Chapter 122 The Affairs of Yinzhou: A Young Child Gets Lost
Yinzhou Prefecture, Qishan County.
"Mom, let's not go..." The little girl with her hair in a high ponytail tugged at her mother's clothes, wiping away tears as she cried, "Grandpa and Grandma's graves are still here. If we leave, we'll never see them again."
The dark-skinned woman, wearing tattered straw sandals, glanced back at where her parents were, her eyes slightly moist. She fought back tears, stroking her daughter's head, "That's no longer our home."
She turned to her husband numbly and said, "Let's go."
Corrupt officials, colluding with local gentry, have seized their land and homes, acting tyrannically and recklessly. If they don't leave now, they may never be able to leave again.
Recently, countless people in the counties under the jurisdiction of Yinzhou Prefecture have had their homes seized by powerful officials and have been forced to leave their homes and the land that nurtured them.
"Mother, where has our home gone?" the little girl cried, covering her eyes.
The woman glanced at the sweltering ground, picked up her daughter, and tore a banana leaf to cover her body. Her face was pale, but she forced a smile. "Mother doesn't know either."
Whose hands did their homes fall into? Why did fate play such a cruel trick on these unfortunate people? They didn't even have the right to know these things.
The man wiped away his daughter's tears and scolded her, "Stop crying. We didn't bring much water. This wicked heaven is merciless; be careful it doesn't roast you alive."
The little girl was terrified and immediately stopped crying, burying her face in her mother's arms in fear.
The woman comforted her daughter with heartache, then retorted to her husband with displeasure, "She's still young, why are you being so fierce?"
The man's face was extremely sallow. He looked at his daughter in his wife's arms, moved his lips, but said nothing more.
The family of three set off like this, and after walking for two hours, they encountered many acquaintances on the official road.
The little girl nestled listlessly in her mother's arms. "Mommy, where are we going?"
Yes, where can these homeless, untouchable people go?
The woman's feet were covered in rashes from the scald. She remained silent for a long time before saying, "Let's go find something to eat first."
They left their homes in a hurry, without having time to take anything with them.
A companion walking beside him wiped the sweat from his face and said, "We need to find a water source first. There are quite a few men and children in our group, and everyone's water bags are almost empty. If we don't replenish our water, we won't be able to hold on."
The others nodded in agreement, found a shady spot to rest for a while, and then split up to search for water sources.
The woman handed the child to her husband, saying, "I'll go find water and food. You look after the child. If you and your daughter are hungry, eat the dry food in your bundle first. Don't wait for me." She looked around and specifically instructed, "Don't wander around. It's better for you men to stay together so you can look after each other."
The man hugged his daughter and nodded silently.
After his wife left, his companions gradually dispersed to find something to eat.
The man watched anxiously as the dry rations he brought were far from enough for his family of three.
Just then, a neighbor's husband invited him to go dig for wild vegetables.
Without a second thought, the man stood up, picked up his daughter, and followed.
The banana leaves that the man had broken off to shade his daughter this morning had dried out, so he spread out his bundle, hid the dry food, and then wrapped his daughter in the patched bundle.
Upon arriving at our destination, we were surprised to find a field of taro growing there—this stuff is very filling!
Excitedly, everyone dispersed. Some broke off dry branches, some hurriedly grabbed a stone, and some even dug with their bare hands, afraid of falling behind and missing out on some life-saving food.
The man was also anxious. He touched his daughter's forehead to check her temperature and breathed a sigh of relief. "Daddy's going to find something to eat. Be a good girl and stay right next to me and don't run around, okay?"
The little girl, covered by a rag, nodded quietly.
Just then, a gurgling sound came from the air, and the little girl said with a blush, "Daddy, Nannan isn't hungry."
The man frowned deeply, his sunken face showing even more sorrow. He touched his daughter's flat little belly with heartache and guilt, opened his mouth but closed it again, and finally said only, "Nannan, be good, we'll wait for Mom to come back and eat the dry food at home together."
"Um!"
Hearing his daughter's strong and energetic response, the man's worries lessened, and he managed a faint smile.
After settling his daughter under the shade of a tree, the man turned and rushed into the taro field.
The taro in June is small and has a bitter taste, not fully ripe at all, but for the refugees who urgently need to supplement their food supply, this is already a great blessing.
Nan Nan was playing alone under the shade of a tree, wearing a tattered cloth over her head. But suddenly she saw a little white rabbit dart out of the woods. It was round and fluffy and was hopping forward slowly and playfully.
Nan Nan stared intently, swallowing hard with longing. The little bunny was so cute, its meat must taste delicious!
She followed the rabbit closely, wishing the rabbit would come home with her on its own.
Her gaze was fixed on the rabbit. After walking for an unknown amount of time, she finally waited for the right moment, and pounced on it, pulling it into her arms.
The white rabbit looked small from a distance, but it was actually plump and strong. Nan Nan used all her strength to hold it down.
After working for quite a while, she happily pulled the rabbit up from the ground by its ears. There would be meat at home today! It was all thanks to Nan Nan.
He looked up triumphantly, only to find that the surrounding environment was completely unfamiliar.
Surrounded by withered trees and incessantly chirping cicadas, she had no idea how to get home.
Suddenly, a powerful tiger roar echoed from the depths of the forest.
Nan Nan took two steps back in fear, looking around in terror. The rabbit struggled frantically, as if danger was about to strike, but Nan Nan held on tightly. She glanced around, gritted her teeth, and dragged the rabbit to the right as they ran wildly.
A thud, like a heavy object hitting the ground, seemed to come from behind. Nan Nan ran even faster, but suddenly tripped over a dry branch. The rabbit slipped from her grasp, and she quickly fled for her life.
"Bunny... Bunny, come back!" Nan Nan panicked immediately. Even the tiger chasing her hadn't made her this flustered. She endured the pain, quickly got up from the ground, and chased after it.
"This rabbit is really fat." Zhang Ting jumped down from the tree, grabbed the rabbit by the ears, and smiled with great satisfaction.
This noon, let's have the little white rabbit and wild chili peppers swim in the pot.
The rabbit, having just escaped the tiger's mouth, fell into the wolf's clutches, struggling with all its might and squeaking wildly.
Unfortunately, it fell into Zhang Ting's hands, and all her efforts were in vain.
Zhang Ting leisurely walked back, carrying the rabbit ears.
"Hey! You bad guy, let go of my bunny!" Nan Nan said, panting heavily as she braced herself on her knees.
Zhang Ting paused for a moment. She thought she heard a child's voice. After a moment, she shook her head. How could there be a child in this desolate wilderness?
It must be my imagination!
Zhang Ting composed herself and continued walking forward, even glancing at the rabbit's ears with amusement. "Little rabbit, do you prefer steamed or braised?"
Nan Nan stamped her feet in frustration, dragging her weak, short legs as she chased after her.
"Hey! Stop right there, you bad guy! You stole Nan Nan's bunny!" Nan Nan was out of breath and on the verge of tears.
"Nannan can't keep up! You bad guy, give the bunny back to Nannan!" Nannan couldn't keep up at all and sat on the ground, pounding the ground and crying loudly.
She was too weak to keep up, but her cries were deafening.
Zhang Ting felt the demonic sound echoing in her ears and thought to herself, "Oh no! How can I, at such a young age, have such severe auditory hallucinations?"
Only when she saw the startled birds taking flight ahead did she realize what was happening and turn around.
The little girl, wrapped in rags, sat on the ground crying loudly, her cries bringing tears to the eyes of all who heard them, and causing everyone's heart to ache.
However, Zhang Ting was hard-hearted and felt nothing. Wild animals were everywhere in the mountains and forests, and out of humanitarianism, she went over and asked, "Child, where are your parents?"
Nan Nan sobbed, choking out, "Thief, please give Nan Nan's meat back... Waaah, Daddy's sick and wants to eat meat, you bad guy, please give the meat back to Nan Nan!"
He accused him of stealing her flesh?
Zhang Ting raised an eyebrow, then suddenly looked at the quiet rabbit in her hand, and realized what was going on.
The sun unleashed its scorching heat, and she wiped the sweat from her face, casually lifting the child to a shady spot to talk.
The little creature under my hands struggled even more fiercely than a rabbit, crying and saying, "Bad guy! Let go of Nan Nan! Nan Nan's meat doesn't taste good. You should eat the rabbit instead. Rabbit meat tastes better, boohoo... You bad guy."
Zhang Ting was overjoyed and put the child on the ground.
Nan Nan was surprised to be released by the bad guy so easily. She was stunned and fell to the ground with a thud. Looking up at the stranger who was as tall as an ox, she could not even see his face, only his waist.
Nan Nan opened her mouth wide. This strange aunt's clothes are so beautiful, like stars in the sky, and they even sparkle!
Zhang Ting is about to become a mother herself, and seeing adorable children inevitably evokes a sense of fondness. She half-squats down in front of a child, holding a rabbit, and patiently explains things to her.
“Look, kid, I caught this rabbit, so it belongs to me. It’s not your rabbit.”
Nan Nan nervously clutched the hem of her clothes, opened her mouth, and said, "Nan Nan caught it first. Nan Nan chased after it, pounced on it, tripped, and fell. The rabbit ran away, and Nan Nan chased after it."
Did you fall?
Zhang Ting lifted her hand and saw that there were many scratches on the back of her hand, and her palm was broken, bleeding, and covered in dirt. It was a terrible sight for a child.
Nan Nan's hands trembled with pain as she pleaded with her, "Auntie isn't a bad person. Please give the meat back to Nan Nan. Daddy will get better after eating the meat." Whenever Nan Nan was sick, her mother would say that eating the meat would cure her illness. She believed that if Daddy ate the meat, he would definitely get better too!
Zhang Ting frowned and asked her again, "Where are your parents?"
"Father and Mother... went to find food." Nan Nan was stunned for a moment, looked around, and suddenly realized what was happening. She pouted and burst into tears, "Nan Nan can't find the way back. There are big tigers in the forest, it's so scary, waaaaah..."
Although the child was dark-skinned, her crying was so loud that Zhang Ting felt like her ears were about to be deafened. She shook her head, covered the child's mouth, and gently scolded, "Stop crying, it's so noisy."
Nan Nan immediately stopped crying after being scolded. Her dark eyes were filled with tears as she stared at her, her lips trembling as if she wanted to cry but dared not.
Zhang Ting's heart softened, and he picked her up with one hand and carried her back. "I'll take you back to see an uncle first, and then I'll take you home later."
"By the way, kid, where do you live?"
"Waaah... Nan Nan has no home anymore, only her father and mother."
"Don't cry, your auntie is going deaf."
...
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