It's really hard to just farm peacefully.

It took some time to find the "road map", and now it was pitch black outside.

Yu Qian asked Jiang Nian to go to the kitchen to bring out the steamed food, and then asked Jiang Yan and the others to sit down properly.

"You must be hungry. Let's eat first and talk later. You guys came so suddenly. Otherwise, we could have bought some good food. For now, just eat."

Jiang Da waved his hand, "We ate on the way here. We're not hungry, you guys eat. Let's go clean up the house."

The Jiang family had a small room where they usually kept their belongings. When people from Dongshan Village couldn't get home for work, they would ask to stay overnight. The Jiang family wouldn't accept money, as it was too much of a burden. Instead, the villagers would help with firewood, water, and cleaning, and would bring vegetables when they went to the county town.

Yu Qian naturally refused, "How can I not eat when I'm here? I know that there's not enough food in the village and everyone is skimping on it. There's no need to save it for me."

In Jiang Yan's heart, Aunt Yu is a very capable and admirable person.

After Uncle Jiang was drafted, Aunt Yu not only shouldered the burden of supporting the family, but also the social interactions with the villagers. Even though everyone had been living a tight life in recent years, she never stopped sending relief to the elderly and the weak in Dongshan Village during festivals.

They also had to keep an eye on the wind direction in the county town and even the provincial capital so that if there were any matters such as "conscription", they could inform the people of Dongshan Village in a timely manner so that they would not be caught off guard like in previous times.

Aunt Yu and Jiang Da were still trying to persuade each other. Jiang Yan was watching silently from the side. After realizing that Grandpa Jiang Da and Grandma Sun Yun really didn't want to eat, she joined in trying to persuade Aunt Yu to give up.

"Aunt, we've already eaten on the way, so we really won't eat anymore. You also said that there's never a full meal in the village, so we're used to eating a little at night. We won't starve, and eating too much will make our stomachs uncomfortable. We'll come back to your house after spring when our appetites return."

Yu Qian felt helpless and had to give up.

The family of three finished their meal in a hurry, and then continued to talk with Jiang Da and his wife and Jiang Yan who had cleaned up.

Now we have an idea for interpreting the "roadmap", but we still need Jiang Nian and Jiang Yuan to help translate it, which will take a lot of time.

Should I continue to stay in the county, or...

Sun Yun pulled Yu Qian over and whispered, "What do you three think? Do you want to go back to the village? Jiang Yuan is fourteen years old. What if... should we also go to the mountains to take shelter?"

Although the ancestral cave hadn't been opened yet, even if they couldn't find it, the Dongshan villagers could still temporarily hide in the mountains to avoid being found and taken away. After all, compared to being cannon fodder and dying on the battlefield, the disadvantages of being exposed in the mountains in winter were not worth mentioning.

"Let Jiang Yuan and Jiang Nian go back. I will stay in the city so that they can find out the news." Yu Qian hesitated.

Sun Yun couldn't bear to hear this, and unconsciously raised his voice, "Let's go back together. It's unsafe for you to live alone in the city without anyone to look after you. The children won't feel safe there either." Then he whispered, "Besides, once everyone who meets the requirements has gone into hiding, it won't be that important whether we have news or not."

Yu Qian looked at Jiang Yuan and Jiang Nian, both of whom had expectations on their faces.

Jiang Da also persuaded, "Jiang Fu's wife, let's go back together. If you are worried about the things in the city, you can come back after the call-up is over."

After thinking about it, he felt that the bargaining chip was not big enough, so he added, "We took away many strong wives the last two times. You are so capable. If they need to recruit women this time or use you as a replacement when the number is insufficient, what will happen to Jiang Yuan and Jiang Nian? What if you are not here when Jiang Fu returns from his service?"

Although Yu Qian didn't think her husband would be able to return home soon, and had even prepared herself mentally for his death in battle, what Uncle Quan said made sense.

"Okay, uncle and aunt, the three of us will pack up tonight and go back to the village with you tomorrow morning."

"Okay, okay, we'll help you." Sun Yun smiled happily.

Jiang Yan also happily took Jiang Nian's hand and went to her room to help.