After crossing, I was forced to hold on to my thighs and build a kingdom

Qingying approached from behind, and Su Cheng'an stopped him and ordered, "To avoid being seen, let them set off at dawn tonight! Tell the brothers to be alert, and have Zhang Lian lead a group of men to infiltrate them. Ensure their safety along the way."

Qingying nodded and asked, "What about you, Master?"

"I will go with Mr. Chen tomorrow and will catch up with you later." Having said this, he turned to Chen Zhe and asked, "Sir, do you have a horse?"

Seeing Chen Zhe shaking his head, Su Cheng'an turned to Qingying and said, "Prepare a horse for Mr. Chen as well."

Chen Zhe waved his hands repeatedly and refused with a smile: "Sir, there is no need to prepare a horse for me. I will be traveling with these women and children tomorrow. If you have urgent matters, you can leave first."

"It seems that Mr. Chen really cares about the women and children inside. I misunderstood you before!"

Su Cheng'an looked at Chen Zhe deeply and bowed to him sincerely to apologize.

"You are so polite, sir!"

Chen Zhe politely returned the greeting, but the corners of his mouth rose slightly, and his liking for Su Chengan increased a little more.

This young man is smart, flexible, and good at self-reflection. Despite his young age, he has an open mind and a broad mind. He will definitely be a great man in the future!

The prince of Dingbei, from the northern border, was renowned throughout the Jin Dynasty for his exceptional military prowess, composure, and wisdom. The young man before him appeared to be of the same age as the prince. While the prince's family background was prestigious, this man was no less capable and capable, practically on par with him.

"To be honest, sir, I've been away for a long time and have a lot of things to do at home. I'm eager to go home now and I really don't have the time to follow these people back slowly. If you don't change your mind, then I will go ahead. See you in Youyun City."

Seeing Su Cheng'an speaking frankly, Chen Zhe's expression became serious: "Since you are speaking frankly this time, I will also tell the truth."

He looked into the distance, as if reminiscing about the past, with a hint of melancholy in his eyes.

"I lived in Floating Cloud City for many years and have a deep affection for the land. Coincidentally, these women and children are the families of fallen Northwest Army soldiers. They've already lost the breadwinners of their families, and now they're forced to leave their homes. It truly pities me."

"However, the journey south was extremely difficult and dangerous, like a chasm stretching out before us. Due to numerous mishaps along the way, they lost most of their men. They had to go through countless hardships and dangers to survive. It was truly an incredible achievement."

Chen Zhe's face showed a look of sorrow. He slowly shook his head and sighed softly, "We have met today by chance. Although I am unable to fully protect them, I cannot stand by and watch indifferently. Therefore, if I can accompany them to protect them for a while tomorrow, it will be considered as a small contribution, and it will give me some peace of mind."

Su Cheng'an bowed and praised again, "Sir, you are so righteous. If that's the case, then I won't hinder you from doing what you want. I wish you all the best tomorrow!"

The next morning, Su Cheng'an had breakfast and continued on his journey with several Qingyun Guards.

After only half an hour of setting off, they caught up with a group of women and children who were slowly moving forward outside the city.

Zhang Lian in the team saw him and hurriedly came up to pay his respects.

Su Cheng'an looked carefully and found that except for the women including Yu and the older children, who still had some strength left, the rest of the children, who were as old as the little boy's sister last night, were all pale and sweating.

Even so, in nearly two and a half hours, they had only walked more than ten miles.

This cannot go on. This place is still one hundred and fifty to sixty miles away from Baoying City. If we calculate based on their current pace, even if everything goes well, it will take at least five or six days to reach the northern border.

However, among these people, children under the age of six account for almost 30%. Even if the older ones can hold on, these young children cannot. If they continue like this, a group of young children may die before they reach Baoying City.

Since I have promised to take care of this group of people, I must not let those children get hurt. Otherwise, why would I let them go through so much trouble to follow me to the North!

"Brother, my feet hurt, my head hurts, my whole body hurts, I can't walk anymore." A childish voice sounded, it was the little boy's sister.

The young boy wiped the sweat from his forehead and squatted down to coax his sister: "Come here, Acai, brother will carry you on his back."

The little girl shook her head: "Brother is tired too. His back is injured. Ah Cai doesn't want brother to carry him, but Ah Cai can't walk anymore."

Children's words are heartbreaking to listen to.

A soldier nearby took the initiative to go over and carried the little girl named Acai on his back.

Su Cheng'an frowned and thought deeply.

This is not a solution. There will be too many changes on the road in five or six days. If the child falls ill, it will not be worth it.

At this moment, there was a sudden "thump" sound, and a little girl about four or five years old fell down. Her friends around her screamed and helped her sit up.

The little girl's face was pale, and the sweat on her forehead had soaked her dry yellow hair. She closed her eyes and did not move, looking young and pitiful.

Su Chengan made a prompt decision and shouted, "Everyone stop and sit down and rest."

Everyone slowly stopped, and Chen Zhe, who was in the crowd, also stopped and was about to go look for the young man.

Su Cheng'an looked around and saw a small forest about a mile ahead.

He pointed his hand in that direction and ordered Qingying: "Find a few brothers and ride over there to see if there is a river nearby."

Then five or six people came out and rode towards the grove on horseback.

A quarter of an hour later, several people returned and respectfully reported: "Master, there is a small stream about 100 meters inside the grove."

After hearing this, Su Cheng'an's expression relaxed slightly and he glanced at the crowd. This time, his eyes met that of Chen Zhe.

Seeing that the young man saw him, Chen Zhe simply stood up and walked towards Su Cheng'an.

"Master, these children are too young. Due to long-term hunger and extremely weak physical condition, they will definitely not be able to withstand the long journey every day. It's only been half a day and a child has collapsed. It will take at least five or six days to reach Baoying City from here, and they can't hold out that long."

Looking at the small group of young children, Chen Zhe showed a helpless expression.

"Mr. Chen, what you said makes sense. However, we are still in the northwest. If we don't move slowly, the large-scale migration of people may cause unnecessary trouble."

Su Cheng'an looked at Chen Zhe, frowning slightly. "I'm sure you can guess that I'm traveling under an alias this time, so I can't reveal my whereabouts. And these women and children are extremely eye-catching. Therefore, I have no choice but to change my plan and hide during the day and travel at night. Once we reach Baoying City, everything will be easy."

After hearing what he said, Chen Zhe's expression relaxed and a smile appeared on his face.

"It seems that the young master has a close relationship with the Dingbei Palace! In this case, we only need to find a way to successfully cross this section of the road to Baoying City, and the rest will be smooth sailing."

Su Cheng'an nodded and looked into the distance. "My men just went to check. There's water near the small woods ahead. I want to take them there and let them rest during the day. After nightfall, I'll have the brothers split up into small groups and continue on horseback with them. Even considering their health conditions, we should be able to reach Baoying City by the morning of the next day. What do you think, sir?"

"It's a good idea, but I see you only have twenty or thirty horses, while this group of people number over a hundred. If we only use horses, there will be too many men and too little porridge, and we won't be able to drive them."

Chen Zhe looked at the twenty or thirty horses with a worried look on his face.

Su Cheng'an's lips curled slightly, his eyes bright, and a sense of pride flashed in his eyes: "There are still some that have not arrived here, but there are enough horses. Sir, you don't have to worry about this problem!"

The young man had a handsome face and stood tall like a bamboo. His words and actions were full of confidence. Chen Zhe was infected by it and couldn't help but smile.