Chapter 10

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Chapter 10: Jiang Wu wasn\’t aware that the person he was concerned about was currently having her clothes… lifted by someone.

Former Crown Prince’s mentor Qin Chongli, though having young grandchildren, would turn sixty by year\’s end—reaching the age of understanding truth from falsehood.

After two arduous days of exile and staying up the previous night at Taoyuan Post Station, Qin Chongli slept deeply at Sanqiao Post Station. Despite repeated mental warnings before sleep, he still couldn\’t rise immediately upon hearing morning noises outside.

Fortunately, his quick-reacting daughter-in-law Chu Xiulan sharply patted her son awake. Grandson Haoyang proved alert too; though sleeping soundly like a piglet moments earlier, he now bolted out like a wild boar before fully opening his eyes, discarding last night\’s makeshift alarm trap into the junk pile as planned.

Only then did Qin Chongli sit up, supporting his back.

Breakfast remained black bread loaves with warm water. Regardless of taste, dry food surpassed the murky gruel from their first exiled night.

Jiang Wu had become more skilled at soaking bread to separate bran, yet seemed more anxious than last night. The morning rush—possible departure anytime—was one reason. Another: the young guard hadn\’t returned with Tan Wang\’s answer about the cart. Without it, carrying Du Yinsui would aggravate her wounds…

Yesterday, Jiang Wu waited for his teacher\’s group before sending young Haoyang to fetch wood scraps. Using cloth strips from an elderly woman, he\’d stabilized Du Yinsui\’s seemingly fractured leg. But crude materials allowed only basic immobilization—it wouldn\’t withstand a full day\’s journey.

Agitated, Jiang Wu swallowed bran without chewing.

Meanwhile, Qin Chongli broke apart his black bread. Before eating, he mused, \"Is my taste off? Yesterday\’s bread seemed salty, yet today\’s feels sweet untasted.\"

*Cough… sputter… cough*

\"Eat slower. Chew properly.\" Qin Chongli abandoned thoughts of flavor to pat his choking, tearful grandson\’s back, offering water. \"Sip this.\"

Qin Haoyang drank to soothe his throat, then guiltily passed the bowl. \"Grandfather drink too.\"

Honoring the gesture, Qin Chongli pretended to sip. \"This water tastes sweet too…\"

*Cough! Cough-cough!*

Qin Chongli patted the boy\’s back again. \"Why do you choke even on water?\"

Young Qin Haoyang endured hearty back pats while his sister pinched his leg beneath the table.

\"Grandfather, I\’m fine.\" Haoyang flinched from the pinching, improvising, \"Maybe… your heart\’s bitterness makes everything taste sweet?\"

Qin Chongli: \"…\"

Others present: \"…\"

Children\’s blunt truths cut deepest.

Resisting the urge to swat his grandson, Qin Chongli retracted his hand and broke bread.

\"Yesterday\’s bread likely had salt,\" Chu Xiulan defused the tension. She tore her own loaf, intercepting her father-in-law\’s attempt to share with the children. \"Father, eat yours. We\’ll need your strength hauling the little ones later. I\’ll save half to share if hunger strikes on the road.\"

Qin Chongli hesitated, recalling how she\’d pinned him against the wall yesterday when he tried sharing food.

Chu Xiulan then glanced toward Jiang Wu\’s quiet murmuring. Pausing, she broke a fragment from her reserved portion. \"Jiang Wu…\"

The named man stiffened instantly, refusing to turn.

Du Yinsui was his burden, not the Qin family\’s. Their palm-sized bread must last all day…

After several calls met only with Jiang Wu\’s rigid back, Chu Xiulan stopped. She wrapped the uneaten fragment with her saved half—for later when he inevitably weakened.

Not that she doubted Jiang Wu\’s resolve. Since last night, he\’d given most food to Du Yinsui, eating only bran. Without last night\’s second water ration, he\’d have gone thirsty too. No one could endure this. Chu Xiulan wished to advise him, but some only yield after hitting a wall.

Watching her family huddled over bread, Chu Xiulan sighed softly. She hoped that wall came soon—later, neither she nor her father-in-law might spare strength to help.

While the Qin family worried, they remained unaware another in the room worried for them.

Perhaps souls need no sleep. After all, Du Yinsui felt remarkably energetic sipping her familiar gruel despite staying awake all night.

No matter what lay ahead, she had survived last night! She had lived through that damned moment when the poison was supposed to claim her life! Thanks to heaven that finally showed mercy. Though it had taken away her seven years of apocalyptic savings, it at least left her with enhanced senses and a stronger body. The pain at midnight had been excruciating, yet it also led her to discover a key to suppress the pain, perhaps even the poison itself.

Alright, it wasn\’t her discovery; it was an answer delivered to her.

Last night, when the world was quiet and an old man nearby occasionally snored in his deep sleep, someone crawled over to Du Yinsui\’s side.

Initially, Du Yinsui\’s guard was at its peak. In the apocalypse, one should never underestimate anyone, even a child who seemed unable to harm a fly. In her helpless state, unable to make a sound or move, even a three-year-old could have easily crushed her.

Of course, the three-year-old there didn\’t do anything impolite.

This little one merely…

As Du Yinsui slowly felt the flow of the gruel in her mouth, she recalled the events of last night. Her soul sighed softly. If the little one had fed her as skillfully as Jiang Wu or if this body had swallowed more diligently, perhaps she would have finished the entire bowl of mung bean paste before the baby remembered others were \"sick.\" Then there wouldn\’t have been two mouthfuls left for Grandfather or the scrapings at the bottom of the bowl for the brother who suddenly woke up…

What a pity.

What a pity that this neighboring family was so kind, yet she couldn\’t even accomplish the simple task of finishing every drop of the moldy mung bean paste.

Moldy, partly fermented mung bean paste… If you snore, don\’t open your mouth; if you wake up at night, don\’t sneak around.

May both of you be fine today. As a soul, Du Yinsui could only sigh, powerless to help.

Ignoring everyone else, that mung bean cake supposedly only for the \"sick\" was truly a timely blessing for Du Yinsui last night!

The high energy from the mix of sugar and oil far exceeded ordinary gruel, even though it was a bit moldy. The long-lost taste lifted her spirits. At the same time, the faint connection between her soul and body, the reduced pain, and the brief return of her enhanced sense of smell reassured her that here, as in the apocalypse, she could use food to strengthen herself.

As long as she had enough food, the poison couldn\’t claim her life. Perhaps if she ate enough, that nightly \"alarm\" would gradually quiet down, and regaining control of her body might not be just a dream.

Then the question was, where could she find enough food?

In the moments her sense of smell returned, Du Yinsui could tell that the amount Jiang Wu fed her was more than two people\’s average meal. Yet, it was still too little for this body.

Now, the only thing she could hope for was… the handful of moldy mung bean cake crumbs the little one held.

Through wind and rain, she would wait for it tonight!

Who would have thought that what she initially dismissed as a child\’s leftover spoiled snack would become the future she longed for?

Just as Du Yinsui lamented the uncertainty of life, the guards came to assemble the group.

The young guard finally brought less bad news. The post station agreed to sell the old wooden cart to Jiang Wu for five black bread loaves, to be deducted from their evening meals.

Though food was crucial, the cart was urgently needed, so Jiang Wu had no choice but to accept.

As for how they would manage without evening meals for the next five days… living hand-to-mouth as they were, what else could they do?

The young guard temporarily loosened Jiang Wu\’s shackles to help move the debris piled on the wooden cart. Only after pulling the entire cart out did they realize why it had been discarded in what seemed like a junk room.

The cart\’s frame and wheels were intact, but the planks were rotten. Just from pulling it out, they cracked and collapsed into ruins.

\"Take two boards from over there, make do for now,\" Wu Li said, seeing Zhao Qi loitering outside and not wanting to cause trouble. He pointed to two thin, long, mold-blackened boards from the pile.

Seeing those frail boards, Jiang Wu shuddered and turned to look in the debris pile, hoping to find something sturdier and more reliable.

Outside, guards were calling for people to relieve themselves and line up. Jiang Wu\’s desperation clouded his vision, causing dizziness as the pile of debris seemed to collapse toward him. He swayed back, thankfully caught by a hand.

\"Fixing the cart?\" Aunt Tian slowly withdrew her hand as if she had just casually helped, smiled at Wu Li, and pointed to a shed across the courtyard. \"There\’s an old door by my firewood pile; I was going to chop it for kindling. If you want it, why not take it and try?\"

Wu Li glanced at the old woman who had wandered to the door, saw her turn to fiddle with beans hanging under the eaves, and ignored her casual offer. He then said to Jiang Wu, \"Come with me to move it.\"

Jiang Wu hesitated, looking back at the room where Du Yinsui lay alone while the others went to relieve themselves.

\"Come on!\" Wu Li, already several steps away, nudged him and whispered, \"Do you want Zhao Qi to help you?\"

Alarmed, Jiang Wu glanced at Zhao Qi, who was tying up the carriage.

\"Right,\" Jiang Wu replied quickly, seeing his teacher return with the little one, easing his worry a bit. He followed Wu Li toward the kitchen to find the door.

Unbeknownst to Jiang Wu, the person he was worried about was having her clothes… lifted by someone.