A daily intelligence report; in chaotic times and famine years, grain is plentiful.

"How much is this?"

Thirty coins.

"Twenty coins."

"Take it, take it."

After paying the money, Chen Mo was about to leave the town when a voice came from behind him.

"Chen Mo?"

Chen Mo paused, then turned around abruptly.

In the shadows of the corner, a gaunt man was waving at him.

He was the village peddler, on Wednesday.

On Wednesdays, he usually travels between the village and the town on his own two feet, selling small items such as needles and thread to earn a living.

"Third Brother? What are you doing here?"

On Wednesday, I pulled him to a corner further inside the wall.

"How did you get into town? Get out of here! The Wang family is looking for you!"

"Old Wang has acquaintances in town. I just saw Manager Liu of the grain store talking to two fierce-looking men at the street corner, and he even mentioned your name."

"That Manager Liu pointed to the black market alley you just came from. Those two people don't look like kind people. You should leave quickly."

Even without Wednesday's words, Chen Mo knew things were not going well.

The pharmacy clerk betrayed him.

Manager Liu's men couldn't find him in the black market, so they must be searching for him all over town right now.

"Thanks, Third Brother."

Chen Mo patted Zhou San on the shoulder, then turned and left with exceptionally fast steps.

Instead of taking the main road he came from, he deliberately chose to walk through those secluded alleys.

We must leave the town immediately.

As soon as he turned into an alley, he heard footsteps behind him.

Two tall, burly men blocked the alleyway entrance, their faces bearing malicious smiles.

"Kid, you're pretty fast." The man on the left said, holding a short stick in his hand.

Chen Mo didn't say anything; he gripped the hilt of the dagger at his waist with his other hand.

Another man sneered, "I heard you have some silver dollars on you? Take them out and give us a few to spend, and I'll let you off this time."

"I don't have any silver dollars," Chen Mo said calmly.

The man said impatiently, "Stop talking nonsense! The pharmacy clerk has already confessed! If you know what's good for you, hand over the goods, or you'll regret it!"

Chen Mo's gaze quickly swept across his surroundings.

It's unwise to fight two opponents head-on.

He suddenly bent down, grabbed a handful of dirty snow from the ground, and threw it at the two people's faces.

"court death!"

The two instinctively closed their eyes and raised their hands to block.

Chen Mo charged forward.

He lowered his body very low, and before the man could react, the old dagger in his hand slashed fiercely across his thigh.

"ah!"

The man with the knife let out a scream as a bloody gash appeared on his leg, staining his tattered trousers crimson with blood.

Another man came to his senses and punched Chen Mo in the back of the head.

Chen Mo suddenly tilted his body to the left, avoiding the force of the punch.

At the same time, his right elbow slammed backward.

"Bang!"

The elbow struck the man squarely on the back of the neck.

The man snorted, his vision went black, and he staggered back two steps.

Chen Mo didn't even look at the results of the battle. He picked up the things on the ground, rushed out of the alley without looking back, and ran straight towards the outskirts of the town.

"Don't let him get away!"

The two injured men came to their senses, clutched their wounds, and shouted as they chased after the injured man.

Chen Mo's goal was clear: the withered forest outside the town.

The terrain there is complex, making it easy to hide and also easy to fight back.

The distance from the village to the woods wasn't far, but the footsteps behind them grew closer and closer.

One of them chased after it particularly fast.

We're almost at the edge of the woods.

Chen Mo quickly sidestepped and hid behind a large tree, immediately taking the hunting bow off his back.

Nocking the arrow and drawing the string were all done in one smooth motion.

He held his breath, listening to the footsteps approaching slowly from afar, and the sound of panting.

Nearly.

The man appeared at the edge of the woods, looking around for Chen Mo.

He saw the bow.

"Kid, you..."

He hadn't finished speaking.

The bowstring emitted a soft hum.

The arrow struck the man's left shoulder.

"Aaaaaah!"

The man clutched his shoulder and rolled around in the snow, howling in pain.

The other man was so frightened that his legs went weak, and he stopped at a distance, not daring to take another step closer.

Chen Mo turned and disappeared into the depths of the woods.

Instead of going home immediately, he took a long detour through the mountains.

It wasn't until it was completely dark that he cautiously approached the village by the moonlight.

On the way, he tallied up his spoils.

Two old cotton-padded coats, two packets of life-saving herbs, a small packet of precious coarse salt, and a piece of coarse cloth that could be used to make clothes for my sister.

They now have an extra dagger as a weapon.

The harvest was enormous.

But the cost is equally enormous.

The pharmacy clerk betrayed him, and Wang Laoqi's influence in the town also turned its attention to him. He even injured someone.

It's not advisable to visit Qinghe Town anytime soon.

Chen Mo took a long detour to get back to his own doorstep.

A faint light from an oil lamp shone through the crack in the door.

He felt a warmth in his heart and pushed open the door.

"elder brother!"

A small figure rushed over; it was Chen Ling'er.

"You're back!"

Inside the room, Chen Dashan struggled to sit up, coughing violently.

"Mo'er, did it go smoothly?"

"smoothly."

Chen Mo closed the door and took out the items from his back one by one.

He draped a cotton-padded coat over Chen Ling'er.

The cotton-padded jacket was quite large, probably covering the little girl completely, but a surprised smile appeared on her face.

"Brother, it's so warm."

She pressed her face against the rough but thick fabric, tears streaming down her face.

Chen Mo handed another cotton-padded coat and two packets of medicine to his father.

"Dad, this is medicine. Quickly boil it and drink it while it's hot."

Chen Dashan took the medicine packet, his lips moved, but in the end he only let out a sigh.

"I've spent money again."

"Money can be earned back, but if you lose your life, you lose everything." Chen Mo arranged the salt and coarse cloth. "Dad, what happened in the village today?"

Chen Dashan recounted Wang Mang's offer to exchange grain for land to others, his face full of worry.

He then continued, "In the afternoon, Old Man Sun came over and brought half a bundle of firewood to thank you for lending me grain that day. I didn't accept it and let him take it back; his family is quite poor too."

Chen Mo nodded.

He briefly recounted being followed and robbed in town, without mentioning the details of how he physically assaulted someone.

Even so, Chen Dashan's expression turned serious upon hearing this.

"Old Wang, his reach is really long," the old man said, coughing. "Mo'er, you need to be more careful in the future."

"I see."

In the dead of night, all was quiet.

Chen Mo lay on the haystack, but was wide awake.

The familiar, cold, mechanical voice rang in his mind right on time.

[Daily information has been updated, please select:]

[First, on the south slope of the back mountain, under the snow facing the sun, there are about five ounces of potato seeds that the villagers overlooked during last year's autumn harvest. Some of them have already sprouted, so be sure to take care of them.]

[Secondly, in the cracks of the abandoned well in the center of the village, wild pigeons are building a nest with three pigeon eggs inside.]

Thirdly, deep in the valley west of Black Wind Ridge, there is a small geothermal hot spring. Around the hot spring, a small amount of cold-resistant wild vegetable, *Firewood*, grows.

Chen Mo's eyes quickly scanned the three options.

Potato seeds are a good thing and can be used as seeds, but it's winter now, so we can't plant them right away.

Hot spring vegetables could improve the meals, but Black Wind Ridge is too far away and the risks are quite high.

Pigeon eggs are the best source of protein, which can help Ling'er and her father nourish their bodies.

"I choose information two."

The moment he made his decision, a scene unfolded in his mind.