Chapter 8 Chapter 8 Night Dream
After saying goodbye to Lu Chen, Xie Yunzhou came out of Yanglou and rode back to Duke Xu's Mansion. It was already 12:00 p.m.
Xie Yunzhou casually threw the horsewhip to the servant beside him and went straight back to the yard. After washing up, he changed into loose clothes, lay on the couch with his arms as a pillow, closed his eyes, and seemed to be able to smell the bitter medicinal fragrance in the dew bag.
The scene of Zhe Rou looking up at him with a look of surprise and delight appeared in front of his eyes when they bumped into each other tonight.
Xie Yunzhou couldn't help but curl the corners of his lips.
That time he went to Taozhou to visit Lu Chen, and it happened that Zhe Rou went to the patient's home for the first time to see a patient. Lu Chen was worried and wanted to go to see the patient in person, but he suddenly received an order to be transferred back to the camp, so he asked Zhe Rou to look after the patient secretly.
But it was just a small matter, so Xie Yunzhou readily agreed.
After finding the place, he leaned against the willow tree at the entrance of the alley, holding a grass stem in his mouth. He saw Zhe Rou saying goodbye to the family in a proper manner. Unexpectedly, she pretended to be a steady doctor in front of others. After walking out of two alleys, she seemed to be unable to hold back any longer, and her whole body became light and cheerful.
After watching for a while, he suddenly found it very interesting.
On the way back, he followed closely behind her, watching her wearing a plain dress that was slightly whitened from washing, carrying an ebony medical box on her back, walking on the winding country road with light steps, the silk ribbons in her hair fluttering in the wind, the brilliant sunset shining on her delicate profile, like the apricot blossoms that had just bloomed on the branches in late spring, soft and bright.
Xie Yunzhou did not deliberately remember that scene, but it was engraved in his mind and he thought about it frequently later.
He was born into the royal family, a prince who grew up in a pile of splendor. He was unruly and frivolous. He had been raised in the rich and powerful capital of Shangjing for more than 20 years and was accustomed to all kinds of noble ladies, but she was different from those women.
How could there be such a young lady? She had clearly endured a lot of hardships, yet she always had a smile on her face. She looked gentle and soft, as soft as spring water, yet inside she was as warm and lively as a fire, with a vigorous and tenacious spirit.
As Xie Yunzhou thought about it, the alcohol in his stomach began to churn again, burning his heart. Hazily, half drunk and half awake, he fell into a chaotic dream.
It feels like being in the Lantern Festival, with millions of lanterns hanging on the towering colorful buildings, shining brightly and colorfully. The long street is full of fireworks, the sound of phoenix flutes is heard, and fish and dragons dance all night long.
He walked anxiously through the bustling crowd, glancing at the fleeting figures all around him. He didn't know how long it had been or how far he had walked, but finally at the end of the long, crowded street, he found the gentle figure he had been thinking about day and night.
"Nine Lady!"
As if hearing someone calling, the woman standing in the brightly lit area suddenly turned around, smiled at him, and called out in a light and tender voice: "A Lang."
In an instant, the noisy sounds around her receded like a tide, and everyone's faces became blurred, as if she was the only one left in the world.
Xie Yunzhou's heart skipped a beat and he smiled unconsciously. He took a step forward to greet her, but the next moment, he saw her tender gaze pass over him and look at the person behind him.
Xie Yunzhou froze in place for a moment.
Seeing her walking towards the man with a smile on her face, getting closer and closer, just when they were about to pass each other, Xie Yunzhou suddenly grabbed her wrist.
The woman's arm was soft and slender, and it was tainted by the coolness of the snowy night, but the hand covering it was strong and powerful, and it was burning hot.
She turned around in surprise, the street lights reflected her beautiful face, her red lips slightly parted, full and smooth, as beautiful as a ripe cherry in June.
How would it feel for her lover to taste those two lips?
Unable to control his emotions, Xie Yunzhou's Adam's apple rolled. He held her shoulders tightly, pulled the woman into his arms, and lowered his head to kiss her.
The refreshing breath was just around the corner, but the person in his arms struggled, raised his hands to press against his chest, opened his eyes wide in panic, and murmured in disbelief: "Mingqi..."
The cool night wind passed through the gaps in the windows, blowing the gauze curtains.
Xie Yunzhou woke up suddenly, his body almost soaked in cold sweat, his heart beating violently.
He is really crazy.
Lu Chen and he grew up together. The two had been friends for nearly twenty years. They were brothers and close friends, but he had inappropriate thoughts about his first wife.
He knew he shouldn't.
But the more I suppressed it, the more I longed for it. After hundreds and thousands of days and nights, it almost turned into an instinct that was difficult to control.
The night wind was quiet, and the curtains hanging in the house fluttered gently.
Moonlight leaked in through the mullioned windows, pouring all over the ground, as thick as frost.
After a long while, Xie Yunzhou got off the bed barefoot, walked to the table, tilted his head back and drank a cup of cold tea, and his heartbeat slowly calmed down.
It was late at night. He walked out of the lattice door and sat down on the wooden steps under the corridor. His clothes were disheveled and his plain white undershirt was open, revealing an old scar on his chest that was over an inch long.
When the thin and powerful long fingers touched him, Xie Yunzhou was stunned for a moment.
That year, Lu Chen went on an expedition with the army, but he did not expect that the commander-in-chief Han Siquan was greedy for merit and advanced rashly, and fell into the trap of the Qiang people to lure the tiger away from the mountain. Tens of thousands of troops were trapped deep in the heart of the Western Qiang, and the main force of the Qiang army took advantage of the night to attack the main city of Taozhou, which was undermanned.
He and Zhe Rou were trapped in the city. The battle situation was fierce. He was accidentally hit by an arrow. The blood in his chest kept flowing and his life was in danger.
The situation was urgent and Zhe Rou could not find the prepared mulberry thread, so she used her own hair to suture his wound in desperation.
Although she was so frightened that her face turned pale, she still managed to stay calm and comforted him again and again, saying in a trembling voice, "Mingqi, don't be afraid."
His life was almost over at that time, but seeing her wholeheartedly nervous and worried look, he actually felt a little happy and wanted to make fun of her, but unfortunately he was too badly injured and couldn't say a word.
Time has passed, and the arrow wound on his chest has long since healed and the stitches removed, but he often has the illusion that her hair has grown together with his flesh and blood, pulling at his heartbeats, like a secret and unspeakable throbbing.
The passion of youth is like a wildfire that spreads across the prairie and cannot be stopped.
But, so what?
She was already the first wife of his good friend, and seriously speaking, he even had to call her "cousin-in-law".
The couple is deeply in love and will never give up on each other.
That year, the Jin army was ambushed in the heart of Western Qiang territory. Lu Chen's vanguard battalion bore the brunt of the attack and was completely annihilated. The remaining defeated troops retreated to Taozhou in disarray, not even having time to collect the bodies of the fallen soldiers.
Everyone said that the corpses of those soldiers had probably been crushed by iron hooves and buried deep in the yellow sand, making it impossible to tell which was which.
She just smiled, packed her medicine and food by herself, tied up her hair, changed into men's clothes, led a small black horse, and said she was going to find Lu Chen and bring him back.
She said that even if Lu Chen really died in battle outside the Great Wall, she would bring his body back.
She was his wife, how could she watch him die in a foreign land? A hundred years later, they would be buried together.
Lu Bingyan, ah Lu Bingyan, it’s really enviable to have such a wife.
Xie Yunzhou suddenly raised his head and smiled self-deprecatingly.
Yes, he knew he was stupid. For almost three years, he had been holding onto those dark thoughts. But so what? He was happy to do it. Who was he bothering?
Money can’t buy my happiness.
Xie Yunzhou never cared about the outcome throughout his life, only that he should be true to his conscience.
**
Xu Mansion.
Xu Yourong went to visit the Third Prince's residence during the day. After returning home, he felt a little tired, so he washed up and went to bed early, lying on the couch thinking about his worries.
Although she and Lu Chen had become much more familiar with each other after spending the past few days together, she still didn't know what Lu Chen's real intentions were. She had planned to be reserved for a while and wait for Lu Chen to take the initiative to invite her out, but she didn't expect that when she came back today, she heard that he had brought that Taozhou woman to the banquet.
Naturally, she disdained to take that country girl seriously. After all, any man with some power in this world would always have a concubine.
Her father already had two concubines in the backyard, not to mention her second brother-in-law, concubines, concubines, maids without rank... so many that they could not be counted on one hand.
To the wife, these concubines and maids were nothing more than breathing things, not to mention the orphans with no roots to rely on, so they could be dealt with very easily.
But when she thought about it, she couldn't help feeling a little jealous, but she was more curious. She wanted to know what the woman Lu Chen brought back from the countryside looked like, so she couldn't help but send someone to send a letter, hoping to wait a couple of days to test his opinion.
Just as she was daydreaming, the servant in the front yard brought Lu Chen's reply. Xu Yourong couldn't help but cheer up and immediately got off the bed happily. She ordered the maid to take out the clothes in the wardrobe one by one, and compared them with the newly made hairpins in the dressing box. She chose for a long time and finally decided on a silk dress embroidered with gold and silver thread, and paired it with a pearl hairpin.
She also asked the maid to comb her hair again, put on some lip rouge, and dressed herself up properly.
Standing in front of the bronze mirror and looking around, Xu Yourong clapped her hands and nodded with satisfaction, seeing that the dress was both luxurious and charming.
When she was finally tired and turned off the lights to settle down, the old woman serving in the corridor raised her head, glanced quietly into the house, turned around and hurried to Fenglan Garden, reporting everything about her young lady to the mistress Zhou.
The more Zhou listened, the more her brows furrowed. Before she finished listening, she suddenly stood up and went to the study to look for Xu Chong.
Xu Chong was at his desk, appraising a newly acquired ancient painting. When he saw her enter, he immediately smiled and said, "Madam, are you here? Come, take a look at this painting. Rumor has it it's an authentic work by Wu Daozi from the ancient dynasty."
Zhou was no longer in the mood for that. She patted her chest and said straight to the point, "I heard that Sixteenth Lady has taken a fancy to Lu's Third Son. They've been interacting privately quite a bit these past few days. Did you know about this?"
Hearing this, Xu Chong nodded indifferently and continued to look at the scroll on the desk.
Zhou looked him up and down, then hesitantly asked, "Could it be that you are happy to see this happen?"
Xu Chong said lightly, "Hmm," "I think it's good."
Zhou's heart suddenly erupted with anger. She stomped over to the table and frowned at him. "Although the third son of the Lu family has some abilities, I heard that he secretly married a wife in Taozhou and now keeps her at home. How can he be considered a good match with such a dirty woman? In short, I will not agree to it. I will never allow Rong Niang to have any contact with that Lu family boy again!"
She was Xu Chong's concubine, her only child being Shiliu Niang. Now that her daughter had grown up, finding a good husband was paramount. Life was not easy for women in this world. If her husband had another concubine in his room, she would have to endure a lot of hardship when she married him.
Xu Chong looked up and glanced at her, thinking to himself that women are just women, they really have no knowledge.
Waving off the servants, Xu Chong said helplessly, "I've already sent people to investigate the concubine. An orphan without a father or a mother is nothing at all, not even as good as an ant."
He lowered his voice and continued, "The emperor is old, and I'm afraid he regrets what happened to the late crown prince. Otherwise, how do you think that young man from the Lu family could be transferred back to the capital so easily and take over the command of the two yamen guards?
Since the emperor has such intentions, this boy should not be underestimated. If Rong Niang can be used to resolve the conflict between the two families, I won't have to worry about him anymore. Moreover, the power of the imperial guards in his hands will also be helpful to the Third Prince.
"Of course, the most important thing is that Rong Niang likes it."
Xu Chong talked about so many pros and cons, but only the last sentence touched the heart of Zhou. She loved her daughter like the palm of her hand, so how could she bear to let her daughter marry a man she didn't like? She fell silent after hearing this.
But even after thinking about it, she still felt upset. She couldn't help but ask, "Then have you asked someone to check how Lu Sanlang treats his mistress? Is his affection for him deep?"
Xu Chong sneered, "How can a mere country girl compare to future power and influence? Since he was interested in dating Rong Niang, he had already made a choice in his mind.
It is often said that a general's success is built on the sacrifice of thousands of soldiers. If the disaster of the past were to happen again, how could Lu Bingyan know that he would definitely be the general and not the soldier? He had crawled out of a mountain of corpses and a sea of blood, and this account would not be forgotten.
Zhou gradually calmed down. She was also the mistress of a noble family. Of course, she knew that love was far less reliable than interests, and what her husband said made sense.
However, she still had some hidden worries in her heart. After thinking for a moment, she asked hesitantly, "Mother Rong is simple-minded. If we just let them do what they want, if, if something happens... won't we, Mother Rong, suffer in the end?"
"Don't worry, the young man from the Lu family knows how to act."
After a pause, Xu Chong narrowed his eyes and said slowly, "Let's let them spend some time together. I want to see with my own eyes how sincere he is in showing goodwill to my Xu family."
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