116 Chapter 116

◎Ice Play◎

Qin Zhenzhen looked around as she walked. "Mrs. Cheng's place is so small."

"There aren't many people at home."

After entering the study and sitting down, Qin Zhenzhen suddenly stood up and said, "Madam Cheng, why don't we go ice skating?"

"Ice fun?"

"Mrs. Cheng, aren't you going to be a good host and take me to play ice skating? Is that okay?"

Qin Zhenzhen shook off her previous dejection and became more energetic. "Let's call Xiaoliu and Xiaoqi together. Let's go play ice spinning tops, ice skates, and see the ice lanterns. How about that?"

Cheng Mu had never done anything like this in all the years she had been here. She said, "Xiao Qi caught a cold a while ago and has just recovered. He's weak..."

"There is no child who doesn't like ice skating. I'll go ask them." Before she finished speaking, Qin Zhenzhen ran back to the kitchen.

By the time Cheng Mu chased after them, Xiaoliu and Xiaoqi had already jumped out shouting.

"Mom! We're going to go ice skating! Haha! Ice skating!"

Qin Zhenzhen pulled two teammates along, not caring whether she wanted to go or not, and not afraid of making things difficult for her at all, as she was determined to do it.

Cheng Mu asked Wanli to rent a car while she prepared things for the child at home.

In order to prevent them from having no change of clothes if they got wet outside, each person brought a set of clothes. In order to prevent their shoes from getting wet, they brought two pairs of insoles, not to mention cloaks and ear-warmers. Cheng Mu also brought a fur mat in case they played on the ice slide, and she also brought her small red clay stove to slowly boil the cold medicine.

Xiaoliu and Xiaoqi played at home by themselves first. Mu Yun made spinning tops for them out of wood, and they took them along.

The car was rented back quickly, and Cheng Mu asked Wanli and Tong'edan to lock the door and go together.

Today there is only wind but no sun, which is not really suitable for ice skating, but this is the weather in the north most of the time.

There was an artificial lake in the city, surrounded by many houses and huts, a popular spot for boating on summer nights and ice skating in winter. When we got there, we found that most of the people there were children and teenagers.

Everyone here is bundled up tightly. Cheng Mu told Xiaoliu and Xiaoqi not to take off their gloves and face towels even when they are hot. "Be careful of the cold wind and frostbite. Don't play until you sweat profusely. If you feel hot, come back to the car and rest for a while."

Qin Zhenzhen disliked her nagging and said, "Mrs. Cheng, come and play with us."

Xiaoliu's eyes were sharp, "There really is an iceberg over there!"

It was a snowdrift by the roadside. Several snowfalls had formed a small iceberg. Someone had carved out a long ice path, and someone else had carved out steps. I saw a group of little creatures scrambling to climb the mountain and then roaring down from the top.

"Mom, let's go there and play!"

Cheng Mu's hands and feet were cold, but she didn't want to go ice skating. She asked Wanli to stay with the two children, while she and Tong'erdan stayed in the carriage.

The cold medicine on the small stove was boiled for another quarter of an hour. After lifting the carriage curtain and looking from afar, it was impossible to tell who was Xiaoliu and Xiaoqi. At this time, they were having a lot of fun with all the children on the lake.

"It's windy outside, come in and sit inside." Cheng Mu called Tong'edan.

Tong'erdan immediately jumped down from the shaft and said, "I'm not cold, Madam Cheng. I'm just practicing my boxing skills down there."

He started to laugh and Cheng Mu knew it was just an excuse.

Although the carriage was surrounded by a cotton fence, it was still as cold as an ice cave in the snow and ice. The wind was blowing everywhere, making it very chilly.

Cheng Mu took the cold medicine and drank it while it was still hot, and only then did she feel a little warmer.

It only lasted for a while, and then it became cold again.

Tong'erdan suddenly shouted excitedly, "Madam Cheng, here comes a group of ice performers!"

Cheng Mu struggled to get off the bus with her feet frozen like ice. Tong'erdan asked, "Do you want to come over and play with us? It's getting colder just sitting here. Playing will warm us up."

"Okay." If she didn't move around, Cheng Mu felt like she was trembling even when she spoke.

They paid a few coins and left the carriage in front of a shop. The owner had special ice hockey shoes and enthusiastically promoted them. They spent some more money and each bought a pair.

When walking on the frozen lake, you have to be very careful, for fear that the ice will be thin somewhere and you will fall into a hole, which would be terrible.

Madam Cheng was walking so slowly that Tong'erdan suggested, "Put on your ice skates, grab my arm, and I'll pull you along."

Cheng Mu refused, saying safety first and it would be embarrassing to fall flat on her face.

When the ice actors arrived, they attracted a lot of people's attention and they all gathered around.

Ice play is acrobatics on ice. Purple swallows flying through waves and phoenixes spreading their wings are the basics. The more difficult ones include playing with flags, climbing poles, and flipping bars. They are greeted with continuous cheers. If there are children or teenagers who want to learn, they will be called over to interact and ask for tips. It is up to them to give more or less, or even not to give at all.

Cheng Mu had been heading for the iceberg to find her two children, but once the ice show began, the crowds were all running around, creating chaos and making it impossible to find her. Even getting back was difficult, as the ice show performers played gongs and drums, commanding everyone on the lake to move, and obstacles abounded.

So Cheng Mu was caught in the middle and played helplessly for half an hour.

Tong'edan learned the lesson from Wanli's last incompetence, and wanted to pull an ice bed to help Cheng Niang, but he didn't take any action. He just followed her closely. He was having a lot of fun, unlike Cheng Niang, who was full of anxiety.

"Madam Cheng, the ice play people have left. Should we follow them? They are going to take a stroll around the moat next."

"No, let's go find Madam Qin and the children." If they followed her out of excitement, it would be all over.

Fortunately, Xiaoliu and Xiaoqi did not leave without saying goodbye. After most of the crowd had left, they were quickly found among the remaining people.

Wanli looked at them, and he was obviously not as comfortable as Tong'edan. There were three people, and he only had two eyes, so he couldn't see them all.

Cheng Mu asked, "Where is Madam Qin?"

"They got separated during the ice show. I searched for them for a long time with the Sixth Miss and the Seventh Young Master," Wanli said. "Could he have gone to the moat to watch the fun?"

Cheng Mu was upset and had a headache, a real headache.

"Well, let's go back to the carriage first, and Wanli will continue to look for people."

"Yes." Wanli received the order, put on his ice skates, and started skating immediately.

"Mom, we want to play more." Xiaoliu and Xiaoqi begged. They were having so much fun that they had no intention of going back at all.

"If you want to play again, wait until tomorrow and let your daddy bring you here."

"No, Mom, just play for a while longer!"

Cheng Mu's promise was completely useless. They just wanted to enjoy the pleasure of the moment. Cheng Mu was on the verge of anger. "If you don't come back with me now, you are not allowed to come out to play on the ice again!"

Only after threats and harsh words did the two children reluctantly compromise.

When she returned home, Cheng Mu felt like she was frozen to the bone and couldn't even generate any heat.

She asked Tong'edan to report to Mu Yun and quickly send more people to look for Miss Qin. She also asked Huaihua to help Xiaoliu and Xiaoqi get rid of the cold, give them medicine, rub their hands and faces, soak them in warm water, apply ointment, etc.

She wrapped herself in a down jacket and a quilt, drank some medicine, and then drank some meat porridge. When her limbs recovered, she felt as if she were being pricked by millions of needles all over her body.

I really hate the cold in the north.

An hour later, Tong'edan came to report that Mu Yun had found Madam Qin and sent her back to the escort agency.

Only then did Cheng Mu feel completely relieved. She fell exhausted on the kang and fell into a drowsy state.

She didn't know how long it had been, but she suddenly shivered in a half-dream, feeling cold again, and her clothes were damp. Without turning on the light, she fumbled to change into dry clothes and fell into a deep sleep again.

She felt as if someone was pushing her.

His eyelids were heavy, and he opened them with difficulty to take a look. "Mute woman..."

She didn't know whether she made any sound, she just felt warm water pouring on her mouth and flowing into her mouth, and she swallowed it again and again instinctively.

After a while, Xiaoliu and Xiaoqi arrived, each shouting at the top of their lungs, "Mom! Mom!"

Xiaoliu put his hands on her neck and said, "Mom, you're sweating a lot."

The mute woman signaled Huaihua to tell Menzi.

After hearing this, Tong'edan hurried to report to Mu Yun.

Not long after Mu Yun arrived, the doctor also came. After diagnosis, he prescribed some medicine and said that it was nothing serious, just a cold, and that he would be fine after sweating.

Mu Yun asked Xiao Liu, "Your mother had a high fever yesterday. Did you know?"

Xiaoliu realized he had neglected his duty and said, "Last night, Mom asked me to sleep with Huaihua. I came back from the ice rink fine..."

Huaihua said, "Mrs. Cheng was freezing outside. She stayed wrapped in a blanket after returning home and only had some meat porridge for dinner."

Xiao Qi remembered: "When my mother went out yesterday, she brought a small stove with her to boil medicine, and she drank the medicine when she came back."

Mu Yun asked, "Were you sick before yesterday?"

"No, no," Huaihua denied. "We've all been cooking together these past few days. Madam Cheng is fine, and she hasn't taken any medicine."

That was because of going to the ice rink. Mu Yun suppressed his nameless anger.

Yesterday, he heard that they had gone ice skating with Qin Zhenzhen and lost her. He was annoyed. Why did his sister-in-law go through all this trouble? Furthermore, Qin Zhenzhen came back saying she had caught a cold. To prevent them from blaming her, he stayed there. He had forgotten that his sister-in-law was sick last year, that she could catch a cold...

She didn't say anything when she wasn't feeling well, which also made him angry.

He personally stood by and fed the girl medicine and porridge himself.

Cheng Mu's face was abnormally red. He touched her forehead and found it was sometimes hot and sometimes cold. She would sweat even after taking medicine or drinking porridge. Mu Yun wrung out a handkerchief and wiped her forehead, hands and forearms over and over again.

"It's hot..." Cheng Xi muttered, struggling to take off her clothes.

Mu Yun held her hand and touched her neck, which was cold.

"Don't move."

The doctor said the medicine would help her sleep, so she kept her eyes closed and slept soundly. She didn't know if she was dreaming, but her eyelids were twitching under her eyelids. She struggled for a few times but then lost her strength.

Mu Yun held her wrist without moving and stared at her face for a long time.

Suddenly, a wet tear fell on the pillow, and her dry mouth moved, "How disgusting... cold..."

Mu Yun's heart was instantly gripped, feeling sour and bitter.

Yes, Auntie had always disliked the winters in the north. She said they were too long. The long winters were spent doing nothing, the seeds didn't sprout, and the crops withered. It was such a waste. In the far south, there were two or three harvests a year, and as long as one was diligent, no one would go hungry.

She was so far away from the south that all she could do was transport the good seeds to the south in batches.

Her presence in the North is the North's luck, but people like her shouldn't be confined to the North.

Mu Yun leaned over and hugged her tightly.

It's almost done. He's almost done recruiting people and has built the shell. He'll wait until he's more fully prepared...