Chapter 17

When Dabao heard his father agree, he gratefully shot a quick glance at Xiaodie before swiftly and efficiently starting to gather firewood.

In these times, dry branches were the least of their concerns.

Soon, a small campfire was built.

As for the snake, Laifu decided to personally take care of it—he skinned it first, then asked Ding Gui if he wanted the snake gallbladder. Ding Gui quickly shook his head in fear, so Laifu tossed it straight into his own mouth and swallowed it raw with a tilt of his neck.

Zhang Xiu could only cover her eyes at the sight.

Laifu was puzzled. Which man in the village didn’t eat snake gallbladders like this when they caught one? What was so scary about it?

But what he said aloud was this:
“These kids must be scared of hunger. Otherwise, for a timid girl like Xiaodie, she would’ve never dared catch a snake. Did you see her just now? Not a trace of fear. Sigh… poor thing.”

Well damn, his brave daughter almost got exposed.

Ding Gui quickly agreed, “Exactly, hunger drives people. They were forced to do it.”

Zhang Xiu’s face turned grim with worry.
“All the kids are the same now… Who knows how long they can hang on. Village Chief, where are we heading after we leave Yangliu Town?”

Laifu shook his head helplessly.
“To tell you the truth, I don’t know either. We’re just heading in the direction of the capital, following the main road.”

That plan wasn’t wrong—simple and direct. But they still needed to get an idea of how far the next town or village was, so they could plan the trip better.

The snake meat was quickly roasted. There wasn’t much of it, but Laifu fairly cut it into pieces and gave everyone a share—no favoritism based on age or gender.

Once he was done eating, he went to the back courtyard to look for maps or anything useful. Ding Gui, not wanting to miss out, pretended to help and followed him. Zhang Xiu headed to the kitchen.

In front of the small fire were only Ding Xiaodie and Dabao.

This big guy, all tall and burly, was now showing a face full of concern like a gentle giant.
“Xiaodie, does it still hurt where your aunt hit you this morning?”

Xiaodie paused mid-bite into her snake meat. She had almost forgotten about it—it didn’t even land after all.

But seeing the concern on his face, she furrowed her brow lightly.
“It hurt at the time, but not anymore!”

Ugh!

Having to speak like a delicate little girl made her get goosebumps all over.

Dabao believed her completely.
“If she ever hits you again, just call me. I’ll help you.”

“You’d dare fight my aunt?” Xiaodie decided to tease him a little.

Dabao’s handsome face turned bright red.
“I won’t hit a woman, but I can protect you. If she wants to hit someone, she can hit me instead.”

“……”

Xiaodie was speechless.

She hadn’t expected Dabao to protect her like this—just because she spoke a few fair words for his father earlier?

Clearly, Dabao was a sincere and loyal person—someone who never forgets a favor. A rare kind, whether as a friend or a neighbor.

“Thank you, Dabao!”

In a world that wasn’t her own, to have someone who wasn’t family care this much about her made Xiaodie a little emotional. She stood up and used her little arms to hug Dabao around the neck.

Dabao smiled warmly and patted her on the head.
“Let’s go inside and check if there’s anything useful.”

“Okay!”

Just as Xiaodie answered, she suddenly felt her small body lifted off the ground. Startled, she instinctively grabbed onto Dabao’s collar.

But Da Bao, totally unaware, carried her toward the back of the magistrate’s office, occasionally glancing at her with a soft smile—pure gentle guy energy.

Xiaodie’s wide eyes stared:
“……”

Stunned!

She had been a tough-as-nails female cop for twenty years. She never thought there’d come a day when someone would carry her like a baby and give her the “up high, hug hug” treatment!

Dabao carried her all the way in front of the three elders.

Village Chief Laifu didn’t think anything of it—an older brother taking care of a younger girl seemed normal. He continued searching.

But Ding Gui and Zhang Xiu exchanged strange glances, both trying hard not to laugh.

Thinking of their fearless daughter, now being held like a soft little kitten by Dabao… the image was just too absurd.

“Dabao, put me down now!” Xiaodie could tell from her parents’ weird expressions and was completely embarrassed. Da Bao gently set her down.

“Mom, Dad, did you find anything?” she asked, clearing her throat.

Finding a map was really important.

“Nope, nothing at all,” Ding Gui said—and then immediately burst into laughter, confusing Laifu and his son. Zhang Xiu quickly smacked him on the back.
“Shut it.”

Why laugh? Couldn’t he see their daughter was clenching her little fists already?

Xiaodie gave a soft humph and crawled under the magistrate’s desk.

Some antique desks had hidden compartments, and as a former police officer, she would never overlook any possible clues.

Sure enough, she found a hidden compartment under the desk and pulled out a yellowed piece of paper.

Could it be a map?

Maps were valuable in this era and wouldn’t be left out casually.

“I found something,” Xiaodie said, crawling out with the paper. Her face smudged with dust, Dabao quickly used his sleeve to brush the dirt off her hair.

Lai Fu took the paper to study it, and Ding Gui leaned in for a look.

After a while, Laifu said:
“It’s a map, but not of the whole country—just of Yangliu Town.”

A town map, much like a land deed, clearly marked boundaries. That’s how towns and counties were kept separate.

Hearing that it was just a local map, everyone felt a little disappointed.

There was no clue where the townspeople went, and the map didn’t help either. It seemed their trip to the magistrate’s office was wasted.

Zhang Xiu sighed.
“That magistrate was something else—cleaned out the rice jar completely, not a single grain left. The oil jar’s empty too, and even has rat poop in it.”

“Uncle Laifu, can I play with the map?” Seeing everyone so disappointed, Xiaodie suddenly wanted to study the map. Of course, given the original host never attended school, saying she wanted to play with it was a better excuse.

Laifu figured it was useless anyway—they’d be leaving Yangliu Town in two days. He casually handed the map to Xiaodie.

“Let’s go back before we waste more energy.”

The group turned and headed toward the front courtyard.

Xiaodie quickly folded the map and hid it in her clothes.

As the others walked ahead, she hurried to catch up—only to see Dabao waiting for her at the gate.

As soon as he saw her, he gave her a warm smile and squatted down with his back facing her.
“Come on, Xiaodie, I’ll carry you back.”

“N-no, it’s okay Dabao, everyone’s tired, I—”

How could she let Dabao carry her? Even though he was young, they were still barely getting enough food each day. But the more she declined, the more stubborn Dabao became. He stood up, pulled her over, and held her like before.
“What are you being shy about, little girl?”

Xiaodie:
“……”