Chapter 95: Encounter on the Road

As evening fell, just like the previous night, General Geng and the others set up camp two thousand paces from the caravan. No incidents occurred that evening.

By now, Chengdu was near. Early the next morning, thirty knights approached with the morning dew. After exchanging greetings with the group, General Geng nodded to Lu Ying, then shouted a low command, and the riders spurred forward.

Watching the dust they raised, Wang Shang called out, “Let’s hurry as well, and try to reach Chengdu within three days.”

“Yes.”

The caravan accelerated.

As the caravan drew closer to Chengdu, more and more scholars and travelers appeared at the crossroads leading to various parts of the city. Some young Confucian scholars sang loudly on the backs of donkeys. Others rode in small donkey carts laden with goods, and one of the carts bore a middle-aged man dressed in scholar’s robes lying atop the load.

After a while, Wen Qing stepped out from the carriage. He mounted a horse specifically to clear his mind and came to Lu Ying’s side. Looking at her with a complex expression, he suddenly said, “After we reach Chengdu, will A Ying have a place to stay?”

Lu Ying turned her head.

Meeting her eyes as black as midnight, Wen Qing spoke with the utmost gentleness and courtesy: “If not, I can help A Ying find one.”

As he said this, his gaze toward Lu Ying was filled with intense focus. Amid this focus lay an indescribable mix of bitterness, loss, hope, and longing.

Lu Ying was a nun; how could she mysteriously accept a man’s goodwill?

She immediately shook her head and smiled faintly. “Thank you for your kindness, Wen Lang. If A Ying requires a place, I will seek your assistance.”

Her reply was precisely what Wen Qing had anticipated. He said nothing further, simply nodding in silence. After a long moment, he added, “A Ying has matters; speak them freely.”

At that moment, commotion erupted from behind, and the caravan halted.

Wen Qing glanced back and asked, “What happened?”

Soon, a guard rode up, smiling. “There’s no trouble now. A runaway donkey cart had rushed from the left fork and collided with the Zhao family’s young master’s horse. We checked; the nun inside the cart sustained a minor injury, nothing serious, only from the fright.”

The guard had barely finished when Lu Ying heard A Ti’s laughter. “A Ying, the family from Xunyang is very similar to you. It’s also a brother and sister pair, and that younger brother is also heading to Chengdu to study.”

Here, Lu Ying smiled and nodded. “This is quite normal. I heard that before the New Year, His Majesty issued an edict requiring that this year’s recruits be half again as many as last year. Now, all the major academies in Chengdu are busy recruiting.”

Amid their chatter, Lu Ying grew curious. She and A Ti went to the scene. Chaos had subsided, and the donkey cart that had crashed into the ditch was being righted by everyone.

Lu Ying poked her head out and saw a girl standing beside the ditch, her face pale as she forced a smile to thank the onlookers, along with a fourteen-year-old boy standing at her side.

Unlike her tall and robust brother, the girl appeared particularly delicate and fragile. At sixteen or seventeen, she was a nun whose countenance was refined and beautiful, yet with a hint of sickly pallor. Her large, sparkling eyes and small lips made her truly captivating like pear blossoms. Nevertheless, the girl was clearly the head of the group, her small frame exuding stubbornness and strength.

Although the donkey cart had been lifted, its old carriage had collapsed in half from the impact. It was now covered in mud and could not accommodate passengers.

The girl bit her lip, smiling bravely. After rummaging through her own bundle for a long time, she finally took out a small pouch of iron coins for the driver.

The sturdy boy behind her became displeased. “Sister, it’s clearly his own fault for driving carelessly.” His face flushed as he said indignantly, “We have so little money; if you pay for him, what will we do when we reach Chengdu?”

No sooner had he spoken than the girl turned and glared at her brother, scolding, “Silence.” Her face paling, she said stubbornly, “No matter what, after all, A Shu’s accident happened because we hired his cart.” Still, those iron coins in her pouch were probably insufficient to cover the donkey cart’s losses?

Just as Lu Ying thought this, the driver grinned with yellow teeth and shouted, “Qian family little lady, big young master, this isn’t how it’s calculated. My cart is wrecked like this, what use are these few iron coins of yours?”

The driver’s words made the boy seethe with rage. The girl’s face turned even paler as she continued rummaging through her bundle, tears welling up.

At that moment, the tall Zhao family young master, already married and over eighteen, approached. He stepped in front of the siblings and asked with a sidelong glance, “How many more iron coins?”

The driver estimated and said hesitantly, “Five hundred.”

Five hundred? Roughly what Lu Ying had anticipated.

With such a sum, the Zhao family young master clearly did not regard it as much. He casually took a money pouch from his servant’s hand and tossed it to the driver. “Here. You can go now.”

With that, he turned to the brother and sister and said gently, “We’re also going to Chengdu. Would you like to join us?”

The siblings brightened. The girl bowed to Zhao Langjun gratefully. “Thank you, Langjun.”

“No need.”

Zhao Langjun turned and walked back.

Seeing this, Wen Qing called from ahead, “Don’t delay. Prepare to move out.”

Everyone responded haphazardly, and after reorganizing the caravan, they set off once more.

As they traveled, an ox cart pulled up beside Lu Ying. The girl poked her head out and smiled sweetly at Lu Ying. “Lu Jie, I heard you’re also going to Chengdu for your brother’s studies?”

Lu Ying slowly set down her bamboo slips and turned.

In the sunlight, the girl’s smile was very sweet. Unlike her demeanor toward others, it conveyed intimacy when facing Lu Ying. Clearly, in her heart, Lu Ying and she were the same kind of person.

Lu Ying glanced at her and nodded. “En.”

The girl was stunned by her coldness but immediately smiled again. “Lu Jie, which academy does your younger brother attend?”

Before Lu Ying could answer, she continued, “Sister’s clothes are so lovely. Much prettier than mine. Sister is truly good—plenty of money left by your parents and friends you made along the way. Unlike me, with only a maternal uncle far in Chengdu and a younger brother busy with studies…”

Here, she lowered her eyes pitifully and gave a soft smile like pear blossoms. This smile was truly more touching than tears.

Lu Ying glanced at her once more, “En” again, and lowered her head.

Lu Ying was a woman who spoke little; when she did, her words were concise and cold. The girl’s casual inquiries met with a cold face, leaving her stunned.

Gradually, she lowered her head and bit her lip. Her expression showed the embarrassment of being snubbed.

From then on, the girl no longer spoke to Lu Ying.

Yet, even without speaking to Lu Ying, her fragile and cautious laughter continued to ring out. Lu Ying vaguely heard her saying, “Zhao family brother, I really don’t know how to thank you for your kindness.”

After Zhao Langjun said something, the girl’s voice carried a hint of sobs. “My parents passed away several months ago, and my husband’s family took the chance to break off the engagement. If it weren’t for my younger brother still needing to pursue his studies, I wouldn’t have sought refuge with my maternal uncle’s family.”

After a pause, her fragile voice continued, “We women are like this. Our fates are like willow catkins; without meeting a good man, we drift like rootless things.”

The voice was utterly pitiful.

After listening for a while, A Ti came to Lu Ying’s side, snorted, and said, “I don’t like her.”

Lu Ying looked up at this straightforward, impulsive, rash nun who acted on impulse. “Why?”

A Ti pouted and leaned closer to Lu Ying, complaining, “Those people say this Zhao family young master is affectionate and righteous, grew up with his wife, and has always been gentle to her. Hmph, in my view, on the way back, he will immediately add a sister to his wife who married less than a year ago.”

Is that true?

Lu Ying became curious and turned to look.

The ox cart of the girl surnamed Qian, provided by Zhao Langjun, followed closely behind him. At this moment, the girl was confiding her pitiful past while silently weeping, and Zhao Langjun watched her with gentleness, offering occasional comfort.

Vaguely, Lu Ying heard the girl say again, “Meeting Zhao brother is truly a blessing for our brother and sister. A young master from such a wealthy family, yet so kind to others, even kinder than someone with the same background as me. I am so happy.” As she said the last words, the girl raised her head, secretly glanced at Zhao Langjun, then quickly lowered it again.

One glance was enough to convey endless gratitude and gentle affection.

Lu Ying tilted her head, thinking secretly: The person with the same background who is not kind seems to be me.

As Lu Ying pondered this, Wen Qing, Wang Shang, and the others looked back at Zhao Langjun, exchanged playful winks, and turned their heads away.

For these young men raised in wealthy circles, such matters were commonplace.

Amid the Qian girl’s complaints, Zhao Langjun smiled and said gently, “You are so good, worthy of being treated well.”

With that one sentence, the girl’s originally pale face flushed with a blush.

After watching the spectacle for a while, Lu Ying withdrew her gaze and closed her eyes to rest.

The day passed swiftly.

After a peaceful night, the caravan set out once more. As they started, A Ti called Lu Ying onto her carriage.

Compared to the others, A Ti’s carriage was particularly spacious. Soon after Lu Ying arrived, Xiao Yan and the other nuns came over. The girls ate pastries and chatted and laughed.

As they talked, A Ti suddenly leaned out, speaking in a low voice, “Let me tell you, last night Zhao Jiang that bastard entered the tent of that Qian family little nun.”

As soon as this was said, Xiao Yan laughed immediately. “So soon? I thought this little nun could at least mix into a concubine. So fast she got the upper hand—does she not want a formal name anymore?”

“Who said got the upper hand?” A Ti glared at her, then giggled again. “My maid said, at that time she claimed she wasn’t feeling well, so Zhao Jiang went to see her. Zhao Jiang simply rubbed her feet for a while. The two only embraced uncontrollably; they didn’t do anything else.”

Upon hearing A Ti’s words, the girls all wanted to roll their eyes. With her tone, she had sent her own maid to secretly monitor the other. Otherwise, where would she have obtained such first-hand information?