Chapter 6: A Big Harvest

Fang Dahai, having worked as an officer in the Jingyi Wei (Embroidered Uniform Guard), had a sharp eye when it came to searching for items, and his experience proved invaluable. When he purposefully searched, he discovered, to his surprise, a hidden compartment behind a bed in the east bedroom, measuring about 80 cm deep.

And when the mechanism of this hidden wall was triggered, it revealed quite a substantial find.

“Goodness, a whole box of silver dollars? How many are there? One, five, ten, fifteen, twenty… forty stacks, each worth fifty dollars… that’s 2000 dollars?”

At that moment, Fang Dahai felt as if his eyes were turning to silver! This large sum of money would be more than enough for his family of four to live comfortably for several years in the capital.

But the surprises didn’t stop there. As Fang Dahai shifted his body to move further in, he discovered two more small boxes. In one of them, not only did he find a pile of discarded Qing dynasty copper coins, but also a box containing ten small yellow fish—an unexpected and significant amount of money.

As for the other box, its contents were less valuable. It contained some antiques, such as four-boxed Qing dynasty ink sticks, a Ming dynasty blue-and-white porcelain brush washer, a small ink bamboo painting by Zheng Banqiao, and a pair of Qianlong period cloisonné pen holders. These items seemed to have some age, but Fang Dahai knew that in the current troubled times, antiques weren’t worth much. “In times of chaos, gold is king; in times of prosperity, antiques reign,” as the old saying goes.

Nevertheless, considering the status of the Fu family and the day’s haul, Fang Dahai still felt quite satisfied.

He chuckled to himself—looking at the things he’d collected so far, it seemed the defeated soldiers hadn’t found much of value. If the Fu family hadn’t been tied up, they probably wouldn’t have lost much. In times of war, those who survive are never ordinary people.

However…

Fang Dahai glanced at the boxes, deep in thought.

As the old saying goes, “Take a man’s money, and you must also rid him of his misfortune.”

Since he’d benefited so much from the Fu family, he felt it was only right to look into their whereabouts when he had the time. If possible, he’d help them out, repaying the favor in the process.

With this resolve, Fang Dahai felt a shift in his mood as he continued packing the items. The excitement of earning his first bucket of gold made him feel even more prosperous. The only downside was… there was still no food!

Well, forget it. The joy of intercepting the fleeing soldiers alone was enough to make up for it. After all, one shouldn’t be too greedy, right?

But there was one issue…

Fang Dahai rubbed his chin, troubled. The items took up a lot of space—how could he carry everything?

Gold, silver, antiques… none of these could be discarded, even if they weren’t immediately useful. Their value was undeniable, and they could serve as family assets. As for the copper coins, though many and seemingly worthless, what if there were some rare coins among them? If he left them behind, he might regret it later.

After thinking for a while, Fang Dahai finally made a decision. He first stepped out of the hidden wall and discarded the bulky items like bedding, clothes, and pickled vegetables on the floor of the bedroom. He then placed the small yellow fish and the silver dollars into the boxes in the hidden wall and stored them back in his space. After restoring the hidden wall’s mechanism, he tidied up the jars and containers, sending the unnecessary items into his space until there was no room left.

Next, he went to the workers’ quarters at the front of the yard and found two baskets, which he used to store the compressed bedding and clothes.

At this point, with a pole, Fang Dahai could easily carry everything back home. The only problem was… walking out the front gate seemed a little too conspicuous, didn’t it?

He looked up at the sky, then, using some clutter, stood on tiptoe to take a look around.

It was already past lunchtime, and the village had started to show signs of activity. It was clear that someone was coming this way. Perhaps, like him, they were looking to scavenge.

To be safe, Fang Dahai decided to leave through the back.

He picked up his load and quickly headed toward the back of the house. After climbing the wall again, he made his way through the forest behind the house and took a longer route back to his own place.

Fang Dahai hadn’t stayed long at the Fu family’s house, and he had chosen the right time. When he arrived near his own yard, it was still early enough that the people who had been out gathering wild vegetables hadn’t left yet.

Since there was no one around…

Fang Dahai glanced at his prize system. Oddly, perhaps due to his proficiency in the hidden room technique, he had accumulated 10 points during the morning!

With such a high score, why not spin the wheel? After all, they still needed rice for dinner!

Without even waiting to put down the baskets, Fang Dahai eagerly reached out and spun the prize wheel.

The wheel spun quickly and gradually slowed to a stop. A voice from the system announced:

“Lottery complete. Congratulations to the host for winning 10 pounds of rice! We look forward to your next spin.”

10 pounds of rice? Oh my goodness! This prize was just what he needed!

Given the current exchange rate for fine and coarse grains, even if he didn’t exchange it, this would be enough to provide 30 pounds of food. With that much rice and some wild vegetables, they could make meals for days—at least half a month!

Fang Dahai’s face was filled with joy as he quickly put down the burden, took out the prepared cloth bag from the basket, gave it a shake, and with a thought, the 10 jin of rice he had stored in his space landed into the cloth bag.

He then hid the bag under the bedding, picked up the burden again, and rushed home like the wind.

In Fang family’s main room, the sweet potato porridge had already started to cool. Fang Dajiang stood at the door of the room, anxious and with a frown, his eyes fixed on the main door. His fingers, resting on the doorframe, were subconsciously picking at the wood.

“Why hasn’t Big Brother come back yet?”

In the main room by the table, He Yulan was sitting with an herb, soothing a child, while occasionally glancing toward the door. When she heard Fang Dajiang ask, her reply was uncertain.

“He must have had a hard time finding food and went farther than expected. He’ll be back soon, he’s probably on his way back now.”

Even though she was only 12 years old, her tone was practiced and mature. The saying that a poor child grows up early was indeed true.

Fang Dahai heard their conversation as he approached the front gate. He considered responding but, upon thinking about the things he was carrying, decided to remain silent. He carefully checked his surroundings, ensuring no one was nearby, then quickened his pace. When he reached the gate, he kicked it open, stepped into the courtyard, and swiftly closed it behind him. Before Fang Dajiang could say anything, he placed his finger to his lips, signaling for silence.

They were all children who had survived the chaos, and family members who had been together day and night. As soon as Fang Dajiang and the others saw Fang Dahai’s gesture, they silently closed their mouths and quickly helped him carry the burden into the main room. He Yulan, who was the last to enter, also shut the door behind her.

“Brother, did you… go to the Fu family? No one saw you, right?”

Look at how clever they were! Fang Dajiang, only 10 years old, already had survival instincts better than many adults in modern times.

“Don’t worry, it was mealtime, so there weren’t many people outside. Besides, I came through the back forest, so even if one or two people saw my shadow, they wouldn’t have been able to guess it was me.”

After making sure of that important point, Fang Dahai, who had used a lot of energy and focus, grabbed a bowl of sweet potato porridge from the table and began to gulp it down. As he ate, he pointed to the basket that hid the rice.

Upon hearing this, the children immediately understood that their older brother had found something valuable. Fang Dajiang was the first to reach into the basket, then…

“Is this… refined rice? No rice husks, no sand? Even the nobles in the imperial city wouldn’t have this! When did the Fu family hide such a treasure? How come those fleeing soldiers didn’t take it?”

Fang Dahai had rushed through the trip, and by now, he was so hungry that he ate the porridge rapidly, with great speed. By the time Fang Dajiang finished speaking, his bowl was already empty, and he had time to respond to his younger brother’s question.

“It was hidden very well. If it weren’t for my sharp eyes and good luck, I might have kicked open a mechanism by accident. Otherwise, no one would have known about it, not even if it had gone moldy.”

“Mechanism?”

“Alright, this isn’t the time for storytelling. Yulan, I checked the rice, and there should be 10 jin. I was planning to trade it for sweet potatoes or cornmeal so we could eat for a few more days, but after coming back, I felt something was off. Like Er said, this rice is too good. If we take it out, it could cause trouble, so let’s indulge a bit and keep it for ourselves. You decide how to arrange it.”

“Keep it for ourselves?” Hearing those words, He Yulan’s heart ached. How could they eat such good rice? What a waste of money.

“Big Brother, this… can’t we trade it? We could exchange it for 40 jin of cornmeal from last year’s stock.”

Wow, this girl was even more thoughtful than Fang Dahai. 1 jin for 4? Should they go to the imperial city to trade? But what if something went wrong, and both the people and the rice got taken?

“Our family doesn’t have any adults around, so it’s better not to stir up trouble. Let’s keep it and eat it ourselves.”

“Then… let’s gather more wild vegetables. We’ll have more vegetables, less rice, and make it watery. Otherwise, I can’t bring myself to eat it!”

Hearing this, Fang Dahai was helpless. If they followed He Yulan’s suggestion, the 10 jin of rice would last them 10 days. That wouldn’t work. It wasn’t a famine situation, and if they ate like that, wouldn’t they lack energy? They were already malnourished, and if they didn’t replenish themselves, how would they make it to the capital?

Hmm, to the capital? He realized he hadn’t told his younger siblings about this plan. Now was a perfect time!

“Don’t be so thrifty. Let’s have a few full meals, save some strength. We still have a long road ahead.”

This was big news, and it immediately grabbed everyone’s attention.

“Traveling? Where are we going?”

“Big Brother, are we going to visit relatives?”