Ye Haohuan harbored his naive thoughts only in his heart, never sharing them with those around him, for some things, once spoken, became disasters!
Ye Shiqi had no idea how long their journey would take before they could reach their destination.
She felt that the people outside might be hungry and thirsty, so she had the old housekeeper and guards come to her carriage to fetch hot water to drink.
Of course, the maid personally took care of these tasks!
They were people from the Capital City and were not used to drinking strong liquor; while some people could treat liquor as water, in the cold and sandy place, they had to replenish their water more than ever!
The old housekeeper and the guards, along with Ye Haohuan’s guards, felt rejuvenated after receiving water replenishment, not just quenching their thirst but also keeping their spirits at their peak.
As for the food Ye Shiqi shared with them, it was the steamed buns prepared for breakfast at the inn—they had water to drink and a bun to eat for lunch, just one each, and after resting for a while, they continued on their way!
They traveled until evening and still hadn’t reached their destination, they could only stop at a somewhat flatter area with a few patches of grass but no water source, and no villages nearby.
The travelers had brought tents and planned to set them up here for an overnight stay.
Ye Haohuan and his guards began to regret following the others into this place, having bought nothing and prepared no food; even the water they had brought was finished!
The water and food they had at midday were all prepared by Ye Shiqi’s people.
Watching the night approach, they faced the prospect of going hungry.
Ye Shiqi had the maid move out some of the backup food stored in a compartment of the carriage, which included some meat and there was also rice.
They moved a pot out from the carriage too, so while cooking congee, they could roast meat.
Dinner could only be congee and roasted meat.
The maid had no idea that these items were stored in the carriage compartment. The old housekeeper knew about the long journey and had said that they should prepare some food for the next two days.
Ye Shiqi told them about the food stored in the carriage.
Neither the old housekeeper nor the maid knew what kind of things were in the carriage, but they trusted the Lady.
After all, they had woken up here and did not really know if there were other items present!
Having followed the Lady on many travels, they felt the Lady’s aura of mystery and, to protect it, they did whatever the Lady asked.
As they settled for the night, the group was worried about going hungry, but discovering they could have congee and roast meat was already quite fortunate!
The meat could be added to the pot to make soup or meat porridge.
Ye Haohuan looked thoughtfully at the carriage, for so far, the young girl inside had not come out.
The tents they erected were now ready!
With tents available, the young girl still preferred to stay in the carriage.
The tents were probably meant for these grown men!
Tents were also set up around the carriage; the space near the carriage was quite small and only barely enough for a young girl to sleep in. These tents were set up to protect the Lady.
Ye Haohuan always had this feeling that it wasn’t they who were protecting the young girl, but rather the girl was protecting them!
So far, he was still confused about how they had ended up here, as these past days were a blur!
His guard companions were also puzzled, but since the young master did not inquire or speak of it, they kept silent and quietly helped out.
Ye Shiqi, inside the carriage, constantly felt as if eyes were watching her.
She knew it must be Ye Haohuan, and whatever doubts anyone else had, she would not respond, all to protect her mystery.
Ye Shiqi was truly troubled that if one day her secret space was discovered, she might be deemed a monster!
It’s hard to be a good person in this world!
The group worked together, quickly cooking a pot of meat congee and roasting some meat.
At that moment, eating the piping hot food felt so comfortable, so aromatic!
Though their cooking skills weren’t the best, they still managed to produce a delicious meal.
The maid also brought the meal into the carriage, where a small table had been set up. Ye Shiqi sat eating porridge and roasted meat!
The cooking spices, of course, were provided by her! Nᴇw ɴovel chaptᴇrs are published on novel✦fire.net
It had grown dark, and outside, the fire was lit, some stood guard, while others slept first, taking turns on duty!
This area was somewhat of a plain, with a bit of grass and trees. The twigs for the fire had been picked up from here!
The night seemed very quiet, with only the whistling sound of the wind blowing through the sand!
Such silence, in an unfamiliar environment, was somewhat frightening!
In the distance, the sound of horse hooves, mixed with people whistling and shouting!
They couldn’t hear clearly, with the horse hooves sound being the loudest!
Suddenly hearing such noises, everyone from the tents rushed out!
They asked the guards what was happening?
Ye Haohuan also came out of the tent!
He saw fire in the distance and the sound of swords clashing!
The old housekeeper ordered someone to check what was going on and for everyone to protect Lady Ye Shiqi’s carriage!
Regardless of whether those in the distance were friend or foe, whether they needed to flee or stay put, they had to investigate!
They observed a signal!
"Not good, our people have been intercepted!"
The old housekeeper ordered some guards to help and the maids to pack up the tents quickly—they had to escape in the night!
Ye Shiqi was still unclear of what the signal meant!
"Lady, our grain store’s shipment, which set off after us and was not with our group, seems to have encountered thieves!"
Upon hearing this, Ye Shiqi frowned. If they were to encounter those thieves here, with so few people, they might be killed!
Without additional reinforcements, just these people protecting the grain could end up costing them their lives!
She couldn’t just take these people into her space again!
"Abandon the grain, keeping the people safe is what’s most important!"
The old housekeeper was somewhat unwilling; they had come such a long and arduous distance and were only a day’s journey from their destination.
"Lady, are we to lose the goods we’ve transported from so far away just like that?"
"What’s more important, people or materials? I have my plans!"
Ye Shiqi firmly stated this, and the housekeeper dispatched some guards to assist and then sent a signal for them to abandon the goods and withdraw the people!
Ye Shiqi said to the maids on this side, "Have everyone prepare to travel through the night, let the guards who know the way lead us!"
"Lady, if we travel through the night, what if there’s an ambush?" the maid asked with concern.
"We’ll have to rely on luck!" Ye Shiqi certainly wasn’t foolish enough to not use her space to scout ahead!
She had confidence in predicting what lay within several hundred meters in the darkness!
Ye Haohuan, seeing them pack up the tents and hearing they were to travel through the night, supported Ye Shiqi’s idea that as long as people survive, everything else could be managed!
As the saying goes, "As long as the green mountains are preserved, there is no fear of running out of firewood."
If these people took the goods, once they reached the military base, they would send people to reclaim them!
He believed they would be capable of doing it!