Chapter 278 Reward
After the servants gathered together to discuss, they separated to take care of their respective responsibilities. After Sui Yu waited for them to separate, she went into the tent to visit Ding Quan.
Ding Quan lay drowsy on the ground, his head loosely wrapped in white cloth, his expression painful and struggling. Sui Yu saw that he must be in a nightmare, so he walked over and called out to him.
"Ah?" Ding Quan woke up in a daze. He glanced at Sui Yu and was in a daze for a while before he recognized him.
"Master, I dreamed of the will-o'-the-wisp fire again." He said with fear.
Sui Yu: "...That's not a will-o'-the-wisp. Don't be so weird and scare yourself. How are you feeling? Is the fever gone?"
Ding Quan's hair was barely burned, but he was wearing a hat, which he quickly flung off after the fire started. Sui Yu and Xiao Chunhong rushed over to put out the flames, leaving him with only two burn scars on the back of his neck and the side of his face, and large blisters on his scalp. Sui Yu had someone use a can of cold water to repeatedly rinse him. Afterward, the combination of shock and cold wounds kept him from getting a fever for two days before it subsided.
"I have a headache. It hurts when I move," said Ding Quan.
"Then I won't take you with me. You and Song Laodong will stay here to recover. The head of the Song family will arrange two servants to take care of you." Sui Yu said, "I'll leave you a month's worth of food. After your injuries have healed, you can go to Ruoqiang to find work and earn food. We'll pick you up when we pass by on our way back. Or you can go back with the caravan back home first, just in time for the spring planting season. You and Erhei can stay at home and farm the land."
Mentioning Erhei, Ding Quan subconsciously asked: "Master, aren't you afraid that I will run away?"
Sui Yu chuckled and said, "I think you're delirious. You'll still have a meal to eat when you get back. Outside the Great Wall, even if you're lucky enough not to die, you'll meet another master like Captain Hu. Okay, I won't chat with you anymore. Go back to sleep."
After leaving the tent, Sui Yu saw Song Xian coming out of another tent. The two looked at each other and went together to find the Xu and Li caravans.
The two burned merchants of the Xu caravan were not seriously injured. One was injured on the hand and the other on the ear, which would not affect their journey. So Sui Yu notified them that they would set off the next day, and the leaders of the two caravans agreed.
"Bring two camel legs over here," said the head of the household, Li. He turned and said, "Shopkeeper Yu, you and Mr. Song each bring back a camel leg. The camel that was burned to death that night was quite large. We plan to make it into dried meat. We've been busy for a few days, and there's still quite a bit left. It's hard to carry them on the road, so you each take some back."
Sui Yu thanked him and asked, "Have you found all your camels?"
"We found it. There was no one else in the desert except us. No one was doing anything bad, so the camel couldn't be lost." Li Dadang said truthfully.
Sui Yu glanced at the Gobi Desert, wondering if the two camels that had disappeared in the Gobi Desert could be found again.
After the matter was settled, the Li merchant came with two camel legs. Sui Yu and Song Xian thanked them again and asked them to take a few more steps to help them deliver the camel legs to the caravan and hand them over to the servants.
Boss Xu glanced at Song Xian twice. He had heard about the Song family servants' defection and had even witnessed the scene of the thieves and slaves being hacked to death and their bodies thrown away.
After Sui Yu and Song Xian walked away, the head of the Xu family said with a hint of anticipation, "Brother Li, guess whether these two female caravans will cause any more trouble along the way."
Sui Yu and Song Xian were somewhat famous among the merchants. These two female merchants were both smart and capable, and they were very keen on making money, so they were called "female leaders".
Li Dazhang thought for a moment and said, "I don't think so. Those who dared to run have already fled. The rest, whether loyal or cowardly, will give up their thoughts after seeing the thieves who took action being killed."
Boss Xu smiled and said, "Those two girls are quite capable. How many years have they been trading? Only this year did they have a slave defection."
Mr. Li didn't say anything else.
After a night, the caravan set off, leaving only a tent in the desert outside the Gobi Desert. Song Laodong personally selected two trusted slaves and took Ding Quan to stay there to recuperate.
The cry of an oriole awakens the spring outside the Great Wall. The ice and snow on the snow-capped mountains melt, and the winding streams in the mountains begin to show water. On the sunny slopes halfway up the mountain, the snow water nourishes the spring soil, and the green color spreads silently among the foothills in a few days.
The dry streams now have water, and the livestock that had been suffering throughout the winter gathered by the river. In order to compete for a good position, scenes of cattle and sheep fighting were often seen by the river.
The nomadic herders rode horses to drive their flocks to the spring pastures. When they heard the loud sound of camel bells on the road, they stopped and exchanged the furs they had saved in the winter for sturdy cloth from the caravans.
A piece of light purple coarse cloth was spread out on the green grass with purple buds. After making sure that the cloth was free of any damage or stains, the woman in the robe nodded with satisfaction.
Hua Suichun conveyed Sui Yu's message in his not-so-fluent Qiang language: "This piece of cloth must be exchanged for six sheepskins."
The woman had no objection, and she couldn't bargain. They were going to move to the spring pasture in the mountains and couldn't wait for the second Han caravan to arrive.
The deal was done and the caravan continued on its journey.
Sui Yu and Song Xian's goods were mainly taken to Dayuan for trade. If they met Qiang people on the way, they would do some small business with them, but they would not make large purchases.
The herdsmen were busy migrating, and the caravans passed by them. The sounds of sheep, cows and camel bells gradually faded away.
After dark, the caravan stopped at the edge of Ruoqiang State. Each of the four caravans bought a sheep and slaughtered it that night. The aroma of meat filled the area where the desert and oasis met all night long.
Far from the Xiongnu, the herders lived a stable and peaceful life. They lived a nomadic life, migrating year-round. They had no fixed abode, relying on passing caravans for their clothing, spices, and food. Consequently, the locals were very friendly to these merchants. Sui Yu and Song Xian led the caravan through Ruoqiang State. After two weeks of travel, they encountered no rogues or robbers, and even received gifts of dried meat and ghee from the local herders.
Song Xian did not see the three escaped slaves in Ruoqiang State. She asked Hua Suichun, who could speak Qiang language, to ask the herdsmen. They all shook their heads, indicating that they had not seen the Han people she was talking about.
Song Jiu defected with a total of six slaves, four of whom were captured. The three who escaped ran away with their camels, and the pursuers did not catch up with them, nor did they recover the silk they stole.
"We'll ask around when we get back," Sui Yu said.
Song Xian nodded. "I'll have many opportunities to come out of seclusion in the future. They'd better pray they don't run into me again. If I ever see them, I'll buy them back even if it means selling them myself. I'll spend all my money to cut off their livelihood."
Zhang Shun glanced at the person walking next to him. The servant of the Song family shuddered when he heard this, and his head hung down as if he wanted to bury it in his crotch, looking frightened.
After leaving Ruoqiang State, the caravan entered the desert again. When they reached this place, Sui Yu met a caravan coming from the west. It was a large caravan composed of Hu merchants and Han merchants.
"Ah! Isn't this Shopkeeper Yu and Headmaster Song? You came out so early? You set off just after the beginning of February?" asked the familiar escort.
"You left Dunhuang on the second day of February. Where did you come from?" Sui Yu asked.
"They left from Shule," the escort replied. He glanced north and asked, "Is the situation still turbulent in the north? I heard from the caravan that went to Dayuan last autumn that the Xiongnu and the Cheshi were fighting."
"The war has ended." Sui Yu untied the bag from the camel's back and asked, "Are you going directly back to the border? Could you help me take a bag for my child back home?"
"Is the war over? Tell me more." A merchant, driving a camel not far away, approached. He took the bundle and said, "Is this for your son? Leave it to me."
Sui Yu thanked him and carefully explained the situation in Cheshi and the ghost fire that appeared outside the Gobi Desert.
"It's the foul air formed by the decaying corpses of humans and animals. It will burn when it encounters fire or the temperature is too high. I don't know if there is any residual foul air nearby. Be careful when you get close to it. Don't start a fire if you can." Sui Yu instructed.
"We have arranged people to guard that place. You will be able to see them when you go there. You don't have to worry about not knowing the location." Song Xian added.
Those who heard this expressed their gratitude.
Two caravans heard that the Huns in the north had been driven away, so they planned to go to Loulan, do some business first, and then return.
Song Xian mentioned the escaped slaves to them, describing the three thieves' appearances in detail. He said, "I'll buy their lives for a camel. If you can find them and bring them back to Dunhuang and deliver them to the Changgui Inn, I'll give you a camel. Alternatively, if you rent a camel from me, I'll waive the rent on five camels."
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