Chapter 262: The consequences of the drought begin to emerge
Ah Man dismissed the funny images in his mind and changed his words with a smile.
"Three heads and six arms is not good enough, it should be Thousand-armed Guanyin."
Ye Chutang reached out and poked Ah Man on the head.
"Then you're done. With so many arms, it will probably take you six hours to get dressed and six hours to get undressed."
Ah Man was amused again and laughed until tears came out.
"Then I must not have died from exhaustion from dressing and undressing, but from starvation because I had no time to eat."
After saying that, she opened her arms and hugged Ye Chutang.
"I like you so much."
Ye Chutang: “…”
Is it inappropriate to confess your love to your love rival?
What did Qi Yanzhou say to Ah Man?
Ye Chutang was so curious that he asked directly.
"Ah Man, what are you talking about? What happened during the three days you were with Ah Zhou?"
Ah Man let go of Ye Chutang and raised his chin towards the teahouse not far ahead.
"Come in and sit down, I'll tell you right away."
There are more customers in the teahouse than on the street.
As the storyteller sang in rhythm, the audience burst into applause.
In order to facilitate chatting, Ye Chutang asked for a private room on the second floor.
It is called a private room, but in fact it is just a small room separated by a screen, and there is no privacy at all.
Fortunately, the two of them were not talking about anything private, and there was no one in the private room next door.
Ah Man put the things in his hands on the table and poured himself a cup of hot tea.
When she poured it for Ye Chutang, she was rejected.
"I don't drink tea at night. I can't sleep easily."
Hearing this, Ah Man put down the teapot.
She looked at the storyteller in the audience and listened carefully to a short passage.
"It's another drama of a man taking a concubine and betraying his wife. It's boring."
Ye Chutang deliberately teased.
"Who forced Azhou to marry a concubine? Who wanted to be a concubine?"
Ah Man thought of the ridiculous things he had said before and wished he could find a crack in the ground to crawl into.
"I wasn't in a clear mind at the time, so what I said doesn't count."
"Why are you suddenly awake now?"
"It's all thanks to my second brother."
Now that Ah Man has become the adopted daughter of the Qi family, she addresses the Qi family members according to their age.
Ye Chutang was already intrigued, so he urged, "Don't keep us in suspense. Just tell me."
"I only did one thing during the three days I spent with Brother Qi."
"What's up?"
"Listen to him talk about you."
"What did he say about me?"
Ah Man took a sip of the hot tea. It tasted a little bitter and had some dregs. It was not a good tea.
She put down the cup and looked at Ye Chutang seriously.
"Tell him everything you've done since he met you."
Ye Chutang did not speak, waiting for Ah Man to continue.
Admiration appeared in Ah Man's eyes, fervent and sincere.
"You are well-read and admired by scholars and students; you wrote down a good recipe for preventing and treating plague, saving Jiangnan and even the entire Beichen Kingdom; you are not foolishly filial, and you avenged your mother's death; you are unparalleled in wisdom and courage, and helped the Qi family survive the disaster of genocide; you are not afraid of life and death, and you risked your life to save the people of the city."
"Brother Qi said a lot, what I just said is just a drop in the bucket.
Every word and every sentence he said was filled with deep affection for you.
I didn't understand at first, but after listening to you more, I realized that you are his best choice.
So I thought it through, gave up, and fell in love with you even more. ”
Ah Man said a lot in one breath, and every word he said was full of sincerity and emotion.
She stood up and solemnly apologized to Ye Chutang.
"Ye Chutang, I was stupid and ignorant before, and I apologize for any offense I have caused. Please forgive me."
Ye Chutang quickly helped Ah Man up.
"I have never blamed you. There is nothing wrong with you fighting for what you want."
If she is obsessed with something or someone, she will do everything she can to achieve it.
In fact, no one was wrong in detoxifying Qi Yanzhou, they just had different positions.
Ah Man pulled Ye Chutang back to the stool and smiled self-deprecatingly.
“I used to think this way too, if you need me to make an effort, you have to give me the return I want.
The first time I saved Brother Qi was to recover southern Xinjiang and to make my life more stable.
The second time she saved him was to marry him, but due to her selfish motives, she almost killed him. ”
After saying this, she looked at Ye Chutang sincerely.
"I am inferior to you in every aspect, and Brother Qi is devoted to you. If I continue to pester him, I will only bring shame upon myself, so I let it go and choose to be his adopted sister."
"Now, I am also your stepsister. Can you forgive me for the stupid things I did before?"
Ye Chutang looked at Ah Man who had a hopeful look on her face and nodded.
"Of course, I also want to ask you about the Gu worm."
"That's great. I also want to learn about traditional medicine. Let's learn from each other."
"Okay, let's learn from each other."
Ah Man was as happy as a child after getting Ye Chutang's consent.
"From now on, I'll call you Sister Chu, and you can call me Ah Man, okay?"
"Okay, Ah Man."
"Sister Chu."
The two of them listened to the storyteller's sad stories, pointed out the unreasonable parts, and had a very happy chat.
At the end of the story, a woman came on stage to play the pipa.
Ah Man is not interested in musical instruments and doesn't understand them very well.
She stood up and said, "Sister Chu, it's getting late, let's go back."
Ye Chutang's eyes fell on the gadgets on the table.
"Please walk with me again."
Since Ah Man has acknowledged her as her sister, she naturally has to give her a decent gift.
Ah Man didn't think too much about it and just thought that Ye Chutang hadn't had enough shopping.
She nodded. "Okay."
After the two left the teahouse, Ye Chutang took Ah Man to visit clothing shops and jewelry shops.
I bought her two beautiful clothes suitable for traveling, as well as two sets of matching headwear.
Ah Man was straightforward and did not refuse.
"Thank you, Sister Chu. I have a gift for you too."
After saying that, she summoned the mother and child Gu.
"This is the last pair I have. I'll give them to Brother Qi later."
Ye Chutang knew that Ah Man meant well, but she was pregnant and didn't dare to take any risks.
"Let's give this mother-child Gu to Azhou first. His body is badly damaged. If the Gu worm can help him recover his vitality, it will be more effective."
Ah Man thought it made sense and nodded.
"Okay, I'll give it to Brother Qi when I get back."
She didn't give it to Qi Yanzhou before because he was too weak.
Now, after a few days of recuperation, his body has recovered a little and he can use the Zi Gu to nourish his vitality.
She put the mother-child Gu back into the longevity lock and returned to the inn with Ye Chutang.
On the way back, Ye Chutang asked about the efficacy and disadvantages of the mother-child Gu.
This kind of mother-child Gu that Ah Man raises to replenish vital energy has no disadvantages as long as the timing of releasing the child Gu into the body is right.
As long as the mother Gu is not dead, the child Gu can continue to help the host to nourish the body.
If the mother Gu dies, the child Gu will also die at the same time, and there will be no adverse effects on the body.
"Sister Chu, this mother-child Gu that nourishes vitality is beneficial and harmless, but it is very difficult to practice. It may take many years before I can give you the gift I want."
Ye Chutang smiled and said, "It's okay."
The two of them soon reached the door of the inn.
Just as Ye Chutang was about to go in, he was stopped by Ah Man.
"Sister Chu, actually, what I feel for Brother Qi is not love, but affection, admiration, and reluctance.
If I really love him, I will not disregard his safety and force him to do something he doesn't want to do. ”
Ye Chutang was somewhat surprised that Ah Man would say this.
"Isn't this what Ah Zhou told you?"
Ah Man shook her head. "Brother Qi never said anything bad about me. He only praised Sister Chu. It was Xi Ze who saw that I was unhappy and analyzed the situation with me."
Ye Chutang understood that it was Qi Yanzhou and Xize who cooperated with each other.
"Ah Man, you will definitely meet someone who loves you in the future."
"I think so too. When I work hard to become stronger and better, the right person will come to me uninvited."
"Well said, the higher you stand, the more people will see you."
Just as Ye Chutang finished speaking, a gust of wind blew through the hall.
The thin clothes were blown tight to her body, outlining her slightly bulging belly.
Although she immediately turned sideways, Ah Man still saw it.
"Sister Chu, you...you've gained weight?"
Ye Chutang, whose heart was in his throat, said: "..."
The idea is unique and deserves praise!
She coughed lightly and said in a low voice, "I relaxed these past two days, eating and sleeping, and I have a little belly. Don't tell anyone."
The reason why Ah Man didn't think about pregnancy was because in her opinion, Qi Yanzhou and Ye Chutang had only been married for three months.
Even if Ye Chutang was pregnant, she would only be two or three months pregnant and it would be impossible for her to show it.
She quickly assured, "Don't worry, Sister Chu, I won't tell anyone."
After saying that, she quickly praised: "Sister Chu is a natural beauty, she looks good no matter what."
Ye Chutang smiled and scratched Ah Man's nose.
"You have such a sweet mouth. Go back to your room and get some rest."
"Okay, I'll put the Zi Gu on Brother Qi tomorrow."
After Ye Chutang entered the inn, he went straight back to his room.
As a result, I saw a man who shouldn't be there on the bed.
Qi Yanzhou was awakened by the sound of the door opening and immediately looked towards the door vigilantly.
It was almost mid-month and the moonlight outside was bright.
There are also illuminated lanterns hanging in the yard.
He recognized Ye Chutang at a glance, and quickly put away his guard and sat up.
"I'm back. Are you tired? How was your chat with Ah Man?"
Ye Chutang placed the pastries he bought on the table.
She didn't answer but asked, "Why are you resting in my room?"
The room in the backyard is very small, so the bed is naturally not big either.
If two people sleep together, it will definitely be crowded and hot.
Qi Yanzhou said naturally: "I miss you, I want to see you, I want to hold you while sleeping."
Ye Chutang looked at the man who was saying sweet words seriously, then turned around and closed the door.
She poured herself a glass of cold water, drank it, and then asked about the business.
"When are you going to let Caesar and A'man leave?"
"Ah Man just recognized the Qi family as her relative. It's not appropriate to let her go right away. Let's wait three days."
After Qi Yanzhou answered, he asked, "You guys didn't have a good chat tonight?"
"We had a good chat, but she saw my belly. Although I didn't think I was pregnant for the time being, if she saw it a few more times, she would definitely react."
There are actually two reasons why Ye Chutang insisted on hiding the fact that she was pregnant.
First.
She didn't want the emperor to know that she was pregnant and put the child in danger.
It's difficult to kill her, but it's relatively easy to make her have an abortion.
second.
She didn't want people to know that she had physical contact with Qi Yanzhou before marrying him.
If you can maintain a good reputation, there is no need to let people gossip about you.
So as to avoid affecting the child and being accused of being the product of "unmediated adultery".
As for how to avoid arousing suspicion about the pregnancy, Ye Chutang had already thought of a solution.
Qi Yanzhou knew that Ye Chutang didn't want her pregnancy to be exposed too early.
He thought for a moment and said, "I will find a reason to let Caesar and Ah Man leave the day after tomorrow."
It is now late at night and it is too late to make any arrangements.
If I just find a random reason to let the two of them leave, it would arouse suspicion.
Ye Chutang thought it would be easy to keep it a secret for a day, so he agreed.
"Okay, that's decided."
After saying that, she raised her chin towards the bed.
"How can two people sleep on such a narrow bed?"
Qi Yanzhou moved closer and pressed his body against the slightly cool wall.
"Hold me while sleeping."
Ye Chutang looked at him with difficulty describing what he was saying.
"Why did you suddenly become so..."
The word "greasy" went around in her mouth and then became "slippery".
"Atang, we haven't seen each other for three days."
Qi Yanzhou not only missed Ye Chutang, but also felt terrified of losing her.
He would feel at ease only when he was with her.
Ye Chutang met the man's sincere and affectionate eyes, and her pink lips curled up.
"Wait till I finish my bath, and then we'll go upstairs and sleep together."
Since you can only sleep together, choose a more comfortable environment.
Qi Yanzhou's anxiety disappeared and a smile appeared on his face.
"good."
The room in the backyard is very small and there is no separate clean room separated by a screen.
Ye Chutang placed the bathtub against the wall in the middle of the room and brought in cold and hot water from the kitchen.
After adjusting the water temperature, she closed the door of the room.
Then, in front of Qi Yanzhou, she took off her clothes and got into the bathtub.
Now, her belly was noticeably protruding, and she was much fuller than the skinny figure she had when she first traveled through time.
Seeing Qi Yanzhou turning his face away shyly, she smiled and teased.
"Why are you hiding? It's not like you haven't seen it before."
Qi Yanzhou was choked and coughed lightly, his face flushed and his ears felt hot.
"I have seen it, and I want to see it, but I dare not."
He promised to give Ye Chutang a perfect wedding night after arriving in Tianshan County, and he would not break his promise halfway.
If you have to bear watching it and it is not good for your health, then don't watch it.
Ye Chutang knew that Qi Yanzhou was very principled.
Even if I felt the same way, I would suppress it and stop teasing him.
This is to prevent him from getting upset and having difficulty using it in the future.
Seeing that Qi Yanzhou had his back to her, she boldly took out the shower gel and bath ball from the space and started washing.
Ye Chutang didn't sweat much today, so he didn't wash his hair.
A quarter of an hour later.
She came out of the bathtub, put on a snow-white silk lingerie and an outer coat.
"Let's go and sleep on the third floor."
After saying that, she packed her luggage and went up to the third floor with Qi Yanzhou.
As for the bathtub and dirty clothes, Qi Jingyao will clean them up tomorrow.
There are more ice cubes in the No. 1 room, and you can feel the coolness as soon as you enter the room, which is extremely comfortable.
Ye Chutang casually placed the bag on the table and lay down on the bed with Qi Yanzhou.
He used the man's arm as a pillow, hugged his waist sideways, and made his comment.
"I've lost a lot of weight and my comfort level is not good."
Bad review!
Qi Yanzhou was amused by Ye Chutang's words and kissed her on the top of her head.
With the soft fragrance in his arms, he finally felt the reality of having regained what he had lost.
"Atang, don't worry, I will recover soon and make you feel comfortable in my arms."
"Okay, I'll wait."
Qi Yanzhou hugged Ye Chutang tighter and stroked her slightly protruding belly with his big hands.
"Atang, we must be good and accompany our children to grow up."
Speaking of children, Ye Chutang remembered what he had considered before.
She poked Qi Yanzhou in the heart.
"I didn't want people to know that the child was born before we got married, so they wouldn't be judged."
In ancient times, women were treated very strictly. No matter what the reason, losing virginity before marriage was a taboo.
If we can keep it secret, that would be best.
Qi Yanzhou knew very well that gossip could save people, but it could also kill people.
He nodded in agreement, "You have repeatedly concealed the fact that you are pregnant, so I guessed your plan."
"Atang, you are right to think so, but the twin belly is growing fast, can you hide it?"
If it is a single baby, it is relatively easy to conceal the actual month of the baby.
And the twins...
Ye Chutang raised his head and kissed Qi Yanzhou's chin, where a slight stubble of beard had grown.
"Don't worry, the fact that I'm telling you this means that I've already thought of all the countermeasures."
She has a retroverted uterus, so her belly wasn't very noticeable during pregnancy.
Otherwise, if the pregnancy was more than four months, and it was twins, it would have been revealed long ago.
Moreover, the weather is about to turn cooler, and it will not be difficult to cover the pregnant belly as I have to wear thicker clothes.
When the child is six or seven months old and she can no longer hide it, she will admit that she is four or five months pregnant.
Since it's twins, it's normal to have a bigger belly.
As long as you don't let the doctor take your pulse, the falsification of the date of birth will not be exposed.
In addition, twins are small in size and rarely carry to full term, so if a full-term birth turns into a "premature birth", it will not arouse suspicion.
After listening to Ye Chutang's plan, Qi Yanzhou thought it was feasible.
He said apologetically, "Atang, you've always been the one worrying about the child. I'm sorry."
"You don't understand this, there's nothing to feel guilty about, just go to sleep."
The two of them fell asleep in each other's arms and slept until dawn.
Ye Chutang was woken up and frowned in annoyance.
Qi Yanzhou had woken up a long time ago.
He lay sideways, his elbow resting on the bed, his chin supported by his hand, looking at her tenderly.
Seeing that she looked annoyed, he raised his hand and scratched her nose.
"Atang, it's time to get up and have breakfast."
Ye Chutang opened his hazy eyes and sat up lazily.
"What time is it? Why is it so noisy downstairs?"
"Just after the mortal hour, the prefect came. It should be about the kidnapping of Concubine Xu last night."
Hearing this, Ye Chutang’s sleepiness disappeared immediately.
She threw back the quilt and got down to the ground, "I'll go check it out. Something didn't seem right last night."
"I'll go down with you."
Ye Chutang put on her coat and casually tied up her long hair with a hairpin.
There is water for washing in the room.
The two of them packed up briefly and hurried downstairs.
Kong Zhizhou had been waiting for Qi Yanzhou downstairs for half an hour.
Actually, he didn't need to tell me in person what happened last night.
The reason why he had waited until now was because he heard that Qi Yanzhou was seriously ill and wanted to express his condolences.
Seeing Qi Yanzhou coming downstairs, he immediately went to greet him.
Kong Zhizhou looked at the thin and weak Qi Yanzhou and was slightly surprised.
He knew that Qi Yanzhou was not in good condition, but he did not expect that he was so seriously ill.
"Master Qi, I heard that you were ill. Are you feeling better now?"
Qi Yanzhou nodded and said, "Thank you for your concern, Lord Kong. I am fine now. I will leave after a few days of rest."
"Master Qi, your health is the most important thing. It won't be too late to leave once you've recovered."
Qi Yanzhou did not respond, but asked about the purpose of Kong Zhizhou's visit.
"I'm really sorry to have kept you waiting for so long, Lord Kong. You came here so early in the morning, is it because of what happened last night?"
"Yes, the money has been recovered and the case has been tried clearly."
"Master Kong, let's sit down and talk."
Kong Zhizhou quickly moved aside and said, "Master Qi is not feeling well. Please sit down."
Ye Chutang asked, "Master Kong, you haven't had breakfast yet, right? If you don't mind, we can talk while we eat."
"Then I will respectfully obey your orders."
He interrogated the prisoner for most of the night, and shortly after taking a break, he came to the inn and sat there for half an hour.
I am tired and hungry at this moment.
Aunt Xu and Old Madam Qi have already prepared breakfast.
Although it’s not rich enough, it’s definitely enough to eat.
Chicken porridge, side dishes and vegetarian buns were soon served on the table.
Mr. Qi greeted him, "Master Kong, these are just simple meals, please bear with me."
When Kong Zhizhou smelled the fragrant chicken porridge, his appetite was aroused.
"It's very rich. Thank you for the treat."
The porridge has been in the pot for a long time and has become warm, just right for eating.
After he gobbled up the whole bowl, the hunger that had been lingering on his chest and back finally disappeared.
After recovering, he briefly told the results of the trial.
It’s similar to the news brought back by the National Protection Army.
Some time ago, those hunters who had become bandits were sent into Jizhou City by the leader of the mountain stronghold.
They were required to get ten taels of silver each as a token of their surrender within five days.
Hunters originally made legitimate livings, but were forced to become bandits.
They will not cheat, deceive, or steal.
After wandering around the city for three days.
Seeing that the time given by the leader of the bandit group was running out, they conspired to rob the silver.
Initially, the hunters' target was the north of the city where all kinds of people lived.
Most of the people here are untouchables and no one cares about them.
There are many people who make a living by stepping on the corpses of others.
As long as you don't cause any big commotion, the government won't interfere.
But the untouchables had very few copper coins on them, and they robbed countless people but still couldn't collect enough silver.
So they turned their attention to the drunkards who went to the pub to drink.
Anyone who can afford to go to a tavern to drink has some money in his pocket.
Once they are drunk, the hunters will pick on those who are easy to attack.
This method was always successful, and they soon saved up more than fifty taels of silver.
When someone sobers up and discovers that something has been stolen, he immediately reports it to the police.
However, because he could not remember anything after being drunk, the authorities were unable to investigate and he could only blame himself for his bad luck.
But as the authorities received more reports of the case, they realized there was a problem.
Just as Magistrate Kong was about to arrange for officials to keep an eye on all the taverns, the incident of Concubine Xu being kidnapped happened.
With the help of the National Protection Army, the hunters were caught in advance.
And Aunt Xu’s kidnapping was completely an accident.
She and Qi Hean discussed ordering dinner at Baiweizhai, which was overheard by the hunter.
The hunter saw that the mother and son were dressed in ordinary clothes and thought they were servants of a wealthy family, so he designed a plan to rob them of the silver.
Qi Yanzhou actually didn't care about how Aunt Xu was kidnapped.
After listening to Kong Zhizhou's story, he confirmed one thing and breathed a sigh of relief.
Hunters became bandits not for the purpose of rebellion!
He asked, "Master Kong, why would a hunter become a bandit?"
After eating two cabbage buns, Kong Zhizhou sighed heavily.
"It's too dry. Water supply has become a problem for many villages. The grass and trees on the mountain are gradually drying up. The prey is getting less and less. The hunters can't survive, so they turn to banditry."
As he spoke, he looked at the sun-bleached street outside the inn, his brows filled with sorrow.
"If the drought continues, the crops will fail and there will be no water. The people will be forced to leave their homes and flock to various states and counties, which will surely cause unrest."
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