Reborn as a Cube Man in the Late Ming Dynasty

"Zhang Yongyuan, you bastard, how many times has this happened now! We've run out of food for you. Get out of here, and don't try to stay here, or we'll break your legs!"

Inside the dilapidated thatched hut, Zhang Yongyuan was pushed out, the door slammed shut, and he fell to the ground, shouting angrily, "If you're not going to give me food, then don't! Why are you yelling so loudly?"

He stood up and slowly walked more than ten meters away, then spat in the direction of the house.

"Hey, I don't want to eat your pig swill. Let me tell you, if they don't want me here, there are plenty of other places that will! When I become successful, don't come near me!"

Snapped.

"You bastard, come here and say that again!"

The door opened, and a middle-aged man walked out.

"Oh, Uncle, I was just saying that, don't take it seriously, I'm leaving now, I'm leaving now!"

Zhang Yongyuan stared fearfully at the bundle of rope he was clutching in his hand, and then ran as fast as he could towards the edge of the village.

"Pah! You coward! From today onwards, don't even think about getting a single piece of food from us!"

The man shouted at Zhang Yongyuan's retreating figure.

"Tch, if you won't give it to me, then don't! I don't care anyway!" Zhang Yongyuan panted heavily, half-squatting on the ground to recover his strength.

I'm so hungry, I have no energy left. Lately, everyone in the village has been so stingy. I help with chores, and they only give me a tiny bit of wild vegetable roots, which is hardly enough for me.

"Looks like I can't rely on this family. Where am I going to find food for today?" He rubbed his empty stomach and pondered, "The village chief is the same. I just took some of his things when no one was home when I went to him. It's not like I'm not going to return them."

Forget it, as expected, everyone in the village is heartless. It's just food, I'll go find some myself.

Zhang Yongyuan snorted coldly and walked away from the village with a nonchalant air.

……

"Damn it, they've dug up all the wild vegetables. Are they trying to starve me to death?" Zhang Yongyuan picked and chose on the cracked ground, managing to salvage a handful of wild vegetables and grass roots.

"Go back and cook something, make do with it. If it really doesn't work, apologize to the village chief. He can't just watch me starve to death in front of him, can he?"

Hmm, this seems to be near Liujia Village. I was so focused on finding food that I didn't realize I'd ended up here.

Liujia Village and Zhangjia Village are very close to each other; you can see the opposite village almost after walking a short distance.

This is why there is an almost irreconcilable conflict between the two villages.

Water sources and fertile land.

These are the lifeblood of the villagers, and the lifeline of every village.

Every year they fight fiercely over these two items. Although no one is killed, it's common for them to be badly injured.

Especially in recent months, since the river dried up, the village's land has been unable to be irrigated, and the plants that can be found to fill their stomachs have become increasingly scarce.

If anyone from another village dares to dig for wild vegetables around their village, they will be severely beaten if caught.

I have to leave quickly, or I'll get a beating if the villagers see me.

Wait, what's this smell?

Just as he was about to turn and run away, a very faint fragrance lingered around his nose.

There's no mistake, it tastes like fish, they're cooking fish!

Eating from everyone's homes, Zhang Yongyuan didn't know anything else, but his sense of smell was extremely keen. This allowed him to tell which family was cooking and what they were making when he wandered around the village.

When that time comes, I'll go in and help out, and I'll give him some food in return.

Zhang Yongyuan sniffed hard, the cold wind filling his nostrils and making it difficult to breathe, but he didn't care, only longing to catch the scent of fish carried in the wind.

His mouth watered uncontrollably as he swallowed and licked his chapped lips.

His craving for meat outweighed his fear of being beaten, and he muttered to himself:

"I... I'm just going over to take a look. I'm not doing anything bad. As long as I'm careful not to get caught, it'll be fine!"

Thinking it over, he tiptoed and quietly slipped into Liu Family Village.

To his surprise, the journey was very smooth, and he didn't even see many people.

Don't they come out to dig for wild vegetables?

Could it be that the people of Liujia Village have found a patch of wild vegetables, and everyone gets a share?

Zhang Yongyuan was very puzzled, but the increasingly strong aroma made him put the strangeness to the back of his mind. He gritted his teeth and went inside.

"This fragrance isn't just one aroma; it's emanating from several rooms!"

Zhang Yongyuan hid behind the wall, looking in shock at the surrounding houses.

There's one here, and there's another one too!

There weren't just a few restaurants; every single one of them clearly got a share of fish!

At this moment, Zhang Yongyuan even began to doubt whether his sense of smell had become malfunctioning because he hadn't smelled meat for a long time.

He leaned against the wall and walked around the village. To his disbelief, almost every house in Liu Family Village reeked of fish.

"Impossible, absolutely impossible! I don't believe it. Didn't the river dry up? Where did they get the fish? Oh no, my nose is broken."

Zhang Yongyuan rubbed his nose in fear, but no matter what he did, the smell wouldn't go away.

"No, it smells too good, I can't resist!!!"

Zhang Yongyuan's eyes were bloodshot as he stared intently at the room in front of him.

"So what if I die? I might get beaten to death. I've had enough of this life of eating one meal and going hungry! I need to see if there are any fish in there."

He crouched down and felt his way to the doorway.

Hearing that the sounds inside were still there, he breathed a sigh of relief, then pressed his ear against the door frame to listen to the conversation inside.

"I just made this fish soup, come and try it, how does it taste?"

"Mmm~ This tastes absolutely delicious! Girl, your cooking skills are so good, I can never get tired of it. Just thinking about being able to drink such delicious fish soup every day gives me the energy to do all the work."

Slurp~

Hearing the sounds of soup being drunk inside, Zhang Yongyuan's saliva involuntarily drooled from the corner of his mouth and dripped onto the ground. He quickly wiped it off with his sleeve.

"Yes, it's all thanks to the Immortal Lord. Otherwise, let alone fish, we might not even be able to get any wild vegetables to eat!"

First Army?

What a strange name!

The smell made Zhang Yongyuan feel even hungrier.

goo~

"What's that sound?" The chair was moved, and footsteps approached the door.

Oh no! I've been discovered! I have to run! If I get caught, I'll be skinned alive, if not dead!

He scrambled to his feet and disappeared in a flash.

Reaching the doorway, the man shrugged as he looked at Zhang Yongyuan, who was fleeing in a panic.

"Why is he running so fast? I was going to invite him for fish soup." The man scratched his head in confusion. "I don't know whose kid he is. He's running so fast. I didn't even get a good look at him. His back was just a bit unfamiliar."