Chapter 51
The next morning, Li the blacksmith sent Niu Niu to fetch Zhou Yuan to his house.
Chen Qing didn't go with him. He took some vegetable seeds from Aunt Sun and planned to plant them so that they would be ready to eat soon.
When Zhou Yuan returned, Chen Qing was about to fetch water from the river to irrigate the fields. Zhou Yuan quickly pressed down on his shoulder and said, "I'll fetch it."
Chen Qing followed him and asked about the day's events: "What did they say?"
Zhou Yuan replied, "I've already decided to go. My godfather will stay home to look after Niu Niu, and Shu Ning and Li Xin will go together." He had been there before, so he wanted to go too.
Chen Qing nodded: "It's good that Aunt Yin has figured it out."
“You’ll come with us too,” Zhou Yuan said.
"Me?" Chen Qing stopped in his tracks. "I think I'll pass. I'll stay at home. I can help look after Niu Niu and help Mom with some chores."
The turbulent life he experienced on the road in the past few years instilled in Chen Qing a fear of the word "journey." Whenever he talked about setting off on the road, he would think of sandstorms, blistered feet, and many unpredictable dangers.
He turned to look at Zhou Yuan, remembering what Zhou Yuan had always told him: if something is on your mind, you should speak it out. So he said, "I'm scared."
Zhou Yuan put the bucket into the river and waited until it was full before lifting it out: "What are you afraid of?"
Chen Qing lowered his head: "I always think back to the past."
Zhou Yuan carried the water and let Chen Qing walk in front.
After arriving home, Chen Qing watered the fields, and Zhou Yuan accompanied him, saying, "I've been by your side the whole time, Qing, don't be afraid."
Chen Qing put down the water ladle in his hand and looked at Zhou Yuan.
"Don't you want to go out with me? Remember what I said? I want to go back to your hometown with you, and my hometown."
"This trip to Xixin Prefecture is just a rehearsal. Don't think of it as a long journey. I, Li Xinshu Ning, and Aunt Yin will be with you on the way."
Chen Qing blinked, hiding the slight sting in his eyes: "We're clearly going to treat Aunt Yin's illness, but it's acting like we're treating me."
Zhou Yuan leaned in and kissed him: "It's to cure your heartache."
They decided to set off the day after tomorrow. Before leaving, Zhou Yuan called Niu Niu aside and said, "I have a task for you."
Niu Niu blinked, and then heard Zhou Yuan say, "I'm entrusting the cows at my brother's house to you."
“Okay!” Niu Niu patted his chest. “I will definitely take good care of Niu Niu.”
Zhang Yin was still worried. Li the blacksmith was a rough and uncultured man who also had work to do at the shop. She pulled Niu Niu along and said, "If you're hungry, go to Aunt Sun's house for dinner. Wait for Daddy to come home tonight."
Niu Niu smiled and said, "I will take good care of Daddy."
Zhang Yin touched his hair, knowing he was a good boy. Even though Li the blacksmith was somewhat distant from him, he still deeply admired his upright and honorable father.
"Okay, then Niu Niu will take good care of Daddy."
Qi Shuning packed his book box and told Niu Niu to practice writing on the sand every day. He also said that when they came back, he would teach Niu Niu to write on paper with pen and ink.
Before leaving, Li the blacksmith gave all his savings to Li Xin, leaving him with fifty taels of silver after deducting the money he had previously given Li Xin for repairing his house.
The fifty taels were what he had earned over the years of blacksmithing. As long as he could cure Zhang Yin, it wouldn't matter if he ran out of money; he could start over.
Li the blacksmith escorted them to town and rented a very comfortable horse-drawn carriage, with Zhou Yuan riding alongside.
They modified the carriage so that Zhang Yin could lie down. Zhou Yuan rode a horse with Chen Qing in tow, while Li Xin and Qi Shuning drove the carriage.
It was Chen Qing's first time riding a horse, and he was a little scared. He clung tightly to Zhou Yuan's clothes, and when the horse started moving, he felt dizzy.
Zhou Yuan didn't dare let the horse run too fast, so he stayed beside the carriage and talked to Qi Shuning.
Li Xin disliked Qi Shuning very much, and asked him while rushing to catch the carriage, "Why did you come along?"
Qi Shuning said with a smile, "There is a Shuming Academy in Yunxi Town. All the students there have achieved good results in the imperial examinations over the years, so I want to go and take a look."
Hearing that it was for his studies, Li Xin had nothing more to say. Zhou Yuan controlled the horse's speed, worried that Chen Qing might not be used to riding a horse for the first time, and walked beside them, saying, "I remember the provincial examination is in September, are you participating?"
Qi Shuning shook his head: "I want to take another year to reflect."
This was also the advice given to Li Xin by his maternal uncle when they visited Li Xin's maternal grandparents' home.
In recent years, due to the war, people's lives and conditions have changed. Therefore, the emperor's requirements for the officials selected from below are also different from those of the past. His uncle told him to go out and see more, and perhaps he would have different experiences. That's why he wanted to go to Xixin Prefecture with them.
Firstly, it was to take care of Li Xin, and secondly, it was to pay homage to the Shuming Academy. If they could obtain one or two textbooks from the academy, that would be even better.
The carriage wasn't moving fast, and Zhou Yuan was riding slowly as well. Chen Qing finally got used to it. So this is what the view is like when you stand at a higher vantage point. Is this the perspective Zhou Yuan usually sees?
Seeing that he had gotten used to it, Zhou Yuan said to Li Xin, "We'll run for a while and wait for you up ahead."
As he spoke, he cracked the whip, and the horse galloped off, leaving Li Xin, who was sitting in the carriage, with a mouthful of dust.
He glared at Zhou Yuan, wanting to curse him but he couldn't hear him, so he could only say to Qi Shuning, "It's all your fault! I wanted to ride a horse too!"
Li Xin also wanted to ride a horse, but he didn't know how, and he couldn't ask Zhou Yuan to take him. He could only blame Qi Shuning for being so useless.
Qi Shuning had a good temper and gently comforted him, "Once Mother recovers, I'll have my older brother teach me to ride a horse, and I'll take you riding with me in the future."
Li Xin snorted: "That's more like it."
Zhang Yin leaned against the carriage, listening to their argument, and didn't feel tired at all. She sat up and lifted the carriage curtain: "Xin Xin, don't always argue with Aning."
"Yes, Mother." Li Xin was very obedient, her hands gripping Qi Shuning's arm tightly.
Along the way, Chen Qing realized that traveling could be like this: there were no shouts or whips from those in charge, only a leisurely and pleasant feeling.
Sometimes when Chen Qing got tired of riding a horse, he would climb onto the carriage to keep Zhang Yin company. Li Xin would occasionally want to ride a horse, and Zhou Yuan would help him up and then lead the horse a few steps from below.
Sometimes, when they traveled too late and there were no inns nearby, they would make do in the wilderness.
They had brought plenty of dry rations along the way, but eating only dry rations left them all feeling tasteless. When they came to a mountainous area, they stopped the carriage on the side of the road. Qi Shuning took two horses to graze, Li Xin accompanied Zhang Yin, and Chen Qing and Zhou Yuan went up the mountain to see if there was any wild game.
Zhou Yuan held Chen Qing's hand and breathed a sigh of relief when he saw that Chen Qing's complexion was alright: "How are you? Are you alright?"
Chen Qing nodded: "That's good."
This was the first time Chen Qing wasn't in a rush on the road. He had the leisure to look at a roadside flower, a distant tree, and a gently flowing river. He realized that sometimes the unknown isn't frightening.
"Just think of it as a group of us going out to have fun, only the place we're going to is a bit far away."
Chen Qingchao smiled and said, "I understand."
Zhou Yuan stroked his hair: "Don't be afraid, I'll be with you no matter what."
They didn't return empty-handed from their trip up the mountain. Zhou Yuan's hunting skills, honed in the village, came in handy. They caught a fat rabbit and a pheasant, while Chen Qing gathered some edible wild vegetables from the mountains. The two of them returned to their resting place with their bountiful harvest.
Seeing them return, Qi Shuning and Li Xin went to gather firewood. There was a river not far away, and Chen Qing and Zhou Yuan went to the riverbank to process the wild game they had caught.
Sitting in the carriage, Zhang Yin coughed softly twice, covering her mouth with a handkerchief. She also felt that this trip didn't seem like they were going to get medical treatment, but rather like they were taking a group of children out to play.
She had been traveling for almost ten days and didn't feel particularly unwell. Every time they arrived at an inn, Li Xin would brew medicine for her. If they were in the wild, she would brew it in the mountains and forests.
Normally, I would be too tired to get out of bed, but after being out and about for several days, I haven't felt particularly uncomfortable.
Perhaps it was fate that led her on this journey?
While she was still thinking, Chen Qing returned. As Chen Qing packed his luggage, Zhou Yuan told him to take some seasonings with him, saying that they might be needed on the road.
Zhou Yuansheng started a fire, used thick branches to spear wild rabbits, and roasted them over the fire. Soon, the air was filled with the aroma of smoke and fire. On another fire, there was a small iron pot, made by Li the blacksmith, just in case.
A pheasant soup was simmering in a small iron pot, with some wild vegetables from the mountains added; it smelled delicious.
The chicken soup was made for Zhang Yin. Not wanting to spoil their fun, Zhang Yin broke her dry rations into pieces, soaked them in the chicken soup, and ate a hot bowl of it. She sweated a little and felt much better.
The roasted rabbit smelled delicious, but it didn't taste very good. The meat was tough and had an earthy taste.
With a mindset of not wasting food, Chen Qing finished his share. Zhou Yuan, on the other hand, had been away from home for many years and had experienced all kinds of hardships. Not to mention rabbit, he had eaten even more unpalatable things.
Li Xin and Qi Shuning didn't have the same tolerance. Li Xin only took one bite and then threw it to Qi Shuning, saying it wasn't tasty.
Seeing that he had no appetite, Chen Qing remembered that there was a small bag in his bundle containing seasonings that Zhou Yuan had brought back from Xixin Prefecture. He opened the bag and smelled a very pungent odor.
Chen Qing handed the purse to Li Xin, who looked inside and saw some red and yellow powder: "What is this?"
“Zhou Yuan brought back some seasonings from Yunxi Town. I thought that since I’m here, I could ask him how to use them,” Chen Qing said.
"Is this really edible?" Li Xin was a little unsure, and when she leaned closer to smell it, she felt like sneezing.
Zhou Yuan leaned closer, holding a little rabbit meat in his hand: "Try it, you don't want to eat it anyway, so it won't be a waste if you can't finish it."
Finally, Li Xin sprinkled the powder on the rabbit meat with some skepticism. The red specks on the slightly browned rabbit inexplicably made it more appetizing.
Zhou Yuan did the same thing as him, but he didn't give it to Chen Qing. He took a bite himself first. A very peculiar taste that he had never tasted before spread out. After swallowing, there was a slight stinging sensation in his mouth. With this taste neutralizing it, the earthy smell of the rabbit disappeared. Instead, it brought out the oily aroma of the roasted rabbit meat, making the rabbit meat much tastier.
Zhou Yuan remembered the taste; it was the same as what he had eaten at Tianji Restaurant in Yunxi Town. The owner had told him that it was spicy.
So he nodded to Li Xin: "Try it, it's delicious." He then tore off a piece of meat for Chen Qing, "You try it too."
Hearing him say that, Li Xin took a bite with some skepticism. She first frowned, but then couldn't control herself and ate it in big mouthfuls.
Chen Qing wasn't used to the taste at first, but he couldn't control himself. Even Zhang Yin tried a little bit. When he finished eating, Chen Qing's eyes were watery and his lips were a little swollen. Zhou Yuan watched and swallowed.
Li Xin said, "Let's buy more of this when we get there, it's really delicious."
Zhou Yuan nodded: "There are many delicious things in Yunxi Town. Once Godmother is better, we can stroll around Yunxi Town and buy some new and interesting things to take back with us."
After finishing everything, Li Xin was still a little unsatisfied. He looked at Zhou Yuan and said, "Why didn't you bring out such good stuff sooner?"
"I forgot about it after I gave it to Aqing when I got back," Zhou Yuan said.
As darkness fell, they were to camp out in the wilderness that night. Zhang Yin naturally slept in the carriage. Originally, they had asked Li Xin and Chen Qing to sleep in the carriage as well, but the carriage was too small, and Chen Qing felt uncomfortable.
So Chen Qing stayed by Zhou Yuan's side, and they leaned against a big tree. Zhou Yuan used a coat to pull Chen Qing into his arms.
The chirping of insects in the mountains was incessant; although it was noise, it also brought a sense of peace.
"How much longer until we arrive?" Chen Qing asked.
"If things go quickly, it will take another ten days; if things go slowly, it will take another fifteen days," Zhou Yuan said softly.
Will Aunt Yin get better?
Zhou Yuan shook his head: "I don't know. I only know that we did our best. What fate has in store is beyond our control."
Chen Qing nodded and hummed in agreement: "I hope everything goes smoothly on this trip."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
