"Grandma, with this hail water, we shouldn't be short of water for a while!"
As they fled the famine, Ge Xiaoyu peered into the basket on her back, which contained several bamboo tubes of water.
They collected these last night when it hailed.
By morning, all the hailstones had melted into clear water.
Lin Xue also instructed Ge Xiaoyu to boil the hailstones in a clean earthenware pot, let them settle, and then pour them into a bamboo tube so that they could be drunk directly.
"We have enough water, but we're still short of food!"
"How are you feeling, Xiao Enze? Are you still feeling dizzy?"
Lin Xue gently bounced Liu Enze in her arms. His complexion had improved a lot in the morning, and he was already able to hold his bowl and eat by himself.
Lin Xue and the others didn't eat all the snake meat last night; they saved half for this morning.
Snake soup is delicious; just break off a piece of flatbread and soak it in it, and the taste is completely different.
Unfortunately, ever since they caught that big snake, they haven't encountered another snake.
Lin Xue, who had just tasted the flavor, was somewhat disappointed.
"Grandma Su, my head isn't so dizzy anymore. I'd be fine if I didn't shake my head so hard!"
Liu Enze nestled obediently in Lin Xue's arms. He had already met Ge Xiaoyu and was now looking at her through Lin Xue's shoulder.
"Sigh, I wonder when we'll be able to get to Yulin County!"
"I heard that many refugees have already settled in Yulin County. The imperial court has also allocated land to each household. Yulin County is different from our area; the soil and water here are much more fertile!"
When Ge Xiaoyu saw Liu Enze looking over, she smiled at him, but still voiced her worries and hopes.
"I don't care when we'll reach Yulin County, I just hope we can find a town soon so we can buy more food to eat on the road."
There really wasn't much food left in her basket, and she couldn't just conjure it up out of thin air.
Moreover, their group looked easy to bully, so Lin Xue couldn't possibly put too much food in her basket.
I thought I'd buy a little bit when we passed through towns, just enough to keep them going until the next stop.
"stop!"
Just as the three were walking forward, several disheveled men suddenly ran out from both sides of the woods.
"Grandma Su, I'm scared!"
Having been robbed by bandits before, Liu Enze immediately hid his head in front of Lin Xue's chest upon seeing this.
"You old hag, leave the woman and the food behind, and you can take this little beast and get out!"
The man who turned around revealed a lewd look in his eyes, which landed on Ge Xiaoyu.
Lin Xue's lips twitched at the sight of those sticky, saccharine eyes.
"You little brat, who are you talking to? Who are you calling an old woman?"
Lin Xue wasn't going to tolerate these people's behavior, so she kicked out and sent the man blocking her way crashing to the ground.
"I was just worried about not having enough food, and then you guys came out and brought me food. Did you know that Grandma was short of food and came all this way to bring me some?"
After kicking one person away, Lin Xue not only didn't retreat, but instead took two steps forward, startling the others around her who instinctively took a step back.
"She's just an old hag, what are you afraid of her for?"
"She only succeeded because we caught her off guard. All of you, attack her together and kill this old woman. The child in her arms has such delicate skin; he'll be easy to kill!"
Just as the people in front were starting to feel timid, a woman's voice came from the edge of the woods. Although she didn't show herself, her voice clearly reached Lin Xue and the others' ears.
"Oh ho, so there was one hidden here!"
"Xiaoyu, take Enze to the back!"
"We're going to have a nice meal tonight!"
Lin Xue shoved Liu Enze, who was in her arms, into Ge Xiaoyu's arms, then pushed the two of them back before walking towards the men in front.
"Go ahead, is a dead old woman enough to scare you like this?"
"Whoever goes up and beats her first, I'll spend the night with them!"
Seeing that the men were starting to back down, the woman hiding in the woods couldn't hold back any longer.
"Damn it, the bold get rich, the timid starve! Brothers, charge!"
One of the men, bewitched by the woman, immediately grabbed his chipped woodcutter's knife and lunged at Lin Xue.
"Bang!"
The raised wood-chopping knife was kicked away, and when it fell again, it struck another short man right in the face.
Without touching the ground with her toes, Lin Xue kicked the man in front of her again.
"ah!"
The man coughed up blood after being kicked and collapsed to the ground, unable to move for a long time.
The other men who were still observing felt a chill run down their spines upon seeing this scene, and they turned and ran away.
The woman's voice also disappeared into the woods; she must have realized the situation was bad and fled early.
"Grandma Su!"
"Grandma!"
Seeing that everyone had been chased away, Lin Xue immediately sat down on the ground and pretended to be in pain in order not to give herself away in front of Liu Enze.
"It's nothing, it's just that I'm getting old, and my body can't handle even a little bit of activity!"
After all, Liu Enze had experienced being robbed by bandits, and the original owner of this body was also present at that time. If Lin Xue acted too powerfully at this moment, Liu Enze might become suspicious.
Now that she had driven away the bad guys, Lin Xue pretended to be exhausted, perfectly showcasing the fragility of an elderly person's body.
"Grandma Su, have some water! Grandpa Liu used to feel better after drinking some water when he was tired, so you should have some too!"
Seeing Lin Xue looking distressed, Liu Enze quickly took a bamboo tube out of his basket and carefully handed it to her.
Although young Liu Enze was somewhat clever, he didn't understand the fickle nature of human nature and didn't realize that Lin Xue was faking it.
"Thank you for your kindness. Let me catch my breath first, I'm exhausted!"
"If they don't run away soon, this old woman might not be a match for them!"
After sitting for a while, Lin Xue finally stood up with Ge Xiaoyu's help.
For the rest of the journey, Liu Enze refused to be carried by Lin Xue and insisted on walking on his own like a little man.
Ge Xiaoyu was already 16 years old. Although she didn't understand why her grandmother had suddenly become weak, she wouldn't foolishly ask for the reason.
After traveling all day, they found a place to rest early in the evening.
Lin Xue didn't want to rest directly on the open ground; she always found places like caves or rock hollows to spend the night.
At least there are mountains or rocks behind you, so you can save some energy by focusing your attention on what's in front of you.
In the evening, Lin Xue asked Ge Xiaoyu to cook some corn porridge.
He used the little bit of black flour to make two pancakes, and washed and ate the few handfuls of wild vegetables he had picked up by the roadside, as a way to supplement his vitamins.
Although the food was ordinary and not particularly delicious, all three of them felt it was incredibly tasty.
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