must be stealing the melons! But that can't do, these are such good things, we can't feed them to mice!"Jiayin missed the other piece of winter melon even more. Logically speaking, winter melon should...Jia Ren bowed deeply once more, then carefully took the jade pendant with both hands.

"Thank you, sir. In the future, I will definitely study hard, carry forward the teachings of the master, protect my relatives and friends, be filial to my teachers, and never slack off!"

Mr. Wen nodded and personally helped him up.

Jiārén turned around and bowed to Cui's wife again, "Aunt-teacher."

"Ai." Madam Cui responded with a sob, tears streaming down her face.

Whether she was reminiscing about her late father or rejoicing that his teachings had found a successor...

Old Li patted her shoulder sympathetically and advised,

"From now on, we're a family. We should always look at things from the bright side."

Jia Yin also climbed into Cui Fu's arms, her small hand wiping away the tears from Cui Fu's eyes.

Mrs. Cui hugged Jiayin tightly, but her back straightened even more.

The villagers were delighted to see Jiaren had invited a good master and they all came forward to offer their congratulations.

"Congratulations, Mr. Wen, you have a good disciple."

"Yes, Mr. Wen, you don't know that Jiaren is the best child in our village."

"That's right, studying diligently and being filial and obedient will definitely lead to a bright future."

Mr. Wen also smiled and bowed to everyone in gratitude.

For a time, the Li family had a feast laid out. Men gathered inside the shelter, roasting meat and eating by the fire, while women ate and fed their children.

Old Li felt a twinge of pain at parting with half a bag of grain, but she knew it was worth it.

Sometimes she felt that this escape was truly magical. If they had lived peacefully in the north, their family would have been safe and sound, but Lao Si and Jia Yi wouldn't have become so bold, and their grandson wouldn't have found such a good husband...

Wealth and nobility are hard to come by, this saying is truly right...

After formally becoming his disciple, Mr. Wen's expectations of Jiaren increased considerably.

Jiā Rén almost went to the small cave to study as soon as it was getting light, and he wouldn't be back until long after dark to sleep. He ate, drank, used the toilet, and did everything else there.

Then Li Laotai discussed it with her daughter-in-law, and Tao Hongying went along with her, taking on the responsibility of preparing both breakfast and dinner for the cave dwelling every day.

Although Mrs. Cui had recovered and there was also Qiong's help, neither of them seemed like they were good at housework. They even managed to make porridge into a mess.

To avoid food waste, for her own children to eat well, and even more so out of respect for her teachers, Tao Hongying had no choice but to go.

When Jiayin was idle, she often followed.

It has to be said, the pile of books from the Guo family truly saved Mrs. Cui, entertaining her and filling all those idle hours with purpose.

Sometimes, she could spend an hour or two holding a book without saying a word.

Sometimes, Jiayin would occasionally glance through the complex characters. She found them quite troublesome and couldn't recognize them all. So, she nestled into Cui's arms, acting coquettishly to persuade her to read aloud.

Mrs. Cui was delighted that the little girl was eager to learn. So, she embraced her and half-reclined on the bed with her feet resting on warm stones, covered by a thick quilt. The two of them read together.

When she came across something interesting, Jiayin's eyes would light up. For uninteresting poems, Jiayin would treat them like lullabies and drool in her sleep...

Tao Hongying had been worried that Mrs. Cui would be annoyed, but as she watched her holding Jiayin, her face especially tender, she dispelled the thought of taking her daughter away.

As a woman herself, she could better understand the sadness in Madam Cui's heart. If her daughter's innocence could bring Madam Cui some comfort, it would be a good thing.

Thus, Jia Yin spent her days listening to stories and books in the daylight, and at night she would lie nestled in her bed and secretly practice her mental power, taking care of the chickens, ducks, geese, and pigs. Life went by quite swiftly.

One day, the village head flipped through the yellow calendar in his package and suddenly exclaimed, "Oh my! There are only three days left until the New Year!"

This sentence got everyone busy. Although they were refugees living in difficult conditions, they still needed to prepare for the new year.

The past year can be hard, sad, and confusing, but the new year is coming soon. We must pray for good weather and health, and for peace.

This time, Li Laotai decided to make a big feast of dumplings so that the whole family could eat their fill, without adding sorghum rice porridge.

Here's a good omen, and some encouragement for the whole family.

In the past, it was always the elderly woman who watched over the grain bag. This time, Jia Yin took advantage of her third aunt's first time scooping noodles and secretly added two scoops.

Zhao Yuru still thought it was given by the people on the other side of the small cave, and she didn't pay attention. After all, there were few people there, and the food was relatively plentiful.

Li Lao Tai was still saying, “Invite Mr. Wen and Mrs. Cui, as well as Dr. Zhang, to have a New Year's Eve dinner. And ask Old Zhao and the others if they can come too.”

Perhaps fearing her daughter-in-law would be reluctant, she added, "Old Zhao and the others originally ate with our family. Mr. Wen is the husband of Family Ren's member, and Dr. Zhang is a distinguished guest entrusted to us by Young Master Ye, we can't let any of them down."

Tao Hongying and Zhao Yuru naturally agreed, so on New Year's Eve, Li Jia Shandonghui was packed with people.

Li Jia prepared dumplings with two fillings: deer jerky and vegetables, and wild boar meat and mushrooms. They also simmered a large pot of rabbit meat stew, made a wild chicken soup, and cooked flatbreads made from a mixture of sorghum flour and fine wheat flour.

Everyone was well-fed, chatting and laughing merrily, working with great enthusiasm.

The rest of the caves were like this too, children playing, adults chatting.

In such a chaotic world, we can still have such peaceful days. It's like everyone is dreaming...

But as the year passed, with the accumulated snow in the mountains melting, and food reserves in each household dwindling, everyone knew that the day to embark on their journey again was approaching.

After another half month, the snow on the sunny slopes of the mountains and forests had almost melted away.

Everyone started packing their belongings. It was hard to part with them, but things like seats and benches had to be left behind.

Li Laosan led his men in making twenty large sleds, and each household loaded their belongings onto them.

On a chilly morning, everyone had eaten a hearty breakfast and gazed silently at the stream they had lived beside for four months, their eyes filled with reluctance.

Especially Jiaren, the Guo family had too many books, it was impossible to take them all away, so they could only leave most of them behind and wait for an opportunity to come back and collect them later.

Although the entrance was blocked by a large stone carried in by his uncle and younger brother, preventing any animals from entering to cause harm, he was still worried. After all, these books were too precious...

Despite the lingering reluctance and anxieties, everyone courageously embarked on their journey.

After a winter of training, the villagers became more coordinated and tougher.

The remaining dozen or so peaks were conquered in just twenty days.

Of course, along the way they met a pack of wolves and a wild bear who had woken up early to look for food.

But this time, the pack of wolves dropped them for a day and retreated.

The black bear even contributed its fur to the Underworld, going to see the King of Hell.

This gave the villagers great confidence and made them even more united and courageous.

On a certain day in March, the ninety-eight members of their family finally stood on the summit of the last mountain. Gazing at the Jinsha River winding below and the pier with large ships moored by its banks, everyone was overcome with emotion, tears welling up in their eyes as they shouted with joy.

"We're out, we're out, wow, we're alive!"

Everyone could no longer bear it, wishing they could get down the mountain and across the river immediately!

The sled, which once felt heavy, now races swiftly as it is pulled.

Before sunset, everyone arrived at the foot of the mountain.

It's a pity, hoping to reach the mountain only to find the horse has died.

Even at the foot of the mountain, there were still seven or eight miles to the wharf.

The elders discussed and decided to continue their journey. At the dock, with the protection of the imperial army, they would be safer.

With empty stomachs and lugging their belongings, everyone hurried towards the dock.

The little boys, laughing and having fun, ran ahead constantly shouting for their parents to hurry up.

Everyone beamed, walking on the official road. It was much easier than trekking through the mountains.

Just as victory was in sight, a deafening sound of horses' hooves suddenly came from behind.

The startled Liu, the head of the鏢局, instinctively turned his head back and was so shocked that his eyes almost popped out.

He shouted with all his might, "Throw the things away and run, run to the dock!"t, but perhaps if someone else saw her, they might even find her wanting.""After all, she's so fat, trying to pick her up and run would be impossible! Besides, even if we took her back, it would just...