Traveling through the mountains and farming

Li Chongshan and Li Chonghai, who were talked about by Luo Dashan, were going to the nearby villages this time. There were six villages assigned to them to investigate. Fortunately, these villages were not far from each other.

The mission of going out to gather information was something they both actively sought for, and they also wanted to use this opportunity to find out about the situation at their grandmother's and father-in-law's homes.

Especially Li Chongshan, he didn't want his wife to worry about her pregnancy every day.

They hid and rushed to five villages all day, but could not get any accurate information.

Every time I looked at the house, there was no one there. I didn't know whether they had escaped or been captured by the soldiers.

Now there is only one Lianhua Village left to visit, and this is the village where Li Chongshan’s wife Fang Yun’s parents’ home is located.

The two of them quickened their pace and headed towards Lotus Village with trepidation.

Finally arriving at Lotus Village, they walked along the path into the village and found it was equally quiet.

Li Chongshan went straight to his father-in-law's house. As soon as he arrived at the door, his heart rose to his throat.

He raised his hand and knocked on the door, calling in a low voice: "Mother-in-law, I am Chongshan."

However, there was no response from inside the house.

Li Chongshan's heart sank suddenly, and he knocked harder, his voice also rising a bit:

"Mother-in-law, are you there? I'm Chongshan!"

But it was still quiet.

Li Chonghai said, "Maybe there's no one there. The wall is a bit high. Let's climb over from the next door."

After saying that, the two of them went to the next door and climbed into the yard with some effort.

As soon as I landed, I heard a slight sobbing sound coming from inside the house.

They walked cautiously in the direction of the sound.

I gently pushed the door open a little, and peeped inside through the crack. I found a little boy who looked about five years old curled up in the corner.

The two men pushed the door open completely, and the little boy in the corner curled up even more after hearing the noise.

Li Chongshan walked over, squatted down and asked softly: "Little kid, why are you here alone?"

It was probably because of his gentle tone that the little boy slowly raised his head and looked at him in horror.

Li Chongshan quickly comforted him: "Don't be afraid, we are not bad people."

After a long while, the little boy stammered:

"The soldiers... the soldiers came to arrest people, and everyone ran away. My mother told me to hide... I hid here, but my mother disappeared."

Li Chongshan's heart tightened, and he quickly asked again: "Then do you know where the people from the Fang family next door have gone?"

The little boy sniffed and said, "My mother told me that they left several days ago. It seems they went to the mountains."

When Li Chongshan heard that he had escaped to the mountains, he felt relieved.

Only then did he remember that his wife had said a few days ago that they were neighbors of Lin Wan. Could this be Lin Wan's home? Could the person in front of him be Lin Wan's younger brother?

But before they came out to inquire about the news, other wives asked them for help in finding out the situation in their natal families, but Lin Wan did not come to them.

Li Chongshan asked tentatively: "Do you know Lin Wan?"

The little boy replied: "Lin Wan is my sister."

Li Chonghai beside him hurriedly asked: "Where is your father?"

"Dad was captured by the soldiers."

Li Chongshan and Li Chonghai felt a sinking feeling in their hearts when they heard this.

Li Chonghai gently patted the little boy's shoulder and comforted him:

"Don't be afraid, kid. We are your brother-in-law's cousins. Are you willing to go with us to find your sister?"

"What about my mother? She asked me to wait for her here. If I leave, I won't be able to wait for her anymore."

Li Chongshan gently pulled Li Chonghai from the side, and Li Chonghai immediately understood what he meant, so he stood up and followed Li Chongshan to the side to quietly discuss the issue of whether the child should stay or go.

Li Chongshan and Li Chonghai talked about what they learned from Fang Yun about Lin Wan's parents' family.

Lin Wan's stepmother often treated her harshly, and her father was also very cold to her, so he didn't know whether he should take the child back.

But if I don't take it back, it won't work if I leave it here, and I don't know where else to put it if I take it away.

After listening to Li Chongshan's analysis, Li Chonghai said decisively:

"No matter what, he is Lin Wan's brother. We can't let him stay here alone. Take him away from here first and talk to Uncle Dashan and the others."

Li Chongshan thought it made sense, and the two of them returned to the little boy.

Li Chonghai squatted down and said to the little boy gently: "Little brother, let's take you away from here and find your sister, okay?"

The little boy hesitated for a moment and finally nodded.

They rummaged through boxes and packed the child's clothes. Then, they took the little boy out of the house and prepared to leave the village.

Along the way, the little boy held Li Chongshan's clothes tightly, his eyes full of anxiety.

Li Chongshan took the little boy's hand and comforted him softly: "Don't be afraid, we have brothers here."

When they were about to leave the village, they suddenly heard a loud noise.

They were shocked. Why would they raid and arrest people in the middle of the night?

He quickly took the little boy and hid in the woods nearby.

I saw a group of soldiers walking into the village aggressively and searching everywhere.

Li Chongshan signaled the little boy to cover his mouth and not make any sound. Fortunately, the little boy was very smart and cooperated obediently.

The officers and soldiers searched the village for a while, but found nothing, so they left in a hurry.

Only after the officers and soldiers left did Li Chongshan and his companions breathe a sigh of relief and continue on their journey with the little boy.

Finally they returned to the agreed cave entrance. They blew the secret signal first, and after hearing Luo Dashan's response, they quickly entered the cave.

Seeing that Luo Dashan and the other man were safe, everyone breathed a sigh of relief and their tense nerves temporarily relaxed.

At this time, Grandma Zheng was lying on the hay and had fallen asleep.

Li Chongshan gently placed the sleeping little boy next to Grandma Zheng.

Then, they sat together and shared what they had learned.

As they had been busy all day, dawn would arrive in about an hour or two, so they planned to rest here temporarily and go back after daybreak.

Li Chongshan asked Luo Dashan what to do with Lin Wan's younger brother?

Luo Dashan glanced at Li Changli, who was Lin Wan's younger brother. He was somewhat related to Li Changli, so he wanted to hear his opinion.

Li Changli glanced at the sleeping little boy, frowned and thought for a moment, then said:

"Take him with you for now. You can't just leave him there. We'll see how things go later and make plans."

After running around outside all day, everyone was already starving with only the few pancakes they brought with them.

At this time, Li Chongshan's stomach growled and he scratched his head awkwardly. He gave some of their biscuits to the little boy as he had been running all the way and had no time to look for food.

Luo Dashan handed the pancake in his arms to Li Chongshan, then stood up and said:

"I'll go see if I can find any food nearby."

He picked up the bow and arrow and strode out of the cave.

A quarter of an hour later, he came back carrying two hares.

"Haha, I'm lucky!" Luo Dashan said with a smile in a low voice.

Everyone's face suddenly showed joy.

Li Chonghai quickly found some branches and prepared to make a fire.

Li Chongshan and Li Changli took the rabbit and worked together to skillfully skin it and clean its internal organs.

Soon the fire was lit, and they used branches to place the hare over the fire and slowly roasted it.

The rabbit meat sizzles under the fire, emitting an enticing aroma.

The little boy was also awakened by the smell. He rubbed his eyes and sat up. He looked at the roasting rabbit meat and began to swallow his saliva.

Granny Zheng who was standing nearby was also woken up. She was startled at first when she saw the extra people, but when she saw that Li Changli was there, she realized he was an acquaintance and relaxed.

She supported herself with her hands and slowly sat up. Her eyes fell on the roasted rabbit meat and her dry lips moved slightly.

"Did you catch a wild rabbit?" asked Granny Zheng in a hoarse voice.

"Yes, auntie, please wait a moment and you will be able to eat soon." Li Chongshan replied with a smile.

At this moment, Luo Dashan, who was guarding the cave entrance, suddenly looked nervous and said in a low voice:

"There's a noise outside. Get ready to evacuate. I'll go check out the situation first."

Everyone was startled, and the originally relaxed atmosphere instantly became tense.

Li Chonghai quickly put out the bonfire, Li Chongshan hurriedly grabbed the little boy's hand, and everyone held their breath.