chill
In the twentieth year of Donghe, a regional conflict broke out between the northern border of Dongmu Kingdom and the southern border of Xiyu Kingdom, thus triggering a war.
The Feng family army stationed in the north began to fight the enemy with General Feng. However, at this time, the fourth prince, who was associated with the Feng family, launched a coup. He was trapped in Yanjing by the Crown Prince and the Southern Army led by Commander Pei, and eventually died in Yanjing.
The once formidable Feng family army also fell into trouble, and General Feng was captured by the enemy and sacrificed on the battlefield.
With a formidable enemy in front and a hidden threat behind, General Feng Xiao retreated to Ale City in Anhe County in response to the powerful offensive. The city was mountainous and easy to defend.
After holding out for a month, they finally received reinforcements from the Nanling Army led by Pei Jue, and the two armies then joined forces to fight against the Xiyu Army.
When the great war broke out, life was the most vulnerable, especially for ordinary people. Anyone with a little money was robbed of everything. Women suffered even more. It wasn't until three years later that Ararat managed to recover and that families were finally able to eat their fill.
As spring arrived once again, the newly appointed emperor sent an imperial edict via express courier to Pei Jue in Wu County in the south.
Arleigh
"Xiao Sheng, come quick, come quick."
"Why."
A woman dressed in a gray-brown cross-collar cloth robe responded. She had her hair styled in a bun for easy work, with her long black hair held in place by only a wooden hairpin, making her look neat and efficient.
Walking to the shop counter, Manager Gao handed over another stack of messy papers, pointed to the ground, and said, "Oh dear, this old man is dizzy from looking at it. Please help me tidy it up quickly. I remember your bookkeeping method is excellent! Superb!"
Mei Sheng couldn't help but laugh out loud at the boasting, saying, "Uncle Gao, why are you trying to slack off now that Brother Feng is home?"
Brother Feng is the accountant at this pharmacy. A few days ago, his elderly mother fell seriously ill, so he took leave and went home.
Mei Sheng had managed the accounts for a period of time a couple of years ago. At that time, there was war, prices soared, and shops went bankrupt one after another. Manager Gao, on the other hand, must have had a powerful backer, so he managed to survive for a while.
It was during this period that Mei Sheng was recruited.
In the northern part of Dongmu Kingdom, women are less restricted and there are quite a few women who go out to work to supplement the family income. However, there are even fewer women like Mei Sheng who can read and do accounting. After Manager Gao hired Mei Sheng, he kept saying that he had found a treasure.
When Mei Sheng became one of the owners of the pharmacy, and saw that Manager Gao had hired Brother Feng, he handed over the bookkeeping job entirely to him. Brother Feng was cautious, meticulous, and diligent, making him an excellent bookkeeper.
Now that he's not here, Mei Sheng has to be pulled in by Uncle Gao to keep the accounts.
"Hehe, even though you're a woman, your accounting skills are better than mine." After saying that, Manager Gao left the basket of account books and abacus on the ground to Mei Sheng.
"Okay, Uncle Gao, you should go home quickly. Your aunt said she saved some wine for you."
Speaking of alcohol, even his legs, which he usually complained about, no longer hurt. He only said, "Hurry up, we might have to deliver medicine to Ale Mountain in the next day or two."
Mei Sheng smiled helplessly, found a shop assistant, and together they took the items to her room. Her room was nearby, in the small courtyard behind the shop. Three years had passed, and she had finally settled down for the time being.
She closed the door, lit a few candles, sat down at the small desk, and carefully examined the data.
Perhaps because she was focused on watching and close to the fire, Mei Sheng rolled up her sleeves, revealing a fair wrist. Her wrist was strong and no longer as weak as it had been in the past.
Bletilla striata, Typha pollen, safflower...
These common medicinal herbs each require several hundred kilograms, and there are many different kinds, making the calculations quite troublesome. Even she spent an entire night by candlelight to barely manage to get the numbers right.
Mei Sheng pressed her temples and breathed a sigh of relief: "It's finally over."
Having not slept all night, she felt somewhat dazed.
Three years ago, just after the New Year, she finally arrived in Anhe County after going through many hardships.
Who knew that just a few days after arriving in the city, a heavy winter snowstorm blocked the mountains, and the snow hadn't melted yet. Mei Sheng could only wait for the snow to melt, and she waited and waited, until she found a place to stay, until she found a child, until she became one of the shop owners, but she still didn't get what she wanted.
The snow on the mountain melted, and the army arrived.
Little did I know that three years would pass in this wait.
Now that the war situation has gradually stabilized, the army needs to purchase medicines from shops in various places. The army has given the order, and in theory, the shops in various places should be very eager to do so.
However, the Crown Prince's attitude towards the Feng family army was ambiguous after he ascended the throne. As a result, the Feng family army's orders were nothing more than a waste of breath for the local forces.
"Auntie, I can't sleep."
The door opened, and a small head popped in, its shoulder-length hair disheveled, pouting as it looked at her.
When Mei Sheng saw the child, she rushed forward, grabbing a piece of clothing and wrapping it tightly around Lele. Now, only Lele's round, pinkish-white face was visible, making her incredibly cute.
She asked gently, "Lele, what happened? Where did Sister Xiaoqin go?"
Lele shook her head: "My sister went to wash up. I saw the room was lit up, so I ran over."
After saying that, she hugged Mei Sheng's neck tightly with her little hands and said affectionately, "I haven't seen Auntie for several days. Where did Auntie go?"
Mei Sheng gently pinched the tip of her nose and laughed, "It's my fault. I've been too busy these past few days. I'll take Lele out to play when I have time in the next few days, okay? Now, we need to go find Sister Xiaoqin. She'll definitely be worried if she doesn't see you."
"Okay." Lele opened her round eyes, held Mei Sheng's hand, and was very obedient.
The next day, after settling the accounts, Mei Sheng had a good night's sleep. She then followed the medicine delivery convoy from the shop to Mount Ale. Some of the Feng family's troops were still stationed at the foot of the mountain, and there were many wounded soldiers there.
Back then, when Mei Sheng heard the news that Pei Jue had raised troops to help the north, she was very panicked.
After running away for so long, am I going to run into him again? Will I never escape his grasp?
But in the end, Mei Sheng was overthinking things. From the beginning to the end of the war, until Pei Jue's army completely withdrew and returned to the south, she never saw him once.
Yes, the world is so vast, if Mei Sheng were willing to keep hiding, how could he find her so easily?
What are you doing?
The soldiers stationed at Mount Arle came forward to inspect, and Uncle Gao got out of the carriage upon hearing the noise. He explained the situation to them, and after the soldiers checked the people and medicine, they let them in.
They were one of the few shops that voluntarily offered to donate medicine.
Since the reorganization of Anhe County began, the army failed to collect grain and medicine from powerful clans, so it turned to merchants. Merchants are profit-driven and opportunistic, so no one would do such a thankless task.
Apart from a few shops that donated along with Mei Sheng, everyone else remained silent.
The carriage kept stopping and starting, which was quite strange this time. Usually, they would only stop once or twice for inspections before arriving at the logistics area where the medicines were stored. But this time, there were several more inspections.
It seemed unusually strict.
"That's enough, you've all had a long journey." A dark-faced young man smiled and, seeing them arrive, hurriedly called for people to unload the goods and place them in a nearby tent.
The camp was located at the rear of the entire army, and without even looking, Mei Sheng knew that the mountain she wanted to go to was to her right.
That small hill is where she fell into this world. However, for the past three years, she has been unable to find a way in. Even now that she has come in, she still cannot get in because there are troops patrolling that area in batches.
Uncle Gao stepped forward and handed over the ledger, speaking in detail with the dark-faced soldier opposite him. Taking advantage of this moment, Mei Sheng pretended to go to the outhouse and headed to the right.
She only had the time it takes for an incense stick to burn.
Mei Sheng had observed this gap several times during emergencies. She was already very familiar with route drawing and arithmetic, and this time, she came specifically to exploit this oversight.
If this oversight in the defenses is not resolved, then this will be her only chance to enter the mountains.
Mei Sheng whispered, approaching the side of the tent. She saw that the soldiers had just left and were running towards the small hill. Even after so many years, she still knew this road very well.
Walking down the familiar road, she couldn't help but want to cry. The wind carried the scent of joy.
But the next moment, she was stunned for a moment, as if she had been doused with cold water.
What do you do?
In the blink of an eye, Mei Sheng felt despair and thought that God was being cruel to her.
She was just one step away from entering the mountains. Once inside, the trees would provide cover, making it easy to conceal her whereabouts. If a woman were to disappear, even if someone came to search, the surrounding mountains would make it difficult to find her.
Why?
She had clearly calculated this time in advance. After so much time, she finally noticed this flaw. Judging from the sound, it was still far away. If she ran in now, if...
Mei Sheng closed her eyes briefly, then turned her head, looking confused. "I came to deliver medicine. I was looking for a restroom, but I got lost. I saw this place from afar and thought it was here, here..."
At this point, she became somewhat flustered, her face turning bright red.
As they spoke, the two patrolling soldiers drew closer. One of them recognized Mei Sheng and said, "You are... from the pharmacy? Yes, yes."
He didn't want to make things difficult for the woman and wanted to take her back, but it was best not to go into details, as he was afraid of embarrassing her.
But another soldier said, "Come with me to see the leader. You can leave only after the search is completed."
Mei Sheng understood this process very well. Others might not know, but he did. He knew that the Feng family army was quite tolerant of women and children.
Mei Sheng immediately replied, "Of course."
The two men led her back to the tent where the medicine had just been placed. The dark-faced boy identified Mei Sheng, and a woman searched her thoroughly before they left.
In the distance, "Governor Pei is indeed a prophet. With just one glance, he saw the loophole in the defenses here. If we let this woman in, we'll be in for a lot of beatings."
"Governor Pei is truly formidable. Could it be that the Feng family army..." The voice trailed off.
"Who knows?"
After Uncle Gao and Mei Sheng apologized, the stern-faced soldier, knowing that Mei Sheng had always donated medicine for free, softened his expression and said some kind words to the team leader, thus ending the matter: "Miss, don't wander off in the future. If you go the wrong way, those crossbows won't recognize you."
Are there guards stationed on the mountain?
Mei Sheng's face paled, and she said, "Thank you, sir, I understand."
The team leader nodded, picked up the ledger, and walked towards the tent opposite.
"Xiao Sheng, let's go."
Mei Sheng responded, but after taking only three steps, she was stopped in her tracks by a chilling voice.
"Xiao Sheng?"
The word was still the same, but Mei Sheng felt that if someone else read it, she would be even more terrified than when the soldier had discovered her earlier. It was early spring, yet she was chilled to the bone by the fright.
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