When she arrived at the horse shop, Su Zu skillfully chose a horse. She had seen the Masked One's group's horses not long ago and thought that the shop should have some. However, she was disappointed when she looked around the shop and did not find any horses with good characteristics like the Masked One's. Su Zu could only choose the best horse in the shop, which cost a hundred taels. The merchant said that this horse was strong and well-raised, and could run at least two hundred li in a day. Su Zu agreed to buy this horse. At least it would help her avoid having to use the Light Body Technique to travel.
" Uncle, if I want to go to the capital, which way should I go?"
" Oh, Miss, do you want to go to the capital ? Then you have to go to Zhenguan City first. That city is the way to the capital. As for the next city, I don't really know which city to go to because I've never been to the capital before."
" Thank you, uncle, for telling me. In which direction is Zhenguan City?"
" Oh, Zhenguan City is heading northeast. You can ride your horse along the path. This path will definitely take you to Zhenguan City."
" Thank you, uncle. Then I will take my leave first."
Su Su, who knew the direction, hurriedly asked to leave the city before the sun got any stronger. It was too late now to choose a horse and ask for directions. Su Su didn't know how many days it would take her to reach Zhenguan City. Su Su rode her horse out of the shop towards the east gate of the city without delay. Because there were many villagers coming to buy things in the city today, she was afraid that she would accidentally run into someone. After leaving the city through the east gate, Su Su hurried her horse along the path as the owner of the horse stall had told her earlier. When she saw that it was noon, Su Su stopped her horse on the side of the road to find some grass and water for it to drink. She had forgotten to buy a water bottle earlier, so Su Su had to walk into the forest and take her horse to find a stream on the side of the road. She led the horse for a short while before finding a small stream. She took the horse to drink water and let it eat grass near where she was sitting and eating the rice that her grandmother had packed for her.
After resting until she saw that the newly bought horse was ready to continue her journey, Su Su led the horse out of the forest by the roadside to return to the original path. While traveling, she sang a song leisurely as if she was traveling to prevent herself from feeling too bored.
" I am both beautiful and talented. No matter who comes to stare and cause trouble, I will not be afraid. If anyone dares to disturb or make me angry, my large flying sword will show you its power. La la la."
Su Zu sang the song over and over again in a cheerful mood. Until one person and one horse traveled until dusk. Su Zu could only stop the horse and lead it to find grass and water in the forest by the side of the road as usual. Tonight, she would have to sleep in the tree. But before she could rest, Su Zu went to find wood to make a fire without much difficulty. Fortunately, she brought fuel in a cloth bundle. Therefore, Su Zu had a fire to chase away wild animals that might come to drink water at night. After tying the horse under the tree, Su Zu used the light-body levitating technique to climb up to a large branch nearby. She looked at the horse that was resting after eating and grazing with a smile. It was worth buying this horse at a high price. It seemed that this horse could really run two hundred li a day. However, she did not like to travel at night, so Su Zu rested with the horse by the side of the road like this.
The next morning, Su Zu let the horses graze and drink water as usual. She used the Light Body Technique to walk to the middle of the stream to find some fish to grill and eat as a snack. She didn't know how long it would take to reach Zheng Guan City. She had to fill her stomach first. She hadn't eaten dinner last night, so Su Zu was quite hungry now. It was a pity that she didn't want to waste time hunting around this area. Not long after, Su Zu saw many fish swimming around, not afraid that she would catch them and eat them. Su Zu took out a sword from her storage bracelet and stabbed several fish near her at once. When she saw that she had enough fish, Su Zu walked on the water's surface and returned to the stream. After taking out the fish, she put the sword aside and took out a short knife to cut open the fish's belly to prepare to grill them over the fire she had built when she woke up. Su Zu cleaned the seven fish and skewered them onto sticks she had found nearby and grilled them over the fire. While waiting for the fish to cook, Su Zu sang her song without rushing to leave.
Su Su's horse, which had eaten its fill, sat obediently waiting for her, making Su Su very satisfied with her choice of horse. After waiting for a while, all the fish were cooked. Su Su ate and blew on it because the fish had just come out of the fire and were still hot. It took her almost two ke to finish eating. Su Su, who had her fill, brought water to put out the fire. She did not see any bamboo forest around here, so she had to walk to the stream to drink water helplessly. If she had not forgotten to buy a water bottle earlier, Su Su would not have had to take the trouble to stop and rest so often in the first place. But since she had forgotten, Su Su could only take her horse to stop and rest like this until they reached Zhenguan City.
Su Su had been stopping here and there for the past five days, until today when she saw the city gate not far away. Su Su urged her horse to go and ask the official at the city gate if this was the Zhenguan City she had expected.
" Officer, I wonder if this is Zhenguan City or not."
" That's right, this is Zhenguan City as you said. Where did you travel to that you came to this city?"
" I want to go to the capital, sir. Could you give me directions on which city to go to next? I will rest in Zhenguan for two days before leaving."
" Oh, then you have to go to Qianzhou City next. You have to travel north from this city for about ten days without stopping, and you should be able to reach Qianzhou City, which is not far away."
" Thank you, officer. I will be leaving in the direction you told me in two days. I have already troubled you all. This is just a small gesture. Please accept it."
Su Su gave each official one tael of money. She was rich, but this amount of money wouldn't make her shed a single hair on her legs.
The officials could only smile as they accepted the money from the pretty young lady who also kindly gave them directions. After seeing her ride her horse into the city, the two officials could only thank her in their hearts. To them, one tael of silver could last them for several more days. They never thought that just giving directions could earn them so much money.
Su Zuo rode her horse slowly to explore the shops along the way, and she had to be careful not to run into anyone. There were many more people in Zhenguan City than the city she was in. Su Zuo thought that there should be good things for her to buy to provide supplies for her journey to Qianzhou City, including her water bottle, which she had to buy for both the people and the horses to drink along the way. Instead of wasting time looking for water sources along the way like before, Su Zuo waited to see which shops looked interesting before asking the villagers along the way if there were any good inns. She could stay for a couple of days to buy some supplies before having to travel far again the day after tomorrow.
The villagers here saw that she was a beautiful young lady riding a big horse, and they thought that she was the daughter of a wealthy martial artist, so they immediately told her the name of the largest inn in the city and the directions to the inn.
Su Su thanked the villager for pointing the way with a smile, then she steered her horse towards the inn to rest for a while. Moreover, she was hungry now, it would be great if the inn cooked some food for her to eat. Su Su, who had not bathed for many days, also wanted Xiao Er to bring her some water to bathe. Thinking of the convenience she would receive from the inn, Su Su urged her horse to walk a bit faster so that she could arrive at the inn quickly.