Chapter 226: Meeting

Chapter 226: Meeting

By late July, the merchant caravan entered the Jade Gate Pass. The appearance of the oasis eased the intense summer heat. After consulting with Song Xian, Sui Yu decided to take a two-day rest there.

The caravan led by You Dadangjia made a brief stop at the Jade Gate Pass for an hour, restocking supplies for five days before continuing eastward out of the city.

The return journey was smooth, with no delays. It wasn’t yet the autumn harvest season, and there were at least two months before the first snow, enough time for them to cross Hongchiling and make it across the great river before the dry season. They would return to Chang’an before the end of the year, making a significant profit and enjoying a prosperous New Year.

After finding a place to stay, Sui Yu had Gan Da and Gan Er open the medicine chests. These were exchanged with You Dadangjia for sheepskin. Sui Yu planned to go to Chang’an in the middle of summer, when sheepskin wouldn’t command a high price, so she decided to exchange it for medicine, which could be sold in either Dunhuang or Chang’an.

Song Xian also exchanged for two chests. When she pried open the medicine chest, a pungent odor hit her face, and she turned sideways, waving her hand to signal a servant to open the other chest.

Sui Yu came over for a look and said, "The types of medicine we exchanged are quite similar."

Song Xian picked up a greyish-yellow stone with a rough surface through a cloth, furrowed her brow, and said, "What is this? Is it also medicine?"

"It’s myrrh. I saw the Kucha merchants buy two chests from You Dadangjia when I was in Kuqa," Sui Yu explained.

"I thought it was a stone," Song Xian put down the stone and picked up another item that looked like a moldy tree root. It was soft, as if made from camel dung.

"This is called Asafoetida," Sui Yu introduced again.

"These are indeed medicines, though they have unusual shapes," Song Xian said, accepting a wooden box handed over by a servant. Inside was white powder, which she passed to Sui Yu and asked, "What is this?"

Sui Yu shook her head, she wasn’t sure, but it should be powdered minerals.

Except for these three, the rest were common medicinal herbs that could also be used in cooking, such as cloves, cardamom, sesame, cinnamon twigs, and astragalus. Sui Yu recognized these. Additionally, there were two tortoise shells and two large lumps of realgar at the bottom of the chests, along with a deer antler and a deer penis.

These items filled three chests. The last chest contained cheaper medicinal herbs, half being alfalfa seeds and the other half bright, plump jujubes.

"Did we lose out by exchanging thirty pieces of sheepskin for just these four chests?" Xiao Chunhong asked.

"If we can sell them for six thousand coins, it won’t be a loss," Sui Yu said, "By the way, go with Gan Da and buy four fat chickens from a farm. Use the jujubes and five slices of astragalus to prepare a chicken soup to nourish everyone."

"Alright," Xiao Chunhong leaped up and ran to get the money.

They had brought two chests of copper coins when they left Dunhuang, and there was still one and a half chests left before entering the Jade Gate Pass. After entering, after paying the city entrance fee and commercial taxes, half of the money was gone.

Sui Yu, feeling both tired and sleepy, took a wolf skin mattress into the room, spread it on the floor, and fell asleep immediately.

There were few beds, and mats were scarce, so the caravan prepared their own things and slept on the floor. Consequently, the room rate was low, only twenty wen per room per night.

By evening, the chicken soup was ready. Xiao Xi went into the room to call everyone. Sui Yu was in deep sleep and couldn’t be woken up, muttering a few words before drifting back to sleep.

"Let’s eat first. Prepare two bowls for her, and she can eat them later when she’s hungry at night," Song Xian arranged.

Xiao Chunhong peeked into the room and worriedly said, "Is Miss unwell? She’s never been this hard to wake up, even after exhausting journeys before."

"Outside the pass, she didn’t dare to sleep deeply," Song Xian put a few more jujubes in her bowl and said, "She’s not at ease. The reason we all returned safely with so much cargo is thanks to her efforts."

They all traveled the same distance, but apart from physical exhaustion, Sui Yu had to worry about navigating. She had sheepskin scrolls and marked wooden boards in her hands all the time, making decisions about which valley or fork to take. Besides, she had to deal with other caravans, buying and selling goods, inquiring about prices, and negotiating joint travel, all of which drained her energy.

Sometimes, Song Xian felt that their role was primarily to accompany and embolden Sui Yu.

Sui Yu slept until the early morning. When she woke up, her stomach was empty and growling.

"Miss, this is the chicken meat we left for you. I reheated it with some water and also cooked a bowl of soup noodles. Please fill your stomach," Xiao Chunhong brought over two bowls of chicken soup noodles and said, "I tried to wake you last night, but you didn’t wake up. I was worried you were sick."

"No, I was just too tired," Sui Yu took the bowl of food, sniffed the chicken soup, which smelled very fragrant, and took a small sip of the soup, hesitating, "With such hot weather, will it spoil if left out overnight?"

"I don’t think so. I didn’t smell anything sour," Xiao Chunhong said uncertainly, noticing Er'hei as he carried firewood in. She waved him over. "Er'hei, come taste the chicken to see if it's spoiled."

Er'hei nodded, put down the firewood, and walked over with his head down.

Sui Yu glanced at Er'hei, then at Xiao Chunhong, and put down her chopsticks. "Forget it, I'll eat outside. Throw these two bowls of chicken noodle soup to the pigs. I remember the host raises some pigs."

Sui Yu took some money and left. Xiao Chunhong picked up her chopsticks, intending to offer Er'hei a taste of the chicken but worried about wasting the meat. She took a bite and immediately spat it out. "It's sour. It's spoiled. Throw it out to feed the pigs."

After she left, Er'hei quickly grabbed a piece of chicken and stuffed it into his mouth. It was a little sour, but he had eaten rotten food before. This was nothing and wouldn't kill him. He quietly took both bowls of chicken noodle soup, poured them into his own bowl, and ate everything.

When Song Xian heard from Xiao Chunhong that the chicken left for Sui Yu the previous night had gone bad, she went to a farmhouse in the morning and picked two old hens. She had Xiao Chunhong stew them again with red dates and astragalus.

At noon, after savoring the fragrant chicken soup, Sui Yu smacked her lips. "The chicken soup I had this morning tasted off. It wasn’t the same as the one at noon."

"In this heat, food spoils quickly," Song Xian said.

"Did you feed those two bowls of chicken noodle soup to the pigs?" Sui Yu asked Xiao Chunhong. "Make sure no one eats it by mistake."

"I asked Er'hei to throw it out," Xiao Chunhong said, looking around. "But where’s Er'hei? Why isn’t he here?"

"Did he run off again? He wasn’t here for the meal," Gan Da chimed in.

"I saw him carrying water to the camels this morning," Zhang Shun said. "We're inside the Jade Gate Pass now. There’s nowhere for him to run. He’s not a fool."

Sui Yu paid no more attention. After eating her fill, she went for a walk to digest and then came back to sleep some more.

They stayed two extra days at the Jade Gate Pass, mainly so Sui Yu could catch up on sleep and look refreshed. She didn’t want to return looking haggard and upset the three people at home.

Sui Yu slept until sunset, waking up to a sky full of evening clouds. She went out to fetch water to wash her face and saw Xiao Chunhong and Liu Ya'er busy cooking. She went over to ask, "What's for dinner?"

"Madam Song wants large white steamed buns. We’ll steam buns tonight and cook a sour tofu soup. Does that sound good?" Xiao Chunhong asked.

"Sounds good," Sui Yu replied.

"Madam, Er'hei is sick," Qingshan rushed in, too out of breath to wipe the sweat from his face. Speaking quickly, he said, "He ate the chicken noodle soup you didn’t eat this morning and has been vomiting and having diarrhea all day. He's lying on the wasteland outside and can’t get up."

Sui Yu’s face fell, and she looked annoyed. After thinking for a moment, she said, "Let him pay for it himself. Take him to see a doctor."

"He saved some money while working at the inn. After we left Kuqa, I didn’t let anyone touch his belongings. His belongings are still with me, and I haven’t returned them," Qingshan said.

"Alright," Sui Yu replied.

After receiving her answer, Qingshan went into the room, grabbed a bag of copper coins, and rushed out again.

It was already dark, and everyone had finished dinner when Qingshan and A'niu helped Er'hei back. The doctor had needled him and given him garlic water, which stopped the vomiting and diarrhea. He also prescribed two packs of medicine.

Because of his greed for the sour chicken, Er'hei had spent all the reward money he saved from his time at the inn in Kuqa.

When Qingshan reported the situation to Sui Yu, she instructed, "Take some extra effort and care for him. We'll leave a day later, the day after tomorrow, to leave the city and return to Dunhuang."

"You’re too kind-hearted," Song Xian remarked. "You don’t seem like a young lady raised by an official family. Did your parents treat their servants this well too?"

Sui Yu mumbled something and smiled without answering.

"If it were me, Er'hei would have been sold off long ago in Kuqa, sent far away so he wouldn’t bother me. And that girl on Tian Shan, since she had thoughts of betraying her master, I would have traded her for two more horses, regardless of whether she lived or died. You, I often don’t understand how you think."

"They’re living beings, two lives. I’ve been with them day and night for two or three years. Even pigs and dogs develop feelings, let alone people, people like me... If I’m a person, they’re people too... How could I have the right to decide their fate?" Sui Yu said, her voice trailing off as if in a daze.

"What did you say?" Song Xian didn't catch that.

"Nothing, I was just saying how good it is to be alive." Sui Yu came back to herself, calming her restless heart. She explained, "Everyone makes mistakes and gets lost in confusion. I've been there too. If those people had insisted on beating me to death back then, I wouldn't be here today. A girl like her is just short-sighted. If I spend a little more effort and talk to her, pulling her up, she might come to her senses. A girl like her shouldn't be bought and sold like merchandise. As for Er'hei, he'll farm for me from now on, and I'll only provide him food and shelter without pay, as a reward for saving him twice."

Song Xian scoffed, "Still paying them? You've only made them more demanding."

Sui Yu couldn't argue back.

"Really, you don't seem like a missy from a noble family." Song Xian marveled again, "Were your parents also so kind to their servants? I'm genuinely curious. What kind of parents could raise such a person?"

Sui Yu laughed a few times and said, "You can't possibly know or imagine."

"So it runs in the family?" Song Xian asked in surprise, "Is that true?"

"You could say it's a family tradition." Sui Yu didn't want to say more, "Enough talk, time to sleep."

Considering that Sui Yu's parents were both gone and her family had fallen, Song Xian suppressed her curiosity and didn't pry further, not wanting to bring up painful memories. But because of Sui Yu's kindness, Song Xian felt completely at ease with her. When partnering in business, she never had to worry about being schemed against.

After staying an extra day in Jade Gate Pass, Er'hei's health had improved significantly.

The next day, Sui Yu left Jade Gate Pass with the trading caravan, heading into the desert bound for Dunhuang.

At the West City Gate of Dunhuang, Xiao Zai and Da Zhuang sat under a tree outside the gate, with their water flasks by their sides. They drank when thirsty and went into the city to buy buns when hungry.

After receiving a message from the head of the You family, Xiao Zai couldn't contain his excitement. He kept insisting he wanted to go out of the city to welcome his mother, but since Zhao Xiping and Sui Liang were busy, they could only take him and Da Zhuang to the city gate and ask Huang Ancheng to watch over them.

"Zhao Mingguang, stand by the wall over there. There's shade." Huang Ancheng came out and called, "Are you a fool? There's no shade under the tree, yet you're sitting there in the sun."

"I'm catching ants." Xiao Zai's little face was flushed red.

"Come here." Huang Ancheng called again.

Xiao Zai dragged Da Zhuang over and stood by the wall, scratching the bricks. Bored, he peeked at the city guards inside the gate.

Suddenly, the faint sound of camel bells reached his ears. Xiao Zai perked up, standing straight and tiptoeing to look westward.

As the caravan approached the West City Gate, the camels kicked up yellow sand, creating a dust storm. Seeing this, the city guards knew a large caravan had returned.

"That must be my mother coming back." Xiao Zai shouted excitedly.

Da Zhuang pulled him back, "Your father said we can't leave the gate."

"I'll just go to the tree." Xiao Zai struggled, "Da Zhuang, I won't wander off, just to the tree."

Da Zhuang let him have his way.

As the caravan neared the West City Gate, it slowed down, and the dust began to settle, revealing both people and camels.

Xiao Zai stood on his tiptoes, stretching his neck to see carefully, but everyone on the camels wore headscarves, and no matter how wide he opened his eyes, he couldn't tell if it was his mother.

Sui Yu spotted him first. He had grown taller in the six months they had been apart, and there were subtle changes in his appearance. Much of the innocent look had faded, and his eyes were lively, showing he was a clever child.

She drove her camel closer, cleared her throat, and asked, "How much for this child?"

Xiao Zai stared at her, filled with doubt and unease.

Da Zhuang eyed her warily, holding Xiao Zai tightly, not letting him go forward.

Sui Yu revealed her headscarf, smiling as she asked, "Kid, want to come with me?"

Sui Yu had tanned and lost weight, not the way Xiao Zai had imagined her to be. He held his hands together uncertainly and hesitated, "Mom? Say something again."

Sui Yu jumped off the camel, laughing loudly as she picked him up and spun him around, "It seems your father hasn't neglected you. You've gotten heavier; I can barely carry you."

"Xiao Zai, it's your mother. I recognize her." Da Zhuang shouted excitedly.

Xiao Zai recognized her too, cupping Sui Yu's face, looking at her again and again, laughing with tears streaming down his face, which he quickly wiped away.