Chapter 1166
Staying in Dongming Prefecture [2]
Chapter 1166 Staying in Dongming Prefecture [2]
Xue Shiwu was also terrified, staring at Qin Xiaomi and asking for advice: "Master Qin, what should the Xue family do?"
Qin Xiaomi: "Calm down, don't be too nervous. Just keep Xue Dongjia as bait... We're not afraid of Brother Yu coming, we're afraid he won't come. Only when he comes can we crush him in one fell swoop."
She looked at Xue Mingyi: "But you should also be careful, that Brother Yu might come after you. You, the son of an old friend, are also a good bait."
"Am I bait too?" Xue Mingyi's expression darkened further.
Qin Xiaomi laughed: "Young man, you should be happy. This is your chance to make a name for yourself. If there are no hardships, how will you kill enemies and achieve merit? Rely on fantasy?"
Ah this?
Xue Mingyi felt a little embarrassed.
Xue Shiwu laughed out loud and cupped his hands, saying, "Master Qin's mind is indeed beyond our reach; he always has a way to break the deadlock when faced with danger."
Xue Zhui, a cousin, once said that Qin Dongjia always made a fortune every time he escaped a dangerous situation, so Qin Dongjia always regarded dangerous situations as opportunities bestowed by heaven.
But many people only see danger as danger.
Xue Shiwu and his group stayed for another quarter of an hour or so, and after finishing their business, they got up to take their leave.
"Take care, Master Xue Fifteen." Grandpa Qin and Uncle Qin saw Xue Fifteen, Xue Mingyi, Li Zhiyuan and others off.
The relatives of Zhou, Lü, and Han were somewhat anxious while staying at the Qin residence, but they waited until the Qin, Jiang, Xu, Qiao, and Guan families were settled before the Lü clan chief and his group came to inquire about the situation.
"Lord Qin, has the supply situation been settled? Are we still able to buy carts and such?"
The Lü family had a lot of supplies, and it would be exhausting to carry them all to the capital city by hand. However, the Lü family couldn't afford to buy enough animals to pull the carts, so they wanted to buy handcarts and have the Lü family members take turns pulling them, which would save them some effort and money.
Grandpa Qin smiled and said, "Brother Lü, don't worry, I've already entrusted it to the fifteenth master of the Xue family. The Xue family has a business and they're from this household, so they have connections and can help us buy things."
"That's good, that's good." Clan Chief Lü was overjoyed. He then grasped Grandpa Qin's hand and choked up, saying, "Aying's uncle, we are so grateful to your family for helping us along the way."
"Old man Lü, what are you doing? Let go of me right now, don't keep crying and ruining Lord Qin's mood!" Village Chief Zhou stepped forward and pried Lü's hands off.
The Han clan chief, who was much younger than them, was speechless.
The wise ones remained silent.
"Waaaah—!" A long cry of a baby broke the silence, interrupting the three old men's argument and bringing a lively atmosphere to the house.
"Don't cry, little Lu Bao, we're at Sister Xiaomi's house now. Look at this big house, the roof is so much higher than ours, it's not so stuffy, it'll be cool in the hot summer." Little Fu Bao coaxed his little cousin.
"What's wrong with Xiao Lubao? Is he feeling unwell?" Xu Erjun hurriedly went to check on his son and touched his swollen belly.
To be honest, every time he sees that swollen little belly, he's afraid that his child has some kind of illness.
However, no, a baby's belly is naturally quite bulging.
In just a short while, Xiao Lubao had finished crying. He blinked and looked at his father, his cousin, and then at Qiao Lizi.
Qiao Lizi gently poked his forehead and smiled at Xu Erjun, "See? He's perfectly fine, he just likes to howl a couple of times for no reason."
Five-month-old Lu Bao grinned at his mother when she poked his forehead.
Xu Erjun and Xiao Fubao were relieved.
Xiao Fubao hugged him and said, "Xiao Lubao, you have to be good, smile more, and don't cry all the time. Crying too much will deplete your energy."
Escaping for your life requires strength.
"Alright, you two stop fussing over Xiao Lubao. Go and rest, or we won't have such a nice house to stay in once we leave Dongming Prefecture." Qiao Lizi reminded them, then touched Xiao Fubao's back and said to Xu Erjun, "Put a cotton towel under him to sleep, so he doesn't get sick from sweat. These days, illness is no longer a concern." "Wife, don't worry about Xiao Fubao. His mother is taking care of him. He's a big boy now... Just take care of yourself." Xu Erjun felt guilty. Lizi had only given birth a few months ago and was now fleeing from war, having to take care of the child on the way.
"Fu Bao, go find your grandma. Don't go playing in the backyard kitchen. There's a well there. If I catch you playing by the well, you'll be punished." Xu Erjun chased his nephew away.
Little Fu Bao whimpered and ran to the next room to find Aunt Xu... The Xu and Qiao families both lived in this small courtyard.
At noon, various aromas wafted from the Qin residence: the fragrance of food, the bitterness of medicinal soup, and the scent of milk.
Following orders, Zhu Liushi and his wife bought dairy goats in the prefectural city in advance to raise, solely for the purpose of providing milk for Xiao Lubao, Xiao Yunping, and the child in Qin Xiaogu's womb.
The four dairy goats had their wool shaved off to prevent fleas, as fleas can spread rat plague.
Ding-ding-ding-ding-ding!
"Time to eat!" Zhu Xuewei shook the medicine bell in the herbal medicine shop to notify the families that it was time to eat.
On this day, the Zhu family was finally reunited.
Zhu Xuemo was not there; he was still fighting alongside Jiang Dalang.
Zhu Liushi and his wife, as well as Zhu Xuewei, were all very worried about him, but they knew very well that they should be grateful to their master's family... If Xuemo could make meritorious contributions in battle, Xuemo's family could become law-abiding citizens, or even become a family of military officers.
"Time to eat! There's chicken soup too!"
Several families gathered together and ate the most normal lunch since the deserters' disaster.
"Sister Pear, Aunt Eryong, and Little Aunt, line up and get ready to have your pulse taken." After the meal, Qin Xiaomi, along with Granny Chen and the others, took the pulses of the three women and the children.
Granny Chen said that it was normal for Xiao Lu Bao's belly to be swollen and that he wasn't sick, which put Xu Er Jun at ease.
Chief Lu and the others watched with great envy... It's no wonder the Qin family has risen to prominence. Look at the Qin family's abilities and foundation. Even an old servant has mastered top-notch medical skills. Several families, no, several generations combined, couldn't raise such a servant.
The Qin, Jiang, Xu, Qiao, and Guan families, along with the clan leaders of the Zhou, Lü, and Han families, stayed at the Qin residence for two days, recovering much of their health.
On the afternoon of the third day, they took Zhu Liushi and his wife, locked the door, and left, preparing to go out of the city to meet up at the main camp.
Before they had walked more than a few meters, the neighbors who had been watching the Qin family opened their doors and blocked their way.
Fearing a misunderstanding, he quickly said, "Commander Qin, please don't misunderstand. We mean no harm. We just wanted to ask you... are you really going to the capital city? Are the Eastern Desert people really that powerful? It's been over a month since the battle started on May 25th, and we haven't seen a trace of the Eastern Desert army. Is there any need to flee from war?"
"Yes, yes, this is our home. My family has worked hard for five generations to establish ourselves in the city and build this house. How can we just abandon our family and property and leave like this?"
The speaker was a man in his thirties, dressed like a scholar.
He was already the pillar of his family, but he was very panicked.
"The city gate camp is full of Wei people who have fled from Tianmang Prefecture. You can go and ask them. After asking, you'll know whether you want to flee or not." Grandpa Qin only said this much before he had Miao Bo lead the carriage and the group away from Kaiming Street.
The neighbors didn't dare to stop them, but some people cried.
They had already asked the Tianmang Prefecture people at the city gate... It was too terrifying; they had to escape to a distant place to avoid being slaughtered by the enemy.
But they simply couldn't bear to abandon their ancestral business!
"Let's follow this large group to the capital city."
"I heard that this time, many prominent families and shops, such as the Xue family, Da'an Inn, and Changji Pharmacy, will be going together."
"Once they left, Dongming Prefecture became half a ghost town."