Chapter 126: Cannot Enter the City
After chatting with Ju Hua for a bit and scoring a piece of dried meat from her aunt, Gu Fei ambled back home for dinner just as the meal was almost ready.
Ever since Su Chen and his companions started eating with them, they had meat at every meal.
They alternated between wolf meat and pork.
Today, they were having dumplings.
Mrs. Chen was a generous person. Her own family ate dumplings with wild vegetable filling, while she cooked pork and cabbage dumplings for Su Chen and his two companions. After all, she felt a little guilty about taking their one hundred taels of silver. Of course, Gu Fei, as the ’patient’, also got to enjoy the pork and cabbage dumplings.
However, Chen Hu and Zhang Ze had huge appetites. Each of them ate thirty dumplings and still seemed hungry.
Mrs. Chen scooped out a few more wild vegetable dumplings for them.
After dinner, they moved around for a bit before going to sleep.
Su Chen took out his horse-tail toothbrush, applied some tooth powder, and carefully brushed his teeth. Then, Chen Hu brought him some hot water to wash his face.
No matter how scarce water was, this was something Su Chen did every day without fail.
Zhang Ze laid out Su Chen’s bedding. Just as Su Chen was about to slip under the covers, he glanced over at Gu Fei, as if guided by some unseen force.
Gu Fei had just taken off her sheepskin jacket, leaving her in a snug-fitting inner tunic. The pink tunic perfectly outlined the gentle curves of her young figure.
Su Chen’s mind went BOOM. His ear tips turned crimson, and he quickly turned away, diving under his covers.
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In the morning, Boss Zhang finally woke up. Gu Zhang gave some more medicinal herbs to the Yu Family, telling them to brew them for Boss Zhang to drink.
The Yu Family was endlessly grateful, stopping just short of kowtowing to Gu Zhang.
The next few days were peaceful. Water wasn’t as scarce here; they could draw water from any place that had a well.
At noon that day, Uncle Ma pointed ahead and said, "This is already the territory of Huainan County. See that city up ahead? Once we pass through it, we’ll have truly entered Huainan County."
Everyone cheered. Entering Huainan County meant that all that was left was the journey itself, without the constant fear and anxiety.
Soon, the convoy arrived before the city. The city wall was wedged between two mountains; in times of war, it would surely be a critical pass.
The number of refugees below the city wall was unprecedented, packed together so densely they were like a swarm. The open ground before the city gate was covered everywhere with makeshift shelters.
The convoy had no choice but to stop on the outskirts. Gu Fei stood on the shaft of a cart and looked into the distance, seeing the city gate guarded by a heavy contingent of soldiers.
Gu Zhang got off the cart and, together with Gu Qing, pushed through the crowd of refugees. As they approached the city gate, they saw several rows of soldiers standing along the base of the wall. A few officials were seated at the gate, inspecting the household register of a young couple holding a child.
Gu Zhang stepped forward, about to ask a question, when he heard one of the officials say, "Go on, get out of here! People from Hedong County can’t enter the city."
A Government Official next to him added, "Can’t you see that huge notice? All refugees from West Qin County, West Mountain County, and Hedong County are forbidden from entering the city."
The couple continued to plead, but a soldier from the side came over and drove them away with his blade.
Gu Zhang and Gu Qing hurried over to read the notice. It was written clearly: entry into the city required a household registration check. Anyone whose registration was from one of the listed counties was strictly forbidden from entering, unless they had an official document issued by the government.
The two exchanged a look, their expressions turning grim.
They turned and squeezed back through the throng of refugees. Gu Zhang explained the situation to the group. Everyone was dumbfounded. They had gone through hell and high water to get here, only to be denied entry!
Going back was impossible. Those counties were all in chaos, and besides, there was no way to survive there.
The village chief looked expectantly at Uncle Ma. "Uncle Ma, can we go around?"
Uncle Ma pointed to the mountain cliffs on either side of the city wall. "See for yourself, old brother. Do you think an ordinary person could climb that mountain?
Gu Fei looked over and saw that the cliffs on both sides were high and steep. Unless one possessed the legendary Qinggong, who could possibly climb them?