Chapter 151: Searching for Water

Yan Yu stretched out her little hand, and Nanny Rong smiled as she held it, looking at her like a kind elder, her eyes filled with affection, as if she could never get enough of Yan Yu’s little face.

“Aunt Rong, can you not turn the leftover food into powder? It’d be great to keep it for the chickens. Our chickens lay eggs, and the yolks are bright red—they look so nutritious!”

Aunt Rong nodded with a smile, squatted down, and wrote on the ground: “Alright, Twelfth Prince, point out our chickens to me, and I’ll secretly feed them.”

Twelfth Prince…

“Aunt Rong, change the way you address me. Don’t call me Twelfth Prince—just call me Xiao Er or Xiao Yu.”

Aunt Rong continued writing: “Alright, Xiao Yu.”

Yan Yu then held onto her and explained the family relationships, moving closer and pointing out her eldest uncle, eldest brother, big sister Da Ya, and the four hens she cherished. Only after that did she watch Aunt Rong leave with her basket on her back.

Nanny Rong did not blend into the crowd under the cover of night but instead chose to stay away for the time being.

Yan Lao’er and Yan Yu worked together to erase the traces of her writing.

While using his foot to roughly scrape the ground, Yan Lao’er clicked his tongue in amazement. “She actually writes in traditional characters. Though her handwriting isn’t great—crooked and missing strokes here and there—it feels more real!

“I thought she was some high-class household manager or an imperial servant with a fancy code name. But no, she’s completely down-to-earth. Now she’s just doing farm chores. Feels like that brother of ours just found himself a mother!”

Yan Yu burst into laughter, laughing so hard her face turned red.

“Dad! You know, you’re actually right! Our little farming families all have aunts like this. As long as the food’s edible, it’s good enough. They manage oil and salt carefully, do laundry by the river, chop and gather firewood, cook pig feed, mix chicken feed, pluck grass for the rabbits, raise dogs, herd ducks and geese… They even know how to check eggs for hatching chicks and help sows give birth!

“Sewing and mending clothes is just patchwork, but they’re amazing at weighing silver—we really need to learn from them.

“According to Uncle, she can keep learning. Whatever we want her to know, she can learn, as long as it’s within the household’s duties. Uh, first things first, let’s teach her how to cook so we can get Dad out of the kitchen!”

Yan Lao’er deliberately put on a stern face. “What, you don’t like your dad’s cooking anymore?”

“Haha, no, Dad! It’s just that we feel bad for you. You’re busy with work outside and inside—it’s too much!

“Of course, I love your cooking the most!”

Li Xuemei chimed in, “You two, hurry up and rest for a bit. Get some sleep. We still have a long way to go tomorrow.”

Father and daughter quickly packed up their things and carefully climbed onto the cart.

—

At dawn, everyone began to wake up one after another.

Yan Lao’er poured a little water to wash his face, then took the diluted alcohol and delivered it first.

He repeatedly reminded them, “This ‘wine’ is for treating wounds. Do not drink it under any circumstances.”

Doctor Cui, annoyed by the nagging, snatched it away and went to clean the wounded.

Madam Cui assured him, “Brother Yan, don’t worry. I’ll be watching. If anyone dares to steal a sip, not even the father of my two boys will be spared!”

“Sis, that puts me at ease. I secretly hid this—there’s not much left. If we need more later, we have to be frugal with it,” Yan Lao’er whispered.

Madam Cui gave him a reassuring look.

After Yan Lao’er left, Doctor Cui noticed that his wife was sticking close to him.

“Why are you following me? I can handle this alone. Go pack up—we’re leaving soon!”

“The boys can pack up. I need to keep an eye on things. If anyone sneaks a drink of my brother’s ‘wine,’ I won’t let them get away with it!”

Doctor Cui: …

Wait, since when did I become his brother-in-law?

Did the scholar know about this?

—

At the second quarter of the Yin hour (about 3:30 AM), they set off on time.

The group walked continuously for four hours before finally reaching the official road at midday.

On the road, no one traveled under the scorching noon sun. People were resting on both sides.

Some just glanced at the new arrivals indifferently, but others couldn’t take their eyes off the oxen, mules, and donkeys. When they saw the sacks of grain on their backs and heard the faint sound of water sloshing in buckets as they passed, their eyes turned red with envy!

Yan Lao’er had originally planned for the group to rest after reaching the official road.

But seeing those bloodshot eyes, he was too scared to stop.

He gritted his teeth and pressed forward.

Everyone gripped their wooden clubs tightly, keeping a close watch on those trailing behind.

The people following them changed several times.

Those who were too hungry couldn’t keep up under the blazing sun and had to stop, watching helplessly as this well-off group moved farther away.

But some still persisted.

These individuals were different from the ones with bad intentions.

They had at least some food on them.

Everyone knew that traveling with a larger group meant greater safety.

So they chased after them with all their strength.

By the time Yan Lao’er’s group finally left the official road and turned onto a smaller path, half of the followers hesitated and stopped.

That direction led to Xizhou.

Everyone from Leshan Prefecture knew—it was not a good place to go.

The remaining half, however, were people who had narrowly escaped death on the official road.

They no longer cared where they were headed. As long as they could stick with a group, that was enough.

Finally, the group stopped.

Everyone was too exhausted to move.

They wanted to drink less and conserve water, but it was too difficult.

Their bodies screamed for hydration: Thirsty! So thirsty!

Yan Lao’er looked toward a distant mountain—that was the place Mao Mao had pointed out as having water.

“Brother, look at that mountain.” He weakly lifted his chin, too tired to even raise his hand. “There might be water there.”

He couldn’t make any guarantees, so he had to hedge his words: might, maybe…

“Will we pass by it?” Yan Huaiwen asked.

Yan Lao’er pretended to gauge the direction and replied, “We should. When we get there, I’ll take some people into the mountain to check.”

“Alright,” Yan Huaiwen responded briefly.

The mountain seemed close, but they walked until nightfall before reaching its base.

They had walked for seven to eight hours that day.

Everyone was completely exhausted.

Especially those who had been pushing the carts. Even though they took turns, their arms were badly swollen.

Their legs no longer felt like their own, and they collapsed to the ground, unable to stand.

Yan Lao’er and his eldest nephew had taken turns driving the cart, alternating between walking and resting, so they were in relatively better shape.

But they were still exhausted.

To keep up appearances, Yan Lao’er pulled Sanbao aside, gave him food and water, and let him lie down and rest, making sure he kept eating and drinking the whole time.

If people were tired, the ox had to be tired too!

It deserved to be well-fed and cared for.

He called Qi Da over and had Qi Si and Qi Wu stay behind to rest while the two of them headed into the mountain.

The flickering torchlight illuminated the path ahead.

Yan Lao’er’s legs ached, his back hurt, and his body felt unbearably heavy…

But despite the pain on his face, he pushed on.