Three days later, Han Mo finally, along with Jiang Yan and the others, prepared to head south.
“Alright, no need to send us off any further. If you keep going, we’ll be out of Kaifeng Prefecture’s boundaries!”
Looking at Zhe Yourong’s reluctant gaze, Han Mo felt a pang of reluctance himself, but he hardened his heart and said with a smile.
“You’re traveling alone, so you still need to be careful. They’re at war over there now, after all. When you have nothing else to do, it’s safer to stay with the main army!”
“Alright, you’ve been saying these words all night. Go back soon. After things stabilize over there in a while, I’ll send someone back to pick you up!”
“Mm.”
The young couple were about to face separation again, and Zhe Yourong felt a surge of bitterness in her heart.
However, as a daughter of a military family, she knew that shedding tears at a farewell was an ill omen. She managed to hold back the tears that had already welled up in her eyes.
“Alright, it’s getting late. Let’s set off!”
With one last look at Zhe Yourong and the others, and after waving to them, Han Mo directly mounted his horse and headed south.
Seeing Han Mo lead the way, Jiang Yan quickly brought his men to follow.
Although leaving Bianliang City meant parting from his family, leaving Bianliang City also announced that Han Mo could temporarily cast aside the schemes and stratagems within Bianliang City.
The taut string in his mind could finally be loosened for a while. This sense of relief made Han Mo feel completely relaxed.
Prince Xin had led the army on an expedition some time ago. If he calculated the dates, Prince Xin should have already reached the Suzhou region by now.
However, Han Mo did not rush to Suzhou. Instead, he led his men directly towards Jingkou.
“Young Master, why are we going to Jingkou first? You hold the public office of handling finances and grains in the Pacification Commissioner’s Office. If we are too late, will someone not say anything?”
Even though they were about to reach Jingkou, Jiang Yan still looked at Han Mo with some concern.
“Who would say anything? My position as an official handling public affairs is just a nominal one. If I truly stayed in Suzhou City and didn’t come out, then people would say things! Don’t worry, after we finish our business here, we’ll head to Hangzhou City for a visit.”
Han Mo knew in his heart that, at least for now, he was still considered one of the Emperor’s people. If he appeared to be too close to Prince Xin on the surface, it would not only be detrimental to himself but also not good for Prince Xin.
Instead, it was enough to hold the title of an official in charge of public affairs, as he was doing now.
His coming here was merely to gain experience. In any case, he did not need to participate in the actual fighting, and local administrative matters would naturally be handled by others.
Frankly speaking, his presence or absence made little difference. When he had free time, he could offer suggestions to Prince Xin, and during other times, he could find a safe place to do as he pleased.
As long as he wasn’t by Prince Xin’s side, the Emperor wouldn’t have any objections to whatever he did.
In the end, when the merits were being rewarded, even if Han Mo wasn’t on Prince Xin’s list of achievements, the Emperor would quietly add him.
“You can be an official like this? Doing nothing, yet being able to get promoted and become rich, while doing more things leads to punishment?”
Jiang Yan suddenly felt that his brain was not enough to comprehend this.
“Alright, we’ve been traveling hard for so many days. Let’s find a place ahead to rest well. We’ll eat and drink well, and after resting, we can slowly report to Suzhou City and do what needs to be done.”
Many matters in the officialdom were difficult to explain explicitly, and even Han Mo did not have the mood to slowly explain the intricacies to Jiang Yan.
After a brief explanation, he once again spurred his horse towards Jingkou City ahead.
The present-day Jingkou is approximately the same area as Zhenjiang in later generations. In fact, it was not far from Suzhou City, and the reason Han Mo chose to come here was entirely to try his luck.
Although the commanding officer had changed, Han Mo believed that the person who should appear here would still appear here.
Among the Seven Princes of the Southern Song Dynasty, he had already found Yue Fei, Wu Jie, and Wu Lin. If he remembered correctly, a Son of Destiny would soon pass through Jingkou City.
“Young Master, are we going to the post station or…?”
After arriving in Jingkou, Jiang Yan tentatively asked.
“Let’s go to the post station first. After we settle down, you can go and inquire about the whereabouts of the elite troops transferred from the Western Army!”
Riding a horse was something Han Mo hadn’t minded much at first, but after three consecutive days of riding, Han Mo had already started to miss his luxurious carriage.
Although its comfort could not be compared to modern cars, it was still much better than the current situation.
Even with the most expensive saddle or the gentlest warhorse, when running on the road like this, they would still cause the rider to ache all over from the jolting.
Even though Han Mo’s physique was indeed good, after being jostled on horseback for so many days, he still felt that every bone in his body was constantly complaining.
Prince Xin, Zhao Zhen, concurrently held the position of Pacification Commissioner for the Six Routes in the Southeast. Han Mo, as an official of the Pacification Commissioner’s Office, although his position was not high, and including his recently promoted substantive rank, he was only at the seventh grade.
However, when he presented his official credentials, almost all the officials in this small post station began to ingratiate themselves with him intentionally or unintentionally.
“Lord Han, at this time, the court is deploying troops and generals, and the generals from various routes are rushing to the southeast. Therefore, the rooms in our post station are indeed a bit tight. What do you think of this small courtyard?”
According to the rules, an official like Han Mo, who was of the seventh grade, would at most be entitled to a single room.
As for his subordinates, such as Jiang Yan and the others, it would be considered very good if they could be assigned a communal dormitory.
Moreover, Han Mo would have to bear the cost of their accommodation himself. But now, because of his nominal position, not only did he receive preferential treatment beyond the standard, but Jiang Yan and the others also benefited from it.
“This courtyard is quite clean, but isn’t this somewhat against the rules?”
If it were someone else, they might have politely accepted it after a few polite words.
However, Han Mo had no interest in such small favors. He had caused Wang Fu so much trouble in Bianliang City. Roughly estimating, Wang Fu’s losses would be at least 300,000 guan.
He did not want to hand over any leverage to Wang Fu over such a trivial matter at this time.
“This… Aren’t rules also made by people?”