Chapter 23 A Calculation
They left the city and headed straight for the remote Xiahe Village.
Guan Zhiwei was going to Xiahe Village to find Hei Er and pick up Yao Sanlang, the one-year-old baby.
"Xiao Guan is truly loyal and righteous, still thinking of Yao's orphan. If anything happens to me one day, please take care of Atu for me," Madam Feng said as she drove the carriage.
Among these people, she was the only one who could drive a horse-drawn carriage because she often went out to play with the soldiers.
"Oh, not really."
Guan Zhiwei lay on the cart, her back injured. Madam Feng had used the ashes from the boiler where she practiced her swordsmanship to press on the wound to stop the bleeding and disinfect it.
She figured she wouldn't die anyway, so she might as well do whatever she wanted.
This is how ordinary people treat illnesses; Madam Feng did the same to herself.
Guan Zhiwei took up a lot of space lying down, while everyone else huddled in a corner, especially Yan Chunsheng, who wished he could curl up into a ball.
She said slowly, "I have injuries, so I need to find a man to do some work like carrying water and chopping wood. I'm looking for Black Second Brother."
Yan Chunsheng was humiliated, but he remained silent; forbearance was his greatest virtue.
Dogtooth yelled, "I can do it! I'm a man!"
Guan Zhiwei snorted, "You're far from being a man."
Dogtooth was indignant, looking like a wronged child.
Guan Zhiwei scoffed, "What kind of man are you? What kind of man are you? You still love her but don't dare ask her to wait any longer. It doesn't matter, if you keep playing the victim, she'll meet a better man—"
A folk song echoes through the mountains.
The mountain below resembles a nine-fold screen, while above it, eight peaks stand side by side, arranged like a forest of halberds.
Guan Zhiwei looked at it several more times, and finally nodded with certainty: "This is a place with good feng shui. A famous general will emerge from this place."
Dogtooth's eyes lit up: "You can even do feng shui?"
Guan Zhiwei chuckled and said, "I know a lot more."
She had a farming system where she could exchange points for strategies, and then use those points to buy "a hoe that makes tilling the land effortless," "herbs that kill instantly with a single spray," and "a sickle that is always sharp." She also had a food system where she could exchange points for MSG, chicken bouillon, soy sauce, and oysters. With so many seasonings, she could turn a pot of water into a delicious soup.
These are all external tools, done without thinking, so they don't resonate with you. But feng shui and fortune telling are different; the main point is what you say yourself, so you think about it and pay more attention.
Her feng shui fortune-telling system aimed to make her a national advisor, but it took her a lot of effort. Even with physical cheat codes, she still needed to act mysteriously and have some knowledge.
I've forgotten many of the things I've experienced in my life, but this is one I remember quite well.
"Tell me your birth date, time of birth, and place of birth, and I can calculate most of your life."
"My parents are both dead, how would I know when I was born?" Dogtooth said sheepishly.
The old lady was confused; she couldn't remember how many meals she had eaten that day, let alone Dog Tooth's birthday.
Madam Feng became interested: "I know when A-Tu was born. Can you take a look and see if this child will have a peaceful life?" She gave him his birth date and time.
A-Tu was frightened and looked a little listless. He huddled in Yan Chunsheng's arms without making a sound, his eyes staring blankly.
Guan Zhiwei laughed: "This child is Indian, hahaha."
A fate of being constantly criticized and condemned.
"What do you mean? Is it good or bad?"
"Hey, everything's fine." Fortune telling is 30% accurate and 70% deceptive.
Guan Zhiwei said a lot of nice things, and Madam Feng finally felt relieved and focused on driving the carriage.
The area around Xiahe Village was eerily quiet, with scorched earth visible along the way. Irrigated by rain, it would be fertile land next year, if only this chaotic world would still give farmers the opportunity to cultivate the land.
As for how we'll get through this year, that's up to fate.
The villagers were emaciated, looking half-human and half-ghost.
After asking around, they found the home of the second brother.
The small, low houses, like mushrooms sprouting after the rain, were surrounded by wooden fences—good for keeping honest people out, but not for keeping thieves out. But then again, who would dare steal from such a house?
"Second Brother Hei, I've come to find you!"
Upon hearing the news, the people inside rushed out, their faces filled with disbelief.
Guan Zhiwei froze the moment she saw the other person.
Blackie's second brother is a blacksmith who has been working for many years. He is tall and strong, and although he is timid at heart, he is still quite intimidating.
Right now, he's become skin and bones, his eyes are lifeless, and a deep frown lines his brows.
The Yao Sanlang he was holding in his arms had only become slightly thinner.
"Xiao Guan." When he saw Guan Zhiwei, when he saw his family, tears streamed down his face. He wiped his hot tears with his dark sleeves and couldn't lift his head for a long time.
Without saying a word, Madam Feng went straight into the yard to get some coarse rice to cook. There wasn't even any firewood in the house, so Guan Zhiwei simply chopped down his fence with two strokes of her knife.
Right now, the world is vast, but cooking is the most important thing.
"A group of soldiers set the land on fire, and the villagers desperately tried to put it out. Three or four people were burned to death, but the fire was not extinguished, and their bones were burned to ashes."
“The village was counting on the autumn harvest, but it was all gone, and everyone was struggling to make ends meet. Our village was farming the Chen family's land, and when they came to collect the grain, we had no grain at all. But they didn't care; if we didn't have grain, they would use other things as collateral. They ransacked our homes. Some families were raising silkworms, but before they even started, they had already used those things to pay off their debts.”
“I’m useless. They snatched all the money Sister Ning gave me. I’m not afraid to laugh at you, but I don’t dare to go into the mountains with a child. I just rely on picking wild chestnuts and catching big black rats to eat.”
The second brother cried uncontrollably, tears streaming down his face like big beans.
He was starving and spoke weakly, but what made him even weaker was a deep sense of self-blame.
“I failed to raise the child well and let down Sister Ning’s expectations.”
"fine."
Guan Zhiwei didn't know what to say to comfort her, "She's dead, but at least the child you raised is still alive."
The second-in-command looked up in surprise: "Dead?"
"They're all dead," Dogtooth cried, explaining what had happened.
More than half the people in the city died, every house was emptied, and the streets and alleys were full of corpses.
They were able to have stored grain thanks to Guan Zhiwei, who managed to retrieve it. Killing a soldier meant they could get some rations back.
Hei Lao Er muttered, "Then we're doomed. If the city is like this, we're even more doomed."
Madam Feng's porridge was ready, and she even threw in two handfuls of wild vegetables that she carried with her. It was sticky and slightly bitter, but Hei Lao Er still ate it with great relish.
While he was eating, Guan Zhiwei held Yao Sanlang in her arms. Sanlang did not reject Guan Zhiwei and nestled obediently in her arms, smacking his lips as he ate the porridge from his spoon, making his little belly round and full.
It's also possible that Guan Zhiwei carries the scent of her parents, brothers, and sisters, since she was the last person to hug them.
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