Famine and Chaos: Weaving Cloth in Exile to Escape the War

Upon hearing Jing Zhichun's analysis, Yang Erniu broke out in a cold sweat.

Having a large group of people would certainly make it easier to be exposed, but he also felt that things might not be so coincidental.

"Madam Shen, our place is surrounded by mountains on all sides. The villagers don't necessarily run to the Wild Man's Pass..."

"You're right," Kyoto Haru nodded, "but it's better to be safe than sorry. You should still go and find out where the village chief plans to escape to."

If they go east, we go west; if they go west, we go east. In short, don't crowd with them.

Yang Erniu immediately agreed, "Okay, I'll go right away!"

After Yang Erniu left in a hurry, Jing Zhichun also quickened her pace to get home.

Her belongings were simple: a few burlap sacks, a clay pot, a kettle, and a bowl, which were easy to tidy up.

The kettle can be placed directly into the space, leaving only a small amount of grain outside as a decoration.

As they approached the edge of Yangjia Village, Jing Zhichun saw in the distance the old exiles' residence. A woman was pulling and tugging at a child on the ground, cursing and swearing.

"You little brat! Your grandpa's about to die, and you're still stuffing food into the coffin?"

"Let go of my hand right now!"

"If you don't let go, I'll beat you to death!"

"Aunt, you can't take it! My grandfather isn't dead! My grandfather isn't dead! Please, give him some food, and he'll live!"

"Please, Auntie! Just give Grandpa a bite to eat!"

"Pah! Even if it's not quite dead yet, it'll be close! Giving it to that old geezer would be a waste of food!"

Kyoto Haru initially only glanced at it and intended to leave quickly, but when her gaze swept over the sack in the woman's hand, her anger flared up.

The woman and child were fighting over her sack.

She bought the burlap sack from the system; its weaving method and color were different from those of burlap sacks from this dynasty, and she recognized it at a glance.

The child on the ground was Su Che's grandson.

It seems that the little bit of food she gave to the child was all taken away by this woman.

Without saying a word, Kyoto Haru took off running in that direction.

Her food is not meant to be wasted by people like that!

As she rushed closer, she saw the woman punching and kicking the boy who was curled up on the ground.

The boy clung tightly to a corner of the sack, refusing to let go no matter how much the woman kicked and hit him.

Jing Zhichun stepped forward and kicked the woman hard in the side!

"Ouch!"

The woman screamed in pain as she was kicked, and staggered to the ground.

She looked up and saw a figure completely covered in a black robe, with his face obscured. She was immediately startled!

"what!"

"A ghost...a ghost!!"

"There's a ghost!"

Ignoring the woman's screams, Jing Zhichun squatted down, picked up the sack on the ground, and then kicked the still wailing woman a few more times.

Su Heng shakily propped himself up from the ground, rubbed his blood-covered eyes, and saw a figure in black.

That all-black outfit looks so familiar.

Then, Su Heng tentatively asked, "Mrs. Shen... is that you?"

Upon hearing this, Kyoto Haru stopped what she was doing and turned to look at the boy: "Are you alright?"

As soon as she said that, her anger flared up again.

The boy's face was bruised and swollen, his eyes were mostly covered in blood, and there were fresh cuts on his legs and body, with several places where the skin and flesh had been torn open and were still bleeding.

Jing Zhichun truly never expected that the little bit of food she kindly gave to the boy would bring such a disaster upon him.

Upon hearing Jing Zhichun's voice, Su Heng forced himself to get up from the ground, clutching his stomach and shaking his head. "You, you're really Madam Shen? I... I'm fine."

"Okay, then wait for me a moment."

After saying that, Kyoto Haru turned around and walked towards the woman who was trying to get up, and raised her hand to slap her repeatedly.

In an instant, the woman was beaten until she was dizzy and screamed repeatedly.

After slapping him a few times, Jing Zhichun suddenly remembered their conversation, saying that Old Master Su was dying.

She stopped what she was doing, turned around and said to the boy, "Take me to see your grandfather first."

Su Heng hadn't expected Jing Zhichun to want to visit his grandfather, so he quickly nodded, "Okay, I'll lead the way for you."

Immediately, Kyoto Haru followed the boy, carrying a sack.

At this moment, the woman recovered her strength. Seeing that Su Heng was about to leave with his men, she immediately got up from the ground and stumbled after him, grabbing Jing Zhichun's arm: "You...you're that...that damned woman from Shen Qingzhou's family?"

"You bitch, give me back my grain! You're not allowed to leave!"

"That old geezer is practically on his deathbed, what's the point of him eating food? What a waste! Food should be saved for the living!"

Jing Zhichun was pulled so hard that she stumbled, and her hat was ripped off.

She frowned and called out to Su Heng, who was in front of her, "Is she your aunt?"

"Hmm." Su Heng turned around and nodded timidly, then said to his aunt, "Aunt, this is Madam Shen's food, please don't take it anymore!"

"I don't care whose food it is, what I see is mine! You little brat, stop lecturing me!"

As she spoke, the woman began to snatch the sack from Jingzhichun's hands.

Jing Zhichun kicked the woman aside and asked Su Heng coldly, "Have you separated from your aunt's family?"

"After my parents died on the way to exile, we separated from my eldest and second uncles' families."

"So now it's just you and Grandpa living together?"

"Yes."

"Have your eldest and second uncles ever helped you out financially?"

Su Heng shook his head. "No...no. When we arrived at the place of exile, my grandfather recognized some medicinal herbs, and we dug them up and asked someone to exchange them for food...most of the time, it was my grandfather and I who helped them out."

Jing Zhichun nodded, then there was no point in keeping this woman around.

"Okay, I understand."

After saying that, she turned around abruptly.

The woman was trying to run away with the sack in her arms when Jing Zhichun caught up with her, grabbed her shoulder with one hand, and quickly pulled out a pistol from his pocket with the other, shooting her in the thigh!

"Bang!"

"what!"

The woman screamed in agony, forgetting all about the sack in her hand, and squatted down, clutching her bleeding thigh and crying.

Su Heng was so frightened by the bloody scene before him that he trembled all over and his small body could not even stand up straight for a moment.

Jing Zhichun quickly picked up the sack on the ground, picked up the trembling boy, and patted him on the back with one hand: "Don't be afraid. If we don't teach her a lesson, you and your grandfather might not be able to survive in the future. I hope you understand what I'm saying."

However, saving your grandfather is the priority; you can think about these things later.

"Now, can you give me directions? Where is your grandfather?"

Upon hearing this, Su Heng could no longer hold back his tears. This was the only person who had stood up for him and his grandfather since his parents died.

"Thank you... thank you... Shen family..."

For a moment, Su Heng was sobbing uncontrollably that he couldn't even speak.

Jing Zhichun quickly patted his back: "Don't speak yet, just point to where your grandfather is."

Su Heng raised his hand tremblingly and pointed to a lone mud-brick house not far ahead.

Kyoto Haru, carrying the boy, rushed into the room.