Upon hearing this, Chen Zhaoci recalled how the people of Hexi had also seen Xu Rao off at the city gate when Xu Rao left for Ganzhou. He felt both happy and reluctant to part with him.

What makes them happy is that Xu Rao has always worked diligently and benefited the local people. The people are grateful and know that Xu Rao is leaving, so they come here to relax. What makes them reluctant is that they have been in the Northwest for more than ten years and are about to leave.

Li Yanxia had already come over to keep him company, and Bai Wei and Bai Mi were following behind Chen Zhaoci.

When Chen Zhaoci reached the city gate, he saw many people, young and old, standing outside. Many of them had their clothes soaked with dew, probably because they had come in the middle of the night.

An elderly man, holding a tray in both hands, stood at the front of the line. When he saw Chen Zhaoci approaching, he bowed and said, "Greetings, Madam Xu. Lord Xu left in a hurry, and we did not have time to meet him. Please take the gifts we prepared for Lord Xu with you."

Chen Zhaoci quickly returned the greeting, saying, "Sir, there's no need to be so polite."

The old man said, “Lord Xu has done a lot for us in Ganzhou these past few years. Because of Lord Xu, our lives have been much better. We are all grateful people and have always been grateful for what Lord Xu has done for us. We hope that Madam Chen will accept this small gift.”

The steward, at Chen Zhaoci's instruction, took the tray. Chen Zhaoci said, "Sir, fellow villagers, my husband is the magistrate of Ganzhou, and naturally he must do his best for the people under his jurisdiction. I and my husband accept your kindness."

Wu Muyue also got off the carriage and naturally saw what was happening outside the city gate. Looking at the many people standing outside the city gate, Wu Muyue couldn't help but feel a lot of emotions. In fact, being able to do what Xu Rao did could be considered as having no regrets.

Xu Bai and Chen Yuyuan stood by the carriage, leading their horses and looking at the people outside the city gate. Xu Bai whispered to Chen Yuyuan, "See? These are the people of our Great Liang. They are the most grateful people. If you are good to them, they will remember it. Even if everything my father did was his duty, they will remember it."

Chen Yuyuan nodded. He had a lot of contact with Xu Rao and naturally knew how much his nominal uncle loved the people. Chen Yuyuan couldn't help but recall a sentence that Xu Di and Xu Rao had once told him: "If the prefectures and counties are well-governed, the country will be at peace; if the county towns are strong, the country will be rich."

After Chen Zhaoci got back into the carriage, the Xu family and their entourage, watched by many people outside the city gate, slowly embarked on their journey to Liaodong.

The road from Ganzhou to Liaodong was specially built. After all, these are border cities, and in the event of war, they would need to watch over each other. Having an unobstructed road is crucial for deploying troops.

Xu Rao later repaired the section of the road that had been lost to Ganzhou. Although it was still a gravel road, it was repaired to be very smooth. He also assigned special personnel to maintain the road regularly. Therefore, after leaving Ganzhou, the journey was not very bumpy.

Xu Rao rode her horse alongside Chen Zhaoci's carriage. Seeing that Chen Zhaoci was still interested in hanging up the curtain above the carriage to look at the scenery outside, she laughed and asked, "Mother, is the carriage bumpy?"

Chen Zhaoci said, "It's not bumpy at all. This carriage was designed and made with your brother's personal involvement, and it was specially designed with shock absorption." Chen Zhaoci's words were filled with pride.

Xu Bai said, "No wonder, Mother. Once my third uncle and sister help bring back the rubber, I'll make you a rubber wheel so the carriage will be more comfortable."

Chen Zhaoci said, "Do you have any way to repair this road? Just get some cement or something."

Xu Bai said, "My dear mother, I'm only a few years old. How could I possibly have that ability? Besides, how could I possibly do it all by myself? Please be patient and wait a little longer. Once I've made it to the Ministry of Works, I'll lead the craftsmen there and study it thoroughly. Surely I can develop it then?"

Chen Zhaoci sighed, recalling what Xu Di had once said, and said, "Your brother also mentioned that developing those things involves more than just money; it involves many, many other things. Otherwise, they would have been developed long ago."

Thinking of his all-powerful older brother, Xu Bai nodded and said, "Even my brother can't do it, so you can see how difficult it is. But with me here, we'll be able to do it eventually."

Chen Zhaoci was quite pleased with her youngest son's confident demeanor and said with a smile, "Mother believes you can definitely do it."

From Yanmen Pass to Yinzhou in Liaodong, it is more than 2,500 li away. This is what Xu Bai and Chen Yuyuan saw from the map left by Xu Di. The two of them had marked the places they would pass through along the way last night.

They were traveling along the border, beyond which lay nomadic tribes. It was summer, and the grasslands were lush with water and grass. The nomadic tribes were busy herding their livestock and had little opportunity to harass them, so Xu Bai was quite at ease.

Ganzhou is a long and narrow place, and it took five or six days to get out of Ganzhou and then enter Liaodong.

Once you leave Ganzhou, the most obvious thing is that the roads become increasingly difficult to travel.

There were fewer post stations along the way than in the territory of Daliang. Sometimes the group had to camp in the wild. Xu Bai and Chen Yuyuan were the happiest at these times. The two of them followed A Jin and the others to the nearby mountains or places with lush vegetation to hunt, catch fish and shrimp, which was very enjoyable.