A tray of 20 large steamed buns, and Old Gu Six ate 12 of them, along with a large cup of milk.
Chang'an was also very worried, how could she afford to feed someone with such a big appetite!
After finishing breakfast, there were still two quarters of an hour before the morning shift.
"Daughter, sit tight, we're setting off."
They first went to the village entrance to gather, and once everyone was assembled, they could begin the journey.
Chang'an sat in the donkey cart in a Ge You-style slouch, as the cart swayed and rocked its way to the village entrance.
They didn't look back at their former home, as Chang'an hadn't lived there for long, so she didn't feel any sense of attachment.
As for Old Gu Six, he was indifferent, for he had already decided to abandon everything.
Why linger over what was meant to be left behind?
He and his daughter were headed towards a better future, where they would have a better place to live.
Yesterday afternoon, he had collected the remains of his late wife and father-in-law.
How could he leave his father-in-law and wife behind when fleeing famine?
They had to be brought along, for a family must stay together.
He didn't tell Chang'an, for fear of frightening her, but the remains were placed in his wooden box meant for cotton quilts.
Old Gu Six was delighted, with his father-in-law, his late wife, and his daughter all in the cart.
A family could go anywhere together.
When they reached the village entrance, most of the people had already gathered.
Old Gu Six stopped the donkey cart while still some distance away, not wanting to drive it into the midst of the crowd.
He didn't want to get too close to the Old Gu Family, as they disgusted him.
It would be better for him and his daughter to stay at the very back.
Chang'an lifted the cart curtain and saw a sea of dark heads in front of them.
This was an enormous procession of over 600 people.
Most families had carts, whether handcarts or donkey carts.
The Zhao, Jiang, and Yang families had many ox carts and donkey carts.
A few other families also had ox carts.
The elderly and those too young to walk sat on the handcarts, pulled along by their families.
As the morning shift arrived, the Village Head struck the gong.
"Everyone, kneel and bow farewell to the village, for we may never return."
The villagers knelt and bowed, weeping.
Their kneeling inadvertently drew attention to Old Gu Six and Chang'an.
They remained seated in the cart, unmoving.
"Daughter, we won't kneel."
Your mother and grandfather are with us in the cart.
Chang'an didn't know, assuming Old Gu Six simply felt no attachment to this place and thus didn't want to kneel.
The villagers were too distraught to care whether Old Gu Six knelt or not.
There were still some people remaining in the village, clinging to dreams of relief from the imperial court.
Whether they would survive was simply a matter of luck.
The Village Head struck the gong again, signaling "Depart."
The procession set off slowly, gradually leaving the boundaries of Qingfang Village.
Chang'an slept in the cart for a while, waking to find the procession still plodding along at a sluggish pace.
The large numbers, combined with everyone's belongings which couldn't all fit on the handcarts, meant they had to travel encumbered.
The small children couldn't walk, and families with many children couldn't have them all ride on handcarts, while the adults couldn't pull the weight.
This inevitably slowed their progress.
The morning was nearly over, yet they still hadn't reached the main road.
Along the way, they saw scattered groups of disheveled refugees in tattered clothing, unclear where they had come from.
Chang'an took ice from the refrigerator in her spatial realm and put it in a waterskin, handing it to Old Gu Six once the ice had melted into water.
"Father, have some water."
Old Gu Six took the waterskin and drank, the icy coolness incredibly refreshing.
He gulped down a third of the water, "Glug glug glug."
They were at the very back, with the Jiang Family also traveling alongside them.
The Jiang Family also had ox carts and donkey carts, with the elderly and children riding in the donkey carts while their belongings were loaded onto the two ox carts.
The women of their family were better off than most, not having to carry anything on their backs, just keeping up with the walking.
The procession stopped at an open area.
Old Gu Six looked up at the sky and said, "It's noon."
Chang'an also looked up, unable to discern anything.
She took a small iron pot and a bag of steamed buns from the cart, using the wooden box as cover to retrieve a jar of pickled vegetables from her spatial realm.
Eating some pickled vegetables would be refreshing on such a hot day.
Old Gu Six brought out the water bucket, first helping Chang'an set up the pot stand and pouring some water into the pot.
Then he went to untie the donkey and give it water and fodder.
Chang'an gathered firewood to light the stove, then stared dumbly.
How could the steamed buns be hot? Was she supposed to boil them in water?
With everyone watching, she couldn't retreat into her spatial realm to heat them up.
The buns had been cold and hard when she took them out, so how could they suddenly become piping hot by just turning away?
She looked at the people in front, who were tearing flatbread into pieces and cooking it in a pot with dried vegetables into a gruel.
Chang'an silently put the bag of steamed buns back into the cart.
Steamed buns would release an aroma when heated, while everyone else was eating gruel.
Using the cart as cover, Chang'an took out cold vegetable buns from her spatial realm, replacing the pickled vegetables with chopped chili peppers.
The dough for her buns was fermented, with thin skins, so they remained soft even when cold.
Unlike the steamed buns bought in the city, which hardened like rocks when cold.
Those scorched flatbreads were also tough as nails.
Cold buns would be fine on such a hot day.
The water in the pot was boiling, so Chang'an extinguished the fire, letting the water cool slightly before pouring it into Old Gu Six's old waterskin.
She laid out a straw mat and sat waiting for Old Gu Six.
After feeding and watering the donkey, Old Gu Six led it to a nearby grove to relieve itself.
Upon returning, he tied up the donkey and sat down to have lunch with his daughter.
Sounds of commotion came from the front - were they already causing trouble after just half a day?
Chang'an craned her neck to look, but Old Gu Six pressed her down. "Eat. What's there to gawk at?"
The quarrel was among the Old Gu Family, with all nine of the useless sons in tow, not having been left behind.
Those nine good-for-nothings had to lean on canes to walk, so carrying their own packs was out of the question.
Thus, their family only gave them meager portions of food, saving more for those capable of labor.
But the nine wastrels wouldn't have it.
"Father, Mother, why are you giving us so little to eat?" protested Gu Gao Di, the second son of Lady Zhu.
The five sons of Gu Dagou remained silent, as they had already split from the main family yesterday on orders from Oldest Gu.
Now that their affairs were separate, with their own meager provisions, they had to ration carefully.
The five brothers stayed quiet, even distancing themselves to avoid any association.
Their father had declared yesterday that their survival on this journey depended solely on themselves, a matter of life and death.
They felt relieved, no longer having to rely on their father and stepmother for sustenance.
With their own children all grown up, there was no fear of starvation.
Oldest Gu didn't say a word, while Lady Zhu, with a sagging old face, said, "There's just a little food left in the house. You, a mere eater, should just fill your belly a bit."
"We all still have to carry things. How can we have the energy if we don't eat more?"
"Then why can my younger brother and older brother eat more?"
"Didn't you see that your older brother is carrying a bundle of clothes? Your younger brother is still growing, so he needs more food."
"I don't care about that. Why do just my younger brother and I get less to eat? We're all your sons, Mother. You can't be so biased."
"So what if your old mother is biased? Don't like it? Then don't follow us."
Lady Zhu's words put an end to the argument.
Where would Gu Gao Di and Gu Gao Shan have the courage to not follow? They could only swallow their anger.
Chang'an couldn't help but stand on her tiptoes and take a glance ahead.
With her good eyesight, she spotted Oldest Gu's large family in the middle and rear.
With those nine bald heads, they were impossible to miss.
For now, she could only see that their skin was starting to peel off, but as for the rest of their bodies?
Only they themselves knew.
