Jiang Yushu felt lost and couldn't help but stare at Guo Honglei quietly, gazing at his back as he walked forward with his head held high.
Because the nearby bridge was destroyed, they had to take a detour to get some dry food and then continue on their journey.
Under the wind and sun, and with the wheels of the cart rumbling, the group trekked through mountains and rivers, heading north with difficulty.
By the first day of June, they had traveled more than 2,400 miles.
The Guo family wore mourning clothes for forty-nine days.
At lunch that day, except for Wang, the rest of the people, led by Guo Honglei, knelt down facing the direction of the capital and paid tribute to the deceased from afar.
Guo Honglei knelt tall, speaking solemnly and respectfully, "My family has been through a great change, and I had no choice but to hastily arrange the funeral of my father and elder brother. I am extremely sad and guilty. Now I am exiled and forced to work in the army to farm, and my future is uncertain. I hope that the spirits of our ancestors in heaven will protect our descendants. After we overcome the difficulties, we will surely complete all kinds of memorial ceremonies one by one!" After speaking, he led his family in kowtowing.
Unconsciously, I had already passed the seventh day of mourning. Jiang Yushu bowed silently, feeling a surge of emotion. She thought: It's hot in summer, and the roads are rough. Fortunately, I don't have to wear mourning anymore, otherwise I would have been scorched on the way.
"Alas, how pitiful." Wang sat on the cart, her eyes red and she sobbed bitterly, rambling, "If the Marquis is still alive, please protect our children and grandchildren and help the Guo family overcome this difficult time. Also, although Yao'er made a mistake out of ignorance, he has been severely punished and even lost his life. Please forgive him. Between father and son, how can there be any grudge left overnight? We can only rest assured if you both take care of each other."
After a while, the ceremony was over.
Guo Honglei was the first to stand. He naturally turned a few steps, helped his wife up, and then helped his sickly third brother up. He sighed, "The 49th day has passed. There's no need to wear mourning clothes. 'Filial piety' lies in the heart. When the time is right, we can hold a memorial ceremony."
With their family in decline, Guo Hongzhe and Guo Hongxuan were sad, depressed and anxious.
"My condolences." Jiang Yushu came closer and comforted him, "As long as you live well, the sun will always shine after the storm!"
Guo Honglei nodded in agreement and urged, "Hurry up and change out of your mourning clothes. Get some dry food and then we'll have to hurry on."
The sun is scorching, the cicadas are chirping non-stop, and the heat is unbearable.
As usual, the crowd rested under the shade of the trees. The officers drank water and ate dry food. Some guarded the prisoners, while others sat and chatted. As long as the prisoners did not quarrel or fight, they were too lazy to pay attention to them.
Deep in the shade of the trees, the women were changing their clothes.
"It's so hot!" Cuimei was sweating profusely, and she said thankfully, "Luckily we set off in April. We'll be in Xicang in ten days. If we had set off in June, we'd probably be scorched to death."
"Indeed. Fortunately, we are almost there." Jiang Yushu changed into a frosty thin shirt, stood gracefully, and quickly arranged the mourning clothes. Unexpectedly, just when she had folded half of it, she suddenly heard a scream of fear from not far away:
"Snake! Snake!"
"Ah—it's biting me."
"Help, help, help!"
…
"Snake?" Jiang Yushu shuddered, her face horrified. The hair on the back of her neck stood on end. Without thinking, she ran over, shouting, "What snake? What kind of snake? What kind of snake? Be careful to avoid it. Don't get bitten!"
After a while, she came over with a dead branch she picked up and looked closely:
Beside the grass, two maids were crying, one injured in the left foot and the other in the wrist. Both wounds had large and deep snake tooth marks.
"Get away from the bushes! Take them to see Doctor Fang immediately!" Jiang Yushu glanced around and asked nervously, "How many snakes are there? What do they look like?"
A maid replied in a trembling voice, "I saw two. They were brown with round spots."
As soon as he finished speaking, the police arrived upon hearing the news. Zhang Feng frowned and examined him, then drew his sword cautiously and shouted, "Don't stand here! Everyone, retreat to the open space outside! You've been safe all the way here, how did you suddenly get bit by a snake? Didn't you find something to test before stepping into the bushes?"
The maid who witnessed the incident turned pale with fear and cried, "I was changing clothes nearby when I heard the two women yelling 'I have to go to the bathroom' and hurriedly running into the bushes. A moment later they started yelling 'snakes!' When I came to check, I saw two snakes slithering away into the bushes."
"They were probably so anxious that they forgot my warning and became careless!" said Zhang Feng.
Guo Honglei rushed over and asked, "Are you okay?"
"I'm fine." Jiang Yushu shook her head, trying to remain calm. "But two people were bitten, and their injuries... aren't good."
Guo Honglei said solemnly, "We can only ask Fang Sheng to do his best to see if he can save them."
In a blink of an eye, there was no one around the lush grass.
"My lord, be careful."
Zhang Feng held the knife in his right hand and a handful of stones in his left hand, throwing them into the bushes with all his strength. "Hey!"
After the "plop", there was a rustling sound, and a brown-backed, white-bellied snake swam out in fright, darted into the woods like an arrow, and disappeared in an instant.
"We're in trouble. Those are grass flies and poisonous snakes." Zhang Feng waved his hand, signaling everyone to retreat.
Jiang Yushu saw it clearly and blurted out, "Viper?"
"It's also known as the pit viper." Zhang Feng answered casually.
After a while, everyone watched nervously and surrounded the only doctor Fang Sheng to save people.
Fang Sheng borrowed the officer's sword, carefully cut open the wound, and repeatedly squeezed out the poison/blood.
However, the snake venom took effect quickly. The two maids were able to cry out at first, but in an instant the wounds became red and swollen. They gradually became slow in their movements, gasping in their throats, and eventually fell into a coma.
Guo Honglei asked in a low voice: "How is it?"
Fang Sheng shook his head and sighed, helplessly answering, "Snake venom is inherently difficult to cure, and there are no herbs for it right now. I can only feed them the antidote pills I prepared. I'll leave it to fate."
After trudging over mountains and hills for over 2,000 miles, he was bitten by a venomous snake. How unlucky! Jiang Yushu clenched her fingers, feeling powerless.
At this time, Zhang Feng shouted, "It's getting late, we should hurry! The north is sparsely populated, and there are many wild beasts in the mountains. Dangers are lurking everywhere, so we must reach the post station before dark. Otherwise, if a wild beast takes us into the dense forest, who will dare to save us? Hurry!"
In an instant, the crowd was frightened and hurriedly packed up their bags and prepared to leave.
Jiang Yushu hurriedly asked: "Master Zhang! These two injured people——"
Zhang Feng interrupted, "According to the rules of the escort: if a prisoner dies, he is removed from the list, but if he is still alive, he cannot be lost. Let's pull him on a cart first, and then we'll check him when we get to the post station."
"They are still alive, we must not abandon them!" Jiang Yushu raised her hand and hit her forehead. Guo Honglei immediately turned around and briefly told the elders:
"Mother, what Lord Zhang said just now wasn't alarmist. To be on the safe side, we must reach the post station before dark." He bowed slightly and advised respectfully, "For now, I'll have to ask you to walk a little. The cart will be used to transport the injured."
Wang Qiaozhen was filled with reluctance and asked with a stern face, "It's scorching hot, my mother is old, and Yu'er is young and weak. How can we leave?"
Guo Honglei replied calmly: "Help the old ones and hold the young ones."
"Yu'er, come here!" Jiang Yushu clapped her hands and picked up her nephew who jumped into her arms.
Wang thought about it, compromised, and got out of the car, saying, "Qiaozhen, in the eyes of the officers, we are all prisoners. Just follow your orders."
"Hmph." Wang Qiaozhen had no right to disobey, so she obeyed with frustration, muttering in annoyance all the way.
Everyone was afraid of the wild beasts, so they hurried on their way and left the mountains in fear.
As dusk fell, Jiang Yushu was out of breath. She stopped to wipe the sweat off her face and saw dozens of people coming towards her. They were carrying bags and driving a few ox carts. On the carts sat old people and children. They all looked pale and thin, and looked tired and depressed.
"It's quite lively," Cuimei said in surprise. "Old and young, with bags and bags, they must be a family. Are they moving?"
Jiang Yushu said softly, "We are heading north, and they are heading south." As she spoke, the two groups of people crossed each other. She couldn't help but pick one person and asked:
"Little girl, are you moving?"
"Huh? Yes, we're moving." The girl looked disheveled and dusty.
Jiang Yushu said kindly, "It's getting dark soon. There are many wild animals in the mountains. It's very dangerous. You'd better not travel at night."
The girl was stunned, but replied helplessly, "Alas, we have to chase them away. The Northern Jie bandits attack every now and then, and the chaos is unbearable. Besides, once the city is broken, those beasts will definitely slaughter innocent people. Last year they killed over 100,000 people in Yongzhou. It was so cruel."
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