Chapter 35: Old Yan is Directionally Challenged

After walking for another two hours, they finally saw the blurry silhouette of a relay station in the night.

Yan Erdi stopped immediately. A group of people began searching for a path connecting the official highway to the small trail to turn onto it. Only after walking a distance further did they select an open, flat area to settle down.

They had been traveling for nearly eight hours in total. As it was already past midnight, the villagers were exhausted.

Some of the less fastidious folk simply rolled up a tattered quilt and fell asleep instantly.

Those with the elderly or young at home could not do so; they scattered straw on the ground, laid out straw mats or thin blankets, and settled in. The children, who had been running wild during the day, fell into a quiet sleep, while the elderly curled up with their eyes closed, though it was unclear if they were actually asleep.

Village Chief Luo, accompanied by his son and grandson, carried torches to gather some firewood and lit three campfires.

The carriage frames were all unloaded to allow the livestock to stretch and relax.

The men, fighting off drowsiness, instinctively gravitated toward where the Yan family was situated.

This was their first night sleeping outdoors, and the exposure made them feel uneasy, making them long for their own cozy homes.

When people lack a sense of security, they subconsciously move closer to the strong.

At this moment, Yan Huaiwen was that pillar of strength in their hearts.

A scholar with the title of *Xiucai*—it seemed as though such a halo made one capable of anything.

"Everyone is exhausted from today. Each family will provide one person to take turns on night watch, and the rest should rest. We will set off a bit later tomorrow; we can discuss the details in the morning," Yan Huaiwen said.

Yan Erdi conscientiously went to join the duty roster.

When he returned from his watch, his wife, daughter, and Da Ya had climbed onto the upper bunk. The three of them moved some belongings to surround the four wheels to stabilize the carriage, then squeezed together and fell into a deep sleep.

His eldest nephew couldn't hold out and had fallen asleep first, but his brother was full of energy, writing feverishly at the small desk Yan Erdi had modified for him.

"Brother, why aren't you sleeping yet?" Yan Erdi looked at the nearby campfire and frowned. "Write more tomorrow. You'll ruin your eyes."

"Come take a look." Yan Huaiwen handed over several sheets of paper.

Yan Erdi took one look and wanted to die.

The characters were so tiny and densely packed.

Besides, even if they were larger, he wouldn't be able to recognize them all. He refused to look—absolutely refused.

"My eyes aren't good; I can't see clearly in the dark," he smoothly offered a perfect excuse.

*Oh!*

Yan Huaiwen had an epiphany. No wonder his younger brother never studied hard at night.

"I have transcribed the details for each family, including how many people there are, their ages, and their classifications: men are divided into adults and those not yet adults; children are divided into young children and toddlers; the elderly are divided into those able to walk and those with mobility issues...

When we set off tomorrow, we cannot follow today's method. Aside from the elderly with mobility issues, young children, and the sick or weak, everyone else must take turns walking and take turns riding in the carriage.

Adult men will walk the longest stretches, followed by those not yet adults and women, and then the elderly.

We will travel for three *shichen* (six hours) each day—half in the morning and half in the afternoon—leaving the two *shichen* of the hottest part of the midday for rest.

Three meals a day.

For now, it is tentatively decided that each family provides one person for night watch every night."

"Brother, you are a man of great talent!" Yan Erdi praised him first before carefully pondering what his brother had said.

The part about everyone taking turns riding and walking was fine; it was exactly what his daughter had thought of! Walking was good for exercise; sitting in a carriage all the time was unhealthy.

As for the three meals a day and the night watch, he had even fewer objections.

However, walking for three *shichen* a day meant six hours—half in the morning and half in the afternoon...

It didn't feel like much time.

"Brother, is three *shichen* a day a bit short? If we keep going like this, when will we reach Guanzhou?"

Traveling with entire families made the villagers quite slow.

But there was no other way; women and children had less stamina, and it was a feat just to keep up without falling behind.

"Let's keep it this way for now. Once the weather is no longer this scorching and everyone is used to the pace, we will make adjustments," Yan Huaiwen said.

"Brother, let me see your mileage map." Yan Erdi was glad he remembered that term.

"Can't you see?"

Yan Erdi: "I'll look at it early tomorrow morning. Keep it with me for now. Brother, I have no objection to you giving everyone three meals a day, but the villagers don't have much grain at home. Will it work?"

"I considered that, but if they don't eat, I fear their bodies won't hold up. It's better to eat small, frequent meals. Once we are out of the Qishan Prefecture borders, the situation should improve."

"Brother, I have an idea. Just listen to it."

"Go ahead."

"If we only follow the official roads, there are few villages along the way and we'll be far from forests, making it inconvenient for everyone to find water and food. Since we've already identified the locations of nearby relay stations, why don't we head straight according to the direction of the mileage map? Even if we deviate slightly, it won't matter; we can ask people for directions. As long as we don't enter deep mountains or dense forests, we will eventually find our way."

Yan Huaiwen pursed his lips. "Tianyou, you... do you know how to navigate?"

"No! But I have a great sense of direction!" Yan Erdi shook the mileage map and said, "Trust me, Brother. When dawn comes tomorrow, I'll study a route for you that is both fast and straight. We won't have to keep circling near the relay stations and acting all sneaky like we're afraid of being discovered."

"But let's get this straight: my eyes only work during the day. Don't come to me at night; I'm functionally blind in the dark." Yan Erdi laid out the unpleasant truth beforehand.

He couldn't handle written materials alone; during the day, his wife and daughter could help him bluff his way through.

Yan Huaiwen felt relieved.

It turned out neither of the brothers was perfect.

"Tianyou, your brother... has a very poor sense of direction. I'm fine in familiar places, but in unknown lands, I get lost."

Yan Erdi:...

*So, Brother, the reason you've been leading us along the official roads and circling around the relay stations with such effort is because you're directionally challenged?!*

Seeing the elder Yan lowering his head in embarrassment, Yan Erdi immediately realized this was a sensitive matter for his brother.

"Then we brothers perfectly complement each other! Don't worry, Brother, leave the navigation to me. I guarantee it'll be smooth sailing."

"Sigh! As your elder brother, I have failed in my duty. I didn't know your night blindness was so severe. Wait, you were driving the carriage tonight?" Yan Huaiwen was puzzled.

Without even blushing, Yan Erdi continued his fabrication: "That 'blindness' is just a figure of speech; it's not like I can't see anything at all. Besides, don't you provide the directions? I'll go wherever you point. It won't be a big problem; it's just that the tiny print in books is truly hard to see at night."

...

The next morning, Yan Yu woke up to a clamor of noise.

The sky was bright; she had slept well through the night.

Looking beside her, her mother and Sister Da Ya were gone; she was lying there sprawled out alone.

She rolled over, not in a hurry to get down, but instead looking down from her height.

Her father was teaching her eldest brother how to drive the carriage. He was repeating the same few sentences over and over; she listened for a while and found it quite funny.

Sanbao was entirely voice-controlled; what "skills" did it need? It just needed a mouth.

However, to hide their secret, her father was truly racking his brains. Hard work, indeed.

The aunts, mothers, wives, and daughters of each family were all busy preparing food.

They had found several large stones and built a simple stove to cook a single pot. One person would make a bowl of batter, another would make a bowl, and they would take turns making pancakes.

Yan Yu rested her chin on her hands, watching intently.

In her mind, she was calculating how many pancakes one bowl of batter could produce.

If they only used one pot, would their extra pots go to waste?

Steaming buns required a lot of water, but they produced a higher yield. Compared to batter, which was more cost-effective?

With so many people crowded around one pot, human labor was being greatly wasted.

Even though it was only for the time spent cooking, if they could pick up some firewood or grab a handful of grass, it would be better than just standing there waiting.