In the vast northwest border of Da Chu, the sky is high and the land is vast, desolate and boundless.
At the westernmost edge of this remote and barren desert, lies Da Chu's first border post – Dieling Pass.
Surrounding Dieling Pass are dozens of military garrisons of varying sizes. About thirty miles southeast of these garrisons, on the edge of the desert, the court has established a post station for the convenience of exchanging war reports and official documents. It's called Tianling Tun Post Station, as it's located near the Tianling Garrison.
In the scorching June of the borderlands, the heat is oppressive, and the air is filled with sweltering waves, making people restless and parched.
A gust of wind blows through, not relieving the heat, but stirring up rolling sand and dust.
In the backyard of the post station's firewood shed, a five-year-old girl named Li Wuya sits by the edge of an improvised wooden bed. She holds a cracked porcelain bowl, sipping water in small sips, her sweat-soaked face revealing her discomfort.
It's too hot!
It's too thirst-inducing!
Life on this border is exceptionally harsh!
Shortage of water and food, along with the unfavourable climate – scorching hot in summer and bone-chilling in winter – thinking about potentially spending her entire life here, Li Wuya feels that life is full of malice toward her.
Born into a military family, she's stuck here. In times of war, her family serves in the military, and in times of peace, they work the land. Unless granted permission by the court, they're destined to stay on this border for generations.
She thought that coming from the modern world would bring her a better life, but instead, fate has thrown her into this remote and desolate wasteland.
This wasteland is synonymous with desolation and barrenness.
For five years since arriving in this world, she's been complaining non-stop, and considering the current circumstances, she might continue to complain indefinitely.
"Five Sister!"
A boy of about five, who bears a strong resemblance to Li Wuya, walks in. He proudly takes out a worn-out palm-leaf fan from behind his back, holding it up like a treasure. With a raised chin, he says, "Aunt Fang gave this to me. Take it and use it to fan yourself."
Li Wuya glances at the little boy in front of her, takes the fan, and hands him her bowl of water. "Have some water. Your lips are dry."
Li Qilang, just like his older sister, Li Wuya, sips the water in small sips, cherishing every drop. Water is scarce in their region; there are only two wells in the garrison and post station combined. The garrison's well provides water for the entire garrison, while the station's well serves the military traffic – no one can freely use the water.
Seeing Li Qilang take a few sips and stop, Li Wuya speaks, "You've finished the water in the bowl. Once you're done, I'll go ask for more."
She and Li Qilang are twins, and despite the harsh elements that have left their skin coarse and dark, they still possess cheerful and endearing faces.
Furthermore, unlike other children who are always unkempt, Li Wuya and Li Qilang are clean and tidy every day. This earns them favour among the adults. As long as their requests aren't unreasonable, the people at the station usually accommodate them, even giving them extra water.
"Okay!"
Li Qilang always listens to his sister. As she suggests drinking up the water, he happily complies, finishing it without hesitation.
Li Wuya fans herself with the bamboo fan, fanning herself a few times and then fanning Li Qilang a few times.
"Gurgle, gurgle~"
Suddenly, Li Wuya's stomach lets out a growl.
Oh, hungry!
Rubbing her empty belly, Li Wuya can't help but sigh, "When will these days of scarce food and drink ever end?"
The Li family only eats two meals a day. Each meal consists of a small piece of unleavened bread and a bowl of bitter wild vegetable soup.
Even with these meagre rations, the Li family still fares better than ninety per cent of the households in the garrison.
The borderlands are infertile and harsh, with low agricultural yields. Many families can only afford one meal a day. The Li family manages to eat twice a day partly because of Li Changsen, Li Wuya's father, who serves as a junior officer in the guard post.
Li Changsen, her father in this world, joined the military as a soldier when he was thirteen.
In recent years of constant border conflicts, he earned a junior officer position when Li Wuya and Li Qilang turned one year old.
Though junior officer is only a seventh-rank official title, it still provides a monthly stipend of 7 shi of grain.
With this stipend, the Li family's life has improved somewhat. However, it's just a slight improvement.
After all, the Li family is quite large.
For generations, the Li family has been a military household in Tianling Garrison. Li Changsen and his wife have three sons and one daughter. Their daughter married into a neighbouring military household, while their three sons each got married and had children.
Li Changsen is the eldest son but is married at the latest. In the borderlands, most people marry at around sixteen or seventeen, but he didn't marry until he was twenty-two, taking the daughter of a mountain hunter, Jin Yue'e, as his wife.
Li Changsen and Jin Yue'e had four children together. Their eldest son, Li Sanlang, is ten years old, their second daughter, Li Erlang, is eight, and then there are the five-year-old twins, Li Wuya and Li Qilang.
Li's second and third sons married earlier, with one having five children and the other having six.
When added to Li Changsen and his wife, the Li family has a total of twenty-three members.
Thinking of her large extended family, Li Wuya's heart sinks. If they had fewer family members, even just a few less, and combined the yield from the family's fields with her father's stipend, they wouldn't have to live so frugally.
"Growl, growl~"
The sound of her stomach rumbling interrupts her thoughts. Li Wuya hops off the bed and says to Li Qilang, "Come on, let's go to the kitchen and see."
Li Qilang's face brightens up. Whenever he follows his sister to the kitchen, there's always something to eat. However, his expression becomes hesitant soon after. "Sister, isn't Third Brother forbidding us from going to the kitchen? He said it might affect Mother's work."
Li Wuya hesitates for a moment, then suggests, "Let's just stay outside the kitchen and watch, without going in."
In these times and in this place, finding a job isn't easy. Jin Yue'e being able to work in the post station's kitchen was a hard-fought opportunity gained through Li Changsen's efforts. Their family cherishes it deeply.
In the face of survival, face and dignity mean nothing; filling one's stomach is the real concern.