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

Liu Yi was inspecting the set traps when he heard this. He looked up and narrowed his eyes slightly.

A cold smile flickered across his lips. They ran fast enough; these people were smart enough not to try and take the tiger from them.

However, as for whether or not to pursue it...

With corpses readily available as bait, the stench of blood is enough to attract tigers. Whether these people are kept alive or not, they are indeed of little use.

Moreover, judging from their appearance, both men were incapacitated. If the two men hadn't been injured, he could have kept them around for a while. But now only two women were able to move around, and bringing them back would only be a burden, adding a few more mouths to feed for no reason.

"No need." Liu Yi withdrew his gaze, his tone indifferent. "Let them go. There's plenty of good food here, enough for that scoundrel to enjoy. We don't need them."

The subordinate immediately understood, nodded, and withdrew, no longer paying attention to the four figures that gradually disappeared into the woods.

Jing Zhichun carried no one on her back, but kept a close eye on the sounds behind her, fearing that the Liu family would come after her.

After walking for about the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, Yang Xiaoniu, who was on her back, kept squinting and observing what was behind them. He noticed that the Liu family had only glanced at them once and then stopped paying attention to them. At that moment, he breathed a sigh of relief.

"They're not chasing us anymore, and they're not looking this way. Erniu, Erdi's wife, go down that slope ahead, turn the corner, and they won't be able to see us anymore. Then we can walk on our own."

As soon as she heard this, Yang Ersao immediately led the way down the slope.

After descending the slope and confirming that they were completely out of the Liu family's sight, Yang Xiaoniu and Yang Erniu immediately slid off the two men's backs.

No one said much, and they quickly started their journey.

The journey out of Yeyang'ao would take two more days. They knew that every moment they stayed in the mountains meant an increase in unknown dangers, so they had to get out of the mountains as soon as possible.

The four of them quickened their pace silently.

About an hour after they left, a deafening tiger roar suddenly rang out from the depths of the mountains behind them, heading straight from the Liu family camp they had left!

The voice was very intimidating; even through the mountains, it sent shivers down one's spine.

The group's faces turned pale, and they quickened their pace, almost running away.

On the morning of the third day, after many hardships, they finally saw the exit of Wild Goat Pass.

The Liu family's conspicuous tent is still there.

"Keep pretending," Kyoto Haru whispered.

Yang Xiaoniu and Yang Erniu immediately fainted again, and Jing Zhichun and Yang Ersao carried them with great effort, staggering towards the camp.

The guards from the Liu family, who were stationed outside the tent, quickly noticed them. One of them walked over, looked at the four men—who were disheveled, covered in blood and dust, and almost unrecognizable—and frowned: "What happened? What happened to these two?"

Jing Zhichun forced a look of panic and exhaustion, and said, "They...they are badly injured. They encountered something strange in the mountains and have been unconscious ever since. Their injuries are severe, and we must get them to the city to find a doctor as soon as possible, or it will be too late!"

The guard looked at Yang Xiaoniu and his companion's lifeless appearance, and then noticed the dried and blackened bloodstains on their bodies. He believed it.

Since these people didn't bring the tiger with them, there's no need to keep it.

"Return what you took from the manor, and you can leave," the guard said matter-of-factly.

"Okay, okay!"

Jing Zhichun and Yang Ersao quickly and carefully put the person on their backs down, took out the ropes and other items they had received from the Liu family, and returned them all.

The guards checked the inventory and found nothing wrong. They waved their hands, indicating that they could leave.

Jing Zhichun and Yang Ersao picked up the two wounded men who were pretending to be dead again and headed towards the official road leading to the county town without looking back.

Only after walking far enough away that the camp was completely out of sight did Jing Zhichun's heart, which had been hanging in suspense, finally settle down a little.

We finally made it through the first step without any major incidents.

Yang Ersao was familiar with the mountain path and led the way.

After another day of travel, the group suddenly found themselves out of the mountains and onto a somewhat desolate official road that morning.

At the crossroads, one path leads to the distant county town, while the other stretches towards the place of exile.

Yang Xiaoniu was eager to go home, so he led the group directly toward the place of exile.

However, Kyoto Spring came to a halt.

She gazed in the direction of the county town, her eyes calm.

She had risked her life to venture out of the mountains this time, and she was unwilling to return in disgrace.

More importantly, she hasn't repaid the Liu family for this generous gift yet.

If she misses this opportunity, who knows when she will be able to leave the place of exile legitimately again.

Therefore, we must go into the city today.

Moreover, they had to stay in the city overnight.

Only in this way can one go to the Liu family to collect debts on a dark and windy night.

Thinking of this, Jing Zhichun turned to Yang Xiaoniu and said, "Brother Yang, Sister-in-law Yang, I have something I'd like to ask for your help with. Today I want to go to the city to see if you know anything about medicine. But even a skilled cook can't cook without rice. Without medicine, having a prescription is useless. The New Year is approaching, and Xiaoman is weak. I also want to go to the city to get some medicine to help the child recover, and also to buy some cloth. My family doesn't have much food left, and I want to buy more to take back. However, you know how difficult it is for me to go to the city, so I'll need your help to get things done. I'll pay you back after I get to the city and exchange the banknotes."

Entering the city requires verification of household registration; as a convict, she cannot enter.

Along the way, she heard from Yang Ersao that the Yang family often went into the city to sell mountain products and game, and were somewhat familiar with the guards at the gate. They should be able to find a way to give her more money and make an exception to let her into the city.

Yang Xiaoniu agreed almost without hesitation.

Without Jing Zhichun, they would not have been able to make it through the Wild Sheep Pass alive. The Yang family will always remember this kindness.

Therefore, I must help with this small favor.

"What are you saying, Madam Shen! Leave this to me," Yang Xiaoniu said. "Let's go into town now."

It's morning now, buying these things won't take long, and they'll definitely be home tonight.

After agreeing on their plan, the group headed towards the county town.

On the way, Kyoto Haru noticed that all of them had bloodstains on them, which was unacceptable for entering the city.

So she told everyone to grab some soil and smear it on the bloodstains until all the bloodstains were black and the color of blood was no longer visible.

Half an hour later, the group arrived at the city gate, where soldiers were indeed guarding and checking their belongings.

Yang Xiaoniu asked Jing Zhichun to wait a moment, and he, Yang Erniu, and Yang Ersao stepped forward. Yang Xiaoniu started talking to a familiar-looking gatekeeper, and under the cover of his sleeve, he quietly slipped half a tael of silver into the man's hand.

"Sir, it must be freezing cold and you must be exhausted. This little bit of money for tea is nothing." Yang Xiaoniu said with a smile, pointing to Jingzhichun Restaurant not far away. "My sister-in-law carelessly forgot to bring her household registration. Could you please do me a favor and make an exception this time?"

The soldier's hand sank as he weighed the silver in his hand, satisfied. Seeing it was Yang Xiaoniu, a hunter he knew well and who seemed reasonable, his expression softened. He glanced casually at Jing Zhichun, seeing her timid, frail peasant-like appearance, and waved his hand, "Alright, alright, hurry up and go in! Remember to bring everything next time, this won't do!"

"Yes, yes, yes! Thank you, sir! Thank you for your mercy, sir!" Yang Xiaoniu bowed repeatedly and winked at Jingzhichun.

Jing Zhichun lowered her head and quickly followed the Yang family. Only when her feet touched the stone slab road inside the city gate and she heard the sounds of vendors hawking their wares did she finally breathe a sigh of relief.

She finally came in.

Everything went so smoothly that even Kyoto Haru was somewhat surprised.

However, the play still needs to be played out completely.

Without delay, Jing Zhichun followed Yang Xiaoniu to a small pharmacy on the street corner and bought two doses of the most common cold-dispelling herbs.

Then, he went to a money exchange and exchanged the hundred-tael silver note he had hidden on his body for a fifty-tael silver note, along with some loose silver and a string of copper coins.

After leaving the money exchange, Jing Zhichun turned around and slipped half a tael of silver to Yang Xiaoniu, saying, "Brother Yang, this is the money I spent on arranging things in the city earlier."

Yang Xiaoniu quickly waved his hand, "Madam Shen! What are you doing! Take it back! It's just a little bit of silver, why bring it up? If it weren't for you, the three of us siblings would have been fed to the weasels in the mountains long ago, and we wouldn't even have our bones left! This little bit of silver is our way of thanking you this time."

Yang Ersao chimed in, "Yes, Madam Shen, my elder brother is right. You should put this money away quickly and don't be polite with us."

Jing Zhichun is not the type of person who likes to take advantage of others.

If she accepted this favor for nothing, the money was a small matter, but if she needed the Yang family's help to enter the city again in the future, she would be somewhat embarrassed to ask again.

In short, feelings are feelings, and accounts are accounts; it's better to keep things separate for the long term.

She stuffed the silver into Yang Ersao's hand again, saying, "Yang Ersao, Brother Yang, I appreciate your kindness. But I'm not used to taking advantage of others for nothing. Whoever is supposed to pay should pay. If you insist on not accepting it, I'll be too embarrassed to ask you for help next time I'm in trouble."

After a round of back-and-forth refusals, Yang Ersao finally gave in to Jing Zhichun and accepted the money.

Yang Ersao sighed and gave Jing Zhichun a reproachful look: "You...you're too serious. Fine, fine, I'll accept it. But it's a promise, next time if anything happens, don't be polite with us!"

Jing Zhichun then smiled and nodded: "Definitely."