Famine and exile: I brought the Spirit Spring to save the entire Marquis's mansion.

An investigation revealed that these families were the scourge of the village, and the villagers had suffered greatly from their mistreatment.

Two families were sent directly to repair the city defenses, while the other three were flogged and sent away from Liuxia Village.

As soon as they left the county government office, Sang Ning picked up Jin Tang.

"How can you be so amazing, Jintang! I admire you so much!"

"Come on!"

He gave her a big kiss on the cheek.

Jintang was terrified and struggled frantically.

Finished!

It's over, it's over, it's over!

He has let his fourth uncle down!

"Come here, let your fourth aunt apply the medicine for you. We can't let our pretty little face be scarred."

Sang Ning took out the muscle-regenerating medicine he had obtained from Lu Shishen and sprinkled some on Jintang's bleeding wound.

Let's see how effective this medicine is.

Like his fourth uncle, Jintang had almond-shaped eyes, long eyelashes, and tender skin that was as bouncy as cheese.

"My goodness, how many girls will be captivated by this when he grows up?"

"No, you need to learn some kung fu so you can run away quickly if you get surrounded by girls."

Jintang: "..."

"..."

"..."

When the two were almost home, Jintang suddenly stopped.

"Fourth Aunt, you go first, I'll be there shortly."

"Oh, you can't hold it in anymore? Okay, hide well so no one sees you. Boys need to protect themselves."

Jintang: "..."

He didn't need to use the restroom; he just wanted to avoid suspicion.

Sang Ning reached her doorstep in a few steps, where a slightly familiar figure was lingering.

It was the old man who stole her "papa" steamed bun.

His body was still swaying, like a ghost.

"Grandpa, what are you doing?"

The old man was startled; his thin, bulging eyes revealed terror.

He calmed down when he saw it was Sang Ning.

"It's you, my dear. I noticed these blankets are a bit worn out..."

"Oh, you mean this? All five members of this family hanged themselves. The county government allocated this house to us, so I threw them out."

"That...that..."

“If you need it, take it. To be honest, when a person dies, it’s like a lamp going out. This world is so bitter, even if there is any soul left, it’s gone long ago. Who would want to stay in this wretched place?”

The old man nodded repeatedly, "That's exactly right, I don't mind at all."

The old man bent over and struggled to carry the pile of tattered blankets.

I don't know what's stuffed in the quilt; it's dark inside and probably won't keep you warm.

"Grandpa, don't you have any food to eat every day?"

Sang Ning was really afraid that he would fall flat on his face.

But the old man still managed to get up, albeit shakily.

His willpower is quite strong.

"There isn't enough food at home, and we need to save some for the children, so I go out every day to find something to eat."

"It's alright, my dear. The government distributes rations every three days. I can always manage to snatch a bite. I won't starve."

Living is agonizing, but when he thinks of his children and grandchildren, he doesn't want to die.

They lack the ruthlessness of this family of five.

Sang Ning chatted with the old man for a few more minutes.

The old man's son is a carpenter, and he was also sent here a few years ago.

The implication is that he offended a local tyrant and was tricked by the tyrant into having his son carve a poem that satirized the royal family on the furniture.

It was during a period of severe crackdown, and my whole family was imprisoned and exiled here.

Carpentry is a skilled trade. In the past, it could earn a living, but these past two years, people's lives have been so hard that there's simply no work to do.

Sang Ning happened to have a small job to do.

I told the old man to have his son come over tomorrow.

"Alright, girl, I'll have him come over right now. I won't ask you for anything, just give me some money for the service!" The old man was so excited that his pale face turned a little red.

"No rush, no rush. We just arrived and need to settle in. We can come back tomorrow."

"Fine, fine, you decide, you decide."

The old man's tone was humble, as if he was afraid that Sang Ning would change her mind.

Sigh, what a miserable world.

Sang Ning sighed and went home.

"Fourth Sister-in-law, we've brought the water. Go and wash yourself and change your clothes."

Huo Jingya had finished getting ready, and her face was finally clean.

Aside from being a bit thinner and darker than before, she's still just as beautiful.

Her face was delicate and pretty, but her eyebrows were thick and dark, giving her a heroic air.

The Huo family has good genes; their children are all good-looking.

"How much water did you fetch?" Sang Ning asked.

Huo Jingya's face fell: "Each family can only get one can of water. We just arrived, and the prefect was very kind and gave our family an extra can."

Therefore, taking a bath was impossible; several people could only share a basin of water to wipe themselves down, and their hair still smelled terrible.

Hey.

"Fourth Sister-in-law, can we filter the dirty water using the method you taught us and reuse it after it's finished?"

"This... we don't need to, do we?" Sang Ning asked in alarm.

Wastewater can be treated, but bacteria can't be killed.

"But there's not enough water!"

"You guys use it first, I'll find a water source. You know I'm best at finding water, I can find any water source underground!"

At worst, we can dig a hole and draw out the spiritual spring water!

Huo Jingya looked at Sang Ning with admiration, and then said, "Fourth Sister-in-law, give me some money so I can buy some incense. Mother said we should pay our respects to this family before moving in."

"Mother is right."

Sang Ning had long forgotten about this matter. She directly gave Huo Jingya ten taels of silver and asked her to exchange them for loose silver and copper coins.

Before, when they didn't need money on the road, she kept it all. Now that things have settled down, everyone needs to have some money to spend.

Upon seeing so much money, Huo Jingya immediately became serious, as if she had received a major mission.

Little did she know that she had spent twenty taels on the quilt, and this was the last ten taels she had left!

Fourth Sister-in-law trusts her too much!

"Be careful, don't get scammed," Sang Ning advised.

"Understood, Fourth Sister-in-law! I'll compare prices at several stores before deciding!"

Huo Jingya, as if she held the livelihood of her family in her hands, repeatedly considered the possible scenarios in her mind before leaving with a stern face.

The old lady finished washing up and came out. She neatly combed her hair with water and wore the coarse cloth clothes that ordinary people often wore, looking very capable.

"You stay home, I'll go check on things over there."

That's my second uncle's house, of course.

Even the Huo family children weren't familiar with that second uncle, let alone Sang Ning.

But Sang Ning was worried that the other side would take their anger out on the old lady.

"Shall I go with you?"

"No need, I'll go take a look first. Don't worry, they're all civilized people."

"Then, Mother, please take some cornmeal with you."

When they left Lujia Village, the villagers gave them some cornmeal, which Sang Ning divided into several portions, and each person carried one portion with them.

It was both safe and allowed her to cause trouble, occasionally taking some corn from her spatial storage, crushing it, and mixing it in.

Anyway, the villagers ground it coarsely, and the Huo family didn't know any better, so they didn't taste the difference at all.

I just thought she was a good cook.

The portion that the old lady brought hasn't been touched yet!

"Do we have enough to eat?"

The old lady actually wanted to bring them along, but since Sang Ning was in charge now, she was too embarrassed to say so.

The main concern is that my child might not have enough to eat.

Sang Ning said confidently, "As long as there are mountains here, I can find food. Mother will take me there."

They couldn't very well turn away the food they had brought with them.

The old lady's worried brows relaxed.

This is a good choice for the head of the household; she's always so calm and composed, as if no difficulty can defeat her.

Whether it's her and her eldest son's wife running the household, or those wealthy ladies in the capital, the key is that they can make decisions when things happen and allocate the family's finances reasonably.

When things are stable, it's considered acceptable.

But in dire straits, it is like a boat capsizing in a raging storm, utterly powerless to resist.

But Sang Ning is different; she can lead her family out of dire straits and carve out a way to survive.

This is what a true leader should be like.

This shows that if she can manage a household, she can certainly manage other things as well.

The old lady was pleased and patted Sang Ning's hand, saying, "Then I'll take a share with you. Go inside and rest. Let the fourth son tell you a story and get a good night's sleep. That boy has plenty of stories to tell!"

Uh, that's not necessary.

She didn't have this habit, and the more she listened, the more energized she became.

After the old lady left, Sang Ning went into the house.

As soon as I went inside, I was almost blinded by the light.

A muscular man is sitting on the edge of the bed, slowly wiping himself down!

The boy was not wearing anything on his upper body, with broad shoulders and a narrow waist, forming a perfect inverted triangle shape, and his abdominal muscles bulging like a wall.

A line of water rolled down the muscle lines, seeped into the trousers at the waist, and disappeared without a trace.

"I'm sorry, I didn't know you were taking a bath."

Sang Ning swallowed hard, glanced at it again, and turned to leave.

But then she heard a soft plea for help behind her: "Could you help me rub my back? I can't reach it myself."