Xu Zhuohua stood on the cargo ship's deck, gazing at the neatly stacked ammunition boxes inside the hold, his fingertips unconsciously stroking the dial of his wristwatch.
The escort went exceptionally smoothly. There were no bandits on the river, the handover at the dock was seamless, and even the heavens seemed to be on their side, with clear skies every day.
When the last box of weapons was counted, it was two days ahead of schedule.
Xinghua wiped her coal-dust-covered hands on her apron and locked the last stack of account books into the camphor wood chest.
Her tense nerves, which had been taut for days, suddenly relaxed. She looked out the window, supporting her aching back, and just then saw Xu Zhuohua leaning against a bamboo chair. The steam from the celadon teacup blurred half of her well-defined face.
"Come sit down." Xu Zhuohua moved the purple clay teapot to the bamboo chair she usually sat in, and the tea soup condensed into an amber halo on the cup.
As Xinghua took the teacup, her fingertips touched the warmth of the cup, and suddenly she remembered...
The sound of light footsteps came from afar. Seeing the two people's relaxed posture, Zhang Qi subconsciously stopped in his tracks.
Xu Zhuohua raised his hand and beckoned, the setting sun reflecting off the silver watch on his wrist: "Zhang Qi, we don't have anything planned for today, so let's take a walk around here?"
Xinghua's eyelashes trembled slightly, and the tea reflected the shimmering light in her eyes.
Zhang Qi was reluctant; he had been trying to contact Cheng Muyun for days, but couldn't find an opportunity.
If Xu Zhuohua and Xinghua weren't around, he might be able to find an opportunity to send a telegram to Cheng Muyun.
"I won't go, madam. I want to rest."
Xu Zhuohua also expressed her understanding, after all, it always feels strange for two women to go shopping with a man by their side.
While the two were sightseeing, Xu Zhuohua spotted an extremely small station on the map.
The dappled sunlight danced along the creases of the map, and Xu Zhuohua's fingertip suddenly stopped on a tiny mark, no bigger than a sesame seed.
It stands out conspicuously among the dense freight routes—sandwiched between two stations with huge throughput, and in the freight records of the past three years, not even a single sporadic supply has been recorded.
That station was next to a river and was originally a small dock where Xu family boats delivered supplies and mail.
However, a heavy rain later caused the river to change course, and it lost its natural advantage as a mooring point, so it gradually fell into disuse.
"Let's go take a look."
When Xu Zhuohua arrived, she discovered that the place had been transformed into a small clinic.
The aroma of herbs, mingled with the pungent scent of mugwort, wafted towards Xu Zhuohua. She gazed at the medicine grinder and steelyard hanging on the wall.
Several strings of dried medicinal herbs hang between the faded beams and pillars, and the midday sun shines through the carved window lattices, casting coin-shaped spots of light on the blue brick floor.
Before the two could examine it closely, a crisp sound suddenly rang out from the corner as a porcelain jar fell to the ground.
The child who was squatting by the threshold pounding medicine was startled and jumped up. He looked no more than four or five years old, with a chubby face and dark eyes full of vigilance. He clutched the pestle and stumbled into the inner room.
"Grandpa! Someone's here!" The childish voice echoed in the wooden building.
A moment later, the bamboo curtain was lifted, and a gaunt figure peeked out.
The man, in his fifties, squinted, his sparse goatee trembling slightly with his movements. His faded blue cloth shirt was washed until it was almost white, and the cuffs were still stained with undried medicine.
His gaze, which scrutinized the two of them, was like a sharp scalpel; he spotted the jade pendant on Xu Zhuohua's waist from a distance.
"Young Master!" The old man came out with honey still in his hands, which he had used to make honey pills.
"I never expected that after two or three years, the owner would still remember this place!"
The old man, his back hunched, rubbed his honey-stained fingers on his apron before hurriedly reaching for a teacup.
Before he could even reach out, the child had already tiptoed and deftly lifted the copper kettle, pouring the amber-colored tea steadily into the white porcelain cup, his movements so skillful that they didn't seem like those of a four or five-year-old child.
After pouring the tea, the child clutched the hem of his clothes and timidly shrank behind the old man, only revealing half of his rosy little face.
"I didn't know the young master was coming. There's nothing much to offer you at the station. Please have a seat, young master." The old man's voice trembled, and his calloused hands pushed the teacup forward, causing the tea to ripple slightly at the rim.
Xu Zhuohua remained standing at the threshold, his cold gaze sweeping over the scroll of the Yellow Emperor's Inner Classic on the wall, the ceramic medicine jars piled in the corner, and the patina-covered copper handles on the medicine cabinet.
The grandfather and grandson stood awkwardly in front of the carved wooden medicine cabinet. The old man's blue cloth shirt was lifted by the draft, and the child twisted his belt, unconsciously even breathing softly.
"Is this still a station on the eastbound southbound line?" Xu Zhuohua's voice broke the silence.
"Yes, yes!" The old man nodded repeatedly, his Adam's apple bobbing violently. "This is a station near South Lake, established many years ago..."
Before he could finish speaking, the sound of water birds flapping their wings suddenly came from outside the window. Xu Zhuohua looked towards the crisscrossing waterways in the distance. In the shimmering light, several small boats were slowly sailing along the winding waterways, and the reeds were rippling in the wind.
Xu Zhuohua will never forget that test site; it was the place where Xiao Wuxin and the others held a meeting more than a year later.
Although history books only say it was near Nanhu Lake, they don't specify the exact location.
Xu Zhuohua had a vague feeling that it shouldn't be far from here.
"How did this website turn into a pharmacy?"
Xu Zhuohua and Xinghua stepped across the threshold, and the bamboo stools creaked slightly as they sat down.
The child, like a nimble little sparrow, carried a rattan chair out of the inner room in the blink of an eye and placed it steadily behind the old man.
“Young Master must also know that there are many waterways near Nanhu,” the old man said, his withered fingers unconsciously rubbing the armrest of his chair. “Now that the Eastbound and Southbound routes are growing stronger, this station can no longer meet the demand for resending mail. In fact, it’s no different from being abandoned.”
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