The carriage stopped outside the manor, and Jiang Huaifu was still sitting inside reading, not even noticing that Song He'er had come up.
"I rarely see you so focused. What are you looking at?" Song He'er asked.
Jiang Huaifu then realized what was happening, slowly raised his head, and remained silent for a long time before saying, "No, I'm just a little tired lately."
Song He'er smiled. "This isn't like you at all. Let me see what kind of book this is."
Jiang Huaifu handed the book in his hand to Song He'er, and saw that the cover was marked with the two large characters "Nanzhao".
Although Song He'er was not very familiar with ancient writing, she could roughly tell that this was a list of government officials registered in Nanzhao.
She knew Jiang Huaifu was meticulous, but these kinds of books were completely useless to them, so she didn't know why Jiang Huaifu was looking at them so seriously.
"Isn't this just a list of ordinary people? Why are you looking at this? Are you looking for someone?"
Jiang Huaifu took the book back and pointed out the two names circled on it to her. "These people marked with red circles are all deceased. The date of death and their age at the time of death are clearly written next to them."
Song He'er couldn't quite figure out Jiang Huaifu's thoughts. "But what does all this have to do with us?"
Jiang Huaifu didn't speak, but stared at Song He'er with unusual patience, as if trying to force her to figure out the key.
"You...you mean we should take their place and live in Nanzhao!"
"Hmm." Jiang Huaifu nodded in satisfaction.
"Are you crazy? These are all dead people. Not only is the government on file, but even their relatives and friends know about it. If we take their place, won't we be exposed soon?"
"You're always so impatient. You haven't even listened to my detailed analysis before you're quick to dismiss it."
"Then tell me, how can we make it completely watertight?"
Jiang Huaifu opened the book again, scanned all the personnel lists, then opened the last page containing information on the families of the common people, and patiently explained:
“Their identities are all clearly recorded. Some of them have little background and no relatives in Nanzhao. These foreign merchants or farmers with simple identities are basically unknown when they die, and even when they are alive, few people recognize them. Some of them are merchants who died accidentally in other places, so the people of Nanzhao naturally do not recognize them either. Therefore, as long as you take their place in the household registration information, you can live peacefully in Nanzhao.”
Song He'er finally understood that Jiang Huaifu was studying this roster so carefully because he was trying to find a way for them to be completely transformed.
Even if one day their escape from Xinzhou comes to light, and they acquire new identities, there will be no way to trace them back to the Central Plains. They can't very well cross the border to search for them in Nanzhao.
Thinking of this, Song He'er felt a surge of joy.
"You're actually smarter than me; I didn't even think of that."
"It's not that you didn't think of this, it's just that you didn't dare to bother me again. However, I have already started to arrange these things. You can stay in the manor for a while. If you want to do some small business to make a living, you'll have to wait until things are more stable. In short, you must follow my instructions and not act rashly."
"I see."
"Um....."
The carriage fell silent instantly, a silence that made Song He'er feel somewhat awkward.
"Actually, thank you very much. Go back and get some rest, don't overwork yourself."
"Hmm," Jiang Huaifu replied calmly.
Song He'er didn't want to make a fool of herself here, so she turned around and got off the carriage. When she saw A Qing, she whispered to her, "Take good care of your young master. I feel that he is not in very good spirits. Perhaps he is too tired. When you get back, ask your personal kitchen to make him something nutritious to eat."
"Yes, I understand, Miss Song. I'll take you home..."
"No need, it's such a short distance, I can go back by myself. You should take your young master back and rest..."
"yes."
After saying goodbye to Aqing, Song He'er hurriedly returned to her residence.
The next morning, Zhang Xiue cooked a meal with simple ingredients.
Even if there are fresh vegetables today, there's no guarantee what to eat tomorrow. Although the weather in Nanzhao is warm, it's not like you can grow anything in a day. To make a living, people still need to go to the market to buy some.
"After dinner, your third uncle and I will go to the market to see if there are any cheap vegetables and buy more. We always need to eat, and we need rice and noodles. We can't do without either. Today's meal was quite tasteless because we didn't have any seasonings."
Zhang Xiue said this while drinking the vegetable soup in her bowl.
Upon hearing this, Song He'er realized that she had taken out some oil, salt, soy sauce, and vinegar from her spatial storage yesterday and placed them in the wooden door of the outer hut. However, she had gotten up too early today and hadn't told Zhang Xiu'e, resulting in them all having a tasteless meal.
"Third Aunt, Young Master Jiang sent us some things yesterday, including oil, salt, soy sauce and vinegar, but I forgot to tell you."
"Really? That's a real pity. We didn't get to use it this morning. Sigh, in the end, everything we eat and use comes from others. Even if we buy on credit, who knows when we'll be able to get it?"
As Song Xiaoyu spoke, she replied, "We will always repay the money; it's just that favors are hard to repay."
Song He'er coughed lightly, interrupting him, "Third Uncle, we've just moved here, and there are still many things that you and Uncle Qiang need to help us with. This house is in disrepair, and I don't know if it will leak next spring. You'll need to go up and repair it. Also, the window paper here isn't clean, and we don't have much firewood left for the kang (heated brick bed). Third Aunt and Tian Niangzi can stay and take care of these things. As for going to the market to buy things, leave it to me and Fourth Aunt. After all, I've been to Nanzhao twice, so I'm more familiar with it than you are."
Qin Xiaoniang thought it made some sense. Although it was a temporary place to stay, it didn't feel like a home, so it needed to be tidied up properly.
"Let He'er and Chun Di go, and the rest of us strong ones can stay and do the work."
Zhang Xiue nodded while drinking water. "Then it's settled. He'er, do you have any money left? We don't have much money left from our work. Go ask your third uncle for some, and take it with you. Buy whatever you can..."
"Yes, I understand."
Song He'er grabbed some things and went out with Chun Di.
What's giving her a headache right now isn't buying things, but finding some work for Zhang Xiu'e and the others. After all, living such a frugal life isn't a sustainable solution...
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