The weak scholar in the end of ancient times

Chapter 33 Not Enough

He Da and Yu Er looked at each other: You kid actually have such a hidden trick!
He Da stole a cow from the government office, intending to exchange it for supplies later. These two days, he decided to follow Wen Gu northward. He Da was secretly pleased with himself: I really have foresight, God helps me!
I didn’t expect that Yu Er also hid a car!

Yu Er had similar thoughts at this time, he just felt that he had underestimated the other party before.

But no matter how you complain in your heart, buffaloes can only be used most effectively when combined with wooden carts.

But now is not the time to worry about so many things, so just suppress any thoughts you have.

The two sides kept a clear distance from each other and came to the shed where Wen Gu and the others were.

Wen Gu bowed elegantly and said, "Please wait a moment. Taoist Qingyi needs to perform a ritual to exorcise the evil spirits. Please forgive me."

Everyone knew that this was to verify whether they were possessed by evil spirits, and they did not feel offended, and even felt a little happy.

This kind of thing has never happened to them before. This Taoist Qingyi seems to be a Taoist master, maybe he even has some magical powers!
"It should be."

"Thank you, Taoist priest, for casting the spell!"

"Master Immortal, please! We promise not to move!"

Taoist Qingyi acted like an indifferent master, holding an exquisite incense burner in his hand, and walked around these people with seemingly mysterious steps, then called it a day... cough, called it a day!
When Wen Gu had asked him to do this, Taoist Qing Yi had of course agreed. He knew all too well how the common people felt about gods, demons, and ghosts; with just a little trickery, they would have to respect him all the way.

No matter what Wen Gu's intentions were, Taoist Qingyi would do whatever he thought was beneficial to him.

Feeling the admiring gazes of the new members, Taoist Qingyi had a calm expression on his face, but was secretly delighted in his heart.

It has to be me, this team can’t do without me!

After the short spell was over, everyone didn't exchange many pleasantries, so as to avoid being noticed by the forces in the city and run away first.

By the time people in the county town realized that Blacksmith Yu and Uncle Yu Wu had disappeared and wanted to chase them out, there was no one outside.

The hidden shed where he had lived was also found, but it was empty.

The house where the two He brothers lived was left to another villager with whom they had a good relationship. Others wanted to take it, but they lost the opportunity and the house had already been occupied.

Setting out again, the original team of eight people has increased its total number of members to more than twenty.

However, the three groups of people maintained a clear boundary.

Leading the group were Wen Gu, his cousin, the Taoist priest, Xiao Liu, and County Magistrate Zhou with three children. They had a donkey cart and a mule cart.

Walking in the middle, He Da was leading the buffalo, He Xiaodi was sitting on the buffalo, and there were three of He Da's followers beside them.

At the back was the Yu family. Yu Er, his two friends, his fifth uncle, the blacksmith Yu and his wife, and their daughter, Yu Xiaocai. Several adults took turns pushing and pulling a wooden cart loaded with goods and a child.

Eight, five, seven.

Exactly twenty!

Wen Gu was happy in his heart because the escape team heading north had increased from the two Wen brothers to twenty people!

If you add the donkey, mule, cow, and the air guard Ma Tuaner.

Twenty-four members!
Not bad, not bad, there are many outstanding new talents joining the team, and we even got an ox cart beyond our expectations!
Although the ox cart has not been assembled yet, it is only a matter of time.

With this calculation, all aspects such as attack, defense capabilities, cargo capacity, etc. have been improved.

The next step is communication and adjustment, which is not difficult.

But not enough.

There must be quite a few escape teams heading from south to north now. The teams of the aristocratic families are well-equipped and may encounter robbery gangs on the way north. It would be safer for their team composed of civilians to have more people.

Wen Gu was thinking and looking forward to meeting people again on the road. As long as they were not vicious people, no matter what their character was, he would pull them into the team to work.

The chaotic world has lasted for more than a year. Those who have survived until now have a certain ability to protect themselves, or they are lucky enough and may have stockpiled a lot of supplies.

By noon, the temperature had risen, so they found an empty house in a village to rest.

"County Magistrate Tan brought people from the yamen here to clean up before. They didn't find anything useful, but it was enough for a rest stop. The people in the county town didn't dare to chase so far."

He Da came over to chat with Wen Gu and exchanged concentrated feed for a small bottle of turbid wine.

Before they set out, they had obtained the concentrated feed from the warehouses of several groups in the county town. They had originally planned to eat it themselves and save some for the cattle, but when they learned that Wen Gu and his men rubbed their bodies with muddy wine to ward off evil spirits, they became interested.

The turbid wine in the small ceramic bottles was fragrant, and He Da and his followers swallowed their saliva.

How long has it been since you tasted alcohol?

But saving their lives was the most important thing now, so they each tasted half a spoonful and rubbed the rest on their bodies.

Smelling the aroma of the wine, I felt dizzy. Not drunk, but dreamy. I kept thinking about the time when I used my reward money to buy wine.

Too extravagant.

Life was so luxurious back then!
The more I recall, the more tears are about to flow from the corners of my mouth.

Yu Er also wanted to free up an iron spoon to exchange for a small bottle of turbid wine.

But Wen Gu and the others don't need iron spoons now.

Wen Gu thought for a moment and said, "So, from next time, when we have a break, Sister Ma will help us cook the porridge."

Wen Gu and his family provided their own food, while the Yu family made a fire and chopped wood to cook.

The two groups ate together, saving firewood and trouble.

The Yu family had no objection, as they had to chop wood and make a fire to cook anyway.

County Magistrate Zhou and Xiao Liu had no objections. They only needed to share a small portion of the wine, saving time on chopping wood, making fire, and cooking. Wine was precious, but it wasn't impossible to find more later. Furthermore, as the weather got colder, fewer evil creatures would appear outside.

Having witnessed many deaths and separations, County Lieutenant Zhou now wanted to spend more time with his children. Xiao Liu, on the other hand, wanted to find suitable prey; he couldn't just stay a vegetarian for a long time, as he needed to grow.

The iron pot brought by Yu Er and his companions was not big enough, so they replaced it with the one brought by Wen Gu and his companions. Although it had a hole in it, it was indeed a big iron pot and enough for them to use.

He Da wanted to join, but the food they brought was of lower quality and not enough, so they had to make do with it for now. There was something I had to do first.

He took the time to find Yu Er, and the two of them chatted for a while and finally agreed on the ox cart matter.

Wen Gu did not get involved.

It's not just the ox carts. Wen Gu didn't talk to everyone about the issue of unified management of materials at the beginning.

Now everyone is still unfamiliar with each other, so they usually keep a close eye on their belongings. Moreover, now is a time of chaos and we are fleeing, so we are wary of each other and will not trust others easily.

Everyone wants to keep important supplies like food in their own hands.

Don’t be in a hurry to review the old knowledge, it’s okay, take your time.

Anyway, after all, the supplies are all in the team.

Continue on your way.

The small groups from the He and Yu families quarreled at first, but as they moved away from Feng County, left their familiar places, and entered unfamiliar areas, they all quieted down. In addition to vigilance, there was more hesitation in their eyes.

The atmosphere became increasingly silent.

Wen Gu waited for another two days in this silent atmosphere before making adjustments during a break.

Their escape team stopped at an inn at this time.

This post station was different from the one they had used to collect wine. It was obvious that a group of people migrating north had passed through here. Food, wine, cloth, tools, and all kinds of items had been looted countless times, and the post station was completely empty.

A lot of wooden building materials were also removed and were obviously burned as firewood.

Wen Gu and his companions stopped here and stole a lot of wood from the post station.

Mainly used for modifying ox carts.

When the ox cart was almost there, He Da and Yu Er were both free, so Wen Gu called them over and said he wanted to discuss something.

When the two arrived, Wen Gu slowly scanned the surroundings:

"By this time next year, many post stations along the way may be reduced to ruins. Therefore, it is better to move north sooner rather than later. The further back the team is, the less likely it is to get free supplies along the way."

He Da and Yu Er heard it and said, "That's right!"

Those who passed by here before can find food, clothing and weapons. Although they are a little late, they can still dismantle the wood and modify it into ox carts. By next year, the teams behind them will only be able to eat grass!
Thinking of this, the anxiety and confusion in my heart were alleviated.

We are still lucky!
Seeing that the two men's expressions relaxed, Wen Gu continued:
"Everyone must be very tired and uncomfortable from traveling these past few days. But we can't rest yet!"

Wen Gu's face was serious. "We should take advantage of the recent stable weather and the lower temperatures in the morning and evening. We should hurry on our way. If we come across a deserted village or town, it will be easier for us to search for and stockpile supplies. If the weather suddenly turns warmer, that would be disastrous."

The two men, exhausted and still not used to the long journey, nodded.

Yes, we still have to do it while the weather is cold. It will be too dangerous if it gets warmer!
It doesn’t matter if it’s a little hard, as long as it’s safe!

Wen Gu took out his notebook, which contained a crude map he had drawn based on information provided by the He and Yu families.

Their usual strategy is to visit villages and towns rather than county towns.

Not every county town has a capable person like County Magistrate Tan. Once it falls, it will become a huge monster nest.

According to the route planned by Wen Gu, they will arrive at a small town tomorrow.

"I guess if the northward migration team is large, it's unlikely that they'll go there. Since we're small in number, we can go around and take a look. It would be great if we can find some food."

He Da and Yu Er perked up when they heard the word "food".

"Okay!" they said.

"If we want to arrive before tomorrow night, we have to travel a little harder," Wen Gu said.

"It's okay! We can get there!"

For food, you have to fight whenever possible.

Especially He Da, the food he had was of low quality, and he wanted to stock up more food to improve his life and give his younger brothers something good to eat.

The next day, the escape team set off.

The newly assembled ox cart was easy to use. Both the He and Yu families had adjusted their mindsets and were eager to hurry on their journey.

Finally, in the afternoon, they arrived earlier than expected.

Review and observe the ground and the dead trees around you.

"No one should come to this small town. At least no large group has passed through this autumn."

When everyone heard this, they felt their fatigue lifted and their eyes lit up.

food!

we are coming!

(End of this chapter)