As Wang San spoke, he led a group of people toward the riverbank.

The river wasn't as deep as people imagined. Even when several men walked to the very center, the water was only knee-deep, and they could easily wade across.

Seeing that most of the people had left, Song He'er felt relieved and went to call Qin Xiaoniang.

"Mother, hold Huan-ge'er tight, let's wade through!"

Qin Xiaoniang held Huan Ge'er tightly in her arms, as if afraid of accidentally dropping the child.

Zhang Xiu'e also carried Nian Jie'er on her back.

Li Qiang's wife and Su Yu's wife have two children, and they can't take them across the river together, so Chun Rao and Chun Di have to help carry them.

However, since all these people had taken their hands, there were no extra people to lead the camels.

Wang San's child had already been taken there beforehand, so they were able to leave more quickly.

At her wits' end, Song He'er had no choice but to shout towards the other side of the river, "Please, everyone, come and help me bring down the camel!"

The strong man at the back heard the shouts from behind and stopped. After discussing with the people next to him, he decided to come back and help.

Song He'er handed the camel to the group of people, then followed Qin Xiaoniang as they waded across the river to the other side...

"He'er, the water is a bit cold. Are you alright?"

Song He'er shook her head. "Mother, please take good care of Huan-ge'er. The water isn't cold, I can walk."

"Then you must be careful, hold on to your mother's clothes and don't let go."

"good."

The group huddled together and carefully crossed the river.

Although the river was not flowing rapidly, people's clothes were already mostly wet. With no other option, they could only rest on the spot and warm themselves by the fire until their clothes dried before continuing their journey.

Just as Zhang Xiue was about to start a fire, she suddenly realized that there was no firewood left.

Song He'er then remembered that because she had been brewing medicine for the past few days, she had used up a lot of firewood. Now she didn't have enough dry firewood left to cook a meal, let alone dry clothes.

"You all wait here, I'll go find some firewood!"

Qin Xiaoniang stopped Zhang Xiue, who was about to leave, saying, "You've just recovered, so don't overexert yourself. You just waded through water, so be careful not to catch a cold. You wait here, Chunrao, Chundi, and I will go."

Zhang Xiue smiled and decisively refused, "I'm not that delicate. It's always good to get some exercise with other people. Don't treat me like a patient; I'm not used to it."

Before Qin Xiaoniang could speak, Zhang Xiue had already left.

She was the best-built among them, not only strong but also in good spirits.

If she hadn't fallen ill while taking care of Nianjie, she wouldn't have been unconscious for several hours.

Song He'er took off her outer garment and helped Qin Xiaoniang pull down her wet trouser leg. After all, there were many men around, so she still had to be mindful of etiquette.

"He'er, there are still some dry clothes in the package, go and change into them."

"Why change it? We'll be at the next place soon. Let's save it for when we absolutely have to. Let's warm it up over a fire for now!"

Qin Xiaoniang sighed and stopped talking.

Zhang Xiue returned in the time it takes for an incense stick to burn. After all, this was no longer the center of the desert, so finding some branches was relatively easy.

They started a fire with tinderboxes, the children played around, and the adults gathered around the fire to hang clothes out to dry.

Su Yu's wife stayed by the side watching the child and showed no intention of coming over. The bottom of her skirt was still wet, and if this continued, she would definitely catch a cold.

Song He'er breathed a sigh of relief, wanting to go over and persuade her, because for the sake of the child, it would be a bit unreasonable for her to ignore it.

Just then, Song He'er walked over to Su Yu's wife and handed her a dry handkerchief. "Madam Zhou, your clothes are wet. Why don't you go and warm yourself by the fire?"

Su Yu's wife didn't speak, perhaps a little embarrassed. "I'm fine. There are too many people by the fire. I'll wait a bit before going over."

Song He'er knew she didn't want to face Li Qiang's wife, afraid that if she gave in, she would be embarrassed if the other party was firm.

"Madam Zhou, even Madam Tian doesn't seem to care about this, so why should you? We've finally made it out of the desert, so let's not have any more trouble. The most important thing now is to get to Xinzhou safely!"

Song He'er was still young, and such a sensible child naturally evoked pity. After hearing her words of advice, Su Yu's wife softened.

"It's my fault. I always quarrel with everyone over the smallest things. But I'm just timid by nature. Even my mother can't do anything about me. Fifth Miss, please don't mind."

Song He'er smiled and shook her head. "I won't mind. Go and warm yourself by the fire. Don't catch a cold. I just finished taking care of Auntie. If you get sick again, I'll be exhausted!"

Su Yu's wife smiled, picked up the child, and followed Song He'er to the campfire.

When everyone saw her, they acted as if nothing had happened and chatted happily. Before long, they had forgotten all about their unhappiness.

After chatting for a while, Zhang Xiue remembered something important.

"Where do we pass through next? By the way, when we first entered the desert, I heard from others that this is the border of Xizhou. We have no soldiers with us, and no travel permits. How can we get through safely?"

Zhang Xiue asked a good question, but Song He'er had already dealt with these troubles in advance.

As they approached the desert, she had already exchanged merchant passes with someone in the thatched hut. Besides, they had a camel caravan, though only two camels, which was enough to get them across smoothly.

"Third Aunt, we can disguise ourselves as merchants and go there!"

Qin Xiaoniang stared at Song He'er in disbelief, "Look at us, all dressed in such shabby clothes, who would believe we're merchants?"

"Mother, didn't we just have new clothes made? We just changed out of them a few days ago. We can just wash them and wear them again!"

Zhang Xiue sighed, "Although this is one way, merchants always need goods to travel between places. We don't have any goods! These odds and ends on the camels are worthless. This doesn't look like we're going to deliver goods at all!"

Li Qiang's wife preemptively answered Song He'er, "I say, Madam Zhang, your IQ has been declining ever since you got sick. We don't have to say we're going to deliver goods; we can say we're going to pick up goods and then return to the Central Plains!"

Upon hearing this, Zhang Xiue immediately slapped her thigh and burst into laughter, "Hahahaha, why didn't I think of that!"

The children hadn't eaten much that morning, and now, after wading through water and walking for so long, they were bound to be hungry.

"Mother, can we eat something before we go?" Nianjie pleaded from the side.

Zhang Xiue patted her head and said affectionately, "Son, your younger siblings aren't hungry, why are you hungry again?"

"Mother, I have a big appetite, and I haven't had a proper meal lately..."