“Er Niang, You Niang, get up quickly! We’re leaving now!”
Xu Yue and Xu Erniang had just laid down when Wang Shi rushed back and urgently pulled them out from under the blankets.
She held hemp rope in her hands, rolled up the straw mat and bedding together, stuffed the sisters’ small bundles into the bedding, and quickly tied it into a military pack, handing it to Xu Erniang.
“Can you carry this?” Wang Shi asked.
Xu Erniang nodded, slung the bedding onto her back, and asked puzzledly: “What happened? Why do we need to leave now?”
Xu Yue had already put on her straw sandals and was looking at Wang Shi anxiously.
Xu Da had already rolled out the bedding on his side. He didn’t know how to pack a military bundle, so Wang Shi stepped forward to take over. As she packed, she explained:
“The vagrant army is coming! They’ll take the county town before dawn and will soon swarm toward all the major villages. We must leave now!”
Otherwise, the dangers they would encounter next would be completely unpredictable.
Xu Yue’s memory of armies still lingered with the People’s Liberation Army from the 21st century – organized, disciplined, not taking a single needle or thread from the people.
But she had read history books. So-called vagrant armies were actually large bands of fugitives, bandits, and robbers. Though some desperate peasants might join them after being persuaded, ordinary people who encountered such forces would find death to be a release.
In this era where slave trading flourished, people were wealth, and those vagrant bandits wouldn’t let anyone escape. Men would be killed outright, women sold into slavery, and children too young would be thrown by the roadside to be trampled to death by chaotic horses – utterly inhumane.
At this moment, Xu Yue began to vaguely realize what kind of barbaric era she was actually in.
…
The family had already planned to leave, so their things were prepared beforehand.
Wang Shi carried the packed military bundle on her back and took up her bow and arrows along with a sickle.
Xu Da shouldered the basket filled with food and picked up the family’s only torch and a firewood knife.
Xu Erniang carried the sisters’ luggage and bedding. Xu Yue was too small and didn’t need to carry anything.
In just five minutes, the whole family was assembled and ready.
“Mother!”
Just before the family set out, Xu Yue urgently called out, looking toward the slightly ajar firewood shed.
Wang Shi frowned but didn’t say anything – after all, that was a living life too.
Xu Da’s eyes showed some irritation. Regarding Wang Shi’s hesitation, he automatically attributed it to womanly softness.
With no one objecting, Xu Yue hurried into the firewood shed and untied the hands and feet of Xu Dalan, who had already been awakened.
“Brother, the vagrant army is coming. We need to leave this place. Can you behave and come with us?”
Xu Yue looked at the thin twelve-year-old boy before her with nervous anticipation, hoping he would seize this opportunity.
Fortunately, although Xu Dalan glared hostilely at the three people outside the door, he nodded firmly to her and directly picked her up in front of him.
Despite his thin frame, his immense strength was unmatched in the Xu family – he was undoubtedly the strongest. Especially now that he had eaten his fill, carrying a child weighing several dozen pounds was effortless for him.
Wang Shi walked at the front, followed by Xu Erniang, then Xu Da holding the torch, and finally Xu Dalan carrying Xu Yue.
The family of five hurried to the village entrance. As they passed by a few households that might still have survivors, Wang Shi would pound fiercely on the doors to warn them about the approaching vagrant army.
Whether these people believed her or not, whether they fled or stayed—that was their own choice. She had already done her utmost.
This act delayed them considerably, and Xu Da voiced some discontent, but…
As the saying goes, a real man knows when to yield and when to stand firm! He who understands the times is a wise man! With his cultivation completely lost and still reliant on this woman, he had no choice but to endure for now.
Arriving at the village entrance, Xu Da gazed at the morning star on the horizon, concentrating as he calculated with his fingers. Just as he was about to announce his findings, Wang Shi—having already assessed the wind direction, mountain terrain, and her own marching experience—pointed toward the northwestern mountains:
“We’ll take shelter in the mountains first to evade the vagrant army, then decide our next move.”
Xu Da was taken aback, wondering inwardly if Wang Shi might be a fellow practitioner.
Otherwise, how could she have reached the same conclusion as his calculations?
Wang Shi had already strode ahead, leaving Xu Da no time to ponder further. He glanced back at Xu Yue and her siblings, signaling them to keep up.
Knowing that the cores of their entire family had been replaced—that the children were no longer truly children, and that the most childlike-looking Xu Yue even had Xu Dalan as a free porter—Wang Shi walked with such vigor that Xu Erniang, trailing behind, gritted her teeth in frustration.
Seeing that Wang Shi and the others had already pulled far ahead, Xu Yue hurriedly urged her seemingly dull-witted brother to run.
Unexpectedly, Xu Dalan misunderstood her intention. Clutching her tightly, he shot forward like the wind, overtaking Xu Da, passing Wang Shi, and in the blink of an eye, dashed straight into the forest!
The three left behind stared in astonishment. What on earth was inside Xu Dalan’s body?!
Xu Yue: “…”
I’m utterly dumbfounded!
Feeling the harsh wind whipping past her cheeks, Xu Yue regained her senses and urgently shouted for him to stop.
Xu Dalan, obedient as ever, came to an abrupt halt, startling birds from the trees and kicking up a cloud of grass, mud, and dust that left Xu Yue coughing uncontrollably.
“Growl! Growl!” Xu Dalan let out anxious, non-human roars again, his slightly reddened eyes filled with concern as he looked at her, his face a picture of helplessness.
After her coughing subsided, Xu Yue asked him very seriously, “Brother, can you speak human language?”
“Huh?” He tilted his head, his eyeballs rolling in confusion, then nodded, but shook his head immediately after.
Xu Yue: “Alright, I understand. Brother can’t speak human language yet, but he can learn, right?”
The young man paused for several seconds before nodding.
Xu Yue realized that everyone in the family had inherited the memories of their original bodies, so Xu Dalan should have them too.
Regardless of what essence resided within him, since his body was human, he ought to be capable of human speech.
They could teach him slowly in the future, Xu Yue thought, massaging her forehead.
Footsteps approached as the three lagging behind finally caught up. Xu Erniang scrutinized Xu Dalan from head to toe, her eyes gleaming with fascination, her gaze so blatant it seemed she wished to dissect him on the spot.
Xu Dalan’s eyes widened, and he let out a low growl at Xu Erniang. Startled at first, she then broke into a strange smile and scoffed provocatively.
Confident that her younger sister could keep this odd creature in check, she felt no fear. Smugly, she followed in Wang Shi’s footsteps.
“You Niang, call out if anything seems amiss,” Xu Da urged uneasily, still full of apprehension toward his “esteemed eldest son,” Xu Dalan.
Xu Yue nodded obediently. “Understood, Father.”
“Good girl.” Xu Da reached out contentedly to pat his daughter’s head, but unexpectedly, as his hand extended, Xu Dalan suddenly glared fiercely, clutching Xu Yue tightly with one arm while swiftly striking toward him with the other.
Xu Da’s eyes darkened as he quickly sidestepped to avoid the blow, tightening his grip on the firewood axe in his hand.
“Brother!”
At Xu Yue’s urgent cry, Xu Dalan—who had been poised as if facing a formidable enemy—halted his attack. He held her with both arms, body slightly crouched, legs spread apart, and round eyes fixed warily on Xu Da, adopting a defensive stance.
Should anyone dare harm the little one in his embrace, he would instantly lunge to tear out their throat!
“Xu Da, You Niang!” Wang Shi called from ahead.
The father and son locked in confrontation finally relented, quickening their pace to catch up.