Armed with a machete and a gun, armed with a system, they fled the famine.

Zhao Yan's lips twitched involuntarily, and she flicked her daughter's head with a finger.

"What strange and wonderful things are inside Xiaomi's head? Why don't we let Mom open it up and take a look?"

"No, no, it will hurt."

Zhao Xiaomi was so frightened that she covered her head and hid behind Zhao Yan.

Chen Qingjiao came over with a smile and took Zhao Xiaomi's little hand in hers.

"Little Xiaomi, that's my dad. My dad's back."

When Chen An left home, Chen Qingjiao was already seven years old and could remember things.

Chen An's sudden return last night surprised Chen Qingjiao, who appeared somewhat awkward and distant.

However, blood is thicker than water. In the morning, Chen An called his daughter over, and the two snuggled together and talked for a long time. By now, they had become quite affectionate.

Yang Sanlang watched from the side and felt envious.

Clearly, Zhao Xiaomi was still wary of him and didn't really like to be around her adoptive father.

After listening to Chen Qingjiao's words, Zhao Xiaomi glanced at Chen An, but when Chen An smiled at her, she hurriedly shrank back behind Zhao Yan to hide.

Helpless, Zhao Yan squatted down and rubbed her daughter's head.

"Xiao Mi, don't worry. Those two are your father and your Uncle Chen An. Go ahead and go with Sister Jiao Jiao to wake up Brother Chen. You can have breakfast soon."

Chen Qingjiao smiled and reached out her hand to Zhao Xiaomi.

"Xiaomi, your sister will take you there."

"Oh, Mother, Xiaomi isn't afraid."

Zhao Xiaomi wasn't afraid of her father or Chen An; she was just meeting them for the first time and wasn't familiar with them yet.

Actually, she longed to spend more time with her father.

But Mom said Dad was injured and needed to rest more.

She had no choice but to keep quiet and try not to disturb her father's rest.

Zhao Yunchen had already woken up after hearing Zhao Xiaomi's voice.

Before Chen Qingjiao and Zhao Xiaomi even got close, he had already called the three little ones to get up.

Upon seeing Chen An, the two sides exchanged introductions once again.

After breakfast, Zhao Yan discussed with Yuan Yutang: "Uncle Yuan, are their injuries suitable for moving?"

Yuan Yutang stroked his beard and shook his head.

"I'm afraid that won't work. Sanlang is wounded on his back, and the cut hasn't scabbed over yet. If we leave now, the wound might reopen."

"Chen An injured his leg, so don't expect him to be able to walk for at least the first month."

In other words, if they were to leave at this time, they would need to prepare at least one stretcher and at least two people to take turns pulling the person.

Because the carriage is only so big, it's too much of a strain to fit two adult men in it.

Zhao Yan looked at the group of elderly, weak, women and children, plus two sick and disabled people, and remained silent for a moment, sighing inwardly.

"In that case, let's stay here for now and wait until Sanlang's injuries have healed more or less."

A knife wound should heal in about two weeks. After it scabs over, be careful not to get it wet and just let it heal slowly.

In this way, when they set off, Yang Sanlang would at least be able to walk on his own.

"Ah."

That's how it was settled.

After breakfast, Tian Xiu'e was in charge of washing the pots and dishes, Zhao Yunchen and Chen Qingjiao were in charge of looking after the children, and Zhao Yan carried a machete and walked to the vicinity.

They didn't bring much food to begin with, and after using some on the way, plus the addition of two adult men, the food they had left was only enough for them to eat for another month.

Zhao Yan would never allow herself to live off her savings.

During this time, she should take a walk around the neighborhood. If she can find something to eat, that would be best. If not, she can hunt some wild animals and roast them into jerky, which would also be a food.

She had already carved out a path in the northeast direction, and she knew exactly what was happening along the way.

This time, she changed direction and headed straight north.

They were originally heading north, and she came ahead to clear the way so it would be easier for them to leave.

The path in the mountains was difficult to walk on, overgrown with weeds. Zhao Yan swung her machete forward to clear a path while observing the terrain on both sides.

Along the way, they encountered many wild vegetables that could fill their stomachs, but Zhao Yan skipped them all in order to save time.

There are wild vegetables near the cave, so they don't lack these things.

What they lack is staple food and meat that can supplement protein.

Walking and stopping intermittently, Zhao Yan would hide whenever she encountered pheasants or rabbits, waiting for an opportunity to strike them dead.

Before she knew it, her storage cabinet had been stuffed with six pheasants and eight gray rabbits.

She also saw a gray squirrel in a pine tree.

Unfortunately, the guy ran away as fast as he could as soon as he saw someone, and she couldn't catch him no matter what she tried.

We walked and stopped intermittently.

Two hours later, Zhao Yan was stopped in her tracks by a one-sided massacre on the opposite hillside.

It was a pack of wolves hunting a bison.

Zhao Yan curled up in the grass on the hillside, her eyes fixed on the scene below.

There were sixteen wolves in total, fifteen of which were gray-black in color, and they were launching an orderly attack on the bison.

One of the wolves was enormous, covered in silver-gray fur.

It did not participate in the hunting of bison, but stood arrogantly on the high ground issuing orders.

Zhao Yan speculated that this must be the leader of the pack of wolves.

The bison, large in size and fierce in nature, gradually became exhausted under the powerful attack of more than a dozen wolves.

The alpha wolf suddenly bit off the carotid artery in its neck, and the bison's massive body swayed before collapsing with a crash.

This one-sided hunt has come to an end.

Although the bison died, several wolves also died.

Zhao Yan counted and found that there were still ten wolves standing, including the alpha wolf.

As if sensing something, the alpha wolf suddenly glanced sharply at the place where Zhao Yan was hiding.

Zhao Yan's heart skipped a beat, and she quietly pressed her body down.

She heard long, drawn-out "howls" all around her, her palms were sweating, and she dared not make a move.

She wasn't confident she could kill ten wolves at once.

Therefore, it would be best for her to hide at this time and wait until the wolves have finished their meal and left before getting up.

The alpha wolf, having noticed nothing, calmly withdrew its gaze and was the first to step forward and enjoy the food.

After the alpha wolf had eaten and drunk its fill, the remaining nine wolves then had their picnic.

The waiting time is excruciating.

Especially in life-threatening moments like these.

Zhao Yan's legs were numb from kneeling for so long before the wolf pack finally finished eating the bison.

The sounds they made while eating were sharp and loud, causing Zhao Yan, who was hiding in the shadows, to momentarily lose her senses.

The weak eat the strong.

This is the real world.

Whether in modern times or this era, the weak will be bullied.

Resources are limited; it's a matter of life or death.

It took the wolf pack two hours to devour a bison completely, leaving no part of its entrails untouched.

"Ouch——"

The alpha wolf howled to the sky and led its minions westward.

Zhao Yan waited in the bushes for a while longer, and only dared to get up when she heard no sound.

At the same time, I felt a slight sense of relief.

Fortunately, the wolf pack didn't run south.

If she went to their cave and faced the wolves, even with her great strength, she would be badly injured.

It was getting late, and Zhao Yan dared not go any further.

Looking at the dead wolves on the hillside, she quickly went down the mountain, put the wolves into her spatial storage cabinet, and then climbed back up the hillside.

She originally intended to walk further west, taking a roundabout route back.

But knowing there was a pack of wolves, she abandoned her plan and returned the way she came.