Chapter 5: Did they go back?

Chapter 5: Did they go back?

Jiang Yutang made a "shh" gesture and quickly glanced around: "I brought it secretly."

At this critical juncture, having a knife is better than not having one. Jiang Songzhi now regrets not secretly hiding some money back then, so that his family could have a better life.

Of the nine members of their family, Jiang Yutang is the one with the most hidden thoughts.

With their persistent efforts, the bamboo finally fell to the ground.

Jiang Yutang selected several sections of bamboo that were not infested with insects, cut one end with a knife, and then smoothed the edges with a stone, thus making several bamboo cups.

She then selected the thicker sections at the bottom and made a lid for the bamboo cup, which fit perfectly and could be used to store water.

The family was waiting for water, so after the two finished, they went along the path to the lake to fetch water.

Without a pot, they had to make do with drinking tap water.

By the time the two returned, it was almost dark.

The yamen runners distributed coarse flour steamed buns, a type of dry food made from black flour and straw. One bite was so dry that it was impossible to swallow without water.

Cheng Dai'er originally wanted to see the Jiang family make a fool of themselves, but she saw Jiang Yutang and Jiang Songzhi each carrying three bamboo tubes back.

The family sat on a stone bench, sharing water among themselves.

“Mother, you drink. My little sister and I just finished drinking,” Jiang Songzhi said.

"This bamboo cup..."

Jiang Sumin rubbed the edge of the knife between his fingers and spoke in a very low voice: "Which of you two is hiding a dagger?"

“It’s my little sister,” Jiang Songzhi said.

Jiang Sumin had a serious expression, and the atmosphere around him was extremely tense.

Jiang Yutang knew what he was thinking; he was simply worried that if he had a dagger, he would find another opportunity to murder Cheng Lanzhou, and so on...

Before the other party could speak, she simply handed over the dagger: "Fourth Brother, you keep it for me."

Jiang Sumin paused for a moment, then shook his head: "Keep your own things. If you encounter danger, you can use them for self-defense, and it will save your parents from worrying about you!"

Jiang Yutang looked at him and curled up her lips: "Fourth Brother, you really care about me."

“Who cares about you?” Jiang Sumin frowned. “I’m just worried that you’ll cause trouble for the family again.”

A proud and arrogant person.

Jiang Yutang pretended not to hear, her lips slightly upturned as she continued to gnaw on the steamed bun in her hand. She was starving, and although it was hard to swallow, she still ate it all.

The package also contained five loaves of bread, two sausages, a bag of pork jerky, and three cartons of pure milk.

She didn't eat, not because she didn't want to.

There are just too many people in this family who need to nourish their bodies.

Zhu was pregnant, and the fetus in her womb needed nutrition.

The eldest brother's daughter with the Mu family, Jiang Xiaoxiao, was only one year old and still breastfeeding. She was choking on a coarse flour bun and crying.

Jiang Shengan has lost a lot of blood and needs to replenish his qi and blood.

Jiang Yutang hesitated for a moment, then took out a bottle of milk. She looked around to make sure no one was watching them, and said, "Sister-in-law, why don't you give this to Xiaoxiao?"

"What is this?" Mu looked at it curiously.

"This is what I just found; it's similar to goat's milk."

The group immediately gathered around, their faces filled with surprise.

They had no idea where the milk would come from in this desolate wilderness; they hadn't even heard a sheep bleating. They'd never even seen the container used to hold the milk before.

Mu felt sorry for her daughter and couldn't care less about anything else at the moment. She took a sip first and her eyes widened immediately: "It really is milk. It's so sweet and not fishy at all."

As if she could smell the aroma, Jiang Xiaoxiao grabbed it with her hands and said, "Drink, drink!"

"Hurry up and feed it to the child, lest someone find out," Yun urged.

Mu nodded excitedly and placed the milk carton to Jiang Xiaoxiao's lips, whereupon she began to drink it in large gulps.

A faint milky aroma lingered around their noses, causing them to salivate uncontrollably.

"There are two more boxes. You can drink one, Second Sister-in-law, and give the other one to Dad." Jiang Yutang said softly, and then took out two more boxes of milk.

Zhu shook her head: "I won't drink it, I'll save it for Xiaoxiao."

Her refusal was so firm that Jiang Yutang, fearing discovery, didn't try to persuade her further.

“Since your father can only drink water porridge, I will feed him this milk,” Yun said.

"Hurry up and feed him, Mother. Father's health is the most important thing." Madam Mu nodded.

Jiang Yutang then gave everyone a piece of pork jerky.

Jiang Songzhi took a small bite and then couldn't bear to finish it.

We need to save this meat so that Dad can recover and recover.

The others did the same, except for Jiang Yutang, who ate the entire piece of pork.

Jiang Huaiyu went to ask the yamen runner for a light.

After the fire was lit, the two empty milk cartons were burned to avoid leaving any unnecessary evidence against them.

As darkness fell, she looked towards the Cheng family's house, but because it was dark, she couldn't see much clearly.

She looked away, then at the large family, and felt troubled.

There's only one carton of milk left, and the bread will last for a few more days. What should Jiang Xiaoxiao eat and drink after that?

Moreover, Zhu's belly looks like it's already eight months along. If things continue like this, she'll miscarry sooner or later. We have to think of something.

If there were more food...

She couldn't help but think about it, and her eyebrows furrowed slightly.

And then there's Jiang Sheng'an. Seeing him lying unconscious on the trolley, Jiang Yutang couldn't help but think of her grandfather in the hospital room.

She turned over and took the book out of her bosom. This time, she was surprised to find that there seemed to be words on the inside pages. Just as she was about to bring the book closer to the firelight to take a closer look, her finger suddenly hurt.

The next second, a flash of white light appeared.

She gasped and quickly closed her eyes. When she opened them again, she was no longer on the road to exile, but in her modern home.

She's back?

Jiang Yutang scrambled to her feet, grabbed her phone, and glanced at the time.

Beijing time, August 7, 2025, 7:35 AM.

Something's not right.

She clearly remembers that the time her soul traveled to was 7:00 AM on August 7, 2025.

She spent a whole afternoon in the book, but only half an hour in her own world.

Is it that time flows differently in the two worlds, or is this just a dream?

She looked around the room and subconsciously looked for a book.

The book lay quietly on the ground, next to a tattered bundle, which was used by the Jiang family to pack clothes.

She slowly knelt down beside the package and fell into deep thought.

At that moment, the book's suction was so strong that she instinctively wanted to grab something. And then, she grabbed the package.

Moreover, she realized a problem even more serious than the flow of time: she seemed to be able to bring things from the world in the book into reality, and also bring things from reality into the book.

Crossing two worlds.

It wasn't a dream, but it felt more like one.

All of this happened so suddenly that Jiang Yutang didn't have time to think. She rolled off the bed, picked up the book, and opened it. The book was blank once again.

Just then, the doorbell rang.