Chapter Two: The Narrow Path

  The clouds gathered and the rain stopped, and the empty official road seemed to have suddenly emerged from the ground with many people, and it became bustling and crowded.

  The people who took shelter from the rain in the broken temple laughed and dispersed, but what they saw today was enough for them to talk about for several days.

  "I've heard that those officials in the capital would observe the wind and measure the rain like this..."

  "Is this woman as fierce as those masters?"

  The crowd dispersed, leaving only Half-Chen and his servant, along with the old man and the young girl in the ruined temple.

  The things were packed up long ago, and the carter helped load them onto the cart, urging the donkey to set off.

  The old man also went out with the girl on his back.

  "The girl will summon the wind and rain!" The little girl listened to it for half a day, seeming to understand but not really understanding, but while thinking about the delicious pastries, she couldn't help but rush over to this side of the donkey cart, clapping her hands and shouting.

  My wife is a fairy who has descended from heaven, with a hint of pride and a smile on her face.

  "No, it's looking at the sky." The donkey cart again sent out a voice, and lifted up half of the carriage curtain.

  At this time, they had already walked to the temple gate. The rain had stopped and the sky was clear. The sunlight was shining brightly, but the curtain of the carriage door blocked some of the light, so it was still possible to see the woman and girl sitting inside.

  So young! The old man was startled and couldn't say he was young! Only thirteen or fourteen years old!

  "When I went out in the morning, there were cotton clouds." said Jingniang, looking at the little girl lying on her grandfather's back.

  The little girl didn't understand, but the old man did; one can tell when it will rain by looking at the clouds and know when it will be sunny after seeing the rain.

  "My daughter is very talented, my daughter is very talented." He said repeatedly.

  Jiang Nang bowed her head slightly in response and looked at the old man.

  "Old man, your illness must be cured as soon as possible." She said suddenly.

  The old man had already stood aside to let them go first, and was taken aback by what he heard.

  "Will the girl still be able to see patients?" he asked.

  "Just barely," said Jingniang, her eyes falling on the old man's slightly hunched back.

  It seems to outsiders that this old man is hunchbacked and using force because he has a girl on his back.

  "What illness does the young lady say I have?" The old man asked with a smile after being taken aback.

  Jiangniang remained silent.

  "I don't know." she replied.

  The old man was stunned again.

  "But I can cure it," said Cheng Jiaoniang.

  "How can it be cured?" The old man asked with a smile, his expression already showing that he didn't take it seriously.

  "My wife's medical expenses have to be paid in advance." said Ban Jin from the side.

  As soon as this was said, the old man couldn't help but laugh.

  "Thank you, madam," he said, and surprisingly cut off the conversation, nodded and took a big step out of the temple gate along the road.

  The cart driver could no longer bear it.

  "Miss, you can't do business like this. Who talks like that?" he said, "How can you say you don't know the illness? Even if you don't know, since you can cure it, just make up a name for the illness."

  Bàn qín bù yuè de dèng tā yī yǎn.

  Translation:

  Half of the celery discontentedly stared at him.

  "We're not in business," she said.

  The cart driver pouted.

  "It's not a business, why still ask for consultation fees?" he muttered.

  "Because we need the money..." said Ban Jin, looking at the driver's lazy appearance with some annoyance. "Hurry up and drive, we have to reach the town ahead before nightfall."

  "It's all for your own good." The driver looked a bit wronged and muttered under his breath as he urged the donkey out of the door.

  The carriage swayed out of the temple gate, and the sunlight was a bit dazzling. Cheng Jiaoniang put down the curtain.

  Ban Jin sat in the carriage, the driver urged the horse on, and they all went forward.

  When the night was deep, the donkey cart finally stopped in front of an inn. The shopkeeper came over to greet them, yawning, and Half Cinnamon jumped down from the cart and asked seriously for half a day before finally waving his hand at the carter.

  "It's really hard to serve you, so many inns asking east and west, this is not good that is not okay, tossing until dark, you still have to give me another day's money, and also take care of my food and lodging for a day, what are you up to?" The driver muttered and pulled the donkey cart towards the backyard stable.

  "It's good that you can earn money, isn't it?" said Ban Jin, dissatisfied with the car owner.

  Jiang Yao had already gotten off the car, and Ban Jin hurriedly stretched out his hand to support her.

  The shop assistant leading the way turned his head and saw that this woman was slightly taller than Yatou, wearing a hood from head to toe, with a brown half-sleeved jacket inside, and a plain white skirt that was faintly visible. This simple and unadorned attire showed that this woman was not young, but her figure was still slender and elegant.

  At this time, the lobby was no longer crowded with guests, and most of the lights in the back rooms had been extinguished. The night wind blew, and the woman walking under the lanterns in the lobby was particularly eye-catching.

  Across from them were two people leaning against a building and chatting, one of whom happened to glance over, and their eyes lit up.

  "This girl is really beautiful," he said.

  Another person looked for him with his eyes, but only saw the shallow back of Cheng Jiaoniang entering the room.

  "Yu Lang's eyes are now even sharper, and from the back of the sedan chair, he can see a person's appearance." He smiled.

  The man called Yuanlang burst out laughing.

  "What is called a beauty is not just good looks," he said.

  He said this and looked towards the room where the woman was. The house had dim lights and seemed to have already rested.

  Ban Jin sat under the dim lamp, seriously counting money.

  "My daughter, we only have three or four silver coins left," she said.

  Jiangniang leaned against the head of the bed, the dim light unable to dispel the darkness around her, her whole person dazed and confused.

  "Tomorrow rent a car, two meals, arrive at Jiangzhou City just in time before sunset." she said.

  Although Ban Jin was familiar with the prices of car rentals, meal fees and so on, she still couldn't calculate as quickly as Cheng Jiaoniang. So she simply memorized the prices and reported them each time, letting her daughter arrange the itinerary directly.

  "Girl, it's just a day's journey, are we going to change trains?" asked Ban Qin in confusion.

  Jiang Yao remained silent for a moment.

  "I want to." she said.

  "Hmm, this driver is very noisy." said Ban Jin with a nod.

  It wasn't because of that, but she subconsciously wanted to do so. She changed cars frequently and took different routes to confuse her whereabouts, making it hard for people to notice. These actions increased their expenses unnecessarily, which seemed pointless to ordinary people. But why did she want to do this? It seemed like she was hiding from something, but what was it?

  Is it Jingniang's escape or someone else's?

  Jiang Nang once again fell into deep thought, what exactly was it in her chaotic and unclear memories?

  Looking at his wife by the bed, he fell into a daze again. Half awake, he carefully put away the money bag, blew out the lamp and lay down on the mat with his eyes closed.

  Since falling ill last month, the daughter-in-law has not fallen ill again all along the way and is about to arrive home, no longer having to rush around without a place to rely on.

  Ban Jin's lips curled up into a sweet smile, with a mix of excitement and relaxation, she fell asleep.

  The second day, when the young lady and her servant got on the carriage and drove out of the city gate, it was almost noon. The road was crowded with carriages and horses, and the young lady's donkey cart walked among them without drawing attention to itself.

  "Breaking news, breaking news."

  The sound of horseshoes came from behind, and the pedestrians on the road dodged one after another, watching a team of soldiers galloping by.

  A carriage narrowly escaped falling into a roadside ditch in the midst of the congestion.

  "Father, are you all right?" A middle-aged man wearing a satin robe immediately dismounted his horse and asked anxiously.

  The little servants rolled up the carriage curtains.

  An old man and a child were sitting in the car.

  "Daddy, Dan Niang wants to ride a horse." The little girl shouted to the man with her hands open.

  The old man stretched out his hand and stroked the little girl's head.

  "It's hot outside, let's wait for it to cool down a bit before Dan Niang rides the horse again." He comforted the little girl and nodded at the man, "I'm fine, hurry up and get going, don't delay your official business."

  "It's unfilial of me, making Father work so hard together." The man said with a hint of shame, lowering his head.

  "Don't say such things, hurry..." The old man said, but his words stopped abruptly, and he looked slightly surprised.

  "Father?" The man was puzzled and shouted out, seeing his father's line of sight looking forward at a place, he also looked over.

  There was a donkey cart there, and a fifteen or sixteen year old girl was lifting the curtain to say something inside, her expression somewhat anxious.

  Look at that donkey again, it seems to have been injured in the legs by the congestion just now, and the car owner is squatting down to check.

  It's that wife of his...

  The old man hesitated, were they also going to Jiangzhou Prefecture?

  Last time on the road, they saw that the old and young were moving slowly. They invited themselves to sit in the car, saying that they were in a hurry to avoid being rained on. At first, this remark was not taken seriously, just as a kind of helping hand for the elderly. Although I didn't believe their words, I still believed in their kindness, so I let the little girl be carried by the little girl and sit outside the car with me for a while.

  Should we invite them to come along this time?

  My own family still has a car, which is better and faster than their donkey cart.

  But...

  The old man remembered what the girl said: it can be cured, but I don't know its name, and there's a consultation fee.

  He shook his head.

  "Father?" The man shouted again with some anxiety.

  The old man came back to his senses and nodded at his son.

  "It's okay, let's hurry along." he said

  The middle-aged man saw his father's expression and felt relieved, then comforted the little girl a few more times before turning around to mount his horse and leave.

  The guards led the way and they soon walked to the front of the road.

  The carriage curtains fluttered in the wind, and the old man subconsciously glanced outside. The small donkey cart flashed by.

  Your illness needs to be cured as soon as possible...

  The sound of that girl's wooden voice floated in her ears.

  The old man stretched out his hand and touched his waist, then shook his head and smiled.

  This girl is just a teenager who knows a little bit about the Tao.

  The team soon disappeared into the distance on the official road.