Cao Xiangqian’s face was dark as he strode toward Xu Zhiwen, getting so close his face was practically pressed against his.
"The report that just ca in only said refugees had stord the city. Don’t forget, they are also subjects of the Holy Emperor! Our swords are ant for foreign enemies, not our own brothers and kin. What are you really after with a suggestion like that?"
Startled by the large face that suddenly lood before him, Xu Zhiwen staggered back. He wiped the spit from his cheek and retorted stubbornly, "I never said to use your blades. Just go and intimidate them. In case any troublemakers want to stir things up during the chaos, they won’t have the gall..."
Under the other man’s glare, Xu Zhiwen’s voice slowly faded. The killing intent washing over him made his legs tremble uncontrollably.
"Coward," Xiao Liwei quickly rubbed his face, trying his best not to laugh out loud.
"..."
While the imperial court was still squabbling over selfish interests, the refugees had already stord a city not far from Shangjing.
"These officials aren’t giving us a way to survive, so let’s not hold back! We want to live! We don’t want to lose our lives here for nothing."
"Everyone, charge! Once we’re inside, there will be water and food! We’ll have a chance to survive!"
Spurred on by these words, the crowd no longer bothered to avoid the city’s residents or the governnt officers chasing them everywhere. So even began to loot shops. If anyone dared to fight back, a mob of refugees would swarm them and beat them rcilessly.
In an instant, the city was filled with anguished cries. But the people, as if in a blood frenzy, continued their mad dash toward Shangjing.
Although most were ordinary folk, there was no shortage of those who dread of becoming heroes in chaotic tis. So had even ford their own bands. These groups were surprisingly united, coordinating with one another on their journey. Now, it wasn’t just water and food they were after; they seized anything of value they ca across.
Many rchants and wealthy families ordered their servants to bolt the gates shut, while at the sa ti relentlessly sending out people to call for help.
But these ssengers were no match for the speed of the refugees. Long before any help arrived, everything had already been looted.
"Fish! There’s fish over there!" Besides foraging for wild vegetables every day, the refugees who had previously moved here now turned their sights to the large lake.
Unfortunately, they had no fishing gear and could only fashion a few leaky bamboo baskets to scoop around the edge of the lake.
With any luck, their wild vegetable soup for the day might have a hint of fishy flavor.
Jin Qianqian saw the elderly and the children gathered by the lake to watch the spectacle. She turned to Gu Wenheng. "Wenheng, I seem to recall you’ve been in swimming competitions before. Feel like going for a swim?"
Gu Wenheng lifted an eyelid. "I’d rather not provide entertainnt for everyone. But if you want so fish, I can catch a couple for you later."
Jin Qianqian’s eyes darted about, looking for a bit of fun herself. "I have tons of sea and river fish in my space, but I need a pretext to take them out."
"Then I’ll go catch a couple for you?" Gu Wenheng thought Jin Qianqian was simply craving fish. Forgetting his rest, he stood up, ready to go.
Jin Qianqian quickly grabbed his arm. "I’m not finished! Even if we wanted to eat fish, catching them the way those people are, we wouldn’t even get two mouthfuls in a day."
"I do have all kinds of fishing tackle in my space, though. I was thinking of just taking out so fishing line and hooks—they’re small and don’t weigh much. If anyone asks, we’ll just say they’re from a set we bought a while back."
At last, Gu Wenheng was intrigued. "I’ve never fished before, but I know a bit about it. Take the things out and let have a look. I’ll get them ready."
"It’s a deal then, I want to fish too!" Seeing he was on board, Jin Qianqian quickly pulled out the fishing line and hooks she already had prepared.
"This will take so fiddling," Gu Wenheng said, looking at the still-unopened packaging. He swiftly peeled off the plastic, which didn’t belong here, then found a relatively flat piece of wood from the firewood pile and wound the line around and around it.
"Look, there are instructions," Jin Qianqian said, using her body to block the view so Gu Wenheng could study the diagrams on how to tie the line and hook.
Gu Wenheng studied them carefully and, following the model exactly, managed to assemble two simple fishing rigs.
Jin Qianqian excitedly grabbed her very own fishing rig, then hesitated. "Aren’t we missing a bobber?"
Gu Wenheng’s gaze fell on the reeds by the side of the lake. He walked over, pulled up a few stalks, and tied them into a bundle, creating a simple bobber.
"Seventh, what are you two up to?" Gu Yuantu asked as Gu Leshun dragged him over.
"Fifth Brother," Gu Wenheng called out. "I got a craving for fish, so I’m ssing with this little gadget to see if I can catch sothing to satisfy it."
"With just a piece of string?" Gu Yuantu had never seen anyone fish with a line before, and his eyes were full of doubt. "If you want to eat fish, wait a bit and I’ll weave you a few fish traps. Find a good spot to put them down, and you’ll catch sothing eventually."
"Just yesterday I got two small fish out of my ground trap. We gave them to our Leshun for a treat."
"Seventh Uncle, next ti my dad catches fish, I’ll share with you," Gu Leshun said. He was always managing to get milk tablets from them, so he was especially friendly with the young couple.
Jin Qianqian patted Little Leshun’s head. "Our Little Leshun is so good. When Seventh Uncle and Seventh Aunt catch a fish, we’ll definitely treat you to a big al."
Gu Leshun’s eyes sparkled. "Really, Seventh Aunt?"
"Seventh Aunt doesn’t lie. But our Little Leshun has to be good, all right? You can’t go running off to the lake by yourself, you hear?" In the last few days, a couple of children had already accidentally fallen into the lake. Luckily, with everyone living right by the shore, they were pulled out imdiately.
But one can never be too careful, so Jin Qianqian patiently repeated the necessary warnings.
Little Leshun nodded obediently. "I won’t go. If I do, I’ll fall in the water like Brother Le An. He said choking on the water was horrible."
Just yesterday, Gu Le’an had gone to the water’s edge to try and catch fish. He hadn’t caught any, but he had managed to fall in, scaring Gu Yuanhuo and his wife half to death.
Jin Qianqian stroked Little Leshun’s dry, yellowish hair. "Little Leshun is a smart boy. We don’t do dangerous things like that."
Seeing how confident the couple was, Gu Yuantu didn’t want to be a nuisance by saying more. ’I should probably go back and weave those fish traps first,’ he thought. ’If they don’t catch anything, I can show Seventh where to place them.’
They had the fishing rigs, now they needed bait. After searching several clumps of grass for grasshoppers and finding none, Gu Wenheng had to find a patch of damp earth and start digging.
Seeing him pull up one earthworm after another, Jin Qianqian shrieked and backed away. "Do we have to use worms?"
The sight of the soft, wriggling creatures made her skin crawl.
"I can’t find anything else to use as a substitute," Gu Wenheng said.
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