Jiang Yimian walked along, pondering the matter of the mountain stronghold.
There should only be one stronghold in this area, Shanhu Village. Even if there are some small bandit groups, they couldn't possibly be as large as Shanhu Village.
Zhao Sandao would not allow anyone to threaten the position of Shanhu Village, so the traitor could not have gone to other villages.
If it wasn't some other mountain stronghold, then what could have made those bandits so angry?
According to Wang Zhuzi, the men at the entrance of the mountain stronghold have been hanging there for several days, and people go to whip them every day.
Jiang Yimian suddenly remembered what Lu Cijian had said about bandits searching for someone on the mountain. Could it be that the government was behind it?
Thinking of this possibility, she raised an eyebrow.
That's good. The fact that the government has noticed the mountain stronghold means that the nearby villages and towns are slowly recovering.
If the government is able to eliminate the mountain strongholds, the refugees in the mountains will eventually leave, and their lives in the low-lying areas will return to normal.
If the government officials didn't have the capability, the mountain stronghold would likely focus their attention on the government and wouldn't send people to search the mountains extensively, thus keeping their small valley safe.
Regardless of which route you take, the small depression will be safe.
However, the situation is less certain for the refugees living on the mountain.
She needed to remind Wang Zhuzi and the others that it would be best to leave as soon as possible.
It would be safer to wander around the town than to be on this mountain.
The situation in the villages and towns is slowly improving. There must be soldiers maintaining order in the towns. No matter how rampant those bandits are, they can't openly rush into the towns to kill people.
Thinking of all this, she quickly went up the mountain.
Wang Zhuzi hesitated for a moment after hearing Jiang Yimian's instructions.
On their way back home, they passed through many towns, but they were still in a mess, with refugees fighting and killing each other over food.
But in the last two months, everyone has been living peacefully together on the mountain because they have food.
He feared the town would remain in chaos, and there were bandits down the mountain; rashly leading the villagers down the mountain would be dangerous.
Jiang Yimian knew the other party's concerns and simply said, "I know a shortcut down the mountain that can bypass the stronghold. You can go to town with peace of mind. If you are still worried, you can send someone to town to check the situation first."
She also needed to know the specific situation in the town. If it really was the government coming to suppress the bandits, she could consider secretly helping them. With the bandits around, they would have to be careful if they wanted to come down the mountain.
Unlike her, the others in the small depression had little fighting ability, so they were naturally worried and afraid.
Wang Zhuzi nodded and walked down the mountain path with Jiang Yimian before they parted ways.
Jiang Yimian returned in the afternoon.
Gou Sheng and his friends ran back early, each carrying a full basket of chestnuts. They also filled Jiang Yimian's basket to the brim, half with hawthorns and half with chestnuts.
The group went out again to continue searching for chestnuts and walnuts, while Mimi went off to hunt somewhere.
The small depression was much quieter now, with only the woman and child and patient Chen Tiezhu present.
Jiang Yimian ate the food that Wang Fengqin had kept warm for her on the stove before she started making candied hawthorns.
She first soaked the hawthorns in clean water to wash them.
Xiao Ye, Xiao Nuan'er, and Daya noticed this place early on, and seeing Jiang Yimian busy, they quickly came over to help.
They were even happier when they learned that they were making candied hawthorns.
None of the children had ever eaten candied hawthorn before; they had only seen others eat it from afar. When they heard that their older sister was going to make candied hawthorn, their eyes lit up.
Wang Fengqin was somewhat surprised. While washing the hawthorns, she asked curiously, "Yimian, the syrup on candied hawthorns is not easy to coat. Do you know how to do it?"
Many people in the village know that candied hawthorns are made from hawthorns, but they don't know how to coat them with sugar. They tried a few times but gave up, afraid of wasting the sugar.
In the countryside, sugar is a precious commodity. If Yi Mian hadn't discovered such a large jar of sugar in the cave, they wouldn't have been able to drink sweet sugar water these days.
Jiang Yimian just smiled and nodded, saying, "Mother, don't worry, I will do it and I will definitely not waste the sugar."
Wang Fengqin just smiled helplessly and didn't say anything more.
As long as the children are happy, that's all that matters. What's the point of worrying about waste? She used to be controlled and bullied by her in-laws in the Jiang family. Now that she's finally escaped the Jiang family, she's not going to follow their example.
All she wants is for her three children to grow up happily and safely.
With the help of several people, the half basket of hawthorns was quickly cleaned.
Jiang Yimian dried the hawthorns in a winnowing basket, then skewered them with thin bamboo sticks before going to the stove to boil syrup.
Before long, the loose white sugar in the pot turned into a pale yellow syrup. Several children excitedly gathered around to watch, afraid of missing a single step and losing their candied hawthorns.
Jiang Yimian found it amusing but didn't stop her. Seeing that the syrup in the pot had completely melted and changed from small bubbles to large, even bubbles, she then took the skewered candied hawthorns and coated them with the syrup.
The children stared at it for a long time but still couldn't understand how the red hawthorns had turned into shiny candied hawthorns.
As the candied hawthorns on the stove cooled down, Xiao Nuan'er couldn't help but swallow hard, tiptoeing to look at the bright red, glistening candied hawthorns.
Seeing that the little guy's eyes were practically glued on, Jiang Yimian chuckled and handed each person a skewer.
As soon as they got the candied hawthorns, the little ones couldn't wait to put them in their mouths.
The sweet and sour taste made everyone happily shake their heads.
Daya nodded repeatedly, a smile spreading across her chubby face. "Sister Yimian, you're amazing."
Little Nuan'er smiled so much her eyes narrowed, and said in her childish voice, "Little Nuan'er got to eat candied hawthorns too, not just my cousin can eat them."
Jiang Yimian was taken aback, then smiled and patted Xiao Nuan'er's head, saying earnestly, "Whatever Xiao Nuan'er wants to eat, we'll have it for her from now on."
Xiao Nuan'er nodded happily and then followed Daya to see the little rabbits.
Xiao Ye then moved closer to Wang Fengqin and said with a smile, "Mother, with my sister here, we can eat anything. Don't think about those unhappy things. Xiao Ye will also try to grow up and protect Mother, sister and Xiao Nuan'er."
Wang Fengqin wiped her eyes before smiling and nodding, "Xiao Ye is right, Yi Mian is very capable, and we will not be the same as before."
She was too blindly filial and weak in the past. In order to be dutiful to her elders, she caused her own children to suffer along with her.
In the end, she gained nothing and almost caused several children to die in the village with her.
She will definitely not do it again.
Seeing that the other person was starting to blame herself, Jiang Yimian felt a little helpless. She handed her a string of candied hawthorns and then smiled and said, "Mother is very good. I am not the same Yimian I used to be. I will definitely not let you be bullied again."
"Mother, try it! It's so sweet!"
Wang Fengqin simply smiled as she accepted the candied hawthorn. The first taste was sweet, followed by a sourness that balanced the sweetness in her mouth, creating a delicious sweet and sour flavor.
"Mmm, it's very sweet and delicious, just like the candied hawthorns sold in town."
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