Chapter 12: Entering Zhao County City
Since they needed to reach Zhao County to settle down, they couldn’t keep waiting for the rain to stop.
First, people and horses can’t be exposed to rain for too long; second, once the rain stops, the roads become even muddier, and the carriage can’t move.
Regarding Mo Zheng’s explanation, Yang Luo indicated that she would listen to her in everything, so when the rain lightened a bit, Mo Zheng wrapped herself in the raincloth and sat outside, urging the horse to pull the carriage forward.
Stop and go, after a day and a night, Zhao County’s city appeared before them.
By now, daylight had fully broken, but there was almost no one entering or exiting in front of Zhao County’s city gate.
Yang Luo lifted the carriage curtain to look outside, somewhat puzzled: “I remember the servants at home saying that Zhao County is bigger and more prosperous than Lu County. Why does it look so desolate, with no one around?”
Mo Zheng’s expression was also somewhat puzzled. When they reached the city gate, she proactively got off the carriage and asked a gate guard who looked like he hadn’t slept well, “Officer, can we enter the city now?”
The gate guard came back to his senses, didn’t ignore her, nor curse her to get lost, but instead tugged at his mouth as if smiling: “If you dare, then enter.”
Dare? That word was used strangely.
“I saw almost no one and thought entry was not allowed.” Mo Zheng explained, “We’ve been traveling too hard and are exhausted. We want to enter the city tonight to find an inn and rest well.”
Yang Luo, who had been hiding inside the carriage, heard this and slightly lifted the curtain, with a bit of timidity: “I’m fine. How about we keep traveling?”
The gate guard looked at the pale, frail girl with a sharp little face inside the carriage and curled his lips: “Don’t get scared when you go in.”
Mo Zheng showed an expression of not understanding, asked no more, led the horse, and pulled the carriage through the city gate.
Just after passing through the city gate, she knew why the gate guard had said that.
“Young Lady.” She said softly, “Quickly get back inside the carriage…”
But this sentence was still said too late. Yang Luo, who was lifting the curtain to discuss finding an inn with Mo Zheng, glanced at the wide street by the city gate entrance, where a row of… corpses were laid out.
All the corpses were covered with white cloth, and under the white cloth, body shapes were visible—some large, some small, some male, some female. Though in shock, she still subconsciously counted them: fully fifteen bodies.
Although White Horse Town had suffered a calamity with more deaths, ever since escaping that night, Yang Luo had never returned to White Horse Town, let alone seen corpses with her own eyes.
Although covered with white cloth, the wind lifted the cloth somewhat, revealing the corpses’ hands and feet, and a rotten stench assaulted the face—
These corpses didn’t know how long they had been dead; their hands and feet had already begun to rot.
Yang Luo clutched the carriage curtain and leaned out, dry heaving, while tears fell like rain.
Mother, was Mother’s corpse like this after she died?
No, A Sheng said Mother was burned to death, burned until there was no human form left.
“Young Lady…”
Seeing Yang Luo like this, a flash of apology passed through Mo Zheng’s eyes. She turned to pat and comfort her, but two civilians who were sidling along the street side against the wall saw and hurriedly reminded, “Don’t pat her, hurry and leave.” “Little child, if you stay longer, she’ll be scared out of her wits.”
Hearing this, Mo Zheng hurriedly urged the horse on. The horse neighed and dashed forward with clopping hooves. The sudden jolting made Yang Luo fall back inside the carriage, and the carriage quickly left the area.
……
…….
Although inside Zhao County there was no former bustle, there were still people walking on the street. The inn had two tables of guests eating, and the shop assistant stood bored at the doorway. Seeing the carriage stop and the youth help a pale, weak young girl with tears still on her face down from the carriage, he immediately approached with sympathy.
“From outside?” he asked.
Mo Zheng nodded.
The shop assistant sighed, shouting inside: “Old Four, bring a bowl of calming soup.”
Another shop assistant responded.
“No need to trouble yourselves.” Yang Luo said weakly.
“No trouble. It’s not just you who needs it; everyone does. Now everyone in our Zhao County is scared out of their wits.” A shop assistant brought the calming soup and said, “Every household has it prepared.”
Mo Zheng thanked him, helped Yang Luo sit down, and Yang Luo took the calming soup and sipped it slowly.
She couldn’t get sick; she had to get better. This life of hers was also her mother’s life; she couldn’t betray her mother’s tragic death.
Mo Zheng saw that although her face was still bad, her eyes were bright, so she relaxed. Turning to the shop assistant, she asked: “Those ones, what’s going on?”
The shop assistant cautiously glanced outside, lowered his voice: “It was Mr. Jiang’s family from our city’s Spring Willow Academy who met with calamity.”
Mo Zheng was puzzled: “Met with calamity? They were victims, so why are their corpses displayed at the city gate?”
Only bandits who had done much evil would have their corpses publicly displayed after death; this was also a form of punishment.
Another shop assistant let out a cold laugh: “Because a high official from the capital city said Mr. Jiang committed treason, so the whole family is to be publicly displayed at the city gate as a warning.”
The other shop assistants hurriedly signaled him: “Say less; do you want to be dragged out for public display too?”
That shop assistant’s face showed fear, but he still muttered softly, “No evidence at all. I think they couldn’t catch the real culprits, so they’re framing the victims.”
Yang Luo’s expression was also somewhat odd; she wanted to say something but was interrupted by Mo Zheng.
“Since we’ve come in, we’ll stay here one night.” She said, then to Yang Luo, “Young Lady, shall I go invite a doctor?”
Yang Luo waved her hand: “No need. I’ll rest a bit and be fine by tomorrow when we leave.”
The shop assistant discerned from their speech that the youth was a servant and the girl the young lady of the house, so he agreed, personally led the way, selected a superior room, and specially gave an adjacent ordinary room for this servant to be on call.
This arrangement made the young lady very happy. She instructed the servant, “A Sheng, give the waiter some tea money.”
Mo Zheng then took several large coppers from her sachet and stuffed them to the shop assistant.
The shop assistant was delighted, thanked repeatedly, and withdrew.
Only then did Yang Luo softly ask Mo Zheng: “Was this Jiang Family also killed by mountain bandits? No way—for our mother and daughter, they created an illusion and even Zhao County took action?”
Although she was a victim, she also felt it too exaggerated.
Mo Zheng shook her head: “It should be a different case.”
Yang Luo recalled the corpses just now—old and young, clearly the whole family had been killed.
“So the world is this chaotic.” She murmured softly.
She had never left home from childhood to now; it was like this in White Horse Town, and the same when arriving in the capital city. The only time she traveled was under the protection of Duke Ding’an’s Mansion, safe and smooth, seeing neither villains nor the dead and injured.
“Yes, so traveling is not easy.” Mo Zheng said, “Young Lady, now…”
She was about to persuade her not to go again, but Yang Luo interrupted first: “Go check if the horse is settled, and if good fodder is prepared for it. Our whole journey relies on it.”
Mo Zheng then smiled, pressed the bamboo pole in her hand before her, said “As you command,” and said no more as she walked out.
Watching the door close, Yang Luo gently exhaled. Traveling is not easy, but she had A Sheng.
Not just on the journey did she need her; upon reaching the capital city, she would need her even more. She absolutely couldn’t give her a chance to shake her off.
……
…….
Night fell, and the inn became very quiet.
Yang Luo was asleep, but her sleep was restless; her brows furrowed from time to time, and she made intermittent sobbing sounds.
Mo Zheng leaned slightly over and heard from the sobs vague words like “Don’t kill me…” “Why kill me…” “Zhu Yunxiao…”
It seemed in the girl’s prophetic visions, she had also died.
And not in White Horse Town, but in the capital city.
But despite that, this girl was still determined to head to the capital city.
Her courage was indeed not small.
Mo Zheng straightened up and gently pressed on Yang Luo’s neck.
Yang Luo’s head tilted slightly, her originally tense body relaxed, her furrowed brows smoothed, and she no longer sobbed.
This way, she wouldn’t wake up in fright in the middle of the night.
Mo Zheng turned and went outside, lightly tapped the bamboo pole, and the person passed through the window, flipping into the night.
