Traveling Through Farmhouses: Taking the Baby on a Famine Escape

Zhang Xixi finally managed to deal with all the people who came to thank her; she was more tired than if she had walked all day.

Zhang Xixi baked a lot of pancakes in the morning. After the whole family and Duanmu Yun had breakfast together, they loaded everything onto the carriage. Since the carriage could pass through the rest of the road, families with livestock made simple wooden carts to make the journey faster.

After everyone had packed their things, they set off. Zhou Dashan and his son Zhang Dacheng led the way, followed closely by their families.

Zhang Xixi and Chen Shi, along with their two children and Duanmu Yun, sat in the carriage, with Zhou Yujie driving in front and following behind.

A large group of people from Zhoujia Village walked up the mountain from the village at the foot of the mountain. It took them two hours to reach the mountain. Zhang Wenbo was relieved, as he was afraid that they had led the villagers astray again.

Seeing the mountain meant losing the car. Zhang Xixi looked at Duanmu Yun with concern. This girl looked like a young lady from a wealthy family. She had never experienced hardship. She wondered if she could even walk on mountain roads.

Duanmu Yun looked at the mountain in front of her, then at Zhang Xixi, and said with a smile, "Sister Xixi, I'm not that delicate. I practiced martial arts at home, so I can walk this mountain path."

Zhang Xixi thought that even those who had practiced martial arts might not be able to persevere through so many mountain paths, and she couldn't discourage this girl's confidence.

"Yun'er, don't push yourself. The mountain road is very difficult to travel. You should ride a horse instead!"

Duanmu Yun glanced at the two children and refused, "Sister Xi, I'd better walk first, and we can talk about it later if I can't walk."

Zhang Xixi looked at the two babies and said, "Alright, just say so if you can't hold on any longer."

Zhang Xixi secretly packed some of her heavy belongings into her storage bag and fed her horse some spiritual spring water, so that her two children could sit on it with more peace of mind.

"Da Bao, Er Bao, sit quietly on the horse." Zhang Xixi instructed her two children.

"Mom, don't worry, we'll be good."

Zhou Yujie, who was leading the horse, also said, "Sister-in-law, don't worry, I will take good care of the two babies."

"Let's go then!"

Zhou Yujie, carrying a basket on his back and leading his horse, followed behind the villagers and walked along the old mountain path leading to the mountain. Zhang Xixi, also carrying things, followed behind with Duanmu Yun.

This path must have been frequently used by the villagers from the foot of the mountain. There were no obstacles on the road, but there were also no wild vegetables. Their journey was not too difficult, and they reached their pre-selected campsite before dark.

Duanmu Yun was a very resilient girl; she walked for so long without complaining of being tired or suffering, which Zhang Xixi greatly admired. Zhang Xixi noticed that Duanmu Yun was constantly rubbing her legs, which must have hurt, so after dinner, Zhang Xixi specially boiled a basin of water for her to soak her feet.

"Yun'er, soak your feet for a bit, it'll help relieve the pain," Zhang Xixi said to Duanmu Yun before going to get some sulfur.

Ever since Zhang Xixi saw a snake in the mountains, she has been sprinkling a lot of sulfur around her every night before going to bed. After all, it's a deep forest with lots of snakes, insects, and rodents, so it's better to be on guard. She doesn't want to be scared by snakes again; one experience was enough to make her remember it vividly!

After dark, Zhang Xixi found a place and released Xiao Jin. As soon as Xiao Jin came out, it ran into the mountains and forests, probably because it had been cooped up in the space for a long time and wanted to relax!

"Host, please note that the system's built-in space is about to close!"

Zhang Xixi complained: "Just shut it down, why do you have to remind me?"

System: This is a program requirement, not something I did on purpose. System is very aggrieved!

The next day, the two little ones were overjoyed to see Xiao Jin had really returned. After breakfast, they whispered amongst themselves around Xiao Jin, who occasionally barked in response. Zhang Xixi watched this scene with curiosity. How exactly did the three of them communicate? Wasn't it like they were talking past each other?

"Erbao, what are you talking to Xiaojin about?"

Erbao looked up at Zhang Xixi and said, "Mom, this is our secret, a secret that belongs only to men."

Upon hearing this, not only Zhang Xixi, but even Duanmu Yun, who was terrified of Xiao Jin, laughed.

"What secrets could you two little kids possibly have?"

The two boys ignored Zhang Xixi and the others' laughter and said righteously, "Mom, you need to be more sensible. We already said it's a secret, so we definitely can't tell anyone."

Zhang Xixi smiled and laughed, then stopped asking questions, deciding it was best to give the two children some personal space. Remembering she'd forgotten to give the tiger-shaped gun to her parents yesterday, Zhang Xixi found a secluded spot, took it out, and handed it to Zhang Dacheng.

Zhang Dacheng looked at the gun in his hand and asked in confusion, "Girl, what's this?"

Without even blinking, Zhang Xixi lied, "I found it in that inn, and brought it back especially for you and your second brother."

"Daughter, you're so lucky to have found such a good weapon. I won't be polite with you!" Zhang Dacheng said happily, stroking the tiger-shaped spear.

"Don't mention it!" Zhang Xixi liked her father's straightforward nature and disliked all the polite refusals.

Seeing that Zhang Wenbo and Zhou Dashan had finished studying the map and were probably ready to set off, Zhang Xixi greeted Zhang Dacheng and then walked to the back.

"Da Bao, Er Bao, now that you're done talking, get on Xiao Jin's back obediently. We need to get ready to leave!"

Seeing that Duanmu Yun was unable to walk today, Zhang Xixi insisted that Duanmu Yun ride on a horse, with Zhou Yujie leading the horse behind them. However, the mountain road had become rugged again today, so Zhou Dashan arranged for people to clear weeds ahead and instructed everyone to carry wooden sticks to knock them away as they walked, in case of snakes.

Zhang Xixi was also clearing away the weeds and branches along the roadside with her large knife, praying in her heart that she wouldn't encounter any snakes. She had several sachets on her body filled with sulfur.

"Host, are snakes really that scary?"

"It's already terrifying enough, and I can't explain it to you. You have no emotions, so you probably don't even know what fear is!"

System: I don't want to talk anymore. I was originally going to comfort the host.

Although the journey was slow, the forest was hot and stuffy, and there was almost no water in the surrounding area. After walking for several days, the villagers ran out of water. Although they had wild vegetables to eat, everyone looked very haggard, and their lips were chapped. If they couldn't find water soon, they probably wouldn't be able to hold on!

Although Zhang Xixi didn't lack water, it wasn't convenient to get it out, and she didn't want to eat wild vegetables every day, so she had to continue roasting taro, drastically reducing her food intake. Because of the water shortage, she had to stop giving her two children bedtime milk. Watching her family struggle to eat taro, Zhang Xixi was also worried: where in these mountains could she find water?