Chapter 14
The wet clothes and pants were half dry when they arrived at the post station. The straw mats had not been made yet, but most of the men had already taken off their clothes and were walking around the woodshed with their bare chests.
Sui Ling and Sui Hui didn't dare to look up. They sat on the straw mat and buried their heads to clean the mud and sand from the soles of their shoes.
As night fell, the wind outside the house suddenly picked up, and the waves of the river in the distance seemed to be rolling violently. Sui Yu came in from outside with some porridge, walked through the wall of people without looking around, and turned a deaf ear to the man's deliberately evil laugh.
"Miss, it's time to eat." She said sarcastically.
Sui Hui and Sui Ling couldn't help but blush, how could they still be called rich ladies?
"Where is my brother?" Sui Hui asked.
"He was called by the soldiers when he entered the door. He told us to eat first and not wait for him." Sui Yu was hungry. She picked up the food pot with a missing corner and took two mouthfuls of hot food to fill her stomach. Then she tilted the pot and handed it to Sui Liang to drink.
Sui Hui squinted her eyes and looked outside. When she met a fierce gaze, she quickly looked away.
Sui Yu stuffed the jar into her hands and said unhappily, "You're scared to death. The more timid you are, the more he wants to bully you." After that, she turned around and glared at him. Everyone walking along the way was as thin as a paper skeleton. The man was shirtless, with a shriveled belly, protruding ribs, a dry face and a big head. Under her disgusted and picky eyes, he fled in panic.
"Why are you afraid of this kind of man? He can't scold you, but he can shout at you. He's a tough guy on the outside but weak on the inside. If you shout 'official', he'll be scared to pee his pants." Sui Yu was very disappointed with his son.
"I'm afraid of causing trouble for you and my brother." Sui Hui shrank her neck and said, "If you do that again, I'll yell."
Sui Wen'an strode in. After he sat down, Sui Yu handed him the food can and asked, "What did the official call you for?"
"Tell me about what happened at night. I told you everything truthfully." Sui Wen'an guessed that the previous accident had made the officers and soldiers alert, and they might have to be strictly monitored on the next journey. This was good news for him.
After dinner, Sui Yu took Sui Liang out of the woodshed to get some fresh air. Sui Hui and Sui Ling followed her closely, and only went back to the house to sleep after their wet clothes were completely dry.
Late at night, Sui Yu woke up from her sleep. She heard loud snoring in the woodshed. She turned over and prepared to continue sleeping. She caught a glimpse of the empty straw mat on the right. She was stunned for a moment and looked up, but there was no familiar figure there.
Oh, Sui Hu is dead.
Sui Yu sat up. People tend to feel depressed at night. Thinking that Sui Hu was dead, she suddenly felt uncomfortable. Habits are really terrible.
There were footsteps outside the door, and heavy footsteps stepped into the woodshed. Sui Yu looked over and saw that the other person was a burly figure. She recognized at a glance that he was an officer traveling with her. The other person was pacing in the woodshed. The footsteps approached and woke up Sui Wen'an who was dozing off.
"What are you doing up late at night?"
Sui Yu recognized the voice; it belonged to the bearded soldier.
"I dreamed about my dad." She whispered.
The officers and soldiers were speechless and said nothing more.
After he left, Sui Yu lay down and continued to sleep. On the other side, Sui Wen'an was no longer sleepy and was lost in self-blame.
At dawn, they left the post station and led the way into the river valley. The valley was lush with water and grass, with herds of cattle and sheep. Villages were scattered along the river.
Heading west along the river valley, there were more and more merchants on the road. The travelers held flags that fluttered in the wind, and the melodious sound of camel bells drove the shepherd children to chase the caravan.
The valley came to an end, and the terrain ahead rose. Except for the back road, it was surrounded by mountains on three sides. Looking up, the mountains were winding and the peaks were hidden in the clouds.
Walking along the mountain, people will forget the time. As they climb over one mountain after another, looking around, it seems that people are trapped in the mountains and can never get out. The earth becomes vast, and people are infinitely close to the clean and clear sky.
While spending the night at the inn, Sui Yu stood outside the door looking at the night. The night was desolate and the howling of wild wolves was empty. This seemed like a good place to exile his soul.
However, her sentiment was shattered the next day. The sky was clear yesterday, but it changed overnight. At noon, a cold wind blew violently, and within an hour, snow began to fall from the sky.
"It's summer, why is it snowing?"
"Yesterday it was so hot I had to take off my clothes and unbutton them. What a lousy weather."
Nearly a thousand people on the road were shivering with cold. After the spring came, in order to reduce the burden, they took out the cattail fluff from their jackets and threw it away when it got soaked while crossing the river.
"Brother Liang, let me carry you." Sui Wen'an squatted down.
"Let him walk by himself. He will be warmer if he walks more," said Sui Yu.
As they were speaking, a layer of white had already fallen between the mountains. The snow did not melt, and the flowers, plants and short trees turned white in an instant.
"Run, walk faster, and everything will be fine if we get to the next post station." The officers and soldiers shouted.
Sui Yu pulled Sui Liang to run. As they sped up, the biting cold wind swept the snowflakes against their chests. It felt like someone was slapping them in the face. Soon they lost consciousness.
"Come, I'll carry you." Sui Yu squatted down and said to Sui Liang, "Lie down."
"Sister Yu, let me carry you. I'm very strong." Sui Wen'an said.
"I'll give it to you when I can't carry it anymore. I'll be warmer if he lies on my back." Sui Yu couldn't stand the cold anymore.
The snow on the ground was already above the ankles, and it was getting harder to walk against the wind. The tired people had no strength left and could not run anymore, so they could only walk slowly in the snow. The team was getting longer and longer, and the officers and soldiers following behind seemed to be kicked by a donkey, and their urging voices were sharp and harsh.
Suddenly, the crisp sound of camel bells appeared in the cold wind. A caravan crossed a pass and appeared in the snow. The merchants on the camels were wearing wolf skins. In this world of ice and snow, they were neither anxious nor panicked.
"I have furs here, is anyone interested in buying them?" The merchant on the camel never misses any opportunity to make money.
How could the volunteers who were willing to move westwards afford to buy furs? They were so poor that they could not afford to eat or support their families, so they were willing to leave their hometowns and move to the northwest to make a living.
"I want to buy. How much is the cheapest fur?" asked a prisoner.
Sui Yu looked over and saw that it was a male prisoner from Chang'an.
"Two hundred coins a piece of sheepskin."
"I'll buy two."
The officers and soldiers watched coldly, wearing wolf skins, and did not stop them from trading.
"Sister Yu..." Sui Ling stared at Sui Yu. She knew that Sui Yu still had some silver in her hand. Her third uncle should have given the silver to her before he died.
Sui Wen'an and Sui Hui also looked at her with hope in their eyes.
Sui Yu took off his shoes, untied one of his shin guards, and poured out five pieces of silver, saying, "This is all I have. Once I use it, it's gone."
In this dynasty, most silver was kept in the homes of officials. If it was exchanged with the government, the copper coins would be greatly depreciated. Merchants rarely did business at a loss, and the opportunity to come into contact with silver was even rarer. Seeing Sui Yu take out the silver, he did not hesitate to exchange it with her for sheepskin.
Five pieces of silver weighing nearly eight taels were exchanged for four black sheepskins. Sui Wen'an carried Sui Liang on his back, and the two of them shared a sheepskin.
Among nearly a thousand people, less than twenty bought sheepskin to keep warm. Sui Yu could imagine how many people were jealous without even looking up. However, there was nothing she could do. If she didn't pay at this time, she would be gambling with her life.
"Yu girl, let your brother stand by to block the wind." Aunt Chun pulled her two grandsons over.
"Okay." Sui Yu pulled one of them into the sheepskin and said to the other one, "Go to your sister Hui."
"Bah." The boy spat at Sui Hui.
"Go over there." Aunt Chun pushed him.
Sui Hui's face flushed, and without saying a word, she shook the sheepskin to cover the boy with his neck stiffened.
Sui Wen'an turned around and saw his tribesmen eagerly preparing to grab the sheepskin. He hurriedly said, "Ling'er, give your sheepskin to Auntie. You and your sister can share one."
"I..." Sui Ling didn't want to give it, but seeing her elder brother glaring at her, she reluctantly threw away the black sheepskin and got into the other side of Sui Hui.
Aunt Chun picked up the sheepskin and glanced at Sui Wen'an. She carried the sheepskin back to the crowd and covered her two sons with it under the complicated gazes. She had two strong laborers in her family and was not worried about being targeted by the tribe members.
The people walking on the mountain path have turned into snowmen, blending into the white snow.
As it got dark, the fallen snow covered the footprints, and the ground became flat. However, the snow piles on both sides of the road kept piling up, and underneath the snow piles were people who had fallen to the ground and could never get up again.
A bonfire was lit in the post station at the foot of the mountain. Three pits were dug in the woodshed, and cow dung was burning in the pits. Circles of people gathered around the bonfire.
"The ginger water is here, everyone drink more." The soldier who blew the whistle followed the servant into the woodshed.
"I'll go distribute the soup." Sui Wen'an picked up the jar and went over. As expected, he was beaten before he could squeeze out of the crowd.
When the porridge was distributed, he was beaten again.
"Even God couldn't bear to see us arrive at the place of exile safely." He sighed helplessly.
"Hold on a little longer." Sui Yu said.
"This is the only way. I will keep watch tonight," said Sui Wen'an.
"If someone is looking for trouble, just shout and wake everyone up. It would be best if you could attract the soldiers." Sui Yu instructed.
"good."
Covered with black sheepskin and warmed by the residual heat from the fire, Sui Yu hugged Sui Liang and fell asleep quickly.
At midnight, the inn's chickens crowed, and while everyone was sound asleep, a fight broke out in the woodshed. When the soldiers rushed over, Sui Wen'an was badly beaten, and the black sheepskins in the hands of the Sui Hui sisters were thrown into the fire, burning, and the flames soared as high as a person.
"It was the criminals who caused the trouble. They caused our family to be broken up and we to suffer from the cold. How could they sleep peacefully under the sheepskin?" An old man with a hunched back stood up and confessed his guilt before the officers and soldiers could speak.
The other troublemakers remained silent. It was obvious that they had already agreed to push a dying old man out to take the blame.
The officers and soldiers knew that he was lying, but they were too lazy to pursue the matter. They dragged the man out and beat him to death with a few sticks.
"What's going on?" Bearded officers and soldiers rushed over.
"I have already dealt with the revenge-seeking and trouble-making incident. Boss, you can just go back to your room and sleep." said the young soldier.
The bearded officer ignored him. He walked straight up to the Sui clan members and swept his calm gaze over them. The guilty people lowered their heads.
"You tell it." He pointed at Sui Ling, who was brainless and impulsive and could not lie.
Sui Ling stood up. With the help of the firelight, she could see the frightened faces. It turned out that they were also afraid of death. She felt happy.
Sui Wen'an suddenly coughed so hard that he couldn't breathe, and tried to stop Sui Ling from speaking.
"It's not just that old man causing trouble, but it was too dark and I couldn't see who it was." Sui Ling spoke.
Sui Yu looked over in surprise. She thought that a few more people would die and the hatred between the two sides would become deeper.
The bearded soldier heard a few sighs of relief. He sneered and said, "You'll see clearly next time."
The officers and soldiers left, and the people gathered in the woodshed dispersed. The Sui family members quietly returned to their seats. Sui Ling and Sui Hui also helped Sui Wen'an lie down.
"You were smart for once today." Sui Yu pulled Sui Liang over and held the black sheepskin to sit over. The sheepskin was spread out to cover the five of them. If it was not covered tightly, straw was buried.
"If they do it again, I won't let them go." Sui Ling turned her head and shouted, "One life for one life. I'll let you go tonight, and you also let us three brothers and sisters go. We owe each other nothing."
Several cold snorts were heard in the darkness.
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