Chapter 22
That day, while Wang Lang was out looking for food, Han Jinan quietly followed him and said, "We'll be in Yichun in half a month. Don't you have any ideas?"
Wang Lang and Han Jinan rarely looked for opportunities to meet alone along the way, and this was their first private meeting.
Wang Lang turned his head slightly to look at him without saying a word.
Han Jinan smiled awkwardly and said, "Your wife has already infiltrated the inner circle of the escort officers. It will be very convenient for her to do anything."
When Yao Chunnuan was mentioned, Wang Lang fell silent for a rare moment. After a moment, he said, "Han Jinan, I haven't forgotten how Yao escaped from danger and was then captured and exiled to Yichun."
Han Jinan's breathing stopped.
"You come to me and say this, you don't think I've forgotten, do you?" Wang Lang's eyes were cold.
He thought that since he had expressed his apology with his eyes in court, the matter was over.
Han Jinan said anxiously, "We're brothers. I think you should understand, right? I don't believe you don't understand the difference between exile to Fengqing and exile to Yichun. This involves the lives of more than a dozen people in my Han family."
Wang Lang smiled. "You want me to understand how you felt about using my wife and my child to benefit your Han family? I just hope that one day in the future you can understand me in the same way."
Han Jinan was silent for a moment before saying, "Now that things have come to this, I have nothing more to say. But I still feel that since we are about to arrive in Yichun, we should join forces, just for the sake of our families."
Besides, hadn't Yao Shi been living a comfortable life all this time? Better off than any of them, so why was he still harping on their past mistakes? After all, they had been friends for so many years.
The bandit's logic was this: if she could live well, that was her own ability. Could she possibly be thanking your family for reporting her? Wang Lang said coldly, "So, we haven't joined forces, and we won't. Each of us will survive based on our own abilities. If we can't survive, then we'll die."
After saying that, he turned and left. He had not forgotten the trap that Yao had dug for the Han family before he was exiled. His Han family was under surveillance by the Third Prince. The sooner they showed up, the sooner they would die. How could he possibly join forces with him?
Han Jinan was furious. The Han family, a military family, had subordinates; the Wang family, a family of civil officials, must have had many students and former officials. He had proposed a partnership simply because he thought that after arriving in Yichun, the two families could help each other establish a firm foothold quickly and avoid being bullied. Did he really think he had no hidden tricks? Did he really think they couldn't survive without the Wang family? Ridiculous!
Watching Wang Lang's back, without a backward glance, Han Jinan felt a headache. He didn't regret his family's reporting of Yao Chunnuan's pregnancy in exchange for a different place of exile. The rumors of high death rates during exile were true. If their family had truly been exiled to Fengqing, who knew how many would have died along the way, and how few would have survived. This time, they were exiled to Yichun, and out of nearly a hundred prisoners, only four or five had died. None of their group had died. This was a miracle, unlikely to happen again. But it also meant they had lost the foundation for their cooperation with the Wang family. There was no solution to this situation.
The weather is beginning to turn to autumn, and as the saying goes, every autumn rain brings a chill.
In weather like this, Tian Qigang and his companions tried to find shelter, avoiding the wilderness. After all, no one wanted to be in the middle of a nap when the rain suddenly started to fall and they had to run for cover, with nowhere to hide. Fortunately, they had traveled this route frequently and were familiar with the shelters, so they weren't completely in the dark.
That day, they walked for a quarter of an hour in the rain and finally arrived at a dilapidated temple to stay.
During this section, Luo Suyi protected Yao Chunnuan as she walked. Luo Suyi was very strong and held her steadily.
In the wind and rain, Wang Lang supported his mother. He looked up and saw Yao Chunnuan and Luo Suyi walking forward against the wind and rain. Their hair and clothes were quickly soaked. His heart sank. Looking again, he saw that the men in the family were either caring for the elderly or the three children. They couldn't let go. He could only follow closely behind them to prevent any accidents.
The temple is very dilapidated and the roof is leaking due to years of disrepair. There is limited space to shelter from the wind and rain. When it rains heavily outside, water is dripping inside.
Thanks to her good reputation in front of Tian Qigang, the three of them occupied a leak-free corner next to the officials after they took away the driest spot.
Yao Chunnuan was already three months pregnant, with a slightly protruding belly. After two quarters of an hour of brisk walking and running, she felt a dull pain in her stomach.
Yao Chunnuan instructed Luo Suyi to prepare dinner. She was already quite skilled in the kitchen, and with her constant assistance, her cooking skills had improved. The food she cooked was only slightly inferior to Yao Chunnuan's, but it was still very good. This was a rare occasion, so the escorting officers didn't complain.
She also instructed Luo Suyi to boil a pot of ginger soup, using the wild ginger collected these days to ward off the cold.
Tian Qigang also accepted her kindness and gave everyone half a bowl.
After dinner, Yao Chunnuan felt a little stuffy and drowsy. Not daring to be careless, she found the herbs that the Yao family had prepared for her and asked Luo Suyi to help her make a medicinal soup. These herbs were specially picked for her by her family, probably taking her pregnancy into consideration.
While she was wrapping herself tightly in her little jacket and leaning against the corner waiting to drink her medicine, the other people in the dilapidated temple were also having a hard time.
At the Wang family's territory, Zhang cried out in alarm, "It's so hot! Oh no! Xiaoxi has a fever!"
Wang Lang reached out and touched her forehead, then went out for a while, but when he came back he looked grim.
He had secretly asked Tian Qigang to prepare two sets of these herbs for treating colds and fevers, but unfortunately they were never used. He hadn't placed them properly and they got caught in the rain.
Especially one of the main ingredients, which is no longer usable because it was caught in the rain. If this main ingredient is missing, the effect will be greatly reduced.
Zhang looked at him hopefully. When she saw his expression, her eyes dimmed. Then, her eyes suddenly lit up again. "Yao must have some medicinal herbs!"
"But she seems to have caught a cold, and they're making medicine over there." Wang Chao said hesitantly.
"The Yao family must have prepared more than one batch of medicinal herbs for her!" Zhang said with certainty.
Wang Lang pursed his lips and said nothing. Even if the Yao family had prepared something, they would not prepare too much. After all, the packages were limited, and they also had to prepare other things.
Zhang touched her daughter's burning forehead, feeling anxious and furious. She couldn't care less. "Her second uncle, make a decision quickly. If Xiaoxi keeps getting a fever, even if she's saved, her brain will be burned into dementia."
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Not long after, Old Lady Wang, Zhang, and Wang Lang, who was holding the child, came to Yao Chunnuan to ask for medicine, but no one else came.
"Second sister-in-law, no matter what, she is just a child, and the older sister of the baby in your belly. Please save her!" Zhang cried while holding the child.
"Yao, this little girl does have a very high fever. Without medicine, I'm afraid she won't survive. Saving a life is better than building a seven-story pagoda. Please consider this."
Tian Qigang gave a few words of advice and then walked away.
This little woman was quite stubborn. She had been relentless in accepting the Wang family's overtures and benefits, but she hadn't shown any appreciation. Out of goodwill, he hoped that Yao could reconcile with the Wang family. Otherwise, she wouldn't have an easy time in Yichun, without support. Yichun wasn't a place she could easily get through with her skills. Furthermore, the medicinal herbs Wang Lang had privately asked him to buy were unusable, which was something Tian Qigang felt sorry for. He hoped that a few words of advice would make up for it.
Yao Chunnuan looked up and saw that the child's cheeks were indeed red with fever. The child was frail, having spent the past few months in prison and exile, sleeping in the open air. It was only after a heavy rain that he became ill, so he was considered to be in good health.
"Come, the medicine is ready, drink it quickly." Xiao Jieming ignored them and brought a bowl of boiled medicine to Yao Chunnuan, urging her to drink it, fearing that someone would snatch it away.
Yao Chunnuan took it and drank it mouthful by mouthful.
Zhang looked at him eagerly, "Second sister-in-law, please, please be kind."
Xiao Jieming couldn't stand it any longer and threw the bowl in his hand towards Wang Lang's door. "Mr. Wang, do you know that she also has a fever? If you borrow her herbs, it's like taking away her lifeline. Don't forget that she is pregnant with your child!"
Yao Chunnuan remained silent. Yes, she had lived the best life of all the prisoners during her exile. But don't forget she was pregnant. How could such an environment compare to a safe and secure one, with a high bed and soft sleeper, and proper care? Therefore, the resources she had, whether food or medicinal herbs, were very precious.
Wang Lang turned his head away, took a deep breath and said, "Lend me the herbs. Consider it as a debt I owe you. I will repay you tenfold or a hundredfold in the future." If Xiaoxi was not saved this time, she would not be able to survive.
Yao Chunnuan scoffed inwardly. Is this just medicinal herbs? This is a human life! He said he would pay her back tenfold or a hundredfold, but what could he give her?
Yao Chunnuan glared and said nothing, but she had to consider Tian Qigang's attitude. Along the way, she had dealt with the escort officers quite a lot. How could she not notice that Tian Qigang was secretly taking care of the Wang family? Now it was obvious that Tian Qigang was biased towards the Wang family. The situation was stronger than the person. Even if he secretly gave away her herbs, she could not do anything.
So, "You can take the herbs, but I have one condition."
Zhang was surprised. "What conditions? We will agree to them no matter what they are!"
Wang Lang's heart tightened, and he asked in a deep voice, "What are the conditions?"
"From now on, the child in my belly has nothing to do with your Wang family. It is only my, Yao Chunnuan's, child. Your Wang family is not allowed to take the child back under any excuse!" Yao Chunnuan snorted coldly. When he repeatedly ignored her body and asked her to make sacrifices and concessions, it was equivalent to giving up the child.
She would sever her ties with the Wang family and raise the child herself. Otherwise, if she gave the child she had carried for ten months of pregnancy and had given birth to, she would be so angry that she would die.
In her later life, her grandmother urged her to go on blind dates and get married. In the end, her grandmother compromised and agreed to get married first. As long as she gave birth to a child so that she would have someone to rely on in the future, she didn't care about anything else.
Madam Wang said, "Second Brother, there's no need to do this. We just need this medicine temporarily to get through this difficult time."
Yao Chunnuan raised her eyes and said, "That's all I ask. If you agree, I'll take the herbs away. If you don't agree, please go back."
Wang Lang pursed his lips. "By proposing such a condition, was she really sure that the Wang family would never recover?" "She's severing ties with him after just a small contribution. Wouldn't he treat her and their child well in the future?"
Yao Chunnuan was not certain that the Wang family would not be able to rise. After all, in the original novel, Wang Lang must have had real ability to return to the pinnacle of power.
Although the plot is now very different, she remembers that in the original novel, someone in the Wang family must have died during his exile, which led to his gradual transformation into a darker person. Perhaps the change in the location of exile also led to a change in the plot.
Yao Chunnuan didn't know that their road overlapped with the road to Fengqing for a section, and the two roads only split after the rocky beach.
Along the way, the family had been well-protected by Wang Lang's men, a testament to their abilities. But precisely because Wang Lang protected his family so well, they were often held back. Returning to the pinnacle of power wouldn't be easy; the hardships and sacrifices involved would surely be beyond imagination. She feared that if she didn't sever ties with the Wang family, she would be sacrificed again, forced to compromise.
"Now, tell me your answer." After taking the medicine, Yao Chunnuan felt a little drowsy and didn't want to bother with them any more.
Zhang looked at her mother-in-law and Wang Lang anxiously.
Old Lady Wang sighed inwardly. Both the palms and the backs of her hands are made of flesh, and this choice was too difficult.
In the end, Wang Lang took the medicinal herbs away.
Even though the life-saving herbs were retrieved, the atmosphere at the Wang family was not very good.
While feeding her daughter the prepared medicine, Zhang muttered to herself, "Yao Chunnuan is so cold and heartless. She is destined to be a lonely person! Why didn't I realize that Yao Chunnuan's personality is so unpleasant before?"
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