Chapter 3

By now, everyone had settled down. Even though they were cold and hungry, they huddled together and fell asleep. The loud rumble woke everyone up, and they all looked toward the noise.

Xu Qinyu also opened her eyes and looked over.

The noise came from the foot of the mountain where they had previously stopped. A large amount of sand and mud, mixed with rainwater, was sliding down, carrying several large boulders, smaller rocks, and uprooted pine trees rushing down the slope.

Sure enough, a landslide had occurred.

Everyone’s faces changed.

Many people patted their chests in relief, saying, “That was scary. Luckily, we moved forward a bit and didn’t stay there. Otherwise, we would have been buried or swept away by the mudslide or hit by those rocks. Deputy Officer Chen had the foresight to know that area was dangerous.”

“Indeed, Deputy Officer Chen had the foresight.”

At this moment, they realized that even though the journey was tiring, at least they were alive.

Being alive was more important than anything else.

Madam Wen was also pale with fear. Pei Jianing glanced around expressionlessly and then closed her eyes again. Pei Weixuan looked at Xu Qinyu but said nothing, continuing to rest against the pine tree with his eyes closed.

Xu Qinyu looked around and saw that the landslide wouldn’t reach them. They were in a very safe place. Feeling reassured, she hugged the two children closer and fell into a deep sleep. She was too exhausted, and now that the danger had passed, she could finally sleep peacefully.

The Wen family members were also pale with lingering fear and had no intention of causing trouble for Xu Qinyu. Even though they had been stripped of their titles, they still wanted to live well. They hoped that in the future, Wen Yunling could enter the palace and become a concubine for the new emperor, allowing them to regain their status and return to the capital as nobles, admired by all.

Deputy Officer Chen looked at the distant landslide, feeling relieved. He wasn’t particularly concerned about the exiled criminals and their families; he was more worried about his soldiers. These soldiers had been following him for years, escorting exiled prisoners across the country, enduring hardships and worries from their families. He had to ensure their safe return every time.

Therefore, Deputy Officer Chen was very grateful to that young lady.

This young lady, who had been silent and timid along the way, had unexpectedly done a great deed.

Ma Liu was also surprised, his eyes wide open. The young lady had predicted correctly, and a landslide had indeed occurred.

“Boss…” Ma Liu couldn’t help but call Deputy Officer Chen to talk about how the young lady knew a landslide would happen.

Deputy Officer Chen said, “Don’t talk too much. Just rest well.”

…

After another half an hour, the sky darkened, and the rain gradually stopped.

Deputy Officer Chen looked at the sky and instructed the soldiers to gather firewood. It was too cold, and although they all wore raincoats, they were still drenched and needed to dry their clothes to avoid getting sick.

Ma Liu couldn’t help but suggest, “Boss, it’s too cold today. Since we’re making a fire, why not cook something? Our biscuits are too dry to swallow. There’s still a lot of cured meat on the cart. We can cook it and share some meat and broth to regain our strength.” The weather had been bad for the past few days, and they hadn’t cooked anything, eating only dry biscuits that were hard to swallow.

Deputy Officer Chen agreed.

They had been on the road for years, escorting exiled prisoners, and couldn’t ride horses. However, they had prepared a horse to pull a cart with their supplies. Although there were only about thirty soldiers, they were well-equipped with a large iron pot, salt, and even some liquor. Occasionally, they would buy food and supplies when passing through towns or villages.

The cured meat on the cart was bought from a town they had passed through earlier. They had bought a whole pig’s worth of cured meat and some dry firewood, but the dry firewood was running low and wouldn’t last long. They would start with the dry firewood and then use the wet firewood they found to keep the fire going.

Half of the soldiers went to gather firewood while Deputy Officer Chen uncovered the oilcloth on the cart and took out a water bucket, liquor, and the iron pot. Some soldiers fetched water, while others set up the pot.

There was a small stream not far from their resting place with good water quality.

They didn’t have a cook, so when they cooked, they would just set up a large pot, add water, boil it, and throw in all the ingredients to cook. It had no flavor to speak of.

“Boss,” Ma Liu couldn’t help but complain to Deputy Officer Chen, “If only we had a cook. We should find someone who can cook to join us. We’ve been eating our own cooking for so long that our mouths are getting tasteless. I want to eat big meat buns and braised meat with liquor. It would be invigorating.”

The food they cooked was terrible, but in this environment, having hot food was already a blessing. The exiled prisoners had been eating coarse grain biscuits, which were hard as rocks and hurt their throats. At least the soldiers had white flour biscuits.

Deputy Officer Chen didn’t say anything. Finding a cook willing to endure such hardships was not easy. Even a cook in a military camp would have a better life than following them around.

Xu Qinyu had already woken up and was watching the busy soldiers not far away. The soldiers were close enough for her to hear their conversation. Thinking about what Ma Liu had said, she had an idea. She had been wondering how to borrow their pot, and now she had a way.

Deputy Officer Chen didn’t say anything. After all, who would be willing to take on such a tough job as a cook? Working in a military camp’s kitchen would be better than running around with them.

These people couldn’t cook, but cooking was the simplest thing for her. It would also allow the Pei family to have a hot meal. She handed the two children in her arms to Pei Jianing, “Ning Jie’er, take care of Feng’er and Yuan’er. I’ll be back soon.”

Pei Jianing, who had also been drenched, ignored Madam Wen’s pleading look and ran to the boulder to shelter from the rain.

Pei Jianing was still asleep, groggily taking her brother and niece and continuing to sleep.

Madam Wen saw her daughter-in-law get up and quickly asked, “Yuniang, where are you going?”

“Don’t worry, Mother. I’m going to borrow some hot water from the soldiers.”

Xu Qinyu made up an excuse. Madam Wen was timid, and if she said she was going to volunteer to cook for the soldiers, Madam Wen would be worried to death.

Madam Wen hesitated. Although the soldiers never beat or scolded them or the prisoners, they weren’t easy to deal with. Every time she went to ask for hot water or food, she had to pay some silver. She still had some jewelry left, but that was their capital for settling down in the southwest. Now that her daughter-in-law was almost recovered, she was reluctant to use the remaining jewelry to exchange for hot water.

Xu Qinyu approached Deputy Officer Chen and said warmly, “Deputy Officer, are you looking for a cook? I can cook. How about letting me try for today’s meal?”

Deputy Officer Chen looked at Xu Qinyu without speaking. Ma Liu stared at her with wide eyes, “You can cook?”

This time, the exiled families included the fourth prince’s family from the capital and the Anping Duke’s family. This young lady seemed to be the legitimate daughter of the Marquis’s family. How could a noble lady know how to cook?

Xu Qinyu smiled bitterly, “Although I’m the second daughter of the Dechang Marquis Mansion, my days in the mansion…”

Deputy Officer Chen and Ma Liu were soldiers from the capital and knew the young lady’s situation. Even they felt a bit sympathetic towards her. She was the second daughter of the Dechang Marquis Mansion, and initially, the third daughter was betrothed to the fourth prince. In the end, a decree made her the one engaged to the fourth prince, and she had to follow him into exile. She seemed to have learned to cook because she wasn’t valued or loved in the mansion.

Xu Qinyu’s words were meant to elicit sympathy, but they were also true. Seeing the sympathetic expressions on the soldiers’ faces, she continued, “So I can indeed cook, and the food tastes decent. Please trust me, soldiers. If I don’t cook well, I’ll compensate you for the ingredients. But if I do well and you find the food tasty, could you also let my family and I have a hot bowl of food?”

“Alright, give it a try.”

These men were terrible at cooking, so they thought that the young lady’s cooking would still be better than theirs, no matter how bad.

“What ingredients do you have?” Xu Qinyu felt relieved. As long as they agreed to let her cook, she could impress these soldiers.

Ma Liu happily said, “We have cured meat, some white flour, eggs, and a few cans of oil, all bought from the town ahead.”

Although their job was tough, many of the prisoners’ families would bribe them with silver to take care of their relatives on the road. So they had some money to spare and didn’t want to skimp on food. They were generous in buying food and ingredients when they came across them.

Xu Qinyu nodded, already knowing what to make.

“Sir, can I go to the nearby mountain to find some ingredients? There should be winter bamboo shoots in the mountains. They are fresh and, at this time of year, perfect for stewing with cured meat.”

Deputy Officer Chen agreed. He wasn’t worried about the young lady running away. Although these exiled families were sent to the southwest, they would become ordinary commoners once they arrived and wouldn’t need to serve. Besides, in the wilderness, a young lady running away would be risking her life.

Xu Qinyu borrowed a basket and a knife from Deputy Officer Chen.

The area was full of rolling hills, and the place where they were resting was relatively flat, not a high mountain. Once in the mountains, Xu Qinyu was pleasantly surprised to find that, perhaps because the area was so remote, no one had come to pick the wild vegetables, winter bamboo shoots, and mushrooms. There were plenty of wild vegetables- especially the wild mushrooms, which were very abundant. Every few steps, she could see patches of wild mushrooms, most of which were edible, with only a few poisonous ones mixed in. Some wild mushrooms were highly toxic and absolutely inedible. Some had mild toxicity but could be made safe by thoroughly cooking them and turning them into delicious dishes. Of course, if not cooked properly, they could be deadly if not treated in time.

Xu Qinyu didn’t pick the mildly toxic ones, fearing the soldiers might taste them while cooking. She also worried that in the wilderness, the toxins might not be properly handled. It was safer to pick the completely non-toxic mushrooms, which were just as delicious.

She picked half a basket of wild mushrooms and found some winter bamboo shoots not far ahead, filling the basket halfway. She even found some wild ginger and onions, which she also dug up.

Two-quarters of an hour later, Xu Qinyu returned to the group and emptied the basket of wild vegetables, preparing to clean them.

Ma Liu saw the young lady return and empty a basket of things, including many mushrooms. Surprised, he asked, “Young lady, what will you do with these mushrooms?”