RWNEFE -Chapter 13 On the Road to Exile

Shen Lanxi looked at the family of six before her. “Are you really going to take your whole family into exile with the Shen family?”

Nanny Li bowed deeply. “Miss, our Wang family has served the Shen household for generations. We no longer have any other relatives. Our entire family is your accompanying household servants, and we are willing to continue serving you. Please, Miss, don’t drive us away!”  After saying this, Nanny Li led her family to their knees and kowtowed.

Shen Lanxi pondered for a moment. “Fine. From now on, serve me loyally, and I will guarantee your family food and clothing for three generations.”

“Thank you, Miss!”

The exiled prisoners still had to remain at the city gate for a while, allowing time for their families to see them off. Taking advantage of this moment, Chunxiao brought out the buns and tea eggs she had bought from Yunxue Pavilion the day before, along with four small side dishes arranged on plates. She set them on the folding table that Qiushuang had prepared earlier and placed the stools neatly.

“Miss, it’s rather crude out here. Please make do for now.”

The pastries from Yunxue Pavilion were famous throughout the capital. There were five kinds in all. With several small plates of side dishes added, the one-meter-long folding table was almost too small to hold everything.

This was hardly “making do” at all.

“We’re traveling outside now, so we need to keep a low profile. From now on, there’s no need to set up a table when we eat. Just hold the food in your hands and eat.”

The dry rations Chunxiao and Qiushuang had prepared for themselves were cornbread buns. When they heard Shen Lanxi say this, they immediately felt aggrieved on her behalf.

Their miss had never endured such hardship before.

Shen Lanxi noticed what the two girls were holding.

“From now on, whatever you eat, I’ll eat the same. No need to prepare anything special for me.”

Chunxiao looked distressed. “Miss, we still have money. You don’t have to wrong yourself like this.”

Naturally, Shen Lanxi had her own reasons.

“We’re traveling together with the entire Shen family—eighty-nine people in total. If they see us eating so well, won’t they ask us for some?”

“If they ask, do we give it or not?”

“If I give food and money to my father, mother, grandparents, and siblings, and they know I still have supplies and silver, won’t they ask me to take everything out for my uncles, cousins, and concubines? Won’t those relatives who were implicated by the Shen family rely on that and demand that I hand over the food and money?”

Chunxiao and Qiushuang fell silent.

Shen Lanxi waved for Nanny Li’s family to come over as well. Before officially setting off, she needed to give these people a proper lesson.

Less than half an hour later, the dark mass at the city gate began to move—the exile convoy set off!

Those who had just been “taught a lesson” by Shen Lanxi hurriedly hid whatever they could inside the carriage. Whatever couldn’t fit inside was tied underneath the carriage with ropes.

Two horse carriages and one ox cart followed the exile convoy at a moderate distance. It wasn’t until noon, when the convoy stopped to rest, that Shen Lanxi carried the prepared items and walked toward the yamen escorts.

When the escorts looked over at her, she raised the large bundle in her hands, along with two water jars.

She stopped three meters away and opened the bundle, revealing its contents.

Steamed buns, pickled vegetables, flatbreads, cornbread buns—plus two roast chickens and a braised pork knuckle!

Everything was clearly visible at a glance. After confirming there was nothing else, a burly escort with a saber at his waist stepped forward and questioned her.

“What are you doing?”

Shen Lanxi shot him a knowing look and took out a small pouch of silver from her pocket. The escort immediately understood and, under the cover of turning around, tucked it into his clothes.

“Sir, this humble one is a merchant going to Dongchuan to do business. I was entrusted by relatives of the exiled prisoners to look after them a bit along the way.”

There were strict rules when escorting prisoners—guards were not supposed to eat food provided by outsiders.

So Shen Lanxi walked straight up to the food, broke off a piece from each item, and ate it herself!

The escort raised an eyebrow at her, weighed the silver in his pocket again, and then spoke. “Which family’s prisoners?”

“The Shen family.”

The escort said, “Go call a few of them over.”

Shen Lanxi obediently walked toward the Shen family.

After experiencing dramatic ups and downs, as well as ten days of imprisonment, the Shen family members were all listless, the former light in their eyes completely gone.

“Yuanjing, Yuanjun, Yuanqing—you three come with me to get some food!” These were her full brothers, born of the same mother.

The three stared at her in disbelief, their dull gazes slowly turning into shock.

“Eldest Sister?” the youngest, Shen Yuanqing, cried out in surprise.

Noticing that the rest of the Shen family was already looking over, Shen Lanxi didn’t waste words.

“Come with me!” She dropped the words and turned to leave.

The three brothers exchanged glances. Shen Yuanqing was the first to catch up, followed by the other two.

“Eldest Sister, why are you dressed like this? How did you get here? Shouldn’t you be in the Prince’s residence?”

This was not the time to talk.

“Shut up. Talk less.”

The escorts were watching them closely.

After a few steps, they reached the food. Shen Lanxi had the three brothers each break off a piece from every item and eat it.

Trusting their sister, although they didn’t understand what she was doing, the three complied and broke off small pieces from each food.

The food in the Heavenly Prison had been terrible. The three brothers had long been so hungry that they felt dizzy. Each of them wished they could tear off a huge chunk—especially of the roast chicken and pork knuckle—and swallow it in one bite.

Seeing them eat with such relish and noticing nothing seemed amiss, the escort immediately stepped up and kicked each of them once.

“Take the cornbread and get lost!”

That “get lost” was only said for the sake of the silver; otherwise, they would have been chased away long ago.

Shen Lanxi nodded to the three brothers, exchanged a few flattering words with the escort, and then headed back toward the carriages.

The three brothers stared at the meat, saliva dripping, but fearing another beating, they hurriedly clutched their cornbread and left.

Before long, the escorts gathered together and began to eat heartily.

After the three brothers returned, they immediately ran to their parents.

“Father, Mother, this is from Eldest Sister!”

When the three brothers had been called away earlier, the other Shen family members had already been whispering among themselves. Now that the brothers were back, they all crowded over.

Upon hearing that it was their daughter, Shen Congwen and his wife didn’t even bother taking the cornbread, grabbing their son to question him instead.

“You said the person who called you away was your eldest sister? Isn’t your eldest sister in the Prince’s residence? How could she be here?”

Shen Yuanjing quickly pleaded, “I don’t know. Eldest Sister didn’t say anything.”

Shen Yuanjun added in a wronged tone, “Eldest Sister gave the escorts a lot of food—there was meat. The escorts wouldn’t let us take it and only allowed us to take cornbread.”

Shen Congwen seemed to suddenly understand something. He sighed and released his son.

“Our whole family has been exiled. Your eldest sister must not be having an easy time either.”

The Shen family fell silent.

“Eat something,” Shen Congwen said. “Yuanjing, share some of the cornbread with your grandparents.” He took two cornbread buns from his son’s hands—one for himself and the other handed to his wife.

“Xinrou, eat a bit. Lanxi went to great trouble to bring this for us.”

Once the gentle Princess Minrou, her title had also been stripped away. Now, dressed in coarse cloth with disheveled hair, she looked as though she had aged more than ten years overnight.

Seeing that his wife didn’t take it, Shen Congwen sighed and placed the cornbread into her hand.

The food in the Heavenly Prison had all been spoiled, and they were given only one meal a day. Though it had been just ten short days, every member of the Shen family had grown noticeably thinner. If it was already like that in prison, how could there be anything good to eat on the road to exile?