Chapter 17: One Must Always Pay the Price for Wrong Decisions

“Yesterday, Fifth Brother was doing fine…”

Zhao Yue’e had always been close to Aunt Zhang and cared deeply for the children.

Upon hearing how dire the situation was, her eyes immediately reddened. She hurried out of bed to support the sobbing Aunt Zhang.

Aunt Zhang wept bitterly, but upon seeing Zhao Yue’e and Cao’er’s exposed legs, she hastily stifled her cries.

In disbelief, she said, “You all…”

“That salt… we didn’t even get to use it,” Zhao Yue’e lowered her head, her voice faint and trembling like a whisper.

Cao’er, innocent and confused, asked, “Mother, didn’t you say we could use it after cleaning Father’s wound?”

“Yes, Yue’e, that’s salt, it can’t be wasted,” Aunt Zhang’s voice quivered.

Zhao Yue’e bowed her head even lower.

“Yue’e, it’s okay even if the wound’s been cleaned, just give me a little!”

“We adults aren’t the problem; I’m just afraid the children won’t last…”

Mentioning Fifth Brother, Aunt Zhang, usually so strong and fierce, broke down and wept uncontrollably.

Zhao Yue’e didn’t look at Su Yanwen.

Clenching her back teeth tightly, she choked out, “I’m sorry... I accidentally knocked over the bowl…”

Su Yanwen’s heart felt as if it had been struck hard.

At a time like this, Zhao Yue’e still thought to protect him.

If anyone knew he had carelessly discarded something so precious, they would surely despise him.

This had nothing to do with poverty or wealth; it was sheer wastefulness, a sin against heaven.

Aunt Zhang stood there dumbfounded, as if her soul had been sucked out.

“Spilled… spilled it…”

After a long silence, she finally found her voice.

Stubbornly wiping her tears, she sniffled, “This is fate!”

“The fate of us poor folk.”

Her body swayed; had Zhao Yue’e not caught her in time, she would have collapsed.

After a pause, her gaze fell on the legs of Zhao Yue and Cao’er, and she forced a bitter smile.

“Yue’e, where did it spill?”

“Dig up the mud and boil it; maybe it can still be salvaged.”

“After all, you and Cao’er won’t last much longer!”

Zhao Yue’e wiped the corner of her eye with her sleeve.

She had done so immediately.

There was no other choice.

The salt was already scarce; once diluted with water and absorbed by the mud...

The room was filled with despair.

“All right... I... I understand…”

Aunt Zhang’s body shook; stubbornly, she let go of Zhao Yue’e’s hand and turned to walk into the wind and snow.

Her unsteady figure slowly vanished.

“Daddy.”

Cao’er whispered softly, “Brother Huzi… is he going to die?”

Hearing the word “die” from the mouth of three-year-old Cao’er, Su Yanwen felt a surge of panic.

Cao’er did not cry but spoke calmly, “If someone dies, they won’t hurt anymore, right?”

Su Yanwen opened his mouth but found no words.

His worldly emotional intelligence seemed useless when comforting a child in the midst of famine.

“But… but…” Cao’er tried to comfort herself, yet her voice began to tremble.

Suddenly, the long-suppressed emotions burst out.

With a wail, she cried, “From now on, when I get beaten, Brother Huzi won’t be able to protect me anymore…”

Cao’er’s sobs tore at the heart.

Tears welled in Zhao Yue’e’s eyes too, but she remained silent, quietly continuing to prepare the fish.

Human tragedies unfold every day.

They were just the next ones.

Guilt surged overwhelming in Su Yanwen’s heart.

At that moment, he even wished Zhao Yue’e would say something, anything—even scolding him would be better than this silence.

“I’ll go find some salt.”

Su Yanwen said and started toward Miao Qin’s place.

“There’s no salt left. Before you caught any rabbits, Mother’s leg had already swollen, and she asked me to rub it,” Zhao Yue’e’s voice was emotionless, as if accepting the fact that there was no salt.

Cao’er sobbed convulsively.

No matter how strong, she was only three years old.

The only place in the village with salt now was probably the village chief’s house.

Ever since the last incident, Zeng Tianba had made it clear he would kill Su Yanwen one day.

Using the same methods would no longer have the same impact.

Moreover, the village chief’s household had many people; Su Yanwen, unarmed, could defeat two or three men, but how could he face twenty or thirty?

He sat on a bench, quickly calming himself and organizing his thoughts.

Their village was called Wenlun.

It wasn’t even marked on the map of Daqing.

Even the main road only led to the town.

To reach Wenlun, one had to cross a mountain and then walk a long narrow path to the village entrance.

Why would that person pass through such a remote village?

He had asked Cao’er what was on that mule.

Cao’er recalled carefully—two large sacks, both filled with salt.

Wenlun was the last village; beyond it was uninhabited land, and further still was Oyrokhgui—an off-limits place.

Even locals dared not go there; what could an outsider be doing there?

There was only one possibility.

There was salt inside the mountain.

“Mother, I’ll rub your leg too.”

Cao’er, exhausted from crying but sensible, used the dark water to rub Zhao Yue’e’s leg.

Su Yanwen looked at his wife and daughter—once a blooming beauty and a rosy-cheeked child—now swollen and monstrous for lack of salt.

Could it become so deformed as to threaten their lives?

And Huzi.

That child had protected Cao’er; could they just watch him die?

That night was unbearably hard.

He feared at every moment that Huzi would stop breathing.

Even more, that Cao’er and Zhao Yue’e would suddenly collapse.

Finally, dawn broke.

Su Yanwen fell silent, grabbed his hunting knife, and prepared to leave.

“Daddy, where are you going?”

Cao’er asked anxiously.

Su Yanwen didn’t dare look at them, overwhelmed with shame.

He hung his head and stepped outside.

“Daddy, Daddy!”

Cao’er’s voice followed him.

He hurriedly stopped and looked back.

Cao’er stumbled forward, clutching a worn quilt.

“Daddy, here.”

She struggled to lift the quilt, a happy smile on her face.

“Mother said it’s cold at night.”

Warmth blossomed in Su Yanwen’s heart.

In that icebox of a home, they had only this threadbare quilt; without it, the house would be even colder.

“No, I can’t take it,” Su Yanwen refused.

“Mother said you must have it,” Cao’er’s bright eyes were resolute.

If Su Yanwen refused, they would remain at an impasse.

He was at a loss, not knowing if he would return from this journey.

He draped the quilt over Cao’er’s small frame.

With a helpless smile, he said, “Put it on me when I get back.”

“While I’m gone, protect your mother.”

Why did Daddy feel so warm?

Cao’er had never experienced such a moment; she stood frozen, unsure how to reply.

By the time she came to her senses, Su Yanwen had already gone far.

“Don’t worry, Daddy. I will protect Mother.”

Su Yanwen pressed on.

He only hoped this time he wouldn’t encounter wind and snow.

At the village entrance, he could barely make out a narrow path worn by footsteps.

Following it forward, signs of human activity grew fainter.

Further in, only white snow stretched endlessly.

Even if there had been traces, the snow had long since covered them.

Fortunately, his profession had trained him in tracking.

Even when footprints were covered by snow, the places people walked left subtle clues.

He moved forward, interpreting these faint signs to guess the path the person might have taken.

The world around was bleak; thick snowflakes fell relentlessly.

Su Yanwen trudged alone along the snowy trail, his body numb from cold, his consciousness gradually fading.

He lost track of time—night turned to day, day to night.

The person’s tracks vanished completely.

He was left wandering aimlessly in the snow.

His only rational thought was to avoid climbing the mountain, sticking to the plains as much as possible.

The deeper he went, the stranger it became.

At first, there were signs of animal activity; later, not even animals, nor plants, could be seen.

Only bare emptiness and snow remained.

Hungry, he bit into a roasted fish filled with icy bits; thirsty, he scooped snow to melt in his mouth.

He had brought three roasted fish; after swallowing the tail of the last one, he had no food left.

After an unknown time wandering in the whiteness, he suddenly glimpsed something different.

Ahead lay the seaside mudflats.

Blazing sunlight poured down, and sparkling sea salt spread neatly across the sand.

The salty scent seemed to drift on the sea breeze.

This dreamlike scene stirred Su Yanwen’s heart, filling his legs with inexhaustible strength as he dashed wildly toward the shore.

Salt.

Ha ha.

Salvation.

Snowflakes slapped his face, turning into icy droplets.

His foot slipped, and he crashed heavily into the snow.

Looking up again, there was no beach.

It had all been a hallucination.

Before him was still a vast expanse of white.

“Heh…”

Su Yanwen let out a bitter laugh and beat the ground in despair, burying his face deep in the snow.

His face stung.

His cracked lips burned painfully.

He quickly sat up; snow slid across his lips.

Something… felt off.

Compelled by some strange impulse, Su Yanwen stuck out his tongue and licked…