Chapter 31031 I had a dream
Chapter 31
Meng Yuning looked around. Although she didn't see any mosquitoes, she didn't doubt that His Royal Highness Prince Shen would lie.
"It's out in the wilderness, so there are bound to be mosquitoes. Doctor Tang sprayed medicine everywhere when we were in the mountains, but I'm afraid he forgot about it when we got on the boat. I'll tell him tomorrow."
Qi Jingyan: “Yeah.”
After being interrupted by Qi Jingyan, Meng Yuning forgot the question she had asked him before and felt sleepy. She yawned several times, muttered "Good night, Your Highness", and closed her eyes while hugging Yi'er.
Qi Jingyan: "Good night, An Ning."
Meng Yuning was dazed, and another question came to her mind. She barely opened one eye and mumbled incoherently, "By the way, Your Highness, why did you suddenly take us to hide in the mountains last time?"
After asking, he waited for a while but saw no response from Qi Jingyan, so he yawned again and closed his eye.
Qi Jingyan turned his head to look at her, and was silent for a long time before he slowly gave a seemingly ambiguous answer.
"A Ning."
"The night you came back."
"I had a dream."
But Meng Yuning had already fallen into a deep sleep and didn't hear a single word.
---
The next day, the sun was shining brightly.
Meng Yuning had a good night's sleep and felt refreshed.
When I opened my eyes, I found that Qi Jingyan and Yi'er were no longer in the room, just like before.
These two brothers are the kind of people who get up early, and Meng Yuning has gotten used to it.
She lay on the spacious and soft bed for a while, rolled around twice, then got up, tidied her clothes, went to the bathroom to wash, combed her hair, and left the cabin.
There was no one in the corridor, so she went straight to the deck.
In a shady corner, Yi'er was feeding his rabbit with a handful of radish tops. Mu Feng was feeding the chickens, each tied together with a leg tied, with a handful of rice. Su Yang squatted nearby, watching the fun.
When they saw Meng Yuning coming over, they all stood up and greeted her with a smile. Yi'er even threw herself on her lap and said, "A Ning, have you eaten yet?"
Meng Yuning reached out and picked up the little boy, touching his little face: "You haven't eaten yet, Yi'er, have you eaten yet?"
"Yier has eaten," Yier nodded and pointed towards the kitchen: "Aning, go eat too."
Meng Yuning agreed and carried Yier to the kitchen on the first floor.
Arriving in the kitchen, Meng Yuning opened a steaming pot and found the breakfast everyone had left for her: a bowl of porridge, half a thousand-layer pancake, and a stack of pickles.
The guards bought the pickled vegetables together yesterday and placed them in a jar on the shelf. She saw it yesterday, but she didn't take it out because there were enough fresh vegetables last night.
But she remembered that not only were the crispy and tender lasagna made last night, but everyone ate them all up with the mutton and radish soup. Even the rice crusts from the rice bowls were snatched away, leaving nothing behind. So, where did this pancake come from?
Meng Yuning brought the food out and asked curiously, "Yier, who made this cake?"
Yi'er pointed outside and said, "Mu Shan did it."
Meng Yuning was shocked: "Mu Shan?"
Yi'er nodded his head and pointed at the cake with his little finger, his attitude a little too enthusiastic: "A Ning, try it and see if it tastes good."
Meng Yuning only thought that Yi'er herself thought it was delicious and that was why she strongly recommended it to her, so she readily agreed: "Okay, I'll try it."
She picked up the pancake with her chopsticks and took a bite. The pancake had been in the pan for who knows how long, and the crust, which should have been crispy, had been softened by the heat, but the softness gave it a different flavor.
Meng Yuning was a little surprised. Yesterday, when they were making pancakes, Mu Shan only helped her, but she didn't expect that today he could make pancakes independently, and he did it well for the first time.
This is really a cause for celebration. From now on, she will have a good helper when she cooks.
Yi'er stood aside, her eyes sparkling, and she stood on tiptoe and asked curiously, "A Ning, is it delicious?"
Meng Yuning smiled and nodded: "It's delicious."
Yi'er smiled happily and clapped his hands: "Then I'll go tell my brother."
Meng Yuning asked curiously, "Why do you want to tell my brother?"
Yier said excitedly, "My brother said that if An Ning said it was delicious, he would reward Mu Shan with one or two taels of silver. Mu Shan told Yier that if he got one or two taels of silver, he would give Yier half."
Such a young child already knew how to ask for money. Meng Yuning almost spit out a mouthful of cake. She reached out and grabbed Yi'er, smiling and asked, "Yi'er, what do you want the money for?"
Yier: "Save it up."
Meng Yuning pinched Yi'er's face, which had obviously gained a lot of weight in recent days, and asked, "What are you saving it for?"
Yi'er twisted her body and said, "Buy candy for An Ning, buy medicine for brother, and also buy cakes for mother."
Hearing the first part, Meng Yuning smiled widely, feeling the joy of a grown-up son. But when she heard the last part, especially looking into the boy's innocent eyes, she couldn't smile anymore.
Death does not seem so easy for a three-year-old child to understand.
Yi'er seemed to understand the Queen's departure. Sometimes, he seemed to know that the Queen would never come back, but sometimes, he believed that the Queen would come back and he would be able to see her again in the future.
She didn't know what Qi Jingyan was thinking. After being out for so long, he had never clearly explained this matter to Yier. Every time, no matter what Yier said, Qi Jingyan just went along with him.
She understood Qi Jingyan's approach. Yi'er was too young, and even if she explained it clearly, he probably wouldn't understand.
But she also felt that it was not good to keep being ambiguous like this. She had to find a way that Yi'er could accept, explain it to him clearly, and let him know that the queen would not come back.
But this matter is most suitable for her to do by her biological brother Qi Jingyan, and it is not appropriate for her as an outsider to interfere.
Meng Yuning felt a lump in her heart as she thought about these things.
She put down her bowl and chopsticks, reached out and took Yi'er into her arms, hugging him tightly: "Our Yi'er is the best and most beautiful child in the world."
Yi'er rubbed his little face against her shoulder and smiled shyly: "Then An Ning, I'll go find my brother."
Meng Yuning kissed the little boy on the cheek, patted his little butt, and said with a smile, "Go."
Yier smiled and ran away.
Meng Yuning sighed softly, picked up the bowl of porridge and continued eating. After finishing the bowl of porridge, half a pancake, and the small dish of pickles, she washed the dishes and went out to look for Yi'er.
When she went up to the second-floor deck, she found that no one was there, so she asked Mu Feng and Su Yang who were still feeding the chickens. They pointed to the third floor and said that Yi'er had gone upstairs to look for the prince. Meng Yuning then went around to the stairs and climbed up.
As soon as I reached the door of the meeting room on the third floor, I saw Yi'er running out. The little boy smiled when he saw her and showed her the purse in his hand: "An Ning, look, silver."
Qi Jingyan, Mu Yun, Mu Shan, Mu Jiang and others in the conference room all laughed.
Meng Yuning squatted down to catch Yi'er and squeezed her purse: "Wow, so much silver."
Yi'er nodded and stuffed the purse into Meng Yuning's hand: "A Ning, help Yi'er keep it. Yi'er's money in the future will also be kept by A Ning."
Meng Yuning glanced at Qi Jingyan and saw him smiling at them. She thought, how much money could a child like Yi'er have? If he asked her to keep it, then she could just keep it and give it to him later.
So he took the purse, smiled and said okay, and Yier clapped his hands happily.
Qi Jingyan and the others sat around the table with a map on it, apparently discussing something. Meng Yuning then took Yi'er back to the second floor.
After Mu Feng and Su Yang finished feeding the chickens, they got out a bamboo pole from somewhere, tied a rope to it, hung a hook on it, and threw it into the river, saying they were going to fish.
Yi'er was curious and dragged Meng Yuning over: "Yi'er also wants to fish."
Mu Feng handed the fishing rod in his hand to Yi'er, squatted behind him and patiently taught him: "Little Prince, hold the fishing rod firmly and don't let go."
Yi'er nodded and said yes, then asked, "How long will it take?"
Mu Feng: "When the fishing rod moves, it means there is a fish on the hook. Just pull it up with force."
As he was talking, he saw the fishing rod shaking violently. Yi'er stamped his feet and screamed, "Fish! Fish! There's a fish!"
Mu Feng was also very excited and held the fishing rod tightly: "Catch it, little prince, catch it."
The big and the small were trying their best. Yi'er's little face turned red, and so did Mu Feng. The veins on the back of his hands were bulging, but the fishing rod was still shaking violently, and it pulled the two of them forward and made them stagger a step.
Yi'er was so frightened that she screamed again: "What a big fish!"
Meng Yuning and Su Yang both thought that Mu Feng was deliberately acting along with the little prince to make him happy, and they laughed out loud, thinking that this guy was acting so convincingly.
The two were laughing when Mu Feng spoke, "Ayang, help me quickly, I really can't hold it back."
The two then realized that Mu Feng really couldn't pull it anymore and was already sitting on the ground, leaning back.
Yi'er also lay on him, her little voice breaking: "Help, help!"
Although Mu Feng is not very old, as a martial artist he is still very strong. Even he can't pull the fish, which shows that the fish is really big.
Su Yang and Meng Yuning hurried forward. Su Yang grabbed the fishing rod and pulled back with him.
Meng Yuning picked up Yi'er, stepped back a few steps, and patted him gently: "Yi'er, don't be afraid."
Qi Jingyan and others in the conference room on the third floor heard the commotion below. They walked out and stood on the open-air platform on the third floor, looking down.
Qi Jingyan asked, "What happened?"
Yi'er hugged Meng Yuning's neck and pointed excitedly at the river: "Brother, there are fish, big fish."
As soon as the word "fish" landed on the ground, the rope broke, and Su Yang and Mu Feng both fell backwards to the ground.
Everyone was startled. The other guards who came rushing over after hearing the noise stepped forward quickly, laughing and helping the two men up.
But when Mu Feng pulled the rope back, he discovered that there was a piece of cloth hanging on the iron hook. When he got closer, he found that there was also a piece of flesh hanging on the hook.
Several people's expressions changed at the same time. They looked at Qi Jingyan. Mu Feng said, "Your Highness, you hooked a person, not a fish."
When she heard that it was a person, Meng Yuning became nervous and quickly retreated with Yi'er in her arms. After taking two steps back and looking at the uncovered deck around her, she felt it was unsafe to stay there, so she quickly ran towards the stairs and went straight to the third floor.
Qi Jingyan followed Meng Yuning with his eyes and said, "Let's go and take a look."
Mu Yun agreed and pointed at a few people who were good at swimming. "Go down and take a look. Be careful."
Several people responded, without taking off their clothes, each holding a dagger in their hand, and jumped off the deck. Mu Feng was among them.
"Stop the boat." Mu Yun shouted, and someone below shouted back: "Stop the boat~"
Mu Yun said again: "Mu Shan, Mu Jiang, you stay here and guard His Highness." The two men responded, put their hands on the hilts of the swords at their waists, and looked around warily.
Mu Yun jumped down from the third-floor terrace and took the piece of cloth to examine it. "This is ordinary cloth, not used for diving. It shouldn't be an assassin."
Su Yang echoed, "Brother Mu, what you said makes sense. There shouldn't be such a stupid assassin in the world, hiding underwater in broad daylight and getting caught by a fishhook."
Mu Yun examined the piece of flesh again: "This is from a dead person."
Su Yang also stepped forward to take a closer look and continued to nod: "I don't think it's a living person."
Just as they finished talking, they saw Mu Feng emerge from the river, wipe the water off his face, and said, "What we hooked is a dead body. There are stones tied to the feet and it is sinking to the bottom of the river. It looks like it died not long ago."
Meng Yuning had just climbed up to the third floor with Yi'er in her arms. The two, one big and one small, were leaning beside Qi Jingyan's wheelchair, looking at the direction where Mu Feng and the others had jumped down. When she heard what Mu Feng said, Meng Yuning's face turned pale, and she hurriedly reached out to hold Yi'er, who was leaning towards the railing in front, back.
Mu Yun habitually ordered, "Pick it up." After saying that, he realized something was wrong and looked at Qi Jingyan again.
Sure enough, Qi Jingyan glanced at Meng Yuning and ordered, "Don't make it dirty. Carry it onto the boat."
Meng Yuning looked at him gratefully.
Mu Yun agreed and changed the order. Mu Feng agreed and took a few guards to fish out the body from the bottom of the water and carried it to a small boat following the big ship.
Qi Jingyan reached out and took Yi'er from Meng Yuning's arms, holding her in his arms. He then asked Mu Shan to bring a chair to Meng Yuning. He stretched out his hand and pulled the chair towards him first, then took Meng Yuning's wrist: "A Ning, sit for a while."
Meng Yuning uttered an "oh" and sat down on the chair. She asked nervously, "Your Highness, who did you say died?"
Although she felt that dead people were not scary, she was still unhappy that they were happily fishing and encountered such a thing.
She doesn't know about others, but as for herself, she will not eat any fish caught in this river.
If you walk a little further and catch some fish, you should eat it.
Otherwise, from ancient times to the present, countless dead bodies have been buried underground. If it were a taboo, wouldn’t we not even be able to eat vegetables?
She was so lost in thought that she didn't notice that Qi Jingyan was holding Yi'er in one hand and resting the other hand on the back of her chair, loosely hugging her.
Mu Shan and Mu Jiang looked down at their prince's action as if he was declaring his territory, looked at each other silently, and then looked away.
Not long after, Mu Feng returned to the ship and stood on the second deck to report the situation.
"The corpse is a man, about forty years old, eight feet tall, and thin. He died from a severe head injury. His face was also severely injured, and his original features are no longer recognizable. Judging from his physique and the calluses on his hands, he must have been a scholar who had been holding a pen for a long time."
"Except for a burn scar on his left forearm, a thorough search of his body revealed nothing that could prove his identity."
"The body had been soaked, so the exact time of death could not be determined, but judging by the circumstances, it was probably thrown into the river last night."
After Mu Feng finished his report, everyone looked at Qi Jingyan.
Qi Jingyan looked towards the right bank of the river: "Is that the official road heading south?"
Mu Yun replied: "That's right. If we didn't take the river route, we would have passed by here."
Qi Jingyan: "Inspect it again, record it in detail, and then send it to the nearest government office in the name of Young Marquis Yu. Have them investigate and report the results to Young Marquis Yu."
Mu Yun agreed and gave the order. The guards did as he was told. Mu Feng also went back to his room to take a shower and change clothes.
Yi'er had been leaning obediently in Qi Jingyan's arms. Seeing that her brother had finished his business, she asked, "Brother, can we still go fishing?"
A three-year-old child has no concept of death and is fearless. Of course, he doesn't think there is anything wrong with fishing with him just because a dead body has just been fished out of the river.
Qi Jingyan didn't think it was a big deal. After all, on the battlefield, if you were hungry, even if there were dead bodies around you, you would still take out the bread in your arms and eat it.
So he nodded and said, "Of course you can, but you should ask An Ning."
Yi'er tilted his head and looked at An Ning: "An Ning, do you want to go fishing?"
The two brothers were fearless, but Meng Yuning still felt a little hesitant. After thinking for a moment, she said, "Yier, An Ning is going to cook dinner now. Do you want to go with her? After we finish eating, let's go fishing, okay?"
By that time, the boat had already sailed some distance away.
When Yi'er heard that they were going to cook, she thought of the delicious meat last night and nodded: "Yi'er and An Ning will go cook."
Meng Yuning and Qi Jingyan said, "Your Highness, I'll go cook."
Qi Jingyan nodded: "Go ahead, don't get too tired, let them do the work that can be done."
Meng Yuning agreed, carried Yi'er downstairs and went to the kitchen.
---
Knowing that Meng Yuning was going to cook again today, the dark and thin guards, who had finally had a delicious meal yesterday and were still savoring it today, became happy again and rushed to the kitchen.
Those who helped in the kitchen yesterday didn't even get the chance to enter the kitchen today and were squeezed out. Not to mention the fat guards like Mu Feng, they couldn't even touch the door.
Meng Yuning looked at the kitchen helpers who were crowded in the room waiting for their assigned tasks and smiled: "Everyone, don't worry. Let me see what dishes we have for dinner today."
Everyone smiled and agreed, then stood aside obediently, allowing Meng Yuning to check the ingredients.
Yi'er took Meng Yuning's hand and pointed to the bowl of beef soaking in cold water: "A Ning, do you still want to eat meat?"
The guards had carried the beef from the shore yesterday morning, having left it there for a day. Although the cabin was on the first floor, with the bottom facing the river, and the meat had been soaked in cold water, it still lost its freshness after being left there for too long. It was best to cook it as soon as possible, so Meng Yuning smiled and agreed.
After she finished her walk, she decided on the ingredients: "Today we'll have beef stewed with carrots and potatoes, and stir-fried Chinese cabbage with vinegar. We have a few bundles of spinach, so we'll make a spinach and egg soup."
The guards started drooling when they heard it and cheered.
Meng Yuning assigned tasks to everyone. Some peeled the cabbage, some peeled the potatoes, and some washed the carrots. She also called two people with good knife skills to cut the beef into small pieces, and arranged for two other people to cook the rice first.
The guards were chatting and laughing, busy in the kitchen. Meng Yuning was infected by their mood and gradually forgot about what happened just now. She took a small stool and sat down, took a basket of eggs and beat them into a porcelain basin.
Yi'er looked around but couldn't find an empty stool, so he went to the pile of white radishes, picked out a big radish, and carried it to Meng Yuning with a grunt. He put the radish on the ground and sat on it skillfully.
The little boy squatted aside and watched for a while, then stretched out his little hand to take an egg, and imitated Meng Yuning, knocking it on the edge of the basin with a click, then he opened his two little hands and poured the egg accurately into the basin.
Meng Yuning was very surprised: "Has Yi'er ever beaten eggs before?"
Yi'er shook his head: "No."
Meng Yuning smiled and praised: "Wow, Yi'er, you are amazing."
Yi'er asked with crooked eyes: "Aning, is Yi'er a good cow?"
Meng Yuning couldn't help laughing out loud: "Yes, our Yi'er is a good cow."
Yier smiled, looking very proud: "Brother is a good cow, and Yier is also a good cow."
Thinking of the last time Yi'er said Qi Jingyan was a good cow, and his somewhat depressed look, Meng Yuning laughed even more happily and whispered: "Yes, you and brother are both good cows."
The guards heard the conversation between the two and couldn't help but murmur curiously: "Your Highness is a good cow? What is this?"
"I don't know. Perhaps it's a code word between the two princes and Miss Meng."
Many hands make light work. With the help of a group of nimble young men, the ingredients were almost ready soon.
Meng Yuning and Yier also beat eggs in a porcelain bowl. Meng Yuning took the chopsticks to stir the eggs. Yier looked at him for a while and asked him to stir it. Meng Yuning gave him the chopsticks and told him how to stir it. Then he stood up and prepared to check on the rice.
But Yier was not very good at using chopsticks, so she could only stir the food by holding the chopsticks with both hands.
Seeing that he was struggling, a guard came forward, squatted beside him, and said respectfully, "Young Prince, please let me go."
Yi'er sat on the radish and shook his head, stirring it vigorously with his two little hands: "Yi'er can do it."
Meng Yuning also smiled and said to the guard, "Let Yi'er come."
Children can exercise their limbs and brains by doing some work. Besides, life is long and no one knows what situation they will face one day. It is always good to learn more skills.
Seeing that both the young prince and Miss Meng said so, the guard smiled and said okay, and went back to continue peeling his potatoes.
The three pots of rice were already cooked. Meng Yuning asked the three guards who were watching the fire to serve out the rice and wash the pots.
Meng Yuning rolled up her sleeves, tied on her apron, and first added half a pot of cold water to the pot. Then she put the beef into the pot with the cold water, threw in the chopped green onions, sliced ginger and garlic, and added some cooking wine. After the water heated up, she blanched the beef, took it out, and placed it in a basin to dry.
Then heat oil in two pots together. When the oil is hot, add the onion, ginger and garlic into the pot and stir-fry until fragrant. Pour in the beef and stir-fry until it changes color. Then add cooking wine, soy sauce and salt and continue to stir-fry.
When it’s almost done, add hot water to cover the beef, cover the pot, bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce to low heat and simmer.
The dark and thin guards were anxious: "Miss Meng, how long will it take to stew this beef?"
Meng Yuning: "It needs to be stewed for half an hour."
After saying that, he dried up the remaining pot, poured in oil and heated it, then added onions, ginger and garlic and stir-fried them until fragrant, poured in the cabbage that the guards had torn into small pieces, and kept stir-frying until the cabbage was cooked and softened, then poured the sauce that had been prepared with cooking wine, salt, soy sauce and vinegar into the pot, continued to stir-fry for a while and then served.
Two guards took away the two large basins of pickled cabbage. One guard washed the pot and, according to Meng Yuning's instructions, boiled half a pot of water and quickly blanched the large basin of spinach.
After the oil in the pot is heated, Meng Yuning adds the minced garlic and stir-fryes quickly, then directly adds hot water and salt, and when the water boils, adds the blanched spinach.
When the spinach was almost cooked, she asked a guard to help pick up the porcelain bowl containing eggs. She used chopsticks to hold the edge of the bowl and poured the egg liquid into the pot evenly and quickly in circles.
As soon as the egg liquid was poured, Meng Yuning asked the guard who was burning the fire to turn off the fire, and then quickly served out a pot of spinach and egg soup with green and tender yellow colors.
The two dishes were ready, but the beef was not yet stewed. The guards cleaned up the kitchen, and Meng Yuning took Yi'er outside to get some fresh air.
Enjoying the breeze and the river view, Meng Yuning calculated the time and took Yi'er back to the kitchen. The beef was almost cooked through. She instructed two guards to pour the diced potatoes and carrots into the pot, stir it briefly, cover it, and continue simmering for another cup of tea. It was ready.
A guard had already run out to announce that the meal would be ready soon. Everyone had already set the table and was looking forward to it.
Meng Yuning called for dinner to begin, and everyone took a bowl each, carrying out the food that had been divided into several portions.
Today's meal was much earlier than yesterday. Meng Yuning looked at the sun in the sky and thought it should be around two or three in the afternoon.
As usual, she sat at the same table with Qi Jingyan and the others. After everyone was seated, Meng Yuning pointed to the main dish on the table and introduced it, "This is beef stew with carrots and potatoes. Your Highness, please try it."
Yi'er, who was in the kitchen and had tasted it first, also said, "Brother, try it quickly. It's delicious."
Qi Jingyan didn't need Meng Yuning to help him serve. He picked up a piece of beef with his chopsticks and put it in his mouth. After eating, he didn't say anything and picked up a piece of potato to eat.
The beef is tender and tasty, and the potatoes that have absorbed the soup are soft and melt in your mouth. The taste is simply amazing.
Seeing that he had no reaction after finishing his meal, Meng Yuning, Yi'er, Doctor Tang, Su Yang, and Mu Yun all looked at him, "Your Highness, how is it?"
Qi Jingyan nodded: "Delicious."
Everyone laughed and started eating without being told.
But before they could take two bites, they saw seven or eight small boats suddenly emerge from the bend in the river ahead and head towards their boat.
The small boats were moving very fast and soon came close.
A man in official robes stood at the bow, pointing at everyone on board with an extremely arrogant and domineering attitude: "Where did this lunatic come from? How dare you sail through the border under the Yu family flag?"
The guards stopped eating and looked at Qi Jingyan.
Meng Yuning also became nervous: "Your Highness, what should we do?"
Qi Jingyan picked up a piece of beef for Yi'er and Meng Yuning, and then said, "Eat first."
Mu Yun stood up and said loudly: "Our master is eating, let's talk after we finish eating."
The man was furious: "Where did you come from, you blind bastard? How dare you act so arrogantly when you see me? Get out of here!"
Before the word "get out" was uttered, Qi Jingyan didn't even raise his head, and threw the chopsticks in his hand out with a whoosh, directly piercing the man's official hat.
The man raised his hand to touch it, and his eyes widened in horror. He staggered back a few steps and fell onto the deck.
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The author has something to say: Here I come, thank you for the messages, nutrient solution, landmine rocket launcher, bow~!
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