After a two-day journey, the cargo ship finally arrived at the northern dock.

The pier was only about ten kilometers away from the border, and luckily they arrived just as the sun was rising.

It only takes one day to travel from the dock to Mohe City, where Zhu Shengan is stationed.

As Grandma Zhu stepped off the cargo ship, she looked at the passersby coming and going, suppressing her excitement.

Worried about the crowd and the potential for chaos, she quickly turned back to instruct Liu.

"Daughter-in-law, hold Xixi tight. Sining, Dabao, and Xiaobao, you all come with Grandma, do you understand?"

The group naturally understood Old Lady Zhu's concerns; the closer they got to the border, the more dangerous it became, as this place was practically a paradise for criminals.

Many people who had committed crimes either fled here or were criminals exiled by the emperor.

In addition, the conditions in the border areas are harsh, with mostly desert surrounding them, and people have to walk a kilometer away to fetch water if they want to drink it.

As a result, evil people run rampant here, and many traffickers kidnap women and children in order to survive.

After everyone disembarked, Wang Haocheng also planned to part ways with Old Lady Zhu, as he needed to go back and handle business matters with her.

Along the way, everyone supported each other. Old Mrs. Zhu had come to regard Wang Haocheng as her own family, and now they had to part ways.

She couldn't help but feel a little sad, but she also knew that all good things must come to an end.

Before leaving, she asked Zhu Haotian to hand two bamboo baskets filled with food to Wang Haocheng.

"Manager Wang, if it weren't for your protection along the way, we would probably have lost our lives long ago. Please take this food with you."

Wang Haocheng was surprised that Old Lady Zhu would distribute food to him, and he thought that the border cities were now cut off from the capital.

Food became the most scarce resource for everyone, but he did not refuse and accepted the bamboo basket with a smile.

"Madam, I'll come find you after I've finished what I'm doing."

"Okay, okay, I'll wait for you!"

With tears welling in her weathered eyes, Old Lady Zhu nodded to Wang Haocheng.

Chen Xiang was also reluctant to part with Wang Haocheng. With tears in his eyes, he stepped forward and hugged him, saying, "Manager Wang, you must come and see us."

"Lord Chen, you're not going back to the capital this time you're going to Mohe City, are you?"

Wang Haocheng was somewhat worried that after Chen Xiang sent Grandma Zhu and the others to Mohe City, he would then travel across most of the land back to the capital.

Chen Xiang had already made up his mind. He would stay with the Zhu family and not go back. He would take Grandma Zhu and the others to Mohe City and see what kind of small business they could start.

When Wang Haocheng heard that Chen Xiang had decided to stay in Mohe City, he finally felt relieved and nodded.

When it was time to part, Wang Haocheng and his men reluctantly said goodbye to Grandma Zhu and Chen Xiang.

Grandma Zhu didn't look at Chen Xiang until Wang Haocheng's group gradually disappeared from sight. She choked up as she looked at him.

"Lord Chen, let's go!"

Upon hearing this, Chen Xiang nodded to Old Lady Zhu, then, holding a large knife, walked ahead with An Qing.

Zhu Wen, along with his two other brothers, walked behind the group to protect the Zhu family.

As the group crossed the dock, they were all astonished by the scene before them.

Minghai City, located near the dock, is one of the wealthier cities on the border, but what surprised everyone was that...

As they passed through Minghai City, the people were displaced and beggars filled both sides of the street.

Looking at the dilapidated state of Minghai City, Old Lady Zhu could hardly believe that this once prosperous city, which relied on trade, had become like this.

"Mother, why is Minghai City like this?"

Liu was frightened by the scene before her and approached Old Lady Zhu to ask her questions in confusion.

Grandma Zhu didn't understand what had happened to the city either, so she looked at Chen Xiang with a puzzled expression.

"Lord Chen, why is Minghai City in such a state?"

Faced with the current dire situation, Chen Xiang felt helpless. "Ever since the Yuan Dynasty was destroyed, the local officials no longer care about the lives of the people."

"On the contrary, they have increased taxes and, taking advantage of the fact that the people have nowhere to seek justice, they have become local tyrants. Now that disasters are frequent and taxes are heavy, naturally more people are being displaced."

After learning this information, Old Lady Zhu felt a sense of unease, realizing that even the once prosperous Minghai City had become like this.

Wouldn't Mohe City be even worse than Minghai City? If the local magistrate deliberately makes things difficult for them, they probably won't have a good life in the future.

[Alas, it is precisely because of this that the people of various towns have fled to Mohe City.]

[Because only Mohe City was still functioning normally, the magistrates of other towns saw a large influx of people into Mohe City.]

Fearing they would no longer be able to collect taxes from their people, they united and planned to attack and capture Mohe City.

Xixi felt helpless as she thought about the days to come. In a country without order, the people become the prey of these corrupt officials.

This information, like bombs, entered the ears of the Zhu family, Chen Xiang, and Pei Sining in fits and starts.

They all looked solemn and walked forward with their heads down.

Now is not the time to be discouraged. We're about to cross the desert, and the weather has been bad lately.

We still need to prepare camels; otherwise, we don't know if we can successfully cross the desert on foot.

After a moment of contemplation, Old Lady Zhu looked at Chen Xiang with a grave expression. "Lord Chen, do we need to cross the desert to reach Mohe City?"

"Yes, the desert can be reached on the same day if there is no sandstorm, but if there is a sandstorm, it will take the next day."

As Chen Xiang spoke, he took out a map and looked at the route on the ground seriously.

"Since we have to cross the desert, we still need to prepare camels."

Pei Sining stood beside Chen Xiang, tiptoeing as she looked at the map in Chen Xiang's hand, and frowned as she spoke.

"These days, camels must be very expensive in Minghai City!" Zhu Chenfeng sighed helplessly, thinking about the current situation in Minghai City.

They didn't know if the gold they had seen before was enough to buy camels in Minghai City.

Remembering her granddaughter's reminder, Old Lady Zhu secretly pulled Sun Shi to her side and took out several gold ingots from her bosom.

She had secretly hidden the gold in her bodice, and she only took it out of her bodice before disembarking.

She handed the gold to Sun and whispered, "Secretly give the gold to the third son and tell him to find a way to buy the camel back."

"Mother, shall we buy a few camels?" Sun asked softly as she took the gold from Old Lady Zhu's hand and held it tightly in her palm.

Grandma Zhu doesn't know the price of camels yet, so she can only offer suggestions based on the current situation.

"Buy two horses first, then buy one if they're too expensive."

After receiving Old Lady Zhu's reply, Madam Sun immediately understood, turned around and went to Zhu Chenfeng's side, whispering instructions.

After listening, Zhu Chenfeng nodded thoughtfully and quickly went to Chen Xiang's side.

"Lord Chen, let's ask someone to buy camels!"

"Purchase it through someone? Why would you need to ask someone to buy it?" Chen Xiang asked loudly, puzzled.

Worried that it would attract too much attention, Zhu Chenfeng quickly stepped forward and covered Chen Xiang's mouth, "Lord Chen, please keep your voice down."

Although Chen Xiang didn't understand Zhu Chenfeng's purpose, he still obediently nodded in agreement.

Zhu Chenfeng lowered his voice and explained after Chen Xiang quieted down.

"Now that Minghai City has fallen into such a state of ruin, if we openly and blatantly purchase camels, we will surely attract attention and bring about our own demise."

Chen Xiang understood Zhu Chenfeng's concerns, but he still felt that the matter was inappropriate.

"If we ask someone else to make the purchase, how can we guarantee that person won't sabotage the process?"