As soon as Hong Xiaoduo finished speaking, the donkey cart suddenly stopped, and the six children and one adult inside the cart were caught off guard and all swayed.
"Tian Shu, what's wrong?" Hong Xiaoduo reacted and quickly opened the front window of the carriage, looking around as she asked.
There was nothing unusual about the surroundings. Could there be something on the road?
Tian Shu stammered, "No, no, nothing, there was just a pothole on the road, and I was trying to avoid it, but..."
"Oh, that's what happened," Hong Xiaoduo said, understanding the situation. She quickly comforted him, "Don't blame yourself. We've only had this donkey for a few days, how could we be so familiar with it so quickly?"
"Okay, Tian Shu understands." Tian Shu responded sullenly, his back to the front window of the carriage. Hong Xiaoduo didn't see his tense little face and melancholy expression.
Hong Xiaoduo noticed something was off about his voice, but didn't think much of it, assuming he was blaming himself for not catching the bus properly.
After closing the front window and settling in, I quickly asked the children if they had bumped into anything and hurt themselves. The children all shook their heads and said no.
This interruption caused Hong Xiaoduo to abandon the previous topic. Instead, she realized that she had been careless. Tian Shu was sitting outside in the carriage and would be colder than them. She should have bought him a cotton cloak.
Thinking about it this way, I realized that there are actually too many things I want to buy, which will cost money. I have gold and silver now, but I can't just buy whatever I want. What if I run out of money?
Is she going to make a living by performing on the streets with her seven children? Or will she set up a stall to earn a living?
No, I still have to talk to the old man at the science museum and ask him to come up with a solution. Why not use high-tech helpers? That would be a waste!
The donkey cart swayed along the official road, and Tian Shu, preoccupied with his own thoughts, didn't even notice that a group of people were following behind.
Inside the carriage, Hong Xiaoduo, having roughly determined that they had arrived at their destination, lifted the curtain to look around and then asked Tian Shu to stop.
The map showed that there should be a mountain in front of this place. Because of the robbery she had encountered before, she had to be more cautious when she encountered this kind of area again.
Should we hurry across this road before it gets dark, or wait until dawn to set off? Which option is safer?
Just as I thought of this, I noticed a group of people parked not far behind me. They were the old man and his guards whom I had met during the midday break.
I was wondering why I hadn't noticed if they had passed us; turns out they were right behind us!
She was just wondering whether she should go over and greet the old man when she saw a guard walking over.
"My master asked me to ask the young lady whether she is taking a break or planning to spend the night here?" the guard asked as he approached.
Upon hearing his question, Hong Xiaoduo thought for a moment and said, "I wonder what your plans are. If you intend to travel through the night, then we will follow behind."
The guard was taken aback, because he had no idea what his master was planning.
He hurriedly said to wait a moment, then turned around and went back to the carriage to inquire.
The carriage started moving, and as it passed Hong Xiaoduo, the old man inside the carriage window laughed and said, "In my opinion, we need to pass through the mountains and forests ahead. If we don't delay any longer and walk a little faster, we will pass through the forest section by the end of Xu hour. Then, after another hour or so, we will reach the post station."
"Xu Shi?" Hong Xiaoduo silently calculated in her mind after hearing this. In modern times, this time should correspond to 7 pm to 9 pm, and the end of Xu Shi is around 9 pm.
If we travel for another hour, which is two hours in modern terms, we can stop and rest for the night around 11 p.m.
“Okay, then I’ll go with my father-in-law.” Hong Xiaoduo replied after making her decision.
"Well, let your donkey eat some more hay in a little while," the old man said with a smile, glancing at the child feeding the donkey. He wondered if it was because of his age or failing eyesight, but the child's gaze seemed a little off, as if there was a hint of wariness in it. In any case, the child didn't seem happy.
No way! I was just trying to be kind and brought them along!
Realizing he was being watched by the old man, Tian Shu turned away guiltily, his back to him.
A moment later, Tian Shu finished tidying up the fodder, and the younger ones went to relieve themselves and came back to get on the donkey cart.
“Young lady, since we’re traveling together, why don’t you let these children sit here with me? It’s more spacious,” the old man suggested, pointing to the children who were about to get on the donkey cart.
Tianquan and the others looked at the impressive carriage, then at Hong Xiaoduo.
"No need, thank you for your kindness, Father. But my younger siblings are too young and mischievous; if they ride in the same carriage with you, they might disturb you," Tian Shu said loudly before Hong Xiaoduo could even speak.
Huh? What's going on? What's wrong with this child? Is she worried about the old man? Hong Xiaoduo couldn't figure it out.
Similarly, the other children looked at Tian Shu in confusion, only to see him glare at them. They were so frightened that they didn't care what was wrong with their older brother and quickly climbed onto their own donkey cart.
Hong Xiaoduo apologized to the old man somewhat awkwardly, "I'm sorry, this child was afraid that the younger ones would cause trouble."
The old man glanced at Tian Shu again and smiled, "It's alright, let's set off then." After saying that, he ordered the guards to set off.
Hong Xiaoduo glanced at Tian Shu, said nothing, stepped into the carriage, found her bundle, took out a cotton coat and handed it out the front window: "It will be chilly at night, put this on."
Tian Shu didn't dare to meet her eyes. He lowered his head, pursed his lips, and took the coat, only to realize that it wasn't his own.
Hearing the car window close behind him, he murmured softly, "We'll be very obedient and well-behaved. Why can't we just stay with you all the time?"
Inside the carriage, Hong Xiaoduo told the children that they would not stop to rest before reaching their destination, and that if they were hungry, they could eat whatever they wanted, as the food in the food box was the same as what they had bought before.
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