Lu Shiyan approached Luo Yuquan and others to discuss making a heated kang (a traditional heated brick bed) and asking them to temporarily take in the children.
Almost without hesitation, everyone agreed to take in the children. Some even expressed a desire to adopt certain children, saying they missed their younger brothers very much.
Unfortunately, my family didn't meet good people like Lu Shiyan and Jiang Tangtang back then, and the rest of my family died on the way to escape famine.
When talking about their experiences on the road to escape famine, many people think of their families.
Most of those who followed Liu Chengfeng to seek refuge with Lu Shiyan had family members who died on the way to escape famine.
Because they thought of their own families, everyone felt even more sympathy for the children.
Previously, everyone was too busy taking care of themselves to have much spare energy to look after these children. Now that things have stabilized, everyone is willing to help those children more.
Lu Shiyan did not object to them adopting these children, but suggested that they should first consult the children's opinions and obtain their consent before proceeding.
Furthermore, once you adopt them, you cannot mistreat them, or you will be punished.
After agreeing on this, Lu Shiyan then approached Xie Ziang and told them about the matter.
This arrangement couldn't be better for the children. Xie Zi'ang naturally had no objections.
But he was unwilling to go.
To be precise, it wasn't that he didn't want to live with Luo Yuquan and his group of bachelors.
Instead, she wanted to leave the valley and join the army with Lu Shiyan.
“I can do it.” Fearing that Lu Shiyan would disagree with him joining the army because of his young age, he not only showed off his arms to show that he had become stronger, but also said, “I will be fifteen years old soon. According to the laws of the Great Zhou, I can join the army.”
Lu Shiyan did not immediately answer whether he could or not, but asked, "Do you know what it means to go to the battlefield? If you go to the battlefield, I may not have time to take care of you, and you may die."
“I know.” Xie Zi’ang looked at him with firm eyes and said, “I will not let myself die easily.”
"Okay!" Lu Shiyan nodded. "Remember what you said today."
Xie Zi'ang had prepared a whole host of arguments to persuade him. Unexpectedly, he agreed after only getting started.
A look of surprise flashed in his eyes.
"You stay in the valley and settle them in. I have other things to do. When I come back, I will take you to the military camp."
With the arrangements in the valley complete, Lu Shiyan, accompanied by Crow, set off for the black mine.
Meanwhile, Fang Dayong and his men in the black mine waited for many days, but the crows never returned. Their initial excitement, exhilaration, and hope turned into despondency, despair, and resignation.
Recently, everyone has returned to their previous numb and dejected state.
Fang Dayong was also filled with despair, but he was unwilling to give up just like that.
"Please wait a little longer, everyone. Maybe my cousin is already on his way."
He spoke without much conviction.
He actually thought Lu Shiyan wouldn't come, but he didn't want to die.
"If all else fails, we can think of other ways."
Someone muttered, "What other way is there?" If there were any other way, they wouldn't be trapped like this.
The more they talked, the more desperate they became, and some even considered taking the manager down with them.
Just as someone was about to do something foolish, someone suddenly exclaimed excitedly, "Old Lai, isn't that your pet crow?"
The worker, who had picked up the carrying pole and was about to rush towards the foreman, muttered, "It seems so."
Several workers nearby also became excited when they saw the crows.
Fang Dayong gripped the carrying pole tightly, steadied his breathing, and said, "Everyone, be careful to cover up for Old Lai, and make sure the manager doesn't discover him when he gets close to the crow."
Having worked together before, the team was even more skilled this time.
Soon, under the cover of the crowd, Old Lai secretly removed the strip of cloth from the crow.
Although he only glanced at it, he could tell that this strip of cloth was different from the one that had been tied to the crow's leg before.
This must be a reply from Fang Dayong's cousin.
Clutching the strip of cloth in his hand, Old Lai was filled with excitement. Taking advantage of a break from work, he subtly handed the strip of cloth to Zhang Xu.
Zhang Xu really wanted to open it immediately, but for safety's sake, he restrained his impulse.
Everyone suppressed their excitement and worked in silence. It wasn't until after work in the evening that Zhang Xu finally found an opportunity to look at the strip of cloth hidden in his clothes.
Although Fang Dayong was illiterate, he excitedly squeezed through and whispered, "Brother Zhang, is this a reply from my cousin? What does it say?"
Zhang Xu was so moved that tears welled up in his eyes.
Putting aside the contents of the letter, his beautiful handwriting alone was enough to make him boil over.
This was the first time in his life he had ever seen such beautiful handwriting.
Not to mention the hope this letter brought him.
He said, "It's a reply from your cousin. He said he's arrived, but to rescue so many of us, we need to cooperate with his plan. He needs to prepare, so he told us to be patient and not to leak the news."
"Really? Is he really my cousin?" Fang Dayong couldn't hold back any longer and burst into tears.
Although he had sent a message by crow, he never dared to hold any hope during that time.
He knew that his current predicament was entirely his own doing, and he deserved it. He dared not even hope that Lu Shiyan would come to his rescue.
He truly hadn't expected that Lu Shiyan would disregard past grievances and come to his rescue. Overwhelmed with emotion and shame, he regretted his earlier foolishness in trying to outdo Lu Shiyan.
Seeing that he was too excited to control himself, Zhang Xu quickly reminded him, "You should keep your eyes closed and not let anyone notice anything unusual. Otherwise, you'll ruin your cousin's big plan."
"Yes, yes, I can't hold him back." Fang Dayong quickly composed himself and wiped away his tears.
"I need to think of a way to get rid of this note." Zhang Xu was very reluctant to part with the beautiful handwriting on the cloth strip, but keeping it was too unsafe. He hardened his heart, gritted his teeth, and swallowed the note.
"We'll secretly pass the message to someone else." Fang Dayong had calmed down by now and was thinking about how to cooperate with Lu Shiyan to rescue everyone.
"How about I secretly tell other people the good news? There's strength in numbers, and we can all run together when the time comes."
Having experienced betrayal and intrigue, Zhang Xu thought for a moment and said, "It's good, but let's not say it directly yet."
If the information is accidentally leaked, your cousin and we will all be in danger. But it's okay to try and make contact first, to sound them out."
“Brother Zhang is right. I don’t care if I die, but my cousin came to save me out of kindness. I can’t let him suffer because of my mistake.”
Fang Dayong thought Zhang Xu was knowledgeable and much smarter than himself.
He simply went to discuss it with him.
What should be done next? How can we contact more people while ensuring no secrets are leaked?
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