Chapter 10: Someone Inquired at the Post Station
The whole family was caught off guard by Xie Zhen's appearance.
Especially the third wife, Shen, Xie Zhen's mother, couldn't believe it for a long time when she saw her daughter suddenly appear in front of her.
"Zhen'er...you?"
After Xie Zhen passed the interrogation of the officials, he relaxed all over when he was with his family and sat down on the ground.
Her mother, Shen, asked her, "Why are you coming here when you can't just live your life in Beijing?"
Xie Yuchuan learned about his second sister Xie Zhen from the family god, but he said nothing.
When Xie Zhen saw her mother asking her, she took out the divorce letter written by Zhuang Xu from her arms.
After Shen finished reading it, she passed it on to others, and finally to Old Lady Xie. After reading it, the old lady cursed, "Zhuang Xu, you treacherous man! You are unworthy of being a husband."
Shen held her daughter in her arms sadly and choked up, saying, "My daughter has been wronged."
Xie Zhen was fine. He gently patted his mother's back and said, "Mom, Zhuang Xu is not a good match. It's a good thing that we can get rid of him completely while I have no children."
Tu Huan was hiding not far away and couldn't help but applaud when she heard this.
Unexpectedly, the second sister of the Xie family is such a straightforward person, which is just to her liking.
Shen seemed weak, but she was actually strong-willed. Seeing that her daughter could let it go, she stopped worrying about it.
"You, child, actually said words to comfort me."
Xie Zhen was her only daughter. She had lost her husband early and became a widow. Her lifelong thoughts were all about the one and only child left to her by Third Master Xie. When the Xie family was exiled, she was thankful that her daughter Zhenniang was already married and didn't have to suffer with them.
Now...that's all.
The Xie family is in such a situation now, and it would be a good help if the mother and daughter were together.
Xie Zhen was not on the registration list, but Xiong Jiushan still sent an official to check her in.
Xie Yuchuan glanced to the other side. Xiong Jiushan seemed to be a reckless person, but in fact he was a meticulous person.
When Xie Zhen was free, Xie Yuchuan asked her, "Did the Zhuang family take your dowry?"
"After something happened at home, they no longer had any scruples."
Upon hearing this, Xie Yuchuan nodded, his expression did not change, but his look became a little colder.
After the whole family exchanged greetings, it was late at night and it was time for everyone to rest.
The escorting soldiers and yamen runners were arranged into three shifts, taking turns on duty. In the wilderness, they had to keep an eye out for not only bad guys but also wild animals.
The prisoners huddled together to keep warm against the cool night breeze.
Xiong Jiushan looked at the group of old, weak and sick people. He didn't want them to get into a murder case just after setting out, or to drag their sick bodies into the whole team. So he ordered people to light a pile of torches in the east, west, south and north around the prisoners. Even when the fire burned out, the residual heat remained, which dispelled some of the cold.
This move has attracted gratitude from many prisoners.
The men of the Xie family still kept the women inside and formed a circle around them, which was safer. Even though there were officials on duty around, Xie Yuchuan still agreed on the order with the men in the family and took turns to keep watch.
Tu Huan stayed outside for too long. Seeing that Xie Yuchuan had settled his family, she turned around and went back to her room.
After a quick wash, I changed my clothes and went to the study to paint.
Outside the window, insects chirp, birds sing, the wind rustles, and the moonlight is hazy.
It was the perfect atmosphere for creativity. Since she couldn't sleep anyway, she continued with her previous work and worked until late at night before turning off the computer and going to bed.
Tu Huan slept for a long time this time.
When she woke up, the sun was high in the sky and it was almost noon.
She habitually asked about the situation on Xie Yuchuan's side, and found out that if their exile team walked another two or three miles, they would reach a small post station in the middle and take a short rest.
After a day and a night of tossing and turning, many prisoners wisely kept some of the bread distributed in the morning with them, in case they got tired or hungry and had nothing to eat.
Xie Zhen originally had a car, which was specially prepared for his grandmother and children. But last night he donated it for fear that the officials would obstruct him.
At this moment, when I am walking with my family, the shackles on everyone are so annoying.
She walked to Xie Yuchuan carrying a few bags, looked around, and discussed with her brother in a very low voice.
"Yuchuan, I still have a few life-saving silver notes and gold leaves on me. Can you please be flexible? I see that everyone will feel uncomfortable if we take these things away. If we continue like this, there will be problems."
Xie Yuchuan shook his head, "Sister, you donated some things last night, so it's not appropriate to show off your wealth now."
Xie Zhen said: "I understand, it hurts me to see this."
"After we pass the post station, we should be able to pass by the village in the evening. I'll come."
"Do you have a solution?"
Xie Yuchuan nodded slightly.
The entourage was not allowed to interfere with the person being tortured. Xie Zhen looked at the shackles on his mother Shen and wished he could take them off and put them around his own neck.
Shen waved her hands repeatedly, "Don't do anything reckless, or you might get implicated."
The team moved forward all the way, starting from early morning until now, and passing through the scorching sun at noon. When the escorting officials asked for a break, they sat down one after another, and some even lay down directly, as they could not walk anymore.
As soon as Xiong Jiushan and his men arrived, the servants at the post station hurried over to apologize.
"There are several distinguished guests resting at the post station. Sir, please look at this..."
He pointed at the long line of exiles behind Xiong Jiushan. Among the prisoners who had walked for a day and a night, few looked good.
"It's unsightly, but I hope the officer will understand."
Xiong Jiushan looked down at the other person from a high position. Seeing that the other person's expression was wavering and seemed to be in great difficulty, he waved his hand and ordered: "Then prepare some water."
The post station official said happily, "Please wait a moment, sir! I will send someone to bring water right away."
As long as we don’t get too close to the post station and offend the noble, everything will be fine!
The team rested in a woods 500 meters away from the post station. The prisoners had no idea what the officials were talking about, but they were happy to be in the woods and sheltered from the sun.
The forest is quiet, but it can also be noisy when there are too many people.
But even so, the sound of stringed instruments from the distant post station still drifted over.
Xie Yuchuan was treating the wound on his arm. The trauma medicine given by the family god was very effective. He applied the medicine to the other injured family members one by one.
Xie Wuying was supervised by his Sixth Brother and had medicine applied to his skin last night. Today, he found that the inflammation had gone away and scabs had formed, and he was amazed.
“This medicine is really good!”
Xie Yuchuan did not explain where the medicine came from. It was common for soldiers to have some medicine for treating injuries.
The official from the post station brought a few men to deliver water, and Xiong Jiushan took people to sign the formalities. Every time they passed a station, they had to check the documents. If there was any emergency, they could report it at any time.
There was no problem with the procedures. The officials at the post station reserved a few rooms for Xiong Jiushan and other escorts. They were not big, but better than staying outside.
Xiong Jiushan felt annoyed when he heard the playing and singing sounds from next door, and decided to go outside to get some peace and quiet.
Just as I was passing by the stairs, I happened to meet a handsome young man walking out from the opposite side.
"I wonder if among the fugitives you're escorting this time are any members of the Xie family from the Duke of Jingmen's Palace?"
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