Chapter 46: Stop Sobbing
After Xiao Wangqing left, Shen Zhiwei sat alone at the desk. The tea in the cup was warm and no longer hot.
teacher.
How can she, who has lost all her memories and has no idea who she is, teach others?
But no matter what, since I have agreed to it, I can't be perfunctory.
She stood up and walked to the desk. Besides the usual writing brush, ink, paper, and inkstone, a pile of books had appeared on it. They were all records of the geography of the northern border, and even a few volumes of basic military strategies and historical essays. The edges of the pages were slightly worn, obviously showing frequent reading.
He was the one who put it there.
Shen Zhiwei casually picked up the top volume, "Liangzhou Chronicle," and flipped it open. The pages carried the faint scent of ink and the unique aroma of old paper. Some margins held neat, sharp annotations, the owner of the book having perused them with considerable care.
She sat down and read page by page in the flickering candlelight.
Liangzhou's topography, climate, products, and folk customs... Shen Zhiwei read intently. Since he was going to establish himself here, he at least had to understand the land beneath his feet. Moreover, if he truly wanted to be a teacher, he couldn't be completely ignorant of his surroundings.
As the night deepened, the wind howled outside the window, stirring up grains of sand that pelted the window paper. The measured footsteps of the soldiers patrolling the camp approached from afar, then gradually receded.
Shen Zhiwei rubbed her sore eyes. The military book was difficult and contained many terms, so she had a hard time reading it.
Time was not abundant, at least not enough for her to become an expert in military strategy, but she could still avoid making unprofessional remarks and making a fool of herself.
One candle burned out, and she lit another. Time slipped by as she flipped through the pages. She discovered she wasn't completely clueless. Many concepts, though unfamiliar, were not difficult to understand, as if she had some underlying knowledge in her subconscious, which gave her some peace of mind.
It was not until the sky outside the window turned pale and the faint sound of the training horn came into view that Shen Zhiwei realized that he had not slept all night.
The days passed one by one.
The soldiers in the camp were very respectful to Xiao Wangqing because of her attitude. When they saw her, they stopped what they were doing, saluted politely, and addressed her as Mr. Shen or Lord Shen. Shen Zhiwei felt guilty at first, but gradually got used to it and responded frankly.
Qin Huaiyu came the most frequently. This heroic female general seemed to have great curiosity and respect for her. She often sent some dried fruits and furs unique to the northern border, or some rare books. Her words were warm and cheerful, but very measured, and she never asked about her background.
Shen Zhiwei stayed in the courtyard most of the time. Xiao Wangqing had sent over a lot of books, including classics, history, geography, and even some military books and miscellaneous talks. The types were diverse, as if he had collected everything he could find.
During the day, she sat by the window, reading. The sky in the northern borderlands was high and vast, the sun was bright. She read slowly and carefully. From these unfamiliar words, she pieced together the outlines of the world, filling the blanks in her mind.
Occasionally, she would look up outside the courtyard. She could see the black mountains in the distance, the sweaty figures working in the dust on the training ground, and the tall, stern silhouette of Xiao Wangqing, dressed in military uniform, patrolling the edge of the training ground.
He was really busy, training troops, patrolling, handling military affairs, and often I didn't see him for a whole day.
But every day at dinner, he would always appear in her courtyard on time, sometimes alone, sometimes with one or two generals. During the meal, they would occasionally talk about military affairs and people's sentiments without any reservations.
The meals were simple, mostly noodles, dried meat, and stews. Xiao Wangqing remained quiet, but he would pay attention to her chopstick movements. If she didn't touch a particular dish, he wouldn't see her again.
He began to ask her opinions on certain matters.
At first, Shen Zhiwei was cautious, choosing only the safest words to say. Later, realizing he was truly listening and even considering some of her suggestions and putting them into practice, she gradually relaxed and began to offer her insights, drawing on what she had learned from books and her own remaining intuition.
Gradually, she discovered that she seemed to have an unusually keen eye for these things. She could quickly sort out the complex situations and human calculations in her mind and come up with plans that would make Xiao Wangqing nod in approval.
It felt strange yet familiar, as if she was born to be good at it.
The look in Xiao Wangqing's eyes as he looked at her grew increasingly serious. It was no longer the initial politeness and testing, but now contained a hint of genuine reliance and a complex emotion she couldn't understand.
It was like he was looking through her at the others.
Shen Zhiwei thought that he might be looking at his past self.
The spring chill still lingered that night, and the wind howled outside the window. Shen Zhiwei frowned over a scroll of policy papers, which dealt with a vast amount of financial and grain accounting and land data, a tedious and complex undertaking. She was absorbed in her reading, calculating with her pen, completely oblivious to the time.
Just when I was getting extremely worried, I suddenly heard a cat's meow outside the window.
The sound was very weak and was mostly covered by the wind.
Shen Zhiwei paused, suspecting he had misheard. Where did the cat come from in this northern border military town?
She shook her head and turned her attention back to the book. But a moment later, the sound rang out again, this time clearer, with a little pitiful whimpering, like something was scratching at the window frame.
Her heart skipped a beat. She threw down the book, stood up, walked to the window, and hesitantly pushed it open a crack.
The cold wind immediately blew in, causing the candlelight to flicker.
In the dim light, she saw a small, dark figure huddled under the windowsill. Its entire body was pitch black, almost blending into the night. Only its eyes, startlingly bright in the darkness, stared at her without blinking.
It's that cat! The black cat in the Prince's Mansion!
How did it get here? From the capital to the northern border, a thousand miles away, how did it find its way here?!
Blood rushed to her head, and she didn't bother putting on her coat as she flung open the window. The cold wind scraped against her face like a knife, and Shen Zhiwei cautiously reached out her hand.
The kitten was freezing and very tired. When he saw her open the window, he just cried weakly and tried to stand up, but his legs went weak and he lay down again.
Its body was covered with dust and grass, and its once shiny fur had become gray, with one or two small scratches visible. It had lost a lot of weight and could only barely raise its head to look at her with its golden eyes.
Shen Zhiwei felt as if something was tugging at his chest, causing it to feel sore and swollen. A sharp pain he had never experienced before shot up into his eyes.
She frantically leaned out most of her body, not caring about the cold, and scooped the icy little thing into her arms. She felt a light handful of bones, and through the dirty fur, she could feel its subtle trembling.
"Stupid thing..." Her voice was shaking, her eyes were hot and sore, and something rolled down uncontrollably, dripping onto the cat's cold fur, spreading a small dark patch.
She never thought she would shed tears for a cat.
But at this moment, seeing this small group of people traveling thousands of miles and still finding her in such a mess, all the complex emotions that had been forcibly suppressed over the past month finally found an outlet to burst out.
She held it tightly in her arms, warming it with her body temperature. Her fingertips trembled as she brushed across the dust and tiny wounds on its body. Her voice choked with sobs: "Does it hurt? Huh? Who asked you to follow me... so far... how did you find me..."
The black cat rubbed against her arms very gently, letting out a very faint but contented purr from its throat, then closed its eyes and curled up.
Shen Zhiwei's tears fell even harder. She remembered how back in the Prince's Mansion, it always domineeringly occupied the warmest spot in her arms, picky about food, and was raised to be spoiled and delicate. Although Xiao Lingjun didn't like it, he never deprived it of food and water, and raised it very well.
But now...
She was feeling extremely upset when she heard familiar footsteps outside the courtyard gate. It was Xiao Wangqing.
He usually doesn't come so late, maybe he just finished patrolling the camp. Shen Zhiwei subconsciously wanted to wipe away her tears, but it was too late.
"Miss Shen..."
As Xiao Wangqing stepped into the courtyard, he saw Shen Zhiwei's tear-stained face, holding the familiar but disheveled black cat in his arms, and he stopped in his tracks.
"What's going on?" He walked over quickly, closed the gate behind him to block out the wind and snow outside, walked to the table first, poured a cup of hot tea and handed it to her.
"Thank you..." Shen Zhiwei cried until her head was dizzy. After thanking him, she took the teacup and put it aside. "I don't know how it followed me here..."
Xiao Wangqing's gaze fell on the black cat. The cat seemed to be aware of something and opened its eyes with difficulty. It bared its teeth at him very lightly, made a weak threatening sound, and then closed its eyes weakly and shrank into Shen Zhiwei's arms.
"From the capital?" Xiao Wangqing opened his eyes wide. This distance was almost impossible for a domestic cat to complete.
Shen Zhiwei nodded, tears streaming down her face: "Excuse me, Your Highness...do you have any medicine for my injuries?"
Xiao Wangqing looked at her tear-stained face, then at the dying black body in her arms. He nodded, immediately stood up and walked to the cabinet in the corner, rummaging through a small military leather medicine bag.
He took out a clean soft cloth, soaked it in warm water, and handed it to her: "Wipe it clean first."
Shen Zhiwei took the cloth, her hands still shaking. She carefully wiped the mud and dried blood from the kitten's paw pads, revealing the tiny scratches and abrasions underneath. The cat flinched in pain, a faint whimpering in its throat, but it didn't struggle, just staring at her with wet eyes.
Xiao Wangqing squatted down and examined her hand. His fingertips gently touched a deep wound on the black cat's hind leg through the cloth, causing it to tremble violently in pain.
"It needs to be sutured," the Third Prince narrowed his eyes and tried to make his tone gentle, but with little effect, "but it's too small and the needle can't get in. This is the only way." He took out a flat tin box from the small medicine bag, opened it and found a dark brown ointment with a pungent smell.
“It’s a strong wound medicine. It will hurt, but it can stop bleeding, regenerate tissue, and prevent ulceration.” He looked at Shen Zhiwei.
Shen Zhiwei looked at the weak appearance of the kitten, made up his mind, and nodded.
Xiao Wangqing scraped a small piece of ointment with a bamboo stick and applied it quickly and gently to the wound. The cat suddenly arched its body, uttered a shrill scream, and scratched unconsciously with its claws, leaving several red marks on the back of Shen Zhiwei's hand.
Shen Zhiwei bit her lip tightly, resisted the urge to retract her hand, and instead hugged the cat tighter, coaxing it in a low voice: "Be patient, it will be fine soon..."
Xiao Wangqing worked tirelessly, quickly tending to several other minor wounds, and finally bandaged the cat's hind legs gently with a clean, thin cloth. His movements were extremely skillful, clearly a familiar sight.
After doing all this, he stood up and went to the basin to wash his hands. Shen Zhiwei looked at the cat in her arms, which had finally calmed down. It had its eyes closed, its body still trembling slightly, but its breathing seemed to have stabilized. She breathed a long sigh of relief, and only then did she feel the burning pain on the back of her hand.
Xiao Wangqing turned around and saw the blood on the back of her hand. Without saying a word, he walked over and took her hand. He carefully wiped the blood with the wet cloth and sprinkled some powder from a white porcelain bottle on it. The cool feeling instantly relieved the stinging pain.
"It's a minor injury, nothing serious. It needs warmth and clean water."
Shen Zhiwei quickly pulled the cat closer to his arms and wrapped it tightly in his fur coat.
Xiao Wangqing walked to the brazier, added a few pieces of charcoal to make the fire burn more vigorously, and brought the kettle that had been warm on the stove over, poured a bowl of warm water and placed it next to her.
The black cat seemed to smell the water vapor and struggled to raise its head. Shen Zhiwei carefully dipped his hand in the water and put it to its mouth. It stretched out its little tongue and licked it, drinking very quickly.
Watching it drink water, Shen Zhiwei's nose felt sore. She remembered that in the Prince's Mansion, it used to drink warm milk or broth from small fine porcelain dishes, and never licked up clear water in such a clumsy way.
"Don't cry," Xiao Wangqing's voice sounded overhead, a little stiffly, "It was lucky that it was able to find us. There are few living things in the barracks, and its arrival will add some vitality."
This was not a comfort, and was even a little awkward, but it calmed Shen Zhiwei's chaotic mood a little. She raised her sleeve and wiped her face carelessly, and hummed.
Only then did she realize that she was embarrassed and that she had been crying and flustered, and must have lost her composure.
"Thank you, Your Highness," she whispered, her eyes drifting away.
"That's all right," Xiao Wangqing said, his voice devoid of emotion. "Since it's here, it's fate. I'll keep it in Miss Shen's courtyard from now on."
"Um."
Shen Zhiwei held the cat and sat by the brazier for a long time, until the cat in her arms breathed long and steady, and its claws dug into her clothes before finding a more comfortable position and falling asleep. Her tense shoulders and back slowly relaxed, and a deep sense of fatigue swept over her body.
Xiao Wangqing didn't leave and didn't say anything else.
He sat on a low stool opposite her, added charcoal to the fire several times, then stood up and went outside to bring in a pot of freshly boiled water. He silently refilled the cup of tea in her hand that had already gone cold.
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The author has something to say: Xiao Wangqing is a very stable person, as if the word "reliable" is written on his face, and he always makes people around him feel at ease.
The moment I stepped into the yard, I saw the scene in front of me.
To be honest, this was the first time Xiao Wangqing treated Miss Shen as a living person.
Not God.
He thought, it turns out that people like Miss Shen can also cry.
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Whether in the past life or this life, Shen Zhiwei always makes people around him feel at ease.
She is immersed in the mundane world, yet seems omnipotent.
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