Chapter 3

Su Ci curved her lips slightly, quickly restraining herself so no one would see. She had to maintain her persona. When she got home and slipped into bed with her sister, Su Yan, who was still awake and waiting for her, quickly lifted the curtain to let Su Ci in and whispered, “What’s wrong?”

Su Ci was in high spirits, but she thought about it and realized this wasn’t something easy to explain. It was too long, and bringing up that lover would make the explanation endless. It was already very late, and they would have to get up in the middle of the night to prepare for the journey. Who knew if they would get a good night’s sleep again?

Forget it, she decided not to say anything for now and wait for a better opportunity to explain later.

“I’ll tell you on the way.”

Su Yan had no objections. She jumped out of bed to check the doors and windows, especially the half-old wooden window facing the outer alley and secured it with something. Then she let her sister sleep on the outer side of the bed while she slept on the inner side, half-lying down to protect her sister. The two sisters quickly fell asleep.

…

They got up at the second watch the next day. Su Ci was in a good mood. Despite sleeping for less than four hours, she was full of energy. She quickly got out of bed, washed, dressed, filled all the water containers they could carry, and hurried to the front yard. They opened the main gate and followed everyone to the eastern foot of the mountain. The entire military town was on the move. Footsteps, horse neighs, dust flying everywhere. The weather was still hot, the brown earth absorbed heat during the day and released it at night, like a steamer.

However, Su Ci was in a great mood. The dark blue sky tinged with red, and the dusty yellow earth looked much more pleasant to her.

“A’Ci, are you hot? Thirsty?”

Her mother, Mrs. Chen, wiped the sweat from Su Ci’s forehead with a handkerchief. Su Ci clung to her mother’s arm and acted spoiled, “Yes, Mom, I’m thirsty.”

Mrs. Chen quickly opened the water pouch she carried and gave her youngest daughter a sip. Su Yan came over, “Mom, you didn’t ask me. I’m thirsty, too!”

Mrs. Chen playfully tapped her eldest daughter’s forehead and scolded with a smile, “I was just about to give you some!”

The three of them shared half a pouch of water. Su Rong, who had been smiling and watching, stepped forward, “Mother, let me do it.”

She also held a water pouch. Everyone was trying to drink as much as possible and refill their water containers at the last moment. Mrs. Bai and her daughters were no exception.

Mrs. Bai wanted to speak but was interrupted by Su Rong. However, Mrs. Bai looked at Su Di, who was busy with his adopted son Lin Yichu, and then at her own son, who was responsible for looking after the girls like Su Yan, and felt indignant. She insisted on speaking. But before she could, she was interrupted.

A’Kang came over and bowed to Mrs. Chen, saying that Yang Yanzong wanted Su Ci to come forward. Going to the front meant traveling with Yang Yanzong and the others.

Everyone was surprised, and Su Rong’s eyes flickered slightly, “This is…”

The others didn’t understand, but when they asked A’Kang, he didn’t explain. As one of the two personal soldiers currently with Yang Yanzong, A’Kang was known for keeping secrets.

Despite their confusion, no one questioned Yang Yanzong’s arrangements. Mrs. Chen was a bit worried and gave some instructions. Su Yan patted her chest, “Mom, don’t worry, I’ll go with my sister.”

Su Yan, carrying seven or eight large bundles, moved quickly. She had just fetched water with the water pouch and returned in time to hear this. She handed the water pouch back to her mother and, without a word, accompanied Su Ci to the front.

A’Kang glanced at Su Ci, and seeing her agreement, he said nothing and led the way.

Su Ci’s lips curled slightly, and she whispered to Su Yan, “I’ll tell you later.”

The two sisters moved quickly and soon reached Yang Yanzong’s side. Then they set off.

In the distance, the entire military town had already gathered. In the dim light of dawn, there were thousands of people, all soldiers. There were hardly any family members, except for special cases like Yang Yanzong’s group. The families of the military households who originally lived in the town had already moved out in advance.

Without the worry of food and water, Yang Yanzong changed his plan. Instead of joining the main group, he quietly gathered on the other side of the mountain. He had many enemies, and quite a few wanted to take his life.

Su Ci quietly glanced over and saw, amidst the distant flying dust, a group of black-clad soldiers at the front. Among them were several burly, imposing officers on horseback with military sabers. She wondered which one was the rapist. But it was definitely one of them. There was also a young man in dark red clothes, anxiously looking around the soldiers and the military town, as if searching for someone. Of course, Su Ci wouldn’t let him find her. She took a quick look and then quickly pulled her head back.

Hehe, goodbye!

…

At Yang Yanzong’s command, over a hundred people quietly set off, earlier than the main group, heading southeast. After about an hour, the sky was fully bright, the sun was up, and the temperature soared. They had entered the mountains, where there was some shade, but most of the trees were dry and leafless.

The mountain road was difficult, but the eastern mountain range was the best choice. It was the only place where some green could still be seen. Other areas were brown and yellow, plowed by disaster victims, with little hope for food or water. The mountains were the best choice. But even so, it wasn’t easy.

The long grass and ferns were lying flat, most of the small trees and shrubs were dead, and the edible plants in the outer mountains had been picked clean. Only a few shriveled ones remained, barely hanging on. In many places, even the fern roots had been dug up completely. As people walked, dust flew up, and the ground was covered with dry, yellowed plants, with only a few patches of green from the large trees and a few hardy shrubs, which were mostly half-yellow and half-green, looking half-dead.

The sun was scorching, and they kept moving, sweat pouring down like rain, soaking their fronts and backs. They were losing water quickly, but only when they were extremely thirsty did they take a small sip from their water pouches.

Now, unlike before they set out, food and water were extremely precious. Some people hadn’t even had a sip of water all morning.

Around noon, Su Ci began to pay attention to the plants with green on the surface. She had said the southeast direction was the best, and she wasn’t just making it up. She and Su Yan had hidden in the eastern mountains for half a month before being brought back, and she had seen it with her own eyes—it was true.

Although it was scorching, Su Ci’s high spirits hadn’t diminished much. Having successfully bid farewell to the “two wolves” combination of the rapist and the lover, even the blazing sun didn’t seem so harsh to her.

When good things happen, people feel great. Her luck was also through the roof. After walking a few steps, she found a very suitable place. Not every place with puffball grass would have enough groundwater to form a puddle. One had to observe the terrain and geology, judge the direction and accumulation of water veins, to have the best chance of digging out water.

Su Ci immediately spotted a place in front of a rock wall behind a large tree. The rock wall was vertically embedded and very hard, and the mountain slope here had a depression where a large patch of puffball grass was growing. When she dug it up, two-thirds of the roots were green.

Su Ci turned back and glanced at Yang Yanzong.

Yang Yanzong was riding on horseback. His lips were pale, and his face flushed, likely more from fever than sunburn. However, his back was straight, and he controlled the horse with one hand. He sat as steady as a mountain, showing no signs of weakness. He understood and nodded, then glanced at A’Kang.

A’Kang immediately led seven or eight people to dig vigorously with shovels, digging down more than two meters. Soon, they found water.

Murky water slowly seeped out, quickly forming a large puddle. Seeing it was almost enough, A’Kang threw in some alum, causing the mud and impurities in the water to settle, and the puddle gradually cleared up.

Su Ci, with her sharp eyes, noticed a large patch of dead leaves behind the thorn bushes that looked like water yam leaves. She was delighted. That area had clearly been a shallow marsh before it dried up, so finding water yams there was normal!

She quickly lifted her cotton skirt, waded through the sharp, dry thorns, squatted down, and examined the leaves. Digging a bit with her fingers, she was overjoyed, “Come quickly, there are many water yams here!”

Water yam is considered a type of weed. The plant looks about 70-80% like taro and mostly grows on the water’s surface, usually in large patches. However, its roots and tubers are much smaller than taro, with the largest being only about the thickness of two or three thumbs. But it is edible! Even when dried, it can still be eaten and is non-toxic. Its small size doesn’t matter because many small ones add up. This large patch they found was enough to feed their group for a meal!

Yang Yanzong pinched a piece of dried water yam, broke it, and fed it to his horse, then ordered people to start digging.

Everyone got to work, using shovels if they had them or their hands if they didn’t. Under the scorching sun, they dug for nearly half an hour and quickly finished digging up all the water yams.

They wrapped up the extra ones, washed the rest in a newly formed puddle, and put them into a large pot. Soon, the aroma of food filled the air.

Although it was hot and exhausting, and everyone was drenched in sweat, they all smiled. They filled a bowl, let it cool in the shade, and ate it with relish.

Su Yan brought over two bowls, giving one to her sister. She took a sip and found it quite tasty. She nudged Su Ci with her elbow, “You’re amazing!” She spoke softly, her face full of pride.

Su Ci chuckled quietly, glancing sideways at her sister with a slight smile.

Of course, she had been quite popular back then!

After a good start at noon on the first day, everything went smoothly. They rested during the hottest part of the day and continued their journey until evening. The further they went into the mountains, the more food they found, and there was much more greenery compared to the edges of the mountains. Finding water was also easier than before.

Su Ci started finding mountain rat holes, the kind with mountain rats inside. These small animals were very resilient and ate various dry and wet fruits, grass seeds, bamboo shoots, etc. Their meat was very clean.

Moreover, digging up a mountain rat hole often yielded other rewards besides catching a nest of mountain rats. There were large piles of hazelnuts, chestnuts, hickory nuts, mixed with a few pine cone roots, all plump and well-preserved.

Animals are more sensitive than humans, and the mountain rats had been busy early on. A single rat nest often had several large pits filled with food.

In addition, Su Ci found many edible plant roots, including long kudzu roots, wild cassava, ground bamboo shoots, and smilax. These were all filling foods. Many of the ground vines were withered or gnawed clean by wild animals, but Su Ci could recognize them from just a bit of stem.

After three or four days, Su Ci thought: Can we leave safely now?

…

Yang Yanzong had not strayed far from the main military town, keeping a close but not too distant watch. He was always aware of the situation there, thanks to his personal soldier, A’Zhao, who was responsible for liaising with trusted subordinates on that side.

Su Ci found this quite normal, as it wasn’t yet certain if she was reliable. If she wasn’t, at least there were still 800 military horses over there. Thinking about horse meat and blood, especially drinking raw horse blood, made Su Ci shiver. Fortunately, it wasn’t necessary.

Now that it was confirmed she was reliable, could they leave safely? Only by completely distancing themselves and parting ways could she feel at ease!

The sunset’s last rays disappeared over the mountain peaks, and the campfire was already burning, its orange-red flames crackling.

Yang Yanzong sat in the shade of a tree while Su Ci cleaned his wound. In such hot weather, the wound must be cleaned several times a day. His wrist was still slightly warm, but his eyes remained indifferent and sharp.

A’Zhao stood by, reporting the situation in a low voice. “…The main military force deviated from the original eastward direction. Commander Liang dispatched several scout teams to search for our traces, but as of my return, they hadn’t found anything.”

Yang Yanzong snorted coldly, not giving a clear response.

Su Ci knew Yang Yanzong had arranged for someone to clean up their tracks wherever they went. She cleaned his wound several times with strong alcohol, then re-bandaged it with a thin layer of gauze and secured it with a boiled and dried splint.

Without stopping, Su Ci sneaked a glance at him. The campfire flickered, casting shadows between the dark and red, highlighting the man’s cold and sharp profile.

Just as their conversation ended, A’Zhao stepped back behind Yang Yanzong. Su Ci showed a slightly fearful expression and whispered, “Can we leave safely now?”

Yang Yanzong didn’t respond immediately, so she quickly added, “There’s more food in the deep mountains, and the streams probably haven’t dried up yet!”

Her voice had a bit less fear and a hint of eagerness to leave, which Yang Yanzong noticed. Su Ci quickly explained, “When my sister and I were hiding from people, we went into the deep mountains once. There was plenty of water and wild animals, but we were very scared and came out quickly.”

Hmm, she got carried away. Fortunately, she recovered quickly and didn’t give herself away.

Su Ci looked at Yang Yanzong expectantly.

Unexpectedly, Yang Yanzong turned his head and instructed A’Zhao, “Send a message to Zhao Da and the others to find a way to lure Liang Shen over.”

What?

Not leaving?

And bringing the main force over?!

Su Ci: “???”

Su Ci: “!!!” What are you thinking, big brother?!