Fortunately, with the help and care of the hotel staff, Jiang Qiao and the others felt a little better. She had no choice but to wave goodbye to the city where her relatives had been buried and head south.
They traversed mountains and valleys, drinking water from their spatial dimension when thirsty, cooking when hungry, sleeping when tired, and hunting when they encountered prey.
No one would have imagined that Jiang Qiao would sneak into such a place. After crossing the line, Jiang Qiao looked back for a while with some reluctance. This land, where she had poured out her passion and enthusiasm, was a place she loved dearly. No one could know how much she loved this land.
However, for the sake of her family and fellow villagers, she had to make this trip, because the food in her space was running low after all the trades along the way, and other supplies had also decreased significantly, so she urgently needed to replenish them.
With her cheat code of spatial ability, plus her disguise, no one really paid attention to this little girl when she arrived in the foreign land.
This greatly facilitated Jiang Qiao's actions. She didn't touch the belongings of the poor; she targeted the wealthy and powerful. However, she didn't empty their possessions; she left them some things. Her main targets were public assets, and she was ruthless in taking them.
Of course, if she sees something she likes, she'll buy it. Keeping those Japanese money isn't very useful, and it'll save her space.
She had moved around to many different places, and her space was now completely full. All the supplies were piled up so high that she could hardly see the top. Then she checked the date and realized, wow, more than four months had passed. She had to hurry back.
Back home, Qiao Jie and Ma Liu were really worried. You wouldn't expect the kid to take this long to gather food, especially since the two old men were almost out of food.
Jiang Qiao left them a lot of food before she left, enough for them to eat.
Moreover, Ma Liu's side can also obtain grain through their own means, but they can't stop these two old guys from smuggling it out.
Since Ma Liu recovered, the two brothers have been frequenting the black market. With more goods in their possession, their food supply naturally dwindled. Given that two people are only allowed one person's portion, the already limited rations are now even more insufficient. Qiao Jie and Ma Liu are now basically drinking wild vegetable porridge, worried that they will starve to death before Jiang Qiao returns.
"Brother Qiao, is the girl alright? Could it be that she doesn't want to be a burden to us anymore?"
Ma Liu had a lot on his mind; he wasn't as confident as Qiao Jie.
Qiao Jie glared at him and said, "What nonsense are you talking about? Our Qiao'er is not that kind of person at all. Something must have happened to the child, otherwise it wouldn't have taken so long."
"Don't worry, anyone can abandon the two of us, but not Qiao'er. That child has a conscience. Look at how Wang Dahua schemes against the girl, but she doesn't even hesitate to send her the things she needs. So, let's wait patiently; the girl will come back sooner or later."
Ma Liu sighed, "Brother Qiao, you've seen what's going on outside, haven't you? There are no wild vegetables left, not even tree roots and bark have been spared. And with the rain still not coming, there's no hope for the crops. It's just like what the girl said."
It was precisely because they knew this that the two old people felt so heavy-hearted; they didn't know where Jiang Qiao could get the food.
Jiang Qiao had no idea that the elderly in her family would turn out like this. The food she had left was enough for the two elderly people to eat for half a year, and that was the kind where they could eat their fill every day. She never dreamed that Qiao Jie and Ma Liu would actually use food to barter for other things.
She was on her way back at the moment. She had been delayed in the south for a few days, mainly to buy some food she wanted to eat. As soon as she got the food, she boarded the train. Fortunately, she took an express train. Even so, her two elderly relatives at home were already starting to feel the strain.
We couldn't hold on any longer; we ran out of food. No matter how much we tried to save, the rations were definitely not enough for two people.
When all the money was gone, the remaining food coupons were useless without cash. Qiao Jie had no choice but to go out and treat patients on an empty stomach. That's how he earned a little money, enough to buy some pastries. The two old men were trying to eat them sparingly, half a piece each, afraid that if they ate them all, their child wouldn't be able to come back, and they would be in a real bind.
The two brothers lay listlessly on the bed, not because they were sleepy, but because lying still would not expend their energy.
"Brother, Qiao'er is still the best. When Qiao'er was home, she would cook whatever was good for us. Without Qiao'er, I feel like I have no hope of living."
Qiao Jie sighed weakly, "Brother, if you're hungry, drink some water. Even just water will do. Or, how about we exchange those things for grain again?"
Ma Liu gave a wry smile. "Brother, don't be fooled by our ability to trade. If things were really reversed, we might not be able to get any grain. Look at how many people are smuggling grain out; they're desperate, and it's not even good quality grain. Otherwise, why would we be trading so much stuff?"
Jiang Qiao had no idea that the two old men in her family were starving to death. After getting off the train, she went to the post office first and mailed grain, brown sugar, oil, meat, cloth, and cotton-padded coats to the addresses provided.
Fortunately, everything was prepared in advance. Since the situation varies from place to place, she could choose what to pack. It didn't take her much time, but it cost her a lot in postage, which made her feel a little pained.
She also bought some stamps and envelopes so she could write letters later.
Although this wasn't where she grew up, she had at least spent some time here, and walking down the street, Jiang Qiao found everything pleasing to the eye.
They returned carrying bags and bags of food, calling out, "Grandpa Qiao, Grandpa Liu!"
Although the door wasn't locked, it was closed from the inside. Jiang Qiao called out, but no one answered. She had a bad feeling. She strongly suspected that they had left too much food at home, and that the two old men had been targeted. Perhaps the two grandfathers had already been murdered.
Thinking of this, he didn't care about anything else. After throwing his things into the yard, he jumped over the wall and went straight to the house where the two old men lived.
Seeing the two people lying on the bed, she finally felt relieved; at least she could see that the two brothers' eyes were moving.
"What happened?"
The only word Ma Liu could utter was "Hungry—"
Jiang Qiao didn't have time to ask the two of them why they were so hungry. She quickly ran out and took out some vegetarian buns. Given the old man's current condition, it wasn't suitable for him to eat meat.
She rushed in carrying steamed buns, shouting, "Eat some quickly!"
Holding a water bottle, she sat to the side and helped the old man up. The two old men didn't even have the strength to hold steamed buns, so Jiang Qiao fed them one on each side.
The two of them were really hungry. They ate a bun in just a few bites and then had some energy left. Jiang Qiao stood by and occasionally offered them some hot water.
"Don't choke, eat slowly, there's plenty, you can eat as much as you want."
After eating three steamed buns, Qiao Jie and Ma Liu finally breathed a sigh of relief. "My god, I'm starving! Girl, if you hadn't come back soon, you probably would have seen our corpses."
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