Chapter 45 Men's "Unspeakable Secrets"

Chapter 45 Men's "Unspeakable Secrets"

Jiang Yutang panicked when she saw him holding her foot without moving it for a long time. Could it be that her foot smelled bad because she had been traveling for a long time and he was disgusted by it?

She awkwardly shrank her toes, her voice barely audible: "I'm...I'm sorry..."

When Cheng Lanzhou heard her apology, he was stunned for a moment before realizing what she was thinking. The complex emotions in his eyes were instantly replaced by helplessness, and he regained his usual composure.

He didn't speak, but he tightened his fingers slightly, grasped her ankle, and gently twisted his wrist—with a soft "click," the bone instantly returned to its place.

Jiang Yutang felt a brief stinging pain in her ankle, and then the excruciating pain subsided by most of it, and even the previous swelling was reduced a lot.

She looked at Cheng Lanzhou with surprise and gratitude in her eyes: "Thank you! My foot really does seem to hurt less!"

Cheng Lanzhou gently put her foot down, without looking at her, but just pursed her lips, said "Be careful not to touch it again," and then turned and left.

The Jiang family members breathed a sigh of relief. Madam Yun quickly took out clean strips of cloth and carefully wrapped her ankle, telling her to rest well for the next few days.

But with this mishap, how could the camp possibly quiet down?

The silence was shattered by the angry roars of the bailiffs.

After the bodies of the four thugs were discovered, the four constables escorting them were furious, feeling that the refugees were disrespecting them by killing the criminals on their own. They immediately called Cheng Lanzhou over, cracking their whips loudly, and threatened to make an example of him and teach him a lesson so that everyone would know the rules.

"I never expected that the former great general would be so unruly. Has he forgotten that he is now just a lowly commoner!"

Upon seeing this, Cheng Dai'er immediately took out a few gold leaves from her bundle and quickly stepped forward to hand them over: "Sir, this is all a misunderstanding. Those people are villains who wanted to harm us. My brother was only protecting himself. Please accept this small token as a gift to buy everyone a pot of wine. I beg you to be lenient and let this matter go."

But the four constables stared wide-eyed at the small amount of silver, their faces full of disdain.

One of the fat constables sneered, "Four lives lost and this is all the money you get? If you want to get away with this, hand over all your family's wealth, or don't blame us for being impolite!"

Cheng Dai'er's face turned pale, and she looked at Lin Shi behind her, at a loss.

The road to exile is still long. If we hand over all our money now, we won't have anything to eat or use. How will our family survive until we reach Danzhou?

But seeing the whip in the bailiff's hand, she gritted her teeth and reached into her bundle to retrieve the last bit of her savings.

Cheng Lanzhou must not suffer any more new injuries.

"Wait!" Jiang Yutang suddenly spoke up. She supported Yun Shi's arm and limped forward to stop Cheng Dai'er.

Then, she gave the four constables a confident smile, mysteriously moved closer, turned her back to them, took out a small white medicine bottle from her bosom, poured out two white pills, and handed them over.

No one else could hear what they were saying.

The fat constable took the pill, examined it closely, and frowned as he asked, "Are you serious? Does this stuff really have the effects you describe?"

"Don't worry, sir," Jiang Yutang patted his chest and assured him, "I'll be in the ranks for a long time. If I'm lying, you can come and deal with me anytime!"

The four constables exchanged glances, examined the pills carefully, and ultimately believed Jiang Yutang's words, waving her away.

But Jiang Yutang had only taken two steps after turning around when another thin constable called out to her, "Wait! Do you have any other medicine in your pocket? Hand over the other dose as well!"

Jiang Yutang was stunned, then her face showed an expression of disbelief and amusement.

How could she forget that when she was packing her bag this morning, she also stuffed the Wuji Baifeng Pills into it?

"Brothers, are you sure you want this thing too?"

The skinny constable curled his lip, revealing his displeasure: "Didn't you say this thing is very nutritious? Now that I'm giving it to you, you're reluctant to part with it?"

"Of course not, it's just a matter of a word from you."

Helpless, she could only reluctantly take out the opened box of Wuji Baifeng Wan (a traditional Chinese medicine) and hand it over.

The thin constable took the box, opened it, and saw that the pills inside were coated with red wax and looked exquisite. He immediately said to the other three constables, "Look, this thing looks like a magic pill! The white medicine we just had was novel, but this one looks much more precious. Let's split it equally!"

The four constables immediately gathered together, excitedly dividing up the pills and the black chicken and white phoenix pills, completely forgetting about the money they had been asked for earlier.

Seeing their excited expressions, Jiang Yutang hesitated and pressed her lips to her lips.

I wonder what their expressions would be if they knew the purpose of Wuji Baifeng Wan (乌鸡白凤丸).

On the way back, Cheng Lanzhou walked silently beside Jiang Yutang and couldn't help but ask, "What did you give the constable just now?"

Jiang Yutang blinked, deliberately keeping everyone in suspense: "It's a magic pill for men, capable of curing their 'unspeakable troubles'."

Cheng Lanzhou frowned, clearly not understanding what this "unspeakable secret" was.

But Jiang Huaiyu suddenly burst out laughing. He put his arm around Jiang Songzhi's shoulder and whispered a few words in his ear.

After hearing this, Jiang Songzhi's face instantly showed an awkward expression of wanting to laugh but not being able to. He secretly glanced at Jiang Yutang, then at Cheng Lanzhou, and finally held it in.

Seeing the two's strange reactions, Cheng Lanzhou's doubts deepened, but she didn't press them further, only her eyes held a hint of inquiry.

The fire by the river was rekindled, casting a mix of light and shadow on everyone's faces.

Having experienced today's pursuit and turmoil with the yamen runners, the Jiang and Cheng families were able to sit together for once, discussing their future strategies around the fire.

Cheng Lanzhou held a twig between his fingers and gently traced lines on the ground, his tone solemn.

"Only four people were dealt with today. I suspect there are other members of the 'Black Hawk Gang' lurking in the team. Their actions today were probably just a small test. There will definitely be more moves later. We must be careful."

Jiang Huaiyu nodded in agreement: "That's right. Next, we need to arrange for people to take turns on duty, and we can't let our guard down at night. In addition, we need to pay close attention to the movements of those unfamiliar refugees, and notify them immediately if we find anything unusual."

The men chatted amongst themselves, discussing everything from duty arrangements to coping strategies, their atmosphere serious yet harmonious.

The past estrangement has gradually diminished in the face of a shared crisis.

On the other side, the women gathered around the pot where the noodles were being cooked.

Jiang Yutang took out more than a dozen packets of instant noodles from his bundle, tore open the packaging, and threw the noodles one by one into the boiling pot. The rich aroma instantly filled the air.

Yun leaned closer and whispered worriedly, "This smells so good, won't it attract other refugees? If the yamen runners see it, they'll come and confiscate the pot again."