Chapter 331 Picking up bones
After passing the pass and walking forward for dozens of miles, they arrived at the post station. Geng Zhongcheng's attendant took the official disc to negotiate with the postman, and finally, the postman agreed to let the caravan's slaves and camels live in the stable.
"Brother Liang." Sui Yu walked over quickly. "The little guy is looking for you. You don't need to take care of the caravan's affairs. Go to the front yard."
Sui Liang turned around and said, "I want to go in and take a look."
"What's so good about it? It's not like we haven't seen it before." Sui Yu pulled him away and said, "You've been pricked by the thorns on the fence, and you're still trying to push against it. How foolish of you! It's not like there's no way in. We have the right to enter the house through the main gate, so don't try to climb over the wall like a thief."
Zhao Xiping and the cub had already made the bed. Geng Zhongcheng took off his shoes and sat beside the couch to soak his feet. Sui Yu pushed Sui Liang in and said, "Don't run around. You've been tired and cold these past few days. Rest early and have a good sleep."
Zhao Xiping walked out and asked, "What happened to him?"
"It's cold, and people tend to get depressed easily. I think he's a little depressed." Sui Yu sighed, "Further down the mountain, my father is still buried on the grasslands of the Qinling Mountains. He probably forgot what he looked like and might be trying to find his memory."
Zhao Xiping was silent.
"It's okay, he's just a little confused. Just keep an eye on him and don't wander off. There's no need to comfort him." Sui Yu said, "Don't think it's a big deal. The less we care, the more embarrassed he will be to dwell on this emotion. He will find peace of mind on his own."
Zhao Xiping looked into the room and saw the little boy whispering something to his uncle with an excited look on his face. Sui Liang was listening attentively and his face lit up.
"Okay." He agreed.
The postman brought dinner. After eating, Sui Yu and Lu Ya'er washed their faces with hot water, soaked their feet, and then crawled into the cotton quilt to sleep. They covered the quilt with their cotton coats and fox furs, and soon the bed was warm.
His body warmed up and he fell into a deep sleep after being tired for several days.
In the middle of the night, Zhao Xiping woke up. He got up and looked at the uncle and nephew who were sleeping together in each other's arms. They were sleeping soundly and didn't look worried at all. He lay down again, thinking that Sui Yu understood Sui Liang well and could defeat him with one move.
At daybreak, the caravan continued on their journey. After leaving the valley, they went down along the river.
The surface of the river has frozen, and there is water flowing under the ice. Perhaps in another three to five days, this stream formed by the meltwater from the mountains will be completely frozen.
The further down the mountain they went, the farther the gray sky was from their heads. As the sky grew brighter, Sui Liang's mood visibly improved. When the caravan stopped to cook, he even took his children to dig wild radishes.
"Sister, when we passed by here last year, a camel in Lu Yaer's family was injured. Sister Song released it here wild. I wonder if it will come here again." Sui Liang thought of this.
"Is it mine?" asked Lu Yaer.
"Yes, it's yours." Xiao Chunhong continued.
Green Bud looked around. Although the surroundings were barren, there was still a patchwork of yellow and green weeds growing in the cracks between the rocks. Further down, she could see a rich green. The camels had enough food and water, so they probably wouldn't be doing hard labor with the caravan anymore.
“It probably won’t be found again,” she said.
"Pay attention when you go down the mountain. A camel costs more than two thousand coins." Sui Yu said.
However, we walked all the way to the bottom of the mountain and didn't see any wild camels.
Lu Yaer looked at the lush green mountains and she had no intention of looking for camels anymore. At this time in Dunhuang, the rivers were probably dry and the grass was withered. But thousands of miles away, the rivers here were flowing and the leaves were still hanging on the branches. She couldn't help but sigh that the territory of the Han Dynasty was so vast.
The young man who was guarding the sheepskin raft by the river heard the sound of camel bells. He shouted, "Business is coming," and ran back.
When the caravan arrived at the river, there was no one there. The cub stared at the wide river in a daze. With so much water, it was no wonder that it could produce fish taller than golden flowers.
There was a clatter of footsteps; it was the boatmen approaching. The one in front saw the women in the caravan and, recognizing their Han Chinese faces, couldn't help but ask loudly, "Which caravan are you from?"
"The Sui and Song caravans." Zhang Shun went over to negotiate. He inquired, "Last year, we asked a passing caravan to bring us two jars of tiger bone wine. Did Ma Huang and Lao Shuan receive them?"
"Got it, got it." Lao Shuan's eldest son came running over. He shook Zhang Shun's hand and thanked him profusely, "I've been wanting to thank you guys. Why are you here so late this time?"
"Something delayed me." Zhang Shun took him to meet the master.
"Is your father in good health?" Sui Liang asked.
"Well, he keeps saying he wants to thank you. Thank you for not making a fuss about him." Lao Shuan's eldest son's face was full of gratitude and admiration. Their family had never thought that this caravan had made friends with leeches and kept their promise to bring a jar of tiger bone wine.
"It's almost noon. It'll probably be dusk by the time you cross the river. You won't be able to travel much further at night. Why don't you rest here for the night?" Lao Shuan's eldest son pointed to a mud house by the river and said, "No one's living there now. Stay here for the night. We'll help you load your camels over. Tomorrow morning, we'll be able to get you and your cargo over in just an hour."
Sui Yu and Sui Liang nodded repeatedly. With the wall tiles to block the wind, it was much more comfortable than living in a tent.
The other boatmen had no objection to what Lao Shuan's son said. The people in this caravan had good character. If they treated them kindly, they might be able to get tiger bone wine from them in the future.
The sheepskin raft entered the water, and the servants unloaded the goods from the camels' backs and drove the camels onto the sheepskin raft. Xiaozai and Zhao Xiping had never seen such a novel thing, and the father and son squatted by the river and looked at it for a long time.
When Lao Shuan received the letter, he personally thanked Sui Liang and apologized, saying that what he said on the boat that day was indeed unkind.
Only then did Sui Yu realize that there were all these tricks mixed in a jar of tiger bone wine. Sui Liang never mentioned to her that Lao Shuan threatened him on the sheepskin raft when he returned.
"There are a lot of fish in the river. Wait for my son to come over. I'll ask him to cast two nets and catch some big carp. You can stew some hot fish soup in the evening." Lao Shuan said politely.
"Then I won't be polite. My nephew and brother-in-law have never tasted the taste of fresh big carp." Sui Liang was very happy.
Lao Shuan looked at the father and son standing by the river, enjoying the cold wind, and thought that the water in the west of the river was shallow and the land was thin, so it couldn't raise big fish, but it could raise tall men.
All the camels had crossed the river and it was getting dark. After the caravan paid the boatman, most of the people left, leaving only three or five people to keep watch.
Lao Shuan's son cast two nets and caught fish. It was already dark, so he did not go home. He slept together with the male servants at night.
The scales of the big carp are scraped off and the fish is marinated with wild leek juice and ginger slices to remove the fishy smell. The peppercorns and leek roots are stir-fried with lard and then removed. The fish meat is chopped into pieces, fried on both sides until golden brown, and then poured into a ceramic pot to stew. In order to prevent the cold and remove the fishy smell, peppercorns and ginger slices are added to the fish soup.
That night, Xiaozai and Zhao Xiping drank fresh fish soup. The soup was thick and white, fresh and not fishy. The fish belly was thick and the bones were big. For this father and son who usually ate small fish, there was no need to worry about fish bones getting stuck in their throats.
After eating two meals of fish in the evening and the morning, the caravan left the river with the smell of fish all over their bodies.
In the evening, the caravan entered the mountains. Thick fog rose in the forest, so the caravan set up tents to rest.
"This is fog." The kid learned something new.
He was Zhao Xiping's substitute. Zhao Xiping was in his thirties and had never seen such thick fog. He thought that it was a good thing that the battlefield was not in the mountains, otherwise it would be difficult to distinguish between friend and foe.
"After crossing the Qinling Mountains, we will reach Chang'an." Geng Zhongcheng secretly breathed a sigh of relief. This journey was so tiring.
"How many days will it take to cross the Qinling Mountains by the official road?" Sui Yu asked.
"Five or six days. It only took us five days to get here. You're traveling with a caravan, so we won't be able to travel very fast. It might take another day," Geng Zhongcheng replied. "Once we get to Chang'an, I'll put you up at the post station. I can also bring your camels and merchandise with me. You'll just wait there. If the emperor wants to see you, someone will teach you etiquette."
Sui Yu said "Oh".
The forest was cold and damp, and even though there was a fire burning in the campfire, it was unbearable to sit outside. The cold air whizzed up from the soles of the feet. So, after leaving their meals behind, everyone except the night watchman went into the tent.
However, they woke up from the cold in the middle of the night. Everyone stayed up all night, and the fog in the forest had not yet dissipated, but the caravan was ready to set off.
After two days and two nights of hard work, the caravan walked out of the forest and the camel caravan stepped onto the grassland.
The scene that had repeated countless times in the dream came to Sui Liang's mind. His legs went weak and he almost fell off the camel's back. His ears were buzzing. He vaguely saw his sister's mouth moving, but he couldn't hear what she was saying.
"Uncle, why are you crying?" the kid asked anxiously.
Sui Liang wiped his face, his hand damp. He saw the solemn expression on his sister's face, as well as the worry on the faces of his nephew and brother-in-law. He wiped away his tears and said, "Grass dust blinded my eyes."
As the caravan continued on its way, and the horse ranch loomed faintly in the grassland, Sui Yu's gaze shifted away from Sui Liang. She stared at the grassland along the way, and when a raised haystack caught her eye, she shuddered. Looking around, she was almost certain the burial site was just a few steps away.
Sui Yu looked at Sui Liang, who was still looking around like a headless fly. Obviously, this grassland was chaotic and distorted in his memory, and he could not tell the direction.
The guards of Mayuan came over after hearing the sound of camel bells. Geng Zhongcheng negotiated with them, and the group entered Mayuan smoothly.
Sui Yu borrowed two shovels from the groom. She asked Zhao Xiping to carry the black pottery jar and take Sui Liang and the kid out.
"Sister, do you know where it is?" Sui Liang was panicked and timid.
"Where are we going?" The cub had no idea.
"We know the approximate location. Let's go look for it." Sui Yu said, "Come here, little one, hold my hand."
"Where are we going?" the cub asked again.
"Your grandfather is buried on this grassland. He fought against wolves to protect us and died in their mouths." Sui Yu explained, "It is his contribution that allowed me to marry your father."
The kid had never heard of such a thing before. He let out an "ah" and didn't know what to say.
After a while, he came to his senses and asked, "Are you and my uncle's father?"
"What are you doing?" Zhao Xiping scolded.
The kid shut up. He broke free from Sui Yu's hand, took two steps back and grabbed Sui Liang's hand. He felt that his uncle was the saddest.
After finding the place, Sui Yu handed Zhao Xiping a shovel, and the two of them dug up the withered yellow grass bag together. With a "clang" sound, the shovel hit a stone.
The turf and soil were continuously dug out, and a whole piece of stone was exposed in the sunlight. Zhao Xiping pried it with a shovel and moved it. He called Sui Liang and Sui Yu, and the three of them worked together to lift the stone.
When the stone was moved away, a nest of fat earthworms wriggled in the soil. Sui Yu's scalp suddenly went numb. Thinking about the reason why the soil here was fertile, she felt scared.
"I'll do it. You stand back." Zhao Xiping pushed her away and continued digging with a shovel, saying, "Little boy, hold on to your mother."
Sui Yu waved her hand, indicating that he should accompany Sui Liang.
There were no tools at hand at the time and the pit was not dug deep, so after a few diggings by Zhao Xiping, the bones emerged from the broken soil.
Sui Liang's legs went weak, he knelt down, and crawled over with a trembling body. He opened his mouth to call out "Dad", but his throat was blocked.
"Dad, Liang'er has grown up. I have done what I promised you." Sui Yu also knelt down. She said calmly, "Liang'er can speak now. He is not stupid anymore."
The boy looked at his father who was busy digging in the soil, his mother with a calm expression, and his uncle who was crying uncontrollably. He knelt down hesitantly, unsure of his emotions.
Zhao Xiping looked up at him, pointed at the bones and then at himself, and said, "This is your mother's father. I am your father."
The kid stared at him blankly, tears quickly filling his eyes.
Zhao Xiping: "...Don't look at me crying."
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