Chapter 34: We Are All Night Blind

Yan the Second finally understood why Old Yan said traveling by night was difficult.

He realized he was a night person with nyctalopia.

His entire extended family, and even the whole village, were.

They were fine at home, but walking outside now, they had all become the blind; they could only see the path immediately beneath their feet.

The surroundings were pitch black, illuminated only by moonlight, making it impossible to see what lay ahead.

When the wind blew, the surroundings rustled, and if a dark shadow suddenly fluttered past through the air, it could make a person break into a cold sweat.

The entire village had only lit four torches for the whole journey.

This way, even if they couldn't see the road, they could follow the light and avoid getting lost.

They had been walking for two hours. It was his elder brother who had set the direction, and it was not the usual road to the town.

At first, it was all country paths, until just now, when they stepped onto a relatively flat dirt road.

It was the official highway that connected various prefectures and counties.

Yan Huaiwen ordered the group to stop so everyone could rest their feet, feed the livestock, and eat something; they would set off again in fifteen minutes.

Hearing that they only had fifteen minutes, the entire group became a flurry of activity.

Helping the elderly down to walk a bit, the extended family ate some food and drank some water, and took turns handling their personal business.

Quilts and mats were hurriedly spread onto the carts.

In the chaos, a child gripped in a hand slipped away unnoticed; the parents had to shout, and once the child was finally found, they received two swats on the buttocks, causing the child to start wailing.

The chickens were startled, flapping their wings, and the donkeys added to the commotion with a few braying calls...

It was quite a scene of a village folk traveling by night.

"Our family's ox..." The further Yan Huaiwen walked, the more he felt something was off. Never mind an ox cart, he had even ridden in horse carriages, but this was the first time he had seen an ox with such strength.

Yan the Second picked up the conversation, saying with great heartache, "Are you thinking we bought it too expensive! Brother, from now on, you must take me when you buy things. You don't know how to haggle and end up wasting silver. If I were the one buying, I could save at least two taels!"

"No, it's just that our ox is a bit too strong," Yan Huaiwen said.

Yan the Second replied, "What's the big deal? Some people are strong too. Our Sanbao might just be a strong ox like that one. Right, I need to get some fodder to feed it."

Yan Huaiwen thought about it and felt it made sense.

People are different, and oxen shouldn't be judged by the same standard.

Yan the Second went through the motions of feeding the ox. Sanbao would eat if given food, but wouldn't make a fuss if not.

Later, when he wasn't paying attention and fed it too much, you wouldn't believe it—Sanbao actually stopped eating!

Heh! See, I told you this ox was "smart."

The simulation of ox behavior was quite spot on.

"Big Brother, how much further do we have to go?" Yan the Second asked.

"There is a relay station every thirty li; we shouldn't be far. We will settle down to rest once we are near a station," Yan Huaiwen answered.

"Will the station let us stay?" Yan the Second asked a foolish question.

Yan Huaiwen looked at his uneducated younger brother and sighed, "Relay stations only receive officials. We cannot go in; we must stay a distance away."

If it were a large-scale flight from famine, it wouldn't matter, but they had left too early. If they encountered officials questioning them, it would be very troublesome.

First, they had no travel permits, and more importantly, the entire village was fleeing to avoid grain taxes.

"It would be best if someone could scout ahead. Once they see where the station is, they can return to inform us, and we can bypass it via small paths before returning to the official highway," Yan Huaiwen said.

"Are we afraid of the officials?" Yan the Second finally realized. That's right! They were no longer law-abiding citizens; they weren't paying taxes or grain. They were what the girl called—refugees.

"Then why are we even walking the official highway? We should just take the small paths," Yan the Second's sense of crisis rose. Not only was survival difficult, but their identity was also an issue.

"If we don't take the official highway, how can we determine our direction?" Yan Huaiwen's face darkened slightly.

Yan the Second fell silent, not daring to ask further.

Yan Yu waited for her uncle and elder brother to relieve themselves, then stealthily slipped up to her father.

"Dad, we don't have a detailed map. I saw the distance map Uncle was holding; we have to go from one station to the next to avoid getting lost."

"And we have to avoid the stations and take detours through small paths, which means so much extra walking. Look behind us, those walking on foot are exhausted." Yan the Second couldn't bear to watch the people walking.

"Hehe, if you can get that distance map and show it to Sanbao, I think it could save a lot of trouble. How many li we've walked, whether the direction is correct—Sanbao should be able to calculate and correct it. That's its most basic function. Dad, we must persistently develop Sanbao's utility; it is currently our family's greatest asset," Yan Yu whispered.

Yan the Second glanced around and said, "Daughter, we had a deal. We can't swap the village's mules and donkeys for 'smart' ones. If one day we want to slaughter one for meat, goodness, the knife might fly right off!"

"Of course. Those mules and donkeys don't belong to us anyway," Yan Yu added. "Dad, you need to take turns driving the carts with Uncle and Big Brother. We won't be traveling by night every day. In the future, try to let them drive during the day and rest at night. You should grab the night watch duty; it will make whatever we do at night much more convenient."

Yan the Second understood immediately; his daughter was talking about the platform that activated at midnight.

"Right, we can't let those two stay idle while only I do all the work."

"Also, Dad, find a chance to test Uncle's intentions to see what his plan is. The villagers look to him to make decisions, but I see that Uncle's way of speaking isn't very down-to-earth. It's hard for the neighbors to understand him. You need to assist him by explaining things. Speak as plainly as possible so everyone can understand," Yan Yu said, her little head nodding as she spoke logically.

Yan the Second kept nodding. "Exactly, I've noticed it too. Your uncle can't let go of his scholar's airs; he likes to leave his sentences half-finished and doesn't give people time to prepare. He won't say anything unless asked. With so many of us on the road, we can't just walk indefinitely. How long we walk, how long we rest—we need to lay it out. Our villagers are very honest; they just follow along blindly without asking anything."

"There are many problems. How far we walk each day, when to rest, when to eat, who is on night watch, how much food and water each family brought, how long it will last, and if it's shelf-stable—we need to at least make a rough estimate. When it's light tomorrow, I'll count how many elderly and children there are, how many are riding in carts, and how many are walking. Those who look physically weak need extra care; if someone falls ill on the road... Oh boy! Leading a group involves so much!"

Yan Yu had a headache.

Yan the Second also had a massive headache.

The last time the platform opened and they connected with three companions, they discovered a very serious problem: once food and warmth were resolved, their greatest survival crisis was disease.

Especially in their current environment, where doctors and medicine were scarce.

There was only one doctor, Physician Cui, a former apprentice of a pharmacy.

All medicine depended on him; however much he brought on the road was all they had.