The storm is coming
The first gust of winter wind brought snow to Mingyue Mountain.
Mingyue Mountain doesn't usually snow, but it happened this year. Snow on a mountain makes the roads more difficult to navigate. There's only one way up and down the mountain, and venturing off the beaten path would be fatal. Fortunately, the so-called "bride price" from those trucks not only solved the immediate problem but also helped me stockpile a lot of useful supplies.
"Look at the snow, Sister Zi Yan won't be able to come in the next half month." Fei Chun teased Nie Qing.
Nie Qing was not happy to hear that. Her hope every day was to see Zi Yan as soon as possible. She carried her quiver and walked into the deep forest. She wanted to collect some mountain products while the snow was still light and store them for emergency use.
"Come back safely." Feichun buried her head in Nie Qing's furry collar and rubbed it. She was a head shorter than Nie Qing, so she just fit in her fur collar, which was also the position she was most used to and most comfortable in.
In fact, it is not necessary to go and get these mountain products, but Nie Qing can't stay still. She can't be idle before Zi Yan comes, and she will miss her when she is idle.
"Did you think of your husband the same way at that time?" she asked.
Feichun nodded and shook his head, tutted his words a few times, and said, "There is still a little difference. At that time, I thought he would never come back."
Nie Qing was silent for a while, nodded, took a sip of wine to warm himself up, gathered his courage, turned around and walked into the woods.
"Why don't you not go?" she called Nie Qing.
How could we take advantage of the snow when it wasn't heavy? The snow would cover the ground and the mountains all at once.
"Don't worry, it will be quick. Wait for me to catch a white fox and make you a cape as a gift!"
"Okay. I'll wait until you come back." Feichun didn't know what had happened to her recently. It was as if her heart had softened since Liu Qingbai came back. Her nose felt sore and tears suddenly fell. She quickly wiped her face and pretended nothing had happened. She said, "I'll stew the pheasant when you come back."
"Don't try to trick me into eating pheasant. I'm tired of it."
"Okay, then I'll wait for you to come back and eat something else. You can have some." As she said that, she watched Nie Qing's back as he walked slowly into the forest.
She believed she would be fine.
As soon as Nie Qing left, the mute servant began to stir. If Liu Qingbai hadn't stopped him, Feichun would have simply tied him up and tortured him, which would have yielded something. But Liu Qingbai insisted on luring the snake out of its hole, rather than laying out a long line to catch the big fish.
People who have read books are different. Whatever they say makes sense.
"I gave him false information." Looking at the mute servant sneaking down the mountain while avoiding the people in the village, Liu Qingbai explained to Feichun from the dark.
"He is Shen Ju'an's spy, can you trust him?"
"It is precisely because I am a government official that he believes me."
Liu Qingbai still felt a little guilty when he said this. In order to make the spy believe him, he even fabricated stories about how he had given himself to the bandits.
The dumb servant was not really dumb. He was able to get the truth out of him after just two or three sentences.
Who doesn’t like to hear strange stories like “raping men” and “sacrificing personal interests for the greater good”?
Feichun didn't even bother to expose his guilty conscience. For the sake of the village, his reputation had been ruined for more than a day or two.
“I didn’t say anything bad about you, I said Shen Juan forced me to do it.”
"Shut up."
Another hit on the forehead.
Just as the servant reached the entrance of the village, Helan Zhu happened to bump into him. The servant gestured that he wanted to go down the mountain to stock up on some things before the snow got too heavy.
A mute is always a good liar. He gestured nervously to make it seem as if no one understood him. Helan Zhu was also worried and said that he would follow him down the mountain to see what goods he was storing. He didn't want to take such a risk.
"Is he... okay?"
"Of course there's no problem." Helan Zhu came from Hanxiang County.
Liu Qingbai seemed to suddenly feel down after hearing the answer. He lowered his head to look at the muddy soil and his shoes, which were an inch taller than everyone else's. It was as if Feichun and Helanzhu had become the most trusted partners in the past five years, able to trust each other, and he didn't belong here.
"Everyone in the village is my companion, the one I trust the most."
Feichun was very sensitive to Liu Qingbai's emotions, and it seemed that trying to figure out his thoughts had become something she was accustomed to. It was tiring, but she also seemed to enjoy it, enjoying the fact that only she could understand Liu Qingbai's thoughts.
His fragility, his humility, and his despicable little thoughts.
"But...you are my love, my husband, the one closest to me."
She hugged her lover.
The wind and snow continued one after another.
It was a 1,800-li journey from Hanxiang County to Yueming County, and Zi Yan arrived with wind and snow.
She had actually come to the government office on some days, but she chose a snowy day like today to go. She was from Hanxiang County, and she believed that the snow would bless every Hanxiang County resident who went out.
The yamen door had been repainted with a coat of vermilion lacquer, a special order from Shen Ju'an. The dilapidated door, the lazy yamen runners, and his own frustration made him feel deeply uneasy.
The red door opened, and in the wind and snow, a tall woman in purple took off her straw hat and looked at the people in the court with a firm gaze.
For a moment, Shen Ju'an was also panicked, but he soon remembered who this was?
"Everyone knows that the proprietress of Tianxian Pavilion is extremely beautiful. Now I see that it is indeed true."
Yin Ziyan was too lazy to play along with him, so she found a stool and sat down. She asked, "How are you doing with what the Marquis asked you to do?"
Shen Ju'an immediately left the chair in the courtroom, offered the freshly brewed tea with both hands, bowed, and replied humbly: "We almost caught them last time at Tianfu Inn, but unfortunately they were rescued. However, they were injured and should not be able to run far. We will be arrested soon."
The tea bowl lid turned a circle, and the delicate jade hand lifted Shen Ju'an's chin. After all, there were traces of time, and it was not as "beautiful" as before.
"Then you have to hurry. The Marquis's patience is limited. If you had followed the Marquis back then, you wouldn't be a small county magistrate today. Unfortunately, some things are missed once they are missed."
Zi Yan stopped looking at him and lowered her head to take a few sips of tea. She thought that face wasn't much better.
"Yes, the young lady is right. I didn't appreciate your kindness back then, and now I regret it." As he spoke, a breath seemed to escape from his heart. He was numb and used to it.
This tea doesn't taste good. The tea leaves are moldy and the tea bowl has cracks. Zi Yan returned the tea bowl to Shen Ju'an, smiled vaguely, and then walked away.
"Sir, who is she?" As the master helped Lord Shen up, his eyes seemed to be attached to Zi Yan, watching her disappear into the vast expanse of white.
"The owner of Tianxian Pavilion, the one favored by the Marquis." He sighed deeply, not knowing how much helplessness and resentment were contained in this sigh, but it was all meaningless. He shook off the snow and dust on his clothes, called the master again, and ordered: "It's snowing, open the granary and give out some porridge."
Many days passed in a flash, and the day Nie Qing returned also happened to be the day Wu Rou went into labor. Everyone gathered outside the specially vacated delivery room, stretching their necks to worry about her.
Nie Qing pulled Feichun from the crowd to a corner and whispered, "There are outsiders in the forest, outsiders with weapons."
We can't alarm others about this matter right now. Wu Rou is still giving birth, so we can't let anything else happen.
"Let's take a few people and guard the entrance to the village first. With such heavy snow, I don't think there will be many soldiers. Besides, it's almost dawn, so we estimate that they won't take action until late at night."
Feichun and Nie Qing hit it off and immediately went ahead with it. But suddenly, a thought occurred to them: does this mean that something has happened to Helan Zhu?
She lowered her head and suddenly felt a little dizzy, but quickly forced herself to calm down.
"Have you forgotten? He came from the poor and remote areas of Hanxiang County." Liu Qingbai said, hugging Feichun from behind. At this moment, he did not feel jealous at all, he just did what a lover should do.
"There are still two baskets of vegetables, which I left for him to pick." He chuckled, looking particularly bright in the snow.
"That's not like you would say."
In the past, Liu Qingbai should be standing aside gloomily, clasping his hands and pouting in jealousy.
Today is indeed strange.
"It doesn't matter whether it's similar or not. What matters is that you need such words."
The east is getting brighter and the sun is rising.
The light was warm, falling on the two of them. Feichun shook his furry cloak, like a little white fox in the mountains shaking off the snow.
To put it clichédly, Feichun now deeply feels the charm of Mr. Zhang's erotic words back then, and gradually understands her mother's determination.
She used to feel sorry for her and resented her for a long time, but now she gradually hates her less.
Love is a wonderful thing, like the warm sun in winter that shines into every corner. Even a snowy mountain that has not melted for a thousand years will turn into a lush green mountain if it encounters a sun that never sets for a thousand years.
However, love is also fragile, something that shatters at the slightest touch. If you encounter a heartless person, you will plunge headfirst into the abyss, your true heart will be trampled upon, and in the end, even your body will be eaten clean.
In this world, I wonder whether there are more affectionate people or more heartless people?
She thought, there must be more heartless people, right? Otherwise, where would there be so many stories of infatuated men and resentful women? Otherwise, where would there be so many female ghosts trapped by love?
Fortunately, Feichun held Qingbai tightly.
"Fortunately, we are all compassionate people."
Although Liu Qingbai didn't understand why, love would make him respond and hold his bug tightly.
She closed her eyes, feeling the sun's glare on the white earth. This was a very precious person, and also a very precious moment.
Perhaps at this moment, she was thinking of her mother, the other woman in the brothel, Concubine Yun, Madam Qin, Miss Liu, Concubine Fan... She was thinking of that small, square house, that filthy brothel, and the days when she had been hiding from place to place...
She hugged Qingbai a little tighter.
"If we survive this winter, when spring comes, shall we go visit the places in your travelogue?"
"good."
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