After being forced to leave the marriage, I became the wife of a top scholar.

Chapter 109 Departure
The next morning, Cui prepared breakfast early and asked Da Niu to invite Lin Yunche and Bai Wanqing to come and eat.

"Mom, why are you here so early today!" Lin Yunche was delighted to see that she had made his favorite wontons for breakfast, and he plopped down on the floor.

Bai Wanqing ran to the kitchen to help Cui Shi. When Cui Shi saw that her son was so clueless, she gasped.

"He hasn't even taken office yet, and he's already acting like an official? Hurry up and come help!" Madam Cui didn't give her son any face at all.

Knowing his mother's temper, Lin Yunche immediately jumped up from the stool, grinned, and took over the work from Bai Wanqing to continue cooking wontons.

Seeing this, Cui nodded in satisfaction and winked at her daughter-in-law.

It's as if to say, "See? We can't spoil him anymore. Let him do the work! Otherwise, what's the point of a man's strength?"

Lin Yunche did not witness the spiritual exchange between his mother and his wife.

He glanced silently at his father, who was tending the fire, and seemed to think there was nothing wrong with it.

Once all the wontons were cooked, the family gathered around to enjoy them.

Da Niu was incredibly envious when she learned that her brother and the others were going to the prefectural city today. All morning she kept asking, "Big Brother, is the prefectural city even more lively than Huai'an County?"

"Are there many kinds of food there that the girls have never seen before?"

Lin Yunche knew what his sister was thinking, but since she was just a child, he didn't expose her and answered each of her questions seriously.

The more Da Niu listened, the more engrossed she became. She turned her head and looked longingly at Cui Shi and Lin Feiyun.

Suddenly feeling a pang of sadness, Cui felt sorry for her child, but she remained firm in her words, "Daniu, your brother is going to work. Once he has established himself in Huaizhou City, I will take you to join him."

Da Niu turned her head and patted Lin Yunche's shoulder, saying, "Big Head Brother, you can't slack off when you go to Huaizhou Prefecture! You should bring Dad, Mom and Da Niu over as soon as possible."

Lin Yunche twitched the corner of his mouth and smiled, "Okay! I will definitely work even harder."

Da Niu didn't trust Lin Yunche, so she didn't forget to talk to her sister-in-law, "Sister-in-law, you have to keep an eye on Big Head Brother at all times, otherwise he often slacks off."

Bai Wanqing affectionately patted Da Niu's head, "Okay! I'll keep an eye on him."

After breakfast, Bai Wanqing and Lin Yunche watched as the servants loaded all the packed luggage onto the carriage. Since some of it had already been sent ahead, there didn't seem to be much left.

Cui and Lin Feiyun knew that once they left, the things Lin Feiyun was going to do would gradually come to light in the eyes of the world. It would be a lie to say that they were not worried.

So before he left, he carefully instructed him: "Big Head! When you get there, don't be in a hurry. Our Lin family has been waiting here for decades, so two more years won't make a difference."

Lin Yunche saw the worry in his mother's eyes and comforted her, "Don't worry, Mother, I know what I'm doing."

Seeing her son and mother's reluctant farewell, Lin Feiyun felt a pang of sadness and quickly added, "Don't worry about Linjia Village. We'll still be there for you, just like before, to see if there's anything we can do. Just send someone to deliver a message."

Lin Yunche immediately agreed.

Cui gave Bai Wanqing a few instructions and then saw the two of them out.

Lin Feiyun was filled with worry. "Big Head Aunt, do you think we have no chance to back out now?"

Madam Cui glared at him angrily, "Our son is all grown up now. Whether this happened or not, he will have his own life. Do you want to follow him for the rest of your life?"

"What's wrong with spending a lifetime with my two children?" Lin Feiyun really wanted to live with his two children for the rest of his life, even if it meant staying in Linjia Village.

However, Cui disagreed, saying, "He's a boy, and he's been enduring this for so long. He should go out and gain some experience. We can't let him just drift through life like everyone else."

Lin Feiyun: When did he start living a carefree life?

He felt wronged, but he dared not speak out.

Meanwhile, Bai Wanqing and Lin Yunche had unknowingly left the city.

Their journey took about six or seven hours. To balance the weight of the two carriages, Bai Wanqing and Lin Yunche rode in one carriage with a small amount of luggage.

Ruixin rode alone in a carriage, and her carriage was noticeably more loaded with luggage.

Ruixin thought that her mistress wanted her to watch over the valuables in the carriage. From the moment they got into the carriage until they had traveled some distance out of the city, she dared not blink more often, for fear of failing her mistress's request.

Of course, Bai Wanqing had no idea about all the responsibilities that Ruixin had imagined.

After a bumpy two-hour journey, Bai Wanqing noticed that it was noon and asked the driver to stop the carriage by the roadside so that everyone could get off, rest, and have lunch.

Lin Yunche got off the carriage, stretched, and watched as Bai Wanqing helped Ruixin down from the carriage behind.

Lin Yunche stepped forward and saw that Ruixin's face was pale and her forehead was covered with large beads of sweat. He couldn't help but ask, "What's wrong? Did you get carsick in the carriage?"

Bai Wanqing took Ruixin's pulse and said, "You're probably too tired. Ruixin, you can take a nap in the carriage. Don't be too stressed or overexert yourself, or your body won't be able to handle this trip."

"But what about food?" Ruixin wanted to force herself to prepare lunch for the young lady and her husband, but Bai Wanqing stopped her. "Don't worry about the food, your mother-in-law packed it all this morning."

"You rest here first, I'll bring you some food to the carriage in a bit." After Bai Wanqing finished speaking, she glanced at Lin Yunche, who immediately understood and started to arrange with the coachmen to go and collect some firewood nearby to boil some water.

“Miss, it’s all because Ruixin is so useless.” Ruixin felt really guilty at this moment. She should have been the one taking care of her mistress, but instead, her mistress was taking care of her.

"Ruixin, there's no need for that. Everyone gets sick sometimes. You should rest." Bai Wanqing comforted Ruixin and then helped Lin Yunche and the others gather firewood.

Lin Yunche didn't want Bai Wanqing to do it, but she was surprisingly efficient and soon picked up about the same amount they were carrying.

"I didn't realize you didn't mind at all." Lin Yunche walked back, put the firewood aside, and began to prepare to start a fire.

Bai Wanqing twitched the corner of her mouth, "I've worked with my grandmaster a lot on medicinal herbs on weekdays. Some of those herbs are almost the same as these firewood after they've been dried, so why would I look down on them?"

"Moreover, we took this firewood to provide heating for ourselves, so we should be more grateful."

Lin Yunche had never heard such a view before and found it quite novel. "Did Master Luo say this too?"

Bai Wanqing gently shook her head, "That's what my mother said."

Chen? Lin Yunche immediately dismissed the idea when he thought of Chen's appearance. It seemed that she must be Wanqing's birth mother, as Kou Shi had said.

"My mother-in-law has such a good perspective!"

Lin Yunche had already started the fire, and Bai Wanqing took out the small iron pot she had prepared in advance from the carriage.

The group poured water from the kettle into the pot and brought it to a boil. Then they placed the flatbread that Cui had brought them on the pot lid, and it soon became steaming hot.

Seeing that the pancake was already hot, Lin Yunche immediately took one down and handed it to Bai Wanqing, saying, "It's hot! It's perfect to eat now."

Bai Wanqing thanked him and accepted the cake. After the coachman and Lin Yunche each had one, she gave the remaining cake to Ruixin before sitting down by the carriage and slowly eating it.

Thanks to the pot of hot water, everyone felt warm again after lunch.

Seeing that it was getting late, they knew they couldn't delay any longer.

"Why don't you and Ruixin sit in the front carriage? I'll go to the back," Lin Yunche said, getting up.

Bai Wanqing thought this was a good idea, so she helped Ruixin into the carriage in front, and then the group set off again.

This time, they did not choose to rest again, but continued on their way, and finally saw the city gate of Huaizhou Prefecture at dusk.

"Miss, have we...have we arrived?" Ruixin was no longer in so much pain.
Bai Wanqing was also visiting for the first time. She saw the two large characters "Huaizhou" on the city gate from afar and nodded, saying, "We've arrived."

After saying that, the two of them became excited and quickened their pace, finally managing to enter the city before the gates closed.

"Miss, Huaizhou City is still closed? Our Huai'an County sometimes doesn't even close its gates," Ruixin said curiously.

"Whether the city gates are closed or not is related to local trade and the officials in charge. Perhaps there's something special about Huaizhou." Bai Wanqing naturally didn't know either, and was just making a casual guess.

Although the city gates of Huaizhou Prefecture close early, it is still the prefecture capital, and even at night, it is more lively than Huai'an County.

"Miss, look over there, there seems to be a night market. It's so lively with so many people gathered there."

Bai Wanqing also noticed, "This prefectural city is indeed more prosperous than Huai'an County."

"Miss, once we're settled in, let's find a chance to go out and explore! It looks like there are many wonderful things we've never seen before."

Because Ruixin is young, Bai Wanqing doesn't restrict her with the master-servant relationship, so she sometimes acts more like a little girl next door.

"Okay! Once we're settled, we'll go out for a stroll."

As he spoke, the coachman turned the carriage into the alleyway, and Bai Wanqing knew that they were heading towards the government office.

However, it was getting dark, so she didn't notice how many households lived in this alley.

It just seemed like they hadn't been gone long when the carriage suddenly stopped.

Perhaps the driver hadn't expected there to be someone in front of him, because he stopped rather abruptly.

Bai Wanqing also realized something was wrong and asked, "What's wrong? What happened?"

"Madam, someone is blocking the way ahead."

The master and servant sitting in the carriage tensed up slightly, but then they heard a familiar voice.

"Lord Lin, I apologize for not being able to greet you properly upon your arrival in Huaizhou today."

(End of this chapter)