caged robin

The tailor was still the little tailor who made daily clothes for Abner, and the hair on his head still hadn't grown. When he learned that Master Abner came back, he was skeptical. When he really saw the real person, his hand holding the measuring tape was excited. Trembling, "My lord..."

Seeing him spreading the trembling measuring tape on his arm, Abner chuckled and asked, "Are you sure you won't make me a suit of dancing clothes?"

"Sorry, my lord..." The tailor's bald head was dripping with sweat, "I'm so excited."

"Excitement is always a good thing." Abner smiled.

The tailor continued to measure Abner, and after noting the size on the paper, he hesitated: "My lord, with all due respect..."

"Go ahead."

"My lord... You haven't grown very fast in the past two years," the tailor continued, scratching his head, "Your Highness is already as tall as His Majesty."

The corner of Abner's mouth twitched, "..."

I was away for not two years at all!Abner thought about it, but couldn't say it, so he turned his face to Xiao En with a sullen face, "How is Your Highness doing?"

"My lord, how can I, a tailor, approach His Highness? I just saw His Highness when I delivered silks and satins to His Majesty last time."

Abner imagined that Sean lost his childishness and became more and more like a king, sitting on a luxurious high seat, so he couldn't help raising his eyebrows, wanting to strike him with a sword.At this time, the tailor had already measured Aureas. The tailor squinted his eyes and stared at Aureas carefully until he wrote down the size, and said, "This lord is Sir Aureas?"

Abner was startled, the tailor's memory was terrible, he coughed lightly twice, and argued, "No, you remembered it wrong."

Again the tailor stared suspiciously at the measurements written down on the paper, and said, "But it's the same size as that Sir."

Abner: "..."

Abner said, "You remember people by size?"

"Oh no, my lord, it's the first time I've seen a tall and strong figure like Sir Aurelias." The tailor smiled apologetically and wiped the sweat off his head, put the tape measure and paper into the sheepskin bag, and followed the footman away.

When it was close to the meal time, Duke Apocassery ate some soft food and went to sleep, Abner tiptoed out with an empty plate, and closed the door softly.The servant respectfully invited him to the table. He didn't want to be at the same table with his stepmother, but Johnny said that His Royal Highness Xiao En had learned that he was back, and was rushing back from Chilong City overnight, and asked the royal family's cook to hold a banquet in the Yufu Building. Clean up the dust for yourself.

"Brother, we haven't had dinner together for a long time." Johnny pleaded with a hint of coquettishness.

Abner couldn't refuse anymore.

Standing in the empty dining room, Abner felt both familiar and unfamiliar. The bird totem tapestry curtain hung on one side of the long table, and the glass-covered oil lamp in the alcove shone dimly, making the curtain somewhat old.He frowned, unable to think of anything different from what he remembered.

"Master, please take a seat."

A strange voice sounded from behind, and Abner turned around, only to see that the male servant turned his back to him and opened the seat for Jonny.

The back of the chair is the goat's head crest of the Apocasteri family embroidered with gold thread, and two goat's eyes made of polished emerald are fixed under the goat's horns.Jonny turned his back to himself, his short hair was reddish in the candlelight.

Suddenly Johnny turned around, with an apology on his face, "Sorry... brother, this position..."

It would have been Abner's.

Abner was taken aback for a moment, then smiled, and walked to the side, and before the manservant opened the chair for him, he just sat down.

Jonny's little face looked stiff, and his lips moved.

"It's okay, it's good that Duolun Palace can accommodate me, don't take it to heart." Abner waved his hand to show that he didn't care, and Jonny's complexion was slightly better.

Abner smiled stiffly, thinking that he didn't care about these things, but he seemed to be wearing a sackcloth, feeling uncomfortable all over.

Aureas sat beside Abner, and Abner's other hand was placed under the table. Aureas held that hand. Abner was taken aback, and turned his head to face Aureas. Take a look.

"Fyuei (I'm here)." Orreas whispered, using the language of the spirit beast clan.

Abner trembled, and Oreas's hand clenched even tighter.

He turned his head, at this time the servant was pouring wine for him, he glanced at the bright red Cargallos wine, the circle of the wine glass was engraved with complicated patterns, he raised the wine glass to face Johnny.

Jonny was stunned, and quickly raised his glass, saying, "Brother, I should be the one to respect you."

"My lords, I intended to come and see my father. When my father's health improves..." Abner put down his glass and said casually, "I should go back."

"Go back?" Johnny asked suspiciously.

"Yeah." Abner replied casually. The bread was coated with pear pudding, and the pear meat was soaked in spices made from cinnamon, cloves, cardamom and red wine. At that time, he only missed the white futon.

Then, there was silence, and the whole dining room was only the sound of the clash of knives and forks, and even the noisy stepmother didn't make a sound.

Abner wiped the corners of his mouth, raised his head, and was wondering why Rhea didn't say something nasty, and happened to meet Rhea's eyes, Rhea's eyes suddenly moved away, then lowered his head, and put a piece of frosted pie Put it in your mouth, nervous like a little girl.

Abner was stunned for a while, and suddenly realized that Rhea was staring at Oreas.

Hell, he clenched the spoon in his hand and glanced furtively at Aureas, who was drinking thoughtfully with a clean plate in front of him.

He amplified his voice and said to Rhea: "My respected mother, this is my loyal friend. I dare to swear to the kings that although he has no title, he is a good man that cannot be found in all the four kingdoms. If you know Suitable girl, please be sure to help my friend speak well in front of her father."

Rhea raised her head stiffly, glanced at Abner, then at Oreas, her stiff neck supported her head as if sprained, "That's...natural."

"Ma'am, Abner is joking with you," Oreas said with a light smile as he slowly put down his wine glass, "I already have a family, and Abner knows it best."

After finishing speaking, Oreas looked at Abner with a smile on his face.

Abner stared at him, his cheeks gradually became hot, but fortunately the candlelight was not bright enough, and the blush was hidden in the dim yellow light.

He looked away uncomfortably, took a sip of wine, cleared his throat, and asked, "Where's Mr. Alvin? Why haven't I seen him yet?"

The atmosphere suddenly froze.

Johnny lowered his head, held the spoon in his hand, and remained silent.

"What's wrong?" Abner clenched his wine glass tightly, with a bad premonition.

"Mr. Alvin, he... passed away..." Johnny's voice was weak.

Abner's hand trembled, and some of the wine in the glass spilled out.

"when?!"

"Late last month. When we found him, he was bleeding dry from his eyes, nose, ears."

Abner fell silent. Mr. Alvin has a brain disease, and he has been taking medicine to maintain it, but the blood in his brain is like sparks in a stove, seemingly powerless, but as long as the fire stick is poked, the fire will burst sprayed out.

But this is something that the kings are helpless.

Abner pushed the glass aside, unable to take anything.Soon the dinner was over, and the food on the long table didn't move much.

He bid farewell to Aureas in the corridor, watched Aureas's back disappear around the corner, and retracted his eyes.The footman led him to his room, as if afraid that he might not know which one it was.

"I know how to go, you go to work."

Abner sent the servant away, walked to the familiar yet unfamiliar door, touched the oak door, and then slowly pushed it open. The room was still the same as when he left. The sheets had obviously been changed, but the surface was still the same. Printed with lush cornflowers.

He breathed a sigh of relief and closed the door, but the depression left by the dinner party was still in his heart.

Abner tossed and turned, unable to fall asleep.

He closed his eyes tightly, but his mind was full of the day's events, his father's illness, Mr. Alvin's death, the strange manservant, Rhea's eyes... Even the brocade curtain in the dining room was lingering in his mind .

damn it.

The inexplicable uneasiness made him shiver violently.

Finally, he got out of bed, put on his robe, and opened the door. No one was there, and the servants were all asleep. Only the oil lamp in the corridor gave off a faint light.

He closed the door of his own room softly, and walked towards Aureas' room on tiptoe, his heart almost jumping out, lest some talkative servant should see him.But he thought about it again, so what if he saw it, what is there to be afraid of talking between friends late at night.

He straightened up again, deliberately making a "dong dong" sound with his feet, but when he turned a corner and saw the door of Aureas' room, he withdrew his feet again, and slid past quickly like a bird doing bad things, crouching. In front of the door, I dare not knock loudly.

"Oreas—" he called out under his breath.

no respond.

He sighed and looked out the window at the dark night, Aureas probably fell asleep early.

He glanced at the door and turned around.

"Aren't you coming in?"

Suddenly, a low and lazy voice sounded from behind.

His breathing froze suddenly, and he turned around immediately, seeing Oreas standing at the door, holding out a hand to him.

He rushed over, and Oreas picked him up and closed the door behind him.

Seeing that the door was closed, he pecked Aureas presumptuously on the mouth. Aureas smiled lightly, pressed the back of his head, and deepened the kiss.

"Why haven't you slept yet?"

Oreas asked, putting him on the bed, he immediately got into the quilt, and the flat quilt was pushed up by him into a small hill.

"I can't sleep alone." He said in the quilt.

Oreas raised his eyebrows slightly, lifted the quilt, and saw the light on Abner's body faintly appeared again, and a pair of beautiful blue eyes with light were hiding in the quilt and looking straight at him.

As soon as he lay down, Abner clung to him, his slender body carried the coolness of the night, so he opened his arms so that Abner could curl his whole body into his embrace.

Then he hugged Abner tightly, bowed his head and kissed his forehead, and said, "Go to sleep now."