Restoration
Chapter 19: Restoration
When the master and the servant entered the county office, they were the only two talking in the yard.
Nalan Han's voice was clear and elegant, and he smiled as he spoke to the person next to him, "Wait until spring comes in two months, shall we go for a spring outing?"
"Bring the kite, I'll prepare some food, and we'll go on a picnic."
She didn't hear what Peng Zuoyan explained to her about what a picnic was, and her voice kept repeating in her mind.
Although he hadn't heard it for a long time and the voice had changed slightly, Peng Zuoyan would never have been wrong. This voice could only be hers. Unexpectedly, it was not her who died.
I closed my eyes and tried to match the voice to the blurry face in my memory, and they were surprisingly consistent.
Hearing the sound of someone breaking in, the two looked at the same time. Peng Zuoyan's eyes caught the girl in front of the case and rushed straight towards Yi Huan. Nalan Han, who stood up to block him, was pushed away by her.
"you……"
Peng Zuoyuan pinched her chin and pushed her against the edge of the table. Her cowardly, half-covered eyes were clearly revealed, and he felt more certain in his heart. Is she still pretending at this point?
"Yi Huan."
The look in her eyes turned into one of question and fear, and she struggled, "Yi Huan? General, please let me go first, Ah Han..."
"General, you must have recognized the wrong person..."
"Take him away!"
Chang Yi immediately took action, grabbed Nalan Han with both hands, covered her mouth and pushed her out.
Yi Huan turned his head away, his whole body filled with fear as he said, "Ah Han."
Holding the person in his arms with his left hand, Peng Zuoyan closed his eyes and sighed, occasionally falling into a deep sleep, with this familiar feeling.
Yi Huan pushed him away with both hands and said in a shrill voice, "General Peng, I'm the county magistrate's servant. What are you doing?"
Peng Zuoyan stopped her with one hand, glanced at her face twice, reached out to tear off the thin skin of the animal skin, and wiped away her eyebrows with a towel, revealing her original face.
Yi Huan's timid eyes changed in an instant, showing hatred, disgust, and unwillingness to be caged again.
Because of his not-so-gentle touch, her face was covered in red and white patches. Peng Zuoyan touched it with his fingertips and said disdainfully, "What kind of skin is this? Ah Huan has put so much effort into it."
Knowing that she didn't dare to use human skin, Peng Zuoyan bent down to look at her, his eyes gleaming.
She hadn't changed much in the past two years. Looking at her eyes, he suddenly felt as if he had returned to the time when they were at loggerheads in Gongzhou.
"Ahuan, even though I know you're dead and my eyes tell me you're not, my feelings tell me I need to get close to you."
"You found me, so you can say whatever you want."
Peng Zuoyan turned her head back and laughed out loud, "Ah Huan, Ah Huan, I knew you couldn't die so easily."
"Ah Huan has lost weight this time."
But it didn't matter. Peng Zuoyan's family was wealthy and could afford to raise her. He didn't have time to reminisce about the past, to blame her for disappearing on purpose. His heart was filled with joy.
The tablet that was carved and then put away turned into a living person, and Peng Zuoyan even felt a sense of being favored.
"You said it." Yi Huan roared tremblingly, "If I survive by chance, you will let me go. You promised me with your own mouth. You will set me free. You promised me with your own mouth!"
"Tsk, Ah Huan, I will allow you to make another promise."
His scorching black eyes flashed with deception. Yi Huan could no longer bear it and punched him, cursing, "You despicable villain who tells lies all the time, liar."
"Ah Huan, you said I was despicable, do I have to prove it?"
The pain on her neck was neither painful nor itchy. Peng Zuoyan clasped his hands together and pressed them close to her, quietly feeling the warmth of her body. He could smell the burning charcoal in the room, and it was unavoidable to feel uncomfortable if he smelled it for too long.
Peng Zuoyan tried to pull her out, but Yi Huan pushed her away forcefully. "You gave me up with your own hands, and now you're pretending to care about me. Isn't that disgusting? You're such a hypocrite!"
"I had no choice in that matter, Ah Huan. Since you escaped death, I will definitely make it up to you."
Yi Huan stopped by holding the door frame with one hand and said with disgust, "Hypocrisy."
Peng Zuoyan released his hand, stood outside the threshold with his feet, folded his arms, and asked in a good-tempered manner, "How did Ah Huan escape death? Tell me."
"Selling oneself for fame."
Peng Zuoyang immediately sneered in disbelief. She didn't even want to stay in the general's mansion, so who else in the world could make Yi Huan willing to commit herself to her?
"Ah Huan, come back to Rongzhou in two days, and we'll go together."
"I don't……"
Peng Zuoyang pointed his right finger at her forehead and decisively suppressed her refusal. "Yi Huan, I will only say this once."
Until he got on the carriage, Yi Huan didn't see Nalan Han again.
That night at the inn, Peng Zuoyan turned over on his side before falling asleep. He groped and touched the back of Yi Huan's hand, and said teasingly, "Ah Huan, you've been away for two years. I will measure the changes in you."
"roll!"
With his back against the wall, Yi Huan's eyes were angry and alert, and he threatened: "If you touch me, we will die together."
Peng Zuoyan scoffed. He knelt on the bed with his hands on his knees and asked jokingly, "How do you want us to die? How do you want us to die together? You or me?"
Yi Huan said no more, and reached his right hand into his sleeve. Hehong's poison powder floated in the air. Peng Zuoyang was even faster. He pulled the quilt over to wrap the two of them and rolled to the ground under his feet.
Hearing the sound from inside the house, the guard came out with his sword in hand, "Master, is there anything wrong?"
"Go away, find a doctor who can detoxify."
"yes."
Peng Zuoyan pinched her hand, which was gradually corroded by the poisonous powder, with two fingers and washed her hand with the teapot.
The palm of his hand, wrapped in a light-colored handkerchief, was bleeding. He said sarcastically, "You are originally my lover. Why are you being so chaste, Ah Huan? What do you want to do by carrying this thing around with you?"
"I am Nalan Han's man now."
"Ha, if Nalan Han wasn't a girl, you wouldn't have gotten involved with her. Your identity as a concubine is well hidden. Even if I knew you were still alive, I wouldn't necessarily be able to find you."
Yi Huan raised his head tentatively, "Are you investigating her?"
"If the Nalan family's descendants weren't so unpromising, why would Nalan Yan support someone from another family? Ah Huan, what do you think Nalan Han would do if he knew that Nalan Han was secretly the child of someone he despised?"
"Ah Han is an official appointed by the court. You can't shake her position. She has interests tied to the Nalan family. Even if you want to interfere, the Nalan family will not abandon her."
Yi Huan spoke with such confidence and conviction that Peng Zuoyan snorted in disdain. He really couldn't bear to expose her empty belief.
"Ah Huan, the benefits are not as important as the greater good, and I can crush a mere Yongchuan County Magistrate with just one sentence."
There was no madness in his eyes that came from threatening others. Instead, he spoke calmly about his power and how easily he could clear obstacles.
Yi Huan pinched his palms to calm down, "Nalan Han and you have no conflicts. I forced her to save me. She was forced."
Peng Zuoyan reached out and pulled her closer to him, but he had no intention of letting go of Nalan Han who dared to hide her.
"How many people in Yongchuan would be willing to insult the former county magistrate, Ah Huan?"
"You bastard! I won't let you abuse her!"
Forcibly suppressing her slapping movements, Peng Zuoyan moved closer to kiss her, "Ah Huan, I also told you that you can use my power from now on. If you behave well, how could I touch your people?"
When his cold lips touched her earlobe, Yi Huan cursed angrily, "Coward."
No matter how powerful he is or how ruthless he is, the fact is that he sacrificed her on the battlefield. No matter how much he says, it is all hypocrisy. His nature implies cowardice in seeking peace.
Peng Zuoyan's eyes flashed with displeasure, but he insisted on getting his way. He put his arms around her neck and kissed her forcefully. As her breathing became increasingly shallow, two tears flowed into his palms.
The uncontrollable shaking made him loosen his grip. Looking at her embarrassed appearance, Peng Zuoyan coughed, "Alright, I'll allow you to be angry and give you time to adapt. But Ah Huan, you have to know that I am not a vegetarian."
"Peng Zuoyan, don't you understand what I'm saying? I'm telling you, don't even think about it! You're just a piece of shit who gets horny everywhere and can't control your lower body!"
His words were filled with derogatory insults. He had never been scolded before. Peng Zuoyan's temper also became stubborn. He raised his voice and said, "Yi Huan, I can't control your temper, right?"
"Of course a dog's temper can overpower a human's."
The two of them were arguing excitedly. Chang Yi knocked on the door carefully and said, "Master, the doctor is here."
Peng Zuoyang was afraid that if he stayed any longer he would not be able to help but ask Chang Yi to give him medicine, so he told Chang Yi to come and take a look at Ah Huan's hand and then left with his hands behind his back.
Goshur's master Gao thought of a way. The court issued an edict to transfer Peng Zuogong to the left and right guards of the sixteen guards of the Southern Court, and appointed him as a fourth-rank captain. He was to return to the capital that day. The leading eunuch Dexin knelt in the Hanyuan Hall and received another secret order.
He didn't dare to repeat the four words "kill on the spot" a second time. He secretly looked at the saint with a dark green figure and an elusive look in front of him, then knelt down and received the order in a loud voice.
The one-month journey was delayed for half a month due to the snow. De Xin did not dare to delay and rested for one night at Rongzhou Post Station before going to announce the imperial edict.
The Jiedu Mansion was seized and its owner was hiding in Chang'an, not daring to come back to confront the emperor. De Xin was heartbroken, but he did not meddle in other people's affairs. He just announced the imperial edict and returned to the capital with the newly appointed Zhechou Duwei.
Those without roots look old. A man in his early forties has gray stubble and deep wrinkles at the corners of his wide eyes. In the spacious and luxurious square courtyard, a man in his prime wears a round-collared robe with a right lapel, the dark color adding to his dignity.
As expected of someone who had fought his way through the frontier, De Xin collected his thoughts and bowed, saying, "Your Highness, I, the eunuch in front of the Saint, greet General Ding Yuan."
"My father-in-law is polite."
De Xin held up the yellow silk imperial edict in his hands and gestured to Peng Zuoyao, saying, "General, announce the edict."
Peng Zuoyuan sat down with no intention of moving. The porcelain cup in his hand became warm, so he put it aside.
Giving Fulu a look, the young eunuch in a round-necked brown-yellow robe with a diamond pattern took the order and stepped forward half a step, saying in a husky tone, "General Dingyuan, only those who have been granted special pardon by the Holy Saint can receive the decree without kneeling. I don't think your name is among the several lords who have received the Holy Saint's favor."
Meeting his contemptuous expression with cold eyes, Peng Zuoyao chuckled and said, "A mere eunuch dares to lecture his master."
"you!"
"Fulu, you are talking to General Dingyuan."
His face, with its flat cheeks and puffy eyes, clearly showed his discontent, and he spoke in a disrespectful tone, not trying to hide it. "General Dingyuan, the sage has issued a decree. Please move your body and kneel to receive it."
Fulu was Concubine Hui's man, and knew something about Peng Zuogong's self-important military power. The imperial edict hinted at a promotion in name only and a transfer in reality. General Peng had already offended the emperor, and when he arrived in the capital, he would be manipulated and controlled.
Let him be the first one to take action.
Peng Zuoyan stared at him until he finished the last word, then slowly lowered his head and asked calmly, "Who are you?"
"We are just people in the palace. How can we compare to the general who forced the governor to leave and occupied the two states of Rong and Gong?"
Peng Zuoyang stopped talking about this brainless eunuch and ordered directly: "Second Officer, drag him away."
Fulu was shocked, but he still said stubbornly, "General Peng, our family works for the Saint. No matter how powerful you are, you must give the Saint an explanation."
The second butler was dressed like a killer. Fulu saw him touch the short knife at his waist, his eyes calm but with murderous intent as he walked towards him. His steps were no longer calm. He knelt beside him and said, "Eunuch Dexin, please save me. I don't know how I offended General Peng. Eunuch, I am coming with you. Please save me."
De Xin spoke slowly after he was gagged and dragged away, "General, Fulu is Concubine Hui's man after all."
"When the eunuchs arrived, they encountered a landslide caused by melting snow. This man, Fulu, unfortunately died while trying to save the eunuchs. Before his death, he asked the eunuchs to take good care of his family in the palace."
"Do you understand, Grandpa?"
He brought up Concubine Hui, but Peng Zuoyao had no scruples at all. De Xin was silent for two breaths, choosing to protect himself. "Understood, General."
The eloquent and meticulous wordplay sounded too fake. Peng Zuoyuan sat and listened, propping up his fingers and asking, "If I say no, will the archers on the top of the hard mountain shoot through my head?"
It turned out that he had already discovered it. De Xin couldn't help but start to sweat. The Shen Ce Army ambushing in all directions was the border defense army of Jiannan Road. It was the saint's guarantee to help him in case of any eventuality. He didn't expect that it would be easily pointed out by Peng Zuoyuan.
Or is it that although Peng Xun has retired, he still has hidden thoughts?
"Hey, General, you're joking. You're a newly appointed commander. Who would dare to assassinate you?"
De Xin carefully held the imperial edict in both hands and flattered him, "General, how can a monarch and his subjects hold grudges overnight? The Sage has promoted you to the Left and Right Guards. Firstly, you're far from the frontier, allowing you to reunite with Doctor Peng. Secondly, you're at the Emperor's feet, and you possess considerable skills. Why worry about not gaining the Sage's favor?"
Peng Zuoyao smiled playfully and said, "Then I must accept this decree."
"Oh, General, you're joking. I understand what he means. Dexin, keep up the good work. The general's heart for the country and the people is evident to everyone. It is the well-being of the people of Dayu."
"Hmph, alright, I've got the order. I'll let you know when we're going to set off."
Without bothering to investigate the disrespectful act of taking the imperial edict with one hand, De Xin reminded himself not to look at what he shouldn't, bowed and took his leave.
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