under the field

Scarlett

I have money, which is the luckiest thing I've ever done since this escape.

After checking into the room, I started to arrange all the gold coins and clothes and jewelry in the box on the bed.

If the decision to get off at Warwick was a mistake, I hope I don't regret it.

There was a knock on the door, I glanced at the bed full of gold and silver treasures, but did not open the door.

"Is something wrong?" I responded. "I'm changing clothes."

Recognizing the voice of the woman who was collecting money at the table just now, I became even more vigilant because her eyes lit up and she kept looking at me when I took out the money.

We talked through the door panel, and I refused her to bring in the food, and said that I would go downstairs to eat.

Scar, be wary of strangers, I keep warning myself.

But just now I followed the stranger all the way to a brand new and dangerous place for me.I began to regret that I didn't follow Colin into his hotel, even though the environment was shabby, I could ask him for help.Even though he wasn't interested in me, he didn't bother me.

I looked at the small but clean room and hoped I hadn't made the wrong choice.

The clothes I brought out were all the most common petticoats, but I still took two extra pairs of trousers.I picked up the jewelry and started tucking them into the inside pockets and inside of the sleeves, dividing the money into two parts, one in the sole of the boot, the other in the clothes, and the rest on the bottom of the suitcase.

After doing all this, I fell back on the bed and sighed.

The three meals for these two days are settled in the hotel where I am. I have a ghost in my heart, and I don’t want too many people to see me. After all, Warwick is next to Edo.

When I was eating, I would lower my head nervously when I heard a businessman from Edo was staying. When I saw someone reading a newspaper, I didn’t have the courage to ask him to check and confirm the news.

I don't even have the opportunity for others to talk to me. This town doesn't want me to go out for a stroll. I prefer to stay in the room, even if such days make me suffer and even lose sleep.

I think the reason for my inner uneasiness may also be because I didn't see Colin again. I followed him to this town by accident. It suddenly occurred to me that he might have left. I decided to go out of the hotel today to try my luck.

I heard the woman at the hotel say that a ship arrived at the port this morning, so the street was very crowded.I lowered the brim of my hat and walked quickly through the crowd.

There was a line of people staying outside the "Chameleon", most of whom were men who had just disembarked. They crowded at the door and chatted loudly. I looked at the crowded door and gave up my plan to get in by chance.

I came to a tavern from which I could observe the door of the Chameleon.The tavern is full of guests at the moment, and the dark room is full of sweat and alcohol. I managed to find a window.

"Boy," a woman came up to me, "mahakan potato soup?" I nodded. "Wine?" I nodded again.

She came over quickly with a tray and passed by a man. He reached out and patted her buttocks. She turned her head and joked with the men at the table.

After she put down the food, I gave her a few coins, and she happily took them away and turned around.

This sour soup tastes good, at least it is the most satisfying food I have eaten these days.

"Hey, The Hasting girl." The man at the table said suddenly, so that I didn't react and coughed, and hurriedly picked up the glass and took a sip.Fortunately, no one paid attention to me, they started talking, "Count Reggie's fiancée."

Not yet, the marriage certificate has not yet come down.I didn't agree either.I refuted in my heart.

"She ran away, the youngest daughter of the Hasdin family. In order not to marry Earl Reggie." Everyone began to gossip, "How did she escape?"

"It disappeared in the manor, and no one noticed it. Mrs. Hastings was about to agree to this marriage, but she ran away. Earl Reggie was still waiting for the Queen to issue the marriage certificate and come down to marry her himself."

The woman who delivered the food just now lay down in front of the table curiously, letting her chest be exposed, "Is there anything wrong with marrying him? He has so much money! How many women are willing!" It seemed that a large sum of money lay before her eyes , her eyes shine.

"Then if you marry, I can't guarantee how good he is in bed. Would you still like it?" They teased, and the woman sat on his lap and let him take advantage of it. "That's not necessarily the case..." Everyone laughed laugh.

"They will find her," they said, as if sure of the earl's power.

I don't know how long I stayed in the sitting position, but it was so long that I realized that the mahakan potato soup in front of me had congealed into lumps and was no longer attractive.Creamy yellow potatoes lay on the plate, and I rubbed them apart with a spoon.

"If I were you," a mellow voice sounded from behind, with a habitual teasing, "I would let go and eat regardless of my image, instead of holding a ruler all the time to accurately measure the next piece of meat to cut. How to fit into the mouth size."

He sat across from me and looked at my face. I was sure there was nothing dirty on my face.

Seeing me stunned, he stared at me amusedly, his low voice drifting to my eardrums.

"This is not your manor or the royal reception. Do you know that? People who look like you here look like a walking bag full of gold coins, the kind with the mouth open."

I swallowed the chicken whole, I knew what he was talking about, I couldn't even refute it.But obviously, he didn't intend to stay, so he got up after speaking.His back looked ridiculously tall in the short eaves, and the eyes of several women in the tavern followed him.

I put down the spoon and gave chase.

There are too many people here, and the environment is not good. I am not a picky person, but the air here is indeed not very circulated. I wanted to ventilate outside the house, let alone I finally found him.

The doorway is not a good place, people come and go, and they are usually justifiable when they bump into people, and they will even curse you mercilessly.

I had no intention of conflicting with them, and accidentally bumped into a burly Viking at the door (because he spoke Norwegian and had the salty smell of sea water on his body), I quickly backed away and leaned against the table at the door, I bowed my head and apologized.

Someone outside the door stretched out his hand to give me a hand. I nearly fell, and I inevitably supported the other person's shoulders to stand upright. I was about to apologize, but I bumped into that smiling face.

I was suddenly very angry, a feeling of being played by me rose spontaneously, I forgot my original intention of coming here, felt tears were about to come out of my eyes, I subconsciously turned around and left.

"Hey!" He called me from behind, I still didn't stop because the tears were still flowing, and he called my name again, "Scarlett!" I still didn't look back.

He grabbed my wrist from behind, and this time he lowered his voice, "Stop, girl Hastings." I stopped obediently.

"It's not me." Almost at the same time, I immediately denied it.

"Usually those who subconsciously say 'I'm not' are admitting in disguise. When others say that you should say 'I'm not', it's more convincing." He still didn't forget to tease me.

Apparently another batch of passengers was about to disembark, and the pier quickly became crowded, "We need to find a place to talk." He pulled me through the street market, preparing to cover this cow dung-smelling place amidst the turbulent crowd. before the street.

I came to the "Chameleon" again, and I no longer resisted entering, but the inside of the lobby was not as dilapidated as the exterior wall of the building.The lights weren't very bright, and I had to keep an eye on the steps below me to keep from falling.

We were supposed to be talking in his room, though the thought made me slightly nervous.He lived in a corner room on this floor, and he could hear the other tenants swearing as he walked along the corridor.

Colin went ahead and opened the door for me, and I followed without hesitation.

It's just that I didn't expect that there were other people in the room.Obviously, Colin didn't expect the arrival, but he didn't react too much. Instead, the person on the bed looked at me and asked him, "New friend?"

"Hastin girl." Colin replied.I couldn't believe that he would tell others my identity like this, so I couldn't help but stare at him.

"...What? A girl?" The man on the bed stood up and raised the oil lamp on the stage in front of me, as if to confirm that I was a girl, his eyes were wider than mine.It was hard for him, and I hid my hair under a black beret to hide it, and I put on pantyhose and a big shirt, and I looked like the little boy who delivered the papers to Dindalk.

While he was probing me in surprise, I also saw his appearance clearly. His narrow jaw, high cheekbones, and wide-eyed eyes made me think that this should be a funny man, and he quickly caught him. Key point: "The escaped Hastin girl?" The voice was so loud that I quickly reached out to cover his mouth.

Then he stepped back and said to Colin in disbelief: "You kidnapped that old man's fiancée?!"

I blushed and jumped up to retort: ​​"It doesn't count! I didn't agree at all!"

Colin spread his hands and looked at the man with an inexplicable expression, "We met on the train." Then he pointed at me and introduced us perfunctorily: "Scarlett, Otis. Otis Tees, Scarlett."

Otis looked at me in disbelief, "You've become a legend. The whole ship is talking about it."

I don't think they look like the ones to hand me over to Reggie, maybe because of their unintentional disdain when it comes to Reggie, and then I find myself in Otis like a gossip woman In the question, I once again explained my origin clearly.

Otis is undoubtedly a storyteller's favorite kind of listener, not only full of empathy, but also responding to the plot of the story, which makes me feel encouraged and comforted.For example, at this moment I talked about how my sisters and I sent away the most trusted coachman of my mother Clare without telling her, and found a carriage from Orlando to send me to the station. After spending the night at the station, he bought a ticket and left, but he was able to immediately find the most important point in my words and said, "You must be very sorry." He didn't say goodbye to his mother properly.

In contrast, Colin deserved a beating. He still looked like he had nothing to do with himself on the train. He was not moved by my tearful speech. I even thought he might yawn in the next second.

"So, you followed Colin off the train and came here. And you lived here too?"

"No, I live in the 'front room'." If it weren't for my illusion, I could feel the room quiet down at that moment.