After days of trekking in the ice and snow, even wearing thick yak leather boots could not stop the invasion of damp and cold air.
Her feet had started to suffer from frostbite days before, and after arriving here, they became so swollen that the simple act of putting her feet into shoes in the morning became a torture.
He held her foot again.
Such intimacy made her feel a little uncomfortable.
She tried to withdraw her foot again, but failed.
"Don't move." He said, without looking at her. His eyes were still on her feet, and he never stopped applying the medicine on his hands.
The flame of the yak lamp was orange-red, dimly reflecting on his face. The man lowered his eyebrows, and his face seemed to be covered with a warm color that she had never seen before.
The feeling of embarrassment and surprise caused by his sudden appearance slowly dissipated.
She slowly lay back down, watching him apply the medicine to her feet, and after applying the medicine to one foot, he switched to the other. After applying the medicine to both feet, he did not stop, and continued to wrap her feet with his palms, rubbing them slowly for her.
No one spoke, and there was silence in the small tent.
Suddenly, a strong wind blew in from outside, accompanied by a strange and low humming sound. The tent door was blown up, and the flame on the yak oil lamp flickered.
The man's face became dim and bright.
"What brings you here?"
Mu Fulan suddenly came to her senses and spoke hastily, breaking the silence in the tent.
"Is Xi'er alone over there? Will something happen to her?"
She then asked.
Xie Changgeng stopped what he was doing and looked up at her.
"He's still so young! I hope you've made proper arrangements for him before you leave!"
"I brought him here too."
He finally said slowly.
Mu Fulan was startled and pulled her foot away from his hand, then sat up.
"In this kind of weather and in this kind of place, you actually brought him here?"
She did not try to hide the reproach in her tone.
"yes."
He nodded.
"This child is much braver than you think. You don't have to worry too much. There was an accident on the road, and he even helped me a lot. He is in Jincheng now. You will see him when you go back."
The tone of his voice was neither hurried nor slow, as if it carried a steady and powerful force.
"He is worried about you and misses you very much, so he wants to come and pick you up himself."
Mu Fulan exhaled slowly, calmed herself down, and said, "Thank you. My foot is fine now."
Xie Changgeng put the ointment he brought aside.
"Tomorrow morning, apply the medicine again to the frostbitten area. Remember to rub it after applying it to help the medicine work."
"I know. You must be tired, so go and have a rest."
He did not move, and was silent for a moment, then suddenly said, "Mu, why don't you ask me why I came out here?"
Mu Fulan's heart skipped a beat and she looked up at him.
"Could it be that the old leader is no longer able to do so?"
Xie Changgeng stared at her nervous face.
"The old leader is indeed unconscious again. I hope he can get out of danger, but to be honest, even if he can't wait for you to come back, it won't have much impact on the overall situation."
Mu Fulan had expected the old leader to fall into a coma again. Before leaving, he had also instructed the military doctor on his behalf to deal with the life-saving treatment and try to wait until he returned.
She asked, “Why did you come out?”
"I have sent my mother back. She will not ask me to marry a Qi again in the future."
He said somewhat abruptly.
Mu Fulan was stunned, and looked into his eyes for a moment, then said vaguely, "I hope your mother won't be too disappointed..."
"She's disappointed, but accepting it," he interrupted.
Mu Fulan stopped talking, turned around and said, "You go and have a rest. I'm also very tired and I have to get up early tomorrow..."
Her voice suddenly stopped.
Xie Changgeng reached out, gently held her chin, and turned her face back to face him.
"Mu, the reason why I am here is the same as Xi'er."
"I missed you. I was worried about you. So I came here to take you back as soon as possible."
He stared at her and spoke softly.
Mu Fulan froze for a moment.
The small tent suddenly became more and more cramped, and only the sound of breathing could be heard clearly.
He continued, "You should still remember how Xi'er came to Hexi. When the Sanmiao earthquake occurred, I forced him to come here. I am not a gentleman. I was just venting my anger and forcing you to submit to me. But you don't know that I had already left. The reason I went back was not to embarrass you again. I just couldn't let you go. I knew you were devoted to saving people, and I was worried that you would be in danger in the earthquake."
He paused, hesitated, as if he had finally made up his mind, and then said, "Since I'm here to pick you up, there are some things I might as well tell you directly."
"Mu, every time you sleep with me, I think you are just being perfunctory, or even painful. But do you know what I am thinking?"
Mu Fulan said nothing.
He said to himself, "Every time I see you with this attitude, I can't help but wonder, if it were someone else, what would you do if that person treated you like this today! Why should I do this? It makes me unhappy. I am also tying myself up in knots! The more you do this, the more I don't want you to get what you want..."
"Why should I compete with that dead man? Just think about how much happiness he can bring to you, and I will do the same to make you happier."
He smiled self-deprecatingly and stared at her.
"Mr. Mu, tell me, am I extremely stupid?"
Mu Fulan's heart was beating fast and her face was hot.
She stared at the man in front of her, and felt that breathing seemed to become difficult.
His breathing was a little unstable, and he exhaled slowly, as if trying to calm himself down.
"From now on, don't take any more medicine that harms your body..."
He finally said.
"Don't worry, I will treat Xi'er like my own child and raise him well. When he grows up, I will not treat him unfairly."
He approached her slowly.
The two men's foreheads almost touched.
"Please treat me better!"
He spoke softly, his voice hoarse, like a whisper, echoing in her ears in the small tent.
Mu Fulan was unable to react until the man's straight and slightly cool nose gently rubbed her cheek, and his dry and rough lips rubbed her soft lips intimately. Suddenly, she shuddered.
In a flash, the first night of her wedding seemed to appear before her eyes.
That man treated her so well, and did not hide his love for her in his arms at all.
Tenderness always moves people's hearts. However, love between men and women is like a mirage.
Her face suddenly turned away, avoiding his lips.
"Thank you, Lang," she said, "I appreciate everything you have done for me, including what you promised me that night."
She slowly turned back to look at him.
"We will return to Jincheng tomorrow, make the medicine, and then set off as soon as possible. There should still be hope of rescuing the old leader."
Xie Changgeng's figure froze.
The orange-red dim light still shone on his face, but the warmth was gone, and his face was half light and half dark.
After a long while, he gritted his teeth and said word by word: "That man, how good is he? What do you love about him?"
Mu Fulan looked at the pair of dark, tired, red eyes in front of her and said, "It has nothing to do with others. I just can't stand your kindness to me."
He was silent as a stone. Finally, he slowly stood up, turned around, walked to the tent door, stretched out his hand, and when he was about to open it, his hand stopped. He slowly turned around and stared at the woman behind him whose heart was colder than stone.
Even if it is a stone, there will be a day when it will be warmed up.
"Mu, just pretend I didn't say anything."
After he finished speaking, he lifted the tent and left.
A gust of wind blew into the tent as he opened the door, instantly blowing out the dim light on the low table.
The tent was suddenly plunged into complete darkness.
Mu Fulan sat in the dark tent, her eyes slowly becoming hot.
Before she could shed tears, she raised her hand and quickly wiped them away with her fingers.
…
After returning to Jincheng, Mu Fulan and Xier met and did not take time to rest, but prepared medicinal materials overnight.
The next day, she went to look for Xier and learned that he had been taken away by Xie Changgeng.
She waited for a long time, but when they didn't come back, she went to look for them.
Jincheng is an isolated city outside the Great Wall. It is not very large. It is only a few miles to walk from the east to the west of the city.
She found her way to the city gate and was told by the soldiers that the governor had just returned on horseback from outside the city with his young master and was now on the city wall.
She followed the broad and heavy stone steps up to the city wall, and saw two figures, one large and one small, standing on the tall watchtower in front of her.
Xie Changgeng picked up Xier and let him stand on the battlements of the city wall. The two were talking.
On this day, the snowstorm that had been raging for days stopped, and the sun's rays illuminated the four walls of Jincheng, the wasteland in front, and the top of the mountain in the distance that was covered with snow all year round.
"Thank you, sir. Why is this place called Golden City? Is there a lot of gold here?"
Mu Fulan heard Xier asking the question.
Xie Changgeng laughed and said, "When summer comes, the snow here melts and the sun shines down. When you stand on the snowy peak and look down, the city will seem to be covered with gold. It is extremely spectacular, so it is named Golden City."
Xier exclaimed: "I really want to take a look!"
Xie Changgeng said: "As long as we can defend the city, this place will always be ours. You can come and see it anytime you want!"
"Okay! Sir Xie, you must defend this place!" Xier cheered.
Xie Changgeng nodded with a smile, and suddenly seemed to realize something. He turned his head abruptly, his eyes fell on her, he glanced at her, whispered something to the child beside him, and then hugged him.
"Mother! You're here!"
Xier ran towards Mu Fulan and held her hand happily.
"Master Xie just took me outside to ride a horse. It's so big outside! It turns out that this is not the end of the world! Master Xie said that if we go west and keep going, there are many other places!"
Mu Fulan had just wanted to go quietly, but when she saw that he had noticed her, she had to give up. Hanxiao and Xi'er responded with a few words, looked up at him, and said, "The medicine has been prepared. You can leave now."
Xie Changgeng nodded indifferently and turned away.
…
The return trip was smooth.
Mu Fulan brought Xi'er back to Guzang safely under the escort of Xie Changgeng. That day, without taking a rest, she immediately rushed to Mahe Valley.
The old chief was already on his last legs, and the natives had been waiting anxiously for her return, and were overjoyed to see her return, as if she had seen a god.
Mu Fulan tried her best and, with the help of the magic medicine, she revived the man. After slowly treating him for some time, the remaining poison in the old leader's body was completely eliminated, and his health got better day by day.
In another month, the harsh winter will pass, and the early spring of another year will arrive quietly.
On this day, early in the morning, when it was just light, Mu Fulan took Xier and the maid, got on the carriage, and left the Jiedushi Mansion under the escort of the entourage led by Liang Tuan.
A line of carriages and horses passed through the still empty streets and arrived in front of the city gate.
The gate officer had received orders long ago and had opened the city gate in advance. He and the gatekeepers stood solemnly on both sides, respectfully seeing off the carriages and horses as they left the city.
The carriage passed through the arched city gate and rumbled along the snow-covered road towards the south.
Xier sat beside him, saying nothing.
Since a few days ago, when he learned that he was about to leave here, he has been silent.
Mu Fulan smiled and said, "The little dragon horse can already walk long distances. Don't worry, it will live happily with us in the south."
Xier nodded: "I know."
He hesitated for a moment and asked, "Mother, is the master in the Ma River Valley now?"
Mu Fulan hummed.
Ma River Valley should be very lively today.
Not only did the old chief recover, but the garrison city named Wu'an also progressed smoothly. The main city was topped off a few days ago. The son of Xu Ke, the commander of Jiaocheng, and the native girl, who had fled before, came back boldly upon learning that the two sides had reconciled. They found Xie Changgeng and begged him on their knees to officiate their wedding.
After Xu Ke beat his son up, he had no choice but to accept it. The girl's family was also willing. The wedding was held today. In addition to Xie Changgeng, the old leader was also the master of ceremonies.
He set off yesterday and went to Mahe Valley.
"Didn't you say goodbye to Master Xie yesterday?"
Xier closed her mouth and stopped talking.
The carriage traveled several miles and gradually left the city behind.
Mu Fulan held her son in her arms and said softly, "You got up early this morning. If you feel sleepy, go to bed."
Xier hummed, leaned in her arms, closed her eyes, and lay motionless, as if she had fallen asleep.
It was already daybreak, and the sun was about to come out.
Mu Fulan signaled to the maid to draw down the curtain to prevent the morning sun from reflecting the glare of the snow.
The maid stood up and gently lowered the curtain when suddenly, Liang Tuan's voice came from outside the carriage: "My lady, the governor is here!"
Xier, who seemed to be asleep, suddenly opened her eyes, jumped out of Mu Fulan's arms, quickly leaned over the car window, lifted the curtain, and looked out.
"Thank you, sir!"
He shook his arms vigorously, half of his body almost leaning out, and shouted loudly, his voice full of joy.
Mu Fulan held Xier tightly, ordered the carriage to stop, and looked out.
In the morning light, in the snowy field at the end of her sight, she saw a horse galloping towards her from the direction of the city, surrounded by a group of riders.
The person who rode first was Xie Changgeng.
Before he came close, Xi'er turned around, looked at Mu Fulan and said, "Mother, can I go down to pick up the adults?"
Mu Fulan wanted to shake her head. But when she looked into the child's eyes full of expectation and joy, she couldn't say "no".
She hesitated, then nodded slowly.
A smile appeared on Xier's face. She hurriedly got out of the carriage. Without anyone holding her, she jumped down by herself, fell to the ground, then quickly got up and ran towards the fast horse.
Xie Changgeng came closer and stopped his horse.
"Thank you, sir! Didn't you go to Mahe Valley for something?"
Xier stopped in front of his horse's head, panting, looking up at him and asked.
Xie Changgeng smiled and said, "I just remembered that I have something else to give you."
He rolled off his horse and untied his sword from his waist.
"Xi'er, this sword was made for me by the best craftsman hired by Mr. Xie's father when Mr. Xie was ten years old. He used his annual salary to make it for me. At that time, Mr. Xie would get up before five o'clock every morning, and practice swordplay with it after finishing his studies. The sword is not expensive, but it has been with Mr. Xie all these years. Now that you are leaving, I will give it to you. When you grow up, study hard and practice swordplay, okay?"
Xie Changgeng was about to hand it over when he heard a voice say, "No!"
He was startled and raised his eyes, and saw that the woman had gotten out of the carriage, ran quickly to him, grabbed Xier's hand and brought him behind her.
Her eyes were fixed on the sword in her hand, as if it was something extremely disgusting.
At this moment, Xie Changgeng vaguely remembered that night long ago, in that mansion in Shangjing, when he first saw her, she seemed to be staring at the sword hanging above his bed.
Her expression then was exactly the same as it is now.
Mu Fulan slowly raised her eyes, looked at the man opposite her, and said, "The legacy of the late master is too precious, I dare not take it away. On behalf of Xier, I thank you for your kindness, please take it back."
Although she said this, Xie Changgeng knew in his heart that she clearly hated the farewell gift he wanted to give to the child.
The atmosphere suddenly froze, with a hint of awkwardness.
His sword-holding hand froze in the air for a moment, then slowly let go.
"Mom! I want it!"
At this moment, a child's voice suddenly sounded.
Xi'er broke free from Mu Fulan's hand, ran to Xie Changgeng, and said, "Thank you, sir! I will keep it well. When I grow up and can use it, I will use it to practice martial arts and swordsmanship!"
After he finished speaking, he bowed properly towards Xie Changgeng as a token of his thanks, then raised his hands to receive the sword.
Xie Changgeng laughed and put the sword into his little hands.
He picked up the child from the ground, walked him to the carriage, put him in, touched his little head with his big hand, said to Liang Tuan, "Escort him well", and then turned and left.
He strode past Mu Fulan, who was still standing there, without looking at her. He jumped on his horse and turned it around. Accompanied by his followers, he galloped away as fast as he had come, and his figure soon disappeared in the snow.
The author has something to say: Thank you little angels for voting for me~
Thanks to the little angels who cast [mines]: 4 for Lanzhi Yanyu, 2 for Bailuqing, 2 for Juanjuan, 2 for Petitefleur, 1 for Xiaobai, 1 for Sarbrina, 1 for Xiaoqiaoqiao, 1 for Ye Gong, 1 for Xixi and Dandan, 1 for 27615969, 1 for after96, 1 for reading romance when depressed, 1 for Yishengsheng, 1 for 28851213, 1 for Zoe, 1 for Xuxia, 1 for Shanshan1015, 1 for Yueshangxilou, 1 for Hello Kerouac°, 1 for 21233829, 1 for Ly, 1 for Shuixiao, 1 for 222222, 1 for Haruna, 1 for Zhuticcc, 1 for Peaceilove, 1 for Lene, 1 for Xiaopiao, 1 for Sophia?, 1 for Qiuqiujiang, 1 for Xiaoqi_tse 1 piece, 1 piece for Duanduan, 1 piece for Meiya, 1 piece for Momotou
Thanks to the little angels who threw [hand grenades]: 1 for Kebaobao and 1 for Xiaoqiaoqiao
Thank you little angels for irrigating me with nutrient solution~
Thanks to the little angels who irrigated the nutrient solution: 18856640 89 bottles, 19593207 70 bottles, 23233749 50 bottles, Laihu 50 bottles, Miaomiaomiaomiao 40 bottles, Xiaozhu. 40 bottles, niuniu 40 bottles, picky bookworm 34 bottles, 20038850 30 bottles, Chengcheng 30 bottles, Shuang 30 bottles, Little Raindrop and Big Snowball 30 bottles, Gao Yueyue 30 bottles, 22210891 25 bottles, tanhelen 24 bottles, Xiaotransparent 22 bottles, Shuoshuomama 20 bottles, Luanhua 20 bottles, beautiful and lovely Feifei 20 bottles, ajs100 20 bottles, 31913818 20 bottles, paris 20 bottles, 13764605 20 bottles, Bajun Carp 20 bottles, Cute and Charming Villain 20 bottles, Baby Fish 20 bottles, Unspoken Smile 20 bottles, Flowers Blooming on the Road 20 bottles, Puppy in the Photo 20 bottles, Jiji Dajiji 20 bottles, Mi Ma 20 bottles, Light Bulb 20 bottles, Firefly Forest 19 bottles, 17744650 18 bottles, Human Face Peach Blossom 16 bottles, 222222 14 bottles, Four Happiness Meatball Bracelet 14 bottles, Pleasant Goat 13 bottles, Love Color Mix 13 bottles, Yizhuang 12 bottles, Zero Degree Wine 12 bottles, Tendon Little Treasure 11 bottles, 24775046 10 bottles, Vanvan 10 bottles, Su Qin 10 bottles, Vovi 10 bottles, Iris 10 bottles, Sister Head 10 bottles, Sum Ke 10 bottles, La La La 10 bottles, CL 10 bottles, Ming 10 bottles, Little Fairy 10 bottles, Duanduan 10 bottles, Xie Chunfeng 10 bottles, Passing by lightly 10 bottles, Half Shadow 10 bottles, mrsfirefox3952 10 bottles, echo 10 bottles, Shasha Yichen 10 bottles, 21320398 10 bottles, Bie Xianzong 10 bottles, Xiaoqi_tse 10 bottles, Ponyo An'an 10 bottles, Qiuqiu Sauce 10 bottles, Hahaha 10 bottles, What's the Year 10 bottles, lene 10 bottles, 245678u 10 bottles, 342364 10 bottles, Kaka 10 bottles, yiyi0707009 10 bottles, Riding Mouse Nanxia 10 bottles, Qianmo 10 bottles, Moyi 10 bottles, Wang Gu Bird 10 bottles, Qingming Willow 10 bottles, Leaves Under the Shadow 10 bottles, 22317488 10 bottles, 13172628 10 bottles, Ziwei 10 bottles, Kyokakan 10 bottles, Red Beans Born in the South 10 bottles, Stool Spear 10 bottles, Feng Zi 10 bottles, Joyyi 10 bottles, Cute and Charming Villain 9 bottles, Jin Xi He Xi 7 bottles, Ji Tonglin 6 bottles, Untitled 88% 6 bottles, Stella 6 bottles, Putizhang 5 bottles, Circle Qaq 5 bottles, Silly Buji 5 bottles, Hairpin Tofu Loves Reading 5 bottles, Yu Shi 5 bottles, Love Summer Pomelo 5 bottles, Little Beans 5 bottles, Wei-3 5 bottles, Milymama 5 bottles, □□ 5 bottles, Black and White Baby 5 bottles, Rain Tree Plum Smoke 5 bottles, A Big Xia 5 bottles, Acatmm 5 bottles, TT 5 bottles, Romance Princess 5 bottles, Yiyuan 5 bottles, Wendao Yixin 5 bottles, Small Mirror 5 bottles, Office Worker 5 bottles, Reading Like Taking Drugs 5 bottles, Waterworks Girl Open 5 bottles, 26981340 4 bottles, Jinshu 4 bottles, Listening to the Rain 3 bottles, Galan Paramita 3 bottles, I'm an Idle Man 3 bottles, Hungry Black Bee 3 bottles, Ellie 3 bottles, SS 3 bottles, W Love 3 bottles, 20249026 3 bottles, Close and Far 621 2 bottles, Watermelon Sweet 2 bottles, Xinyuan 2 bottles, Yellow and White Cat 2 bottles, For example, Morning Dew 2 bottles, Veron3371 2 bottles, Orange Latte 2 bottles, Little Bubble 2 bottles, 30145012 2 bottles, Sarbrina 2 bottles, uynehc_0 1 bottle, Qiu 1 bottle, Li Xiaomanman 1 bottle, Water Boy 1 bottle, In fact, scum is a commendatory word 1 bottle, Draw the sword and sing a long song 1 bottle, Jing 1 bottle, Deer Manman 1 bottle, 27797809 1 bottle, Yimu 1 bottle, 19687141 1 bottle, Stubborn Radish Head 1 bottle, The near future 1 bottle, Good Years 1 bottle, 24828306 1 bottle, 20664045 1 bottle, 23437716 1 bottle, yier097 1 bottle, Zhao 67 1 bottle, One Thousand and One Nights 1 bottle, Damengguo 1 bottle, 35394418 1 bottle, Green Radish 1 bottle, 21622185 1 bottle, The Cricket Doesn't Know the Spring and Autumn Period 1 bottle, Amomo 1 bottle, Jiabao 1 bottle, july 1 bottle, 34533809 1 bottle, eeee 1 bottle, 1 bottle of spell, 1 bottle of spiritmania, 1 bottle of three bears, 1 bottle of yoga, 1 bottle of clothes, 1 bottle of listening to the rain and watching the clouds, 1 bottle of Wei Yu Xiao Xiao
Thank you very much for your support, I will continue to work hard! ^_^