The Cheng Family's house was in the eastern corner of the village, near the foot of the mountain.
Because the Cheng Family lived in a standalone house, they had some dealings with the other villagers, but they weren't particularly close.
The number of families they were truly friendly with could be counted on one hand.
He went inside and shut the door, with no intention of giving anything to Li Yongkun.
"Big Brother!"
A sweet, childish voice called out from the main hall, and then a little figure came toddling out.
Hearing his little sister's voice, the corners of Cheng Zongyang's mouth turned up in a smile. "It's me."
"What happened to you?" Cheng Zongyang asked as he walked inside, staring at his second younger brother, who was also emerging from the room, his hair looking like a bird's nest.
Cheng Zongliang complained, on the verge of tears, "It was Little Sister! She insisted on tying my hair. If I said no, she'd start crying and threaten to tell Dad. And this is the result."
Hearing this, Cheng Zongyang looked down at the little girl beside him, who immediately began to argue defensively:
"Big Brother, he wasn't studying, so I just made him play with me."
At this, Cheng Zongyang chuckled.
"Alright, Little Sister was just bored. And it's your own fault for not liking to study. If you had just learned the things I wrote down for you, this wouldn't have happened. Where are Dad and Mom?"
As he spoke, Cheng Zongyang set down the things he was carrying at the kitchen entrance.
Cheng Zongliang closed the main door, while the little girl beside Cheng Zongyang rushed to answer:
"Dad and Mom were called away by the village chief. Uncle Kun came by just now, but since they weren't home, he left."
Cheng Zongyang's brow furrowed. He turned to his second younger brother, who was staring intently at the back basket.
"I saw him. Did he say what it was about?"
Cheng Zongliang, who hadn't yet had time to lift the basket's cover, immediately turned his head. He thought for a moment before saying uncertainly:
"Something about forming a team, I think. I didn't hear the details. He just mentioned it and left."
Cheng Zongyang nodded slightly.
"AH—!"
Suddenly, the little girl's shriek rang out, snapping her two brothers to attention. They both spun around to look.
"Snake! Snake! WAHHH…"
The terrified little girl stumbled backward, then turned and ran behind Cheng Zongyang, burying her little face in his clothes, on the verge of tears.
Hearing this, Cheng Zongyang let out a sigh of relief. 'So she got curious and peeked into the back basket.'
Cheng Zongliang, however, looked over in surprise.
He saw that inside the back basket, thoroughly concealed by leaves, was a whole basketful of dead snakes—and the gunnysack was full of them too! On top of the snake carcasses in the basket, there were also quite a few round eggs.
"Whoa, Big Brother, how did you do it? You got so many snakes and eggs!"
In his eyes, this was all meat. So many snakes—it was an incredible amount!
Cheng Zongyang didn't answer his question, instead saying:
"I'm going to the County Town in a bit to sell the snakes. Otherwise, they'll go bad by tomorrow in this weather. As for the wild pheasant and eggs, wait for Mom to get back and let her handle them. You can wash these blueberries and share some with Little Sister. They're very sour, so don't eat too many."
Cheng Zongliang nodded, took the items from his big brother, and headed for the well.
When the little girl heard there was food, she wasn't scared anymore. With teary eyes, she peeked over. Seeing her second brother run off, she took off after him on her short little legs, shouting as she went:
"Second Brother, I want some too!"
Cheng Zongyang sighed. 'How did I end up raising such a little foodie?'
"Second Brother, don't let Little Sister get near the well!"
Cheng Zongyang shouted. Not waiting any longer, he picked out seven or eight of the larger dead snakes to leave at home for them to eat, then tied up the rest to take with him.
"Bolt the door."
Cheng Zongyang called back from outside the doorway.
"Okay."
A moment later, the sound of the bolt sliding shut came from inside.
Hearing this, Cheng Zongyang shouldered his back basket, Bow and Arrow, and Firewood Knife, and left the house carrying the gunnysack.
Originally, there was only one road out of the village, leading from the east side to the west.
But later, because Cheng Zongyang often needed to go to the County Town to sell game and other mountain goods without anyone knowing the details of his business, he had cleared a small path for himself that also led directly to the county road.
He went behind the house, pushed aside a section of a thorny hedge he had planted as a child to protect his home and ward off wild beasts, then entered a patch of woods and disappeared among the trees.
Less than fifteen minutes after Cheng Zongyang left, Cheng Guanghai and Zhou Xiao'e returned, looking burdened with worry.
They were stunned when their second son told them his big brother had caught many snakes, and when they saw the large wild pheasant, thirteen wild eggs, and several nearly two-meter-long snakes in the kitchen.
A whole gunnysack and a back basket?
How many could that be?
Zhou Xiao'e, however, felt something was off. She asked suspiciously:
"Are there snake dens this big in the Outer Mountain? And this kind of pheasant is almost impossible to find, isn't it?"
Cheng Guanghai knew the truth. While inwardly stunned by the abundance of the Inner Mountain's resources, he covered for his son, saying:
"The Outer Mountain is huge; there's no way it's been picked clean. Maybe Yang'Er just got lucky."
Zhou Xiao'e didn't think much more of it, nor did she believe her son would actually go into the Inner Mountain. After all, she had heard countless times how dangerous it was.
It was said that no one who went in ever came back out.
"This is so much. We'll have to salt it, or it'll spoil."
"My son is just so capable! But he's going into the city this late at night? Aren't the city gates closed?"
Other families were short on rice and meat, but her family had more meat than they could eat today. While this made Mrs. Zhou of the Cheng Family feel wonderfully pleased, it also added to her worries. The County Town had a curfew now; the gates closed at sunset. How could he get in?
"Yang'Er knows some of the gatekeepers. He has his ways. Don't worry."
Cheng Guanghai shook his head.
But when he thought of the meeting at the village chief's house, his brow furrowed again.
Cheng Zongyang reappeared on a small mountain path, his hands now empty save for a Firewood Knife. He remained vigilant of his surroundings as he traveled.
Jade Peak County was under the jurisdiction of Qianye Prefecture, which belonged to Xiangyang Prefecture.
Cheng Zongyang didn't know its exact area, only that you couldn't explore the entire County Town in a single day.
This wasn't his first trip to the County Town; he had been there early in the morning and late at night.
If he couldn't make it back before the County Town gates closed, he would stay the night at his second uncle's medical clinic and leave the next day.
Soon, he reached the main road, where he encountered some groups of people heading home in the opposite direction, carrying shoulder poles or pushing wheelbarrows. He kept his distance from them to avoid any misunderstandings.
Following the familiar route for an hour, he arrived, travel-worn but safe, near the West Gate of Jade Peak County Town.
He had originally thought about selling his goods at the black market, but considering the quantity, he gave up the idea. Although he had his strength and his Firewood Knife, city folk were a different breed from the villagers who were just struggling for their next meal. Without any martial arts skills, he was afraid he would be targeted.
He could go to the black market, but he rarely did. The main reason was the danger.
So, his only option was to try the Celestial Fragrance Tower, where he usually sold his mountain goods and game.
The main gate of the County Town was already closed. Outside, Cheng Zongyang took out three bags, then knocked a specific rhythm on the gate. Soon, a crack opened in the gate, and Cheng Zongyang entered with his things.
"Kid, what are you doing here at this hour?" one of the two slender young guards asked cautiously.
Cheng Zongyang immediately handed over one of the bags he had prepared, which contained about twenty jin of snake carcasses. He smiled and said, "I had no choice. If I don't take care of this overnight, I won't get a good price tomorrow. This is for you two to share. Get some good nourishment."
One of them took the bag, opened it, and peered inside by the faint torchlight, looking quite surprised. Then he tested its weight, and both guards broke into a knowing smile.
"Good stuff. You've really got skills."
"Alright, hurry along now. While no one's around."
"Many thanks." Cheng Zongyang clasped his fist with a smile, then quickly left with the other two covered bags.
This wasn't the first time he had dealt with them. If you wanted to get things done easily in the County Town, you naturally had to make some connections.
If it weren't for the martial might of the Da Liang Court and the Noble Families, based on the situation these past two years, he would have written the dynasty off as doomed. But unfortunately, these two absolute beneficiaries of the system held it together with their vast Martial Arts Power, making a collapse difficult.
An entire prefecture had been in a great drought for two years. Not only were the officials doing nothing, but taxes had increased instead of being reduced. Countless refugees were on the move, and there was no intention of providing any aid.
Even the crucial corvée labor could be dodged by paying money for an exemption, and all sorts of policies were designed to extract silver coins from the common people.
No matter how you looked at it, these were all signs of a chaotic era to come.
But none of that mattered to him. If a problem could be solved with money, all the better.
Corvée labor could get you killed. Anything that could be solved with money was not a real problem.
As for the drought, although the main water source for the village's fertile fields had dried up, at least they still had some well water and could live off the mountain.
Coupled with the savings he had given the family over the past few years, their life was at least decent compared to other families.
Now that he had the Wilderness World, he could provide an even better life for his family.
Even if true chaos were to erupt, he wasn't worried.
'The number of beggars in Jade Peak County seems to have increased a lot.'
Arriving in the County Town again after five days, Cheng Zongyang immediately noticed people lying in front of many shops and in street corners. They were disheveled and emaciated, their hair unkempt. Although there was a curfew, it wasn't strictly enforced; a few people were still hurrying along the roads. The only difference was that the numerous storefronts were all shut.
'Looks like refugees or migrants have made their way here. There shouldn't be too many of them yet.'
Although he thought this, the scene still made Cheng Zongyang's heart tighten with unease.
There were few now, but it meant that more refugees were on their way!
What would that mean?
A jolt went through Cheng Zongyang. Finding a deserted corner, he stored everything except his Firewood Knife into the Wilderness World and quickened his pace.
He didn't disturb his second uncle at this hour, instead preparing to find a place to make do for the night.