TSWPF -Chapter 84 The Villains

Days passed one by one, and Li Qingling’s worry deepened. The weather grew hotter and hotter, and the plants and trees in the mountains were slowly withering due to the lack of water.

The river, in particular, had shrunk even further. If this continued, within half a month, it would dry up completely.

If that happened, even if they had food, they would starve to death because there would be no water to cook with.

Li Qingling knew they couldn’t just sit and wait for disaster. If they continued like this, they could lose even their lives.

“We should dig a well!” After finishing her meal, Li Qingling hesitated for a moment before speaking to Liu Zhimou. “The river’s water level keeps dropping. If it continues, it’ll dry up completely. What will we do then? If we can dig a well and find spring water, that would be perfect. Then I wouldn’t have to worry about running out of water.”

Liu Zhimou also understood the severity of the situation. Once the river dried up, they would be forced to flee. If they had to escape, the chances of the family surviving safely were slim.

To survive, digging a well was absolutely necessary.

“I don’t really know how to dig a well. Do you?” Liu Zhimou looked up at Li Qingling, asking cautiously. Digging a well wasn’t easy—it depended on whether the soil was suitable.

If the conditions weren’t right, digging could cause the well to collapse, which would be extremely dangerous.

Li Qingling felt a weight in her chest when she heard Liu Zhimou. She shook her head; she didn’t know either. She hadn’t paid attention when the family had dug wells before, so she had no knowledge of it. If she acted recklessly, it could be fatal.

Was giving up the only option?

Both Li Qingling and Liu Zhimou felt heavy-hearted. They exchanged a glance and fell silent.

If they truly couldn’t dig a well, they would have no choice but to find another water source.

Without water, they would really die of thirst.

At that moment, a timid voice spoke up: “I… I can dig a well.”

The words instantly drew everyone’s attention to Dahe, making him even more nervous. Blushing and rubbing his hands together, he continued, “My father helped villagers dig wells, and I went along to watch. He also taught me how to check the soil.”

Li Qingling looked at the nervous boy and smiled. “Alright, I believe you.” She trusted that Dahe wasn’t lying. If he weren’t confident, he wouldn’t have spoken up.

Her trust lit up Dahe’s eyes. He had feared she might not believe him, but as soon as he finished speaking, she trusted him. This unintentionally boosted his confidence.

“Since Dahe knows how to handle this, let’s go find a spot now!” Liu Zhimou encouraged him with a pat on the shoulder. They had thought all hope was lost, but now hope was right in front of them. Truly, after darkness comes light!

“Okay…” Dahe nodded resolutely, then ran off to grab the hoes and tools, heading to the river with Liu Zhimou and the others.

Dahe walked around near the river before finally selecting a spot—not too close, not too far—where he said a well could be dug.

Without hesitation, Li Qingling picked up a hoe and started digging.

They dug continuously for half a month before finally hitting water. When they saw the spring water, Li Qingling’s eyes filled with tears.

Half a month—it had been incredibly grueling, both physically and mentally.

But fortunately, they hadn’t given up. If they had abandoned the effort midway, they would never have seen this water.

When Li Qingling climbed out of the well, she gave Dahe a thumbs-up and praised him. She knew the pressure on him had been immense, fearing he might misjudge the soil. Now, with the spring finally flowing, he could relax.

Dahe scratched his head and smiled foolishly, feeling a huge weight lifted off his heart. He had not let everyone down.

Together, they placed the well ring and covered the well properly. Only then was the job truly done.

Li Qingling sank to the ground, exhausted but happy. She hadn’t expected that a simple act of goodwill would bring such benefits.

Dahe, though still young, not only knew how to dig a well but also how to install the well ring, which pleasantly surprised her.

Without him, in just a few days, they might have faced the desperate situation of having no water to drink.

Her eyes turned to the dwindling river water, worried. When would the merciless, scorching weather finally bring rain? When would this drought end?

She was truly overwhelmed by the heat.

“Let’s go home,” Li Qingling said loudly, standing up. The day was unbearably hot; sitting outside for even a minute felt like being baked alive. Better to retreat to the cooler cave for relief.

Liu Zhimou grabbed a hoe and walked alongside her, followed by the three boys.

Once inside the cave, a wave of cool air hit Li Qingling, instantly easing her heat and discomfort. She was genuinely grateful to live in a cave—if it were a house, the heat would have been unbearable. The temperature must have been at least forty degrees.

Truly scorching…

“Sis…” Li Qingning waddled toward Li Qingling like a little penguin, calling out over and over.

Li Qingling responded, set down her hoe, and squatted, spreading her arms for Li Qingning to run into her embrace.

Li Qingning giggled as she jumped into Li Qingling’s arms. Li Qingling kissed her little face and asked if she had been good and listened to Sister Rou.

Truly, farm kids mature quickly. Even little Rou had to take care of the even smaller Li Qingning.

Though small, she handled caregiving quite properly.

Li Qingning wrapped her small hands around Li Qingling’s neck and nodded, stammering that she had listened to Sister Rou and Sister Xi.

Hearing this, Li Qingling patted her little head and said, “Good girl,” then praised Liu Zhirou and Xiao Xi a few more times, making both of them blush.

Li Qingning was obedient and sensible, making her care easy.

“Sister Xiaoling, you should eat. The food is ready,” Xiao Xi said softly, blushing.

Li Qingling felt grateful—Xiao Xi was a huge help. She could care for the two girls at home and cook meals so that when they returned, food or porridge was ready. It truly saved her a lot of worry.

“Thanks for your hard work.”

Xiao Xi shook her head. It was nothing—after all, Xiaoling was their savior. Without her, they would have starved. Helping out was only natural.

Li Qingling smiled and asked if they had eaten.

“Yes.” Before Xiao Xi could answer, Li Qingning nodded and patted her small belly.

Seeing this, Li Qingling kissed her several times. “Little rascal.” She placed Li Qingning back on the bed to play and went to eat her own meal.

Before she could finish, Ah Huang came rushing back. She hadn’t even called it to eat when it grabbed her pants and dragged her outside.

Her heart skipped a beat. Li Qingling quickly finished the last two bites of her meal, asking Ah Huang what was happening.

Ah Huang, anxious and unable to speak, spun in circles, nudged Li Qingling’s bow, and looked at her.

Seeing this, Li Qingling had a bad premonition.

She grabbed her bow and said, “Don’t make a sound at home. Ah Huang and I will go check what’s happening.” With that, she followed Ah Huang out.

Ah Huang led her along a secluded path, and she silently followed with her bow ready.

They stopped at a patch of thorny bushes. Ah Huang looked at her, then at the outside.

Without Ah Huang’s signal, Li Qingling had already heard voices.

Peering through the thorns, she saw a group of men in soldier uniforms sitting and talking.

“I wonder how long this battle will last? If it keeps going, we’ll either be killed or starve.”

“The prince hasn’t rebelled before, but now, right during the drought, he does. What can we do?”

“I’ve been eating porridge for so long, my mouth is numb. Wonder if there’s any game in these mountains so I can have some meat?”

“Let’s rest a bit, then go check it out!”

Li Qingling’s heart jolted. Her hands holding the bow trembled.

These were soldiers of the Southern Yan King. If they discovered her family, there would be no grave for them—they’d be killed without a trace.

She silently took a breath, gave Ah Huang a glance, and quietly retreated with him.

Once at a safe distance, Li Qingling broke into a run. If she didn’t hurry, it would be too late.

“Ah Huang, go quietly find Ah Bai and keep running deeper into the mountains. Don’t confront those villains—they have numbers and power, we can’t fight them. We’ll hide and return after they leave.”

As she ran, Li Qingling instructed Ah Huang. The tiger grunted and ran off in another direction.

She sprinted back to the cave as fast as possible. Barely catching her breath, she moved the rocks piled at the entrance to block it.

After the last encounter with the bear and leopard, they had to block the entrance with stones every night before sleeping.

Li Qingling had checked before—blocking the cave with stones made it nearly impossible to detect unless someone inspected closely.

“What happened? What’s going on?” Liu Zhimou asked, noticing Li Qingling’s anxious state, his heart sinking.

After securing the entrance, Li Qingling finally breathed a little easier. She whispered, “A group of Southern Yan King’s soldiers came to Song Mountain. We need to hide.” Hopefully, they wouldn’t be discovered.

Hearing this, Liu Zhimou’s heart sank even further.