Elder Ma, along with Shuanzi and his mother, came to see them off.
“Linbao, Xiao An, Xiao Ding… I made each of you a slingshot.” Shuanzi handed the boys the slingshots he had stayed up all night crafting.
“Brother Shuanzi, this is for you.” Linbao passed him a packet of red bean pastries.
“Linbao, can I pet War God?” Shuanzi asked curiously, eyeing the tiger cub in Linbao’s arms.
“Mhm!”
Friendships between children always formed quickly, yet their understanding of parting was still vague and innocent.
“There are no feasts that last forever. Brother Ma, there’s no need to keep seeing us off. Everyone should head back now,” Jiang Kun said.
“Benefactors, please take care!”
“You all must stay safe too…”
As the two groups waved goodbye, the distance between them steadily widened.
After crossing a hill, Linbao asked Jiang Qingshu in confusion, “Why aren’t they coming with us?”
“Because everyone has different choices to make, and naturally that leads to different paths,” Jiang Qingshu explained patiently and gently.
“Then… will I ever see Brother Shuanzi again?”
“If fate allows it, perhaps you will.”
Jiang Qingshu lifted her gaze toward the crimson clouds glowing in the eastern sky, a faint smile curving her beautiful eyes.
She had originally thought the refugees would continue north with them, but since they had found a better option, she was sincerely happy for them.
Still, just in case something unexpected happened, she had already prepared backup measures for them.
That morning, Jiang Fengyu had once again assembled the carts using wooden planks and wheels they had prepared earlier.
Two horses each pulled a flatbed cart, just as before—one for supplies and the other for the children.
But starting today, Tang Shuangshuang also needed to ride in the cart.
She was still within the first three months of pregnancy and could not overexert herself.
Yet there was none of the pampered delicacy usually associated with pregnant women in her demeanor. Instead, she blamed herself.
Under such circumstances, she felt she was becoming a burden on the family.
So as long as there was anything within her abilities, she insisted on taking it on herself.
“We need to travel sixty li today, so we must make haste.”
Jiang Kun strode at the front of the cart, moving swiftly.
Sun Yuluo refused to fall behind and barely managed to keep pace with him.
Jiang Yifeng held the horse reins steadily and called out loudly, “Hold tight! There’s a downhill slope ahead.”
The cart suddenly slid downward with momentum, accelerating as it rushed downhill, thrilling the children.
“Waaah~ This is so fun! Second Uncle, do it again!” Linbao clapped his tiny hands excitedly.
Jiang Yifeng flashed a wicked grin.“Fun, huh? Just wait until we reach the next stop—training will be even more fun.”
The moment the children heard the words “training,” they instantly wilted like deflated balloons.
Jiang Luoyou, however, became delighted and hurried after Jiang Chengyu.
“Third Brother, with my talent, when do you think I’ll be able to fight ten enemies alone?”
Jiang Chengyu crossed his arms thoughtfully.“When? Probably in your dreams.”
“Really?”
For a moment Jiang Luoyou failed to realize he was teasing her. Just as she was about to turn and tell Jiang Qingshu, she finally understood.
“Third Brother, you’re making fun of me!” she shouted indignantly, stomping in place.
“Xiao Wu, hurry up and catch up…”
After traveling along the official road for two hours, the family entered the mountain path.
It happened to be noon, so they stopped briefly to rest and replenish their strength with food.
Jiang Qingshu handed out water pouches mixed with glucose to her family, then took out bread and fried pancakes. She also gave Tang Shuangshuang several dried sour plums to ease her morning sickness.
This was not the first time the Jiang family had eaten bread. They had tasted some earlier at Elder Ma’s camp.
Jiang Kun suddenly realized something.
“So the supplies the refugees found… those were all left behind by your master?”
“Of course. My master isn’t just peerlessly skilled—she’s also an incredibly good person.” Jiang Qingshu praised herself without the slightest shame.
“Indeed! Not only did your master cure your illness, she also saved our entire family. If we ever meet her, we must kneel and thank her properly.”
“What would be wrong with setting up a longevity tablet for our benefactor and offering incense morning and evening?” Sun Yuluo said seriously.
“Cough—cough!” Jiang Qingshu nearly choked to death.
Having the whole family bow and burn incense to her every day? Wasn’t that basically shortening her own lifespan?
“My master isn’t someone who seeks repayment. Father and Mother don’t need to think too much about it.”
Jiang Kun’s expression suddenly darkened.
“Nonsense. How can there be such a thing as receiving kindness without repaying it? If our benefactor ever needs us in the future, we will never refuse.”
Hearing this, a clever glint flashed across Jiang Qingshu’s eyes.
Perhaps one day she really would have to “summon” this mysterious master into existence.
While chewing on bread, Jiang Yifeng could not help praising it.
“This stuff tastes really good—soft, fragrant, sweet but not greasy. And that strange water you can see but can barely drink… I keep wondering what kind of place your master lives in. Everything she eats and drinks is so unique.”
Jiang Qingshu smiled awkwardly.
“Well, my master is a hidden expert living on an island, so naturally she has many unusual things.”
The “water you can see but can barely drink” Jiang Yifeng referred to was actually bottled mineral water.
Earlier, when Jiang Qingshu had thrown supplies to the refugees, she had included several large water jugs along with durable foods like bread, biscuits, and instant noodles.
Even Jiang Kun, who prided himself on being worldly and knowledgeable, had never seen such strange food before.
That day, it had caused quite a few amusing scenes.
The water containers looked neither like vats nor buckets. Everyone could see the water inside, yet no one could figure out how to open them.
Someone had even tried cutting one open with a knife before Jiang Chengyu stopped them.
After carefully studying it, he finally discovered a sealed layer on top. Using the tip of his spear, he pierced it and successfully poured the water out.
Jiang Qingshu had timed things well.
After her family had already encountered these “new objects,” it became much easier later for her to take more supplies out from the space mall without arousing suspicion.
After resting for about half the time it took a stick of incense to burn, the family set off once more.
They had to find a safe place to stay before nightfall.
The river that once flowed through the deep mountain valley had long since dried up. Along the riverbed lay several animal corpses already reduced to white skeletons.
The prolonged drought was spreading everywhere.
After another two hours of travel, they finally emerged from the valley and arrived at a vast region of rolling hills.
Seeing dusk approaching, they hurried to set up shelters before darkness fully fell.
The area was open and exposed, with no caves or natural barriers against the cold.
At this season, sleeping outdoors without shelter was impossible.
Having learned from the previous disaster, they no longer dared casually enter forests. Regardless of whether pursuers existed, the dry climate alone made spontaneous wildfires a real possibility.
After traveling a little farther, they finally found a suitable campsite.
Jiang Fengyu immediately went to gather firewood for the night, while Jiang Yifeng collected dry grass to build the shelters.
Jiang Chengyu patrolled the surrounding area to check for dangerous people or wild beasts.
Tang Shuangshuang stayed with the children, while Jiang Qingshu and Qin Sining prepared dinner.
After Jiang Luoyou and Jiang Lingfei cleared away the dry grass from the ground, it conveniently served as kindling for the fire.
Qin Sining had already stacked stones into a simple stove.
Jiang Qingshu took down a medium-sized soup pot from the cart—something she had deliberately “borrowed from her master” yesterday.
Since all their previous supplies had been abandoned during the forest fire escape, she had prepared an entirely new set.
Besides the soup pot and a wok, there were fifteen sets of bowls and chopsticks, three tents, three quilts and sleeping mats, one hundred jin of rice, ten jin each of pork belly and mutton, twenty jin of apples, dozens of pancakes, and two large barrels of water.
As for everything else, she could always repeat her old tricks and retrieve more items from her space whenever necessary.
“Little Sister, shall I cook minced meat porridge?” Qin Sining was naturally thrifty and believed in rationing supplies carefully.
“Second Sister-in-law, let me handle dinner tonight.”