107 Going Home
◎Overnight stay in hotel◎
Twelve brought her to an arena, where cheers were deafening, the inside and outside of the arena were crowded with people, and the roars of wild beasts could be faintly heard.
He took out a pearl and handed it to the gatekeeper, who then took them directly to the viewing platform on the second floor.
After coming up, I leaned over to look and saw a man and a beast fighting below. Dust was flying, and strands of blood mixed with the dust fell down, making a mottled scene. The fighting scene was horrific.
Shu Yao looked away.
Twelve took her in his arms and sat her down, then asked, "Do you think it's cruel?"
Shu Yao nodded.
Twelve scoffed, "Look at that guy down there. Do you know what reward he'll get if he wins?"
Before Shu Yao could say anything, he said to himself, "One hundred taels."
"People who participate in animal fights come voluntarily. If they win, they take the money and leave. If they lose, they leave their lives behind."
Shu Yao frowned and looked down again, only to see the tiger opening its bloody mouth and pouncing on the shirtless man opposite. Suddenly, her eyes went dark, and she fainted after a dizzy spell.
Before she closed her eyes, a worried handsome face enlarged in front of her, and then she fell into endless darkness.
In a daze, she seemed to see Ji Shijing.
He was wearing a brand new bright red official uniform, his back to her. Shu Yao gently placed her hand on his shoulder and called him, "A Jing."
Hearing her voice, Ji Shijing's body stiffened and he turned around in disbelief. But the moment he turned around, Shu Yao's pupils suddenly dilated and her eyes were full of fear.
Ji Shijing's body was covered in blood, and the dagger in his hand was stained red with blood. His increasingly resolute face was also covered in blood and had lost its luster. Only his eyes were still dark and sharp. He stretched out his bleeding hands and wanted to hug her.
Shu Yao took a step back in fright and couldn't help but scream.
"Ah." I woke up from the dream.
"Sister Yao."
Wu Lan's voice was in my ears.
She looked at Wu Lan and slowly came back to her senses.
Wu Lan poured her a cup of milk tea and sat beside the bed: "Sister Yao, you were in a coma for two days and two nights. I was scared to death."
Shu Yao hit her head. The scene in her dream was still clear. It was strange. Why did she dream of Ji Shijing covered in blood? Did something happen to him?
Thinking of this, she became extremely anxious. She threw off the quilt and got out of bed, but because she had little strength left, she fell to the ground again.
Twelve happened to come in and saw her. He picked her up and walked out of the house directly.
Wu Lan called out from behind, "Brother Wang, where are you taking Sister Yao?"
Twelve Head didn't reply: "Find a witch doctor."
Shu Yao nestled in his arms: "Twelve, I want to go back."
Twelve's chest heaved. "Your illness hasn't healed yet. It will probably take until next spring to fully recover."
Shu Yao felt a little lost.
After a long moment, Twelve looked down at her and said, "I...I shouldn't have taken you to the Colosseum." The scene there was too cruel, so it was normal for her to feel uncomfortable.
Shu Yao shook her head. It was already winter, and the winter on the grassland was especially cold. Twelve took off his animal robe and put it on her.
The witch doctor lived in the northwest corner of the palace. It was a remote location and few people came here. As soon as Shu Yao entered the door, she smelled a strong herbal scent and she couldn't help coughing twice.
The witch doctor was brewing Chinese medicine. When he saw the two people come in, he bowed to Twelve, then brought two cups of hot tea and said slowly, "It's going to snow heavily today. Why is the Third Prince dressed so lightly?"
Shu Yao pinched the animal robe draped over her body and felt a little uneasy.
Twelve frowned and asked the witch doctor to treat Shu Yao.
When the two came out again, the sky was gradually darkening, and fine white snow was floating in the air. Shu Yao couldn't help but reach out to catch it. Another year of snowfall had passed, and she had been in this world for three years. It had gone so fast.
Along the way, the two walked side by side in silence, and no one spoke.
Twelve turned his head to look at the person next to him, and after a long time, he sighed heavily.
When Shu Yao returned home that night, she had a high fever again. This fever lasted for three days, and she kept muttering the word "go home" during that time.
Twelve, who was standing by the couch, held her wrist and gently stroked the hair by her ear. As if he had made some kind of decision, his voice was suppressed and painful: "Okay, I promise you, I will send you back when you get better."
Shu Yao woke up on a snowy morning. Knowing that Twelve was going to let her go, she walked over and gave him a big hug, her face full of joy: "Thank you."
Twelve finally withdrew his hand from her waist. He turned his face away, not wanting her to see the emotion in his eyes. "When the snow stops, I'll have someone take you back."
"good."
The snow on the grassland continued to fall for many days. Half a month later, the weather finally cleared up. Shu Yao packed her things while looking at the place where she had lived for seven months. For some reason, she felt a little reluctant to leave.
Wu Lan, who is usually lively, was unusually silent at this moment. She secretly wiped away her tears, her voice trembling a little: "Sister Yao, are you really going back?" Although she tried her best to suppress it, tears still rolled down her face.
Shu Yao quickly put down the bag in her hand and comforted her softly: "Princess, don't cry. I will come back to see you when I have time in the future."
Wu Lan sniffed and held out his pinky finger: "Let's pinky promise."
Shu Yao put her fingers on it.
Only then did Wu Lan burst into laughter.
Twelve didn't know how long he stood at the door. He was like a sculpture, with no emotion on his face. Shu Yao walked up to him with a bag on her back, and suddenly she didn't dare to look him in the eye.
He reached out and took the bag from her shoulder, then carried her onto the horse. The two of them walked towards the city gate. Only when they reached the carriage he had prepared for her did he turn around and say to her, "Be careful on the road." He had mentally prepared himself for these four extremely simple words all the way. He didn't want to let her go back at all.
Shu Yao took out two sachets from her bag and handed them to Twelve: "There are many mosquitoes on the grassland in the summer. I made these sachets myself. They contain three kinds of mosquito repellent grass. I give them to you and Wu Lan."
After a pause, she continued, "Twelve, thank you for your time. If there's anything you need my help with in the future, please let me know."
Twelve concealed his good mood and said "hmm" indifferently, then took out a porcelain bottle from his sleeve, "There are ten pills in this bottle. Take one pill a day, and the poison in your body will be cured."
Shu Yao took it carefully.
"I have something to do in the palace, so I won't see you off." He helped her into the carriage and whispered.
Shu Yao nodded, lifted the curtain and got into the carriage. When she saw the items placed inside, she was slightly surprised. There were three sets of thick quilts made of real fabric piled in the carriage, and the footrests were covered with soft felt, so she would not feel cold even if she stepped on them barefoot.
To prevent the cold wind from blowing in, the windows were covered with thick collars, and there was a fireplace that was burning perfectly in the corner.
There were four or five food boxes on the seat next to me. When I opened them, I saw that they were filled with dried fruits that could be stored and eaten for a long time.
Shu Yao was stunned. Twelve was too attentive.
"Gee." The driver waved his whip, the horse neighed, and slowly drove forward.
Shu Yao lifted the heavy curtain and saw Twelve standing in the crowd leading a black horse. She waved at him and then lowered the curtain, her heart pounding wildly, afraid that he would change his mind and not let her go back.
Only after the carriage disappeared from sight did Twelve mount his black horse and slowly catch up.
Shu Yao had not recovered from her illness yet, so she walked very slowly along the way. It took her almost two months of staggering to reach the edge of the capital.
It was already nightfall when the carriage arrived at a forest. There was no one living within a ten-mile radius, save for the dilapidated house in front. As we got closer, we could see the words "Spring and Autumn Inn" on the plaque.
Seeing that the night was getting late, Shu Yao packed up her belongings and put the remaining ten taels of silver into her sleeve.
On the day she came back, Twelve gave her a hundred taels of silver. She had spent most of it on the way, and now only ten taels were left. She couldn't spend it carelessly anymore.
As they approached the hotel, a sudden north wind blew, blowing the big red lanterns hanging on the eaves all over the place. Shu Yao suddenly felt a little afraid to go in, but this was the only place she could stay, so she gritted her teeth and pushed the door open.
It was pitch black inside, and a musty smell hit her face. Shu Yao covered her nose and fanned it, then bravely shouted, "Is anyone there?"
But the voice fell on deaf ears, and no one responded at all.
It looks like an abandoned house. Who hung the two lanterns that are burning brightly at the door?
Looking at the dark room, she still didn't have the courage to go in, so she turned around and walked back. But as soon as she turned around, she was met with an ugly face.
The man held a candle and approached her, his mouth grinning from ear to ear, revealing a mouthful of dark, yellow teeth. The man's face was covered with wrinkles. "Hey, little girl, are you going to stay at the hotel?"
Suddenly seeing such a face, Shu Yao was so frightened that she pushed him away and ran towards the carriage.
"Little girl, why are you running so fast? I'm not going to eat you."
"It's pitch dark here, you must not get carried away by that wild bear."
"There are always bad guys around here, girl, you better be careful."
Shu Yao glanced at the dark forest, swallowed, and slowly turned around to look at the man holding a candle at the door of the inn: "Are you the owner of this inn?"
The man nodded and said, "My shop has been open for forty years. It's a bit shabby. I hope you don't mind, young lady." Then he walked into the shop and lit the candles inside.
Shu Yao hesitated for a moment, but after thinking it over, she bravely walked in. She had to admit that the shop was quite clean and tidy, and her heart was relieved a little.
The man put the candle in his hand on the counter, took out a rusty key from the box and handed it to Shu Yao: "Miss, this is the only room left today, please make do with it."
Shu Yao looked at the second floor and asked, "Are all the guest rooms on the second floor full?"
The man smiled and said, "Yeah, there's only one room left."
Shu Yao took the key and turned to go upstairs. Thinking that there were people living upstairs, she was not so scared anymore.
The old stairs creaked continuously, and the man gave her a strange smile behind her.
Shu Yao walked to the second room at the end and opened the door with the key. She seemed to hear a noise next door, as if something hit the wall, but when she listened carefully again, there was nothing.
She walked into the room, closed the door, locked it, pushed the table against the door, and then closed the window. Only then did she feel a little more at ease.
I lit the candle on the table and looked around the small room. It was very ordinary furnished, with only a bed and a table, nothing else.
After traveling for several days in a row, Shu Yao was already extremely sleepy. She took off her shoes and went to bed. The quilt was wet, and when she smelled it carefully, there was a musty smell.
She frowned and decided to make do with it for the night.
The wind was howling outside, and the shadows of the trees were cast on the windows, forming dark shadows.
Shu Yao turned over and gradually fell asleep.
It was quiet all around, even the woods were eerily quiet, with only the creaking of the old stairs. A man was holding a silver boning knife in his hand, and he walked up to the second floor with deep and shallow steps.
The silver light reflected on his face, revealing a strange and cruel smile on the corner of his mouth.
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