While resting at the post station, Mu Wanyao heard Fang Tong's report and went to see Yan Shang. She calmed down a little in front of the door of a house before pushing the door open and entering.
Mu Wanyao: "Go on a hunger strike to protest?"
She saw the blindfolded young man leaning against the table, his sleeves fluttering down his knees and onto the floor. He sat upright and calmly, like a pile of silver and jade covered with snow and green pines, a man of dignified pride that could not be broken by power.
Even Mu Wanyao would admire it.
Yan Shang heard the sound of Mu Wan shaking his head and frowned slightly.
He was in this situation after he woke up. He was surrounded by Mu Wanyao's people, and everyone looked at him like a prisoner. No matter what he wanted, the people around him had to ask the princess for permission. After a whole morning, Yan Shang didn't touch a pen, so how could he have the mood to eat?
Even if Mu Wanyao didn't give him any medicine like muscle softening powder, it would be almost the same.
This princess is so bad!
When Yan Shang was thinking this, Mu Wanyao sat down next to him, and put her hand on his arm with a smile, coaxing him: "No matter how angry you are, you can't not eat. If you get sick from hunger, I will be so sad. Doesn't Second Brother Yan love me?"
Yan Shang blurted out: "I love you, but who loves me? I think so much about you, and this is how you repay me? You put me under house arrest and take me away, and that's how you treat me well? You're going too far."
Mu Wanyao couldn't help laughing.
He was really used to being gentle, and his voice was always low and soft, especially deep and pleasant. He rarely spoke loudly, and even when he was angry at this moment, his voice was not loud, and his words did not sound like questioning, but rather like he was complaining to her gently.
Mu Wan shook his head and coughed.
Her eyes curved into an autumn smile and she said, "I do treat you well. But let's talk about that later. Let's eat first?"
It was rare for her to praise him in a nice way because she was in the wrong, but Yan Shang refused coldly: "Let's talk about this first. I won't eat the food or drink the water you give me in the future. Who knows what bad tricks you will use to deal with me when I trust you so much."
Mu Wan shook her head, feeling a little unhappy because of his words.
She asked, "Why do you think I kidnapped you against your will?"
Yan Shang: "Who knows your bad intentions!"
Mu Wanyao: "Because my grandfather is dying, I want to see him for the last time. When I go to see him, I want to bring my beloved husband with me, so that he can rest assured about his affairs after his death and not have to worry about me. Am I wrong?"
Yan Shang was slightly startled, then said: "You can make black into white too."
Mu Wan said confidently: "I really mean well!"
The words still sounded a little annoying.
He said, "Do you really want me to put it so bluntly?"
Mu Wan shook her head: "Please speak."
Yan Shang was such a smart man, even though he was imprisoned by her, his brain did not rust. He lowered his voice and whispered in anger: "You are not doing this for my own good, you think that I, the county magistrate, can give way to others, anyway, it is not important. You don't care that I, the county magistrate, will make a mistake if I leave Nanyang. The court stipulates that I cannot leave Nanyang, you are deliberately making me make a mistake!
"Are you planning to fire me?"
Mu Wan coaxed him, "It's just a seventh-rank county magistrate. We don't want to be one. What's the point of staying in a place like Nanyang? Even if you have made a lot of arrangements for Nanyang, it's the same if you let others do it. Let's go back to Chang'an."
Yan Shang: "You are so reckless! You just rely on the fact that you are a princess and hold great power to arrange things for others at will!"
Mu Wanyao saw that he had a sullen face and was indeed furious. He got up angrily and held the table to leave, not wanting to talk to her. Mu Wanyao knew that he would be unhappy, so she tried her best to coax him and quickly forced him to sit down. She said firmly: "Now that it has come to this, it is impossible for you to ask me to send you back. But I can compensate you a little. Do you like being the magistrate of Rang County so much? You don't really regard Rang County as your own home, do you?"
Yan Shang was pressed down by her hand and sat back. He frowned, turned his head and "looked" at her, and said, "You...Okay, I know I can't convince you. If you insist on taking me away, what can I do. But during my tenure, I have never been dismissed for various ridiculous reasons, and naturally I can't be dismissed by the central government for such a ridiculous reason as being forced to leave Nanyang.
"I don't care what method you use, I cannot lose my position as the Magistrate of Rang County. If you cause me to lose my job because of this, I will... ignore you again."
The threat has no deterrent effect.
Mu Wanyao hesitated, thinking, why does he care so much about a county magistrate? Could it be that Rang County has some arrangements that she doesn't know about? She never dared to underestimate Yan Shang's wisdom. Even if she imprisoned this person, she was afraid that Yan Shang could turn the situation around.
Yan Shang waited for a while, but Mu Wan did not come. He said angrily, "Do you still want to make me lose my position because of your own fault? You can't even meet my condition. You are too much."
Mu Wan looked at him with his jaw clenched, and thought to herself that he was just a county magistrate. She had already prevented Yan Shang from contacting the outside world, so what was the point of keeping him as a county magistrate? When she dragged him back to Chang'an and forced him to marry her, he would still not be able to go back to Nanyang.
There is no reason in the world for a prince consort and a princess to live apart.
After thinking about it, Yan Shang would never be able to return to Rang County in the future, so Mu Wanyao nodded happily: "Okay, I agree. Can you have dinner now?"
Yan Shang hurriedly said: "We haven't finished talking yet!"
Mu Wan shook impatiently: "What else?"
Yan Shang hesitated for a moment and asked, "Let me ask you, if you kidnap me like this, have you made arrangements for Miao Niang?"
Mu Wan shook her face coldly and tilted her head to look at him: "What do you mean? Caring about other women in front of me?"
Yan Shang has been angry today, and he was also annoyed at this moment: "What are you thinking? Do you want me to speak out? Do you dare to say that you don't dislike my way of dealing with things and want to use force to suppress others? You are trying to snatch me from Miao Niang, but Miao Niang certainly can't snatch me from a princess. But after all, I have an engagement with her, is it okay for you to bully a girl like this?"
Mu Wanyao: "Robbed you? You are not ashamed to say that."
Yan Shang’s face turned red instantly.
In Mu Wanyao's opinion, he was so cute that he could blush even when he was angry because of such a thing.
He whispered, "That's exactly what happened. If you can do it, can't I tell you?"
Mu Wanyao ignored his anger about the engagement because of his blushing face and said slowly, "You don't have to fool me about your Miao Niang. I have found out everything about your relationship with her. I heard from Fang Tong that it was your father-in-law who got you drunk at the banquet and recommended his daughter to you, and you agreed without thinking. And you didn't regret it afterwards. What is this? Isn't this just bullying you because you can't drink?"
Yan Shang explained: "Mr. Chen is not the kind of person you say. I was drunk because I was in a bad mood, and it was not Mr. Chen's deliberate plan..."
Mu Wanyao changed to a more comfortable sitting position, leaning on his arm. He turned sideways to prevent her from leaning on him, but she simply grabbed his arm and didn't let go, and moved closer to him freely, and even rubbed him hard as if to show off. Yan Shang wanted to glare at her, but he had no eyes, and Mu Wanyao had already spoken: "Fang Tong found out that you and Miao Niang had decided to get married on February 2nd. This time is very delicate."
Yan Shang was indifferent: "Where's the subtlety?"
Mu Wan shook her head and looked at him: "The subtle thing is, four days before this time, it was the time when Pei Qing and I made an engagement."
Yan hasn't spoken yet.
Mu Wanyao's heart was already soft and full of love. She held his shoulders and made him bow his head. She gently rubbed her nose against his and said softly, "Brother, you drank because you were sad about my engagement, and you were tricked into getting engaged. And because the other party was not a threat to you, you were discouraged and felt that you were not suitable for falling in love with others, so you did not refuse this engagement, right?
"You're because of me, right?"
Yan Shang reached out and pushed her away from his face. Mu Wan shook her head in disbelief, but his attitude was firm. Even if he blushed, he didn't want to do this with her.
Mu Wanyao was furious: "Are you crazy? How dare you push me away? Do you know that if I want to force myself on you, you simply..."
She spoke without thinking, and before she could finish her words, Yan Shang interrupted her sternly: "What are you talking about! How can a girl talk nonsense like this?"
Mu Wanyao's momentum was made dazed and wilted by him.
She snorted and said sourly, "Forget it, I won't say anything more. Don't worry, I won't bring bad luck to you. I will find a good husband for your wonderful wife that you can't find fault with. Do you really think you are gold and everyone will hold you in high esteem and cannot leave you? Eat your meal first."
Yan Shang heard that she treated Miao Niang as a passer-by and arranged things casually, so he could only accept it helplessly. He thought that even if Mu Wanyao arranged a marriage for Miao Niang casually, she couldn't go too far with him by her side.
But Yan Shang had a lot of things on his mind, so he had no mood to eat: "No. You're imprisoning me like this..."
Mu Wanyao interrupted coldly: "I gave you face, didn't I? Even if I kidnapped you for various reasons, is it all for my own selfish reasons, and there is no benefit to you at all? Don't you think of me as a good girl, and think I'm a bad person?"
Yan Shang was stunned and stared. He didn't expect that she would really say black is white.
He said, "Good for me? What good is it for me? Why can't I see that you imprisoned me for my own good?"
Mu Wanyao said confidently: "A beautiful lady is available to you for free, what are you dissatisfied with?"
Yan Shang was angry and started to talk without thinking: "Am I that kind of person? I won't use anything. What's the use of you being good-looking? Can I see it?"
Mu Wanyao immediately seized the opportunity and held his hand: "Look! Isn't this how I treat you? I'm helping you with your eyes! I invited the imperial physician from Chang'an, and he's on his way and will meet us in Jinling. Your eyesight has been delayed, and I'm worried that your condition will get worse if you follow me for a month, so I have to see you recover before I can rest assured, right?"
Yan Shang pursed his lips and lowered his face.
Seeing that he was weak in attitude, Mu Wanyao continued, "And I really do this for your own good. Look how tired you are usually, you are working all day, busy with various official duties. You don't even have time to rest, look at what you have done to yourself. You are so thin now, but you are just taking advantage of your youth and not caring. I am afraid that you will keep working so hard and eventually ruin your body.
"Second Brother Yan, even if you love working, you still have to take care of your health, right? Your eyes are not in good condition, why are you in such a hurry to go back to Rang County? Why don't you take this opportunity to have a good rest? Do something you like and give yourself a good vacation?
"You keep that string tense all day long, without any relaxation at all. Is this really good?"
Yan Shang was slightly stunned.
He looked at her sideways and whispered, "Do you really think so?"
Mu Wan waved her hand and stroked his cheek, then gently touched his lips. She assured him, "I really mean it. I feel sorry for you when I see you like this. I don't want you to be in the office all the time, and everyone comes to you when something happens. When you were in Rang County, you were so busy that you even lived in the government office... I want you to have a good rest. We will make medicinal soup every day to nourish your body.
She was obsessed: "I want to make you fat and white."
Yan Shang spat at her: "Nonsense again."
I smile at you in the evening.
Yan Shang whispered, "Isn't it good for me to be busy with official business? Do you think I'm too tense? No one has ever said that to me, only you always say that."
Mu Wan shook her face and gently leaned against his cheek, saying quietly: "Because they don't love you, only I love you. Others treat you as Yan Suchen, and I treat you as Yan Shang, my second brother Yan. No matter what I do, I want to do it for your own good. You have to understand me."
She took the opportunity to speak well of herself again.
Yan Shang was both moved and angry.
After a while, he whispered: "I really don't want to talk to you, I don't want to care about you."
Mu Wanyao was furious: "Why are you still angry?!"
Yan Shang thought, this is such a serious matter, if I just say a few words to you and you forgive me, do I still have any principles?
She was really willful and could do anything. Yan Shang realized that he was too accommodating to her, which made her act recklessly towards him, and he thought that he would forgive her no matter what she did.
And sadly, she was right.
Yan Shang knew that he couldn't really be angry with her in his heart, and he knew that he was always soft-hearted towards her. But this was wrong, because she didn't realize that she should respect him. She was high above him, and now she could get whatever she wanted. But there were some things in the world that could not be forced out by power and coercion.
After a while, Yan Shang said calmly: "I want someone I trust to help me taste the food. I don't trust you anymore. If not, I will never touch the food you give me again."
Muwan shook his head and let out a sigh.
She rubbed her forehead. "Where can I find someone you can trust and taste food for you every day? We are on the way to Jinling. Even if I buy someone for you, will you believe that the other person is not mine?"
Yan Shang turned his face away and said, "Didn't you lock up Han Shuxing? I don't believe that Han Shuxing would not care if I was kidnapped by you."
Mu Wan shook: "..."
She cursed, but had no choice but to accept that the man she chose was really smart and had such judgment even when he was trapped. Then she had to be more careful about Yan Shang contacting the outside world and escaping from her hands.
-----
Yan Shang was supported by a servant and went to see the imprisoned Han Shuxing.
Han Shuxing was tied up, with a cloth ball stuffed in his mouth, and thrown into a dark room. He tried to struggle against the ropes that bound him, but the ropes were knotted, and he was weak all over. He had been drugged along the way and had no strength to stand up.
When Han Shuxing was desperate about how to escape, Yan Erlang came.
Yan Shang asked the servant to untie Han Shuxing and brought food to Han Shuxing. While Han Shuxing was wolfing down his food, he quietly looked at Yan Erlang. He saw that Yan Shang was quiet and peaceful, wearing clean clothes, a jade crown and a silver belt, and had an outstanding demeanor. There were no external injuries on his body caused by the torture of the princess.
This beautiful young man with a golden and jade-like appearance was different from Yan Erlang who was always hurt because of his blindness when he was on the run, and even different from Yan Erlang who was buried in a pile of tedious official duties all day in Rang County. Han Shuxing couldn't find anything good to say, and felt that Yan Erlang looked like those clean and beautiful noblemen in Chang'an, fragrant, soft, and fair.
After Han Shuxing finished his meal, he drove the servant who was accompanying Yan Erlang out of the house. He grabbed Yan Shang's hand and was about to take Yan Shang up.
Yan Shang was surprised, but he didn't intend to follow him. He laughed: "What is this for?"
Han Shuxing said in a tense tone, "Erlang, Her Royal Highness the Princess is not a good person at all! I don't know what she said to you to deceive you, but I saw with my own eyes that day that you drank a glass of her wine and then passed out. I chased after her, and her guards really treated me cruelly. That's not all, they drugged me and made me weak all day... This is a sinister intention! I suspect the princess wants to kill both of us!"
Yan Shang: “…”
Yan Shang said softly: "Because you are a martial artist, she is afraid that your martial arts can help me, so she drugged you, making you weak all day long and unable to take me away. This is normal. I will discuss with her to give you less medicine, which is always bad for your health. Don't think about escaping. Let alone other things... Fang Tong's martial arts are comparable to yours. He can compete with you alone, let alone the other guards around her?
"Now that you are here, make the best of it. You are being held back by me. Stay with me in the future. I told her that I wanted you to help me taste the food, and I also wanted to rescue you from confinement."
Han Shuxing was slightly relieved when he heard his gentle voice and logical words. As long as Yan Erlang's brain was still there, Han Shuxing was not worried. Yan Shang told him not to mess around and not to try to escape. Although Han Shuxing was unwilling and felt that they should not sit and wait for death, she still reluctantly agreed to Yan Shang's request.
Han Shuxing asked Yan Shang in a low voice: "Why did the princess want to capture you, Erlang? I saw that when we were on the run, her relationship with Erlang was not that bad. But why did she turn against you so suddenly? It was you, Erlang, who saved her, is this what you people in the Wei Dynasty call 'repaying kindness with enmity'?"
Yan Shang breathed a sigh of relief and murmured to himself, "It's just repaying kindness with enmity."
Han Shuxing frowned: "Then why did Her Highness capture Erlang, if she didn't want to kill him?"
Yan Shang suddenly felt uncomfortable.
Said, "It's nothing important. Don't worry about it."
Han Shuxing stared at Yan Shang for a while. Although he didn't quite understand what the various subtle expressions of the people of Wei meant, he was an adult man after all, and he had been following Yan Shang and Mu Wan for so long. Seeing Yan Shang lowering his head and his ears slightly red, Han Shuxing thought of the two people kissing so passionately outside the temple that night.
Han Shuxing frowned: "Does she want to sleep with Erlang?"
Yan Shang was choked by his straightforward words. When Han Shuxing helped him out of the door, Yan Shang tripped over the threshold.
Han Shuxing was already worried: "How could a man of Erlang's noble character get on His Highness' bed? How could His Highness insult Erlang like this? Erlang, don't worry, I'm here and I won't let her bully you."
Yan Shang: “…”
Yan Shang smiled helplessly: "Han Shuxing, I really should teach you more about the customs of the Great Wei. Don't say many things so...directly. And you don't have to protect me from being bullied..."
Han Shuxing was surprised: "Does Erlang want to sleep with her?"
Yan Shang: "...I mean, I have my own plans! You don't have to worry about me and His Highness! You...starting tomorrow, I will teach you to read."
Didn’t Mu Wanyao want him to relax?
Anyway, he didn't have anything he liked or wanted, so it was a good opportunity for him to teach Han Shuxing how to read and write.
-----
The carriage continued to move forward.
The atmosphere in the princess' carriage was very depressing. No one dared to speak loudly for fear of angering Her Royal Highness the Princess.
It’s because Yan Erlang is worthy of being Yan Erlang. He is willing to push his luck further and has not yet pissed off the princess to death.
Mu Wanyao tied Yan Shang here just to be alone with him during the journey, to restore their relationship, and preferably to rekindle their old love and restore it to the best period of their relationship. This way, when Yan Shang was tied to the bridal chamber, he would not be reluctant.
But Yan Shang asked to teach Han Shuxing how to read.
So the carriage, which was originally spacious enough for Mu Wanyao and Yan Shang, became crowded with the addition of Han Shuxing. Han Shuxing was not good at reading people's expressions. No matter how long Mu Wanyao's face was, he only stared at Yan Shang.
In the quaint carriage, Mu Wanyao sat next to Yan Shang despite his resistance. Han Shuxing was tall and big, so it was useless for Mu Wanyao to say that there was no room in the carriage. Han Shuxing lifted his robe and sat on the ground. Under the princess's rolling eyes, he took out a wrinkled book and a thick brush and asked Yan Shang to teach him how to read and write.
And this person is stupid enough.
For a whole hour, Mu Wanyao listened to Yan Shang teaching a poem over and over again. Mu Wanyao leaned against Yan Shang and felt that she had woken up from a nap, but Han Shuxing had not yet learned such a simple poem.
Mu Wan shook his head and sighed: "It's really stupid."
Han Shuxing, who was sitting on the ground, had a blank expression on his face and didn't care about what the princess said at all.
Yan Shang turned his head and "looked" at the girl who insisted on squeezing into the same car with him in such a hot day, and said: "How can you call someone stupid in front of her? Han Shuxing is a Wuman, and it is already amazing that he can learn the Dawei language. He has just started to learn the Dawei characters and sentences, which is equivalent to a child holding a pen. It is normal that he is not smooth at first. And Han Shuxing actually knows some simple characters, which is amazing.
"If you don't like what we're saying, why don't you get off the bus and take a ride alone."
Mu Wan shook her head coldly: "I won't go down. I want to sit with you and watch you."
Yan Shang sighed: "You don't mind the heat."
Mu Wanyao was naughty, raised her head and kissed his jade-white neck, saying softly: "This is the benefit."
Her voice was soft and hoarse, and she suddenly raised her head to kiss him, and Han Shuxing was around. Yan Shang was startled by her, and his hands holding the wooden sticks suddenly tightened, and he tensed up. Yan Shang's mind was in a mess, and he heard Mu Wan yelling and scolding Han Shuxing: "What are you looking at? Write your words properly!"
Yan Shang thought nervously, could it be that Han Shuxing saw Yaoyao kissing him? How could she, how could she... be so presumptuous!
Mu Wan looked up and saw that his neck was sweating, so she enthusiastically took a handkerchief to wipe it for him. But he felt uncomfortable and kept twisting his neck. In front of Han Shuxing, Yan Shang didn't dare to struggle too much and make too much noise. With this pushing and pulling, his neck was already red.
I don’t know how strange this scene looked to Han Shuxing.
Han Shuxing coughed.
Mu Wanyao liked playing with Yan Shang too much. She could play with his hair, his nails, and his collar that covered his collarbone for a long time. It was this Han Shuxing... Mu Wanyao was about to scold Han Shuxing for coughing all the time, but the carriage stopped and Fang Tong said outside that they had arrived at a destination.
Yan Shang leaned against the wall of the carriage and was startled when he heard this. Although he couldn't see, he had been calculating the distance in his mind. In any case, according to their progress, they should not reach the post station until the evening. How could they reach their destination at noon?
Mu Wan shook her head and kicked Han Shuxing who was sitting on the ground, very impatient: "We have arrived at the destination, didn't you hear? Why don't you get off the bus first! If Yan Shang and I get heatstroke by squeezing together in such hot weather, it will be all your fault!"
Han Shuxing was driven out of the car. Mu Wan shook her head and saw Yan Shang put his fingers on the table and flicked them a few times. She always felt that he was calculating something... Mu Wan leaned over quietly, interrupting his thoughts, hooked his chin and kissed him.
Yan Shang pushed her away in shock: "...I already told you I don't want to bother with you, but you're still like this!"
Mu Wan shook her head sweetly and said, "What about me? I just asked you for a reward."
Yan Shang was annoyed: "What reward do you have? Reward for tying me up against my will?"
Mu Wanyao didn't care about the content of his words. Anyway, his gentle voice was enough to please her. Mu Wanyao rubbed him for a while before holding Yan Shang's hand and pulling him out of the car.
Yan Shang was so angry, but seeing that she didn't care, he could only reach out and hug her back, fumbling to cover her collar, fasten her belt, and tidy up her clothes.
Mu Wan shook her lips and smiled, letting him treat her like this, then she supported him and took him out of the car.
The two stood beside the car. Mu Wan pointed to the green fields ahead and said, "You can't see it now, so you don't know that we are standing in front of a field. It's green everywhere, and there are people working in the fields. You always said that I didn't know the sufferings of the world, and you wanted to take me with you to do the spring ploughing so that I could be closer to the people.
"We're close enough now. We can continue where we were back then."
Yan Shang was still in a daze.
Mu Wan turned back and looked at him, smiling at him: "Don't you love the people's livelihood? Then let me feel your feelings. I also want to know what those things I read in the books actually mean. We are already standing here, you hold my hand, and let's go to farm together."
Yan Shang was moved, and the hand she was holding trembled slightly.
Mu Wanyao thought she had impressed him, but his next sentence was tense: "How can I, a blind man, hold you? Can I hold you?"
Mu Wan shook her eyes and glared, choking at his indifferent words. She was furious, but she couldn't do anything to Yan Shang even after glaring at him for a long time. He was so disrespectful, so she pushed his hand away and went to the fields alone, holding up her skirt.
Yan Shang stood by the road, listening to the sound.
After a while, he heard Fang Tong's voice: "Erlang, why bother?"
Yan Shang hesitated for a moment and said, "It's so hot, Guard Fang, why don't you go and take a look? She's not in good health, why are you putting on a show in front of me?"
Fang Tong was speechless to the two men, so he had to go to the fields with the guards. Han Shuxing quietly approached Yan Shang and whispered, "Erlang, they are all gone. This is a good opportunity to escape. I have already checked the road and secretly hidden the medicine for a few days..."
Before Yan Shang could say anything, Han Shuxing used his Qinggong to lift him up and put him on the horse. The horse neighed loudly, and Mu Wanyao and others standing in the field turned around in shock, and saw a horse galloping away, with dust and smoke billowing.
Yan Shang: “…”
-----
An hour later, Han Shuxing was tied up again and put into solitary confinement in a small dark room.
Yan Shang sat quietly. Mu Wanyao pushed the door open in a rage and said angrily, "How dare you run away! I trust you, so I didn't tie you up. Do you want me to tie you up before you can stop running away?"
Yan Shang raised his face, and after a while, he said helplessly and slowly: "I'm not trying to escape."
Mu Wanyao: "I saw it all, do you think I'm blind?"
After a moment of silence, Yan Shang said, "...are you doubting my brain?"
Mu Wan shook: "..."
Yan Shang whispered in a rather subtle tone: "Even if I really wanted to escape, why would I use this method?"
Mu Wan raised her eyebrows.
She heard... a hint of disgust in Yan Shang's words?
oops.
Is Yan Shang disliking Han Shuxing?
She chuckled and covered her mouth. She made up her mind and decided that she had to take drastic measures.
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