Farming Family's Pocket Dimension: A Charmed Little Lady Comes to Farm

Chapter 86: Chapter 86: Human Life is Cheap

That night, their family had the inn’s communal sleeping platform all to themselves.

The old matron had already gone to bed, and Uncle Ma had wandered off somewhere. Gu Fei took out the remaining sheepskin, and the women gathered under the oil lamp to sew jackets from it.

The days were growing colder, so they would need the jackets soon.

As they sewed, Gu Fei secretly took out some broken silver and had Mrs. Chen and the others sew it into the corners of the garments. "The road is getting more and more dangerous," she said. "If something happens and one of us gets separated, having a little silver is better than having none. If we’re truly separated, everyone should try to find a way to meet up in Ping’an City."

Gu Sanlang leaned in with a grin. "In that case, sew a little extra silver into my jacket."

Mrs. Chen slapped him lightly. "This is just a precaution. Our family must stay together, no matter what."

At 7 p.m., Mrs. Chen blew out the oil lamp and told everyone to go to sleep.

The next morning, the group was preparing to cook in the courtyard again, but the inn’s Shopkeeper was a fastidious man. He forbade them from cooking in the front yard and herded them all to the back.

As they were making breakfast, two of the inn’s hands came to the backyard to chop firewood and started gossiping.

One of the hands said, "Someone died over on the street corner. Did you hear? I just went to take a look."

The other shook his head and swung his axe down. "That’s not surprising. I heard an old man died outside of town a few days ago. They said he starved to death."

The first hand waved dismissively. "These two didn’t starve. It was a woman and a young boy, probably a mother and son. I heard they were beaten to death. It looks like someone was robbing them for their food. There was a broken pot on the ground, and the woman still had blood on her head!"

As the two men talked, everyone making breakfast in the backyard overheard. Lian’er, who was tending the fire, suddenly threw down the kindling in her hands and bolted out as if she’d gone mad.

Ms. Qian shouted after her, "You wretched girl, where are you running? Have you gone mad?"

A chill ran down Gu Fei’s spine, and she ran out after her.

Just then, several of the men also reacted. They exchanged a look and headed out together.

Gu Fei followed Lian’er to the street corner. There, she saw a broken iron pot lying on the ground, its inside wiped clean.

Two bodies were lying at the base of a wall.

A woman lay on her back, a bloody hole in her forehead. The blood had long since congealed.

A boy was propped against the wall, his neck twisted to one side, his face a deathly blue.

Their bundles lay scattered on the ground, revealing a few tattered, cotton-padded jackets.

A fine yellow powder, which looked like cornmeal, was sprinkled across the flagstones.

Lian’er threw herself forward and let out a heart-rending shriek. "Mother—"

"Brother—"

Gu Fei bit her lip as tears streamed silently down her face.

’Just yesterday, they were so full of life,’ she thought. ’And today, they’ve fallen here like this.’

’They thought the cornmeal would save them. Who knew it would become their death warrant instead?’

The other men had arrived as well and were looking on in silence.

The door to a neighboring house opened, and a woman appeared in the doorway. "Do you know these people?"

"Get them out of here and bury them! It’s terrible luck to have them die here!"

No one said a word.

Lian’er lay on her mother’s body and wept for a time before crawling over to her brother. She cradled his body, shaking it relentlessly. "Xiao Song, wake up! Wake up! I’m here! I’ll take you home!"

The boy’s head lolled limply to one side, swaying with Lian’er’s movements.

The village head’s wife, Aunt Liu, had also come over. She sighed, stepped forward, and placed a hand on Lian’er’s shoulder. "My dear girl, your mother and brother are gone. There’s nothing to be done. In times like these, a human life isn’t worth much."

"We should bury them quickly, before the wild dogs get to them."