From Hoarding to Time-Travel: My Supplies Saved Him

Guo Yurong looked at the dozens of acres of mountainside by the water. He suddenly leaped into the air, landing atop the highest branch of a tree to gaze into the distance.

When he landed back on the ground, he asked, "How many refugees are there outside the city now?"

Ancient Wen Heng shook his head. "When we first arrived, counting those who were already here and those who came after, there were probably close to ten thousand. Two days have passed since then, so who knows how many more have arrived?"

"Has it already gotten that difficult?"

Jin Qianqian said, "If it weren’t difficult, why would anyone flee their homes?"

Guo Yurong realized Miss Gu had misunderstood him and quickly bowed with his hands clasped. "Please forgive me. I’ve been here for a very long time and truly don’t know what the situation is like outside.

"You see, there is water and land here. If you don’t mind, you can bring your families here to settle temporarily. Then, once you find a better place, you can move on."

Jin Qianqian asked, "Have you already bought this land?"

Guo Yurong shook his head. "This place is deep in an old forest, after all. It’s not suitable for long-term living. Here in the deep mountains, besides the wild grass and trees, there are also wild beasts.

"I placed some Beast Repellent Medicine nearby for my own convenience, but its effects won’t last forever. Eventually, the beasts will return to drink from the water here.

"Ordinary people wouldn’t necessarily be able to fend them off."

Jin Qianqian and Ancient Wen Heng immediately thought of the pack of wolves and wild dogs that had come down from the mountain earlier. ’Could it be that they came down to cause trouble for others because their territory here was occupied?’

Ancient Wen Heng asked, "Brother Guo, was there a wolf pack in these mountains before?"

Guo Yurong thought for a moment. "I’ve heard wolves howling before, but I’ve never actually encountered them here. Why? Did you run into them?"

Ancient Wen Heng was speechless. "..."

Guo Yurong clearly had something on his mind and was in no mood to listen to such trivial matters. "Brother Gu, I have some things to attend to right now. If you don’t mind the risks, bring your families here to get through this difficult period. We’ll meet again."

Without giving the couple a chance to respond, he performed a few leaps and vanished from their sight.

"TSK, TSK. With Qinggong like that, who needs bicycles or cars? I’m so jealous!" Jin Qianqian’s eyes were filled with envy. She even tried to imitate him, hopping forward twice, but she barely managed to get a few inches off the ground each time. The sight made Ancient Wen Heng laugh in exasperation.

"You have bicycles and cars, so what do you need Qinggong for? To waste your energy? Or just to look cool?"

"Ancient Wen Heng, do you smell something really sour? Don’t tell me your jealousy is about to turn this entire lake into vinegar. That would be impossible to drink."

"Do you want to see if the lake has turned to vinegar?" Ancient Wen Heng walked over, bent down, and scooped up a handful of water. He went to offer it to Jin Qianqian’s lips, but she dodged him and ran off.

After fooling around for a while, they looked up at the wooden cabin on the cliff as dusk fell. They both sighed in unison, "Building a house that high... how are we supposed to get up there? Is he trying to mess with us?"

＆

The refugees from Bainiao at the city gate were on the verge of despair. They had spent the entire day searching for water but had come up with nothing.

Even the miracle that had previously appeared just in time to save everyone had now vanished without a trace.

"It’s all their fault. If those two hadn’t revealed a divine secret, why would the immortal have stopped giving us water?" Liang Mugen gnawed on a grass root he had dug up, trying to suck out any remaining moisture.

"That’s probably it. The immortal must have sensed their intentions back then, right? That’s why he took everything back and has now abandoned us." Gu Kaishan also pulled a grass root from his robes. "Now we’re all stuck chewing on these just to quench our thirst. When will this misery ever end?"

"You should be grateful we can even find grass roots to chew on here." Gu Daping leaned against an earthen slope, also gnawing on a root. "Think about the last few days on the road. We couldn’t even find roots like this back then."

"I’m telling you, Gu Daping, this isn’t the time to talk about that! Shouldn’t we be talking about those two who leaked the secret?" Liang Mugen was desperate to find water; otherwise, he couldn’t get medicine for Liang Xiaojun’s wound.

"And what good would talking about them do? Are we going to grab them and beat them up? Or force them to bring the miracle back?" Gu Daping spat out the dry, chewed-up root. "Don’t forget, the officials from the Prefecture City might still be watching us. Don’t cause trouble for everyone right now."

"Listen to you, with your whole routine," Gu Kaishan said, sticking a fresh root in his mouth. "We got sick of hearing all that from the village chief, and now you’re starting in with it."

Gu Daping didn’t want to engage with them, but he was afraid they’d stir up trouble. "You two better behave. If you really cause a scene, just look at the situation those two families are in now. No one is feeling merciful these days."

Although no one had openly berated or attacked He Tuliang and Lan Tian, it was as if everyone had reached a silent agreement. For the entire day, no one spoke to them. People even avoided them when they approached, determined to give them the cold shoulder.

Lan Tian’s family was doing slightly better, as most people didn’t know them well to begin with. He Tuliang’s family, however, was in a miserable state. Not only were their fellow villagers ostracizing them, but even their own relatives and friends were keeping their distance.

"But how are we supposed to survive these days without water?" Gu Kaishan held out his chapped hands. "Even though there are roots here, they’re hard to dig up. I’ve been at it for so long, and it’s barely enough to keep myself from dying of thirst."

"Sigh..."

"Sigh..."

Seeing the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law from the Lan Family approaching her again, Li Cuicui rolled her eyes and went back to sorting the grass roots she had spent all day digging up. ’The women from every other family are busy with this,’ she thought. ’I don’t know how these two have so much free time.’

"Um, Aunt Li," Liu Xiaoli said with a fawning smile. "Busy?"

"Isn’t it obvious? If I weren’t busy, would I just be sitting around?"

"You see, we’re practically in-laws, in a way. And who knows, once my sister-in-law and your son get back, we might really become one family." Liu Xiaoli licked her dry lips. "My family has reached a critical point. I was wondering if you could help us out and give us some water."

She had spent most of the day working alone outside. Not only had she been ostracized by everyone, but she had also only managed to gather a few roots. At this point, they couldn’t afford to worry about saving face; they just wanted to get whatever they could.

"Water? Who has any of that stuff now?" Li Cuicui looked at them mockingly. "Can’t you see my husband and I are chewing on grass roots? This is what I worked hard for all day, and it has to last us the whole day. You’d better go ask someone else."

"Then... could you give us some grass roots?" Liu Xiaoli asked, forcing a smile as she pointed at the roots in front of Li Cuicui.