Chapter 64 Drinking Snow (Part 4) Are you going to take my knife and hurt me? ...
Not far from the capital, the weather on the road was getting increasingly chilly. A bleak evening wind swept by, and although it was still the same day, it felt as if autumn had already arrived.
Princess Huaixian and the Crown Prince stayed in the post station, while the rest camped outside the city. A postman rode up on the road, showing no interest in the grand procession outside, simply doing his job, his horse's hooves churning the sand as he entered the city gate.
Zhi Rou stood by the roadside, lost in thought. Her clothes were thin, and when the cool breeze blew on her, she couldn't help but shiver.
A palace maid hesitated as she approached and whispered beside her, "What are you looking at, young lady?"
The addition of a young woman from a prominent family to the group aroused everyone's curiosity.
The one who spoke was a female official in her early twenties, with a soft voice, but she was two inches shorter than Zhi Rou.
Zhi Rou tilted her head slightly, remained silent for a moment, and then said, "Can't I stand here?"
The female official realized she had misunderstood and quickly explained, "No, it's cold and damp here... Why don't you come and warm yourself by the fire with us?"
Zhi Rou turned around and looked at the raging flames not far away. Around them were a group of women with blank and distressed expressions, and a few with calm expressions who were now watching her.
Zhi Rou frowned slightly in displeasure, but her voice remained friendly as she addressed the female official who had approached her: "I'm not afraid of the cold. You don't need to worry about me, sister, you can go ahead."
The female official did not leave, but stood quietly beside her for a while: "Is the young lady grieving?"
Although I don't know why Miss Song was included in the entourage, she is different from me. Miss Song has family in the capital; how could she not be saddened by this sudden change?
The female official glanced at her, then looked away into the distance, and asked in a very low voice, "Is someone who followed the group all the way someone you know, young lady?"
Zhi Rou paused slightly, then glanced warily at the female official and said firmly, "I don't know them."
The female official seemed unaware of her wariness and moved closer, speaking to her casually: "Perhaps it's someone's brother who's come to see me off... I have no parents or brothers, so no one will see me off."
Zhi Rou's original intention was simply not to cause trouble for Wei Yuanzhan, but upon hearing what she said, she suddenly regretted that her tone had been too harsh. She frowned and asked, "What's your name, sister?"
He spoke softly, his tone tinged with apology.
The female official was slightly taken aback upon hearing this, only to realize that she had talked too much again. Fortunately, Miss Song did not take it to heart.
She awkwardly touched her eyebrows: "Jing Yao."
Zhi Rou smiled at her and said, "My name is Zhi Rou." She glanced silently into the woods, wondering how long Wei Yuanzhan would follow her or where he would go. She only hoped that he would be safe and sound and return to the capital as soon as possible.
Birds flapped their wings in the woods, making a "whooshing" sound.
Lan Ye tied the horse to a tree nearby and saw Wei Yuanzhan sitting in front of the campfire, using a dagger to cut open a freshly picked fruit, but hesitating to put it in his mouth. So he walked over and asked, "Aren't you going to eat, sir?"
The tone sounded exactly like someone asking for a reward.
Wei Yuanzhan glanced at him for a moment, casually tossed the fruit aside, then stood up and walked to the water source to wash up.
He was always meticulous about his appearance, even at times like this. I heard that the old Marquis was the same way when he was alive; although he was a military general, his dignified and gentlemanly demeanor was ingrained in his very being and could never be erased.
Recalling the few times Wei Yuanzhan was disheveled, it was all because of the Fourth Sister.
Although Lan Ye was slow to notice, she could tell that her master treated the fourth young lady differently. She remembered that three years ago, the fourth young lady had bullied her master very badly. That fight lasted for a long time. Later, her master declared that he would make Song Zhirou cry and beg for mercy.
Could it be that the master has come here under false pretenses to fulfill this unfulfilled wish, in order to make this matter a reality before the Fourth Miss's long departure?
Judging from Wei Yuanzhan's demeanor in front of the Marquis and his wife, he hardly seemed to be feigning military service.
Lan Ye took a bite of the juicy fruit, and spat it out as soon as it touched her tongue, making two "pui pui" sounds, "It's so sour."
The night was very long. Perhaps it was because it was the first time he had spent the night in a tent, or something else, but Wei Yuanzhan tossed and turned. In the chilly weather, he actually felt a little hot.
The sound of even, drawn-out breathing filled the tent; it was Lan Ye.
Wei Yuanzhan put his hand behind his head and asked in a low voice, "Changhuai, are you asleep?"
Thinking he had given instructions, Changhuai sat up, ignoring the magnanimous figure at his feet, and asked in a normal voice, "What does Master want?"
Wei Yuanzhan did not agree, staring at the dim light before him, his thoughts in a daze.
After an unknown amount of time, he said slowly, "I want to go find her."
Chang Huai was taken aback, his brows furrowing slightly as he said with some disapproval, "There are so many people... you won't find them."
There were as many as three hundred guards in the marriage procession, and even if half of them stayed with Princess Huaixian at the post station, the remaining half was not a small number. It was almost impossible for them to disappear without a trace in front of them.
Wei Yuanzhan had no intention of taking Zhirou away. Defying the imperial decree was a responsibility the Song family could not bear, and she was determined not to follow him. However, having not spoken a single word to her for days, he was almost unsure if Song Zhirou was even real.
He wanted to stand in front of her, to hear her voice; he had so much to say to her, so many promises to make.
Wei Yuanzhan withdrew his hand and covered his eyes, seemingly a little sleepy: "Just think about it. Go to sleep. Yuyang is still far away, and this is only the first night..."
Sending off a bride is not like marching an army; the procession moves slowly.
The further north they went, the colder the weather became. When they were about to arrive at the Chuzhou Palace, Princess Huaixian suddenly developed a high fever. A large number of her entourage suffered from acclimatization problems, which slowed down their journey and caused them to be delayed in Chuzhou for several days.
Wei Yuanzhan's journey to the Northwest had no time limit. Whenever the marriage procession slowed down, he would stop as well, and instead of staying at the inns in Chuzhou City, he insisted on setting up camp outside the city.
Lan Ye, who had been holding back his frustration, finally couldn't take it anymore and pulled Chang Huai aside to ask, "Are we really heading to Yuyang? Judging from your speed, are you waiting for someone?"
The Northwest is bitterly cold; who else but his master, in a moment of madness, would come?
Lan Ye spoke with a thick tone of doubt, but Chang Huai glanced at him for a moment, too lazy to pay attention, and focused on preparing food for his master.
After a while, the sound of horses' hooves approached from afar, like the beating of drums.
Chang Huai glanced at him casually, then slowly opened his squinted eyes, revealing a hint of surprise.
Lan Ye was right; the master was waiting for someone.
He put down what he was doing and went to the tent to report to Wei Yuanzhan: "Master, I think I saw Young Master Song."
Wei Yuanzhan stepped out of the tent: "Which Young Master Song is it?"
Without Chang Huai needing to answer, the figure had already clearly appeared in his field of vision.
The sky was not yet completely dark, and the clouds hung in a fiery red. The boy on horseback saw them early in the morning, dismounted, and led them towards them by the reins.
Wei Yuanzhan stood still, but raised his eyes slightly: "Cousin? I'm not mistaken, am I?"
"Young Master Wei," Song Qiyu replied, using the same title, but with a much more familiar demeanor.
Wei Yuanzhan scrutinized him for a moment: "Cousin, where are you going all by yourself?"
He didn't try to hide it: "Yu Yang."
Wei Yuanzhan became suspicious and glanced at him for a moment: "What are you doing in Yuyang, cousin?"
It was during the imperial examinations in the capital, and he wasn't in the capital preparing for them. He came alone; surely he wasn't going to join the army like me? The Song family had been scholars for generations; how could they possibly let him join the army?
Instead of answering, Song Qiyu asked, "Where is the Crown Prince?"
Wei Yuanzhan remained silent for a while, his handsome eyebrows twitching slightly. Although surprised, a sense of joy welled up inside him. He casually asked, "Cousin, would you like to travel with me?"
"No, thank you." A hint of difficulty appeared on Song Qiyu's clear face, but he quickly concealed it, raised his hand to stroke the horse's mane, and after it rested for a moment, he had to continue on his way.
He hadn't told his family about joining the army, and if he stayed too long, his father's men might catch up with him. He couldn't afford to fail, especially since he was going against the grain for once.
Wei Yuanzhan kindly invited him to go with him, but he refused outright. Feeling embarrassed, he reverted to his original arrogance, sat down by the woodpile, and kept his eyes straight ahead while listening to the sounds around him.
As the last rays of dawn faded, Song Qiyu rose, mounted his horse, turned it around, and called out to Wei Yuanzhan.
Unlike before, he didn't call Zhi Rou "Fourth Sister." The firelight blurred his features, and even his voice seemed to change, with a hint of reluctance hidden within: "If you could see Zhi Rou..."
He suddenly stopped speaking and remained silent for a long time.
Strangely, he actually thought that Wei Yuanzhan could see Zhirou again under the guard of the guards. But how easy would that be? He lowered his eyelashes, and the unspoken "take care" became a regret.
“Never mind,” Song Qiyu said, moving on from the previous topic. He looked up at Wei Yuanzhan and said, “I’ll be waiting for you in Yuyang.”
Having said that, he spurred his horse and rode away, raising a cloud of dust. Wei Yuanzhan watched his departing figure, as if he knew what he wanted to say. He raised his head, gazing at the moonlight, and a thought that had been suppressed in his heart for so long finally sprouted.
On the third day of their stay in Chuzhou, a large number of people in the group fell ill, which made the guards much more relaxed. It was like an epidemic, spreading extremely quickly.
Jingyao started vomiting that night. Zhirou was already quite familiar with her and learned a lot about Beili from her.
That night, Zhi Rou helped her to rest and then went outside the tent alone.
The moon was bright and the stars were few; the boots moved slowly and heavily on the grass, making a soft "rustling" sound.
Zhi Rou did not run away, but instead plotted how to escape from the Yan Dynasty. She could not disobey the imperial decree. Although she had only stayed in the Song family for five years, she already regarded it as her place of origin, and she was absolutely unwilling to implicate the Song family.
A fallen leaf drifted from the tree into Zhi Rou's hair, but she didn't notice. She was lost in thought, while stroking the short knife hidden in her sleeve.
The Seventeenth Prince… Zhi Rou recalled Jing Yao's words, still unable to connect that noble man with her own plans. Perhaps once she arrived in Bei Li and truly got to know the people of the grasslands, things wouldn't be so thorny, shrouded in a heavy fog.
A moonlit night shone on the water, reflecting in Zhi Rou's eyes. Her eyes were clear and bright, but her thoughts were heavy.
I miss my mother so much, I miss Wei Yuanzhan so much.
Zhi Rou was slightly lost in thought when someone suddenly approached her. The wind from the robes rushed past her ears, and then a slender hand covered her mouth.
She didn't know who it was, but almost the instant the hand touched her, she snatched the knife from her sleeve, struck with her elbow, turned around and grabbed the person, then pressed him against the tree trunk, pressing her arm firmly against his shoulder.
"Who is it?" Before she could finish speaking, he gripped her wrist firmly in his hand. It wasn't the strength to move her away, but rather a hint of interest, as he patiently awaited her reaction.
Zhi Rou had never encountered such an audacious villain. She loosened her grip, and the dagger immediately fell into her other hand. Just as she was gaining momentum, he suddenly opened his mouth, his tone concealing a roguish smile.
Are you going to take my knife and hurt me?
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