Chapter Thirty-Four: Leave the City?

Zhao Mu was uncertain whether Wen Zhi’s wife still held any affection for him. Had she been more ruthless, Wen Zhi surely would not have escaped this situation unscathed. The debt of twenty taels alone was enough to crush him; with interest compounding daily, the sum would soon become an astronomical figure—one that the entire Great Qi dynasty might struggle to repay, let alone the world, even if all untapped silver were included. The trap Wen Zhi had fallen into was simple yet lethal. However, this could not be blamed entirely on him; had it not been for the burden of supporting Zhao Mu, Wang Wu, and the others, Wen Zhi might have avoided the trap, or at least navigated it with greater caution. It was his desperate need to provide for them that drove him to borrow money, even from usurers.

Listening to Wen Zhi’s plight, Zhao Mu felt both poignant and helpless. The ancient mandates of "parental arrangement and matchmaker’s word" had claimed countless lives. True filial piety should not be blind obedience; parents who love their children should plan for their long-term well-being. Yet, differences in experience and perspective often breed estrangement. Wen Zhi’s father-in-law had initially supported him, perhaps hoping for a bright future for his daughter. She, too, might have once been charmed by the idea of marrying a hero. But as years passed and Wen Zhi remained a lowly gatekeeper, her doubts grew, eventually taking root like a towering tree. Fueled by Wen Zhi’s recent self-sabotaging behavior and the disruptions caused by Zhao Mu’s group, her resentment had piled up like a mountain. When her childhood cousin stirred the pot, the explosion was inevitable. In truth, the current outcome was the best they could hope for.

Draining a few bowls of cold tea, Wen Zhi seemed drained of all vitality. Though angry, he felt a deeper, lingering guilt toward his wife. Despite being manipulated, forced into a legal separation, and cast out onto the streets, he could not bring himself to hate her. Huang Wan and the others, though unsure of their next move, chose not to disturb his grief.

After a long pause, Zhao Mu finally asked, "Brother Wen, what are your plans now?"

Huang Wan and Wang Wu remained silent; they did not wish to burden Wen Zhi further, nor did they want him to think they were abandoning him. Although Wen Zhi had left his home and marriage empty-handed, he held residency in Taiping County and had acquaintances there. If he were willing to swallow his pride, he might survive on their charity. But if he brought his companions along, that charity would surely vanish. In these times of disaster and strife, people struggled to feed their own families, let alone a group of strangers. Yet, to leave now would make them appear fair-weather friends—opportunists who had used Wen Zhi and discarded him the moment he faced hardship.

Only Chu Bai remained pragmatic; staying with Wen Zhi was not a viable long-term solution. The seven of them had only a few copper coins between them—not even enough for a meal, let alone a future. Because they lacked proper residency permits and identity tallies, they could find no work, and Wen Zhi alone could not sustain them all. Regardless of how the others felt, Zhao Mu needed to know Wen Zhi’s intentions.

Wen Zhi looked up, his heart torn. In the past, he could have relied on his savings and his wife’s dowry to support his friends, but now, he had only a dozen coins left. He could easily survive by turning to old friends, but he could not bring himself to ask for help while dragging along the others. Unless he abandoned them to their fate—but that would not be Wen Zhi. He was a man who repaid debts and honored his word. That was who he was.

"I haven't decided yet," Wen Zhi replied, shaking his head. "Do you have any suggestions, Mu?"

Zhao Mu sighed, understanding his dilemma. Both Wang Wu and Wen Zhi were trapped by the same inescapable reality. "Brother Wen, there are only two paths before you."

"And what are they?" Wen Zhi asked.

"One is to walk alone," Zhao Mu said, "the other is to stay with us."

Wen Zhi paused, then chuckled. "Is that all? If so, then I shall stay with you, of course."

Wang Wu looked hesitant. He had always felt that his arrival was the reason for Wen Zhi’s downfall, and he feared that staying together would only continue to drag him down.

Zhao Mu smiled thinly. "But it will be very difficult if you stay with us."

Wen Zhi rolled his eyes. "What is a little hardship? When we fought the Hu, what suffering did we not endure?"

Zhao Mu smiled knowingly. "Then, if we leave the city, would you be willing to come along?"

Wen Zhi frowned. "You want to leave the city?"

Wang Wu and Huang Wan looked on in shock. They had traveled thousands of miles to find a sanctuary. Now that they had finally reached Taiping County, Zhao Mu wanted to leave?

Zhao Mu nodded. "We all know our situation. Even if we are inside the city walls, how is it any different from being outside?"

The others fell silent. The children, Wang Hu and Xiao Xing, might not understand, but the adults knew the truth: they had come to seek refuge with Wen Zhi, but their ultimate goal was to find a way to survive. Without residency permits, they were trapped, and they would only continue to be a drain on Wen Zhi. Their only advantage in the city was safety from the horrors outside—like in Gaozhou, where refugees were being treated as little more than food. It was said that the situation outside Gaozhou had descended into chaos, with riots breaking out repeatedly, only to be ruthlessly suppressed by the imperial court. After all, starving refugees who could barely lift a staff stood no chance against the state.