Chapter 12 World One

As the disaster relief work was slowly getting back on track, Feng Hui and others had a chance to rest for a while.

There are many places to relax in Fuling City, such as restaurants, teahouses, brothels, drinking and entertainment, horseback riding and playing ball...

Feng Hui's favorite place to go is a teahouse in the west of the city, which is quiet and peaceful.

Although there is no fine wine to accompany the meal, there are small and exquisite snacks.

Apart from the occasional scholars reciting some incomprehensible and sour poems in the teahouse, it is still a good place to go.

Feng Hui was able to return to such a good place, but he was still thinking about Baoshan. So, when Baoshan was free, he took her with him.

The waiter found a good seat and led the two men there.

There are three or two green bamboos outside the house, and their mottled shadows are reflected on the window. Occasionally, the sound of wind blowing through the bamboo leaves can be heard, making a rustling sound.

In the center of the teahouse, a simple platform was set up with a table, a chair, and a guqin on the table.

Besides the zither player, there were also two songs sung. These weren't the usual tunes; I heard they were composed by the singer himself. I heard the story was true, but after some editing and revisions, only about 60% of it was true. The lyrics were soft, yet every word was clear.

Holding her cheeks lightly with her precious fan and jade hands, she listened carefully. The lyrics sounded like a story.

The snacks have been served, and Feng Hui urged Baoshan to taste them.

Bao Shan saw the pastry, which was the color of jasper and shaped like a bamboo leaf. He picked one up and put it in his mouth. He found it sweet, but also slightly bitter, like the aroma of Longjing tea.

After taking just one bite, she put the fan down and praised it, "It's delicious. If the young marquis had come with us, he could have had this snack too."

Feng Hui disagreed: "Just take it back with him."

The lingering singing voice came again, telling the story of a man and a woman who supported each other in times of poverty. The man went to Beijing to take the imperial examination and made a promise that he would marry the woman in the future.

But when her name was on the list of successful candidates, the woman received news that he had married another woman.

This song is sung by a woman, with a voice full of sorrow and misery that moves people.

Feng Hui saw that she was listening attentively. There were only two or three birds singing the song over and over again. Feng Hui only needed to listen to one to know which song it was.

"This woman is such a coward! She's just crying and whining after someone abandoned her. It would be better to just go to his house and ask him for an explanation."

Bao Shan felt that Feng Hui's idea was too reckless. If things really developed as Feng Hui said, the story would end up like this: the woman came to the door and told others about her miserable life like a shrew. Others might feel pity for her, or even stand up for her.

But when the men appeared, one was a handsome man and the other was a poor-looking peasant woman. Who would say that these two people were a match?

If you rashly ask for an explanation, you will only lose face and end up feeling ashamed and leaving in disgrace.

But her mind was in turmoil, she frowned and shook her head gently.

"She won't. Brother Feng Hui doesn't know what the woman is thinking. She has resentment in her heart, but also love.

Because of this affection, she would not go to visit and offend her former lover."

After saying this, Baoshan's eyes showed a hint of sadness, as if he was hinting at something.

"If I were this woman, I would probably be reluctant to do so too."

Feng Hui was speechless. "How did you become this woman? If you had feelings for someone, that person...that person would definitely treat you well. How could they abandon you?"

Feng Hui thought in his heart that if anyone was blessed with the precious fan, he would be so happy every day that he would hide it in his palm and take good care of it. He would never be willing to throw it away.

A faint light flashed in Baoshan's eyes, but she blinked lightly and the light disappeared.

"Yes, I won't become this woman. She even had a time when she was in love with him and loved him sincerely..."

Feng Hui listened to her sad words, and his heart moved slightly, wanting to ask something.

But Baoshan had already turned around to look at the person singing on the stage.

Before leaving, Baoshan took a bag of snacks with him and told the waiter when he arrived at the post station.

When Mu Nanxing was having his meal, he served this snack to him.

Mu Nanxing didn't need to wear a belt today. An amber jade hairpin was placed on the table. Bao Shan was waiting beside her and said in a gentle voice, "Let me do it."

The relationship between the two had been quite cold recently. Although Mu Nanxing had left behind the treasured fan, the softness that had touched him had brought back memories that had warmed his heart for days.

He would not scold Baoshan coldly, but would always avoid it on purpose.

Baoshan was not as careful as usual when changing his clothes. If she got too close to him, her body would become stiff.

She hurriedly changed Mu Nanxing's clothes and left with the clothes in her arms.

At this time, Baoshan offered to tie his hair, but Mu Nanxing only responded coldly.

Baoshan washed her hands, picked up the wooden comb and combed his hair.

When everything was ready, she used her hands to tie her hair and pinned the amber jade hairpin into it.

Her hands were gentle, like fluttering butterflies, and there seemed to be a hint of floral fragrance in her sleeves. The fresh scent followed her movements and drifted to Mu Nanxing's nose.

Baoshan was wearing a pair of jade bracelets on her wrist. The bracelets were round on the outside and flat on the inside. There were a few dotted marks on the jade, which looked like it was not made of good material.

She didn't wear any accessories on her ears. It seemed that she had taken off her earrings and only wore bracelets since the day Mu Nanxing drove her out.

The jade bracelet felt a little cold, especially when it brushed across Mu Nanxing's cheek.

No matter how good the jade is, it is still cold and cannot compare to the warmth of a human hand with a light touch.

Mu Nanxing felt uneasy. He seemed to have heard what Feng Hui had said before, that Baoshan had bought a piece of jasper and planned to make jewelry.

I probably originally wanted to make earrings, but for some reason, I suddenly changed my mind and made it into a bracelet.

Such bad material is not good even for making earrings.

But at least, it is definitely a thousand times better than making a bracelet.

"Why don't you wear earrings?"

This was the first time he took the initiative to speak in the past few days.

This was the second time he had asked her about the earrings. The first time he had asked her, she had already put them on.

But this time, Baoshan lowered his head, and his left hand unconsciously touched the jade bracelet on his hand, and the slightly cool touch slid across his fingertips.

Although she tried to hide it, people still noticed the sadness in her eyes.

"I don't think I'm suitable for earrings."

After she left, Mu Nanxing felt a chill on his face and a sense of depression and discomfort in his heart.

Baoshan picked up the clothes and prepared to hand them over to the servant.

She was not allowed to do chores like washing clothes by herself.

Feng Hui even told her personally that she couldn't even hold a porridge spoon steadily, so how could she soak her hands in cold water and then rub the clothes.

Not to mention anything else, the pampered hands cannot withstand such torture.

So, Baoshan only needed to do some easy work.

She put all the brocade robes she had taken off into a wooden basin. Mu Nanxing liked cleanliness, so his horses had to be kept clean, and the hay and water had to be carefully prepared. He also changed his clothes every day, and as long as there was not a trace of dirt on them, he would wash them.

Baoshan's fingertips brushed across the clothes. Her nails were well-maintained, smooth and plump, never stained with nail polish.

At this time, she used her slender white fingers to slide across the collar of the brocade robe and unbutton it.

When all the clothes were untied, she hugged him to her chest. Her face instantly turned red, and she looked like a shy girl.

The figure outside the door paused for a moment and then hurried away.

Even if Feng Hui was dumb, he understood what had happened when he saw Bao Shan's love-struck look.

No wonder Bao Shan looked so melancholy while listening to the music, and no wonder she took Mu Nanxing's affairs so seriously. Even when she was eating a snack, she would think of Mu Nanxing.

She, she actually fell in love with the young Marquis Mu.

What should I do?

Feng Hui didn't think that Baoshan was a servant, so why did he have such thoughts?

He was just familiar with Mu Nanxing and knew that Mu Nanxing had someone in his heart, and that person was in the capital.

But Baoshan didn't know that she had been saved by Mu Nanxing and had been staying by his side all day.

Whether it's love at first sight or love that grows over time, it's normal to have feelings in your heart.

But Feng Hui knew the inside story. They were now staying in Fuling City, and Baoshan would not meet Li Qingyu.

But the disaster relief work will eventually come to an end, and when they return to the capital together, then...

Feng Hui didn't dare to think about it anymore. By then, Baoshan would definitely be heartbroken and shed tears.

The sad song sounded in Feng Hui's mind again, but this time, the singer was Baoshan. She was so fragile, and the song she sang was even more sad, which made people feel extremely pity.

Aside from disaster relief work, Feng Hui no longer visited the teahouse, remaining close to Bao Shan. Bao Shan, perplexed by his strangeness, asked what was the matter. Feng Hui opened and closed his lips, shook his head, and said nothing.

Half a day later, Feng Hui circled around Bao Shan again, his words full of innuendos.

"What do you think of the young marquis?"

"The young marquis is a kind-hearted man. Although his face is cold, he has a good heart..."

When Bao Shan said this, her eyes shone brightly, like the twinkling stars in the night sky. But the more Feng Hui listened, the more his heart sank to the bottom of the river.

Everyone in the capital says that Mu Nanxing is cold and hard-hearted, a young man who doesn't understand the ways of the world.

But when it came to Baoshan's mouth, how did he become such a good person?

He almost blurted out, "Except for you, I only came up with all this because I love the young marquis. If it were anyone else, I'm afraid..." But Feng Hui didn't say it. He was worried that Bao Shan was a girl after all. If her feelings were exposed like this, she would inevitably feel ashamed and angry. If she stayed away from him because of this, it would be bad.

Feng Hui wanted to say something but stopped himself. Mu Nanxing looked at the two of them from the steps, laughing and talking happily. He also saw that Bao Shan's ears were empty, so his steps became a little heavier.

"Young Marquis."

Feng Hui turned around and shouted too.

Mu Nanxing looked at the food on the table and thought of the bamboo leaf-shaped snacks he had used. When he ate them, he only felt the fragrance of tea in his mouth. The taste was quite good, so he asked the waiter to bring another plate.

Without waiting for the waiter to explain, Feng Hui revealed the truth.

"Those are snacks from the teahouse, not available at the post station. If Baoshan hadn't thought of you and brought them to you, you probably wouldn't have been able to eat them."

Mu Nanxing raised his eyes and saw Feng Hui's face full of anger.

There was anger in his voice as he spoke, I wonder what was wrong with him.

It was just that the snacks were brought by Baoshan.

Mu Nanxing looked at Baoshan, only to see that she lowered her eyebrows and did not say a word.

Mu Nanxing felt even more depressed, thinking that he had come in the wrong place and disrupted their conversation.

The two of them were laughing and talking happily just now, but when he came, one of them had a face full of anger, as if he had done something wrong, and the other one didn't say a word.

"The food was delivered to my room."

Bao Shan didn't dare to raise her eyes until Mu Nanxing left. She looked at his departing back, her face becoming even more sorrowful. Her beautiful eyes trembled slightly, and she no longer had the desire to talk to Feng Hui, so she went back to her room.