Traveling through troubled times to escape famine and cultivate crops as a grain merchant

Since the water consumption has been reduced, the two buckets of water can indeed be used for a longer time. One bucket of water can last a family for three days, and all the water added up can last for seven days.

During this period, every day when they rested, each family sent someone out to look for water.

At this time, Zhou Guo usually took Zhou Su out to find food and water. Sometimes they were so tired that they fell asleep immediately without even having time to eat.

During this period of time, the refugees they encountered were all small groups of three to five or a dozen people. They had not encountered a single group as large as theirs, and they didn't know whether they were falling behind or moving forward.

That day, the team arrived at a small river.

She looked around and had no idea how long it had been since it rained. Everywhere she looked on the hills was dry and yellow, the rivers had dried up, and the land was cracked. There was no need to go down there; it was so dry, how could there be water?

The crowd, who were originally cheering and rejoicing, gradually fell silent and quiet after seeing such a desolate scene. There was no water in the river, so what was waiting for them ahead?

What's even more frightening is that the victims they met were all skinny, ragged, and sitting on the roadside with numb expressions. When they saw so many things piled on their carts, their eyes lit up with greed, but when they turned around and looked at so many people, the light in their eyes dimmed again.

Zhou Guo was secretly frightened when he saw this.

Not only was she frightened, but everyone in the team who was attentive became alert. They were originally going to rest here, but the headman didn't even let them stop. The team continued to move forward. In such a large group of people, there was not even a voice of objection, and the children all quieted down.

It was a very hot day, but Zhou Guo felt a chill on his back.

Zhou Dacang was pushing the cart, his mind highly focused, staring at the victims around him with sharp eyes. If anything went wrong, he would be the first to rush out. At this moment, he secretly regretted that he should have had some sharp sticks or something on the cart. He didn't have a knife at hand. How could he beat so many people with his bare hands?

The Li women also became wary.

Fortunately, nothing happened in the end. After walking more than a mile, everyone gradually relaxed, wiped the sweat from their heads, and continued to move forward. This place was still not safe. They had to walk a few more miles to leave others far behind.

Zhou Guo frowned, thinking that the road ahead might be difficult as well. After all, there were so many people fleeing, with no food and no water. If things got really desperate and people couldn't survive, wouldn't the only thing left for them to do was rob?

She looked around and felt that she could only discuss this matter with her uncle.

After the team stopped, Zhou Dacang left with his knife without even looking for water.

Seeing this, Zhou Guo hurriedly followed, carrying the gourd and holding the basket.

Zhou Dacang was going into the mountains to cut branches, the kind that were sharpened into pointed pieces. It would be best if everyone in the family had one, so that if there was a conflict with someone, they would have a weapon, which would be more useful than stones.

When he found Zhou Guo following her, he was startled. This girl usually acted alone except when she was with Zhou Sulu. She quietly carried a basket and a small hoe to dig wild vegetables, fruits and water sources. Why was she following him for the first time?

Puzzled, "Guo Guo, why are you following me?"

Zhou Guo said: "Uncle, I have something to discuss with you."

Zhou Dacang was even more surprised. "What do you want to discuss with me? Can't you just ask your mother?"

Zhou Guo told him all her worries at once, and then said, "Uncle, we have to be prepared. Otherwise, if a fight breaks out, we don't have strong laborers in our family, so we are the easiest to be targeted and the easiest to suffer."

The more Zhou Dacang listened, the more surprised he became, and his eyes widened. Is this girl really only eight years old?

When he was eight years old, he seemed to only know how to throw mud with the children in the village, teasing cats and dogs, and everyone disliked him.

Seeing that he didn't speak, Zhou Guo frowned, "Uncle, did you hear that?"

"Oh? Oh, I see, I see." Zhou Dacang said quickly, slapping his thigh. "Hey, I went into the mountains to cut some sticks. Everyone has one, and we can fight when we see something wrong. It's better than being empty-handed, right?"

Zhou Guo said, "We can't be the only one on guard. What's the point of us being on guard? Everyone has to know about this." After thinking for a while, he said, "It would be best if the village could specially select some people to form a defense team to be ready for unexpected situations at any time."

Zhou Dacang scratched his head and said with difficulty: "It may not be easy to send out a defense team. The situations of each family are different. It sounds like it is not a good job. If things go wrong, they will be beaten to death or disabled. I am afraid that few people are willing to do it."

Zhou Guo thought about it and decided not to force him. Since he was unwilling, forget it. He nodded and said, "Okay, then don't worry about other people's families. We still have to prepare for our own family. You can talk to the head of the village later."

The two of them went into the mountains together and picked some straight, egg-sized oak trees. They cut down a few, shaved off the leaves, and sharpened one end into a pointed shape.

Zhou Guo picked one up. It was the right size and length in his hand. He waved it once, but it was a little light and didn't feel firm in his hand.

Zhou Dacang, who was standing by and seeing the little girl holding a stick that was several times longer than her, waving it around in a very serious manner, couldn't help but burst out laughing.

Zhou Guo glanced at him. What was so funny? It was just swinging a stick. Although she had never learned it, she had plenty of strength. With a grunt, she thrust the stick hard into the ground. In an instant, only two feet of the eight-foot-long stick was left exposed.

The laughter stopped abruptly.

Zhou Dacang looked in amazement at the piece of stick still left on the ground, then looked at his niece who looked relaxed. Suspecting that he was dreaming, he stretched out his hand and slapped his cheek hard, the pain making him see stars.

Then he widened his eyes in horror, staring at the scene with difficulty and unable to speak. He walked forward like a sleepwalker, wanting to see if this was real, or if the kid had replaced it with a shorter one.

Seeing that he looked dazed and terrified, as if he had seen a ghost, Zhou Guo felt a little guilty. Could this healthy person be scared silly by her? Besides, is it really that scary? When she first knew that she had traveled through time, she didn't seem to be like this, right?

She saw him walk to the stick, first squatted down and looked at the ground carefully, then walked around the stick a few times, then stretched out both hands and tried to pull it out, but couldn't pull it out. He pulled hard again, but still couldn't pull it out. Finally, he pulled with all his might, his face flushed red, but still couldn't pull it out, and sat down on the ground gasping for breath.

She had no choice but to step forward and with one effort she dug out the stick that was six feet deep in the ground.

Zhou Dacang’s eyes widened. He couldn’t believe what he saw. He stammered and couldn’t speak. “You…you…you…this…this…this…what…is going on?!!!”