Chapter 24

The woman with sunken cheeks is surnamed Fang, and everyone in the village calls her Aunt Fang. Her granddaughter has just turned two years old, and her daughter-in-law is due to give birth in two months.

Gu Xiyue and Meixiang followed her from a distance. It was completely dark. By this time, everyone had basically received their cakes and were walking back. Everyone had a smile on their face and they were talking and laughing together.

As Gu Xiyue walked along, everyone who recognized her greeted her.

Aunt Fang walked very fast. When someone greeted her, she ignored them, waved her hand hurriedly, and continued walking forward.

Finally, he turned and entered the yard in front of a low fence.

"Miss, this is Madam Zhou's home."

Gu Xiyue nodded. It turned out that it was next to Xue Jun’s house, and Xue Jun’s house was just ahead.

"What are you looking at?"

After Aunt Fang entered the room, her angry voice rang out, "You little bitch, you still want to eat cake? I'm telling you! No way!"

"Mother, didn't Miss Gu say that pregnant and growing children can get an extra cake? Yun'er didn't eat dinner, so mother, please give her some."

This was the voice of Aunt Fang's daughter-in-law, Madam Du, and it was clearly begging. At the same time, the sound of a child crying could be heard from the room.

"You're just a bitch! You don't help the adults with work, and you still want to eat cakes! I'm telling you, don't even think about eating them. Wait until you give birth to a boy!"

The meaning is obvious: if Madam Du cannot give birth to a boy, she will starve with her child.

"But……"

"Even if Miss Gu gave you two extra cakes, it's not your turn to eat them with your bitch. My two sons have to work to support the family, so it's only right to give them some."

Meixiang clenched her fists when she heard this outside. Gu Xiyue patted her hands and told her not to be impulsive.

"Hurry! Sons, you two eat, one each. This cake is delicious. I just ate one, it smelled so good. Come on! There are six cakes left. You two can eat one now, and we can eat the remaining four tomorrow morning."

His tone suddenly became gentle, as if he had become a different person.

Aunt Fang has two sons, the elder is twenty-three and the younger is nineteen, and neither has married yet.

A man inside responded, and another man's voice said, "Mom, my sister-in-law is pregnant. Give her..."

Before he could finish, he was interrupted by Aunt Fang.

The man's voice stopped abruptly.

Gu Xiyue frowned slightly. She thought that Madam Du’s husband was not at home, so her mother-in-law dared to be so arrogant. It turned out that her husband was at home.

When Boss Fang was at home, Madam Du and the child were treated like this. If he was not at home, one can imagine what life would be like for the mother and daughter.

I thought that the people in the Southern Wilderness were all connected by the same fate and would support each other, but I didn't expect to meet such a vicious person.

Gu Xiyue didn't knock on the door, but pushed it open, stepped over the threshold and entered the house.

The oil lamp in the room was dim. Boss Fang was sitting on a chair on the left, holding a bite of a cake in his hand and chewing it vigorously. Boss Fang on the right was also holding a cake in his hand, looking hesitant.

Aunt Fang was sitting on the cabinet against the wall, busy wrapping pancakes with cloth, with a smile on her face.

At the right wall on the inside, the skinny Madam Du had a bulging belly and was trying hard to bend down to comfort her two-year-old daughter who was crying and hugging her legs.

The little girl was as thin as a piece of dried firewood and her hair was sparse.

When several people saw that the person who came in was Miss Gu, they were all stunned.

Gu Xiyue looked around and her gaze finally fell on Boss Fang's face.

Aunt Fang quickly came over with a smile on her face and said amiably, "Ms. Gu, how did you find time to come and see us?"

Seeing that Gu Xiyue had been staring at her eldest son, she quickly said, "They are too hungry. My daughter-in-law and granddaughter have already finished eating. My son...thought of eating now and not eating tomorrow morning, otherwise he would be too hungry to sleep."

After Aunt Fang finished speaking, there was no trace of guilt on her face.

While she was talking, Boss Fang immediately stuffed the cake into his mouth in two bites, filling it up. He stood up and smiled, inviting Gu Xiyue to sit down.

Fang Laoer was still standing on the right, without touching the cake in his hand.

The two-year-old child stared at the cake in his uncle's hand, tears streaming down his face.

Gu Xiyue turned to look at Aunt Fang and asked her, "Aunt Fang, I want to ask you a question?"

Aunt Fang nodded quickly, "Miss Gu, please speak. I'm all ears!"

She also knows to listen attentively! Gu Xiyue's mouth curled up slightly, and his face suddenly turned cold.

"Aunt Fang, do you have any objections to my decision?"

"ah?"

Aunt Fang was stunned.

The prestige that Gu Xiyue had accumulated bit by bit during the days she came to the Southern Wilderness had already taken root in the hearts of the villagers. When people saw her, they felt like they had found a backbone.

When she arrived at the Fang family, the two sons of the Fang family acted like they were meeting their master and did not dare to say anything.

“No, no!”

Aunt Fang reacted and quickly waved her hands.

Gu Xiyue immediately said, "I asked Madam Liu and the others to give an extra cake to pregnant women and children. Why didn't you give it to them? You think my idea is unnecessary, right?"

Aunt Fang was speechless and wanted to explain herself, but she moved her mouth but couldn't utter a word.

"And you!" Gu Xiyue turned his head and looked at Boss Fang. "You're a grown man, your wife is pregnant, and your daughter is so thin, but you don't think about taking good care of them, but just eat your own cakes with peace of mind. Do you think you deserve a wife and children?"

Gu Xiyue rarely gets angry, and only loses his temper when he is extremely upset.

Boss Fang, who had a smile on his face just now, now looked as ugly as liver.

When Aunt Fang saw Miss Gu scolding her son, she immediately became anxious.

Just as she was about to open her mouth to refute, Meixiang stepped forward from behind Gu Xiyue, staring at her and asking, "What do you want to say? You want to say that your son didn't have it, right? Or do you want to say that your wife and granddaughter have eaten the cake, right?"

Meixiang took another step forward, talking like a bunch of beans, "Let me tell you, when we were handing out the cakes in the dining hall just now, my young mistress and I saw everything you did. How come you didn't choke to death when you were eating the cake just now!"

"You disrespectful old man! Turn around and look at your daughter-in-law. She's pregnant with your Fang family's child. She's so thin, even if the baby is a boy, it will starve to death because of you, a disrespectful old man. How did the woman from the Li family in the west lose her child? Don't you know?"

"She had no food to eat while she was pregnant, and the baby in her belly also starved. Her body was too weak, and she died shortly after she was born..."

Meixiang grew angrier and angrier as she spoke. "You're still a bitch, bitch! Have you been raised like that since you were little? You let your son eat the cakes we gave your granddaughter. I don't know what's wrong with you. How could you be so mean? How could you do such a thing that will be struck by lightning!"

When Fang Lao Da and Fang Lao Er heard Mei Xiang scolding their mother like that, they wanted to say something but didn't know how. They just stood there in a daze, lowered their heads, and wished they could find a hole in the ground to crawl into.

Gu Xiyue listened to Meixiang cursing and nodded secretly in her heart. She was simply her mouthpiece, saying everything she wanted to say.

Aunt Fang took two steps back and pointed at Meixiang with a pale face, "You...you...you..." In the end, she didn't say anything.

When she saw that she couldn't win the argument with Meixiang, she sat down on the ground, slapped the ground with her hands and was about to throw a tantrum.

Gu Xiyue took the lead and said, "Meixiang, did you bring the booklet?"

When Aunt Fang heard Gu Xiyue mention the booklet, she paused. She remembered that when Miss Gu was dividing the work among everyone, Meixiang followed her and took notes with the booklet.

What does Miss Gu want to do by asking for the booklet now?

It can’t be…

Thinking of this, her face changed, and she quickly got up and cried, begging Gu Xiyue: "Miss Gu, it was my fault. From now on, I will never withhold food from my daughter-in-law and granddaughter again."

Seeing that she admitted her mistake quickly, Gu Xiyue softened her attitude and asked, "Where is the cake you just received?"

Aunt Fang hesitated for a moment. Seeing this, Fang Lao Er next to her immediately took out a cloth bag from the basket next to her, took it out along with the cake in his hand, and handed it to Gu Xiyue.

"Mrs. Gu, we were wrong. We will change in the future. We hope that Mrs. Gu can forgive Mother and us this time."

He was two years older than Gu Xiyue and half a head taller than her. His face turned red as he spoke, and he felt self-blame and guilt.

There is still one sensible person in this room.

Gu Xiyue took the cake and the cloth bag, untied it and took out a cake from it, put the cloth bag down again, and walked inside with the two cakes.

The wild vegetable pancakes were baked not long ago and were still slightly warm. She walked to Madam Du and the little girl, squatted down, and handed the pancakes to the mother and daughter.

The little girl looked at her timidly, her eyes wet. She took the cake and took a look at it, then held it tightly with both hands, trying hard to swallow her saliva, but she didn't dare to eat it.

Madam Du beside her, tears welling in her eyes, whispered, "Thank you, Madam Gu, I..."

She nervously grabbed her clothes with one hand and held the cake with the other, not knowing what to say.

Although the clothes worn by Madam Du and her children were worn out, they were washed very clean. She had even sewn patterns on the torn parts with thread. Although she didn't use colored thread, she used gray thread, and the stitches looked quite good.

He is a clever and skillful person, but too weak.

Gu Xiyue reached out and stroked the child's hair, and said softly, "Your name is Yun'er, right?"

Yun'er nodded slowly. Her big eyes looked out of place on her skinny face.

"This is specially prepared by your aunt for you. Eat it with peace of mind. If you are not full, you can eat another one later."

Gu Xiyue felt a little upset. From ancient times to the present, there have always been people who favor boys over girls, and some people's preference is so serious that it is unimaginable. She didn't know what happened to Yun'er in the original book, but she hoped that Yun'er could grow up healthily like many other little girls.

Yun'er hesitated when she heard Gu Xiyue say this. Madam Du said with a choked voice, "Yun'er, eat."

When Yun'er heard her mother asking her to eat, she looked at Gu Xiyue again, then put the cake into her mouth and took a careful bite.

After tasting it, she couldn't wait to take another bite. Finally, a smile appeared on her face, and some of her childish innocence was restored.

From curling up to letting go, this whole process made Gu Xiyue's nose sore.

Afraid that she would choke, Gu Xiyue asked Meixiang to pour a bowl of water for Yun'er and watched her finish the cake.

He also urged Madam Du to eat the cake.

Madam Du ate while crying. The atmosphere in the room was depressing. Except for Gu Xiyue's voice persuading the two to eat the cake, no one else made a sound. Boss Fang's face turned pale and red, and he felt ashamed.

"Yun'er, you can go to school tomorrow. There are many little brothers and sisters in the school, and there will be lunch at noon. Not only will you have someone to play with you, but you won't have to go hungry either."

Yun'er listened with longing on her face. She looked at Gu Xiyue again and again with joy, and her little heart was filled with happiness.

Before leaving, Gu Xiyue said to Madam Du: "Since you unfortunately married the wrong person and can't rely on others, then rely on yourself, protect yourself and your children, and if there is anything you can't solve, you can come to me at any time."

When they reached the door, he said to Meixiang, "Take your men and walk around the village to see if there are any other families who are stealing other people's cakes. If you find such people once, give them a warning. If it happens a second time, you will have to bear the consequences!"

"Also, if anyone abuses their children, report it to me!"

Meixiang agreed repeatedly.

After Gu Xiyue finished knocking, he turned around and walked out.

Before leaving, she didn't look at Aunt Fang or Brother Fang, but glanced at Second Brother Fang.

When passing by Boss Fang, he lowered his head and took two steps back. He felt a blockage in his throat and it seemed that he had not completely swallowed the wild vegetable cake he had just eaten.

After Gu Xiyue went out, he heard a cough behind him.

When he was about to leave the yard, Gu Xiyue found a person standing next to the fence gate. It was dark and he couldn't see his face clearly, but he was tall and looked familiar. When he got closer, he found that it was Xiao Heng.

Gu Xiyue was in a bad mood and asked in a low voice: "Why are you here?"

Xiao Heng's expression was unclear in the darkness. He said softly, "I've been here for a long time. I was here when you entered the yard."

Without waiting for Gu Xiyue to speak, he said, "Don't be angry. I'll call Zhao Yancheng and go to each family with Junye later."

"Um."

Gu Xiyue was in a bad mood and didn't say much, but she knew that he would visit each house later and the situation would definitely be better, so she felt a little better.

Xiao Heng and Mei Xiang followed behind her. The three of them walked very fast. The road was uneven and Gu Xiyue almost tripped. Fortunately, Xiao Heng was quick and supported her from behind.

After Gu Xiyue stood firm, he said thank you.

"When I have money in the future, I will install street lights on the roadside."

"good!"

Xiao Heng pursed her lips and smiled. It could be heard that she was in a much better mood.

When they arrived at Zhao Yancheng's house, Gu Xiyue and Meixiang went back first, and Xiao Heng went directly to Zhao Yancheng's house.

After returning, the two found Wei Lin and Hu Mazi standing in the yard, one on the left and one on the right. They ignored each other, one looking at the stars and the other looking at the sea in the dark night.

After seeing Gu Xiyue and Meixiang come back, Wei Lin walked over to them with a smile, "Madam, where is my young master?"

"Let Meixiang tell you. I'll go inside first."

Throwing down a few words, Gu Xiyue walked into the room, stretched out on the bed, and let herself rest.

The appearance of Madam Du and Yun'er always kept flashing in her mind. Some things were fine if she ignored them, but once she started to care, she would take them to heart, and when she took them to heart, she would have all kinds of emotions.

It's not that she doesn't want to punish Aunt Fang, the problem is how to punish her. Human nature will always be magnified in a bad environment. When life is rich, people still have conscience, but when they are hungry, human nature is also terrible.

She was willing to forgive them once, hoping that after they had something to eat, their conscience would return.

Today's scene made her even more determined to lead everyone to a good life.

Xiao Heng came back half an hour later. At this time, Gu Xiyue had adjusted her mood and was sitting in the middle room drinking water waiting for him.

Xiao Heng looked solemn when he entered the room. Gu Xiyue poured him a glass of warm water. After Xiao Heng drank it, he told Gu Xiyue the news of the visit.

Sure enough, the Fang family was not the only one to experience this. There were several other families. Some had both sons and daughters, but when they returned home, they gave the bread to their sons and not to their daughters. Some even refused to give the bread to the elderly.

After hearing this, Gu Xiyue fell silent and began to think of other ways.

Xiao Heng looked at her expression and said, "The most important thing is the child. It would be better if the child could have three meals a day at school in the future."

Gu Xiyue's eyes lit up.

Yes, the school is right next to the canteen, so there is no need to distribute the cakes belonging to each family’s children. They can be placed directly in the canteen and distributed to the children by the teacher the next day. This ensures that every child can have his or her own share.

As for adults, the situation is relatively better. You can give their families a little warning when necessary. I believe they won’t dare to go too far.

The next day, Gu Xiyue told Liu Niangzi and others about this matter and asked them not to give the children's cakes to the adults, but to leave them in the cafeteria and give them to the children the next day.

Today is the day when everyone is officially busy. As soon as the hour of Mao arrives, some people get up.

Summer mornings are very cool. You can get up early to work, have lunch at noon, and rest for an hour or two.

Gu Xiyue woke up very early as well, and Xiao Heng woke up even earlier than her. Meixiang said while combing her hair that Xiao Heng had gone out with Wei Lin and Hu Mazi early in the morning.

"His Highness said he had cooked porridge in the pot and asked the young lady to get up and eat some bread and drink some porridge before going back to work."

Gu Xiyue nodded, washed up, and after dinner, he took Meixiang to the beach.

A few days ago, the villagers of Nanhuang were still shrouded in the atmosphere of impending starvation, but today Nanhuang is full of vitality.

Looking along the coastline, there are a few women evenly arranged at intervals. The women carry their own cloth bags for collecting salt. They squat in front of the thatch in groups of two or three to collect sea salt, talking and laughing, and the beach becomes lively.

The men on the inside of the road, in four groups, had already drawn lines. Some were cutting grass, some were moving stones, and some were taking hoes and starting to dig along the drawn lines. After all the stones and weeds in the square boxes were cleared, everyone started digging together. The men worked very quickly, and each hoe dug a hole.

The four team leaders were directing everyone to dig while looking around and making various adjustments. Their voices could be heard from far away and everyone was working enthusiastically.

The four groups put in their best efforts to see which group would succeed first.

After excavation, each group sent out a few people, pulling carts to the foot of the mountain to quarry stone slabs. After the pit was dug, the bottom was paved with stone slabs and lime powder to make it flat and clean, which would also be convenient for drying salt the following year.

Gu Xiyue also took a walk around the school and deliberately stayed outside the courtyard wall for a while. Children aged two to five were playing games in the courtyard with two female teachers, while the other children were taking classes and learning to read in the rooms.

Gu Xiyue saw Du Niangzi's child Yun'er at a glance. She was being held by a little girl of four or five years old. She had an innocent smile on her face and was listening to the little girl talking to her. When Yun'er turned around after listening, she saw Gu Xiyue standing outside at a glance.

Her round eyes widened instantly, and before she could scream, Gu Xiyue quickly raised her index finger to her lips.

Yun'er understood immediately and covered her mouth with her hands while smiling. The little sister next to her saw it and immediately called out "Auntie!"

At this shout, the children in the yard and Mr. Qiqi turned around and looked at Gu Xiyue. Even the children sitting in the room learning to read turned their heads to look outside.

Dozens of pairs of eyes, some cute and innocent, some full of curiosity, were looking at her.

Gu Xiyue's face suddenly felt a little hot. She didn't know whether she was embarrassed by being stared at or because she had disturbed them.

Gu Xiyue smiled, waved to everyone, and left quickly.

It's not easy for sir to maintain order, so we can't disturb them.

Meixiang saw that the young lady was running a little panic-stricken, so she chased after her and whispered, "Young lady, your face was red just now."

Gu Xiyue touched his hot face and said stubbornly, "How could that be?"

Meixiang looked at the young lady in confusion. Could it be that the children's aunt called her and made her blush?

It shouldn't be!

The young lady can speak so eloquently in front of so many people, but why does she blush in front of children?

What Meixiang didn't know was that school was a very sacred place in Gu Xiyue's heart. Being stared at by so many innocent eyes, she felt inexplicably nervous.

The two went to the canteen next door. Madam Liu and others were washing vegetables and boiling water in the pot. They planned to push a cart to the beach to deliver water to the people working there.

Gu Xiyue sat for a while and then went back.

After a circle, more than an hour had passed. The two began to clean up the west side of the yard. They had discussed with Xiao Heng last night that the salt collected by the women should be placed under the west wall of the yard. This afternoon, they would have someone come over to build a shed here.

Everything was packed up and it was almost lunchtime. Xiao Heng had not returned yet, so Gu Xiyue took Meixiang to the cafeteria to eat. She also wanted to see how everyone was doing on the first day of work.

Lunch was stewed noodles. Madam Liu put two slices of dry steamed bread in each person's bowl as Gu Xiyue had said. The villagers picked up their bowls and gathered together to eat. Many people picked up the dry steamed bread in the bowl and were a little confused, not knowing what it was. They tried to take a bite and found that it was quite chewy.

After a while, the steamed buns softened and absorbed the soup in the bowl, making the noodle soup thicker. Everyone was very satisfied with the meal.

When they found out that these were the steamed buns that Miss Gu had cut and dried earlier, everyone was a little surprised. They didn't expect that Miss Gu didn't eat the steamed buns they gave her, but sliced ​​them and dried them for them to eat.

Some people who treated the elderly and children badly last night were a little moved. Miss Gu saved the food given to her by others and gave it to them. They had no relationship with Miss Gu, but they were so selfish that they only thought about eating for themselves and even cheated their own relatives.

Gu Xiyue also saw Aunt Fang and her two sons in the crowd. She was still eating and looking around with a shifty look in her eyes.

Her eldest son sat in the corner, eating with his head down, not looking at anyone. The youngest son took the bowl to the other corner where his sister-in-law was. He lowered his head and said something to Madam Du, who just shook her head with a look of gratitude on her face.

Gu Xiyue breathed a sigh of relief. It seemed that this Fang Laoer still had a conscience. As long as Fang Laoer was in their family, and considering how he had warned Aunt Fang last night, Madam Du and Yun'er shouldn't have a hard time.

Gu Xiyue sat with Madam Liu and the others to eat and found the food particularly delicious.

After lunch, Gu Xiyue asked everyone to go back and rest for an hour to avoid the hottest sun before going out.

But most people refuse to rest.

"It's windy at the beach, so we can wear a hat to avoid getting too hot!"

"Yes! We are not afraid of harvesting wheat in summer, so this is nothing!"

"We need to dig out the salt flats as soon as possible and dry the salt."

"We can rest at noon after the salt flats are dug. There's no need to rush."

Seeing that everyone was very motivated, Gu Xiyue could only remind everyone to drink more water and rest when they were tired.

The women couldn't bear it any longer, so they went back to rest for an hour, and then got up to continue collecting sea salt.

In the evening, the women who collected salt came one after another, carrying cloth bags, to Gu Xiyue's yard to weigh the salt.

Xiao Heng and Xu Junye were watching the scales while Wei Lin was taking notes beside them.

What Gu Xiyue didn't expect was that the women collected salt very quickly. At the end of the day, the least they collected was 17 or 18 kilograms, and the most was more than 30 kilograms.

When they found out that they had earned a dozen or dozens of coins today, they all showed an unbelievable smile on their faces.

If you earn thirty cents a day, it will be close to one or two taels of silver in a month. If you work a little harder, you will definitely have one or two taels of silver.

Even if a woman collected more than ten kilograms of fruit, she would earn four or five cents a month. If she kept this money outside, it would be enough for their basic living expenses for a month.

It’s exciting just thinking about it.

Everyone calculated that they would get the money by the 25th of next month, and the fatigue in their bodies disappeared all of a sudden.

When Aunt Fang saw that someone could collect more than 30 kilograms of sea salt, she was obviously jealous and her eyes were shining when she looked at others.

She collected 15 kilograms of salt today and thought she was very fast, but it turned out that someone collected more than her!

The shed on the west side has been built, sealed on the north and south sides, and open on the west side. A layer of branches is placed inside, and several layers of coarse cloth are laid on the branches. The salt collected by everyone is poured on top to prevent moisture.

When pouring the sea salt, you can see the quality of the salt and see if anyone has mixed stones or other things into the sea salt.

At the end of the day, a total of nearly two thousand kilograms of sea salt were collected.

This quantity surprised Gu Xiyue a little. Now people can make so much sea salt just by collecting it from the thatch. Once the salt is dried in the salt flats, based on the capacity, a salt flat would have to dry thousands or even tens of thousands of kilograms of salt a week.

This small shed in the yard can't hold tens of thousands of kilograms of salt.

At night, Gu Xiyue couldn't sleep, and her heart was heavy. She tossed and turned in her thoughts. Once things started, everyone's expectations were also full. Where would the salt be stored and what would be used to transport it out? Thousands of kilograms of salt could not be transported one by one by carts, which was too slow. She also couldn't let the merchants come here to transport it, as that would expose their base camp. In the end, she simply sat up and took a piece of paper to write and draw. In the end, she only slept for two hours.

The next morning, Gu Xiyue stopped Xiao Heng who was about to go out with dark circles under his eyes.

"Get a boat?"

Xiao Heng thought there was something wrong with his ears and stared at Gu Xiyue for a long time.

Seeing that she didn't look like she was joking at all, he became serious.

"Didn't you sleep well last night?"

Gu Xiyue thought he would say something, but he asked her this.

I nodded immediately and said, "I can't sleep well unless the problem is solved. I thought about more than just this problem last night."

"We can't store sea salt like this. We need a special place to store it. Otherwise, we can't put it there. And we don't have a big truck to transport the sea salt. We can't carry much at a time. A small cart won't work on this road. It's too heavy and the wheels will easily sink into the mud. So I think it's most convenient to transport it by boat."

"We are close to the sea, and the water is deep, so we have the conditions to build a dock. As long as we can get a medium-sized ship, we can transport tens of thousands of kilograms of sea salt at a time without any problem."

Gu Xiyue talked freely and told Xiao Heng all her thoughts last night. Xiao Heng took the paper from her hand and wrote down the plans and arrangements for these things clearly.

He looked at her deeply, read her carefully, pursed his lips and said solemnly: "Come with me to find the military master, we will discuss it."

"And!" He patted her shoulder gently. "If you have any unsolvable problems in the future, don't think about them alone. Tell me and I'll work with you to find a solution."

Gu Xiyue raised the corner of his mouth and whispered, "Okay, thank you, Your Highness!"

The two of them went to the east end to find Jun Ye. Before leaving, Xiao Heng returned to the middle room. When he came out, he was holding a cloth bag and a kettle in his hands.

He opened the cloth bag, took out a cake and handed it to Gu Xiyue, then opened the kettle and held it in his hand.

"Have some bread to fill your stomach. I'll make lunch when I get back."

Gu Xiyue took a bite of the pancake, which was a vegetable box. The vegetables were salty and fragrant, and the pancake was fragrant, soft and chewy. The mixture tasted very good. After eating a few bites, she took the kettle from Xiao Heng, tilted her head back, opened her mouth, and poured the water into her mouth.

His lips never touched the rim of the kettle.

Xiao Heng stared at her rosy lips for a few seconds, then smiled and looked away.

After finishing the cake in a few bites, Gu Xiyue took out a handkerchief and wiped his mouth. "Let's go to the cafeteria for lunch. Food tastes better when there are more people around. You can go and experience it."

"good."

Wei Lin and Hu Mazi followed the two of them from a distance. Meixiang stayed in the house to spread out the sea salt that she had collected yesterday and let it air in.

Starting yesterday, Xiao Heng formed a protection team with three military officers and his two guards. The six people were divided into three groups to guard and patrol, taking turns to keep watch at the entrance.

Among the three generals, only General Wang had no kung fu skills, while the other two had some kung fu skills, so General Wang was grouped with Xiao Heng.

It was Wei Lin and Hu Mazi's turn to keep watch today. When they arrived at the east end, Xiao Heng and several military officers asked them to sleep in the room next door so that they could get enough rest and be more alert for the night watch.

Although the higher-ups have controlled Hu Mazi and the families of the three military lords and made them do those things, there is no guarantee that they will not send other people to investigate.

Even if someone comes, they will only come at night, so night duty is very important.

Gu Xiyue told the three military officers about her idea. When they heard that she wanted to build a boat, they were immediately happy.

"Get a boat?" Xu Junye said with a smile: "If we go out to get a boat, I guess we need at least several thousand taels of silver. How about..."

He glanced at the vast ocean and said, "Let's build our own ship."

"Build your own boat?"

Gu Xiyue was shocked.

This kind of thing was completely beyond her expectations.

Xiao Heng nodded, "I also think this method is suitable."

Gu Xiyue turned her head to look at him suddenly. Xiao Heng smiled slightly and said, "It's impossible to buy a boat, but we can still build a boat with a sail of about six feet."

"Yes!" Master Xu pointed to the back of the house. "Miss Gu, you may not know this, but there's a cellar in the back with a large amount of tung oil. More than a decade ago, this was originally where Ganzhou built ships. Later, the authorities banned the development of maritime transport and abandoned this place. Later, it became increasingly desolate and became a natural prison."

Gu Xiyue was confused. She didn't know how long six zhang was, nor did she know what tung oil was used for. But from what Mr. Xu said, it must be related to shipbuilding.

"Miss Gu, don't forget that there are quite a few skilled craftsmen among the villagers of the Southern Wasteland. Wang Hu, Zhao Yancheng, and Zhang Tieliang are all expert shipbuilders. When they first arrived, they cut down a lot of pine and oak trees, waiting for them to dry out, hoping to build a boat and escape. But they gave up the plan because they were told that their families would be implicated if they escaped or committed suicide."

"In other words, this regulation has only been in place in recent years?"

Mr. Xu Jun nodded.

After hearing this, Gu Xiyue had an idea in mind and turned to ask Xiao Heng: "How long is a six-meter-long boat? How many kilograms of stuff can it hold?"

When Xiao Heng heard this, he drew a line under his feet with his feet and started counting his steps.

Gu Xiyue followed him and counted. He stopped after taking eighteen steps, turned around and said, "It's about this long."

Gu Xiyue had just followed him for a few steps and roughly estimated that his three steps were about two meters and five in length. One zhang was equivalent to two meters and five, so six zhang was about fifteen meters.

Xiao Heng looked at her puzzled face and continued, "A small cargo ship six feet long and two feet wide can hold at least five to six thousand kilograms of cargo at a time."

After saying this, Gu Xiyue's eyes lit up. "How long does it take to build a boat like this?"

"With dry wood and ten craftsmen, it can be built in about twenty days."

Gu Xiyue clapped her hands and asked, "Can it be completed so quickly?"

She was very excited. If she could really build a boat by herself, she would not only save money but also solve the problem of shipping goods.

But this dry wood...

Grandpa Xu Jun scratched his head and said, "Everything else is fine, but I don't know if this dry wood is still there. I don't know if the wood they secretly stored before is still there. If it's not there..."

He hesitated for a moment. Xiao Heng, standing beside him, looked serious and said slowly, "If there's no dry wood, it will take about one to two years to cut the wood and wait for it to dry before building it."

Gu Xiyue's joyful mood instantly sank to the bottom.

She said without hope: "Let's ask first. If there is nothing, we can only use a cart to pull it. At worst, we can pull it a few more times."

Although I feel a little disappointed, it’s okay. As long as I can get out, there will definitely be other ways.

She was too impatient.

But this gave her another idea.

Now that the salt flats have started production, if they wait a month to go out and look for buyers, the battle will probably be very long, and the money she and Xiao Heng have will not be enough to pay everyone's wages. If they can go out and look for sales channels earlier, then when the east entrance opens, the sea salt can be transported directly by truck. This will not only reduce the process of sea salt accumulation, but also allow them to see the money earlier.

She whispered this idea to Xiao Heng and asked him to communicate with Jun Ye to see if he could let her out quietly first. Xiao Heng's beautiful lips immediately closed.

"You want to go out alone?"

Gu Xiyue shook her head and said, "I'll take Meixiang with me so we can take care of each other."

Xiao Heng's expression became even uglier. "You two women, you want to walk outside? It's not safe outside!"

Gu Xiyue was stunned for a moment, and felt that this abandoned prince was quite caring. He smiled helplessly and said, "I also want you to go with me, but if you leave, what if something happens here? One of us must stay behind to prevent any accidents."

Xiao Heng looked at her sincere eyes, which didn't seem like she was telling lies, and he felt a little relieved.

After thinking about it carefully, he felt that what she said was right. Before the Southern Wilderness was safe, one of them had to stay here to take charge of the situation. If the two of them went together, everyone would be confused, and it would be hard to say what would happen then.

Xiao Heng discussed it with the three military officers for a while, and surprisingly, the three military officers agreed immediately.

"Right now, the higher-ups must think you're starving and won't send anyone to investigate. If we wait another ten days or so, we might not be able to say for sure. But, you two..."

"I'll stay and let Wei Lin go with us. With him around, we won't have to worry about any petty thieves."

Xu Junye nodded, "Then there's no time to lose. Go early and come back early. You can go out at Yinshi in the morning. This time is the best."

Yinshi is from 3 to 5 in the morning. Even if there are people waiting there, this is the time when they are most relaxed.

The departure time was set for the morning of the next day at 3:00 AM. That day happened to be the day when Xiao Heng and Hu Mazi were on guard at the east entrance.

After the discussion, Gu Xiyue separated from Xiao Heng and went to the beach to call Zhao Yancheng out and ask him about the storage of wood in the past.

Zhao Yancheng was busy, and when he heard Gu Xiyue calling him, he thought she had something to tell him, but he ended up hearing her asking him about the wood.

He suddenly felt a little embarrassed. This incident happened when he was just exiled here. He was laughed at in the village at that time. It was a shameful thing. Now that Gu Xiyue brought it up, he felt really ashamed.

Seeing the ever-changing expressions on his face, Gu Xiyue said seriously, "Brother Zhao, I'm not kidding you anymore. If those woods are still there, tell me the truth. I want you to find someone to build a boat."

"shipbuilding!"

Zhao Yancheng's jaw almost dropped. He didn't expect that Gu Xiyue also wanted to build a ship.

Could it be that she had the same idea as I did at the beginning?

"Build... build ships for what?"

"Transporting sea salt."

Gu Xiyue smiled and said, "Brother Zhao, our cart is so small that it can only carry two or three hundred kilograms of salt at a time. If we really want to transport salt to sell, it will take many trips just to pull the cart. And if our four salt flats are well developed, we can produce thousands of kilograms of salt in seven days. By then, using a cart to pull the salt will tire us to death!"

Zhao Yancheng laughed when he heard this. He scratched his head and said, "That's true. Miss Gu is really thoughtful. It's just..."

Gu Xiyue's heart was in her throat and she had lost hope in getting dry wood.

"We secretly put the dry wood away. The three of us divided it up and put it on the beams, thinking we could make something else out of it later. We never looked at it again, and we didn't know if it could still be used."

Hope ignited in Gu Xiyue's heart.

"When Brother Zhao finishes his lunch, call the other two brothers and I'll go with you to see if it can still be used."

Zhao Yancheng smiled and nodded. He was very happy to hear this. It would be great if the wood could really be used.