Shen Yu went outside and gave some of the water from the water bag to the big blue donkey, along with a piece of candy, before returning to the tent to sleep.
Shen Yong’an was assigned to keep watch during the late night, while Lin Shuyuan brought little Shen Hao over to sleep with them. That night, Shen Yu slept very soundly.
The breeze from two small gauze windows flowed gently through the tent—not too cold, not too hot—more comfortable than at home.
The other villagers, however, were suffering. Families with children could make do with a makeshift tent from a bedsheet, but adults had no such luxury. They slept on the damp ground, bitten by mosquitoes all night.
Early the next morning, even before breakfast, many villagers sought out Shen Yu, asking her to teach them how to make proper tents—they had been extremely uncomfortable the night before.
Shen Yu didn’t fuss. She first explained how to cut oilcloth to the right shapes and sizes, then told them to gather thin bamboo poles nearby. She promised to teach them how to sew the tents properly at noon.
After sending the villagers off, Shen Yu did a quick wash-up.
By then, Lin Shuyuan had prepared breakfast—corn porridge with wild vegetables, and a little chopped meat secretly added from the braised pork. Each person received a flatbread to dip in the porridge, and everyone ate heartily.
Since separating from the stepmother’s family, Shen Yong’an’s family had finally experienced full, satisfying meals. They realized there was so much good food they had never tasted before.
Meanwhile, the Shen-Liu family was still eating plain sorghum porridge, lightly salted, and that was it.
Shen Cui drank a bowl of tasteless sorghum porridge and wanted a second. Shen-Liu snatched her spoon away. “You ungrateful thing, one bowl is already enough for you.”
Shen Cui could only place the bowl down angrily, watching Shen Yu’s family eat well and sleep comfortably. Her jealousy burned inside her. “That damned little brat! Why do you get to sleep in tents and eat so well? You used to serve us, but one day you’ll be kneeling before me!”
She rolled her eyes and whispered to Shen Xu, “Our uncle’s meals are way better than ours. From now on, when he eats, you go there. All the good food used to be ours, right? Aunt won’t chase you away.”
Shen Xu, who never liked sorghum porridge anyway, was eager to go. “Exactly! They used to eat what we left over. They don’t deserve good food. I’ll take lunch there and make them give me all the good stuff.”
Shen Cui cheered him on. “Brother’s right, you’re the best. Everything they have was originally ours!”
Shen Xu snorted disdainfully. He thought his uncle’s household should stay just like before, obeying orders, acting as their servants.
Nearby, Shen Yongcai agreed. He also felt resentful—if his older brother hadn’t separated from the stepmother’s family, he wouldn’t have to toil in the fields these days. Life at the academy had been so comfortable, but now his hands were blistered.
If his older brother hadn’t split the family, he would be the one eating well and sleeping comfortably. Damn it—why couldn’t he just stay a good little servant?
The Shen-Liu family’s members were all scheming, glaring maliciously at Shen Yu’s family.
Meanwhile, Shen Yu cleaned the kitchenware, and Shen Yong’an folded the tents and loaded them onto the cart. Once everyone was ready, the old village chief gave the signal, and the group resumed their journey.
The morning was slightly overcast, so the heat wasn’t severe. They took advantage of the weather to cover more ground than the previous day.
On the road, they encountered other villagers fleeing from nearby settlements. Some traveled alone or in small family groups, others in groups of dozens. None were in good shape.
The old village chief sent a few clever villagers to inquire and learned that the barbarians had indeed invaded, burning and pillaging several villages. These survivors had barely escaped, leaving their fields full of unharvested grain.
They had only managed to bring a small portion of food from their homes, which wouldn’t last more than a few days.
The village chief shuddered at the thought. If not for Shen Yu’s early warning, they would never have harvested their grain in time or brought their belongings. She had given Shenjia Village a chance at survival—a tremendous favor.
He wiped his eyes and reminded everyone to guard their grain and stick with the group. He also organized all the strong men and women in the village, giving them hoes and sickles to walk on the outskirts of the group.
Fortunately, it was still early in their escape, and no one had reached the point of hunger. The morning passed quietly as they traveled almost ten li, until near noon. The village chief stopped by a small river to let everyone rest and refill their water supplies.
Lin Shuyuan quickly prepared food, while Shen Yu was surrounded by villagers learning how to make tents. She generously shared leftover mosquito net material, letting anyone who wanted small windows in their tents use it.
By midday, the materials for the tents were mostly ready, and sewing was fast. The villagers completed their tents just in time for lunch.
Lin Shuyuan cooked a noodle dumpling soup using white flour dumplings with green wild vegetables, bits of meat, and a sprinkle of fresh green scallions—so tempting it made mouths water.
Just as she was about to serve the soup, Shen Xu dashed over. “No! You’re not eating! You’re using our stuff. Bring this pot over to me, or nobody eats!”
He raised his hands, clenching mud and sand, threatening to dump it into the soup if it wasn’t moved.
Before Lin Shuyuan could react, Shen Yu stood up and kicked Shen Xu two meters away.
Shen Xu was the most pampered at home and had barely worked in the fields these past days. The kick curled him up on the ground, pale and speechless.
The Shen-Liu family had been waiting for Shen Xu to bring the soup to them. Seeing him thrown down, they were furious. Mrs. Shen-Liu lunged at Shen Yu to attack her, while Xie Jinhua joined in, reaching for Shen Yu’s face.
Shen Yu kicked both away and then picked up Shen Xu, throwing him at Shen Cui’s feet.
Everything happened so fast that Shen Yong’an and Lin Shuyuan hadn’t even reacted before it was over.
Shen Cui, terrified, retreated and ignored Shen Xu, hiding behind the crowd.
Mrs. Shen-Liu and Xie Jinhua got up from the ground, suddenly realizing Shen Yu’s terrifying strength.
They no longer dared approach and instead ran to the village chief to complain.
The old village chief, hearing the commotion, rushed over. Seeing that it was the Shen-Liu family causing trouble again, his face darkened.
“Village chief, please do something! That little brat Shen Yu is trying to kill our grandson! She’s lawless… if you don’t stop her, she’ll kill someone!” Mrs. Shen-Liu cried, snot and tears streaming down her face.