Pei Yan slowly opened his eyes, and what he saw was a clean and tidy tile house. Dim light came in from the wooden windows, and the air was filled with a faint scent of medicine.
He frowned, and just when he wanted to get up, the pain in his chest and back came very clearly, and he let out a muffled grunt in pain.
The next moment, a confused moan sounded beside him.
Pei Yan turned his head to the side, and saw Tao Ti lying on the bed with sleepy eyes.
Tao Ti was still a little sleepy, she raised her hand and rubbed her eyes, and seeing him looking at her with black eyes, she immediately showed a surprised expression, "Your Highness, you're awake! Great! How are you feeling now, are you thirsty?" Thirsty, are you hungry?"
Before he could answer, she stretched out her hand to touch his forehead again, the high fever had subsided, and Tao Ti breathed a sigh of relief, "Brother Hao is right, Old Uncle Xu's medical skills are really good, so he just fed you a soup, yours The fever subsides."
Pei Yan looked at her, with many questions in his mind, and wanted to speak, but his throat was really dry.
Tao Ti saw his difficulty, slapped her forehead, and realized, "Your Highness, you want to drink water, right? I'll pour it for you right now."
She got up quickly and went to the table to pour water.
It was only then that Pei Yan realized that she had changed into a light blue coarse cloth with no patterns, and it was a little too big. Wearing it on her made her look even more petite. The bun was also replaced with a short bun that ordinary women often wear, with a wooden hairpin on it.
Although there is no makeup on a small face, but at the age of sixteen, the skin is fair and tender, as if it can be squeezed out of water, and it still has a pink and tender complexion like peach petals. But after all, he didn't have a good rest all day and night, his eyes were a little black and blue, and there was a tired look between his brows and eyes.
Tao Ti came back with a teacup, put one hand on his arm, helped him up, and handed the teacup to his mouth, "Your Highness, come, drink some water."
When she approached so naturally, Pei Yan's heart moved slightly, lowered his eyes, and drank all the water in the cup with her hand.
"Your Highness, do you want to drink?" She asked softly, the soft breath brushed against Pei Yan's ears inadvertently, making his ears a little hot.
"No...it's useless..." he said hoarsely, still weak.
Tao Ti helped him lie down again, covered him with a thin quilt, and said softly, "Your Highness, do you still remember that we took shelter from the rain in a mountain temple before we entered Luoyang City?"
Pei Yan looked at her quietly, "Yes."
Tao Ti's black eyes were shining brightly, and she couldn't hide the excitement in her tone, "Didn't there be a grandparent and grandson who took shelter from the rain that time, or even gave me wild vegetables before leaving. Or the relationship between people The fate of the old man is really wonderful, when I went to find someone for help for the second time, I happened to meet their grandparent and grandson. The old man is a medicine farmer and a doctor, and we will live in his house now!"
Pei Yan understood, showing a weak smile, and said hoarsely, "It's really lucky."
"Yeah, I almost jumped up when I saw them!"
Tao Ti seemed to be chatterboxing, and said in a small mouth, "The old man's surname is Xu, and his grandson's nickname is Brother Hao... Well, our current location is forty miles outside Luoyang City." Taoyuan Village. It really drifted far enough, and I don’t know when Master Zhan and the others will be able to find it.”
After knowing the current location, Pei Yan thought calmly.
Although he did not expect Tao Ti to come out suddenly during the assassination, but judging from the current situation, it seems to be pretty good
At least... the effect was much better than what he had imagined at the beginning.
He came back to his senses and said lightly, "Don't worry, they will find this place in three to five days at most, and Gu Gu can also recuperate."
Hearing what he said, Tao Ti felt relieved, "That's good."
The two fell silent, and Pei Yan looked at her gently with her beautiful peach blossom eyes.
Feeling his gaze, Tao Ti was a little nervous, and whispered, "Your Highness, why are you looking at me like this?"
Pei Yan smiled, "Ah Ti, you look pretty dressed like this."
Tao Ti lowered her head and glanced at the somewhat whitish blue cloth dress on her body, this... pretty
She couldn't help but doubt Pei Yan's aesthetics.
Coughing lightly, she said, "Uncle Xu has no female relatives in his family, and I borrowed the clothes I'm wearing from an aunt in the village."
"Did you comb the bun yourself?"
"... No, that aunt helped me tie it up too." Tao Ti touched her nose with a guilty conscience.
Speaking of combing her hair, she really has a big head. In her previous life, she had always had short, neat hair, which could basically be done with a comb twice. But here, the noble ladies are very precious to this black hair, the hair is long and thick, it is extremely difficult to take care of, let alone put it into a bun.
Seeing her bowing her head in shame, Pei Yan chuckled, "It's okay, I will help you comb it later."
Tao Ti's heart skipped a beat, and her cheeks felt hot.
She got up quickly and stammered, "Well, the medicine is still warm on the stove, I'll go and have a look, you, you lie down and rest first..."
Seeing her fleeing back, Pei Yan snorted.
After a while, he suppressed his smile and stared at the roof indifferently.
Assassinated last night, whereabouts unknown—
Probably tomorrow evening, this news will reach the ears of the royal father.
He was really curious about the reaction of everyone in Chang'an.
...
After a while, the sound of footsteps reappeared in the house.
Pei Yan turned to look, and it wasn't Tao Ti who came, but the ten-year-old grandson.
He came over with a bowl of medicine, looked at Pei Yan with dark eyes, and said timidly, "Big sister said she is going to make dinner, let me deliver the medicine to you."
Pei Yan glanced at the child lightly, and smiled slightly, "Thank you."
Seeing him smiling, Brother Hao thought to himself, when he was in a coma, he looked dignified like a fairy and unapproachable, but he didn't expect that after waking up, his temper seemed to be pretty good
He stepped forward, put the medicine aside first, and asked, "My lord, can I help you up?"
Pei Yan said thank you, and sat up slowly with his help, leaning against the pillow behind him.
"Do you want me to feed you medicine?" Brother Hao picked up the medicine bowl and added resentfully, "It's what the elder sister said, she said you have injuries on your chest and arms, if you can't drink it yourself, let me drink it yourself." I feed you."
She explained it meticulously, but the person hid far away.
Thinking this way, Pei Yan took the medicine bowl with his uninjured hand, and said quietly, "I can drink it myself."
The soup is warm and tastes just right, but it tastes too bitter, but for Pei Yan, drinking medicine has become his habit.
Sometimes he even felt that half of what was flowing in his body was warm blood and half was bitter soup.
Seeing him finish the bowl of decoction in one breath, Brother Hao opened his mouth in surprise, "Wow, you are so powerful, you just drank such a bitter medicine."
Pei Yan smiled and said nothing, Brother Hao suddenly remembered something, and took out two purple-red plums from his pocket, "Here, you eat, these plums are picked from the mountain, they are so sweet."
"You keep it and eat."
"That can't be done. This is what the elder sister asked me to bring for you to eat. She said that there is no candied fruit after drinking the medicine, so you can eat two plums to get rid of the bitterness."
Hearing this, Pei Yan's heart moved slightly, she still remembered what she had said.
The slender hands took the two plums, took a bite, the sweet and sour juice filled the lips and teeth, the sweetness was soft, and the bitterness in the mouth suddenly faded a lot.
After eating the plums, he asked Brother Hao, "Whose clothes are on me? Who changed them for me?"
He is now wearing such a dark blue cotton and linen robe, the fabric is washed soft, although it is not gorgeous, but wearing it on him adds a bit of elegant and scholarly atmosphere, like a young scholar who is coming to Beijing to rush for an exam.
"This is my grandpa's clothes. My grandpa and I changed them for you together."
Speaking of this, Brother Hao tilted his head and asked doubtfully, "My lord, aren't you and big sister husband and wife, why is she embarrassed to change your clothes?"
Pei Yan, "..."
Good boy, I really know how to ask.
He was silent for a while, then suddenly remembered something, frowned and asked, "When you helped me change my clothes, did you ever see a purple tang-colored sachet?"
"Sachet? There seems to be one, but it's very dirty. It's placed outside with the robe you changed." Brother Hao asked, "Mr. Do you want that? I'll get it for you."
"Thank you." Pei Yan said.
Brother Hao went around for a while, and quickly gave the not-so-gorgeous sachet to Pei Yan. He was still thinking to himself, it's just a sachet, what's so special about it
But this handsome man opened the sachet and took out two red strings from it.
Now Brother Hao didn't understand even more, ah, just two ordinary red ropes, what's so rare about it
Seeing that the red rope was still there, Pei Yan relaxed the tense corners of his mouth. After thinking for a moment, he simply wrapped the two red ropes around his wrists so as not to lose them hard to find.
After he tied the red rope, he chatted with Brother Hao.
He treats people with gentleness, giving people a sense of comfort like a spring breeze. Brother Hao was very happy to talk to him, he knew everything he said, and he was not at all defensive.
One big and one small chatted enthusiastically, and not long after, a tempting scent wafted in from the door and window.
Brother Hao stopped talking immediately, raised his chin, squinted his eyes, and sniffed deeply a few times, "It smells so good!"
It was as if there were lice growing under his buttocks, and he couldn't sit still. He smiled at Pei Yan embarrassedly, "I'll go and see what delicious food Big Sister made!"
After speaking, he bounced away.
in the kitchen.
Tao Ti rolled up her sleeves and was busy working in front of the stove. Uncle Xu sat on the stone pier and added firewood to the stove. The blazing fire made his old face blush.
"Miss Tao, do you want more firewood?"
"No, no, the dishes are almost done. The leftover firewood in the stove is more than enough to steam a fish."
While talking, Tao Ti scooped out the small fried yellow beef from the pot, and sprinkled it on the plate, on the semicircular pot.
The crispy rice is freshly fried, and it is still hot. The fried rice is golden, crispy and shiny. The fried beef is evenly sprinkled on the crispy rice, and there is a tempting sound of "stabbing". The aroma of the beef is mixed with the aroma of rice in the rice crust. , this taste is really mouth watering.
Brother Hao, who followed the scent, looked at the dishes on the table and couldn't help sighing, "Wow, big sister, you are amazing, you can make so many delicious dishes in such a short time!"
Tao Ti swiftly stuffed the onion knots into the fish's belly, and said with a smile, "If you want to eat, then wash your hands quickly, and then serve the dishes on the table. After the fish is steamed, you can start eating."
When Brother Hao heard this, he immediately stood up straight and obediently said, "Okay, I'll go right away!"
Seeing the little grandson serving dishes back and forth, he was as happy as in the New Year. Old man Xu in front of the stove was very emotional. It was a lot of hardship for his grandson to follow him.
Seeing his dignified expression, Tao Ti asked softly, "Uncle Xu, what's wrong with you?"
Uncle Xu came back to his senses, shook his head, and said with a smile, "Brother Hao has always been naughty and mischievous. This is the first time I have seen him so obedient. It seems that he really likes you."
Tao Ti smiled, "Brother Hao's age is just when he loves to play. Although he is a bit naughty, he can be seen to be a good boy with good conduct."
Speaking of this, she couldn't help but think of the fifth prince who was similar to Brother Hao. Compared with that arrogant young master, Brother Hao can be regarded as very well-behaved and sensible.
…
The house of the grandparents and grandson is not big, with a main room in the middle, two wing rooms on the left and right, and a small yard in the middle, where various herbs are dried in the sun on weekdays. A small bamboo building was built in the backyard, which was regarded as the study of the old man in gray robe. Next to the study was a vegetable field, where some simple daily vegetables were grown.
When the red clouds covered the entire sky, the dining table in the small courtyard was also served with hot three dishes and one soup.
Brother Hao couldn't wait to climb up to the table, staring at the dishes with straight eyes, but although he was greedy, he was polite. Seeing that Grandpa and Big Sister didn't move their chopsticks, he obediently held down his little hands and sat and waited.
"Eat if you're hungry, I'll go in and have a look at my husband." Tao Ti smiled, took off the bib in front of her, turned and walked to the left wing.
Inside the house, two small candles were lit to illuminate a small space.
Pei Yan was resting his eyes with his eyes closed, when he heard familiar footsteps, he slowly opened his eyes.
Tao Ti walked to his side and asked softly, "Your Highness, dinner is ready, can you get up? Or should I bring you some?"
"I'll go out and eat with you." Pei Yan propped himself up with one hand, and said with a light smile, "My upper body was injured, and my lower body was not injured."
Seeing that his tall figure was still shaking a little, Tao Ti subconsciously reached out to hold his arm, and said, "Let me help you."
Pei Yan glanced calmly at the hand she was holding on to, and slightly parted her thin lips, "Okay."
The two walked out supporting each other, and the orange sunset light quietly sprinkled on the two of them.
Pei Yan looked at the small square courtyard, the big dense banyan tree in the courtyard, the steaming fresh meals on the square table, the yellow hair hanging down in front of the table, the kittens and puppies in the corner... A sense of peace that has never been felt before. Emotions flooded my mind.
That's great.
Thinking like this, the two fell into their seats together.
The food on the table has not yet started, a steamed sea bass, a beef crispy crust, a stir-fried cabbage heart, and a sauerkraut tofu soup. They are all home-cooked dishes, but they are delicious to look at.
Pei Yan thanked Uncle Xu. Uncle Xu waved his hand and said with a smile, "Pei Lang-jun will talk about these polite words later, eat first. This dish is very gluttonous, and it will taste worse when it is cold."
Brother Hao has long been hungry, and his little head is on fire, "Yes, yes, let's eat, my stomach is going to be hungry."
Pei Yan smiled kindly, "Okay."
Everyone picked up their chopsticks and ate together. Brother Hao was most interested in the beef crispy crust, while Uncle Xu scooped up a bowl of sauerkraut and tofu soup first.
The rice crust is fried very crispy, and when you poke it with chopsticks, it will be divided into a large piece. The golden-yellow crispy rice has an incomparably burnt aroma, and it tastes crunchy, with a slight salty taste and a strong rice aroma, which satisfies the taste buds in the simplest and simplest way. Served with the spicy and delicious fried yellow beef, the green and red millet peppers are spicy to enhance the flavor, and the yellow beef is extremely tender. Although there is no broth to thicken the soup, the soup is still delicious. The crispy rice crust is paired with tender beef. Fantastic.
The hot and umami taste permeated the tip of the tongue, Brother Hao took a hot breath, but he refused to stop, and kept praising, "It's delicious, it's so delicious!"
His appearance made Tao Ti think of those elementary school students who bought spicy strips at the school canteen and kept stuffing their mouths with tears.
She couldn't help laughing out loud, and said, "Eat slowly, drink some soup first."
Here, Old Uncle Xu had already drank half a bowl of pickled cabbage and tofu soup, squinted his eyes enjoying it, and said, "Miss Tao, your soup is so good! I never thought that the soup made of pickled cabbage and tofu can be so delicious. , the sauerkraut is crisp and appetizing, and the tofu is smooth and tender, especially there are some pickled radish in it? Well, it tastes crunchy and chewy, which really adds to the icing on the soup."
"As long as you like it, this soup is simple to make, especially suitable for the elderly and children." Tao Ti smiled, and from the corner of her eyes, she caught sight of Pei Yan's chopsticks about to reach for the beef pot, and she immediately stopped her, "Dian , Husband..."
Pei Yan paused with his chopsticks, and a look of surprise flashed across his dark eyes.
I don't know if it's because of her blocking action or because of her soft "husband".
Tao Ti's black pupils were very bright, and he said solemnly, "You still have injuries on your body, so avoid spicy food."
As she spoke, she picked up a chopstick of steamed sea bass and put it in his bowl, "Eat this, it's light and delicious. Eating more fish will help your wound heal as soon as possible."
Pei Yan lowered his eyes, looked at the snow-white and tender fish in the bowl, bent his black eyes, and said softly, "Yes, thank you for your concern, my wife, eat more fish for my husband."
He is both a wife and a husband, Tao Ti's cheeks were blushing bright red.
She lowered her little head, took a mouthful of rice, and told herself: This is just a title, calm down.
However, Brother Hao said with a smile, "Big sister, you are so kind to your husband, and your husband listens to you very much. You two are really compatible, just like the golden boy and jade girl sung in the opera... If I can get her in the future For a daughter-in-law like you who is considerate and can cook, I will definitely listen to her."
Tao Ti almost complained, "You are only ten years old, and you want a wife?"
Brother Hao said, "Ten years old is not too young. Grandpa said, I can talk about marriage when I am sixteen."
Pei Yan finished the piece of fish in the bowl gracefully, and smiled lightly, "It's okay if you want a considerate wife who can cook, but my wife is unique in the world, and you may be hard to find like her." .”
Brother Hao, "...?"
Why did he smell a faint smell of vinegar.
—
After dinner, Tao Ti and Brother Hao cleaned up the dishes, and Uncle Xu helped Pei Yan change his wound medicine.
Under the dim light, Pei Yan's robe was removed, revealing his lean upper body wrapped in white gauze.
Uncle Xu checked the injury, removed the gauze and changed the dressing for him.
Throughout the whole process, Pei Yan didn't hum.
After changing it, Old Uncle Xu packed up the medicine box and sighed, "You can bear it."
Pei Yan put on his robes slowly, and said lightly, "As long as your life is still alive, the pain is nothing."
"It's also your luck. If the sword wound on the chest is two inches away, Hua Tuo will not be able to save it even if he is alive." Old Uncle Xu said, "However, your wound is quite serious. After one night, if you want to fully recover, um... According to your physique, you will have to recuperate for two months at the earliest."
Pei Yan's fingers trembled undetectably, and he said casually, "Uncle Xu, your medical skills are good. If you practice medicine as a career, you should be much richer than being a medicine farmer."
Old Uncle Xu smiled and shook his head, "Being a doctor is not as comfortable as being a drug farmer. Besides, there is only a bad old man like me and a ten-year-old boy in my family. It is enough to have a shelter from the wind and rain and a mouthful of food. Why bother?" What more wealth do you want?"
Pei Yan said, "That's really a pity."
Hearing this, Old Uncle Xu raised his eyebrows, turned around slowly, and looked at Pei Yan, his pair of old eyes that looked cloudy but sharp revealed wisdom, "What's the pity?"
Pei Yan stopped pretending, cupped his hands, and said politely, "Hello, Mr. Xu."
The old man in front of him is none other than Xu Wenhe, a genius doctor who is known as "the flesh and bones of the living dead".
Hearing him say "Old Mr. Xu", Xu Wenhe's face flashed with surprise, but he quickly recovered his normal look, and his tone became calm, "How did you know?"
Pei Yan chuckled, "Brother Hao."
Xu Wenhe snorted calmly, "His Royal Highness is really sharp, he knows how to talk to children right after he wakes up."
Pei Yan was not angry with this half-boastful, half-derogatory tone, but said, "Mr. Xu, don't blame me. It's really dangerous these two days, so I have to be more vigilant."
He paused, then asked again, "Old Mr. Xu has already guessed the identity of me and my wife?"
Xu Wenhe closed the medicine box, "You can hide from such a big formation even if you hide from the rain, even a fool would have guessed it."
Pei Yan, "..."
The dim candlelight gave out a rattling sound, and the two, who knew each other's identities, felt more at ease.
Xu Wenhe stared at Pei Yan on the bed, and said straight to the point, "To be honest, in the beginning, I didn't want to save you."
Pei Yan was not surprised, Qing Juan still had that indifferent smile on his face, "Understood."
This made Xu Wenhe a little surprised, and he carefully looked at the young man in front of him again, "Do you understand?"
Pei Yandao, "I know that you want to live in seclusion in the mountains and forests, and stop worrying about the disturbances of the world. But my royal father is looking for you in secret, disturbing your peace for no reason."
Xu Wenhe stroked his beard, gave a look of "you know it", and added, "The reason why I saved you this time is mainly for your wife's sake. I don’t want to owe anyone, last time at the Shanshen Temple, she kindly took us in, I always remember this kind of love, and this time I just paid it back.”
Pei Yan sincerely thanked him.
"I don't dare to thank you, I just hope that the crown prince can act as if I don't know the identity of the old man, so that the old man can spoil his grandchildren and end his life, after all—"
Xu Wenhe stared deeply at Pei Yan, and said solemnly, "His Royal Highness is in good health, and I don't need this old man at all. What do you think, Your Highness?"
Pei Yan's handsome and flawless face became deeper and deeper under the light and shadow, his deep eyes were like a bottomless pool of stagnant water, and murderous intent flashed in his eyes, and after a while, he smiled little by little , "As expected of a miracle doctor, fortunately my father didn't find you."
Xu Wenhe said, "Your Highness, don't worry, this old man will definitely die in his stomach, and he will never say a word."
Pei Yan said, "Old Mr. Xu doesn't need to be so nervous."
Xu Wenhe, "..."
Just at this moment, there was a burst of brisk laughter outside the door, it was Tao Ti and Brother Hao who came over.
The expressions of the two people in the room changed slightly.
Xu Wenhe picked up the medicine box and said respectfully, "The wound has been bandaged, the old man will go out first..."
"Mr. Xu."
Pei Yan suddenly called out, and Xu Wenhe looked at him suspiciously.
Pei Yan nodded to him, smiling with peach blossom eyes, but there was an invisible coercion, "My physical condition, please keep it a secret from my wife."
A flash of surprise flashed in Xu Wenhe's eyes, and he lowered his voice, "Are you even hiding it from her?"
Pei Yan's eyes darkened, her slender eyelashes drooped slightly, and her tone sank a bit, "Now is not the time to tell her."
When the time is right, he will explain everything to her, and he will never lie to her again.