Now it was Tao Yiru's turn to be stunned: "You mean, he crossed the mountains and ran to the south to find you?"
She spoke a little loudly, but Chen hurriedly pulled her to a more secluded place, put his index finger on her lips, and told her not to make a sound.
In that hasty glance just now, he and the man on the arch bridge looked at each other from afar. In that instant, Shen's heart was filled with mixed feelings, and he almost froze.
He had almost only seen the forest pavilion under candlelight, the dim room, and the crowded bed, and everything he had experienced was like a dark and confusing nightmare.
But even if he had the chance, he probably wouldn't be willing to take a closer look at Lin Xie. Looking at him for one more second would make him more aware of the shame this man brought him.
But now when he thinks back on it, he can't help but feel a little strange. Firstly, the man didn't seem to recognize him at first sight. Instead, he seemed to have noticed the subtle expression on his face, which led to his action of chasing after him.
As for the second point, this "Lin Xie" inexplicably gave him a very strange feeling. Both his expression and behavior seemed a little weird and out of place.
That man was too serious. When he saw him, he didn't raise his eyebrows or smile evilly. He wasn't angry or had any emotions.
But it is also possible that they were too far away at the time. From the moment the man discovered him to the moment he ran all the way to hide in this small temple, it was only a matter of a split second. Just this glance could not explain anything.
There was just one thing that puzzled Shen: did this "Lin Xie" come here privately or was he sent by the prince?
Seeing his face turn pale, Tao Yiru was a little confused: "He came all the way to find you, maybe he can't let you go. If there is anything wrong with you, why don't you talk about it in person? Why are you so anxious to avoid him?"
In her opinion, traveling thousands of miles to find someone is not an easy task. Since this person has such patience, doesn't it mean that he cares about this mute?
In addition, the mute named the baby Silai, and Tao Yiru guessed that he couldn't let go of the past. Since he couldn't let go, he had to talk it out. Otherwise, the scar in his heart would become a lifelong knot and a regret, and he would probably regret it for the rest of his life.
Chen Que's eyelashes drooped slightly, and he shook his head gently when he heard the words, and wrote on her palm: It's just a bad fate.
He was also afraid that this word was not strong enough and that Tao Yiru would not be able to understand it, so he continued to write: If we are caught, Silai and I will both die.
Tao Yiru was speechless and became depressed: "What should we do? If we go back now, we can arrive in the evening. I am a widow, and you are alone... In short, it will be inconvenient to be on the road after dark. If we go back too late, my mother will be worried."
After saying this, she looked towards the temple gate and said, "He may not have seen me just now. Why don't I go out and check?"
As she spoke, she was about to go outside, but Shen hurriedly held her shoulders and gently shook his head.
The man might not have forgotten what Tao Yiru was wearing. These assassins from the palace were all desperate criminals without any sense of morality. They would not take action easily, but once they did, blood would be shed.
Tao Yiru had been in this water town for a long time, and after hearing his words, he was skeptical: "It's broad daylight, the pavilion chief's house is nearby, and there are petty officials patrolling the streets. How can he kill me?"
"We can hide for a while, but not forever," Tao Yiru said, "We can't just stay in this little temple and never leave. We have to go home to feel at ease."
Seeing that he couldn't stop her, Shen didn't want to let her go out alone, so he asked her to open her palm and wrote solemnly: Follow me and be careful in everything.
Tao Yiru nodded. Sometimes the mute got up early and would gesture in the yard with the wooden stick for half an hour. Although she could not understand, she felt that he seemed to have the courage of ten thousand men, giving people a sense of stability and reliability.
So I didn't refute him on this point.
Chen Que took a deep breath, then clamped the tempered poison needle between his fingers, protecting Si Lai and Tao Yiru behind him all the way.
But I don’t know if the man didn’t expect that he would return to that street again. Now there were people coming and going on the street, but there was no trace of that man. It was as if the panicked glance just now was just an illusion of his.
The two of them then hurriedly bought grain, oil, rice, flour, and other miscellaneous New Year's goods, and then hurriedly took a bus back home.
However, not long after they left, the man with a face exactly like Lin Xie walked into the clinic. He was holding a silver hairpin that was 70% similar to the one on Tao Yiru's temple. He leaned against the counter and began to ask questions of the shopkeeper.
"I just found this silver hairpin on the roadside. The lady was wearing a persimmon-colored short jacket, and she was accompanied by a tall man. They were walking fast, so I couldn't catch up with them. I thought I saw them enter your store when I was walking on the bridge just now," the man said politely, "so I came to ask, what village are they from?"
The shopkeeper glanced at him, then took the silver hairpin from his hand and looked at it. Tao Yi usually wore a plain silver hairpin, so he remembered it.
"My dear, you don't know that the lady lives in Qingyuan Village, which is far away from here," he said, "Why don't you leave this hairpin with me first? Anyway, she will definitely come to the town in the spring."
The man smiled and took back the silver hairpin as if nothing had happened: "It's not that I don't trust you, but the young lady just now is quite pleasing to my eyes. I'd better return the hairpin myself, so you don't need to bother me."
The shopkeeper also laughed, raised his hand and pressed it to his lips, then whispered to him, "That is a pretty widow, my dear, you are not stupid. She is quite skilled in medicine, and she used to make cosmetics and sell them in town. She is very hardworking. If you go to her house, you will enjoy a good life."
"But this widow is very proud. She even disdains the bachelors in this town who want to marry her."
The man at the counter was listening to him, but his eyes showed a lack of interest. He changed the subject and asked, "Who is the person next to her?"
"He is a stranger. I have never seen him come to town before. I asked her just now, and she only said that the man was his distant cousin. But there are few people as tall as him here. I think he is from the north."
After asking, Guyu was immediately certain in his heart that ** Cheng had seen Chen Que. This mute had been with the prince for many years. Wherever the prince was, he would definitely be there.
But the mute probably didn't recognize him. These death warriors of the palace usually didn't show up in public. They came and went in the secret passages under the palace, and monitored these people at the same time.
But when the mute saw his face just now, he was obviously stunned. It was obvious that he had seen the face he used before and was even very familiar with it.
In order to facilitate their work on the ground, these people usually put on a human skin mask. Before leaving Beijing, he took one at random from the underground darkroom, which is the one he is using on his face now. In fact, there is nothing special about it. It is just an ordinary face.
Could it be that... Shen had seen a dead warrior wearing this face before? That's why he was so surprised at that time.
But these were not important. He hurried back to the hotel where he was staying, spread out paper and ground ink, briefly wrote down what he had just seen and heard in a letter, then sealed it in a letter, added a secret mark, and immediately handed it to the nearest post station.
This secret letter is sent in an expedited manner, so it will only take three days and nights to reach Beijing at the earliest. Even if there is a delay, four days will be enough.
What he had to do now was to find Qingyuan Village, then find Chen Que and keep a close eye on him.
He remembered that when Chen Que was in the palace, his martial arts skills were the most outstanding among all the guards. Now that he has been away from Beijing for a year, Guyu cannot guarantee that he has the strength to subdue the mute. Besides, everything still needs to be approved by the prince before taking any action. Without the order of His Highness, he dare not act rashly.
Ever since he ran into "Lin Xie" in the town that day, Chen Que has been worried day and night. At night, he has to take care of the crying and noisy little kid, so he can't sleep well. During the day, he is awake and has no appetite, looking depressed.
Tao Yiru saw it all, but she had no idea what the injustice was all about. If she opened her mouth to try to persuade him now, it would be like watching someone carrying a load without any effort.
Finally one day, Shen coaxed the kid to sleep, and then went to the kitchen to help add firewood to the earthen stove.
Tao Yiru threw some noodles into the pot, and then said, "The fire is strong enough, don't add more."
Shen Que then stopped and sorted out the remaining firewood. There was really nothing else to do, so he slowly approached the stove.
Seeing him like this, Tao Yiru found it a little funny and smiled, "If you have anything to say, just say it. Why bother with so much trouble?"
Only then did Shen Que tap her palm and write softly: I want to go back to the mountain.
"For no reason," Tao Yiru's smile suddenly stopped, "Why are you going back to the mountain? In a few days, there will be a few heavy snowfalls, and the roads will be blocked by snow. There won't be any wild animals on the mountain, and it will be difficult to come down from the mountain. How are you going to survive in the mountain with Silai?"
Shen Que had been thinking about this since he came back from the town that day. However, the kid was so spineless that he felt hot after coming back. His mind was completely focused on the kid, so he had no energy to think about this matter anymore.
Last night, I thought about it and my fever went away. I haven't had a fever since then. After thinking about it all night, I decided to discuss it with Tao Yiru.
But Shen continued to write: I will pay you back, believe me.
"Is this because you haven't paid back the silver?" Tao Yiru's words were filled with anger. "Si Lai is only this old, are you planning to carry him on your back when you go hunting? If you encounter a small beast, that's fine, but if you encounter a big beast, can you take care of it by yourself?"
Tao Yiru was trying to persuade him, and without waiting for his response, she continued, "Since you were born prematurely, your body must be weak. If you get cold and frightened, and if you get sick again, the snowy mountain road will be difficult to walk on. How long will it take for you to get from the mountain to my place?"
Shen Que knew what she said, but he was extremely scared and wanted to hide as deep as possible.
Seeing that his expression had relaxed, Tao Yiru added, "Besides, if that person can really find Qingyuan Village, then finding the mountain hut is just a matter of time."
But Shen didn't actually want to leave.
He had just settled down here. Tao Yiru was cheerful and kind-hearted. From time to time, she would tell jokes to entertain him and make him laugh. Shen could find a little bit of his senior brother in her.
Although the old lady at home doesn't talk much, she is kind and the fish soup she makes is delicious.
All he longed for in his life was just this little bit of warmth. This small courtyard had the smell of home. He was reluctant to leave, and he didn't know where else he could go.
Besides, a year has passed. Is the prince really still looking for him?
There are so many guards in the palace, some of them are more tactful and capable than him, and any of them should be more convenient to use than a mute like him.
However, Shen knew Xie Shiguan very well. After such a long time, it was still necessary to mobilize a large number of troops and go to great lengths to capture him. His Highness would not do such a meaningless thing.
His Highness is not nostalgic. He just lost something that he was convenient to use. He would only be angry for a few days, and when he calmed down, he would replace it with a new one.
If that "Lin Xie" came here out of selfish motives, Chen just hoped that he would not pester him anymore and also hoped that he would not find his way here.
The author has something to say:
To be precise, we will meet in the next chapter.
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