The Eldest Daughter Returns: Imperial Uncle, I'm Pregnant!

Siqi bought a set of clothes according to her young mistress's wishes. Ning Yi and Ning Er were not idle either. One went to the nearby area to buy some essential dry food and supplies, while the other sent their horses to the nearest pharmacy to be taken care of and hired a carriage. After returning, Gu Qingwan gave each of them two hours of rest.

Two hours later, Siqi finished packing her things and asked, "Master, what's our next step?"

Gu Qingwan said, "Let's change our clothes and have Ning Yi and Ning Er hide our weapons and such so that no one can find them."

At this moment, Ning came up and said, "Master, everything is ready, we can leave now."

"Have you bought all the gifts I asked you to?"

"We've bought everything, but we don't know what Master wants, so Ning Er and I just bought some random things."

"It doesn't matter what it is, it's just for show. Also, have you found any clues about the prince's whereabouts as I asked you to do?"

"I've inquired, and everyone says that the prince's decisive leadership helped them withstand the natural disaster. They're all praising the prince. However, it seems that the prince has already left. It's said that he went to the Western Hills to manage the silt. The rest of my subordinates haven't found out anything of value."

Gu Qingwan thought for a moment. Since the prince went to Xishan openly and honestly, he must have taken the official road. If he took the official road, he would be received by the local officials of Xishan and would be very likely to stay at the post station to rest. Therefore, there might be clues left by the prince at the post station.

Even though judging by the days, the prince wouldn't be at the post station anymore, I still had to go and check to see what he was thinking.

"We'll head straight to West Mountain in a bit, taking the official road, and try to arrive by tomorrow evening to find an inn to stay at."

Gu Qingwan was dressed as an ordinary young lady, and Si Qi also dressed as a maid to serve her. Ning Yi and Ning Er, dressed as servants, sat outside the carriage and drove it. The four of them swayed and headed towards the West Mountain.

When we arrived at the inn, it was noon. The ground was damp from the rain, and the summer heat made it feel stuffy, like being in a steamer.

Although this post station is located in a relatively remote area, no matter how much money you have, unless it is for official business, even the wealthiest person is absolutely not allowed to use the post station. Only officials are allowed to use it.

However, when delivering official documents, the couriers at the post stations would often also help wealthy local families carry letters or small, lightweight items. This was a regular source of extra income for the couriers in ancient times.

Therefore, the postmaster and postmen were usually quite idle, and the sweltering summer heat made them listless and drowsy, until they heard the sound of horses neighing at the gate, which told them that someone had arrived.

A young maidservant, covered in sweat, scurried over, wiping her brow with her sleeve. It was Siqi.

"Hey, hey, what are you doing here! This is a post station, and unauthorized personnel are not allowed to enter."

"Sir," Siqi said, bowing and scraping, "my young lady has heatstroke, and it's the middle of the day. Could we come in and have a bowl of tea? We'll rest for a bit and then leave immediately."

The courier, looking impatient, waved his hand and said, "No, no, what do you think this place is, a teahouse or something? You think you can just stop and rest whenever you want? What if some important person comes along and you offend them? Hurry up, hurry up, hurry up!"

"Oh, oh, sir, sir, sir!" Siqi quickly grabbed the postman's sleeve and stuffed a money bag into his hand. "Sir, please be lenient. We won't go in. We'll just ask for a couple of bowls of cool tea. It's the middle of the day and no officials are passing by. We'll rest for a bit and then leave. We definitely won't cause you any trouble."

The courier weighed the item in his hand, smiled and nodded. He craned his neck to look under the big tree and saw that there was indeed a carriage. Next to the carriage stood a thin woman who didn't look very well. It wasn't unusual for a frail woman to ask for tea.

"Alright, come in, but it's agreed that you can only rest in the corner for a while, and you have to leave after you finish your tea."

Siqi was overjoyed and thanked her profusely.

She jogged back and helped a young lady with a pale face into the room. Once inside, the courier looked the young lady up and down. She was plain-looking and looked very haggard. She kept coughing, and it was hard to tell if she was sick in the heat of the day. The courier led them to a table in the main hall and, out of consideration for the bag of silver, served them some cool tea.

"Oh dear, is Miss suffering from heatstroke? Quickly drink some herbal tea to cool down."

"Thank you, sir. I didn't expect it to be so hot and humid. If there hadn't been a post station here, I probably would have fainted."

Hearing the commotion, the postmaster came over and asked, "What happened?"

"It's like this, sir. This young lady is suffering from heatstroke and came here to ask for a bowl of cool tea. I saw that there was no one around at the time, and the young lady looked quite pitiful, so I took the liberty of letting her in. Please don't blame me, sir."

The postmaster nodded in agreement. Helping others was no big deal, especially since he had seen the young lady himself. She looked quite unwell and was panting. The maidservant beside her had given her two pills, and she seemed to be getting better. The postmaster wasn't a heartless person, but this group of people did look unfamiliar, so he felt he should ask them some questions.

"It's alright, what's wrong with just a bowl of cold tea? Besides, this young lady does look unwell."

Gu Qingwan coughed twice and drank a cup of water before she could catch her breath. She said weakly, "Thank you for your help, sir. I was saved."

"Miss, do you have any ailments? Would you like me to find you a doctor?"

"Replying to your question, my lady has suffered from acute asthma since childhood, and she usually doesn't have an attack. It's just that it's too hot and humid today, and the carriage isn't very well ventilated, so she's not feeling well. We carry medicine with us, and she'll be fine after resting for a while," Siqi explained from the side.

Gu Qingwan nodded, "My lord, I will leave after sitting for a while, and I will certainly not cause you any trouble."

The postmaster waved his hand dismissively and said, "It's nothing. Few people come at this time of year. Miss, please sit here for a while. But I don't recognize you. Where did you come from?"

"Ahem, ahem, my home is in Linqing. My mother passed away early, and my father is a schoolteacher. It was only because of the continuous heavy rains a few days ago that our home was destroyed, so I came to Xishan to seek refuge with relatives."

Upon hearing about the disaster, the postmaster was also deeply moved, because he had heard that his distant relatives had been swept away by the flood, and the whole family was scattered and he didn't know how they were doing. "We've also been affected by the disaster here."

"What! Cough cough cough!"

"Miss, please don't get agitated. It's not as serious as the situation in Linqing. I don't know what's wrong with the weather. One minute it's dry and the next it's pouring rain and the mountains are about to collapse."

"Yes, thankfully the Prince came to our side to take charge, things are much better now. Otherwise, I probably wouldn't have survived to come and seek refuge with my relatives. I just don't know if my family is still safe and sound." Gu Qingwan sighed softly, her eyes red.

Upon hearing the name "Prince," the postmaster recalled that the prince and his entourage had visited him a few days prior. He remembered that the prince's bearing was indeed as legendary as the one described, inspiring awe and reverence.

"The Prince is the guardian of our Daqing. With the Prince here, we will definitely be safe and sound. Don't worry, the Prince came to our side a while ago, so everything will be fine."

"Has the Prince been here before?" Siqi asked curiously. "My lord, have you met the Prince? Is he as heroic and majestic as described in the teahouse?"

"You silly girl, cough cough cough, please don't take offense, sir, my sister is just a bit outspoken."

The postmaster didn't really care. There weren't many people at the post station at this time, so it was nice to have someone to chat with.

"It's alright. The prince is indeed just as the legend says, tall and very handsome."

"That's right, the prince is a war god, and even with beauty before him, he didn't waver in the slightest..." The courier from before started to speak with a wink, but was interrupted by a glare from the postmaster.

Gu Qingwan knew immediately that Xiao Jingchen had been offered peach blossoms again. Fortunately, she wasn't tempted. If she hadn't been able to resist, Gu Qingwan would have immediately taken her people back and ignored him.

"What nonsense are you talking about? Be careful that your superiors find out you've spread this around, and you won't even know where you're going to lose your life!"

"So what? So many people knew about it back then. The prince is probably still in the city, and that other girl is probably still following him around. If you ask me..."

"Shut up!" The postmaster grabbed the postman's ear. His brother-in-law was good in every way except that he was fearless and had a big mouth. Even on that dangerous day, he dared to hide in the shadows and watch the excitement. When he came back, he even told him something about how good Miss Zhao's figure was. He almost fainted from anger at the time.

"Get out, get out, get back to where you came from! If you're going to get yourself killed, don't drag me into it! Get out!"

The courier pursed his lips, muttered something under his breath, and left.

Gu Qingwan had overheard their conversation and roughly knew that the prince had gone to Xishan City safely with Lord Huang. However, according to the carrier pigeon's message, the prince should have met with misfortune in Xishan County. What exactly happened? She looked towards the door and saw Ning Er nod to her, indicating that things were almost settled.

"My lord, I apologize for disturbing you. To avoid causing you any more trouble, I will set off now."

"Oh? It's alright, it's alright. Miss, would you like to sit a little longer? It's noon now, you can leave when it's cooler."

"Thank you for your kindness, sir. We'll leave now and hopefully reach the city before dark, Siqi."

Siqi understood and placed a small ingot of silver on the table.

"Thank you for your hospitality, sir. I don't have much money, but I hope you won't mind."

"No, no, it's just a cup of herbal tea, it doesn't cost any money."

"Please accept this, my lord. If it weren't for your help, I would have been doomed today. I know you have everything you need, but it is still a token of my appreciation."