Wang Xiangxiang returned to her room and sat by the window, unable to resist the urge to see what he was up to.
Chu Lian walked over to Wang Xiangxiang’s window sill and thought she should be able to hear him, so he said, "I’m leaving now, I’ll come again tomorrow."
Hearing this, Wang Xiangxiang’s eyes widened. He was telling her his whereabouts. She looked out the window to see his figure moving further away. A small smile curled the corners of her lips, as she felt content just hearing him speak to her.
Chu Lian had returned because he and Yang Ming had planned many methods they wanted to implement as soon as possible. Moreover, they had decided to set off for Lin County the very next day, so he also needed to go back and make some quick preparations.
Wang Xiangxiang soon learned about their plans to set off the next day. They had decided to use Wang Xiangxiang’s family’s carriage and bring their own coachman, so they wouldn’t have to drive the carriage themselves.
The coachman had always been with the Yang Family village, living with Yang Dong, which also meant he helped look after the Yang residence. Despite having agreed on this arrangement with the coachman, a stranger arrived the next day.
The person who came was Acheng, appointed by Chu Lian. Acheng sought out Wang Xiangxiang’s family’s coachman and bribed him with silver to replace him. He said to Wang Xiangxiang, "Miss, I am Acheng. The original coachman is my cousin, and he urgently needed to return home due to a pressing matter, so I’ve come to replace him."
"Miss, you can rest assured, I am very skilled at driving a carriage."
Wang Xiangxiang was surprised by the last-minute substitution and worried about the possibility of him being a bad person, as she did not recognize him. She felt uneasy and wanted to refuse, being highly sensitive at the moment.
However, Chu Lian had informed both Yang Ming and Xiaoxiao about the switch to Acheng, so Xiaoxiao quickly assured her, "Sister, this person should be fine. I’ve heard your coachman mention his cousin before, and he looks exactly . Let’s use him because it’s too late to find someone else now."
Upon hearing this from Xiaoxiao, Wang Xiangxiang reluctantly agreed, realizing they didn’t have other options at the moment. "Alright then."
With the coachman in place, the three of them began to prepare for their journey, loading their necessary belongings onto the carriage. Xiaoxiao suggested they keep it simple, saying that all they needed was to bring their silver, since having too much would be cumbersome. Moreover, as it was their first long trip, they should save room to bring back souvenirs.
Therefore, the group prepared very few belongings. Shortly thereafter, Chu Lian arrived. Seeing that Xiangxiang appeared in good spirits today, he shared a glance with her, smiled at her, and then boarded the carriage.
Wang Xiangxiang was somewhat surprised, but with time pressing, she had no leisure to ponder much and followed onto the carriage.
The four of them set off , embarking on their first long journey.
Xiaoxiao was extremely excited. This was her first time visiting another county since she had arrived, and she was eager to discover what the outside world was like.
She chattered away non-stop to Yang Ming throughout the journey.
"Husband, look outside; that tree is filled with flowers."
"Husband, that mountain over there is so high."
In contrast to Xiaoxiao and Yang Ming, Chu Lian, and Wang Xiangxiang on the opposite side were very quiet, watching Xiaoxiao and Yang Ming interact, both couldn’t help but feel envious. How nice it would be if they too could interact like that.
"Wife, calm down and sit down," Yang Ming said.
Xiaoxiao sat down and noticed the silence on the other side. Her little mind began working again. No, she had to think of a way to liven up the atmosphere inside the carriage.