Chapter 74 Look, the Xiao family is so poor they have to dig for wild vegetables.
The afternoon journey followed the stream for an hour. The soil was soft and moist, and the vegetation was lush. After passing through a grove of trees, the roadside was covered with wild grass and wildflowers.
Some of the women couldn't resist picking a couple of brightly colored flowers and holding them in their hands or tucking them behind their ears.
Even in exile, one must dress respectably.
Perhaps one day the emperor will pardon their family, their father will be reinstated to his official position, and they will be able to regain their status as daughters of officials, marry into noble families, manage the household affairs, have children, and live out their lives according to the original plan.
Many people, like them, are dreaming beautiful dreams.
Some people walked until they were dizzy and collapsed on the ground. Sweat soaked their eyes, making it difficult to open them. They struggled to open their eyes even slightly.
Yellowed leaves fell in their face, and in a daze, they seemed to see an imperial edict. They grinned and said, "Imperial edict! The imperial edict has arrived! The Emperor is going to pardon us! He's pardoning us! We're going back to the capital..."
The escort kicked him, saying, "Are you crazy? Stop daydreaming, wake up, and get out of the way. Don't block the way for the people behind you."
The path through the woods was narrow, only about the width of a horse-drawn carriage. He lay down on the path, blocking the road and slowing down the procession.
The man was so excited he cried and laughed at the same time, "The imperial edict has arrived! The Emperor is going to pardon us! We don't have to leave! Hahaha!!!"
The escort gripped the rope handle tightly and lashed down with the whip, "Crack! Crack!"
They whipped him again and again until he woke up, then picked him up and continued on their way.
Yun Zhaoxue kept glancing into the woods.
Xiao Xuance noticed her gaze several times and assumed she also liked flowers, so he asked, "Which one do you like? Can I pick one for you?"
He thought Yun Zhaoxue was shy, or felt that the wildflowers by the roadside were not good enough for her, so he offered to help her pick them.
Yun Zhaoxue, "What are you picking?"
"defloration."
He saw that the other women had picked flowers and were holding them in their hands, and his mood improved.
Yun Zhaoxue said, "Who wants to pick flowers? We're starving, why would we pick flowers? They won't fill our stomachs. I'm thinking of seeing if there's any wild ginger, wild onions, wild vegetables, mushrooms, or chili peppers in the woods."
The plants in ancient times were very different from those in her previous life, and she couldn't recognize many of them.
She occasionally saw a few mushrooms, but since she had never seen them in her previous life and wasn't sure if they were edible, she didn't pick them.
Although there are plenty of them in the space, the ones by the roadside are free and you can pick them yourself, which gives you a greater sense of accomplishment.
This is what it means to enjoy sightseeing and have a picnic along the way.
Xiao Xuance said, "What is a chili pepper? I recognize all the others except this one."
Yun Zhaoxue was feeling down; if she didn't know them, the journey would be much less fun.
Hearing that he recognized them, his eyes lit up, and he asked again to confirm, "You recognize wild vegetables and mushrooms too?"
Wild vegetables are probably not a problem, but eating mushrooms indiscriminately will get you killed. Now we're in exile, so even being killed is a luxury. Just throw them into the woods or down a cliff and that's it.
In ancient times, seasonings were scarce, and conditions were limited during exiles; mushrooms were the soul of grilled fish.
Xiao Xuance nodded, "I recognize them. When I led troops into battle in the mountains before, we had to find our own food. I recognize mushrooms and wild vegetables."
Yun Zhaoxue snatched the cart. "I'll push it. You keep an eye out for any edible mushrooms around here, and pick some wild vegetables too. We'll need them for making grilled fish later."
Prepare the side dishes on the way, and cook them as soon as you arrive at the rest stop so you can eat quickly, instead of looking for them when you get there, or you'll starve to death.
Xiao Xuance dug as he went.
As Yun Zhaoxue pushed the cart, she looked around for anything. Finally, she saw something she recognized and pointed to it, saying, "There's perilla over there. Go and dig some up."
He emptied the mushrooms from the cloth bag onto the car and then handed them to him.
We dug up some wild onions, wild vegetables, and mushrooms, but we didn't see any ginger or garlic.
When no one was looking, Yun Zhaoxue secretly took it out of her spatial storage and put it in the car.
When the others saw Xiao Xuance digging for wild vegetables, they assumed he was starving and mocked him.
"Look, the Xiao family is so poor they have to dig for wild vegetables. Are they starving? Can you even eat that stuff?"
"The escorts want cornbread, 10 coins each. It's a bit expensive, but cornbread is better than wild vegetables."
"The Prince of Zhenbei's mansion was dirt poor before it was raided, and no one was sending them money, so they definitely didn't have the money to buy anything."
In the capital, a steamed bun cost one coin, but by the time it reached the escort, it cost ten coins—a tenfold increase, more than just a little.
The escorts knew they all had some money and wanted to skim some cash, but later they were all penniless, so they couldn't get anything out of them. They were even afraid the escorts would starve to death and they would have to give them extra steamed buns.
He was starving after rescuing people on the road, so he went to the escort to buy some cornbread.
They're ridiculously expensive; they've already fallen into the trap. Only when they see more people falling into the trap can they feel at peace.
...
Yang and her eldest and second daughters-in-law would pick wild vegetables when they saw them by the roadside.
Yun Zhaoxue said that if you want to eat fish, you have to work. You eat steamed buns and cornbread every day, and you get dizzy from hunger after walking only a few steps.
They can handle it, but the children can't, so they have to work hard and diligently.
When Yang saw a small patch of wild onions, she quickly led her two daughters-in-law over to dig them up.
"Third Sister-in-law, let us help you push the cart." Xiao Xuanwu led the three children to help Yun Zhaoxue push the cart.
"Good!" Yun Zhaoxue was very satisfied. The Xiao family members were all capable and she didn't support idlers.
After walking for a while, Yun Zhaoxue saw that the three children were panting heavily, so she took out her water pouch and gave them some water to drink. "Have some water first."
Jun'er patted the water bag on his back. "Third Aunt, no need, we have water."
Yun Zhaoxue said, "I added a little sugar to mine, so it's a bit sweet and will keep you full. Drink mine instead."
The three little ones shook their heads in unison.
Jun'er then said, "Third Aunt, water is precious, we can't accept it."
They were reluctant to drink much of their own water, only taking a small sip when they were extremely thirsty.
Xiao Xuanwu took the water pouch, opened it, and handed it to Jun'er, saying, "Just drink it."
Jun'er was a little afraid of Yun Zhaoxue. He glanced at her, dared not refuse again, and said thank you, "Thank you, Third Aunt."
He first offered some to his younger siblings, then took a small sip himself. It was a little sweet and very delicious.
The Third Prince's carriage was not far from them. Hearing the crowd's discussion, they lifted the curtain and saw Xiao Xuance picking wild vegetables.
Yun Jiaoyue remembered that someone in the group said that the Xiao family had caught two fish in the stream.
She said to the Third Prince, "Your Highness, I'm craving fish. The Xiao family caught two big, fat fish, and they're short of money right now, so they've started eating wild vegetables. Why don't we buy those two fish?"
The Third Prince was also hungry, not because there was no food, but because he had eaten too many steamed buns and pastries and was too tired to eat anymore. "Hmm, let's go buy some."
Yun Jiaoyue lifted the curtain of the carriage window, poked her head out, waved to the guards walking beside her, and ordered them to buy fish. She then took out two pieces of silver from her sleeve.
The guard took the silver and walked to the back, saying he wanted to buy fish from Yun Zhaoxue.
Yun Zhaoxue: "Not for sale."
"Why not sell? Our Third Prince's Consort wants to eat fish. Sell the fish to us, and you won't have to eat wild vegetables anymore."
How much silver do you want to sell it to me?
"500 taels each."
Five hundred taels?
Even fish made of gold aren't this expensive.
Yun Zhaoxue said, "This is the price. If you can't afford it, don't buy it! A good dog doesn't block the way."
The guards stood in front of the carriage, blocking her way, and pushed her aside to continue walking forward.
When Yun Jiaoyue heard the guard's report, she gritted her teeth in anger, "Five hundred taels? Are they robbing us? Ten taels of silver is the most we can offer. If Your Highness wants to eat it, we'll take it even if they refuse to sell it to us!"
The third prince was tired and fell asleep leaning against the carriage, unaware of her conversation with the guard.
The guard hesitated for a moment, and after a while, when he did not hear any objection from the Third Prince, he replied, "Yes! I will do it right away."
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