There are still some women and children left in the village, and they ran out as soon as they heard the noise.
"Nanshan is on fire! Everyone grab your weapons and put out the fire!" someone shouted.
When Li Daniu's family heard the knocking outside, they rushed out and saw that the smoke on the opposite South Mountain was getting thicker and thicker.
Today, most households have their tools taken away by men to dig irrigation ditches, as women's strength is ultimately inferior to men's.
"Mother, go and send a message to the people digging the irrigation ditch, and ask them to send a few people to put out the fire."
Liu Yuelan didn't dare to delay, nodded and quickly ran out of the village.
The remaining women in the village, those who still had tools at home, carried them up the mountain.
The fire started at the foot of the mountain. The weather was dry, and the mountain was full of dry branches, so the flames shot up all the way up.
Without water, we can only bury it with soil.
Many women frantically shoveled dirt up and threw it, while some of the bolder ones even stepped forward and covered the flames beside them.
When the men returned, many of their clothes were warped from the heat and their hair was singed.
As soon as the men returned, they ran straight up the mountain without saying a word.
Although the flames spread quickly, fortunately the fire was not too large, and all the men in the village worked together to put it out in no time.
Everyone breathed a sigh of relief. Fortunately, it was discovered in time and there was no damage. The houses at the foot of the mountain only had a few corners charred.
The village chief returned to take charge, and the matter was quickly resolved. Song Ning didn't pursue the matter further and went home.
I heard that the fire was caused by the dry and hot weather. That night, the village chief even came to her house to thank her.
It was just a coincidence today, and Song Ning didn't dare to really flatter herself.
When the village chief returned home from the Song family, he exclaimed as soon as he entered the door, "This Song Erya is indeed a good girl."
Yu, with her sharp ears, naturally heard what her husband said. She glared at him and continued working in the yard.
While busy with his work, he said, "Let me tell you, our son has exams in the fall, so don't get any funny ideas."
Madam Yu has always looked down on Song Ning. Her son is going to be an official in the future, and the person he marries must be someone of importance. How could someone from a remote mountain village be worthy of her son?
“I think Song Erya is smarter than many of the girls in town. If she really becomes our daughter-in-law, it will be a great honor for our family,” the village chief said, puffing on his pipe.
"Pah!" Madam Yu scoffed. "I know Song Erya better than you do. She wasn't like this when she was pestering Ling An. Who knows what she's up to?"
The village chief didn't like what he heard: "What are you saying? I think Er Ya is doing just fine. Besides, she doesn't have any feelings for our Ling An right now, so why are you worrying unnecessarily?"
Yu pursed her lips and didn't say anything more, but she didn't believe that Song Erya could really give up on her son.
With her son's looks and qualities, countless girls are eyeing him with envy. Would Song Er Ya really let go of this opportunity to rise in status?
She would never believe it, not even if you beat her to death.
Meanwhile, Song Ning had no idea that Yu was so imaginative. The next morning, she took her things and went to town.
After delivering the goods to the restaurant, he took a horse-drawn carriage to the county town.
Upon arriving at the destination, Song Ning first went to the clinic, left the things he had promised there, paid the bill, and then went to the restaurant.
Song Ning placed the bucket at the door as usual, and then quietly put the cold noodles inside.
The waiter came out and carried a wooden bucket. He glanced at Song Ning and said, "You're quite strong."
He was a grown man, and even lifting the wooden bucket felt a bit heavy, but he never expected that she, a young girl, could carry it all by herself.
Song Ning smiled and said, "I'm naturally strong."
Because of the tools she uses, each sheet of her cold noodles isn't very big, but it's a bit thick, so it's quite heavy to lift.
She arrived early today, and there weren't many people in the shop, so the shopkeeper quickly settled her payment.
After leaving the restaurant, Song Ning slipped into an empty alley and entered his spatial dimension.
All her money is currently stored in her spatial storage. She also picked out several bags of flour. She's been making a lot of cold noodles lately, which uses a lot of flour. Luckily, her land has a good yield, otherwise she would go bankrupt just by buying grain to make cold noodles.
The price of grain in town has gone up again. It rose to forty coins a while ago, and in the last two days it has risen to fifty coins.
If this continues, poor families will really have no way to survive.
After selecting the things to take home, Song Ning left the space and planned to wander around the county town.
The county town has everything, especially seeds, many of which are species from outside.
I bought a few freshly made pancakes from a roadside stall for lunch. Just as I turned a corner, I ran into two little beggars. They were dressed in tattered clothes and their faces were covered in soot. They stared intently at the pancakes in my hand and I swallowed hard.
Song Ning only took one bite before she couldn't eat anymore.
He looked around, then took the two children into the alley and shared the pancakes with them.
The two children hesitated for a moment after receiving the cakes, then looked up at Song Ning.
"It's okay, go ahead and eat, I'm full."
As soon as they finished speaking, the two began to wolf down their food.
Song Ning squatted down and asked, "Where are you from?"
The little boy choked and stretched out his neck, so Song Ning fed him a sip of water.
After catching his breath, he began to speak, "My mother said we came from the north."
They were indeed refugees.
Recently, I've often seen people coming from the north in Shanhe Town. They all bring their families. Those who can afford it take horse-drawn or oxcarts, while those who can't walk on foot.
"What happened to your family?" Song Ning asked.
"My mother said that it's not raining, and a lot of big insects have come and eaten all the crops," the little boy said.
"There are also many bad people," the little girl beside her added softly.
I heard that the drought in the north started earlier and was more severe. The big insect he mentioned is probably not a locust.
When locusts pass through, nothing grows; they can devour an entire mountain, let alone crops.
Song Ning asked again, "What kind of bad person?"
“They had knives, they beat people up, and they stole everything from our house.”
Song Ning realized that these were no longer thieves, but rather mountain bandits.
Song Ning's heart sank. Drought was already enough to make the people suffer, but with locust plagues and bandits on top of that, there was no way to survive.
"How long have you been here?"
"Two days... Mother said she's leaving tomorrow..."
After seeing the two children off, Song Ning walked out of the alley and glanced at the street.
The county town remained peaceful, as if everything outside had nothing to do with it.
They're also in the north, not far from the places where things are getting chaotic. Most people just stop by the county town or town to rest, they don't settle down. There's not much difference between here and where they are.
Before long, the county town and Shanhe Town will probably no longer be able to continue to be so peaceful.
If it really comes to the point where locusts swarm and bandits invade the village, it will be too late.
Song Ning silently made a decision in her heart; it seemed she needed to make plans as soon as possible.
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