If they kept someone like Wang Cuiju around, who only cared about saving her own skin, the whole family might eventually lose their lives because of her!
Old Madame Han seemed to have forged a heart of stone; no matter how Wang Cuiju wept and pleaded, she remained unmoved.
Even Han Er’er would not plead on her behalf, let alone anyone else—everyone simply turned their faces away and refused to look at her.
Wang Cuiju knelt on the ground, crying, throwing a tantrum, and begging for a long time.
Seeing that there was truly no hope of turning things around, she swept a venomous glare across everyone present, her eyes ultimately settling on Han Yanqing and Lin Yueru.
“Just because of the words of two fools, you’re kicking me out? Han Er’er, today I finally see your true colors!”
Before Lin Yueru could see clearly, a hand covered her eyes.
A voice whispered softly yet firmly beside her ear, “Wife, don’t be afraid of her. I’m protecting you.”
Lin Yueru lowered the arm she had started to raise, feeling a wave of warmth in her heart.
Old Madame Han spoke coldly once more: “If you run forward now, it’s not too late. You might still catch up with your parents. Wait any longer, and you’ll just be left to fall into the hands of the mountain bandits!”
Wang Cuiju slapped the dirt off her behind, stood up, and wiped the tears from her face.
“Fine, I’ll leave! Did you really think your Han family was such a great place to be?!”
“Raising one fool as a burden wasn’t enough, so you had to buy another fool! Your whole family is completely out of their minds!”
“Shut your filthy mouth! Get lost!”
Old Madame Han glared furiously, pulled off her other straw sandal, and hurled it at her.
Han Er’er also set Sanbao down and lunged forward aggressively, inting to strike her.
Seeing this, Wang Cuiju took off running into the distance.
As she ran, she shouted back, “It serves your Han family right that you ran into bandits! Let’s see how long your meager food rations last you!”
Old Madame Han cursed in a fit of rage, “Facing death and you still dare to yap! Just make sure you don’t starve to death out there, you dog of a woman!”
Suddenly, the weight over Lin Yueru’s eyes vanished.
She opened her eyes to see that Han Yanqing had already run into the distance to fetch the shoe Old Madame Han had thrown.
He placed the shoe by Old Madame Han’s feet, looked up, and said, “Mother, it’s cold. Put on your shoe.”
Old Madame Han felt a pang of bittersweet warmth in her heart. She patted Han Yanqing’s head.
“Mother will put it on. Putting it on right now.”
Even Han Si, foolish as he was, was far better than those heartless wolves!
Wang Cuiju’s departure did not draw a single sigh of regret from anyone. With one less gluttonous, lazy mouth to feed, everyone felt a weight lift from their chests instead.
Old Madame Han glanced at the moon and estimated there were still about four hours until daybreak. She immediately made the call.
“We’re all exhausted after tossing and turning all night. There’s a big tree right here, so let’s rest our feet first and get moving at dawn.”
At Old Madame Han’s word, everyone immediately began setting things down to prepare for rest.
They had brought quite a few belongings when fleeing famine, but after eating and drinking along the way and then being ransacked by bandits, their situation had gone from bad to worse.
Their food was down to half a bag of millet, half a bag of sorghum, a small handful of polished round-grained rice, and five eggs Liu Qiumei had hidden in her bosom.
As for money, the entire family could not even scrape together two taels of silver.
Lin Yueru followed behind Third Sister-in-law Zhao Shuangtao, helping to set aside the items from the handcart and spreading out their only remaining set of bedding.
This would be where Old Madame Han, Sanbao, and Sibao slept for the night.
Seeing that her hands were free, Han Yanqing hurried over and took Lin Yueru’s hand, pulling her to the side.
Reaching the back of the large tree, Han Yanqing pointed to a bundle of grass on the ground, presenting it like a treasure.
“Wife, I gathered lots of dry grass! This way, it won’t be hard when you sit down!”
Without waiting for Lin Yueru to praise him, he impatiently pulled her hand to sit down together.
Sure enough, cushioned by this thin layer of dry grass, the ground was no longer so cold and hard.
Han Yanqing took off his outer garment and draped it over Lin Yueru’s shoulders. “Wife, cover yourself with my clothes to sleep. It’s cold!”
“No need, put it back on quickly.” Lin Yueru took it off and tried to drape it back over him.
After he giggled and dodged her several times, Lin Yueru could not help feeling a little exasperated.
Deliberately putting on a stern face, she said, “Are you going to wear it or not?”
Hearing the commotion, Old Madame Han leaned her head over with a smile to smooth things over:
“Ru, don’t be angry! Han Si has had a sturdy build since he was little. He’s practiced martial arts and isn’t afraid of the cold. If he wants you to wear it, just wear it!”
Zhao Shuangtao also teased them with a laugh, “That’s right, Fourth Sister-in-law! If it were me, I wouldn’t even wait for your Third Brother to take it off—I’d just snatch his clothes myself! They have strong bodies, so don’t you worry!”
Zhao Shuangtao had a frank and feisty personality, and was always capable of poking fun at herself.
If it were not for such a temperament, she likely would not have survived the past six months since Han Sansan’s disappearance!
Half a year ago, Han Sansan had gone out with an escort convoy to escort shipments. Perhaps the convoy had run into bandits; in any case, not a single person had returned.
Not a trace of him alive, nor a corpse to be found!
Zhao Shuangtao had been devastated, going without food or drink for two full days.
Everyone had held their breath in worry for her, but after holding her child and weeping bitterly, she had pulled herself together once more!
As long as she had not seen Han Sansan’s body, she refused to believe he was dead!
With everyone chiming in, Lin Yueru’s face flushed slightly, and she felt awkward pushing the garment back onto him.
Instead, she simply pulled the coat over, using it to cover half of herself and half of Han Yanqing.
Seeing that she was no longer upset, Han Yanqing happily leaned closer, pressing his body against hers.
“Wife, my body is warm. If I stick close to you, you’ll be warm too.”
In her past life, Lin Yueru had been a secret agent. She had never had the time or opportunity to date; the only physical contact she ever had with the opposite sex had been for missions.
Now, pressed against Han Yanqing, she could not help the heat rising to her face, her palms clutching the fabric turning slightly clammy.
She forced herself to close her eyes, seizing the time to rest and recover her strength!
Han Yanqing was also exhausted, his back aching and sore from the beating he had taken earlier.
Before long, his head slowly tilted onto Lin Yueru’s, and with their heads nestled together, they both fell asleep.
Lin Yueru was awakened in the middle of the night by a prick of pain.
Her left wrist felt as if it had been bitten by a mosquito, both itchy and sore. She gently rubbed her wrist with two fingers.
Without realizing what she had touched, the scene before her suddenly blurred and abruptly transformed!
What met her eyes was a Space of over ten mu. Within it lay vast stretches of prime farmland, more than a dozen fruit trees, and a crystal-clear stream.
Beneath the fruit trees, chickens, ducks, geese, and other poultry strolled leisurely.
This place was practically rivaling a hidden paradise!
Right in the center stood a bamboo tower. The room on the first floor was stocked with ample grain, flour, fruits, and vegetables;
On the second floor were three rooms suitable for living, which actually contained many first-aid kits, poisons, silver needles, and other items she had routinely used in her past life!
Lin Yueru could no longer keep her composure.
At this moment, she was certain that this place was a Space prepared exclusively for her!
Lin Yueru let out a long breath of relief.
On this journey fleeing famine during a year of famine, she finally had some confidence to survive!
The late-autumn wind was a bit chilly, leaving lips parched and chapped.
Taking advantage of everyone being fast asleep, she quietly drew a sip of spring water from the Space to moisten her throat.
To her surprise, once the water went down, her entire body felt remarkably refreshed and invigorated!
She secretly took a few more sips, only then confirming with delight that the water in the Space was certainly no ordinary water!