Zhao Yonggeng and his family headed north, seemingly the closest they were to the capital, but their journey became increasingly difficult.

It's already March, and the snow has started to melt in some areas, making the roads very muddy.

Although they were traveling on an official road, at that time the official road was only paved with sand and pebbles, and the ground underneath was not compacted.

Therefore, after the thick snow on the ground melts, the soil underneath the road becomes soft.

When a vehicle passes by, it leaves a deep rut on the road.

As for the passing vehicles, when they were rushing to catch their trains, they would naturally follow the tracks left by the people in front of them.

This process was repeated, and four ruts would appear on both the left and right sides of the official road.

The kind of road is so steep that even a vehicle with a slightly low chassis can't get through it.

Sometimes you can clearly feel the undercarriage being scraped. And that's not all...

There will naturally be a lot of water in the ruts.

The journey was incredibly difficult for Zhao Yonggeng and his family.

After his vehicle got stuck in ruts several times, Zhao Yonggeng bought a lot of thick wooden planks in Yang County.

Therefore, another carriage was added.

There's nothing we can do about it; the road conditions are just too bad.

When they encountered difficult terrain, everyone had to get off the carriage, lay planks on the road, and let the carriage pass.

Then remove the board from the back and place it on the road in front.

Stopping and starting frequently.

A normal person can walk fifty li a day, but driving a horse-drawn carriage, one is considered fast if one can walk thirty or forty li a day.

This couldn't continue indefinitely, so Zhao Yonggeng decided to travel at night and rest during the day.

After all, it can freeze again at night, making it much easier to navigate those deep ditches and ruts.

After traveling day and night for more than ten days, Zhao Yonggeng noticed that everyone was in a bad state, looking extremely exhausted.

This can't go on. In the end, not only will our own people be worn down, but even the health of these bodyguards will be ruined.

After discussing with the leaders of the escort agency, the group decided not to travel that day, but instead slept in the inn for a day and a night.

They set off again early the next morning.

When they encountered a difficult road, Zhao Yonggeng personally drove the car over the thick soil above the ruts.

And you know what? With that kind of rush, we actually made it across smoothly. It just really tested the coordination between the driver and the horse.

If one wrong step is taken, the entire carriage might fall off the embankment with a crash.

That day, Zhao Yonggeng and his group walked with trepidation. However, overall, the journey went relatively smoothly.

To avoid blocking the road, when Zhao Yonggeng's family chose to travel on the dirt ridges, one wheel would rest on the dirt ridge while the other wheel would stay close to the edge of the main road.

Fortunately, the pebbles and sand along the pipe were firm and held in place, and there wasn't much mud.

After a day of going about their business, as it was getting dark, they rolled down the mound of earth and discovered that it wasn't solid at all; it was just a pile of mud that created the illusion.

With a soft "plop" rather than a loud "bang," the left wheel sank into the hole.

The couple, Zhao Yonggeng and his wife, who were sitting inside, were completely disoriented from the impact.

The couple had an intimate encounter in the car, and Zhao Yonggeng felt like his arm was about to break.

Tian Xiaolan felt like her chest was about to be squeezed flat.

"Ouch, that hurts! Honey, are you alright?"

Zhao Yonggeng said with great difficulty,

"Honey, could you move a little? I can hardly breathe because you're pressing down on me."

"Honey, have you gained weight again?"

Tian Xiaolan struggled to support herself against the carriage wall and moved her body, while Zhao Yonggeng gradually regained some strength.

The voices of the coachman and Zhao Qingfeng could be heard coming from outside.

"Father, Mother, are you alright?"

"Master, Madam, how are you? Are you hurt?"

Zhao Yonggeng shouted from inside.

"It doesn't seem like a big deal. Let's figure out a way to get your mother out of here first."

The planks on the truck behind came in handy; they were laid out one by one, and Zhao Qingshan, Zhao Qingluan, Zhao Qinglin, and the others came over.

They worked together to pull Tian Xiaolan out first, and then pulled Zhao Yonggeng out as well.

During the struggle, Zhao Yonggeng cried out in pain.

Only then did they realize that Zhao Yonggeng's arm was either broken or dislocated.

There's no village or shop in sight, where am I supposed to find a doctor?

The little girl, Zhao Qinghe, timidly raised her hand, "Dad, how about I give it a try?"

Zhao Yonggeng grimaced in pain.

"My dear daughter, are you sure you can do it? If you're confident, then give it a try. Dad will bear the pain."

Zhao Qinghe looked at Zhao Yonggeng's insincere attitude,

"Hmph, I knew Father didn't trust me. Don't think I only know how to concoct poisons; I have a deep understanding of the human body's meridians and bones."

Zhao Qinghe wasn't lying; she did indeed understand the meridians and bones of the human body, but that understanding was limited to her own.

She didn't have a chance to touch other people's things.

As she spoke, she asked someone to bring a stool for Zhao Yonggeng to sit down, and then she stretched out her small hand and began to stroke him from top to bottom.

Although he tried his best to avoid hurting Zhao Yonggeng, he still couldn't stop Zhao Yonggeng from spitting out his breath.

I went through it once,

"Dad, there's nothing wrong with your bones. The pain is mainly from the dislocation. It'll be fine once it's set. It's nothing serious."

Zhao Yonggeng asked in a trembling voice, "Can you fix it?"

Before the word "no" could be uttered, a cracking sound was heard, and Zhao Yonggeng let out a scream. He then looked at his little daughter with great surprise.

"Hehe, it seems to be less painful now. I must say, my youngest daughter is quite capable; she can cure illnesses."

Zhao Qinghe felt that her father looked really stupid.

He climbed back into his carriage, took out the anti-inflammatory medicine Zhao Qingyan had given him, poured out two pills, took the water pouch, and had Zhao Yonggeng take the medicine.

After taking his medicine, Zhao Yonggeng's carriage had already been unloaded by the bodyguards and drivers.

However, for the next stretch of road, they would have to lay planks on one side and travel as they went.

The bodyguards felt they had really lost out on this trip.

I've never traveled on such a terrible road before.

Zhao Qinglin sighed.

"If you want to get rich, build roads first. Father, eldest brother, second brother, when you take office, you must build roads."

Look, why is the north so poor? It's all because of the bad roads.

If the road is good, the carriage can travel at least a hundred li a day.

A distance of a thousand miles can be covered in ten days; what can't be transported here?

But look at us now, what do you call this path?

It's supposed to be an official road, and the government did spend money on it, but in reality, it's not as easy to travel as the roads in our hometown.

With such a large mud pit, which caravan would dare to follow?

I'm worried now that the convoy that my third sister promised to send us seeds might not make it in time for the planting season.

It's not that they weren't doing their best, but rather that the road construction team was clueless.

Upon hearing this, Zhao Yonggeng realized it was indeed true.

Before he could even camp out, he quickly wrote two letters: one to the men who were on their way to him, and the other to Zhao Qingyan.