Chapter 72 - Village

Chapter 72: Chapter 66 VillageThe group quickened their pace, and in less than half an hour, they saw houses. It should be a small town, with houses sporadically scattered at first, but following the terrain upward, they could see smoke rising in the distance, clearly indicating this was a large village.

A few households living at the entrance of the village heard the commotion and peeked out. Seeing so many people and horses shocked them, and they quickly slammed their doors shut, hiding inside.

Zhao Hanzhang heard the slam and looked towards the sound. She saw a young man sneaking out of a courtyard, avoiding their gaze, and darted into the village.

Seeing this, Zhao Hanzhang raised her hand to stop everyone and, after glancing around, pointed to a deserted area nearby and said, "Let’s camp here tonight. Uncle Qianli, make sure to keep everyone in check; no one is allowed to disturb the villagers."

Her gaze fell on the refugees following them, and she said to Uncle Cheng, "Give them some bread, and tell them if they want to follow us, they must abide by the rules. If anyone commits murder or theft, I’ll treat them as if dealing with chaotic soldiers."

Uncle Cheng agreed, reached for the grain sack, thought for a moment, and decided to take half of it over to them.

Zhao Hanzhang helped Mrs. Wang down from the horse and found a stone for her to sit on, "Mother, do you have anything valuable on you?"

Mrs. Wang: "..."

She instinctively touched the hairpin on her head and looked at her daughter. She still poked her forehead lightly and scolded in a low voice, "You really are a little troublemaker."

She took it off and handed it to her, whispering, "All our family possessions have been robbed, and we can barely have a meal, yet you are being so generous."

Zhao Hanzhang gave her a charming smile.

Mrs. Wang looked worried, "I wonder if Mr. Ji managed to safely take your dowry back to Ru Nan. If not... everything we have now is all the family’s property, so don’t be too extravagant."

Zhao Hanzhang said, "Don’t worry, Mother, I know what I’m doing."

Zhao Hanzhang searched through the only box but couldn’t find anything worthwhile, so she wrapped the hairpin in a handkerchief to make it look a bit more valuable.

Fu Tinghan saw this, reached out to take the hairpin, and gave her the jade pendant from his waist, "This is more useful."

Zhao Hanzhang accepted it, saw the inscription on the jade pendant, and returned it, shaking her head, "No, this jade pendant is too precious, and it’s engraved with your family name. It must have been carved by your elders."

Fu Tinghan insisted on giving it to her, "Take it; you’ll need sufficient sincerity if you want to trade for food."

Zhao Hanzhang thought for a moment, then accepted it, "I will redeem it for you later."

Fu Tinghan smiled.

Zhao Dian and his men went out to find a water source, brought back water, and also gathered some firewood. Finally, with the guidance of the reporting young man, villagers began to arrive.

The villagers carried sticks, hoes, and kitchen knives but didn’t dare to get too close. Seeing them set up camp at the village entrance without entering, they immediately stopped, hiding their sticks and kitchen knives behind them.

A senior man and a middle-aged man walking at the front paused, then turned to stop the villagers. The two approached, bowed to Uncle Cheng, and said, "May I ask who among the honored guests is in charge?"

Though they posed the question, their gaze fell directly on Fu Tinghan.

Fu Tinghan looked directly at Zhao Hanzhang.

Zhao Hanzhang stood up, greeted them with a smile, and performed a courtesy bow, "Sorry to disturb you, elder."

Uncle Cheng immediately said, "This is our young lady, and she is the one in charge of our group."

The elder was slightly surprised but did not dare underestimate Zhao Hanzhang. Noticing the coffin surrounded by people, he asked, "May I ask how to address the young lady, where she is from, and her destination?"

Zhao Hanzhang replied, "Third Lady from the Ru Nan Zhao Family, coming from Luoyang. My grandfather passed away, so I am escorting his coffin home, passing through your esteemed land and bothering you and the villagers. I apologize for any disturbance."

The elder was taken aback and couldn’t help but glance at the coffin.

The term "passed away" is not used by just anyone.

It is reserved for the Empress Dowager, princes, and only high-ranking officials like marquises.

"May I ask who your ancestor is? Since we’ve met, we should offer our respects."

Zhao Hanzhang said, "My ancestor was Shangcai Marquis, former Secretary of the Imperial Secretariat."

The elder was shocked, and tears welled up instantly, "It turns out to be Mr. Zhao."

He immediately pulled the middle-aged man forward to kneel in worship, Zhao Hanzhang hurriedly lifted them up, "Elder, you flatter us."

The elder, in tears, said, "Mr. Zhao deserves this ceremony. During the chaos in Yong’an, when the havoc reached our village, we were plundered repeatedly, almost to the point of not being able to survive. It was Mr. Zhao who stood up to restrain those marauding soldiers, sparing us from having to leave our homes. We remember this kindness. We never expected that our benefactor would..."

He cried and asked, "When did our benefactor pass away?"

Zhao Hanzhang sighed, "Eight days ago."

The elder looked at them and then at the coffin again, unwilling to let Zhao Changyu’s coffin stay outside and gather frost.

He immediately instructed to set up a mourning shelter in his courtyard to place the coffin.

He insisted on inviting Zhao Hanzhang to his home as a guest.

Zhao Hanzhang hastily declined, "We are only staying one night, there’s really no need to set up a mourning shelter."

"If our benefactor had to endure the elements in our village, how could we face living in the world?"

Zhao Hanzhang, hearing this, could only follow them into the village.

Fu Tinghan woodenly followed behind her, entering the village with everyone else.

The villagers, in stark contrast to their previous defensiveness and hostility, warmly welcomed them.

The mourning shelter was quickly set up. As soon as Zhao Changyu’s coffin was carried in, groups of mourners arrived, crying their hearts out, tears streaming down their faces, seemingly more sincerely than Zhao Hanzhang, his granddaughter.

Zhao Hanzhang watched in a daze.

The elder also went up to cry, then, with red eyes, came to entertain them. He curiously looked at Fu Tinghan, who had been following beside Zhao Hanzhang, "And who might this be..."

"Oh, this is my grandfather’s betrothed fiancé, also the eldest son of the Fu Family. Elder can call him Fu Dalang."

Mrs. Wang, stirred by the villagers’ cries, was reminded of her sorrows and also went with her son to cry in front of her father-in-law’s spirit, almost fainting, and was finally helped down to rest by Qing Gu and Ting He.

Zhao Erlang, injured yesterday and sitting on horseback all day today, was already sore and so sleepy his eyes were about to close. He muddle-headedly followed his mother into the house.

The elder, observing all this, sighed and instructed his daughter-in-law to invite Zhao Hanzhang down to rest, pulling his own son aside to speak, "It should be true; I heard Mr. Zhao’s grandson, just like Emperor Hui, is a simpleton. Their attire and speech don’t seem fraudulent either."

The middle-aged man asked, "Father’s intention is?"

"I don’t think they’ll stay long. Since they are not villains, we should treat them well as guests. I noticed their luggage is scattered, and they are followed by a group of refugees—likely escaping for safety. We should prepare more food and see them off properly."

The elder sighed, "Thus repaying the favor and avoiding any potential troubles."

The middle-aged man agreed, bowed, and went to prepare.