Yang Xi peeked through the gap in the carriage curtain at the soldiers gathered outside. Their eyes kept glancing at the donkeys, their eyes indeed green with greed!

Zhou Yu lowered his voice, “They’re not getting enough to eat.”

The two hundred men had the air of soldiers, but not the robust physiques. They were clearly starving, having not had any oil or fat for ages, and were practically dying of hunger!

Zhou Xiaodi was even more frightened. “Brother, they won’t rob us, will they?”

Zhou Yu shook his head. “They’re very skilled at escorting; obviously not their first time. Reputation is important, and their discipline is very strong.”

Through observation, although he hadn’t let his guard down, his tone was much more relaxed.

Zhou Xiaodi was still afraid and dared not go out for steamed buns. Jizhou was much better; the journey had been smooth and uneventful.

Zhou Yu’s thoughts drifted. He didn’t know much about the imperial garrison; he was a civil official, and his father had paid little attention either.

Now he was quite curious about the general stationed in Nanzhou; this man was certainly quick-witted.

Two hundred soldiers gathered together, some drooling. “Look at that! The donkeys are so well-fed, they must be incredibly fat!”

“I haven’t had any meat in six months.”

The wild animals of Nanzhou had been driven away by hunting; alas, life was growing harder and harder.

The soldier leader “…”

He couldn’t take it anymore; his stomach was growling. He touched the palm-sized pancake in his pocket. He couldn’t eat it now; he had to wait until evening, or else the night would be too unbearable.

They hadn’t considered collecting their rations early. They couldn’t eat the rations; they had to take them back to the camp for registration. Even a missing ounce of rations was a big deal!

Suddenly, someone cursed under their breath, “Damn corrupt officials.”

Zhou Yu, with his sharp ears, recognized the curse. “I reckon their winter pay and rations have been withheld again.”

Yang Xi said, “Luckily, they paid their rations before the Bozhou rebellion.”

Zhou Yu chuckled. “King Jiang still needs time to plan; he wouldn’t dare cause too much trouble.”

Yang Xi thought it made sense. After eating a simple bun, Yang Xi closed her eyes to rest.

Third Yang was unusually quiet this time, hiding his bow and arrows and avoiding getting off the donkey cart whenever possible!

Yan Bing rarely saw Third Yang so quiet. “It’s not easy.”

Third Yang snorted. “Go read your book.”

Yan Bing couldn’t concentrate; there was a troop of two hundred soldiers outside. He had been captured and beaten before, and his psychological trauma was the greatest; he couldn’t calm down.

The caravan set off again, but the procession moved slowly. Of the two hundred soldiers, only the captain had a horse; the rest had to walk!

Yang Xi was somewhat helpless. They could have left Nanzhou in ten days, but now they were moving slowly!

Yang Xi frowned. She wanted to reach Ruizhou before the New Year, but now that was impossible!

They found a village to stay in for the night. The village was made up of military households. Life was hard for military households, and in Nanzhou, where there was no land, life was even harder.

Yang Xi looked at the children wearing straw sandals, without even a cotton coat, in the dead of winter.

The woman was overjoyed to hear that she could stay the night. “I… I don’t want any money!”

The roads in Nanzhou were rugged and difficult to travel, making it hard to get from the village to the town. Many people bartered, and grain was the only real currency in the villages. Yang Xi had a headache but had no choice but to offer some coarse grain as lodging fees.

The woman happily accepted the grain and left with her child, not worried about losing anything, because they were so poor that they had nothing to lose.

The soldier leader approached, “Need firewood? One cake for one bundle.”

Zhou Yu blocked his wife’s path, even though she was wearing a mask; he still watched the soldier leader warily.

The soldier leader smiled. “Need firewood?”

Zhou Yu looked at the bare courtyard and rubbed his forehead. “Six bundles of firewood.”

He didn’t dare let his younger brother and Third Yang come with him to gather firewood; it was better for them to stay together.

The soldier leader left happily, and with so many of them, they quickly gathered enough firewood. Zhou Yu also readily gave them six cakes.

The soldier leader’s eyes widened, his heart filled with joy. The flatbread was bigger than he had expected, and it was even oily to the touch. He was incredibly proud; he knew this caravan was from a wealthy family, as he hadn’t encountered one in quite some time.

They had encountered merchant caravans before, but unfortunately, they were usually guarded and rarely hired. Instead, they had to follow them for free, fearing they were there to inquire about military deployments. The general had said that Bozhou was in chaos and warned everyone to be vigilant!

After two more days of continuous travel, they finally arrived at the county town. The town was quite prosperous, with many shops and enough food. Many shops bought medicinal herbs. With abundant mountains and medicinal herbs, merchant caravans were eager to come to Nanzhou to buy them.

Zhou Yu and his wife bought grain and a donkey to pull a cart.

The two hundred soldiers couldn’t enter the town and had to wait outside.

After spending time with them, Yang Xi was deeply impressed. From the soldiers’ feedback on the general, she felt that the general stationed in Nanzhou had principles, and the soldiers greatly respected him.

Zhou Yu instructed Third Yang to buy some dry rations and send them out of the town, and Third Yang went off promptly.

Yang Xi knew Zhou Yu wasn’t pitying the soldiers but rather wanted Third Yang to hear from the soldier leader about how the Southern General managed his troops.

After resting in the city for a day, Third Yang, with Jiefu’s permission and having grown up in the barracks, quickly became familiar with the soldiers.

The garrison general, whose family had been stationed in the Southern Prefecture for generations, was someone Third Yang had heard many tales of.

Third Yang was incredibly impressed. “Jiefu, General Zhang is truly remarkable.”

Zhou Yu replied, “Indeed remarkable”.

He thought further ahead; in this chaotic world, many forces would surely be eyeing General Zhang!

Traveling south, they stayed overnight in villages. One day, they arrived at a village of considerable size, where a thatched hut stood out conspicuously.

The soldier leader hesitated. “Let’s continue on our way.”

Zhou Yu asked, “Is there something wrong here?”

(End of Chapter)

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