After everyone had calmed down, Zhen Wanwan patiently explained, "His wound isn't big. As long as it doesn't get wet, it will heal on its own after a while."
"Thank you, Madam Zhen."
Dongzi's family bowed gratefully to her and handed her a dried wild game.
“Madam Zhen, my family doesn’t have anything of value, please accept this.”
Dongzi's mother looked to be in her fifties or sixties. Her eyes had lost their sparkle from the pressures of life, and she looked incredibly old.
At this moment, she sincerely gave herself the only meat she had. Zhen Wanwan felt a mix of emotions. The common people were starving and cold, and those princes and nobles, in their struggle for power and profit, disregarded the lives of the people. It was only a matter of time before they lost the hearts of the people.
But as an ordinary person, she couldn't change the fate of this era; she could only try her best to protect the people around her.
She sighed and refused the things Dongzi's mother offered. Knowing they were worried, she said that no one in her family could gather firewood and hoped they could help her on the way. Dongzi readily agreed.
It was still pouring rain today, so everyone was resting peacefully in the cave. She took a detour past Lin Biaotou's place. The镖师 (bodyguards/escorts) were arranged to live in a cave next to the cave where the bandits were imprisoned, which was exactly in the opposite direction from where they lived.
On the way Zhen Wanwan went, people affectionately called her "Zhen Niangzi".
Thinking about this, she felt a little ashamed. She knew nothing about medicine, and she had been mistaken for a doctor by them on the way, which was really hard to accept.
When they arrived at their destination, Zhen Wanwan went to check on the bandits, only to stumble upon a conspiracy!
Zhao Si was seen furtively fiddling with something in the bandit's den, while Li Zhenzhen paced anxiously back and forth, the two muttering to themselves.
"How's it going? Did you find anything private?"
"No... I'll look inside... I found it."
Li Zhenzhen excitedly accepted the item Zhao Si handed her: "I'll secretly hang this on Zhen Wanwan and find a way to lure her to a secluded place. Then you can lie in ambush, and once we find the treasure, we'll split it equally!"
Upon hearing this, Zhao Si retorted unhappily, "How can we split it equally? I was the one who did the dirty work, so I should get more! I'll get seven and you get three. If you can do it, do it; if you don't want to, then forget it."
Knowing Zhao Si was unwilling, Li Zhenzhen gritted her teeth and glared at him angrily, but finally agreed to a 30/70 split.
Her eyes were filled with ruthlessness. Zhen Wanwan couldn't escape this time. It was quite normal for someone to die in the middle of nowhere. If you're going to do it, then go all the way.
Hearing that the two were plotting against her, Zhen Wanwan was genuinely amused and angry. She didn't have time to deal with them, but they delivered themselves to her doorstep, so their intentions must be quite ambitious.
Then she'll play along and strike decisively when the time comes. You can't let everyone bully you and still have to swallow your anger and keep quiet!
After the others left, Zhen Wanwan walked up to the bandits and examined them closely. She didn't know what the two men had taken from them and wanted to frame her for.
She looked at it for a long time but couldn't figure out what was wrong. The bandit was still delirious from the fire and was tightly bound with ropes, so it was impossible for him to do anything evil.
To avoid being tricked by Li Zhenzhen and the others, Zhen Wanwan took out a syringe from her spatial storage and injected some unknown liquid. This medicine would slowly spread throughout her body until she lost her breath.
After confirming that all the bandits had been injected, she left with peace of mind, only to bump into Chief Escort Lin next door.
“Madam Zhen, you’ve come here…”
Lin, the head镖师 (bodyguard/escort), looked worried. Their plan to go to Leling Prefecture had been disrupted, and they would probably have to be delayed for a few more days.
Not only that, but the food supplies are also running low. Otherwise, he wouldn't have stopped to go hunting a few days ago. Now that the rain is getting heavier, it's definitely not a good time to go hunting.
He was extremely worried. He had just seen some villagers trying to go out in the rain to find food, but he angrily scolded them and sent them back. However, he knew that if the rain continued, the villagers would only starve to death in the cave.
When people are driven to the brink, who knows what they might do!
Zhen Wanwan didn't know what he was thinking, but his purpose in coming was the same as hers: to get food.
"Chief镖林, I came here to ask if there's anything we can do. Our food supplies are almost gone, and with this rain continuing, we probably won't last more than a few days."
Lin, the head镖师 (bodyguard/escort), was also anxious about this matter! His wife had come to tell him about the food situation early on, but there was nothing he could do. The game he had caught while hunting a couple of days ago was divided equally among the镖师 (bodyguards/escorts), and he didn't keep much for himself.
He glanced at the raging storm outside, feeling utterly helpless.
"Alas, to tell you the truth, our food supplies are almost gone, and we've been worried about it these past few days."
Zhen Wanwan understood. After a few seconds of contemplation, she offered her suggestion: "When I came over just now, I saw that there were quite a few bandits in the cave."
Before she could finish speaking, she saw Lin, the head镖师 (bodyguard/escort), looking at her with a terrified expression, and Zhen Wanwan's next words got stuck in her throat.
Is this a misunderstanding that she wants to eat people?
She died young! How could she even imagine that?! Does she seem that cruel?
"Ahem~ What I mean is, with so many bandits, they can't possibly be without food supplies. Do you think we should go and plunder their Old Cao?"
Lin, the head镖师 (bodyguard), was reminded by Zhen Wanwan and finally realized what she meant: "Absolutely, absolutely! How could I, with my blockhead, not have thought of that? It must be Zhen's wife!"
He looked directly at Zhen Wanwan, filled with admiration for her. Not only was she skilled in medicine, but she was also quick-witted. He could ask her questions if he didn't understand something in the future.
Soon, Chief Escort Lin notified every household in the village, and everyone in the cave began searching it. They even had to dig into rat holes by hand. Unfortunately, someone pulled out a snake.
After Zhen Wanwan's inspection, everyone was relieved to find that the snake was not poisonous. The snake then became the victim's family's dinner, which was somewhat like a blessing in disguise.
Seeing how seriously everyone was searching, Zhen Wanwan and her second brother exchanged a glance, their unspoken understanding unspoken.
A moment later.
A gasp came from somewhere, and everyone rushed over. Zhen Fuyou emerged from the narrow opening carrying a large bag. The grown man, with tears in his eyes, excitedly showed everyone the contents of the bag.
Upon seeing the white rice, the villagers spontaneously knelt down to thank God for the blessing. Lin Biaotou could not hide his excitement either. He turned to look at Zhen Wanwan, his admiration for her beyond measure.
But after everyone calmed down, they started discussing who should go in and move the grain. It was a lucrative job, and those who were shrewd could secretly hide a few bags of grain, enough to feed their families for a long time.
These people are not from the same clan or village, and their hearts are not united to begin with. If the grain is not distributed equally, it may cause the villagers to fight each other.
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