All People Like Steamed Buns, the World in Chaos

In the fourth month of the first year of Taixi, the impact of the disaster finally passed.

Jiang Shouyi returned to his hometown, Tea Mountain Village, and resettled. Because he had money to buy land, he was restored to the status of a good citizen.

He took his grandson and worked hard to cultivate the land, thinking that peaceful days would finally come.

However, it was also in this month that the founding emperor of Great Jin died suddenly due to a serious illness, posthumously honored as Emperor Wu!

All the princes were young, only Crown Prince Sima Zhong was the eldest and immediately ascended the throne, changing the era name to Yongping.

The intention was eternal peace.

But the new ruler, Sima Zhong, was born with intellectual disabilities and could not handle affairs. A year later, the various vassal kings and imperial clans rebelled one after another, fighting each other.

For a time, heroes were divided, this one founded a country, that one declared himself emperor! Just ten years after Great Jin ended the chaotic times, the world fell into great chaos again!

The nine provinces were in constant conflict, with smoke of war rising everywhere! Famine and war continued unabated, and the people had no way to live!

The third year of Yongping.

Langya Commandery repeatedly increased taxes to supply King Qi's "clearing the ruler's side," causing the common people to lose their homes, either selling themselves into servitude or becoming bandits.

Tea Mountain Village was first exploited by tax collectors, and then encountered rampant bandits.

Jiang Shouyi stepped forward, united the villagers, built fortifications for self-defense, and after fighting hard for several days, finally repelled the bandits and saved their last grain, thus surviving the winter.

To save enough grain seeds for plowing the next year, Yan Nu, only four years old, lived on dry grass.

"Yan Nu'er, Grandpa is sorry to you. When it's peaceful next year, Grandpa will make you noodle soup." In the twelfth lunar month, Jiang Shouyi hugged Yan Nu and wept uncontrollably.

"Mmm!" Yan Nu gnawed on the grass with big bites, eating with relish, not knowing what Grandpa was sorry for.

There were still obvious bloodstains around his waist.

Outsiders all thought it was a birthmark, only Jiang Shouyi knew that it was an injury from being cut in half when he was young that hadn't fully healed.

A bone injury takes a hundred days to heal, and even a cut hand while chopping wood takes more than ten days to grow back. Being cut directly in half, it was estimated that it would take at least several years to heal completely.

Although being cut in half was also called an injury, and such a thing was strange, Yan Nu was just like that.

"Grandpa always says to wait for peace, what is peace?" Yan Nu's big eyes were full of curiosity.

Jiang Shouyi showed a longing smile on his face: "It means the world is peaceful and without chaos, and we common people can live good lives and not be bullied."

"Will it come next year?" Yan Nu saw that his usually worried Grandpa was smiling, and thought that it must be something extremely beautiful, and couldn't help but want to see it too.

Hearing his grandson's words, Jiang Shouyi recalled the wars of his youth. Before Great Jin, the world had been in chaos for a hundred years. Now it had been unified for more than ten years, and a prosperous era should be coming.

So he nodded firmly: "Of course, next year will definitely be peaceful."

The fourth year of Yongping.

The refugees and rebels from Donglai ravaged into Langya Commandery.

Their leader called himself 'Duke Tianyi', under the banner of 'Old Immortal Tianyi, boundless magic power, saving the world, eternal peace', attacking cities.

The major noble families strengthened their recruitment of soldiers, and the garrisons in various cities of Langya defended their cities. The rebels attacked for a month without success, so they changed to plundering various villages and finally headed west.

Tea Mountain Village, due to the scarcity of seeds in early spring and too much wasteland, had a poor harvest. It was also looted by the rebel soldiers, and the people were left without clothes or food.

Jiang Shouyi led Yan Nu and dozens of fellow villagers into the mountains, digging for wild roots to survive.

Yan Nu still ate grass, not understanding why the villagers and his Grandpa had to eat those unpalatable wild roots. He had tasted them once and thought they tasted worse than grass!

"Are they the ones who bring peace?" Yan Nu pointed at the army with large and small packages below the mountain and asked. He had heard these people shouting something about eternal peace.

"No! No! They are rebels! Bandits!" Jiang Shouyi's eyes were red. Their village had been looted clean, and countless familiar faces had been taken away.

"Those who don't give us a way to live are evil people. The government will surely suppress them. When the government's army arrives, we will have peace."

The fifth year of Yongping.

Great Jin's General Huwei, Gou Xi, led an army of 30,000 to suppress the rebels. The two armies confronted each other at the border of Qing and Xu prefectures.

Among the rebels were demons who were skilled in transformation. They infiltrated the army to disrupt military orders, spread rumors, and burned granaries, causing the Jin army to be defeated.

Gou Xi gathered the defeated soldiers and wandered through the various commanderies of Qingzhou. As they marched to Langya Commandery, due to low morale and the unwillingness of local noble families to support the army, they were allowed to search the countryside at will.

Tea Mountain Village was left with not a single grain of rice. Cries filled the air. Soon after, the entire village was taken in by a local noble family, becoming serfs. All the farmland of Tea Mountain Village was transferred to the Zhang Clan of Hua County and renamed Tea Mountain Fort.

Six-year-old Yan Nu, now half as tall as a person, had only faint marks on his wounds, which had basically healed.

Now barefoot, he chewed on dry grass with big bites and also went to the fields to help with the work, cultivating for the noble family.

He asked innocently: "Grandpa, is it peaceful now?"

Jiang Shouyi's face was filled with grief and indignation: "Good child, this is not peace..."

"Although it's the government's army, they are more hateful than the rebels. The court will definitely punish them severely."

Yan Nu was very curious: "Will it be peaceful after the court severely punishes them?"

How would Jiang Shouyi know? He swung his hoe and thought for a moment, then said, "King Qi raised his army to clear the ruler's side a few years ago. The world is in chaos because of treacherous officials rebelling. When King Qi succeeds, it will be peaceful."

The sixth year of Yongping.

King Qi defeated Zhao Wang, who had usurped the throne, and after successfully clearing the ruler's side, he issued a general amnesty and won over the generals.

This led to Gou Xi, who was full of criticism, being promoted to General Pingdong with merit and no demerit, and then transferred to Yanzhou to continue suppressing the rebellion...

However, before Gou Xi left, he conscripted civilian labor, seizing 60,000 laborers from various counties to build roads and bridges and transport supplies.

Jiang Shouyi and Yan Nu suffered greatly along the way, with soldiers whipping them as if they were escorting prisoners.

"Grandpa, Grandpa, has Eternal Peace arrived?" Yan Nu asked, hearing the earth-shattering cries around him.

Jiang Shouyi protected Yan Nu in his arms and gritted his teeth, saying, "If they don't give us a way to live, we have to find our own way..."

The great battle began. Amidst the chaos, Jiang Shouyi fled with Yan Nu, taking advantage of the confusion.

Along the way, Jiang Shouyi desperately killed four soldiers, while Yan Nu was stabbed more than twenty times but was unharmed.

Finally, with the help of Yan Nu, who was only seven years old, the grandfather and grandson escaped back to their hometown.

Year Seven of Yongping.

King Nansha again purged the emperor's advisors and broke into the imperial city, killing King Qi in the chaotic battle.

An immortal slew the demons among the rebels, and the imperial court issued a decree of amnesty, pardoning the rebels and only punishing the ringleaders. A month later, Duke Tianyi was killed by his subordinates, and the 120,000 rebel troops turned into Jin soldiers, all falling under Gou Xi's command.

Gou Xi was rewarded for his meritorious service in the amnesty and was promoted to General Zhengdong! He was ordered to garrison the four commanderies of Mount Tai, Langya, Pingchang, and Northern Sea!

Jiang Shouyi finally returned to his hometown, but Gou Xi subsequently ordered the second and third-rate noble families in each commandery to fund the army and repair the city walls.

This caused widespread resentment among the noble families and immense suffering for the common people.

Eight-year-old Yan Nu, with a blade of grass in his mouth, his upper body bare, and his feet unshod, ran back and forth at the foot of the city wall, delivering water to the laborers.

When he reached Jiang Shouyi, he asked, "Grandpa, Grandpa, is this Eternal Peace?"

Jiang Shouyi stroked Yan Nu's head with one hand, gulped down a large bowl of water, and forced himself to say, "Good child, just wait a little longer, just wait a little longer... Eternal Peace is coming soon..."

"Once this city is finished, we can go home and farm. A little hardship won't matter; things will get better next year."

Year Eight of Yongping. Qingzhou suffered a severe drought, leaving the land barren for thousands of miles.

Tens of thousands of refugees stormed noble estates, besieged fortified villages, and looted granaries.

The Zhang Clan of Hua County distributed weapons to their tenant farmers and ordered all fortified villages under their control to defend themselves to the death. Jiang Shouyi also picked up a saber and stood on the walls of Tea Mountain Fort, fighting desperately.

Finally, ten days later, Gou Xi's army arrived. After repelling the refugees, he demanded that his troops enter Tea Mountain Fort to rest.

The Zhang Clan within the fort refused to open the gates. Gou Xi was furious and ordered an attack, resulting in the massacre of Tea Mountain Fort.

A great fire consumed the entire village. Of the former villagers of Tea Mountain Village, only a few families managed to escape to various places.

Gou Xi claimed to have crushed the rebels, beheading over ten thousand!

Jiang Shouyi desperately led Yan Nu to escape into the mountains, narrowly surviving. When they returned, the land was devastated, corpses littered the ground, and countless familiar faces had been murdered.

"Grandpa..." Yan Nu found a few blood-stained blades of grass and put them in his mouth, but before he could finish speaking.

Jiang Shouyi knelt on the ground, sobbing, grabbed the scorched earth, and wailed, "No... nothing is left..."

"Everyone is dead... everyone is dead..."

Yan Nu squatted beside him, "Grandpa, what happens when people die?"

"You never see them again..." Jiang Shouyi stood up and hugged Yan Nu.

But Yan Nu pointed at the mangled corpses hanging nearby, "Uncle Big Head, Aunt Tea, A Lian, Xiao Quanzi, aren't they all there?"

"But they'll never speak again, never call you Yan Nu'er again, they'll never move again, forever and ever," Jiang Shouyi cried uncontrollably.

Seeing his Grandpa so heartbroken, Yan Nu couldn't help but cry too.

Jiang Shouyi wiped his tears with his rough hands, "Yan Nu'er, don't cry... don't cry..."

Yan Nu obediently wiped away his tears and said, "If I cry, will Grandpa be unhappy?"

"Yes, Grandpa likes to see you smile."

Yan Nu immediately broke into a moving smile, warm and radiant.

Jiang Shouyi also put on a bitter yet strong smile, and a surge of strength rose within him again.

"Good child, you have such a beautiful smile, Grandpa likes it." He, a wretched old man, had thought of dying countless times, but for Yan Nu, he had to keep living desperately.

It was as if he lived for this smile.

"Let's go, we're going into the mountains! Yan Nu, you eat grass, and Grandpa will dig for wild roots! When Eternal Peace arrives, we'll come back..." Jiang Shouyi said resolutely.

He couldn't help but feel fortunate that Yan Nu was so easy to raise; he had basically been eating grass all these years... In winter, he could even provide warmth...

Thinking of this, Jiang Shouyi felt a pang of sadness. He was too useless as a Grandpa, never giving Yan Nu a good life. Instead, Yan Nu had helped him through many difficult times.

"Will it be Eternal Peace when we return?" Yan Nu asked.

Jiang Shouyi nodded heavily, "It will! Gou Xi has angered the noble families; his good days are numbered!"

Year Nine of Yongping.

King Donghai raised an army to purge the emperor's advisors, and Gou Xi led his troops in response.

To prevent unrest in the rear, King Donghai asked the leader of the literati, the Wang Clan of Langya, to mediate and temporarily suppress the resentment of the noble families, easing the tense relationship between Gou Xi and the noble families.

Shortly after, Gou Xi was promoted to General Zhengdong for his meritorious service in battle.

The various families then restrained themselves, recruited refugees, intensified training for local militias, reclaimed wasteland, and recuperated.

The forest of Tea Mountain was completely logged, leaving Jiang Shouyi unable to make a living. He was forced to descend the mountain to reclaim land, eventually becoming a slave under a powerful clan.

Ten-year-old Yan Nu strained as he pulled the plow, chewing on grass as he worked.

Jiang Shouyi, his skin withered and dark like smoked jerky, also toiled in the fields, sweat pouring down his back.

"Grandpa, Grandpa, when will the world be peaceful again?"

"Just wait a little longer... when those feudal lords behave themselves, good days will come."

Year Ten of Yongping.

The King of Donghai captured the imperial capital, killed the King of Nansha, and seized control of the court.

He campaigned east and west, quelling the rebellion of the feudal lords. Immortals came to offer congratulations, and for a time, all the vassals submitted.

Gou Xi was rewarded for his merits in quelling the rebellion and was promoted to Governor of Qingzhou! He was given command over Qingzhou's nine commanderies!

He became increasingly arrogant and tyrannical, preying on the common people and filling his coffers with gold and jade. His relationship with the powerful clans deteriorated again, leading to constant conflicts within his territory.

The elderly and young, like this grandfather and grandson, could only work themselves to death. They reclaimed land during the day, chopped wood and fired bricks for the powerful clans at night, and had to fetch water at dawn before continuing to till the fields.

Even so, after the harvest, they still had to help the powerful clans repair their fortified villages.

In the biting winter cold, Jiang Shouyi relied on Yan Nu for warmth, repairing the outer walls of the 'New Tea Mountain Fort' on a snowy night.

"Grandpa, will peace ever come?"

Jiang Shouyi replied numbly, "The war is over, the world will be peaceful. Next year... next year will be better."

Year Eleven of Yongping. The Hu barbarians rebelled.

The various clans and tribes that had previously relied on Great Jin, helped quell the rebellion, and used the opportunity to grow their power, all rose up in arms. They ravaged the northern lands, slaughtering and looting indiscriminately.

They were fierce and unstoppable, possessing monstrous strength and dark arts. In just a few months, they swept across the north and south of the Great River, roaming through various provinces.

Yongzhou, Bingzhou, Youzhou, Jizhou, and Yuzhou fell into chaos one after another, with dozens of commandery cities falling.

Countless starving refugees were forced to rebel, forming armies for self-preservation, fleeing across the land, seeking food to survive.

Gou Xi, stationed in Qingzhou, repeatedly levied heavy taxes. The powerful clans frantically built fortifications and trained their troops, making the lives of the grandfather and grandson increasingly difficult due to the heavy labor.

One day, Jiang Shouyi fell gravely ill. Yan Nu was frantic. Hearing that there was good medicine in the armory of the training grounds, he broke in directly to get it for his grandfather.

Afterward, he was beaten half to death by the nobles within the fort, nearly gasping his last breath.

Seeing his grandson's tragic state, Jiang Shouyi was heartbroken. He secretly regretted letting him be an ordinary person: "Next time, you must not be so impulsive and anger the nobles... If something happens to you, how can Grandpa live?"

Although Yan Nu was miserable, he stubbornly asked, "What makes the nobles nobler than us?"

Jiang Shouyi paused, "Nobles read more books and possess great knowledge for governing the world..."

He thought of the current chaos and changed his tune, "Most noble families have produced immortals. Immortals are immortal, can summon wind and rain, and possess power unimaginable to mortals. They are very formidable..."

Yan Nu suddenly understood, "So being immortal and powerful makes one noble?"

Jiang Shouyi was speechless, unable to explain clearly. He only said, "We are all lowly people. When the world is at peace, and you can live a good life, Grandpa will be satisfied."

Yan Nu asked, "Can peace truly be waited for?"

"Yes..." Jiang Shouyi murmured numbly, "I heard that noble families are inviting immortals to appear, and immortals will create peace."

Year Twelve of Yongping. In the Year of Great Calamity, monstrous beings were born, and in the midst of great chaos, evil spirits gestated.

The great chaos had now lasted for over a decade, and monstrous beings and evil spirits were gradually appearing all over the world!

In Bingzhou, there was a Great Golden Horned Demon, ten zhang long, leading beasts to devour humans and raising humans like sheep! It devoured three hundred maidens a day!

Countless heroes went to slay it, only to become meals for its horde of a hundred thousand wolves.

In Yongzhou, there was a World-Scorching Drought Demon, neither living nor dead, leaving nothing but barren land in its wake!

The Twelve Loose Immortals of Jiming Mountain descended from the heavens to subdue the demon, but perished in Tianshui, turning into zombies.

In Qingzhou, there was Nine Dragons Uprooting Mountains. A giant blue and white peak rose from flat ground, and those who climbed it were struck by tribulation clouds.

Eighteen demonic lords resided within, establishing eighteen layers of purgatory, torturing the immortals, known as the 'Nine Dragon Demon Cave'.

Witnessing this chaos, the noble families and powerful clans were finally roused to action, inviting their own immortals to descend and subdue the demons.

Little did they know that among the Hu barbarians, there were also mighty beings. They had infiltrated the Central Plains and developed since the previous dynasty, and had now formed a powerful force!

They merged with the demons and monsters, becoming an extraordinary threat.

In contrast, the cultivators of the Central Plains responded sparsely. The Immortal Mighty Beings were all leisurely and carefree, avoiding the world and living in seclusion in the mountains and seas.

Those who occasionally responded did so on a whim! They would appear gracefully and leave just as suddenly...

The secular situation in Great Jin also became extremely unfavorable. The top noble families and first-rate clans suffered heavy losses and simply abandoned their ancestral lands, retreating to the peaceful Jiangnan region to recuperate.

The great clans all migrated south in their fine robes, further emboldening the Hu barbarians in the north.

Only numerous local small and medium-sized powerful families remained, inheriting the assets of the great clans in the north.

"Grandpa, Grandpa, the nobles are all crying. It seems some Old Ancestor has died?" Yan Nu said, chewing on grass, relaying the news he had gathered.

Jiang Shouyi sighed deeply. He knew that many of the immortal practitioners in the noble families of Langya Commandery had died on that distant, suddenly erected blue and white demonic mountain.

His expression became somewhat lost. The world was becoming increasingly difficult.

Looking at himself, he was already over sixty, his hair white, his body as thin as a rake, his health declining day by day, almost like a corpse. How much longer could he stay with Yan Nu?

He hugged Yan Nu tightly and said weakly, "Remember, Grandpa will die one day too. Don't cry then, be brave and live strong."

Yan Nu murmured, "Live on..."

Jiang Shouyi stroked him, "Yes, to live is to eat, to laugh, to miss, to protect those you love..."

"You are still young. If you live on, you will surely see a day of peace."

Yan Nu nodded vigorously, "I understand, Grandpa. I will live on forever!"

Year thirteen of Yongping.

A Hu barbarian tribe called the Tu Fa clan swept into Qingzhou.

Although the entire tribe had only thirty thousand people, their military might was extremely fierce.

The Governor of Qingzhou, Gou Xi, was greatly alarmed. He gathered his army to meet the enemy while also ordering the powerful clans of each commandery to send troops for assistance.

However, the various powerful clans deeply resented him and paid only lip service, sending only the old, weak, sick, and disabled. Jiang Shouyi was among them.

"Good child, don't be afraid. Grandpa won't be here, you must be good by yourself." Jiang Shouyi, his hair completely white, held his weapon and bid farewell to Yan Nu.

Fourteen-year-old Yan Nu was already as tall as him. His lean body had slightly dark skin, and his large eyes shone like stars.

Yan Nu said eagerly, "I want to go too! Yan Nu has never been separated from Grandpa!"

"No! Don't!" Jiang Shouyi said sternly, "You must be obedient. Wait for me to come back peacefully in the fort. Remember not to cause trouble! Work hard..."

"Those nobles were born nobler than us. If they bully you and don't give you food, you go dig for grass secretly..."

"If they scold and beat you, absolutely do not fight back. But if they try to kill you... you must run! Whoever blocks you, kill them! Fight to kill!"

Jiang Shouyi didn't know if he would be able to return. He was too worried about Yan Nu.

Yan Nu was pure and fearless, with a fiery temper. He was usually a bit foolish, always unable to grasp many common-sense things.

Conversely, once he understood something, he would never change his mind, and ten oxen couldn't pull him back.

When he was around, he could still manage him, but what would happen when he was gone?

Without Xue'er, Yan Nu's magic had stagnated. His strange abilities like eating grass were just relying on his infant days.

Thinking of this, he instructed again, "Remember, child... you have another family member. Her name is Zhu Yanxue, a noble lady from the Zhu family of Anqiu..."

Jiang Shouyi had kept his promise over the years and had not gone to the Zhu family's territory. He didn't know how Xue'er was doing and assumed she must have grown into a proper young lady.

At this moment, he told Yan Nu about Xue'er, fearing he might not have another chance.

"Family?" Yan Nu scratched his head.

"Yes, you were all born of heaven, and Grandpa picked you up..." Jiang Shouyi finally told him about his origins. He didn't know if he and Xue'er were siblings, so he just called them family.

"If one day someone bullies you and you have nowhere to go, go find her. It doesn't matter if she doesn't recognize you. You just need to follow her, protect her, even if it's just as a servant by her side."

Jiang Shouyi knew that as long as Xue'er was by Yan Nu's side, Yan Nu would be even more extraordinary, and he would have the capital to protect himself in this chaotic world.

Although that might make him more prone to trouble and attract the covetous eyes of many villains, there was nothing he could do if it truly came to that. Perhaps Yan Nu was truly destined to be no ordinary person.

If he had known the world would become so chaotic, he probably wouldn't have let the two children separate.

"Xue'er grew up in a prestigious family, she must be more sensible than you. If... if you think she's right, then listen to her."

"I understand... Grandpa, you must come back soon." Yan Nu gave a warm smile.

Jiang Shouyi reluctantly stroked Yan Nu's soft black hair, "Grandpa will come back. Grandpa hasn't given you a good life yet."

Yan Nu grinned, "Oh! Grandpa! When you come back, will the world be peaceful?"

Jiang Shouyi smiled, "When the world is peaceful, Grandpa will come back."

p.s: Sorry. Chapters five and six were required to be modified. I'll change them again if necessary.