Saving System: Calm Down, My Fleeing Host!-Chapter 229: Journey to Dingzhou

The mottled shadows of the trees rippled across the river’s surface, and patches of naturally fallen yellow leaves floated down, spiraling into the river, ultimately drifting away reluctantly.

With Dingzhou Pier drawing closer, what awaits them is unknown.

Turning past a gurgling rapid, it was like peeling away the mysterious veil of Dingzhou. The scenery shifted dramatically as they entered a broad waterway, and the number of boats suddenly increased around them.

Most were fishing boats and black-roofed boats, but there were also a fair number of luxuriously decorated pleasure boats interspersed among them,

Near the pier, the long piers divided to the left and right, extending far, with boats coming and going in a dense but orderly manner, and several multi-layered luxury merchant ships docked.

On both sides of the embankment, there was a bustling crowd, and shops stood in great numbers, with customers and merchants bustling about, painting a scene of vibrant and lively prosperity.

From afar, the magnificent silhouette of Dingzhou’s city gate could be seen, offering a rare experience, with everyone looking curious and childlike, as none had ever visited such a bustling city before.

Dingjiang, as a major city of the state, has an innumerable variety of people, and its level of prosperity far surpassing any city they had seen before, appearing grand and majestic. 𝒻𝓇𝑒𝘦𝘸𝑒𝒷𝓃ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝒸ℴ𝘮

On the western side of the shimmering river, from a distance, a painted barge stood prominently.

The barge was richly decorated with lights, with yellow lacquered boat pillars and intricately carved railings, and Cheng Xiaoxiao, with her sharp eyesight, noticed that even the characters on the colorful lanterns were vividly depicted.

On the boat, the beautiful women either walked or stood, all veiled in light gauze, wearing exquisite silk garments, while elegant scholars recited poetry, painted, played the zither, and made music, full of lively interactions.

As they approached the jetty, Cheng Xiaoxiao’s boat was ordered to stop.

The pier here was no longer managed by officials but by a squad of twenty armored soldiers. The lead soldier, clad in iron armor and a silver helmet, holding a long spear with a heroic presence, shouted loudly at them, "Who goes there? State your name."

"We are merchants from Lijiang County, with documents to prove it, hoping for leniency, sir." With that, Qi Fei pulled out the documents from his chest to show proof of identity.

One of the soldiers leaped onto the boat lock, inspected their household registration, trade certificates, and guarantees, and only confirmed they were free of discrepancies before allowing them to dock.

Cheng Xiaoxiao inwardly breathed a sigh of relief; fortunately, they had prepared adequately, or they would have been exposed.

It was unexpected that the inspections in Dingzhou would be so stringent that those with unclear identities could not even dock.

Everyone tensed, holding their breath, lowering their presence, trying to reduce their visibility as much as possible.

Not until the soldiers inspected all the cargo on their boat again were they allowed to proceed.

Passing through the noisy trading area of the ferry port, moving further in, they saw many small stalls on both sides, selling various goods and snacks, as well as fortune-telling and tea-selling stands, leading up to an arched bridge, presumably the moat bridge.

On the bridge’s footpath, there were bustling crowds moving east and west, with sedan chairs, shoulder poles, and horse-drawn and freight carts.

Moving through the crowd and standing at the highest point of the bridge, about 500 meters ahead, stood the solid, towering bastion-like city walls, solemn and grand, sturdy and imposing, with the words "Dingzhou City" carved dramatically above the archway.

Worthy of being the largest city in the Southwest, having previously blocked strong invasions from the West Di several times and still retaining such grand proportions.

Upon entering the city, the streets’ sides were crowded with stalls, with cries resounding continuously, and delighted proprietresses warmly entertaining customers.

Along the way, there were teahouses, inns, fabric shops, pawnshops, and more.

Turning a street corner, another prosperous road appeared, selling antiques, powders, jewelry, calligraphy, and paintings.

The city’s transportation was well-connected, like a spider web spreading to every corner, with groups of people, or rushing carts, or carrying goods, bustling hurriedly.

In short, everyone was busy with their own splendid and intricate lives in this vast Dingzhou City.

Led by Qi Fei, the group quickly arrived at the entrance of the Lai Fu Trading Company.

The promised medicine and goods for Boss Lu were with Cheng Xiaoxiao. Although he had signed the contract, he only brought samples, and the goods were still in Cheng Xiaoxiao’s warehouse, with some transferred into boxes before disembarking for the transaction.

Therefore, they came specifically to deliver the goods first, and once completed, to see if any other items needed to be supplemented and then find an ordinary inn to rest for the night before setting off the next morning.

The shopkeeper, seeing Qi Fei, warmly came out to greet him, as the boss specifically instructed that if this young man came, he needed to be well-received and kept there, as the boss would personally come to discuss business. Items they could personally trade with the boss had to be quite rare.

He instructed a shop assistant to notify the boss as he held Qi Fei there.

At this time, the boss was already distressed over the ointment to be presented to the Ke Family.

Unable to wait for someone to trade, he had already tried to find solutions elsewhere.

Unfortunately, the results were minimal, and in the past two days, his hair had turned white with worry.

Tomorrow is the wedding day of the eldest daughter of the Ke Family, and if it isn’t delivered tomorrow, the consequences would be unimaginable.

Previously, when Qi Fei passed by Lai Fu Trading Company’s door, a reckless horse-drawn carriage rushed past, almost knocking over a little girl, and it was Qi Fei who took out the ointment to stop the bleeding for the little girl.

Though her mother promptly pulled her back, the girl’s arm still scraped against the cart’s edge, bleeding non-stop.

This scene was witnessed by the owner of Lai Fu Trading Company, standing by the window on the second floor.

His son, a junior officer in the military, was often injured, and bumps and bruises were inevitable.

When he saw that the golden sore medicine Qi Fei brought out could stop such heavy bleeding quickly, he was astonished.

He subsequently reached out to Qi Fei.

Qi Fei also expressed willingness to share some of the golden sore medicine with Boss Lu, but the medicine was with the master and required reporting back.

Additionally, he was interested in collaborating on trading fresh vegetables.

Boss Lu happily agreed to this.

Receiving the top-notch golden sore medicine, Boss Lu had it delivered into the military camp the next day.

Initially, Boss Lu’s son, Lu Jingtian, did not consider it seriously, as his father often worried about him getting injured in the military camp, frequently sending good medicines, slightly better than what the military doctors provided, but as it happened often, he did not pay much attention, merely carrying some casually for emergencies.

On this day, during normal training and sparring, unexpectedly, a friend got injured, as he accidentally applied too much force and pierced the friend’s arm, causing an immediate gush of blood, startling him greatly.

Ordinarily, even if he used too much force, the friend could have dodged, but it seemed the friend was distracted and didn’t notice.

The friend repeatedly said it was his own distraction, asking him not to feel burdened as it wasn’t his fault. The concerned Lu Jingtian quickly took out the golden sore medicine his father had given, applied it, and bandaged the wound. Seeing the blood flow and his friend’s face turn pale instantly, he felt terrible.

Still assuming that such a deep cut wouldn’t stop bleeding, he waited for the military doctor to arrive.

But miraculously, the bleeding stopped.

The military doctor marveled, repeatedly stating that such a deep wound being stopped from bleeding in such a short time was extraordinary.

Eagerly, he inquired about the medicine’s source.

A puzzled Lu Jingtian had to honestly confess.

Unexpectedly, this news soon reached Governor Ke’s ears, and the golden sore medicine was submitted as well.

The next day, not only was he called to the main account, but even his father, who did business, was summoned.

Only then did Lu Jingtian realize how precious the bottle of golden sore medicine was.

Unfortunately, his father said it was left by a merchant, but its origin was unknown.