"Lian'er, you're going to town to do heavy work. You guys should drink. We're not tired at home," said Old Man Qiao.

“I carry this medicinal herb with me, so I can add it to the water whenever I need to fetch water.” Qiao Lian’er sealed the water bag and patted it.

"Let's go!"

Qiao Laosan also wanted to drink this water, but after looking at the stone mill, he worried that he would be tempted to lift it again, so he decided to wait until he was in the county town to drink it.

After they left, the two elders also drank a sip of water from their bowls.

"Old man, my bones have all loosened up, and my face feels smoother. I feel like I'm ten years younger."

"Old woman, my arms and legs are full of strength, I can lift you up high and spin you around again."

Madam Feng took a sip and then went to the corner of the courtyard to lift the millstone.

Old Mrs. Qiao quickly pulled her back: "Eldest daughter-in-law, your body was damaged during childbirth, so you shouldn't lift such heavy things."

"But Mother, I feel like I can't suppress the power within me."

The group waited at the village entrance for a while, and when they saw a horse-drawn carriage passing by, they waved it down and got on.

We weren't going to their own county, Ning County, which is quite far from here. Instead, we were going to Yongguan County, a neighboring county, which was about 30 li away.

There's a lot of work to be done in Yongguan County, because the county seat has only been built for less than two years, and there are many construction sites, teahouses, taverns and shops being built, and a lot of goods need to be transported back and forth.

The Qiao family had little harvest from their fields and couldn't hunt anything in the mountains, so they often went to Yongguan County.

However, there are many people vying for jobs there, and if you go late, there will be very few jobs left. If there are no jobs, the Qiao family plans to spend the night in Yongguan County and try to find some good jobs tomorrow morning.

In the past, when they stayed overnight in the county town, they would sleep on the street. Now that they have money, they can stay in inns.

The carriage stopped after traveling a distance, and the coachman asked the child waving by the roadside.

"Little one, are you going to the county town too?"

"Yes, sir, I brought money with me."

"But you don't have any family, just a little child all alone. I don't dare to give you a ride."

"Uncle, my family is in the carriage. My mother, my uncle, and my sister are all inside."

Song Ruier now spends his days observing the movements of the Qiao family. When he saw that the Qiao family members were going to the county town, he quickly wanted to go with them.

The Qiao family made so much money selling mushrooms, they weren't going to go to the county town to eat well, drink well, and stay in nice places.

Who knows, he might even manage to snag something good.

The people inside the carriage already thought the sounds outside sounded familiar, and now they were immediately certain.

"You brat, you think you can get something for nothing by coming with us? We're going to do hard labor to earn money, but he thinks we're going to enjoy ourselves," Qiao Laosan cursed.

Qiao Dameng sneered, "They broke off their ties a long time ago, so why do they keep trying to get close to us?"

The coachman didn't believe it rashly. He got off the carriage and lifted the curtain.

Do you know this child?

Qiao Lian'er glanced outside and said, "I don't recognize him. Whose child ran away from here? He's probably going to try and frame us. If we take him to the county town, he'll say we're child traffickers and make us pay a huge sum of money."

“Yes, I guess someone from his family is waiting for him on the way or in the county town,” Qiao Xiaomeng added.

The coachman then looked at Qiao Yunni.

Qiao Yunni didn't look at Song Ruier, she just shook her head.

"Go away, you little brat, always trying to take advantage of others. You're so young but have such bad intentions. Go home now." The coachman's face darkened.

He got back into the carriage, flicked the reins, and drove the carriage away.

A surge of resentment and anger rose in Song Ruier's eyes. She thought, "You think you can just leave him here? No way!"

He rushed towards the curtained door, took a few quick steps, and dashed inside.