Chapter 18
This night, we slept outdoors again.
While Yao Chunnuan was digging rice by the river, he took out a duck egg from the old house and pretended that he had picked it up from the grass by the river.
She originally wanted to get a goose egg because goose eggs are large and can eat more, but she was worried that if someone saw her, she would have trouble explaining where it came from. Duck eggs were different; she could easily pass them off as wild duck eggs.
She had this duck egg in the open, firstly to observe the escort officer's reaction, and secondly, she had been in exile for a few days, and everyone else was getting darker and thinner, but she, thanks to the subsidies from the old house, wasn't very thin, or rather, her weight loss wasn't noticeable. It was okay now, but after a while, the difference would be obvious. So sometimes, when it comes to supplementing nutrition, it's better to go through the open.
All the prisoners knew that she had luckily found a duck egg by the river. Then, a group of prisoners rushed to the grass by the river and began to sweep. Of course, they found nothing.
Wei Qiuyu didn't realize that Yao Chunnuan was so lucky that she could pick up a duck egg just by taking a walk by the river.
Yao Chunnuan ignored the disappointed prisoners. She kept an eye on the escorts, and when they didn't react much to her duck eggs, she breathed a sigh of relief. She had only dared to offer them because she saw the escorts had caught prey and didn't care about her eggs. She struggled to ensure nutrition without attracting attention.
Wang Lang took two of the best-looking taro from the dinner and planned to give them to Yao Chunnuan.
The river where they camped was very deep, and the male prisoners in shackles could not go down to the river to fish or catch shrimp, so tonight's dinner was very simple.
"What's there to send? They eat much better than us!" Zhang complained dissatisfiedly, "Look at her, she's still making summer tea every day, and she's not willing to come home and help cook! Since she'd rather hang out with those two murderers, then let her be. Why bother with her so much?"
Yao Chunnuan would rather be nice to outsiders than take care of the Wang family, which makes people feel suffocated.
There wasn't much food to begin with, and they had to share some of it with her, which was infuriating! However, much of the extra food was brought back by the child's second uncle and several other male members of the family, and she didn't dare to tell them directly.
Along the way, it was clear that she was a very good cook. Even in the wilderness, she could make delicious food with limited conditions. But since Yao Chunnuan didn't come back and accepted the food sent to her, it was no wonder she was dissatisfied.
Old Lady Wang and First Lady Wang did not say anything. They were both people with relatively decent ideas. She was pregnant with the Wang family's child, so it was only natural to send her some food.
Yao Chunnuan was unaware of the Wang family women's dissatisfaction. While others were still discussing the wild duck egg, some even looked at her with greedy eyes, Yao Chunnuan quickly devoured the boiled duck egg in a few bites. She ate it too fast, though, and it was a bit choking.
During this period, Yao Chunnuan kept an eye on Luo Suyi's reaction. After all, the two of them were partners, and if something was wrong with the other party, they would break up immediately.
To her surprise, the man didn't even look at the white duck eggs she'd found. Even when he learned she wasn't planning on sharing them but was eating them all by herself, he looked at her with a soft glint in his eyes. What was wrong with him? Yao Chunnuan was completely baffled.
Wang Lang came over at this time, and she happily accepted the fat taro he brought. At this time, no one would complain about having too much food, and besides, he also had a share of the child in her belly, so she would not stubbornly refuse to accept it.
After giving her the food, Wang Lang did not leave. Instead, he watched her finish eating and started to make some thirst-quenching herbal tea. He was a little puzzled, so he asked.
"Why are you going through all this trouble?" The underlying undercurrents of her actions were frightening. The problem isn't the paucity of treatment, but the inequality. If everyone suffered together, it wouldn't be a big deal. But the problem is, it's clear that Team One is being treated far better than Teams Two and Three. Something's bound to happen.
Yao Chunnuan said as a matter of course, "Of course it's to live a better life." If you can live like a human being, who would be willing to be tied up like a dog?
"Actually, as far as exile is concerned, we're not living badly." He had used his connections and spent a lot of money to carefully take care of Tian Qigang, so the prisoners in their team had better food than the other two teams, and other aspects were also more relaxed.
For example, two days ago, Tian Qigang and his men had hunted a lot of prey, and if they couldn't finish it, they would share some of the leftovers with the prisoners. The portion that the Wang family received might not seem large, but it was the best. Wang Lang knew that Tian Qigang was taking care of them in this way, without leaving any trace.
That's why he initially hesitated when deciding whether to step forward and help her. If he helped, and Yao Shi also received preferential treatment due to the summer tea incident, it would be more conspicuous, and would make Tian Qigang's hidden care public. This would contradict his intention to keep a low profile. In exile, he only wanted to protect his family and make further plans after they all arrived safely in Yichun. This was not his main battlefield, and Tian Qigang was not a target he needed to conquer.
"Are you satisfied with this?" Yao Chunnuan was surprised. "Do you still remember your identity as the young master of the Wang family? Don't try to persuade me to join you just because you've become accustomed to darkness and chosen to live in mediocrity. I'm different from you. My heart is burning, and it yearns for a free sky and a better life. As long as I can still try, I won't give up."
Wang Lang paused and said, "That's not what I meant. I just think you don't need to work so hard."
"Okay, if I don't work hard and don't suffer, can you give me what I want?"
Wang Lang was speechless again, and after a long while, he said, "Never mind. You have the ability to make your life easier, and I should be happy for you. But I still want to remind you that Xiao Jieming and Luo Suyi are not good people. That's all I have to say. Please be careful."
Yao Chunnuan didn't say anything. She didn't know the story behind Xiao Jieming and Luo Suyi. Perhaps Wang Lang knew it, so he reminded her again and again. But she had her own eyes and judgment, and didn't need others to tell her what to do.
Wang Lang stared at her deeply, seeing that she was unmoved by other people's words and was doing her own thing. Thinking back on everything that had happened to her during this period of time and her response, he felt deeply unfamiliar.
Before the divorce, she wasn't like this, and I didn't see her using such tactics. Of course, it could also be because they had only been married for half a year and didn't know each other well enough.
But with a personality like that and methods like that, she'd have no trouble making it big. How could she have ended up as an obscure, housebound woman in her previous life? Could it be that her gender and her marriage had limited her development in her past life? He couldn't figure it out.
However, her various actions made him realize that his family members, including himself, were inferior to her in many ways. Compared to her shameless behavior of stooping to a low position for a purpose or profit, the Wang family was used to being superior and didn't know how to be good subordinates. They would probably have to learn these things when they arrived in Yichun.
He was the same. He had been in a high position for a long time in his previous life and had long forgotten his humble status among the mortals.
Realizing this is a wake-up call.
The cooling herbal tea prepared by Yao Chunnuan was indeed effective. After a few days, no one in the group of prisoners led by Tian Qigang fainted, and they were even more energetic than the other two teams.
To be honest, only a few of those who have been in prison are in good health after being released. Exile is a difficult journey, and illness is all too common.
In the past, when they had to travel under the scorching sun with the prisoners, several frail prisoners would inevitably fall ill. This not only delayed the journey, but also was troublesome and expensive to treat. If they didn't, they could force them to wake up by pouring cold water on them, but those who traveled sick would gradually become weaker and usually wouldn't make it to the destination, which was frustrating.
Of course, they did prepare some anti-heat medicine, but that was for themselves, so how could they give it all to the prisoners?
Now, Yao Chunnuan had solved their big problem. Her request was very simple: not to be handcuffed or shackled. This was completely possible. They just needed to assign someone to watch her.
For a moment, Tian Qigang and the officials he brought with him were extremely satisfied with her. Having her help on this trip was such a relief!
Zhang Heimian and Gao Daxiong, the leaders of the other two escort teams, watched with envy. Who would want to deal with such trivial matters if they could just have less worry? Zhang Heimian immediately dragged Gao Daxiong to find Tian Qigang and suggested that Yao Chunnuan make a portion of the summer tea for everyone in their two teams as well.
Seeing that they were both empty-handed and were just talking about something, Tian Qigang refused without a second thought. Why would he do something that offered no benefit and took risks?
The two teams' leaders were in a bad mood after being rejected. Coincidentally, they heard the prisoners being escorted below muttering that the prisoners in Team One ate better than the other two teams and even had summer tea to drink every day.
Zhang Heimian was immediately furious. He whipped the man with his whip and mocked him, "Get lost! I envy you, why don't you go? If you can't go, it's all your fault for not managing things properly, so you fell into my hands! You want to drink herbal tea? Do any of you know how to pick herbs? Don't end up boiling a pot of poison, drinking it to death, and then making me bury your bodies."
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