Chapter 41 Danger Approaching

Chapter 41 Danger Approaching

Jiang Shengan leaned against the cart and slowly spoke, his voice tinged with urgency: "Well? Did Cheng Lanzhou agree?"

Jiang Songzhi smiled with a hint of relief and nodded: "Yes, he agreed to join forces with us and look after each other on the way. This is all thanks to my little sister; she came up with the idea."

Jiang Yutang smiled and explained simply, "I promised them that I would provide them with clean food along the way, and I would also help treat anyone who got sick. They thought about it and agreed."

Upon hearing this, Mu couldn't help but sigh, "It's fortunate that you know medicine, otherwise, given our current situation, the Cheng family might not have agreed. Medicine can truly save lives in critical moments."

Jiang Shengan listened and nodded with satisfaction, his eyes full of pride: "Yes, it was the right choice when I insisted on sending you to study medicine."

Hearing her family's praise, Jiang Yutang secretly breathed a sigh of relief and couldn't help but feel fortunate that she had chosen medicine as her major in college, as her basic medical skills and first aid knowledge would always come in handy.

If I had made a mistake and chosen to major in preschool education, would I still be able to reason with thugs and sing "Clap Your Hands" to them now in the face of these crises?

That's ridiculous!

Jiang Sumin stared at her face thoughtfully for a while before asking, "What about the Cheng family's grain? How come you're so lucky to find it every day?"

Jiang Yutang looked away, paused for a moment, and answered seriously, "There will always be a way."

Seeing this, everyone understood the importance of taking things one step at a time, and there was nothing they could do about worrying now.

Jiang Songzhi quickly told everyone, "Now that the matter is resolved, everyone should rest. We still have to travel tomorrow, so don't overwork yourselves."

Everyone nodded in agreement, and Jiang Sumin couldn't resist teasing, "Finally, I can get a good night's sleep. Before, I was always worried that someone was playing tricks on me, and I didn't dare to sleep too soundly at night."

Seeing her family members looking relaxed, Jiang Yutang couldn't help but smile. Just as she was about to close her eyes, she heard Jiang Huaiyu's voice calling out to her soul from the other side.

She suddenly opened her eyes and saw the other person looking at her with a mournful gaze.

Jiang Huaiyu lowered her voice, afraid of disturbing others: "Why didn't you take me with you when you went to negotiate with the Cheng family?"

Jiang Yutang wore a troubled smile, wondering if she could take him with her. Jiang Songzhi was willing to kneel before Cheng Lanzhou for the sake of his family; if it were Jiang Huaiyu, he might have pulled out a dagger and fought Cheng Lanzhou on the spot.

She could only pretend not to hear and shift the blame to Jiang Songzhi: "It's my brother's idea, there's nothing I can do about it."

Jiang Songzhi, who was sleeping on the other side, reached out from under the thick woolen cloth and scratched his reddened ear.

As soon as it was light, the exile procession set off again.

In the past, when traveling, the Jiang family and the Cheng family would always deliberately avoid each other. One family would walk to the east side of the group, while the other family would move to the south side, and they would rarely even meet.

But today was different. Perhaps because they had reached a cooperation agreement last night, the two families tacitly moved closer to the middle of the group, keeping a distance of seven or eight steps between them. This way, they didn't appear to be deliberately close, but they could ensure that if the other side made any unusual moves, they could immediately provide support.

Jiang Yutang walked in the middle of the Jiang family's procession, occasionally glancing back unconsciously. She could always see Cheng Lanzhou's family following not far behind, with Lin Shi and Cheng Dai'er walking in front and Cheng Lanzhou bringing up the rear, expressionless but vigilant.

Occasionally, when their eyes meet, Jiang Yutang will immediately look away as if nothing happened, but she also notices that the other person's gaze towards her is less disgusted than before.

During the midday break, the refugees found places to eat their dry rations. Jiang Yutang took out beef jerky and wafers from his bundle.

She set off towards the Cheng family's house, handing the items to Cheng Dai'er: "Try these, they're more filling than dry biscuits."

Lin and Cheng Dai'er had never seen such exquisitely packaged food before. As soon as they opened the packaging of the beef jerky, the aroma of spices and meat wafted out.

Cheng Daier took a bite, and the chewy texture and savory flavor of the beef spread in her mouth. Her eyes lit up instantly: "This...this is so delicious!"

Lin also tried a piece, and the tense lines on her face gradually softened, revealing a childlike joy.

Cheng Lanzhou remained silent throughout, simply sitting to the side with a calm expression, slowly chewing on the beef jerky.

Thinking the other person was worried about not having enough food, she quickly said, "Don't worry, I know a merchant who can buy these things, and there will be more later, so don't be stingy."

As soon as she finished speaking, Cheng Lanzhou looked up at her, his eyes filled with obvious suspicion and inquiry.

"What merchant would follow the exile caravan all the way? The exile route is unpredictable and the journey is uncertain. What merchant would do such a high-risk business?"

Jiang Yutang's heart skipped a beat. Sure enough, Cheng Lanzhou was not someone who could be easily fooled; he could find fault with any excuse.

She immediately shut her mouth, knowing that continuing would only reveal more, and simply waved her hand: "Whether you eat or not is up to you, there's enough food anyway, you don't need to worry about the source." After saying that, she turned around and went back to her own group.

The whole day went relatively peacefully; no more refugees came to cause trouble, and no accidents occurred.

However, Cheng Lanzhou noticed that there were always a few unfamiliar refugees who would occasionally peek in their direction out of the corner of their eye, their eyes darting around. Once they made eye contact with him, they would immediately lower their heads and pretend to be on their way.

He quietly kept this discovery in mind, planning to mention it to the Jiang family later that night.

The Jiang family was also filled with emotion.

Jiang Shengan said in a low voice, "Fortunately, we joined forces with the Cheng family."

Jiang Yutang nodded, feeling relieved. With Cheng Lanzhou around, there was at least an extra layer of protection.

When they stopped to rest in the evening, a few refugees came over and timidly asked Jiang Yutang if they could have some more ginger soup.

Jiang Yutang glanced at the few pieces of ginger left in his bundle, then simply put them all into the pot, added water, and boiled the last pot of ginger soup, which he then distributed to the refugees who came to ask for soup.

"This is the last bowl. We've run out of ginger, so please make do with this to warm yourselves up."

The refugees quickly expressed their gratitude, sipped the hot soup, and showed satisfied expressions on their faces.

Watching this scene, Jiang Yutang felt even more convinced of her profession. The mission of saving lives was too heavy, but the achievement after saving lives was real and tangible.

Cheng Lanzhou was gathered with the Jiang brothers, speaking in hushed tones about the anomalies they had discovered that day.

Jiang Yutang followed Mu and Zhu, carrying the pot towards the river behind the woods.

We were having instant noodles for dinner, but we decided to cook them somewhere less crowded. We decided to go by the river and chat during this quiet moment.

"After walking this road, I noticed that we've all gotten quite tanned."

Mu squatted by the river, rolled up her sleeves to fetch water, and looked at the uneven skin tone on her arms. She couldn't help but laugh and said, "Especially my little sister, who used to be as white as a pearl, now has a honey-colored hue."

Madam Zhu nodded in agreement: "That's right! But my little sister has a good foundation, so even if she gets tanned, she'll still look beautiful."

Upon hearing this, Jiang Yutang couldn't help but complain, "I've almost forgotten what I look like now! I haven't looked in a mirror in ages."

Upon hearing this, Mu secretly took out a small bronze mirror, about the size of a palm, from her bosom, handed it to Jiang Yutang, and said with a smile, "I have another one hidden here."

Jiang Yutang accepted the bronze mirror with delight. Although the mirror surface was not particularly bright, it was still enough to make out a person's image.

She gently brushed the dust off the mirror and was about to bring it closer to examine it closely when her gaze inadvertently swept over the reflection in the mirror.

Behind the bushes not far away, several furtive figures were huddled, their heads slightly peeking out, their eyes fixed on them as if spying on something.

Jiang Yutang's heart tightened instantly, the smile on her face vanished in an instant, and her hand holding the bronze mirror unconsciously tightened.

She didn't make a fuss immediately, but instead subtly tilted the bronze mirror slightly, using the reflection to observe the figure more carefully.

"What's wrong?" Mu asked softly when she saw her suddenly freeze.

Jiang Yutang slowly put down the bronze mirror, winked at the two of them, and said in a low voice, "Don't look back, there's someone watching us from behind the bushes."