Martial Arts: I Have a Wilderness World-Chapter 35: Plan Disrupted, Heading to Shuikou Village
Inside the storeroom.
Cheng Zongyang looked at the cellar entrance, which was covered by a wooden board and piled with bamboo baskets and other things. He went over and moved them aside.
A specially made wooden ladder sat at the entrance, leading down about two meters.
In the past two days, the cellar had been dug out to be one meter wide and two meters deep, with a two-by-two meter space extending from the bottom toward the back of the house. His father’s speed was clearly not slow.
He took an oil lamp, descended into the cellar, and saw a support beam with planks nailed to it, holding up the ceiling to prevent a potential collapse.
He nodded slightly as he saw the bags of grain on the floor, separated from the ground by a layer of plant ash and wooden boards to keep them from getting damp.
’It’s good enough for hiding a person or some things for a short while, but it still doesn’t meet my requirements. At the very least, there needs to be a tunnel leading to the woods behind the house.’
But digging that tunnel would have to be put on hold for now.
’My timeline needs to be completely re-planned.’
The sudden attack on the village by the refugees had shattered his original plans. He had to prioritize his family’s safety first.
He came out of the cellar and put the board back in place.
In the courtyard, Mrs. Zhou of the Cheng Family was processing the marten, rabbit, and wild pheasant meat he had brought back. The only way to preserve it was to salt it and then make it into jerky.
The wild bird eggs he had brought back were stored separately.
Of course, Cheng Zongyang also took out the three catties of grapes.
As the sky grew dark, Cheng Guanghai finally returned, his face etched with exhaustion.
Mrs. Zhou of the Cheng Family’s heart ached for her husband, and she quickly drew water for him to wash up.
His little girl was also very sweet, walking out with half a cup of water.
"Daddy, have some water."
Hearing his daughter’s words, Cheng Guanghai’s dark face broke into a smile, revealing his relatively white teeth. The fatigue on his face vanished in that instant, and he laughed happily.
"Alright! Coming right now."
He then roughly scrubbed his face up and down with a washcloth, handed it to the children’s mother, and strode quickly toward his little daughter.
Mrs. Zhou of the Cheng Family shot the children’s father a look.
’Such a rough man.’
She sighed, washed the cloth, and hung it up to dry before calling her young son and daughter over to wash their hands.
After washing her own hands, she poured the well-used basin of water into a large designated barrel, saving it to wash clothes later. After the clothes were washed, the water would be used for washing their feet.
As for the family’s vegetable patch, the last of the withered yellowing greens had been picked yesterday. There were no vegetables left.
After closing the door, as dinner was served, Cheng Zongyang made sure the two little ones were eating. He wasn’t in a hurry to ask about the situation; they could talk after dinner. Otherwise, the conversation would ruin everyone’s appetite.
After dinner, the family sat in the main hall. Cheng Zongyang placed the washed grapes on the table and began to ask about the situation.
Cheng Guanghai looked at his son, his expression grave.
"Don’t go into the mountains for the next few days. I’m worried there might be refugees or people from other villages there. Those people are like madmen. If we hadn’t struck down a few of them, they wouldn’t have known fear."
At his side, Mrs. Zhou of the Cheng Family nodded in agreement. "That’s what I told him, too."
Cheng Zongyang asked, "Father, which villages were they from?"
Cheng Guanghai said, "The village chief said it seemed to be Hechi Village, Dongtou Village, and... people from Shuikou."
Hearing the last name, Mrs. Zhou of the Cheng Family jumped, her face pale with shock.
"How can that be! You went over to Shuikou just two days ago. Didn’t you say things were fine when you came back?"
Mrs. Zhou of the Cheng Family’s reaction startled the two little ones who were eating grapes.
The little girl was stunned, her cheeks puffed out with grapes, frozen in place.
"It’s okay, eat slowly," Cheng Zongyang immediately said, gently stroking the little girl’s head.
"Calm down. You’re scaring the children," Cheng Guanghai said with a frown.
Mrs. Zhou of the Cheng Family’s eyes reddened, and she sat down without another word.
After comforting his little sister, Cheng Zongyang said to his younger brother, "Take the grapes and bring your sister out to the courtyard to eat."
"Oh!" Cheng Zongliang, seeing the adults had serious matters to discuss, knew he couldn’t take part. He could only look after his little sister.
Only after the two little ones had gone outside did Cheng Zongyang speak.
"Mother, don’t worry. The situation in Shuikou must have changed in the last two days. It’s probably just a small number of people who couldn’t hold out any longer."
Cheng Guanghai also nodded.
That was his father-in-law’s village, so he naturally understood his wife’s agitation.
"How can I not worry? No, I have to go check on them later," Mrs. Zhou of the Cheng Family said anxiously.
Cheng Guanghai shook his head. "No! It’s already dark. It’s not far to Shuikou, but the roads are too dangerous right now. I’ll go check tomorrow."
Cheng Zongyang didn’t speak, lost in thought.
Shuikou was a bit closer to the County Town than Golden Bridge Village.
’If my guess is right, I’m afraid all the villages near the County Town have fallen into chaos, haven’t they?’
But he didn’t voice this guess. Saying it would only make his mother worry more.
He thought for a moment, then said, "Father, Mother. The village will probably still need people during this time. Let me go to Grandfather’s place. I’m fast, and if I bring the Firewood Knife, no one can touch me unless they’re a Martial Artist."
"This..."
"It’s settled." Cheng Zongyang didn’t give his father a chance to object, making the decision final.
"Alright then." Cheng Guanghai wasn’t one to dither. His son had long been capable of handling things on his own, so he felt at ease.
"I’ll go tonight. Most people will probably be asleep at this hour, so traveling will be safer than during the day."
"Mother, pack some rice, flour, and brown sugar for me. I’ll take it over, just in case."
"Okay." Mrs. Zhou of the Cheng Family hurried off to prepare.
Cheng Guanghai thought for a moment, then went to the storeroom to get a torch.
"Take this. If you need it, light it with the flint and steel."
He didn’t light it right away. A torch would be too conspicuous in the dark of night. It wasn’t too late to light it when needed.
Cheng Zongyang didn’t refuse, and also grabbed the Firewood Knife from the corner of the courtyard.
A moment later, Mrs. Zhou of the Cheng Family came out carrying twenty catties each of rice and flour, and two catties of brown sugar. It all just barely fit in the back basket.
She knew her son’s strength, so she wasn’t worried about the weight.
But she still worriedly advised, "If you run into danger, don’t try to be a hero. Just drop the grain, and they won’t chase you."
Cheng Zongyang smiled. "Don’t worry, there won’t be anyone. Also, if I don’t come back tonight, it means I’m staying at my uncle’s house. Oh, right, I might go into the County Town tomorrow. Mother, give me the Travel Permit."
Mrs. Zhou of the Cheng Family was taken aback. "What do you need that for? No one usually checks."
Cheng Zongyang shook his head slightly. "These are not normal times. What if they do check?"
Mrs. Zhou of the Cheng Family didn’t say any more and went into the inner room to retrieve an old bamboo plaque.
Cheng Zongyang tucked the plaque inside his clothes, shouldered the back basket, and left home with the torch and Firewood Knife.
After leaving home, Cheng Zongyang’s expression grew more solemn.
There’s an old saying: you can be a thief for a thousand days, but you can’t guard against one for a thousand days.
The refugees had attacked the village today. To the villagers, killing some of them might have intimidated a portion of the refugees, leading them to believe they wouldn’t dare to come back.
But in his eyes, this might have just been a probe.
A few useless refugees died in exchange for information about Golden Bridge Village’s defenses and supplies. The next time they came, there might be even more of them.
Simply put, the first time is for reconnaissance, the second is for real.
This... was perhaps only the beginning!
Moreover, the reason he’d said he might not return tonight was that he planned to go into the County Town tomorrow. He wanted to check on the situation, buy more grain, and get the medicinal cuisine recipe from his second uncle.
Beyond that, he also needed a backup plan.
If the village were attacked by a large number of refugees and became uninhabitable, his family couldn’t possibly stay. At that point, they might have to move into the County Town.
Therefore, he had to make arrangements for a house. Even if they didn’t end up using it, it was better to have it and not need it than to need it and not have it.
With these worries on his mind, Cheng Zongyang walked without stopping toward a country path at the north end of the village.
The country path wasn’t as easy to travel as a main road; it was just a small track connecting to other villages. The path wasn’t wide, and its surface was rough and uneven.
Just like that, Cheng Zongyang’s figure quickly disappeared into the darkness of the night.
At the same time, in the courtyard of Jin Fumin’s home in the Central Region of the village, twenty-six people had gathered, completely filling the small space.
Jin Fumin stood at the entrance of his main hall, looking at the people present.
If someone familiar with the households of Golden Bridge Village were present, they would have noticed that everyone there had the surname Jin.
