After the meeting disbanded, Ying Yue and Su Ru headed off to bed. For the longest time, Ying Yue was able to sleep peacefully. Unlike other nights, Ying Yue dreamt of Jianyu again. In a beautiful field of white flowers. with a sunny blue sky; Ying Yue was laying her head on Jianyu's chest as they rested under a beautiful willow tree. Ying Yue was about to lean in for a kiss, until Su Ru woke her up suddenly.
"My lady! Wake up!"
"Mmghhhh.....Why.... Su Ru. I was so close!"
"Close to what, my lady?"
"Nothing! I'll get up."
Ying Yue stares out the window and realized she had slept all morning.
"Why didn't you wake me up earlier?!"
"I was going to, but master Duan said not to. Since you're pregnant he said you needed some rest. It's time for lunch now, so please wake up as I bring in your lunch."
"Alright...alright, I'll get up."
Once Su Ru was out of sight, Ying Yue forced herself to move out of bed. Making her way towards the water bin, Ying Yue scoops out some water into a wash bin; wetting a clean cloth, Ying Yue washes her face to wake herself up.
"Sigh...much better."
Ying Yue was about to get changed into the lotus uniform when Lin An knocked on her bedroom door.
"Knock Knock."
"Ying Yue, it's me."
"Come in."
"Oh, good. You're awake. Here, change into this. If we're supposed to look like we're going on a family trip, we should at least make sure to dress like we are."
Lin An hands Ying Yue a dress that was folded nicely. It was a beautiful pale yellow with little white flowers sewed onto the front of the dress. Ying Yue runs her hand along the fabric of the dress as she stared in awe of how simple and pretty the dress was.
"Here, this one is for Su Ru. Make sure to change into these and come downstairs once you're done with lunch."
"Ah! Just a moment, Lin An."
Ying Yue walks to her bed and lifts up her pillow. She grabs her money bag and hands it to Lin An.
"Here, give this to Duan Da. It's not much but it's something to help with preparations."
Lin An opens up and pouch and counts all the gold coins.
"Ying Yue, what do you mean it's not much! There's over twenty gold coins here! This is more than what most people make in a year."
"Oh, I had no idea. Ehm.....well I still want Duan Da to have it. It's the least I can do."
"Knock Knock."
"My lady, I'm back."
"Since Su Ru is back, I'll be taking my leave. I'll be sure to give this to father."
Lin An quickly exits the bedroom and closes the door behind her. Su Ru looked confused for a moment as she wondered why Ying Yue gave away all the money they had.
"My lady, why did you give away all your money? What will we do if they lie to us?"
"It's alright, Su Ru. Don't worry, Duan Da isn't that kind of person."
"I guess.....If you say so."
Su Ru places the plates of food onto the table and seats herself across from Ying Yue. The two girls spent the next half hour chatting away and enjoying food. Once lunch was over, Ying Yue handed Su Ru the outfit that Lin An had given her.
"This is from Lin An, make sure to change into it."
As Su Ru was clearing up the dishes, Ying Yue found time to slip into the new dress. Leaving her hair in a braided bun; Ying Yue smiles in relief as everything was going as planned. Ying Yue walks back to the table and grabs the dishes from Su Ru.
"I'll head downstairs and bring the dishes to the kitchen."
"No! My lady! I can do that, it's my job to take care of your needs!"
"Don't worry, Su Ru. I can do this much at least. Get changed and I'll see you in a bit."
With those parting words, Ying Yue walked out with the dirty dishes and closed the door to give Su Ru some privacy. As Ying Yue made her way downstairs, Ying Yue realized she had never seen the lotus tea shop so empty in the afternoon before. Quickly glancing around the room, Ying Yue could see everyone working hard in preparing for the trip. Xu Bao who was resting nearby approaches Ying Yue as she walked down the stairs with dirty plates.
"Ah! Such a shame you're married already."
"Uh....sorry."
Jin slaps Xu Bao in the back of the head for spouting nonsense again.
"Ow! That was uncalled for Jin! How many times are you going to abuse me like that?!"
"As many times as it takes to shut you up."
Ying Yue breaks into a nervous smile as she walks away from the two men bickering at each other. Finally making it into the kitchen, Ying Yue could see Sun Ju and Gao Jia wrapping up and boxing up produces and cooking utensils. Ying Yue places the dirty dishes into a bin fill with water and began cleaning only to be stopped by Sun Ju.
"Ah! Ying Yue, you don't have to do that. That's our job, you should be resting."
"I'm fine, really. I think I got more sleep than anyone last night. Do you two need help with anything?"
"Nope, everything is pretty much done and ready. The rest of these are heavy so we're having the men come help in a bit. Did you see the two carriages? Ones for supply and the other is for us to rest in.'
"Oh! I haven't seen them yet. Are they in the back?"
"Yes, father Duan is outside in the back if you need to speak to him."
Sun Ju points into a direction for Ying Yue to follow. Quickly bidding the sisters farewell, Ying Yue follows the long hallway that led her to the back of the shop. The moment she opened the door, Ying Yue could see two large brown carriage with two horses attached each. Quickly scanning the area, Ying Yue finally spots Duan Da getting out of one of the carriages.
"Duan Da!"
"Hm? Ah, Ying Yue. What is it?"
"Did you get the money from Lin An?"
"I did, I had her take it into town to purchase some additional things we'll need for the long journey."
"How's everything? Is there something I can help with?"
"No, don't worry about it. Everything is pretty much done, much earlier than I anticipated too. Once the sun starts to set, we'll be heading out."
"I see! I will start packing my things and bringing them down here then."
Ying Yue quickly runs off towards her shared bedroom with Su Ru. Without thinking much, Ying Yue slams the door open and sees Su Ru dressed and packing already.
"Oh! The dress looks nice. They did a good job picking a purple dress for you."
"Thank you, my lady. The pale yellow really brings out your fair complexion as well."
"What have you packed already? We should start bringing our things down to the carriages."
"Our clothing is packed, and I think the only other things left are your sword and scrolls."
Ying Yue wraps her scrolls up and ties them to her sword. Laying her sword down, Ying Yue takes out the extra cloth and wraps the sword completely to hide anything that might attract people. After an hour of cleaning and preparing their things, Ying Yue and Su Ru headed downstairs and heads out towards the carriages in the back.
Su Ru hands over their belongings to Jin who was helping to load in the heavy things. Ying Yue takes a glance into the carriage and realized how many water pots there was inside.
"Jin, why is there so much water?"
"Most likely because we have to cross the desert."
"A desert?!"
"It's the Xuzou desert. There are desert people who live there, but they aren't the friendliest. Water is scarce and we definitely don't want to come across them. That's all I really know."
After hearing Jin's explanation, Ying Yue moves to the other carriage and pulls Duan Da aside for more information.
"Duan Da, what is this Xuzou desert?"
"Oh, it's an extremely dry desert. Not many people are willing to cross it, but it's the quickest way to the dragon kingdom. It's also one of the many reasons why the dragon kingdom doesn't have to worry about other kingdoms attacking them. It's rough during the day time, but night time should be easier. There are two tribes in the desert, but there are ways to avoid clashing with them. Should something happen and we have to fight our way through, we have weapons ready for that."
"Hmm....I see. I would like to avoid unnecessary bloodshed if possible."
"That is my goal, but desert people aren't the friendliest, especially if they realize we have water and women with us. The men will be on the lookout, so don't worry."
"Will it really be alright? It sounds dangerous already."
"Don't worry, my sons and daughters are all trained in martial arts. I've taught them a few things myself. Besides, I know you aren't so weak yourself."
"You're right...I'm not weak. Thanks for reminding me."
Ying Yue walks off to the other carriage and pulls Su Ru to the side.
"Su Ru, this is your last chance to live a normal life. If you want to stay in Jianxiang, I won't hold you back. This journey is not easy and will be hard. Are you certain you still want to follow me?"
"My lady....I will follow you till my last breath. You were the only one to treat me like another human being. I have no one left, but you now."
"Su Ru...."
Ying Yue felt touched at how dedicated Su Ru was to her. Quickly pulling Su Ru into a hug, Ying Yue then made a promise to herself that she was going to survive no matter what.
Soon, the hours flew by and the sun finally started to set. The lotus tea shop was finally cleaned out and the carriages were ready. Ying Yue stared at the lotus tea shop as they got farther and farther away from it. After twenty minutes; everyone was now at the main gates to the kingdom. Getting out of Jianxiang was simple as everyone knew who mother Duan was.
Everyone sat silently inside the carriage as they awaited what fate would hold for them on this journey. After six long hours on the road, Duan Da finally called it a day. Finally, far enough now, Duan Da removed his makeup and changed out of his clothing. The sisters got to work and prepared dinner. Everyone sat by a fire to warm up for the night as they ate their dinner. The women all slept in the carriages as the men laid out blankets on the ground to guard the carriages and sleeping women.
Ying Yue and everyone drifted off in no time. With the sun barely in the sky, Ying Yue could feel the carriage starting to move. She rubs her eyes and sits up to see some of the other women awake already.
"Good morning, Lin An and Yuan Chen ."
"Good morning, Ying Yue. Did you sleep alright?"
"I think so. How long have we been on the road, Lin An?"
"About three hours now. The men all woke up around the crack of dawn."
Ying Yue opens the back of the carriage that was covered with cloth for some fresh air. Xu Bao who was guarding the back of the carriage waves to Ying Yue from his horse. Unsure of how to respond Ying Yue weakly waves back to him. Ying Yue glances around her and realized they were passing a small town on the outskirts of Jianxiang kingdom. After another four hours on the road, Duan Da finally calls for another break. With everyone awake now, the cooking sisters got to work and started to cook lunch as Duan Da headed off into town to check for any news on Xinjing.
Everyone ate their rice and sausages in silence, until Duan Da returned from the small village with a worried look on his face. Jin who was finished eating first, heads off to bring a plate of food for Duan Da. Ying Yue happened to be sitting across from Duan Da as he quickly ate his food. Ying Yue knew something wasn't right from how he was acting.
"What happened when you went into the village Duan Da?"
"Xinjing soldiers just passed this village a day ago. There's a good chance they are in Jianxiang kingdom right now. Everyone said they were looking for a woman that matched your description."
"Sigh....I knew this was coming."
"We have to keep moving everyone. We'll be taking less breaks seeing as they aren't that far behind. Let's get going everyone."
Everyone nods and agrees to Duan Da's orders. Quickly covering their tracks, they wasted no time and continued pressing on. Soon, hours became days and a whole week had passed. With each passing day, Ying Yue grew bigger and more tired from her pregnancy. After a long day on the road, Duan Da finally called it a night as they were more than far enough from Jianxiang and Xinjing.
Duan Da took one glance at Ying Yue and could tell the trip was exhausting and taking a toll on her physically.
"How are you feeling, Ying Yue?"
"I'm sorry, we're making so many stops because of me."
"It was to be expected. You're doing better than I thought. Long travel is never good for expectant mothers in the first place."
Ying Yue slurps on her porridge and chicken as everyone laughed and chatted the night away. After dinner everyone wanted to do some story telling. Everyone turned their attention to Su Ru and Ying Yue as they were the only people that could possibly have any good stories they haven't heard. Ying Yue glances over to Su Ru and gestures for her to start.
"Uh....why don't you go first Su Ru."
"Well, what does everyone want to know?"
"Oh! Tell us about your life and family in Xinjing."
Xu Bao yells out excitedly as he munched on his chicken leg and porridge. Su Ru was silent for a moment before finally breaking into a smile.
"Well....I am an orphan. I have no idea who my father is. My poor mother raised me alone until she passed away when I was six years old. I grew up in an orphanage after that, until I got hired to work in the palace at twelve years old. I trained for three years, yet no royal concubines would pick me to serve them. So, I stayed in the bath house and cleaned my days away. That was until lady Ying Yue came to Xinjing palace. She gave me a name and treated me like another human being. I actually got to enjoy a better life than most people who live in Xinjing."
"Sniff....Sniff...I had no idea you suffered as well!"
Xu Bao cries out from hearing Su Ru struggles. Even Ying Yue was caught off guard. Since she had never really asked Su Ru about her life, seeing as Su Ru never wanted to talk about it. Ying Yue couldn't help but feel sympathy for Su Ru. She placed one of her hand over Su Ru's clenched fists that were resting on her legs to assure her that she made the right choice in following her. Once Su Ru was done, everyone turned their attention to Ying Yue.
"Guess it's my turn.... where do I even begin?"
Ying Yue takes a deep breath to calm her senses and clears her throat. She decided they all at least deserved to know some truths about her as they are putting themselves in danger for her.
"If I told you guys I was from another world, would you believe me?"
Everyone looked at each other and wondered if they all heard the same thing. Lin An, who was slouched over by a nearby tree was now standing up straight.
"I believe you, Ying Yue. Not just anybody can say they are from another world, if they didn't know there was another world in the first place, right?"
"You have a point there, Lin An. But yes, I am from another world. I left my world to be with my husband who is in the dragon kingdom. In my world.... I was the imperial general that served a selfish king. I didn't have the best father growing up, but at least I had a loving mother who's waiting for me in the dragon kingdom."
"Who is this husband you speak of?"
"You will know when the time is right, Duan Da. I think that's something you all will have to see for yourself. He's not someone I can describe, if that makes sense."
"Ha Ha! I like that! Very well, I look forward to meeting your husband!"