A new day began, as usual, with a chorus of noisy shouting.
After breakfast, Chen Yuan slung her bundle over her shoulder, put on her bamboo hat, picked up Daniu, and headed out.
The moment she stepped outside, she froze.
No wonder those voices had sounded so familiar.
It was the people from Zhang Family Village.
They had left a full day earlier than she had, yet they had only made it this far.
Ignoring their bickering, she continued on her way. Fortunately, she was still dressed as a man. With the bamboo hat shading her face, her exposed skin darkened with makeup, and her eyebrows thickened, no one recognized her.
The more she wanted to avoid them, the more fate seemed determined to throw them together.
Sure enough, walking directly behind her was Zhang Laosan’s family.
Zhang Laoda and Zhang Laowu were each pushing a handcart.
Zhang Laosi’s family, however, was nowhere to be seen.
“Laowu, it’s your turn to push Mother today,” Zhang Laoda said.
“Big Brother, help your little brother out. Yue’e hasn’t even finished her confinement yet, and Jinbao and Jinju are still so young. They can’t leave the cart. There’s simply no room left for Mother.”
Zhang Laowu deliberately put on a pitiful expression.
“Laowu, I’ve pushed Mother for three straight days already. Honestly, what kind of confinement lasts this long? It’s been over twenty days! You’ve spoiled your wife rotten. No matter what, today you’re taking Mother.”
Zhang Laoda’s face was full of anger.
“Mother, I really don’t have a choice. Yue’e is weak. If she has to walk, it’ll kill her. Mother, can you really bear to watch my family fall apart? Mother… I’ve failed you.”
As he spoke, Zhang Laowu actually burst into tears.
Walking ahead of them, Chen Yuan rolled her eyes.
“Laoda, you know Laowu has it hard…”
Old Madam Zhao had barely begun speaking when Little Madam Zhao interrupted.
“Who’s got it easy? Madam Wang is only three months pregnant. The baby isn’t even stable yet, and she’s still walking. I’m the one carrying Huzi the whole way. Why? Because you insisted on riding the cart. What, is Lin Yue’e the only human being? Doesn’t my daughter-in-law matter too?”
“Laowu, if you don’t push Mother today, don’t blame me for no longer treating you as my brother,” Zhang Laoda said coldly.
Zhang Laowu’s face darkened instantly.
“I won’t ride anymore. I can walk.”
Old Madam Zhao climbed down from Zhang Laoda’s cart.
“Mother, a few days ago you said your back and legs hurt too much to walk. What’s this supposed to mean now?”
His expression was full of displeasure.
“I’ve rested on the cart these past few days. My back and legs are all better now,” Old Madam Zhao hurriedly explained.
“Fine, Mother. But let’s make this clear. Today you’re helping Laowu by not riding his cart. If the day comes when you can’t walk anymore, then Laowu will be responsible for you. His wife can’t stay in confinement forever.”
With that, Zhang Laoda pushed his cart forward without another glance at his mother.
That family was as lively as ever.
…
At noon, the people from Zhang Family Village stopped to rest.
Chen Yuan didn’t.
She continued walking. She truly wanted nothing to do with the Zhang family.
But after barely another li, someone ahead suddenly screamed,
“Bandits! The bandits are here! Run!”
“Ah! Help!”
“Mom! Don’t leave me!”
“Mom, I’m scared!”
“Shitou! Shitou, where are you?”
The road instantly descended into complete chaos.
“Grandpa, watch out!”
A young voice rang out beside Chen Yuan.
Following the sound, she spotted a teenage boy. Following his terrified gaze, she saw an elderly man kicked to the ground while a bandit raised a broadsword to bring it down on him.
In the blink of an eye, Chen Yuan flicked out a throwing knife.
It shot straight through the bandit’s throat.
Without making a sound, the bandit collapsed.
“Lao Ba! Damn you! I’ll kill you!”
Another bandit roared.
Chen Yuan lunged forward in a single stride, kicked up the fallen broadsword from the ground, caught it in her hand, and charged the shouting bandit.
These bandits weren’t truly skilled fighters.
At most, they knew a few flashy moves. They relied mainly on brute strength and sheer viciousness to intimidate ordinary people.
Against someone like Chen Yuan, who possessed tremendous strength and solid combat skills, they were no match at all.
In less than a minute, all seven bandits lay dead.
Only seven of them…
Yet those seven men had already left countless refugees dead or wounded.
“Why didn’t you come sooner?” a woman cried accusingly. “If you’d killed them earlier, my husband wouldn’t have died!”
Before Chen Yuan could respond, another voice cut in.
“Tianfang’s wife, stop talking nonsense! I’m sorry, young man. Her husband just died, and she’s overcome with grief. Please don’t take it to heart.”
Without saying a word, Chen Yuan turned and left.
Daniu had started crying.
The commotion had jostled her awake, and her loud wails echoed in Chen Yuan’s ears.
She needed to find somewhere quiet to nurse and soothe the baby.
She searched around, but there wasn’t a peaceful spot anywhere.
“Young man, you can feed your child in my carriage.”
Chen Yuan turned.
It was the elderly man she had just saved.
A horse-drawn carriage stood beside him.
“Thank you.”
“No, I should be thanking you. If it weren’t for you, this old man would already be dead.”
He led Chen Yuan to the carriage before remaining outside to stand guard.
Inside, she quickly nursed Daniu.
The moment the baby latched on, her crying stopped.
She finished feeding in one go, cried herself to sleep halfway through, and drifted off peacefully.
After changing Daniu’s diaper, Chen Yuan carried her back outside.
“The child fell asleep?” the old man asked softly.
Then he smiled.
“My thanks to you, Madam, for saving my life.”
“You could tell?” Chen Yuan asked in surprise.
“This old man practices medicine. I can still tell the difference between a man and a woman.”
He smiled warmly.
“Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Shi Maolin, and this is my grandson, Shi Yu.”
“Yu’er, come thank this lady at once.”
Shi Yu obediently stepped forward.
“Thank you for saving my grandfather, Madam. I have no way to repay your kindness. If you should ever need anything, I will gladly do whatever is within my power.”
“No need to be so polite. It was only a small matter.”
Chen Yuan turned to leave.
“Forgive my asking,” the old man said hurriedly, “but where are you headed, Madam? If we’re traveling the same way, perhaps we could journey together.”
“No, thank you. Farewell.”
With that, she walked away.
In this lifetime, she had no intention of isolating herself forever. After all, she had Daniu now. She couldn’t let her daughter grow up lonely, without any friends.
But now wasn’t the right time.
Life on the road was already hard enough. If she couldn’t freely sneak away to eat better meals, bathe, and clean herself whenever she wanted, she’d lose her mind.
Two days later, she finally arrived at Yanggu County.