Chapter 31 [VIP]

Two mule carts creaked and groaned as they drove through the snow.

Uncle Chen drove the mule cart with the cargo bed in front, while Dunzi drove another flatbed cart loaded with New Year's goods behind. The Chen family only kept one mule; the other one was rented.

Inside the carriage, Wang Ying reached out and grasped Chen Qingyan's hand. Seeing that his palm was warm, she knew he wasn't cold.

He originally planned to take Uncle Chen and Dunzi to the county town by himself, but Chen Qingyan absolutely refused and insisted on coming along.

"It's freezing cold and the journey is long. What if you get sick from all the travel?"

Chen Qingyan squeezed his hand back and said, "I'm worried about you going alone."

These words warmed Wang Ying's heart. In his previous life, apart from his grandparents, no one had ever cared about him. He never expected that after transmigrating, he would have someone who cared about him so much.

The two intertwined their fingers, and Wang Ying nuzzled him with her shoulder, saying that the boy seemed to have grown taller since he recovered.

When they first got married, she was only two inches taller than him, but now when they stand together, she is at least half a head taller than him, and her body is not as thin as before.

"By the way, a few days ago I mentioned your uncle's family when I was sending New Year's gifts to my mother, and asked if she should prepare anything for them, but it seems that my mother is not willing to have any contact with them."

"This is a long story, and it all started when my mother got married."

My maternal grandfather's family was the Li clan of Tianyang County. Three members of the family had passed the imperial examinations (举人), making them quite famous locally. The marriage my grandfather initially intended for my mother wasn't with my father, but with my fourth uncle.

"Huh?" Wang Ying was somewhat taken aback.

"My father got married very late. He was engaged a long time ago, but when he reached the age to get married, his family suddenly broke off the engagement."

Subsequent marriage prospects became unsuccessful; four or five suitors were chosen, but none were suitable. This continued until she was twenty-three, when her grandmother passed away, and after a year of mourning, her marriage was completely postponed.

Wang Ying nodded. No wonder Chen Biao's children were all older than Chen Qingyan.

"At that time, my fourth uncle had just passed the imperial examination, and my maternal grandparents sent someone to propose marriage. My grandfather was naturally very happy when he heard about such a good match, so he took my father and fourth uncle to visit them. As a result, my father accidentally ran into my mother..."

One was a young woman in her late teens, the other steady and reliable; they fell in love at first sight.

Li begged her parents to let her marry Chen's father, but the Li family naturally disagreed. Not to mention that Chen's father had no official rank, the two were also too far apart in age.

But his mother was willing, and in order to marry Chen's father, she eloped.

Although they didn't end up getting married, being caught in the act ruined their reputation, so now they had no choice but to get married.

The Li family, a scholarly family, could not bear to lose such a person, so they hastily married her off, and from then on, the two families severed ties.

"Later, when my mother gave birth to me, my father planned to take her to my maternal grandparents' house to ease the tension, but they were beaten out before they even got through the gate."

Wang Ying couldn't help but marvel; she hadn't realized her mother-in-law had been so bold in her youth. However, what she had done was wrong, and it was truly heartless that the Li family still refused to forgive her after all these years.

Chen Qingyan said, "It's better not to visit each other. I made such a disgraceful mistake in the imperial examination. If my maternal grandparents find out, they will feel ashamed and sever ties with us again."

"Wow, you're even daring to joke about this now?"

"I'm just saying it to myself, but if other people say it like that, it still hurts."

"You're quite honest. Are you reluctant to go to the county town this time? After all, the county examination is held in Longquan County."

"A little, but it's been so long, I doubt anyone remembers me."

"Don't be afraid, it wasn't your fault in the first place. If anyone dares to make fun of you about this, I'll slap them across the face for you."

Chen Qingyan chuckled and bumped her head against Wang Ying's forehead.

Wang Ying covered her forehead and hissed, "Having knowledge makes a difference; it hurts more when you hit someone than others."

"Ha ha ha ha……"

Hearing the young master's hearty laughter from outside, Uncle Chen couldn't help but smile, thinking how fortunate he was to have married such a handsome young man.

*

It's more than 130 li from the town to the county seat. Under normal circumstances, it would take about two and a half days to get there. However, driving at night is not safe, and in winter the roads are slippery, so it takes three days to get there.

As dusk began to fall, the group went to the post station to rest.

This was Wang Ying's first time visiting such a place in ancient times. It was quite different from what was shown in TV dramas; the post station was much simpler than she had imagined.

After getting off the bus, I saw a row of low adobe houses with faded gray-yellow signs hanging at the entrances, on which I could vaguely make out the words "post station".

Chen Bo and Dunzi went to the backyard to park the car and feed the livestock, while Wang Ying and Chen Qingyan went into the post station.

The room was dimly lit and filled with the smells of wine and food. A waiter came forward and asked, "Gentlemen, would you like a meal or a room?"

Wang Ying chuckled inwardly; that statement actually made sense.

"We plan to stay overnight and leave first thing tomorrow morning."

"Okay, how many rooms do you need?"

"Two rooms, I suppose."

The waiter went to get the key and led the two to see the room. The accommodation was in the backyard, which was also a row of low thatched houses. They looked quite old, and the walls were uneven from being washed by rain.

"These two rooms on the east side are clean and tidy. Would you two gentlemen like to come in and take a look?"

Upon opening the door, Wang Ying was overwhelmed by the pungent smell of foot odor, and exclaimed, "Wow, that smell is really strong!"

The waiter, used to this, went inside, lit an oil lamp, and said, "There's a stove inside. If you're cold, you can get some wood to start a fire. The room rate is sixty coins a night. Hand over the keys before noon tomorrow. If you're late, we'll deduct one day's room rate."

The price wasn't too expensive. Wang Ying counted out 120 coins from her purse and handed them to the shopkeeper.

"There's free hot water in the kitchen. If you need food, you can go to the front to get some. If there's nothing else, I'll be going now."

"good."

As soon as the waiter left, Wang Ying went out into the yard to get some fresh air. It stank so badly! The last person who lived in this room must have had sweaty feet; the stench was so strong that you couldn't even open your eyes inside.

Chen Qingyan took the key and opened the door to the next room. It wasn't much better. There was a bed and bedding in the room, but judging from the condition of the bedding, it probably hadn't been changed for several months.

Wang Ying wasn't exactly a germaphobe, but she still felt incredibly disgusted and longed for the budget hotels she had lived in her previous life.

A little while later, Uncle Chen and Dunzi arrived, intending to move everything from the flatbed cart into their own room. The post station was crowded and dangerous; they were worried about thieves, and it would be troublesome if something was stolen.

Wang Ying and Chen Qingyan helped move the items, and by the time they were all settled, it was already dark.

After locking the door, the four of them went to the front hall to ask for food. The inn wasn't expensive, but the food was ridiculously expensive, almost like the service areas in later generations.

A simple bowl of vegetarian soup costs ten coins, meat costs twenty coins, and vegetables are even more expensive; a plate of stewed meat costs more than seventy coins, enough to buy two catties of good meat.

When traveling, Wang Ying was willing to spend money, so she spent eighty coins to order four bowls of meat soup dumplings.

Tangbing is the same as noodles in later generations, except that the noodles are cut into wider and thicker pieces and topped with a savory topping made of minced meat. It tastes so-so, but it's enough to fill your stomach.

After dinner, they ordered another pot of hot water and the four of them went back to their room to rest early.

The stench was still strong when they entered the house, so Wang Ying simply tied a handkerchief to her nose. Chen Qingyan followed suit and tied one too. The two looked at each other and were amused by each other's comical appearance.

Wang Ying: "Still laughing? Tomorrow we'll be marinated until we're fully flavored. When we go to Auntie's house, the old lady will be smothered by the smoke as soon as she walks in."

Chen Qingyan laughed until her stomach hurt. "Brother, stop teasing me."

"Let's go to the experimental field first, do some work, and then we can sleep peacefully when we're tired."

"good."

After locking the door, Wang Ying pulled Chen Qingyan along and silently chanted "Open the experimental field" in her mind. A white light flashed before their eyes, and the two of them stood steadily on the ground.

Having learned from her previous experiences, Chen Qingyan was no longer so surprised. Following Wang Ying's example, she began weeding in the field.

I was a little tired after pulling for half an hour, so I sat down to rest.

Wang Ying picked two tomatoes and handed them to him. "Next time I go out, I'll bring some cooking utensils with me. If we get hungry, we can use what we have here to make something delicious."

"That's great."

The transplanted peach trees have already blossomed, and a gentle breeze blows, causing delicate petals to fall. The two lean against each other, enjoying this rare moment of peace.

"elder brother."

"Um?"

Chen Qingyan nudged him with his arm, and Wang Ying glanced at him and knew what he was up to. She looked up and kissed him, and Chen Qingyan immediately cupped the back of his head and kissed him back.

Both of them had a sweet tomato flavor in their mouths, and it tasted wonderful when they kissed. Wang Ying mischievously sucked on his tongue and wouldn't let go, so Chen Qingyan helplessly pinched his waist.

The person in his arms went limp instantly, letting out a wail of unbearable sobs.

Damn, this body is too sensitive! Wang Ying cursed herself as she wrapped her arms around Chen Qingyan's neck, practically hanging on him.

Just as the two were about to do something else, the screen went black and the time was up, and the two returned to the post station.

Chen Qingyan wanted to continue, but Wang Ying lost all interest due to the fumes.

"Damn it!" Chen Qingyan pounded the bed in anger.

It was rare to hear him swear, and Wang Ying laughed so hard she almost fell over. "Go to sleep, or I'll throw up if you keep smelling it."

*

The next morning, just as dawn broke, Wang Ying handed over the keys and hurriedly left the post station to continue her journey.

After three days of travel, we finally arrived in Longquan County.

Longquan County, under the jurisdiction of Jizhou Prefecture, comprises seventeen towns and has a population of over 40,000, making it a relatively large county. Due to its location in the flat Central Plains and convenient land transportation, commerce is relatively developed.

Today is the tenth day of the twelfth lunar month, which happens to be the county market day. Many people from nearby villages and towns came to the market, and there was a long queue when they entered the town.

It was almost noon when it was their turn. Uncle Chen took out a wooden token he had prepared in advance and handed it to the official. This was a travel permit issued in the town, which was only valid within the county. Outside of Longquan County, other procedures were required, making each trip quite cumbersome.

The clerk took the wooden plaque, glanced at it, and recorded it in the register. "What's loaded on the cart?"

"In reply to you, sir, they are all worthless grains, dried vegetables, and wild game from the mountains, which are given as New Year's gifts when visiting relatives in the city."

Upon hearing this, the official raised his head, got up, went around the carriage behind him, and forcibly confiscated two pheasants.

"This..." Chen Qingyan was a little anxious. Why would someone take someone else's things for no reason?

Wang Ying pressed him down and said, "Two chickens aren't worth much money. Don't get into any trouble with them. As the saying goes, it's easier to see the King of Hell than to deal with his underlings. It would be troublesome if they blocked us from getting in."

After the clerk took the goods, he waved and let them pass. Uncle Chen and Dunzi quickly led the mule cart inside.

Upon entering the city, Wang Ying was immediately drawn to the hawkers.

"Steamed buns, steamed buns, thin-skinned and generously filled meat buns~"

"Candied hawthorn berries, oh, so sweet and sour!"

"Sharpening scissors and knives, ten coins a piece, quick and easy!"

Food stalls billowing white mist along the street, vendors carrying baskets and hawking their wares, beggars kneeling on the ground, and porters squatting by the roadside waiting to solicit customers.

This is what ancient times should have looked like!

A note from the author: