Chapter 254 Returning Together
Qin Yao wanted to find Ding Shi to accompany her, and Ding Shi was about to come to find her.
As soon as the two sides met, there was no need to say more, they immediately reached a consensus and went together.
"How many guards did Young Master Ding bring?" Qin Yao asked.
Ding Shi replied: "Two guards, plus the coachman and me, a total of four people, one carriage, and two horses."
Qin Yao also explained her own situation. "We are two families. You know Liu Li, right? He is also studying at Kaiyang County Academy."
As soon as Qin Yao mentioned Liu Li, Ding Shi laughed, "I know him. He passed the main exam and ranked 13th in the second class. Am I remembering correctly?"
Qin Yao nodded, she was not mistaken.
Although Ding Shi was only a figurehead at the county academy and rarely stayed there, everyone was from the same academy and naturally had met each other a few times, but they were not that familiar with each other.
After agreeing with Ding Shi on a time to meet at the city gate tomorrow, Qin Yao returned to the inn, called Liu Li and Liu Ji together, and announced the news.
Liu Li had no objection, on the contrary he was looking forward to it.
Although Ding Shi was younger than them, he was very famous in the academy.
One reason is that he has a father, Mr. Ding, who is a scholar.
Second, because he had a reputation for extraordinary knowledge at an early age, and coupled with the influence of the Ding family in Kaiyang County, many people paid attention to him.
However, the Ding family has its own resources. Ding Shi has rarely come to the academy in the past two years. He only shows up occasionally when the dean has important instructions.
This time, as both of them are from Kaiyang County and are on the same list, Liu Li naturally wants to take this opportunity to make friends with them so that they can take care of each other in the future.
Of course, the children of wealthy families might not necessarily be willing to associate with him, but Liu Li thought it would be nice to get to know them along the way.
Liu Ji is not qualified to express his opinion.
Qin Yao said, "It's settled then. We'll meet at the city gate at noon tomorrow."
Liu Ji had almost prepared everything he needed, so Liu Li followed suit and asked Da Zhuang to ask the cook to help him make a lot of pancakes. He also bought two big bones and took them with him to make soup on the way.
I also wanted to bring some bacon or something, but unfortunately I couldn't find it after searching the entire city, so I had to keep everything simple and travel light.
However, no matter how light it was, the carriage was still filled up because we stayed for many days and bought all kinds of specialties and gifts.
They are setting off tomorrow, so after dinner Qin Yao and her family of six went to bed early.
As soon as the sun rose, Liu Ji was the first to get up yawning and go to the kitchen to make breakfast.
After the meal was ready, Qin Yao and her four children packed their luggage, and Ma Er had asked the innkeeper to lead the luggage to the back door of the inn.
After a simple breakfast, packing my luggage and checking out, I was finally ready to embark on my journey home.
The four brothers and sisters of Dalang were still reluctant to leave. They looked back at the inn for a long time before turning around and getting on the carriage one by one.
Da Zhuang was almost ready, and after Liu Li got in the car, the two families set off towards the city gate.
Both sides arrived at the city gate almost at the same time. The Ding family guards were all familiar faces. They greeted Qin Yao with a smile and a nod.
Qin Yao responded with a smile, "Everyone is here."
"Let's go." Ding Shi squatted on the shaft of the carriage, confirmed that everyone was there, nodded at Qin Yao, got into the carriage and sat down.
The wheels rumbled forward. It was still early and there were few people at the city gate. The sound of the carriage moving kept echoing inside the city gate.
After leaving the city gate, the view in front of my eyes brightened up.
The three brothers and sisters of Dalang climbed out of the car window again and looked back at the tall city walls of the capital. They felt that the past half month was like a dream, so beautiful and happy that it seemed unreal.
But when they think of the small courtyard on the north slope of Liujia Village, the provincial capital in front of them is nothing. That is their roots and their home.
"Mother, I bought lanterns for Sister Jinhua and Damao. Do you think they will like them?"
Si Niang climbed most of her body out of the carriage door, and lay on her father's broad back like a spoiled child. She turned her head and asked Qin Yao who was sitting beside the shaft of the carriage.
"Yes, this is a gift carefully selected by Si Niang." Qin Yao replied with a smile.
The little girl immediately started laughing, her body shaking. Liu Ji shrugged his shoulders and said, "It's hot, Si Niang, please go into the carriage."
In the morning of late May, as soon as the sun appeared, the heat came up and my daughter was so hot. It was indeed warm in winter, but forget it in summer.
Si Niang snorted, poked her father's back with her little fingers as if to express her anger, and then climbed back into the carriage.
The rear door can be opened, and when both doors are opened together, you can feel the cross-breeze when sitting in the car, which is very cool.
The small table in the carriage was folded up and covered with bedding and mats, providing plenty of room for four children to roll around.
Liu Ji looked back and was filled with envy.
Unfortunately, the woman next to him didn't go in to lie down, so how could a poor man like him qualify?
From the exit of the city to the official road, the whole way was filled with people from nearby farms rushing to the morning market. The fields on both sides of the official road were lush green, and it could be predicted that there would be a good harvest this autumn.
Such harmonious people and scenery made Liu Ji confused. "Didn't they say it's a mess outside?"
How is this different from what Qin Yao said before?
Qin Yao reminded him not to jump to conclusions too quickly, as they had only driven 500 meters, not even a mile.
To actually get out of the city, you have to reach a hillside two miles away.
There is only one main road leading to the city. If an emergency occurs, soldiers will set up a checkpoint here.
Seeing Qin Yao say this, Liu Ji nodded and decided to wait and see.
The group continued to move forward, but because of the carriage, they were not moving very fast.
After walking for another half a quarter of an hour, we finally saw the hillside where the checkpoint was set up. There was no checkpoint when we came here, but now there was a fence more than two meters high.
There was a team of about ten officials guarding there, allowing only exit but not entry. If anyone wanted to enter, they had to show a pass.
Before reaching the checkpoint, Qin Yao and his group heard many voices gathered in one place. They couldn't hear what they were saying, but they could feel that there were a lot of people over there.
The Ding family carriage was in the front. A guard rode to the front to check the situation, then immediately came back to report:
"Master, there are about 100 to 200 people waiting to enter the city at the checkpoint ahead. Most of them are seeking refuge from neighboring provinces. Judging from their attire, they should be people with some power in the local area."
No matter what time it is, people with money and power can always get information faster than ordinary people and take action in advance to avoid disasters.
After reporting to the young master, the guard followed Ding Shi's instructions and came to the end, and told Qin Yao about the situation ahead.
"There is no danger. Let's continue on our way. But you should walk in front and be more careful. Don't stop if you see homeless people begging for food on the road. Just walk on our own way and don't mind your own business."
Only Qin Yao dared to give such an order. Liu Ji was worried that the young master of the Ding family would be unhappy after hearing her say that.
The guard got the message and passed it on to Ding Shi.
Ding Shi felt that the matter of refugees begging for food depended on the situation and was not a serious matter, but he still took note of Qin Yao's instructions and asked the driver to do as Qin Yao said.
(End of this chapter)
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