Chapter 113: The Protector Fell!
ople say she's fat. Last time, she even said she wanted to lose weight, but she changed her mind after just skipping one meal."As expected, Funiu held onto her father's neck and protested, "I'm still...Finally, everyone couldn't come up with a solution and could only continue on their journey.
Perhaps because of the cold weather, there seemed to be far fewer wild animals in the forest. Insects and snakes were nowhere to be seen either, having vanished long ago.
Within the team, young and old alike were filled with speculation, anxiety gnawing at their hearts, as they quickened their pace.
But ten or so mountains are not something you can quickly speed through in a day or two.
After three more days, the second snowstorm arrived.
It snowed for half the day, and the snow hadn't melted yet. Stepping on it, it was almost up to my ankles.
Everyone pulled out their cotton-padded clothes, and those who didn't have them put on extra layers of undershirts.
The Li family was the most prepared, of course everyone had cotton clothes, including Zhao Shu and the others.
Only a divine physician was "tied" to Ye Shan's side, wearing only a single garment.
Fortunately, Li was an honest man and had prepared new jackets and trousers for Zhao Uncle well in advance.
Uncle Zhao wore the old one, so this new set was given to Zhang Shenyi.
He didn't stand on ceremony, dressed warmly and urged Zhao Yuru to sew him a hat.
Uncle Zhao was idle on the road, and tanned a few wolf skins. But it wasn't long enough, so they still had a strong stench.
Even Zhang the divine physician didn't find it beneath him, he kept it on his head day and night.
Because it's really cold at night, the most common sound you hear around camp lately is sneezing.
It was another night, and the snow made it exceptionally cold.
The elderly and children huddled in the shelter, while the men gathered around the bonfire, chatting. They didn't want to sleep, but it was too cold to fall asleep.
The village head and Zhao Shu talked with the villagers, "Looking at this situation, we probably won't be able to get out before the heavy snow closes the mountain. We should prepare early and find a place to settle down for the winter. Otherwise, the elderly and children will not be able to withstand it, and it will be too late when they get sick."
Everyone nodded in agreement. "It's really too cold. Not just the elderly and children, but even us, we won't be able to hold on for another two days."
Li Lao Er spoke up, "Uncle, we can find a place to settle down for the winter. But first, we need to find a sheltered cave that will keep us warm. And one or two won't be enough; it's not easy to find a place like this that suits everyone. Second, we need to gather supplies for the winter. We should hurry and collect all the edible mountain goods we can find. Third, we need to stockpile medicine to be prepared in case someone gets a headache or fever during the winter."
"The second brother is right, there are only these three major events at hand. Let's discuss together, we must act separately and try to settle down before the third snowfall."
The village head knocked on his pipe and said, "Liu鏢頭, you have traveled through these mountains, so I'll leave finding a place to stay to you"
"Alright," Liu, the head of the鏢局, replied readily. "I vaguely recall there being a place similar to that across two mountains, but I can't be sure. Give me a brother, plus Liu Yang and Jia Yi, and I'll set off at dawn!"
"Alright, you pick the manpower. Mark your way as you go, and we'll follow it." The village chief waved his hand, and that settled it.
Of course, it was Dr. Zhang who led the children to gather medicine.
And gathering all the edible mountain produce to prepare for the winter stores became the task of the entire village.
It's only September now, it won't be until next March at the earliest that we can come out of the mountains.
Nearly one hundred people, with enough food rations for about a month left.
That means they have to find enough food in this vast forest to feed the entire village for five months.
This is simply a daydream, but even if it can't be done, we must still try.
No one wants the elderly and children to go hungry!
The journey has been incredibly difficult and dangerous, and it hasn't been easy getting this far.
One must not fall short of one's goal!
The woman gave the cooking to the elderly, and as soon as she rested, she rushed into the forest carrying a basket.
At this time, there is no fear of insects or snakes, nor black bears or wolves.
Compared to starvation, none of these things frighten them anymore.
Gia Yin had been waiting for this moment for a long time. She lay obediently in her grandmother's arms, subtly leading her mother and aunt away from the group. Then she frantically started moving things out of the space.
Apples, pears, a large pile of chestnuts, dates, and rabbits committing suicide, in nests of eggs.
Everyone is frantically harvesting mountain produce, walnuts, chestnuts, wood ear mushrooms, frost mushrooms, a dazzling array of everything.
Sometimes, people also hit wild chickens, rabbits, or even deer.
So, the things Li's wife and daughter-in-law brought back were novel but not too eye-catching.
It's just a quick glance, and no one has the time to think too much about it.
When you're struggling to survive, anything that can fill your stomach is a good thing, no matter where it comes from.
It's better if it falls from the sky, proving that God doesn't want them to starve!
Thus, going back and forth, the villagers were all busy until their eyes turned red.
The women gathered enough to fill four large sleds.
The men weren't idle either, the prey filled three sleds.
Especially Li Laosi, he carried back a lone wild boar.
Although these things are still not enough to get through the winter, they have also given everyone great confidence.
Thus, after three more days, the weather turned colder, and a windstorm swept in at night.
People huddled together, shielding the elderly and children from the wind and snow, and they also built many more bonfires.
But overnight, more than twenty people still caught a cold.
Five little children, five old people, the rest are middle-aged.
Apart from Old Lady Li who has a bit of a stuffy nose, everyone else in the Li family is doing well.
Their trousers were thick to begin with, and Jia Yin secretly took out an old quilt at night and added it to the bedding.
This was left behind at home and she put it away.
At this time, it was taken out and no one paid much attention to it.
Li Laotai and Tao Honghui Zhao Yuru put Jiā n jiā Xǐ in the middle, and Jiā n jiā Xǐ tightly hugged her sister.
And Li La Er's brothers and Jia Ren, Jia Yi, and Jia Huan were gathered on the outermost circle.
The Li family, like layers of an onion, surrounded Jia Yin with protection.
But she couldn't sleep, her heart burning with anxiety, wondering how to get the food from the space out.
How to keep your family warm and safe throughout the winter
Before she could figure out a solution, something else happened.
Dr. Zhang took the young boys to gather herbs and decoct medicine. Perhaps they were caught in the wind, and they all fell ill with a cold.
He relied on his status as a doctor and thought it wasn't serious, so he just drank a bowl of warming herbal soup.
But when night came, his fever worsened.
He was already sixty years old, and Ye Shan had tied him to his horse the whole way, jolting him all the way to Li's house. After staying for just a few days, he fled with them during their escape.
Even with the Li family taking care of them in the deep mountains and old forests, life was not comfortable. They couldn't eat well and they didn't sleep soundly.
It was to be expected that the old man wouldn't be able to hold up any longer.
But at this time, he was the protector of everyone, suddenly fell down, everyone panicked.
Li Lao Si led people to chop down trees all night. Beside Li's shack, he built a smaller one. He made a bed for the old man and lit a small brazier to keep him warm.
This way, it won't infect the Lee family and is convenient to take care of.
Tao Hongying and Zhao Yuru fetched water to apply to the old man's forehead, but seeing it was ineffective, they disregarded any propriety and unbuttoned his cotton jacket, rubbing both his front and back.
The old man also drank the fever-reducing soup he had prepared for the villagers earlier.
But the old man grew worse and worse, by nightfall he had begun to talk nonsense.
"I'm going to find out who you are! There's nowhere for you to run."
"Say, what kind of miracle medicine cured young Ye"
“Nothing heals itself without medication!”
Jia Yin was thinking about her grandfather and secretly came to the small shed to take a look. As a result, as soon as she entered, she heard all this.
Her legs went weak and she almost fell on the old man.
It turns out, this old geezer has been trying to get to her weak spot all along!
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