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Six hundred miles out of Chang’an, Yang Wei told Xu Zheng that they had finished a whole cart of grain. Now one cart was empty, and they could let the elderly and children who couldn’t walk well ride in it. This way, they could also travel faster.
Xu Zheng asked the remaining four officers, “What do you say?”
The officers looked at each other, stunned. The exiles were even riding in carts!
“Head, you decide. Whatever you say, we have no objections!” Why ask them? They wouldn’t dare have objections!
“Alright, then I’ll decide.” So, Xu Zheng waved his hand, and the Qin family’s women and children all boarded the cart.
Next, without the burden of children and women, Xu Zheng and the other officers, with the three Qin brothers, traveled a hundred miles a day.
At noon that day, they had lunch outside. Soft, steamed white flour buns paired with a bowl of hot meat broth filled them with immense satisfaction.
After finishing their meal and resting for a while, everyone prepared to continue their journey.
Lu Songli was a bit full and didn’t want to ride in the cart, afraid it would upset her stomach. So she walked with them. Everyone walked along the official road in groups of three or four.
Qin Zhao looked at someone’s back and remarked meaningfully, “A Sheng, I heard pigeon soup is very nourishing too.”
Qin Sheng, burying his head in his journey, ignored him, humph.
A couple of days ago, he said fish soup was very nourishing, especially for the elderly and women.
He took it to heart. When they passed a frozen river, he chose a spot, smashed a hole in the ice, and the fish inside jumped out one after another. In no time, he had collected a basketful.
Their group of over fifty people all had a taste of the fragrant, delicious fish soup, which also contained frozen tofu. The flavor was truly exquisite.
His mother and wife didn’t say anything. Only his third brother praised the fish soup endlessly, saying how delicious it was.
If he believed him again, he would be… Qin Sheng hadn’t finished his thought when he heard his wife speak.
“Pigeon soup is indeed quite nourishing.” Lu Songli nodded in agreement.
Qin Sheng turned to look at her. You’re serious? “Really that nourishing?”
Lu Songli nodded, “Yes, it nourishes yin and kidney, replenishes qi and blood. It’s especially good for postpartum women and those with a hot constitution. It can accelerate wound healing.”
Understood! So Qin Sheng raised his head and looked at the sky.
Lu Songli also looked up and happened to see two white pigeons flapping their wings in the sky.
Qin Zhao quickly looked up too, and his eyes widened in shock. Were those two white pigeons going to fall?
As he stared at the sky in astonishment, Qin Sheng had already picked up the bow and arrow he had borrowed from Zhou Da’s companion and was chasing after the pigeons in the sky.
Everyone thought he wouldn’t catch them. After all, how could someone running on the ground catch up with something flying in the sky?
But soon, Qin Sheng returned, carrying two white pigeons pierced by arrows.
Qin Zhao: “…”
“Wait, there seems to be something tied to the pigeon’s leg.” Lu Songli pointed to the message.
Qin Heng took it off, looked it over, and handed it to Lu Songli, “Sixth sister-in-law, take a look.”
As Lu Songli read the note, Qin Sheng leaned over, next to her shoulder.
Lu Songli glanced at him and moved the note to the middle, so he could read it too.
After reading it, Lu Songli passed it to her second brother-in-law, Qin Zhao.
Qin Zhao finished reading and passed it to Qin Sheng.
Qin Sheng didn’t take it. He turned his head away, “I’ve seen it.” He had read it while holding his wife’s hand. No need to read it again!
The paper in Qin Zhao’s hand moved with him.
Qin Sheng frowned, “What are you doing?”
Qin Zhao made a swallowing motion.
“Go on! Eat it yourself!” Qin Sheng gave him a disdainful look and walked away.
Qin Zhao shouted at him, “Little Six, that’s not fair. When you were in the Da Li Prison, you ate without changing your expression.”
Qin Sheng only showed him the back of his head. Who would want to eat that dry thing? You think you’re her? You dare to demand the same treatment as her!
In the end, Qin Zhao had no choice but to eat it himself and destroy the evidence.
Nie Yunniang looked at the dead pigeons, “Are these carrier pigeons? Is it okay to eat them?” She was a little worried.
“What’s wrong with that? A Sheng shot them down.” Qin Zhao stepped forward and picked up the pigeons.
Qin Heng also said, “Yes, eat them with peace of mind.”
These two carrier pigeons were flying to the north. The message on them wasn’t urgent, so losing them wouldn’t have a huge impact. Besides, this was his Song Dynasty, not the Qin family’s. They weren’t in that position, so they didn’t need to concern themselves with it.
In the end, the two pigeons were stewed, along with ginger, wine, goji berries, angelica, and red dates. They were boiled over high heat, then simmered over low heat, and eventually yielded only three bowls of soup, one for Qin Mother, one for Nie Yunniang, and one for Lu Songli.
While the Qin family was happily heading towards their exile destination, in Chang’an City, the Xie and Zhao families were not doing well.
Zhao Bin was dead. He was unable to move, and on the seventh night after entering prison, someone covered his nose and mouth and killed him. He didn’t resist. It was said that he died with a smile on his face. His death was quite peaceful.
The valuables on his body, including his thick clothes, were all taken away. He was left with only a single garment to cover him.
Zhao Bin was carried out by the jailers.
The Zhao family looked on coldly.
Because no one had bribed them, the jailers could only use a tattered mat to carry him and dump him at the mass grave!
The jailers grumbled as they worked. It was New Year’s Eve, and they had to carry a dead body. It was unlucky! The worst part was that they didn’t even get a red envelope to ward off bad luck!
Then, at Xie Zhan’s orchestration, the Xie and Zhao families were finally exiled to Lingnan.
On New Year’s Eve, when every household was lit with lanterns, the Xie and Zhao families, their steps slow and heavy, were slowly escorted out of Chang’an City by the officers and guards, who occasionally used their whips.
In fact, during their time in prison, the Xie and Zhao families had lost many people. Due to torture, cold weather, poor food, and insufficient warm clothing, there were deaths almost every day. Mostly the elderly and children died. The young people were better off, with fewer deaths.
Now, there were no longer many elderly or children in their group.
Because there were so many exiles in this batch, four officers and twenty guards were assigned. To avoid trouble, all the adult men of the Zhao and Xie families had to wear shackles.
It was New Year’s Eve, and the officers and guards had to escort the prisoners to Lingnan. They were all in a bad mood.
These guards weren’t good people. Unlike those who escorted the Qin family, they were all carefully selected by Xu Zheng.
The guards who escorted the Xie and Zhao families were all those who shouldn’t have been assigned to this task, but they were forced upon them by their superiors. Forced overtime, but no overtime pay. It was obvious that, judging by the state of the Xie and Zhao families, there wouldn’t be much profit to be made. It was no wonder they were in a bad mood.
“Head of the family, why did we choose to be exiled south, not north?”
Cough, Xie Zhan had lost a lot of weight recently. He tightened his worn-out rat-skin coat and answered his cousin’s question in a low voice, “Dunhuang County, Ximei County, and Liangzhou are in the north. The Qin family has been stationed in the north for many years. If we go there, we won’t be welcome.” It would be difficult to win over those forces to our side.
Xie Zhan paused and said, “Pingzhou and Lelang County are where the Qin family has gone.”
During his time in prison, he had been reflecting on his failure. He had been too arrogant, thinking that no one could see through his plan. But he was attacked by Lu Songli while he was in a vulnerable state, and he couldn’t fight back at all.
After this heavy fall, he realized that she had been waiting for the right moment, which is why she chose the perfect time to strike. He had underestimated the heroes of the world.
So, during his time in prison, he reflected deeply. He decided to adopt the same attitude towards Lu Songli and the Qin family, to avoid provoking them and let them develop independently. Da Li was so vast; they could each occupy the north and south and develop independently.
Therefore, the Xie family would not go to Pingzhou or even Lelang County!
If they went there, it would be like two tigers fighting on the same mountain. There was only so much land there. To develop and secure resources, the two sides would inevitably fight openly and secretly.
All those with ability were strong. The Qin family was exiled to Pingzhou. Lu Songli likely considered Pingzhou and its surrounding areas to be her own. Any newcomers would be seen as plunderers, and they wouldn’t rest until they were eliminated.
He realized that he didn’t understand his opponent, Lu Songli, very well. Fighting her like this was very dangerous.
The most important thing for the Xie family now was to survive.
Therefore, he chose to avoid her sharp edge. He would use time and space to develop and grow stronger. He would use this time to observe her methods. He would fight her another day.
“The southwest has many minority tribes and mountains, which is not conducive to future development.”
“The southeast is better, both in terms of economic development and geography and customs.” Although there were many clan forces there, he was confident that he could resolve these issues.
“Moreover, we are poorly clothed and fed. If we go north, I don’t know how many more people would die before reaching the exile destination. The south is warmer, which will allow more of our people to survive.”
After Xie Zhan finished speaking, he lifted his gaze toward the distance, his expression deep and distant.