Chapter Eleven: Mount Tai County

  Tie Niu found some herbs, chewed them up and applied them to the messy wound. The cool sensation made Yang Bo, who had just been shouting hoarsely, let out a moan. The numbness in his body also improved a lot. Just as he relaxed, fatigue hit him and he couldn't open his eyes again.

  Yang Bo leaned against the stone wall and fell fast asleep, snoring as soon as he lay down.

  Tie Niu tidied up the nearby debris, lit a few bonfires around the two of them, and fell asleep on the ground.

  Yang Bo, who had fallen into a deep sleep, did not know that in the fifth year of Chongzhen, the Yellow River burst its banks at Mengjin, causing countless deaths and injuries among soldiers and civilians, forcing people to flee and beg for food, with no way out but to gather and rebel. In Shandong, Kong Youde had rebelled, and the prefecture was largely devastated. Gao Yingxiang, Luo Ruzai, Zhang Xianzhong and others were plundering Shanxi, while Li Zicheng was flexing his muscles in Guanzhong. Fujian was overrun with pirates. And to top it all off, the Later Jin's slave army was still lurking, eyeing the Ming dynasty with a predatory gaze...

  The bright moonlight spilled onto the ground, and besides the occasional insect chirping, there were sometimes eerie sounds that sent shivers down his spine. Perhaps it was the memory of being pursued by a killer that left Yang Bo with psychological trauma, or perhaps it was the impression of being chased for two days that was too deeply ingrained, or maybe... he was just too close to the bonfire. Yang Bo had a terrible nightmare that night.

  A fierce-looking soldier beheaded himself with a single knife, and the bloody head was hung in front of the horse's head, still grinning at his own headless body.

  Yang Bo was so frightened that he let out a loud cry and opened his eyes, only to find that it had already dawned, and Tie Niu on the side was looking at him with embarrassment.

  "Tiě niú, nǐ zhè shì gàn shá ne?" Yáng Bō sat on the ground panting heavily for a few mouthfuls before calming down. He reached out to touch his forehead, good, no fever.

  "I wanted to put some soft wild grass under big brother's head, so he wouldn't hit the stone and sleep badly. But unexpectedly, I startled big brother..." Tie Niu, who was moving Yang Bo's head, smiled somewhat awkwardly.

  "Uh..." Yang Bo was speechless.

  Tie Niu had already roasted the food, Yang Bo found a small grass stick and carefully picked at his swollen gums for over a dozen times, then went to the edge of the water pool to rinse his mouth carefully, only then did he feel much more comfortable.

  Recalling the infatuation of those people online with time-travel, Yang Bo couldn't help but laugh bitterly. If he had a choice, he would rather return to his own carefree life as a small office worker in his later years and leave this pitiful opportunity for time-travel to others, if they could adapt to the pain of not brushing their teeth for an extended period.

  The two of them had a hearty meal again and prepared some dry rations to bring along. With their bellies full, they felt invigorated, and the towering mountain that seemed so distant at first didn't seem as lofty anymore.

  After two days of arduous trekking, Yang Bo and Tie Niu finally stood on the summit of this mountain. Although they had prepared early, the difficulty of obtaining food in the mountains was much greater. The two men were so hungry that they could only eat one meal a day, but they finally crossed the towering peak that blocked their path.

  The strong wind on the mountain top blew Yang Bo's tattered hemp clothes, making a rustling sound. He supported his left hand in front of his eyes and gazed into the distance.

  On the low hills opposite, several thatched cottages were scattered and hidden in the vegetation, which excited the two people who had not seen any signs of human habitation for a long time.

  "Big brother, where is that?" Tie Niu asked curiously. Yang Bo shook his head, and compared to Tie Niu, he was even more unclear about the direction.

  "We can go there to beg for some food," said Tie Niu excitedly, pointing at the thatched cottage.

  Yang Bo furrowed his brow and said: "Let's go take a look at the situation first"

  The road down the mountain was even more difficult to walk, and it took another day for the two of them to finally arrive near these thatched cottages. Yang Bo restrained Tie Niu's impulsive behavior, and the two of them crouched in a clump of grass, observing the cottage in front of them. It seemed as though the owner was not at home; the gate made of woven branches was slightly ajar, and several pieces of clothing were hung out to dry on the outer earthen wall. From far away, the dogs locked outside in their kennel caught wind of the scent of strangers and began to growl softly in Yang Bo's direction.

  "These people are also very poor" Yang Bo muttered to himself, he didn't want to get in touch with these people. In a chaotic world where life was not guaranteed, being cautious wouldn't hurt, but those few pieces of clothing made him hesitate.

  A dog suddenly squeezed out of the narrow gap in the door, baring its teeth and growling at Yang Bo. Immediately after, two more dogs broke free!

  "I'll go distract the dog, you sneak over and grab those clothes" Yang Bo pointed to the back "We'll meet up there"

  Tie Niu turned his head and looked, the place Yang Bo said was already past these few houses, he couldn't help but feel a little strange: "Aren't we going to the village to ask for some food?"

  Yang Bo hesitated for a moment and then shook his head: "We've been on the road all this time, and we're not short of food. At least it's better than eating mice. Look at these dilapidated houses, they may not be willing to provide assistance either. Why bother to stir up trouble?"

  Tie Niu nodded, Yang Bo took a deep breath, tightened his belt and rushed towards the few dogs, starting to provoke them from afar.

  After a while, Yang Bo's miserable cry echoed in this quiet mountain...

  Mountain villagers raise dogs mainly for guarding and hunting, what good can Yang Bo get from provoking those fierce animals? Tie Niu held two clean clothes, staring blankly at Yang Bo who was flustered like a rabbit, while occasionally squatting down to grab a clod of earth to scare away the vicious dog that closely followed his buttocks.

  It seems to have no effect, those dogs simply ignore Yang Bo's threat, they bare their teeth and stare at Yang Bo's neck, ready to pounce on the prey at any time!

  Fortunately, Yang Bo seized the advantage of distance. Seeing that intimidation was ineffective, he quickly turned around and continued to run wildly. One man and three dogs ran in circles, getting farther and farther away, soon disappearing from Tie Niu's line of sight...

  It wasn't until halfway through the day that a lone figure finally appeared before Tie Niu, Yang Bo panted and ran into the grass hut, collapsing to the ground unable to get up.

  "I ran and ran... for over eighty laps, fortunately only the elderly, women and children were at home" Yang Bo said with a sad face "Cough cough, almost got bitten!"

  Seeing the clean clothes on Tie Niu's shoulders, Yang Bo suddenly became happy "How about it, Tie Niu? Can your brother run fast or not? Originally in school at that time... uh, past glories are already looked down upon, won't say it anymore."

  "What's the use of brother taking these few clothes on an adventure, is it worth it?" Tie Niu touched the clothes that still had some steam and asked, these clothes were patched up, but they were relatively clean.

  "Of course it's worth it!" Yang Bo said as he was dressing, "A man relies on his clothes and a horse relies on its saddle... Most importantly, there are no detestable lice in these clothes!"

  Tie Niu chuckled and said, "What's the big deal if there are a few lice in his clothes? This Yang family brother is indeed spoiled."

  Yang Bo rested for a moment, got up and patted Tie Niu "Let's go, we'll follow this small road, by tomorrow morning we can find a place with more people, then we'll ask where we are."

  Tianshan County

  At the entrance of this short earthen city gate, Yang Bo saw a broken and mottled sign hanging above, relying on his vague impression of Cuiping Mountain pears, Yang Bo half-guessed and half-blindedly identified these few words.

  The local accent is a bit soft, and they asked several people along the way, but they didn't understand the local dialect. The later Dangshan County was located in the northernmost part of Anhui Province, at the intersection of seven counties in four provinces: Jiangsu, Shandong, Henan, and Anhui. However, after the 14th year of the Hongwu reign of the Ming dynasty, Dangshan County belonged to the Xu State Directly Controlled Prefecture of the Six Ministries.

  "We've reached the border of Jiangsu!" Yang Bo said excitedly to Tie Niu. The river network is dense on this side of Jiangsu, and compared to the north, it's a relatively affluent area. Hearing that it's relatively wealthy here, Tie Niu also nodded excitedly "At least, we have a way out now, right?"

  The entrance was bustling like a market, Tie Niu was curiously looking at the large crowd of people surrounding the city gate. Dangshan County had been very lively for several days, and three days ago, a large number of refugees arrived here in batches. Now, there were countless soldiers holding long guns and waist knives driving away the refugees who gathered together at the city gate.

  Tie Niu's heart sank, and Yang Ge didn't say anything wrong. The officials here indeed refused to accept these starving people who came from other provinces!

  The empty space in front of the city gate was filled with a sea of dark heads, numbering several thousand people. This was still just the ones who had been walking ahead on the escape route; it could be imagined that more and more refugees would continue to arrive in an endless stream.