Before dawn, the old and young men who had been sleeping outside all woke up; it was just too cold.
Someone mumbled in a daze, "Is it frosty? It's so cold, I dreamt I fell into an ice hole, it's freezing to death."
"Yes, we'll have to think of a way to camp here again; we can't keep sleeping in the open like this."
"It will be fine once the sun comes out."
The night watchman couldn't hold on any longer, and seeing that everyone was awake, he quickly lay down by the campfire for a nap.
Inside the Li family's tent, Jiayin didn't hear any noise outside, but she suddenly woke up.
It was cold, but hers was the chilling kind of cold.
Even though she was lying on a thick mattress and covered with a blanket, she felt cold from the inside out.
She got up, was stunned for a moment, and quickly touched her grandmother's forehead.
Fortunately, the old lady did not have a fever.
The old lady opened her eyes when her granddaughter touched her and struggled to sit up.
Her face was pale and she looked somewhat weak.
But she still picked up her granddaughter and comforted her with a smile, "Fu Niu, were you worried about Grandma? Don't worry, Grandma is fine, everything's alright."
Jiayin's nose tingled with tears, and she hugged her grandmother's neck. "Grandma, good morning."
"Okay, okay, Grandma will definitely get better soon. Grandma still has to send Fu Niu off to her wedding, Fu Niu, don't be afraid!"
Zhao Yuru and Tao Hongying woke up when they heard the noise.
"Mom, how are you feeling? Are you feeling better? Is there anything that's bothering you?"
Both daughters-in-law are filial, which makes Grandma Li smile even more.
"I'm still a little weak, but everything else is fine."
“There’s still a lot of meat soup left from last night. I’ll make a bowl of noodles for Mom. If she eats a full meal, she’ll recover faster.” Tao Hongying was happy and quickly arranged her mother-in-law’s breakfast.
Old Mrs. Li was strong-willed and never wanted to owe anyone anything, so she gave one more instruction.
"Alright, make an extra bowl for Doctor Zhang. He must have troubled you quite a bit last night."
Tao Hongying and Zhao Yuru quickly agreed and got up to get busy.
By this time, it was already quite bright on the horizon, and most of the people in the camp were awake.
Only the boys were still sleeping in, and the little ones were sucking their fingers and having sweet dreams.
Only Jiayin stayed close to her grandmother, keeping the old lady company and not letting her feel lonely.
"Grandma, again, eat again!"
Grandma Li, half guessing and half guessing, laughed and said, "You mean Grandma didn't get to eat pork, right? Don't worry, your father can hunt, so Grandma will be able to eat it again in the future."
Jiayin turned to look outside and saw the chubby little boy holding a piece of orange candy and quietly stuffing it into his grandmother's mouth.
The refreshing aroma and sweet taste of the oranges immediately revitalized the old lady.
She was reluctant to eat such a delicious thing.
But her granddaughter covered her mouth, afraid she would spit it out, which made her both laugh and cry. In the end, she could only enjoy the sweetness by herself.
I must say, sugar is really a good thing. Soon, my burning stomach felt much better, and I felt less weak and powerless.
Jiayin watched all this, her regret growing stronger. Why hadn't she bought a few more pounds at the market before she transmigrated?
This mixed candy, which I often ate as a child, doesn't have a wrapper, but it's incredibly sweet.
When she bought the cake, she casually bought two pounds of it as well…
At this moment, Jiaxi and Jia'an also woke up and climbed into the shed to see their grandmother.
The two boys have a keen sense of smell; their first words were, "It's so sweet!"
"Yes, it tastes sweet!"
Jiayin felt a little guilty and quickly stuffed a candy ball into each of their hands.
The two boys' eyes nearly popped out of their sockets with surprise, but they kept their mouths shut, afraid to utter a sound, lest the sweetness escape.
Grandma Li couldn't stop laughing, so she gently shushed her grandsons, signaling them to keep it a secret.
Jiaxi and Jia'an nodded vigorously, snuggling close to their grandmother. Their little faces were tense, but their tongues were frantically licking the candy balls.
Oh, how sweet! There's such delicious candy in the world!
Jiayin giggled as her brother amused her, but she still felt something was off and couldn't help but shiver again.
Grandma Li, Jiaxi, and Jia'an immediately pulled the blanket over her and wrapped her up like a ball...
Soon, Li Laosi invited a renowned doctor to take the old lady's pulse.
Doctor Zhang glanced at Jiayin from left to right, noticing that she was huddled under the covers, with only her fair, chubby face and big, blinking eyes showing.
She's a chubby girl who looks so cheerful.
He became increasingly certain that he was wrong, and his desire to find the hidden master had gone to extremes.
"Don't worry about it anymore, you're completely fine. Just rest for a few days, remember to eat well and get plenty of rest," said Doctor Zhang after taking your pulse.
The Li family members, young and old, gathered at the entrance of the shack all breathed a sigh of relief and smiled.
Tao Hongying quickly brought over two bowls of meat broth noodles and invited Doctor Zhang.
"Miracle doctor, I've also made you a bowl of noodles. Please stay and eat with us."
Doctor Zhang nodded. Tao Hongying was a good cook. Even though they mostly ate sorghum and wild vegetable porridge on the road, it still tasted very good. What's more, this was noodles cooked in meat broth. Just smelling the aroma made his stomach rumble.
Grandma Li couldn't bear to eat it herself, so she hugged her granddaughter and shared it with her, quickly finishing even the noodle soup.
Jiayin didn't stand on ceremony; if she didn't eat, her grandmother wouldn't be able to eat in peace. There would be plenty of opportunities along the way; she would continue to secretly feed her grandmother…
In the camp, everyone was eating, slurping and slurping, their food just as delicious.
One large, two small, and three wild boars—that's quite a lot, by all accounts.
But with nearly a hundred people, young and old, who hadn't had any oily food for many days, even if they really put in a lot of effort to eat, it would barely be enough to feed them.
Fortunately, I used some fatty meat to render most of a jar of lard last night, which I can add to stews and porridge from now on.
After finishing his meal, the village chief carried a piece of pork belly with alternating layers of fat and lean meat to the front of the Li family's shack.
“Hongying, your mother didn’t get to eat pork last night, so I specially saved a piece for her. Look, I’ve prepared it. I’ll cook it for her on the way home to help her regain her strength.”
"Okay, thank you, uncle."
Tao Hongying quickly took it, carried it to the salt jar at home, and started pickling it.
This way it won't spoil easily, and you can just cut a few pieces when you want to eat it.
Looking at the sky, Li Laosi asked the village chief, "Have Uncle Zhao and the others returned?"
Uncle Zhao seemed a bit off early in the morning, and he took the villagers for a walk around the neighborhood.
Before the village chief could respond, Uncle Zhao limped over, his face full of anxiety.
"Something's not right around here. It doesn't seem safe. We need to get out of here quickly."
"Something's not right?" Everyone was on edge, turning to look at the nearby mountains and forests, which seemed quiet and nothing seemed amiss.
Uncle Zhao shook his head. "I can't quite put my finger on what's wrong, and I can't see any traces. But something just feels off. We should leave as soon as possible."
No one asked any further questions; they quickly gathered their belongings and prepared to set off.
We're going to leave anyway, so a little longer won't make a difference.
Uncle Zhao walked around, urging everyone to pack as little as possible, as they needed to travel as much as possible today.
This time, Li Laosi led Jiayi at the rear to bring up the rear, while Liu Biaotou led the way.
The lines should be kept close together and not stretched out too much.
Upon hearing this, everyone became somewhat nervous, and the children dared not cause any trouble.
But Jiayin insisted that her father carry her on his back.
In that case, she would have to stay at the back of the group.
Soon, the group set off. Uncle Zhao, sitting on the sled, kept urging everyone on, "Faster! Hurry up! Watch your step, don't twist your ankle, don't delay our journey."
Jiayin hugged her father's shoulders tightly, turning her head to look back every now and then.
Although she couldn't see anything, the quiet forest filled her with inexplicable fear, and her heart pounded wildly.
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