Chapter 280 Arrival at Dawan
When the night fades and dawn comes, the red sun rises from the top of the mountain, and the bright halo covers the mountains. The sleepy people wake up and open their eyes to see the huge sun floating above their heads.
"Master, wake up quickly and get up to watch the sunrise." Gan shouted without blinking.
Sui Yu yawned and got out of the tent, then shouted again: "Quick, come out, the sun is so bright."
This was the biggest sun Sui Yu had ever seen. Standing high and close to the sky, she felt like she could reach out and grab the sun. She even had an urge in her heart: to run higher and chase the slowly rising sun to the highest peak of the mountain.
Most people came out after hearing the exclamations. They looked at the sun climbing over the sea of clouds in shock and silence. The morning mist was as cold and frosty as smoke, dissipating bit by bit under the brilliant halo of light.
When the sun rose high in the sky, Sui Yu came back to her senses and discovered that the camels were also very obedient, each one looking at the sky quietly.
"It's really beautiful." Xiao Chunhong praised, and then said regretfully, "It's a pity that Mr. Chen didn't see it. If he had seen it, he would definitely have written three or five poems. Unlike me, after thinking about it, I can only say it's beautiful."
"I think you have the talent of a poet. When you see something beautiful, you want to write poetry." Sui Yu teased her, "Mr. Chen didn't see it, but you did. When you go back, learn from him. In three to five years, you will be able to write poetry and fu."
Xiao Chunhong covered her mouth with her hands and smiled. She went into the tent to put on clothes. It was very cold on the mountain. The mountain top two miles above was covered with ice and snow. It was June or July, and the cold on the mountain forced people to wear coats and robes.
The fire in the pit had been extinguished long ago, but sparks could still be seen after clearing away the floating ashes. Xiaoxi pulled a handful of hay over the fire and blew heavily. When the flames started to rise, they heated up the cold breakfast. After everyone had their fill, they continued to climb the mountain, leading the camels.
The mountain is steep and there is no grass on the top. The uneven rocks have been polished smooth by the erosion of wind and snow. Frost falls on them and freezes into ice. If you are not careful, people and camels will slip.
"Slow down, look carefully before you take a step. If you fall, you will either break your legs or hit your head." Sui Yu muttered.
Upon hearing this, Zhang Shun acted as her mouthpiece and repeated it loudly.
We walked safely along the way and after half a day, we finally came down the barren mountain wall at noon.
It took another half a day to go around the north-facing hillside. The mountain road meandered downwards. When it got dark, I could faintly hear the voices of people at the foot of the mountain.
"Sister Yu, it's already mid-June. We are selling goods and then buying goods in Dayuan. If we can't finish it within half a month, I'm afraid we won't be able to return to Dunhuang before winter." Song Xian said.
Sui Yu knew what was going on. When she left Dunhuang, she had expected to be able to return before winter. However, she encountered problems one after another on the way and was delayed several times, and her life became obviously tight.
"And this snowy mountain. It's expected to snow heavily in September. It will be completely blocked, making it even harder to travel." Song Xian smiled apologetically and explained, "I'm deeply regretful and scared because of my impulsive behavior. As for the timing of our return trip, I think we shouldn't be so reckless. Like the other caravans, we should come this year and leave next year. What do you think?"
"We'll see how the situation develops. If it's early, we'll leave Dayuan as soon as possible, cross the Pamir Mountains to spend the winter in Shule, and then set off back in March next year." Sui Yu thought.
Song Xian had no objection and quite agreed.
After a night's rest, at dawn, Gan Da instructed the others to fold the tents and winter clothes neatly and tie them on the camel's back. They were still wearing coats to survive the cold winter yesterday, but when they came down the mountain, the weather became hot and they felt too hot even in thin clothes.
At the foot of the mountain is a lush grassland with lush grass. The grass is growing well, with strong roots, thick leaves and full of juice. When the camels walk down, they chew and swallow greedily in big mouthfuls, like wolves entering a flock of sheep, eating so much that they can't even lift their heads.
"Hello, guests who have come from afar." A middle-aged man with deep eyes and a long beard strode over.
Hua Suichun walked over to Sui Yu and introduced him, "This person must be from the Anbulu family. They travel around the cities of Dayuan all year round, translating Dayuan language for Han merchant caravans to earn a living."
Sui Yu understood, and she sighed, "They have quite a business mind."
"Yes, they can make money just by sending people without any goods. They're smart." Song Xian continued, "Isn't this kind of person useful? They make money from the caravan, so they shouldn't cheat us, right?"
Hua Suichun nodded. "This family has a good reputation in Dayuan. I've been to Dayuan several times, and I haven't heard any other caravans say anything bad about them. By the way, you can also buy information from them, such as this year's cloth and horse prices, the prices of medicinal herbs and spices, or which place has the best medicinal herbs. As long as you can afford it, they will do you a good job."
As he was speaking, a Dayuan man with dark eyes and a long beard came over. He had already negotiated business with the caravans of the Xu and Li families.
"Greetings, ladies." He recognized the leader of the caravan at a glance. He walked up to Sui Yu, facing Song Xian sideways, and said, "I have a Han Chinese name, Zhao Qin. You can call me that. Ladies, you are new to Dayuan. You are unfamiliar with the place and cannot speak the language. It's easy to be deceived in business. Why don't you hire me to accompany you?"
"You can't handle everything by yourself, right? How many business orders have you taken?" Sui Yu glanced in the direction of the Xu and Li caravans.
"I will arrange someone else for them," said Zhao Qin.
"Okay then, how much do I have to pay you?" Sui Yu asked.
"One piece of silk for each family, for a month." Zhao Qin glanced at Song Xian and said, "Don't try to fool me, you two. I noticed you before you even left the mountain. Although you two groups were walking together, your spirits and expressions were very different. It's obvious that you're not from the same family."
Song Xian swallowed the words she was about to say. She glanced at her servants. They all had their brows lowered and looked submissive. They really didn't look like they were from the same family as Gan Da and Gan Er.
Sui Yu looked at Hua Suichun and when she saw him nod, she agreed.
"Everyone, take a rest for a while. I'll go back and call people." Zhao Qin said.
After everyone left, Sui Yu and Song Xian told everyone else to rest where they were while they went to look for the people involved in the Xu and Li families.
Lu Yaer looked at the bouquet of flowers in her hand, handed the gorgeous bouquet to Xiao Chunhong, and followed her quickly.
Sui Yu first blamed the heads of the Xu and Li families for being dishonest. They came to Dayuan for the first time and knew nothing, and they did not remind them. They had never heard of this An from the Lu family.
"It's a misunderstanding, a complete misunderstanding. We saw that there was a boy from the Hua family in your caravan, so we thought he would tell you." The head of the Xu family explained, "Besides, whether they know about this or not doesn't affect our business. As long as there is a Han caravan coming, they will take the initiative to come to us."
"That's the truth. It's just that we didn't know about this. When someone came to our door, we didn't know their identity. In their eyes, we were probably easy to deceive." Song Xian said, "Our four caravans went through hardships together and walked for four months to reach Dayuan. It was really not easy. Why don't we travel together for the rest of the journey? We came here together and we will go back together."
The leaders of the Xu and Li caravans had no objection and agreed immediately. After all, the caravans led by Sui Yu and Song Xian had not fallen behind along the way and they got along quite well.
Sui Yu told them about the return trip she and Song Xian had discussed. They had no objections and left it all to Sui Yu.
"Where are you going next?" Sui Yu asked. "You've been to Dayuan before, so we're counting on you to lead the way."
"No problem." Boss Xu agreed. "My caravan will go ahead, and Boss Li will lead the rear. You guys will follow in the middle to avoid falling behind."
Sui Yudao thanked him.
After the matter was agreed upon, Zhao Qin packed his bags and came with his three cousins. The four of them followed a separate caravan and asked questions about the situation in Dayuan.
"You are the fifth caravan to arrive in Dayuan this year. The first three were from the Wusun region, and the caravan that arrived three days ago was from the Parthian Empire," Zhao Qin told Sui Yu. "I won't charge for this information; I'm giving it to the female shopkeeper for free. You are the first Han caravan to arrive in Dayuan. As long as the prices aren't too high, we can ship quickly."
"Can you sell out the goods within half a month?" Sui Yu asked.
"Okay, you give me a commission and I'll introduce some business to you." Zhao Qin smiled cunningly.
Sui Yu: "...Tell me about it."
"If the business I introduced to you is successful, I will take 10% of the profit."
Sui Yu shook his head and refused without hesitation, "With this money, we might as well stay in Dayuan for a winter."
Zhao Qin smiled and didn't force it.
When they entered the first city, Xu Da led the caravan to find a place to rest, agreed on the rent, and the four caravans stayed there together.
After the goods were unloaded, Qingshan led his men to drive the camels out of the city to graze. Zhang Shun and Xiao Chunhong took Zhao Qin out to buy food. Gan Da, Gan Er and Li Wu Aniu stayed at home to guard the goods. Sui Yu took Liu Yaer away and asked Song Xian and her daughter to go out for a walk.
"The soil in Dayuan is really fertile. Along the way, the grass on the grassland is growing well and the crops in the fields are growing vigorously," said Song Xian.
"There are a lot of fruit trees," Lu Yaer said excitedly. "There are a lot of wild fruit trees on the road. I saw walnut trees and peach trees with a lot of fruit. There are also many bunches of grapes hanging on the wild grape vines. Mother, Auntie, have you seen it?"
Sui Yu nodded. She came out this time just to pick wild peaches.
"Would you like to buy some wine? You Han people all like our wine." A little girl in pink gauze poked her head out and asked in somewhat awkward Chinese.
Sui Yu and Song Xian waved their hands at the same time. Even if they wanted to buy wine, they would buy it when they left. Buying it now would be a burden.
"What's the price?" asked Lu Yaer.
"Last year, one foot of silk cloth was exchanged for five kilograms of wine."
"What about this year?" Sui Yu asked again.
"I can sell you six kilograms this year."
"Then we'll buy it from you when we leave," Song Xian said.
"If you don't buy it now, it will be gone later." The little girl shouted. Seeing that these people ignored her, she closed the door and hurriedly followed them.
"...Does this peach tree have an owner?" Sui Yu asked.
The little sister nodded and shook her head, "People die and are eaten by sheep."
"Then we can just pick any." Sui Yu chuckled.
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