At the first light of dawn, Zheng Beiqiu and his party had already set out again.

It was still more than seventy li from the post station to the banks of the Yellow River; even at a brisk pace, it would take two days to reach it.

They had to cross the Yellow River before the end of the first lunar month; he’d heard that by mid-February, the river would thaw, and crossing it would become much more difficult then. While resting partway along the route, they ran into those fellow villagers again; these people seemed to be following them, whether intentionally or not.

Since there were few men among them—mostly elderly people, women, and children—Zheng Beiqiu wasn’t worried they might be up to anything malicious; they were likely just seeking companionship in case they encountered bandits or outlaws along the way.

For the rest of the journey, they slowed their pace slightly to wait for the others to catch up, which also gave the mules and horses a chance to rest. From all the traveling and poor food, several of the mules and horses had lost a lot of weight. Once they crossed the Yellow River, they would see if they could find a place to stay for a few days, let the animals recover, and then continue on their way.

As evening fell, they finally arrived at the next inn.

Zheng Beiqiu went inside to ask about rooms, but as expected, the inn was fully booked—even the wood shed and storage rooms were occupied.

“Looks like we’ll have to spend the night by the roadside tonight. Let’s go gather some firewood nearby later and build a fire to cook our meal.”

“Alright.” None of the men objected. They’d been living like this for nearly a month—though it was hard and exhausting, none of them had complained, because they knew that if they didn’t flee far enough, they’d still be conscripted when the main army arrived.

The carts and horses of their fellow villagers behind them also came to a stop. The man leading them went inside to inquire and came out looking just as dejected. Seeing Zheng Beiqiu watering and feeding his horse, he walked over to strike up a conversation. “My surname is Li; my name is Li Qiao. May I ask your honorable surname, sir?”

“My surname is Zheng; my name is Zheng Beiqiu. Just call me Daqiu.”

“Brother Daqiu, may I ask where you’re headed on this journey?”

Zheng Beiqiu set down the fodder he was holding and said, “We don’t have a specific destination in mind. After all, we have no relatives in the southern regions, so we’re thinking of heading toward Yizhou. If we come across a suitable place, we’ll settle there.”

Upon hearing this, Li Qiao nodded repeatedly and said, “That’s exactly what we’re thinking! My father used to travel with merchant caravans years ago, and he’s been to Yizhou—we’re also heading in that direction. If you don’t mind, how about we travel together?”

“That would be wonderful, of course!” He was more than happy to have a free guide, and besides, there was safety in numbers—if they encountered bandits along the way, they wouldn’t dare attack so many people at once.

Li Qiao said cheerfully, “I’ve been worried the whole way about running into bandits, but I never expected to meet companions first. If there’s anything you need, just let me know—I won’t hesitate to help!”

Zheng Beiqiu nodded with a smile; Li Qiao certainly knew how to get along with people.

Zhang Linzi and Liu Yan gathered a large bundle of firewood from nearby—enough to last through the night. Er Zhuzi also returned with two buckets of water he’d drawn from the nearby river. Xiaofeng lit the fire and began cooking, while Luo Xiu waited nearby with the three children.

During dinner that evening, Zheng Beiqiu relayed Li Qiao’s message to everyone: “I figured it’d be safer with more people, so I agreed to come along.” Zhang Linzi nodded and said, “Their old man knows the way—if we stick with them, we won’t get lost.”

He recalled the last time they’d taken a wrong turn; luckily, they’d turned back in time. Otherwise, if they’d been delayed too long, they might well have been caught up by the main army.

After dinner, everyone sat around the campfire for a while. From spending all day in the carriage, their legs had gone weak, so as soon as they were back on solid ground, they wanted to walk around a bit to stretch their legs.

While it was still early, Luo Xiu, carrying Xiaoyu on his back, strolled around, picking a few blades of grass to give the child to play with. Zheng Beiqiu followed behind them, teasing the child, and Xiaoyu giggled as he rested his head on his father’s shoulder.

With their journey having been such a hurried rush, they’d rarely had a moment like this to relax—and even Xiaoyu hadn’t laughed so happily in a long time. After playing for a while, Luo Xiu quickly led the child back to the carriage; it was too cold to stay outside for long.

The men continued to work in pairs, with two keeping watch during the first half of the night and two during the second half.

The Li family, just like them, spent the night by the roadside. The elderly and children huddled together on the mule cart, covered with thick quilts, while the young men took turns keeping watch; they managed to get through the night, at least.

The next day, they set off again. Ahead lay the banks of the Yellow River. This stretch was a trade route, so there were more travelers on the road, and they could see quite a few merchant caravans making their way along.

It was the depths of winter, and a thick layer of ice had formed on the Yellow River; the carriages traveled across it as safely as if on level ground.

Zheng Beiqiu asked Luo Xiu to bring out a few pieces of cloth to wrap around the horses’ and mules’ hooves. The ice was slippery, and since the horses and mules were shod with iron horseshoes, they were prone to slipping. If they were to break a leg, the rest of the journey would be very difficult.

It took less than one hour to cross the Yellow River. Once they had crossed, everyone knew they were getting farther and farther from home, and it was unclear when—or if—they would ever return.

South of the Yellow River lay the territory of Songzhou. With the grain on the carts nearly depleted, Zheng Beiqiu planned to lead the group into town to restock and, while they were at it, buy some food for the children.

They couldn’t enter the county seat—as outsiders, they would be strictly questioned by the officials guarding the city gates, and without a travel permit or official documents, they would certainly be detained.

Better safe than sorry—they’d be better off finding a small town to settle down in and rest for a couple of days.

Zheng Beiqiu found Li Qiao and mentioned this to him. As it happened, they, too, were planning to stay for a couple of days to rest—the children back home had all caught colds from the cold—and see if there was a clinic in town where they could get some herbal decoctions.

Li Qiao’s father said, “If I recall correctly, there’s a small town called Qingyang Town about ten li further on. Why don’t we settle there?” 

“Sure, I’ll go along with what Uncle Li says.”

Having a seasoned traveler who knows the way can save a lot of trouble—at the very least, you won’t have to keep asking for directions along the way. Because of their foreign accents, locals often ignore them, and if pressed too hard, might even snap at them.

After traveling for a little over an hour, the mule cart arrived at Qingyang Town, as described by Old Master Li. The town was quite large; perhaps because so many merchants passing through stopped here, there were many inns and restaurants within the town walls, and it looked even more bustling than an ordinary county seat.

They found a small inn with a modest facade. Zheng Beiqiu went inside to inquire about the rates; one room cost eighty wen, which was an acceptable price, so he booked three rooms right away.

The Li family also settled in here, booking three rooms as well, and both families went about settling in.

Luo Xiu carried Xiaoyu into their room. It was much cleaner than the post stations they’d passed along the way, and there was no longer that annoying stench of sweaty feet. The heated brick bed made the room quite warm. Luo Xiu unwrapped Xiaoyu from his swaddling cloth, changed his diaper, and let the child crawl around on his own.

The little one was almost eight months old in the blink of an eye; he could already kick his feet against the mat and crawl a few steps forward. If he hadn’t been cooped up in the cart every day lately, he might already be crawling quite fast by now.

He took off the child’s dirty clothes—he’d fetch some water to wash them later. Since they hadn’t been able to bathe the whole trip, his hair was itchy, so he asked a fellow traveler for a few basins of hot water to give himself a quick wash.

After lunch, Zheng Beiqiu took Zhang Linzi with him and drove the cart into town to buy grain and other supplies. Halfway there, Zhang Linzi pulled a money pouch from his bosom and handed it to Zheng Beiqiu.

“What’s this for?”

“Er Zhuzi and I have been living it up these past few years and haven’t saved much. There’s only thirteen taels of loose silver in here. Take it, Big Qiu, and use it as you see fit.”

“I have enough money.”

“Take it. We’ve been eating and drinking on your dime the whole way, and it’s been weighing on our minds. From now on, Er Zhuzi and I will follow you—wherever you go, we’ll go too!”

Zheng Beiqiu patted him on the shoulder. “All right. Since you two have accepted me as your big brother, I’ll naturally take care of you until the very end.”

The two of them drove the mule cart to the grain shop first. When they inquired about the prices, they were both shocked: foxtail millet, which had originally cost fifty or sixty wen per dou, had risen to two hundred wen per dou! Soybeans were also one hundred and eighty wen per dou.

“Why is it so expensive?”

The shop clerk replied, “Expensive? I’m afraid in a few days, you won’t even be able to buy any for 200 wen! There’s a war going on up north now, so grain can’t be transported here. Prices are changing by the day—just a few days ago it was still over 100 wen, but this morning the shopkeeper raised it to 200 wen.”

Upon hearing this, Zheng Beiqiu didn’t waste any time. He immediately ordered three shi of foxtail millet, three shi of beans, and one shi of whole wheat flour—the whole wheat flour was mainly for the children, as they were too young to survive on just foxtail millet and beans.

After paying the silver, the shop assistant helped load the grain sacks onto the cart. All that grain cost over ten taels of silver, but fortunately, he had enough money on hand. Once he found a place to settle down, he could go hunting in the mountains and plant the fields next spring.

After buying the grain, he also purchased oil and salt in town. Salt was essential—not only for himself but also for the mules and horses, who needed to lick some to maintain their strength for pulling the cart.

Luo Xiu asked for a packet of needles; he’d broken and lost a few along the way. He also bought some frostbite ointment; several of the men had their ears frozen raw. They hadn’t felt any discomfort on the road, but once they entered the inn and warmed up, an unbearable, stinging itch set in. After scratching just a couple of times, yellow pus began to ooze out. They didn’t dare sleep on their sides at night, for if the pus got on their pillows, peeling it off in the morning would cause such excruciating pain they’d scream and cry out in agony.

When he got back to the inn, Luo Xiu had already packed everything up. He gave Xiaoyu a hot bath, and the little one fell asleep right after. He washed his hair and gave himself a quick wash, too.

“Did you get everything?”

“Yeah, grain prices have skyrocketed—a dou of foxtail millet is already two taels. I gritted my teeth and bought a little extra.”

“Two taels?” Luo Xiu’s eyes widened in shock. “That’s way too expensive!”

“Once the fighting starts, prices are bound to go up even more. It’s better to buy a little extra just in case.”

Luo Xiu nodded. “Go wash up and get some rest. You’ve been completely worn out from this journey.” Driving the cart all day and keeping watch at night—it was truly grueling.

Zheng Beiqiu was indeed utterly exhausted. The journey had taken a toll not only on his body but even more so on his mind—during the day, he feared being caught by pursuing troops; at night, he feared bandits and robbers would raid the wagon; and then there were the adults and children suffering from cold and other illnesses…

Once they crossed the Yellow River, he felt a little more at ease—they had a safe place to stay for the time being. He gave himself a quick wash, lay down on the kang, and was snoring within moments.

Luo Xiu gently stroked his stubble-covered cheek with a look of concern; the area under his eyes was dark and sunken.

He scooped up some frostbite ointment and applied it to his ears and fingers, patched up his worn-out pants and clothes, then lay down beside him and fell asleep as well. They slept straight through until nightfall, when Xiaoyu woke up hungry and began crying, finally rousing them both.

Luo Xiu picked up his son and soothed him, while Zheng Beiqiu rubbed his face and went to the front to ask for food.

They ordered only egg custard and soup dumplings for the children; the adults borrowed the inn’s kitchen to cook bean porridge themselves and asked for a plate of pickles on the side. With grain so expensive, they had to spend their money sparingly.

While they were eating, there were still a few groups of travelers from out of town at the inn, and several of them pricked up their ears to listen to their discussions about the war in the north.

“I heard that Jizhou Prefecture has already been taken by the Pingzhou Army.”

“That fast?”

“How could it not be fast? The Jizhou troops basically surrendered without even putting up a fight…” 

“Surrendered?!”

“Prince Jing is quite a ruthless man. He rallied the common people of Jizhou to serve as the vanguard. With these unarmed civilians standing outside the city walls of Jizhou, how could the soldiers bring themselves to raise their weapons against their fellow villagers, brothers, and relatives?”

“Oh my…”

“Someone secretly opened the city gates, and just like that, Jizhou was taken.”

Everyone felt a pang of unease hearing this, but at least there hadn’t been a battle—otherwise, who knows how many civilians would have been killed or wounded.

“Has there been any word from the imperial court?”

“Who says there’s no movement? The main army has already started marching north. I reckon they’ll reach Songzhou in six or seven days. Once they cross the Yellow River, fighting will break out on both sides…”

After finishing their meal in a somber mood, everyone returned to their guest room. Zheng Beiqiu, who wasn’t very sleepy after a nap, kept Xiaoyu entertained on the kang, while Luo Xiu continued mending the clothes he hadn’t finished.

Suddenly, a heart-wrenching wail rang out from outside. Luo Xiu was startled; the needle pricked his finger, and he let out a sharp gasp of pain.

“What’s going on?”

Zheng Beiqiu stood up and said, “I’ll go take a look.”

He threw on some clothes and went out into the courtyard, where he saw several members of the Li family weeping. The matriarch of the Li family was kneeling in the courtyard, repeatedly kowtowing. “I beg you, I beg you—please save my child!”

“It’s not that I won’t save him, but your son was brought here too late. Even I am powerless to save him now. Perhaps you should seek another doctor.” The physician, carrying his medicine chest, hurried away.

Standing nearby, the eldest son of the Li family, tears streaming down his face, pulled his wife to her feet and said, “Don’t be hard on the doctor…” Li Qiao also kept wiping away his tears; this was already the second child in their family to die in infancy.

The first to die was their little daughter, who had just turned one. On the seventh day after they fled, she ran a high fever, fainted, and never woke up again. This one was the third child in the eldest brother’s family, only four years old, who also succumbed to the cold and a high fever.

The weather was cold, the roads were rough, and unlike the Zheng family, they didn’t have a large carriage to shelter them from the wind and cold, so the child naturally couldn’t withstand such bitter cold. Zheng Beiqiu stepped forward and patted Li Qiao on the shoulder. “Take comfort and accept this loss.”

Li Qiao sniffed and said, “He was fine this morning, but suddenly took a turn for the worse at noon. We called a doctor to perform acupuncture, but it didn’t help. He just passed away…”

“Take good care of the child’s remains. Find a place to bury him first, then bring him over once everything’s settled.”

Li Qiao nodded. “Thanks, brother.”

Since they were away from home, the funeral was kept simple. Plus, it was just a little child, so the old man of the Li family and his two sons stayed up all night to nail together a small coffin for their grandson, carried it outside the city, and buried him under a large tree.

As he left, the old man wept bitterly, his heart aching. He murmured, “Why didn’t I die instead? I’m so old now—I’ve lived long enough… My dear grandson, wait for Grandpa to come for you. Don’t be afraid…”

Upon learning of the Li family’s tragedy, Luo Xiu and Xiaofeng were deeply moved and grew even more attentive to their own children, fearing they might fall ill as well. After a brief two-day rest in town, the two families set out once more.

The further south they traveled, the warmer the weather became; the snow on the road gradually thinned from half a foot deep to a mere thin layer. The leaves on the trees lining the road also changed from withered, yellowed branches to a deep green.

To them—northerners who had never been to the southern regions before—this sight was truly remarkable.

Back when he was in the barracks, Zheng Beiqiu had heard Chen Bing and the others mention the southern regions, but hearing about it was quite different from seeing it with his own eyes. As they traveled further, the mountain paths became more frequent; since the official road had to pass through a county seat, they had no choice but to take a detour.

Although this road wasn’t the official highway, it was still quite wide. According to the Li family patriarch, he had traveled this route in the past as a merchant; the only drawback was that there were relatively few post stations along the way.

After traveling together for some time, he had come to know the Li family a bit better. There were twelve of them on this journey in total—six adults and six children—though sadly, two of the children had passed away along the way. Of the remaining four children, two were from Li Qiao’s family and two from his older brother Li Song’s family.

In addition to the two married couples, there was the patriarch of the Li family and a young daughter named Li Rong.

Most of the time, the two families stayed together, seeking shelter from the wind for the night. The mountain roads were rugged and difficult to traverse, so the carriage slowed to a crawl.

Because the ride was so bumpy, they didn’t dare light the stove in the carriage; several times, the charcoal nearly shook out, which was very dangerous.

Fortunately, the weather here wasn’t as cold as back home; on sunny days, a thin cotton jacket was enough to keep them warm, and at night, they simply lit the stove to stay warm.

Today, as evening fell, they still hadn’t found a post station, so Zheng Beiqiu chose a flat, sheltered spot to stop the wagon and rest. There happened to be a small stream nearby, so they could lead the mules and horses across to drink.

The Li family also stopped their wagon; the men gathered firewood and built a fire, the women prepared a meal, and the children gathered together to play and frolic.

Xiaofeng let Niuniu and Xiaohu get off the cart to play for a while, while Luo Xiu, carrying Xiaoyu on her back, joined in helping with the cooking.

The bean rice in the pot was ready, but after waiting quite a while, Zheng Beiqiu still hadn’t returned. Xiaofeng said, “Liu Yan, go down to the river and call Big Brother back for dinner.” 

“Okay.” Liu Yan hurried off and returned a short while later, leading the mule and the horse.

“Big Brother said he spotted a warren of rabbits. He told me to bring the horse back first while he sees if he can catch any.”

Luo Xiu stood up, looking a little worried. Through the sparse trees, he could just make out Zheng Beiqiu’s silhouette. “It’ll be dark soon—why is he catching rabbits? I hope he doesn’t get into any danger…”

Zheng Beiqiu was indeed quite lucky—the litter of rabbits he’d come across were all plump and fat. It was a pity, though, that he hadn’t brought any hunting gear with him.

He was afraid the rabbits would vanish if he took the horse back, so he hesitated. When Liu Yan came down to lead the horse away, he pulled a small dagger from his coat, whittled a piece of wood into a sharp spike, and, clutching it, quietly set off in pursuit.

There hadn’t been any post stations along the way for quite some time, so everyone had been eating plain rice and pickles day after day. Seeing that Luo Xiu had lost even more weight—and he was carrying a child, after all—he knew he couldn’t afford to lack nourishment, so he decided to hunt some game to help his husband regain his strength.

He crept slowly toward the rabbit warren—one step, two steps, three steps. The rabbits, likely accustomed to a life of ease, didn’t notice they were being watched at all; several of them huddled together, nibbling on the dry grass on the ground.

As he broke into a sprint, Zheng Beiqiu suddenly lunged with lightning speed, driving his wooden spear straight into one of the fattest rabbits! The other rabbits scattered in panic, and Zheng Beiqiu immediately pulled out the spear and turned to stab another one.

Another hit!

Excited, he picked up the rabbit from the ground and gave it a shake—it was quite heavy. He’d have a hearty meal tonight! Back at their resting spot, Zheng Beiqiu grinned, baring his teeth. “Look what I caught!”

“A rabbit! You really caught one!” Everyone gathered around. “Let’s clean them up—we’ll roast them later to satisfy our cravings!”

Both rabbits were quite plump; together they weighed about sixteen or seventeen tael. After skinning them, gutting them, and cleaning them, he rubbed them with salt and oil and set them over the fire to roast.

Zheng Beiqiu’s skill at roasting meat was second to none; having grown accustomed to foraging and roasting food in the barracks, he expertly controlled the temperature of the charcoal so the meat would neither burn nor remain undercooked.

Before long, the aroma of the roasting meat wafted through the air, making both adults and children salivate with anticipation.

Not far away, the Li family members were also driven wild with hunger by the smell of the meat. While the adults could hold out, the children lacked such self-control and began wailing with hunger.

“I want some meat! I want some too…”

Old Master Li scolded them, “That’s meat they hunted—you’re not allowed to have any! I’ll buy you some meat to eat when we get to the post station up ahead.”

Unexpectedly, not long after, Zheng Beiqiu actually brought over half a rabbit. “I just caught two rabbits in the woods; here, to satisfy the children’s cravings.”

Li Qiao, overcome with emotion, hurried forward and clasped his hands in thanks. “The Zheng family is so thoughtful!” To still be thinking of them at a time like this—this family was truly trustworthy!

The children cheered with joy at the sight of the meat. Li Qiao divided it evenly among them. Having gone so long without any fatty food, the children were eager to chew even the bones to pieces and swallow them whole.

Having eaten their fill that evening, Luo Xiu and Xiaofeng held their children close and enjoyed a rare, restful night’s sleep.

Zheng Beiqiu and Liu Yan kept watch through the first half of the night. Zheng Beiqiu stoked the fire and leaned against a wagon wheel to rest. Just as it was nearly midnight and time for the shift change, they suddenly heard rustling sounds coming from the mountain.

“How many are there?”

“I counted them—seven or eight men; the rest are women and gers.”

Although they were quite far away, he could still make out the sound of people speaking.

Liu Yan turned pale with fear and whispered, “Big Brother, is there someone on the mountain?”

Zheng Beiqiu pulled a long sword from under the cart and said, “Shh. Go wake everyone up. I’ll keep watch here.”