Chapter 34 – Following Along

Aunt Zhao frowned. “It’s so cold at night! Anbao’er, be good. If you catch a chill, you’ll suffer.”

Qin Ying said, “Mother, I actually think it’s better to go at night. That way, no one will know it has anything to do with us! We’ll wrap An’an up more tightly.”

“That’s right,” Zhao Hu chimed in. “It’s cold at night, so no one will be outside. Our mountain village is poor—who would waste oil to light lamps? Everyone must go to bed early. Isn’t it safer for us to go out now?”

Hearing this, Aunt Zhao realized it made sense and smiled. “If that’s the case, then I’ll go with you two! One more person means more support.”

And so, the matter was decided.

Around the second watch of the night, the family of three bundled An’an up tightly and quietly slipped out of the house.

Fortunately, they were all used to the rural roads. Even with only a bit of moonlight, they didn’t stumble as they walked.

But they hadn’t yet left Tongshu Village when Zhou Yu found out.

Zhou Yu had been reviewing documents when he heard a report from Xu Xia. He immediately stopped writing, a look of interest appearing in his eyes.

Xu Xia had a good impression of the Zhao family and couldn’t help but worry. “Those four—elderly, weak, women, and children—all of them. What if something happens to them in the middle of the night…?”

Zhou Yu got up and put on his shoes. “I’ll go take a look.”

Xu Xia handed him a cloak and naturally followed along.

But Zhou Yu said, “You don’t need to come.”

Xu Xia hesitated for a moment. Thinking that the young master was capable and, in case anything happened, it was so quiet at night that a single shout would bring him running in time, he decided to obey and stay behind.

Still, to be safe, after Zhou Yu left the Chen residence, Xu Xia quietly climbed up onto the roof.

In another room, Uncle Chen Jiu was snoring heavily, completely unaware of what was happening outside.

As Zhou Yu reached the gate of the Chen household, the guards living nearby quietly emerged. Zhou Yu gestured for them to return and then strode off in pursuit.

The Zhao family’s pace was no match for his. In just a moment, he spotted three vague figures ahead.

The three kept walking without stopping, leaving the village.

Zhou Yu had a vague guess in his heart.

Soon, the Zhao family reached Huaihua Gully. After walking a few steps along the village’s main street, An’an’s childish voice rang out: “Left!”

Qin Ying stepped eastward.

An’an whimpered, “Not right!”

Qin Ying turned west.

An’an still said, “Not right!”

Qin Ying blinked and turned north.

An’an giggled. “Left!”

The three adults exchanged smiles and headed north.

Heading north meant leaving the village and entering the mountains.

Zhou Yu twitched his ears. Though he couldn’t hear clearly, it was indeed An’an giving directions. It seemed his earlier guess was right.

Once in the mountains, the Zhao family slowed down. But being far from the village, they dared to use lights.

As they walked, Qin Ying reminded, “Huzi, watch the sparks carefully. Don’t start a forest fire.”

Life was already hard enough. A fire would make things even worse.

Zhao Hu quickly responded, “Don’t worry, sis. I’m being careful.”

Aunt Zhao and Qin Ying switched carrying An’an again.

An’an yawned, then used her Heavenly Eye to check. There was still about ten miles to go until they reached a suitable spot, so she figured she could take a nap.

But before sleeping, she needed to check for danger nearby.

She opened surveillance again and quickly spotted Zhou Yu trailing not far behind.

Why is the handsome uncle here? Did he notice something? No way, right? I’ve been so cautious, and my family even more so.

Let’s watch for now. If he does anything to jeopardize me… hmph! I’ll erase his memory!

Of course, killing to silence him would be the simplest solution. But as a mature and rule-abiding System, how could I be so crude?

Besides, that handsome uncle could still provide energy support. Killing him would be such a waste. Memory erasure is enough!

And if he’s really smart and discovers it again? Then I’ll erase it again! Anyway, the energy required to erase memory is something he can replenish quickly.

The Zhao family stopped for a break. They carried water flasks filled with hot water, still warm now. Seeing that An’an was asleep, they didn’t wake her. The three rested their legs, drank a bit of water, and ate some dry rations.

Being out in the cold at night—even with cotton clothing—required food and drink to stay warm.

As they neared the destination An’an had set beforehand, she woke up, yawned, and mumbled, “Pee!”

Aunt Zhao quickly gathered some straw, had Zhao Hu stoke the fire, and helped An’an out of her many layers to let her relieve herself.

With a fire going, there was no worry she’d catch a chill.

Zhao Hu’s eyes wandered. Suddenly, he saw a frosty patch of green not far away. Holding the torch high, he ran over and quickly called, “Mom, sis, come look!”

The two hurried over with An’an. In the firelight, they saw a patch of short green grass covered in white frost.

The center was taller, with the edges shorter. It was about three to four zhang (10–13 meters) in diameter.

The three were overjoyed. They pulled out hoes and picks and began digging.

An’an had already contributed 1 energy point earlier. Now she used another 0.002 points to clear the rocks underground. That way, it would be easier to dig wells or canals in the future.

She secretly opened surveillance again to check on Zhou Yu. His expression was very complicated, and she couldn’t quite tell what all the emotions were.

Whatever. Sleep first. Tomorrow’s matters can wait.

If handsome uncle carelessly leaks my secret… could he even leak it? Didn’t headquarters give me protection protocols? They should have, right?

Worst-case scenario: if there’s no protection and my identity is exposed, I’ll just spend more energy and erase memories on a large scale!

I’ve gotten used to this pattern of storing energy—consuming it—then storing more—and consuming again.

Sleep!

The ground had already begun to freeze, making digging hard. The three moved the fire over and burned it for a while before digging a hole.

Once they confirmed the deeper soil was more moist, they stopped.

They refilled the soil and camouflaged the site. Wiping the sweat from their foreheads, they turned back.

After they walked far enough away, Zhou Yu emerged, improved the camouflage until no trace was visible, and quickly followed them.

Fortunately, everything—from mountain to village, going and returning—was as peaceful and safe as before.

He escorted the family home and waited until they had all gone to bed before returning himself.

Not wanting to disturb Uncle Chen Jiu, he went to the courtyard next door.

Xu Xia jumped down from the roof, had someone bring hot water, helped Zhou Yu wash up, soak his feet, and drink a bowl of ginger soup. Then he cautiously asked, “Young Master, you…”

Zhou Yu glanced at him, and Xu Xia immediately shut his mouth.

Once inside his sleeping quarters, Zhou Yu said lightly, “Tonight, you saw nothing and know nothing.”

Xu Xia immediately pretended to seal his mouth with an invisible seal.