This brings a sense of peace.
Laifu listened as the young master and Ji Bo chatted inside, while the young madam busied herself with her things. The convoy moved smoothly, everyone was present and accounted for, and no one was missing. He truly felt at ease.
A smile even appeared on his face.
Seeing him, Ji Bo chuckled and called him a silly boy, but then sighed and said, "It's best to be open-minded. Perhaps fools have more luck? It's good that you're content like this!"
It truly was good.
Laifu chuckled, "I really think things are great now. With you here, and the young master and young madam, I feel secure!"
These words made the old man laugh heartily, and his heart felt much lighter.
The journey was long.
It was also quite boring.
After Cheng Hao and Ji Bo finalized all the known locations and approximate distances with the elder, they fell into silent contemplation, and the carriage became quiet.
Ji Bo dared not disturb them, so he said no more, and Laifu could only focus on driving the carriage.
Su Miaomiao was making good progress. She examined the bag of herbs in her carriage, organized them, and realized she could make hemostatic powder, though the tools were lacking.
However, the medicinal materials hadn't been processed yet, so she decided to simply divide them and let them dry.
After she finished, she propped herself on the windowsill and began transcribing all the prescriptions she could remember, lest she forget them after being in ancient times for too long.
She wasn't afraid of being seen.
After all, she would have her childhood friend keep such important things for her later.
In the space.
Soon.
The notebook began to fill with dense knowledge.
Prescriptions she was one hundred percent certain of were marked as usable, while those less certain were marked as pending.
Through this process, she managed to organize a significant portion.
Su Miaomiao was engrossed in her work.
Cheng Hao, having finished his own tasks, looked up and saw the young girl engrossed in her work, her small lips pursed, her expression serious, very impressive.
Her demeanor was that of a diligent little scholar.
But in reality, her personality was mischievous and wildly imaginative. He had always envied her freedom and unconventionality, crying when she wanted to, sulking when unhappy, laughing when joyful, and sweet-talking to appease others. Although the elders found her bothersome, they couldn't help but cherish her. As for himself, though everyone praised him for being obedient, he was actually the easiest to be overlooked.
Yet, her eyes always held him. Others might overlook him, but she never would. The person most anxious when he was unhappy was definitely her.
As Su Miaomiao grew up, she cried less, but only he could break her defenses.
Cheng Hao sometimes felt he was quite heartless, yet he couldn't help but push her boundaries, knowing she would be unhappy, but still doing it.
To prove his importance.
Like a despicable child.
He truly despised himself.
However, she always managed to forgive him. Now, having gone through the transmigration, he had matured a bit, and at least he no longer acted as he had in the past.
As noon approached.
The convoy stopped for a short rest.
Everyone got down to relieve themselves.
They had all been holding it in for a long time.
The carriages with children had small commodes, as children couldn't hold it.
These also needed to be emptied now.
There was no water source nearby.
Everyone felt fortunate that the convoy always had boiled water on hand.
It was enough for drinking.
But as soon as they got out of the carriages, everyone clearly noticed that the surrounding environment had changed.
Earlier, they could occasionally see mushrooms and a few wild vegetables, but here, as far as the eye could see, there was practically nothing edible, not even small branches.
It had a strangely clean appearance.
Cheng Fengtai was alarmed and murmured, "This, this situation is not optimistic."
Cheng Kaichun, who was passing by and tucking in his trousers, pouted and muttered to himself, "Do I need you to tell me? Can't everyone see it?"
Clearly, this area had been visited by people and everything edible had been cleared out.
"I saw quite a few people moving through the forest up ahead, which means others are also taking this route. It's not surprising that it's been scoured by people."
Even Li Datou, who was usually rather insensitive, had noticed this, so naturally, everyone else wasn't oblivious.
Cheng Fengtai remembered his past conflict with Li Datou and felt a bit awkward, so he didn't respond. Wang Daming, another guard who was clearing the path, was also present. This person was taciturn but actually more reliable than Li Datou.
His presence was always low, but his strength should not be underestimated. He was also the one who could read the sky. He urged them to get back into the carriages quickly.
Li Datou laughed heartily, "Alright, alright, let's keep going. Since they've taken the goods first, we'll just speed up. We'll definitely overtake them!"
Besides,
He knew the convoy still had provisions, so he wasn't overly worried.
He was just a bit too carefree.
The other people, however, grew more somber and started to worry.
Cai Shi and Xi Shi, as soon as they got out of the carriages, took the children to relieve themselves. While waiting for the children, they couldn't help but express their concerns.
"We're too late. They've already picked all the good things. If it keeps up like this, our days ahead will be difficult."
"Alas, indeed. I thought things would be peaceful after crossing the river, but now this has happened. I really didn't expect this."
New problems had arisen.
Both of them were worried, as they were in charge of the provisions and knew best how important the wild vegetables and mountain produce they had gathered were in recent days.
They were a significant supplement.
If this source was lost, it would cost a lot of grain for everyone in the convoy to eat as much as before. That would be too much consumption of grain!
They were both troubled.
Su Miaomiao and Cheng Hao also noticed the signs of hunting immediately.
But that was normal.
After all, Su Miaomiao wasn't the only one who knew how to hunt; others did too.
They informed Ji Bo, asking everyone to be careful when they went to relieve themselves next.
"The main thing is that these people hunt unscrupulously, leaving behind many trap remnants. If one isn't careful, they could still get hurt. Tell everyone to be more vigilant."
Su Miaomiao felt a bit angry seeing this; it was truly unethical. Getting injured at a time like this would directly decrease their survival ability, and she could tell that some traps were clearly left intentionally.
It was unclear whether they were for hunting or for harming people.
Ji Bo was also aghast upon hearing this and immediately had a message relayed to everyone to be careful.
When everyone learned this, their hearts sank further.
Hunting would likely be difficult from now on.
Cai Shi and Xi Shi held a sliver of hope, thinking that Su Miaomiao in their convoy was at least a prodigy and a skilled hunter. Even if all else failed, everyone could still survive by eating some meat.
But now, that was gone.
The atmosphere in the convoy instantly plummeted to rock bottom. They had thought crossing the river meant a new beginning, but it turned out to be the start of new difficulties, and the hardship of escaping the disaster had increased.
Although Su Miaomiao was angry at the unethical behavior of these people, she also understood that during such times, disgusting things were likely to come in succession. Who would reason with you then?
In times of chaos.
Might makes right.