Chapter 51
The next morning, before dawn.
The caravan members were gradually getting up, tidying up, and preparing to depart.
After a good night’s sleep, their spirits and energy had greatly improved.
When Huo Xu brought breakfast from the kitchen into the room, he also picked up a boiled egg.
Last night, Tao Yu had cried on him for a while. This morning, when he opened his eyes, he found that the person in his arms had swollen eyes. The egg was perfect for rolling over them to reduce the swelling.
When he entered the room, Tao Yu had already gotten out of bed and was sitting at the table, gently dabbing his eyes with a handkerchief.
His swollen eyes felt a bit dry and painful; they hurt when he touched them.
As he was dabbing his eyes, a hand suddenly covered his forehead.
“I’m not sick.”
Tao Yu said honestly.
Perhaps it was because he had practiced his body for half a month in the morning before, and after traveling for a whole day yesterday, apart from feeling a bit weak, he felt no discomfort after sleeping.
It was just that he had cried last night, so when he woke up, he knew his eyes must be swollen.
Even without a bronze mirror in the room, he knew how pitiful and frail he looked in the morning after crying all night. Anyone who didn’t know might even think he was severely ill.
Huo Xu felt no abnormality in the temperature of the hand on his palm, and then he reassuredly withdrew his hand: “Eat something.”
Tao Yu wiped his hands dry, knowing they had to travel and couldn’t afford to delay, so he quickly brought the porridge over to drink.
Huo Xu sat beside him, smashing and peeling the eggshell.
As the eggshell fell away, revealing the smooth, delicate, and lustrous egg white, Huo Xu inexplicably looked up at the young man drinking porridge beside him with large gulps.
Tao Yu noticed Huo Xu’s gaze and blinked his eyes in confusion.
He slowly swallowed the porridge.
Thinking about his behavior yesterday, he felt a bit guilty about his earlier boastful words at home to Huo Xu that he would absolutely not cause him trouble on the road.
He cleared his throat: “That… I was just a little unaccustomed yesterday…”
Seeing Huo Xu’s impassive expression, he pursed his lips, raised his hand to his forehead, and said: “I promise I won’t do that again tonight!”
Huo Xu looked at his serious and determined expression, which was no different from a child making a promise to an adult.
It was almost amusing.
He relaxed his brows, took the peeled egg, and placed it on Tao Yu’s eyelids, gently rolling it: “Eat quickly.”
“It’s normal to miss home and your hometown when you suddenly leave. You’ll get used to it after a while. In the past, when I left home to head north, I often missed home in the military camp. This is nothing bad.”
“You’ve never left home before; this is also a form of tempering.”
Tao Yu tilted his chin up and looked at Huo Xu, whose tone was calm but gentle, and a warmth flowed through his heart.
Huo Xu didn’t blame him for yesterday’s events; instead, he comforted him this morning. How could he not be moved?
Tao Yu nodded: “I feel much better after waking up. Don’t worry about me.”
When the two of them tidied up and went downstairs, everyone else was almost ready.
“May I trouble you, waiter, to refill my kettle? Regular tea soup is fine. The weather is such that bitter tea isn’t necessary.”
Ji Wenliang and a few others were by the stairs asking the waiter for tea soup when they looked up and saw the two coming down.
“Taozi Ge, are you feeling unwell?”
Ji Wenliang saw the redness at the corners of Tao Yu’s eyes and the slight redness on his nose, making him look as if he were sick.
He quickly put down the kettle and walked over: “Did you catch a cold from the wind yesterday?”
“No, I just didn’t sleep very well yesterday.”
Tao Yu felt embarrassed to admit that he had missed home and cried under the covers on his first day out, so he made an excuse to try and fool Ji Wenliang.
“Your voice is even a bit hoarse, and you say you’re fine. Otherwise, you should take some medicine.”
“It’s really not a big deal. Besides, I have medicine with me. If I really felt unwell, I would take medicine.”
Ji Wenliang then felt a little relieved.
“Then give me your kettle. I’ll get you some hot water. You can drink it on the road later; it’ll soothe your throat better than cold water.”
Tao Yu’s eyes curved slightly, and he nodded with a smile.
“Are you really okay?”
Ge Liang also asked, seeing this.
Huo Xu said: “We’re fine. Tell everyone who needs to get ready to hurry up and get ready. Once we’re all set, we’ll prepare to depart.”
After speaking, he led Tao Yu to the carriage first.
“He’s already like this after just one day out. Who knows what he’ll be like later.”
The man who had just poured tea beside Ge Liang watched the two leave, his chest heaving.
“I already said he’s fine. Tian Fu, why are you such a petty man? How will you ever find a wife if you’re like this?”
Ge Liang teased him good-naturedly and then patiently said: “We are a group of people; we should look out for each other. If you were injured or sick, would everyone else be cold-shouldered? How would you feel?”
Tian Fu said: “I’m not one of those frail people.”
“I’m not looking to earn a dowry either. I just want to bring back money during the autumn harvest to pay off my debts. But if there’s someone who’s always sick and falling behind on the road, what we earn might not be as much as digging in the fields back in the village.”
Ge Liang was already somewhat displeased at hearing this. It was early in the morning, and he didn’t want to scold anyone. Moreover, people from both villages were together, and if they argued, it would create a rift.
At that time, the people from Hongli Village would support him, and the people from Mingxun Village would support Huo Xu, making them seem like two separate teams.
He had hated such clique-forming teams in the military, where everyone had their own ulterior motives. If they were going to do business and create such problems, how could they make any money?
“Since we’re already out, why say such discouraging words? Men should have some breadth of mind.”
Ge Liang patted Tian Fu on the shoulder: “Alright, let’s go.”
Tian Fu took a deep breath and finally said nothing more.
The rain had stopped in the middle of the night, and not only was there no rain this morning, but the water on the ground had also half-dried.
The horizon was about to break open, tearing through the darkness and letting out the morning light. In the grayish sky, lanterns were lit along the street, and the road was still bright.
The carriage wheels rolled over the bluestone street, heading towards the city gate.
“Why are you crowding? Why are you crowding! Don’t you see we have to queue!”
As the convoy approached the city gate, there was congestion ahead.
Early in the morning, farmers and vendors from the villages outside the city came to sell vegetables and fruits, and the crowd suddenly increased. With carriages and horses passing through, and the city gate needing to allow both entry and exit, traffic became temporarily blocked. Soldiers were directing and mediating, and a queue began to form.
Ji Wenliang’s donkey walked briskly and got a bit ahead. Just as he was about to join the queue, two carts, both carrying goods, cut in from the middle.
“Kid, all of our goods are precious. High-quality porcelain from Tongzhou. Can you afford to pay if it gets damaged?”
The two men driving the carts and tending to the livestock even turned to rebuke them.
“Who is it that’s crowding whose cart? Have you no shame!”
“Oh ho, you’re quite fiery.”
The man on the cart said: “Why are you shouting at us? Go to the yamen and ask if the shameless officials will judge it.”
The two men laughed heartily.
Seeing that Ji Wenliang was young, he clearly lacked experience in dealing with the world, and they intended to continue their banter.
The soldier in front, who was directing the queue, shouted:
“What are you standing around for! Hurry up and pass through!”
Seeing this, the men gave up. They flicked a whip at the animals’ hindquarters and drove them out of the city.
Huo Xu and Ge Liang, who were behind, hadn’t had time to come forward yet. Seeing that the men had already left, they didn’t pursue them.
Unexpectedly, after leaving the city, the two teams drove very close together, one in front and one behind, heading along the same path.
The two men who cut the queue saw that Ji Wenliang also had a caravan and was going in the same direction. They changed their previous obstinate attitude.
“So you’re fellow travelers. Please excuse me. Where are you gentlemen heading?”
Ji Wenliang, however, no longer wanted to deal with them. He closed his mouth with a cold face.
The man turned to Ge Liang, who was riding ahead and clearing the way on horseback, and asked the question again.
Ge Liang smiled and said: “The official road is wide and flat, so we are naturally heading to Lianping Prefecture.”
He told half the truth and kept half the truth.
“Where is your caravan heading, brother?”
“What a coincidence, we are also going to Lianping Prefecture.”
The man looked at the goods and gestured with his chin: “You’re also bringing goods from Tongzhou, right? Tongzhou porcelain transported to Lianping Prefecture can fetch three to five times the price. It’s profitable. Take a few more trips, and your broken straw hut at home can be rebuilt into a large tiled house.”
Ge Liang said: “Isn’t that the truth?”
Hearing this, a glint flashed in the man’s eyes. He then looked at the oxen, donkeys, and mules of their group and said: “You guys look very unfamiliar. Is this a newly formed team?”
Ge Liang did not answer this and said: “Big brother is an old hand in the porcelain business.”
The man, however, laughed: “Brother, don’t push me away. I’ve traveled this road many times. We’re all out here doing business to earn a living. Seeing that it’s your first time out, you must lack experience. I just want to remind you a few things.”
“The reason why Tongzhou porcelain fetches such a high price in Lianping Prefecture is that to enter Lianping Prefecture’s territory, you have to climb a big slope, and the porcelain is easily damaged by bumps along the way.”
“Now that it has rained, the road is even more difficult to travel. Rocks can easily fall and slopes can slide on the mountains. You must hurry your livestock along. Take advantage of the daylight. If you’re still on that road when it gets dark, it will be very dangerous.”
“Be sure not to camp overnight by the river slope before the uphill climb. There are bandits in that area who specialize in ambushing traveling merchants. Many merchants who are unfamiliar with the road have fallen into trouble there. Those who are lucky have been left with their lives, but those who are unlucky have lost their lives there.”
Ge Liang said: “In that case, why don’t the government officials do anything about it?”
“Sigh, at the border between the two prefectures, the officials shirk responsibility from each other. The officials are unwilling to add any merit to each other’s performance records, and neither is willing to expend any extra effort.”
“Alright, I’ve said all I need to say.”
After speaking, the man shouted to his caravan: “Speed up your pace! We must pass Dragon Tail Slope today!”
The caravan members waved their whips, increasing the speed of their livestock.
The man drove his cart, keeping close to his caravan, and waved to Ge Liang and his group: “Have a safe journey! We’ll be going ahead!”
Watching the caravan ahead truly push forward with all their might, they disappeared around the corner in a short while.
The man’s voice was full of energy, and everyone had heard his words. They couldn’t help but feel a little anxious.
They all looked at Huo Xu and Ge Liang: “Why don’t we speed up? What that man said doesn’t seem like a lie. The map says there’s a Shanlong in Lianping Prefecture, which is already difficult to pass, and there are bandits lurking. It’s better to be safe than sorry.”
