With her small stature, Qin San Niang dodged left and right, finally reaching the city gate. In fact, the further she went, the less dense the population became. After all, who wouldn't be afraid of the city guards carrying broadswords?! Especially a refugee who was starving and had nothing but skin and bones.
He wiped the sweat from his face and tried to smooth out the wrinkles in his clothes with both hands, but the clothes had too many patches, and no matter how he tried to fix them, he was still a refugee.
So you have to go to the city, at least you can buy some fabric, right? Supermarkets don't have this stuff. They have a few ready-made pajamas and underwear, but no fabric. Who would buy fabric to make clothes back then?
"Sir, my master is planning to travel to the south, but after many days of travel, he has run out of ammunition and food. He doesn't know how to get into Luzhou City. My master wants to replenish his supplies." As he spoke, he stuffed ten large coins into the yamen runner's hand. These were the original owner's money, and he spent them without any guilt.
Weighing the large sum of money in his hand, it wasn't much, but they didn't earn much by guarding the city gate all day. After all, they were all refugees who were so poor that they couldn't even afford to eat. Being given ten large coins as a tribute was already considered quite good.
"Of course we can enter Luzhou City, but our city garrison stipulates that each person must pay half a tael of silver as a toll." The corvée said to Qin Sanniang with a smile, carefully hiding ten large coins in his pocket. Taking money to do something for someone else is not a big deal; it's just passing on a message.
Half a tael of silver, that's quite a lot! But she can afford it. She plans to go inside, and deal with the money later.
The city guards, seeing the woman's disheveled appearance and her silence, must have felt sorry for her because the toll was too high. They whispered, "The prices in Luzhou City haven't risen much, but I've heard that prices in the cities further south have more than doubled! And traveling through Luzhou City will save you a lot of walking."
"What else is there to understand?" Qin San Niang quickly thanked them, explaining that they planned to enter the city, but their oxcart had also been stolen, and they didn't know if there were any carriage shops in Luzhou City.
Hearing that the woman's oxcart had been stolen, the constables felt even more sympathetic. After all, oxen were a luxury item at that time, and losing an ox was no different from losing one's life! They hurriedly told her everything they knew, including which market was the best place to buy and sell grain, and which carriage shop was the most profitable for buying and selling livestock.
After thanking the constables and confirming that she could enter the city before the end of the 7 PM hour, Qin San Niang hurried back to find Liu Shi and the others, planning to enter the city tonight. If she could find a suitable place to stay, she might be able to get a good night's sleep and take a bath.
When Liu heard that it would cost half a tael of silver just to enter the city gate, and that it was calculated per person, she was quite surprised! There were seven people in their group, big and small, which would cost three and a half taels of silver!
Fatty and her son repeatedly said that they didn't have anything they wanted to buy, and they didn't have any money on them. They suggested that they look at cars outside the city to save money.
When Liu heard this, she thought it made sense. She then discussed with her eldest daughter whether she could take one of the children or the chubby girl into the store to buy grain, while she would stay there with the other children. This way, they could save some money and buy more grain. Besides, they also wanted to buy a donkey cart.
Qin San Niang quickly rejected their idea, "Mother, you still need to see a proper doctor to check your leg. After all, we're not sure if my previous treatment was appropriate. Also, I plan to lead everyone through Luzhou City. Going around Chengcheng is not only unsafe but will also take several more days of travel, which is not worthwhile! As for the money, don't worry, I still have some. We'll figure something out once we get to the city."
Qin San Niang took out the only four taels of silver she had and prepared to lead everyone into the city.
Last night, Liu had handed over all twenty-two taels of silver to her. Her eldest daughter was now quite organized and capable, much better than this old woman, so she had nothing to worry about. Besides, they still needed to buy livestock, which would require a considerable amount of money.
Seeing her mother tremblingly pull out money from her sleeve, wrapped in layers of hemp cloth, Qin San Niang was deeply moved once again. This was her mother's money for her funeral and retirement.
Whether Liu believed it or not, they assured her that they would repay her even more money for her retirement in the future.
The group entered the city gate in one go without being delayed for long. The yamen runner who had been guarding the city was no longer there, presumably having been relieved of his post.
Upon entering Luzhou City, the group exclaimed in surprise. Although it was just a city gate separating them, the inside and outside of the walls were truly two different worlds.
Unlike the starving corpses scattered outside the walls, Luzhou City had a somewhat peaceful and prosperous atmosphere, with shops on both sides brightly lit! There were also many food stalls along the roadside, attracting quite a few customers, as it was dinner time and many shops were trying to attract customers.
Of course, people like Qin San Niang, who were clearly dressed as refugees, would not be recruited. If they ate their fill and didn't pay, they would be at a huge loss. Without exception, the waiters ignored them.
However, this did not dampen the children's spirits; such a lively scene is not something you might see even during the Lunar New Year.
To be honest, these kids have never left their villages or towns. The eldest one, who's quite remarkable, only went to the county town once with his father. But how can a county town compare to the prefecture capital?! They're not even in the same league!
Qin San Niang didn't have time to buy things for the child. Besides not having money, the most important thing right now was to find a place to stay. She asked several people before someone was willing to tell them the location of the inn.
Half an hour later, the group finally found a place to stay. The gatekeeper was quite nice, probably because the city gates were closed and there were no tourists coming from outside, so their business wasn't doing very well.
As for refugees? Forget about them! Most of them, once they enter the city, are unwilling to spend money on lodgings; they'll just find any place to spend the night. So, the gatekeeper assumed that the family, like Qin Sanniang, who was searching for lodging everywhere, must be able to pay. Besides, if they didn't pay the next day, they wouldn't be able to leave so easily—they were just a few weak women.
Liu and his family were naturally unaware of the ulterior motives behind this, and naively thought that the gatekeeper was decent, unlike the previous guards who were arrogant and condescending.
Qin San Niang chose two rooms, each costing thirty coins per night.
Wu Chunhua felt this was too expensive. They could sleep in a large dormitory-style room for only two copper coins a night, which was already quite a sum.
Finally, under Qin San Niang's insistence, they had no choice but to move into the room, saying that they had already paid and it would be a waste not to stay.
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