Chen Chang and Shui Ling'er jumped into the river hand in hand. Chen Chang couldn't move one of his hands, so he could only paddle with one arm. Shui Ling'er grabbed Chen Chang's clothes.

But after just a few strokes, he began to choke on the water. It felt as if his chest was being pierced by thousands of needles, making it almost impossible to breathe. He tried again and again to stick his head out of the river, but the water kept pouring into his nose, and he gulped down a bellyful of icy river water.

Despite this, he did not dare to slack off at all. He just wanted to swim faster and farther while he could still move, and get as far away from the bandits chasing him as possible.

The river water at the end of March was still icy cold, and my whole body was frozen and I soon lost feeling.

In a daze, I only felt Shui Ling'er's hand still grabbing my clothes. I didn't even have the chance to see how she was doing. The two of them were like rootless duckweed, rising and falling, floating and sinking, drifting in the cold water, following the flow.

Suddenly, a wave with white foam came towards them, and instantly submerged both of them...

The sky is vast, high and deep, the night is as black as ink, and a single moon hangs high in the sky, walking side by side with its reflection in the river.

Under the moonlight, a small boat with six turquoise lanterns on board came from upstream. The two-masted sails on the boat were as big as the full moon, taking in the wind and full of wind. The bow of the boat cut through the water, and the water splashed and rolled up waves that spread out towards the boat's harbours. The dark blue river water spit out endless white petals.

"Sister, sister, look, the moon is so beautiful!"

A slightly childish voice came from the ship, and under the hazy moonlight, a figure dressed as a teenager appeared on the deck, pointing at the moon in the sky and cheering.

As soon as the curtain was lifted, a graceful lady in a goose yellow robe and a crown on her head walked out. She was tall, with a handsome face, delicate eyebrows and eyes. Her eyes seemed to be solemn and dignified with affection, and solemn and resentful. A purple Ruyi jade pendant was hung on the jade belt around her waist, swaying slightly with her steps.

The whole person looks elegant and outstanding.

I only heard her say, "Last night the sky was covered with dark clouds and no moon was visible. Today the clouds have dispersed and the sky is blue, which is much better."

The voice was charming and clear, and it was actually a female voice.

When the servants in green clothes and red hats on both sides of the bow saw her coming out, they hurriedly stood with their hands clasped. An old man who looked like a housekeeper stepped forward and said, "Miss, Mr. Xiao..."

The woman dressed as a man waved her hand, interrupting her words. At this moment, a cool and fresh breeze blew in her face, which made her look refreshed. She asked, "Where are we?"

The housekeeper waved his hand and said, "My dear sister, at this speed, we will be able to reach the shore in another stick of incense. I would like to ask my dear sister for instructions. Should we go back to the city directly or wait until dawn?"

The woman said, "We are tired on the way. Let us rest after the boat reaches the shore. It won't be too late to go home when the day breaks."

The housekeeper agreed and walked away to make the arrangements.

Seeing that the servants were not paying attention to her, the woman made a few chest-expanding movements and looked around from time to time, as if she were a thief.

"Sister, come and see!" the boy urged.

The woman looked at the young man with indescribable concern in her eyes, and said angrily: "Who told you to get out of the cabin by yourself? Be careful, don't fall off the boat."

The young man pouted and said, "Sister, I'm already one year old this year, do you still think of me as a child?"

The girl covered her mouth and laughed: "You are only one year old, but you are not a child anymore. Is my sister wrong?"

The young man was not convinced and retorted, "So, my sister is only seven years old, and my brother is only six years old. They are also children."

The girl was amused by his logic and smiled like a flower, with a warm glow in her cool eyes.

The young man was even more annoyed by her smile, and said angrily: "You are still laughing! The grandfather said that you are a man and can be the head of the family now!"

The girl seemed to understand her brother's temper very well, so she coaxed him in a gentle voice: "Okay, okay, okay, our Xingchen is a handsome husband!"

After hearing what his sister said, the boy named Xingchen relaxed his brows a little. He looked about 70% similar to his sister, with delicate features, handsomeness and a proud bearing. People would be impressed at first sight.

With a little makeup, one can pretend to be a girl and make it look real.

Xingchen took a deep breath and said seriously, "Sister, Xingchen is the only boy in the first room. He will be the head of the family in the future. Otherwise, our first room will be bullied to death by the second and third rooms."

The daughter looked at him lovingly and sighed slightly: "You can think like this, my father's spirit in heaven and my mother don't know how relieved they should be. The stars in our family are really growing."

Xingchen said, "Sister, they took advantage of Grandfather's illness to bully you. I will argue with you when I get back. You didn't have to agree to that. This was a trap set by them to push you into the fire."

The girl felt a trace of worry creeping up her brows after hearing this. She reached out and touched her brother's hair, and said quietly, "Xingchen, you are still young, and you don't understand some things yet."

Xingchen clenched his fists and said, "Is it possible that what 놖뀘 said was wrong?"

The daughter thought of the matter that was weighing on her mind and could not help but sigh: "Grandpa is getting old now, and his long-term injuries have recurred. He is seriously ill and has been bedridden all day. As a younger generation, I am heartbroken that I cannot relieve his pain. Alas, this is the only thing I can do."

Xingchen said angrily: "But, this sacrifice is too much, this is the price of your life..."

The woman said, "Now that things have come to this, let's not talk about it anymore! Maybe, Grandpa's illness will really get better." After she finished speaking, she smiled sadly, her expression as calm as a breeze blowing through willow leaves, and a hint of helplessness and sadness flashed in her eyes.

"Hmph!" Xingchen clenched his fists. "It was all Uncle San's bad idea. When I get back, I'll go to your house and question you. What bad idea did you come up with? Is you really our uncle? Do you still care about blood ties?"

Having said that, he raised his foot and kicked an empty wooden barrel on the deck. The barrel flew into the air, swayed, and fell into the river beside the boat with a splash, immediately causing a huge splash of water.

Xingchen's eyes followed the barrel that fell into the water. Suddenly, his face froze and he pointed at the river and whispered, "Ah, sister, look!"

…

The surroundings were shrouded in mist, and dark figures appeared one after another not far away. Although they were only a few steps away, he could not see their faces clearly. The figure of one of them looked very much like Shui Ling'er. Chen Chang was anxious and ran towards them, but he found that no matter how hard he stepped, he could not move forward at all.

And not far away, Shui Ling'er's floating figure seemed to be getting farther and farther away.

He wanted to shout to stop her, but his mouth was wide open and the sound kept tumbling and struggling in his throat, and he was so anxious that sweat covered his forehead.

Suddenly, I felt my body shaking and everything in front of me disappeared. Shui Ling'er's figure also disappeared in an instant. The inky river water swept over again, exerting an endless pull on 놛's ankles, dragging 놛 desperately to the bottom of the river.

"Ling'er, Ling'er, don't go, don't leave..."

"Hey, wake up, wake up..."

I don't know how much time had passed, but in my daze, I seemed to feel my body swaying rhythmically and waves of medicinal fragrance wafting over me, but I still felt very cold, so cold that I could even hear the "bang bang" sound of my teeth trembling.

After a while, Chen Chang woke up slowly, opened his eyes, and felt a splitting headache.

놖Where is this?

Where is Ling'er?

Is he dead?

No one answered. A warm and comfortable feeling came over me gradually. I then realized that I was covered with a quilt of exquisite texture. A faint fragrance of lotus filled my nose.

I tilted my head and looked around in surprise. In the dim firelight, I found that the space here was not very large, but the furnishings were extremely luxurious. There were seasonal fruits on the table, and there was a window opposite the bed, and the green curtains swayed in the wind.

It was probably still night outside, and 놛's clothes had already been changed.

However, that damp and cold feeling seemed to still linger in my bones. I huddled up with my knees hugged, my teeth chattering, and I shivered violently. My head hurt more and more, and I subconsciously wrapped the quilt tightly. Only then did the warmth come over me little by little, but the speed of the warmth was still not enough to withstand the waves of chill.

Listening to the sound of water outside and the rhythmic swaying of the boat below him, Chen Chang realized that he was on a boat.

Just as he was about to sit up with great difficulty, he felt something furry and wet on his touch, and he quickly pulled his hand back in fear.

The next moment, a scarlet tongue appeared in front of 놛's eyes, and a hot breath with a faint fishy smell rushed towards him, almost licking 놛's face. Chen Chang's eyes suddenly went dark, his eyes rolled back, and he almost fainted.

"Woof, woof, woof..."

A low growl of a dog brought Chen Chang back from his extreme fear. He felt a flash before his eyes, and a huge dog head appeared in front of him.

This is a giant dog, with a head like a lion, and two rows of three-inch-long sharp teeth exposed from its huge body. Its head is covered with black hair like needles, each strand standing up. From the neck down, its entire body is covered with gray hair, as dense as scales, with stripes on its body...

It has two thick legs, higher in front and lower in the back, with sharp claws like steel hooks hidden under the soles of its feet. Its whole body is five feet long, and from head to toe, it is also very tall, twice as tall as an ordinary wolfdog.

Oh my god! This is worse than seeing a ghost!

Chen Chang saw the ferocious dog, with its sharp teeth wide open, which seemed to be about to bite off his neck in one bite. He trembled all over and quickly retreated.

"Tiger girl, stop making trouble!"

With a low shout, the cabin door was gently pushed open from the outside, and a handsome young man walked in.