in2ebook Chapter 3 People's joys and sorrows are all different.
Chapter 3 People's joys and sorrows are all different.
Ning Xiaoxi struggled to hoist the large bundle given to her by Granny Gui onto her shoulder, but Ming Luoying swiftly snatched it away and awkwardly hoisted it herself. Ning Xiaoxi looked at her mother's fair and delicate skin, her plump and graceful face, her hair disheveled from the recent commotion, and how she was carrying the large bundle on her not-so-strong shoulders. A pang of sadness welled up in her heart. This pampered young lady, who had been the mistress of the household after marriage, was now reduced to a criminal and forced to fend for herself.
Ning Xiaoxi didn't force herself. Between lifting and lowering her legs, she felt that the shackles weighed about eight or nine pounds and were about two feet long. They were okay to walk slowly on flat ground, but it would be easy to fall if she took big steps.
Ning Ziqing's load on his back was quite heavy, but he was already a fifteen-year-old boy. However, with handcuffs and shackles on, his frail physique couldn't bear too much weight for him. His hands, which he usually only used for writing, were now slowly taking on the burdens of the family.
As the saying goes, there is no harm without comparison. Compared to the warm farewell from the Ning family, several other families simply stood aside and coldly watched those families who had people seeing them off, without even the slightest ripple of emotion.
The three clans refer to the father's, elder brother's, and son's clans, excluding the maternal clan, and married women are not implicated. But what family is not like the Ning family, with maternal and paternal clans, and even married daughters? Why is there not a single person who came to see them off? Even if they couldn't come in person, sending some clothes by servants would have been enough!
The fickleness of human relationships was especially evident in the snowstorm that swept through the capital city in February.
Fortunately, the heavy snow gradually stopped after leaving the city. The official road was slippery due to the snow, so the travel speed was not fast.
"Father, how far is Fufang County? How long will it take us to get there?" Ning Xiaoxi followed Ning Shi closely with her small, quick steps, asking in a soft voice.
"The territory under the jurisdiction of the Marquis of Youzhou is a frigid land in the far north, near the Beiling Mountains and the Ruoshui River. It would take about two months to travel a hundred li a day from the capital." Ning Shi said with some melancholy, "When I was young, I read travelogues and thought it must be a place full of strange mountains and beautiful scenery. I never thought that it would be the place where I would spend my final years."
Ning Xiaoxi then took a closer look at her adoptive father. As an official of the Ministry of Rites, her father's demeanor was quite impressive. Although his face was somewhat pale and haggard, he was not dejected. His eyes were clear, his eyebrows were slightly thick, and his eye sockets were slightly deep. He did not have the air of a weak scholar, but rather a somewhat dashing and strong temperament. It was likely that her adoptive father inherited these traits from her grandfather, who was a soldier.
"Xiao Xi, don't worry. Although our Great Xia Dynasty has strict laws, it does not punish criminals privately. The escorting officers will not make things difficult for us. As long as we don't do anything outrageous, the journey will not be too difficult." Ning Shi's words were full of reassurance. "In recent years, the Celestial Masters of the Celestial Masters Pavilion have been very diligent and have not been heard of any demons causing trouble for a long time."
However, Ning Xiaoxi didn't hear the last sentence clearly because it was spoken very softly.
"Yes, I understand. The hardships and suffering begin after we reach Fu Fang." Ning Xiaoxi nodded heavily, indicating that she was fully aware of her current situation.
Ning Shi took a rare, careful look at his little daughter and nodded in approval of her clear-headedness. It seemed that his decision to go to great lengths to hire tutors for his daughter was absolutely correct.
Ning Xiaoxi gradually digested her understanding of this unfamiliar world. She was no longer in her warm little home. Poor thing, after winning the million-dollar lottery, she was just thinking about living a carefree, lazy life when she was kicked into this imperial dynasty. Although she didn't know why the system had abandoned her here, she had a feeling it wasn't a good thing.
Ning Xiaoxi looked at the long procession of exiles with a heavy heart. It was already February, and the royal city was still so cold. What kind of icy and snowy land must it be in the far north, thousands of miles away?
According to her adoptive father, the distance to the capital was approximately six thousand li. The thought of this devastating figure made her wonder if her family could even reach their place of exile safely, and how many of them would actually make it there.
The exiled groups automatically split into smaller groups based on family units, with the Ning family of four being the smallest group.
"Xiaoxi, don't worry, our family will always get through this." Ning Ziqing, the older brother, said softly. His voice, which was going through puberty, was deep and heavy, without any lisp.
Looking at her brother's face, which was somewhere between childish and mature, Ning Xiaoxi thought that this young man's heart was probably not much better than her own.
After traveling ten miles, before dusk, the exiled caravan arrived at the Shili Post Station north of the royal city, their first stop on the exile journey.
Ding You, dressed in a blue uniform with white trim, stood in front of the gathered prisoners, his cold gaze slowly sweeping over the entire area. "Tonight, you will rest at Liuchuan Post Station. You can list the supplies you need to prepare for the guards, and we will make a unified purchase. This is also your last chance to make your own purchases."
After saying this, Ding You turned and walked into the post station, ignoring the crowd outside.
"Can we make purchases?" Ning Xiaoxi frowned. It seemed that the Great Xia Dynasty was still quite humane, allowing family members to see them off outside the royal city walls and permitting a certain amount of on-demand purchasing along the way.
All the prisoners were divided into four groups by the guards, each group consisting of about fifty people. They were taken to the large communal sleeping area in the inner room, where the two communal sleeping areas with beds on the north and south sides were where everyone would rest that day.
Ning Xiaoxi reacted quickly, pulling her mother to a spot against the east wall of the south bunk, where she helped Ming Luoying place the large bundle on the bed. This spot was closest to the stove, and although she wasn't exactly a farming expert, she at least knew more about survival than these people who clearly came from wealthy families.
Ning Shi and Ning Ziqing clumsily followed behind Xiao Xi, imitating her as they placed their bundles on their bunks. The clanging of handcuffs and shackles made Ning Shi and Ning Ziqing feel a little relieved for a moment.
Ignoring the awkward expressions and hesitant movements of the other families who followed in, Ning Xiaoxi helped her mother sit down on the bed. "Mother, please sit down and rest."
"Dad, what items do you think we need to buy?" Ning Xiaoxi looked up at her father with her big almond-shaped eyes blinking.
"Uh, do we need to buy anything?" Ning Shi murmured, looking at the clothes and shoes in the bundle. Her brother-in-law had already given her so many necessities, did they really need to buy anything else? Ning Shi was a little confused.
“It’s cold in the north, and our clothes are still a bit thin. Shouldn’t we get some thicker, warmer clothes?” Ming Luoying grabbed the clothes in her bundle, causing the chains on her handcuffs to clang. “We also need to prepare some food. Although the constables won’t skimp on our food, we need to make sure that Xiaoxi and Ziqing are well-fed while they are still growing.”
Ning Ziqing's eyes reddened, and she stammered, unable to say anything.
Ning Xiaoxi closed her eyes. Although she had no experience of being exiled, she was, after all, a little fish who had swum in the vast ocean of online novels.
[Ding ding ding]
[Congratulations, host, for unlocking the basic level of Social Charm: Affinity and Friendliness. This ability will continuously increase the initial goodwill others have towards you, enhance your personal charisma, and greatly help you deal with external doubts.]
A cheerful, childlike voice rang in Ning Xiaoxi's mind along with the lighthearted music, followed by a gentle breeze that circled her lips before disappearing.
Ning Xiaoxi sighed, realizing she had almost forgotten she had a foolish system.
"Father, how do we usually manage to eat during our exile?"
"According to the law, the food for exiled prisoners is carried by the escorting officers and is rationed. Our supply wagons should be replenished at this post station, but there is no fixed quantity."
"Will we need to prepare our own meals during the journey?"
“This…” Ning Shi was speechless. This was also his first time. Ning Shi blinked as he looked at his daughter and suddenly realized that he was a bit useless as a father.
Ning Xiaoxi looked at her mother and brother again, both of whom also looked bewildered.
Gritting her teeth, Ning Xiaoxi knew she had to prioritize her own life. She spoke again, "Father, right now we mainly need to consider clothing and food." Her focus was on ensuring her family was well-fed and warm throughout the journey. "We'll add another set of padded winter clothes and shoes for everyone. Since the temperature isn't high, we can buy some steamed buns and flatbreads to store up. We can also buy some rice, oil, and salt, a small earthenware jar, and a few water bags. Mother, are there any baskets for sale around here? Bundles are inconvenient to carry, so do you think they sell them?"
"What is a basket?" Ming Luoying looked at her daughter with a confused expression. Although she came from a merchant family, she had been raised in luxury since childhood. How could she have participated in such specific business operations?
Ning Xiaoxi choked for a moment, then thought, "Fine, I'll add this in. It'll be best if it's there, but if not, I'll think of something else." Ning Xiaoxi lowered her head and calculated again. Sigh, poor her, a lazy bum, actually having to think about the mundane details of life.
Soon, a constable came in and asked, "Is there anything we need to purchase?"
Ning Xiaoxi looked up and around at everyone in the room. The room was completely silent; not a single person stepped forward. Ning Xiaoxi gritted her teeth and raised her foot to stand up.
"Officer, we need your help." Ning Ziqing, who had been standing behind Ning Xiaoxi, suddenly stepped forward and stood in front of the constable. The Ning family wasn't without men; they couldn't let his sister handle everything.