Becoming the Villain's Discarded Wife
Chapter 516

Chapter 516: 516

Sun Cui safely gave birth to a little girl, everyone breathed a sigh of relief.

Nanzhi had requested the kitchen to prepare nourishing soup early in the morning, and only after Cheng Yue and Ma Po helped Sun Cui clean up her body, the soup was sent in.

"Sister-in-law, you’ve worked hard."

"It’s okay."

Sun Cui shook her head while Lin Ercheng warmed the soup in his hands and carefully fed it to her.

The rat plague within Yan city was no longer the primary concern.

Yet, it was March and the weather was still cold. Odd weather coupled with the already limited grain in the city was causing trouble again in Yan city.

All the stored food had run out, and the people in the city had to rely on rice porridge to get through the day.

Even in famine years, people could dig up some bark and roots to fill their stomachs.

But now, outside the city was a wasteland. The fallen trees had rotted within two short months. The soil had turned into fertile black earth, but anything planted in it yielded no results.

Chi Sheng returned to the village early while Ming Qin kept running into obstacles with her soilless planting method.

There was no nutrient solution in ancient times, so true soilless cultivation was impossible. Homemade nutrient solution needed fertile soil. The soil on Ercheng’s courtyard, previously used for herb planting, could have been used for experiments, but sustainable low temperatures made it impossible for things to improve.

Every failed seed was a waste from the already few existing reserves.

Within one and a half months, of the 230 seeds used for experiments, only 21 showed no signs of rot.

The rest of them failed due to contamination from the homemade nutrient solution.

"It’s okay, we’ve done our best."

Chi Sheng hugged the despondent Ming Qin and comforted her.

He knew his wife was an extraordinary woman.

But he didn’t want her to carry all the burdens by herself.

"There’s barely any food left in the village."

Ming Qin spoke with grief, filled with self-blame and regret.

She blamed herself for being unable to help, having to watch as everyone exhausted their resources.

She regretted not learning more in the past. Perhaps if she had, she could resolve the current crisis.

"We still have some left. If we ration it out, we can hold on for a while. Shen Wenchen sent a letter, saying that things in Kyoto have stabilized. We need to believe in them."

Chi Sheng hugged the woman in his arms tightly, fearful that she would leave again.

With the world in the state it was in, he’d rather die together as a family, than see his wife push herself to her limits for the "greater good".

The husband and wife sat in silence. Outside, Xiaoqi and Yuanbao looked at each other without speaking a word.

Not until they left the courtyard, did Yuanbao quietly ask: "Brother Xiaoqi, are we going to starve to death?"

"No, we will find a way, we will find more food, everyone will survive."

Xiaoqi looked serious, seeing Yuanbao’s despondent look, seemed to think of something.

"Yuanbao, come with me to the end of the village."

"Okay."

The two kids ran towards the end of the village, and only when they heard the sound of cracking ice and flowing water, did Xiaoqi’s face show joy.

The ice in the river had broken open!

Where there’s a river, there are fish. As long as these fish were edible, they would have food to eat!

"Yuanbao, do you know who has a fishing net? Let’s catch some fish and see if they’re edible. If they are, we won’t need to worry about food!"

"Uncle Er has one! Brother Xiaoqi, wait for me, I’ll go find it!"

"Good, take your time, I’ll wait for you here."

Xiaoqi nodded and after a short reminder, watched her run off.

Ever since the Rat Plague ravaged the village, the second landlord ordered everyone to stop drinking water from the river.

All this time, they relied on the few wells in the village for water.

The ice on the river had melted, which made it a perfect time to catch fish.

As long as they can eat the fish, they’ll be able to hang on for a few more days.

Just as he was feeling hopeful, something in the corner of his eye caught his attention—someone was slowly approaching him.

All cheerfulness vanished from Xiaoqi’s face, and instinctively, his hand reached for the dagger at his waist.

He turned around to see Zhuzi’s grandmother hunched over, watching him with a gloomy expression.

"Xiaoqi, have you seen my Zhuzi? My Zhuzi is missing..."

The old woman rambled on, growing angrier when he didn’t respond.

"My Zhuzi! You tell me! Where did my Zhuzi go!"

The old woman glared menacingly at Xiaoqi, her eyes fixated on him.

She had been mad ever since Zhuzi disappeared.

The old woman had lost her son and daughter-in-law and had brought up her grandson by herself during the years of famine.

Just when her grandson was growing up, he suddenly vanished.

The old woman searched frantically for Zhuzi in the village for five days. Initially, the villagers, unable to bear it, joined the search, but with time, their patience wore thin.

Firstly, the whole village had been searched with no clues found. Secondly, Zhuzi was always a troublemaker; even though he was young, he had done all kinds of wicked things. He wasn’t a good kid, so the villagers weren’t keen on helping anymore.

Those whose children were bullied by Zhuzi would often make snide remarks.

"This kid disappeared without a trace, perhaps he was gnawed clean by the rats!"

Every time she heard such words, the old woman would fly into a rage, and no matter how loud she shouted, no one listened anymore.

"Xiaoqi, have you seen my Zhuzi?"

The old woman advanced step by step, her murky eyes fixed on Xiaoqi, her raspy voice repeating her grandson’s name.

Xiaoqi was still young and faced with an elderly woman, he could only retreat step by step, trying to maintain a distance.

"My Zhuzi is missing, but I heard someone say that they saw you by the river that day, and later they saw you coming back from the riverside."

The old woman’s dead fish-like eyes moved slightly, and she pointed at his clothes with a trembling finger.

"And the blood on your clothes, where did it come from? Where did my Zhuzi go? Xiaoqi, do you know?"

His heart sank when she pointed out a faint stain on his clothes. He knew someone had told her about him.

The only ones left that day were him and the unconscious Erniu.

Sensing something, Xiaoqi pursed his lips, and his grasp of the dagger tightened.

"Why did you kill my Zhuzi! My lovely Zhuzi... such an obedient boy..."

As the old woman rambled on, she suddenly reached out towards him.

The edge of the river was right behind Xiaoqi, but just as he prepared to react, a silhouette appeared in the distance, causing him to pause.

Yuanbao and Yueyue, holding a fishing net, were approaching, but they saw the insane old woman pushing Xiaoqi off the riverbank.

The splash of water rose high, and the old woman, like a child who had found a treasure, burst into a fit of hysterical laughter.

"Brother Xiaoqi!"

"Brother!"

The two girls dropped their fishing net and rushed to the riverbank, but they could no longer see any movements, only a small dagger gleaming under the sunlight.

The villagers of Datian fished for a long time that day, pulling up lots of fish, but there was no sign of Xiaoqi.

The good news was that the fish were not poisonous—they were safe to eat.

The bad news was that Xiaoqi had sunk into the river, his whereabouts unknown.