The capital city? Baoyunzhai? Qinghe, who was heating up his food in the kitchen, kept pondering Yu'er's words.
He had indeed always carried this flint and steel with him, and he had seen the words on it. He had asked the people in the neighborhood where Baoyunzhai was, but none of them knew.
Even if he did find this place, the shopkeeper probably wouldn't know his background, and over time, he would forget about it.
Little did they expect that Yu'er would know about Baoyunzhai.
Her words pointed him in the right direction, but he still had reservations.
After the food was heated up, Qinghe carried it into the inner room and placed it on the small table beside her bed.
Su Yushan propped herself up on her elbows and slowly sat up. Qinghe brought a quilt to place behind her so that she would have something to lean on.
Su Yushan silently ate the egg noodles he brought her, while Qinghe sat at the table beside her. He usually ate very quickly, but today he ate slowly, picking at his food with his chopsticks, clearly preoccupied.
Su Yushan couldn't help but ask, "Are you hesitating about whether to go to the capital?"
Qinghe, feeling touched, nodded, put down her chopsticks, and said, "Actually, I've always wanted to figure out my origins, but I'm afraid of going with hope only to return disappointed."
She understood his concerns, but she still believed that one should be brave enough to face life's challenges. "How will you know the outcome if you don't try? It's just a clue, and giving it a try won't hurt anything."
“But Aunt Liu has already treated me like her own son. She’s afraid I’ll leave. If I say I’m going to the capital to investigate my origins, I reckon she’ll worry.”
He has lost his memory and has no recollection of his past. He seems to care more about Aunt Liu. As an observer, Su Yushan has a more impartial view of the situation.
"What about your biological parents? Maybe they are at home waiting for you to come back. You can't ignore your parents just because you care about Aunt Liu's feelings, can you?"
Without waiting for him to speak, Su Yushan felt that she was meddling too much. After thinking for a moment, she changed her words and said, "Of course, this is just my personal opinion. Whether or not to investigate further is up to you to decide."
After hesitating for a moment, Qinghe said, "I don't want Aunt Liu to know before the results are found. But the capital is quite far from here. Without horses, it would take two days to walk and four days to go back and forth. I have no reason to leave for so long."
"Riding a horse should be fast, right? How much silver does a horse cost?" Su Yushan thought that if it was ten taels of silver, she could buy one for him, but to her surprise, he said:
"I'll get seventy or eighty taels."
This price was truly beyond her imagination. "Huh? How can it be so expensive? A maid only costs a little over ten taels of silver, yet a horse is more expensive than a person?"
“Things are valued for their rarity. Horses can go to the battlefield and serve the country, so the court naturally values them. But there are countless maids and servants, whose status is low. Who would care about their lives?”
Comparing the two situations, Qinghe also felt that being a servant was pathetic, but the world was what it was, and he could not change it, so he could only sigh.
Su Yushan originally wanted to help him, but now it seems she can't. After all, she only has a hundred or so taels of silver and can't possibly spend that much to buy him a horse. She still has to plan for the future!
How to talk to Aunt Liu in a way that won't worry her is a problem that Qinghe needs to think about carefully.
Because of the snow, the roads were exceptionally difficult to travel, and it wasn't until evening that Liu and her daughter returned. Yunfang was shivering from the cold and deeply regretted going on her long trip. "If I had known it would snow, I wouldn't have gone. It's freezing!"
Su Yushan quickly handed her the hand warmer. Yunfang drank a bowl of hot tea and then put the hand warmer in her bosom, which made her feel a little better.
Yu Shan didn't intend to tell Aunt Liu about her injury, but as soon as Aunt Liu entered the inner room, she smelled the ointment and hurriedly asked her where she felt uncomfortable.
Upon learning that she had fallen, Liu was alarmed and anxiously asked if she was alright and how the child was.
"The doctor said the child is fine, and I wasn't seriously injured either. A few plasters will do the trick."
Since it was the doctor's opinion, Liu was somewhat relieved and told her to rest well before going to the kitchen to cook.
During dinner, Su Yushan had difficulty getting up.
Liu served the rice and brought it to her bedside before going to the main room to eat.
Sitting in the inner room, Su Yushan vaguely heard Qinghe's voice coming from the main room, "Mother, I want to go to the capital tomorrow."
Upon hearing this, Liu's expression tightened slightly. "What are you going to the capital for?"
“I heard that you can earn more money selling game pelts in the capital than in town, at least an extra tael of silver.”
This was the excuse Qinghe had come up with after thinking about it all afternoon. He spoke calmly, but Liu Shi didn't really want him to go.
"The capital is too far away. What if we encounter danger? Let's not take the risk!"
"I know martial arts, so I can protect myself. If I sell an extra tael, I can buy a bolt of cloth and make new cotton-padded jackets for the whole family."
Upon hearing that she could have new clothes made, Yunfang was overjoyed and chimed in, asking her mother for permission.
Aunt Liu also wanted to sew cotton-padded clothes for Yu'er's child. One tael of silver was indeed very important to their family. After hesitating for a long time, she finally agreed. But she had one condition: she had to wait until the snow melted before she could go and could not travel in the snow.
Only after receiving Liu's agreement did Qinghe feel relieved.
After three agonizing days of waiting, most of the snow had finally melted. On the day before dawn, Qinghe could no longer contain himself and got up early. Carrying the dry rations that Aunt Liu had prepared for him and a bundle of game pelts, he left home for the capital.
Still in bed, Su Yushan vaguely heard the noise and knew that Qinghe had already set off. She secretly prayed that Qinghe would be able to find out about her background.
Little did she know that Qinghe's departure would also affect her fate.
After traveling for two days, Qinghe finally arrived in the capital. Su Yushan was not very familiar with the city's routes, as she rarely went out. She could only tell him the general directions, and Qinghe asked around. After a long and complicated journey, they finally found Baoyunzhai on West Street!
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