Chapter 39
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Chapter 39: "It wouldn’t be so soon. We hadn’t learned yet…"
Instant noodles, milk tea, hot pot, boxed meals…
Holding a large stone, then adding a small one, then another small stone…
The forest’s fragrance, the floral sea’s aroma, the open plain’s breath…
Wild sheep neck, roe deer neck, deer neck…
Imagine encountering begging children, fallen elders, unseen cries for help, carrying a "secret order" from superiors, or delivering a friend’s letter…
Every day brought new knowledge to learn.
Every day meant progress.
The two youngsters immersed themselves in effort and fascination, growing fonder of little Du girl daily—though that’s beside the point.
Qin Chongli believed his clever daughter-in-law must’ve noticed the underlying issue.
Though unspoken, Chu Xiulan hadn’t repeated for ages how nicely Jiang Wu and little Du girl complemented each other.
Indeed, since leaving Li Village, little Du girl had acted openly and honestly. Her urgency to sharpen their skills and minds was plain. Some truths needed no voicing; silent understanding sufficed.
But…
Perhaps not…
This marked their forty-second exile day. Far from the Capital in Central State, they’d likely crossed most of Xizhou. Further north through Daizhou would lead to Linzhou—their final destination.
Qin Chongli couldn’t guess when, where, or how little Du girl might leave. But clearly, it would be before entering Linzhou. Bordering Cang State and garrisoned by General Han (the imperial concubine’s brother), Linzhou posed too many risks.
Frankly, it felt shameful.
When little Du girl regained mobility after leaving Li Village and began "teaching according to aptitude," Qin Chongli had suspected outside backing. Yet recalling her two suicide attempts early on, he dismissed the thought.
Regardless of little Du girl’s contradictions, possible patrons, or motives…
As she often repeated after posing him questions: "When matters stay unclear, judge actions—not intentions."
By "actions," they owed little Du girl immeasurably.
Who’d imagined starting destitute, yet by day forty possessing clothes, food, a donkey cart, medicine, plus cartloads of smoked meat and furs ample for winter outfits?
Exile’s suffering seemed concentrated in the first ten days; afterward, the road smoothed. Even their initial blisters had healed during thirty donkey cart days.
Without little Du girl, their current comfort seemed impossible—Qin Chongli doubted they’d survive intact to Linzhou.
Truly, exile’s harshness and the guards’ cruelty exceeded his prison expectations.
Exile meant many died en route.
Even if Wei family girl claimed Tan Wang’s convoy had fewer losses than most, "fewer" didn’t mean "none."
Shortly after leaving Li Village, some Kong family members—likely poisoned by wild plants or mushrooms—vomited and had diarrhea after supper, deteriorating rapidly. Night had fallen at their riverside camp. Unwilling to risk travel, Tan Wang noted no nearby healers anyway.
The guards offered anti-diarrheal medicine, but it proved ineffective—soon blood stained the vomit.
Du Yinsui had Jiang Wu keep others back while she examined them. Returning, she confirmed it wasn’t plague, but predicted no further guard intervention: the afflicted included three Kong concubines, one illegitimate granddaughter, and two illegitimate grandsons. Kong Fangqiu fretted only over his grandson; the guards cared less.
Though tragic, it exceeded their capacity to resolve.
Unexpectedly, a young Kong man rushed out—kowtowing first to the guards, then the Liu family, before prostrating himself before their group.
At that time, Qin Chongli had already received several lessons from little Du girl and believed the proper response should be a polite refusal. Yet unexpectedly, little Du girl gave away the medicine. Though she told the man it came from the guards—just like what was given to the Kong family—she still handed it over.
But it didn’t end there. When the young man went to kowtow before the Wei family, little Du girl pulled Qin Chongli and Jiang Wu aside, instructing them to carefully observe the man’s appearance and expression. In life, one might meet swindlers or madmen. According to little Du girl, this man was very close to madness.
That night, though it was Chu Xiulan’s turn to keep watch, little Du girl stayed awake. So did Qin Chongli and Jiang Wu, unsettled by her alertness. Late into the night, unusual noises arose from the Kong family’s area. Little Du girl was the first to grab firewood from the campfire, handing a piece to each awake companion. Chaos erupted instantly, and the guards reacted swiftly—but not quite fast enough.
Only at dawn, when Ma Datou arrived with the donkey cart looking grim, did they learn what had happened. That night, none of Kong Fangqiu’s three senior concubines survived. Both young non-legitimate grandsons perished too. Only the little granddaughter had some luck and pulled through.
The commotion they’d heard wasn’t the Kong family dying, but the medicine-seeking man—now motherless and sonless—losing his mind. He’d thrust a burning stick into Kong Fangqiu. When guards rushed over, Kong Fangqiu had a gaping stomach wound. Unlike his family, he was valuable; the guards hurried off at first light to find him a doctor.
The wealthy Kong Fangqiu had bought much grain from the guards. Yet he begrudged the cost and distributed it stingily, creating strict hierarchies. His three concubines received the least and were starving. While gathering firewood the previous evening, one concubine found a large mushroom and hid it in the cooking pot. After receiving their hot gruel, the three secretly tore up the mushroom, boiled it in their bowls, and ate it—even sharing some with their young grandchildren. This led to the night’s tragedy.
The attacker was Kong Fangqiu’s second non-legitimate son, Kong Er. When guards intervened, Kong Er tried to attack them too—in his eyes, the guards profiteering on grain were as guilty as his miserly father. But firewood was no match for blades. By departure time, Kong Er wore full shackles and would remain bound until Linzhou.
Ma Datou found the whole affair deeply unsettling. Kong Er’s murderous glare seemed to target them all, making the guards uneasy even with him restrained. That night, the exile group lost five people. Qin Chongli and Jiang Wu learned to either avoid madmen or not provoke those they couldn’t escape.
From that night until this forty-second day of exile, two more were lost. One was Kong Fangqiu’s youngest legitimate son, accidentally killed when Kong Fangqiu threw a stone at the re-attacking Kong Er. The other was a Liu family concubine who fell from a slope while stopping children’s play, breaking her neck instantly.
Strangely, this second loss struck Jiang Wu and the others harder than the dramatic first. It echoed how Du Yinsui had nearly died falling from a similar slope. Of over thirty exiles, nearly half the journey was done, yet seven were gone. This despite all buying grain from guards, with no beatings or starvation deaths.
Qin Chongli sometimes wondered: without little Du girl, how would they—the old, the young, the despairing, the penniless—have survived? Frankly, they were her shackles. Without them, she’d fare better. Escaping exile is hard; living as a fugitive without papers is harder still. Yet Qin Chongli felt certain little Du girl could manage it. Thus, the final question remained.
Let’s set aside the younger ones for now. He understood, and presumably, his daughter-in-law was also aware, but what about Jiang Wu?
When he first started the exile journey, Jiang Wu was tied up by guilt and self-blame, silent like a shadow. Day by day, he tried to be useful, secretly smiling and blushing when little Du girl praised him. Did he have any clue about little Du girl’s plans?
Qin Chongli thought about it for days and felt Jiang Wu should have known. Otherwise, if something unexpected happened, it would hit him too hard, and he’d be left alone to handle it.
Qin Chongli wanted to find a chance to talk with Jiang Wu, but little Du girl’s sharp ears made it tough to bring it up without her hearing. Still, Qin Chongli didn’t expect an opportunity to come so fast.
On the forty-second day of exile, when the guards urged them to gather firewood that evening, Du Yinsui pushed Jiang Wu back down to sit: "The weather’s been cloudy lately; stay and dry our damp clothes by the fire."
The reason Du Yinsui gave was very poor. After all, the fire burned all night; clothes could be dried anytime. But they were used to little Du girl’s orders by then. Jiang Wu hesitated and stood up again, but couldn’t budge Du Yinsui’s strong hand and had to stay.
Qin Chongli finally got to speak alone with Jiang Wu, though he stumbled for a while before saying heavily, "Jiang Wu, do you know why little Du girl has been making you learn so much and quizzing me daily?"
Jiang Wu stopped searching through the bag, head down, and after a pause muttered, "She’s afraid we won’t take care of ourselves."
"And why is she afraid…" Qin Chongli tried to push further but was cut off by Jiang Wu.
"Because she wants to leave, to go alone." Jiang Wu looked at Qin Chongli with a bitter smile, "I’m not Yao Yao or Haoyang. I feel what you feel."
Did he? Qin Chongli stroked his beard, since Jiang Wu had seemed eager to improve, wanting little Du girl’s praise…
"All because I dragged her down," Jiang Wu lowered his eyes, "Luckily, she’s really strong."
"As long as you’re ready." Qin Chongli sighed, "Little Du girl can live well anywhere."
"Teacher… when do you think she will…" Jiang Wu found it hard to ask.
"Likely before we enter Linzhou. With her plans for us, she’ll pick a good time." Qin Chongli had thought about this long, blurted it out, then paused.
Jiang Wu also paused before jumping up, "She didn’t let me go with her just now!"
"No, no, stay calm… she took my daughter-in-law with her." Qin Chongli realized his mistake and felt a moment of scare.
"Oh, right, Sister Chu went." Jiang Wu slowly sat back down, also feeling suddenly weak.
Seeing their own uselessness, both couldn’t help but share a bitter smile.
"I still can’t cut a deer’s throat well… she won’t leave so soon…" Jiang Wu pressed his chest, trying to soothe himself.
Qin Chongli looked up, "You’ve tried that deer’s throat many times; if you keep failing, the deer’s head would rot. Are you doing it badly to keep her here?"
"I’m not!" Jiang Wu waved his hands fast.
Qin Chongli chuckled, "So you really can’t do it."
Jiang Wu copied Qin Chongli, "Teacher, you’ve been getting lots of questions wrong lately, are you answering wrong to make her stay?"
"I’m not!" Qin Chongli huffed, mustache puffing with anger, "Last night’s question, whether to save or not save someone who collapsed from thirst on the road, you got it right!"
"So, Teacher, you can’t do it either." Jiang Wu awkwardly copied Qin Chongli’s smile, then stared dazedly where Du Yinsui had gone, murmuring, "It won’t be that soon; we haven’t learned enough yet…"
He hadn’t had the chance to prepare a farewell Gift.
