Shortly after, Jing Rong sent the order to depart immediately; after all, they were in a rush. His subordinates acted quickly and prepared everything in less time than it took for a joss stick to burn out. Jing Rong stood at the front door of the yamen and stared at the people loading the carriage with their belongings. After finis.h.i.+ng his job, Lang Po came over and asked curiously, “Prince, were we not supposed to wait for the arrival of the newly appointed magistrate before we leave?”
“We are not waiting anymore.”
“Yes.”
“Instead, you shall hand over the responsibility to the advisor of the yamen until the magistrate arrives.”
“Yes.”
Jing Rong’s gaze turned focused as he spoke.
When all the necessities were loaded to the carriage, Tang Si shamelessly insisted on following Ji Yunshu to her carriage.
However, Mo Ruo came over and dragged her straight into his carriage, acting as though he was the mother hen and she was his little chick, “Don’t disturb the others!”
“Let me go. I want to sit with Ah Ji!”
“You’ll have to behave if you still wish to tag along. Otherwise, I’ll throw you out.”
“Let me go!” She spat fire as she was stuffed into Mo Ruo’s carriage.
Mo Ruo’s voice came from the carriage, “You need to quit making noise if you wish to learn from me. You’re hurting everyone’s ears.”
Although Tang Si felt reluctant, she still wished to learn from Mo Ruo, leaving her no choice but to listen to him.
Meanwhile, Ji Yunshu entered the carriage with Wei Yi while Jing Rong followed right behind them. After they got into the carriage, Wei Yi rested his head on Ji Yunshu’s shoulder while his tranquil eyes stared blankly into s.p.a.ce. Ji Yunshu did not push him away, instead adjusting his cape before she touched his forehead to check his temperature. After her worry for Wei Yi’s physical health had subsided, Mo Ruo’s vague words resounded in her head. Jing Rong was upset seeing Ji Yunshu’s behaviour.
All or sudden, Ji Yunshu came to realisation and asked Jing Rong, “Why have I not seen Aunty Xie?”
“She has left earlier to Yufu. I didn’t know how long our journey was going to be delayed. Therefore, I ordered someone to send her off earlier.”
She nodded.
Soon, the carriages left Anfu County. Just as they expected, Zhao Huai and his people followed right behind them. They could never get rid of this sticky candy.
Shortly after they left the county, dense clouds covered the sky, and rain started falling heavily. Everyone was caught off guard as the precipitation gradually became heavier the further they moved from Anfu. It had already been raining on and off for almost a week with no sign of it stopping. The humidity only added to the depressing atmosphere.
Since they had encountered some delay in Anfu, Jing Rong had ordered his people to expedite the journey. Hence, they rarely had any opportunity to rest along the way, spending most of their time inside the carriages. Wei Yi did not speak a word during the trip. Just like Wei Yi, Jing Rong and Ji Yunshu kept quiet, with the former only making a few innocuous comments. In contrast, it was as though a war happening in the carriage Mo Ruo and Tang Si were located in. It was a mixture of joyful laughter and petty quarrel. Tang Si would not stop telling Mo Ruo that she was his lifesaver. Consequently, he had no choice but to unwillingly admit his defeat in the argument.
Nevertheless, there was a short peaceful moment during the trip where both of them engaged in their shared hobby: wine drinking! Surprisingly, the scent of the wine intertwined with the smell of the mud creating a smell reminiscent of home. Outside the carriage, Lang Po and the guards, who were wearing woven robes and hats, carefully rode the horses on the main roads in the heavy rain. It was raining so heavily that even the battle horses could not stand the weather. As they could not clearly see the road ahead, their pace got slower and more cautious.
A masculine guard to the side asked, “Escort Lang, how much longer would it be until we arrive at the pit stop? It will not be a good idea for us to continue in this weather.”
His normally loud and clear voice now sounded weak in the midst of the rain. Lang Po looked at the blurry mountain view in front of him as he wiped his rain-soaked face with his sleeve. He answered, “We will reach Beiliang soon.”
Beiliang? That means they will only take another half day to arrive at Jinjiang.
The guard threw a glance at the carriage as he heard Lang Po’s answer, and said, “Does that mean we will arrive at Jinjiang soon? That’s Teacher Ji’s hometown.” His words were unexpectedly loud in the rain. The other guards heard his statement and quietly laughed to themselves. It was well known that their Prince fancied the someone of the same-gender.
Lang Po glared at them, “Get your attention together! We’re rus.h.i.+ng so don’t waste your time on these stupid jokes!” The laughter ceased.
After about the time it took to burn a joss stick, they arrived at the border of Beiliang. There was a giant rock by the roadside that was carved with the word ‘Beiliang’. Lang Po shouted at the direction of the carriage, “Your Highness, we have arrived at Beiliang.”
At this time, an order came from the carriage, “It’s raining. Be careful of the slippery road!”
“Yes.”
Inside the carriage, Jing Rong was sitting up straight with an expressionless face. It was as if the shaky carriage that was travelling on the b.u.mpy road did not disturb him at all. On the other hand, the humid weather made Ji Yunshu felt depressed. She felt as if something was pressing against her chest when she heard the thunder from the outside and Lang Po’s announcement.
We’re reaching Jinjiang so soon?
She drew the curtain up and took a look outside the carriage. The heavy rain severely limited her visibility, and the rain blew into the carriage and onto Ji Yunshu’s delicate face.
Seeing this, Jing Rong raised his hands… Unfortunately, he was a second slower than Wei Yi. Wei Yi held Ji Yunshu’s hand and said, “Shu’er. Be careful and don’t catch a cold,” as he pulled Ji Yunshu into the carriage. At that moment, Jing Rong’s face turned sour.
“Bang!” The carriage impacted something. The noise of the horses shrieking immediately followed, before the whole carriage leaned to one side. Ji Yunshu lost her balance and fell into Jing Rong’s embrace. Jing Rong held her in his arms, as though he was trying to protect her from any harm.
Lang Po’s voice came from the outside again, “Your Highness, the wheels of the carriage are stuck in the mud.”
Jing Rong frowned. He looked out from the carriage after he seated Ji Yunshu properly. The thunderstorm had flooded the coming path with murky yellow water. At the same time, the rainwater went through the window and slowly filled up the whole carriage due to how it was slanted.
“Fix it as soon as possible,” Jing Rong ordered.
“Yes, Your Highness.” Lang Po ordered the guards to push the carriage out of the mud.
Even after a lot of hard work, the wheel could only move back and forth in the mud. It could not move forward. The crying of the horses accompanied by the sound of the rain tore the peaceful atmosphere apart. They were totally out of ideas!
Lang Po said, “Prince, the wheels of the carriage cannot get out of the mud. I might need you to get out of the carriage for a while.”
Hence, Jing Rong led Ji Yunshu and Wei Yi out of the carriage with an umbrella in his hand to s.h.i.+eld them from the rain. However, this did nothing to protect the lower half of their clothes as the rain was simply too heavy. Jing Rong ignored the rest of the people and pulled Ji Yunshu into his arms. Tang Si soon exited the other carriage as well, coming down with an umbrella in one hand and biscuit in the other. She stood aside as if she was watching a movie! Ji Yunshu stayed in Jing Rong’s arms quietly without any objection. She gazed ahead and said, “Since we’ve arrived at Beiliang, it will not be far away from the memorial hall.”
Memorial hall?
Everyone looked at her. Ji Yunshu explained, “The memorial hall that’s guarded by Fu Bo.”