the fog for five minutes, Carter was the first to burst out. They were greeted by a horde of creatures feasting on humans. At that moment, they were inserting their beaks into human chests, sucking th..."Father, I want to go back home and tell my family about this, would you mind"

Zhuang Sisi pursed her lips and said in a low voice.

"Alright, you go back and remind your in-laws. You also tell the second daughter-in-law that if we can get the permit sorted out, we'll leave. The two of you shouldn't just relax at home these days. Start preparing some dried food."

Old Liu finally made the decision.

"Yes, Father!"

When the three brothers returned to their own house, they didn't rush to rest. They all spoke in low voices with their wives, especially the eldest and second brother, who instructed their wives on what to say and what not to say when returning to their parents' homes.

When Lian Yi heard this, she coaxed Shan Gen to sleep. The next day when the two of them woke up, their parents were already off the kang.

Liàn'yī directed Shān gēn to put on his own clothes. Then, he took his younger brother to wash up. Afterward, they met with r yā, Sān shān, and Dà fēng. The whole group of children, all with their heads shaved in the style of "lòu bō tóu," carried their small knapsacks on their backs, ready to go up the mountain with the villagers to pick wild vegetables.

Old Liu didn't stop him. Children from farming families were raised to be independent, doing simple farm work at this age. They grow up tough through hardship.

Liudahu set out early that morning with silver tucked away to attend to business in Fenghe Town. Fengxu was a shrewd one, and privately gave her husband five taels of silver, instructing him that if the other party tried to inflate prices, as long as they had enough silver, not to be petty. Just get the permit first and then worry about the rest.

Liu Dahua also understood that some things were constantly changing. When he inquired before, it cost ten taels, but now it was estimated to be higher, so he didn't hesitate. He took the silver, ate a pastry, and left.

The remaining members of the household were not idle either, they all began to bustle about. Since there were no oxen at home, they could only prepare two more carts. With a fortune worth ten thousand guan in their possession, they also began to gather up everything from the house.

He was so busy that the day flew by. When the sun began to set, Liu Dahua finally returned home. The first thing he did was drink water. Water in town cost money, and he couldn't bear to spend it.

After quenching his thirst, he produced a pass from his bosom in the expectant gaze of all and presented it to Old Liu, who was seated at the head.

"Father, the official handling this matter raised the price. I paid an extra five ounces of silver. Luckily, Xu'er gave me some emergency funds. If I hadn't had enough money, I wouldn't have been able to get this permit today. Tomorrow it will cost twenty ounces."

Liu Dalihu was also helpless, these officials didn't give people a way to live, they actually made money this way. They would definitely face retribution in the future.

Liu Lao Han nodded and said:

"Lao San, you did a good job with this. I'll make up the money for you later. This is everyone's business, we can't use your daughter-in-law's dowry money."

"Thank you, Dad!"

“Alright, now that we have the pass, we can leave. Let's pack up quickly these two days. I’ve been so unsettled lately, I'm just afraid something will happen.”

Yes, Father!

The three sons immediately replied.

Then the entire Liu family shut themselves indoors and quietly prepared for three days. At dawn on the fourth day, they loaded all their belongings onto three carts and left Liujia Village.

Several little turnips, heads still drowsy from sleep, were placed in the carriage. They didn't wake up until they were already on the official road.

And the Liu family was lucky, following behind the wealthy families of Fenghe Town. They looked like servants of a wealthy family as they left Fenghe Town and headed for Youzhou.

This wealthy man also went to Youzhou, which was a coincidence. Lianyi then knew that her good fortune had already reached the Liu family.

Along the way, as the eldest child in the family, she was mainly responsible for looking after her younger siblings and preventing them from running around so they wouldn't be targeted.

The children of the Liu family were all nurtured by the ripples of the spirit spring. Although they wore patched coarse linen clothes, they were all good-looking and obedient, saving the Liu family a lot of trouble.

Even with all this, the journey was not without its perils. When they left heavily-stricken Xuzhou, a convoy of wealthy families was also robbed. Fortunately, their hired bodyguard was skilled, and the servants fought valiantly, so they managed to escape unharmed.

The Liu family had three strong men who, wielding hoes and sickles, surrounded their wife and children in the middle, vowing to defend their home to the death.

The ripples, along with the radish heads, wielded homemade slingshots and used pebbles for sneak attacks, providing backup for their fathers. In the end, Old Man Liu sustained minor injuries, but they successfully drove the bandits away.

Three sons worked together to carry their elderly father onto the cart. Lian Yi led her younger siblings aside and also reached out to hand Wind-Dancer the small medicine pouch prepared on the cart.

Feng Xu'er calmly used a burning knife to clean the wound, applied crushed hemostatic grass, and then wrapped it with a cleaned cloth strip. She also gave Liu Lao Han a bowl of red sugar water before looking at the three brothers and saying:

"Father's injuries aren't serious, just a bit of bleeding. These two days, don't let Father walk around. I'll cook some delicious food to make him recover."

"Alright, I'm an old man now, what's the point of making up for it As long as I'm alive, that's enough. It's inconvenient to go out and about, so don't bother me. Just change my dressing on time."

Elder Liu waved his hand.

The three sons, of course, were unwilling. But they didn't argue with their old father either. They exchanged glances and perfunctorily agreed, then did whatever they pleased.

The wealthy merchants in front had also reorganized their ranks, fearing that these bandits might have a backup plan. They hastily set off again, and the Liu family naturally followed closely behind. In this way, they walked for ten days straight before finally leaving the territory of Xu州.

After leaving Xuzhou, they gradually saw green trees and plants along the road. With grass came wild vegetables, and the Liu family all breathed a sigh of relief. When they stopped to rest, they would pick some wild vegetables to eat fresh, and their food consumption slowed down a bit.

Old Liu was forcefully laid on a stretcher by his three sons for rest. After ten days, his wounds scabbed over and his complexion improved considerably. He strongly demanded to get off the stretcher and walk, taking turns with his grandchildren riding in the car.

This time, the three sons didn't refuse. Mainly, because Ripple secretly gave Old Willow a drop of diluted spring water to drink. He mixed it in with his water so he could last until the end.

After thoroughly entering Youzhou City, the Liu family finally let out a big sigh of relief. What remained was the matter of settling down, which required Fengxu'er to take action. After all, she had lived here for ten years and even served as a maidservant in a wealthy household, so she had some connections.

The Liu family first moved into a budget inn. Watching Feng Xuer change her clothes and go out with Liu Dahu, the entire family anxiously awaited news.

Then ripples touched the red string on her wrist, her eyes flickered, feeling that she should not spend much time with the Liu family.

It wasn't until the middle of the afternoon that Feng Xuer and Liu Dahui returned, but neither of them looked particularly happy. It was clear that things hadn't gone as planned.

Uncle Liu looked at the expressions of the young couple and opened his mouth to speak:

"Lao San, Lao San's wife, how is the matter going Whether it succeeds or not, you both tell us, so we can come up with a plan together."

This time, Feng Xu'er spoke up to explain:

"Father, we can settle down here, but the other party demands too much silver. They say it's calculated per person, five taels of silver per person, and our family would need sixty taels altogether. They also want an additional five taels as a facilitation fee. If you want to choose a good location to settle in, you'll have to pay more."

"They...they are outright robbery!"

Liu Dachuan said angrily.about in the carriage, so she asked the coachman to slow down.Because it was a period of mourning, not a trip to the estate for enjoyment, there were not many people accompanying Liàn Yī. There was o...