They arrived at the county town in the afternoon and went straight to the carriage and horse shop.
I told the carriage dealer that I wanted to rent a carriage with a driver to go to Tongzhou. The other party asked whether they wanted to rent a one-way trip or a round trip, and said that if it was a round trip, it would be 8 taels, and if it was a one-way trip, it would be 5 taels.
Chunxiao rents a one-way ticket.
They had originally thought they wouldn't be able to leave until the next day, but the driver at the car dealership told them they could leave immediately and that they could stop in a town before dark. Without further delay, they chose to set off immediately.
After waiting at the horse-drawn carriage for about an incense stick of time, a coachman came over with a piece of luggage on his back and told them that they were leaving. They quickly took their luggage and got on the carriage.
It was the first time for all three of them to ride in a carriage, and they all found it very novel. Just now, when Shuwen was waiting for someone, he stared at the horse in front of the carriage for a long time. Now, sitting in it, he looked out the window and said, "Auntie, this carriage is like a small house."
"Yes, it's just a small moving house. This horse-drawn carriage runs much faster than an ox-drawn cart. How long did it take you to drive the ox-drawn cart there last time?"
"About 10 days, that's different. Our car is full and we can't go fast."
Chunxiao lifted the carriage curtain and said, "Master, I forgot to ask you how many days it will take to get to Tongzhou."
The driver whipped his horse vigorously, "That depends on the route. Normally, with stops along the way, it'll take about four or five days. If we're going 800 miles in a hurry, it'll only take three days."
The driver was quite humorous. Chunxiao lowered the curtain and said, "It's only been four or five days. It's been fine."
The last time they walked for 15 days they were so exhausted that she thought it would take more than 20 days. Now it seems that renting a carriage was a perfect decision.
When it was getting dark, they arrived at a town. They went to an inn and asked for two rooms, one for Shuwen and the coachman, and one for her and Xingfu.
It was agreed when they rented the car that food and lodging would be included. They ordered food at the inn and then rested after eating.
At the hour of Mao on the second day, Chunxiao had not yet woken up, but the coachman urged them to set off. Chunxiao and Xingfu hurriedly washed up and got on the carriage and set off.
"Everyone, we'll be traveling all day today. Aside from stopping for lunch, we won't be stopping at any towns along the way. If you need to buy anything, please let me know in advance."
"Understood, Master. Let's go."
"Miss, these horse dealers make money by traveling. They can only take the next order if we arrive early, so they are rushing us to hurry."
"That's great. We also want to arrive early. Aunt, have you asked Ma Xing which county in Tongzhou he's going to?"
"It's Wanfeng County, which is closest to Qingzhou."
"Although I haven't been around Wanfeng County much, I got to know quite a few merchants while we were selling cotton. It would be great if it were Wanfeng County."
Several people were sitting in the carriage, which was shaking, and Chunxiao soon fell asleep.
This time they were afraid of being cold on the road, so they brought a thin quilt with them. Xingfu saw her dozing off and quickly put the quilt on her.
"Miss, why don't you lie on the stool and rest your head on my legs to take a nap. There's no one else here, and it's too early to get up in the morning."
Chunxiao looked at Shuwen opposite her.
"Auntie, go to sleep. Are you afraid that I will laugh at you? Don't worry, you two can sleep. I will watch the route for you."
"I was afraid you'd see!" Chun Xiao sneered. "I was just wondering if I could buy you a thin blanket when we get to town. That way you'd be warmer. You'd get cold sitting still."
"No, no, I have another set of cotton clothes. I can just take them out of my bag and put them on. You can go to sleep."
It was really boring in the car, so it was more comfortable to sleep. She lay down and didn't get up until lunch time. The driver said it was already past noon. They didn't always eat on time on the road, sometimes early, sometimes late, which was common.
Several people ate noodles at a noodle stall in the small town. Chunxiao asked for a bowl of beef soup for everyone, and especially asked for a big bowl for Shuwen. As a result, Shuwen had to find a place to urinate several times along the way.
"Auntie, let's forget about drinking soup on the way. It's really troublesome for me to keep asking the driver to stop."
"It's not a problem. Just tell me if you want to stop the car. This person has three urgent needs, and they can be solved immediately." The master's voice came from outside, full of energy.
He was embarrassed and felt extremely ashamed.
Chun Xiao suppressed her laughter and said, "Okay, let's drink less soup these days, and if we have to drink it, we should wait until the evening."
Shuwen pulled open the door curtain and asked, "Master, do you go to Tongzhou often? Does your horse company have vehicles that go to many places?"
"Little brother, our horse business is all about this. We can go anywhere, as long as you can afford it. We can even go to Hejian. It's not peaceful over there right now. I specialize in running to Tongzhou, and I'm familiar with this route."
"Have you ever encountered bandits?"
The groom smiled and said, "Of course there are people blocking the road, but we've taken care of them. Don't worry about the road to Tongzhou. Although we're not on the official road, it's quite peaceful."
Shuwen felt that Ma Xing was so powerful that he could even deal with the bandits. "Aunt, we didn't encounter any roadblocks last time we left."
"Didn't you hear what the master said? There are still some places with it, but the Tongzhou route is safer. We should take the official road when we go out in the future. It's better to go slowly."
They still rested in a town at night.
At noon the next day, they finally arrived at the neighboring Wei County.
"It would be nice to have a topographic map." Chun Xiao complained casually during the meal. Unexpectedly, the chef took out a piece of paper from his bag and said, "Miss, I have the topographic map you want. However, we spent a lot of manpower to survey and draw this map, so we can't give it away for free."
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