"Do you miss your dad? Did you listen to your grandparents?"
"Yeah, Dad, we are obedient. Put me down. I want to go find my sister (Mom)."
"This brat!"
Everyone who stayed in the cave came out one after another, and when they saw them coming back, they all greeted them. Liu Daling and Old Lady Jiang also came over.
Liu Shinan and his wife knelt down in front of the two elders. "Dad and Mom, I'm sorry to have caused you so much worry."
"Hey, get up, get up. I'm glad you're okay. I'm glad you're okay." The two elders responded and helped them up.
The two elders looked much more haggard. Even their gray hair, mixed with their black hair, had turned even whiter.
"Daniel, are you all right too?"
"Grandma and Grandma, we are all fine. Let's go inside and talk."
"Alas, you are all tired. Go back to the cave and rest first. Everyone else should get back to work. We can chat again when the village chief comes back."
The crowd didn't dare to ask any more questions and dispersed.
I went into my own little cave. Except for my grandparents, Xiao Si and Xiao Wu, no one else was there.
Liu Yuhan entered the cave and swept the water tanks and wooden barrels, but there was no food or water left.
I took the steamed buns and baozi I'd heated up this morning from my space account. I also had a few water bags filled with chrysanthemum tea. I told my grandparents to eat first, and Xiao Si and Xiao Wu to eat first.
Xiao Si and Xiao Wu ate with big mouthfuls of food and choked.
Liu Yuhan and Liu Shinan were both heartbroken. They had all lost weight.
It's been 20 days. I guess the food is almost gone. We only have one meal a day. I don't know how long my family has been hungry.
The two elders also ate with relish, and Liu Yuhan took out some beef jerky and candy from the space for them to eat. Liu Shinan told the two elders about their experience in Yiyang City.
"Grandma, Dad, Mom, I have a map given by the prefect, as well as a letter of recommendation. Let's go to Fu'an City in the south. I heard that the land there is vast and sparsely populated, which is very suitable for growing rice. Let's settle there."
"We left the mountain and went straight around Yiyang City to the next city. The prefect gave us a lot of food because of our help, and we have hidden it in the small village, right, Dad?" Liu Yu blinked at Liu Shinan.
Liu Shinan coughed and said, "Yes, we gave a lot of food, and it's hidden in the small village."
Liu patted him in amusement. "Just tell the village chief and the others later. Let Xiaohan rest. You figure out what to say. Got it?"
Liu Shinan nodded.
I heard from the two elders that the village chief and his men had gone to the mountains farther away to find food and water. Sometimes it was too far and they would not come back until later.
The food that had been hidden in the cave had been slowly taken out and eaten.
The food left by Liu Yuhan, plus the food everyone else contributed, totaled about 1,300 kilograms. With 400 people, no matter how frugal they were, even if they only ate one meal a day, there wouldn't be much left.
They usually cook porridge with wild vegetables, or yam, wild vegetables, and brown rice. They also eat nearby tree bark. There's no telling when this drought will end.
Fortunately, Liu Yuhan left some food for their little cave, and Old Lady Jiang and Aunt Jiang often secretly cooked some food for the children.
At noon, except for Liu Shihu and his son Liu Yang, Yang Nianhua did not return. Everyone else came back one after another, picked some wild vegetables, and chopped some firewood.
The family was ecstatic to see them back.
Liu Yuhan had already taken out the chestnut braised pork ribs rice that she had cooked in the space. She packed it up for her family to eat when they returned.
Old Mrs. Jiang asked them to sit further inside the cave and close the door at the entrance.
Everyone ate in silence, relishing the delicious meal. Especially Liu Shiliu and her two sons, Yang Zhi and Yang Rong. It was the first time they had eaten such a delicious meal, and it was all white rice!
Old Lady Jiang had already told them that this was a reward from the prefect, and that the family should just eat it and not say too much, or else spread the news and make others dislike them. The mother and son nodded repeatedly.
At 7:00 PM, the villagers, hunters, and strong men who had gone out to look for food and water finally returned with some goodies: over ten pheasants and rabbits, already gathered. They also brought water.
They had to travel further to find these things. The mountains around here weren't very high. There weren't many animals. They didn't go deep into the mountains.
The group of people didn't care about taking a break and surrounded Liu Shinan. Liu Shinan asked them to drink some porridge first, and he sat beside them and told them about Yiyang City...
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