“Host, I don't know if the host bound to the Cultivation System is your eldest brother, but I can check,” the little fox said, its voice dropping a bit lower.
“However, checking this costs Shock Value.”
“The Shock Value I saved before was all used to upgrade my functions. I only have one hundred thousand left, which isn't enough.”
“Host...”
“You still need to give me ten million Shock Value...”
Hearing that checking his identity would cost Shock Value, Yun Shu immediately waved her hand. “Forget it, don't bother.”
“Even if it turns out to be my eldest brother, I can't see him right now anyway. Besides, it might not even be him.”
She picked up the Body Tempering Technique book again and began to read. “It's better to leave it like this. At least it gives me something to hope for.”
At this critical moment of survival for this world, she needed to set aside her personal feelings and first resolve the impending crisis.
Right now, her most important task was to find a way to turn this book world's unreal elements into reality and elevate its dimension.
The road ahead was long and difficult.
The little fox suddenly spoke up. “Host, I see a lot of people down there. It looks like they're building a road!”
“That's so fast! It's only been a month, and they've already paved the road from Zhenbei Prefecture to neighboring Dingwei Prefecture.” Its voice was filled with unconcealed surprise. “They must be putting all their effort into working every single day. They can really endure hardship.”
Yun Shu put down her book. “Let's go down and take a look.”
Based on her understanding of Shen Yu and the others, they wouldn't force the common people to perform high-intensity labor.
However, it was always better to be safe than sorry.
She had secretly suggested the road construction. If Shen Yu and the others mistakenly believed that it had to be completed in an extremely short time, they might do whatever it took to get it done.
This was the downside of excessive theocratic faith.
Once any ideological deviation occurred, theocratic belief would turn into an oppression even more terrifying than that of a feudal society.
Yet, what she needed to accomplish could not be done without theocratic power.
At least, not for now.
Yun Shu and the little fox appeared at the construction site. Since both she and the fox were invisible, the laborers paving the road did not notice their presence and continued to work with their heads down.
“Host, why aren't you showing yourself?” The little fox curled up in Yun Shu's arms, its fluffy tail wagging back and forth.
Yun Shu did not answer. She stood in place, her gaze following a thin, frail old man for a long distance.
The old man's knees were wrapped in faded strips of cloth. Every time he bent down, his knees made a faint creaking sound, yet the work in his hands did not slow down in the slightest.
Cement was splattered on his calves, drying and wetting repeatedly until it finally formed a grayish-white crust.
Around her, porters bustled back and forth, their shoulder poles digging deep into the flesh of their shoulders. Sweat dripped from their foreheads, leaving dark circular spots on the cement.
No one spoke.
There was only the scraping sound of trowels passing over the ground.
When the sun climbed to the middle of the sky, the foreman struck a tin bucket, calling the road-building laborers to collect their meals.
The laborers' food was nothing fancy—just coarse flatbreads and some pickles—but it was filling and free.
After receiving their food, the laborers dragged their exhausted bodies to the roadside, slumping down in a row along the roadbed.
A young laborer ate his flatbread too quickly and began to choke. Just as he wanted to take a drink, he realized his canteen was empty.
He was about to get up and head to the river to grab a quick drink when the old man next to him pulled him back.
“Drink mine, it's boiled water I cooled down this morning.” The old man handed his canteen to the young laborer. “My grandson said that water must be boiled before drinking so we don't get sick.”
The young laborer drank the water, wiped his mouth, and returned the canteen to the old man. After thanking him, he asked, “Old uncle, you're already at this age. Why are you still out here building roads?”
Someone nearby chimed in, “Old Man Zhao is doing this to save up some more money for his grandson.”
The young laborer looked at him.
The man continued, “You probably don't know, but his grandson is incredibly smart at studying. Last month, he even passed the medical clinic's examination and became Physician Lin's student. Physician Lin is the most famous divine doctor in our Xindu. For his grandson to become Physician Lin's student, his future is boundless!”
“Don't even get me started,” Old Man Zhao sighed. “My grandson is even more stubborn than I am. He clearly could have stayed in Xindu City and had a stable job, but he insisted on running off to those impoverished, remote areas. He even said that we already have enough doctors in Xindu City—one less wouldn't make a difference, and one more wouldn't either.”
“Isn't that exasperating?”
“Indeed. These kids have just never experienced the bitter days we went through. That's why they won't live a comfortable life and always want to run off to the outside world. No matter how much we try to advise them, they won't listen.”
These words instantly struck a chord with many people present.
“My boy is the same way. He even said that if everyone else refuses to go, then he must go even more.”
“I was so angry at the time that I reached out and slapped him. But he just stiffened his neck and said some phrase to me—something about ‘even if ten thousand people oppose, I shall go.’ I have no idea what it means.”
“Sigh, it's only because times are peaceful now. Back then, with war everywhere, who would dare to wander around outside?”
“Kids nowadays are much luckier than we were. They have clothes to wear, food to eat, and books to read. They don't even have to worry about being conscripted for forced labor. Back then, the imperial court's forced labor didn't care whether you lived or died. Not only did we starve every day, but we were also frequently whipped!”
“Yes, it's all thanks to the protection of the Divine Lady.”
“If not for the Divine Lady, we probably would have starved to death long ago. How could we still have the energy to sit here and chat like this? I think my daughter was right. We can never fully repay the Divine Lady's kindness to us mortals, but just because we can't fully repay it doesn't mean we shouldn't try. We must do our best.”
The man who spoke scratched his head simplemindedly. “If the kids want to go out and make a difference, let them go. They've read a lot of books and know many great principles. A rough fellow like me, who can't even write his own name, can't help them much. I just want to pave this road well so they have a smooth path to walk on, and can better assist the Divine Lady.”
Hearing this, the little fox got emotional again. It wiped its tears with its tiny paws. “Host, what is wrong with these people? Why are they so pure and simple? It keeps making me cry.”
Yun Shu's eyes were also misted with tears.
These laborers reminded her of the ancestors of Huaxia.
At that time, Huaxia was also facing such difficulties, yet there was also a group of simple, hardworking people. With their own hands, they built a beautiful Huaxia, shocking the entire world time and again and turning every impossibility into a reality.
The ancestors of Huaxia were not gods, nor did they have the help of a heaven-defying cheat like the Dress-Up System. They relied purely on their unyielding backbone to achieve things that only gods could do.
The hardships they endured were beyond her imagination.
The little fox patted Yun Shu's shoulder. “Host, can you help them and make things a bit easier for them?”
Yun Shu snapped back to her senses and opened her system wardrobe.
Rate on N.U.
