Just as the square-faced man's hand was about to grab Qin Junyao, a hand struck it away.
It was Hou Jing.
Hou Jing then patted Qin Junyao, jolting her into action. She turned and ran with the flow of people, quickly stowing her basket into her spatial dimension as she fled.
The people on the road were like madmen, rushing forward to find water. No one noticed the basket that had suddenly disappeared, except for Axe, who was watching her intently.
The square-faced man, seeing he had failed, did not give up. He engaged the Hou brothers, while others were sent to pursue Qin Junyao and the Hou family's donkey cart, intending to steal their food and children.
The Qin family, unaware they were being pursued, ran forward rapidly under the urging of Grandma Qin.
As Qin Junyao ran, the surrounding sounds seemed to fade. Her breathing grew ragged, and the hot wind on her face and the stinging in her trachea were stark reminders of her exhaustion.
Her pursuers were getting closer. She needed to reach the donkey cart or the Qin family ahead to be safe.
"Sister, faster!" Axe, standing on the donkey cart, shouted continuously. The crowd surged forward, and the people and carts in the procession couldn't slow down or stop, forced to run along with the flow.
"Run faster!" The Hou aunts and mothers, running around the donkey cart to protect the children on it, also turned back to urge Qin Junyao on.
Run, Qin Junyao wanted to run faster.
But the lure of the water was immense. The crowd's pace quickened, and her pursuers drew nearer, making her legs feel unresponsive.
Her head felt as if kicked by a donkey, her legs heavy as if filled with lead, and her trachea burned as if seared by a branding iron, all screaming within her:
Give up, perhaps you can return to modern times if you give up.
Give up, this is the ancient era, you won't survive long here with no survival skills.
Give up...
Thump!
An old man holding a little girl ahead suddenly collapsed. The people behind, unable to go around, stepped on his back, one after another.
The girl beneath cried out for her grandfather, while the grandfather above shielded his granddaughter with his arms, protecting her from being trampled.
This scene jolted Qin Junyao, reminding her of her grandfather's dying words.
'Yao Yao, Grandpa is gone, you must live well, live happily. Remember the greatest sin in this world is to give up on your own life.'
'It's alright if you don't have parents. Grandpa won't reincarnate, Grandpa will watch over you. Our Yao Yao is loved and cherished by someone.'
'Yao Yao, always look forward.'
Grandpa.
Grandpa is watching me.
"Grandpa!"
Qin Junyao's eyes widened, and with a mighty shout and a surge of strength, she pushed past her physical limits, rapidly catching up to the donkey cart and being pulled alongside by Aunt Hou San.
"Uncle Hou San, the people behind are trying to hijack the cart," Qin Junyao informed Hou Neng, who was leading the donkey, as soon as she reached the cart.
The Hou family's four brothers, from oldest to youngest, were named Jing, Ming, Neng, and Gan.
Following Qin Junyao's direction, Hou Neng saw the pursuers.
Seeing that most of the Hou family was surrounding the cart, the man instructed his three companions to circle the donkey cart.
Panting heavily, Old Man Hou shouted to Hou Neng, "Third son, pull over to the side and let Xingwang and his brothers catch up. The hoes are all on his cart."
"Understood, Father," Hou Neng pulled the donkey cart as far to the side of the road as possible, no longer speeding up, waiting for his nephews to catch up.
Qin Junyao, running alongside the donkey cart, felt unwell. The original host was not someone who engaged in manual labor, and now with bleeding, injuries, and starvation, her body was truly weak.
Fortunately, after a short run, they reached a densely populated area. The carts, horses, and people on the road changed direction and surged towards the gathering ahead.
Qin Junyao could see and hear people fighting and shouting, but she saw no water.
Before she could look further, the four pursuers attacked the Hou family's donkey cart.
"You brats, get your weapons and beat them, Grandpa!"
At Old Man Hou's command, his grandsons and Hou Neng threw aside the straw curtain on the cart, drew out hoes and pickaxes, and charged at the four men.
The Hou women were also not idle. They gathered the younger children in the center, holding kitchen knives and glaring fiercely at those around who might try to take advantage of the chaos.
Axe, the little one, climbed to the highest point of the donkey cart, shouting the names of the Hou family members and directing the fight. Qin Junyao stared blankly at the chaotic scene and at Axe, who had memorized the Hou family's names in such a short time.
At the water source in the distance, a large crowd was fighting. Nearby, a small group was fighting. Dust flew, and objects were thrown. Qin Junyao could only describe the scene as spectacular.
Less than twenty-four hours after transmigrating, Qin Junyao had experienced more than she had in her twenty-plus years in modern times.
Qin Junyao didn't know how long this chaos lasted, but during this time, she became good friends with the Hou family's donkey, thanks to the grass in her spatial dimension.
The six men who tried to hijack the donkey cart were all beaten down by the Hou family, their heads bleeding.
Hou Jing and Hou Ming, the two brothers, chased after the square-faced man from behind and became the main force in the fight. He was now leading his nephews in searching the toppled men's baskets.
At this point, the area around the water source had also quieted down. Many people lay on the ground, too tired to get up, some crying for their relatives, others rummaging for useful items.
"Junyao, where's my basket? Eldest son and Da Niu, go find the carrying poles. Eldest son's and second son's wives, take Er Niu and San Niu to see if they can pick up anything useful."
"Where are Third son and Xiao Yu?" Grandma Qin, carrying a basin and with her second son's face covered in blood, returned and began assigning tasks to her family, regardless of whether they had the strength.
When Qin Junyao heard Grandma Qin's voice, she hid behind the donkey and secretly retrieved the basket from her spatial dimension, ensuring its contents were intact.
"Grandma, the basket is here. I also haven't seen Third Uncle and Xiao Yu."
"Where are those two hiding again? Did you lose anything?" Grandma Qin glanced at the basket.
"No," Qin Junyao shook her head.
"That's good then. There's a handkerchief in the basket, take it out and let your second uncle wipe his face. Oh, I'm so tired," said Grandma Qin as she carried the basin of muddy water towards the donkey cart.
The Hou women were using cloth to roughly filter the muddy water brought back in a bucket by Hou Gan. Grandma Qin intended to use their cloth.
Qin Sen and Qin Xiaoyu, who were asked about, slowly caught up from behind. When the crowd started to run, they had slipped into a roadside ditch and had been walking in it ever since.
Qin Junyao looked at the surrounding scene and the helplessness of the Qin and Hou families, and a wave of exhaustion washed over her. She took out a dusty handkerchief from the basket, poured some water, and prepared to wipe the blood from Qin Lin's face.
"I'll do it myself. It's not my blood," Qin Lin took the handkerchief from his niece's hand and rubbed it haphazardly on his face. The hand that had grabbed water with excessive force trembled slightly.
Qin Junyao noticed that Qin Lin had blood not only on his face but also on his clothes and hands.
Just as she was about to offer him some water, Qin Lin suddenly lunged, raising his fist and charging towards her side.
It turned out a man had noticed the water jar in Qin Junyao's hand and, with wicked intent, had tried to snatch it from behind her.