Chapter 20
Hearing Gu Ran's question, Pei Liuniang felt relieved and her lips curled up slightly.
Is she caring about him?
"It's okay, I've always been like this."
Oh! Gu Ran didn't say anything.
Due to differences in physical constitution, some people's body temperature will be higher than ordinary people. I am afraid that Pei Liuniang is one of them.
Since it was a normal phenomenon, Gu Ran didn't care. He took off his cotton shoes, crossed his feet, and began to rub each other.
"Second Lady Gu."
"Hmm?" Gu Ran paused and had to stop.
"What are you moving about? Are you feeling uncomfortable?"
The voice that Gu Ran heard was filled with deep doubt.
"No, if I get cold, my feet are prone to... cold sores. I'm moving around to prevent it."
Pei Liuniang then stopped talking.
Gu Ran saw that Pei Liuniang didn't seem to want to stop him, so he continued to rub his feet. When he felt his toes getting warm, he stopped and slowly closed his eyes.
She was very tired after the day and had just eaten a full meal, so she fell asleep easily.
After hearing the steady breathing sound, Pei Liuniang turned her head slightly and looked at the sleeping face beside her. Her nose twitched habitually, and a hint of confusion flashed in her eyes. It was unknown what she was thinking. After a while, she slowly closed her eyes.
This night in the snow was actually the most comfortable night that Gu Ran had slept since he came to the Great Sheng Dynasty.
I opened my eyes and felt warm all over, and saw a sleeping face.
At some point, she leaned on Pei Liuniang's shoulder, and Pei Liuniang also leaned over unconsciously in her sleep. The two of them snuggled together to keep each other warm all night.
The face is like a lotus with closed eyes, sleeping soundly and not cold, with red lips and a beautiful nose, which is also very beautiful.
Gu Ran stared at Pei Liuniang's face for a while, and then he heard the voices of the officials outside the cave. He was hesitating whether to continue lying there and wait for Pei Liuniang to wake up, or wake her up now, when he met a pair of clear eyes.
"Awake, awake?" Gu Ran felt embarrassed. In order to cover up his loss of composure, he hurriedly moved his body away, and as a result, one of his arms hit the snow wall beside him.
"Yeah." Pei Liuniang responded softly, half sat up, grabbed the jacket and put it on, then climbed out nimbly.
Gu Ran rubbed his sore arm and immediately grabbed the cotton autumn sweater underneath and put it on.
The autumn coat still retained some warmth. When I put it on and climbed out of the snow cave, it was immediately blown away by the wind.
It's still very cold outside.
Gu Ran endured the cold wind and grabbed the cotton shoes beside the cave.
After drying overnight, the cotton shoes were finally dry, but they were still very cold and hard, with a thin layer of frost on the surface.
She patted the frost off the surface of her shoes, bent them a little, and then put them on.
After putting them on, I rubbed the soles of my feet back and forth for a while and only stopped when I felt comfortable.
After putting on his shoes, he saw Pei Liuniang still waiting there. Gu Ran took the knife stained with snow foam, walked to the cave entrance and returned it to Li Jieguan.
"Hey, Gu, your method is good and can be used." Li Si saw that it was her and said with a smile.
What method?
Gu Rancai saw an obvious snow cave on the snow on the other side of the cave. It was probably because Li Si and the officers on duty learned from her how to dig a cave to spend the night.
Gu Ran smiled and said nothing.
The able-bodied officials got up early, and then followed Li Jieguan to chop trees nearby to find branches, and made three simple wooden frames, intending to pull the seriously injured officials back to the post station soon.
As for the two who could still walk, they were given branches to make sticks and asked to follow slowly.
The injured officers were all in good spirits, and it didn't appear that any of them had become more ill due to their wounds.
It is estimated that firstly, the temperature is low in winter, the wound is not easy to get infected, and the bacterial activity is not high. Secondly, he received timely treatment after the injury. Li Jieguan disinfected the wound with wine and applied medicine. Finally, he ate well and slept well last night, so that the patient was in a cheerful mood and the further deterioration of his condition was prevented.
But since he was injured, he still had to go back to see a doctor and apply medicine and rest in time. So early this morning, in order to go back as soon as possible, Li Jieguan brought the officials to make these stretchers.
Not only the stretcher, but also the wolf skins that were peeled off from the five wolves that were eaten last night, which had been blown all night, were also what the officials planned to take back.
It was just because the wolf skins were from animals that were killed after being injured in a fight, so the skins were not complete. There were several cuts on one wolf skin caused by swords and knives. Some of the skins were not worth keeping because of too many cuts and messy knife edges, so they were thrown on the ground.
Gu Ran found a thin branch from the tree next to the cave, put it in his mouth and scraped his teeth with it, then grabbed a handful of snow from the tree and put it in his mouth to rinse his mouth.
After extinguishing the fire and tidying up, the three wounded were carried out of the cave and onto the wooden frame. Li Jieguan instructed Gu Ran and Pei Liuniang to take care of one wounded person each, and the ten people slowly set off towards the post station.
Fortunately, the ground was now covered with snow, which allowed the stretcher to slide, reducing the burden on the officers pulling the stretcher.
Gu Ran was looking after the seriously injured officer he was in charge of, walking with one foot deep and one foot shallow. Soon, his cotton shoes were stained with snow foam again.
The wolf meat I ate last night was digested after a night. I didn't eat anything for breakfast when I got up. My stomach was empty and I was so hungry that I felt dizzy.
We couldn't walk fast on the way back. In order to take care of two wounded people who had to walk, we could only walk and stop for a while.
Fortunately, halfway through their journey, they met a donkey cart that came to pick them up at the post station.
One of the lightly injured postmen was sent by Li Jieguan back to the post station to inform Tao Zhubu before Gu Ran and the others woke up.
When Tao Zhubu saw that Li Jieguan and others had not returned last night, he was very anxious. Just as he was about to send people to search, he met a postman who had returned injured to report the news. So he quickly sent two donkey carts to pick them up.
So for the second half of the journey, Gu Ran sat on a donkey cart and finally didn't have to wander around on the snow.
The people left behind at the post station had already heard about the wolf attack from the ones who had returned earlier. When Gu Ran and Pei Liuniang returned to the prison, Aunt Mai and her daughter shouted at them, "Second Aunt Gu, are you okay?"
"Sister Gu, did you really encounter a wolf?"
Mai Xiang was also very worried, with an uneasy expression. Before Gu Ran could reply, Aunt Mai looked him over and asked again, "Were you bitten?"
Gu Ran shook his head, "I'm fine."
"It's all right, it's all right."
Seeing that Gu Ran looked tired, Aunt Mai and her daughter breathed a sigh of relief after confirming it. Then they looked at Pei Liuniang and saw that she seemed to be safe and sound. They felt relieved and sat aside without disturbing them, allowing them to have a good rest.
Gu Ran, who returned to the prison safely, breathed a sigh of relief, sat on his bedding, hugged the fire basket and leaned against the wall, not wanting to talk at all.
The same thing happened when Pei Liuniang sat beside her.
From yesterday until now, after struggling in the snowy forest for so long and walking such a long way, when I returned to the post station, the energy I had was gone all at once. I just felt very tired all over and didn't want to do anything or think about anything.
After a while, the guard outside brought the officers in: "Gu, Pei Liuniang?"
"Yes, what's the matter, sir?"
"Master Li asked our kitchen to heat up some food, and your portion has been delivered."
As he spoke, the guard opened the door and the officer placed two meals at the prison entrance. Gu Ran and Pei Liuniang both walked to the door and brought in their own meals.
A serving of two white flour steamed buns and one dry steamed bun, a serving of multi-grain porridge, and a serving of pickles.
Compared to the barbecue last night, it was indeed simple, but compared to the usual prison meals, it was much better because the portions were larger and there were steamed buns made of white flour that we couldn’t usually eat. In addition to the pickles, everything was still hot.
It seems that they were attacked by wolves after being taken out yesterday, and Li Jieguan wanted to calm people down.
"Sir, we are very thirsty. Can you give us another bowl of hot water?" Gu Ran asked, trying to be more demanding.
She hadn't had any water in almost two days and her body was in dire need of hydration.
"There are many requests. Wait." Although the officer said this verbally and looked at her with disdain, he still agreed.
"Thank you, sir."
Gu Rancai didn't take it seriously. He sat back in his seat with his food. Pei Liuniang also sat next to him. Gu Ran didn't say anything. He first finished eating the two steamed buns, and then drank the bowl of multi-grain porridge with pickles.
As for the remaining dry steamed bun, save it for last and eat it slowly. If you can’t finish it, you can save it for the next meal.
The water brought up later was too hot, with white steam coming out. Gu Ran took a sip to test the temperature, but it was too hot. So he waited for a while, picked it up to blow on it, and drank it all in one gulp.
After his stomach was filled with food again, Gu Ran felt warm all over and finally felt much more comfortable.
Seeing that Gu Ran's complexion had improved, they waited for a while before Aunt Mai and her daughter came over again. "Can you lend us a fire basket so we can warm ourselves up?"
Gu Ran then looked at his fire basket and realized that he had not been back for a day and a night, but the charcoal in the fire basket was still burning. He then went to look at the broken charcoal gathered in the corner.
There was very little charcoal left from Mrs. Dou.
"We were afraid the charcoal fire would go out and it would be hard to find a new one. When you were here, Second Mother, I had to add more charcoal every day, so I helped you add more charcoal a few times. Don't worry!" Aunt Mai said with a smile, "It would be a waste if no one was using the fire basket after it was refilled, so I did it a few times too."
"Mom!" Mai Xiang called out again in a low, anxious voice.
Auntie, what a fool! The fire basket was not originally theirs. She felt a little guilty about Auntie using it without permission when Sister Gu was not around. And when she secretly turned over Sister Gu's charcoal to keep warm, she felt even more uneasy.
Now that A-niang is still talking so loudly, I’m really afraid that Sister Gu will be angry.
"Mrs. Gu, you don't mind, do you?"
Aunt Mai was also afraid that Gu Ran would get angry, but in such a cold day, the difference between roasting with and without a fire was too great, and she couldn't resist the temptation. Besides, even if she didn't roast, she was afraid that her daughter would get cold, so she quickly took out two cents while speaking, "I'll give you the money as usual!"
"I don't mind. Like you said, it's hard to relight the fire once it's out, and it's a waste if I relight it but don't roast anything." I just have to find a chance to steal some charcoal from the kitchen.
Gu Ran didn't want to get bogged down in such trivial matters, so he grabbed the copper coins from Aunt Mai's hand and put the fire basket on the ground. Aunt Mai pulled Mai Xiang and quickly surrounded them.
Mai Xiang glanced at Gu Ran cautiously, and seeing that she didn't look angry, she mustered up the courage to reach out her hand.
"It's really cold today. I'm afraid it's the coldest yet. You are still sleeping outside. It's really hard for you." Aunt Mai continued to ask in a familiar manner.
"Yeah." Gu Ran nodded.
"Well, I heard that Master Feng was killed by a wolf. Is this true?"
"It's true." Gu Ran said calmly, took off his cotton shoes and wet socks, and started to warm themselves next to the fire basket.
These cotton shoes get wet very easily on the snow. She only has this pair and has no rotation. She wore wet shoes yesterday and today. This is not good. She will easily get cold and damp feet, which will cause hypothermia of the feet, skin ulcers, cold pain and swelling.
"Aunt Mai, can you make shoes?"
"Yes, of course I can. I have been doing needlework for decades, so I can definitely make shoes," said Aunt Mai proudly.
Mai Xiang was listening on the side and asked, "Sister Gu, do you want to make shoes?"
"That's right." Gu Ran said, and looked at the shoes worn by Aunt Mai and Mai Xiang, and found that they were also cotton shoes, but they looked much thicker than his own cotton shoes.
Gu Ran glanced at their cotton shoes with envy, and when he saw Pei Liuniang's pair of wool felt boots, he became even more jealous.
In this women's prison, everyone has thick bedding except her; everyone has warm shoes except her.
Comparing yourself to others is really frustrating.
"Can you make me a pair of thick-soled boots that are easy to walk on snow?
"Forget about making boots. There's no fabric or leather. How are we going to make them?" Aunt Mai denied it, waved her hands, and shook her head three times.
"How about making another pair of cotton shoes? We can take turns wearing them." Mai Xiang suggested, "Mother, we still have some fabric. Can we make a pair of shoes for Sister Gu? I'll do it and I won't charge Sister Gu for the labor."
"Silly Xiangxiang, how can you not accept the money?"
Not accepting money? When did Xiangxiang become so stupid? Accepting money, of course I have to accept it.
Aunt Mai patted Mai Xiang on the head, then smiled at Gu Ran. "Second Aunt Gu, it's not impossible for me to make shoes for you, but you don't have any cloth, so I have to see if I have enough cloth first. And the soles have to be measured and re-sewn. How about this, a pair of thick-soled cotton shoes, all hand-made, for one tael of silver?"
“So expensive?”
"It depends on who made the shoes, where they were made, and when. Naturally, they are a little more expensive than ordinary shoes." Aunt Mai said confidently.
In this prison, she is the only family that knows how to sew and has extra fabrics. If Gu Er Niang is short of shoes, who else can she ask if not them?
Gu Ran was embarrassed and glanced at Aunt Mai. He was about to say something when Pei Liuniang came over and said, "I can do it."
Gu Ran was stunned, and Aunt Mai was also speechless. They all looked at her.
"I can sew and make shoes for you without charging you a penny." Pei Liuniang looked at Gu Ran and reiterated.
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