After seeing off Daya and Erya, the village chief suddenly came to the door.
"Village Chief, why are you here? Have you eaten?"
The village chief has always taken good care of Suman and his family, and Suman is also very polite to the village chief.
"Man girl, you are very knowledgeable, please help me come up with some ideas."
Seeing that the village chief looked worried, Su Man guessed that it was a big event in the village, so she asked the village chief to sit down and talk slowly.
Just now, the person who went out to explore the way came back.
It is said that the surrounding area is full of muddy swamps and even a few swamps. The villager walking in front stepped into one and almost couldn't come back.
Fortunately, he was discovered early and several people worked together to rescue him.
They went to another place and the situation was almost the same.
In such a geographical environment, it is unclear what will happen to the dozens of people in the village, including their luggage.
Grandma Zhou, who was sitting on the edge of the kang, was a little worried when she heard this. "Can't we take a detour?"
"Yes, but the journey that was supposed to take less than two weeks will now take a month."
One month...
It sounds like only a dozen more days, but in times of food shortage, it is enough to cost some people's lives.
Now many villagers have run out of food, and it is already difficult for them to walk the rest of the way. Suddenly the distance has doubled, which means they are being pushed to death.
Taking a detour is definitely not an option, so we have to think of other ways.
Su Man recalled the terrain they had come from and asked, "What if we take the mountain road?"
The village chief sighed, "You're thinking the same thing as me. If we take the mountain road, it won't slow down our progress. In fact, we can reach the ferry earlier."
"But the mountains around here are different from the ones we passed before. There are no mountain roads and they are steep. We can only climb up by ourselves. Even large pieces of luggage have to be thrown away, for example..." The village chief looked at Su Man and hesitated to speak.
Suman finished for the village chief, "Our horses."
"Why."
The village chief sighed.
Horses were very expensive even in peaceful times, let alone now.
What's more, if you have horses, you can earn money whether you use them or sell them in the south.
This is where the village chief is in a dilemma. Although climbing the mountain can save time, every family will have to throw away some things more or less.
It's easier for families who have nothing left, but people like Suman and his family who have cows or horses at home will definitely not agree.
Su Man also understood the village chief's dilemma. No matter what choice he made, some sacrifices would have to be made, and it would be impossible to satisfy everyone.
She pondered for a moment and said, "This concerns the villagers, so it's not easy for you to make a decision directly. I think we should gather everyone together and listen to everyone's opinions."
"I had the same idea, but selfishly, I thought climbing the mountain would be better. Look, it's raining again, and we don't know how long it will last. The longer it takes, the harder it will be to travel. The sooner we reach the south, the sooner we can settle down."
Su Man understood the village chief's implication. Because she had rescued the villagers from a bandit's den before, her words carried more weight than those of ordinary villagers.
The village chief hoped that she could help him persuade the villagers, but he was afraid that she would be reluctant to leave her horses and luggage, so he came to test her attitude first.
But the village chief was worrying too much. Su Man was not someone who would not give up immediate benefits.
If possible, she would also like to take the horse with her, but the surrounding area is mostly lowlands and swamps, and they have elderly and children in their family. If they get stuck in one, the consequences will be disastrous.
Weighing the pros and cons, it is definitely more important to save your life first.
Su Man expressed her opinion, "Don't worry, Village Chief. I think the same as you. No matter how good something is, you have to be alive to enjoy it. In this situation, taking the mountain road is the only option."
When the village chief heard that Su Man was on his side, he felt relieved. "Man, it's great that you think so. I'll gather the villagers to discuss this later."
...
The village chief left like a gust of wind, and Zhou Anan sat down next to Su Man without saying a word.
He heard the conversation between the village chief and Suman and felt a little depressed.
"Are we really going to abandon Xiao Hei?"
Xiaohei is the name Zhou Anan gave to the horse. Men love horses, and he is no exception.
On weekdays, he always rushed to feed the horses and chat with them. When he heard that the horses were to be abandoned, Zhou Anan felt very upset.
"Aunt, can I ride Xiao Hei and take a detour? It will take a month. With Xiao Hei, I can get there in half a month."
Su Man touched Zhou Anan's head and said, "Auntie knows you can't bear to leave Xiao Hei, but I can't bear to leave you either. If something happens to you, what do you want me to do?"
Zhou Anan stopped talking. He didn't want to make Su Man sad.
Su Man hugged Zhou Anan into her arms. "Our family has always been together and never separated. We are already luckier than many people. If we can't stop the separation, then let's say goodbye properly."
Zhou Anan buried her head in Su Man's shoulder and cried silently.
Zhou Anan went to accompany Xiao Hei. Outside, the village chief was beating drums and gongs to call all the villagers out.
Just like before, the village chief told the whole story of his exploration.
"If we continue forward, we'll probably run into a swamp. Even if it's not as dangerous as a swamp, the heavy rain we experienced yesterday was enough to put us in a position of near-death experience."
The village chief paused, "But climbing the mountain isn't completely without danger. The mountain is steep, so for safety's sake, we can only travel light. We can't bring any large bedding or bags, only food for the next few days."
Some people also asked the same question as Grandma Zhou, asking if they could take a detour, but when they heard that taking a detour would take them another half a month, they fell silent.
After nearly a month of walking, they were running out of food. Only Wang Laowu's family had enough food to sustain the detour, while the others would starve to death before they could even get halfway.
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