Chapter 15 Beginning of Winter (Revised) A hint of heat floats in the cold wind of early winter...
He exhaled, and a thin white smoke floated in the air, rising up and merging with the grayish-white sky.
The girl stood in front of the gate and looked up. Her clear almond-shaped eyes reflected the dark sky. Her furry coat blocked the biting cold wind, but still made her exposed fingers turn red from the cold.
She crossed her fingers and clenched them, then exhaled a ball of warm air, which dispelled the stiffness in her fingertips.
"Today is the beginning of winter." Chun Tao was making the bed in the inner room. She glanced at the hazy sky and said, "I wonder if it will snow this year."
"I hope not." Wen Ying lowered her head and rubbed her fingers.
Speaking of Bai Xue alone, Wen Ying likes her.
The snow in the poet's writing carries countless emotions, some are sad and gentle, some are longing and expectant, and I was moved when reading the text.
But this is the elegance of a young man from an aristocratic family. Wen Ying's father was a military general who sacrificed his life for military merit. Every snowfall meant extreme cold after the snow melted, which could take the lives of hundreds of people when the war was urgent.
What’s more, the people in the suburbs don’t even have decent clothes. How can they survive this cold winter?
"Ms. Liu."
Wen Ying tilted her head and saw a man wearing a fox fur coat. It seemed as if snow had fallen before it even started.
She bowed slightly and said, "Master Yan."
In the plain world, the man was like a sculpture of ice and jade, cold and elegant, making the girl wonder if even his skin was cold.
When they were only one step away from each other, Yan Jing stopped and said in a gentle voice, "I haven't seen you go out in the past few days. Would you be willing to do me a favor and take a walk with me today?"
These days she has been busy taking care of "Chu Yang" and has no energy to deal with Yan Jing during the day. She just says it's too cold and she doesn't want to go out.
But since Yan Jing had invited her, Wen Ying naturally would not refuse and nodded happily.
Winter begins today. The breeze in the woods might be refreshing in late autumn, but it feels a bit harsh today.
Wen Ying gathered her cloak together. She was not afraid of the cold when she was a child. Some people who practiced martial arts were full of vigor and vitality, but three years of living in the open air had more or less left her with some internal injuries, causing her hands and feet to be cold when the weather was cold.
Before he could put his cloak in place, a hand warmer was suddenly stuffed into his hand. The copper object wrapped in rabbit fur emitted just the right temperature.
Wen Ying looked up at the man next to her. The latter met her gaze and smiled with his eyes curved. He did not explain it, but just took it as a matter of course.
Is he so considerate to everyone?
"Miss, have you been troubled by anything recently?" Yan Jing walked slowly, as if he was matching Wen Ying's pace.
I was too attentive to Yan Jing in the past, and I haven’t shown up in front of him for a few days. Did he become suspicious?
Wen Ying lowered her eyes and explained softly, "My Lord, you misunderstood. It's just that the weather has turned cooler with the change of seasons. I have a cold and I'm afraid I'll infect you."
"In that case, I will ask the court physician to prescribe some herbal medicine for you. Miss, have a good rest." Yan Jing's voice was just like him, gentle yet distant, like the surface of a lake in early spring, without any ice or frost, but cool to the touch.
The cooperation with Yan Jing allowed the two to communicate more frequently, and the more Wen Ying got to know Yan Jing, the more she felt that this person was truly flawless.
Putting aside his knowledge and courage, the fact that he was willing to risk his life just to save the people from the scam shows his moral character.
Perhaps no one knows his dedication, but he still does not hesitate.
Carrying firewood for everyone in silence.
The young man from an aristocratic family packages his reputation with good deeds, but in fact he is full of rotten stuff and will rot into soil if he talks a few more words.
But getting close to Yan Jing is like chasing the bright moon. The brightness is still there, but people cannot reach it.
"Thank you, sir. You have been so kind to me and I am so lucky." Wen Ying's tone couldn't help but be tinged with loneliness.
Rather than using any honey trap, perhaps it would be faster to simply ask him to overturn his father's case.
No, he is the Prime Minister of Dahua and a supporter of Hualu. The moment her identity is exposed, it will be more likely that Yan Jing will detain her first.
Wen Ying was a little tired after days of busyness. Just as she was daydreaming, she suddenly felt a warmth on her cheeks, and the faint scent of sandalwood permeated her heart.
Wen Ying tilted her head in surprise, looked at the man who reached out to touch her cheek, and asked blankly: "Sir?"
Yan Jing pressed the tip of his thumb on the corner of the girl's eye and placed his four fingers lightly on her earlobe, which made her feel a little itchy.
When he heard the girl's voice, Yan Jing's gaze suddenly focused, and when he saw the girl's eyes, he was stunned for a moment.
There was a hint of hot air floating in the cold wind of early winter, which made the Prime Minister, who was always eloquent, silent.
The amber eyes that were the same as Dawn's made him glance sideways, and he saw the changing emotions in those eyes.
The face of a peach blossom in winter adds color to the world, and when it looks a little lost, he unexpectedly reaches out his hand to comfort it.
Whether it was the assassin who was as free and easy as the breeze in the moonlight, or the girl in front of him who was as soft as a snow-white rabbit, they both made him a little out of control.
He was never one to indulge in beauty.
"Sorry, I'm so abrupt." Yan Jing lowered his eyes, withdrew his hand from the side of her face, and spread out his palm to reveal a dark green in the middle. "I just want to help you remove the leaves from your ear."
His tone was calm, as if what he had just done was perfectly normal.
Wen Ying was stunned.
Can leaves be hung on ears? Why didn't she feel it?
Before she could figure out what was going on, Yan Jing had already stepped back and distanced himself from her. He said softly, "Since Miss Liu is ill, I won't drag her along in the cold wind. I'll take my leave first."
He is acting too abnormal today. We can't stay here for long.
Wen Ying looked at the man's back as he turned and left, and blinked.
The feeling of the touch on her cheek was still there, and she raised her hand to cover the place where the man had just touched.
The hands of a person with icy and jade-like bones are also warm.
"Miss!"
Chuntao's voice came from afar, sounding a little flustered.
Wen Ying was still holding the hand warmer that Yan Jing had given her. She turned around and looked at the girl who had come running towards her. She frowned slightly and felt something was wrong. "What's wrong? Tell me slowly."
Chun Tao ran to Wen Ying and handed her a letter while panting. She said in an unstable and intermittent voice, "Miss, this is a letter from home. Please take a look."
Chuntao rarely looks so anxious.
Upon seeing this, Wen Ying knew what had happened to Uncle Liu. She looked around to make sure that the observer was still far away and could not see the contents of her letter before she opened the letter.
He glanced at it briefly and his face darkened.
"Chuntao, go back to the house first."
Uncle Liu’s letter can be summed up in one sentence:
[Something might happen to Changsheng.]
Uncle Liu has always liked children, and at this moment, he placed all his grief over the loss of his wife and daughter on Changsheng, who was temporarily with him day and night.
But Changsheng has parents after all. When the child said he was worried about his mother's illness, how could Uncle Liu refuse his filial piety?
So he sent a servant from the mansion to accompany Changsheng home to take a look.
It was obvious that something was wrong at first glance, and Changsheng's father Hong Liu wanted to take the child away on the spot.
The servant saw that Hong Liu looked unhappy and refused to let Changsheng go with his father no matter what was said, so he forcibly brought Changsheng back.
I thought that even if Hong Liu made a fuss, it wouldn't cause any trouble.
Unexpectedly, Hong Liu reported the case to the police and sued the Liu family for trafficking his child.
Hong Liu is a well-known deadbeat gambler who has a lot of debts and various minor crimes such as robbery and theft. Reporting the case to the police would be like losing money and burning your bridges.
The mansion was suddenly in chaos. Uncle Liu knew that Wen Ying's identity should not be publicized. When he was still hesitating whether to hand over Changsheng, Changsheng ran away by himself.
In order not to implicate Uncle Liu.
During this period of time, Wen Ying was so busy that she neglected the news about Uncle Liu and just ignored it every day as if there was no big problem.
Everyone relaxed a little, and ended up in this troublesome situation now.
Wen Ying put on a metal mask and quickly shuttled through the woods.
In the past few days, she had figured out the daily activities of each household in the slum, and soon found Hong Liu, who was holding the gold brick and grinning.
The girl flashed and kicked the man on the back of the head before he could prepare.
She used enough strength to make Hong Liu fall to his knees. When he subconsciously turned around and cursed, she kicked him over and stepped on his chest, almost choking him.
"Where is the child?" Wen Ying asked coldly, and she exerted force on her leg muscles, making Hong Liu almost unable to move.
How could the weak Hong Liu dare to resist violence? He quickly confessed with a trembling voice: "Dedicate...dedicate it to the Suzaku God."
Wen Ying didn't have time to talk nonsense with Hong Liu. She kicked Hong Liu and knocked him unconscious. Then she went to the temple without stopping.
Wen Ying had long guessed that the "Heavenly Spirit Grass" was fake. It was Changsheng's mother who guessed that Hong Liu was at the end of his rope and used this as an excuse to send Changsheng away.
But she also had a lucky mentality, thinking that even if Hong Liu came to her, she would be able to solve the problem in time.
After all, it was her fault for not thinking it through.
Wen Ying stretched her five senses to the limit, vaguely heard the cry of a child, and moved towards the direction of the sound.
The sky was gloomy today, and everything was plain. Wen Ying, dressed in light grey clothes, squatted on the roof of the temple, blending into the misty sky, looking down at the situation in the courtyard.
The old man in a dark blue hood was leaning on a cane, standing in front of the wooden cage, looking down.
There were two or three children imprisoned in the cages, their faces were numb, and they seemed to have already known their fate.
Longevity is one of them.
The other two were a boy and a girl. The boy was somewhat stunted, with a bigger head than the average child. The girl seemed a little cold, curled up in a corner, her cheeks cracked from the cold.
"Why are there so few? That gentleman wants five people." Qing Gen raised his eyebrows and glanced at Hongsuo beside him, his tone tired.
"He has to have us to get what he wants."
Hongsuo almost rolled his eyes to the sky, and said sarcastically: "You should ask our dear leader why he was overshadowed by a fledgling 'Chuyang God'."
"Besides, the world is so chaotic now, who wants to have a child? It's good enough to have one."
Qing Gen was unwilling to argue with him, and simply said, "Let's leave it at that for now. There is still some time. I will go to the believers to look for an opportunity."
"You talk as if you're the only one doing the work."
Hongsuo said this and left with Qinggeng.
Leaving a few children here? Are you so confident that no one will come and kidnap them?
No matter what, she still has to rescue Changsheng as soon as possible.
Wen Ying frowned, thought for a moment, then flew down from the roof and took out a wire from her hair to unlock the door.
Changsheng saw the light gray figure, his eyes slowly raised, his lips moved, and he whispered: "Who are you?"
"Your mother's friend." Wen Ying opened the lock in two or three moves. "Your mother asked me to save you."
Hearing this, Changsheng was obviously stunned, his eyes lit up as the cell door opened: "My mother is... okay?"
Changsheng would ask this question, most likely his mother had met with an accident.
Wen Ying didn't answer, but just said, "Let's go out first."
Then he turned his gaze to the other two children and asked, "Will you come with me?"
The girl didn't react and just hugged her legs.
The boy stood there in a daze, seemingly not understanding the situation yet.
Before Wen Ying could say something else, she heard footsteps coming back towards her!
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