Liu Qingyu also curiously tugged at its tail and asked, “What kind of animal is your soul body? Why did your tail recover first?”
Before the spirit artifact could respond, she suddenly felt someone pushing her, and her consciousness was instantly pulled out of the space.
Fortunately, time inside the space flowed five times faster than outside, so she hadn’t delayed anything important.
“Xiao Yu, stop sleeping. We’re leaving,” urged Tian Chunchu.
Liu Qingyu quickly got up feeling refreshed. She was surprised to find that her body felt as light as a swallow, and her control over her movements seemed much stronger than before.
Unfortunately, there was no place for her to test her newly learned techniques.
The exile group continued heading northwest. Everyone’s water flasks were filled with mint water; whenever they felt too hot, they would take a sip and regain their energy before continuing on.
Thanks to this mint water, no one had collapsed from heatstroke by noon rest time.
However, because they had walked the entire previous day, many of them—who were used to traveling by carriage—were now sore all over. Some had aching muscles, while others had their feet blistered by their shoes.
As a result, during the midday break, far fewer people were busy cooking or fetching water. Only a few families were still making fires; most simply ate whatever they had prepared that morning.
“Mother, let’s just eat buns for lunch. I still have some here,” Liu Qingyu said, taking out a few meat buns from her bundle while hiding them.
Tian Chunchu saw the buns her daughter took out of the space and assumed they had been stored there back when they were still in the Liu residence, so she said nothing and simply handed them to Liu Hongyi.
“Girl, what you’re reading… could it be pirated?” Liu Hongyi said seriously as he held a half-eaten bun. “According to what you said, the drought should only become severe halfway through our exile journey. But I feel the temperature now is clearly higher than yesterday. If it keeps rising like this, the water may start evaporating in less than ten days.”
Liu Qingyu also looked up at the sky. The blazing sun hanging high above was mercilessly radiating heat, as if mocking humans for trying to change fate.
“Father, I feel the same way,” she said. “Actually, I already felt something was off when our family was being confiscated.
Logically, we should have been ransacked the day after you were imprisoned, but in reality, the Liu residence was confiscated the very same day you were arrested, and we were immediately exiled afterward. It feels like the author is rushing the plot forward.”
Liu Qingyu shared her thoughts from the past couple of days.
Liu Hongyi stroked his chin and fell into thought.
“Alright. We’ll do what we need to do at each step. Finish your buns quickly, then go look for nearby water sources. The more water we store, the better.
We’re just ordinary mortals—this is all we can do.”
Tian Chunchu interrupted the father-daughter pair, snapping them out of their thoughts.
That was true. Even if they figured everything out, what could they do? The best they could do was prepare more supplies and ensure their family survived the hardship ahead.
At that moment, Liu Qingyu suddenly experienced a strange moment of enlightenment. She felt her “Sunflower Manual” technique stabilize further, and the first layer became even more solid.
“Mother, you really live up to your reputation—silent most of the time, but when you speak, it’s always profound!” Liu Qingyu said happily, picking up a bun and eating it.
By the time she finished hers, she noticed her father had already finished eating and was getting ready to leave.
“Father, wait for me! I’m almost done!” she hurriedly said, quickly biting into another bun.
Liu Hongyi chuckled. “Don’t rush. Eat slowly. I’m going to find Lord Lu for a moment and will be back soon.”
Only then did Liu Qingyu slow down. Her father, a former soldier, always ate like he was on fast-forward—“whoosh whoosh”—finishing in just a few minutes.
Liu Hongyi walked familiarly to where Lu Youguang was resting.
“Oh, Brother Lu, eating?” he greeted.
Lu Youguang smiled upon seeing him. “Yes. Have you eaten? Want to sit and have a bite?”
“No need, I’ve already eaten. I’m here to talk to you about something,” Liu Hongyi said straightforwardly.
Lu Youguang liked his directness. “Brother Liu, sometimes I really think you shouldn’t be a civil official—you’d make a great military officer. That would be far more free and unrestrained. So, what is it? Found more medicinal herbs again?”
“Herbs aren’t cabbages. How could I find them everywhere?” Liu Hongyi said seriously. “Brother Lu, have you noticed the temperature outside is unusually high?”
Lu Youguang glanced at the blazing sun. “Unusual? It does feel a bit hot, but isn’t it early autumn? A bit of heat is normal—people even call it the ‘autumn tiger.’”
“I’ll be direct then,” Liu Hongyi said. “Besides medicine, I also study the Book of Changes and divination. Last night I observed the stars and saw the ‘Wei Yue Yan’ star pattern clashing with the moon. I fear a drought may strike the capital and surrounding regions.”
He explained it in a way ancient people could understand.
Lu Youguang burst into laughter. “Brother Liu, you’re just worrying too much. I don’t doubt your medical skills, but your astronomy… are you better than the Imperial Observatory? They already reported before we left the capital that the Great Wei would have smooth weather for the next year. You should keep such talk to yourself.”
Seeing that he wasn’t believed, Liu Hongyi stopped persuading him and instead advised, “Then at least store more water. It’s hot now and we get thirsty easily. If we can’t find water later, it might help.”
“Don’t worry, I know what I’m doing,” Lu Youguang replied with a smile.
After a few more words, Liu Hongyi left.
When he returned, Liu Qingyu quickly asked, “Father, what did you go talk to Lord Lu about?”
“I told him about the drought and asked him to store more water,” Liu Hongyi said gloomily.
From his expression, she immediately knew it had failed.
“Father, you’re being naive. Setting aside the fact that it’s not even the hottest part of the season yet, how could Lord Lu believe such a thing just because you said so?” she said helplessly.
Liu Hongyi lowered his head and sat quietly under the tree.
She knew this was his long-standing soldier’s instinct—protecting the people was carved into his bones. So once he noticed something unusual, his first reaction was to warn Lord Lu and try to reduce the impact of the drought.
“Father, it’s fine that you tried, but only this once. We’re not in Hua Country anymore. Right now, it’s already difficult enough just to protect our own family.
If they really investigate later and ask how you predicted the drought, what will you say? You can’t even recognize all the stars—how would you make up a story then?”
Tian Chunchu comforted her husband, knowing he was upset over his inability to save more people.