Chapter 2 The Carriage Accident
No day of those ten years was easy. At first, Yu Qingci naively thought that she had done something wrong to displease her husband and in-laws, so she willingly took over the household management and used her dowry to support the whole family.
She thought that as long as she was filial to her parents-in-law, considerate to her husband, and kind to her younger brothers-in-law and sisters-in-law, they would eventually see her goodness.
In the end, she had nothing but a broken body and perished in the flames. It was truly tragic.
Heaven took pity on her and allowed her to be reincarnated.
Fortunately, they had not yet returned to the Earl's mansion, and she had not yet married into that family.
Regardless of whether all of this in her dream actually happened, she was glad that she woke up at the last moment of her life and that dying together with those who had bullied her was a form of revenge.
Now that fate has given her a second chance at life, she must take precautions to prevent all of this from happening before it does.
"Qingci, what are you looking at so intently?"
The gentle voice of her mother came from behind her. Yu Qingci turned her head, and her eyes, which had been lifeless just moments before, immediately became bright and lively.
"Mother, the scenery outside the capital is so beautiful, I can't get enough of it."
Yu Qingbai, the younger brother standing beside her, asked in confusion, "We've been looking all the way here, and there's clearly nothing there. How did you find the scenery so beautiful, sister?"
Su Chengniang smiled even more gently as she listened to her two children speaking.
Looking at her perfectly healthy mother and younger brother, Yu Qingci couldn't help but feel a pang of sadness and bitterness in her heart.
Her father was the Earl of Nanping, a noble title. He had been serving in other places before, but this time he was transferred back to the capital and brought the whole family back with him.
Their father had arranged everything for them, so they didn't have to worry about anything. But just yesterday, people from the Nanping Marquis's mansion came to meet them, saying that their grandmother was unwell and that their father needed to return as soon as possible.
Concerned about his grandmother's illness, the father left a steward and several guards from the Earl's mansion to escort them back, while he himself, along with a few trusted confidants, hurried back on horseback.
We'll be arriving in the capital tomorrow, and Su Cheng's mother, worried, gave her two children some instructions:
"When you return to the Earl's Mansion and see your grandmother, you must strictly abide by the rules and not do things as impulsively as you would back in your hometown of Youyang."
Eight-year-old Yu Qingbai nodded sensibly to indicate that he understood.
Yu Qingci lowered her eyes to conceal that glint of light.
If the things in their dreams are real, then unsurprisingly, they're about to get into trouble.
Looking back now, it wasn't that the old lady was unwell; clearly, someone had set a trap on the road to prevent them from returning in style, just waiting for the three of them to fall into it.
Lost in thought, the carriage suddenly shuddered and came to a stop. Soon after, the voice of the steward of the Earl's mansion could be heard outside:
"Madam, Miss, our horse may have eaten something wrong; it can't walk now. What should we do?"
Yu Qingci's heart tightened; what was bound to happen had finally arrived.
In their past life, their horses encountered a problem near the capital and could not continue. They had no choice but to stay overnight at a secluded inn nearby, guided by the steward.
That night, after everyone had fallen asleep, a group of robbers suddenly broke into the inn and brutally attacked them. Although their father had left a team of guards to protect them before he left, the guards were outnumbered by the robbers and suffered heavy casualties. Their mother fought desperately to protect them, but their younger brother was wounded in the arm by the robbers.
After the robbers finally left and dawn broke, they were rescued by passing merchants and returned to the capital in a sorry state.
Unexpectedly, the news of their attack by robbers had become common knowledge throughout the city, and the mother was even maliciously speculated to have been defiled and lost her chastity by the robbers.
Now that she knows what is about to happen in this life, she will never repeat the same mistakes and will not let anything happen to her mother and younger brother.
When Su Chengniang heard from Steward Li that the carriage had an accident, she told her two children to wait in the carriage before getting out to check. Yu Qingci refused to listen and got out of the carriage after her mother, with Yu Qingbai following behind her.
When the group walked up to the carriage, they saw that the two horses pulling the carriage were foaming at the mouth and lying on the ground, unable to get up.
Yu Qingci looked back and saw that the carriages following behind were in similar condition; half of the horses pulling the carriages had collapsed, and the other half looked like they would collapse soon as well.
Everyone was at a loss upon seeing this. Manager Li said anxiously to Su Chengniang:
"Madam, our horses must have ingested something that caused them to collapse like this. We're almost at the capital, and this has happened. What should we do?"
Su Chengniang looked up at the sky. It was dusk. Their original plan was to reach the next post station before dark to rest for the night and arrive in the capital the next day.
Unexpectedly, the horse had an accident at this time, and Su Chengniang was at a loss for what to do.
Manager Li glanced cautiously at Su Chengniang, noticing her delicate brows furrowed and silent for a long time, before finally speaking:
'This horse clearly ate something it shouldn't have, which is why it's like this. It seems it can't move right now, but the driver has already examined it. If it receives timely treatment, has its intestines cleaned, and rests overnight, it might be better by tomorrow.'
"We can't travel any further right now. I know there's an inn nearby; why don't we stay there for the night?"
Upon hearing this, Su Chengniang frowned even more. They had been staying at official post stations all along the way. Before leaving, the Earl had instructed them to stay at post stations. Now that the Earl was not around, the official post stations were naturally safer and more reliable than the unknown inns outside.
How far is it from here to the post station?
Su Chengniang asked.
Manager Li looked up at the sky and said, "It's not too far. If the carriage can travel, it's only a little over an hour's journey. We should be able to arrive before dark."
But now the horse is injured and can't move at all, so we obviously can't reach the post station. But don't worry, Madam, the inn I mentioned, though simple, isn't far from the main road. We can walk there if we hold on a little longer. Treating the horse is the priority. Please, Madam, Miss, and Young Master, move to the carriage behind. We need to get to the inn before the horse collapses.”
Yu Qingci watched as Steward Li acted as if he was thinking of them and couldn't help but sneer inwardly. It was this Steward Li who delivered the letter to her father halfway through the journey, and her father was so anxious that he took his personal guards and left at full speed.
Manager Li volunteered to stay behind so he could take action against them on the way.
Yu Qingci tugged at Su Chengniang's arm and said, "Mother, we've been staying at government post stations for so many days. Father also instructed us before he left that the post stations ahead have been taken care of. Since there are still two carriages that are free, why don't we squeeze in together and try to reach the post station before we rest? We can have Steward Li take some people to stay here and treat the horses."
Upon hearing this, Steward Li hurriedly said, "This is absolutely not allowed. I promised the Lord that I would take good care of the Madam, Miss, and Young Master and would not leave their side for even a moment. How can I let you go forward on your own? What if something happens?"
Butler Li shook his head like a rattle drum.
Yu Qingci looked over coldly: "Hasn't something already happened? If Father finds out that the horse was perfectly fine but suddenly got into trouble, he'll probably be the first to not forgive you. Besides, what makes you think that the nearby inns are absolutely safe?"
Just as Steward Li was about to say something more, Yu Qingci ignored her and spoke directly to Su Chengniang:
"Mother, let's not waste any more time. Let's hurry on our way, or we'll be in trouble if we don't reach the post station before dark."
Upon hearing that she insisted on continuing her journey, Steward Li became anxious and hurriedly waved his hand, saying:
"That won't do."
Yu Qingci's almond-shaped eyes grew even colder: "What's wrong with that? If we delay any longer, it'll get dark soon. Let's do it this way."
After saying that, he only looked at Su Chengniang.
Su Chengniang looked around and decided to listen to her daughter. She turned and instructed the maids and servants following her to take their belongings off the carriage and move them to the carriage behind.
Seeing that the mother and daughter wouldn't listen to him at all, Manager Li's gaze turned cold. He walked up to Su Chengniang, put on a smiling face, and said:
"Madam, look at this—"
Su Chengniang: "I'll listen to you, Miss. You leave a few people to treat the horses, and the rest of you can squeeze in and continue on your way. That way, it's best if we can avoid delaying either of us."
Seeing that Su Chengniang also said so, Steward Li had no choice but to smile and say:
"Then we'll do as Madam and Miss say. I just checked these horses and they're not in too bad a condition. The coachman can stay and treat them. I'll lead the way for you."
"You guys, don't just stand there like idiots, come and help!"
Manager Li directed several guards and servants to step forward and help, but under his urging, everyone's movements became chaotic instead.
Nearly half an hour had passed since then, and just as Yu Qingci was getting anxious, a group of people caught up from behind.
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