Chapter 8

Departure!

It had to be said that this leader was indeed smart.

He had hit the nail on the head!

A person’s face could be changed through disguise, but under normal circumstances, very few people would pay attention to details like hands.

The crown prince and the crown princess had lived a luxurious life before, especially the crown princess. She had just escaped from the East Palace. Compared to refugees, her hands were definitely fairer and smoother.

Lin Suisui raised her hand slightly and opened her palm in front of the soldier.

The roughness of her palm made the soldier frown slightly, but he didn’t say anything. He turned to look at Lu Ze’s palm again. It looked just as rough. The calluses on his palm looked like the result of long-term farm work.

The soldier stared at the two of them for a moment longer. Although he didn’t want to give up, he didn’t pester them any longer. He raised his hand and waved them away. “Go!”

Lin Suisui thanked him in a low voice before turning around with Lu Ze to follow the other refugees outside. They left together.

Because they were leaving early the next morning, the more than 300 households that had voluntarily decided to head to the north were placed near the Great Mercy Temple.

As previously agreed, the adults were given 10 catties of coarse grain each. They had to find their own food on the way. They would travel at sunrise and rest at sunset. They would be given some time to rest midway every day to ensure that everyone could keep up.

Lin Suisui took two copper coins and found a woman at the side to exchange for a sturdy bamboo basket to hold the coarse grain that she and Lu Ze had received.

A clay pot to hold the water she needed to drink every day while traveling was carefully placed in the remaining space.

Seeing Lu Ze staring at her, Lin Suisui quickly explained to him with a smile, “Mrs. Luo taught me this. She said that we don’t have a wheelbarrow, so this way, we will be less tired.”

Hearing her words, Lu Ze didn’t say anything else. However, when it was time to rest at night, the man uncharacteristically pulled her into his arms when she was about to move to the side to rest.

“There’s other people.”

Lin Suisui subconsciously wanted to struggle, but because of Lu Ze’s words, she instantly stopped trying to break free. The man held her waist and hugged her tightly. Through the thin summer shirt, she could clearly feel the man’s warm body and his strong heartbeat…

Even though Lin Suisui had always been bold, this was the first time she had come into such close contact with a man. She couldn’t help but feel her mouth go dry and her heart beat wildly. Her racing heart seemed to be about to jump out of her chest.

“Hurry up and sleep! Those people won’t retreat in a short while. We’ll see what happens on the way.” Lu Ze hugged Lin Suisui and patted her arm gently to comfort her.

How could she sleep like this?!

Lin Suisui couldn’t help but mutter to herself.

However, soon, she felt sleepy and fell asleep.

Lin Suisui was sleeping soundly in his arms, but Lu Ze, who was holding her, opened his eyes at this moment. He raised his hand very slowly and gently touched Lin Suisui’s cheek with his clean and slender fingers.

He wasn’t worried that the person in his arms would suddenly wake up. Even in such an environment, he still had several ways to make this little girl sleep soundly at specific times.

His well-defined fingers slowly touched Lin Sui’s cheek. From her forehead, he touched her bit by bit, behind her ear, then to her chin. He could feel the warm touch. Even through the simple human skin mask the little girl had made previously, he could still feel the smoothness of her skin.

This gentle move was like the most affectionate man caressing his beloved lover.

Of course, if one ignored the coldness and cruelty in his dark eyes, it indeed seemed like a loving scene.

There was no other disguise. Even her facial bones didn’t show any signs of change!

Lu Ze retracted his hand and the doubts in his heart were dispelled. This was still the sixth daughter from the Ministry. She had not been replaced by someone else!

However, could it be that the fact that the person in front of him had a drastic change in personality after she woke up was really because she had hit her head?

Of course, Lu Ze didn’t believe her.

The things that had happened between her and the fourth prince previously could be said to have spread like wildfire in the capital. She even wanted to risk her life to follow him. Would she really forget about everything so easily?!

Lu Ze wrapped his arm around Lin Sui’s slender waist again, his gaze dark and menacing. “Is this your new plan?!”

Lin Suisui was unconscious, so she naturally couldn’t answer Lu Ze.

However, Lu Ze didn’t mind. He reached out and pinched the little girl’s nose playfully, making her frown and struggle for a moment before letting go. With a faint smile, he continued to look at Lin Suisui, who was pouting as she burrowed into his arms. “If you’re obedient, I…”

Realizing that she slept until dawn, Lin Suisui was a little surprised by her strong adaptability.

However, after resting, she was naturally energetic. She tidied up briefly, and the officials who were escorting these people to the north came over to urge them to prepare to leave.

There were more than 300 refugees heading to the north this time.

In order to facilitate management arrangements, the accompanying officials split the 300-odd households into more than ten teams. Each team was guarded by five sergeants.

In addition, there were more than 200 soldiers in charge of security and some trivial matters.

“I heard that a group of criminals who were exiled to the north to do manual labor are also traveling with us.” Before setting off, Mrs. Luo leaned into Lin Suisui’s ear and whispered the new information she had learned.

“Thank you for your reminder.” Lin Suisui thanked Mrs. Luo in a low voice for her kind reminder.

On such a long journey, it went without saying that families like hers and Lu Ze’s were at a disadvantage. It was fine when everything was peaceful, but if they encountered any trouble midway, due to their low number, they would very likely become the target of the other families.

In particular, along the way, there were also those who had been exiled to the northern region.

All the more reason not to be careless.

Lin Suisui was distracted by these trivial matters as she followed Lu Ze, who was carrying a basket on his back. Caught off guard, Lu Ze reached out and pulled her. Just as she staggered into Lu Ze’s arms, a horse galloped past her side, and the sergeant on the horse…