What Xiao Cao didn't know was that the reason why Wen Renying could easily strike up a conversation with them was because she looked close to Zhen Muyao. Zhen Muyao had a very different personality, but in the mansion of Duke Zhen Chengen, her status was definitely top-notch, and no other girl could compare.
No matter they are her own family or people with whom she has a good relationship, they basically all flatter her in some way. Although she doesn't like to talk to people, she won't be picky or cause trouble for others. Compared to some people, she is actually much more likable.
In the past, the ones who had the best relationship with Zhen Muyao were actually the brothers of the Zhen family. When they were young, they climbed trees to catch birds, dived into the water to catch fish, and were naughty and played pranks. They could not play together with other girls at all. Later, when they grew up, the difference in their world views became even greater. However, she has restrained herself somewhat. Now, it is rare to see her so close to a girl.
There's no harm in pleasing Zhen Muyao. Even though I didn't know how to do it before, maybe I can find some tricks now
Wen Renying saw all of this clearly, but she didn't mind. After all, she could take this opportunity to build her own network. It didn't need to be very close. Sometimes just having a connection was enough.
Soon, the pleasure boat started to move and the show was about to begin.
The area of the outflowing water is quite large. On one side is a pavilion corridor built on the lake, and the pleasure boats are located on the other three sides. In the middle is the performance area, a huge circus stage. "Huh, is it fixed?" Xiaocao said uncertainly.
"Yes, it is fixed. It is actually connected to the corridor over there by a flat bridge, but the bridge can be controlled by a mechanism. It is now hidden under the water. This place is not only used for acrobatics, but it will be even more lively during the New Year holidays. If we have a chance in the future, we can watch it together." Zhen Muyao said.
Xiaocao naturally nodded in agreement.
Not to mention that she had been in the imperial city for nearly three years, and her living space was really small. It was not only because she was busy, but class differences were also a major reason. In many places, although there were no explicit regulations that ordinary people could not enter, they would actively avoid them. Xiaocao was also one of those who did not want to cause trouble.
The performance began with the sound of gongs and drums. It was actually quite exciting to listen to. However, compared with the acrobatics that Xiaocao had seen in his previous life, both the difficulty and artistry were much lower. This was actually understandable as there are basically no protective measures now, and due to conservatism, many movements will not appear. It’s just that I haven’t watched it properly for more than ten years, so it was still pretty good.
Apart from anything else, there is a very impressive show at the end.
Three ropes were pulled out from three different positions in the corridor and connected to the acrobatic stage in the middle. Three teenagers in their early teens jumped onto the ropes and ran on them. When they were in the middle, they paused and the ropes pressed down with a greater amplitude. As they jumped up, the ropes recovered a little and various fancy performances began. Not only that, the three people's movements were very consistent and the difficulty was really not small, which made people applaud continuously.
By the time it was over, I still felt a little unsatisfied.
Just as the next show was about to begin, screams were heard from another houseboat.
"There are snakes, lots of snakes—"
In a short time, it became chaos and the performance could no longer go on.
"Snakes, there are a lot of snakes in the water, crawling up, crawling up—"
"Hurry up and get those disgusting things out..."
"Row faster, row faster—"
The pleasure boat where Xiaocao and the others were was not far from the other pleasure boat. When they looked over there, they could see snakes crawling into the pleasure boat. They were so densely packed that it made their scalps tingle. Xiaocao was not afraid of these things. She had used snakes as medicine many times before. Moreover, most of these snakes were non-venomous. A few of them were poisonous, but their toxicity was very low. However, there were too many of them and they were slippery, which would make people feel uncomfortable.
Not only that, a small number of them also climbed onto the pleasure boat on their side.
Wen Renying was also terrified, she just grabbed Xiaocao's arm, "Fourth sister..."
"It's okay. The sachet on your body not only repels mosquitoes, but also keeps snakes away."
"Really? That's great." Wen Renying subconsciously tightened the sachet around her waist. Although she believed in her fourth sister's words, she still felt a chill down her spine when she saw the snakes crawling over.
Then, when they were about to jump up in fright, the snake actually moved around them.
Wen Renying couldn't help but be surprised. Her fourth sister was really amazing. She decided that she would always carry the sachet with her from now on.
"Sister Xuan, do you have any more of that sachet? Give me one." Zhen Muyao said from the side.
Xiaocao turned around and saw Zhen Muyao with a calm face, kicking away a snake in front of her. However, Jianshu had a pale face and was grabbing her clothes tightly. Although he was obviously taller than Zhen Muyao, he shrank into Zhen Muyao's arms.
Although it was obvious from the beginning that the personalities and responsibilities between Zhen Muyao and Jian Shu were reversed compared to other people, and for Zhen Muyao, Jian Shu's personality was quite suitable for her, but the scene in front of her still made people twitch their lips. Xiao Cao took off the sachet on her body and threw it over, "This is for you."
Zhen Muyao didn't hesitate and hung it around his waist neatly.
The effect is almost immediate.
When the other people on the pleasure boat saw it, they couldn't help but ask for it.
Who would bring so many sachets when going out? "I don't have any more, but don't worry, it's non-toxic. Try to stand still and I'll take care of it." Xiaocao patted Wen Renying's hand. Wen Renying was still frightened, but not as much as before, so she let go.
Xiaocao walked forward to the place where there were the most snakes. She calmly took out a small bottle from another pouch, bent down, and sprayed it lightly. Then those nimble snakes became like soft noodles and became motionless.
Xiaocao stretched out her hand, hooked it, and then threw the snake back into the water.
She followed the same method and quickly dealt with the snake on their houseboat.
The frightened girls and boys looked at the grass with gratitude, awe and respect.
The pleasure boat had already been cleared, and there were servants on the other boats to handle it, so Xiaocao didn't bother to intervene.
Wen Renying suddenly approached her, "Fourth sister, Wen Renxiang." She lowered her voice and pointed to a certain pleasure boat. "That man is not her fiancé, but someone from the empress dowager's family, a notorious playboy."
Xiao Cao looked over and narrowed her eyes slightly. Wen Ren Xiang was leaning very closely against a young man. She was really scared, but at the same time she was scheming and took the opportunity to rub against the man, taking advantage of the chaos when no one else noticed her. The man, who was indeed a playboy, was one of the most frightened people. However, he still subconsciously took advantage of her.
Xiao Cao showed no emotion on her face. "Muyao, you guys go up to the corridor first, and have someone row the pleasure boat over there. I'll go take a look."
Zhen Muyao did not object. The houseboat moved towards the corridor as quickly as possible. Everyone else cooperated and left quickly.
"Fourth sister, please be careful."
"Don't worry, it's okay."
As the pleasure boat approached, there was still some distance between them, so Xiaocao supported himself by the edge and jumped over with swift movements.
The pleasure boat was so big and Xiaocao's movements were not small, so it naturally attracted people's attention, and Wen Renxiang was one of them.
When Wen Renxiang met Xiaocao's gaze, his whole body stiffened. He quickly let go of her hand and took two steps back.
Seeing that she still had some dignity, Xiaocao withdrew her gaze. There was no need to draw attention to Wenren Xiang. After all, if the matter got out of hand and ruined Wenren Xiang's reputation, it would only be the Wen family that would be implicated.
Because there were too many snakes here, Xiaocao couldn't even put her feet. She put a pill in her mouth and was not so careful when spraying the anesthetic. The snakes were lying on the ground in a dense crowd. Xiaocao used her feet to push the snakes away and cleared a path. "Cover your mouth and nose with a handkerchief, and leave here quickly."
No one thought too much at the moment. They all followed her orders. Even though they were not on that "road", they stomped their feet, jumped, and shouted as they rushed over, scrambling to climb onto the pleasure boat where Xiaocao was coming from. Those who were a little braver could still maintain their imagination and composure to a certain extent, but for most of them, that scene was really unbearable to watch. When they think back on it, they will probably wish they had collective amnesia.
Well, in the end even the rowers ran away.
No matter who they were, they all shouted at the rowers to hurry up. The person who rowed the boat for Xiaocao before was from the Zhen family, so he naturally wouldn't listen. But there were only two of them, and they could do nothing about it even if the rowing pole was snatched away.
There are so many snakes, and even if Xiaocao runs out of anesthetics, he may not be able to completely knock them down.
As for the thing that could attract so many snakes, Xiaocao could only think of one thing, a kind of snake-attracting grass, which was fatal to snakes. Where there was snake-attracting grass, it was basically equivalent to a snake den, which was very rare. Not to mention the imperial city, there shouldn't be such a thing even within a thousand miles. She hadn't thought of this before. If she didn't come, this matter might not be so easy to resolve.
Xiaocao didn't plan to waste any more anesthetics. After all, it was quite troublesome to make, and he couldn't make too much at a time. After all, the anesthetic would lose its effectiveness over time.
He looked around, trying to find snake-luring grass or something that had been soaked in snake-luring grass.
The other pleasure boats around had already moved far away, because if they were farther away, the snakes would not chase them and it would be easier to clean them up. So, from other locations, Xiaocao was the only one left on the pleasure boat that attracted the snakes. More snakes kept crawling up, and the bottom of the water was dark, so no one knew how many there were.
The little grass in the middle of the snakes doesn't want to attract too much attention. Although I admire her courage, the scene really gives people goose bumps. Will she be entangled by the snakes in the next moment and buried alive
Xiaocao kicked the snake away and sprayed some medicine if there was no other solution.
Because they didn't know what Xiaocao was going to do, Zhen Muyao and the others only knew that Xiaocao went to help, but the group of bastards abandoned her and ran away, leaving her "isolated and helpless". Wen Renying was very annoyed, but Zhen Muyao was completely furious. When those people went up the corridor, she kicked them without thinking twice. The leader happened to be the playboy from the Empress Dowager's family, and he was kicked over by Xiaocao before he could even stand firmly.
The man screamed and looked up to see who it was. "Zhen Muyao—" he gritted his teeth and said, "You dare to kick me!"
Zhen Muyao kicked her again without saying a word, "What's wrong with me kicking her today? Sister Xuan went to help you, but you actually left her alone and ran away. You are cowardly, selfish and self-centered. The Empress Dowager is such a great person, and her family actually brought shame upon herself by producing scum like you!" Zhen Muyao was so angry that he kicked her again and again, very rudely.
The people who were with the playboy were all frightened and shrank back, not daring to get off the pleasure boat, while the people on Zhen Muyao's side just watched coldly, without any intention of dissuading them.
"Zhen Muyao, that's enough. If you keep hitting me, I'm going to fight back."
"If you have the guts, fight back. If there are ten of you, I can kick them down." Having said that, Zhen Muyao didn't continue to fight. "What are you still standing there for? Get down. You all feel guilty and want to repent. Are you ready to go back to help?"
Go back? Stop kidding! Come down one by one.
But this girl's hands and feet were inevitably clumsy. Zhen Muyao went straight up and dragged her down. She probably didn't even know the words "be gentle and kind to women". The girls fell to the ground one by one, screaming.
The people behind were so frightened of Zhen Muyao's brutality that they quickly avoided him and flipped down from other places, and their movements seemed to be much more efficient.
Zhen Muyao dragged down the last person who was in the way and climbed on top, "Hurry up and row the boat to help." As for the young men and women who had not yet gone aboard, and the more servants, they were completely out of Zhen Muyao's consideration.
"Wait a minute, let me go down. ..."
Zhen Muyao couldn't bear to see this useless guy from some unknown family. Perhaps he was too scared and his hands and feet were weak. Zhen Muyao went up and kicked him. The man had already stepped half of his body out of the guardrail and could have been easily kicked out by Zhen Muyao. Unfortunately, the pleasure boat sailed about a foot away, so the man fell directly into the water with a splash.
Zhen Muyao didn't even raise his eyelids.
Then the people in the corridor would have to rush to rescue him.
Zhen Muyao was so cold and ruthless, but when facing Xiaocao, he was completely different. "Sister Xuan..."
"Muyao, don't come over here. Be careful that the snake might crawl up again. Wait for me for a while until I have dealt with it."
Zhen Muyao saw that she didn't seem to be dealing with it, and she was anxious, "Sister Xuan, what are you looking for?"
"The culprit who attracted the snakes." Xiaocao responded, and she had already found the target.
Clearing a path, I walked forward. It was a blue silk handkerchief in the corner, and there was a small snake coiled on it. This snake was different from the others. It was a venomous snake, and it was extremely poisonous. It seemed to know that the grass was trying to "steal" its food, so it held its head high and hissed.