Dimensional Supermarket - Chapter 102

After all, the journey is long and arduous through mountains and rivers. Though they are in a hurry, Ye Zhou and his group still stay at Longxiong Pass for two days.

Longxiong Pass is located where two mountains meet. The terrain gives it a highly advantageous position—easy to defend, hard to attack. One of the reasons why other nations haven’t yet devoured the rich lands of the Chen State is this very pass.

Taking it would cost an unknown number of troops, and since food can be acquired through simpler means, why bother fighting?

Rather than attacking the Chen State, it’s better to target cities that are easier to conquer.

However, once a country becomes truly powerful and unstoppable, the Chen State is the first piece of meat they set their sights on.

The Marquis of Chen hasn’t been idle these past few days either. He finally sheds his façade of a benevolent and virtuous ruler, revealing his true nature underneath—which paradoxically makes him appear even more like a king than before.

To prepare for any unexpected developments, the Marquis leaves over two hundred of the original two thousand soldiers at Longxiong Pass.

Since it isn’t wartime, a change in command doesn’t shake morale. Han Ran, now serving as Left General, is temporarily left here to replace Zhang Rong.

As for Zhang Rong, he is to be brought back to the capital, Linzi.

The Marquis also tells Ye Zhou that Zhang Rong has to die—but not yet. He needs to weaken the influence of the aristocratic clans before taking action against Zhang Rong.

After hearing the Marquis speak at length, Ye Zhou comes to understand that being a ruler here is far from easy.

If someone only wants to coast along and enjoy life, being a muddle-headed monarch might not be so bad. After all, the privileges and luxuries of a king are still better than those of ordinary people.

But if one aims to be a wise and virtuous ruler, the task becomes exceedingly difficult. With external enemies pressing in and aristocratic clans dragging things down from within…

At times like these, ministers truly can die in front of their monarchs just to preserve their reputations—as long as they believe the ruler’s decision is wrong.

And once one such loyal minister dies, that ruler can forget about pushing any reforms.

Because a loyal official has died, he must be in the right—and the king, therefore, must be wrong.

Of course, this is assuming the ruler’s decision is correct. If the king is muddle-headed—eager to govern but lacking the ability—then these officials and noble families can at least act as a check on his recklessness.

It has its pros and cons, but in an era of fierce competition, the cons generally outweigh the pros.

If a country can’t unite in purpose—if it splits into factions before even accomplishing anything—then it’s nearly impossible for that nation to grow strong.

After resting, they set off again toward Linzi.

This time, Ye Zhou finally stops torturing himself—he prepares a carriage for himself.

“You can hop in when you get tired,” Ye Zhou says to Zou Ming, glancing at the carriage parked outside the general’s mansion. He lets out a long sigh. “I really can’t take it anymore. The skin on my thighs finally healed, and now it’s rubbed raw again. It just keeps repeating. Do you know how to drive a carriage?”

Zou Ming, who seems capable of everything in Ye Zhou’s eyes, shakes his head slightly. “No.”

He can drive a car and ride a horse—but not a carriage.

Ye Zhou asks around, but none of his staff can do it. Even Wu Yan can only handle an ox cart, not a horse-drawn one.

Although Ye Zhou thinks ox carts and horse carts should be similar, Wu Yan isn’t confident and doesn’t dare try.

Ye Zhou has no choice but to ask Chen Hou.

Luckily, Chen Hou has plenty of people who can drive a carriage.

And besides, driving a carriage is easier than riding horseback. After all, people are made of flesh, not iron.

Chen Hou summons a young soldier. His skin is rough, but his lips are red and teeth white. He doesn’t look very old—probably around seventeen. He’s short, standing just up to Ye Zhou’s shoulder.

The young man doesn’t expect to be chosen. Though he tries to hide his expression, his eyes burn with excitement.

Chen Hou says to Ye Zhou, “This lad may not look strong, but he’s great at driving carriages. Even a double-horse carriage is no problem for him.”

The young soldier straightens his chest.

Ye Zhou smiles at him. “Then I’ll be counting on you.”

The young general responds loudly, “I won’t let you down!”

He doesn’t dare meet Ye Zhou’s eyes, only staring at Ye Zhou’s legs as he carefully introduces himself: “M-my name is Zheng Shaoyu.”

Ye Zhou replies, “That’s a nice name.”

He’s just being polite, but Zheng Shaoyu immediately lowers his head and grins foolishly.

Although Ye Zhou hasn’t interacted much with the soldiers, they are all very respectful toward him—as though they’re in awe of this “immortal.” Maybe too respectful. Even after all this time traveling together, Ye Zhou has barely spoken a word to them.

The carriage has a spacious interior. Unlike the kids’ carriage, it doesn’t have carpets. There are just a few throw pillows and a short table welded into the floor. It’s not as large as an RV, but in terms of comfort, it’s not far off.

Ye Zhou doesn’t want to share a small space with Chen Hou for long. More accurately, he wants his own space.

So even if Chen Hou looks at him with undisguised desire, Ye Zhou pretends not to notice.

Just as Ye Zhou gets into the carriage, Sarah climbs in through the window.

She’s carrying a bag of fruit and even remembers to take off her shoes before entering.

“Done with riding?” Ye Zhou looks at her as she sits down across from him.

Sarah nods. “Too tired.”

Ye Zhou is a little surprised. “I thought you didn’t get tired.”

Sarah replies seriously, “Boss, vampires might not be human, but we’re not machines either. We still get tired.”

When she’s serious, Sarah looks even more like a child—like a little girl pretending to be grown up.

Ye Zhou leans back with a pillow and the carriage begins to move.

Thanks to shock absorbers, the uneven road outside doesn’t affect the interior too much. It just shakes slightly more than a sedan.

During the journey, Ye Zhou doesn’t dare lift the curtain, or he’ll get a mouthful of sand.

He’s eaten plenty while on horseback.

Sarah looks at Ye Zhou, who has his eyes closed pretending to sleep. She blinks and quietly asks, “Boss, do you think I’m more useful, or is Zou Ming more useful?”

Ye Zhou, who isn’t actually asleep: “…”

He refuses to answer.

So he pretends to be asleep.

“Boss?” She asks again, “Boss, are you really asleep? That fast?”

Ye Zhou keeps his eyes shut. No one can wake someone who’s pretending to sleep.

Sarah whispers, “Anyway, Boss, when you see me again, remember—I came first.”

Ye Zhou is confused. See you again? What does that mean?

Sarah stops talking, hugs a pillow, and pretends to nap.

Neither of them truly sleeps, but both act as if they are.

They make three stops throughout the day.

Although Chen State is small, it’s sparsely populated. Each stop reveals more wasteland.

Occasionally, when they pass a village, there are large tracts of farmland—but few farmers working them.

Those they see are thin and bony. When they notice the passing convoy, they immediately hide—either dropping to the ground or running behind trees.

Cao’er rides her horse, her riding skills still rough. But with a saddle and stirrups, it isn’t too difficult—though she has fallen plenty and is covered in bruises during practice.

“Mother.” Cao’er rides up beside Aunt Li. Looking at the farmers lying in the fields, her heart fills with emotion. She whispers, “We used to be like that, didn’t we?”

They had worked nonstop, backs bent, barely able to eat. When they saw people in fancy clothes, they’d shrink away—wanting to crawl into a hole. They didn’t even dare enter big shops when going to town. They’d lived like rats—always cautious, terrified someone would reach into their holes and steal their meager belongings.

Aunt Li shakes her head. “We were better than them. If there hadn’t been a natural disaster, your father and I would’ve raised you all just fine.” Her eyes grow distant, as if she can see the past. “You’d have married into good families. I told your father before—if possible, none of our daughters should marry far away. What if your in-laws bullied you? If they did, we’d go knock on their door. No way would the daughters I raised suffer in someone else’s house.”

She smiles faintly. “I had it all planned…” Then she cuts herself off. “No more. There’s no point saying it.”

She looks at Cao’er. “You’re luckier than they are.”

Now they can fill their stomachs with hard work. Not only that—they have nice clothes, too. The immortal says this is called labor and reward. Aunt Li hasn’t understood before, but now she does.

The more she works, the more she earns. No more working all day and still not knowing where the next meal will come from.

Back in the Daliang Dynasty, even on festivals, they couldn’t count on eating meat.

They are content now. Truly content.