roccoschili Chapter 141 Departure
Chapter 141 Departure
That night, Cheng Lizheng prepared a table of food to entertain the county magistrate, and Wei Qinglang was also invited to have dinner together. He also asked Cheng Zhengyi to help send his two younger brothers back to the school when he went to deliver the goods the next day, and to bring the September salary of ten taels of silver.
Wei Nanxing wanted to go into the mountains with his two younger brothers, so there was no one to escort them. Fortunately, there was Cheng Zhengyi, a trustworthy person, so it was not a big problem.
While the family was having dinner, Cheng Shuang also instructed Cheng Guqiu and Cheng Pan on some things, mainly that someone needed to keep an eye on the people coming to Taibai Tower to pick up the food. Cheng Pan was also familiar with Manager Zhou, so this was a good opportunity for her to learn how to deal with businessmen.
After dinner, I was busy packing things for my two younger brothers. In addition to some daily necessities, the weather was getting a bit cooler in September, so they had to bring a few more sets of clothes.
After making sure that everything was arranged properly, Cheng Shuang went back to her room and went to bed early without waiting for Wei Qinglang to come back.
Nothing happened that night, and she was woken up by Wei Qinglang before dawn the next day.
After washing up, the two of them were afraid that Cheng Guqiu would come in to clean the room during this period, so they did not forget to tidy up the room.
Wei Qinglang put his pillow on Cheng Shuang's bed, then put away all the other things and took down the curtain.
Wei Nanxing also got up. He found a thick rope and tied a backpack at each end. Then he put the backpack on the mule's back and put the things he wanted to carry in it.
Wei Qinglang asked County Magistrate Zheng to prepare some necessary things, as they didn't actually have much.
The two brothers each carried a bow and arrow, as well as a quiver full of arrows. Cheng Shuang also brought her small backpack, thinking that if she came across any precious herbs, she could bring them back.
Just before leaving, Cheng Guqiu got up and said anxiously that he wanted to cook breakfast for them.
Cheng Shuang quickly told her to stop working, pulled up the mule, and warned, "Chen'er and Xiao Si are going back to the academy, so don't let them oversleep. Uncle Cheng will come to pick them up later, so make sure you bring everything with you."
Cheng Guqiu said, "Don't worry, my aunt is at home and will definitely take care of you. You must be careful in the mountains!"
Cheng Shuang nodded. "Yes, we will be back in a few days."
The three men said goodbye to their elders and went out to join up with the main group. The people in the threshing ground had also gotten up and were packing up their tents and packing their bags.
The dismantled tents were placed on the backs of mules. Two large symmetrical baskets were tied to the backs of the mules and horses. The baskets were used to carry things. Each tent weighed about 20 kilograms. Two mules carried the tents, and the others carried other things.
The officer had nothing on him except a sword at his waist and a package containing thick clothes.
Mules are strong and a mule can easily carry five or six hundred kilograms. However, in order to increase travel speed and conserve energy, Master Lin still instructed his men that each mule should not carry more than three hundred kilograms.
After all the luggage was packed, the team set off towards the mountains facing the rising sun.
Everyone was traveling light, and the mules and horses had steady and powerful hooves, so as long as the slope wasn't too steep, going up or down the mountain was no problem. The large group was moving quite fast at the beginning.
Cheng Shuang and Wei Qinglang led the way together, followed by He Zhou, the county lieutenant of Qushan County, and Wei Nanxing, who was leading a mule.
He Zhou is very young, only twenty-four or twenty-five years old, with regular features, strong and capable. He was promoted after Zheng County Magistrate took office. He has strong ability to solve cases and his kung fu is the best in the entire county government.
Wei Nanxing had been chatting with him. Cheng Shuang overheard them. It seemed that the two of them got along quite well and were talking about archery and martial arts.
Next was Magistrate Zheng. Although he was a civil servant, he was young and in good health, so he didn't fall behind.
In the entire team, only Master Lin and two mining engineers were a bit older. After walking for a long time, they were very tired. County Magistrate Zheng ordered them to slow down, since they were not in a hurry anyway.
When we reached the edge of the old forest, it was almost noon, and it took us longer than the last time we went into the mountains to collect herbs.
The large army found a shady place near the water source to rest and each took out some dry food to eat. A few officers built a simple stove with stones and took out a small iron pot to boil water and cook dried meat.
County Magistrate Zheng, dressed in casual clothes, sat on a rock, repeatedly reading the paper translated by the Feng Shui master. The lawyer came over with a kettle and said, "Sir, please have some water."
County Magistrate Zheng took a sip from the canteen, wiped the sweat off his face with his sleeve, and turned to look at Wei Qinglang. "Master Wei, at our speed, how long do you think it will take us to reach our destination?"
Wei Qinglang put his hands together and looked into the distance, "It should be around tomorrow afternoon."
County Magistrate Zheng was a little worried. "But, I see a vast expanse of mountains and dense forests ahead. Will I really be able to tell the direction once I get in?"
The size of the forest was far beyond his expectations. They were like a lone boat in the vast ocean. If they were trapped, they would be helpless.
Wei Qinglang smiled, "Don't worry, sir. I've been in there more than once and know how to find the way. I will definitely not let you get lost."
Seeing his confident look, County Magistrate Zheng felt relieved. The people under his command all had wives, children and elderly parents, and he didn't want any accidents to happen.
Cheng Shuang was sweating all the way. She wet a handkerchief by the stream and wiped her face. Then she turned around and winked at Wei Qinglang!
Wei Qinglang immediately understood what she meant. This place was not far from where sweet potatoes and potatoes were grown, and it was just a short walk upstream.
They had discussed this before and decided to take this opportunity to gain a clear pass with the county magistrate. After all, once this kind of grain with astonishing yield was released, it would sooner or later attract the attention of the court.
Cheng Shuang took out half of the pumpkin cakes that Cheng Guqiu had made yesterday, gave some to Wei Qinglang and Wei Nanxing, and took the rest to County Magistrate Zheng.
"Sir, please try this pumpkin pie."
County Magistrate Zheng took one and took a bite, nodding. "Hmm, it tastes really good. But what kind of melon is pumpkin? I've never heard of it before."
"We bought these seeds from foreign merchants when we went to the capital. They can be used to cook and make cakes and pastries."
County Magistrate Zheng nodded. "Since our dynasty opened up to foreign trade, many rare and exotic goods have flowed in. However, few have been as daring as you two to try them. It seems I must learn from you."
Cheng Shuang smiled, gave some to Master Lin and the two mine engineers, then turned back to Wei Qinglang and said, "Husband, accompany me up there."
She didn't say what she was going to do. She was the only girl in the team, so she asked her husband to accompany her out of the team. Naturally, no one else asked, so the two of them just swam upstream.
After finding the sweet potatoes and potatoes they had planted before, the two took out tools from the space and dug up half a basket of sweet potatoes and some potatoes, then hurried back.
"Brother, sister-in-law, you have dug up sweet potatoes and potatoes again." Wei Nanxing ran over when he saw them coming back, and saw at a glance what was in the bamboo basket that Wei Qinglang was carrying.
Cheng Shuang smiled and nodded, "Yes, we found quite a few up there, so we dug some back."
Upon hearing this, the others stretched their necks, wanting to take a look at what it was. Wei Qinglang simply put the bamboo basket on the ground for them to see.
Master Lin also gathered around curiously and picked one up to study it. "What kind of medicinal herb is this?"
Cheng Shuang shook her head. "It's not a medicinal herb, it's something edible. Master Lin, you can try it. Wash it, peel off the skin, and you can eat it."
Upon hearing this, Master Lin washed one and actually took a knife to start peeling it.
Cheng Shuang glanced at County Magistrate Zheng, who was sitting still and wondering what he was thinking. Without getting anxious, she looked at He Zhou and asked, "Would you like to give it a try, County Magistrate He?"