As soon as you step out of the courtyard, a refreshing and rustic atmosphere greets you.
Although ancient times were backward, there was no smog or pollution. Qiu Yan, who had traveled from the modern world, felt the sweet aroma, and her mood improved accordingly.
Having been given a second chance at life, she understands the preciousness of life even more.
Looking around, one sees mud-brick houses, thatched huts, and a few rare brick and tile houses, all in a rather uneven fashion.
This village is located in the southwest of Baiyang County. It is in a remote location, and the people in the village are generally very poor.
They were all villagers who toiled in the fields, and none of them had an easy life.
This isn't even the worst of it. Further into the mountains, there are still many people living in the deep mountains, and those mountain villages are truly impoverished.
Qiu Ling'er blinked her big, watery eyes, "Sister, will we go back again in the future?"
Qiu Yan smiled and patted Qiu Ling'er's little head, then firmly shook her head.
Qiu Ling'er grinned and giggled, thinking that she would be spared Yang's punishment. But soon, she became sullen.
"Ling'er, what's wrong?" Little Ling'er's expression changed in an instant, leaving Qiu Yan somewhat confused. It was Qiu Xu, who had been silent all along, who spoke up to explain.
"My sister is afraid that Uncle won't be able to find us when he comes back."
When Qiu Ling'er was three years old, Qiu Laoda packed his bags and went to the battlefield.
Five years later, Qiu Ling'er had long forgotten what Qiu Laoda looked like. In her heart, her second uncle was even closer than her own father.
Mentioning his second uncle, Qiu Xu clenched his fists and lowered his eyes. He knew that his second uncle was in prison, and getting him back would be extremely difficult.
Qiu Yan comforted her softly, "No, we won't. We won't leave the village; we'll stay at the Qiu family's old courtyard. If Second Uncle comes back, he can just ask around and find us quickly."
Hearing her say that, Xiao Ling'er's mood instantly improved. She really thought that her sister was going to take the two of them away from the village.
My sister is right. Even if my second uncle doesn't go looking for them, she can still go looking for him.
Soon, the dilapidated Qiu family old courtyard came into view; it was a run-down fenced yard.
In front of the courtyard, there is a stream about five feet wide, where the villagers usually like to wash their clothes. Sparse willow trees grow on both sides of the stream, and the scenery is quite nice from a distance.
The old courtyard was built by their great-grandfather when he was alive. He lived there for half his life and passed away there.
Upon closer inspection, the old courtyard consisted of only two low houses, one on the east and one on the west, with a makeshift kitchen haphazardly constructed from wooden sticks next to them.
The yard and roof were overgrown with weeds, there were many mosquitoes in the summer, and it was very cold in the winter.
Qiu Yan looked at the old house in front of her carefully, without any disdain. She was already grateful to have a place to live.
"Qiu Yan, what are you doing..."
Suddenly hearing a question, Qiu Yan turned around and saw a woman carrying a basket of wild vegetables walking from the village entrance, curiously looking at the three of them.
Based on her memory, Qiu Yan quickly recognized the person. The person's name was Ye Qiuyun, about thirty-seven or thirty-eight years old, and he lived in the next courtyard. He was their new neighbor.
"Aunt Ye, we've moved out of the Qiu family's house."
After Qiu Yan finished speaking, Qiu Xu and Qiu Ling'er also politely addressed her as Aunt Ye.
Seeing the three children covered in injuries, Madam Ye felt inexplicably saddened. She had long known that Madam Yang mistreated the children, but she never expected her to beat them to this extent.
She nodded in agreement and patted Qiu Ling'er's little head.
According to Qiu Yan, although she had some doubts about the move, she did not inquire too much because the two families were not familiar with each other and it was a family matter.
She went out to pick wild vegetables early in the morning and didn't return until after noon. She hasn't eaten yet, so we didn't say much, just exchanged a few simple pleasantries.
After saying goodbye to Ye Shi, Qiu Yan took her younger brother and sister and turned to enter the old courtyard.
The gate to the courtyard was not locked, and the courtyard was filled with weeds, except for a tattered bottomless basket.
Both rooms were a mess, without even a bed, and were surrounded by walls.
On the stove, there are two burners, one large and one small.
Qiu Xu looked at the stove, stuffed a few strands of thatch piled up next to it into the firebox, lit it, and then went to the yard to find some firewood.
Qiu Yan tidied up all the clutter in the east room, found some straw, spread it on the ground, and laid out bedding.
As spring drew to a close and the weather began to warm up, Qiu Yan's forehead was covered in fine beads of sweat after only a short while of work, and her body felt sticky and uncomfortable.
Good heavens, how she longed for a nice, warm bath!
Once the fire was burning brightly, the three of them gathered around the stove and started roasting sweet potatoes.
After roasting for a while, Qiu Ling'er smelled the faint aroma and asked from time to time if the sweet potatoes were ready.
After the sweet potatoes were roasted, Qiu Yan picked one up, peeled off half of the skin, and handed it to her younger sister.
But as soon as Xiao Ling'er took a bite, her eyes welled up with tears. It turned out that she had lost her front tooth.
Qiu Yan quickly comforted her, saying that new teeth would grow in soon, which cheered the little girl up. She had thought that she would never be able to bite anything again.
Qiu Xu helped Xiao Ling'er break the sweet potato in half and put the pieces into her mouth one by one.
The roasted sweet potato, tender and soft, was delicious and satisfying, finally filling Qiu Yan's empty stomach.
It's just past 1-3 PM, and it's still early.
In search of food for their next meal, Qiu Yan took her younger siblings to the mountains to find something to eat.
She wanted to lie down and take a long nap, but there was no food at home, and the conditions didn't allow her to slack off.
She originally intended to go alone, but fearing that Yang would bring Qiu's third son to cause trouble after she left, she went along as well.
Being a little tired is nothing; prevention is the wise thing to do.
Actually, she wanted to take her younger brother to get his injury checked first.
However, their village was backward, and their only doctor was a somewhat mentally challenged septuagenarian.
Because he has become senile, no one seeks his medical help anymore.
The original owner hadn't traveled much, so finding other doctors was truly difficult for her.
Furthermore, she only had three copper coins on her, and she didn't know if the doctor would give them credit.
Qiu Yan also felt helpless about this.
Before leaving, they took the bottomless basket with them.
Qiu Yan smiled bitterly and sighed; she must be the most tragic time traveler in history.
The mountains and forests were neither far nor near. It took the three siblings half an hour to reach the vicinity of the mountains.
Of course, this was also related to the three of them walking speed. They had just gone through a major ordeal, and none of them had much strength left.
Near the mountain, the trees are scattered and sparse, and the wild vegetables on the mountain have long been dug up by the villagers near the mountain.
The wild vegetables that the Ye family harvested were gathered from deeper parts of the mountains and forests.
Considering that the two children were unwell, Qiu Yan stopped and let them each find a place to sit down and rest.
Qiu Yan rested for a while, then found some thin branches, propped them up at the bottom of the basket, tied them with vines, and placed a few large leaves at the bottom. She then slung the basket over her shoulder and began to look around.
They had to find food before nightfall. Otherwise, they would go hungry tonight and tomorrow morning.
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