Chapter 9 Agree? The night deepened, disappearing behind the mountain ridges...

As the night deepened, the village, nestled against the mountain ridges, became a winding, secretive place. The steep cliffs and dense, impenetrable forests seemed to create a natural barrier of seclusion.

Now Song Heng and Lu Zhifeng can sleep here safely.

There are quite a few plans among them.

After a busy day preparing for the trip south of the Yangtze River, he fought desperately with bandits in the evening.

Lu Zhifeng was already exhausted. Although he knew that there was something involved, he shouldn't worry too much.

But everyone has curiosity, so I'd like to ask, just in case His Majesty replies.

This will save a lot of research effort.

However, I was exhausted and wanted to go to bed early. I had to put the question aside and discuss it later.

While Lu Zhifeng was fast asleep, Song Heng was quite alert. After all, he had been lying on the soft couch in the carriage all day long, and only woke up briefly when bandits attacked him.

No matter how sleepy you are, it can't withstand something this outrageous.

The village is simple, and the only well-equipped room is the one where Song Heng is currently staying.

Thinking of Lu Zhifeng who was already exhausted, Song Heng felt helpless. Lu Zhifeng had a tired face, but he actually forced himself to get up, wanting to clean up the other room before going to sleep.

"Your Majesty, there is a difference between the ruler and his subjects. I cannot share a room with you at night."

"My dear, there's no need to be polite when you're out and about."

"Your Majesty, etiquette cannot be abolished. I'd better find another room." Lu Zhifeng still looked rigid and old-fashioned.

"Why are you talking so much nonsense? This room is so big, there are plenty of beds. There's no need to find another one. Just go to sleep if you're sleepy. Why are you talking so much nonsense?" Song Heng was too lazy to argue with the other person, so he just grabbed the person and threw him on the bed.

This time he was well behaved. He quietly took off his coat, shoes and boots and lay down on the bed.

After a while, the person's breathing became regular and he had obviously fallen asleep.

*

I slept for too long and had nothing to do. Thinking about what happened today, I was left with a mess waiting for me to clean up. Song Heng put on his coat to avoid pressing on the wound and slowly walked out of the room.

As soon as I opened the door, I saw a man in armor waiting outside.

"Your Majesty, the matters you instructed your subordinates to do have been properly handled." When He Yuanming saw Song Heng, he immediately stepped forward and reported today's situation to Song Heng.

"Just as Your Majesty guessed, the silver in the cellar of the village is the disaster relief silver that the court lost." When He Yuanming went there, the silver boxes had not been opened, and there was a special seal pattern made by the Ministry of Works on the silver boxes.

"Where are the bandits?" Song Heng nodded to show that he knew, and then asked about the situation of the bandits.

"The bandits are all dead." He Yuanming thought back to when he led his troops to suppress the bandits. Not only were those bandits well-trained, but when they realized they were doomed, they bit their tongues without hesitation and committed suicide.

Later, He Yuanming went forward to examine their bodies and discovered that not only had they committed suicide by biting their tongues, but they had also taken a precautionary measure. Each of them had poison in their mouths. It was clear that if the truth was revealed, these people would be dead no matter what.

"They were determined to die. They bit their tongues to commit suicide, and they also put poison in their mouths." He Yuanming carefully recalled the details before answering. Finally, he spoke carefully, "They are all dead."

"Did you find anything else?" Song Heng thought of those cruel old guys. This result was normal.

"Here, Your Majesty." He Yuanming immediately handed the letter in his hand to Song Heng. "This was found on a pigeon when I was searching this mountain stronghold."

【If plans change, don't act rashly.】

"Keep it. Don't reveal it to anyone." After reading the content, Song Heng thought of Guan Qiao.

Obviously, those old guys should have made some discoveries, but they were just a step too late.

"General He, if you wait any longer, take the silver and leave immediately to avoid being discovered." Song Heng continued to instruct, "Leave a small group of people behind to wait here."

"As you command, Your Majesty." He Yuanming immediately accepted the order. "Does Your Majesty have enough manpower?"

"Leave a dozen people behind. I will change routes with the Imperial Master the next day and continue on our journey. We will reunite in Jiangnan then."

Not long after coming out, Song Heng had a brief chat with He Yuanming in the bandit's study.

Song Heng felt that his thoughts began to become scattered, as if he was sleepy again.

Without caring about anything else, Song Heng said goodbye to General He and immediately went home.

*

On top of the mountain, deep in the woods.

It is the height of summer and is also a summer resort.

It happened to be a rainy morning, and the daylight disappeared, and the nights were chilling. This was especially true with my shoulder wound, so deep that the bone was visible. The nighttime chill was even more difficult to suppress.

Of course, these are all excuses.

It was just an excuse that Song Heng saw his Imperial Teacher sleeping soundly in the newly changed soft quilt and was too lazy to warm the bed again.

Song Heng never wastes time on internal affairs and always does what he thinks.

Without a second's hesitation, he calmly lifted the covers and prepared to get into bed.

No one would fall asleep when out and about, and the Imperial Preceptor was no exception.

Song Heng had just laid down when Lu Zhifeng slowly woke up.

Lu Zhifeng immediately became alert when he noticed someone nearby. He was about to reach out and strangle the person next to him.

"Imperial Master?"

Song Heng's familiar voice extinguished Lu Zhifeng's murderous intent.

Lu Zhifeng slowly withdrew his hand, "Your Majesty? Why are you sleeping here?"

"I'm cold." Song Heng pretended to be cold, and hugged his arms lightly, "It still hurts."

Finally, the dying one said, "Is it not possible?"

Now, Lu Zhifeng, who originally wanted Song Heng to sleep somewhere else, had no choice.

After a brief hesitation, he said, "How about Your Majesty sleep here and I'll go somewhere else."

"But I seem to have lost too much blood. Now my body is cold and painful." Song Cha Cha didn't mention the injury directly, but leaned forward with her bandaged arm, deliberately moving closer to Lu Zhifeng.

He didn't say anything about the wound, but just said that he was very cold and implied that he needed someone to accompany him.

Although he was devoted to reading books of sages, he was born into a noble family and was exposed to the ways of the world.

Lu Zhifeng easily understood Song Heng's hint. He said helplessly, "Okay. Be careful not to touch the wound."

Not only did he say that, he also slowly lifted Song Heng's hand, examined it carefully, and then put it down. This room was very large, but there were many beds. So each bed was not big. The bed that Song Heng and Lu Zhifeng were currently lying on was the largest one.

It's more than enough for one person, but a bit crowded for two.

In this small space, Lu Zhifeng was able to take care of someone with an injured hand while he was sleeping.

A warm night.

The next morning, I felt relaxed and refreshed.

Unexpectedly, Lu Zhifeng also felt the same way.

All night long, there is always an indescribable pleasant smell lingering around the tip of your nose, which inexplicably relaxes your tired nerves from the journey.

It was a good sleep.

Lu Zhifeng woke up earlier than Song Heng. It was incredibly quiet outside. He went outside and saw that there were only a few people there today, compared to the crowds of people yesterday.

"My lord, you've woken up. Hot breakfast is ready in the room opposite." The servant felt very busy. Seeing Lu Zhifeng, he reminded him of his daily needs and then hurried away.

The water was boiling, and there was porridge and side dishes on the table, ordinary dishes.

After Lu Zhifeng finished washing up and eating, he got some hot water and headed towards Song Heng's room.

After two trips back and forth, the hot water and food were brought to the room.

Song Heng woke up at this moment.

"Your Majesty, flooding is imminent in Jiangnan. You may now get up, wash, and eat. We will be leaving soon."

"snort"

Another day, Song, who had difficulty getting up, groaned for a long time and did Tai Chi on the bed a few times.

Still couldn't get up.

Lu Zhifeng couldn't bear it any longer and slowly walked over to Song Heng with hot water. He helped the man, who still had his eyes closed, to sit up. He wrung out the handkerchief and wiped Song Heng's face. He carefully avoided the wound and wiped around Song Heng's injured arm. Then, imitating a doctor, he fetched the medicine box. After applying medicine to Song Heng's injured arm, he took out a new bandage to help wrap it up and carefully helped him put on his clothes.

After this conversation, he was no longer conscious, nor confused. Song Heng could handle the next task on his own.

Sitting on the only wooden chair in the room, Song Heng was drinking porridge with his uninjured hand.

Only after seeing that Song Heng could eat well did Lu Zhifeng go out and prepare the things he needed for departure.

We went to bed too early yesterday, so this morning we need to check whether the carriage taken away by the bandits and the things inside are still intact.

To my surprise, once I got outside, the carriage was already ready, and all the necessary supplies were on board. It turned out that the servant I had met that morning was hurriedly preparing for the trip.

"Are you all ready?"

"Sir, the carriage and horses are ready."

"Who told you to do this?"

"The general had his subordinates prepare it last night."

"By the way, where is your General He?" Lu Zhifeng remembered the people who came yesterday. He had not seen General He since early in the morning.

"General He, he led his soldiers and left last night." The subordinate replied, and gathered a dozen people. "They are General He, who equipped the adults to set off."

"Okay, continue preparing." Lu Zhifeng saw that they still had some finishing work to do, so he stopped disturbing them and took a look at the dozen or so people who were selected to accompany them to the disaster relief.

I was very satisfied. These dozen people were strong and had calluses on their hands. They were obviously people with great martial arts skills.

This provides a lot of protection for the subsequent journey.

After pondering for a long time, Lu Zhifeng was still worried about Song Heng. He did not stay any longer and hurried back.

Song Heng had no problem eating here. After all, Lu Zhifeng was thoughtful enough to provide a spoon in the porridge bowl.

But now I am wearing complicated and colorful clothes, and I have no knowledge of how to wear clothes. How can I go to the toilet?

Especially since this place is not like the imperial palace, the toilets here are extremely luxurious and clean.

There is only a dry toilet here, surrounded by wooden boards and mud. If your clothes are cumbersome and your arms are inconvenient, you must not get your clothes dirty.

No, Song Heng couldn't even accept it just thinking about it, let alone doing it.

It's so scary.

It can be said that people have three urgent needs.

In a moment of anxiety, Song Heng saw Lu Zhifeng walk in, and ran towards him as if he saw a savior.

Lu Zhifeng was so excited by Song Heng running towards him, which was unprecedented. Although he looked bewildered, a subtle hint of anticipation flashed through his heart.

"I...ah no, I..." After seeing his savior, Song Heng seemed to have made a sudden discovery, which was a bit...difficult to say.

"Your Majesty, I will take you there." Lu Zhifeng seemed to understand Song Heng's needs, and spoke with a rare teasing tone.

"I'm not, I didn't." As if being ridiculed, Song Heng suddenly got angry and immediately retorted.

"Your Majesty, no, Your Majesty, I'm not. I'm sorry." Lu Zhifeng apologized, "You're the one who's feeling bad. It's my fault. How about you deal with me after you're better?"

"Okay, this is what the imperial teacher said." Song Heng felt like playing a prank, so he asked for consent first and then thought of a way to deal with it.

Of course, it’s not the punishment the Imperial Master wanted, and it’s certainly not the reward either.

"Okay, okay, I'll do as your Majesty wishes." Lu Zhifeng agreed gently, his expression normal. Who would have thought that his face would blush later on?

Just because I agreed to Song Heng's request.