Chapter 87 Chapter 87 Jealousy.
Zhang Jingxian's first reaction was to shake her head.
She leaned closer to her cousin, seemingly oblivious to the sudden drop in pressure around Xie Yun, and calmly explained, "I'm just an ordinary commoner. I'm not worthy of being at such a grand occasion as your husband's wedding. What if I offend the nobleman?"
The difference in status and class is like a chasm. The nobles and the common people are people from two completely different worlds. If someone found out that a lowly peasant girl was present at his wedding, he would be laughed at.
After she finished speaking, she realized something, lowered her head and searched in her purse, and found the largest and brightest piece of gold.
"This is for you, my dear, as a wedding gift."
Zhang Jingxian looked sincere. Although the gold came from the Xie family, it was the most valuable thing she had.
Xie Yun did not reach out to take it. He remained silent, trying to find any trace of sadness on her face, but there was none. She could only be eager to get rid of him.
Her marriage was indeed the best news for her.
At this moment, Xie Yun finally calmly confirmed the fact that she did not like him, let alone love him.
Oh, and she even regretted saving him.
Xie Yun slowly raised the corners of his lips, his smile becoming more gentle as he spoke to the peasant girl word by word, "Ah Xian, I want a different gift."
The things he lacked the least were gold, silver and other things.
When Zhang Jingxian heard this, her uneasy heart found a brief peace. She raised her head and asked him what gift he wanted. As long as it was within her ability, she would find it for him.
"Wild goose, I want a wild goose with rich feathers that can fly high and far."
He looked at her with a smile, his eyes dark and cold like a ghost.
This is what Zhang Jingxian once said to Cai Shu when they were in Wuling County. She didn't expect that he still remembered it and said it to her in this way again.
He wasn't the only one in front of her. Zhang Jingxian didn't want her cousin and the villagers to notice her intentions, so she agreed without hesitation and whispered, "I'll use the geese as a gift. My husband and my wife must remain loyal to each other in the future."
Xie Yun's eyes flushed red as he hummed softly, "I'll remember that."
For the fourth time, she expressed her congratulations and best wishes to him. He remembered every time, and it would make this peasant girl unforgettable for the rest of her life.
At this time, Zhang Rushan, who was isolated from the two of them, seemed to have just reacted and immediately expressed his willingness to work with his cousin to catch a wild goose for Envoy Xie who was about to get married.
Zheng Qi and others also responded hurriedly. Not to mention one wild goose, even eight or ten would not be a problem.
It is autumn now, the time when wild geese fly south. Having grown up in the mountain village, they have more or less learned some hunting skills.
Not to mention Zhang Rushan, he has caught birds in the sky, fish in the river and rabbits in the mountains.
"Well, while Madam Zhang is catching wild geese for the envoy, please consider the envoy's proposal. This opportunity to be recruited by the envoy personally is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity." Gong Chengyue spoke at the right time, leisurely waving his feather fan, saying that countless aspiring people wanted to join Envoy Xie's school but were unable to do so.
Besides, can returning to that remote mountain village really bring peace and security?
"If war breaks out again and conscripts come to your hometowns again, it will be too late for you to regret it."
His words were like a knife, cruelly cutting everyone's heart. This was by no means alarmist, but something that was very likely to happen.
Everyone knows that the world is not stable. The Di people in the north are eyeing us covetously and will move south sooner or later.
Zhang Rushan and others fell into deep thought. If there was another conscription, what would happen to their fate and even the fate of their families?
Seeing this, Zhang Jingxian pursed her lips and changed the subject, "Brother, I'm hungry. Do you still want to have toasted wheat cakes for breakfast today?"
She could not tell Xie Yun and Gong Chengyue in front of them that the Di people were defeated in this battle, nor could she reveal that the conscription had been launched again on the heads of the major families and had nothing to do with Wuling County. She was anxious and worried that her cousins would be persuaded.
So she said her stomach was empty and she was very hungry.
In order to make the effect more realistic, she frowned and covered her belly with her hands. She didn't want to think about Xie Yun's marriage, the future war, or whether to be conscripted or not. She just wanted to simply eat a wheat cake.
"I'll get some wheat cakes from the bag. Ah Xian, you can have some maltose first." Zhang Rushan thought she was really hungry, so he ignored everything else and got busy immediately.
He was just like his father, with a strong sense of responsibility. As the elder brother, he couldn't bear to see his cousin go hungry.
Zhang Jingxian had already put the gold that Xie Shijun had despised back into her purse. She freed her hand to take the yellow malt candy handed to her by her cousin and put it into her mouth obediently.
He added, "Brother, hurry up and bake the wheat cakes, or I'll go home and complain to my uncle."
Zhang Rushan's movements in baking pancakes really quickened a lot, one in each hand, as if he was afraid that his father would blame him for not fulfilling his responsibilities as an older brother.
The actions between the brother and sister were homely and heartwarming, and everyone had different expressions on their faces.
Zheng Qi, Liu Cang, and the others thought it was normal. Aren't all brothers and sisters in Xishan Village like this? If Zheng Xiner and Liu Chuan went hungry while with them, they would definitely cry in front of their parents and complain to them.
But it seemed unusual to Gong Chengyue and the others. They would not do this with their sisters. Moreover, it was the first time they saw Madam Zhang, who had always been independent, showing dependence on others on her face.
In the past, Zhang Jingxian would just pick up the wheat cakes and roast them on the fire, and she would not even say she was hungry or thirsty.
Gongcheng Yue immediately went to see his good friend Xie Shijun. When he found that his friend was smiling, and his smile was cold and strange, he paused and put away his feather fan.
"Qilang, it's time for breakfast."
Gong Chengyue reminded him to control his emotions if he didn't want to tear off his gentle mask now.
Xie Yun raised his eyelids and ordered his men to serve breakfast in a cold voice, but his eyes were still fixed on one place.
Compared with Zhang Rushan and others who hurried back home and had no time to make much preparations, Xie Shijun's breakfast was much richer, including jerky, pickled fish, and fragrant porridge.
The aroma filled Zhang Jingxian's nose. She puffed out her cheeks and blew air at the baked wheat cake. When it was no longer so hot, she took a big bite with satisfaction.
From beginning to end, she didn't even look towards the direction where the fragrance came from.
She knew clearly what was hers and what was not.
"Ah Xian, eat slowly, this cake is still hot." Zhang Rushan took a breath when he saw her eating too fast. In the past, at home, she only ignored the heat when eating bean cakes, and would not reluctantly take a few bites of wheat cakes with vegetable soup until they cooled down.
"It's not hot, not hot. I'm hungry!" Zhang Jingxian was really hungry and ate two baked wheat cakes in one go.
It was not until her stomach felt bloated that she shook her head and told her cousin that she was full.
She got up from the fire and fed the oriole and the foal as usual. Then she took out her short bow and wiped it carefully with linen. Later, she was going to catch a wild goose.
Catching wild geese is not difficult, but the difficult part is how to avoid damaging their feathers.
Zhang Jingxian thought for a while and found a wicker basket on the cart, but it seemed that the wicker basket alone was not enough. She recalled her experience in her previous life and grabbed a handful of wheat and put it into the wicker basket.
No matter what kind of bird it is, the temptation of millet is the strongest.
She was going to hunt wild geese, and the puddle she had just visited was a suitable place.
Before leaving, Zhang Jingxian rejected her cousin and villagers who wanted to help. Based on her understanding of Xie Yun, if they helped, he would probably find an excuse to reject her gift.
"Brother, none of us can afford to offend any of the men of the Xie family, so it's better to stay away from them. Who knows, Changling will be the next Jiangyuan."
Returning home has become Zhang Jingxian's obsession. She is firm in her choice and persuades her cousins not to be misled by Xie Yun's few words.
They are the lowest class of common people. Once they arrive in Changling, they will still be oppressed and looked down upon. Losing their lives can happen overnight.
"Believe me, as long as we return home, we will be safe."
She looked at everyone and said this, however, not everyone listened.
At least half of the thirteen people avoided her clear eyes. The world-renowned Xie Shijun and the son of the Xie family could not be compared, especially since Xie Shijun treated them with such courtesy and personally invited them.
A trip to Changling with the chance to leave at any time sounds wonderful, doesn't it?
"Ah Xian, don't worry. After those four years, we will never do anything stupid." Zheng Qi, the most bookish among the thirteen people, responded to her first with a firm tone.
"Although Changling is beautiful and Envoy Xie is respectable, it has been four years and I miss my father, mother and Chun'er and the others more." Zhang Rushan continued, looking at his cousin with a soothing look. He noticed her uneasiness.
Zhang Jingxian nodded with hope and walked towards the puddle.
She had to catch a live goose as quickly as possible to sever the last trace of her connection with Xie Yun. He had said that he would no longer care about a peasant girl like her, and Prime Minister Xie would not allow it.
Faster, faster.
Zhang Jingxian held her breath, crouched in the grass, and stared hard at the place where she had placed the wicker basket. A handful of millet and wheat were scattered there, attracting birds flying in the sky.
First, a little gray bird stopped, tilted its head, pecked at the wheat, and flew away.
Then came the sparrows, the partridges, the pigeons. In short, for a long time, not a single wild goose landed from the sky.
Zhang Jingxian was a little disappointed. Geese, why did the geese fly over here?! As if hearing her anxious cries, a shadow flew across the blue-white sky, its neat and regular formation particularly conspicuous.
It is a flock of geese flying south.
She was delighted, waiting for the geese to land. Even if they only paused for a brief moment, she might be able to catch one. It didn't need to be beautiful and elegant, nor did it need to have lush, fluffy feathers. As long as it was a goose, it would be a wedding gift for Xie Yun.
In her previous life, what was the use of her waiting for several days and nights to catch the highest and farthest flying goose? Her fate did not change because of a goose.
As the human girl was carefully drawing her bow and arrow, the fragrant millet was noticed by the geese in the sky. They had been flying for so long and were thirsty and hungry, and there was a river below.
Then, a wild goose landed, followed by two, then three, and they occupied a large open space in the puddle.
Seizing the opportunity, Zhang Jingxian shot an arrow at a wild goose. At the same time, she quickly pulled the rattan basket tied with a hemp rope with her feet.
The geese scattered and she captured two of them.
Seeing this, she was relieved. She could give the two geese to Xie Yun.
However, just as she stood up from the bushes, something frustrating and depressing happened to Zhang Jingxian. A long arrow, shot from nowhere, pierced the bodies of both geese with a cold sheen and sank into the mud.
They were all dead and not breathing.
The place where the wicker baskets and millet were placed was slowly seeping with bright red blood, as if foreshadowing something ominous.
In the distance, there were continuous and shrill bird calls in the air. All the birds nearby flew up upon hearing the sound, and the rustling sound of their wings lingered for a long time.
No longer will the geese be fooled by human traps and drop from the sky to fly to the side of their dead brethren.
Zhang Jingxian realized this and bit her lips. She pulled the long arrow out of the mud and cursed angrily, wondering how a dead goose could be used as a gift.
If Xie Yun and his close associates saw this, they would probably think that he was cursing him on purpose.
But what you fear will come true. The next moment, the man's face with an unrecognizable expression appeared in her sight.
He didn't have a bow and arrow in his hand, but he held a letter that looked very familiar to her. He walked towards her, ignoring the bloodstains on the ground.
"This is Ah Xian's stuff, Ah Xian, keep it."
Xie Yun walked across the blood-stained soil and repeated the contents of the letter to her with a smile. At the end, he calmly asked her if she had missed anything.
"Ah Xian's handwriting has improved a lot compared to before. I feel very happy every time I read her."
She was taught by him personally, and of course, his shadow is between the lines, an indelible mark that will follow her throughout her life.
Zhang Jingxian stared at his colorful facial features and subconsciously stepped back, but it was too late.
He stretched out his arm and placed it on her shoulders, holding her tightly so that she could not move.
Stepping over the wings of the dead goose, Xie Yun stood upright in front of her, held her wrist, pried open her clenched fingers, and placed the letter in her hand.
"I've kept the letter. My dear, don't you think we should stay further away from each other?"
He will soon marry the noble daughter of the Chao family, and when she catches a live wild goose, she will return to her village. Doing this now is against the rules and etiquette.
When Zhang Jingxian spoke, her eyes were filled with alienation and vigilance.
She wanted to shake off his hand, but was afraid of unexpected consequences.
"We've already kissed, don't you think these words sound ridiculous, Ah Xian?" His thin lips covered her ear, and he whispered, asking if her cousin didn't know they had kissed. "He seems to only know that you saved me and are a guest of my sect. Ah Xian, are you afraid to tell him or are you afraid that if he finds out, it will ruin your...reputation?"
He also had not forgotten what she had said to Dr. Meng in the past.
"No matter what, my brother will never change the way he treats me, and I will treat him the same way." Zhang Jingxian pursed her lips, pushed him away fiercely, and covered her red ears.
"My brother will come back with me. My dear, it will be useless for you to say anything to him."
She believed that her cousin would not be bewitched by him.
Xie Yun's determined attitude made him feel jealous.
He lowered his eyes. Under his feet was the pungent smell of blood and two dead geese. Dead geese were an ominous sign, and she would never be able to catch a live goose.
"Actually, I was just about to write a letter to Xishan Village, inviting Ah Xian's uncle to attend my wedding banquet."
"Or, Ah Xian writes it herself?"
His eyes never met hers, because once they met his, he would uncontrollably drag her into the dark pool and devour every inch of her flesh.
Or, kill her cousin with her own hands and let him become a dead goose under her feet.
Xie Yun was sure that this peasant girl didn't like him, but at the same time, confirming that she had feelings for another man was also an unforgivable cruelty for him.
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The author has something to say: Muah, wait for me to fix it~
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