Chapter 17: Settling in an Abandoned Village

After lunch, the group continued on their way. Liu Juntao supported Wang Minghao while Wang Li and Han Ya carried most of the belongings. They walked all afternoon and eventually passed by a village, deciding to stay the night there.

The village was eerily silent—not a soul in sight. Only after they entered did they realize the place was filled with corpses. Though Wang Li had killed people before, it had only been one or two. Even back when many had died in her old village, there were still tenant farmers to handle the bodies—she’d never had to face this kind of scene directly.

She forced herself to suppress the fear rising in her chest. Liu Juntao and Wang Minghao guessed the Japanese troops had just swept through this village, but there might still be survivors hiding in the mountains or in underground cellars.

After a brief discussion, they agreed to tidy up a house near the edge of the village to rest for the night. They would bury the dead in the morning. Staying near the mountain would give them a route to escape in case the Japanese returned.

Every few steps along the road, they encountered more bodies. In such chaotic times, seeing corpses wasn’t rare. If one couldn’t adapt to it, there was no way to survive in this world.

Han Ya was terrified. She clung tightly to Wang Li, her hands trembling.

They finally reached the last house on the edge of the village. The door was ajar, and the courtyard was empty. After searching the house and finding no one, Liu Juntao checked the woodshed and discovered a cellar. Inside were three air-dried wild chickens and a sack of potatoes.

They bolted the main gate and started a fire to cook. Judging from what they’d heard, the Japanese had already left the area, so it was unlikely anyone else would come tonight. They figured they might as well eat well and leave after burying the bodies tomorrow.

They didn’t have many ingredients, so they chopped up some cured meat and made a pot of porridge, steamed eight large rice buns, cooked one of the dried chickens, and steamed a few potatoes—preparing a hearty meal for the night.

Wang Minghao’s wound had become a bit inflamed. He’d been shot twice, and although the man was impressively resilient, the old injuries hadn’t healed before he gained new ones.

With an unfamiliar person present, Wang Li didn’t dare use alcohol to disinfect his wound—doing so might reveal something odd about her. If people started suspecting she wasn’t ordinary, things could get complicated.

That night, everyone ate their fill. Liu Juntao volunteered to keep watch, and Wang Li asked Han Ya to stay outside with him. She wanted to check on Wang Minghao’s injury.

Wang Minghao, meanwhile, was overthinking it. Big Sis wouldn’t… is she into me? Is she sending them away so she can…? No, not now—my leg’s still messed up, and the wound’s inflamed. I’m in no condition for anything!

While he was lost in his thoughts, Wang Li said, “Take off your shirt.”

Wang Minghao panicked. “Jie, Jie—not now! I’m still hurt. Jie, did you know I like you?”

Wang Li couldn’t help but laugh in exasperation. “What are you even thinking? In my eyes, you’re still a kid. I treat you like my own child. Don’t be ridiculous. I told you to take off your shirt so I can check the inflammation and apply some medicine.”

Wang Minghao protested, “How am I a kid? I’m only two years younger than you! How does that make me a child?”

Wang Li thought to herself, In my mind, I’m already fifty-three. This body’s thirty-two, but I always forget that. I really do see him as a child.
He can’t seriously think I have feelings for him, can he? Please no—I don’t like kids. Enough overthinking, let’s just treat the wound and let him rest.

She said, “Close your eyes. I’m going to apply the medicine. Don’t cry out, even if it hurts.”

Quickly, she disinfected the wound with alcohol, then sprayed it with Yunnan Baiyao.

She added, “When we get to Shanghai, you’re paying me back for the food, the medicine, and the time I’ve spent running around for you. I’m not your nurse.”

Wang Minghao replied, “Jie, once we get to Shanghai, I’ll give you all my money.”

Wang Li said, “Just get some rest. Stop thinking nonsense.”

Outside, the two people sitting by the fire had struck up a conversation. Liu Juntao asked, “Little girl, weren’t you traveling with a lot more people? Where did they all go?”

Han Ya replied, “They took the train and left us behind. Auntie bought them clothes, gave them food, even paid for their train tickets—but once they got on the train, they didn’t even try to help Auntie up. Heartless scoundrels, the lot of them. And you’re all bad too eating our food without even paying.”

At night, it wasn’t visible—but had it been daytime, Liu Juntao’s face would’ve been beet red.

“I don’t have any money either,” Liu Juntao muttered. “Once we get there, Wang Minghao will definitely give something to your aunt’s family.”

Wang Li was surprised that she had slept straight through until morning. Han Ya had already made breakfast, and Wang Li felt a bit embarrassed as she ate—only after the meal did she realize she’d forgotten to brush her teeth or wash her face. How shameful.

The three of them—some carrying, some dragging—managed to gather all the corpses in the village, stacked them together, and found some firewood to burn the bodies. They also salvaged a bamboo basket, a broken pot, and a few jin of cornmeal.

Together, they left the village. Along the way, they passed through several other villages that all seemed to have been ransacked. In some, people could still be seen, but in smaller ones, not a soul was in sight.

They stuck to forest paths, walking cautiously, terrified of running into Japanese soldiers.

“Auntie, I’m scared,” Han Ya said. “Can we just go to the city and buy supplies? This place is terrifying.”

“Don’t be afraid, little girl,” Wang Minghao said. “We still have food. Let’s try not to go into the city. We don’t know what the situation is there, and these devils aren’t exactly reasonable. Look how many villages they’ve already swept through—looting everything and killing everyone.”

Everyone looked haggard and dirty after several days on the road. Wang Minghao’s leg still hadn’t been treated by a doctor; the pain was unbearable, but he kept pushing through.

Wang Li felt like she was about to faint. She stared at the map, thinking, Why aren’t we there yet? My life is just miserable—didn’t have it good in the future world, and now here I am in the 1940s. At least I was a landlady… and still had to flee for my life.

They had been walking for ten days straight, and Wang Li was exhausted. She thought for a moment and said, “Let’s find a sheltered spot tonight and rest. I really can’t go any farther.”

They’d been too afraid of encountering the Japanese to stop and rest, but now Wang Li looked at her tattered clothes—she really did look like a beggar.

Wang Minghao saw the state of his leg, then looked at Wang Li and felt overwhelmed with guilt. “Okay, let’s rest tonight. You all sleep—I’ll keep watch.”

“You’re the one who’s injured,” Liu Juntao said. “I’ll take the watch. Once we get to our destination, we’ll check into a nice hotel, take a proper shower, eat well, and enjoy ourselves for a bit.”

“How about this,” Wang Minghao said. “Tomorrow we walk the main road. The way we look now—like beggars—no one’s going to recognize us.”

They walked for another hour or so. As dusk fell, they saw a large tree up ahead. Turning past it, they spotted a small village.

Could the villagers be asleep this early? Or was this another deserted place?

“Let’s go check it out,” someone said. Even a rundown house is better than sleeping outside. It’s autumn, and it’s already starting to get cold.

“Auntie, look! There’s a light on in one of the houses,” Han Ya said.

Liu Juntao and Wang Minghao saw it too. “Let’s be careful,” they both said. “It might be the devils.”

They cautiously moved forward. The houses at the village entrance had been burned down. The deeper they went, the more dilapidated the homes became. As they neared the lit courtyard, Liu Juntao said, “You all hide behind this wall, back to back, and stay quiet. I’ll go take a look.”

He crept forward and returned a short while later, whispering, “That place with the light is likely the village head’s courtyard. There are two Japanese soldiers at the gate. I climbed over the wall and peeked inside—there are four people in there. It sounds like they’re calling others to help move something. These four were left to guard the goods. Out back, there’s a path leading up the mountain. Here’s the plan: we’ll sneak in slowly. Once I take out the two guards at the gate, you all cover the entrance for me while I deal with the ones inside.”

“You sure you can handle it alone?” Wang Minghao asked. “There are four people—not pigs.”

“How about I go with you?” Wang Li offered.

“I’ll go,” Wang Minghao insisted. “I’ll cover the gate.”

“You can’t,” Wang Li and Liu Juntao said in unison. “Your leg’s injured and infected—you won’t be able to do anything.”

“Alright, how about this,” Liu Juntao said. “I saw a path up the back hill. Let’s find a place there to settle in and rest. We’ll come back in the second half of the night. I’ll take care of the killing, Wang-jie, you help guard the door.”

Wang Minghao said nothing. Even if he objected, no one was listening to him anymore.