"If everything is revealed, there will be no mystery, and people will lose their desire to explore."
Gu Qingcheng said with a grin, a look of confidence on her face.
She had learned some experience in understanding people online.
That night, they stayed in Jinsha City and continued to scatter paper slips.
Their method of scattering paper slips was simple: they released Kongming lanterns in the city.
They put the paper slips inside the Kongming lanterns. When the lanterns rose to a high altitude, Gu Qingcheng would shoot through them with an arrow. The paper slips inside would then drift down from the sky, randomly falling into thousands of households in the city.
They released dozens of such Kongming lanterns in all directions of the city: east, west, south, and north.
As a result, those small paper slips naturally fluttered and scattered everywhere in the city.
"I found another paper slip. Look, it says the route to the south. The map is quite detailed, and it even lists supply points with food and drink."
A day later, early in the morning, Wang Daya excitedly showed a small paper slip to Luo Juan.
"Where did you get the paper slip? I didn't find one this time," Luo Juan asked curiously.
"I found it outside. And many people on the street found them too. Everyone is talking about it now, saying that if there's food and drink along the way, they want to go south."
Wang Daya quickly and truthfully shared with Luo Juan.
They had grown up together since childhood, like sisters. Now that their families were all gone, leaving only them, they were even more determined to advance and retreat together.
"Why don't we try it? The nearest supply point is only ten li outside the city. It's not far. Let's go there first for supplies. If we find them, it means this is real. If not, it's a farce, and we can still turn back."
Luo Juan was not without sense. She understood Wang Daya's thoughts and suggested.
"Yes, you're right. Why don't we leave now?"
Wang Daya was also a straightforward person. Otherwise, she wouldn't have much to talk about with the equally outgoing Luo Juan.
After some discussion, the two girls decided to try the southern route.
So, they first went to Prince Xia's porridge distribution point and drank a bowl of clear, watery porridge. Then, with simple backpacks, they left the city.
They carried a few changes of clothes, a bamboo tube for water, and a flint. They had no food, as they planned to return to the city for Prince Xia's porridge tomorrow if they couldn't find any supplies.
Outside the city, Luo Juan remembered something and showed Wang Daya a pair of scissors she was carrying, saying it was for self-defense. If she encountered a bad person, she could stab them with it...
Wang Daya couldn't help but regret not bringing her kitchen knife from home. But seeing that the city gate had already disappeared behind them, it seemed too much of a hassle to go back. She could only sigh and hide her regret in her heart.
The two walked towards the first supply point indicated on the map.
Ten li didn't seem too difficult to walk. If they persisted, they would reach it.
After the little porridge they drank turned into hot water in their stomachs, they finally arrived at the first supply point marked on the map.
"Who is this? They actually put supplies on a snow pine tree?"
The two stood under the snow pine, dumbfounded. Wang Daya wanted to curse.
The snow pine was tall, about six to seven meters high. The lower meter and a half were bare trunk, with nothing to grip. Only above were there scattered branches.
Luo Juan knew how to climb trees. She walked around and said,
"Daya, squat down. I'll step on your shoulders, and then you stand up to support me so I can grab the first layer of branches. Then I can climb up."
Wang Daya followed her instructions.
Luo Juan was not heavy. With Wang Daya's help, she climbed onto the snow pine.
Climbing further up was much easier. Luo Juan climbed like a nimble monkey.
Wang Daya watched from below as Luo Juan disappeared into the upper branches. Just as she was worried, Luo Juan suddenly called out from above. Her heart skipped a beat, and she anxiously asked,
"What is it?"
Luo Juan didn't answer, but she quickly descended the tree. As she neared the ground, she threw a bundle down.
When she stepped off Wang Daya's shoulders and they opened the bundle on the ground, they found three cotton-padded jackets, two dark, bar-shaped items that they thought were food, though they didn't know they were chocolate, a small jar of sugar, a small jar of salt, ten white steamed buns, five jin of rice, and a cured meat.
My goodness, there really was something here?
Was it the doing of benevolent deities?
The two hugged each other, weeping with joy.
After their excitement, they quickly changed into the cotton-padded jackets.
The jackets were quite large, wrapping them snugly. Compared to their thin clothes, wearing the warm jackets, neither of them felt cold anymore.
They each picked up a steamed bun and took a bite. The buns were very hard from being frozen. They looked at each other and smiled, then put the buns down.
Luo Juan suggested starting a fire to toast the buns.
Wang Daya said there was no rush. They could find a broken temple further ahead to start a fire and cook.
"Okay, I'm not hungry yet. I can walk."
With the supplies, the two felt invigorated, even though they hadn't eaten yet.
Along the way, Luo Juan talked about what she saw in the tree.
"There were several bundles hanging from the branches above. There was a sign at the bottom that read: Take what you need, do not be greedy.
I thought, one bundle is enough for the two of us. The rest are probably for people coming later.
So, I only took one, I didn't dare to take more."
"That's right. They even posted a sign saying to take what you need and not be greedy. And according to the route map, there seem to be more supply points ahead. Judging by the situation here, the supply points ahead will still provide food, so not being greedy is the right thing to do," Wang Daya analyzed.
"That's great. If that's the case, we can successfully head south."
Luo Juan smiled like an 8-year-old child.
The two hadn't smiled like this for a long time since their families were struck by the natural disaster.
"Sister, your idea is excellent. Indeed, people are going out of the city to the south, and they are honest, not taking more than they need."
Mi Guo inspected the first supply point.
"Yes, everyone believes this is the power of deities and trusts in cause and effect, so naturally, they dare not take more than they need," Gu Qingcheng said with a smile.
The two observed for a while longer at the city gate. They saw many people leaving the city one after another: couples, siblings, and some solitary adults.
They had likely lost their loved ones in the extreme cold disaster and lost hope of living in the city. Hearing about the route to the south, they were trying to grasp a glimmer of hope.
The supplies at the supply points were being taken away one after another.
Fortunately, Gu Qingcheng did not have to personally replenish these supplies, otherwise, it would have exhausted them.
After all, this was a main quest initiated by the system. Once Gu Qingcheng fixed the supply points and completed the first batch of supplies, she could automatically retrieve new supplies from the storage cabinet with just a thought to replenish them.
Wang Daya and Luo Juan walked another ten li or so. As dusk approached, they indeed found a broken temple.