Chapter 32
◎A useless man.◎
When Ci Ying said goodbye to Wang Chuyu, the little girl burst into tears. Ci Ying picked up a handkerchief and wiped the tears from her face. She said softly, "Chuyu, parting is a long lesson. The Master believes that this time cannot be counted. There is a long time to come. Chuyu, grow up well, and we will meet again."
Wang Chuyu's tears were falling like beans, and he opened his eyes wide. "Master, can't you not leave? If there are any problems with salary or anything else, I will go and beg Daddy, Master, not to leave."
Wang Chuyu threw herself into Ciying's arms and was hugged by her. Ciying stroked the little girl's head and said with a chuckle, "It's not about the salary, nor is it about any trouble I've encountered."
"What is that?" Wang Chuyu raised his head, tears flashing in his eyes.
Ci Ying picked up a scroll from the side. On it was a sentence that read, "Travel Ten Thousand Miles." She touched the little girl's face and said gently, "Chu Yu, do you know Yan Zi?"
Wang Chuyu nodded with red eyes, not knowing how this was related to Ciying's departure.
Facing the young girl's naive, questioning gaze, Ci Ying offered her a final lesson: "Most swallows migrate, stopping in different places throughout the seasons. When I was little, I wished I were a swallow. A swallow's stay is brief; its freedom lies in its flight."
"The scenery in Jiangnan is beautiful, and the people I met here are all very kind. I met Chu Yu, and walking through the streets and alleys of Jiangnan has inspired me, but I still feel it's not enough. I need to go further down, to more remote places. There are always places in this world that we should visit."
Wang Chuyu asked softly, "So, do I want to go and see it in the future?"
Ci Ying pinched the little girl's fair face and said with a smile, "Master, I don't know. I have to see Chu Yu."
Wang Chuyu held Ciying's hand and said, "Master, please wait for a moment."
After a while, Wang Chuyu came over with a small jade Buddha and carefully handed it to Ciying: "Daddy said that the outside world is very chaotic. I want to give my amulet to you, Master. I hope you can accept it."
Ci Ying wanted to decline, but Wang Chuyu said seriously, "Master, you are all alone and going on a long journey. I cannot accompany you. I only ask that this jade Buddha accompany you on my behalf and protect you a little."
After finishing his neat words, Wang Chuyu opened his eyes wide and said, "I am in Jiangnan, and my father will protect me. The teacher once told me that my father loves me. I understand, so please accept it."
The little girl leaned over and wrapped the jade Buddha around Ciying's wrist, along with the plain silver bracelet. Ciying uttered a hoarse voice, and finally said "thank you".
After bidding farewell to Wang Chuyu, Ci Ying visited the governor's wife and asked about the jade Buddha. Only after hearing that it was not a valuable item did she feel at ease to accept it.
After everything was taken care of, Ci Ying secretly waited for the day to go on a boat trip with Li Sheng. This was also the day she deliberately chose to escape.
Zhu Guang probably had no more missions to perform, so Ci Ying came to look for her every day. She needed to use the person Zhu Guang had deceived Xie Huaijin to buy herself a chance to escape, so she naturally did not expose Zhu Guang.
People were coming and going on the street, and Ci Ying was patronizing Tofu Xishi's stall as usual. The lecher that Zhu Guang helped to chase away last time was at Tofu Xishi's stall.
Tofu Xishi was very happy to see Ci Ying and Zhu Guang. She took out two pairs of pearl earrings from a small box. The two pairs of earrings were wrapped in a clean handkerchief. Tofu Xishi first spread out the handkerchief to reveal the earrings inside, and then handed them to the two men.
She smiled, not giving Ci Ying and Zhu Guang a chance to refuse. "I was fortunate to have the two young ladies help me last time. This is a pendant made of pearls I dug from clams myself. It's certainly not as good as the ones you ladies usually use, but it's a token of my gratitude. I hope you two young ladies will accept it."
Ci Ying and Zhu Guang both declined after taking a look at each other, but they could not resist Xi Shi's enthusiasm and were even stuffed with a few pieces of tofu. Ci Ying secretly wrapped some silver and money in a handkerchief and put it in the wooden box. When she looked up, she saw that there was already a package inside, which must have been given by Zhu Guang.
This made Ci Ying feel a little complicated. While Tofu Xishi was busy, she hid the two bags of silver and turned around to leave with Zhu Guang. On the way, Zhu Guang looked at the earrings in his hand curiously, and Ci Ying realized that Zhu Guang had no pierced ears.
Zhu Guang has a pair of bright eyes and looks about the same age as Ci Ying.
Ci Ying had never asked, and thought that he might be younger than her.
Zhu Guang murmured softly from the side: "What beautiful pearl earrings! This is the first time I've received a gift. What a pity..."
Ci Ying completed it for him, but unfortunately there were no ear holes.
Ci Ying wanted to pretend she didn't hear, but after sighing inwardly, she turned around and took Zhu Guang's hand. In the sunlight, the girl looked gentle. She raised her eyes and touched Zhu Guang's ear: "If you don't mind, I can help you pierce your ears."
After saying that, Ci Ying subconsciously added, "It doesn't hurt. I've been beaten before, and they all said it didn't hurt."
Zhu Guang was stunned for a moment, then curved his eyes and said, "Okay!"
Inside the house, Zhu Guang looked at Ci Ying. The girl held a grain of rice in her hand and rubbed it gently and attentively under her ear bone. Apart from a slight itch, she didn't feel anything. As she rubbed the flesh on Zhu Guang's ear, it gradually became numb. The girl coaxed him softly, "It doesn't hurt. Don't be afraid..."
In an instant, the silver needle, which had been heated by candlelight, was inserted into the flesh, and soon the needle and thread soaked in sesame oil were passed through and tied into a knot, and the same thing happened on the other side.
After it was over, Ci Ying smiled and asked her, "It's over. Doesn't it hurt anymore?"
Zhu Guang blinked and said in a lower voice than usual: "It doesn't hurt."
In the past... she was captured by the young master's enemies and was tortured a lot. She didn't feel any pain when a piece of flesh on her leg was cut off. How could it be possible... that she felt pain because of the holes pierced by the two silver needles?
As far as she could remember, it seemed like the first time someone asked her if it hurt.
Zhu Guang didn't feel any pain, but just felt something astringent, which made her smile more and more.
Ci Ying, who was packing up her things, was still chattering, "I said it didn't hurt. They all said it didn't hurt before. You'll need to apply some herbal ointment to prevent inflammation. I'll ask the court doctor to send it to you later..."
After Ci Ying left, Zhu Guang looked at her ear piercings in the bronze mirror. The needle and thread were still tied. She reached out and touched it, then looked in the direction Ci Ying left.
......
When Li Sheng said goodbye to Wang Chuyu, Wang Chuyu groaned and started to cry again. Li Sheng was amused and did not try to comfort the little girl like Ci Ying did. He just said, "Miss, we will meet again in the future."
Then he lowered his voice and said, "I heard that you gave Ciying a jade Buddha. What about me, your master?"
It was full of teasing, and it really made Wang Chuyu feel less sad.
The little girl's eyes widened. She angrily took out a silver shop token from the box and handed it over angrily: "This is for Master Li."
Li Sheng quickly pushed it away. It was just a joke, and there was no way he could really accept money from a little girl. He waved the tattered fan and said, "The fortune teller said I'm not destined to be rich. Miss, keep it for yourself and buy yourself a couple of nice pieces of jewelry."
As he spoke, Li Sheng took out a book from his arms and said, "I don't have anything special to give you, Chu Yu. This is the book that the Master likes to read most at your age, so I'm giving it to you now."
Li Sheng patted the little girl's head and said softly, "Chu Yu, you don't have to be so obedient in your life and work. It's okay to be a little willful or foolish. Many things change overnight and are unpredictable. Don't live up to anyone's expectations, even if that person is your father."
"Okay." Li Sheng coughed twice and said softly, "Chu Yu, goodbye."
Wang Chuyu started crying again, even harder than last time. She was more afraid of not seeing Li Sheng than Ci Ying. After all, this teacher didn't seem like he would live long from the first time they met. Wang Chuyu cried "Pfft, pfft," but finally said, "Goodbye, Master."
She imitated Ci Ying's words and said, "There's a long way to go. Master, take good care of yourself. When I become the top scorer in the imperial examination, I hope both of you can come to my celebration party."
Well, Mr. Li laughed dumbly, knowing that the little girl didn't listen to what he said at all.
But this is indeed the only way, maybe.
Perhaps this seemingly wrong path, nurtured by love, can also bloom beautiful flowers.
Mr. Li left coughing.
......
The day before Ci Ying was going on a boat trip with Li Sheng, Xie Huaijin came to visit her, a rare occasion.
That was the first time they met since Ciying recovered from her illness.
“Boom.”
“Boom.”
“Boom.”
After three very regular knocks, Ci Ying knew who was outside the door without even opening it.
She didn't want to open the door, so she stayed in the study and pretended not to hear.
There was no more knocking on the door. Ci Ying was reading a book. At first, she glanced outside, but then she forgot about it. Occasionally, when she was turning the pages of a book, she heard the knocking sound and thought that Xie Huaijin had left.
When the sun set, Ci Ying opened the door and found the young man sitting on a stone bench in the yard, quietly playing chess with himself. Hearing the sound of the door opening, he slowly looked over.
Ci Ying didn't want to find an excuse. With a cold face, she stood up and walked past Xie Huaijin.
In the past, I probably didn’t dare to say goodbye to Ying.
But now, Ciying felt that there was nothing she dared not do.
Xie Huaijin didn't stop her. He looked at the girl's angry back and smiled, which was a rare occurrence.
He turned back to look at the chess pieces on the table. Black was in a dominant position, so he gently pushed one aside, freeing the white piece. Ci Ying didn't return until the sun had set. Seeing Xie Huaijin still there, she frowned silently. Turning around and leaving would have been too much of a stretch. She tried to go straight into the study, but was stopped.
The young man's voice was gentle yet helpless: "Ciying, stop being so irritable and come over to watch this game of chess."
Ci Ying lowered her eyes, thinking it over, and finally walked over. She was going to run away tomorrow, and she didn't want to be exposed today. What she had just done was enough. If she continued to be stubborn, Xie Huaijin would probably become suspicious.
When it comes to others, Ci Ying doesn't have to be so calculating, but Xie Huaijin...
If Ciying wanted to run away, she had to carefully consider every sentence and even every word.
Ci Ying glanced at the chessboard, then settled down to study it carefully. After a moment, she frowned, found a black piece on the stone table nearby, and added it to the chessboard, saying softly, "It must have been blown off by the wind."
Xie Huaijin looked at the place where the piece had been restored, which was exactly the place where he had raised his hand to move it away.
The young man's eyes softened a little. He raised his hand to take away the black piece and said slowly, "No, this is how the game is. Ciying, do you think the black piece will win or the white piece will win if the game continues?"
Ci Ying stared at that spot unconsciously, and shook her head after a while.
She didn't know. She reached out and picked up seven or eight black pieces in a row, and said to the new chessboard: "If that's the case, I think it's the black piece."
The girl put the chess pieces back one by one. After careful consideration, she said, "If that's the case, I think it might be the white piece."
The black piece can strangle the white piece directly but leaves a gap, which means it does not want to encircle the black piece.
White is not afraid of not letting the black player take advantage of the black's loopholes and at least draw the game. A draw and a win are both wins for White in this situation.
If those black pieces are removed, the black pieces' advantage will be reduced to only half, and the black pieces will have a greater chance of winning, because the whole game is clearly led by the black pieces.
Ci Ying took the black piece and finally put it back to where she had placed it at the beginning. After taking a look, she flipped over all the chess pieces. She didn't want to play this kind of chess with Xie Huaijin at all, where the outcome was decided from the beginning like them.
The chess pieces fell onto the young man's clothes, tinkling and clattering all over the floor. Ci Ying didn't want to look at Xie Huaijin's face anymore, so she stood up to leave. She heard Xie Huaijin say, "Are you going on a boat trip with Mr. Li tomorrow?"
Ci Ying's heart tightened, fearing that Xie Huaijin had discovered something.
Fortunately, Xie Huaijin only said, "The wind on the lake is cold, Master Li is not feeling well, please be careful."
......
Ciying didn't understand.
Why did Xie Huaijin still care about Li Sheng? She carefully responded: "Okay, I will take good care of him."
After saying that, the girl closed the door from the inside.
...The young man's low voice came from outside the door: "That's not what I meant."
But the voice was too soft, perhaps Xie Huaijin himself didn't hear it. He looked in the direction of the door, not knowing what he was thinking, and laughed softly.
But the smile was only a shallow one, covering his face. The emotion in his lowered eyes was cold and indifferent. A chess piece had fallen into his sleeve at some point, and as the young man stood up, the sound of the chess piece dripped like rain falling from the eaves on a cloudy day.
When the young man was walking through a corridor in the Governor's Mansion Garden, Mo Yu appeared like a ghost. The young man stopped and looked at the withered lotus in the pond.
The lotus seeds in the lotus pod have turned black and are hanging down heavily with the lotus pod head. The lotus leaves have also turned red, and they look particularly withered and yellow compared to the colorful flowers in the yard.
Mo Yu whispered, "Yuwen Fu has found the military token and is about to take action. Sir, do you want to send someone to stop him?"
Xie Huaijin looked at the withered lotus leaves in the pond and chuckled, "Mo Yu, what do you think?"
Mo Yu said in a cold voice: "Kill them all."
The young man looked at Mo Yu in surprise, and the smile on his face became more genuine: "Did Zhu San make you angry?"
Mo Yu shook his head, then nodded.
Xie Huaijin said gently: "Even if I make you angry, just bear with it for now. You picked it up in the first place."
Mo Yu said nothing.
At the top of the mountain, he asked his father, "How many sons are left in the world of human desire?"
My father said he had one son left, but in fact he had two.
There was also a little girl who was hidden by Mo Yu in a wild beast's cave and escaped the bloody purge. It was not until Mo Yu knelt before him and told him the story that he went to the cave with Mo Yu. By then, the little girl had been alone with the tiger's corpse for half a month.
Mo Yu smeared the tiger's smelly and sticky blood all over her body. When they went there, the little girl was biting the dead body, and her whole body except for her eyes was blood red.
When he heard the sound, his eyes looked over clearly.
That is Candle Three.
......
The next day.
Ci Ying woke up at dawn, thinking about her plan for the day: first, she'd find a way to get rid of Zhu Guang and then escape. She hadn't planned a route in advance, figuring that whatever she'd thought of, Xie Huaijin might have thought of it too. She had a final destination in mind, so everything in between was improvisation.
She naturally knew that it was not very thorough, but after escaping several times, she vaguely realized that the more thorough her plan was, the more likely it was that Xie Huaijin would see through it.
Ciying wants to take a gamble.
She didn't have time to think. If she didn't run now, she would be unable to run away when she returned to Chang'an.
Ci Ying rested in bed until she got up on her usual day. She washed and dressed as usual, thought for a moment, and put on the pair of pearl earrings given to her by Tofu Xishi. The pearls were crystal white, and Ci Ying's face was a similar color, like light snow, with a hint of light red.
Ci Ying took some powder to cover her face, took out a set of clothes she had never worn from the bottom of the closet, and then found a set of clothes she often wore from the inside of the closet to put on.
She opened the door only after everything was tidied. The sun was shining brightly today and it wasn't raining. Ciying's heart was beating slightly.
When leaving the house with Li Sheng, Ci Ying inexplicably remembered Xie Huaijin's "instructions". She looked at Li Sheng, who was holding a tattered fan, and asked with concern, "How is your illness lately?"
Li Sheng shook his head: "Same old cough...can't be cured."
Ci Ying frowned: "You told me last time that the doctor said there is no cure."
"It's a disease I had in the womb. I've consulted many doctors, and they all say it's nothing serious. I'm used to it. Thank you for your concern, young lady."
Ci Ying sighed lightly, knowing that there was nothing she could do.
After a while, the carriage stopped at Yubaofang.
Mr. Li took a long time to choose a fan, but Ci Ying did not get impatient. She just waited quietly for Mr. Li to choose. She remembered the first time she met Mr. Li, and she even suspected that Mr. Li was sent by Xie Huaijin.
Now it is time to say goodbye to Li Sheng. What I said to Wang Chusheng was somewhat comforting. The world is so big, when will we meet again?
Mr. Li finally made his choice and Ciying went up to pay.
The fan that Mr. Li chose was very expensive, but the girl didn't seem to mind at all. She took out three large silver bills from her bosom and handed them to the shop owner. She lowered her head to look at the jade pendant hanging under the fan. It was a gentle green jade, the color of a mountain.
Ci Ying whispered, "Be safe."
Li Sheng looked up at Ci Ying and shook his new fan: "Thank you for the money."
Ci Ying was good-tempered and didn't mind. She looked around and picked out a bracelet. After paying, she said, "No problem."
The smile on Li Sheng's face froze. The person in front of him had three words written all over his body: "I have money." Li Sheng smiled and walked behind Ci Ying with the courtesy of a gentleman.
Ciying seemed so engrossed in the new object in her hand that she didn't even notice there was someone in front of her when she walked down the stairs.
When the girl looked up and saw the person she was about to bump into, she subconsciously turned her head but twisted her ankle on the steps and was about to fall. Li Sheng wanted to help her but it was too late. The corner of the girl's clothes brushed past his fingertips. Before he could say "Ci Ying", an apricot-colored figure caught Ci Ying faster than he did.
It's Zhu Guang
Zhu Guang held Ci Ying and sat down. He stretched out his hand to press Ci Ying's feet. Ci Ying cried out in pain. Zhu Guang frowned and said, "Shall we go back home?"
Ci Ying whispered, "But I want to go on a boat trip. It took me many days to book a boat. I heard the scenery along the way is very beautiful. In a few days I will..."
The words "I'm leaving Jiangnan" were not spoken, but the meaning was very clear.
Ci Ying helped Zhu Guang stand up, taking a deep breath and saying, "It doesn't hurt too much. Let's go to the boat first."
Li Sheng's eyes dropped for a moment, then he stepped forward to support Ci Ying. Under normal circumstances, Zhu Guang would have glared at him, but now he simply said to Li Sheng, "Take good care of Ci Ying. I'll go buy some medicine. You guys get on the boat first, I'll be right back."
After saying this, Zhu Guang left in a hurry.
Ci Ying whispered, "Get on the boat, quickly."
Li Sheng helped Ci Ying onto the boat. The moment the curtain was lifted, Ci Ying began to take off her outer layer of clothes. Li Sheng quickly closed his eyes and did not make a sound to disturb Ci Ying.
Just as Mr. Li was pondering Ciying's plan, he heard Ciying quickly say, "I'm sorry, I might have to cancel the boat trip I promised you. I can't say much to you. If anyone asks you about my whereabouts in the future, just tell them the truth. Mr. Li, it's nice to meet you as a friend."
After saying that, the boat outside was sailing through a shady grove of trees. Ci Ying took one last look at Li Sheng, lifted the boat curtain, turned around and jumped into the water. Li Sheng looked at the girl who wanted to go with the water like a fish, turned around and followed her.
Ci Ying looked at Li Sheng hesitantly, but had no time to think about it. She took Li Sheng's hand and swam towards the deeper water.
They reached a forest and two people emerged. Ci Ying asked in a low voice, "Why did you jump down?"
Li Sheng sighed and said, "How could Master Xie let me go?"
Ci Ying's eyes grew more serious. This name almost confirmed her previous suspicions about Li Sheng.
Mr. Li couldn't explain it clearly in a few words, so he just coughed and said, "Ciying, believe me."
Ci Ying frowned and pulled him to run somewhere until they reached a shady cave. She threw a set of clean clothes to Li Sheng and said, "I need to leave today."
Mr. Li did not deny that once Ciying was discovered missing, it was only a matter of time before the cave was found.
Ci Ying stared at Li Sheng, and after a while, she said, "Xie Huaijin won't hold you accountable for my affairs."
Li Sheng coughed twice and put on his dry clothes directly: "There are some other things between me and the Xie family. I'm afraid that..."
Before he could finish, he coughed again. Ci Ying pondered for a moment and said, "Well, Mr. Li, my destination is in the west. You choose a route for us to escape."
Xie Huaijin could guess her thoughts, but what about Li Sheng?
Compared to her choice of path, Mr. Li’s choice might be more difficult to predict.
Ci Ying detailed several routes; she had researched everything using the topographical map these days. The girl looked at Li Sheng intently, and Li Sheng pointed earnestly at one spot.
Ciying looked doubtful, but she only said, "Okay."
Li Sheng chose a road that looked the most dangerous, with wild beasts and bandits rampant, which was the one Ci Ying had ruled out from the beginning.
As they were on their way, Li Sheng explained, "Master Xie would never have thought that a sickly man and a weak woman like us would take such a journey."
Ci Ying frowned, but didn't stop: "We have to survive first."
Soldiers were already rushing to search outside. Li Sheng put his arm around Ci Ying's shoulders and pretended to tidy her hair: "Trust me."
Ci Ying looked at Li Sheng, took the hand that Li Sheng handed over, and walked into the depths of the forest.
Li Sheng explained, "The beasts here won't hurt anyone unless you disturb them. The governor sent troops to suppress the bandits this month, and they've been quite effective. I've hired some people to hide in the mountains and forests, ready to take action when necessary."
Ci Ying digested the information and understood what Li Sheng meant.
The accumulation of these things seems too deliberate to be a way of escape.
She felt relieved a little and for a moment she didn't notice how close the two of them were. She looked hesitantly at the surrounding mountains and forests, and the occasional sound of birds flying made her tremble with fear.
A day later, the two of them had reached the center of the forest. Ci Ying looked at the leaves on the trees to determine the direction. Li Sheng leaned against a tree, coughing, and said with a smile, "Why don't we stop and rest for a while? It's so quiet here, without even the sound of birds."
Ci Ying paused as she held Ye Zi's hand, feeling a bad premonition.
It's so quiet around here.
wrong......
In an instant, Ci Ying pulled Li Sheng to avoid a cold light, and an arrow shot at their feet.
A group of people dressed as bandits appeared in front of them: "Hahahaha, you actually dodged it. Liu Mazi, are you any good? You couldn't even hit me from such a close distance."
The person who spoke looked at Ci Ying with a lecherous expression: "I thought those people were guarding the forest like they were guarding some treasure, but it turns out it's the young lady, tsk..."
Ci Ying looked at Li Sheng and signaled with her eyes: "Where are your people?"
Li Sheng's eyes became serious. He seemed...
Ci Ying sighed in her heart, she knew that Mr. Li was unreliable!
She looked at the bandits and tried to negotiate: "We have no intention of intruding into your territory. We apologize for any disturbance. We can give you whatever you want, but we were chased here. If we cause you to be implicated..."
Ci Ying understood that it was no exaggeration to say that she and Li Sheng were powerless, and the only way out in the current situation was to lower their posture.
The bandit leader became interested: "The young lady is being hunted by her enemies, hahahahaha, is it a debt of love?"
Hearing this, the surrounding bandits laughed together.
Ci Ying tried her best to remain calm and avoid any significant changes in her expression. "Yes... I, I eloped with him, and my husband hunted me down. He was a powerful man, and he couldn't bear the humiliation, so he followed me all the way."
The bandits listened with great interest, and Li Sheng was so scared that he coughed twice.
【Author’s words】
Useless man [sunglasses]
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