As dawn broke, Jiang Chan took Xiao Tao downstairs.
The inn lobby was deserted.
There was no one behind the counter, and the kitchen was quiet as well.
"Huh? Where's the boss?" Zhou Shi also came downstairs, looking at the empty counter with a puzzled expression.
Chen Yan glanced around, his brows furrowed.
"Maybe... he went out on something." Jiang Chan said calmly, pulling Xiao Tao straight towards the closed door. "Let's go."
Chen Yan glanced deeply at the eerily quiet interior of the inn, then at Jiang Chan's calm and composed back, and finally said nothing, helping Zhou Shi to follow.
The four of them set off again on the official road.
Jiang Chan led Xiao Tao ahead, her pace even faster than yesterday.
She just wanted to leave this area as soon as possible and find an opportunity to part ways with Chen Yan and the others.
The number of people on the official road gradually increased. They were all refugees who had come from different directions, with their families in tow, and they were all emaciated and pale.
They traveled in silence, wary of each other, and no one spoke.
Around noon, a commotion broke out ahead.
"Hurry, hurry! The government is distributing porridge up ahead!"
"Really? There's food?"
"I heard there's porridge at the city gate!"
The crowd seemed to have been injected with a stimulant, instantly stirring up agitation, quickening their pace, and surging forward in a rush.
Jiang Chan frowned.
The government is distributing porridge?
The four of them followed the crowd to a tall city gate.
The city gates were tightly closed, with only a simple shed erected nearby, steaming hot.
Several constables dressed in their uniforms and with menacing expressions stood in front of the shed, holding whips and sticks.
A wooden sign stood next to the shed, with large, crooked characters written on it:
Disaster relief porridge distribution, one bowl per person! Those who receive porridge must perform five days of labor! Digging ditches and clearing silt!
There was also a line of smaller print next to it: "Those without official duties who enter the city will receive one tael of silver each!"
"Line up! Line up!"
A burly official brandished his whip, cracking it loudly, which startled the crowd. "Those who want porridge, come and register! Only those who sign the labor contract will get porridge!"
"You don't want to work? Fine!" Another tall, thin officer crossed his arms and chuckled sarcastically. "See? Pay up! One tael of silver per person! Pay up, and we'll crack the city gate open and let you in! Don't pay up and don't want to work? Get lost!"
The crowd erupted in chaos!
"One tael of silver?! This is robbery!"
"This...this is practically driving someone to their death!"
Complaints and anger rose up, but seeing the whips and sticks in the hands of the officers, no one dared to step forward and force their way in.
Jiang Chan watched coldly.
As expected, the porridge distribution was a pretense; their real purpose was to conscript men for work or extort money from them!
"Ignore them, let's take the back path and go around them," Jiang Chan whispered to Chen Yan.
She has plenty of food and meat in her space, so there's no need for her to do hard labor or be extorted for a bowl of thin porridge.
Chen Yan nodded, looking at the mountain road in the distance, his brows furrowed. "That works too." He didn't want to cause trouble either.
The four squeezed out of the crowd and were preparing to leave.
"Halt!" The tall, thin official, with sharp eyes, strode over and blocked their path, a forced smile on his face. "Trying to go around? Ha, do you know what kind of territory this area is for a hundred miles around? Apart from this official road and the city gate, if you want to go forward, you have to cross that hundred-mile-long Ghost Sorrow Peak! It's all cliffs and precipices! Poisonous insects and ferocious beasts! Going in is certain death! If you want to live, either pay up! Or work! You... choose one?"
Chen Yan's face turned ashen.
Jiang Chan's eyes were icy cold.
One tael of silver per person? That's four taels for four people! That's blatant robbery!
“Sir,” Jiang Chan stepped forward, her voice calm, “we don’t have that much cash on us. Could we… use something as collateral?”
She still has jewelry she took from Wengjia Village in her space, which she hasn't had a chance to deal with.
The tall, thin officer raised an eyebrow, sizing up Jiang Chan. Seeing that she was dressed plainly and her bundle was small, he sneered, "Things? What good stuff could you possibly have? We don't want any junk!"
He clearly didn't believe that this woman fleeing famine could produce anything of value.
Without wasting any words, Jiang Chan pulled a silver necklace out of her bundle! The chain wasn't thick, but the workmanship was quite exquisite. "Is this enough to cover the travel expenses for the four of us?" Jiang Chan held the necklace in her hand.
The tall, thin officer's eyes widened instantly! Greed practically bulged out of his head! Several other officers beside him were also drawn in and gathered around. "Oh."
The tall, thin official swallowed hard and reached out to grab it.
Jiang Chan flicked her wrist and withdrew it. "Sir, please make yourself clear first. Is that enough?"
The tall, thin official's expression shifted, greed and cunning intertwining in his eyes.
He glanced at the necklace, then at Jiang Chan and Chen Yan, and chuckled, "Young lady, this necklace of yours... doesn't look very good! At most... at most it's worth one tael of silver! Enough for only one person!"
Chen Yan couldn't help but shout angrily, "Such a thick chain is worth at least five taels!"
"Boy!" The burly officer beside him immediately brandished his whip, glaring fiercely at Chen Yan. "We'll take whatever price we say it's worth! Otherwise, just hand over the silver!"
The officer's greedy eyes were fixed on the chain in Jiang Chan's hand, while he uttered the nonsense that it was "only worth one tael."
Chen Yan was so angry that his face turned ashen, his fists clenched, and he wanted to rush forward, but he knew that if he went head-to-head with these officials, he would only suffer the loss.
"You jest, sir," Jiang Chan said, her voice remaining flat.
Without even glancing at Chen Yan, she expressionlessly pulled two more silver hairpins from her bundle.
The hairpin has a simple floral design and is quite old, but the silver is still relatively pure, gleaming with a warm light.
"With these two silver hairpins, is that enough for the four of us to enter the city?"
"Miss Jiang! No!" Chen Yan exclaimed urgently, "These things add up to far more than four ounces!"
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