6 Chapter 6

◎On the way◎

The wedding procession moved farther and farther away. Ji walked in, wiping her tears. Her eldest son Pei Shuo supported her and comforted her, "Mother, don't be sad. As long as my sister is well, that's better than anything else."

"The Madam knew very well that your sister was going to marry in Jianye, and the entire Xu family served the King of Wei, but she didn't even bother to give any advice. I don't expect her to do anything to me, but Huiyin is also her granddaughter." Ji shook her head. This marriage was entirely the product of her husband's ability to please both sides.

The emperor was sick and weak, and the crown prince also obeyed the He family. Empress He used the Lu and Zheng families to check and balance each other in order to restrain the He family. The Lu family wanted to treat the Zheng family like dogs, and the He family wanted to annex the Zheng family army and marry the King of Huaiyin, so that the south would not be attacked?

Although Ji relied on Zheng Fang, she always felt that Zheng Fang was inconsistent. Her son Zheng Wuheng was a man of right ideas, but he was only fifteen years old and too young to obey the crowd. She could only say these things to her eldest son.

Pei Shuo followed Ji's remarriage since he was a child. Although Zheng Fang treated him well, he also heard a lot of rumors. But in the end, he still relied on the Zheng family to have a place in the family, and he certainly hoped that the Zheng family could do better. So he said to Ji: "Don't worry, mother, I will definitely help my brother."

"You two brothers have had a good relationship since childhood, so I am not worried. It's just that your sister is marrying far away. I have met the Crown Prince, and he looks gentle and kind, but I don't know about the Prince of Huaiyin." Although Ji Shi had said good things when persuading her daughter to get married, now that her daughter is really married, she is worried again.

Pei Shuo comforted his mother: "Xuzhou is not very far away. If I am free in the future, I will visit my sister on your behalf."

Only then did Ji nod her head, and then she said that Xin had just given birth to a child, and asked her to take good care of herself.

Compared to the worries of Ji's mother and son, Madam Xu was not very angry: "Ji is really biased. When the same daughters got married, Huiyin's dowry was obviously larger than Deyin's."

But her son was a fool who didn't care about anything, so all the benefits went to Ji, who helped her raise her son from her previous husband. Now her daughter was already a princess, but Deyin was only a concubine, and she couldn't even enter the palace to visit her.

Therefore, she deliberately did not tell the Ji mother and daughter about the matter of Prince Huaiyin, and did not let the Xu family help. How could she survive there alone in the future?

**

The wedding procession left Jizhou City in just three to five days. Huiyin brought more than a hundred servants as a dowry. She specially asked Ji to find two female doctors to stay by her side, as this was also a loss she had suffered in her previous life.

The whole journey was arranged by the General of the Household named Yuwen Dang. It was said that he was the number one subordinate of Huaiyin King Li Cheng. He was tall and strong, with eyes like bronze bells. He was a brave general and seemed to be in a hurry to get back.

Huiyin's personal attendants included her wet nurse Nan Mama and four older maids, Leyun, Fugui, Qiufeng, and Dongshun. Now, only Nan Mama was serving in the carriage. Nan Mama had accompanied Huiyin as she grew up, and her children all died young. She only treated Huiyin as her own daughter.

Therefore, she was very happy for Huiyin: "I wonder if we should go to Xuzhou or Jianye? If we get married in Xuzhou, it will be closer, and the young lady can meet her aunt earlier."

Huiyin pouted under the red veil. It might not be good to meet him earlier. She had no impression of the King of Huaiyin. Li Cheng's parents died when he was a teenager. He inherited the throne. He was very decisive and courageous. He immediately decided to join his uncle. There must be some people who followed him since childhood around him. The relationship between these people is far from what a married woman can immediately participate in.

But she didn't care. Nothing is difficult for one who sets his mind to it.

"Mom, I heard that you are from Qingzhou, is that right?" Huiyin asked.

Nan's mother smiled and said, "Yes, at that time, the Marquis was fighting in Qingzhou. It happened that you were born and needed a wet nurse, so the Madam found me. You have also been in Qingzhou, Xiaopei, and Yuzhou. You may be too young to remember so much. Since you were old enough to understand, you have been in Jizhou all the time."

"Now that we're out of Jizhou, I think we'll have to rest at the posthouse in Qingzhou." Huiyin estimated.

Nan's mother said happily, "That would be great if that were the case. You can also wash up. You must be very tired after the long journey."

Huiyin yawned, leaned back on the pillow, and said coquettishly, "Mom, I want to eat some ginger plums."

"Okay, I'll get it for you." Mother Nan doted on this girl who had been breastfed since she was a child.

…

When the team arrived in Qingzhou, Yuwen Dang personally stepped forward beside the carriage and said, "I, Yuwen Dang, greet the princess of the county. Please rest for two days in the Qingzhou posthouse. I will reorganize the carriage and set off again for Xuzhou."

Yuwen Dang was also from a famous family, and his father was loyal and brave. He looked down on Zheng Fang. Not only was he Lu Ji's dog before, but he killed his master. Now he also bowed to Lu Wei, the dog. However, this marriage was arranged by the King of Wei for the King of Huaiyin. The King of Huaiyin always despised Zheng Fang's character and disliked him. But if the King of Wei wanted to deal with Lu Wei, he had to pull Zheng Fang.

"Okay, I'll follow the general's arrangements." Huiyin tried to speak in a low voice.

If for no other reason, her voice was simply too sweet, and to others it sounded coquettish, and they thought she was speaking like that on purpose.

Yuwen Dang saw her holding the carriage with the help of a maidservant, with a dignified demeanor. He did not dare to look at her any longer and told the soldiers to keep guard.

After entering the posthouse, Huiyin asked Nan's mother to take out some silver and treat the soldiers who were guarding her to wine and meat. She then took off her hairpins and coat, and she felt much more relaxed, and her neck could move again.

She also washed up. Although the food in Qingzhou Inn was average, it was at least hot pot dishes, which was better than the snacks she had on the road. No matter how delicious the snacks were, it was easy to get tired of them.

This was her first time traveling far away since she grew up! I heard that this room was the upper room of the post house, and the mattress and mat inside were already laid out, but Huiyin was not sleepy. It happened to be drizzling outside at this time, and she began to flip through the "Zou Ban Shu" that she usually read.

She is a bride now and cannot go out, so she can only read books to pass the time.

As dusk fell, the chief official Guo Qishan and Yuwen Dang were having a meal together. There were only a few pickled vegetables and a bowl of soup on the table. Guo Qishan took a bite of kidney and couldn't help asking, "We have to be more careful in Qingzhou."

"Well, you may appear to be relaxed on the outside but you are actually tight on the inside. If someone wants to save his life, I will not be lenient." Yuwen Dang did not take it seriously at all.

Now the governor of Qingzhou, Ma Kui, has not torn his face with the King of Wei, but he is greedy and started out as a bandit. It is said that he will not let go of even a dog passing through Qingzhou. Now the bride's dowry contains a lot of property, food, gold and silk, how can the Ma family not be tempted.

When they came, the wind and waves were very strong, so they changed to the land route. This time, Yuwen Dang was sent to pick up the bride in order to ensure safety.

Guo Qishan nodded: "With the words of the General, I feel relieved."

After two days of rest, Yuwen Dang took the opportunity to send people out to survey the terrain, and he had a rough idea in mind. Huiyin changed into her wedding dress as usual, covered her head with a veil, and got on the carriage.

Ma Kui, the governor of Qingzhou, was of course jealous of the money. He did all kinds of evil in Qingzhou. He had heard of these rumors. He heard that his father's army also liked to do the same thing at first. After winning a battle, they wanted to rob property. Later, after his mother married his father, she persuaded his father that if he wanted to be proactive and really be loved by others, he must love the people. Because the Zheng family treated the people of Jizhou very well, Zheng Fang took root in Jizhou and would not run away after fighting a battle like before.

Huiyin was also a little worried, but she didn't expect that when they set off, there was also a bride getting married. It was said that she was marrying from the capital to Wu County, and she was the daughter of a wealthy businessman. The dowry was so luxurious that it couldn't fit on the car.

Originally, one family would have been enough, but the other two families followed closely behind. Ma Kui was a little afraid of the Huaiyin King's army, but he immediately sent his men to do it. He also said fiercely: "If you can rob them, I will reward you heavily. If you are caught, you will have to die. Otherwise, your family members..."

People recruit people like them, and Ma Kui's men are all bold and desperate. In this chaotic world, people are willing to kill for a bite of food, let alone so much gold, silver and jewelry.

Yuwen Dang and his group continued to move forward. The bride behind them, perhaps seeing their large group, also followed them and sat under a tree to keep cool.

However, when they went further, a bridge there broke.

The soldier who was exploring the way said, "General, it looks like we have to take the small path."

"No, let's not take the small path. The small path is covered with dense forests and people hiding inside will be completely unnoticed. Let the princess go to the nearby Dizang Temple to shelter from the rain for the time being, and we will repair the bridge here." Yuwen Dang said with a smile.

The bride-picking team behind them was also willing to help, so the bride and Huiyin went to the Dizang Temple to take shelter from the rain. The temple's abbot even set aside a clean room for them, and the two brides sat aside, and the mothers soon started chatting.

"My daughter is the daughter of Mr. Hu, the owner of the Beijing wine shop. Our wine is only offered to the palace."

"So it's the Hu family who is offering tribute. Our Marquis entered the palace this year and was rewarded with wine."

…

"Ahem, Miss Hu, my last name is Zheng. May I know how old you are?" Huiyin started talking.

Miss Hu smiled and said, "I am sixteen this year."

"Then I'll call you sister. It seems we are destined to be together." Huiyin said.

The two chatted quietly, and when the mothers left, Miss Hu pulled off her veil and said to Huiyin, "Sister Zheng, there is no one here, why don't you take off your veil and loosen it up a little."

Unexpectedly, this Miss Hu was such a straightforward girl. Huiyin took off her veil and looked up at her. She thought to herself, what a beauty! Her face was like a full moon, her eyes were like stars, and she was beautiful yet had a bit of a majestic and heroic air. She couldn't help but show admiration on her face.

When Hu Yanyan saw the daughter of Marquis Zheng, she was also stunned by her beauty. Her face was like peach blossoms with dew, her eyes were like rippling autumn water, her lips were like cherry blossoms. She looked charming and beautiful, especially her voice when she spoke, which made her, as a woman, feel half numb. She turned out to be a beauty that could conquer a country and a city.

Huiyin took her hand and said, "You are younger than me. If you don't mind, you can call me Sister Zheng. Who are you marrying? Have you met her before?"

When Hu Yanyan mentioned this, her eyes darkened. "Of course not. My family is in the tribute wine business. This wine is made from grain. The better the grain, the better the wine. The family I married is the largest rice merchant in Wu County. This marriage was also for my family's business. I heard that he originally had a childhood sweetheart ready for engagement, but later gave up his childhood sweetheart in order to marry into my family."

"Sister Hu, as the saying goes, it takes a hundred years to be able to ride the same boat together, and a thousand years to be able to sleep on the same pillow together. What you hear may not be true. Maybe you and him are the best arrangement in the world. Moreover, I see a heroic look between your eyebrows. You must be the head of a family. His family values ​​you so much, so you may do something different." Huiyin advised with a smile.

After hearing this, Hu Yanyan suddenly realized: "My mother died early, and my father was busy, so he just asked me to get married without telling me much. Sister, you are really good, you always think positively."

"Only in this way can people live happily." Huiyin thought of her previous life. She was looking forward to the dawn of victory and was always optimistic. The more setbacks she encountered, the less seriously she took them.

Hu Yanyan said enviously, "Sister is the daughter of a duke, and married into a royal family. I heard that the Prince of Huaiyin is both civil and military, and is very good at music. He is both talented and handsome. It is really a match made in heaven."

"Actually, I feel the same as you." Huiyin also felt a little lonely.

Seeing her lonely, Hu Yanyan felt sorry for her and said, "Sister Zheng and I are so destined to each other. I will marry Wu Jun, and I'm afraid that sister will also be in Jianye in the future, so it's close. Why don't we each leave a token of our love so that we can have contact in the future."

Huiyin was wary at first, but she thought that Hu Yanyan was married to a rice merchant, and that she would have rice supplies in the future war, and that she would have a connection, so she took out a phoenix jade pendant from her waist and gave it to her: "This is my dowry jade pendant. I have another one in my hand. If you have any problems in the future, just send someone to find me with the token."

Hu Yanyan also took out a jade tablet from her arms and said: "This is a gift from my husband's family. If you hold this tablet, you can withdraw a hundred stones of rice from any Ruyi rice shop in the world without having to report it."

"This is too expensive." Huiyin refused. Although the two of them hit it off right away, they were still too young to talk about details, so they couldn't ask for anything too expensive.

Hu Yanyan smiled and said, "My sister is the Princess of Huaiyin. If I tell my father about this, he will definitely praise me for my ability. Don't refuse."

Huiyin then nodded and accepted it. With this episode, the two of them laughed and joked together, and the days passed quickly.

Just after lunch, Yuwen Dang came over to report: "Just now, hundreds of thieves came to steal the dressing box. Please rest assured, Princess, we will wipe them out."

"General Yuwen has had a hard time along the way."

"You are too polite, Princess. This is my duty."

Huiyin asked again: "I wonder if there are any casualties on our side?"

Yuwen Dang hesitated for a moment before saying, "Two people were hit in vital areas and are being treated. There are still twenty people injured."

Huiyin said with concern: "I brought a lot of medicinal herbs with me. If they need anything, just ask Nan Mama who is beside me. Also, the soldiers have worked really hard. I will take out 10,000 yuan to provide relief to these wounded soldiers. I'm sorry to trouble General Yuwen."

Yuwen Dang originally had some prejudice against Zheng Fang, but after hearing this Zheng speak clearly, act generously, and speak appropriately, he could not help but nod secretly: "Then I would like to thank the princess on behalf of the soldiers."

"Not worth mentioning." These are nothing compared to the fact that others are keeping her safe.

Yuwen Dang raised his eyebrows. Ten thousand yuan was a huge sum of money, but the princess was willing to give it to ordinary soldiers around her without any stinginess, which made him look up to her.