Chapter 13 On the Road to Exile!
Shen Lanxi looked at the family of six: "Are you all really going to go into exile with the Shen family?"
Madam Wang bowed deeply and said, "Miss, our Wang family has always served the Shen family, and we have no other relatives left. We are your servants and are willing to serve you forever. Please, Miss, do not send us away!" After saying this, Madam Wang and her family knelt on the ground and kowtowed.
Shen Lanxi pondered for a moment: "Alright, from now on you will serve me faithfully, and I will guarantee your family's food and clothing for three generations!"
"Thank you, miss!"
The exiled prisoners had to wait a while at the city gate to allow their families time to see them off. During this time, Chunxiao took out the steamed buns and tea eggs she had bought from Yunxuelou the day before, and also took out four side dishes, arranged them on a plate, and placed them on the folding dining table that Qiushuang had prepared in advance, and set out the chairs.
"Miss, the food outside is simple, please make do with what you have for now!"
Yunxuelou's steamed buns are famous in the capital. There are five kinds on display, plus several layers of side dishes. The one-meter-long folding table could hardly hold them all!
No compromise, absolutely no compromise!
"We should keep a low profile when we're out and about. From now on, we don't need to set a table for meals. Just eat what we have in our hands!"
Chunxiao and Qiushuang had prepared cornbread as their provisions. When they heard Shen Lanxi say that, they immediately felt sorry for their young lady.
The young lady had never suffered such hardship before!
She also saw the food in the hands of the two little girls.
"From now on, I'll eat whatever you eat, so you don't need to prepare anything special for me!"
Chunxiao looked aggrieved: "Miss, we still have money, you don't need to make yourself suffer like this."
Shen Lanxi naturally had her own plans.
"We're traveling with the entire Shen family, a total of eighty-nine people. If they see us eating so well, won't they ask us for some?"
"If they ask us for it, will we give it to them or not?"
“I gave food to my father, mother, grandparents, brothers and sisters. Now that they know I have food and money, will they ask me to give it to my uncles, illegitimate children, and concubines? Will those relatives who were implicated by the Shen family take advantage of their situation and demand that I give them food and money?”
Spring Dawn and Autumn Frost fell silent.
Shen Lanxi waved for Wang's mother and her family to come over as well. Before officially setting off, she wanted to teach these people a lesson!
In less than half an hour, the black dots at the city gate began to move, and the exile procession began to set off!
After being taught a lesson by Shen Lanxi, the group quickly hid what they could in the carriage, and tied what they couldn't hide under the carriage with ropes.
Two horse-drawn carriages and one oxcart followed the exile procession at a distance, until the procession stopped to rest at noon. Only then did Shen Lanxi carry the prepared items and walk toward the yamen runners.
When the constables looked at her, she held up a large bag and two water jars in her hands.
He stopped three meters away, opened the bundle, and the contents were revealed.
Steamed buns, pickled vegetables, flatbread, cornbread, plus two roast chickens and a braised pork knuckle!
The item was within easy reach of the constables. After confirming there was nothing else, a burly constable with a sword across his arm came over to question them.
What are you doing?
Shen Lanxi winked at the constable and took out a small bag of silver from her pocket. The constable immediately understood and slipped the bag into his pocket as he turned around.
"Sir, I am a merchant traveling to Dongchuan on business. I have been asked by relatives of exiled prisoners to look after them on the way!"
There are rules for escorting prisoners; they are not allowed to eat food prepared by outsiders.
Shen Lanxi walked straight to the food, broke off a piece from a dish, and ate it!
The constable raised an eyebrow at her, then, shifting the weight of the silver, asked, "Which family's prisoner are you from?"
"The Shen family!"
The constable said, "Go and call a few of them over here."
Shen Lanxi walked obediently toward the Shen family members.
After experiencing great ups and downs, and then enduring ten days in prison, the Shen family members were all listless, their eyes devoid of their former brilliance.
"Yuan Jing, Yuan Jun, Yuan Qing, come with me to get some food!" These three are her brothers from the same mother.
The three of them stared at her in disbelief, their eyes slowly shifting from blank to shocked!
"Are you the eldest sister?" the youngest brother, Shen Yuanqing, exclaimed in surprise.
Shen Lanxi noticed that the other members of the Shen family were looking in their direction, so she didn't waste any words with the three of them.
"Come with me!" He said, then turned and left.
The three brothers exchanged glances, and Shen Yuanqing was the first to chase after them, followed by the other two.
"Big sister, why are you dressed like this? What are you doing here? Shouldn't you be at the Prince's mansion?"
Now is not a good time to speak!
"Shut up, stop talking!"
The constables have been keeping a close eye on them.
After walking a few steps to where the food was placed, Shen Lanxi let each of the three brothers break off a piece of food and eat it.
The three brothers trusted their older sister, and although they didn't understand what she was going to do, they still did as she asked and broke off a piece from each of their foods.
The food in the prison was terrible. The three brothers were so hungry they were dizzy. Each of them wanted to tear off a big piece, especially the roast chicken and pork knuckle, which they wanted to swallow whole.
Seeing that the three brothers were eating heartily and didn't seem to be doing anything wrong, the constables immediately went up and kicked each of them.
"Take the cornbread and get out of here!"
They only told them to leave because of the money; otherwise, they would have been kicked out long ago.
Shen Lanxi nodded to the three brothers, said a few flattering words to the constable, and then went to the carriage.
The three Shen brothers, Yuanjing, Yuanjing, and Yuanjing, were drooling over the meat. Afraid of being beaten, they quickly grabbed their cornbread and left!
Before long, the constables gathered together and began to feast.
After the three brothers returned home, they immediately ran to their father and mother.
"Father, Mother, this was given to me by my eldest sister!"
The other members of the Shen family had been whispering among themselves when the three brothers were called over, and now that they saw the three brothers return, they immediately gathered around.
Upon hearing that it was a daughter, Shen Congwen and his wife forgot all about their cornbread and immediately grabbed their son to ask him questions.
"You said the person who called you away just now was your eldest sister? Isn't your eldest sister at the Prince's mansion? Why would she be here?"
Shen Yuanjing quickly begged for forgiveness: "I don't know, my older sister didn't say anything."
Shen Yuanjun added in a wronged tone, "Big sister gave the constables a lot of food, including meat. The constables wouldn't let us take any, they only let us take cornbread!"
Shen Congwen seemed to have suddenly realized something, sighed, and released his son.
"Our whole family is in exile, your eldest sister must be having a hard time too!"
The Shen family fell silent.
"Eat something, Yuanjing. Share some of the cornbread with your grandparents!" Shen Congwen took two cornbreads from his son, one for himself and the other for his wife.
"Xinrou, have something to eat. Lanxi went to great lengths to bring this to us!"
The former Princess Minrou had her title revoked, and now she looked like she had aged more than ten years with her disheveled hair and rough clothes!
Seeing that his wife wouldn't take it, Shen Congwen sighed and put the cornbread in her hand.
The food served in the prison was all spoiled, and there was only one meal a day. Although it only lasted ten days, all the members of the Shen family lost a lot of weight. If it was like this in the prison, what good food could they expect on the road to exile?
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