Chapter 466 Trained People
Luo Xueli could only swallow everything. She already knew about the previous situation between the Bai family and Zi Yusheng. It had all surpassed her understanding. Even if she were to step into danger now, she couldn't imagine it.
"Don't be afraid, everything will pass. Maybe when we go down the mountain, it will be time to return to Mingcheng."
With many hands, in just an hour and a half, everyone was gathered, eating a sumptuous meal. It was truly rich: pheasant soup, braised rabbit meat, and tender greens carried up by Aunt Zhen.
Ye Shenge happily drank two large bowls of chicken soup and only ate a few pieces of rabbit meat before she was full. She sat to the side, holding her stomach, watching her son open his mouth like a little chick, waiting to be fed.
"Mama will feed you, okay?"
But her son shook his head ungratefully, still clutching his grandmother's clothes.
"Hahahaha, you little guy is quite discerning."
Ye Shenge was also speechless. She probably didn't spend much time with her son. During the day, she didn't get to take care of him at all. By night, he was returned to her only when he was asleep, and he only needed her at night.
Little Youyou didn't forget to take a bite and smile at his mother. Although the little guy was small, his appetite was not small at all. His own little bowl could be filled with a bowl of rice.
Little Hexi was just like his mother. He had never had a poor appetite since he was young, and his little arms were as fair and plump as lotus root segments.
After eating and cleaning up, it was already eleven o'clock at night. The day's exhaustion made everyone lay out mats and casually put bedding down to sleep. Old Fan even carefully sprinkled a lot of snake and insect repellent powder in the cave.
Ye Shenge hugged her son as she lay down, thinking about her husband, but fell into a deep sleep within three seconds.
The next morning, as dawn broke, Ye Shenge heard someone cooking. She struggled to get up and saw her son still sleeping soundly, completely undisturbed by the noise.
"Shenge is awake, does your back hurt?"
Mom Ye quickly helped her daughter to stand up. Sleeping on the ground for a night was truly uncomfortable. Her old back felt like it was going to break, let alone her daughter's.
"It's alright, I slept on my side."
"Drink a cup of warm water, I'll help you go to the restroom."
Ye Shenge was still wearing her sweat-soaked clothes from yesterday, which were now a wrinkled mess after a night of tossing and turning.
Outside the cave, she took a deep breath of fresh air and immediately felt energized.
At seven-thirty in the morning, the group set off again. Along the way, everyone gnawed on white flour cakes with chopped green peppers and minced meat, drinking warm water as a meal.
By nightfall, when it was completely dark, they finally arrived at the cave they had lived in for a long time. The wooden beds in the two caves were still stacked neatly. They had even been covered with rain tarps when they left, but no one had expected to use them again.
Ye Shenge and Mom Ye went to a small cave not far away with flashlights. This was where they had secretly stored supplies before, but this time Mom Ye was the lookout.
Ye Shenge took out one hundred bags of rice and one hundred bags of flour, each weighing a hundred catties. The daily consumption of more than thirty people would require one bag, so she put in half a year's supply first, and would consider more if needed.
"Get some stewed items, the three of you pregnant women will need them. And some dried meat, dried fruit, and nuts."
Mom Ye directed, and Ye Shenge mentally selected items from her space. Soon, a small cave was piled high.
Mom Ye shone the flashlight, nodded with satisfaction. If it weren't for her daughter's precious space, their lives would have been really hard to get through.
"Oh, and get some vegetable seeds. We'll plant some on the mountain so we don't have to look for wild vegetables every day."
Ye Shenge obediently took out a small half-bag of seeds, which were sorted and labeled.
"Alright, we'll call people to move them later."
When Ye Shenge returned, she saw that the two caves had already been cleaned up, as everyone was familiar with the place.
"A Can, I just checked, the supplies have arrived. Go and move them back quickly. There's also fabric inside, which can be used to enclose the beds later."
"Okay, we were just saying we're short on a lot of things."
Luo Xueli and Sun Fangni were full of admiration and relief looking at the large amount of supplies brought in. They hadn't expected to have such a good life on the mountain. They were no longer worried about starving.
Even though everyone had said before that someone had arranged everything, they were still worried when they saw the wooden beds upon entering the cave.
Except for the three pregnant women and two children, everyone else got to work.
Rain tarps were used to set up a bathing area, and rain canopies were built at the entrances of the two caves. Cooking still had to be done outside to avoid inconvenience in case of rain.
Mom Ye and the others also skillfully wiped down the beds, spread bedding, and set up poles for bed curtains. Aunt Zhen and the others were responsible for making dinner, as well as fetching and boiling a large amount of water. Over thirty people needed to bathe that night.
Luo Xueli's eyes widened. They were too well-trained!
"Didn't you only come here once? How can you be so skilled!"
Ye Shenge and Chen Tangtang exchanged smiles. It was everyone's effort to optimize things bit by bit back then.
"There were even more people then. We practiced making beds one by one until we got it right."
Luo Xueli looked at the cave walls where no less than twenty flashlights were placed, all pointed at the ceiling, illuminating the entire cave. Each flashlight had a small fixed stand, ensuring it wouldn't tilt or fall. Looking at everything before her, Luo Xueli could only give a thumbs up of admiration.
Inside the cave, people were moving things. The three pregnant women could only be responsible for restraining the two children who liked to run around, preventing them from being accidentally bumped.
By the time Aunt Zhen finished cooking, the two caves were almost organized. Men and women slept separately. The tables and chairs left behind were moved, and four tables were set up for dinner.
"Alright, we have finally settled down. From now on, we will take care of ourselves and wait for those who are fighting outside to pick us up."
Grandpa Bai gave a speech before the meal, which was very much needed to boost morale.
"Hahahaha, yes, taking care of ourselves is already not being a burden."
The atmosphere at the dinner table immediately improved. Uncle Bai found two bottles of white wine from the place where supplies were stored.
"Come, come, have some wine to relieve your fatigue."
Aunt Bai glared at her husband, who was so good at finding things. She had clearly hidden the wine.
The meal seemed to truly ease everyone's worries. They ate heartily and merrily.
Four bathing shelters were set up, two for men and two for women. By the time Ye Shenge finished bathing, she was so exhausted she didn't want to move. Her calves were swollen and uncomfortable, and she fell asleep without even thinking about her son.
Meanwhile, in Mingcheng, Zi Yusheng received the news that his wife and the others had gone up the mountain. Thinking of his wife, who was heavily pregnant and had climbed such a long distance, his resentment towards the Shang family, which he already harbored, intensified.
At this moment, Ouyang knocked and entered, saying that Shang Shaoyan had arrived. Zi Yusheng directly refused to see him.
Ouyang also felt a sense of relief. For someone who couldn't even accompany his wife during childbirth, it was already good that he didn't make things difficult for him. When Zi Shao said he wouldn't see him, Ouyang immediately complied.
Shang Shaoyan did not get angry upon receiving this news. Instead, he smiled and nodded at Ouyang.
"I'm sorry to have burdened you all. I will compensate everyone when the situation is turned around."
"You are too kind, Young Master Shang!"
Shang Shaoyan looked at Ouyang, sighed, and patted his shoulder.
Ouyang squinted at Shang Shaoyan's departing back. For a Shang family to bring forward events that should have happened years later was astonishing. It showed their hidden strength and ambition. This person would definitely be a stumbling block for Zi Shao in the future.
(All disputes are not allowed to be written. Although it is fictional, it cannot involve party and government affairs, so I apologize.)
Ye Shenge slept until noon the next day. It was her mother who woke her up. Little Youyou, God knows who he learned it from, covered his mouth and kept laughing at his mother.
Ye Shenge reached out and pinched Little Youyou's cheeks, raising her eyebrows high.
"You little brat, your guts are getting bigger, daring to laugh at your mother."
"Mama, lazy!"
"Oh, it seems I have to spank you."
Mom Ye quickly reached out and hugged Little Youyou into her arms, pretending to playfully stop her daughter's hand.
"Little Youyou, hide quickly. Mama's hands hurt when they hit."
"Hit, hurt!"
"Yes, Mama hits very hard. You must never laugh at Mama again. Mama has a little sister in her belly, and it's very hard."
Little Youyou's mind turned quickly. He immediately crawled to his mother's side and touched her belly with his little hands.
"Sister, good!"
His expression was so serious that Ye Shenge couldn't help but hug her son and kiss him fiercely.
Mom Ye sat to the side and watched them, smiling. But when she lifted the blanket and saw her daughter's legs, the smile on her face disappeared.
"Are your legs swollen?"
Ye Shenge looked at her legs, pressed them, and an indentation appeared.
"They are indeed swollen, maybe it's from exhaustion."
"I'll have Old Fan take a look, don't let anything happen."
"Let's go see Aunt Bai and Tangtang first. They are further along than me."
Mom Ye quickly went to check on her niece-in-law and Tangtang. The two of them were already sitting outside in chairs, basking in the sun.
"Xueli, Tangtang, are your legs swollen?"
"Uh? No, right!"
Chen Tangtang was a muddle-headed person. As long as she had good food and drink, she didn't care about anything else.
Xia Hong heard this and quickly put down the bowl she was holding, ran over, and lifted her daughter-in-law's skirt to look.
"Oh my, you silly girl, your legs are swollen and you didn't say anything."
"Ah! They're swollen? I didn't feel anything."
Chen Tangtang lowered her head and looked at her feet, which had already swollen significantly, and then at her already thick calves.
"I didn't notice. My feet have been swollen for a while."
Luo Xueli was fine, her legs weren't very swollen, but her old shoes couldn't fit anymore.
Old Fan and Old Dang were busy. The three pregnant women were examined one after another.
"You're overtired. I'll write a prescription. Take it for two days and rest well."
"Do we have enough medicinal herbs?"
Mom Ye was worried about the lack of medicinal herbs. Her daughter had a lot of herbs in her space, but not all of them had been taken out.
"Shenge has prepared quite a lot. In a couple of days, the two of us old men will go around collecting herbs. By the time the babies are born, we'll have enough."
Chen Tangtang nodded in agreement. She had an inexplicable trust in Ye Shenge and those around her.
Old Fan looked at the round and plump Chen Tangtang, who had a naive look, and deliberately tried to scare her.
"You should eat less from now on. You've gained much more weight than you did with Little Hexi. Be careful if the baby is too big, you'll suffer during childbirth."
Chen Tangtang quickly hugged her belly, looking back and forth.
"Is it big? I didn't notice."
"I mean you're too fat. I estimate you're already 160-170 catties. Don't forget you're not even seven months pregnant yet. Do you want to break 200 catties by the time you give birth?"
Ye Shenge couldn't help but laugh out loud. Chen Tangtang's facial features were all squeezed together by her plumpness, but some people who loved to eat simply didn't care about these things.
Xia Hong realized that she had really let her daughter-in-law eat too much. But her daughter-in-law got hungry every now and then, and it wasn't always with rich food. Even a bowl of noodles would be eaten with great relish.
"Tangtang, you really need to pay attention. From now on, Mom will control your meals. We'll halve each meal. We'll eat whenever we're hungry, but the quantity needs to be reduced."
"Ah! I, okay, I'm just too easily hungry."
"When the baby is born safely, we'll eat well. Let's endure it for now!"
Chen Tangtang reluctantly touched her belly. She felt hungry again, but when she turned and saw her friend laughing at her so shamelessly, she felt wronged.
"Shenge, you're too much. I'm almost not getting enough to eat, and you're still laughing at me."
Ye Shenge held back her laughter and pinched Chen Tangtang's chubby face.
"I won't laugh at you anymore. I'll get you some snacks that don't make you fat to chew on later, okay?"
"That's more like it."
Just then, Little Tiantian ran over and handed Ye Shenge a basket of medicinal herbs. Ye Shenge looked up and indeed saw Min Xing following behind Little Tiantian.
"Wow, Little Tiantian, you're so amazing! You've collected so many medicinal herbs. You're truly amazing!"
Little Tiantian tilted her head up, her eyes shining with excitement. It was as if getting praised by her sister was more important than anything else.
"She dragged me out early in the morning. I don't know where she gets so much energy."
Min Xing yawned, looking tired.
"How is it, Daddy Tiantian, that you can't stand this little bit of tiredness?"
Min Xing's spirit immediately perked up when Ye Shenge called him "Daddy Tiantian." His face was full of smug smiles.
"How could that be? Anything for my daughter is worth it."
"Who are you calling your daughter? My sister has a father!"
When Min Xing heard the voice behind him, he helplessly pouted at Ye Shenge, but then turned around with a fawning smile.
"Isn't it better for Little Tiantian to have more than one dad?"
"Hmph, not needed. Don't think I don't know, you're just being lazy and trying to avoid responsibility. You think having a daughter means you don't have to get married and have children? I'm telling you, no way. Don't end up harming Little Tiantian by making her the subject of gossip."
Mo Lin could see Min Xing's efforts. How long had it been? The compensation was more than enough. But he didn't want Min Xing to spend his life consumed by guilt. Little Tiantian was merely the responsibility of her biological brother.
"How can that be? I just can't find a wife. I'll definitely get married when I meet someone in the future."
Min Xing was increasingly afraid of Mo Lin. This kid's punches hurt.
After Min Xing took Little Tiantian away, Xia Hong spoke first.
"Don't say it, Min Xing is actually quite responsible. He's willing to take Little Tiantian as his daughter even though he's not married. I just don't know if the Min family will agree later?"
Xia Hong had heard about the Min family from her son. They were a rigid and rule-abiding family, and Min Xing was the least favored among them.
Ye Shenge remained silent. In her opinion, Min Xing couldn't possibly adopt Little Tiantian as his daughter, and Mo Lin wouldn't agree either. There was no need to waste his life for a sense of guilt.
Life on the mountain continued peacefully. Every day, A Can and the others would lead groups to hunt, gather wild vegetables, and so on.
With Ye Shenge occasionally sneaking in "extra provisions," life on the mountain was still quite comfortable.