Rebirth of an Old Peasant Woman: Taking Her Children and Grandchildren to Escape Famine

When 60-year-old Wang Guixiang breathed her last breath, her ears were filled with the cries of her grandchildren, and before her eyes she saw the tragic scene of her children and grandchildren separated and their corpses exposed in the wilderness - three years of drought and locust plagues all over the fields. She, an old woman, could not protect her family. She watched her second daughter-in-law take away the last handful of grain and run away, her youngest son was beaten to death by hungry refugees, and her most beloved grandson died in her arms... When she opened her eyes again, she went back to the autumn at the beginning of the disaster year. There was still half a tank of grains in the tank. The second daughter-in-law was sneaking grain into her parents' house. The younger son went to the gambling house with coins in his pocket. The eldest grandson was as thin as a firewood stick. He timidly pulled her by the corner of her clothes and called her "grandma." This time, Wang Guixiang's withered eyes lit up with fire. She had had enough of the suffering in her previous life! She wanted to make up for the regrets from her previous life! Hiding food? Search it out! Gamble? Break the legs! Want to separate? No way! She remembers which mountains have drought-resistant seeds, which roads can avoid the plague, which towns hide shady officials and businessmen, and she even remembers that there is fertile soil in the south that can survive. Overnight, she reclaimed wasteland to plant sweet potatoes, sewed cloth shoes and weaved bamboo baskets to prepare food for the road. With her calloused hands and memories of her previous life, Wang Guixiang tightened her grip on the helm of the family. "Let's go together, or die together!" She stood in the middle of the yard with a cane, her eyes sweeping over her hesitant son and daughter-in-law, "If you want to live, just follow my old lady and go south!" On the way to escape the famine, there are hungry and crazy refugees snatching food, evil-minded bandits intercepting the road, betrayal by fellow travelers, and even stumbling blocks within the family. Wang Guixiang took her three sons, two daughters-in-law, and five grandchildren to build roads in the mountains and bridges in the water.