There were quite a few people in town today; it was as bustling as ever.

Early in the morning, Liu Yan had already wrapped all the buns, placed them in the steamer baskets, and set them over the pot to steam. Xiaofeng pulled a finger-length piece of incense from a drawer and stuck it beside the pot to keep track of the time.

Usually, by the time that short incense stick had burned out, the buns in the pot were just about done.

People were already waiting outside the door. Liu Yan greeted the customers, saying, “Just wait another half-quarter of an hour, and the buns will be ready.”

“Do you have any hot wonton soup? Give a few of us a bowl first to warm us up!”

“Please have a seat, sir. I’ll make you some wonton soup right away.”

Four burly men entered the room and sat down. The room was so filled with steam that it was hard to make out their features. It wasn’t until the fire under the pot died down that Zheng Xiaofeng could clearly see how they were dressed.

They were all wearing thick leather coats, their hair was a mess, and they carried backpacks on their backs—it looked as though they had come from far away.

“Here are your wontons. Enjoy your meal, sirs.”

“Bring us twenty more meat-filled buns!”

Liu Yan beamed with delight and immediately went to fetch a plate to serve the buns. The bill for this table alone came to over a hundred wen—what a great start to the day!

The people inside seemed absolutely starving; they slurped away at their bowls and polished them off in no time, though they slowed down a bit when eating the buns. One of them, noticing Xiaofeng kneading dough nearby, took the initiative to ask, “Ma’am, do you happen to know where Dahe Village is?”

“Dahe Village? It’s just thirty li west of the city. My parents’ home is there. Are you looking for someone?”

Upon hearing this, they all looked delighted. “What a coincidence! We’re looking for a man named Zheng Beiqiu. Do you happen to know him?”

As soon as Xiaofeng heard her older brother’s name, she immediately grew wary. “I wonder what business you have with him?”

“Don’t worry, young lady. We’re Old Zheng’s comrades-in-arms—we served together in Pingzhou. Now that we’ve laid down our arms and are heading home, we passed through Changsheng Town and remembered he lives around here, so we thought we’d drop by and say hello.”

Zheng Xiaofeng remained skeptical and didn’t dare tell them her older brother’s address.

The man leading the group seemed to sense her hesitation. He rummaged in his coat for a while before pulling out a letter. “This is a letter Old Zheng wrote to us a while back. Take a look—do you recognize the handwriting?”

Both Zheng Xiaofeng and Zheng Beiqiu had attended school for a few days when they were children. Although she didn’t recognize many characters, she instantly recognized that this was their eldest brother’s handwriting.

“Zheng Beiqiu is my eldest brother. If you’re not in a hurry, wait a bit until I’ve sold all the buns, and then my husband will take you there.”

“So you’re a sister from the Zheng family—that’s wonderful!”

The group took a good look at Xiaofeng and saw that she did indeed resemble Zheng Beiqiu in seven or eight out of ten ways, which made them even happier.

“I thought it would be hard to find him, but I didn’t expect to find him right after arriving!”

Another man, slightly older, nodded in agreement. “Now we won’t have to waste any more time. Let’s go tell him, then get on our way right away—otherwise…”

The group exchanged glances and sighed.

Around the hour of Chen, the buns were nearly sold out, and the second batch was already steaming, so Xiaofeng asked Liu Yan to lead the group to Dahe Village. These four walked extremely fast; even Liu Yan, jogging along behind them, could barely keep up. They reached Hexi in less than an hour.

“Up ahead… that house… the one with the blue-glazed tiles… that’s… Big Brother’s place.” Liu Yan was so exhausted he could barely catch his breath as the group surveyed the house from a distance. Chen Bing remarked, “Old Zheng’s got some skills—he’s only been back for a short while, and he’s already built a new house.”

“Yeah, it looks pretty nice. I wonder how much silver he spent on it. Too bad…” He trailed off, his expression growing somber. Liu Yan didn’t pick up on the subtext in their conversation and stepped forward to knock on the front gate. “Is my older brother home?”

Luo Xiu was feeding the chickens in the courtyard. Hearing the sound, he came over and opened the door. “Brother-in-law, what brings you here? Come on in.”

The four men following Liu Yan also walked in. Luo Xiu’s heart skipped a beat, and he hurriedly called Zheng Beiqiu out.

“What’s going on?” Zheng Beiqiu, carrying Xiaoyu, came out of the house and, upon seeing the group, widened his eyes in excitement. “Commander Chen, Old Dong, Liangzi, and Xiao Liang—how did you all end up here?!”

“We finally found you!”

Once inside, Luo Xiu boiled some water and poured each of them a cup. Liu Yan, worried his wife wouldn’t be able to keep up with the work at the shop, hurried back without even taking a sip.

After drinking a cup of hot water, Commander Chen finally spoke up, “Old Zheng, with your husband and child by your warm bed, you’re living the good life, aren’t you?” 

“Hahahaha, it’s not bad. As for you guys, did you take leave to go back home for the New Year, or have you also laid down your arms and returned to farming?” Chen Bing paused for a moment, then sighed and said, “We snuck out here. Prince Jing has rebelled…”

“What?!”

The Great Zhou Dynasty had been at war with the Jin Dynasty for nearly ten years, but since the civil unrest in the Jin Dynasty, peace had finally returned to the border regions.

An imperial edict arrived in June, stating that the court could no longer afford to maintain such a large military presence along the border; troop reductions were inevitable, and Prince Jing, Liu Ye, was to surrender his military authority as well.

But how could Prince Jing possibly be willing to relinquish his authority? He had commanded a formidable force of 200,000 troops along the border for over a decade; he knew all too well what that meant—it was a power sufficient to bring about a change of dynasty!

The new emperor, young and impetuous, saw that his uncle refused to relinquish power and sent one imperial edict after another to the border. By the end of October, he had even resorted to using his uncle’s son and daughter—who were staying in Bianjing—as leverage.

“If you do not surrender military authority before the New Year, these two will be thrown directly into prison!”

Liu Ye realized this was even more dire. If he surrendered his military authority and returned to Bianjing, he would become nothing more than a helpless victim at the mercy of others. He decided instead to launch a rebellion under the pretext of “cleansing the court of traitors.” He led his 200,000-strong army southward to execute the treacherous ministers and purge the imperial court.

Chen Bing said, “In the past, we fought the Jin Dynasty to defend our homeland. But now that Prince Jing has rebelled, we’d have to turn our swords against our own brothers. There’s simply no way we can fight this war!”

Old Dong sighed as well, “You’re absolutely right! My uncle, the Hundred-House Commander, refused to follow Prince Jing and planned to lay down his arms and return to his hometown, but… but he ended up being used as a sacrificial offering to consecrate the banner…”

Chen Bing’s eyes reddened. “We had originally planned to leave with Uncle, but we never expected that he’d be arrested the moment he finished speaking. General Wude and General Zuo Xiaoqi were arrested along with him.”

Zheng Beiqiu furrowed his brow as he listened; he hadn’t expected even the generals to be used as sacrificial offerings…

Liang Guang said, “We realized things couldn’t go on like this, so we slipped out during a night when security was lax.” 

“Didn’t they send anyone to catch you?”

“They did, but the few of us took the secret river along the Changrong Road—only the few of us know about it.”

They had actually discovered that underground river during a previous hunting trip up the mountain. From the outside, it looked like a limestone cave, but if you went deep enough inside, you’d find an underground river. Back then, Zheng Beiqiu, being bold, had jumped into the river to explore and discovered that it was passable—leading to a major river more than ten li away.

No matter how hard the soldiers chased them, they never imagined the group could escape more than ten li away in less than an hour. The four of them managed to slip away by hiding and evading pursuit.

“What are your plans now?”

Chen Bing said, “I’m going back to my hometown. My uncle has passed away, and I need to return home to inform my family of his death.” Chen Bing’s hometown was in Yizhou, which was quite far from the battlefield.

Old Dong said, “Xiao Liang and I are from the same hometown; we’re both planning to return to our hometown in Qingzhou.”

Liangzi said, “Both my parents are gone. I only have an older sister who married into a family in Liuzhou, and I’d like to go see her.” 

“What about you, Old Zheng?” Chen Bing asked in return.

Standing nearby with a child in his arms, Luo Xiu looked at his husband with concern. Pingzhou was hundreds of li away—what did this war have to do with them? Could it be that they had to leave too?

Zheng Beiqiu fell deep in thought. Having fought in wars for so many years, he naturally understood the gravity of the situation. Changsheng Town, with its narrow, elongated terrain, was easy to defend but difficult to attack—a strategic stronghold that had been fiercely contested by military strategists since ancient times.

Once the two sides clashed, this place would inevitably suffer—not to mention the grain and supplies that would be requisitioned. All able-bodied men, young and old, would be conscripted, and even young women and ger would be sent to the barracks to do laundry and cook. Only the elderly, the infirm, and women and children would be spared.

“Thank you for coming to inform me. I’ll have to discuss this thoroughly with my family!”

“It’s the least we can do. In that case, we won’t linger. Pingzhou is over six hundred li from here. We’re walking faster than they are, so we’ll likely arrive before them. I’m afraid the main army will be here any day now. You should make your plans as soon as possible, and we’ll hurry back to our hometown to make arrangements.”

“Stay for a meal before you go.”

“No, time is of the essence—we can’t delay. If there’s a chance in the future… we brothers will meet again!” With that, the four men slung their packs over their shoulders and hurriedly left.

The four came and went in a flash, leaving behind a lit firecracker that sent Zheng Beiqiu into a panic. Zheng Beiqiu wasn’t afraid of war—back when he fought the barbarians at the border, he wasn’t even afraid of death!

But things were different now. He had a husband and a child, and Luo Xiu was carrying another little one.

Luo Xiu also sensed that something was wrong with him. “Husband, what they said…” 

“A-Xiu, we need to pack up and leave.”

“Leave? Where to?”

“South. The farther, the better.”

“But what about our house, our land, and the livestock at home?” Luo Xiu clutched the child, feeling at a loss. 

“We can’t worry about that now. If we don’t leave right away, it’ll be too late!”

Luo Xiu turned pale with fear. He didn’t understand why they suddenly had to leave home out of the blue—especially since their lives had just started to get better…

Zheng Beiqiu realized he had frightened him, so he hugged Luo Xiu to comfort him. “Don’t be afraid. Listen to what I have to say. If the main army advances, our town will inevitably become a battlefield. By then, I’m afraid every household’s grain will be requisitioned. It won’t just be a matter of starving to death—the common people will also be forced to go to war. If we head south, we might still survive; if we don’t go, there’s nothing but death ahead.”

Luo Xiu nodded, tears welling in his eyes.

“You stay home and pack your things first. I’ll go inform the villagers. Something this serious must be brought to their attention. If anyone wants to leave, we can travel together; if they don’t want to go, there’s nothing we can do about it.”

Zheng Beiqiu hurried out, heading first to the village head’s house to explain the situation. Seeing the village head’s skeptical reaction, Zheng Beiqiu’s heart sank.

“We really have to leave—if we don’t, we’ll all be doomed!”

The village head stroked his beard and said, “Daqiu, regardless of whether your news is true or false, even if it is true, go ask around the village—how many families would be willing to leave everything behind and follow you?”

Zheng Beiqiu was at a loss for words—he didn’t want to leave either… He hadn’t even had enough time to enjoy his newly built tiled-roof house!

“Let’s go back. If fighting really breaks out, it’s just our fate.”

After leaving the village head’s house, he hurried over to his cousin’s home and told Zheng An about the situation. Zheng An furrowed his brow after hearing the news. “Daqiu, are you guys leaving?”

“Yes. First thing tomorrow morning, I’ll take Luo Xiu and leave.”

“What about the land you’re renting? You’ve already paid the rent in full—there’s no getting that money back.”

At a time like this, who cares about a few dozen guan? Zheng Beiqiu really wanted to shake them awake, but the common folk, who had never experienced war, simply didn’t understand its cruelty.

Zheng Beiqiu had witnessed with his own eyes the people along the border being trampled to death by the hooves of warring armies, young children starving to death because they had nothing to eat, and civilians forcibly conscripted as soldiers. Some had never even killed a chicken in their lives; unarmed, they were forced to march to the battlefield. If one or two out of ten survived, they were considered lucky.

Liu Hua added, “Daqiu, it’s not that I don’t trust you—it’s just that we can’t leave. Our elderly and children are all here, and our fields are here too. Where else could we go?”

“If we stay, I’m afraid we won’t even survive!”

Zheng An said, “I’ll discuss it some more with your sister-in-law…”

“Then I’ll head back first.” Zheng Beiqiu stepped outside, looked at the old family home in the distance, hesitated for a moment, and then walked straight inside. In the courtyard, Zheng Xiaohu was playing in the snow. On such a cold day, he was wearing only a thin padded jacket, and his nose was so cold that two strands of snot were hanging down his face. When he saw Zheng Beiqiu, he froze for a moment, then turned and ran into the house, shouting, “Dad! Dad, someone’s here! Someone’s here!”

Inside the house, Zheng Yaqiu was lying on the kang, fast asleep. Ever since Zheng Laotai’s passing, he’d been in this state of utter despondency. By day, he’d go out to drink on credit until he was dead drunk; but since the shopkeeper had stopped extending credit to him these past few days, he’d been lying on the kang every day, pretending to be dead, not even bothering to cook a meal.

It was still Xiaohu, a five-year-old child, who had to stand on a stool to stoke the fire and cook porridge, burning his hand in the process.

“Who’s here?” Zheng Yaqiu sat up and turned to see his older brother standing in the doorway. He shuddered with fright and instantly perked up. “What are you doing here?”

“War is coming. I came to warn you—pack your things and leave right away. Otherwise, once the main army arrives in a few days, you won’t be able to escape even if you want to.”

Zheng Yaqiu looked utterly bewildered. It wasn’t until his brother turned to leave that the reality of the situation hit him, and he hurried after him. “Big brother, are you leaving?”

“I’m leaving first thing tomorrow morning.”

Zheng Beiqiu also notified several neighbors with whom he was on good terms, but the response was the same: first, they didn’t believe the fighting would reach this far, and second, they hadn’t considered leaving their homeland.

In the depths of winter, where could they possibly go? Leaving home would likely make it even harder to survive.

Zheng Beiqiu returned home with a heavy heart. Luo Xiu had already packed up their clothes and bedding, his heart filled with anxiety.

“Are we really going to leave?”

“First thing tomorrow morning, we’ll go to town to pick up Xiaofeng and the others.” 

“Once we leave, how long will it be before we can come back?”

“I don’t know…” In truth, Zheng Beiqiu was also panicking inside. He was more reluctant to leave this place than anyone else—this was his home with Luo Xiu!

But if they didn’t leave, they’d have to fight. He didn’t want to die on the battlefield; he wanted to live to grow old with Luo Xiu, see Xiaoyu get married, and watch the child in Luo Xiu’s womb grow into an adult…

Zheng Beiqiu spent the night patching up the mule-cart shed so it would offer as much shelter as possible from the biting wind when they set out tomorrow.

Luo Xiu also finished weaving the half-roll of cloth he’d left unfinished; instead of sending it back to the textile shop, he loaded it all onto the cart to have on hand in case of an emergency. Neither of them slept well that night—only Xiaoyu, oblivious to everything, slept soundly.

Early the next morning, before dawn, the two rose early.

Zheng Beiqiu packed all the grain into burlap sacks and stacked them at the front of the cart; they didn’t know when they’d return from this journey, so they couldn’t afford to run out of food along the way.

Both of them were wearing several layers of clothing—thin layers underneath and thick layers on top—which kept them warm while saving a lot of space for other items.

They didn’t bring any trunks or baskets—they were too heavy and took up too much space—so they simply took the bedding out and spread it on the cart to keep warm. They had also packed their silver and banknotes and tucked them into their cloaks—this was the foundation of their future livelihood; without money, they couldn’t survive anywhere. Pots, bowls, ladles, and other kitchenware were stacked together, along with cooking oil, salt, soy sauce, and vinegar, and they also brought along the livestock still alive on their farm.

Luo Xiu entrusted the two dogs to her neighbor, Li Fulang: “They don’t eat much—just a bit of leftovers will do. Plus, they’ll guard the house and yard.”

“Don’t worry. My son just loves taking care of cats and dogs—those dogs won’t have a hard time at our place.”

They took a few chickens and ducks to Liu Hua’s house.

“Are you really leaving?” Liu Hua couldn’t understand it. The Lunar New Year was just around the corner—what if the army didn’t come? Wouldn’t this whole trip have been for nothing?

Luo Xiu nodded. Although he was deeply conflicted inside, he still obeyed his husband’s words—wherever he went, he would follow.

“Sigh… Well, I’ll take care of these chickens and ducks for you for now. If the enemy doesn’t attack, I’ll give them back when you return.” 

“It’s fine. Go ahead and use them as you see fit, Sister-in-law.”

“Be careful on the road, and watch over the children. Xiaoyu is so young—don’t let him catch a chill from all this traveling.” 

“We know. You take care of yourself, too, Sister-in-law.”

After settling the animals, the two locked the front gate, took one last look at their courtyard, and left with heavy hearts. Luo Xiu wiped away his tears, his heart aching terribly; he didn’t know when they would be able to return from this journey.

When Zheng Beiqiu drove the cart to the edge of the village, he saw a small child crouching by the roadside. As he drew closer, he realized it was Zheng Xiaohu.

He had mixed feelings toward this nephew. When the boy was first born, Zheng Beiqiu had been very attentive; on the occasion of his full-moon celebration, he had even gone out of his way to send a silver locket from the border garrison as a gift.

After all, he was the first descendant of the Zheng family—how could he, as the eldest uncle, not love him?

But after not seeing each other for so long, and as the two brothers gradually grew apart, he found himself unable to warm up to the child either. Zheng Beiqiu stopped the cart and asked, “What are you doing crouched here? Where’s your dad?”

Zheng Xiaohu wiped his nose. “My dad told me to wait here for you. He said I should go with you.” 

“Go with me?”

Zheng Xiaohu nodded.

Ever since his grandmother passed away and his parents separated, this child had been forced to grow up far too quickly.

Back then, he had once cried and thrown a tantrum, begging to go with Yang-shi, but unfortunately, she didn’t take him with her, and his father paid him no mind once he was left at home. Starving, he even shoveled raw rice into his mouth and fell asleep crying while clutching Zheng Laotai’s clothes.

As time went on, he realized that with his grandmother gone, he had no one left to rely on. At such a young age, he began trying to start a fire and cook for himself. It took him only about a month to go from burning the rice to cooking a pot of thick foxtail millet porridge.

This morning, his father dragged him out and told him to wait at the village entrance for his eldest uncle, who would take him away.

Zheng Xiaohu said nothing; he stood obediently by the roadside waiting for them. He knew that if he went with his father, he would likely not survive the winter. Zheng Beiqiu was torn. To be honest, he didn’t want to help Zheng Er raise the child, fearing he might end up raising an ungrateful wretch.

But if he didn’t take the child with him, the boy wouldn’t survive if a fight broke out.

Luo Xiu sensed his husband’s dilemma and got out of the car before he did. He believed that a grown-up’s feud had nothing to do with a child; even if they encountered a stranger’s child, they should lend a helping hand—let alone when it was Zheng Beiqiu’s own nephew.

“Do you want to come with us?”

Zheng Xiaohu nodded.

“Then get on the cart.”

Zheng Xiaohu climbed onto the mule cart and curled up in a corner, shivering uncontrollably.

Luo Xiu touched the child’s hand—it was ice-cold—and took out a blanket to wrap around him. Zheng Beiqiu said nothing and hurriedly drove the cart toward town.