Lord Han was stunned. "Who would harm you?"
Seeing that he believed him, Han Shuo quickly said, "That day I saw my elder brother go to Lord Su's residence, I don't know..."
Compared to his eldest son, Lord Han believed his second son's words more, and after hearing what he said, he also felt that it made sense: "This unfilial son, why does he love to cause trouble so much?"
Han Shuo shook his head, feeling wronged. "Never mind, Father. I guess my older brother didn't do it on purpose. Maybe he thought you've always been too good to me and wanted you to hate me."
Lord Han completely believed this, because from childhood to adulthood, Han You had always used this method to attract Lord Han's attention.
Lord Han sighed, "Alas, I don't know why the two brothers are so different."
Seeing this, Han Shuo said a few more words, "Father, I think Lord Su might have some misunderstanding about me. He doesn't seem to like me very much."
After thinking about it seriously, Lord Han said, "No way, Lord Su is quite nice. I'll introduce you to him next time."
Thank you, Father.
Lord Han was pleased to hear this and said, "When you have time, go and see your brother, and make sure he doesn't do anything shameful."
"Don't worry, Dad, I will."
...
Because the goose feathers were burned, Liu Huan could only finish the rest for the time being and then send someone to the surrounding villages to buy more.
“In winter, swan feathers are not easy to damage. We can collect more ducks and geese from nearby prefectures. We only use the feathers, so the meat can be sold to the military camp.”
Han You, fanning himself, said, "Okay, I'll handle it personally."
A cold breeze blew onto Liu Huan, who rolled her eyes and said with a look of disgust, "Can you please put away that broken fan of yours?"
Han You gave an awkward smile, "Sorry, I'm used to it."
Seeing that he had accepted the money, Liu Huan said, "We need to get this done quickly. Even though it won't earn much money, it's still a good deed."
Han You understood, "Yes, I know, I'll leave as soon as I get back."
He went back and started packing his things. Lord Han appeared in front of him with a cold face, "You just got back, where are you going again?"
Han You glanced at him and then started packing his things again. "I'm going out to play for a few days. Dad asked me what I'm doing?"
"Going out to play, going out to play, can't you thank your brother? Not to mention helping me like he does, can you at least stop embarrassing me? You even dared to burn Lord Su's things, you're really lawless."
Han You sneered, "Is that what Han Shuo told you?"
"What Han Shuo? That's your younger brother."
"Father, you really don't need to try so hard to make us brothers be harmonious. I have no objection to Han Shuo in the future. I will be my playboy and he will be the young master of the Han family. We will keep to ourselves."
After saying that, he carried his bundle and walked out the door. "But... Father, you are not old and frail yet. You should still do your research and not be fooled by people."
After saying that, I ran away quickly, not wanting to listen to his nagging.
News has arrived from the capital: His Highness the Crown Prince has used his private treasury to make clothes so that the soldiers on the border can keep warm.
With the money, Liu Huan was even more unrestrained in his work, and asked Han You to build a large down jacket workshop in the neighboring prefecture to start industrialized clothing production.
An investigation was launched in the border town: the largest brothel, Yihong Courtyard, was involved in the trafficking of women. The investigation revealed that the mastermind behind it was the second son of the prefect.
If it weren't for the prefect using his connections to clear the person out, having someone impersonate them, and then closing down the brothel, this matter would still be unresolved.
Just as things were calming down here, news broke that another restaurant had caused food poisoning, resulting in many people suffering from food poisoning and the restaurant incurring a large financial loss.
Han Shuo was extremely busy and overwhelmed. "What's going on? Why are all these problems popping up all at once?"
"Young master, have you offended someone?"
Han Shuo thought of Su Yi, "Could it be him?"
Even after they sent people to investigate, they couldn't find any evidence. Fortunately, the other party wasn't too ruthless and gave up after messing with his business for a while.
It seemed to be a warning to him.
Winters on the border are uneventful. Apart from going out to buy things, you can only stay at home most of the time because it's just too cold.
Liu Huan stared at the burning cow dung, feeling no particular thought whatsoever.
Cow dung is a magical treasure; it doesn't smell bad at all, and it even has a grassy scent.
"Miss, it's amazing that cow dung can be used to start a fire."
"Yeah, I thought it would smell really bad."
Qiu Rong said, "No wonder there are so few bare trees. I wondered where the firewood came from. So this is what we're burning."
The two of them were wrapped in thick blankets and warming themselves by the fire, feeling incredibly comfortable.
Just as she was enjoying herself, Changbai pushed the door open and entered from the outside, turning his back with a worried look on his face. "Miss, please change your clothes quickly, I will take you away from here."
Liu Huan sat up. "What happened?"
"There has been a traitor in the military camp. Last night, the city gates were attacked, and enemy troops sneaked in and have already massacred many civilians. The enemy troops outside are also pressing in, and the city is no longer safe."
Qiu Rong immediately began packing Liu Huan's belongings, while Liu Huan started putting on her clothes. "Why hasn't your master returned?"
Changbai looked troubled. "Master can't leave for the time being; he has to stay."
Liu Huan was a little anxious: "What is he going to do by staying here? He doesn't know how to fight."
Changbai didn't have time to explain, "Miss, let's talk as we walk. That's the broken city gate over there, it's not safe any later."
Qiu Rong quickly tidied up their belongings and said, "Miss, let's go."
When the two went outside, they found corpses everywhere and civilians fleeing with bundles in their hands.
Liu Huan had never seen anything like this before. He was escorted by several burly men and left towards the back gate of the city.
On the way, they encountered several burly men with black beards, killing people with curved knives. Changbai missed that street and continued walking forward.
Along the way, we encountered several groups of people fighting, and the blood underfoot stained the white snow red.
"Didn't they say there were over 100,000 soldiers? Why are they still killing people in the city?"
Changbai explained, "Most of them went to guard the city gates and fight outside the city, leaving only a small number to clear out these soldiers, so the speed will naturally be slower."
As they walked and talked, several enemies suddenly emerged from the next alley and swung their knives at them.
Just as Changbai was about to go to meet the enemy, another group of people came out and stopped him. "Take Huanhuan and leave first. Don't leave her for a moment. Don't worry about the others."
Hearing the voice, Liu Huan felt like crying. "Brother, be careful."
Su Cheng paused for a moment without turning around, and took out something with his left hand—a peace charm that Liu Huan had obtained for him.
With a flick of his right hand, he swung the knife to the side, and an enemy instantly fell to the ground.
Seeing this, Liu Huan felt relieved and followed Chang Bai to the back gate of the city.
Su Yi arrived just in time, his clothes covered in blood. Liu Huan rushed over to him, asking, "Are you hurt anywhere?"
Su Yi gently stroked her face with his clean hand. "It's alright. Go with Changbai to Suzhou Prefecture. Han You will come back to meet you on the way. Wait for me there. Don't be afraid."
Liu Huan knew that saying too much now would be a waste of time, so she nodded, holding back her tears, "Okay, I'll wait for your good news with Xiao Shi."
Su Yi looked at her with great restraint, said "Don't cry," then mounted his horse and rode away. Liu Huan and Qiu Rong got into the carriage.
Changbai served as the coachman. The carriage didn't run particularly fast, and there were people protecting it from all sides. Liu Huan felt that the carriage was different. After examining it carefully, he discovered that the carriage had a layer of iron sheet, as did the door.
She didn't know how long she had been running when she arrived at a post station. She changed horses, Changbai handed her a brazier, and then continued running.
I ran for five days and only covered half the distance. Apart from eating, going to the toilet, and taking short breaks at night, I almost never stopped.
When they arrived at the next post station, Changbai stopped the carriage and knocked on the door. "Miss, we've arrived at the post station."
Liu Huan looked pale and asked, "Is it almost here?"
Changbai said, "There's still half the journey left. Miss, you're safe here for now. You should go with Young Master Han to Suzhou Prefecture. I need to go back and meet him."
Liu Huan nodded. "Okay, be careful in everything you do. I'll be waiting for you in Suzhou."
Changbai bowed and left, and Han You led her into the post station, saying, "Let's eat something before you go."
"Hmm." Liu Huan had changed into men's clothing two days ago, which made it easier for her to follow Han You in and out.
While we were eating, I overheard them saying inside, "I don't know when this war will end, it's making business so difficult these days."
"That's right. I used to go to the border town to get some furs to sell, but this year I'm afraid it won't be a good year."
Chinese New Year?
Yes, the Lunar New Year is just over a month away. I wonder if we'll be able to get through it safely this year.
After hearing this, Liu Huan lost her appetite.
He ate one bowl quickly and said he was full.
Han You didn't try to dissuade her. He replaced the horse in the carriage with another one, added a new brazier, and waited until she was seated before continuing on his way.
It took another five days to reach Suzhou Prefecture. Suzhou Prefecture wasn't much better than the border town; both belonged to the western part of the Li Kingdom.
The snow was heavy and the wind was howling.
The soldiers guarding the city glanced at the document, did a cursory inspection, and then let him pass.
Han You took her directly to the courtyard next to his down jacket workshop.
"You can stay here. It's convenient with so many people. If you have nothing to do, you can go and give them some pointers and see how well they make the clothes."
Liu Huan was glad that he hadn't built the workshop in the border town, otherwise it would probably have been destroyed by the enemy by now.
"Okay, I'll take a nap first." She felt her head buzzing.
At that moment, she didn't want to think about anything; she just wanted to lie in bed and sleep.
I woke up after only a short time, my mind was preoccupied, and I couldn't sleep soundly.
Fortunately, after waking up, I received good news: a letter had arrived from the border town.
Liu Huan eagerly opened it; inside was a letter from Su Yi, indicating that he was well and there was nothing to worry about.
Liu Huan temporarily put aside her worries and devoted herself to making down jackets in the workshop. When she had nothing to do, she would go out for a stroll, but because it was too cold, not many people came out.
These places are not comparable to the capital or the Jiangnan region; due to the lack of rain and the loess soil, the people are very frugal.
Because it's close to the border town, once that town is breached, this place will be next, so life isn't easy for anyone.
Generations have lived here, and due to poverty, few people would leave, nor would they dare to leave.
This down jacket workshop is the largest business in Suzhou Prefecture, employing almost a third of the local population.
The men washed and dried the ducks, the women cleaned the goose down, and the remaining duck meat was chilled in snow and transported to the border town.
Since there were not many ducks and geese in Suzhou Prefecture, many people were sent to other places, villages, counties and towns to collect them.
This greatly boosted the economy of Suzhou Prefecture.
The battle raged until New Year's Eve. It wasn't until that day that Su Yi brought Su Cheng to Suzhou to meet up. The moment they entered the courtyard, Liu Huan almost didn't recognize the two of them.
Come in quickly.
She didn't say anything, but felt sad inside. She quickly asked someone to fetch water. Her clothes had already been prepared. The two of them went back to their rooms to take off their clothes, wash up, and then went to the main hall, where a large table of food had already been laid out.
Liu Huan served them rice: "Eat quickly, it's all hot."
Both of their hands were trembling slightly when they held the chopsticks, which were covered in cuts and cracks, a shocking sight.
Liu Huan pretended not to see it and continued eating without taking a bite. Qiu Rong and Chang Bai, who were eating with them for the first time, also seemed a little uncomfortable.
After everyone finished their meal, each with their own thoughts, Liu Huan took out the ointment she had bought earlier and applied it to the two of them.
"Do you still want to go?" Her eyes were filled with anticipation, hoping that Su Yi would say he didn't want to go.
Su Yi looked into her eyes and said seriously, "We're going. We'll leave first thing tomorrow morning. We're almost there. If all goes well, we'll go home next month."
His voice was terribly hoarse from the wind and snow.
Liu Huan opened her mouth but couldn't say the words. Su Yi told Su Cheng to go and rest first, and then pulled Liu Huan into her room.
He closed the door and leaned his head against her, saying, "Let me lean on you."
He fell asleep quickly, and Liu Huan couldn't move him. Su Yi opened his eyes, glanced at him, then followed her hand and lay down on the bed, casually pulling her into his arms as well.
"Sleep with me."
Liu Huan patted him, just like he used to coax her to sleep when she was a child, "Go to sleep."
Even though I wasn't sleepy before, I started to feel sleepy because he was holding me, and I yawned and drifted off to sleep.
The two slept until late at night, then woke up at the same time.
"Do you want to sleep a little longer?"
After a nap, Su Yi's voice had recovered somewhat. Liu Huan felt the position was rather ambiguous, so he immediately rolled out of his arms. "You're done sleeping? Are you leaving now?"
She was about to get up to help him pack his things when he stopped her, saying, "It's still early, it's cold outside if you sleep."
The charcoal fire in the room had long since gone out, and it was indeed cold. Liu Huan shivered from the cold as soon as she lifted a corner of the blanket.
She quickly crawled back inside, but finding it wasn't warm on her side, she rolled over to Su Yi's side and put her feet on him.
Hearing him groan, I thought it was because my toenail was too long and had snagged someone.
"Did you hurt yourself? Let me see."
As she was about to pull back the covers, Su Yi hugged her tightly, blanket and all, saying, "It's okay, don't move around unless you're hurt."
Liu Huan noticed his ears were a little red and felt uneasy. "Why are your ears so red?"
Su Yi buried his head in the blanket, "It's probably from the cold."
"Huanhuan," he suddenly called out very seriously, looking at her earnestly and saying, "How about we go back to Qingyang County this time? I want to marry you."
"We can have another child later. I just want to have a home with you." His tone and eyes were so earnest that Liu Huan couldn't bear to refuse.
"Okay, then you and Brother should both come back safely."
Liu Huan suddenly realized that getting married wasn't such a big deal; she was going to get married sooner or later anyway, and it would be fine as long as the children grew up.
Having received the promise, Su Yi kissed her hand and then tenderly kissed her forehead.
He left with great restraint, saying, "Okay~"
Liu Huan met his thin lips, which were still a little chapped.
She leaned in and kissed him as if possessed, and said seriously, "Your skin is peeling, let me moisturize it for you."
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