Chapter 337: You Dare]

After dinner, he stood up and said, "I'm going out for a while."

Qin Mengyue and Shen Fenghe looked at him in surprise: "What are you doing out here at this hour of night?"

Xiao Yunshuo didn't explain, but just smiled and said, "I suddenly remembered something. Don't worry, I'll be back in a few hours."

Having said that, he went out.

Qin Mengyue and Shen Fenghe waited for about an hour, but no one came back.

Chen Fenghe then said, "Mom, let's go to bed first. It looks like he'll be back in the middle of the night."

Qin Mengyue glanced at the little heads sleeping soundly in a row on the bed in the room and said with a smile, "Go to sleep. There's no point in just waiting."

He laughed again and said, "This room is crowded, you should sleep in that room..."

Having said that, he pushed her without waiting for Shen Fenghe to speak.

Chen Fenghe: “…”

Come on, as a modern person, how could she suffer any loss? Even if something happened, it would be Xiao Yunshuo who suffered the loss!

Moreover, she vaguely remembered that Xiao Yunshuo was as warm as a furnace last night.

It’s a free stove and electric blanket, wouldn’t it be a waste if you don’t use it?

But... Chen Fenghe looked at the cold bed and sighed softly.

Without the 'free stove', she had to be self-reliant...

I slept in a daze until the second half of the night.

There was a faint sound outside the window.

Chen Fenghe woke up in an instant, and looked towards the direction where the sound came from with dim eyes.

She saw a dark shadow climbing through the window - last night, the window had fallen off the frame. During the day, she asked Zhang Yuan to temporarily block it with some straw or something.

"Who?" she shouted in a low voice, immediately took out a pistol from the space, and was about to turn over and get out of bed.

The black shadow had already reached the bedside like a cheetah, raised his hand to press her down through the quilt, and rang out in a deep, magnetic voice: "Don't be afraid, it's me."

It’s Xiao Yunshuo.

Chen Fenghe breathed a sigh of relief and put the pistol back.

At this moment, Xiao Yunshuo reached his hand into the quilt and pressed it on her arm.

"Ah!" Chen Fenghe screamed halfway, then swallowed the rest of the scream in fear of startling anyone, and whispered in protest, "Cold!"

Xiao Yunshuo smiled and said, "Let me warm it up."

As he said that, he simply took off his coat and boots, crawled into the quilt and wolf skin, and hugged Shen Fenghe.

Gusts of cool air came in, and the bed that had finally warmed up suddenly became much colder.

Chen Fenghe: “…”

You bastard, are you using her as a free stove?

Fortunately, the heat of a man's body is indeed incomparable to that of a woman. After a while, the quilt was much warmer than when she was alone just now.

Chen Fenghe couldn't help but turn over in satisfaction and comfort.

At this moment, she suddenly felt Xiao Yunshuo's hand suddenly reach into the collar of her shirt.

All that was left under her middle garment was a red bellyband...

Chen Fenghe: “???”

"Dian Dian Dian... Your Majesty, what are you doing..." Chen Fenghe hurriedly grabbed his hand through his shirt and asked with some embarrassment.

My body suddenly became several degrees hotter than usual.

Xiao Yunshuo leaned close to her ear, his tall nose brushing against her ear bone, his hot and moist breath pounding against her ear. Then, he bit her earlobe with his thin lips and said with a low laugh, "My hands aren't cold anymore, are they?"

As he said this, he did not forget to deliberately grab and rub it hard.

Chen Fenghe: “…”

Is this a place to warm your hands?!

"Your Highness... Um..."

Chen Fenghe opened her mouth to stop him, but just as she uttered a word, her cherry lips were sealed tightly.

At the same time, Xiao Yunshuo's hand reached for the belt of her middle garment and untied it, whispering softly, "Don't worry, I won't do this to the end. But... let me satisfy my craving..."

The temperature in the quilt continued to rise, and both of them were almost strangled.

Chen Fenghe breathed slightly, feeling as if she were a steamed bun fresh out of the pot, with heat emanating from her whole body. She stretched out her fair arms, and the cold air made her feel comfortable.

I don’t know how long it took, but Xiao Yunshuo suddenly stopped, then stood up and put on his clothes.

Chen Fenghe was still a little confused and lost, looking at him blankly: "Hmm?"

Xiao Yunshuo was amused by her bewildered expression. He couldn't help but lean over and kiss her on the lips. Then he whispered, "I need to return to the capital secretly. I'll leave today."

These words were like a bucket of cold water, instantly bringing Shen Fenghe back to consciousness.

"You want to... go to Beijing?"

She suddenly sat up, and the quilt covering her body fell off, revealing her beauty.

Xiao Yunshuo's dark eyes darkened and his gaze involuntarily moved downwards.

Chen Fenghe's face instantly turned redder and redder. She quickly pulled up the quilt to cover herself up. She coughed twice to hide her embarrassment before asking again, "You want to go back to the capital? Isn't it dangerous? If the people in the palace find out that you're still alive..."

Xiao Yunshuo gave her a deep look and said, "Don't worry. I'll be careful, and nothing will happen. I had originally planned to wait until you and Mother were settled here before making my next move. However, news arrived via carrier pigeon from the capital: many ministers in the court have submitted memorials claiming that my conspiracy to rebel is suspicious and demanding a retrial. Father... The Emperor and several other princes, as well as their supporters, have smeared these ministers as members of the Crown Prince's faction, imposing sentences of imprisonment and execution. While some of these ministers do support me, many others are simply speaking out with honesty. They are the backbone of the court. If they become victims of factional strife, the damage to Dayu's country and people will be disastrous. I cannot allow such a thing to happen."

After hearing his words, Chen Fenghe felt the intoxicating heat from the previous romance gradually cooled down, as if she had been moved from a greenhouse to the snowy outdoors.

There were moments just now when she wanted to be a little confused, a little unclear, a little impulsive, not think about his identity as the prince, and just immerse herself in the happiness of being with him.

As for the future, there will always be a way when you reach the mountain, right?

There is always a solution.

But Xiao Yunshuo's words just now brought her back to reality in an instant.

Xiao Yunshuo was favored by his royal grandfather and was trained as the future emperor since childhood.

I'm afraid that his desire to fight for the throne is not just for supreme power.

On the contrary, the greater the power, the greater the responsibility.

Deep in his heart, he must be thinking about the people of Dayu.

People only see the supreme power of the emperor, but how many people know the hard work of a wise ruler who works diligently, loves the people and devotes all his energy to it?

It is easy to be a tyrant, but if you are a wise ruler, wouldn't you be working hard to exhaust yourself and shoulder the heavy responsibility?

If Xiao Yunshuo succeeded to the throne, he would definitely be a wise ruler.

What right did she have to persuade him to give up the responsibilities he had been taught to shoulder since childhood for her?

However, at least for now, she did not like him enough to sacrifice her own freedom for him and was willing to accompany him in the deep palace cage with many towers.

There is no perfect solution between them.

Chen Fenghe only felt a faint sourness rising in her nose, which she concealed with a gentle smile.

After Xiao Yunshuo explained, he continued, "I'll have Yuan Xu stay here. After daybreak, I'll have him go to the government and buy the unallocated land in the village. He'll also buy a house and have him move into the village in disguise so he can secretly protect you..."

After hearing this, Chen Fenghe shook her head and said, "This time when we return to Beijing, the danger on your side is greater than that of mother and me. It's better to let Yuan Xu go with you. Mother and I will feel more at ease."

"As for your plan to send people disguised as farmers to settle in the village, it's best to postpone it for a while. We're definitely being watched. We've just decided to move into this village, and now someone's buying up this barren land and house to settle here. That's a bit too abrupt and might actually arouse suspicion. If someone investigates and finds you, it'll be terrible."

Xiao Yunshuo naturally thought of the situations that Chen Fenghe described, but how could he feel at ease leaving them here alone?

Seeing his worried expression, Chen Fenghe smiled and said, "You don't have to worry about us. After all, we are in the open. The whole world is watching the deposed Queen, the deposed Crown Princess, and the Ninth Prince. We have survived the entire exile safely, so nothing will happen to us now. Therefore, we are relatively safe. Don't worry, my mother and I will just pretend to be content to be peasant women here. This will at least paralyze the people in the palace, and you will be less dangerous. Wait a few months, and then find someone to buy land and move in. It won't be too late."

Xiao Yunshuo thought about it and decided that this method was indeed the safest. He nodded and said guiltily, "It's hard for Mother and you to do this. If anything happens, you two women..."

Chen Fenghe smiled and said, "If you're really worried, just leave us some more money. There are so many families in this village. If we have something to do, we can just hire villagers to help with the work. Just one thing, the hard work must be done by men. If you're worried and jealous, then just ignore what I said. My mother and I will do the hard work ourselves..."

Xiao Yunshuo couldn't help but feel both angry and amused when he heard this. He pulled out a stack of banknotes, about ten in total, from his sleeve and handed them to her, saying with a smile, "Here, I'm ready. This little mouth is really powerful. You just know how to provoke me, don't you?"

As he spoke, he suddenly moved closer, grabbed Chen Fenghe's naked waist and squeezed it, then kissed her before she could scream.

"Don't worry, my Crown Princess, how could I possibly be interested in those country bumpkins? If you dare, I'll show you how I'll 'deal' with you..."

Chen Fenghe was tickled, so she could only smile and beg for mercy softly: "Is it not okay if I don't dare?"

The two of them quarreled for a while, and then Xiao Yunshuo took out another jade pendant and handed it to Chen Fenghe, saying:

"If you need anything, go to the inn called 'Yue Lai Chun' in Youzhou City, find the innkeeper, and show him this jade. After he examines the jade, he will follow whatever instructions are given."

Chen Fenghe took the jade pendant, nodded, and said, "I understand."

Xiao Yunshuo added, "Also, don't go hunting alone in the mountains. There are wolves and tigers there, it's too dangerous. Yuan Xu and I just went into the mountains and killed two wild roe deer. They're frozen in time, so they should be enough to feed you for a month or two..."

Chen Fenghe was stunned for a moment before asking, "You just said you had something to do for a few hours, so you went hunting in the mountains?"

As he said that, he quickly put on his clothes and went out to check.

Aren’t there two fat wild roe deer in the yard?

Qin Mengyue woke up when she heard the door open. She put on her clothes and looked around. She couldn't help but ask, "Where did this wild roe deer come from?"

Chen Fenghe smiled and said, "Isn't it because Your Highness and Yuan Xu just went to the mountain to fight."

Qin Mengyue couldn't help but feel distressed and amused when she heard this: "Going up the mountain to hunt so late at night? There's no need to rush."

Xiao Yunshuo then said, "Mother, I will be leaving soon for the capital."

Qin Mengyue was stunned when she heard this, and the smile on her face froze: "Going back...to the capital? Why so suddenly?"

Xiao Yunshuo briefly explained the reason for the matter.

Qin Mengyue was stunned for a long time before she sighed and said, "If that's the case, you should definitely go back. Feng He, I, and we have a few children, so they won't be a problem here. Don't worry about them or get distracted."

Xiao Yunshuo nodded and said, "Mother, I woke up."

The next day, before dawn, Xiao Yunshuo quietly left.

Qin Mengyue and Shen Fenghe did not sleep all night. When it was dawn, Qin Mengyue got up and opened the door, only to see a pile of firewood at the door.

Qin Mengyue was startled when she saw Zhang Yuan coming over with another bundle of firewood on his back.

Qin Mengyue quickly put away her sadness and said with a smile, "It's Zhang Yuan. Why are you here so early? There's so much firewood. I'm afraid you must have gone up the mountain to chop it long ago. It's so cold. Come in quickly. We're having breakfast. It's millet porridge and pickles. If you don't mind, drink some to warm yourself up."

Zhang Yuan put down the firewood on his back, shook his head and said, "I was afraid that there wouldn't be enough firewood for making bricks today, so I came here early to chop wood in the mountains. I also chopped some for my family before coming here. I won't go in. My family has prepared dinner and is waiting for me to go back. I'll come back later..."

Having said that, he turned around and went back without waiting for Qin Mengyue to stop him.

Qin Mengyue told Chen Fenghe about this, sighed, and said, "The Zhang family are all honest and befriendable. They are much better than my so-called in-laws in the past."

After dinner, Zhang Yuan came back as expected. They had fired another two hundred bricks that day, but Shen Fenghe still hadn't said what they were going to do with them. She visited Aunt Yang's house in the village, asked a few questions, and then paid her son ten cents to run an errand.

On the third day, she asked Zhang Yuan to get some more stones and then built a large kiln with these bricks and stones not far behind the yard. The gaps between the bricks and stones inside the kiln were coated with yellow mud to prevent it from leaking out.

Zhang Yuan, Qin Mengyue and others had never seen this thing before, and the three little guys couldn't help but look at it curiously.

Chen Fenghe smiled and said, "This kiln can be used to burn things. I see a lot of red clay in the back mountain, which can be used to make red bricks and even pottery and porcelain. Bricks are harder than those made from the yellow clay in front. In addition, this kiln is closed, which can greatly save the heat generated by the firewood and increase the temperature inside the kiln. Therefore, the hardness of the fired bricks or other objects will be further enhanced."

Qin Mengyue listened to Shen Fenghe's words as if she was listening to a heavenly book.

Zhang Yuan had seen earthen kilns in the countryside before, used to make pottery and the like, and laughed, "So this can also be used to make bricks."

Chen Fenghe smiled and said, "Sharpening the knife doesn't delay the work of chopping wood. This earthen kiln can probably burn about 2,000 bricks at a time, but the firewood only needs to be used once. Also, I asked Aunt Yang's son to go out and ask around yesterday. There are quite a few firewood sellers in a town a few miles away and in nearby villages. I asked them to send two carts over, so that Brother Zhang won't have to go up the mountain to chop firewood all the time."

After hearing this, Zhang Yuan hurriedly said, “Ms. Shen, I have the strength, why do you still want to spend this unfair money?”

Chen Fenghe said, "This firewood isn't expensive. The main reason is that there aren't many trees on our side of the mountain. The village over there specializes in making wooden furniture and other things, so they've planted a lot of trees specifically for raw materials. The furniture-making process also produces a lot of waste wood sawdust, as well as some useless twigs and the like. They also burn it into charcoal and then send it to Youzhou City to sell. Burning charcoal is time-consuming and labor-intensive, and it's much farther to Youzhou City than to send it here, and the transportation is more expensive, so they're very happy to sell it to us."

Chopping wood is strenuous work. Moreover, repairing the courtyard wall, the kitchen woodshed, and even the main house and wing rooms requires a lot of bricks, which requires a lot of firewood, and it is not something that Zhang Yuan can do alone.

Therefore, Zhang Yuan did not say anything more, but just followed Chen Fenghe's instructions, dug up the red soil, made bricks, and placed them in a place sheltered from wind and rain to dry in the shade.

At this time, Aunt Yang's son, Yang Baozong, had already arrived with a mule cart carrying firewood from another village.

“Miss Shen, this is the firewood you asked me to buy. Look, they delivered it on time.”

Yang Baozong shouted from a distance.

Chen Fenghe went to meet him and took a look. It was all branches and wood chips. There was also some sawdust, but not much. It was indeed delivered according to her instructions. She smiled and said, "Thank you, Brother Yang. This is the money for the firewood, a total of 200 coins, you can count it."

The driver who brought the firewood took it, counted it, and said with a smile, "It's enough. Thank you very much, young lady."

As they talked, they were about to drive away in the mule cart.

Chen Fenghe said, "After four or five days, I'll have to trouble you to send two more carts of firewood."

After hearing this, Yang Baozong couldn't help but ask curiously, "Mrs. Shen, there are only five people in your family. These two carts of firewood should be enough for you to use for at least half of the winter. Why do you need to send it back after four or five days? Do you want to make charcoal yourself? If so, why not buy charcoal directly from them? Many families in their village and nearby villages make a living by burning charcoal. The charcoal they make is much better and more cost-effective than making it yourself."

Chen Fenghe smiled and said, "Thank you, Brother Yang, for reminding me. I'm not burning it to make charcoal, but to make bricks."

Yang Baozong suddenly understood and said with a smile, "Oh, so that's how it is? Making loess bricks does require quite a bit of firewood."

Chen Fenghe didn't explain much.

Zhang Yuan made about 500 bricks in one day. The next step was to put them in a cool place to dry for a few days. When they were almost dry, they were put into the kiln. Then the kiln mouth was sealed with yellow mud and fired with firewood.

It takes several days to dry in the shade, and half a month for it to be fired in the kiln and gradually cooled down.

If you are more particular, it will take longer.

However, in order to use it as soon as possible, Chen Fenghe had no choice but to simplify the process and time.

In the next few days, Zhang Yuan continued to make bricks. After making about 3,000 bricks, the first batch of bricks were almost dried in the shade and were put into the kiln for firing one after another.

It takes half a month to fire the fire, so Zhang Yuan helps watch the fire and prevent it from going out.

The kiln mouth is fully enclosed, and the temperature inside the kiln can reach 900 degrees or even higher. High temperature is the key to firing red bricks, so the temperature inside the kiln needs to be maintained at all times.

Half a month later, the first batch of bricks finally came out of the kiln.

The villagers also heard that Miss Shen, who had just moved in, bought firewood to make bricks, and that she would burn them for half a month. Therefore, they were very curious. On the day the bricks came out of the kiln, more than 20 people gathered to watch.

When the bricks came out of the kiln, everyone couldn't help but stretch their necks to look. When they saw the square red bricks, the villagers were a little stunned.

"Ms. Shen...Ms. Shen, why is your brick...red?"

Chen Fenghe smiled and said, "This is made of red clay from the back mountain, and it is red because it has been fired at a high temperature."

At this moment, a voice rang out in a sinister tone: "Tsk! I thought they had made something wonderful? Turns out they're just a few broken bricks of different colors. What's so special about that? If you ask me, they're not as good as our traditional loess bricks! They're easy to make and durable!"

Chen Fenghe turned around and saw that the person who spoke was Zhu Huaihua, who had come when Aunt Yang brought people to greet her a few days ago.

The girl looked at her with an unconvinced look on her face, as if she was very proud of what she had just said, which embarrassed Shen Fenghe.

Chen Fenghe didn't get annoyed, she just smiled and said, "It's true that loess bricks don't require much effort, but whether they are stronger and more durable than these red bricks is not certain."

Seeing that Chen Fenghe wasn't embarrassed at all, Zhu Huaihua couldn't help but get anxious. She raised her voice and said, "Why not? Just wait. I just made some new loess bricks. I'll compare them and you'll know."

As Zhu Huaihua said this, she ran away.

Chen Fenghe: “…”

Is there something wrong with this girl's brain?

The villagers watching were more or less curious. The red bricks and the loess bricks looked both square, except for the red bricks being smaller and a different color. What else could be the difference? So, would it take two weeks or a month to make them?

Therefore, when they heard that Zhu Huaihua was going to compete, they were a little excited.

"Mr. Yang, who do you think will win?" a woman with her hands in her pockets asked with a smile.