Seeing that his father was angry with his mother, Lü An’s eldest son, Lü Hanyuan, quickly changed the subject.
“Father, just now my sister had the constables remove Lian’er’s shackles. Shouldn’t we also ask them to take off our shackles and cangues?”
Lü An nodded after hearing this.
“Go ask the constables whether they can help us remove them as well.”
“Yes, Father. I’ll go right away.”
Lü Hanyuan got up and headed toward the constables. Seeing this, the other families also sent people to inquire about having their restraints removed.
By the time Noble Consort Yi helped Mo Lian back to the carriage, Linglan and the others had already returned with the supplies, while Nanny Lin and the rest were washing the meat and preparing dinner.
Helping Mo Lian sit down, Noble Consort Yi lifted her trouser leg once more to examine her wounds. Looking at the raw, bloodied skin around her ankles, she was so heartbroken that she didn’t know what to do. They were stranded in the wilderness with no medicine to be found.
Inside the carriage, Jun Wan laid the sleeping little Jingchen down. She lifted the curtain and glanced outside, seeing Noble Consort Yi staring worriedly at Mo Lian’s injured ankles.
Shaking her head, she quietly bought a bottle of Yunnan Baiyao from the pharmacy in her space. She removed the outer packaging, stored it back inside the space, and peeled off the label before climbing down from the carriage with the plain bottle.
She decided to give Mo Lian one more chance for Noble Consort Yi’s sake.
If this lesson still failed to change her, then Jun Wan felt the girl was beyond saving, and she would never show her another ounce of sympathy.
Walking over, Jun Wan handed the medicine bottle to Noble Consort Yi.
“Mother, apply this to her wounds. It will help them heal faster.”
Mo Lian stared at Jun Wan in shock.
When she saw Jun Wan getting out of the carriage and walking toward them, she had assumed she was coming to mock her. She had already braced herself for the humiliation.
She had never expected Jun Wan to bring her medicine instead.
For a moment, her emotions became incredibly complicated, and she didn’t know what to say.
Noble Consort Yi was equally surprised that Jun Wan had managed to keep medicine without the constables confiscating it. But after thinking it over, she found it reasonable.
Even though Jun Wan was no longer the War Prince’s Consort, she was still the princess of the Silver Wolf Kingdom. Out of respect for that nation, Mo Cheng would have to leave her at least a little dignity.
Taking the medicine, Noble Consort Yi looked at Mo Lian.
“Well? Aren’t you going to thank your sister-in-law?”
Mo Lian looked somewhat awkward, but she still quietly said,
“Thank you.”
No matter what had happened between them, Jun Wan had taken out precious medicine to help her. For that, she was genuinely grateful.
She never thought Jun Wan was trying to harm her. There was simply no need.
If Jun Wan had truly wanted to see her suffer, she could have kept the medicine hidden and continued watching her misery. No one would even have known she possessed any medicine.
At that moment, Mo Lian began to think that perhaps Jun Wan was not as vicious as Lü Chunxuan and the others had always claimed.
She had disliked Jun Wan for two reasons.
The first was because she believed Jun Wan had drugged her elder brother.
The second was because Lü Chunxuan and the others constantly told her how cruel and malicious Jun Wan was.
On top of that, Jun Wan never gave in to her during their disputes, while her mother kept scolding her for being immature, saying that Jun Wan was carrying her brother’s child and that she should be more accommodating.
That was how her resentment had gradually grown.
“You’re welcome.”
After saying that, Jun Wan walked over to Linglan and the others and began directing them to clean the pig intestines.
Everything else was easy enough to prepare, but pig intestines were notoriously difficult to clean. In fact, that was the very reason she had bought extra noodles from the constables.
After Jun Wan left, Noble Consort Yi began applying the medicine to Mo Lian’s ankles.
“I don’t care what things were like between you before, but now we are one family, and our family needs to stand together.
“Your brother’s fate is still unknown. At my side, only you and little Jingchen remain. Jun Wan is Jingchen’s mother, so she would never harm him. That means she stands with us.
“I know you don’t like her, but think about it carefully. She has never truly wronged you. On the contrary, Madam Kong and the others are always stirring up trouble between you.”
Seeing that Mo Lian remained silent, Noble Consort Yi finished applying the medicine and placed the bottle into her daughter’s hand.
“Think carefully about what I’ve said. Ask yourself whether I’m right or not. I’ll go help your sister-in-law with the cooking.
“Our circumstances aren’t what they used to be. We can’t rely on others for everything anymore. Since you’re injured today, rest well. But in the future, do whatever you’re capable of doing.”
With that, Noble Consort Yi also joined the others in preparing the meal.
Members of the Lü, Shi, and He families all sent people to ask about removing their restraints.
The constables gave them a straightforward price.
Thirty taels to remove a pair of shackles.
Thirty taels to remove a cangue.
Everyone thought the price was outrageous and asked if it could be lowered.
“What do you think this is? A vegetable market where you can haggle?
“Do you know how much risk we’re taking by removing your restraints? Pay up if you want them off. Otherwise, get lost and go back where you belong. Damn bunch of paupers.”
Hearing this, the three families all replied that they would discuss it with their relatives first.
Lü Hanyuan reported the price back to Lü An, who fell into deep thought.
Their entire family only had thirteen hundred taels of silver.
According to the constables’ rates, every male in the family wore both shackles and a cangue, costing sixty taels each. There were six men, plus nine women.
Altogether, removing everyone’s restraints would cost six hundred and thirty taels.
When Madam Kong heard the amount, her heart ached.
“Forget it. Let’s leave them on. We’ll get used to walking like this.”
The others had all been overjoyed when Lü Hanyuan went to negotiate with the constables.
Many of them had never walked such a long distance even without shackles. Now, after marching for days in heavy irons, their ankles were covered with blisters, and some had even been rubbed raw.
Hearing Madam Kong refuse to pay, disappointment spread across everyone’s faces.
After thinking for a long while, Lü An finally clenched his teeth.
“We’ll pay.
“The road ahead is still long. If we run into danger, these things will only become a burden.”
The family immediately cheered.
This time, Lü Hanyuan stayed behind and instead sent his son, Lü An, to deliver the money to the constables.
The He and Shi families also decided to remove their cangues and shackles and sent people over with silver as well.
Meanwhile, Jun Wan and the others had already finished washing the meat.
She had originally planned to cook rice porridge, but now that they had bones, she personally took charge of the cooking.
She simmered a rich bone broth, stewed the pig’s head and trotters, and boiled the pig intestines and stomach, while Nanny Lin steamed a pot of rice.
When they ran out of pots, Jun Wan had Linglan borrow three more.
While cooking the pig’s head and stomach, she secretly bought two packets of braising spices from the supermarket in her space and added them to the pot.
Nanny Lin was worried that Jun Wan, who had only recently given birth, might catch a chill. The moment Jun Wan finished putting the meat into the pots, Nanny Lin urged her to hurry back into the carriage to rest.
Half an hour later, the rich aroma of stewed meat drifted through the entire exile convoy.
Everyone who smelled it turned toward Jun Wan’s group.
The Lü family, in particular, watched eagerly.
They thought that with so much food, a handful of women could never finish it all. Surely there would be some left for them.
One by one, they stretched their necks, waiting impatiently for the meal to be ready.
After everything was cooked, Jun Wan even had Linglan deliver two pig trotters, half a pig’s head, and a portion of the cooked intestines and stomach to Zheng An and the constables.
Seeing this, Zheng An realized that Jun Wan was someone who understood how to handle people.
He instructed his brother-in-law, Fan Wei, to give Linglan several steamed buns, along with a few bowls and chopsticks for Jun Wan and the others to use.
Linglan repeatedly thanked them.
Seeing that Linglan’s hands were already full with the buns, Fan Wei simply carried the bowls over for her himself.