The bet between the two piqued the interest of the Zhu family, who all followed behind Chen Xiang and Pei Sining. Even Old Madam Zhu rarely showed a smile, pulling Liu Shi along to watch the excitement.
Pei Sining led Chen Xiang to the empty road outside the thatched hut, stretched out her hands which were already red from the cold, and breathed on them to warm them.
In the mornings, the temperature in Lujia Village is close to that of early winter. If you yawn lightly onto your palm, you will see white mist coming out of your mouth.
"It's really cold; I can feel the chill of winter around me."
Zhu Haotian shivered, rubbing his arms incessantly, as he looked out at the village where gusts of cold wind were blowing.
"Is it only in Lujia Village that it's this cold?"
"Don't catch a cold, hurry back!"
Pei Sining's bet indirectly confirmed her granddaughter's warning. The more Grandma Zhu thought about it, the more panicked she became. She stepped forward, grabbed Pei Sining, and turned to walk towards the pharmacy.
There were more than a dozen stoves in the pharmacy where medicine was being decocted. Everyone was busy decocting the medicine and tending the fire, so they didn't feel how cold it was outside.
Now that I've gone out for a walk, I realize how cold it is outside.
Thinking of the patients in the isolation ward, Ms. Sun paused, suddenly becoming anxious.
"Oh no, it's so cold and there's no stove around the patients."
"Don't worry, we have already arranged quilts for everyone. The cotton from Lujia Village is the warmest in the Yuan Kingdom."
Just as Mrs. Sun was anxiously worried about the patients in the isolation ward, she saw the village headman slowly walking over, leaning on a cane and supported by his grandson.
He was followed by seven or eight children, who were about ten years old and were now able to help the village head with the work in the village.
Under the village head's instructions, everyone carried cotton vests and distributed them to the Zhu family members and the escorts.
"Perhaps it's because of the special geographical location of our Lujia Village that frost forms in June. We really feel bad for making everyone feel cold. If you don't mind wearing these cotton vests, they will keep you warm."
Grandma Zhu was still worried about the impending blizzard when she was surprised that the village head of Lujia Village would bring her a cotton vest.
This excited her, and she gestured for the Zhu family members to come forward and take the jacket, then shook the village head's hand in gratitude.
"Village head, thank you! We were worried about what to do in the cold weather!"
The village head stared at the tearful old lady Zhu with a puzzled look, not understanding why a few cotton vests would move her so much.
He smiled sheepishly and gently comforted Grandma Zhu, "Don't be so polite. You are our saviors. Let alone these cheap cotton vests, we would give you cotton if you wanted it."
"Village head, do you still have cotton?" Liu asked excitedly, holding her daughter as she feigned surprise.
"Yes, before the plague, our village grew a lot of cotton, and even though the young people have left, there is still a lot stockpiled in the warehouse."
The village headman didn't notice the excited gleam in Liu's eyes. He turned around with a self-deprecating hunch, saying, "What a pity. With the chronic drought, winters haven't been cold for years, so this cotton is worthless."
"If you are interested, you can come and take a look with me."
"Mom, let's go take a look! Xixi doesn't have any new clothes yet. I want to make her a first birthday outfit."
Wow, new clothes! I'm so happy! Xixi can finally wear new clothes!
[Mommy is so good! Mommy needs to make herself a super warm outfit too!]
Otherwise you'll freeze into an ice sculpture on the way!
[Grandma, brother, uncle, and aunt also need to be kept warm so they can survive.]
The book describes how the temperature dropped to below ten degrees Celsius during the months of the blizzard, a cold that the people had never experienced before.
This temperature also caused many people to die in the winter, and the Zhu family was also severely affected, with the older brother freezing to death on the road.
Her daughter's reminder made Liu even more certain that she was going to the warehouse. Her dark eyes gleamed with excitement as she looked at her mother-in-law with anticipation and a hint of coquetry in her voice.
Old Mrs. Zhu also needed to buy winter clothes, so she naturally wouldn't refuse her daughter-in-law's request.
"Let's go take a look."
With Grandma Zhu's permission, the Zhu family members all showed barely suppressed excitement and anticipation.
Chen Xiang stared blankly at the departing figures of the Zhu family members when Pei Sining suddenly appeared beside him, speaking in a calm tone.
"Lord Chen, I accept my defeat."
Pei Sining's voice instantly pulled Chen Xiang back to reality. He coughed awkwardly a few times, signaling to his brothers in the room.
"You should go and take a look too!"
The escorts left in the room all understood each other without saying a word, covered their mouths with their fists, suppressed their laughter, and quickly left the pharmacy.
After everyone left, Chen Xiang shook his long robe and prepared to kneel in front of Pei Sining.
Unexpectedly, Pei Sining reached out and lifted his arm, giving him instructions with a serious expression.
"Lord Chen, I don't need you to kneel down, I only hope you can listen carefully to my words of advice."
Chen Xiang immediately became wary of Pei Sining's words, his eyes scanning the small boy.
"Who are you? How could a child from an ordinary farming family say such a thing!"
"Just know that I am not your enemy. What we need to face now is the unknown dangers on the road ahead."
Pei Sining will not reveal his identity, nor can he expose the hints he heard from Zhu Xixi to Chen Xiang. The only thing he can do now is to remind Chen Xiang what this team will face in the future.
Chen Xiang remained silent for a while, then turned to look outside. "You mean the frost in June?"
"Isn't this normal? Lujia Village has a special geographical location, which is why it's colder than outside."
"If that's the case, why can cotton be grown in Lujia Village? Cotton needs a suitable climate and sufficient sunlight to grow."
"If Lujia Village had this kind of weather all year round, how could it grow a large amount of cotton?"
Pei Sining had once read about cotton cultivation in a book. Liang was surrounded by deserts with sandstorms all year round, and in winter, it could only purchase cotton from neighboring countries.
To solve this problem, he could only look for solutions in books, but in the end he found that the soil and seasons in Liang were not suitable.
Pei Sining's analysis made Chen Xiang fall into deep thought; he had never thought about this question before.
How do you know this?
"It's very simple, just talk to your child more, and they'll naturally understand."
In order not to reveal her true thoughts, Pei Sining could only put on a childlike, innocent smile, tilting her head and laughing foolishly.
"So... what exactly do you want me to do?" Chen Xiang became more and more confused as he thought about it, staring at Pei Sining with a serious expression.
Pei Sining's request was actually very simple: "I hope you can listen to Grandma Zhu's advice more; she will keep you safe."
"Ha! What a joke!" This suggestion made Chen Xiang feel guilty. He touched his nose, coughed a few times, and turned to leave. "Don't worry, we're all in the same boat. I won't make things difficult for Grandma Zhu."
After saying that, he strode towards the door and kicked his subordinate who was eavesdropping outside the door a few times.
"Let's go! Let's check the warehouse to see if we have any winter clothes."
The guards all approached with a mixture of belief and skepticism, curiously surrounding Chen Xiang and discussing the matter.
"Boss, do you really believe what that kid said?"
"Have you gone mad from taking too much medicine? It's scorching hot outside Lujia Village, why are you preparing so much cotton?"
"Exactly, let's think of a way to escape!"
The incessant chattering in Chen Xiang's ears made him irritably slap the back of his subordinate's head.
"Shut up, we're already halfway there. Where else can we go but keep going?"
"Moreover, the brothers sent to the capital have not yet returned, and we don't know how the capital is doing now?"
Thinking of the situation in the capital, Chen Xiang's face grew increasingly gloomy. The turmoil in the capital had lasted for more than half a month, and if the court was not stable, the road ahead would be even more difficult.
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