Zhou Yu pondered for a while and determined the time of departure, “Five days later.”

Wu Shan was surprised, “So urgent?”

He thought he could stay for at least a month before leaving.

Zhou Yu said, “If we leave early, we can settle down sooner.” The deaths of the princes in succession still affected his plan. He just wanted to settle down quickly. Only when he was settled could he make some preparations early.

The chaos in the world was getting closer and closer. He had a lot of ideas. Their family had to keep more backup plans.

The villagers came to congratulate him, but did not stay for dinner. They took the return gifts and left.

The formal recognition of relatives was still only lively with the two families. Yang Xi gave Third Yang a jade pendant, and Third Yang gave Ziheng a gold lock as a gift.

That night, Yang Xi lay awake for a long time. “I have another little brother.”

Zhou Yu chuckled. “Third Yang has been calling you jiejie these days, and I thought you’d gotten used to it.”

“It’s different. It always felt a little different before we officially recognized each other. Now that we’re officially recognized, Yang Xixuan will be my little brother from now on.”

Zhou Yu said. “I know you’re happy, but it’s late now, you should go to bed.”

Yang Xi’s tone was glum. “I miss Mom and little brother even more.”

Perhaps it was because so much time had passed, but she hadn’t dreamed of mom and little brother in all that time since she returned. She could only reassure herself that her little brother and mom were safe, and that’s why they wouldn’t appear in her dreams.

Zhou Yu patted his wife’s back repeatedly, which had a very soothing effect. After an unknown amount of time, Yang Xi drifted off to sleep.

In the days that followed, Yang Xi designed a bow and prepared different bowstrings. After several adjustments, she finally had a bow she was satisfied with before leaving.

Third Yang was very satisfied, but Yang Xi said, “I’ll study it more carefully once things settle down.”

Third Yang grinned. “Okay.”

My jiejie was amazing! It felt so good to have nurtured her!

The Zhou and Wu families were leaving, and Yan Bing went with them. Yan Bing entrusted the house to the village head. This time, Yan Bing sealed the cellar in front of Zhou Yu and Third Yang.

Zhou Yu remained impassive, and Third Yang was also smiling, having long forgotten about his secret inspection.

Yan Bing, “…”

His intuition told him that this feeling of frustration would only intensify.

The children in the village were particularly reluctant to see the Zhou family leave. They knew that less than a month of training would change their lives.

On the day the Zhou family left, the villagers gathered at the village entrance to see them off. Zhou Yu and his wife, as teachers, earned the respect of the entire village.

Yang Xi was naturally emotional during her pregnancy, her emotions at their peak. Seeing this scene, she was overwhelmed with emotion, and her eyes reddened.

Then she saw Third Yang pull out a handful of brushes and hand them out to each child!

Every time Third Yang handed out a pen, he would say, “You must not let down my jiejie and jiefu’s teachings to you. We must strive to meet again in the future.”

Yang Xi, “…”

Zhou Xiaodi was in a daze, “Brother, what is he doing?”

Zhou Yu rolled his eyes dramatically in his heart. “That kid is taking advantage of me and your saozi.”

Zhou Xiaodi didn’t think that deeply, but Yan Bing understood. Once a teacher, always a father. Zhou Yu and his wife had given the children a great debt of gratitude, and Third Yang had set his sights on the kids!

Yan Bing, “!!”

He thought he understood Third Yang, but in the end, he underestimated him.

The sad atmosphere of parting was gone. After handing out the last pen, Third Yang said, “When we are settled, my jiefu may not have time to write letters, but I will definitely write back. Don’t forget to write back then.”

Yang Xi, “…”

Zhou Yu snorted, “Hurry up and get up.”

Third Yang smiled apologetically, “Jiefu.”

Zhou Yu was too lazy to pay attention to Third Yang. He gave Third Yang the whip and got into the carriage. He didn’t want to see Third Yang now.

Third Yang laughed, “Let’s go.”

There was no danger on this trip. The atmosphere between the two families was good. They could chat while traveling.

Today, Third Yang drove the carriage by himself, so he was quiet for a while. “Jiefu, I have a suggestion. Do you want to listen to it?”

Zhou Yu, “No.”

Third Yang said to himself, “Jiefu, you said you can’t take the imperial examination. I feel bad for you looking at all your knowledge. I think you are particularly good at teaching. When you settle down, let’s take in more children. When the time comes, I will build a house for you to use as a private school. I will definitely not let you spend a penny.”

Zhou Yu blocked his ears with cotton in the carriage and put on a newly made hat!

No matter how much Third Yang talked, Zhou Yu couldn’t hear a word!

Unable to bear it any longer, Zhou Xiaodi pulled back the carriage curtain. “My brother blocked his ears when he said no. He didn’t hear a word you said.”

Third Yang, “…”

He was full of himself, boasting.

Zhou Xiaodi tutted twice. “No matter how much you say, my brother doesn’t want to hear it; it’s no use. Young man, you’re still too young.”

Zhou Xiaomei couldn’t help but laugh. Yang Xi was also amused. Little Ziheng covered his mouth and chuckled. His new uncle was so interesting.

Third Yang let out a wail, “How could jiefu treat me like this!”

He thought there was no one he couldn’t win over, yet every time he was with jiefu here, he hit a wall. Jiefu was his bane!

The two families traveled slowly, full of hope for the future. Once they left the mountainous area of Gao County, they encountered people migrating south on the official road.

Those who migrated all had some family wealth. If they couldn’t afford horses for transportation, they had donkeys or oxen. In ancient times, large extended families lived together to minimize military conscription and other burdens. Migrating families traveled with sizable groups, dragging their households along. The smallest groups numbered a dozen or so people, while larger ones had several dozen.

The Zhou and Wu families had two horse-drawn carriages and two donkey-drawn carts. Including Yan Bing’s own donkey-drawn cart, their group was quite conspicuous.

Horses were now so hard to come by that the common people would give way to horse-drawn carriages, which served as a deterrent.

That day, Zhou’s group couldn’t find a place to rest and had no choice but to camp out in the open. Two other families camped alongside them, but none of them spoke to each other, keeping a safe distance.

By comparison, the other two families feared the Zhou and Wu families more. The Zhou and Wu families had fought fiercely before, and even if no one was killed, their presence was intimidating. The men of the Wu family wore stern faces that could scare children into tears!

That evening, Yang Xi and Zhou Xiaomei prepared chicken soup and cabbage stewed with frozen tofu. The chicken had been slaughtered long ago, so it could be stored for a long time in the winter, safe from spoilage.

The main course was pre-made pancakes.

The Wu family ate their own food. Although they didn’t have chicken, they did have slices of meat in their cabbage stew, making it a decent meal.

After dinner, Third Yang stood up, and the two families became alert. They heard the sound of horse hooves.

Yang Xi and Zhou Xiaomei took Ziheng back to the carriage, using the firelight to observe the situation from the cracks in the carriage.

A convoy of carriages approached from a distance, flanked by guards. They had expected the convoy to continue on its way, but unexpectedly, it stopped.

The leading guard spoke with disdain, “We’ve taken over this place. Find another place and leave quickly.”

The Zhou and Wu families had extensive experience in camping outdoors, and their snow walls were particularly solid; in the wilderness, they would have drawn attention.

(End of this chapter)

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