Chapter 217: Chapter 216: The Ancient Highway

Da Lang was also impulsive. Although he knew Qin Yao wouldn’t go back on her word, he waited at the village entrance early the next day.

Seeing Qin Yao drive the carriage with Da Lang, Jinbao, and five children from the family, he immediately called out and hurriedly followed behind with his own carriage.

He also brought some fresh fruits to deliver to several restaurants in the county, trying to accomplish more tasks whenever possible, especially with Qin Yao accompanying him, ensuring safety on the road.

Previously, Qin Yao had only escorted the children to Lower River Village and hadn’t encountered other villagers begging along the way.

Today, personally taking the children to Jinshi Town, she saw two or three groups of people along the way.

They dressed similarly to the nearby villagers, but each had a patchwork bag slung over their body, which was a necessary tool for begging. Anyone with experience could tell what they were doing.

When they encountered a carriage carrying people, they would usually avoid it. Da Lang said that when the driver took them to school, these people didn’t stop the carriage, possibly because they saw they were all children and couldn’t give them anything.

Qin Yao escorted the children to the gate of the Ding Family School and watched them enter before driving back to the official road to meet up with Liu Dafu, and the two continued on to Kaiyang County together.

The closer they got to Kaiyang County, the more beggars there were on the road. At first, she could understand their language and determine which village or town they were from nearby.

But upon reaching Kaiyang County, there was a group with a foreign accent. As the saying goes, ten miles bring different accents, and a hundred miles different customs, Qin Yao couldn’t understand what most of them were saying.

In Sheng Country, such a massive population movement was not a good sign.

Normally, most people never left their small villages in a lifetime.

“Where are they coming from?” Qin Yao asked suspiciously.

Liu Dafu, well-traveled and knowledgeable, guessed, “Judging by the accent, they might come from a place further north.”

“Where further north?” Qin Yao’s knowledge of the original person’s memories had gradually faded. There were many things she didn’t actually understand.

She only knew the original person’s hometown was in the northwest, that she once had several family members, and the names of those family members.

The rest had blurred with time, until they were no longer recalled.

And she herself had only traveled as far as from Liu Family Village to Kaiyang County.

She promised Liu Dafu to help escort Liu Li to the Prefecture of Zijing Mansion, so once they reached the county, she had to first go to the bookstore to buy a map.

By the way, Manager Wu had been to the Prefecture, and when passing by the Jinshi Town mill on the way back to the village, it would be more reliable to consult him.

Without GPS for intelligent navigation, Qin Yao could only tell the directions: east, south, west, and north.

Liu Dafu, seeing her unclear about the outside world, started telling her about places north of Kaiyang County while testing if she could discern east, south, west, and north.

So as not to escort Liu Li to a pit, literally.

Feeling Liu Dafu’s skeptical gaze, Qin Yao looked wordlessly at the sky. Though she didn’t have a Sheng Country map, she was someone who could navigate freely in a primeval forest, so his worries were indeed excessive.

Thus, the two carried their mistrust and probing towards each other all the way, finally entering the Kaiyang County city.

Qin Yao first went to the bookstore to buy a map while waiting for Liu Dafu, who had to deliver vegetables to various restaurants. They agreed to meet at the government office in the afternoon.

It was Qin Yao’s first time stepping into a bookstore; previously, she had only bought study supplies from the stall outside.

As soon as she walked in, she noticed a few scattered scholars inside who collectively stared at her in shock, as if a woman entering here was an unbelievable occurrence.

Qin Yao was never afraid of such looks; instead, she looked directly back. Under her confident and powerful gaze, several scholars lowered their heads in panic, unable to help but glance at her with curiosity about her actions.

Qin Yao’s lips curled up slightly. Without wandering around the store, she walked to the counter and asked, “Do you have a Sheng Country road map?”

The shopkeeper didn’t say whether there was one but instead asked where she was going?

Upon hearing Qin Yao say she was going to the Prefecture of Zijing Mansion, the corners of his mouth lifted in a smile, and he signaled her to wait a moment.

Then, under Qin Yao’s puzzled gaze, he took out paper and pen, ground the ink, and drew a route for her on the spot.

Looking at the ’map’ handed over by the shopkeeper, it was about the size of two palms, with only a snake-like track drawn on it, with tree symbols in the middle of the line, and circles to represent official posts drawn alongside the road.

Frankly, at first glance, Qin Yao felt it was perfunctory.

But the shopkeeper confidently pointed at the drawing, telling her, “To reach the Prefecture of Zijing Mansion, go southwest on the Kaiyang County official road. There’s an official post every thirty miles along the way, passing through twelve posts…”

He pointed at the circles on the map, “If you can pass through the posts, it means you’re not lost.”

“The trees here mark a major fork, there’s a sign in the middle of the road, just choose Jinyang Road…”

He also told Qin Yao to pay attention to the trapezoidal dirt heaps on the road. These mounds, called bai, were placed every five miles, and she could use them to gauge how far she had traveled and the distance to the next post, among other things.

Qin Yao thought to herself, she had learned something new.

The so-called official road was akin to a modern highway, and the official post was like a service station on the highway.

Furthermore, many signposts would be set up along the way, with commonly used roads called such-and-such road, with wider paths called Kang and Zhuang, intersections called Kui, and small paths called Jing, Creek, or Chong.

The shopkeeper might not be able to draw an accurately scaled map for Qin Yao, but as long as she followed his drawn map, she would surely reach the destination.

“Is there a larger guide map?” Qin Yao asked curiously.

The shopkeeper nodded, there was indeed one, “But it’s very expensive.”

He suspected that Qin Yao was buying a map for her husband going to the Prefecture for an exam, and her attire also looked very plain, worried about her expenses, hence he provided the hand-drawn version.

The hand-drawn one was affordable, requiring only a ten-cents fee for paper and pen.

Moreover, usually, people would ask acquaintances for directions, and few would specifically come to the bookstore to buy a guide map.

Qin Yao thought it would be useful to bring it back home as a teaching material for the children, to deepen their understanding of their own country. She appreciated the shopkeeper’s good intention and didn’t mind if he earned a bit more money.

“May I take a look, please?” Qin Yao politely asked.

The shopkeeper smiled kindly and asked curiously, “Madam, can you understand it?”

Qin Yao nodded with a smile.

The shopkeeper looked even more curious at her, signaling for her to wait while he found the map.

While looking for the map, he frequently glanced back at Qin Yao, as if thinking of something, showing an expression of surprise but uncertainty.

The guide map was a rather thick book, as the extra-large sheets were very costly; cutting them into smaller pieces was much more economical.

Still, the small map included all the necessary markings, ensuring it didn’t impede viewing.

As Qin Yao carefully flipped through the guide map book, the shopkeeper suddenly asked, “Madam, are you the heroine who suppressed bandits?”

Qin Yao looked up at him and nodded gently, “My surname is Qin, you can just call me Miss Qin.”

Being called a heroine was a bit embarrassing.

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