Ordinary observers in fast time travel

Chapter 1237 Caught
After filling their stomachs, Shi Jia and his companions immediately set off.

The mountain road was difficult to travel, and it took a full ten days to bypass the area occupied by the northern barbarians.

"Sister-in-law, there's a city ahead!" Wang Tiehua exclaimed in surprise.

"Wait a minute, let's see if it's guarded by the imperial court," Shi Jia said cautiously.

"Then I'll go take a look." Wang Tiehua ran excitedly toward the city wall.

"Wait!" Shi Jia shouted, but it was too late.

At that moment, a group of soldiers emerged from the woods and captured Wang Tiehua. "Who are you!"

Shi Jia was shocked. She shoved the little one into Wang Tieshan's arms and ran towards Wang Tiehua. Wang Tieshan, seeing this, was horrified. "Sister-in-law, danger!"

"Who are you!" The soldiers shouted as they saw Shi Jia suddenly rush out, their alarms blaring and their weapons pointed at him.

“I am her sister-in-law, and we are from Wangjiazhuang in Feng County,” Shi Jia shouted, raising her hands.

"Sister-in-law!" Wang Tiehua felt slightly relieved upon seeing Shi Jia, but was still extremely worried about Shi Jia's safety.

“It’s alright, we are law-abiding citizens, the government’s soldiers won’t harm us,” Shi Jia said.

The patrolling squad leader looked Jia and Wang Tiehua up and down with suspicion. "You're from Feng County? Just the two of you! That's utter nonsense."

"These two are acting suspiciously. Take them back to the camp for questioning!"

“We really are from Feng County, we’re not lying,” Wang Tiehua said慌张地. “Our hometown suffered a severe drought, we had no choice but to head south, then the barbarians came, and my mother died on the way, sob sob…”

Squad leader Zhang Qi listened, but his actions were not slow.

Seeing that his sister-in-law and younger sister were about to be arrested by the soldiers, Wang Tieshan, who was hiding in the woods, became anxious. He limped a few steps forward, but lost his footing and fell down with a cry of "Ah!"

"Who goes there? Go check it out!"

"Yes!"

Two soldiers, carrying long spears, cautiously approached the woods.

"Squad leader, it's a young lad and a little kid." Soon the soldiers brought Wang Tieshan and the little guy over.

"Tieshan, Niu Niu!" Shi Jia called out worriedly.

At this moment, fine beads of sweat appeared on Wang Tieshan's forehead. He was in so much pain that he couldn't speak, but even so, he still managed to open his eyes and look at Shi Jia. "Sister-in-law, I'm sorry."

Shi Jia shook her head. "Don't talk about that. Are you injured somewhere? Sir, sir, please save my brother." She looked at Zhang Qi pleadingly.

Zhang Qi frowned. "Are you all in cahoots?"

How did a young woman, a young girl, a young man, and a baby manage to travel 800 li (approximately 400 kilometers) south from Feng County safely?
This was also a question for the general guarding the city.

"Could they be spies from the Northern Barbarians?" The city's garrison general frowned. "Continue the interrogation to find out more."

"Yes!"

“It’s a misunderstanding! How could we be spies! My mother-in-law died at the hands of the barbarians. If it weren’t for the barbarians, my husband and father-in-law wouldn’t have been conscripted! I’m just a young woman with three children. Do you think it’s easy for me?” Shi Jia said, unable to hold back her tears.

Zhang Qi frowned. "Tell the truth, don't try anything funny! If you don't tell the truth, don't blame me for torturing you!"

Upon hearing this, Shi Jia felt even more aggrieved. "I'm telling the truth! I'm the one who fled with my son, brother-in-law, and sister-in-law! What more do you want from me!"

"Waaah~" "Waaah, all the way, I was on tenterhooks, leading them up the mountain to dig for wild vegetables, and we were almost robbed by those refugees. To avoid the barbarians, we only dared to go into the mountains and forests, taking countless detours, falling countless times, and eating countless..." Shi Jia paused, "We finally saw a city guarded by the imperial court, thinking we could have a place to rest, but who would have thought that no one would believe the truth!"

Shi Jia glared at Zhang Qi, feeling resentful. If she weren't powerless, she wouldn't have bothered acting for him! She was about to give up!
Zhang Qi felt a little guilty for some reason, and hastily ended the interrogation.

When they went outside and were paired with two other people, their testimonies were surprisingly consistent.
"Colluded?" Zhang Qi frowned.

Centurion Lu Yong rolled his eyes. "Judging from these three testimonies, these three don't seem to be lying."

"Sigh, it doesn't seem like a lie at all. Maybe they've been colluding beforehand!" Zhang Qi disagreed with Lu Yong's judgment. He always felt that it was impossible for three, oh, four weak women and children to get here safely from Feng County.

Another centurion said, "Actually, it's quite simple to verify their claims. Just find a group of men and follow the route they came from."

Lu Yong nodded, "Brother Fang is absolutely right."

Upon hearing this, Zhang Qi scratched his head. "Right, how come I didn't think of that?"

“How about we hand over the confession to the lieutenant general first?” Centurion Fang said. The other two, of course, had no objections.

Upon hearing this, Lieutenant General Li Chang frowned. They were currently at war with the Northern Barbarians, and such a large-scale operation might delay the battle. However, if those three were spies from the Northern Barbarians, the losses would be even greater.

As for killing them outright? Or imprisoning them until the war ends? That's also unrealistic, after all, they're not uncivilized barbarians!

"Very well, Fang Heng and Lu Yong, you two send four people to find evidence. You have two days."

"Yes!"

Two days later, Shi Jia was suddenly informed of her acquittal and release. She was still somewhat dazed. When she saw her brother-in-law, who was moving normally, Wang Tiehua, who was unharmed, and the chubby little guy, her feelings became even more complicated.

"Sister-in-law! It's so good to see you're alright." Wang Tiehua and Wang Tieshan felt like they had found their pillar of support when they saw Shi Jia. They surrounded her, chatting away about what had happened in the past few days.

It turned out that Wang Tieshan had fallen and broken his bones that day. Although he was arrested and imprisoned, Lu Yong and his men still had the army doctor examine Wang Tieshan, apply medicine for two days, and he is now much better.

"Thank you, sir, for taking care of my son and treating my brother." Shi Jia bowed to Lu Yong and Fang Heng while holding the little one.

Perhaps influenced by Li Yunniang's values, Shi Jia did not resent these people. He felt extremely fortunate to have gained his freedom, and that the court treated the people kindly and was very benevolent.

Well, she herself has to admit that loving one's people like one's own children is a very valuable quality, and not every ethnic group possesses it!
Especially during wartime, they would spend time investigating rather than simply killing them.

Lu Yong waved his hand, "Li, do not approach military strongholds casually in the future to avoid suffering further undeserved disasters."

Shi Jia nodded quickly, "Thank you for your guidance, sir."

Lu Yong took out a document from his pocket and handed it to Shi Jia, saying, "This is the identity document the general wrote for you. With this document, it will be easier for you to travel south."

"Once you find a place to stay, take this document to the county government to register your household registration."

"Thank you so much, sir!" Shi Jia felt a surge of gratitude upon hearing this. She truly hadn't expected them to go to such lengths.

"Let's hurry up and go before it gets dark," Lu Yong waved his hand.

Shi Jia left with three children and a small bag of grain sponsored by the soldiers.

But the battle for the defending soldiers had only just begun.

“You’ve done a good job this time. With this passage, I can immediately lead my troops straight to the rear of the Northern Barbarians. At that time, the army will attack from both sides, and the Northern Barbarians will surely be defeated.”

Lu Yong, Fang Heng, and Zhang Qi all cupped their hands in greeting and shouted, "General, you are wise!"