NINETY ONE
“We have encountered Zhu Lizhen’s cavalrymen outside the city. They have been appearing more and more frequently in recent days. They are probably the outposts. Their people are coming this way.”
Lin Bozhou seemed not to care about his eyes, with the whip in his palm, he spoke in a nonchalant tone.
“Yes, ever since the news of An Chui’s being in Qiezhou spread, his father has gone crazy, plotting to seize Qiezhou and is eager to try. A lot of troops have been withdrawn from Jinzhou. It seems that he really wants to keep his son.”
However, Lin Bozhou would not be so kind as to let the enemy get what they want.
He planned to pick a sunny and windy day to hang An Chui’s head on the city gate, so that all of Zhu Lizhen’s people could see clearly what would happen to those who were enemies of Dazong.
Zhu Lizhen, if An Chui is alive, rescue him; if he is dead, revenge him.
Chen An lowered his head, and the group walked towards the central military tent in the wind and snow, with their backs lengthened.
The snow was heavy and Meng Huan felt a little cold. He stretched out his white palm to catch a few pieces of snow, squatted down, and waited for Lin Bozhou to return from the tent.
After a moment, a voice rang in my ears: “Return to the city.”
Lin Bozhou finished explaining the matter and walked to his side without knowing when. He was so close that he lowered his eyes to look down at Meng Huan, who was wearing a hood, as if he was looking at a small gray mushroom in the snow.
The little mushroom stood up reluctantly, shook off the snow on his body, and stared at him for a while with bright eyes: “Your eyes——”
“It got a little redder due to the cold wind on the way back, but it’s no big deal.” Lin Bozhou said in a calm voice.
“oh.”
Since he said so, Meng Huan didn’t ask any more questions. He just inexplicably remembered the time when Lin Bozhou was blind.
But now in the army, hundreds of thousands of people are waiting for Lin Bozhou’s order, and thousands of lives depend on him. No one would want to associate the recurrence of eye disease, right?
Meng Huan hoped that his eyes were just red from the wind.
Many people set up stalls on the streets and sold things. Since hearing that Lin Bozhou was in charge of Qiezhou, many people stopped wandering along the way and went to Qiezhou, seeking a brief peace.
The street is about a hundred meters long, and many people are selling fruits, vegetables, cattle, sheep, chickens and ducks.
Meng Huan said, “Husband, wait a minute.”
Lin Bozhou said “Hmm?” and stopped.
He saw Meng Huan walking quickly to a snack stall. The stall owner was a woman. The snow-white glutinous rice cakes were placed in a basket. The stall was not big, but it was clean.
Meng Huan bought a bag of fried glutinous rice balls, returned to Lin Bozhou, and said, “Go home and eat them. I often buy glutinous rice balls from this stall. They taste great.”
Lin Bozhou glanced sideways, said nothing, and reached out to brush the snow off Meng Huan: “Are you used to living in the city?”
“I’m used to it, but it’s so cold every day.” When Meng Huan said this, white mist came out of his mouth.
He was not as useful as Lin Bozhou in commanding the three armies, so he prepared meals and poured wine in the yard every day. He came back in the evening to make him a pot of hot tea, handed him chopsticks, helped him take a bath, and helped warm the bed. He lived a peaceful life in the small town.
Lin Bozhou raised his lips and smiled inexplicably.
Moreover, Meng Huan quite likes this kind of life.
He felt as if he had completely possessed a part of Lin Bozhou.
“Go home and taste it for your husband.”
Lin Bozhou took a few steps closer and wanted to hold his hand, but Meng Huan looked around and moved his hand away: “No, there’s someone here.”
“…”
Lin Bozhou raised his eyes.
She’s a conservative lady.
But Meng Huan said he didn’t want to lead the dog, but his ears turned red. He said, “Go back to the yard and lead the dog.”
Lin Bozhou’s smile deepened.
Back in the yard, life in the small town of Qiezhou is simple, and there are so many servants standing in the yard that they can’t move their hands and feet. Meng Huan walked in, shook off the snow on his body, took off his hood, and went to the kitchen to bring out the food that was warm in the pot.
Steaming hot.
A plate of stir-fried cabbage.
A bowl of twice-cooked pork.
A plate of boiled lamb.
There is also the fragrant black chicken and mountain mushroom soup stewed in the soup pot.
Meng Huan said excitedly: “Eat, eat!”
Lin Bozhou picked up the chopsticks, drank a sip of soup, and asked Meng Huan how he passed the time when he was not around.
“Not bad, let’s play chess with Zhu Dong, and we’ll go back to the yard when the time comes.” Meng Huan felt like a homely man who would go home to cook for his wife and children after playing mahjong every day. As he spoke, he remembered something else, “I can never beat that beast Zhu Dong in chess, husband, please help me.”
The ending tone is upturned, unconsciously acting coquettish.
Although he thought it was just a trick played by the young boy, and that Lin Bozhou’s participation would be a sign of bullying, he still agreed: “Okay, I’ll find a time to help you win it back.”
“Let me see how he can still be so proud,” Meng Huan put a piece of golden and shiny twice-cooked pork into Lin Bozhou’s bowl, “My husband, have this, have this! It’s been simmered in the pot for half an hour, and it’s cooked thoroughly, and it’s very tasty!”
Lin Bozhou lowered his eyelashes.
He stretched out his chopsticks and picked up the twice-cooked pork that Meng Huan had put in the bowl. Suddenly, his eyes blurred and several swaying shadows appeared.
He paused with his fingers and looked into the void. It took a while for the shadows to stabilize. When he raised his eyes again, Meng Huan was looking at him, but his face seemed to be covered with a layer of white gauze, and his facial features became blurry.
“Husband?” Meng Huan called.
Lin Bozhou closed his eyes, then opened them again. He tried to lift his lips, but his brows were unconsciously furrowed.
“not good.”
He said two words.
Meng Huan realized it and put down the bowl and chopsticks: “Husband, do you have an eye disease…”
Lin Bozhou closed his eyes for a moment, and when he opened them again, the vision in front of him became clear again, but the blurriness just now could not be shaken off.
Meng Huan confirmed: “Call the doctor?”
Lin Bozhou held the back of his hand and said, “Let’s eat first.”
Meng Huan ate absent-mindedly during the meal, while Lin Bozhou acted as if nothing had happened and showed nothing on his face. After the meal, Doctor Zhou hurried in with a medicine box on his back, kowtowed to Lin Bozhou, and then asked, “Your Majesty?”
Meng Huan poured a glass of water for Doctor Zhou and watched from the side.
Lin Bozhou sat in a chair and told everything that happened today: “The weather is too cold. When I went out before, the wind blew my eyes and I felt a little hot, but I didn’t pay much attention to it. When I came back from this trip today, my eyes hurt, and I thought it was the wind.”
Doctor Zhou took out the needle and sighed, “Your Highness’s eyes cannot stand the extreme heat or cold. Don’t blame your Highness for being careless. If you want to blame someone, blame the weather.”
Hearing the word “time”, Lin Bozhou’s knuckles moved slightly, as if touched by something.
The right time, the right place, and the right people.
Lin Bozhou is the only one who has both good timing and good people.
Meng Huan blinked, vaguely feeling that things were a little complicated, but from Lin Bozhou’s calm face, it seemed that he did not have any intense emotions.
After the acupuncture, Doctor Zhou prescribed some medicine.
“Your Highness, please take good care of your eyes these days and take medicine every day. Don’t worry too much. Maybe you can last longer without going blind.” He gave repeated instructions.
Lin Bozhou glanced at the pile of medicine on the wooden table, his throat rolled, and he let out a light breath: “Okay, thank you, Doctor Zhou.”
“I’ll take my leave.” Doctor Zhou picked up the medicine box.
Lin Bozhou was thinking about something and called him: “Don’t tell anyone about the recurrence of my eye disease, especially don’t let the people in the army know. Just say that I got a prescription for a cold medicine.”
Doctor Zhou was even more respectful: “Yes.”
People left in a hurry.
Lin Bozhou sat in a chair, his straight shoulders rising and falling slightly, his handsome eyes and eyebrows tinged with gloom and fatigue.
He can still see now, but he is afraid that if the fierce north wind blows any longer, he will become blind, which is a bit distressing.
“Husband…”
Meng Huan held the medicine bag and felt the silent air.
Now that we are facing a powerful enemy and the crucial battle has not yet been fought, if Lin Bozhou becomes blind, it will add many unexpected events and make the outcome unclear.
Of course Lin Bozhou was in a bad mood.
Meng Huan raised his voice and said, “Don’t be sad. I’ll make some medicine for you. You’ll be fine after you drink it.”
It’s like the tone of coaxing a child.
Lin Bozhou seemed to smile, but it was a very faint smile. His whole body was stained with the damp and cold air of the snowy day, and the smile at the corner of his lips was just right.
Meng Huan had many more words of comfort he wanted to say, but he felt that it would be of no use to Lin Bozhou. He pursed his lips, went to the stove, put all the herbs in, added clean water, and closed the lid.
The flames were billowing and the medicine in the lid was bubbling, emitting a fishy and bitter smell.
“My dear, drink this bowl of medicine before going to the army…”
Just as Meng Huan finished speaking, a deputy general came into the yard and asked him to discuss military affairs.
Lin Bozhou refused: “Wait a minute, I will come back later—”
He knew what Meng Huan was thinking and wanted to finish taking the medicine before going.
But Meng Huan stood in the corridor and did not stop him: “You go and discuss the matter first.”
Lin Bozhou paused, and the person outside the door urged again: “My lord, it’s the Marquis of Zhenguan who is looking for you.”
It was actually the Marquis of Zhenguan who came to see him. He must have something important to discuss. Lin Bozhou paused, stopped beside Meng Huan and said, “Let’s drink at night.” Then he walked out of the courtyard, leaving behind a tall figure.
“Why.”
Meng Huan made “Aba Aba” sounds twice.
Lin Bozhou, just be happy in secret.
Qaq
——It’s really hard to find a wife as understanding as me.
He looked at the medicine jar carefully, occasionally opening the lid to fan the air and smelling the burning bitter smell in the jar.
The smell of the medicine was too pungent. It was not pleasant to smell or drink, but when only herbs could save lives, Meng Huan felt a little relieved as he watched the liquid in the pot gradually turn dark brown and the bitter smell became stronger.
He squatted beside the stove and waited until the medicine was ready. He scooped out a bowl of the warm medicine and placed it in a basket covered with insulating cotton cloth. After covering the porcelain bowl tightly, he carried the small basket and set out for the military camp.
There were some horses tied at the entrance of the camp, chewing beans and hay. There were a few eunuchs in blue official robes standing there. The door of the central military tent was closed, and they were probably discussing something.
Meng Huan wanted to watch for a while longer, but a voice came to his ear: “Why are you here?”
It’s Chen An.
“Deliver medicine to the prince.” Meng Huan said.
Chen An knew Lin Bozhou’s situation and nodded, “Your Highness probably can’t drink anymore. Someone has come from the palace. The new military supervisor sent by His Majesty is asking about the camp.”
“New military supervisor?”
“Yes, a new military supervisor. I’m afraid that His Majesty felt that the previous military supervisor was not doing his job well, so he replaced him with a new one.”
For some reason, there was a hint of embarrassment and bitterness in Chen An’s smile.
Even though Meng Huan did not have much political sensitivity, he could still sense that the sudden change of military supervisor before the battle must have some special meaning.
He looked up and asked, “Why?”
There were so many people here that it was hard for Chen An to explain it to him. He just shook his head and said, “The prince will tell you when we get back.”
“Okay.” Meng Huan hummed, no longer asking about this topic, but asked, “How long will it take for the prince to discuss this matter?”
“not sure.”
Chen An noticed that his face was red from the wind and he was drinking white mist in his mouth. He said kindly, “It’s cold and snowy, go back and rest. I’ll give the medicine to the prince. He will say that you sent it specially because you were worried about his health.”
Meng Huan’s ears turned red and he nodded: “Thank you, Uncle Chen.”
Chen An’s face was full of smiles.
Meng Huan felt embarrassed to let others know that he was so reluctant to leave Lin Bozhou. He put on his hood, stepped on the deep white snow, his fingers were frozen, and ran towards the city with his head down.
Let’s go back and play chess with Zhu Dong.
There are all kinds of random things in my mind.
The camp was not far from the city gate, about a mile away. As Meng Huan was running, when he ran to the bottom of the city tower, his sight was attracted by a heavy gray-black color in the distance.
This gray-black line looks like crawling ants or an advancing storm, and is very dazzling in the snow.
What?
Meng Huan slowed down his pace, turned his head and looked towards the black side.
The gray-black color began to widen, and the distance in the field of vision became larger and larger. This scene inexplicably reminded Meng Huan of the overwhelming cavalry that swept everything. His heart suddenly jumped, and he quickened his pace to enter the city.
Still curious, when Meng Huan stood on the top of the city wall, he found a figure standing there. Zhu Dong was standing on tiptoe to look down at the city wall.
Meng Huan: “What are you looking at, brother?”
Zhu Dong turned around and saw him, with a panicked look on his face: “Master Zhu Li is here!”
Meng Huan’s heart suddenly sank, and his brain felt like it was hit by something.
They waited in Qiezhou for more than ten days, deploying their troops for such a long time, waiting for Zhuli Zhenren, who was about to fall into the trap, to finally set foot on this land.
As long as we meet Master Zhuli, it means that the crucial decisive battle is about to begin and the war will soon be over.
Meng Huan ran over quickly: “Is this true or false?”
“Really? Look!”
“But isn’t Master Zhuli the best at cavalry? Why didn’t I hear any cavalry movement?”
Meng Huan ran to the concave part of the tower, stood on tiptoe and looked out.
When thousands of troops and horses galloped, even the earth would shake, so the ancient soldiers were always on guard and could hear the enemy cavalry coming from afar through their weapons. Meng Huan had heard the sound of cavalry galloping and was very shocked.
But now, he didn’t feel the vibration.
“Cavalry…Cavalry!” Zhu Dong’s voice trembled, containing inexplicable fear.
“The cavalry is behind these refugees!”
In an instant, Meng Huan’s sight was fixed outside the city.
The gray-black crowd marched with heavy steps. At first, Meng Huan thought they were running in an orderly manner, trying to attack Qiezhou, but the closer he got, he discovered that they were screaming and running, crying and shouting, chaos and trampling.
“Forward! Forward!”
“Don’t stop! Don’t stop! Anyone who disobeys the order will be killed!”
Among the crowd there were foreigners riding on majestic horses, holding long swords, running and slashing wildly in the crowd. Their horses had an overwhelming advantage over this group of poor refugees. Any civilian who slowed down would have his skin and flesh cut by their swords, or even his head chopped off, with blood splattering on the spot.
A young woman fell to the ground, and in an instant, her spine was broken by a horse rushing up from behind. She spat out a mouthful of blood foam, and her body was trampled by the panicked refugees behind her and sank into the dust.
Meng Huan’s world seemed silent.
“My Lord! Help!”
“Help!!!”
“Sir! Avalokitesvara! Save us, save us——”
The snow and dust were rolling. In the crowd there were men and women, old and young. Some were holding babies in their arms, crying and shouting as they ran towards the city of Qiezhou.
There were spikes and chevaux de frise installed at the front of the city. Driven by the hooves of Zhuli Zhenren’s horse, the refugees fell into the trench one after another, were pierced by the spikes, and died on the spot. Even if they stopped when they saw the danger, they were pushed by the terrified crowd behind them and fell onto the sharp spikes.
The bodies of the refugees gradually fell down.
A large number of troops lined up to fight the enemy, but everyone looked pale.
These people who come one after another to fill the trap are not enemies.
——but the majority of the people.
Soldiers’ lives are precious, especially in wartime. Well-trained soldiers are much more valuable than ordinary people. Generals are reluctant to sacrifice soldiers’ lives, so when attacking cities and fighting, some people will drive civilians to serve as vanguards, using their bodies to fill traps and ditches, and disrupt the enemy’s formation.
Next.
Meng Huan heard a faint vibration and the sense of familiarity returned.
He raised his head from the city wall and looked forward, and saw the dark army behind the people, like evil spirits from hell, rushing towards them in the blizzard.
——Zhu Lizhen’s cavalry finally arrived.
NINETY TWO
“Let’s go quickly.” Zhu Dong said.
Meng Huan’s footsteps seemed to freeze in place: “Where are you going?”
“Go down the tower. The enemy is good at using bows and arrows. It’s dangerous to stand here.”
Meng Huan let him run downstairs while being pulled by the guard, just in time to stagger with the soldiers who were going up the city wall in an orderly manner. They followed the instructions and took their respective positions.
When he ran back to the street, Meng Huan could no longer see the scenery outside the city, but he could hear the chaotic roars outside the city.
There were many people setting up stalls on the street, but now they all packed up their bags and went home, closing their doors. The city was immersed in a panic, as if the end of the world was approaching.
Several figures hurried over in front, led by Shan Xing. He found Meng Huan, and the sweat on his forehead finally fell. “Young Master, please return to the government office quickly. Don’t go out unless necessary. The prince will handle everything here, and I will tell you if there is anything.”
He was obviously sent by Lin Bozhou to protect Meng Huan.
“Can……”
A hint of astonishment flashed across Meng Huan’s eyes.
If other people were to travel through the book, they would probably be on the battlefield killing enemies by now, but Meng Huan did not have the ability to fight. He could only stay in the safe city as one of the people protected by the fighters and try not to cause trouble to others.
His mind was in a mess, with images of the people outside the city, refugees trampled to death by horses’ hooves, and… the medicine given to Lin Bozhou flashing through his mind.
He was overwhelmed by a great sense of powerlessness.
Meng Huan has always been very clear about himself. When faced with things that he can control, he can go all out and spare no effort. However, the current situation of war and chaos is beyond his ability.
Only Lin Bozhou’s courage and insight can control the overall situation of the world.
Only Lin Bozhou can.
Only Lin Bozhou dared.
“I’ll go home now.” Meng Huan said.
He returned to the yard and found the medicine pot for Lin Bozhou still on the stove. The medicine contained the cooled juice and gave off a bitter smell.
Meng Huan stared at the medicine for a while, as if he was still immersed in the afternoon. Zhu Lizhen did not attack, Lin Bozhou’s eye disease did not relapse, and the refugees were not killed as worthless garbage. After a moment, he woke up and remembered that he should give Lin Bozhou the medicine for the night. He picked up the charcoal fire, raised the stove, and watched the red flames brighten again.
It was as if, in the firelight, I could clearly see Lin Bozhou’s features.
In the past few days, the fire outside the city has never been extinguished, and rumbling noises are often heard outside the city in the middle of the night.
Meng Huan was bored staying in the yard, so he boiled medicine for Lin Bozhou every day. Each time he put the medicine in a brand new jar, wrapped it in a quilt, and then put it in a small basket, and asked Shan Xing to carry it to the camp.
There was a “click” sound at the door, and Shanxing came back with a medicine jar in his hand, with cracks all over the jar.
“The prince dropped the medicine jar,” he said.
Meng Huan took it and was stunned: “He has such a bad temper? Why did he smash my jar?”
The only connection between Meng Huan and Lin Bozhou now is this jar, and he can only use it to express his concern for him.
After being thrown down, Meng Huan felt that his heart was also thrown down.
“The new military supervisor in the camp is always finding faults, like a fool. He has no idea about troop deployment, but he keeps asking questions, and I have to explain it to him every time.” Shan Xing sat down and drank a sip of hot tea, saying, “Your Majesty is extremely annoyed, but the military supervisor was sent by His Majesty, so he has to deal with it.”
“All right.”
Meng Huan could understand why Lin Bozhou threw things. He sat down and rubbed his eyes. “Why don’t you lock up the supervisor who caused the trouble? The war is urgent. Since this person is causing trouble, let’s get rid of him temporarily.”
“There’s no way to turn it off, sir.” Shan Xing smiled bitterly.
He had an idle job in the army, but he was very knowledgeable.
“Since he was sent by His Majesty, he represents His Majesty. Imprisoning him proves that he wants to go against His Majesty’s will. His Majesty replaced the military supervisor before the battle, which shows that he does not trust the prince. If he continues to be disrespectful to the military supervisor, it will only make His Majesty distrust him even more.”
“so……”
Meng Huan’s eyes were full of confusion.
There were flames outside the city these days and the people inside were in panic. He often had nightmares about corpses in the middle of the night and woke up in a sweat. He hoped that Lin Bozhou was by his side, but he knew it was impossible, so he had to close his eyes silently in fear and wait for dawn.
In such a critical battle situation, I thought the central army was united against the outside world, but I didn’t expect there was so much suspicion and betrayal.
“Why did your majesty do this?”
“No wonder, Your Majesty,” Shan Xing said calmly as he drank his tea. “The prince has monopolized power in the court, and now he is leading the elite Beijing army to fight. This is equivalent to holding military power. His power has already threatened Your Majesty. How can the imperial family have so much affection? Of course, Your Majesty will be wary of the prince and be on guard against him.”
He is right.
People are selfish.
Especially when there is a power struggle, even if it is between father and son, it would appear childish to have emotional expectations.
There was a brief silence in the icy and snowy environment.
Meng Huan remembered something.
He raised his head, his eyes were dark and moist, and he looked at Shan Xing with his slightly opened almond-shaped eyes: “Will the prince rebel?”
His voice was relaxed, as if he was discussing a plot in a book.
But with a “crack”, Shanxing’s cup fell suddenly to the ground and shattered into pieces. The hot tea soaked the snow, and the snow at that place sank. The surface quickly became smooth and condensed into more solid ice and snow. It was extremely cold.
Shan Xing picked up the cup, his voice trembling: “My cousin, you can’t say this again. This puts the prince in a position of disloyalty.”
The struggle for power is very fierce. The higher the power, the more people lose their humanity. A simple sentence may lead to a fatal disaster or even the annihilation of the whole family.
Not even a whisper in a closed courtyard would do.
Meng Huan felt a chill on his back as he became aware of the cold atmosphere surrounding power.
In this situation, it seems that any emotion, any tenderness, will be swept away, strangled, and crushed by the cruel and ruthless center, leaving no trace.
“I understand.” Meng Huan said.
Snow flakes fell down, landing on the sparse branches and on the stone slabs in the yard.
Shan Xing’s tone calmed down: “My cousin, do you like the fierce and desolate winter?”
Meng Huan looked at him, not knowing why he asked that.
“Average.” He replied.
After a pause, he added, “It’s too cold. I don’t like it being so cold.”
He likes lively and gentle places.
Shan Xing smiled: “Then, I think it will be difficult for the prince.”
Meng Huan didn’t understand the ambiguous words.
But Shan Xing stood up, as if he was planning to return to the barracks.
Meng Huan also stood up and looked at the medicine boiling on the stove. The brown liquid was boiling and had a strong bitter smell. Meng Huan said, “The medicine is ready. You can take a bottle away and give it to the prince.”
Shan Xing tilted his head, his lips moved slightly, and his expression was hesitant.
It seems that I shouldn’t say it.
But after thinking about it, he spoke anyway.
“Last night, the prince was no longer visible.”
“What?”
The north wind was blowing in the yard, and many dead leaves fell down. At this time, there was no other movement except the whistling sound of the wind.
Meng Huan stood there for a long while before he woke up from a dream and raised his eyelids: “What did you say?”
“The prince’s eye disease relapsed and he became blind. He didn’t let us tell you because he was afraid you would worry,” Shan Xing consoled him. “But everything went well under the prince’s arrangement. There was no chaos in the army, and he even fought back and forth with Zhu Lizhen. The prince’s plan was brilliant. Most of Zhu Lizhen’s troops should be attracted here soon.”
Under normal circumstances, Meng Huan would have believed it. But Lin Bozhou could endure a whole day without telling him about his eye disease, so how credible was his words now?
Meng Huan curled his lips, unhappy: “I want to go and take a look.”
Shan Xing couldn’t stop him, so he had to joke: “Okay, your Highness’s eyes really are watched by everyone.”
“Can it be the same?” Meng Huan couldn’t help but mutter.
Many people are concerned about Lin Bozhou’s eye disease, but most people care about whether he can control order in the army, stabilize the court, and continue to hold power.
Meng Huan couldn’t think of so much. He only knew that Lin Bozhou hated eye disease and disliked darkness. When he couldn’t see anything around him, the pain in his heart would consume him. That’s all.
…He wanted to accompany Lin Bozhou when he was unhappy.
Meng Huan made up his mind and ran to the city gate. The gate was wide open and a line of people crowded into the city. Among them was the person he was looking for.
The crane cloak that Lin Bozhou was wearing was blown away by the wind, and the fox fur around his ears and neck was stained with flakes of snow, which made his eyebrows and eyes look even darker. His face was elegant and handsome, with both majesty and elegance.
His eyes were not covered with white gauze, and every step he took was steady and capable, not at all like someone who was blind.
“We deliberately lost for a few days in a row, and finally attracted Zhu Lizhen’s army. We have divided the troops according to the prince’s instructions. Now we are waiting for the victory report. Whether we can succeed depends on tonight.” Chen An said, “Prince, let’s go to the city tower and wait.”
“Um.”
Chen An whispered a few words into Lin Bozhou’s ear.
Lin Bozhou turned to Meng Huan and said in a cold and distant tone: “Tell him to come over and help me.”
“…”
Meng Huan was angry and wanted to walk slowly on purpose, but then he remembered that he was blind and decided to forgive him for hiding the thing from me.
Holding his hand, he walked in the night, on mud bricks and stone slabs, to the highest place in the entire city.
“Is the wind strong?” Lin Bozhou asked.
“…”
Meng Huan guessed that he should be in a good mood.
Lin Bozhou asked in a gentle voice: “What did you see from the tower?”
Meng Huan cast his eyes downwards. On the flat ground below the city wall, pitch-black horses were lined up in neat rows. There was a huge group of them, probably tens of thousands in number, with a terrifying momentum. They were equipped with ladders, battering rams, and bows and crossbows. Their disciplined military appearance made them even more imposing.
These people were tall, carrying bows and arrows, and exuded a barbaric air.
The dust raised by their horses’ hooves seemed to submerge Qiezhou and could easily crush the city gates.
“There are really a lot of people in Zhuli.” Meng Huan described it stumblingly, “I feel like we can’t defeat them all.”
“Yes, I’m telling the truth,” Lin Bozhou said in a gentle voice, “What else?”
Meng Huan stood on tiptoe and looked down for Lin Bozhou. The breeze blew open his fair forehead.
——He saw it.
The gate of Qiezhou City was too small, and the flat land in front of the city was also small. Zhu Lizhen’s large number of horses could not gallop, and because of the cramped terrain, they were anxiously spinning in place.
The atmosphere on the other side was very impatient, and they seemed to be eager to attack the city.
Meng Huan: “They seem very crowded.”
“By the way.” Lin Bozhou smiled, and then asked, “Do you like watching fireworks?”
Meng Huan looked at him with a little surprise.
To be honest, Lin Bozhou has hardly smiled since he went to the battle.
Meng Huan was stunned: “What fireworks are you looking at?”
Just as he finished asking, there was a sudden burst of sharp and piercing explosions from under the city wall, which made his ears numb all of a sudden, his head was full of echoes, and his legs became uncontrollably sore.
When Meng Huan’s legs went weak with fear, Lin Bozhou held his hand tightly. He thought the explosion and fire would not last long, but it kept going on and rushed towards Zhu Lizhen’s camp.
“Brute force is a good thing, but they can only be trapped outside the Great Wall. The Dazong Dynasty has survived for more than 200 years, relying on the wisdom and wisdom that they disdain.”
Lin Bozhou said calmly: “They should roll back with wounds all over their bodies.”
The frightened horses started to run, but the area was too narrow and there was limited space for running. The resulting bumps and trampling caused many Zhuli Zhenren to fall off their horses and then be trampled to death by the horses.
Some people realized that something was wrong and tried to retreat. When the horses fell back into the deep and narrow valley, the catapults on both sides started working, and the stones pushed down from high places knocked all the people and horses down.
The horse’s hoof slipped and it stumbled to the ground, and Zhu Lizhen was in a mess.
The main army did not appear. When Zhu Lizhen’s horses were exhausted and the people were in panic, five groups of main army attacked from the valley. They were well-trained. Someone shouted, “Capture the flag, break through the enemy’s formation, kill the general, and take the head. These are all military merits! The prince said! Grant us wealth and glory! No worries about food and clothing! Charge!”
The morale is high and gathers like a flood.
The flood was so huge that it quickly dispersed the enemy’s formation and cut it off.
Split.
Defeated.
Devour.
…
The shocking scene made Meng Huan’s heart pound, his whole body felt hot, and he unconsciously moved closer to the city wall. The scene of refugees being driven away a few days ago flooded into his mind, and he really wanted to rush into the group of soldiers and kill these butchers together with them.
My palms were hot and sweat was oozing out, and my pulse was beating faster than usual.
Lin Bozhou sensed Meng Huan’s excitement, and his distracted eyes turned and asked, “Is it spectacular?”
Meng Huan nodded desperately: “Spectacular!”
“pity.”
Lin Bozhou’s voice was very light and was blown away by the wind. “I can’t see it.”
Meng Huan’s throat rolled violently.
How ridiculous, what a trick of fate.
Lin Bozhou put all his energy into planning for this decisive battle for three whole months. His nerves were tense all the time. He reorganized the regiment, redistributed military merits, punished bad generals, recruited soldiers, and rallied the people… He worked hard for this war, was beaten by wind and frost, and his whole body seemed to have been drained of blood and suffered greatly, but he did not get to see this grand victory.
Meng Huan held his hand tightly: “Lin Bozhou.”
He didn’t want to call him by his identity, he wanted to call him by his name.
The wind from the wilderness blew into Meng Huan’s eyes, stinging them like a knife cutting.
His voice was choked and broken.
“we won.”
NINETY THREE
Meng Huan tried to describe to him everything that happened under the city wall.
“The cavalry was dispersed, and the camp on the left was in chaos first. Their horses rushed around, scaring other horses, and the camp became a mess. Some people tried desperately to control their horses, but they were thrown off.”
“The catapults in the valley on the left disrupted Zhu Lizhen’s retreating cavalry. Some of them managed to run into the valley, but were intercepted and killed by the large number of soldiers. Only a few remnants escaped, but they were also pursued.”
Meng Huan described it, trying to express it in simple terms but his words were inevitably plain, and his mouth was dry.
After a moment, he thought about it and asked, “I’ll draw it when I get back and show it to you, okay?”
——Don’t think it’s troublesome, nor do you feel that the task is heavy.
He wanted Lin Bozhou to see the glory that belonged to him.
The Lin Bozhou he cherished was not the treacherous regent rebuked by his ministers, the loser who was attacked from all sides, the slave who was shackled and had lost all his dignity. The glory that belonged to Lin Bozhou should go to Lin Bozhou among the corpses and dry bones in the north wind and autumn geese.
“It doesn’t matter whether you watch it or not.” Lin Bozhou said in a light voice.
“It does matter.” Meng Huan interrupted him seriously.
The original book was unfair to him, making him suffer a lot and be scolded. But now that I am here, I cannot be unfair to him anymore.
Meng Huan’s eyes were bright, and he spoke clearly, “This is the battle you led. You should be the one to see the victory. Their abandoning their weapons and weapons and fleeing in all directions is the greatest compliment to you.”
——No one is allowed to confuse right and wrong and scold you anymore.
Meng Huan tried hard to express himself and spoke in a very literary way.
The north wind was chilly, and the boy’s voice was trembling with cold. Lin Bozhou chuckled, as if he was cheered up by him, and held Meng Huan’s cold hand and pinched his fingertips.
His palms were warm, and he said, “Okay, Huanhuan, go back and draw it for me.”
The fire in the valley flickered from dusk to dawn, occasionally accompanied by the neighing of horses, and the battlefield shifted from the bottom of the city wall to the valley.
Victory or failure will be tested in the early morning, and we will have to wait tonight.
After a sleepless night, everyone stayed in the wind and snow to wait for the eve of victory.
A small table was set up on Chenglou Mountain. Meng Huan stayed up late with Lin Bozhou. He sat beside him and whispered, “Have you taken all the medicine Shanxing brought you?”
Lin Bozhou: “Drank it.”
“You even smashed my jar.” Meng Huan frowned when he thought of this, “I’m angry.”
Lin Bozhou thought about it for a moment, frowned, and said in a gentle voice, “I’m sorry, I was too angry at the time, and I just picked up something and threw it out. I didn’t expect it was Huanhuan’s medicine jar, so I definitely wouldn’t have thrown it.”
My ears felt hot.
Lin Bozhou apologized so earnestly, as if he cared a lot about his opinion. Meng Huan felt a little embarrassed, so he clapped his hands and said, “Okay, I forgive you.”
Snort.
Meng Huan really couldn’t resist the way he took himself seriously.
It was cold at night, and Lin Bozhou held his hand.
The north wind was chilly and the sky in the distance over the city gate was turning pale, as if daybreak was approaching.
Unknowingly, they had been guarding in the freezing winter night, braving the cold wind, for the entire night just to see the first flag of victory.
When Meng Huan was dozing off, Chen An, who had been looking at the city wall from afar, suddenly saw something and started to slap the wall hard.
“I’m coming!”
In the distance, a column of cavalry came galloping, wearing neatly-dressed uniforms of the Great Barracks, carrying flying flags in the snow and ice, like sharp arrows galloping towards them.
Chen An’s voice trembled: “Your Majesty! General Si is back with the left army and the red flag!”
——The red flag is a sign of success.
Meng Huan suddenly woke up from his sleepiness and raised his head.
The officials around him were even more excited than him.
“Red flag? That must mean a great victory! General Si is the bravest! He will surely kill all of Zhu Lizhen’s cavalry!”
“This is the most satisfying and satisfying fight I’ve ever had since I faced Zhu Lizhen!”
“Your Majesty is wise, Your Majesty is wise!”
Meng Huan was so excited that he couldn’t help but look down at the city wall.
Lin Bozhou also stood up from his chair. His shoulders were covered with snow. It was rare to see a smile on his face. He said, “Reward.”
After a moment, a new red flag was seen.
“Your Majesty, Commander Zhang Hu has returned with his generals and red flags!”
Another victory.
“General Zhang Hu is extremely brave! Last night, it was all thanks to General Zhang who rushed into Zhu Lizhen’s camp as a vanguard and was the first to capture the flag and break through the enemy’s formation that the morale was so high and the enemy was defeated!”
“Yeah!”
Meng Huan also nodded. He saw with his own eyes last night that the city gate was wide open and the palace guards were riding away, fighting with Zhu Lizhen. The scene was extremely spectacular. It can be said that the palace guards were the main contributor to this victory, and Lin Bozhou’s strict training of the troops played an indispensable role.
Praise him, praise him!
Meng Huan was overjoyed, but there was no sound in his ears.
She turned her head and saw that Lin Bozhou had a dull smile, his lips pursed, and his expression was a little solemn.
“Let Zhang Hu enter the city through the small gate and don’t compete for credit with the soldiers in the regiment.” Lin Bozhou only said this.
Meng Huan was confused and didn’t understand what he meant.
Zhang Hu was the commander-in-chief of the Regent’s Palace. He followed Lin Bozhou into the army and led the palace guards to participate in this ambush.
Meng Huan was not unfamiliar with this name. It was the efforts of Lin Bozhou’s palace guards that allowed him to enter Shanhaiguan City smoothly. In this battle of Qiezhou, the regiment had been training for three months and was barely in good shape, but it was still unable to compete with the barbaric Zhu Lizhen. Only the palace guards were brave and brave. As the vanguard, they disrupted Zhu Lizhen’s formation, drove him away and defeated him, making great contributions.
——Why didn’t Lin Bozhou praise the people in the palace?
While Meng Huan was pondering, Shan Xing said two words in his ear: “Hide your edge.”
In an instant, Meng Huan recalled the conversation last night. Emperor Xuanhe had become suspicious of Lin Bozhou. If he knew that Lin Bozhou was skilled in training soldiers and had a powerful guard, he would definitely be even more wary.
…But without Lin Bozhou’s guards, how can we fight Zhu Lizhen?
Meng Huan really didn’t understand, so he pursed his lips and didn’t ask any more questions.
There was constant news of victory from the bottom of the city wall, and the generals all returned to their positions carrying red flags. The next step was to reward them according to their merits.
“Call all the generals to report back.” Lin Bozhou said.
“Yes.” The general turned and left.
The city wall was very cold in the early morning.
Snow was flying on the city wall. Although it was cold, everyone had a smile on their face. Lin Bozhou sat upright, waiting for the good news from the generals.
However, the general who was expected to come to pay a visit did not show up, there was no movement on the tower, even the footsteps were light, as if it was a forgotten tower.
Lin Bozhou: “No one has arrived yet?”
“To reply to Your Majesty, no,” said Chen An.
“Who’s delayed?”
Lin Bozhou placed his knuckles on the table and tapped slowly, but stopped.
“It doesn’t look like a delay.” Chen An looked down at the tower again and again, as if he didn’t know whether to say it or not. With sweat on his forehead, he said, “I saw that the guards of the palace were stopped outside the city and were not allowed to enter the city. I don’t know why, but other generals were also stopped.”
“Were we stopped?”
“right—”
Chen An answered this question with concern.
Not allowing the guards to enter the city meant that Lin Bozhou would no longer have anyone to protect him, and not allowing the generals to enter the city meant that Lin Bozhou could not contact the soldiers and would lose the power to lead the troops.
If I think about it in a smaller way, there might be some misunderstanding.
To think in a broader sense, the intention was to imprison Lin Bozhou and seize his military power.
Tens of thousands of troops returned to the camp under the city wall. Only a solitary troop of royal guards and other generals stayed behind, wandering around in circles, not knowing what to do. It seemed that they themselves did not understand why they were intercepted.
The strong wind blew the snow flakes wildly.
Lin Bozhou pursed his lips, as if he was thinking, with his brows furrowed.
In an instant, many things flashed through his mind. He lowered his chin and suddenly stood up. “The general stationed at the city gate is the Marquis of Zhenguan——”
Chen An: “Exactly.”
The blood color on Lin Bozhou’s lips faded.
“not good.”
The two words slipped out of his throat, not loudly, not heavily, as if he had just lost his voice.
But Lin Bozhou, who had always been calm, composed, rational, and able to handle anything in an orderly manner without any confusion, actually said these two words, which caused a stir among other officials like an earthquake. Everyone looked around, driven by the tense atmosphere, and stared at him in panic.
“What happened—”
Meng Huan’s eyes turned and he stood up.
But before he could finish his words, his wrist was suddenly grabbed by Lin Bozhou with great force, making the skin on his wrist feel hot and painful. The veins on Lin Bozhou’s wrist could be seen bulging, and his long, bony fingers looked ferocious.
He heard Lin Bozhou’s instructions: “Find Zhang Hu.”
After one sentence, the sound of orderly footsteps and the creaking of armor could be heard in the silent corridor of the tower. It was obvious that fully armed soldiers were coming up to the tower.
Under the city wall, the palace guards must have realized something, and Zhang Hu pounded the city gate with his fists.
“Who dares to murder the prince? Open the city gate immediately!”
Lin Bozhou stood up shakily, and for the first time he felt that he was weak and his clothes were heavy, so he had to support himself to stand up. The guards behind him were few in number and could not fight against the Zhenguanhou Army stationed in the city; there were guards from the royal palace outside the city, but the siege would take a long time, and distant water could not put out a nearby fire.
If you are trapped in the city, you can only surrender passively.
It seems to have been weighed and thought through.
Lin Bozhou said tiredly: “Set fire to Qiezhou.”
——This is a vicious plan.
The faces of the people around him changed. Deliberate arson, damaging the people’s property and even their lives, was a serious crime, and their hands would be chopped off and their ashes would be thrown to the ground. But chaos was their only way to escape, and someone quickly took out the fire starter in his arms, set his clothes on fire, and threw them into the wooden tower frame. “Boom”, the fire started.
The guards and the soldiers who rushed up were fighting, and the fire grew bigger. Lin Bozhou could not see, so he was supported and surrounded by people, and walked down in a crowded and crowded manner.
“My Lord, be careful!”
“Guard the prince! Guard the prince!”
After leaving the city wall, they set fires everywhere and shouted, “There’s a fire! There’s a fire! Run! Run!!!” In the chaos, people walked out of their homes and stood in panic on the streets looking around. Not knowing what to do, they followed the crowd towards the city gate.
In the huge crowd, it was extremely chaotic. Lin Bozhou held Meng Huan’s hand tightly and repeatedly confirmed: “Huanhuan, are you there?”
Flames shot up into the sky, and there were pursuers behind them. There were originally many guards beside them, but as the crowd and running increased, there were fewer and fewer of them. Only Lin Bozhou held his hand tightly.
It was scorching hot and the grip was so tight that it made Meng Huan’s bones ache.
Lin Bozhou seemed very afraid of losing him.
“I’m here, I’m here, I’m here,” Meng Huan repeated.
They blended into the crowd to avoid the sight of their pursuers.
…and got lost with Chen An.
…and got lost while walking on the mountain.
…and the guard who was supporting Lin Bozhou got lost.
…
Meng Huan held Lin Bozhou’s hand. The pursuers behind them were getting farther and farther away, but there were unfamiliar faces all around him. The people whose houses were burned down took to the streets in anxiety. They had finally saved their lives and homes thanks to Lin Bozhou, but they didn’t know which bastard had burned their houses down again.
Meng Huan lowered his head and hid in the chaotic crowd, trying to avoid the pairs of eyes pursuing him from behind.
“Is the prince here?”
“Is the prince here?”
“Anyone who can provide the prince’s whereabouts will be rewarded handsomely!”
“The one wearing fox fur, jade crown on his head, and white silk in his eyes is the prince! The one wearing fox fur, jade crown on his head, and white silk in his eyes is the prince! Who has seen the prince?”
Soldiers rode by on horseback, questioning the people.
They are the soldiers of Zhenguanhou.
Meng Huan’s hands trembled violently, and he lowered his voice and said, “Husband, lower your head quickly, your clothes are very dangerous!”
Lin Bozhou was very tall, and when he pressed his shoulders, his proud spine, which seemed like it would never bend, lowered slightly.
Meng Huan took off the white silk covering his eyes, the jade crown tying his hair, the royal leather cap, and his expensive fox fur coat. He rolled it into a ball and threw it into the ditch with all his might.
“Alright, alright, it’s alright…”
After all traces were destroyed, Meng Huan’s wildly beating heart eased a lot.
He saw with his own eyes that the guard was stabbed to death for covering Lin Bozhou’s rear, and the blood splattered on his face. He was scared to death, but when he thought that Lin Bozhou was now blind, the fear in his heart was dispelled.
Meng Huan’s eyes were still dazed, and he was panting, as if comforting a child: “Don’t be afraid, I will protect you.”
There was no answer in my ear.
Lin Bozhou, who was led by him, had his black hair hanging down, which was usually neat and elegant. He looked completely different from his previous dignity and dignity. His lips were pale, his sharp nose was stained with blood, and his face was not clean. His luxurious robe was torn to shreds by Meng Huan and was stained with dust. He was far from a noble man with royal blood.
His thick eyelashes trembled, and he whispered, “Huanhuan.”
He couldn’t see, but the flickering flames everywhere stimulated his eyelids to tremble. As soon as he opened his eyes, a string of photophobic drops of water slid down the corners of his eyes, clear and shining, and flowed along the corners of his eyes to his chin.
——He shed tears.
No one blocked the light source for him when he was afraid of the light, so his ugly appearance was exposed.
Lin Bozhou now is so undignified, unrespectable, and weak.
If it weren’t for Meng Huan, he would be just a stray dog abandoned on the roadside.
“Don’t be afraid, don’t be afraid, my husband.”
Looking at the tears in the corners of his eyes, Meng Huan felt a terrible pain in his heart.
When he held Lin Bozhou’s hand, he found that his fingers were shaking.
The eye disease, which is no longer covered by a fig leaf, is exposed in broad daylight. The darkness cannot be broken, and people have to wander around. Compared with the past when the eye disease recurred and he did nothing but carefully took care of it, now he has to escape and find a way. The broken, useless and troublesome eyes will only make Lin Bozhou feel more self-loathing. Isn’t it extremely embarrassing?
His heart must be filled with darkness, gloom and dampness.
Thinking of this, Meng Huan felt a sore throat and choked up.
If there weren’t so many people around, Meng Huan really wanted to hug Lin Bozhou and tell him that it didn’t matter if he couldn’t see.
He can be his eyes.
He will always protect him.
His hand was smaller, so Meng Huan could only hold part of Lin Bozhou’s hand and held it tightly: “With me here, no one can hurt you.”
After saying this, Meng Huan felt more powerful.
He led Lin Bozhou and followed the huge crowd. After the city gate was pushed open in the chaos, he joined the people and poured out of the city gate.
Meng Huan took Lin Bozhou by the hand and walked out of Qiezhou City.
NINETY FOUR
There are four gates in Qiezhou, namely east, south, west and north. Meng Huan went through the south gate, while Zhang Hu and others stayed at the north gate.
Lin Bozhou was being hunted by the soldiers of the Marquis of Zhengan. It was obvious that he could only be safe if he found the guards of the palace. After Meng Huan made up his mind, he went to the north gate. Several rows of cavalry rushed out, scanning the crowd with sharp eyes. Meng Huan was so scared that his breath was choked. He quickly turned around and mixed back into the crowd.
No.
The Marquis of Zhenguan was obviously smart. He knew that Lin Bozhou wanted to meet up with the royal guard, so he set up interception checkpoints along the way and even ordered passers-by to identify the object to see if it was a blind person.
How dare you go over there?
Meng Huan’s palms were sweating as he held Lin Bozhou’s tightly.
Looking back at the city gate – this is also a dead end.
Licking her lips nervously, Meng Huan lowered her voice and discussed with Lin Bozhou: “We can’t go to the north gate of the city, and there are soldiers searching everywhere. It seems that we can only leave here first. What do you think, husband?”
The voice that answered him was hoarse: “Okay.”
A voice came from not far away.
“Get out of the way! Get out of the way! Don’t block the road!”
“Has anyone seen a blind man?”
The soldiers pushed through the crowd, their eyes flashing like lightning. Meng Huan’s mind went blank for a moment: “Hurry up, they are catching up.”
He led Lin Bozhou through the crowd, walked around a few trees, and walked quickly towards the snow-covered path.
Lin Bozhou walked slowly, sometimes bumping into things and stumbling. Before he knew it, he had reached a desolate snowy plain, surrounded by dead trees and rotten branches, with no signs of human habitation. There was no village or city of Qiezhou to be seen. Meng Huan’s heart was beating wildly in his chest, and the cold wind blowing in his face finally made him more conscious.
Looking back, Meng Huanxin felt relieved: “It should be safe.”
He was nervous all the way, and when he finished speaking, he realized that he was a little thirsty.
Subconsciously, she asked Lin Bozhou, “Are you thirsty, my husband?”
Lin Bozhou’s neatly-knit hair fell down a few strands, falling on the bridge of his nose, and his lips were pale and bloodless. He didn’t nod or shake his head. Without the fox fur, his clothes were thin, and his eyelashes trembled and moved, as if sensing the surroundings: “Where is this place?”
“I don’t know.” Meng Huan turned around and looked, “It looks like a small village, but there is no one. I guess the people have all fled.”
Lin Bozhou pursed his lips and stopped talking.
Meng Huan had nothing on him, so he squatted down and grabbed a handful of clean snow.
I licked it with the tip of my tongue first. It felt cold. I took a bite and swallowed it. After it melted, it really quenched my thirst.
Meng Huan picked a leaf covered with snow: “Husband.”
“Um?”
“Open your mouth, ah——” Meng Huan tapped his lips.
Lin Bozhou’s eyelids twitched slightly. He opened his lips and something was gently shaken in. He felt the coldness on the tip of his tongue. It was very cold, and it made the tips of his teeth hurt slightly.
In my ears, Meng Huan’s voice was warm: “Snow can also quench your thirst, eat this first.”
Lin Bozhou felt the gradually rising temperature.
Meng Huan led him and felt that the danger was over. Only now did he ask, “Does His Majesty want to kill you?”
Lin Bozhou: “Not necessarily.”
“Marquis Zhenguan wants to kill you?” Meng Huan blinked.
Lin Bozhou paused and said, “Maybe not.”
But there is someone who definitely wants to kill him, Cui Lang.
Emperor Xuanhe was fickle and his people’s hearts were easily bought. Cui Lang must have been influenced by many things during the three months he was by his side, which led to the huge change in Emperor Xuanhe’s mind, from trusting Lin Bozhou to wanting to seize his military power.
But once Lin Bozhou was escorted to the capital, Cui Lang would never be his opponent when it comes to playing with people’s hearts. Lin Bozhou could easily take advantage of Emperor Xuanhe’s sensitivity and fragility, talk about the pros and cons, win the emperor’s heart to his side, and arrest Cui Lang to bring him to justice.
So.
If Cui Lang was smart enough, he would have chosen to kill Lin Bozhou when he was weak. As long as Lin Bozhou could not return to the capital to meet His Majesty, his troubles would be solved forever. Therefore, when Lin Bozhou realized that there were no soldiers around him, his first reaction was to force his way out of the city and escape.
Once you are captured unarmed, it is equivalent to putting your life in the hands of others, which is absolutely dangerous.
Meng Huan was stunned. He didn’t expect that Men Lin Bozhou would think so much at that moment.
He looked at Lin Bozhou with bright eyes, and a chill escaped from his lips: “Are we going to look for Zhang Hu?”
“Zhang Hu will come to find us, we just have to stay alive.”
Meng Huan nodded: “The first thing to do when alive is to fill your stomach. I’m so hungry.”
He looked around.
There was nothing in the snow.
Meng Huan held Lin Bozhou’s hand and asked, “Are you hungry too?”
Humans are not plants or trees, so how can they not be hungry?
Lin Bozhou remained silent and clenched Meng Huan’s slender fingers.
Meng Huan understood immediately and stood on tiptoe to look forward: “There are people living in the village ahead. I’ll go see if I can get some food.”
After saying this, Meng Huan tried to feel all over his body and found a few pieces of silver. He couldn’t hide his joy in his tone: “I still have money!”
With money you have everything.
Meng Huan quickly led Lin Bozhou over to the fence and said, “Just wait here for me. I’ll be back soon.”
Meng Huan thought that Lin Bozhou had difficulty seeing, so there was no need for him to walk the few steps into the yard and up the stairs, and he would be back soon. Besides… it was strange for Lin Bozhou, a prince, to ask for food.
But after Meng Huan said this, Lin Bozhou’s fingers froze for a moment.
Lin Bozhou responded slowly, and his movements were stiff when he loosened his fingers: “Thank you for your hard work, Huanhuan. Go now.”
Meng Huan blinked and felt that Lin Bozhou seemed reluctant.
“Then I’ll go over there?”
Meng Huan took two steps up the stairs and looked back at him.
Lin Bozhou held his hands in the air, maintaining the hand-holding posture, his knuckles curled slightly, and he looked in the direction where Meng Huan’s voice left, with his eyelids tightly closed.
His figure was blown by the wind, his hair was disheveled, and he looked silent and dejected.
In this wilderness with howling cold winds, the only person he could sense was Meng Huan, but now, his hands were empty and he couldn’t feel any warmth.
Thinking of this, the numb feeling of being pricked by a needle came up, and as it spread, my heart began to ache.
Meng Huan walked down the steps and held out her finger to him: “Husband.”
The warm fingertips pressed against Lin Bozhou’s cold palm.
As the heat was passing, Meng Huan invited: “Shall we go together?”
Lin Bozhou flexed and stretched his fingertips, clenched his hand, and hummed in a low and hasty voice.
The tone was suppressed, as if something that had been expected for a long time had finally been obtained.
Lin Bozhou really wanted to hold his hand.
Meng Huanxin inexplicably softened. His eyes were dark and moist, and he raised his voice and said seriously, “Husband, I’m sorry.”
“What?” Lin Bozhou seemed puzzled.
“I shouldn’t have let go of your hand.” Meng Huan said.
The cold wind howled, ruffling the hair of the two people. The wind was icy cold, but the heat did not diminish at all.
After Meng Huan finished speaking, he saw Lin Bozhou twitching his dry lips, as if smiling, but that smile was extremely bitter and complicated. He shook his head gently and called his name: “Huanhuan.”
“Let’s go.” Meng Huan led him up the stairs.
The yard was clean and simple, with nothing in it, and looked extremely poor. An old woman came out with a cane, and Meng Huan said quickly, “Grandma, my brother and I just fled to this place from Qiezhou. We haven’t eaten all night, and we are very hungry. Can you buy us something to eat?”
The old woman didn’t even look at him, she shook her head and said, “No, there’s a war going on outside, the soldiers are like bandits, the food has been taken away by the army, and the bandits are still coming to rob, I have nothing here, if it weren’t for my inconvenient legs and feet, I would have fled too.”
Meng Huan was stunned for a moment.
He didn’t ask any more questions, but turned around and said, “Shall we go to another restaurant?”
This old woman seems to have a hard life, so it’s not appropriate to ask for food rations from her.
Lin Bozhou said, “Okay.”
They walked out of the yard and continued forward. The next house looked better. The man who lived there was a man in his thirties. When he heard that they wanted to buy some food, he was silent for a while and said, “You can exchange the silver in your hand for four steamed buns.”
“…”
Meng Huan showed surprise. How much silver did he have on him? One dollar was about half a tael. Three hundred yuan, to buy four steamed buns?
Meng Huan said, “Brother, this is too high. My brother and I just escaped from the disaster and we don’t have much money.”
“These days, nothing is more expensive than food.” The other party said in a stiff tone.
Meng Huan had nothing to say, so he just nodded: “Okay.”
He took the four steamed buns and felt like he was being ripped off. He took two steps and asked again, “Do you have any extra water bags at home? Can you give me one?”
The man found a water bag made of animal skin, filled it half with water and threw it to him.
“Thank you.” Meng Huan took it in his hand and saw clothes hanging in the yard. He asked without much hope, “Can you give me two more pieces of clothes?”
The man was speechless.
His wife got up and walked into the house. She dug out some old clothes, handed them to him, and said, “Go, run for your life.”
“Thank you.” Meng Huan said sincerely.
He took the old clothes and opened them to look at them. They were not much different from Lin Bozhou’s body shape. He put the clothes on Lin Bozhou’s shoulders. He had just taken off his fox fur coat and was wearing very thin clothes. After putting them on, he asked him, “Are you still cold now?”
The clothes were made of linen wrapped in cotton, grey-black in color, and had a rough texture. Lin Bozhou had never worn such simple clothes before, and he was quiet for a while.
He said, “It’s not cold.”
Meng Huan was happy: “Let’s go! Half a tael of silver can be exchanged for four steamed buns and a few clothes. It’s worth it!”
The tone is quite exciting.
Lin Bozhou felt so cold and desolate in his heart, but at this moment he inexplicably raised the corners of his lips.
Meng Huan planned the four steamed buns as he walked: “We will each eat one now, leaving two for dinner. They are so expensive, I dare not buy more.”
He found a place to sit down and handed Lin Bozhou a yellow steamed bun: “This is yours.”
“This is mine.” Meng Huan took another one and took a bite.
The steamed bun was cold and a little hard. It must have been steamed with cornmeal, and the grains were rough. Meng Huan took two bites and choked, standing there in a daze for a while.
It tastes terrible, but it satisfies your hunger.
While chewing, he turned his head and saw Lin Bozhou holding a steamed bun in his hand, motionless, with a few flakes of snow on his drooping eyelashes. Even though he was wearing the gray and black clothes of ordinary people, he sat upright and elegant, without the slightest fatigue or ugliness, and had the temperament of an aristocratic family.
“It’s not as good as what I have in the palace, or even in Qiezhou, but I still have to eat to fill my stomach.”
Lin Bozhou is different after all. He is not the ferocious wild dog at the village entrance, fighting for a spotted bone to survive. He is the top predatory lion that dominates all beasts in the wilderness. He is used to enjoying warm and delicious flesh and blood, and finds rotten meat difficult to tolerate.
Meng Huan took the steamed bun, broke it into pieces, and tapped his lips, “Open your mouth obediently, and I’ll think of a way to make something delicious for the next meal.”
The voice was coaxing and deceptive, serious and sweet.
And a bit fierce.
It seemed that if Lin Bozhou refused to eat anymore, he would scratch him.
The cornmeal bun in his hand was mixed with some sand and stones, and it smelled fishy and bitter.
Meng Huan forced Lin Bozhou to hold a piece of flour in his mouth. It gradually melted and he could taste the rough taste on the tip of his tongue. His eyelashes trembled slightly.
Eat and drink politely.
Whenever a gentleman eats, he always lets go.
He has been subject to too many rules since childhood, and unknowingly, he is trapped by many rules.
Lin Bozhou’s throat rolled and he swallowed the steamed bun, but as if he was a picky eater, he tilted his jaw to the side and lowered his eyelashes, unconsciously resisting such food.
“you—”
Meng Huan murmured softly.
You’ve already fled, but you’re still so squeamish, right?
Meng Huan was furious.
He took a big bite of the steamed bun, held it between his teeth, pinched his jaw, and moved his lips closer.
NINETY FIVE
The steamed buns taste fishy and bitter, with coarse grains. It feels like chewing sand when you bite it. They are cold and hard, rubbing against the soft mucous membrane in your mouth.
The lips were close to his and he took the thing into his mouth gently. He blocked his lips, kissed it softly, and waited for Lin Bozhou to swallow it.
“cough……”
After Lin Bozhou swallowed the food, he took a deep breath and his dark eyebrows wrinkled habitually.
“You don’t eat steamed buns because you’re not used to it. You’ll get used to it after a few bites.” Meng Huan looked at him and said seriously, “You must eat. We don’t know how long we’ll have to flee, so you can’t let anything happen to your body.”
After feeding him, Meng Huan looked at his face, trying to see if Lin Bozhou’s resistance was still strong.
Unexpectedly, the expected adaptation did not occur.
Lin Bozhou lowered his eyes silently, twitched his lips in boredom, and stopped talking. He also let go of Meng Huan’s hand and turned his face to the other side.
……Angry?
Meng Huan was a little surprised.
It seemed like this was the first time Lin Bozhou got angry with him.
“Are you angry?” Meng Huan looked into his eyes. “Because you don’t like eating steamed buns, but I insisted on feeding them to you?”
My impression of Lin Bozhou is that he is a ruthless character who is calm, never shows his emotions, and is similar to a cold-blooded psychopath. In order to achieve his goals, he can control his emotions freely. Whether he is laughing or angry, most of the time he is just acting according to the situation, and few people can know his true thoughts.
——But now, he is angry with me for a steamed bun! ?
“…”
Lin Bozhou pursed his lips tightly and refused to speak.
“Really angry.” After confirming this fact, Meng Huan circled around him twice in a somewhat awkward manner.
After the recurrence of Lin Bozhou’s eye disease, his usual behavior could not be judged. He became more moody, gloomy and irritable, sensitive and fragile, and had a tendency to hurt others. Perhaps a small action of mine would hurt him.
Meng Huan had no choice but to bend down and said seriously: “I didn’t force you to eat on purpose. I did it for your health. Even if you are angry, I will still feed you.”
Lin Bozhou said nothing.
Meng Huan took a bite of the steamed bun and said, “Open your mouth.”
Lin Bozhou’s back straightened up suddenly. When Meng Huan approached, he held Meng Huan’s hand and pushed it away. He turned his face away with trembling eyelashes, seeming to be very resistant.
But he had enough strength to easily suppress Meng Huan, but he didn’t use it at all. He let Meng Huan hold his face and push the bun back into his teeth, forcing him to roll it around the tip of his tongue and unable to push it away.
Meng Huan didn’t use much force. Seeing that Lin Bozhou was not cooperating, he kissed him on the lips.
The sticky dough entered my mouth, filled with a cold, hard, bitter taste.
…Why?
There was a voice in Lin Bozhou’s heart.
Why do you have to eat it?
The bones on the back of his hand were bulging, and he clenched his teeth, but Meng Huan’s tongue tip was soft, and when it touched him, it seemed that a slight touch could bite out a drop of blood. Lin Bozhou opened his teeth and endured Meng Huan’s push.
The tip of his tongue withdrew. Meng Huan looked at his reaction and whispered, “Don’t spit it out. Swallow it.”
Lin Bozhou held the dough in his mouth, frowning as if he was being pressed down by a heavy force that made the corners of his eyebrows twitch violently. He was unable to resist at all. His throat rolled and his eyes and eyebrows were painful when he swallowed.
——Meng Huan didn’t use any force to force him.
But just a few words forced Lin Bozhou to carry out the order, even if it was against his will.
It is difficult to tell to what extent Meng Huan can control him.
“Isn’t that great? Just finish your meal and we won’t make things difficult for you.” Meng Huan fed him a few more sips of water and put away the kettle. “Rest for a while and then continue on your journey. This place is very close to Qiezhou. They should be able to catch up with us soon on horseback. We need to keep going.”
Lin Bozhou closed his eyes heavily and said nothing. His forehead was covered with sweat, his face was pale, his lips were red from being bitten, and the collar of his clothes was slightly loosened, as if he had just experienced some inappropriate abuse.
He was panting.
It seemed like he was being attacked, but also like he wasn’t.
This sight made Meng Huan’s throat dry.
“…”
He rubbed his hot face, in a daze, and didn’t expect that he was in the mood to admire his husband at this moment. He quickly tore off a two-finger-wide strip of cloth and said, “Husband, shall I blindfold you?”
He didn’t dare to cover his eyes during the journey, for fear that people would find out that he had bad eyesight. But Lin Bozhou’s eyes couldn’t stand the wind and were afraid of light. If the wind continued, he was afraid that the problem would be very serious.
“Okay.” Lin Bozhou said in a hoarse voice.
The gray-black cloth blocked the strong wind. Meng Huan held his hand and set out on the journey again.
These places were all unfamiliar, and soldiers passed by from time to time behind them, riding their horses quickly. Every time they saw Meng Huan, they had to quickly remove the cloth covering Lin Bozhou’s eyes to prevent others from discovering that he was blind.
A ruined temple appeared ahead.
Meng Huan couldn’t walk any longer: “Let’s go in and rest for a while and hide from the snow.”
It turned out to be an abandoned fox fairy temple. In the empty temple, there was only a fox fairy enshrined in the front hall. It had a hideous and weird look with its teeth bared. The gaps in the dust were filled with spider webs, and it looked like it had been idle for some time.
Meng Huan’s feet were aching terribly, so he helped Lin Bozhou in. After he sat down next to the incense cabinet, he sat down himself.
It’s great to have a place sheltered from the wind and rain.
Meng Huan finally understood what it felt like for a family to support each other to survive.
He took out the water bag, shook it, and, enduring the soreness of his whole body, handed it to Lin Bozhou’s lips: “Husband, drink some water.”
Lin Bozhou: “Have you drunk?”
“There’s water everywhere,” Meng Huan pressed his lips against his wet mouth, “Drink it, and I’ll put some crushed ice in it after you finish.”
The temperature was too low and the contents of the water bag were about to freeze. Meng Huan kept the water in his arms and covered it with his body temperature so that he would not be unable to drink it when he was thirsty.
The march was hard, but after a day of experiencing it, Meng Huan felt that fleeing was even harder than marching.
While Lin Bozhou was drinking water, Meng Huan stood up and walked around the temple. After pushing open the wooden door, he found some firewood and remaining tinderboxes, brought them to the front yard, and lit a fire.
Lin Bozhou seemed to want to help, but when he stood up, his knee hit the cabinet next to him with a loud bang. Meng Huan could hear it through the door.
He ran out in a hurry, only to see Lin Bozhou standing there with his head down. His face showed no pain, but his handsome eyebrows were slightly frowned.
“Bumped into something?”
Meng Huan unbuttoned his pants and took a look in the light of the fire. His knees were blue and the area covered by the bright red was quite large. He didn’t know how hard the blow was. After all, it would be very painful if it hit the bones.
A phantom pain that he could feel came over him, and Meng Huan felt a slight chill on his back. He stared blankly, “Does it hurt a lot?”
Lin Bozhou: “It doesn’t hurt.”
“Is it really not painful? It’s so swollen.”
Meng Huan squatted down and gently touched his affected area with his fingertips.
Lin Bozhou grabbed his shoulders, seeming to be somewhat resistant: “It’s okay, it will be fine soon.”
“How fast is ‘very fast’?” Meng Huan had a good temper. He raised his head and asked him.
Lin Bozhou pursed his lips and fell silent.
They were penniless during the escape and had nothing. Any unexpected event would cause trouble, making Meng Huan more tired and troubled. He would feel like a useless person.
He really didn’t want to make Meng Huan suffer any more.
The boy lay beside his legs like a little mushroom. When Lin Bozhou reached out his hand, he touched his earlobe, which was soft and cold. He pinched it gently and said, “It will be better tomorrow morning.”
Meng Huan: “I don’t believe it.”
He refuted Lin Bozhou again.
After rebutting, Meng Huan thought about how to get rid of the bruise on his knee. After thinking for a while, he put his finger in his mouth to wet it, and then applied it to his wound: “When my legs were swollen when I was a child, adults rubbed them with saliva. I don’t know if it works. I’ll try it for you.”
Lin Bozhou was stunned for a moment, then pressed Meng Huan’s shoulder: “It’s not necessary.”
“I’ll try.”
Meng Huan stared at the bruise intently.
He first dipped his fingertips in saliva and applied it, but thought it was too slow, so he half-raised his knees and bent down.
When Lin Bozhou noticed his movements, he inadvertently stepped back, his fingers brushing his earlobes chaotically, his muscles tense.
“Huanhuan, don’t be like this.”
“Yes.” Meng Huan said.
Lin Bozhou grabbed his shoulders even tighter and pinched them so hard that his bones ached.
“Huan Huan…”
Meng Huan knew what he was thinking.
Even in bed, Lin Bozhou never ordered Meng Huan around. He was good at controlling the situation and making Meng Huan happy. According to traditional customs, he could make Meng Huan kneel down and serve him at will, but he never did so.
This action seemed to underestimate Meng Huan. The more so, the more pain and self-blame Lin Bozhou felt.
He wanted to praise Meng Huan instead of making him submit to him.
Lin Bozhou’s fingers were shaking, and his voice was broken: “Okay, get up, I won’t do it anymore.”
“I want it.” Meng Huan’s tone was also a little stubborn.
When he got closer and touched his skin, Meng Huan paused.
Then, he licked the wound with the tip of his soft tongue, very lightly, itching like the brush of a feather, and a tingling sensation immediately invaded his head.
Lin Bozhou’s fingers trembled slightly.
There was a very light sound of water floating in the cold air.
His knees were bent, and the red and swollen wounds were covered with a layer of shiny water.
Lin Bozhou breathed heavily, and the hoarseness in his words seemed to have reached the end of self-blame: “Huanhuan…”
“Okay, okay, it’s done. Let me see how to knead it.” Meng Huan quickly sat up straight and placed his fingers on his knees, pressing lightly.
He was afraid that rubbing the wound directly would hurt Lin Bozhou, so he lowered his head and wanted to examine the wound carefully.
However, a shadow suddenly fell in front of him, and his shoulders sank as his vision fell into darkness. Lin Bozhou’s whole body fell on his shoulders, and his arms hugged him tightly, as if he was afraid that Meng Huan would disappear on the spot.
“What’s wrong, husband?”
Meng Huan touched his back.
Lin Bozhou just hugged him, resting his head on his neck. The coldness of his hair rubbed against his ears and turned warm.
He hugged her tightly and firmly. Meng Huan was originally cold all over, but warmth began to flow back into his body.
Lin Bozhou seemed to be very dependent on him and wanted to hug him very much.
After understanding this, Meng Huan touched his back again: “Well, then hold me and I will rub your wound. It won’t hurt.”
He lowered his head and gently pressed the wound on his knee, rubbing it with his fingertips.
It was freezing cold, snowing heavily, and dusk was approaching.
In the desolate and dilapidated mountain temple, two figures were hugging each other under the fox fairy’s throne, blocking the wind and snow outside the heavy wooden door, and the firelight ignited a dim warmth.
Meng Huan touched Lin Bozhou’s earlobe and rested his forehead against his. He felt sleepy and said vaguely, “Let’s go to bed.”
Lin Bozhou rubbed his face.
After Meng Huan fell asleep, Lin Bozhou gently felt around and touched his right hand. All along the way, Meng Huan held his hand with his left hand.
Lin Bozhou’s fingers suddenly paused.
The fingers on Meng Huan’s right hand were thicker than usual, cracked and swollen. It turned out that during his time in Qiezhou, Meng Huan could not stand the severe cold and suffered frostbite on his hands and face.
Lin Bozhou continued to stroke downwards, and his throat couldn’t help but tremble.
YOU ARE READING
Transmigrated as the Regent's Runaway Wife
RomanceTitle: 穿成摄政王的侍爱逃妻 Author: 若星若辰 The regent of the Grand Clan, Lin Bozhou, appears to be bright and clear on the surface, but is so dirty and disgusting in his back. A great traitor should be punished by everyone. On this day, a sedan chair carried Me...
