Chapter 31: Where Did Her Younger Brother Go?

Xia Mo took out a few more candles and handed them to the old lady, though not too many.

In this era, only the wealthy could afford candles—poor people used oil lamps and had to be frugal with them.

Seeing Xia Mo casually take out five candles at once, the old woman assumed they came from a well-off family. Accepting their gifts no longer felt so difficult.

After dinner, the old man went to weave straw sandals, and Xiao Jingyuan returned to the room to rest.

Xia Mo stayed behind to help the old lady wash the clay jars.

“Granny, why do you have so many jars at home?”

Indeed, their house had quite a number of earthenware jars, both big and small.

The old woman smiled and said, “My son and daughter-in-law used to run a kiln, mainly firing jars, bowls, and basins for sale. The craftsmanship wasn’t the best, so they sold them cheaply, but it was enough to make ends meet.”

Before the war, they had been a happy family with no worries about food and clothing.

They even had a peach orchard.

After cleaning a few small jars, Xia Mo filled them with oil, salt, soy sauce, and vinegar, explaining how to use them—whether for stir-frying or mixing noodles, but never in excess.

She also warned her not to be too frugal with them—best to finish them within two months. Otherwise, they’d spoil and could cause illness.

Better to use them up than let the Rong slaves plunder them if they invaded again.

Finally, she tossed the emptied plastic bags and containers into the convenience store’s trash bin.

Since arriving in ancient times, this was the most comfortable night’s sleep she’d had.

Probably because this family knew how to fire kilns—the heated brick bed was incredibly well-made, staying warm even in the cold weather.

The bed was spacious too, with a small table placed in the middle. Each of them had their own side to sleep on, undisturbed.

Xia Mo lay on the heated bed, taking out a small cake and placing it on the table. Next to it, she set a pretty cup and a candle.

“Hey, are you asleep?”

Perhaps because he was still young, no matter how many things troubled him, they never seemed to affect his sleep.

Xia Mo, on the other hand, was at that restless adolescent age where even minor worries could keep her up at night—something she envied him for.

Xiao Jingyuan rubbed his sleepy eyes and looked over.

“You’re still up? What are you doing?”

Xia Mo grinned. “Isn’t today your birthday? I don’t have much to give you, so here, have this.”

“What is it?”

It was a beautiful little thing—he had never seen anything like it before.

“I got it from Guanyin herself. Try it.”

The cakes in the convenience store’s fridge weren’t exactly cakes—at best, they were pudding-like desserts.

This one was called a “Mousse Soy Milk Fruit Mille Crepe Cake,” but for tonight, it would serve as a birthday cake.

“You can eat this?”

“Of course! Hurry up and eat it before going back to sleep.”

Xiao Jingyuan gave her a strange look. He had already been asleep, only to be woken up and told to eat something.

“If I eat this, will I grow up faster?”

Uh…

“Of course! Eat this, and you’ll be a year older by tomorrow!”

Xiao Jingyuan’s expression darkened. “I already turn a year older by tomorrow anyway.”

Xia Mo’s smile stiffened—he was no fun to fool.

Despite his words, he still followed her lead, picking up a spoon and scooping a bite into his mouth.

The soft and sweet texture was even better than the best pastries made by the imperial palace’s pastry chefs.

This was his first time tasting something like this.

“How is it? Tastes good, right?”

“Mm.” He lowered his head and hummed softly. His eyebrows relaxed, and he seemed to be in a much better mood.

Xia Mo thought to herself—so the idea that sweets can make people happy really is true.

After that, she took out some toiletries and plopped them onto the small table.

“Eating sweets at night can cause cavities. Brush your teeth before sleeping.”

Her commanding tone annoyed him. He was used to giving orders, not taking them. Even the grand scholars who tutored him had to bow slightly and persuade him gently. No one had ever just thrown things in front of him and expected him to obey.

Yet, being cared for like this also made him feel strangely content.

This conflict of emotions confused Xiao Jingyuan.

That night, he slept soundly until daylight.

When Xia Mo opened her eyes, she found the sunlight particularly dazzling.

Shielding her eyes with one hand, she saw Xiao Jingyuan standing by the window with a solemn expression.

“Looks like we won’t be able to leave again.”

Xia Mo was startled. “Why? Did it snow?”

“Yeah. It snowed quite a bit last night.”

The last snowfall had lasted only one night, yet it had taken several days to melt.

Judging by this snowfall, it seemed even heavier than the last. It still hadn’t stopped.

The snow here either didn’t fall at all or fell in an overwhelming blizzard.

Staring at the vast, snow-covered landscape, Xia Mo’s expression grew more serious.

She ran outside to ask the old woman.

“Granny, how long does the snow usually last here?”

“Oh, that’s hard to say. Sometimes it stops after a night, but sometimes it snows for days on end.”

“For days? Then how long will it take for all this snow to melt?”

“Probably not until spring.”

Xia Mo: “…”

She trudged back inside. “Granny says the snow won’t melt until spring. What do we do now?”

Xiao Jingyuan frowned. “Why are you asking me? I’m not from the north. You are!”

Xia Mo: “…” I’m not from the north either!

“That’s strange, Xia Mo. Aren’t you from the north? Why did you ask the old lady?”

Uh…

“Why can’t I ask? Am I not allowed?”

“Hmph. You never tell the whole truth.”

Xiao Jingyuan stepped outside and saw the old man splitting firewood under the straw shed. He went over to help.

Though his left arm was injured, his right arm was still usable—just not for anything too strenuous, or it would start to ache.

The old man noticed and chuckled. “Leave it be. I’ll handle it.”

But Xiao Jingyuan was stubborn. He refused to stop and insisted on chopping the wood.

The old man awkwardly glanced at Xia Mo.

Xia Mo rubbed her nose, walked over, and patted Xiao Jingyuan’s shoulder. “Step aside. I’ll do it.”

Xiao Jingyuan didn’t argue and simply handed her the axe.

This was the first time Xia Mo had done such physically demanding work. She thought it would be like in TV dramas—one chop splitting the wood cleanly in half.

But when she swung the axe, all she managed to do was leave a dent in the log. The axe got stuck, and she couldn’t even pull it out.

The old man burst into laughter.

“Hahaha, young man, let me handle it.”

His expression clearly said, You’re even worse than your younger brother.

Xia Mo’s face burned with embarrassment. She turned to Xiao Jingyuan and said, “I’m the fourth child in my family. I have three older brothers. This kind of hard labor never fell to me.”

She remembered that when the tyrant found the real Xia Mo, she did indeed have three older brothers.

Thinking about them, she suddenly had a vague suspicion.

Two of them had joined the army.

The old man’s only son had been conscripted—surely a family with so many sons wouldn’t have been spared either.

Perhaps her brothers had all been drafted, leaving the family no choice but to send her south with her younger brother to seek refuge.

If that were the case, it made sense.

But then, where was her younger brother?

Why was the travel permit still there, but he was gone?