"Brother Qiaosheng, you're here." Xiaoqiu was very happy to see Mo Qiaosheng.
Ever since Mo Qiaosheng entered the city leading a horse with two human heads hung on it and was given the nickname Mo Yanwang, many palace servants and maids couldn't help but shrink back in fear when they saw him.
This fear made him, who was not good at interacting with others, appear even more serious and cold.
But perhaps because they met when they were still in humble circumstances and they were still very young, Xiaoqiu was still as enthusiastic and lively as ever every time she saw him.
This made Mo Qiaosheng feel slightly relieved.
"Brother Qiaosheng, you haven't had dinner yet, right? I'm making pancakes. I'll go get some and let you and Brother Feng sit down and eat together." When Xiaoqiu mentioned eating, her eyes sparkled. Without waiting for Mo Qiaosheng to answer, she turned around and ran away.
Mo Qiaosheng looked at the little figure running away, a smile flashed in his eyes, and he sat down at Cheng Feng's table.
"You keep making so much noise that I feel annoyed all day long. Fortunately, you came." Cheng Feng complained impatiently.
"She's only this tall." Mo Qiaosheng stretched out his hand and compared, "If you really hate her, you can use just one hand to make her not dare to come again."
Cheng Feng pursed his lips and looked away.
"Are your injuries healed?" Mo Qiaosheng brought a small jar of wine and placed it on the table, and then took out two cups from Cheng Feng's table.
"What do you think?" Cheng Feng watched him pour the wine. "I've been lying in bed for more than half a month. In the past, when have we ever been injured like this..."
The two of them raised their glasses and clinked them lightly, and the strong liquor went down their throats, fragrant and mellow.
I remember that not long ago, the two of them had sat opposite each other like this, with the same people, the same wine, but it was so bitter at that time.
Alcohol stimulates the nerves and makes people's thinking more emotional.
In the past, every time I was seriously injured, I lay alone in the cold and damp shack.
No matter how thirsty you are, there is no water; no matter how hungry you are, there is no food.
In the boundless silence, I endured, suffered, and feared the death that might come at the next moment.
If you are lucky, a brother will come back at night, stuff a ball of food he has saved into your mouth, and feed you a sip of turbid water.
Barely pulling you back from the brink of death, you can continue to struggle and survive in that dark quagmire.
But now,
Cheng Feng looked at the empty medicine bowl on the table.
Every time he opened his eyes, there was always sweet water and warm porridge brought to his bed by a pair of chubby little hands.
The child talked a lot, which made him feel too noisy. He was not used to it as he had always healed himself in silence.
Not used to this kind of warmth.
Although he was just a child, he was often clumsy in doing things.
But that feeling was so hot, so hot that he, who had been in the cold for a long time, subconsciously wanted to resist.
Cheng Feng closed his eyes and searched through his dark life. It seemed that he had only received this kind of care when he was young.
The warmer it was at that time, the crueler the memories afterwards.
If I hadn't met the lord.
How can I, a person who has been blackened from the inside out, have the chance to be treated gently again
Cheng Feng drank the wine in his glass and asked, "Why did you come to see me?"
Mo Qiaosheng took out the small piece of nail hanging around his neck and rubbed it for a while.
Helan Zhen and Sima Tu are his new friends, both of whom are very warm and sincere to him.
On the contrary, Cheng Feng is always cold and sharp-tongued towards others.
But for some reason, only when he came to Cheng Feng to discuss this matter did he feel at ease and stable.
This is a brother who can truly understand him.
"You said this was given to you by the lord?" Cheng Feng looked at the triangular pendant.
Mo Qiaosheng nodded lightly, and there was a rare tenderness in his eyes as he gazed at the nail plate.
"Qiao Sheng, I once advised you to stay away from the lord, but now it seems that I was wrong." Cheng Feng said.
Mo Qiaosheng's usually strong facial lines softened slightly. "My lord, he hopes that I can give him something in return, but I have nothing to offer, what can I give him? And what in the world can be worthy of my lord? For this reason, I have been troubled for many days."
"Are you stupid? The lord is the ruler of a country. How can ordinary things catch his eye? All he wants is your heart. Tomorrow I will go to the market with you. You can carefully find something that represents your feelings and present it to him respectfully."
Mo Qiaosheng had been troubled for many days, and finally found a solution, and breathed a sigh of relief: "Great goodness."
Tens of thousands of troops were stationed in Bianzhou City.
Every day when the sun sets, the soldiers camped in the city come out in groups to visit the market.
Therefore, the market seems even more lively in the evening, with many shops hanging lanterns and preparing to open for night business.
Although the street was full of veteran soldiers, Mo Qiaosheng and Cheng Feng, walking side by side, were still very eye-catching.
One was dressed in crimson, with a gorgeous appearance and a frosty face.
The other one was dressed in black, looked dignified and full of murderous aura.
Next to the two of them was a fair and tender little girl, with a pair of big eyes looking around constantly.
"Have you decided what to buy?" Cheng Feng frowned.
This was his first time visiting this kind of market, and the overly enthusiastic owners on both sides of the road made him feel very uncomfortable.
He exuded an aura that kept people at a distance, and scared away a proprietress who tried to come over to greet her.
Mo Qiaosheng was also very uncomfortable. He said with some distress: "General Helan suggested that I buy some... pearl and jade ornaments. Sima Tu suggested... cough."
Mo Qiaosheng stayed in a jewelry shop for a long time.
Xiaoqiu was squatting on a stall selling dolls not far from the door, touching this and looking at that with great interest.
Among them was a lifelike cloth tiger that she couldn't put down.
I remember that when I was in my hometown, there was such a cloth tiger at home. Although it had been played with and patched many times, she still had no chance to touch it. It was a precious toy that only her younger brothers were qualified to play with.
"Girl, if you don't want to buy it, please don't keep touching it. It costs five big dollars each. If it gets dirty, it will be hard for me to sell it." The stall owner said.
Five big coins fell on the stall, and a hand reached out from behind Xiaoqiu and picked up the cloth tiger.
"Feng, Ah Feng, what did you buy this for? Lend it to me to play with, to play with." Xiao Qiu trotted behind Ah Feng, standing on tiptoe all the way trying to reach it.
With a puff, the exquisite toy fell into her arms, and the figure in red in front of her strode forward without looking back.
Cheng Feng walked forward with his head down, feeling very annoyed by his meaningless actions.
Forget it, just to thank her for taking care of me during this period of time.
"Feng? Chu Feng?"
At this moment, a man's voice sounded not far away.
Cheng Feng paused and his body froze in an instant. A feeling of fear that made him dread climbed from the soles of his feet all the way up his body to the top of his head.
It was a fear that came from the deepest part of his heart.
A man in his thirties stopped them.
This man has a white face and beard, and is dressed in luxurious clothes.
"Feng, isn't this Feng? I haven't seen you for many years, and you have grown so big." The man stretched out his hand and tried to hold Cheng Feng's hands.
Cheng Feng took two steps back suddenly as if he was bitten by a snake. His eyes were red as he stared at the person in front of him.
"Chu Feng, don't you remember me? I'm Chu Yezhi, your former master." The man rubbed his hands and showed an extremely happy expression, "Back then, our family fell into decline and our family was in financial difficulty, so we had no choice but to sell you. I was also very reluctant to let you go, and I have often thought of you over the years."
"It's different now. I'm lucky enough to be appointed as a guest official by Duke Xiang of Song." Chu Yezhi spread out the sleeves of his gorgeous robe to show off his wealth. "Chu Feng, who is your current master? Come with me, I'll go find him and buy you."
He stretched out his hand to pull Cheng Feng, but halfway through, the back of his hand was slapped by a white and tender little hand.
A little girl who was less than ten years old, holding a cloth tiger in one hand and holding Ah Feng's hand in the other, said to him angrily: "His name is Cheng Feng, not Chu Feng, and he is our general. Who are you? How dare you be rude to our Jin general in our Bianzhou city? You really don't know what's good for you."
"What general?" Chu Yezhi sneered. "Don't try to fool me, little kid. I am an envoy of the State of Song. Tomorrow I will ask to see the Marquis of Jin Yue from your State of Jin. You appoint a slave as a general. Aren't you afraid that your lord will chop off your little head?"
Cheng Feng grabbed Xiao Qiu's hand and turned away.
"Chu Feng! How can you treat your old master like this?" Chu Yezhi stretched out his hand to stop them. "Have you forgotten all the kindness I showed you back then?"
He looked Cheng Feng up and down with a frivolous look, and put on a self-proclaimed romantic smile: "Back then, you were too young, and you probably don't remember it. We were so close at that time. If I wasn't really short of money and couldn't afford to offend those people, how could I be willing to give you away after raising you with great difficulty?"
Chu Yezhi came closer and added in a low voice: "I haven't even touched you myself."
Cheng Feng felt goose bumps all over his body, and he could hardly control the slight trembling of his body.
I actually worshipped this person as a god at one time. Even after he pushed me into hell, I kept beautifying the good things about him in my memory and finding excuses for his behavior.
He felt as cold as if he had fallen into an ice storage.
"Feng, what's wrong with you?" Xiao Qiu looked at the pale Cheng Feng worriedly and pulled his hand.
"Let's go," Cheng Feng gritted his teeth, "Let's go."
"Don't leave!" Chu Yezhi's face turned cold. He waved his hand and called a few followers to surround Cheng Feng and Xiao Qiu.
A hand stretched out from the shadow inside the shop door and rested on Cheng Feng's shoulder.
The hand was warm and strong.
It’s Mo Qiaosheng.
He said nothing, but stood firmly behind Cheng Feng, his eyes gleaming coldly as he looked indifferently at the foreigners in front of him who were wearing Song Dynasty costumes.
Cheng Feng's heart, which was immersed in ice, was fished out by this hot hand.
He felt his weak feet gradually become more stable.
He pushed Xiao Qiu behind him, grasped the hilt of the sword, and with a clang, he pulled out a piece of the sword. With red eyes, he confronted the person in front of him whom he hated.
"Captain Mo."
"What are you doing here, Captain?"
"Fight? Count me in, Yang Sheng."
Several Jin soldiers who were wandering on the street surrounded them.
The leader had a conspicuous scar on his face and a ferocious look on his face. He rolled up his sleeves and approached Chu Yezhi.
"Misunderstanding, misunderstanding. I am an envoy of the Song State, you must not be rude." Chu Yezhi saw that they were outnumbered and there was also a mid-level general present, so he knew it was not easy to provoke them and became timid. So he made his identity clear, called his entourage, and left in a hurry.
Mo Qiaosheng and Yang Sheng greeted each other.
He put his arm around Cheng Feng's shoulder and said, "Let's go back."
Cheng Feng turned and glanced at him.
Mo Qiaosheng understood Cheng Feng's mood at the moment.
He increased the strength of his hand: "Don't worry. It's okay. It's going to be fine."