Chapter 23: Sacrificing the Rook to Save the King

By this time, the villagers were exhausted, parched, and overwhelmed by the fatigue of their long trek.

"Uncle Village Chief, I really can't walk another step!" Zhao Ergou, his gait unsteady, said before collapsing against a large tree to rest.

He was not the only one; the other villagers had long since pushed themselves to their absolute limits just to reach this point. Seeing someone else take the lead in resting, the rest of the villagers followed suit, sinking to the ground.

Anticipating the climb ahead, Su Jinyu took this opportunity to pass her canteen to her family. It was filled with nutrient-rich water, and she had them each take a sip to restore their strength and spirits. The canteens Li Zhe'an had been carrying earlier that afternoon had already been emptied.

"Jinyu, how is there still so much water in your canteen? You didn't drink all afternoon; won't your throat be dry and sore?" Li Tianhe asked, his curiosity piqued and his heart aching for his niece.

Su Jinyu quickly concocted a reason. "Uncle, I drank from the canteens Big Brother was carrying this afternoon. My throat isn't parched at all, which is why there's still plenty left in mine."

She then rummaged through her bundle and produced compressed nutritional biscuits she had prepared earlier, wrapped in yellow paper, and distributed them to her family.

"When I was in town buying grain, I passed a small stall. The vendor claimed these were a local specialty from another region. They looked interesting, so I bought some. They’re perfect for curbing our hunger now."

The nutritional biscuits from her secret space were in limitless supply. While they were quite dense and could be filling if eaten in excess, each biscuit was packed with essential nutrients, enough to sustain a person for days.

Su Jinxiao held a brownish biscuit, sniffing it cautiously. It smelled quite good. Anything his elder sister provided was always delicious, so he didn't hesitate to pop it into his mouth.

"Sister, this snack is delicious!"

The rest of the Li family each took a piece. They trusted Su Jinyu implicitly, and after tasting them, they all agreed the flavor was excellent. Once they had finished their biscuits and washed them down with the nutrient water, the hollow ache in their stomachs had largely subsided. At the very least, they would have the strength to climb the mountain.

Nearby, the members of the Su family watched with envy. Su Wangfu hadn't eaten any vegetable cakes all day and had been trudging along in hunger. Seeing Su Jinyu and her siblings eating something he had never even seen before made him green with jealousy, his mouth watering uncontrollably.

"Grandma, Mother, look! That wretch Su Jinyu is eating something good again! Grandma, go ask her for some; I want to eat too!"

Wu Cuihua was still nursing a sharp, stinging pain in her knees. She didn't dare approach Su Jinyu again, but her son kept pulling at her sleeve with all his might, his constant whining driving her to distraction.

"Eat, eat, eat! That's all you ever think about! The whole family is starving, yet you're the only one demanding food!"

Seeing her favorite brother being scolded, Su Daya felt a rare sense of satisfaction. She secretly pondered that perhaps if she let her brother keep acting like a fool, their mother and grandmother would eventually stop doting on him.

Seeing that his mother wouldn't intervene, Su Wangfu tried his usual tactic and pestered Sun, who was the one person in the family who pampered him the most.

"Grandma, your grandson is truly starving to death. I don't have an ounce of strength left; I really can't walk. If I don't get something to eat, the only grandson of the Su family is going to die of hunger."

Su Daya was weighed down with heavy bundles, yet her brother, who was a year younger, walked empty-handed. She couldn't stand his complaining and pointedly remarked, "Brother, you seem to have forgotten that Second Uncle has two sons. You aren't the only grandson of the Su family."

"Su Daya, you little bitch, do you even have the right to speak?" Su Wangfu snapped, showing no respect even to his own sister.

Pestered beyond endurance, Sun finally reached into her basket and pulled out a few remaining sweet potatoes for him. Watching her precious grandson wolf down the food while her own stomach rumbled, and comparing it to how well the Su Jinyu side was eating, she burned with rage. A sinister glint flashed in her old eyes. "Patience, my sweet boy. Grandma will make sure you get something good soon."

...

Seeing that most of the villagers had sat down and refused to rise despite his repeated urgings, Village Chief Yang was frantic. Qishan Mountain was only a short distance away, yet the villagers had decided to quit here.

His face grim, he bellowed, "Everyone, pull yourselves together! We must at least reach Qishan before we find a place to rest!"

The villagers, sprawled on the ground, groaned in misery.

"Village Chief, it's not that we don't want to walk, but our legs simply won't lift. We really can't go another step!"

"That's right, Village Chief Yang, just let us rest for a while. The barbarians might not catch up that quickly. Why don't we sleep here tonight and head out early tomorrow morning?"

Seeing their excuses becoming more and more outrageous, and with many people closing their eyes to sleep, Village Chief Yang grew desperate.

"Get up, all of you! If you don't rise, don't blame me for leaving you behind! If you stay here, you can feed the wolves in these woods yourselves!"

Village Chief Yang struck a rock with his staff, making a loud, rhythmic *thwack-thwack* sound. He began poking those who wouldn't move, forcing the drowsy villagers to scramble to their feet. Fearing that the Village Chief might actually lead the group away and leave them alone in the pitch-black wilderness, where they would be easy prey for wild beasts, the villagers reluctantly rose and reformed their ranks to head toward Qishan.

As they reached the foot of the mountain, they looked up and gasped. The peak was jagged and steep, its cliffs rising like blades into the clouds, an awe-inspiring and terrifying sight.

"Qishan is too high, too steep! I'm afraid if I get halfway up, I'll slip and fall to my death!"

"Village Chief, it's already late. Are we really going to climb this in the dark? Look at how steep it is; it's far too dangerous!"

The villagers at the front of the line complained incessantly. They were weighed down by their belongings, and many had to carry young children and the elderly on their backs. The burden was simply too great. Previously, the elderly and children could ride on the ox carts belonging to Village Chief Yang and Old Man Zhao, but the mountain path was far too rugged for the carts to navigate while carrying passengers.

Village Chief Yang was also in a bind. How could everyone manage the climb while carrying so much?

Su Jinyu had wanted to find the Village Chief earlier to discuss the excessive weight of everyone's luggage. In her view, many villagers were trying to bring every piece of junk they owned. A family only needed one pot, a few bowls, and a set of chopsticks to survive. Some were even carrying jars of pickles all the way.

The most urgent priority now was to discard the unnecessary to save their lives.