Chapter 1555 - 1402: The Fake Commandery Princess 12
The weather has been very cold these two days, and Shuangshuang is on edge every day, afraid the few weak ones will fall ill.
She doesn’t dare stop the anti-cold medicine even for a day, and she brews a large amount each time, because the government officers are also afraid of catching cold and all drink it along with them.
The herbs Shuangshuang gathers have clearly been consumed a lot faster these two days. She is the only one doing herbal collection and processing, and she can’t go into the mountains to search, only pick what she finds walking along the roadside, so the quantity is limited to begin with.
Now the medicine to fend off wind and cold has been drunk for several days running, and it’s starting to run out. At most it will last another two days, and yet the weather keeps getting colder without stopping.
Now Ye Feiying, the Shen Family, Bai Menghan, and Jingfei are being carried on backs every day and have started to feel the cold. Sitting without moving makes one cold easily to begin with, and the few of them have already started wrapping themselves in quilts even in broad daylight.
Only, this way the burden on the ones carrying them has increased again. Shuangshuang and Fangchen can still manage, but Jingyi is starting to be unable to take it.
The quilts at this time are not fluffy soft cotton quilts, but kapok quilts. After long use the kapok gets compacted and very heavy, much heavier than cotton; on the back it’s like carrying another small child.
Jingyi is just an ordinary youth. Although he’s practiced Martial Power since childhood and has decent strength, he’s still a child not yet fully grown. Add to that the damage from his time in prison, and now another quilt of at least ten catties on top, and he simply can’t stand it.
In the end Shuangshuang had no choice but to have Jingyi only carry Jingfei, while the Shen Family and Bai Menghan squeeze together and sit on Shuangshuang’s back.
By now the Ye Family have a thorough understanding of Shuangshuang’s Innate Divine Strength. This was actually confirmed earlier when the carriage sank into a pit of soft earth and Shuangshuang casually pulled it out by herself.
Knowing Shuangshuang’s strength, they’re sure that carrying two people alone isn’t a problem, so they no longer keep objecting like before. They truly do need Shuangshuang’s help.
Like this they walked another two days. The weather grew colder still, as if once late autumn arrived it suddenly turned freezing. Life for those being carried became harder and harder; they weren’t tired, but they were freezing to death.
A new kapok quilt is still warm, but after long use, even wrapped around the body it doesn’t keep you warm enough; stiff and icy, it’s like a sheet of iron.
Not only are they not warm, there aren’t enough quilts either. They only have two carriages, yet have to carry luggage for almost thirty people; even packed to bursting, they can only bring so many things.
Jingfei shrank against Jingyi’s back, shivering nonstop, and complained aggrievedly to Shuangshuang: "Big Sister, I’m so cold."
Shuangshuang didn’t really have any solution, so she could only comfort her: "If you can’t stand it, take a couple of sips of the hot water in the bamboo tube. Once your stomach is warm, you won’t feel as cold.
The place we’re heading to, Nanzhao, is very warm. The closer we get, the milder it will be. For now we just have to endure a few more days. If you’re too cold, when we rest, your sister will light two more fires so you can warm yourself properly."
Jingfei sniffled, obediently stopped complaining about the cold, took out the bamboo tube she’d been clutching in her arms, drank a mouthful of the hot water inside, then handed it to Jingyi: "Big Brother, you and Big Sister should drink some too."
The hot water boiled in the morning is stored in bamboo tubes and kept hugged in Jingfei’s arms, serving both as a warm stove and to keep the water warm. But by now the water has only lukewarm heat left.
Jingyi drank some, then passed it to Shuangshuang. Shuangshuang took two swallows and didn’t feel much warmth at all; she was truly troubled now.
Given their current pace, and how quickly the weather is turning, it will take at least another month to reach somewhere relatively warm.
And their pace is too slow; they simply can’t outwalk the rate at which it’s getting colder. What’s more, this era is colder to begin with, and even the south is much colder than in modern times. Only in Nanzhao’s location can they truly escape the cold.
The weather keeps dropping, and if any of Ye Feiying, the Shen Family, or Bai Menghan catch a chill and fall sick, or suffer from water and soil incompatibility, it’ll be no small matter.
The bodies of these three are far too weak, and they have plenty of minor ailments. Right now they’re only holding themselves together on sheer willpower.
If they manage to get through the journey without collapsing, then once they arrive they can be properly nursed back to health, and their bodies can slowly recover. Nanzhao is basically a modern-day health resort, extremely beneficial to physical health.
But if they fall ill now, then all those ailments currently suppressed by willpower will seize the chance to flare up. The illness definitely won’t be mild, and more troublesome still is the issue of continuing on the road.
As exiled convicts, they have to keep traveling even if they’re sick. The reason exile has such a high death rate is exactly because people fall ill on the road from water and soil incompatibility and various other causes, and then die from lack of treatment and rest.
The only piece of good news right now is that they’re traveling on a broad, flat official road. The carriages run smoothly; they don’t have to keep jumping down to push, nor do they have to climb mountains and exhaust themselves.
Ever since Shuangshuang treated the government officer’s illness, these officials have been even more friendly toward her, and within the limits of their authority have given her greater freedom.
For example, before, Shuangshuang could only pick herbs that were close at hand on the roadside. Now, as long as she doesn’t go out of their line of sight, she can walk farther away to gather herbs.
During the journey, the noon rest has been extended, the evening stop brought earlier, and the morning departure pushed back. This way, the Ye Family gets more rest.
The officers don’t dare grant them any more privileges than this, but even these modest favors are precious for the Ye Family.
After they’d walked about half an hour more, the government officers had everyone halt for a midday rest and meal. Shuangshuang hurriedly took out the wild rabbits she’d already dressed, made a spicy stir-fried diced rabbit, and roasted rabbit legs.
Although they’d been eating rabbit for many days in a row, the officials were very satisfied just to have meat, and ate with great relish.
Thanks to Shuangshuang’s cooking skills, the Ye Family wasn’t sick of rabbit yet, it’s just that no one had much appetite, dampened by the cold.
The leading government officer habitually sent people ahead to see if there was a place to lodge, then decided the pace for the afternoon’s travel.
If the lodging was far, they’d set out earlier in the afternoon and walk faster. If it was near, they could rest enough at noon and not hurry so much later.
These two days have been too cold. Jingfei and Bai Menghan are still holding up, but the old General Ye Feiying and the old Lady of the Shen Family are finding it hard to bear. At night the cold keeps them from sleeping, and in the daytime they have no energy, always drowsy and groggy.
Earlier, when Shuangshuang lit the fire to roast rabbit and cook, she deliberately built the fire big. Now she cleared away the spots where the fire had burned and lit new fire pits.
The ground that had been burned by the fire was roasted piping hot. Shuangshuang spread weeds over it, then laid a quilt on top. She had Ye Feiying and the Shen Family lie down on it and covered them with another quilt to rest for a while.
At this point no one cared about propriety anymore; being able to rest properly was worth more than anything. Ye Feiying and the Shen Family didn’t put on airs either, and this place, with the heat and warmth rising from beneath, was indeed comfortable to lie on.