Chapter 152 The Passerby Who Died Before the Famine Even Began (8)
The journey was far from peaceful. They encountered two groups of refugees who wanted to rob them. If it weren't for Jiang's father and Bai Ze's swift and decisive actions, they might not have had such an easy time. After encountering several groups of refugees, Jiang's father and Bai Ze discussed changing their route. However, they encountered another group of bandits who immediately tried to kill them. As you can imagine, Bai Ze dealt with them all.
After dealing with the robbers, they didn't dare linger for fear of accomplices. Jiang's father drove the cart forward while Bai Ze cleaned up the traces behind them. After walking about two miles, everyone felt relieved and stopped in a sheltered spot. They couldn't go any further today; the wind was getting stronger, and the dust made visibility too low to proceed.
Jiang's father and Bai Ze were busy parking the car. After parking, Chen and Bai took down the tent and started setting it up. After setting up the tent, Jiang's father went to cut grass to feed the mules. The grass was all withered now, so in order to ensure the mules' physical strength, they also needed to add some coarse grains. Bai Ze collected firewood to start a fire for warmth and cooking at night.
Bai Ze quickly gathered a pile of firewood, and Chen and Bai started a fire before preparing dinner.
After feeding the mule, Jiang's father joined in. The two families sat around the fire, cooking simple food and chatting. Once the meal was ready, they took the brazier and food into the tent to warm it up. After eating, they decided who would keep watch, and the others went to sleep.
When they woke up the next morning, the wind had stopped. Although it was still cold outside, it was warm inside the tent. It wasn't because the tent was of good quality, but because Jiang Yue had put a warm stone inside. Otherwise, with the quality of the tent, they would have caught a cold long ago. After breakfast, they set off again when the weather warmed up a bit. In front of them was a mountain with no trails. They had to go back to the main road and take the small path near the official road.
As they approached the official road, Jiang's father and Bai Ze concealed their knives, carrying only a hunting bow on their backs. Carrying a hunting bow was fine, but carrying a controlled knife was illegal in any dynasty. When Jiang's father crossed the mountain pass, he carefully watched his surroundings, fearing that a robber might suddenly appear. Whether it was good luck or not, they passed through safely without any accidents.
After crossing the mountain, it was getting late, and the weather had been gloomy since noon. Bai Ze estimated that it was going to snow, and the snow would be quite heavy. He told Jiang's father and found a place to park the carriage. Then Jiang's father guarded the carriage while Bai Ze went to find a suitable place to camp. If they were unlucky, they might have to stay for a long time, so they had to choose a good campsite.
It took Bai Ze quite a while to return. He led the caravan to the campsite he had chosen. When they arrived, Jiang Yue looked at it and saw that it was a recessed place with protection on three sides. After parking the carriage, a safe shelter was ready. Jiang's father nodded in satisfaction and couldn't stop praising Bai Ze.
After parking, Jiang Yue stayed in the car with her three children. Chen and Bai cleaned up the stones, dead branches, and weeds on the ground. After they finished cleaning up, they started setting up the tent. After setting up the tent, Bai Ze also collected a lot of wood. Chen and Bai started cooking. After taking care of the mule, Jiang's father went to collect wood with Bai Ze.
After collecting the wood for starting a fire, Jiang's father and Bai Ze went to drag back some thicker logs. They spent a long time hammering away against the mountainside to build a simple shed for the mule. After eating, Jiang Yue stayed behind to take care of the children, and the four of them reinforced the roof of the shed. After a while, it finally looked somewhat like a shed. Although it was still drafty, at least it could provide some shelter. Then they cut some grass and laid it on the ground, otherwise the mule would freeze and they would be in trouble.
After tying the mule to the shed, the snow started to fall, and soon it turned into a heavy snowfall. The family warmed themselves by the fire in the tent. Jiang's father and Bai Ze even took the time to set up a few traps, just in case they caught some wild game for an extra meal. After the fire went out, they closed the tent door and went to sleep. Jiang Yue slept soundly that night. When Chen Shi said there were wolf howls the next day, Jiang Yue didn't know anything about it. Mainly because she knew that Bai Ze was there and that she was very safe, she wasn't worried. Jiang's father and Chen Shi, however, didn't know this and didn't sleep so soundly.
After the two little ones got up, they wanted to go out and play in the snow. They had never seen snow before, and they were so excited to go out and play when they saw snow for the first time. Their mother, Chen, could hardly stop them. In the middle of nowhere, with the weather like this, she dared not let the children go out to play. If they got sick, she would be at a loss. They could only play for a while when they went out to relieve themselves.
After breakfast, Bai Ze went out to check the weather and felt it would rain for a few more days. So he asked Jiang's father to watch the family while he went to collect a lot of wood and put it away. When Bai Ze returned, the two of them took the mule to drink water. After taking care of the mule, they went to check the traps and actually caught two rabbits. They stewed one and roasted the other, which saved them from being bored in the tent.
After preparing one rabbit, Jiang Yue chopped it up for dinner, and marinated the other one with seasonings. Jiang Yue took out a lot of seasonings, and with Bai Ze's cooking skills, the taste was naturally excellent. Jiang Yue's family ate with their mouths full of oil, and the two little ones had oil all over their faces and their clothes were dirty.
After finishing the roasted rabbit, the snow outside grew heavier. Jiang's father and Bai Ze cleared the snow off the tent roof and cleaned the area around the tent. After finishing at the campsite, they went to the mule shed to clear the snow, otherwise the heavy snow might collapse the temporary shed and kill the mule.
With nothing to do, the adults played cards to pass the time, while the twins played with the little puppet. Jiang Yue, having nothing else to do, picked up a storybook to read. It was a very old-fashioned story about a scholar marrying a princess. Since there was nothing else to read, she decided to make do with it. When Jiang Yue went out in the evening, she saw that it was still snowing, but much less than before. She hoped it would stop soon, as it was already ten centimeters thick.
While cooking dinner, Jiang's father and the others cleared the snow again. After dinner, Jiang Yue took out a teapot from her space and gave it to Bai Ze. Then, they gathered around the stove to brew tea. The snow scene outside was quite beautiful. After eating and drinking their fill, it was getting late, so everyone tidied up and went to bed.
The next day, when Jiang Yue woke up, the snow had stopped. Jiang's father and Bai Ze assessed whether they could continue their journey, packed their things, and set off again. They could walk, but their speed was much slower. After leaving the fork in the road and entering a smaller path, the journey became much easier. After walking for a while, they encountered a caravan that was also heading to a nearby city for supplies. Jiang's father spoke to the leader of the caravan and then followed them.
They traveled for another two days before finally reaching a small county town. Upon arriving in the town, Jiang's father and Bai Ze bid farewell to the caravan and then found an inn to stay in. It was the same routine as always: taking a bath, eating, and sleeping. The next day, after replenishing their supplies, they originally planned to rest for another day. However, during Bai Ze's routine observation, they saw a large wave of refugees heading this way. There was no other way but to hurry up and set off, otherwise, once the refugees arrived, the city would definitely be sealed off, and they wouldn't be able to leave even if they wanted to.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
