After two consecutive days of physical labor, Yue Jiuyue could barely get out of bed that morning from the aches and pains.
But she had to get up regardless. If she wanted to live a good life in the future and just laze around like a salted fish, she first had to work hard enough to build up her savings. Only then would she have the confidence to do nothing but eat and wait for the end.
Besides, next year, she would have to flee from the famine.
The last memory the original owner had before dying was that the famine escape was finally over—they had finally reached the capital!
If she didn’t want to go through that ordeal, enduring countless hardships only to reach the capital and then die, she would have to make use of her special advantage and do something about it.
Earning more silver was a must. Then what? Buy water to pour back into the village’s long-dry wells? Or claim a mountain as her own and pretend to have dug a new well?
There was no rush. The spring up in the mountains could still hold out for a while. During this time, the real priority was earning as much silver as possible.
So, aching or not, she had to get up. It was all for the sake of her future.
“Mother, you’re up! I was just about to call you. Just now, the clan leader’s wife came by and said that in a little while, each household should send one person to the stone roller for a clan meeting.
Oh, right, Mother. Xiaoman’s father and Fourth Brother have already gone up the mountain to dig herbs. Third Brother said he wanted to get an early start to help at the medical clinic in town, so he left without eating.”
Yue Jiuyue had just opened her door when she saw Liu Shi about to knock. Then came a rapid-fire report, as if Liu Shi were talking to a superior.
But Liu Shi’s face had already resumed its worried, miserable expression, which made Yue Jiuyue’s eyes hurt.
Wasn’t she doing well yesterday? What was wrong with her today? Could the family not go on?
“Mm, go about your business. I’ll go take a look.”
Yue Jiuyue walked out slowly, heading step by step toward the stone roller.
Yesterday, Yue Jiuyue had found Liu Shi somewhat agreeable and had almost suppressed her idea of splitting the family. But Liu Shi had only lasted one day before reverting to her old self. Now Yue Jiuyue was thinking about that split again.
They said that as long as parents were alive, the family shouldn’t be divided. Given her current persona, if she wanted to split the family, she would need a good reason. She wanted to live her own life, not saddle the original owner’s sons with a bad reputation that could affect their futures. So the reason had to be appropriate.
Lost in thought about splitting the family, Yue Jiuyue soon reached the stone roller.
The stone roller was originally at the east end of the village, where there was a large open space. In past winters, people would grind flour there, or gather to chat and bask in the sun. Whenever something needed to be announced to the village, they usually did it there—it was spacious.
Yue Jiuyue’s home was about thirty or forty meters east of the stone roller, with a well in between. That well had long since dried up, and a large, heavy stone slab now covered it to prevent little kids from running around and accidentally falling in.
About thirty or forty people had already gathered at the stone roller. They chattered softly among themselves, wondering if this clan meeting was about the herbs. Some even grumbled that the clan leader had picked a bad time—everyone was in a hurry to get up the mountain to dig herbs. Every moment wasted was money lost!
Yue Jiuyue arrived without drawing anyone’s attention. She didn’t want to discuss anything with anyone either. She found a stone at the far edge, sat down, and waited quietly.
In the village, most families lived together in large, multi-generational households. Cases like Yue Jiuyue’s—being separated from the main family at such a young age—were extremely rare. So Linjiagou, with a population of around four hundred people, had fewer than forty households. Yue Jiuyue could only exclaim: She was utterly shocked, folks!