Pei Zheng sent Shen Jiujiu back to the general's mansion. Shen Jiujiu stood at the door of the general's mansion and watched Pei Zheng's sedan chair go away before he stepped into the mansion.
In fact, Zhao Litang is fine now, but Shen Huan still has to stay in the general's mansion for a few more days in case there is any problem with Zhao Litang's health.
"Disciple, why did you take so long to come back?"
Shen welcomed him and looked towards the door.
"Are you alone? Where's Master Pei?"
"My Lord, you still have things to do, so I'll go back first."
Shen Huan understood and pulled his disciple inside.
"Don't be so sad. I have good news for you. Tomorrow we can go out and play with the general! Are you happy?"
"Master, where are we going?"
"Liuyun Lake outside the city."
Liuyun Lake outside the imperial capital is a very large lake. It freezes in the cold winter. There is a villa in the center of the lake. Many elegant guests will take a boat to meet at the villa.
It is quite enjoyable to go boating on the vast blue lake, brew a pot of warm wine, watch the birds fly away from the thousands of mountains, and see the people disappear from the thousands of paths.
We made an appointment with those adults to meet directly by the lake, and the people from the general's mansion were the first to arrive.
Originally, Zhao Litang had not planned to bring Shen Huan and Shen Shijiu with him. He did not want to involve them in such official affairs.
But after Shen Huan found out about this, he insisted on coming along, so Zhao Litang had no choice but to agree. Shen Shijiu also brought Yue Nu along as well.
After getting off the sedan chair, we stood by the Liuyun Lake. The cold wind blowing from the lake became even more violent, freezing our bones to shiver.
The surface of the lake was as smooth as a mirror. As the wind blew, ripples formed and then slowly dissipated. In the distance, the lake and the sky merged into one color, just like a silver plate supporting Junshan Mountain.
The lake in winter has a different beauty than usual.
Shen Shijiu stood by the lake, took a deep breath, and then blew out the hot air. He seemed to like this place very much.
The sound of horse hooves was heard again, and several carriages arrived at the lake. They were Lord Qian and Lord Wei from yesterday, as well as their relatives and families.
Three other adults also came along.
Several adults and Zhao Litang began to greet each other and exchange pleasantries.
Lord Qian said, "General Zhao, I didn't expect you to come here. It is such an honor for us."
"Mr. Qian, you are too kind. I haven't been back to the imperial capital for many years. I didn't expect that you gentlemen still remember me. It's my honor."
"Hey, General Zhao, you are being too polite. Don't be reserved today and just say whatever you want to say. The Lake Villa we are going to is owned by my relative, so General Zhao, please don't be so polite."
Zhao Litang just smiled. The intentions of this group of people were almost written on his face. Pei Zheng was really going to push him into the fire pit.
Just as I was thinking about it, another carriage came from a distance, which was more luxurious than any other.
Lord Wei asked quietly, "Old Qian, who else did you invite? Why are there more people coming?"
Lord Qian was also puzzled, "Were we not together at Yipinxiang yesterday? We invited General Zhao. Who else would know..."
At this point, both of them froze. There was another person present at the time...
The carriage stopped in front of everyone, the curtain was lifted, and a dark figure got off the carriage.
"Master Pei...Master Pei, why...why are you here too?"
Except for Zhao Litang, the expressions of the adults present were unpredictable. They looked at each other, as if they dared not be angry or speak.
"I have nothing to do."
Pei Zheng's tone was full of smiles, but no matter how you looked at it, he didn't seem to be really smiling. His narrow eyes swept across the few people, as if he could see through their thoughts.
"What, you're not welcome?" Pei Zheng deliberately suppressed his smile, his eyes suddenly turned gloomy.
"No, no, that's not what I meant..."
Lord Qian was sweating. Everyone was already here, what could he say
"Master Pei, we are all extremely honored to be here with you..."
The others also echoed, "Yes, yes, that's right, Lord Pei is very busy, busy helping the emperor solve problems, and he can condescend to participate in our gathering. We are extremely honored, extremely honored..."
The forced laughter of several adults attracted the attention of other relatives. Several unmarried girls also looked over here, and then whispered with red faces.
Some of them were looking at Zhao Litang, and some were looking at Pei Zheng.
Pei Zheng seemed to sense something and raised his eyes, but he looked past the women and behind them.
There were three people standing by the lake not far away.
Shen Huan pretended to be deep and stroked his beard, sighing towards Liuyun Lake.
Shen Shijiu and Yue Nu each took a small stone and competed to see who could throw it farther.
The two kids were in a playful mood and ignored the people talking behind them. They just looked at the lake, throwing the toss one after another, getting closer and closer to the lake's edge.
"I must be better than you this time, because the stone I picked up is round." Shen Shijiu said as he raised his hand high and threw the stone away.
Yue Nu squatted on the ground and searched for a long time, then stood up with a stone in her hand.
"Mine is also amazing because mine is rounder than yours."
Then he threw the stone out.
Sure enough, Yue Nu threw it farther.
Shen Shijiu was not convinced and tried even harder to look for it, almost lying on the ground.
But after searching for a long time, he didn't find the stone, but a pair of black boots suddenly appeared in front of him.
Shen Shijiu raised his head and saw Pei Zheng looking down at him with gentle eyes.
"grown ups!"
He stood up suddenly with joy, "Why are you here? Are you going to join us?"
Pei Zheng gathered his hair and nodded with a smile.
"Great! My Lord, you can go boating on the lake with us and go to the lakeside villa with us!"
Shen Shijiu's face brightened up and he pulled Pei Zheng's sleeve and swung it. He looked behind Pei Zheng but did not see Chengfeng.
"Sir, where is Afeng? Isn't he going with us?"
"He went to the palace."
"Oh," Shen Shijiu nodded, "Ah Feng went to the palace to find Doctor Jiang."
Pei Zheng tapped his forehead with his finger, "Who told you that?"
Shen Shijiu looked in the direction of Shen Huan and whispered, "Master said that Afeng and Doctor Jiang..."
He was interrupted before he could finish his words.
"Master Pei."
Suddenly someone shouted from behind, "We are about to set off. My father wants you to come over."
The one who spoke was Lord Wei's legitimate daughter, named Wei Yiren. She was the most outstanding looking of all the female members present today. She was only eighteen years old, dignified, elegant and graceful.
"Yeah." Pei Zheng glanced at her.
Wei Yiren smiled shyly and left first.
There are several small boats moored by the lake. You have to take a small boat to the big boat first, and then take the big boat to the villa in the middle of the lake.
The adults and relatives had not yet boarded the boat and were waiting for Pei Zheng on the lakeside.
Seeing Pei Zheng coming over, Wei Yiren quietly pulled Lord Wei's sleeve, and Lord Wei glared at her.
He originally wanted to match his daughter with Zhao Litang, but who knew that Wei Yiren would fall for Pei Zheng? Didn't she hear the rumors that Pei Zheng liked men? She was still so unrepentant.
"Master Pei," Master Wei said flatteringly, "We need to take this small boat to the cruise ship first. I think it may be a bit inconvenient for you."
Pei Zheng smiled in a good-tempered manner and said, "I will follow Lord Wei's arrangements."
Lord Wei did not expect Pei Zheng to be so cooperative, so he arranged the boat for everyone according to his own wishes.
Sure enough, he arranged Zhao Litang and Wei Yiren on the same boat, and also brought Shen Shijiu, who looked the most harmless.
Shen Huan and Wu Quan were both arranged to board other boats, and because Pei Zheng only brought one slave, an extra slave was added to the boat.
—All the passers-by got on board the boat.
Pei Zheng stood at the bow of the boat. The boat was shaking slightly with the water, but he stood very steadily.
Yue Nu also boarded the boat where Pei Zheng was. He was not familiar with Pei Zheng and had only met him once at Yipinxiang.
Moreover, Yue Nu felt that Lord Pei looked too cold, frighteningly cold, and she really didn't know how Shi could get so close to Lord Pei.
After everyone got on the boat, several small boats on the lakeside started moving towards the large cruise ship parked not far from the lake.
Yue Nu had been sitting quietly against the edge of the boat, while Pei Zheng was standing at the bow with his back to him, looking at something unknown.
The boat was rowing very fast and we could see some fish in the lake beside the boat.
"ah!"
Yue Nu suddenly screamed and stood up abruptly.
A fat and big black fish just jumped out of the lake and landed directly on Yue Nu's legs. Yue Nu had never seen such a big fish and was shocked.
But he stood up too quickly, and the boat began to shake violently. Yue Nu lost her balance and fell backward into the lake.
He closed his eyes in panic, but the collar of his shirt was suddenly grabbed by someone, and his body was suspended in the air by the boat, but he did not actually fall into the cold lake.
Yue Nu opened her eyes tremblingly, and saw that it was Pei Zheng who pulled her clothes. He was staring at her with interest and did not pull her up directly.
"Pei, Master Pei..."
Pei Zheng raised his eyelids and looked to the side. Sure enough, the child's cry just now attracted the attention of everyone on the boat, including Zhao Litang.
"What's your name?"
"Yue, Yue Nu."
"What's the relationship with Zhao Litang?"
Yue Nu's eyes shifted to the side, but happened to meet the eyes of Zhao Litang who was not far away. He quickly lowered his eyes, "The general saved my life."
Pei Zheng curled his lips, "Do you like him?"
Yue Nu quickly shook her head, "No, I just want to repay the general, I don't dare to have any unreasonable thoughts."
Pei Zheng pulled him onto the boat, got closer to him, and chuckled, "What if it's not an unreasonable wish?"
Yue Nu looked at him in confusion, not understanding what he meant.
"Are you afraid of the cold?"
"No, not really."
"Then close your eyes."
As soon as Pei Zheng finished speaking, the strength in his hands suddenly loosened.
Yue Nu felt his body falling backwards rapidly. He first widened his eyes in shock, and then quickly closed them.
With a "splash", a figure fell heavily into the lake.
It was freezing cold, and you could imagine how icy the lake water was. If you fell in and didn't get out quickly, you would probably be frozen to death immediately.
The people on other boats saw Pei Zheng trying to pull the little servant, but he probably failed to hold on and the person fell in.
No one would be willing to jump down to save him. He was just a slave. If he could get up by himself, he would be lucky. If he couldn't, he could only blame his bad luck.
As soon as the person fell in, Zhao Litang grabbed the edge of the boat and looked at Pei Zheng angrily, his eyes full of questioning and disbelief. Others might not be able to see it, but he knew that Pei Zheng must have let go on purpose.
Pei Zheng looked back without dodging or evading. He was betting that Zhao Litang treated this child differently.
"Ayue!" Shen Shijiu also saw Yue Nu fall into the lake, and quickly lay down beside the boat, shouting at the lake, "Ayue! Ayue, where are you!"
After Yue Nu fell into the lake, he sank directly without even struggling. His limbs were instantly soaked by the cold lake water, freezing his whole body.
I'm all numb and can't move.
It was dark all around, and Yue Nu felt as if his strength was being drained away bit by bit. He was so cold that he wanted to close his eyes and sink to the bottom of the lake. He was not afraid of the cold, but this overwhelming freezing cold that enveloped his whole body was more deadly than any winter he had experienced before. Lord Pei probably wanted to kill him directly, but that was not right. Lord Pei just didn't save him.
The only one who saved me was the general...
General, Yue Nu seemed to see Zhao Litang's figure. He swam to her side, a strong arm wrapped around his waist, and then led him to swim towards the surface of the lake.
Finally returning to the surface of the lake and breathing the cold but fresh air again, Yue Nu took a deep breath and a lot of lake water was poured into him. He started coughing non-stop.
Zhao Litang dragged him and swam towards the nearest boat.
When he jumped into the lake just now, he didn't think too much in his mind. He was just thinking, how could the child who he saved from almost being poisoned to death be frozen to death so easily
That child must be alive and well.
After swimming to the side of the boat, the people on the boat quickly helped to pull Yue Nu, who had choked on too much water, onto the boat. Zhao Litang was still soaking in the ice water. He dragged Yue Nu up first, and then he held onto the edge of the boat to get on board.
Another hand stretched out from the side of the boat, slender and long, and stretched out in front of Zhao Litang, pretending to pull him.
Zhao Litang looked up and saw the "culprit" smiling at him, as if it was funny to see him in such a miserable state.
Zhao Litang really put his hand on him, but he didn't want to use Pei Zheng's strength to get on the boat, but to take advantage of him being off guard and pull him into the lake.
With a "splash" sound, the person standing on the boat changed as the lake water splashed.
Zhao Litang stood at the bow of the boat, glanced at Pei Zheng on the lake, and felt his mood slightly better. He ignored him and went to check on the unconscious child.
Pei Zheng fell into the lake. Although his limbs were numb from the cold, he didn't seem angry at all for some reason and seemed to be in a good mood.
The actions of these two people scared the other people on the boat next to them. Lord Qian and Lord Wei were so scared that they broke out in cold sweats.
One is the great General Zhenyuan who has made outstanding military achievements, and the other is the powerful Prime Minister of the current dynasty. If any problem occurs between these two people, they will have no words to explain themselves.
"My Lord! My Lord!"
Shen Jiujiu lay on the side of the boat and cautiously stretched out his hand to reach Pei Zheng who was not far away, "Sir! Come up quickly! Give me your hand and I will pull you up!" Pei Zheng stretched out his hand to Shen Jiujiu, and the warm little hand immediately held the cold hand tightly.
Although it was only a little bit of heat, Pei Zheng felt warmer all over. He smiled at Shen Shijiu, swam to the side of the boat, and pushed himself onto the boat with his backhand.
Shen Shijiu opened his arms and was about to hug Pei Zheng, but was pushed away by Pei Zheng on his forehead.
"Don't come over here, don't get wet."
"But are you cold, my Lord?"
Shen Shijiu's face was full of worry. The lake water was so cold that the adults looked uncomfortable. "Let me warm you up."
"I'm fine."
"Master Pei, are you okay?" Wei Yiren on the boat seemed to be very worried about Pei Zheng, and said to the boatman, "Hurry up and get on the boat."
The boatman hurried on to speed up the process.
The other boat also rowed faster, and the two boats moved towards the cruise ship much faster than the other boats.
Yue Nu on the boat still had her eyes tightly closed, not moving a single step. Her face was pale, and the crescents at the corners of her eyes seemed to have faded and turned white, as if she had lost all her life.
Zhao Litang continued to press on his body, but it was of no use.
"General, this is what you have to do when someone falls into the water..."
After the boatman finished speaking, Zhao Litang's expression changed.
"Is this... useful?"
"It works. If you don't believe me, just give it a try. It's best to do it quickly. If you hold it in for too long, something bad may happen to the child."
Zhao Litang reached out and gently pinched Yue Nu's cheeks, and following the boatman's instructions, he let him lie flat with his mouth slightly open.
He leaned down, getting closer and closer to the person under him, until their noses touched.
There were still drops of water hanging on the closed long eyelashes, one after another, crystal clear.
Zhao Litang took a deep breath, leaned forward, and passed the air into the slightly open mouth. The touch on the lips was soft and tender, a feeling he had never experienced before.
After taking several breaths, the person under him suddenly started coughing and spit out all the water that had accumulated in his throat.
Zhao Litang quickly straightened up.
Yue Nu blinked her eyes and slowly opened them. Everything in front of her eyes was white and the water droplets hanging on her eyelashes rolled down.
After taking a few breaths, Yue Nu calmed down and saw clearly that the person next to her was really Zhao Litang.
His eyes became hot and he burst into tears, but he did not dare to cry out loud. He could only sob quietly. He raised his arms to cover his eyes, and tears flowed down his face.
When Zhao Litang saw the child crying like this as soon as he woke up, he knew that he was frightened.
"It's okay. Change into clean clothes after you get on board. Don't cry."
Yue Nu sobbed, held back her tears, and nodded.
The general saved me again. What should I do to repay his kindness
Finally we arrived at the cruise ship. It was very big, with many rooms and many servants.
Pei Zheng and Shen Jiujiu were the first to board the cruise ship. Several servants quickly brought a cloak for Pei Zheng to put on, and then led him to the room inside.
After walking a few steps, I realized that the person behind me was not catching up.
"come over."
Pei Zheng stretched out his hand to Shen Jiujiu who was standing there. Shen Jiujiu walked up to him without thinking and pulled him, then let Pei Zheng lead him inside.
go.
Wei Yiren was also worried about Pei Zheng, so she followed him in. As she was walking, she was suddenly stopped by Shen Shijiu.
"Miss Wei, the master needs to change clothes, you can't come in."
After saying that, Shen Shijiu turned and entered Pei Zheng's room, wanting to close the door.
Wei Yiren asked, "Then how can you get in?"
Shen Shijiu looked at her strangely, "Because I am also a boy."
Wei Yiren was choked and watched the door close in front of her.
She is more worried because Shen Shijiu is also a boy!
After Zhao Litang got on board, several servants took him into the cruise ship.
"Where's the soaking wet kid?"
"General Zhao, are you asking about the little servant? He went to the servants' room, downstairs."
"Down there? Are there any charcoal fires?"
"Of course not."
Zhao Litang paused. Without charcoal fire, how could he warm himself up if he was freezing cold
He had already walked out of the room. As soon as the door was opened, Zhao Litang felt a burst of heat. The charcoal fire in each room was burning brightly and was very warm.
The servant who led the way turned around and was about to go down.
Zhao Litang suddenly said, "Bring him to my room."
"yes"
Yue Nu had already been frozen through and through. Unlike Pei Zheng and Zhao Litang, who had internal energy to protect their bodies, he only had a very thin body.
He might get sick even if he was well taken care of after falling into the ice water, let alone being blown by the cold wind in this small cubicle where the air was exposed to the cold wind everywhere.
Her whole body was in pain, and she had no strength in her fingers. It felt like her fingers were not her own. Yue Nu tried to unbutton her wet robe, and it took her a long time to unbutton the collar.
"Hey, don't take it off yet, come with me."
Someone knocked on the door and spoke to the person inside.
Yue Nu didn't know what was going on, so she quickly picked up the pile of clean clothes and followed the person.
After walking across the deck and into the cruise ship, it was already much warmer inside than outside.
Yue Nu's clothes were still dripping with water. He lowered his head and walked carefully. His steps were a little unsteady because his legs were a little numb from the cold.
Finally, they stopped outside a room. The person in front was knocking on the door, and Yue Nu stood aside obediently with his head down.
After the door opened, the hot air inside floated out, and it was so warm and comfortable that people wanted to rush in regardless of anything.
"Go down."
Zhao Litang waved his hand, and everyone else retreated. Only Yue Nu stood at the narrow aisle with her head down, holding a ball of clothes.
"Come in."
Zhao Litang threw down these words and turned to go into the room.
Yue Nu raised her head and stared blankly at the hot room in front of her.
Can he come in
"Close the door."
Yue Nu moved, walked into the room slowly and carefully, and closed the door gently.