Just as a warm and tender atmosphere settled around Lu Yao and the children, Song Hongsheng came running toward them, his face filled with urgency.
Before he even arrived, his voice rang out:
“Sister-in-law! Take the children and go! The barbarians are about to enter the forest. They’re already at the forest entrance, only a few li away from us!”
Lu Yao immediately sprang to her feet.
Her heart sank.
It seemed the barbarians were truly desperate. They were determined to find food no matter what.
Quickly picking up Song Ziyu and taking Song Ziyang’s hand, she hurried to meet him.
“Brother Hongsheng, do you know how many of them there are?”
Seeing that she still wasn’t moving, Song Hongsheng grew even more anxious.
“There are about forty or fifty of them. Every one is carrying a long blade, though none are mounted on horses. They’re moving very fast. We have to leave immediately. If we’re any later, it’ll be too late. Everyone’s already preparing to move—hurry and catch up!”
Lu Yao looked toward the refugee column.
The crowd that had been resting peacefully moments ago had descended into chaos.
Adults shouted.
Children cried.
Elderly people wailed hysterically.
The patrol members yelled instructions.
Yet despite all the noise, the group’s movement was painfully slow.
Not far from Songyang Village were two other villages, and the scenes there were equally chaotic.
At this rate, they wouldn’t get far before the barbarians caught them.
Looking at the two little children beside her and the doll-like little girl in her arms, determination flashed across Lu Yao’s eyes.
Taking the children with her, she headed straight for the village chief.
Moving through the forest as if walking on level ground—a skill honed through years of training in her previous life—she quickly reached him.
Handing over the children, she said solemnly,
“Village Chief, please look after the children for me.
“With a refugee column like ours, there’s no way we’ll shake off the barbarians. We’re leaving far too many tracks. No matter what, they’ll eventually catch up.
“I’ve practiced martial arts since I was young and I’m stronger than most of the village patrol. I’m going to help stop them.
“Please take care of the children.”
The village chief opened his mouth, then closed it again.
In the end, he could only sigh.
He took one child with each hand while his wife accepted little Song Ziyu.
He understood perfectly.
If Lu Yao failed to return, everyone here would likely die together.
If she succeeded, they might still have a chance to survive.
There was no point making promises about raising the children.
At this moment, all of them shared the same fate.
Song Zixuan’s eyes reddened.
Yet he stubbornly refused to cry.
With a determined gaze, he looked at Lu Yao, silently cheering her on.
Song Ziyang wore a pitiful expression, staring reluctantly at her departing figure.
Meanwhile, little Song Ziyu burst into loud sobs the moment she saw Lu Yao leave her behind.
Hearing the child’s cries, Lu Yao felt as though knives were cutting into her heart.
A woman who rarely shed tears, she now found two streams of tears running down her cheeks into the corners of her mouth.
Wait for me, children, she silently vowed.
Mother will return safely.
We’ll build a paradise of our own one day.
After finding Song Hongsheng, Lu Yao explained her plan.
At first he refused.
But after recalling the skills she had displayed earlier that day, he finally relented.
Once she had gathered all the necessary information, Lu Yao quickly assumed command of the patrol force.
Leading roughly a hundred villagers, she brought them to a steep hillside along the barbarians’ most likely route.
Since none of the villagers possessed proper weapons, she ordered them to gather stones—the larger, the better.
The moment Lu Yao spoke, Song Hongsheng understood her intentions.
He immediately led seventy or eighty men to search for rocks.
The northern mountains of this world were filled with massive boulders.
After considerable effort, the men transported over a hundred huge stones and lined them up across the hillside.
Inside Lu Yao’s spatial storage were pistols, assault rifles, and even grenades.
Unfortunately, she couldn’t use them.
This was a forest in winter.
One careless shot or explosion could trigger a wildfire.
If that happened, nobody would survive.
She instructed everyone to hide behind the boulders while she went ahead to scout.
Immediately, Song Hongsheng stepped forward.
“Sister-in-law, I’ll go with you. I can’t放心 letting you go alone. Another person means another helping hand.”
Lu Yao shook her head.
“Brother Hongsheng, you need to stay here and direct everyone.
“I’ll move faster by myself.
“Don’t worry. I’ll be back soon. I won’t get too close.”
Seeing the firmness in her expression, Song Hongsheng didn’t insist.
He knew his own abilities.
Aside from brute strength, he had little combat skill.
If he followed her, he’d probably just slow her down.
After convincing him to stay behind, Lu Yao’s petite figure quickly vanished into the forest.
Watching her disappear, a villager named Song Qingsong remarked,
“Brother Hongsheng, who would’ve thought Hongyi’s wife was actually a martial artist?
“With skills like that, she could probably take down a dozen grown men by herself!”
Song Hongsheng himself had been surprised by Lu Yao’s abilities.
But now that everyone had seen them firsthand, he decided to use the opportunity to give the villagers a warning.
After all, Lu Yao was a widow raising three children.
He didn’t want anyone bullying her in the future.
Keeping a stern face, he said,
“Then remember it.
“When we get back, tell your wives too.
“Don’t provoke Lu Yao.
“In fact, it’d be best to stay on good terms with her.
“We may not have known each other before, but on this refugee journey we need to rely on one another.
“No infighting.”
Everyone nodded in agreement.
The road ahead would be filled with unknown dangers.
Having someone as capable as Lu Yao as an ally could only benefit them.
What Lu Yao didn’t know was that her casual display of skill had already earned her the villagers’ goodwill.
Meanwhile, she was perched high in the branches of a century-old tree.
It was the tallest tree in the area, its foliage thick and dense.
From her space, she retrieved a pair of binoculars and raised them to her eyes.
They were military-grade binoculars.
In open terrain, they could spot movement up to three kilometers away.
Although the dense forest reduced visibility, she could still clearly observe activity more than a thousand meters away.
Carefully scanning the distance, she continued watching until she finally spotted a group of people aggressively making their way up the mountain.
Only then did she lower the binoculars.
Glancing around, she noticed numerous vines nearby.
Drawing a dagger from her space, she quickly cut down a large quantity of vines.
Using them, she assembled a simple trap.
Then she sprinkled her own special itching powder throughout the surrounding area.
Satisfied, she dusted off her hands and hurried back to the ambush site.
She had barely rejoined the others when the barbarian force arrived at the place where she had been hiding.
The men were huge and burly, most sporting thick beards and booming voices.
After traveling so far without seeing a single refugee, their leader was growing increasingly irritated.
“Damn it!
“How are these Han people running so fast?
“We’ve been walking all day and haven’t seen a single person!”
His men were becoming restless as well.
After all, they had come here for food.
They needed grain to survive the winter.
Yet every village they entered had already been abandoned.
Still, seeing their leader so angry, no one dared make matters worse.
One subordinate quickly tried to placate him.
“Chief, judging from the tracks on the ground, they definitely entered the mountains this way.
“If we’re right, they can’t have gotten very far.
“These tracks are fresh.
“They may even be just ahead.”
The leader thought about it and nodded.
That sounded reasonable.
Waving his saber, he shouted to his men,
“The grain is just ahead!
“Move faster!
“If we catch them soon, we can seize more food before they eat it all!”
The warriors instantly became energized.
With excited howls, they charged uphill.