gnovel Chapter 4 White Lotus Sect
Chapter 4 White Lotus Sect
"Damn it, wasn't it supposed to mean that if the chopsticks floated up, a head would fall to the ground? This porridge is so thin you can see your reflection in it."
Liu Feng cursed and found a place to squat down. He hugged the broken bowl and gulped down the rice soup. After finishing, he smacked his lips and realized he was even hungrier!
Watching the disaster victims quietly lining up to receive rice porridge in the distance, Liu Feng couldn't help but think to himself: "The TV dramas are like operas, with disaster victims arguing with officials because the porridge is too thin, and heroes coming out to defend them... Bullshit! Anyone who dares to cause trouble will be chopped off with a knife."
He had just witnessed a migrant worker who cut in line being dragged out and beheaded on the spot. The saying "in chaotic times, severe punishments are necessary" is no exaggeration.
His stomach was growling with hunger. Liu Feng looked around and realized he had to find a way to get some food quickly, otherwise he wouldn't last more than two or three days before he starved to death.
Damn, officials in ancient times were truly despicable!
The city of Xuzhou wouldn't let disaster victims into the city, so they had no way to go into the city to find work and earn money.
Liu Feng could only try his luck at the dock, hoping to find work, but it was packed with people and he couldn't even squeeze in.
He walked back, pressing his rumbling stomach, feeling both angry and frustrated. Other people who transmigrate either have a cheat code or are born into a royal family and live a comfortable and carefree life. How come he can't even get a full meal?
He didn't have many skills; besides catching fish, he only knew how to kill people... He really didn't want to go down that path unless he was completely desperate.
As I was walking, I suddenly heard someone shout, "A Bodhisattva is distributing herbs and talismanic water to cure illnesses!"
Liu Feng hesitated for a moment, then squeezed through the crowd.
It was the transition from summer to autumn, a time when mosquitoes were plentiful and people were highly susceptible to disease. If medicine were available, drinking a bowl of it would not only prevent illness and disaster but also provide sustenance, which was better than going hungry.
Wow, sure enough, there are people treating the disaster victims, giving them herbs and talisman water. There are quite a few people, some dressed as itinerant doctors, others as fortune tellers and Taoist priests. What kind people they are!
Liu Feng pushed his way forward with the crowd and gradually heard the sounds coming from within.
"This is the Holy Water of the Mother Goddess. Drinking it will cure diseases and ward off disasters. It's free."
"This great flood in Xuzhou is a catastrophe! The government can't save us at all; only the Eternal Mother is our true savior!"
"When Maitreya descends to earth, everyone will have land to cultivate and everyone will have food to eat..."
"Once you join the church, you eat together, live together, and find a way to survive together..."
Liu Feng became more and more confused as he listened. How did this sound like a pyramid scheme?
Wait a minute, Maitreya, Eternal Mother... Could this be the White Lotus Sect?
Then I heard them say, "The world is utterly corrupt. Officials are greedy and lawless, incurring the wrath of heaven and the resentment of the people... The fate of the Great Qian Dynasty has long been sealed..."
Liu Feng turned and left. He didn't care whether he took the medicine or not; he didn't want to get himself into trouble!
On his way back to the soup kitchen, Liu Feng saw a shallow beach and reeds. He suddenly remembered the days when he and his friends caught river clams and collected snails when he was a child in his previous life. On a whim, he took off his straw sandals and stepped into the water through the mud.
As soon as I put my foot down, I stepped on a large river clam. I reached into the mud and found another big one. In no time, I had caught several, and I also managed to grab a few small shrimp.
Liu Feng was overjoyed. He dug a small pit on the spot, gathered some reeds and firewood. He took out the flint he had taken from the corpse and lit it with a snap.
Without pots or stoves, they simply roasted river clams and small shrimp over the fire. In a year of famine, when survival was at stake, there was no time for formalities.
While he was at it, Liu Feng dug up a few more reed roots, washed them clean in the water, chewed them up, and sucked out the juice.
When I was a child, my family was poor, so we often ate this as a snack. It was sweet and quite satisfying.
After chewing on the reed roots, the river shrimp and clams were almost cooked. Liu Feng ate the small shrimp first to fill his stomach, but the clams had thick meat and needed to be cooked a little longer to avoid getting an upset stomach.
He waited until a slightly charred aroma of protein filled the air before he began to devour his food. Even though it was scalding hot, he didn't stop, and after finishing, he even licked his fingers, clearly still wanting more.
It would be even more perfect if it had salt!
Salt?
Liu Feng suddenly had a thought: the land flooded by the Yellow River would eventually become saline-alkali land, and the water itself contained salt!
No, the Yellow River is fresh water, so where would the salt come from?
Liu Feng racked his brains but still couldn't figure it out, but that didn't stop him from taking action.
Just past noon, instead of returning to the soup kitchen, he headed straight for the disaster area. Along the way, he picked up a broken earthenware pot that was still somewhat usable and a piece of iron. He walked to the flooded areas and tried different kinds of food, grabbing handfuls of mud to taste the saltiness.
After walking four or five miles, they finally found a patch of salty soil with enough saltiness. Without taking a break, Liu Feng started digging, filling handfuls of salty soil into a ceramic jar, then scooping water and stirring vigorously to dissolve the salt in the soil.
Then he took off his tattered clothes, pulled up a handful of thatch, filtered it several times, and finally got a jar of murky yellow brine.
He carried the earthenware pot to the edge of the woods, dug a makeshift stove, set up the pot, and began boiling salt. In the end, he actually succeeded in producing salt.
Not much, just a small pinch of yellowish-white salt in the palm of your hand.
Liu Feng tasted a little; it was indeed very salty, but also bitter and astringent. There were too many magazines.
Even so, Liu Feng was incredibly excited. A person who doesn't eat salt for three days will feel weak and powerless, and after seven days they will experience edema, be unable to walk, and have their immune system collapse.
This salt would be inedible in later generations, but in this world, it's a life-saving treasure.
He tore off a few dry leaves, first coating them with salt, then tearing a piece of dry cloth from his pants, tightly wrapping it into a small ball, and finally tucking it into his pocket to hide it.
It's getting late. I'll go catch a few more river clams and make soup with some salt tonight.
"Crackling sound—"
The firelight made Liu Feng's face glow red. With one hand he scooped water and with the other he repeatedly polished the iron sheet with a stone he had picked up, keeping it for self-defense.
A wind picked up, and from the shack came sobbing sounds that made one's heart ache.
Liu Feng couldn't help but sigh. What a messed up era.
"who!"
Liu Feng suddenly stood up, gripped the metal plate tightly, and looked behind him warily.
A middle-aged man dressed as a fortune teller strolled over with a smile on his face: "Young man, don't be nervous. It's just that your pot of river delicacies smells so good that I couldn't help but come and take a look."
Liu Feng frowned. This man was the fortune teller who had stirred up trouble earlier.
The fortune teller glanced at the piece of iron in Liu Feng's hand, then pulled a wooden bowl from his satchel and a piece of flatbread: "How about I trade this for a bowl of soup?"
As he spoke, he broke off a small piece of the pancake, put it in his mouth, chewed it, and indicated that the pancake was fine.
Liu Feng didn't want to get involved with this kind of person, but his stomach wouldn't cooperate, so after hesitating for a moment, he nodded.
The fortune teller walked over with a smile, not at all reserved, and immediately took out his chopsticks and picked up a clam: "Wow, what a plump clam! Oh, and there are fish and shrimp too, I'm the one who's taking advantage of you, young friend."
"I really feel bad, just give me another piece of bread." Liu Feng hated this kind of fake politeness the most.
The fortune teller was taken aback at first, then laughed and said, "Young friend, you are truly a man of character." As he spoke, he actually took out a piece of cake from his pocket and handed it to Liu Feng.
Now it was Liu Feng's turn to be stunned.
The fortune teller smiled and put down the cake. His satchel, which resembled a treasure chest, held a small wooden spoon. He ladled out half a bowl of soup, tasted it, and exclaimed repeatedly, "Delicious! So delicious! Even the river delicacies from the Yangtze River couldn't compare... Oh, you put salt in this soup?"
Liu Feng broke off half a cake and threw it into the earthenware jar, saying as he ate, "Luckily, I managed to get some salt from a corpse."
The fortune teller didn't ask any more questions, picked up the wooden bowl, and slowly began to savor it.
After finishing a large pot of river fish soup and half a flatbread, Liu Feng let out a satisfied burp.
The fortune teller stroked his beard and chuckled, "Young man, you have quite the appetite."
Liu Feng wiped his mouth: "I'm just full of water."
The fortune teller was silent for a moment, then said, "Lin Ruhai is coming soon. He's a good official, and you'll soon be able to eat your fill."
Lin Ruhai? Liu Feng was slightly taken aback. The name sounded familiar, but he couldn't remember where he had heard it before.
The fortune teller didn't say anything more. He took out another piece of bread from his satchel, put it down, got up and left, leaving only the words, "Until we meet again."
Liu Feng finally came to his senses. Farewell? Was he leaving? Was he not going to rebel anymore?