Red Autumn Chapter (VI)
The moonlight also dimmed, and Bian Hongqiu was immersed in his own thoughts, unaware that danger was approaching quietly.
A dark shadow followed him for more than an incense stick of time, and after going around in circles and confirming that he was alone, a straw rope as long as an arm slipped out of his sleeve.
When Bian Hongqiu finally heard something amiss besides his own breathing, the rope had already been put around his neck. He subconsciously reached out to grab the rope, only then did he feel firsthand how "light" his strength was.
There were blood marks on his neck in an instant, his screams were stuck in his throat, and cold sweat broke out on his back in an instant.
Immediately afterwards, his hands were restrained together. The not-so-long straw rope was used to the fullest extent, just enough to tie his neck and hands together.
A sinister voice whispered in his ear: "Good stuff, if you obey me, I will only sell you."
Bian Hongqiu wanted to resist belatedly, but he was like a fish on the chopping board.
The other party was annoyed by his struggle which was so slight that it could be ignored - he didn't have much time and knew that this noble man was surrounded by many people, but he wanted to kill this fish too much.
Not only can it be exchanged for a few more bags of rice. Letting such a clean person who could have lived a comfortable life live a life even worse than him is actually more satisfying than just letting him have a full meal!
He raised his hands high, wanting to beat the man into submission first.
Bian Hongqiu's face turned purple, and there was no place to hide.
"ah!"
But the scream did not come from him.
Then, the force that was clamping him from behind disappeared, and he staggered forward a few steps, trying his best to control his body balance, and his hands were randomly pulling off the straw rope around his neck.
Bian Hongqiu covered his neck and gasped for breath. He looked back and saw a shadowy bean sprout standing in front of him in the night, holding up his hands. The man who was about to tie him up was curled up on the ground and wailing in embarrassment.
"Bean Sprout" didn't say a word. He turned around and picked up the straw rope that Bian Hongqiu had pulled off. He tied up the crutch in the same way, dragged the man to the river with one hand, and kicked the man into the abandoned boat on the river.
Bian Hongqiu opened his eyes wide: "You...will he drown like this..." After he finished speaking, he realized that the kick he just made did not cause any splash.
Bean Sprout heard him speak, looked at him suspiciously for a moment, and said slowly, "Are you a Buddhist?"
Bian Hongqiu didn't realize the sarcasm. The words lingered on his lips for a long time, but he didn't dare ask why he said that. Wen Zouzou said, "A gentleman doesn't talk about strange things."
Meng Shizhuang, who couldn't read a single word, was confused and felt that this "pink butterfly" didn't understand what she was saying.
Seeing that he didn't say anything, Bian Hongqiu took a step forward and said, "Thank you."
"Bean Sprout", who was too hungry to sleep and had been wandering around for most of the night, didn't take his thanks seriously. He turned around, put away his empty scabbard, and prepared to change his route and continue wandering.
Bian Hongqiu took two steps after him, then remembered how he'd been told when they'd first met that he mumbled. He repeated loudly, "Thank you so much! I can repay you with your hand... I really do have a skilled doctor in my family..."
Meng Shizhuang didn't turn around, still speaking in that leisurely tone: "No need. Just consider me meddling in your business. Don't follow me."
He walked a little further, and when he was almost at the ferry, he stopped with a frown: "I said, don't follow me!"
Bian Hongqiu, with her sleeves hanging down, fell a few steps behind him and said in a low voice, "I'm lost."
Meng Shizhuang heard it clearly, "What does it have to do with me?"
He finished speaking and tried to walk back to the dilapidated temple where he was staying. But after a few steps, the footsteps behind him still didn't disappear. He felt a little impatient and turned around. A delicate and dazzling pearl flower was handed to him.
Bian Hongqiu finally learned his lesson: "Repay you."
Meng Shizhuang pushed it away impatiently and swallowed it.
Thinking it was too little for him, Bian Hongqiu took off a pearl flower from her left temple and put it in her palm. "You can give it to your sisters."
Meng Shizhuang raised her eyebrows and said, "What sister? Can't I wear it myself?"
Bian Hongqiu paused and said tactfully, "It's better for women to wear it."
Meng Shizhuang sneered and scolded him for being blind. She put her hands on her waist and puffed out her chest. "I am a woman, can't you see that?"
Bian Hongqiu was truly speechless this time.
Meng Shizhuang's eyes fell on the two pearl flowers again, "Give it to me, but you can't take it back."
Bian Hongqiu took the lead and lowered her head first, then bent her waist a little to pin the pearl flower into Meng Shizhuang's messy hair.
Meng Shizhuang coughed lightly and asked, "Where is your home?"
Bian Hongqiu breathed a sigh of relief. "Home... is very far from here. I live on a boat now. It should be the largest houseboat docked on the Xinglu River."
Meng Shizhuang didn't know whether "louchuan" meant "building" or "ship", but he didn't show any fear and went straight to the word "largest".
Bian Hongqiu wasn't usually a talkative person, but at this moment, he took the initiative to open up: "How old are you?"
Meng Shizhuang added, "The people who raised me said I was thirteen."
"Thirteen?"
Bian Hongqiu looked at his stature and said, "I'm thirteen too."
Unexpectedly, the "bean sprout" leading the way in front of him not only didn't feel ashamed of being a few feet shorter, but also mocked him: "You are thirteen? I thought you were still breastfeeding. You can't even control such a little thief. You are so tall for nothing."
Bian Hongqiu was speechless.
He paused for a moment, "I have learned other things. I can ride a horse and shoot arrows."
Meng Shizhuang replied lazily: "Yes, but I will save you."
Bian Hongqiu had no choice but to remain silent.
After a moment, he asked again: "Are you from Daohai City?"
Meng Shizhuang thought about it and said, "Is that so?"
Sujian Mountain is located in Daohai City.
However, he did not have the identity of a disciple of Sujian Mountain - if Sujian Mountain still existed; nor did he have a household registration in Daohai City, but there were more beggars and refugees in the city than the real people of Daohai City.
He says he is, and he is.
Bian Hongqiu seemed to be talking to himself: "No one in the world has a good life."
To be honest, Meng Shizhuang had just jumped out of the past and grudges in his heart. There were many things he didn't know about the outside world. He could just learn a few words today and apply them tomorrow.
But the difference between the mountain and the foot of the mountain is not much. No matter how fierce and brave everyone is, they are just fighting for a bowl of porridge. At first glance, when I heard such a grand word as "the world", I felt a little dazed.
He thought: Have you eaten enough? What about the rivers, lakes, seas, sky and underground?
Looking sideways, this "pink butterfly" doesn't look like it has no food to eat.
But the arrogance that was inadvertently revealed in the other party's words still made him feel a little puzzled. He wanted to ask, "Who are you?", but he held back.
Who knows, these people who can eat their fill might be thinking differently from them.
Bian Hongqiu always assumed that the person he was talking to was of the same level as him. On his journey from Shangyang, he had heard many people slam the emperor and the court. So he asked again, "Do you blame the court?"
Meng Shizhuang now felt like Bian Hongqiu was a "fairy descended to earth." Instead of discussing trivial matters, she kept talking about the imperial court. He reached out and touched the pearl flower on his head, pleased by the cool touch of the glass. Then he spoke, "Why should I blame the imperial court?"
What is the imperial court?
I hadn't upset his bowl of porridge. He wasn't the type to blame or kick people for everything.
Bian Hongqiu said with a rather melancholic tone, "The imperial court, the emperor, the marquises, and all the officials are supported by the people of the world, yet they have made the world a mess..."
If it weren't for the pearl flower on her head, Meng Shizhuang would have wanted to flee, thinking she'd encountered a hysterical person: "What do you mean by support? There are so many people who don't have enough to eat, who will support others?"
Bian Hongqiu then remembered that the provincial capitals had become independent and almost no one still recognized the emperor in the capital. Most of them continued to be half "people of the Yu Dynasty" in a daze.
While Bian Hongqiu was still lost in thought, Meng Shizhuang's words didn't seem to come from the heart, but she still parroted them, saying seriously: "There are so many people in the world. Since not everyone is starving, if you don't have enough to eat, you should think about your own problems."
Bian Hongqiu came back to look at him in surprise.
This "bean sprout" was pale and thin, with dull eyes. Every inch of his skin was covered with "sarcasm" and "blaming others", so he was never surprised by the "blackmail" when they first met.
During the three days, I saw him once a day, and although his facial features remained unchanged, I felt as if I was being reborn day by day.
Is it true that you can’t judge a book by its cover?
Feeling his gaze, Meng Shizhuang felt awkward and proud.
It seems that this is indeed a very sophisticated statement!
Meng Shizhuang followed her memory to find the largest boat on the river. Before she reached the destination, a row of torches lit up along the road ahead.
He thought of Song Jingyan who had given him two copper coins as a "charity". His heart ached and he stopped walking. He nodded at Bian Hongqiu and said, "The people who are picking you up are here."
Bian Hongqiu's tense body also relaxed.
He turned to Meng Shizhuang, thanked her again, then reached out his hand to straighten the pearl flower on Meng Shizhuang's head that had become tilted due to walking.
Meng Shizhuang took a step back cautiously, thinking that the other party was going to "kill the donkey", and warned: "I told you you can't take it back, otherwise..." I will smash your hand.
Bian Hongqiu: "It's crooked. I won't take it away."
Meng Shizhuang stopped leaning back.
Bian Hongqiu stretched out his hand tentatively again, and his subordinate "Bean Sprout" did not hide anymore.
He stared at the pearls he fiddled with between his fingers. This was the first time he'd ever carefully considered the adornment he'd never paid much attention to. Five-colored glaze pieces were stitched together to resemble peach blossoms, and pearls the size of rice grains hung as tassels, creating a luxurious and elegant scene.
Its current owner has yellow hair, not much hair, and it feels like straw.
His clothes were also very worn.
He looked at Meng Shizhuang's face again. Perhaps it was because of tonight's experience and what the other party had just said, but there was really no trace of harshness in her face.
But the edges and corners are still more masculine and tough.
Meng Shizhuang was a little dissatisfied. She looked up and saw Bian Hongqiu's chin. She urged, "Isn't it done yet?"
Bian Hongqiu quickly stepped back and said, "Okay."
Before he finished speaking, Meng Shizhuang had already run several steps away.
He looked back as he walked, and when he was about to get on the boat, he saw Song Jingyan wearing a thin autumn shirt and a coat casually pulled together. Her fingers were tightly clasped on the edge of the boat, her eyes full of worry, and she only restrained herself when she saw him.
Song Jingyan hesitated to speak. In the light of the fire, her eyes swept over the scar on his neck. Her expression suddenly changed. She ran off the boat, her coat slipping off. "Your Highness is injured?"
Bian Hongqiu touched his neck and didn't feel any pain.
He gave Song Jingyan a soothing smile, "It's nothing, I'm a little hungry."
Song Jingyan had no choice but to ask, "Let Mr. Zhou apply medicine to His Highness?"
Bian Hongqiu did not refuse again.
He supported Song Jingyan's hand and boarded the boat, then turned back again. Song Jingyan whispered in his ear, "The boat will leave tomorrow, Your Highness, please don't wander around."
Bian Hongqiu should be correct.
For many years afterwards, he always remembered this night, and the savior who looked incompatible with Zhuhua but had a unique beauty.
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