The news of the Jiang family's eldest daughter's family having news quickly spread through the village's caravan.
Knowing that Jiang Xiao's family had already left the area, the villagers advised hesitantly, "Da Pan, why don't we set off tomorrow as well? That way, we might catch up."
Jiang Pan glanced at the old and young in the village and finally shook his head, "No need to rush. They've been gone for so many days, we definitely can't catch up. We'll just wait for the road to dry before we leave."
If it were just their own family, they would definitely have to set off immediately. But with an entire village, and a seriously injured young lady in their carriage, they couldn't risk the safety of others by rushing.
In any case, their eldest daughter and granddaughter were alive, which was good news.
Once they reached Jiangnan, with the help of Magistrate Cheng, they were sure to find their daughter's family quickly!
They could only comfort themselves in this way to alleviate their impatience.
Chen Yuezhi bought some food in the city and brought it to Zhang Qiaoxiu after preparing it.
Zhang Qiaoxiu felt very apologetic, saying while lying on the bed, "Auntie, my injury has improved a lot, and I'm not that delicate. We can set off immediately."
Chen Yuezhi smiled at her, "It has nothing to do with your injury. Don't worry about these things, just focus on recovering."
The weather was good for several consecutive days, and the snow melted quickly, but the roads became even more muddy. The villagers found ways to get a lot of dry grass and branches to lay on the ground, thus avoiding the trouble of rolling in mud pits.
Madam Cheng could no longer stand the environment, so she discussed with Chen Yuezhi about renting a few rooms in a city inn and moving in together.
Jiang Pan and Chen Yuezhi considered it and refused her kind offer.
"Firstly, Qiaoxiu cannot be moved yet. Secondly, as the village chief, if Wan Wan's father doesn't stay here, the villagers might have opinions. Besides, we farmers are not that particular, and a few days of roughing it is nothing."
Finally, Madam Cheng, along with Cheng Sinian, rented two suites in a city inn and called Su Shi and Jiang Wan over.
Jiang Wan quite enjoyed staying at the inn. The last time she stayed at an inn was when she sold the Tai Sui.
Su Shi was also very happy. She had never stayed at an inn before in her life. Although the inn's conditions were rather ordinary, they were much better than the Jiang family's previous living conditions.
Moreover, living in the inn meant more food, and it truly felt like enjoying a good life.
Da Lang knew that his wife was living comfortably at the inn, and he was very happy.
All along the way, his biggest worry was Su Shi's health. He had heard his mother say that pregnant women were already more hardworking than ordinary people, let alone enduring a long journey. Any slight carelessness could lead to the loss of the child, or even a double fatality. Therefore, he had been constantly worried.
So, before Su Shi moved in, Da Lang had given Su Shi the ten taels of silver his mother had given him during the New Year, telling her to buy whatever she wanted to eat. If the money wasn't enough, he would ask his parents for more, even if he got scolded.
Su Shi felt very sweet. She held the silver but didn't think of spending it on herself. Instead, she spent money buying a lot of food for Jiang Wan and got some fabric, saying she wanted to make clothes for her.
Jiang Wan smiled and said, "Sister-in-law, you should make clothes for our little baby first. I have enough clothes."
Su Shi smiled and said, "We can use your childhood clothes for him then. Babies grow fast, and new clothes won't be worn for many days."
Jiang Wan didn't know much about raising children, but she felt that letting a baby wear someone else's old clothes seemed a bit unfair to the child.
Su Shi smiled and explained to her, "New clothes have stiff fabric, and babies have tender skin. Wearing new clothes is actually less comfortable. Old clothes have been washed soft and are more comfortable to wear."
Jiang Wan suddenly understood. So that was it.
While the atmosphere at the inn was harmonious, some people outside the city began to cause trouble.
Zheng Wu Shi slipped a paper packet into Zheng Cui'er's hand, "Keep this safe. Do you know how to use it?"
Zheng Cui'er's face turned as red as if it were about to bleed, and she softly hummed in response.
"Cui'er, our family's chance to turn things around is all on you. You must be more determined."
Zheng Cui'er clutched the small packet and turned to walk into the city.
By evening, Zheng Wu Shi and Zheng Da You rushed to the Jiang family's carriage, crying and making a scene.
A neighbor asked, "What happened?"
Zheng Wu Shi said with great anxiety, "Cui'er said she was going into the city to buy embroidery thread. We figured it would cost five wen per person to enter the city, so it wasn't cost-effective to go in large numbers, so we let her go alone. But she's been gone for half the day and we haven't seen her, it's making us anxious to death."
When Jiang Pan heard this, he couldn't help but scold the two of them, "How can you be so careless! In such chaotic times, you let a young lady go into the city alone! You're truly something!"
Zheng Wu Shi covered her face and cried, "We had no choice. It's all because we're poor and can't afford the entry fee."
Jiang Pan knew that everyone was having a hard time, so he stopped scolding them. He turned to Da Lang and Er Lang and said, "Quickly call a few more people, and we'll go into the city together to look for her. Everyone else, don't wander off."
Before the city gates closed, they hurried into the city, and Zheng Da You was among them.
After entering the city, they split up to search. Zheng Da You tightly grabbed Er Lang, "I don't know the way, I'm afraid of getting lost."
Er Lang was speechless, "Fine then, you follow me."
Zheng Da You was secretly pleased. He looked around and pointed to an alley, "Why don't we check over there? That dead girl doesn't remember the way either, maybe she wandered into some alley."
Er Lang didn't suspect anything, nodded, and walked towards it.
Jiang Wan, holding a candied hawthorn, sat in the inn's lobby eating it with relish. The little magpie stood on her shoulder, its eyes fixed on the candied hawthorn, indicating it was very greedy.
Cheng Sinian, while eating a candied hawthorn, looked at the little magpie and really wanted to pet it.
Suddenly, Er Lang's figure flashed past from the alley ahead. He quickly called out to Jiang Wan, "Wan Wan, your second brother!"
Jiang Wan looked up blankly, "Where?"
Cheng Sinian pointed, "He went into that alley, and there was someone with him, it looked like Zheng Da You."
Zheng Da You? Why would her second brother be mixed up with Zheng Da You?
She felt something was wrong, so she instructed the little magpie a few words. The little magpie immediately flapped its wings and flew towards the alley.
Cheng Sinian looked at the little magpie with envy and tried to negotiate with her, "Wan Wan, can you make the little magpie obey my commands too?"
Jiang Wan refused without thinking, "No way!"
The little magpie was her companion, not a toy. She wouldn't let another child abuse the little magpie!
Cheng Sinian snorted, "Stingy."
After flying out for a while, the little magpie returned and chirped a few times on Jiang Wan's shoulder.
After understanding, Jiang Wan threw the candied hawthorn onto the table and rushed out of the inn like a cannonball.
Cheng Sinian was startled. By the time he reacted and tried to follow, he couldn't catch up to the little chubby girl.