I survived the famine by scavenging and supported my family.

Zhao Qi remained calm and waited until the first wild boar charged forward before slowly running towards the trap, glancing back at it as he did so.

Wang Xiufeng and Ning's father, who were standing by the cave, were both worried for him.

Only one or two have come up so far. Zhao Qi is able to handle them by moving serpentinely according to plan!

When all seven wild boars charged at him, Zhao Qi began to run and jump around the cave, taking advantage of the elevated terrain.

Just as the seven wild boars were about to gather together and charge at him, Zhao Qi took off running towards the trap.

When he reached the trap, he suddenly swerved to the side. The wild boar chasing him couldn't stop in time and fell into the pit like dumplings.

Only the wild boar running at the very back stopped. Seeing the others fall down, it realized something was wrong and grunted as it backed away.

Wang Xiufeng wasn't about to let it escape. He ignored the wild boars in the pit, called to the others, and ran towards the last wild boar with ropes and hoes.

A dozen or so people surrounded a wild boar. Each person could kill it with a hoe. The group subdued the wild boar effortlessly.

After the wild boar, pierced through by the splinters, had stopped breathing, the group went down one after another, carefully avoiding the splinters, and tied the boar tightly before pulling it up.

Outside the cave, the villagers knew that everything was going well inside, and their faces were filled with joy. The unease from the fight in the early morning was washed away by the joy brought by the wild boar.

In any case, since the wild boar was discovered by the whole village, the village head would share some meat with everyone!

This is the first time I've ever seen such a big wild animal since I fled famine!

After the wild boar was pulled up, Wang Xiufeng led his men deep into the cave and carefully inspected it. They found that apart from the pig dung in the pit being somewhat dirty, there were no other traces of wild animals in the cave.

Upon hearing that they could get in, the villagers rushed over to reserve spots.

Ning's father pulled Zhao Qi to a spot he had chosen earlier—near the edge of the cave, with a raised area blocking the way so that others couldn't easily approach the flat ground.

It looks perfect from any perspective.

Tell Zhao Qi to stand still, and then Ning's father goes out to drive the family's mule cart over.

The cave floor was not very stable, so the villagers used farm tools to work together to level the uneven clods of earth, and filled the depressions with the excess soil and then tamped it down.

That way their car can get through.

Those pushing wheelbarrows went first, as their carts were light and wouldn't damage the newly prepared ground.

Those pushing carts and those pulling carts with livestock walked at the back, leaving two long, deep dents in the ground after they passed.

These are tire tracks.

Nobody cared about any of that; they heard the people ahead praising how cool and refreshing it was inside the cave, and they couldn't wait to go in and try it out.

After the car came to a stop, Zhao Ningning got out and took a look around. Although it was hot and humid here, it didn't feel like the scorching sun that made you feel like you were going to crack outside.

Even the livestock seemed a bit more energetic.

The messy pig manure at the bottom of the pit had just been cleaned out. The village headman wouldn't allow livestock to be placed at the very back, otherwise the cave would be filled with a stench.

Ning's father could only tie his beloved mule and horse to the entrance of the cave.

Although this is the entrance to the cave, a cool breeze is blowing inside, making it cooler than outside.

After calming the livestock and feeding them half a bucket of water, Ning's father returned to his own carriage.

With protruding rocks blocking the way and the car door facing inwards, Zhao Ningning crawled into the space and took out all the ice blocks, placing them in the carriage.

The temperature inside their car immediately dropped by at least five degrees.

Zhao Ningning stepped out of the space to feel the heat; it was still a bit warm, but compared to outside, the temperature inside the carriage was only around thirty degrees Celsius.

This temperature is the most comfortable it's been in days. Ning's mother leaned against the small table, fanning herself closely next to the ice basin.

Outside, there's still a noisy commotion about fighting for territory.

After the villagers found places to stay and settled down, the village head announced: "Distribute the pork!"

The men who participated in catching wild boars today will receive an extra four jin (2 catties), while the rest of the villagers will share the rest equally!

Seven wild boars! That's enough for a family to get seven or eight pounds of meat! We usually can't bear to cut this much meat even during the Lunar New Year, so we're really in for a treat today!

The young children, who hadn't had anything decent to eat for days, snuggled in their parents' arms and drooled as soon as they heard there was meat to eat.

Some people, upon hearing that there would be meat to eat, immediately started clamoring to eat meat.

The village headman ordered one person from each household to come out and collect the meat!

Ning's father didn't mind being tired at all. After settling into the carriage, he went to watch people slaughter pigs and even dragged Zhao Qi along, saying it was to cultivate their father-son relationship.

There weren't many forms of entertainment available here, so Ning's mother let them go their own way.

Earlier, at the bottom of the pit, the wild boar was stabbed until it was lifeless and had bled out almost all of its blood.

A man in the village who had slaughtered pigs before stood on a makeshift chopping board. A group of people lifted the pig onto it, and he used a freshly sharpened cleaver to slowly cut open the pig's belly. A bunch of large and small intestines, along with the internal organs, tumbled out.

Recalling the scenes of heads rolling and intestines spilling out that they had witnessed in the early hours of the morning, several men turned pale and hid in the back to dry heave.

The remaining few people also showed less enthusiasm.

Ning's father: Haha, what naive villagers. They probably haven't had an appetite for pork for a while.

Fewer men were watching the pig slaughter; when the fight broke out, they were carrying stones from behind and didn't see the horrific scene in front of them. They gathered around and watched with great enthusiasm.

After the seven wild boars were butchered, the village head divided them according to the number of households and people. The wild boars were not very fat, and each person could get about one jin (500 grams). Ning's father and Zhao Qi participated in catching the wild boars, so the village head gave them each an extra four jin, making it sixteen jin in total!

Wild boar meat is tough, and Zhao Ningning's family doesn't really like it. They don't even have enough pork, beef, lamb, chicken, duck, and fish in their space to eat!

No matter what, Zhao Ningning's family couldn't finish eating it all, so Ningning's father strung up four jin (2 catties) with a rope and asked Zhao Ningning and Zhao Qi to take it to the Zhou family.

Zhao Ningning: Here we go again!

Zhao Qi: That's how I get faster and faster as I run!

The two children had no choice but to take on the responsibility and deliver the meat to Mrs. He.

Mrs. He was holding two catties of meat and wondering how to eat it. Boiling it would be a luxury, and making it into jerky would not be enough.

Zhao Ningning and Zhao Qi threw four catties of meat into their house and ran away, leaving Madam He with no choice but to accept it.

Now we have enough to make meat jerky.

Once the jerky is ready, I'll find a chance to send them some. Thinking this, Mrs. He cut off a small piece to make a meat soup later, and then processed the rest, cut it into strips, marinated it, and roasted it into jerky.

While they could rest in the cave, every household prepared a "pig-slaughtering feast".

Since she could eat meat openly, Ning's mother naturally wouldn't let it pass. Taking advantage of the aroma of meat wafting from every house, she brought out the braised pork that Ning's father had made at home before, as well as dishes that she usually didn't dare to eat, such as spicy chicken, rice cake with pork ribs, and stewed chicken with potatoes.

Eating only meat wasn't enough, so Ning's mother brought out a bowl of cold dishes.

Finally, each person gets a flatbread and a bowl of hot and sour soup. Time to eat!

No matter how fragrant the meat smells outside, it can't compare to the aroma of the dishes inside the train carriage.

After finishing their meal, Ning's mother brought out a watermelon from her spatial storage, and everyone had another slice. They were absolutely delighted.

Zhao Ningning took out some chilled boiled water from her spatial storage. The group drank it, then wiped the dust and sweat off their bodies with water before comfortably lying down in the car.

The ice cubes slowly released their coolness, and before they knew it, Ning's mother and father had fallen asleep.

Two days passed peacefully in the cave.

Because there was meat to eat, and because it was hot and easily spoiled, every household was busy eating meat and making it into jerky.

The injured villagers were bandaged up by the village's barefoot doctor and safely passed the most dangerous first two days.

The cave was cooler than outside, and their wounds healed very well.

The only thing that worried everyone was that the water source seemed to have really dried up.

These past two days, we've been arranging for people to take turns guarding the spring, but there's been no sign of water coming out at all.

The village head thought that if they waited two more days, when the villagers had rested enough and there was still some water left, they could continue their journey.

I hope to get to Huangshi County as soon as possible so that I can find a place to stay... But there are already nine suns in the sky, how can I find a place to stay in this world?

If the spring never stops flowing, how wonderful it would be to rest here for a longer period of time.

The village head was filled with a thousand thoughts.

On the third day, there was still no water at the water source.

The men outside kept complaining; after spending time in the cave, who would want to suffer outside like this?!

The village headman shortened their duty hours, assigning them to check the area one hour after sunrise and one hour before sunset.

A dry leaf was placed on top of the spring, and a bucket lid was used to cover it to prevent the wind from blowing through.

If there were water, the leaves would definitely be pushed up and moved.

Unfortunately, the leaves on the leaves above the spring showed no sign of shifting.

The village headman made preparations, and on the afternoon of the fourth day, he told the villagers that they were going to Huangshi County.

Before he could give any notification, on the afternoon of the third day, around 3 PM, when it was very hot, the villagers huddled in the caves, fanning themselves with fans.

The old man sitting at the cave entrance was fanning himself when a wisp of black fluff suddenly drifted into his hand.

It landed on his arm.

The old man raised his hand and rubbed it together. The black fluff looked similar to the ashes from burning rice straw at home, probably drifting over from someone's fire.

These past few days, everyone in the village has been trying to make dried meat; some are roasting it over a fire, while others are drying it in the sun.

The old man didn't seem to care and continued fanning himself.

More and more black fluff suddenly started drifting in from outside.

Finally, the old man couldn't hold back any longer and got up.

"Boss, look outside. Aren't these dark things drifting in from outside?"

The person who was woken up looked up at the sky in a daze and exclaimed, "Oh no!"

He hurriedly got up and ran into the cave.

Hearing that something was floating in the air outside, Wang Xiufeng, without his father telling him, immediately led his horse out to investigate.

The cave was located at a slightly lower elevation, so he led his horse out to the mountain. What he saw there gave him a huge fright.

The mountain next door is on fire!

From afar, the opposite mountain was ablaze with red, the blazing red light constantly devouring the withered plants... The black fluff drifting down from the sky was the ash from the charred grass on the ground!

In the blink of an eye, the flames spread rapidly, and it looked like they were about to reach the mountain on this side.

Wang Xiufeng rushed back to inform the villagers of this terrible news.

"Run! Run!" the village head shouted, slapping his thigh. "The wildfire is spreading very fast!"

Upon hearing the news of the fire on the mountain outside, the villagers were all in a panic.

Each family hastily loaded their belongings onto the carts, some pulling the carts, others leading the livestock.

The child, confused and seeing the adults in a panic, sat on the ground and burst into tears.

Zhao Ningning's home.

Upon hearing the news, Ning's father reacted swiftly, immediately running to fetch his livestock. On the way, he saw Zhou Jian and grabbed him to go with him.

When the two men led their livestock to the cart, the procession was in complete chaos, with people running in all directions, almost ready to fight.

The village headman stood at the entrance of the cave and directed the procession, which gradually straightened out the group. Those who wanted to leave moved to the side, while those who hadn't finished tidying up stayed where they were.

Seeing that the mule could move around, Ning's father made a quick decision and led it to the left.

I squeezed through the crowd and followed the flow of people along the left side.

The horse was somewhat startled and stood still, breathing heavily, refusing to move forward.

Ning's father stuffed the mule's reins into Ning's mother's hand, jumped off the cart, mounted the horse, and held the reins firmly.

The restless horse was reined in, and it twisted its neck a few times in pain. Only after realizing that it was in more pain did it gradually calm down.

Ning's father rode his horse to catch up with his family's carriage.

They rushed out of the cave in a panic, and the people in front of them hurriedly ran out without even looking in the direction they were going, anxiously shouting:

"Run north! Remember to run north after you get down the mountain!"

"If we get separated, let's meet in Huangshi County!"

I don't know if the villagers who ran away heard it, but the village head did all he could, and the rest is up to fate!

Ning's mother drove the car out of the cave and quickly determined the wind direction. She ran downwind first, and once she was out of the mountain, she would run towards a place where the fire couldn't reach.

Inside the carriage, Zhao Ningning stuffed everything she could into the space elevator hall, leaving only the blanket under her.

In this desperate escape, the wheels of the car were practically flying, and Zhao Qi's face turned pale and then blue from being jostled left and right and up and down.

When Zhao Ningning saw this, she took a moment to go back and get a trash bag, then handed it to him.

Zhao Qi: ...

—My sister is so thoughtful!

The next second, the garbage bag came in handy.

Zhao Ningning couldn't bear to watch this, so she quickly climbed out and sat with her mother in the front of the car.

"Why did you come out? It's dangerous here, go home."

Ning's mother held onto Ning's wrist tightly, afraid to let go. The child was light, and she was afraid that if she let go, Zhao Ning would be thrown off the cart.

"My brother isn't feeling well; he's vomiting," Zhao Ningning said helplessly.

"Go back and have him come to the front of the car. In his current state, he just needs a little distraction."

Zhao Ningning obediently went back to the carriage and called her brother, who had just vomited, out.

Sitting at the front of the car, Zhao Qi now held a rein in his hand.

Ning's mother walked to the side and said, "They say that people who get carsick won't get carsick when they drive. You should try it."

Zhao Qi opened his eyes wide and stared nervously at the "road" ahead.

One moment you have to pass between two extremely narrow trees, and the next you have to step over a tree root.

One moment it's a dirt slope, the next it's a kiln. Zhao Qi was so frightened that he forgot he was carsick. His brain was working at high speed, afraid that he wouldn't be able to drive the mule cart well and would lead his family into the ditch.

There were people running ahead, so Zhao Qi just followed without thinking. Ning's mother kept an eye on the road and her son while glancing back at the car.

Ning's father rode closely behind on horseback.

Behind him followed a long line of Wangli Village residents.

Everyone was running around like headless flies, and subconsciously followed the person in front. Ning's mother didn't know who was leading the way, but seeing that the wind direction and the road seemed alright, she let Zhao Qi follow.

Running all the way down the mountain wasn't enough; the group followed the route they'd taken two days earlier and ended up on the main road. The horse-drawn carriages ahead gradually slowed down, and Zhao Ningning's mule cart also came to a stop.

Looking back, all I could see was dust obscuring the sky.