Chapter 268: The Road Home (Part One)

Fictional History

As the morning light faintly broke, Ning Yi stepped out of his tent and sat down on the hillside, surrounded by the sounds of clamor and arguments.

As far as the eye could see, the hills and valleys were filled with refugees, dressed in various clothes and styles, carrying bundles of all sizes, with horses, mules, and even cattle. Carriages could no longer navigate these mountain paths, so there were none.

Some people were fetching water from the stream in the faint dawn light, while others ate dry rations with cold water. Still others, carrying large and small bundles, fearful of being left behind when the journey resumed, were already hurrying forward in groups. Most of these were the elderly, weak, women, and children, dressed in rags and looking pitiful.

Since the fall of Hangzhou and the start of the exodus, the scenes of terrified desolation and chaos had by now settled into a grim numbness. In three days, this largest fleeing group had taken several turns. Now, no one knew where they were headed, not even the leaders of the contingent.

From the moment the city fell, Governor Lu Tuizhi and others had already left by boat. Qian Xiwen and others, who had initially declared they would not take a boat, likely boarded one under their families' protection, fleeing via the Qiantang River estuary. The seaport south of Hangzhou had already been disrupted once by Wang Yin and his followers. Amidst the chaos of the city's fall, countless residents surged there, incited by others. Of course, some ships managed to escape, but Ning Yi couldn't join that scramble. According to his original plan, he and the gathered wealthy merchants and gentry fought their way north out of the city, then converged with scattered troops and countless Hangzhou residents, fleeing northward.

Along the way, this initially chaotic and scattered group had experienced various periods of dispersal and re-formation. Sometimes, one or two smaller groups would split off and flee in different directions, while at other times, they would encounter more fleeing populace. After gradually forming a leadership team, yesterday morning, they encountered a contingent of Fang La's rebels. A skirmish ensued between them, but the rebels were not intentionally pursuing them, and their numbers were not large. Ultimately, both sides chose to cease hostilities and went their separate ways.

At this time, perhaps numerous different groups were fleeing the fallen city in various directions within this area. This particular group included many wealthy merchants, gentry, and prominent families, who carried considerable wealth such as silver notes, land deeds, gold, and silver. Although some had been discarded along the way, the remaining amount was still substantial.

These people dared not leave the group and fall into the hands of Fang La's bandits. It was well known in the Suzhou and Hangzhou region that whenever Fang La's army took a city, landlord, gentry, and official families were almost completely massacred. Within these families, men were tortured and slaughtered, and women were raped and humiliated, a misery beyond words. Even those with no fixed assets dared not leave the group in such a complete absence of external order. Although Fang La's slogan was "All are equal before the law, without distinction," anyone without connections, if isolated in these circumstances, could not guarantee they wouldn't be slaughtered like pigs or sheep by the rebels.

In the initial chaotic escape, although Hangzhou's leaders like Lu Tuizhi and Qian Xiwen left by boat, most scions of influential families did not enjoy such privilege. In this current group, there were quite a few descendants from the Qian, Mu, Tang, and Chang families. Even Tang Xiuxuan, the head of the Tang family, was now among the group. Qian Haiping of the Qian family also missed boarding a ship because he was then dealing with matters concerning Fang Qifo, Wang Yin, Shi Bao, and others. He had previously overseen constables and officials in Hangzhou Prefecture and had dealings with the military. At this time, he was acquainted with most of the generals from the dispersed Wude Camp. When they began considering their next destination yesterday, he invited Ning Yi and his wife.

It was just dawn. Ning Yi sat there, looking down for a while. Not far away, two groups of people, likely due to a minor dispute or friction, began arguing and fighting. Those around watched numbly. In ordinary times, if such a thing happened in the marketplace, countless onlookers would gather enthusiastically. But now, people didn't even have the inclination for gossip. From a small tent nearby, Juan'er emerged with a disheveled head, carrying two small wooden buckets. She glanced at Ning Yi, seemingly a little startled. A moment later, she lowered her head and walked towards the distant stream.

*This girl, she's still scared just from a slight touch, yet I've touched her mistress's chest countless times...*

Ning Yi sat there, murmuring a few private thoughts to himself. Then he felt this mindset was somewhat like that of a profligate young master who spent all day teasing maids, and couldn't help but smile. There were already many people fetching water by the stream.

As Juan'er approached, she saw some people upstream pushing, shoving, and shouting at each other. It was because some young men upstream were washing their feet or had simply jumped into the water. That's when the conflict erupted. Those young men seemed to have quite a background, and being in a foul mood, they refused to back down. The scene immediately became intense. Juan'er looked on from downstream, then carried her bucket and walked further upstream.

A fight nearly broke out there. A little further upstream, Juan'er finally reached a spot and squatted by the stream to fetch water. Just then, she heard one of the shouting people nearby roar: "What can you do to me, acting like this! My family is influential, come on! If you dare, let's fight one-on-one! Go on... Damn it! Damn it! My brother died fighting Fang's bandits in the army, but my family isn't all gone! Come on, if you dare... You're not allowed to fetch water! Hey, you over there, what are you doing upstream! Go downstream!"

This person probably had some military connections. As he spoke, he ran over, threw a bucket from someone's hand, and then pushed another person down. Next, it was Juan'er. The young girl saw the tall man rushing towards her with a fierce expression. She tried to stand up and run with her bucket, but exerted too much force, lost her balance, and sat down on the ground. Her bucket of water spilled. The man had already reached within ten feet of Juan'er and pointed a finger, saying, "You..." Before he could finish, the man suddenly flew into the air.

With a splash, a huge amount of water erupted from the stream. The one who had thrown the man into the water was a scholar who had just walked over. He didn't seem as tall as the man, but he walked straight up, twisted the man's outstretched left hand behind his back, held his other hand on the back of the man's head, pushed him up, and slammed him into the stream.

The action seemed incredibly simple and swift. In Juan'er's eyes, it was naturally her master Ning Yi. To others, he might have seemed like just a somewhat frail scholar amidst the fleeing crowd. But with one hand, he gripped the man's left wrist, twisted his left arm behind his back, and with the other hand, pressed down firmly on the man's head, submerging his entire upper body in the stream. The man struggled desperately in the water but could not move at all.

From the crowd, the people who were with the man reacted and rushed towards them. At the same time, a small group of soldiers, who had been numbly watching the commotion from the side, also rushed over, shouting, "What's going on! What's going on!" but they ended up helping Ning Yi by blocking the other group. The subordinate general leading them, however, recognized Ning Yi. He had his men block the others, and then turned to look at Ning Yi, cupping his hands in greeting and saying, "Mr. Ning."

This person held a minor, though not high, position in the military. Because of this, when he saw Ning Yi and his wife at the meeting yesterday, he had simply thought them to be ordinary scholars. But now, he saw Ning Yi pinning the man in the water without even blinking. The man's entire head was submerged, and he struggled furiously. His unrestrained right hand thrashed about, trying to grab Ning Yi. Ning Yi coughed a few times, placed his knee on the man's back, and twisted the man's gripped left arm to the right. With a distinct "crack," the man's left hand was likely broken. His eyes snapped open underwater, and countless bubbles erupted from his nose and mouth as if boiling.

After holding him down for a moment, Ning Yi pulled the man out of the water and threw him aside. The man's body twitched slightly; he looked almost dead. Only then did Ning Yi greet the officer: "My apologies, Officer Liu."

The officer was stunned for a moment. "Mr. Ning actually knows my name?" His rank wasn't high enough to participate in such a meeting; he had merely been present as an escort before leaving, and he hadn't expected Ning Yi to know him.

Ning Yi simply smiled and didn't answer. He had only overheard this detail last night when people were talking in the tent. While he hadn't paid much attention at the time, it wasn't difficult to recall it now and make an impression. After a few polite words, Ning Yi said, "It's difficult for everyone while fleeing. There might be more battles ahead. It's better for everyone to work together wholeheartedly than to be disunited and anxious. When such incidents occur, it's best to intervene if possible."

After he said this, the officer immediately indicated that he had taken the advice. Ning Yi didn't care if the man was genuinely convinced or just putting on a show. Since he wasn't in charge, merely stating his opinion was sufficient. After briefly dealing with the soldiers, Ning Yi turned around, picked up a small wooden bucket, and filled it with water. He had originally wanted to help carry both buckets back himself, but Juan'er, adhering to her duties as a maid, absolutely refused to let Ning Yi carry the other bucket, simply pursing her lips and shaking her head.

The two walked back, carrying the buckets. Ning Yi looked at Juan'er and smiled, "When others flee for their lives, they either bring gold, silver, and jewels, or food. But you girls, you didn't bring many things, just two buckets and a basin. Whose idea was that?"

"We did bring food..." Juan'er replied, her voice like a mosquito from behind him.

"Is washing so important?" "It's for Miss," Juan'er retorted as if it were obvious, though still in a very small voice, "How can Miss wash in front of others...?"

"Just hang a piece of cloth to make a curtain, anything would work. Besides, I don't think your mistress is so delicate that she'd still fuss over such things at a time like this."

"We forgot when we were running. There were two small buckets nearby, they weren't heavy, so we brought the basin too."

Ning Yi couldn't help but laugh for a moment. Juan'er walked alongside him for a while, then quietly asked, "Master, where are we going next?"

"I don't know yet, maybe Huzhou."

"Oh? Not Jiaxing?"

"Who told you that?" Ning Yi gave a faint wry smile. "Of course, it's still uncertain. It could be Jiaxing, but the canal area is the wealthiest. Since Fang La took Hangzhou, his next step might be to seize Jiaxing... However, neither Huzhou nor Jiaxing is safe right now. The bandits on the road have probably all joined the uprising for the excitement. We'll have to take roundabout routes no matter which way we go. And with so many wealthy people in our group..." "Master, are you worried Fang La will send people to pursue us?"

"They probably will." Ning Yi paused. "However, Hangzhou is famously wealthy. Although it suffered an earthquake this time, vast amounts of money, goods, and grain were not taken. Since they've occupied it, they'll likely spend quite some time killing, settling scores, and plundering wealth. Those who don't get spoils there might eye us with envy—Fang La's men, or bandits on the road. This path won't be easy, but we have no choice but to continue. If we can reach Huzhou soon, everything will be fine." After Ning Yi finished speaking, he smiled at Juan'er. Although his words conveyed these concerns, his tone did not convey a sense of despair. A moment later, they were nearly at the tents on the hillside. Ning Yi coughed. Juan'er said, "Master, have you caught a cold?"

"Hmm?"

"Miss seems to have caught a cold too. Yesterday... Oh, Master, look, Miss..." As Juan'er spoke, she pointed her hand to the side. Ning Yi looked over and saw his wife, Su Tan'er, standing under a tree not far from their tent. She was leaning against the tree trunk, looking somewhat unwell, and Chan'er was beside her, patting her back. By the time Ning Yi and Juan'er walked over, Su Tan'er seemed to have recovered. She gave him a faint smile and said, "Perhaps it's been the difficult journey, eating uncooked and cold food, upsetting my stomach... That's how it is for a wealthy lady, unable to endure hardship. I've made my husband worry..."

Ning Yi looked at her for a long moment. Then he suddenly smiled, "I'll go find a doctor."

He handed the small wooden bucket to Chan'er and turned to walk down the slope. After a few steps, the wind blew, and the scene before him suddenly wavered, making him feel slightly dizzy. He stood there, holding his forehead, for quite some time before recovering. When he reached out to touch the bandaged wound on his right arm, a sharp pain shot back from it.

"Husband, what's wrong?" Su Tan'er and the others hurried over, anxious. Ning Yi turned his head and waved his hand, "It's nothing, I'm just going to find a doctor."

He touched his right arm again, a slight suspicion already forming in his mind. Soon after, a doctor arrived. After examining Su Tan'er's pulse, the doctor confirmed that she was pregnant. Confirming this news amidst their flight truly made everyone's feelings complicated. They were stunned for a long moment before some hesitantly smiled. Ning Yi, however, smiled with relief. Su Tan'er held his hand, smiling with pursed lips, tears flowing uncontrollably.

Then the doctor also re-examined Ning Yi's wound. The result made almost everyone feel as if they had fallen into an abyss. Only Ning Yi had had a slight premonition. For several days, he had experienced mild cold symptoms, which had worsened slightly yesterday and today: coughing, a slight fever, and a feeling of weakness. Perhaps his internal cultivation had delayed the onset of these symptoms, but today, it seemed the wound was subtly festering. At this time, it was called 'external evil entering the body.' In later generations, it would be called wound infection.