After a long while, Jiang Yuzhu slowly replied, "You have a wound on your hand. Although the blood is dripping slowly, it won't last for a few hours. You will die of despair due to the loss of blood. Before that, you have a chance to explain."
Sanniang must be suffering from claustrophobia and won't be able to hold on for long.
After Xie Zhao took Jiang Yuzhu to dinner and inspected the spoils from Mount Longhu, about an hour later, his men came back and reported, "Madam, you still have a solution. Sanniang has given us instructions!"
Inside the woodshed, Sanniang's psychological defenses were breached, and she collapsed and cried out, "The master never shows his face, I don't know his identity!"
"The master is in the capital, holding the handle on the officials in the capital, and using this to achieve the purpose of control."
At present, her master is in contact with Prime Minister Wei.
Sanniang's task is to purchase food and secretly support the barbarians.
As for the people under the master, apart from the secret business contacts, Sanniang knew nothing about the rest.
Leave it to his men to finish the job, and before sunset, the large group of people will leave the city.
Mr. Mi agreed to transport food and fodder. Xie Zhao discussed with Jiang Yuzhu and used part of the silver to buy cotton and other items, and shipped the goods to the north via a caravan.
More than a month had passed since they left Beijing, and by the end of September, the group had only completed half of the journey.
The further north you go, the deeper the autumn becomes.
The mountains on both sides of the official road were covered with fallen leaves and yellow branches, which fell on the clear springs in the mountains.
"We'll be passing through town tomorrow, so it's time to change into thicker bedding."
The sun at noon is not too glaring, and there are cool breezes in the mountains.
The carriage windows were opened for ventilation, and Xie Zhao covered Jiang Yuzhu with a thin blanket.
Leaning against the car wall, Jiang Yuzhu could see the fiery red maple leaves in the mountains through the window, and her heart suddenly became clear.
She smiled and said, "Since we're camping out in the wilderness tonight, why don't we have some hot and sour noodles to warm ourselves up?"
After taking a sip of the hot and sour soup, Jiang Yuzhu broke out in a slight sweat. She missed that refreshing feeling.
Xie Zhao flipped through the booklet and said, "Okay."
After a few days, the group will pass through the no-man's land and then reach Lingcheng.
A large group of people and horses pulled the stones to Lingcheng, exchanged them for silver, and then purchased some military supplies to take to the north.
"Once we pass Lingcheng, the obstacles will be much smaller."
Although things have been calm recently, Xie Zhao has become more cautious, as there are often undercurrents hidden beneath the calm.
When passing through a city during this period, you not only need to prepare thick bedding, but also make a jacket in advance.
The situation in the north was difficult, and refugees appeared in groups of three or two on the official roads.
Unable to bear the war, the refugees brought their families to the south to find their relatives.
Some refugees would rather starve than seek help.
Jiang Yuzhu passed by and saw that the little kid was starving, so she couldn't help but give him some food.
"Adults have to go hungry for a few meals and rely on wild vegetables to fill their stomachs, but children cannot go hungry."
The people were not homeless, but went out on their own initiative, and there was no robbery.
Even if you are extremely hungry, you still maintain your rationality.
From her conversations with the refugees, Jiang Yuzhu couldn't help but feel worried: "No wonder the beacon fires were lit several times. I never thought the military supplies in the north camp would be so low."
When the people left their homes, they could not take any heavy items with them, so most of their bedding, jackets, and even food were donated to the soldiers.
The court had no food supplies and had to rely entirely on the people in the city to donate food.
The North City Camp could not pay out pensions, so the Mo family had to struggle to cover the expenses.
"Don't worry, Madam. The first batch of food has been delivered."
Xie Zhao took this into consideration and chose to delay the journey.
The caravan he had sent out in advance had already gathered in the north, transporting food and fodder to the camp north of the city to relieve the urgent need.
"In winter, when there's a shortage of food, we rely entirely on food and grass for support."
Jiang Yuzhu couldn't help but look worried. Since she left Beijing, she hadn't received any letters from her second brother Jiang Huaiqing on the way home.
Given my second brother's temper, he will definitely go to the battlefield.
Are you injured?
Whenever Jiang Yuzhu thought about it, she became so irritated that she couldn't sleep, and she wanted to go to the north immediately to find out what was going on.
For the sake of her second brother, she had to use her ill-gotten gains to fill the gap in military supplies.
The couple chatted idly while Hongli stood under the carriage and said, "Madam, a group of villagers have appeared on the official road ahead. They want to ask the Imperial Envoy for help!"
About a hundred people came onto the official road and directly blocked the way of the large group of people.
Xie Zhao took Jiang Yuzhu to the front to check, and saw that the leader was a white-haired old man.
The old man was over sixty years old and still needed the support of strong laborers in the village to walk. When he saw Xie Zhao appear, his cloudy eyes brightened.
"Is that Master Xie in front?"
The old man trembled slightly, somewhat in disbelief.
When the villagers heard that the imperial envoy was going to the north and passing by the official road, they had been waiting for him day and night for more than ten days.
Tomorrow is the day when the government issues the ultimatum.
Thank you, sir, you must be the savior of all the villagers!
The old man was about to kneel respectfully, but was lifted up by Xie Zhao: "Old man, I am the imperial envoy who passed by."
"Great, thank you for coming, we are saved!"
The villagers cheered, their excitement evident on their faces.
Jiang Yuzhu stopped and saw joy, excitement and trust on the simple faces, which made her mood rise a little.
In the book, Xie Zhao never remarried after the original owner's death. He had no interest in love and instead devoted himself to government affairs.
In the past, Jiang Yuzhu didn’t quite understand, but now, among the villagers, she has a deeper understanding of the value of Xie Zhao’s existence.
These days, people are born unequal. In the eyes of poor people, upright officials are their saviors.
Xie Zhao spoke calmly to the elder in the lead, "Old man, as long as I can do it, I will definitely make the decision for you."
For Xie Zhao, it was just a piece of cake. He spoke sincerely and did not make any excuses.
The old man put his mind at ease and explained his purpose: "Thank you, sir. The villagers in the surrounding villages have all relied on this piece of land for their livelihood for generations."
After saying this, the old man's lips trembled and he kept wiping away tears.
"Old man, speak slowly."
Xie Zhao listened patiently and did not rush him.
After a long while, the old man calmed down, wiped his tears with his sleeve, and revealed the truth: "Some time ago, the government sent someone to inform us that the small hill ahead was redundant and they wanted to blast it to make way."
After the mountain was blown up, the surrounding roads were unobstructed, and the flat and straight roads led directly to the neighboring city.
The government came not to negotiate, but to issue an ultimatum.
Not only that, the fields and villagers' houses near the official road had to be occupied and demolished to pave the way for road construction.
"My son went to the government office to ask the county magistrate about compensation, but he was beaten with twenty sticks and almost became disabled."
After the old man finished speaking, his eyes became even redder.
His son is a villager and should stand up for the villagers.
They wanted to send someone to discuss the matter, but the government officials didn't treat the villagers as human beings at all and just beat them up.
"That hilltop is where the ancestral tombs of several clans are. The government blew up the mountain and didn't give us time to move the tombs. If they really blew it up, how would I, an old man, have the face to see my ancestors?"
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