Li Wanzhi was somewhat shocked that Chen Lan didn’t understand what Sun Hao meant by “serving.”
But she patiently explained it to Chen Lan nonetheless.
However, Chen Lan snorted coldly, “Sister-in-law, I think it’s your mind that’s dirty, so everything you hear sounds dirty to you?
He’s an officer after all, would he really do such beastly things?”
Li Wanzhi was even more astonished.
When they first went out to fetch water, Shen Qingyan had returned with her clothes torn to shreds.
Could Chen Lan still believe that when those officers said “serving,” they merely meant shoulder rubs and leg massages?
She didn’t understand how Chen Lan could be so naive.
Watching Chen Lan’s retreating figure disappear into the night, she glanced toward the direction of the campsite near the graveyard, then toward where Su Yanxi and the others had gone to fetch water.
Finally, gritting her teeth, she headed in the opposite direction of Chen Lan, going to find Su Yanxi and the others.
Meanwhile, Su Yanxi and the three Su brothers had already reached the spring that Liu Yuan had mentioned.
Just as Liu Yuan had said, the pond formed by the spring’s flow was completely dry.
Moreover, in the short time since Liu Yuan and his group had finished drawing water, the remaining moisture had completely vanished due to seepage and evaporation.
Even the soil had begun to dry out.
It seemed this spring was exhausted.
Su Qinghuai licked his parched lips, “There’s no water, what should we do?”
He scanned the surroundings.
But aside from the faint green of the plants near the spring, the vegetation elsewhere had completely withered and turned yellow, making it even less likely to find water elsewhere.
Su Yanxi had plenty of Spirit Spring Water in her Space.
But she couldn’t just produce water out of thin air; she needed some cover.
“Let’s try digging first. Since there was a spring here before, maybe if we dig, we can get some water to seep out,” Su Yanxi suggested.
Su Qingyu was highly efficient; as soon as Su Yanxi spoke, he immediately picked up a branch and started digging.
Su Yanxi followed his example and began digging as well.
She added, “Eldest Brother, Third Brother, Second Brother and I will dig for water here. You two go see if you can find any food.”
“Alright,” Su Qinghe agreed after a moment’s thought.
They really couldn’t all stay here digging for water.
Otherwise, they might end up with neither water nor time to search for food.
“Second Brother, take good care of Little Sister,” Su Qinghe reminded Su Qingyu before leaving with Su Qinghuai.
Su Yanxi planned to dig for a while and then find an opportunity to channel the Spirit Spring Water from her Space.
But Su Qingyu was too observant, and she feared he might notice something amiss, so she didn’t dare act rashly.
After a while, she suddenly heard a faint cracking sound from nearby, like a branch snapping.
“Second Brother, what was that sound?”
She immediately seized the opportunity to ask Su Qingyu.
Su Qingyu also found the sound unusual; branches don’t break on their own without reason.
It must have been stepped on by something.
Gripping the wooden stick in his hand, he cautioned Su Yanxi, “Little Sister, I’ll go check it out. Be careful, and if anything happens, shout loudly.”
“Mm,” Su Yanxi nodded.
Once she had sent Su Qingyu away, she quickly channeled the Spirit Spring Water from her Space.
In no time, the pit she and Su Qingyu had dug was filled with water.
Estimating that it was enough to fill the entire family’s waterskins, she excitedly called out, “Second Brother, come quickly! There’s water!”
At that moment, Su Qingyu was frowning deeply at the sight of Li Wanzhi appearing before him.
However, the location where they found water was originally told to them by Liu Bantou.
It wasn’t something they discovered themselves or had exclusive access to.
Therefore, he only glanced at Li Wanzhi and, upon hearing Su Yanxi’s voice, turned back.
Su Qingyu’s eyes lit up when he saw the clear water in the pit.
Su Yanxi said excitedly, “Second Brother, try this water! I just had a sip—it’s incredibly sweet!”
Although she had been adding water to the Su Family’s waterskins before, she didn’t dare add much because ordinary water and Spirit Spring Water tasted too different.
She only added a little, not enough to change the water’s flavor.
Su Qingyu scooped up some water and took a drink, his eyes immediately shining even brighter.
He quickly took out his waterskin and said, “It really is delicious. Little Sister, hurry, let’s fill all our waterskins.”
Soon, their waterskins were full.
Li Wanzhi watched timidly from the side as they filled their waterskins but did not approach.
Only after they had filled all their waterskins, with about half a waterskin’s worth of water left in the pit, did she cautiously ask Su Yanxi, “Yanxi, can I take the remaining water?”
Su Yanxi glanced at her and replied without much expression, “Go ahead.”
Su Qingyu carried all the waterskins on himself.
Su Yanxi didn’t even get a chance to carry one or two.
“Second Brother, why don’t you take the water back first? I’ll go find Eldest Brother and Third Brother and look for some herbs along the way,” Su Yanxi suggested.
Su Qingyu immediately shook his head. “No, it’s too dangerous for a young woman like you to be alone in these mountains. I’ll go with you.”
“But this water is quite heavy!” Su Yanxi tried to persuade him.
“Ha!” Su Qingyu looked completely unfazed by the weight. “This bit of water is nothing.
Back when I was training, the iron blocks strapped to me were heavier than this!”
As he finished speaking, Su Yanxi noticed a flicker of gloom in Su Qingyu’s eyes.
He had practiced martial arts since childhood, training through the hottest summers and coldest winters, never complaining of hardship or fatigue.
All to defend the country and serve the court.
Yet now, he hadn’t fallen by an enemy’s sword but was instead betrayed by the very court he had sworn loyalty to!
And his father!
A lifetime spent fighting on horseback, and now…
Thinking that their family might die on this exile journey or in Shachang, Su Qingyu felt nothing but resentment.
Su Yanxi said, “Second Brother, actually, whether Father advocated opening the granaries or not, the Marquis Family would have been convicted anyway, right?
Just under a different pretext.”
Su Qingyu hadn’t expected Su Yanxi to bring this up.
After a moment of silence, he nodded. “Yes, achievements that overshadow the ruler inevitably lead to the hound being cooked once the hare is caught.”
“But the hare isn’t caught yet,” Su Yanxi said.
The current Dayong Dynasty was plagued by internal and external troubles.
The Northern Di, whom Su Anzhi and Su Qingyu had repelled while leading the Su Family army, had returned after the Su father and son were recalled to the capital.
In the south, the Southern Barbarians were watching eagerly.
To the west, the Western Barbarians were also growing restless.
Within the Dayong Dynasty, two consecutive years of severe drought had left the people in dire straits, with uprisings breaking out among those who could no longer survive.
The court’s relentless suppression by government troops was like pressing a gourd underwater only for it to bob up again.
Su Qingyu smiled bitterly. “Perhaps to those people, holding power in the court is more important than the people’s well-being.”
Su Yanxi turned to look at Su Qingyu, her gaze blazing as she declared with resounding clarity: “So, Second Brother, since those sitting high in the court halls are unworthy—why should we remain loyal to them?”
Su Qingyu stared at Su Yanxi’s expression, his heart shaken!
He himself had entertained such thoughts before.
But the education he had received since childhood forbade him from thinking this way, much less acting upon it!
Su Yanxi continued: “If the ruler acts unworthily of a ruler, then the subjects need not act as subjects. This Da Yong dynasty has long been riddled with flaws, rotten to the core.
Only under a wise sovereign can the common people survive in this world!”
Su Yanxi’s pitch-black eyes remained fixed unwaveringly on Su Qingyu.
She knew the Su Family must still hold some bargaining chips.
Or rather, the Su Family members themselves were the bargaining chips.
She had to secure these chips for herself to achieve her great ambition!
Yes! From the moment she was reborn, Su Yanxi had already decided.
In this lifetime, she would not assist anyone else.
She would ascend to that position herself and create her ideal kingdom!