A glance at the spring breeze

Someday many years ago.

In the maple leaf forest in the outer suburbs of the capital.

It had just finished raining a few days ago, and after finally waiting for a sunny day, Yin Jian invited three or two royal brothers to hunt here.

It's a pity that because of the rain that fell for several days in the past few days, there are still a few sections of mountain roads in the forest that are shaded by dense trees, and they are still a bit slippery and muddy.In order to prevent the horse's hooves from slipping, Yin Jian dismounted and walked instead.He ordered the guards on the side to lead the horses and wait here, while he went to the front to search for the prey.

Yin Jian suddenly heard a loud bird song that he had never heard in the palace on weekdays from the woods in front of him.

He was very happy in his heart, holding a longbow and ran quickly after the source of the sound.The singing of the bird became louder and louder, and he also felt that he was getting closer to the flying bird.

Yin Jian took out an arrow from behind and was about to put it on the bow.He looked up at the top of a big tree not far ahead - the bird call came from that tree.

But at this moment, he didn't know what he was stepping on, his right heel slipped, and with the mud on the ground, he fell on his back.

It was probably because of this heavy fall that the bird on the tree was frightened directly, and flew away from the tree with an "ah".

Looking at the figure of the bird flying away in the sky, he couldn't help cursing inwardly.

"Your Highness!"

Just when he was annoyed at losing his favorite prey, a black figure suddenly sprang out from the bushes in front of him, ran to him and squatted down, while holding his hand, he asked eagerly: "Your Highness?" , are you okay?"

His eyes suddenly lit up, and the flame that rose up in his heart disappeared in a blink of an eye.

"Ruan Lan, why is it you?" He took the opponent's hand back and squeezed it happily.

The person in front of me is the companion of the second emperor's brother Yin Cheng, the young son of Ruan Shangshu of the Ministry of Officials, with a handsome face, four or five years younger than him, he still looks childish, but his voice has already begun to change .

"I—" Ruan Lan's eyes dodged, her face blushed slightly, and her two big black eyes gradually looked down at Yin Xian with embarrassment.

Yin Jian also followed Ruan Lan's gaze - he saw a pebble lying at his feet that was not too big or too small.

Yin Xian's mind turned very fast, and he knew what was going on in an instant. He pretended to be annoyed and asked, "You kicked this stone, I slipped on it, didn't you?" ?”

"Hmm..." This time, Ruan Lan's face turned even redder, and she hesitated and said, "I'm sorry, Your Highness... I, I didn't do it on purpose."

"It's over if you didn't do it on purpose? You're murdering the prince. If I tell my father or the second brother, I'll see if they don't punish you."

Yin Jian pretended to be decent, so frightened that Ruan Lan lowered her head, pursed her lips and dared not answer.

"However... it's not that there is no way to make up for it." Yin Jian squeezed Ruan Lan's hand, looked at Ruan Lan without blinking, and said, "Now my highness is so hurt that I can't move. I remember that there is a small cave a few dozen feet away, you help me into it, and when I recover from my rest, I will promise you not to tell my father, brother, how about it?"

Ruan Lan had no choice but to nod her head.

So Yin Jian, who was taller than Ruan Lan and had a head, lay down on the opponent so shamelessly, making Ruan Lan red-faced and panting, carrying him into the small cave.

Ruan Lan took off her robe, folded it and put it on a sloping stone wall, and Yin Zhan laid down on it generously.

Seeing that Ruan Lan was about to walk out of the cave, Yin Jian quickly stopped him: "Hey, where are you going?"

Ruan Lan turned her head and said, "I'm afraid His Highness will be thirsty, so I want to go out and scoop some brook water back."

Yin Jian would not let him go, so he said: "I see you have a water bag pinned to your waist, don't bother, I will drink what you have."

"..."

Ruan Lan untied the water bag on her waist and handed it to Yin Jian.

After Yin Xian gulped it down, he felt that it was much more delicious than the good wine he drank before. He asked casually, "Why didn't you follow Yin Cheng, but ran around here alone?"

Ruan Lan bit her lip, her gaze dimmed in an instant, and she said after a long silence: "Originally, the Second Highness wanted to take me to hunt together, but Feng Bizhi suddenly came to look for His Highness from the capital, and said that he had something important to talk to, so His Highness let me go hunting." I gave up the horse to Feng Bizhi."

Is that so?Yin Zhen thought to himself: If there is anything important, it is probably because the second emperor thought that Ruan Lan was too young and had nothing to talk about, so he found an excuse to get rid of him.

The same is true for the second brother, who found a companion who was so many years younger than him, of course he would feel dull and boring.Speaking of which, didn't you choose Ruan Lan because you needed the support of Ruan Shangshu's lineage?

It's asking for trouble.

Yin Xian said: "Don't talk about these things, you go and help me hunt ten hares."

Ruan Lan stared straight at the pair of dark eyes: "Ten?!"

"Why, ten are too many?... Then let's just have two, and pick up some dry branches, isn't that too much? See if I'm very kind to you, a murderer?"

Ruan Lan let out a "huh" and asked suspiciously, "Your Highness...do you want to roast a hare?"

Yin Jian looked at Ruan Lan's gaze at him, and when he felt displeased, he said, "Why, don't you believe that His Highness can cook roasted game? After every hunt, I would find some dry branches everywhere, light a fire, and catch those The hare and wild boar are roasted on top for a long time, and then... pull the roasted rabbit legs out gently, and you can immediately see a fragrant yellow sizzling oil coming out of an inch of delicate skin. Roasting aroma It can be smelled ten miles away, and the tender and crispy roast meat is chewing in your mouth, not to mention how delicious it is... Ruan Lan, don't you want to try my cooking?"

As Yin Jian spoke, he began to brag about himself, and Ruan Lan was so greedy that he swallowed unknowingly: "Your Highness, then...you wait here first, and I will go and catch His Highness right away." Hare."

"Come back quickly!" Yin Jian shouted, and when Ruan Lan disappeared outside the cave, he remembered to add, "If you can't catch it for a while, don't catch it!"

Yin Jian didn't expect that Ruan Lan was quite obedient.

He sniffed the smell of Ruan Lan on the robe under his body, and began to squint his eyes and lean against the stone wall to take a nap in the cave, but he tossed and turned and waited for at least two sticks of incense, but Ruan Lan didn't come back.

He couldn't sit still anymore, he felt faintly worried, picked up his bow and arrow and walked out of the cave quickly.

"Ruan Lan?" He called out to the woods ahead.

After that, the surrounding area was quiet.

no answer.

There is only the rustling sound of the leaves when the wind blows by.

Yin Jian looked at the footprints on the ground and knew that Ruan Lan ran to the south of the forest.

He followed the marks on the ground all the way to the southernmost end of the Maple Leaf Forest, but Ruan Lan's footprints were broken here.

what happened?Did Ruan Lan run into the bushes on both sides of the path?

At this moment, a high-spirited and manic wild boar cry crossed the sky.

not good!

Yin Jian stepped up from the ground, jumped up a tall tree trunk with ease, and followed the direction of the wild boar's cry.

Sure enough, Ruan Lan was being chased by a burly wild boar about ten feet away.The back of the wild boar was covered with black and long mane, and there was an arrow sticking out of its side, and blood could be vaguely seen on the tail of the arrow—if it was normal, the wild boar would never take the initiative to provoke people, but At this time, it was seriously injured, and it was at its most ferocious and irritable. Probably when it saw the young and thin Ruan Lan, it instinctively wanted to drive and kill.

Yin Jian stepped on the treetops on both sides and flew towards Ruan Lan.

Ruan Lan was sweating profusely and ran ahead, but after all, she was young, so how could she be the opponent of the wild boar behind her?The wild boar was getting closer and closer to him, even if Yin Xian rushed over at this time, it would definitely be too late.

At this time, it seemed that the wild boar could push Ruan Lan to the sky with its two sharp teeth as long as it raised its head.

But Ruan Lan suddenly turned a corner and nimbly circled behind a tree, but the wild boar was slow to react, and before it could turn around, it fell heavily in the middle of the two trees, with its long mane clinging to it. The dirt slid forward a few feet.

Yin Jian was terrified, and when he finally flew to Ruan Lan, he found that Ruan Lan's lips were pale with fright, and she was squatting on the ground tremblingly, and the wild boar also fell unconscious.

He took a closer look, and it turned out that there was a long and thin hemp rope in the middle of the two trees—it seemed that Ruan Lan had tied it to the tree before.

"What's going on?" Yin Jian also squatted down and put a hand on Ruan Lan's shoulder, clearly feeling that Ruan Lan's body was shaking slightly.He asked, "I just asked you to kill two hares. How did you get caught up by such a ferocious boar?"

Ruan Lan was still in shock, and glanced at the wild boar, her eyes filled with fear of it: "I... I just wanted to catch a wild rabbit here, and before I set up the trap, I heard two wild boars from a distance. The voices of His Highness and Lord Feng."

"What's next?"

Yin Jian was dissatisfied in his heart and said: It's Yin Cheng again.

"I'm on the side of the woods, they didn't see me...then Master Feng shot an arrow and hit the wild boar outside the woods. The injured wild boar ran towards me in a panic. When it saw me, it bumped into me and couldn't get rid of it." , I have no choice but to lead it here, trying to trip it, maybe... maybe I can escape."

Yin Jian pulled him to stand up: "So that's how it is. Thank you for your hard work. Let's go back."

Ruan Lan glanced at Yin Zhen suspiciously: "Your Highness, your body...is it back to normal?"

"Ah...cough..." Yin Jian turned the subject around and asked very seriously, "Speaking of which, have you never learned martial arts before? Why didn't you use lightness kung fu just now?"

Ruan Lan's voice was a little aggrieved: "I won't."

"Oh? No?" Yin Jian pretended to be surprised, "Why didn't Yin Cheng teach you?"

"..."

Ruan Lan lowered her head.

Yin Xian said: "But I can teach you."

"Really?" Ruan Lanfu raised her head again, her eyes gleaming with innocence and childishness.

Just as Yin Xian was about to speak, he heard a cry of "Hang Chi Han Chi" behind him.

He looked behind Ruan Lan—the wild boar had woken up at some point, and was rubbing its front hooves angrily, with a sharp and fierce light in its eyes, ready to hit the two of them.

"careful!"

Yin Xian pulled Ruan Lan behind him, then drew out the long sword on his waist, and stabbed at the charging wild boar.

The blade of the sword sank into the wild boar's head in an instant, and the blood spattered Yin Jian's face.

Seeing the burly wild boar crashing down in front of him, Yin Jian raised a smile at the corner of his mouth, and said behind him: "Look, Ruan Lan——"

However, Ruan Lan disappeared.

At his feet was the hemp rope trap set by Ruan Lan, and the wild boar that chased him just now... But Ruan Lan was not seen at all.

"Ruan Lan?" Yin Jian looked around and kept shouting, "Ruan Lan? Where have you been?"

"Ruan Lan?! Where are you?"

No one answered him, and there was an ethereal silence all around.

Suddenly, a bird sprang out from the woods, and with a long mournful cry, it spread its wings and circled up to the sky.

Yin Xian could see clearly—it was an albatross with black wings and white body—it was the prey he wanted to shoot before.

Albatross, living in the sea, I forgot who once told him that this kind of bird was transformed from a deceased relative...

living at sea--

But isn't he in the maple forest on the outskirts of the capital?

Yin Jian shook his head and spun around on the spot.

He smelled a salty sea breeze.

"Ruan Lan!"

Yin Jian woke up from the dream with a loud cry, and sat up in shock.

He felt wet on his back and forehead, and seemed to be covered in cold sweat.

A drop of sweat slipped on the golden brocade quilt.

How can I dream of something so long ago...

He smiled wryly, Ruan Lan was obviously gone, yet he was still calling Ruan Lan's name in his dream.

He let out a long sigh, and turned to shout: "Yun Sheng."

After shouting, there was another "hey".

How could he be so confused today.

Yun Sheng is clearly gone...

"Your Majesty!" A young eunuch pushed the door open, and hurriedly walked up to Yin Jian and knelt down, "The servant just heard that His Majesty called Chief Manager Zhang's name, and thought that His Majesty might be calling the slave to do something..."

"It's nothing, you go back."

"Yes Yes--"

"Wait. Change clothes for me, I'm going to Bihua Palace to see the noble concubine."

"Yes……"