Chapter 169: I don't know how to give it a title (bug)
It was not far from here to the cave. The door of the kitchen was open during the day. Shen Ning lit the stove and added water to the pot. She turned around and saw Shen Jin and Shen Yin. She ran out to greet them and saw that they were not much thinner than Shen Tie. She leaned her head to look behind them.
Before she could ask Tian Ya, the Chen family members who lived nearby had heard the news and came over. They were stunned to see Shen Jin and Shen Yin, who were so emaciated that their bones were just visible. The Chen family members hardly dared to recognize the two brothers. They were no better than the people who were on the verge of death in the drought that year.
Mrs. Chen opened her mouth but no words came out.
Sang Luo handed Shen Jin and Shen Yin to An Ning and his sister, and said, "Take Xiao Jin and Xiao Yin in and sit for a while. Pour two bowls of water for them to moisten their throats first. Your grandmother Chen and I will go see who else is coming."
Shen An and Shen Ning both agreed.
Sang Luo and the Chen family walked a few steps away, and could still hear Shen Ning's low voice coming from him who was leading people to the cave: "It's only been more than three months, how did you become like this? Didn't the eldest brother send you dried meat? And didn't Wen Yin's father also exchange food for you? Where's Tian Ya? Hasn't she come down yet?"
Sang Luo sighed softly.
The Chen family looked back and saw that the children had already reached the entrance of the cave. Then Mrs. Chen asked Sang Luo in a low voice: "I heard from Lu's Erlang that Qiyang County was broken, and the three brothers Xiaojin came over. What about Shen San, Li Shi, and Tian Ya?"
Sang Luo shook her head: "I don't know the details yet."
…
As the Xu family members were led down one by one by Chen Lie using ropes, the Shi, Zhou and Lu families also trotted over one after another.
They were all thinking about the situation outside, and they didn't even move. They just stood there and started asking questions. Shopkeeper Xu told them the situation. Thinking about the children, he didn't go into too much detail about the third branch of the Shen family, and just mentioned it in a few vague words.
Only then did everyone in the valley know what had happened outside.
This was a tough day for any family in the valley. The homes they had been forced to abandon were now truly lost. Shili Village and countless villages in Qiyang County became deserted villages. How many people would be able to go back when peace came?
The three brothers Shen Jin and the Xu family are already extremely lucky. Most people have average luck and have either lost their lives or are still in dire straits.
After the sadness, they felt relieved. They were relieved that they were all safe and sound hiding in this small valley and had luckily avoided a great disaster. Their close relatives had also made preparations and had fled to the mountains early.
As for families like the Xu and Shen, who were able to rescue a few relatives, it goes without saying that Old Mrs. Xu hugged her son and daughter-in-law, and hugged her two grandchildren, laughing and crying.
It’s good to be alive. Being alive is better than anything else.
The old lady was already very old. When she heard that her son's family was able to escape danger safely thanks to the help of Chen Lie and Chen Dashan, she bowed and was about to thank the two young men, but Mrs. Chen was quick to hold her back.
Gan, Shi Erlang's wife, Feng Liuniang, and Zhou's mother-in-law and daughter-in-law, who had relatives outside, had to ask Chen Lie and Chen Dashan about the situation in the mountains. They heard that most people had retreated to the third or fourth day's journey, so they felt relieved.
Shi Erlang said: "Will it be even more difficult for us to leave the valley again after a while?"
It’s less than two days’ journey to the inner circle.
Chen Dashan thought for a moment and shook his head. "The journey these two days is not that easy. There are more wild animals than outside. Unless you are a hunter who is familiar with the traces of wild animals, you can avoid them relatively easily. It is not easy for ordinary people to go inside. The outer boundary is large enough. As long as there are no large numbers of bandits entering the mountains and there is enough food, most people will not come inside in the short term."
As for those who have entered the deep areas right now, there may be casualties, and most of them are in fear when going in and out every day.
Chen Lie said, "Hunting should be done as much as possible recently, and going as deep into the inner circle as possible."
Shi Erlang was puzzled: "Wouldn't it be more dangerous to go inside?"
Chen Lie nodded, "It is more dangerous, but we can still deal with it. As for the outer direction, I mean we should not move if we can. Leaving those wild animals behind is actually a layer of protection for our valley when the situation outside is not critical. There are many wild animals, and few people dare not come in. Without people coming in, our valley will be safe enough. When the situation outside is really critical and a large number of people have to retreat inside, the wild animals will also retreat, which can be regarded as leaving resources for other people hiding in the mountains."
Sometimes, humans are much more terrifying than beasts. If we can preserve the natural barriers through some measures, it is better to preserve them.
Everyone agreed with this point, knowing that people were eating each other outside.
Everyone knew the situation outside, and the Xu family and the three Shen Jin brothers had to settle down, so everyone went back to their homes.
Sang Luo and Shen Lie lagged behind by a step, and it was only at this moment that the two had a chance to talk alone.
Sang Luo looked at Chen Lie: "Manager Xu was quite vague in some of his words just now, what's the situation with Xiao Jin's family?"
Chen Lie sighed and told Sang Luo everything he knew.
On the way here, he also found an opportunity to ask Shen Jin privately how he entered the city, how the food was lost, how Tian Ya disappeared and how she was sent back, so he knew everything.
The only thing that made Chen Lie feel better was that Tian Ya was finally sent out by Wang Meiniang, so she didn't really fall into the worst situation.
I also understand Li's determination to kill Shen San at all costs. If Shen San doesn't die, none of the Shen Jin brothers will survive.
Sang Luo didn't have any good feelings towards Shen San and Li. After hearing this, she just sighed for Tian Ya, or perhaps, for the way the world is.
She knew that in times of chaos, human life was worthless, and that there were cases of cannibalism. But how tragic it was was just a passing mention in books to her. As someone who grew up in the 21st century, she had never experienced it personally.
At this point, Sang Luo just felt fortunate. She was fortunate that she needed an identity at that time, and seeing that Chen An and Chen Ning were obedient and sensible, she stayed in the leaky thatched house of the Shen family. She was fortunate that after Shen Lie came back, she observed Shen Lie's character and chose to stay the second time.
Otherwise, she really couldn't imagine what she would be facing now.
She was still digesting what Chen Lie said about the situation outside. Chen Lie pondered for a moment and then talked about the arrangements for the Shen Jin brothers.
Sang Luo listened quietly and raised her eyebrows after hearing the latter part.
He first made his stance clear, then divided the responsibilities, and tactfully told her about Shen Jin's attitude. Finally, he asked for her opinion on whether he could give part of the prey he hunted and his own food to his three cousins.
He spoke cautiously and nervously, and his words were clear and fluent.
Sang Luo did not answer. She just stood there looking at Chen Lie and asked curiously, "How many times have you thought about this since you came back?"
Shen Lie was stunned.
Sang Luo laughed: "I don't think we will starve if we rely on such a large mountain and have you to protect us."
What she needs to spend most of her time on is probably figuring out how to change her diet.
She glanced at Chen Lie and said with a smile: "So, I'll have to trouble you to go out hunting more often in the future. Also, thank you."
Shen Lie was stunned by the thank you, but Sang Luo didn't explain much, just said: "Let's go, Xiao An and An Ning should know everything by now."
I don’t know how she will cry.
…
As Sang Luo expected, Shen An and Shen Ning's eyes were slightly swollen.
Chen Lie and the youngest Tian Ya actually didn't have that many interactions. Instead, it was Chen An and Shen Ning, especially Shen Ning, who had been taking care of Tian Ya since he was a teenager. It goes without saying that he was very sad to suddenly find out that Tian Ya was gone.
Sang Luo did not try to comfort her, there was no way to comfort her, there was always a process of acceptance.
What she actually wanted to say was, be thankful that the family had been divided, and be thankful that Chen Lie came back in time, otherwise it would not be Tian Ya who would suffer first, but Chen Ning, and then Chen An.
Chen Ning might not even end up like Tian Ya. It is even more likely that she would have become another Wang Meiniang before she became the gold bracelet.
Sang Luo didn't see Shen San's bottom line anyway, and Li, although good to her own children, could not be said to be good to Shen Anchen.
But now the person is gone, and the retribution she deserves has been received. If she really said this, it would only be to provoke the three brothers Shen Jin, so she didn't say it, but patted Shen Ning's head: "Okay, are you paying attention to the water in the pot? Boil it dry carefully."
Instead of crying and thinking about all sorts of things, it is better to go to work.
When Shen Ning heard Sang Luo carrying water from the pot, she really wiped away her tears and hurried to the kitchen.
Shen Jin still felt nervous when he saw Sang Luo, but Sang Luo did not put pressure on him. She asked Chen An to take the two children to wash their hands and faces first and then have a meal. She looked at the two-story bed and considered how such a large group of people in the family would live before the cave above was cleaned up.
Now I am just glad that I made a platform when I made the bed. It is summer now, and one person can sleep on each side of the platform, and there is no other place to squeeze.
…
While Sang Luo was looking at how to settle down in the small cave, the Xu family next door, including Manager Xu, Wei Lingzhen, Xu Wenqing, Xu Wenhong and Uncle Xu, were also standing in their own cave in a daze.
They never thought that living in a cave is like this, and that beds can be made in so many different ways???
Xu Wenyin's eyes sparkled as she took her mother's arm and said, "Mom, isn't it beautiful? This bed curtain was woven by my grandmother and me."
There were actually only two beds in the Xu family's cave. Although this cave was bigger than Sang Luo's, it was irregular and winding. Sang Luo took advantage of the original shape of the cave and made some repairs at the innermost part to create a small room for the old lady and Xu Wenyin.
There is only one old and one young, so there is no need for a two-decker bed. But Xu Wenyin envied the Shen family's platform, so Sang Luo designed a similar platform, but only placed a very low platform bed against the wall, put a mattress on it, and then spread a mat on it, which looked very clean and refreshing.
There is a pole at the head of the bed for hanging a mosquito net, which is a bit similar to the bed net of a modern princess bed.
There are two futons and a kang table on the remaining space on the platform, for daily rest. There is a cabinet under the platform for storage. Because Xu Wenyin coveted Chen Ning's bed with steps, Sang Luo specially made two steps to go up to the platform.
Of course, the original purpose was to provide more storage space and to satisfy Xu Wenyin's little wish. Now, the platform is high enough to isolate moisture, so it can be used directly as a tatami. Now that Manager Xu and Wei Lingzhen and his wife have come, they just put a mattress on it and they have a bed.
As for Wei Qinghe, Wang Yunzheng and Xu Wenbo, they had a bunk bed that was narrow at the top and wide at the bottom, with a wardrobe next to it, which solved the problem of the three of them living there.
The kitchen, tables and chairs were also novel. In short, they were completely different from what they had originally imagined.
Wei Lingzhen turned around and nodded repeatedly: "Beautiful, this is quite a clever idea."
Xu Wenyin laughed and said, "Sister-in-law A'Luo helped us draw it. The beds of every family in the valley are so beautiful!"
Shopkeeper Xu also touched the platform and laughed, "Mrs. Sang is always very clever."
Old Mrs. Xu looked at them with a smile, and then she said, "From now on, you two will sleep on this platform. We can build a double-decker bed like the one Qinghe and his family have outside for Uncle Xu, Wen Qing and Wen Hong to sleep on."
Shopkeeper Xu looked around and thought that if he put another bed in the cave, there would only be an aisle left, so he said, "Will it be too crowded? Chen Lie did say there is a small cave, so let Wen Qing, Wen Hong and Uncle Xu live there with Xiao Jin and his brothers."
Old Madam Xu glanced at him and said, "Just stay here if I tell you to. Why are you afraid of being crowded? Whose family here isn't crowded? You haven't seen the Shen family's cave. This valley was originally found by the Shen and Chen families. They let Luo choose the cave first. To take care of us, they chose the smallest one. It was already crowded, and now there are three children. I say we should take this opportunity to give the cave directly to the Shen family so that we don't have to squeeze in."
The young couple still sleeps in separate beds.
Xu Wenyin went to the Shen family every day, and she and Shen Ning were always together, whispering. How could she not know which bed Shen Ning slept in? Xu Wenyin knew it, and she would unconsciously bring it up when chatting with the old lady.
Aning and her sister-in-law slept on the upper floor.
…
The old lady knows everything.
Now that there is an extra cave, why should her family get involved? It doesn't matter how Shen Lie and Sang Luo use it. At least this is the right time to return the cave to the Shen family, so that the old woman can feel at ease.
Shopkeeper Xu had no idea of what his mother was thinking, but when he heard that the Shen family had taken the smallest cave here, he immediately gave up the idea of letting his son live in another cave.
"Okay, I'll go tell Shen Lie now."
He walked to the grain shelf and found two unopened bags of rice. He called Wei Qinghe, Uncle Xu and Xu Wenqing to help him carry the two bags of rice to the Shen family.
The life-saving grace, let alone two bags of rice, even two hundred bags would not be enough. Sending rice would be an underestimation of himself and Shen Lie. However, the Shen family suddenly had three more mouths to feed, so there was no need to talk about the pressure. He did his best to show his gratitude.
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