Chapter 26

Mu Wanqing sighed softly, "Looks like I can't keep it hidden anymore."
There was no way, her recent behavior had been too conspicuous, too strange; she could fool others, but not the family who lived with her day and night.
She rose and went to the door, peered out, and when she was sure no one was there she gently closed it.
Her secretive manner put everyone on edge, all flustered.
Mu Wanqing tiptoed back, her face grave. "What I'm about to tell you is a tremendous secret. No one must say a word, only the five of us in this household. Even after my brothers marry, they must not tell."
Second Master Mu looked extremely nervous and raised his right hand, "Alright, I swear I will not reveal anything said tonight."
The others raised their hands as well, "I swear too, I won't breathe a word for the rest of my life."
Mu Wanqing lowered her voice, "Do you remember the day our house was ransacked? I was thrown out and knocked unconscious, do you remember?"
In fact, the original person had died that day.
How could Madam Qian forget the fear back then? "I remember. What happened?"
Mu Wanqing stared at them steadily, an odd look on her face. "When I was unconscious I saw a white‑haired immortal. He said the Mu family's fortune had nearly run out; our ancestors braved wind and rain and hardships to build up this household, yet the descendants not only failed to preserve it, they would face extinction..."
There was a gasp. Second Master Mu's face drained; extinction? Did that mean everyone would die?
Mu Wanqing continued, "Then he stared at me for a long while and said one sentence: the Mu family's only turning point is on me. Then he stroked my head..."
Her words trailed off; everyone held their breath, waiting for the rest.
"And then?"
Mu Wanqing touched her head, "I woke up and found my mind filled with all sorts of things, recipes, books on how to behave and get along with people, various formulas, so many disparate things I can't explain them all at once."
They all looked stunned; it sounded unbelievable, but it was the only explanation that made sense.
Second Master Mu suddenly became excited, "It must be that our ancestor couldn't bear to see his descendants wiped out and left the Mu family a sliver of hope. Ancestor bless us."
Isn't that right? If it hadn't been for Mu Wanqing, the second branch might well have collapsed on the road.
At the outset they had nothing, no supplies and no silver.
Now, other clan members benefited from Mu Wanqing; they weren't singled out by the officials, those who were soaked and fell ill got proper rest and survived.
Think about it: if they'd been hurried along in panic, their vitality would have been badly sapped and they might have died on the road of exile.
All of this was thanks to Mu Wanqing.
Once he said it, the whole family believed; people of this time trusted in deities.
Madam Qian's eyes reddened with pride, "Qing'er, you are the savior of the entire Mu clan!"
"Sister, no wonder you've become so formidable." Her two brothers' eyes shone.
"Whether I'm a savior I don't know, but I promise our whole family will reach the border safely." Mu Wanqing, having placated them, smiled faintly. "Now let's discuss how to deal with this money."
Second Master Mu trusted his daughter even more, feeling the clan's future depended on her. "You're so clever, you handle it."
Having taken on the original's life, she was responsible for protecting these relatives. Mu Wanqing had to prepare on multiple fronts.
"I want to buy two more wagons, use the mule cart for supplies and rotate the horse carriages so they can rest. That way, even if we have to camp in the wilderness, we won't fear wind or rain."
"Once we reach the border, if we need money we'll sell them."
Having gone through rainy days, the Mu family now clearly understood how important transport was: use it for travel in fair weather and as shelter in storms.
"Alright, we'll follow your lead."
The sky was clear and clouds drifted as the group set off again toward the border.
Some still hadn't fully recovered and had to be supported by relatives, moving forward step by step; if necessary they'd be carried on someone's back.
At times like these they especially envied those with carts; their envy made their eyes glow red.
Old Madam Mu had also fallen ill and was listless, lying in the carriage and chattering on, "Jinyao, you are the Mu family's most esteemed legitimate eldest daughter, how can you expose yourself to do such unbecoming things?"
Mu Jinyao's lips twitched; faced with her grandmother's wan appearance, she fell silent.
Old Madam Mu had been gravely ill this time, she'd come close to death, and now felt uncomfortable everywhere. At the thought that Mu Wanqing had refused to hand over the mule cart and nearly caused her to die, her heart swelled with resentment.
"And you, Rongxue, an unmarried young woman, what are you doing stirring up trouble? Don't want to get married, huh?"
Rongxue bristled. "Grandmother, what did I do wrong? I just led everyone in the work. I like being the one in front."
She was strong-willed and liked to excel at everything; being put in charge of a team suited her down to the ground.
It turned out she managed well: orderly and efficient, and she even earned an extra hundred wen.
This was the first money she had ever earned with her own hands!
The sense of achievement was like nothing she'd felt before.
Old Madam Mu sneered. "A leader? She's clearly Mu Wanqing's lackey!"
"Lackey?" Rongxue flushed with anger, how could she describe her granddaughter that way? Clearly the old woman was growing more senile. "Grandmother, this was Officer Zeng's arrangement. You're upset with Officer Zeng..."
Old Madam Mu was startled. "I'm not. Don't talk nonsense. I mean, you shouldn't be following Mu Wanqing's orders. What kind of person is she to give orders? You are far nobler than she is; she should be following you."
"That requires the capability." Rongxue had seen Mu Wanqing's abilities with her own eyes and had to admit it. "Anyway, I'm not as good as she is."
Old Madam Mu was choked with anger, how could her granddaughter be inferior to that wretched woman's child?
Eldest Master Mu frowned slightly. "Rongxue, I'm only thinking of your good. You are all daughters of distinguished families, born to nobility..."
Rongxue was annoyed with him; don't think she didn't know what was on his mind.
Mu Wanqing would rather have an uncle from another branch lead than let her own paternal uncle take charge.
No wonder he felt put out, but couldn't he just reflect a bit? He's no longer a third-rank official at court, so stop putting on airs!
"Now you're all prisoners, exiles who don't know how long they'll live."
Like a bucket of cold water dumped over them, Old Madam Mu and her son both looked ill.
"Mark my words, you are not like Mu Wanqing. She's a trouble magnet, whoever gets near her gets unlucky..."
The old woman said this not only to her own descendants but to the clan, actively smearing Mu Wanqing's reputation.
In the end, she just needed an outlet for her anger; who the target was didn't matter.
At that moment a piece of news began to spread like wildfire through the crowd. "I heard the officials will let us sign IOUs to borrow money to buy mule carts and wagons."
The still-ailing people perked up. "Really? Is that true? I'm signing up first."
If things went on like this, they'd likely die along the exile route.
"No way, why would the official be so kind to us?"
"Besides, we don't have the money to pay it back."
"I heard it was Miss Mu Wanqing, the Third Miss, who suggested it."
The head of the Fang family usually listened more than he spoke, but couldn't help himself this time. "Ah, Mu Wanqing, the Third Miss?"
Mu Wanqing had been conspicuous before; there was no one who didn't know her. "Yes, it's her."
The Fang family head's eyes flickered. "Then there's probably some truth to it. Who among you has connections to her? Go and ask around."
He had a sense something was changing; the biggest variable, he suspected, was Mu Wanqing.
Everyone rushed to corner Mu Wanqing, clamoring to find out what was going on.
Mu Wanqing was in the carriage, cooking red bean soup, simmered thick and soft, drink it and you'd feel warm all over.
"It's true. I saw everyone shivering in the torrential rain with nowhere to shelter, collapsing with sickness one after another, I couldn't bear it, so I made the suggestion."
"I thought the most important thing was to keep people alive, especially the little children, they haven't grown up yet; they haven't had a chance to see the world properly."
"As for whether Officer Zeng will agree, I don't know. But you can try to persuade him."
Someone hurriedly asked, "How do we persuade him?"
Mu Wanqing answered bluntly, "I earned merit, so I was given the right to purchase two wagons."
Someone sneered, "Doesn't your family already have a mule cart?"
Mu Wanqing had long since set aside the silver, she didn't need to borrow. "It's too small; you can't fit your things. I figured the farther northwest we go the colder it gets, so dress the carriage properly: warm quilts and a small stove. In winter you can huddle inside to keep warm, and it's easy to have a hot meal."
She was hinting: if you want to live, hurry and come along.
"Getting drenched is bad, but trudging through a blizzard is worse."
Who could resist after hearing that?
Everyone begged Mu Wanqing to plead on their behalf, though she pretended she didn't want to get involved.
But unable to resist their desperate pleas, Mu Wanqing had no choice but to lead them there.
The Fang family head was the first to speak. "Officer Zeng, we'd like to borrow money to buy a carriage, be it a wagon or a mule cart. If there's work to be done afterwards, command us; we'll repay the money as soon as possible."
He did have a wagon, but could only let the elders in his household take turns resting their feet.
Mu Wanqing vouched for them. "Officer Zeng, traveling a thousand li together is a rare bond. Consider this an act of kindness, we're all having a hard time."
"I know there's a quota for exiles dying en route, but it's gone too far, too many deaths, right? Please help us; have a little mercy."
Officer Zeng's eye twitched. She'd taken on all the good favors, cashed in on everyone's goodwill, no wonder she was the Third Miss.
"Well, for the Third Miss's sake, I'll add five more slots."
"Only five? That's too few..."
"A wagon isn't something you can buy just because you want one." Though Officer Zeng didn't understand Mu Wanqing's hint of scarcity marketing, he knew rarity made things valuable, releasing them slowly was the appropriate approach.
Being overly eager won't get you the deal.
The Fang family head was shrewd and decisive. "Officer Zeng, the women in my household are ill and desperately need a wagon. I won't ask for more, just one will do."
Officer Zeng gave a slight nod. "All right, I'll give you one spot, and a carriage for a hundred taels."
The head of the Fang family beamed. "That's a fair price, thank you, sir."
With more mouths than porridge, the five available slots almost sparked a brawl; those who got one rejoiced, those who didn't cried.
Carriages were indeed hard to come by, but Mu Wanqing had an idea: when they stopped at the next busy town to sell soap, they'd take carriages instead of silver.
Ordinary folks didn't have them, but wealthy merchants certainly did.
Any lively town could round up a few carriages, buy one for eighty taels, resell it to an exile for a hundred, pocketing twenty taels as interest, everyone was happy.
Mu Wanqing managed to secure two carriages: one for herself, one for Madam Qian. The mule cart would carry supplies.
The carriage compartment was noticeably twice as large; she tidied it up and had Second Master Mu build a single sleeping bench with storage beneath. She laid a thick quilt over it to soften the jolts, and along the side a row of finely crafted little cabinets held all manner of things.
Under the window sat a small red-clay stove for cooking and warmth.
It was a little house on wheels, convenient for both eating and sleeping.
Mu Jinyao and Mu Rongxue came together to look around, utterly envious of how well equipped the carriage was.
"It's wonderful, I'd like one too. Third Sister, could you pull a few strings for us? My mother hasn't been well these past days, my younger sister is always frail, and my father's mind is entirely on that other woman and child..."
The third branch had too many concubines; the principal wife had only two daughters, and the branch's sole son came from a favored concubine. It all looked glamorous on the surface only.
In the past, proud Mu Rongxue would never have exposed her family's shame.
But she couldn't spare the luxury of pride now, her own father couldn't be relied upon.
"If the three of us had a carriage, we'd at least have a chance to carve out a new life."
Mu Wanqing pursed her lips. "I..."
Before she could finish, a group of masked men appeared from nowhere, knives flashing as they encircled them. Screams of terror tore through the air.
"This mountain I opened, this tree I planted, if you want to pass, leave some toll." A standard bandit opening line.
Officer Zeng froze. Bandits robbing a government escort? They must be blind.
"Friend on the road, we are imperial officers escorting criminals for exile. These are convicts from ransacked households, there's no money on them..."
"Then use women as payment." The man in brown's cold gaze swept toward where Mu Wanqing stood.
Mu Wanqing felt a chill. This wasn't a band of robbers, these men were well trained.
This was bad, this was a planned, premeditated operation!