and tyrannical King Sak..."

He frantically organized his thoughts, "Though I am a hostage in Qin, hearing this still pains my heart. I don't want you to live in such fear anymore, not even knowing if you'll live to see tomorrow. I also don't want our Sawa tribe to be wiped out by that tyrannical ruler..."

He paused, seemingly unsure of what to say next, and subconsciously looked in the direction of Si Yanmo and Zhou Yanqing.

Their eyes were full of certainty, and Zhou Yanqing mouthed to him to speak boldly.

Sano's plan became more resolute. He looked around again, taking in the faces that were red from the cold.

The grief and anger in the man's eyes, the confusion in the woman's eyes, and the helplessness in the child reminded him of himself when he was imprisoned with his parents.

They were like that back then—the father was filled with grief and anger, the mother was worried, and he and his younger siblings had no idea what the future held.

He wanted to escape then, but reality told him that he couldn't escape at all.

If he hadn't met Si Yanmo and the others, he thought he would have been a corpse by the very first day he arrived in Qin.

If his previous words were a compilation intended to win people's hearts, then what followed was a young man's determination.

He took a step forward, his voice even louder, "But the important thing is not whether I want to, but whether you want to."

"Do you want to continue living like this? Or do you want to fight that tyrant to the end and give yourselves and your children a future?"

After he finished speaking, all he could hear was the howling north wind.

He stood there, embarrassed and at a loss.

Yes, how could it possibly succeed on the first try?

He was about to turn around and leave with Si Yanmo and the others when a deep voice rang out from the crowd: "Fight to the bitter end!"

It is Sayong.

His voice was like a spark that instantly ignited the crowd around him, and one after another they shouted the same three words—"Fight to the end!"

"Fight to the bitter end!"

"Fight to the bitter end!"

"Fight to the bitter end!"

...

In an instant, the fierce north wind stopped howling, perhaps knowing that it could no longer drown out the waves of sound.

Inside the Yunji Temple, the first revival fire of this frost disaster was lit, and Si Yanmo and Zhou Yanqing silently watched everything before them. They knew there would be a second, a third...

Winning people's hearts is the most important thing.

People's hearts cannot be bought; they will still strive for everything they desire.

All these people wanted in the past was to survive, and for their descendants to survive as well.

With Si Yanmo's help, the disaster victims were quickly accommodated in the Si family's residence.

That house was indeed very large, even larger and more luxurious than Zhou Yanqing's Qin Prince's Mansion.

Zhou Yanqing and Si Yanmo entered the front hall together, and Zhou Yanqing couldn't help but sigh, "Now I know why you had that expression back then."

Indeed, the Si Mansion I saw when I was there for the wedding procession was extremely luxurious.

"How much money does your family actually have?" he asked curiously, leaning closer to Si Yanmo's ear.

Si Yanmo didn't notice his little scheme. "I don't know either. You should ask your sister. You couldn't even do basic accounting before, how could you expect me to know the true value of this huge fortune?"

Zhou Yanqing was amused by her, but couldn't help feeling a little bittersweet inside.

He raised his hand, pulling her into his arms, and rested his chin on her shoulder. "So what were you doing back then?"

Si Yanmo has gotten used to his touch and didn't push him away. "Eating, sleeping, swinging in the yard when bored, or going to Hechun Tower."

"With that flirtatious butterfly?"

A sour smell permeated the cold air. Si Yanmo was already tired of explaining, "I've said it many times, Zihe and I are like siblings."

"I know, but I'm still annoyed." The puppy unconsciously nuzzled against her neck. "He's too close to you."

"Then aren't we very close now..." We've done what we should and shouldn't have done.

Si Yanmo muttered softly, her pretty face slightly puffed out, which softened Zhou Yanqing's heart.

"Do you like that kind of life?"

She thought for a moment, "I don't know either. It would be a lie to say I didn't like those carefree days, but I really like my current life too..."

"Is it because of me?" Zhou Yanqing asked expectantly before she could finish her sentence.

Meeting those bright, sparkling eyes, Si Yanmo didn't know how to continue the conversation for a moment.

Seeing the awkward atmosphere, Zhou Yanqing guessed her answer, lowered her head and sighed in feigned disappointment, "I knew you didn't have me in your heart."

Seeing him like this, Si Yanmo felt a little sorry for him and quickly said, "Don't think like that. I just feel that although the days before were carefree, living well is meaningless. Didn't I tell you that I died in a confused state in my previous life, and anyone could step on me? But in this life, I can save others and come to Sak with you. I never saw snow in my previous life."

Hearing her mention snow, Zhou Yanqing thought of something and said, "I've been wanting to ask you this before: didn't Zhou Junsong bring you out in your past life?"

Even if Si Yunyun was pregnant, she could still come to Qin to meet her sister. Did Si Yanmo in her previous life never go anywhere?

Si Yanmo shook her head. "No, he doesn't love me. He just thinks that taking a fool like me out would ruin his plans."

"Then why do you like him so much..." The puppy said sadly, its voice becoming so soft that it was almost inaudible.