Chapter 7: The Peasant Girl’s Splendid Manor
Chapter 7 When It Rains, It Pours
Just when Mo Yan and the others had just saved their lives, they were caught in a heavy rainstorm. Without any nearby shelter, they had to brave the rain in hopes of finding a place to take refuge.
After nearly an hour of journeying, the bedraggled group finally found a small cave in the mountainside. Calling it a cave might be an exaggeration; it was merely a sheltered spot where a large rock protruded overhead, with the sides blocked by rocks, barely providing some protection from the rain.
Famished and enduring the rain-soaked journey, Mo Yan felt extremely uncomfortable, her body feeling weak. She sat down on the ground, panting heavily. The damp clothes clung tightly to her body, making her even more uncomfortable. However, the clothes in their bundle were soaked, and there was no way to change. Fortunately, it was summer, so she didn't feel very cold.
Watching the rainwater dripping down along the edge of the giant rock, Mo Yan couldn't help but reach out and scoop up a handful of rainwater. Ignoring whether it was clean or not, she lowered her head and took a sip. Despite a slightly earthy taste, it surprisingly carried a hint of sweetness.
After drinking a handful of water, Mo Yan felt some relief in her stomach. Unable to resist, she scooped up more rainwater and drank it all.
Mo Xin and Mo Zhen, who had been hungry for a long time, saw their big sister drinking like this and followed suit, drinking the rainwater. Mo Qingze opened his mouth to stop them, but couldn't bring himself to utter a word of dissuasion.
They had expected to have a good meal after catching a rabbit, but who would have known they would encounter those ruffians, and the pot of stewed rabbit meat they had just cooked was knocked over in the scuffle. Without eating anything the whole day, let alone the children, even he, an adult, was having trouble enduring it.
The rain continued for over an hour, showing no signs of stopping. The occasional thunder seemed to mock his helplessness. Mo Qingze looked at the curtain of rain with despair in his heart. If he had known there would be a drought this year, he should have taken his children north during last year's floods. Now they couldn't go to Yongcheng, and the capital was too far. Was Heaven really going to cut off their lifeline?
After drinking a few handfuls of rainwater, Mo Yan's stomach felt somewhat relieved. Seeing the two little ones still wanting to drink, she quickly stopped them. Although the rainwater wasn't very dirty in this time and space without air pollution, it was still raw water, and drinking too much wasn't good for the body.
Mo Xin and Mo Zhen were very sensible. Although they still wanted to drink to alleviate their hunger, they didn't dare to disobey their big sister's words.
Seeing their hungry eyes fixed on the water, Mo Yan couldn't bear it and looked away. But just then, she happened to see the despair on Mo Qingze's face. She was startled and, after some thought, finally voiced her thoughts, "Father... Father, let's go to the capital!"
The term "father" made Mo Yan's tongue twist, but since she had inherited this body, she should adapt to her new identity.
Mo Qingze was stunned for a moment, then understood his eldest daughter's meaning. His face was full of bitterness. "Yan'er, do you know how far it is from here to the capital?"
Seeing Mo Qingze like this, Mo Yan was a little stunned. In the original owner's memory, Mo Qingze had always been the object of admiration for his children. Not only literate and courteous, he was the only scholar in Mo Village, and he also knew a bit of music, chess, calligraphy, and painting. He earned money with his talents to support the family... In the eyes of his daughters, Mo Qingze was almost omnipotent.
But even such an omnipotent father was now stripped of his courage by natural disasters and man-made calamities.
It was not so much that he was worried that the family wouldn't make it to the capital, but rather that he was worried that the children wouldn't be able to bear it and would starve to death. As the head of the family, he bore all the hopes of his children. One could imagine how heavy the burden of despair and depression in his heart was!
"Father, if we don't try, how do we know we can't reach the capital?" Mo Yan asked back, leaving Mo Qingze speechless for a moment, lost in confusion.
Mo Yan didn't disturb Mo Qingze, who was lost in thought. She was so confident that they could reach the capital because of her space, but this secret couldn't be revealed.
Mo Qingze was not indecisive by nature. It was just that he had too many worries before, which had led him into confusion. Now awakened by Mo Yan's words, he couldn't help but think: Since there's no turning back, why fear moving forward?
"Yan'er is right. It's father who got confused. Father agrees to go to the capital!"
Mo Qingze touched Mo Yan's head affectionately, feeling relieved that his daughter had grown up and become more resolute. Very good, very good!
Mo Yan breathed a sigh of relief. The decision to go to the capital was settled.
...
The rain continued until late at night without stopping. Worried that the two children might fall ill after being soaked in the rain during the day, Mo Yan and Mo Qingze held Mo Zhen and Mo Xin tightly in their arms, afraid to fall into a deep sleep. Fortunately, the rain stopped in the middle of the night, and the two children were lucky not to catch a cold.
The brilliant sunlight once again illuminated the earth, and the post-rain air carried a fresh scent. The trees, which had turned yellow and wilted due to the drought, seemed to regain vitality, lifting the mood considerably.
The drought here was far less severe than in Lingnan, and the rain last night had somewhat alleviated the situation.
The children had been through a lot yesterday, so Mo Qingze didn't rush to set off. He planned to go out for a walk to see if he could find something to eat. He was afraid they wouldn't be able to endure the journey on empty stomachs.
However, as soon as he was about to leave, Mo Xin and Mo Zhen crawled up from the ground and grabbed onto his clothes, Mo Zhen with a trembling voice, "Father, Zhen'er is scared. Zhen'er wants to go with father!"
Mo Qingze looked at the two children in distress, feeling torn. If he took them with him, he was worried that he wouldn't be able to look after them properly, and they might get hurt.
When Mo Yan came back after drying their wet clothes, she saw the two little ones clinging to Mo Qingze like koalas, listening to him. When Mo Qingze mentioned going out to find food, she couldn't help but be moved. "Father, let me go instead. Xin'er and Zhen'er have been frightened. You should stay and watch over them!"
Mo Qingze was not reassured to let his eldest daughter go out alone, but he was also worried about the two little ones...
Seeing his dilemma, Mo Yan smiled and said, "Father, I won't go far. I'll just walk around nearby. If I can't find any food, I'll come back as soon as possible."
Thinking of his sensible eldest daughter, who knew her limits, Mo Qingze didn't say much more and just gave her some careful instructions before letting her leave.
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