The other two refugees quickly grabbed Lin Lao’er’s family’s grain sack and ran after the one-eyed man.
“Little Stone, don’t go over there! It’s dangerous!” Gu Qinglin’s mother cried out when she saw A Shi seeming to run toward the forest.
A Shi glanced back at her, a fleeting trace of ruthlessness flashing in his eyes.
But in the next second, he resumed his timid expression and shouted loudly, “I’ll go get help!” Then he ran toward the forest.
He had barely entered the trees when the one-eyed man and the others pulled him aside.
“Nicely done. This is for you.” The one-eyed man took out half a sack of dried rations from his clothes and tossed it to A Shi, his tone tinged with approval.
A Shi caught it and hugged it tightly to his chest. He said nothing, only turned to glance back in the direction of the camp.
Meanwhile, Zhang Zhuang and the second batch had just filled their containers and were heading back when they heard shouting from the camp. They immediately quickened their pace.
“Something’s wrong!” Zhang Zhuang shouted, leading the men into a run.
“What happened? What happened?” he demanded as he rushed into the camp, seeing scattered dried rations on the ground and the elderly and weak gathered together.
“Thieves! They stole most of my family’s grain!” Gu Qinglin’s mother wiped her tears, her voice choked with sobs.
She had not fully recovered from her illness, and now that their grain was gone, her face looked even paler.
“Damn it!” Zhang Zhuang cursed and immediately led several men into the forest to chase after them.
But after running some distance, they lost sight of the refugees and had no choice but to return in frustration.
By then, Lin Zheng had brought the first batch back as well. When Gu Qinglin saw his family’s grain sack torn open and scattered, his face turned deathly pale.
“My family’s grain…” He hurried over, crouched down, and picked up the sack. Only a little more than half remained.
When his mother saw him return, it was as if she had found her pillar of support. She hurriedly told him what had happened, tears streaming down her face.
Lin Lao’er squeezed out from the crowd. When he saw his own empty grain sack, he stamped his feet anxiously. “What are we going to do? Without food, how will our family survive?”
A Shi ran back from the forest, panting and looking flustered. “Brother Gu, I… I chased them for a while but couldn’t catch up. They ran too fast—toward the east.”
Gu Qinglin looked at him steadily. “When did you run out? When my mother called you, why were you running toward the forest?”
A Shi lowered his head, twisting his clothes nervously. His voice sounded aggrieved. “I… I saw them stealing the grain and panicked. I wanted to call you back to help. I didn’t expect I wouldn’t catch up.”
Lin Zheng frowned and walked over, his sharp gaze sweeping over A Shi before scanning the camp. “It must be that group of refugees from before. A Shi, are you sure they ran east?”
“Yes. I saw it clearly.” A Shi nodded vigorously, not daring to meet Lin Zheng’s eyes.
Village Chief Li and Chief Wang hurried over after hearing the news. Seeing the mess in the camp, their faces darkened.
“No one’s hurt, right?” Chief Li asked anxiously.
Lin Zheng shook his head. “Fortunately not. Other families only had their sacks slashed and didn’t lose much. It’s just the Gu family and Lin Lao’er’s family who lost most of theirs.”
Chief Wang sighed and slapped his thigh heavily. “It’s our fault for being careless! If we had listened to Sisi girl and left more people to guard the camp, we wouldn’t have given the thieves an opportunity!”
Gu Qinglin remained crouched on the ground, staring at the half sack of grain, feeling as though something was lodged painfully in his chest.
A Shi bit his lower lip and reached behind him, handing over the half sack of dried rations.
“Brother Gu, although I didn’t find anyone to help, I picked this up on the way. Maybe… maybe they dropped it while escaping.”
Lin Sisi had just returned from surveying the surrounding terrain. After hearing the news, she silently walked to A Shi’s side.
Feeling her gaze, A Shi’s body stiffened slightly. He kept his head lowered, not daring to look at her.
“From now on, I’ll arrange who stays behind to guard the camp when we fetch water,” Lin Sisi said calmly, but her voice carried unquestionable authority. “Also, send two people east to follow the footprints. Maybe we can find some clues.”
There was no use arguing now—the priority was to recover as much as possible.
Chief Li nodded. “We’ll do as Sisi says.”
Just as the commotion in the camp began to subside, sharp curses rang out from Lin Lao’er’s family tent, drawing curious looks from nearby families.
“It’s all because of you, you shameless wretch! Clinging to Gu Qinglin all day like some sticky plaster that won’t come off!”
Li Shi sat on the ground, slapping her thigh as she cursed, her finger nearly poking Lin Qingqing in the nose. “If you weren’t always sticking around that Gu Qinglin, would our family have lost most of our grain too?”
Lin Lao’er squatted to the side, his face dark. “Say less. Don’t make a bigger joke of us.”
“Why should I say less?” Li Shi shot to her feet. “We didn’t have much grain to begin with, and now there’s barely anything left. How are we supposed to survive? It’s all her fault!”
She glared at Lin Qingqing as if she wanted to devour her. “You’re a jinx—whoever gets close to you suffers!”
Lin Qingqing stood there, her face flushed red, looking pitiful, yet she stiffened her neck in defiance. “Mother! How can you say that? The refugees stole the grain. What does that have to do with me?”
“I just… I just think Brother Gu is a good person and wanted to talk to him more.”
Her voice trembled with grievance, tears welling up in her eyes. To outsiders, she looked utterly wronged.
But only Lin Qingqing herself knew that she wasn’t truly heartbroken. What she felt more was calculation.
“If not you, then who?” Li Shi spat, saliva spraying. “That wild child was brought here by him, and you helped look after him. Both of you are responsible!”
“I looked after Little Stone because I pitied him as a child. I didn’t expect… didn’t expect it would bring trouble to our family.”
Lin Qingqing cried harder, covering her face with her hands, but through the gaps between her fingers, she secretly observed the reactions around her.
“Besides, the grain was stolen because no one guarded the camp properly. Why put the blame on me? Maybe our family was targeted because… because everyone thinks we’re easy to bully. That’s why we were placed at the end of the line, giving the refugees a chance.”
She deliberately made her words sound pitiful, hinting that her family had been mistreated—both earning sympathy and subtly shifting blame toward others.
“What nonsense are you spouting!” Lin Lao’er suddenly stood up and pointed at her angrily. “You little brat, taking outsiders’ side over your own! The village chief hasn’t even spoken yet—stop talking nonsense!”
They relied on mutual support from the villagers on this journey. If she kept talking like that, she would offend everyone.
“I’m not!” Lin Qingqing cried out unwillingly. “Brother Gu treats me better than you do! All you ever do is scold me!”