Chapter Thirty-Seven: Sunrise Like a Pancake
It was getting late, so it was inconvenient to travel. Therefore, Shen Zhiyi and her group stayed at the village chief's house. Looking at the guest room that had been specially prepared, Lu Jingbai and Shen Zhiyi got into a back-and-forth struggle over whether or not to stay there.
Finally, Shen Zhiyi was so tired that she couldn't stand it anymore. Her words of politeness seemed particularly irritating at this moment, and she couldn't help but say, "Lord Lu, you should sleep in the guest room. Da Ya and I can squeeze in with Aunt Chen and we won't get cold."
After saying this, Shen Zhiyi walked towards another house and waved to Lu Jingbai.
Lu Jingbai, who remained where he was, was slightly taken aback. When he saw the outstretched and waving five fingers, he suddenly understood something, and his expression became complicated.
Why did Miss Shen ask to meet me at dawn?
He thought to himself silently.
"Young Master?" Xuan Yan called softly, and seeing that Lu Jingbai had come back to his senses, he added, "It's time to rest."
Lu Jingbai nodded with a straight face and then headed towards the houses in the opposite direction.
The reason for resting at sunset is that eyesight deteriorates at night, so one must rest early.
Shen Zhiyi was sleeping relatively soundly, but with Zhao Daya tossing and turning beside her, her sleep became erratic until she heard a slightly loud gurgling sound, at which point she realized what was going on.
Aunt Chen over there had already fallen asleep, so as not to disturb her sleep, Shen Zhiyi said softly, "Hungry? Want some more of the pickled cabbage pancakes your dad gave you?"
"I'm done eating," Zhao Daya replied in a muffled voice.
Shen Zhiyi didn't ask why she didn't eat more during the meal. After all, seeing that the Chen family looked pale and thin, she had no right to compete with them for food. She ate only until she was about half full.
Unexpectedly, Zhao Daya, who usually has a big appetite, ate even less than her. It must have been her limit to wait until now to complain of hunger.
"Then go to sleep quickly, you won't be hungry when you're asleep," Shen Zhiyi said helplessly.
"Mmm," Zhao Daya replied in a low voice, turning over and trying her best to fall asleep, but her stomach felt like it was on fire, and she eventually drifted off to sleep.
As dawn broke and the first light of day began to break, Zhao Daya sat up abruptly. The noise quickly disturbed Shen Zhiyi, who couldn't help but ask, "Up so early?"
“I couldn’t fall asleep,” Zhao Daya replied, and started putting on her shoes and walking outside.
Startled, Shen Zhiyi immediately snapped out of her daze, grabbed the person's arm, and asked in a low voice, "Where are you going?"
"Go and ambush the rabbit," Zhao Daya said in a hoarse voice.
Shen Zhiyi was taken aback and asked, "Where did this rabbit come from?"
"Come with me, and you'll see." Zhao Daya didn't bother to explain further, and casually took Shen Zhiyi's shoes. "Hurry up and put them on, let's go together."
The invitation came rather abruptly, but Shen Zhiyi deftly took the shoes, put them on, and followed Shen Daya out of the house quietly, making it seem as if they were acting furtively.
As she opened the door and stepped outside, she was surprised to find herself facing Lu Jingbai, who was opening his door across the room. Shen Zhiyi immediately straightened her back and said in a pretentious manner, "Lord Lu, what a coincidence! Are you up so early to watch the sunrise?"
For some reason, she subconsciously used the word "dignity" to mask her true intentions for going out.
"Huh? What sunrise? We're not going to catch rabbits..." Zhao Daya said, recalling a similar conversation she'd witnessed at the Lin family's house, and continued, "Yes, we're planning to watch the sunrise."
Then Zhao Daya looked at Lu Jingbai with a more scrutinizing gaze and asked, "Lord Lu, would you like to come with us?"
Shen Zhiyi looked at Zhao Daya in surprise. She was thinking of slipping away after saying those words!
“Okay,” Lu Jingbai replied.
To my surprise, Lord Lu actually agreed!
Shen Zhiyi was surprised for a moment, then turned her head to look at Zhao Daya, as if asking her something with her eyes.
Zhao Daya, however, looked very confident and said to Shen Zhiyi in a very soft voice, "Leave it to me."
Upon hearing this, Shen Zhiyi became even more puzzled, but Zhao Daya pulled her away, during which she could hear the other woman calling softly behind her, "Magistrate, you should follow quickly."
Even his tone of voice became lighter, which was truly unpredictable.
Shen Zhiyi was pulled along in front, and when she glanced at Lu Jingbai and Xuan Yan who were obediently following behind, she lowered her voice and said, "Aren't we supposed to be catching rabbits?"
"I'll catch rabbits, and you guys watch the sunrise," Zhao Daya said mysteriously.
With Zhao Daya's smug "help," Shen Zhiyi and Lu Jingbai climbed the back mountain together.
When she saw the river not far away, she suddenly realized that Daya was not nonsensical, but had great wisdom!
“Lord Lu, the water in Shunshui Village is actually borrowed from this river. If we could find a way to divert the river water over that mountain, it would bring a lot of convenience to their lives,” Shen Zhiyi said earnestly.
“What Miss Shen said is exactly what I understand. This involves carving through mountains and digging canals, which is really a waste of resources and manpower. Not to mention the national treasury, just the county government alone…” Lu Jingbai paused here, then said, “I have said too much. Please don’t take it to heart, Miss Shen.”
"I didn't expect this," Shen Zhiyi said with a look of regret.
Lu Jingbai seemed unable to bear seeing Shen Zhiyi's disappointed expression and was about to say something to comfort her when she quickly changed her mind and said, "Is there a way without chiseling the mountain?"
Looking into those expectant eyes, Lu Jingbai felt a strange sensation. His memories of searching through various books for the water source of Shunshui Village seemed to vanish instantly. He then said, "I'll go back and look through the books again to see if there are any other records."
Shen Zhiyi's eyes lit up. Although she couldn't place all her hopes on the classics, at least there was another path she could try.
At the same time, she was thinking about where the original inspiration for the waterwheel came from, and she needed to think about it quickly and find another opportunity to replicate it.
“This is definitely a rabbit hole! Brother Xuan, you stay here and keep watch, I’ll look for others.” Zhao Daya’s confident voice rang out from not far away, and Shen Zhiyi looked up and saw her running energetically through the woods.
"I'll go help stop the rabbit," Shen Zhiyi said, turning and walking in that direction.
"Miss Chen," Lu Jingbai called out.
Shen Zhiyi stopped and asked, "What is it?"
Lu Jingbai's fair face seemed to be bathed in the morning light, even the tips of his ears were flushed red, as he said, "The sun is about to rise."
"Hmm?" Shen Zhiyi responded subconsciously, immediately realizing that the other party was treating the previous invitation to "watch the sunrise" as a serious matter.
If we refuse, Lord Lu will surely be very disappointed.
Thinking of this, Shen Zhiyi couldn't bear to refuse. A soft feeling welled up in her heart that she hadn't even realized she had. She said, "Didn't we agree to watch the sunrise together?"
They didn't want to delve into whether the sunrise was meant for four or two people, and consciously stood side by side, watching the gradually clearing horizon reflected a variety of colors—colors that only the eye could perceive.
Shen Zhiyi hasn't seen the sunrise in a long time. In the past, she buried herself in her studies and research for her work. On her days off, all she wanted to do was sleep until the end of time.
In the hustle and bustle of life, we take for granted the charm of nature.
At this moment, Lu Jingbai felt a long-lost poetic inspiration. He had just started to speak when Zhao Daya's voice came first: "Wow, it looks like a pancake."
"Still a golden-brown meat pie!" Shen Zhiyi chimed in. "Right, Lord Lu?"
In an instant, Lu Jingbai's poetic impulse subsided, and he followed the conversation, saying, "It is indeed very similar."
Xuan Yan, standing to the side, was incredulous. Although his young master had written several poems out of frustration after being demoted to the position of county magistrate, he still possessed the necessary poetic talent. How could he say such a thing?
The sunrise... looks like a pancake?
Xuan Yan glanced at the horizon without making it obvious, and muttered to himself.
Under the sunlight that made them look like meat patties, Shen Zhiyi led Lu Jingbai over to help block up the rabbit's burrow, while Zhao Daya shouted from the other side, "I'm covered in smoke!"
“I know!” Shen Zhiyi replied.
Perhaps because she was speaking too loudly, Shen Zhiyi noticed Lu Jingbai looking over from not far away and returned his gaze with an embarrassed smile.
Lu Jingbai immediately looked away.
Just then, Shen Zhiyi's eyes widened slightly as she saw a white ball rush out from in front of Lu Jingbai. She lowered her voice and warned, "Rabbit!"
Lu Jingbai was stunned. His brain, which was in a state of confusion, was about to ask, "Where did the rabbit come from?" Unexpectedly, he saw something pounce out of the corner of his eye. Almost instinctively, he reached out to grab it, and his palm was instantly warm. A white rabbit landed in his hand.
"Lord Lu, you're amazing! You managed to catch it with your bare hands!" Shen Zhiyi praised without reservation. "Lord Lu, there's even a rabbit!"
Upon hearing this, Lu Jingbai mustered the same spirit he had when he took the imperial examination. Whenever a shadow appeared, he would leap into the air to grab it. He continued until he finally managed to restrain three rabbits with his arm. If there were any more rabbits, he would be too exhausted to catch them.
"I have one here too!" Shen Zhiyi exclaimed, just about to catch a big rabbit, but it turned out to be a small one.
Xuan Yan walked over, carrying three rabbits in his hands.
Only after comparison can one realize how nimble and graceful Xuan Yan's movements are.
"Did you catch them all?" Zhao Daya ran over and asked, seeing that they all had rabbits in their hands. "We can eat as much as we want today!"
Shen Zhiyi quickly checked and found that one of the female rabbits was pregnant. After discussing it, she released the rabbit and its baby rabbits and then led the five adult rabbits back to the village.
As the group walked along a gentle slope, Zhao Daya suddenly looked over at Shen Zhiyi and blinked awkwardly. Before she could figure out what was going on, she heard an exaggerated "Ah!" from the other side, and her body swayed as if she was about to fall!
"Da Ya!" Shen Zhiyi called out anxiously, but unexpectedly she was led astray by Zhao Daya. She lost her balance and was about to slide down the slope when her vision suddenly turned. A flash of azure blue appeared before her eyes, followed by the scent of ink lingering in her nose.
Shen Zhiyi and Lu Jingbai slid down the slope together, and she nestled in his arms, not daring to move an inch to avoid further injury during the fall.
"Young Master! Miss Shen!" Xuan Yan called out as he jumped down the gentle slope and quickly helped the two up.
Almost as soon as he regained his balance, Lu Jingbai released his grip, maintaining a safe distance, and asked, "Miss Chen, are you injured?"
Shen Zhiyi blushed, a rare occurrence, and slowly said, "No."
Her gaze fell on the blood-stained sleeve, and she said anxiously, "Lord Lu, your arm seems to be bleeding!"
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