Tanhualang

It rained lightly all day.

Shen Jing also nestled in the west wing all day without going out, reading, writing posts, or in the gap, staring at the apricot tree outside the window in a daze.

In the evening, the rain gradually stopped, and the afterglow broke through the clouds, illuminating the mottled bamboo shadows in front of the East Wing.

Shen Jing warmed up the half pot of porridge left in the morning, and made a side dish. Before she could eat it, she saw the little butler stepping on the mottled bamboo shadows, completely soaked, limping into the room in embarrassment.

After a while he changed into clean clothes and knocked on the quiet door:

"Shopkeeper Shen, is there anything to eat? I'm too lazy to set the kitchen on fire."

Shen Jing hurriedly let him in:

"Only porridge and side dishes."

"It's enough." Xiaoyou forced a smile, "I came at the right time."

Picking up the hot porridge, Shen Jing felt a little sorry:

"Why don't I make some more—"

Xiaoyou waved his hand, very satisfied:

"No need - this side dish is very refreshing. The porridge is really good. After drinking it warm, I feel warm all over. Is it left over from the morning?"

Nod quietly:

"Yes."

The two slowly finished the porridge, Xiaoyou put down the bowl and chopsticks, and looked at Shen Jing:

"Today's battle is frightening."

After a quiet pause, he smiled:

"Fortunately."

"You must think that our prince is irritable and moody, right?"

Saying it wasn't too fake, but not daring to say it was, Shen Jing could only smile and turn the subject away:

"My lord has a real temperament... Seeing that your feet are inconvenient when you come in, are you okay?"

Xiao You couldn't help laughing when he saw his words turn so bluntly.Without embarrassing him, he bent his legs and opened his trouser legs, revealing his ankle with a large piece of skin scratched:

"It's okay, I didn't notice when I got off the horse and scratched some skin."

As he spoke, he thumped his thigh again, muttering:

"...a horse that has been running in the rain for a day will have a sore leg tomorrow."

"It's really hard work for you."

Xiaoyou patted the trousers:

"What kind of hardship is this? When we fought against the Tartars, that was suffering."

Shen Jing was a little surprised.Looking at Xiaoyou's white and delicate appearance, he doesn't look like someone who has fought in war at all:

"Have you ever been a soldier?"

Xiao You smiled and said:

"Does shopkeeper Shen think that with my appearance, I can only serve people?"

"no no--"

"Shopkeeper Shen, don't care, I have no other meaning." Xiaoyou waved his hand, still smiling, "But to tell the truth, although I am in front of the prince, I am indeed a slave, and I can only serve others Son, this is the truth, what can't you say?"

"..."

There was half-warm tea on the table, Xiaoyou took it by himself, poured a bowl of tea for Shen Jing, and poured another bowl for himself, took a sip, sighed, squinted his eyes and leaned comfortably on the chair:

"Although I am a slave, I do it willingly. I am not a slave. I am lucky enough to serve a master like a prince. Back then, I went to Gansu just to serve the prince. I also experienced several times of siege and suffered from the cold. I have been starved. Although I am still a slave now, as long as I remember that we fought against the Tartars with real knives and guns, how much confidence can we show as a human being? If it weren’t for the three years in Gansu, I would be here now He is a real slave."

As he spoke, he lifted up his sleeves, revealing a deep scar on his forearm:

"Not long after I went to the west, I met the Tartars besieging the city. I was patrolling the city with the prince. I was stupid and looked down from the city wall. The arrows of the Tartars flew over like shooting stars. Fortunately, the prince kicked the city. Leave me alone, or my life will be there.”

"..."

"I was besieged by the Tartars for almost a month, and there was not enough food and grass in the city. Some people proposed to abandon the city and retreat to the pass, and even the general hesitated. Shopkeeper Shen has never experienced it, so he probably doesn't know. If you abandon the city, you will lose Gansu. The people of several cities." Xiaoyou's voice gradually lowered, "I really, I will never forget the situation on that day until I die. The prince counted the grain and grass in the city, and then slashed his beloved horse with a knife with a cold face, turning the horse into a horse. Food rations for guarding the city. In the next half a month, we ate bark and weeds to save food for the officers and soldiers guarding the city. Many times, when patrolling the city, we watched the Tartars eating meat and drinking under the city from a distance—there was a lieutenant general in the Qianfeng Battalion At that time, I don’t know if I was hungry or hated. I watched the Tartars eat meat and crushed half of their back molars. Has the shopkeeper heard of him?"

"This is a great hero who is famous all over the world, who doesn't know?"

Xiao You held the tea bowl, the smile on his face gradually faded:

"Later, thanks to the emperor's efforts to overcome all opinions in the court and ordered Shuntian Mansion to send troops to help, the siege of Gansu was relieved. The prince felt puzzled. When the Tartars withdrew their troops, they secretly discussed with Wang Wuzhi and brought five of the elite guards of the palace. 60 people rode out of the city on horseback and killed more than 100 dead Tartars, and shot one of their right generals blind in one eye. Fifteen or six of the prince's personal soldiers were also killed."

"..."

"At that time, the leader of the Northwest Camp was Old General Sun Yao. He was furious because of this incident, and he whipped Mr. Wang Wuzhi with twenty army sticks. He didn't dare to beat the prince, but he also filed a complaint with the prince. The prince was fined for one year's salary, haha! The prince was young back then, and he didn't have many private houses. Money was really tight that year, and I secretly went to the city to pawn money for the money."

Xiao You spoke unhurriedly, as if telling a story, listening quietly and ecstatically, and couldn't help sighing:

"A man's self-esteem is rampant. It's a pity that I don't have such a chance."

Xiao You shook his head and laughed:

"Shopkeeper Shen's words made me very pedantic. Only after I have experienced it, I know that I would rather be a dog of peace than a chaotic person. It is more important to be safe and sound. Now that I think about it, those people who disappeared back then—"

He leaned on the back of the chair and let out a long sigh, squinting his eyes, and the vicissitudes on his face were disproportionate to his youthful appearance, as if he had returned to the battlefield of killing in Gansu——

After a long time, Shen Jing called him softly:

"... Xiaoyou shopkeeper?"

Xiaoyou suddenly recovered from the daze, slowly put down the tea bowl, and showed the usual smiling face again:

"What time is it?"

"It's the second watch."

"If you don't pay attention, it will be too late." Xiaoyou stood up slowly, brushed off his sleeves and hem, still smiling as he walked out, "I've talked a lot tonight, shopkeeper Shen, don't be offended. It's strange to say, even though we know each other Soon, I felt a little like old friends at first sight with you—it's rare for me to talk to anyone about these things."

"It must be because of the rainy day, the rain makes people's hearts soft, and it's easy to think about the old things." Shen Jing got up to see him off, opened the door, and heard the sound of the rain, "It's raining again, you wait for me to get the umbrella. "

He turned around and opened the cabinet to search for the oil-paper umbrella, when he heard a small sigh behind him:

"It's so unlucky that it's cloudy... The prince doesn't know how to be annoyed tomorrow, alas."

Shen Jing paused, pretending to be inadvertently turned around and asked:

"My lord's leg... also fell from Gansu?"

"The problem of riding a horse crossing the river is freezing, the winter in Gansu, tsk tsk. It hurts badly every time the weather changes, and it doesn't help much if you take medicine every day-those dog tartars who kill thousands of knives!" Xiao You scolded In one sentence, he sighed in a low voice, "...Even if it takes half my life, it's worth it in exchange for the prince's health."

Shen Jing paused again when she handed the umbrella, and then opened it and sent it to Xiaoyou:

"Watch your step."

Holding an umbrella, Xiaoyou said goodbye with a smile:

"Thank you for the porridge. Shopkeeper Shen should take a rest early. There is no need for the ginseng soup tomorrow morning. On such a day, no matter how coaxed, you may not be willing to take medicine."

Shen Jing nodded, watching Xiao Youwei limping away, couldn't help but think of the angry and limping back that he saw during the day.

For more than a month, he has always warned himself that he must be cautious in every way and not to cause trouble, but tonight, I don't know whether it is the story told by Xiaoyou, or the porridge talk on a rainy night that relieved his guard, making him rarely impulsive Once, Xiao You was stopped by shouting:

"Little butler!"

Xiaoyou stopped and turned around.

Shen Jing hesitated for a moment because of her impulsiveness, and finally said:

"I've learned a little bit about how to give needles... My lord's leg hurts, maybe it can help—"