Chapter 179 Placement
After walking into the mountains for more than an hour, Shen Lie and his group finally arrived at where the Zhou family was staying.
It was a not very big cave with a very small entrance, hidden behind bushes and trees. The entrance was completely filled up by several large rocks, leaving only a small gap for light and air to pass through.
When Zhou Laizi went to move the stone, he was afraid of startling the people inside, so he spoke in a low voice before moving.
"Dad! Big brother! Have you finished collecting it so quickly?"
Zhou Erlang spoke in a low voice, poking his head out of the cave. As soon as he finished speaking, he saw Shen Lie and his group behind him. He was so excited that his voice changed slightly: "Brother Lie? Brother Dashan?"
Chen Lie and Chen Dashan smiled, and Zhou Laizi said, "Hurry up, let your mother and brothers and sisters pack up, we will go to the inner circle immediately, A Lie and Dashan will take us there."
Zhou Erlang was so excited that he didn't know what to do. He quickly responded with an "eh" and quickly retreated back into the cave.
The Zhou family did not have much possessions. To be honest, they were so poor that they filled their coats with reed fluff and chicken and duck feathers they picked up on a daily basis.
Of course we also raised chickens and ducks at home, but we couldn't bear to eat them, so we sent them to the market to sell them. Naturally, we couldn't get any chicken and duck feathers, so we could only pick up a little on a daily basis.
The whole family was afraid of keeping Chen Lie and Chen Dashan waiting for too long, so the seven of them joined together. In just over a quarter of an hour, they packed up their things and came out of the cave.
Except for Zhou Laizi, Zhou Dalang and Zhou Erlang who have normal skin color, the rest of Zhou Laizi's wife, Zhou's eldest daughter, Zhou Sanlang and Zhou's youngest daughter all have slightly abnormally white skin color. When they first came out, they all even covered their eyes with their hands.
Chen Lie and Chen Dashan knew how Zhou Laizi's family had been living for the past six months. In other words, in the two months since the bandits arrived in Qiyang County, probably only Zhou Laizi and the two eldest sons of the Zhou family dared to go out. Zhou Laizi's wife and eldest daughter did not dare to go out at all. As for Zhou Sanlang and the youngest daughter of the Zhou family, they were too young to go out.
This world.
Chen Lie, Chen Dashan and the Xu family went to help pick up some things and carry them up, saying, "Let's go."
The Zhou family had little food, and they had two large bags of soybeans and dried wild vegetables, plus the three newly harvested bags, most of which were actually bean pods. But others didn't know that carrying food into the mountains was fine if there was no one outside, but going into the inner area would obviously cause some trouble.
At night, they found a cave to stay in. The Zhou family dumped out the soybeans and peeled them. They spread out the mats next to the fire and dried the soybeans on them to let the residual heat bake. Five bags became three and a half bags, and they entered the inner circle.
In order to avoid being noticed, they didn't even use baskets. They carried small items in a backpack, and tied up other items like quilts and clothes with ropes, so that you could tell what they were at a glance. The jars and cans were also held in the hands of several children. Even so, they still attracted some malicious looks.
Those with fewer people dared only to watch, but those with more people were ready to make a move. Fortunately, Shen Lie and Chen Dashan already had knives and bows and arrows, and the Xu family also borrowed bows and arrows from people in the valley. In addition to the knives that Shen and Chen had confiscated in the county last time, there were nine young and strong people in the group, four of whom were holding knives and six were holding bows and arrows, which was enough to intimidate people.
Those are not kitchen knives, hatchets or hoes, they are military weapons.
During the one and a half days in the inner circle, there were five or six such stares that made the Zhou family's hair stand on end, but there was only one real confrontation. That group of more than 20 strong men looked like repeat offenders from their expressions and postures. Several of them stared at the Zhou family's eldest daughter, with desire in their eyes and excited smiles on their faces without any concealment.
There was no need to say a word to such a person. Shen Lie and Chen Dashan rushed forward head-on. The Zhou family father and son, who were already furious, Zhou Laizi holding a knife given by Shen Lie, and Zhou Dalang and Zhou Erlang holding a hoe and a hatchet, followed closely and rushed forward, really fighting with all their might.
On one side is anger, and on the other side is the ruthlessness acquired from fighting on the battlefield. If the swords are really drawn, it will be either you die or I die, and there is only one outcome.
The other side had more than 20 strong men, and in the blink of an eye, four of them died, and one was injured slightly or seriously. They hadn't even rushed into the other camp, but the five people who rushed out first killed four and injured two? Especially the two of them were holding knives. The four dead were killed by the two of them when they met each other. Killing people was just like killing chickens.
This group of people, who often relied on their numbers to kill people and rob food, felt frightened and their legs trembled at that moment. When Shen Lie and Chen Dashan rushed towards them again, more than half of them turned around and fled.
The two people who were close to Chen Lie and Chen Dashan couldn't run fast enough, and they felt a chill on their necks before they turned around.
Shopkeeper Xu and his men were protecting the women and children, but Xu Wenqing was drawing his bow and arrow. His hands trembled for several breaths, then he gritted his teeth and released the arrow.
After a day and a half of depression, the sudden outbreak of a fight ended quickly. In the hand-to-hand combat, eight people were left on the ground, six dead and two injured. The one who was slightly injured fled away with his companions.
Chen Lie and Chen Dashan didn't say much, and directly killed the two people who were seriously injured and shot in the legs by arrows and had no time to escape.
The Xu family had seen this side of Chen Lie and Chen Dashan. The Zhou family and Wei Qinghe had only seen Chen Lie and Chen Dashan take action when they encountered wild beasts. This was the first time they had seen this. They were shocked, but more of a feeling of relief and admiration.
The Zhou family, in particular, knew very well that if they had not followed Chen Lie and Chen Dashan, not to mention whether they could deal with the wild beasts they encountered earlier, they would not be able to survive the current disaster.
Chen Lie and Chen Dashan didn't think much of it, as this was the survival rule they had learned during those years. However, they both had a new respect for Xu Wenqing.
This kid has been practicing archery for less than two months, and the most important thing is his courage.
Chen Lie patted his shoulder and smiled: "Practice well. Whether it is a chaotic world or a peaceful world, it is always good to have a skill to protect yourself."
Xu Wenqing was still panicking just now, but he calmed down a little after being patted by Chen Lie.
Without cleaning up the battlefield, the group continued to move forward. Not long after they left, several groups of people came out of the woods one after another. When they smelled the strong smell of blood in the air and saw the corpses lying on the ground, they were so scared that they turned around and ran away.
I was determined in my heart that I should never, ever, ever provoke anyone who could take women and children into the mountains.
The Zhou and Xu family members didn't know that there were so many tails following them, but after a half day, the malicious stares that they had been able to detect before completely disappeared.
After walking deeper into the forest for more than a day, they were only one or two hours away from the valley. The Xu family couldn't tell the direction in the forest and were not familiar with the road, so they didn't notice it. Wei Qinghe had been back and forth many times, but because Shen Lie and Chen Dashan always took detours with their men when transporting grain, he couldn't tell clearly. But Chen Dashan realized that Shen Lie had deviated from the direction after walking for a while.
"How to resettle the Zhou family?" He asked in a low voice privately, with a vague guess in his mind.
Shen Lie whispered back, "How about the one where we picked Tremella fuciformis that day? Help them with some simple defense."
really.
Chen Dashan smiled and said, "That's great. This is the area I was thinking of as well."
It was more than half an hour's journey from the valley, not too close, but they usually went there for hunting and gathering, so they were not completely unable to help.
After entering this deep mountain area, given the current situation, the only things the Zhou family will have to guard against for the next six months are probably wild beasts. There will be wolves in that area, but if they spend more time on defense and create a small safe zone, survival should not be a problem.
They arrived at the place Chen Lie mentioned in the afternoon. There were several caves, and the group visited them one by one. Finally, they chose the smallest one under a cliff. Because the facade there was steep, almost no wild animals could climb to the top of the cave and jump down. It was relatively easier to defend, and there was also a small spring nearby.
In these deep mountains, for people who can't move around, having a water source nearby is crucial.
The Xu family saw that they were not led back to the valley. Although they did not know where this place was or how far it was from the valley, they did not say much. They had absolute trust in Shen Lie and Chen Dashan for the affairs of the valley. They all helped to clean up the cave, cut wood, and make basic defenses, so that at least the Zhou family could have a safe place to stay.
The wood was cut directly in front of the cave, and an area for planting was cleared for them. Chen Lie pointed to a small piece of land in front of the cave and said, "Let's build the cave door today, and light a few fires at night. We will cut more trees overnight and drive deep piles to build a high wall outside your cave, and also enclose the mountain spring. This way, my aunt and the others will not be unable to leave the cave. If you want to be safe, you can slowly get more stones and build a stone wall behind. The mouths and claws of those livestock cannot be underestimated."
Chen Dashan walked around a few more times and said, "You can use tall wooden stakes to enclose a planting area. You can still plant soybeans and vegetables now. You can plant them during the farming season and harvest another crop. It will be much safer if you build a wall within a wall. But this will all require your own efforts later."
The Zhou family nodded repeatedly, and Zhou Laizi's wife said, "It's great that you are willing to help us get here. I don't know how to thank you."
There is no way for women to make a living outside the mountains now. She is old and has a lot of health problems. If she dies, it will be less of a burden to the family. But her daughters are still young, especially the eldest daughter, who is as old as a flower. She dare not even think about what might happen to her.
As she walked along the way, she saw corpses that had been eaten clean in the forest. She also didn't see any human figures for the rest of the day. She knew that by entering this deep mountain area, at least they would be temporarily protected from possible harm caused by humans. As for the wild animals in the mountains, where else could they go except in this mountain?
…
Chen Lie and his group left on the morning of the second day. Before leaving, they agreed that if they went hunting in this area later, they would take Zhou's father and son with them.
It was already past noon when they returned to the valley. From the moment Shopkeeper Xu tied a rope and went down the valley, he notified each household of the child he had found. When everyone had come down, all the families in the valley gathered around.
"The grain was not delivered?"
Apart from a few wild rabbits and pheasants shot on the road and some wild vegetables picked, the group came back empty-handed. Seeing this, Old Man Chen asked a question.
Chen Dashan nodded and said, "Qiyang County has been occupied by that gang of bandits. They are recruiting soldiers and are now training outside the county every day. We can't get close to them."
He told her about the situation outside the mountain, how he met Zhou Laizi and his son when he went to Shili Village to investigate, and how he brought them back to the mountains.
There was a long silence in the valley. After a while, Old Man Chen finally spoke: "So many people are trapped in the county. No one has escaped?"
Chen Dashan lowered his eyes and said solemnly, "Maybe only a very small number of people escaped during the chaos, and the city gate should have been taken over very quickly."
Old Man Lu asked anxiously, "What about all those people in the county town? Are they locked up there all the time?"
Chen Lie shook his head: "It shouldn't be the case. The ordinary people trapped in the city have no food, so how can they starve? The men who stuttered may have joined the bandits and become members of the rebel army. The women and children..."
Maybe it depends on fate.
If the men in the family are capable, they can protect the women. If they are incapable and good-looking, they will be in hell on earth if they end up in that city.
A group of people, old, middle-aged and young, stood there for a long time without being able to speak. After a while, Zhou Cunzheng said in a sad voice, "In our Shili Village, are our family and Laizi's family the only ones who are still living peacefully?"
This is because they were protected by the Shen and Chen families and hid in the mountains. Even Zhou Laizi's family was lucky to have run into them. What about other villages? When the world is at peace, how many people can return home alive?
The elderly, including Mrs. Chen and Zhou Cunzheng's wife, all raised their hands to wipe away their tears.
Sang Luo's fingertips trembled slightly, and what flashed through her mind were the ups and downs of the population of ancient dynasties that she had read about in history, a series of comparisons of numbers that only made her sigh.
Now, she has become one of the components of this number, smaller than dust.
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