On June 12, Rong Tang's bones began to ache.
He struggled for a while, but not only could he not get out of bed, he broke out in a cold sweat, his face turned pale, and his lips began to crack.
Rong Tang stared at the carved bed board with his eyes open, sighed softly, and asked the system while enduring the pain: "Why didn't it hurt so much in my previous two lives?"
The system was so anxious that it was spinning around, sometimes hovering over his head, sometimes crawling into his bed, but the characters on the virtual map were all pixels. It could see Rong Tang's pain, but it couldn't hug him. It turned around like a headless fly for a long time, and finally stopped beside Rong Tang's cheek.
It would only be gentle at times like this, even lowering its voice consciously, as if it was afraid of disturbing the host: [Because you have never been here in person before. ]
There was heavy rain in the south of the Yangtze River, but the sun was shining brightly in the capital.
Dayu is a vast country with different climates. In addition, during the days of heavy rain in the south of the Yangtze River, the capital of Dayu was so hot that when Lu Junxian was found to have concealed the disaster, some officials who were in office but doing nothing spoke nonsense in the court, saying that the disaster was not that serious and that the local officials in the south of the Yangtze River must have concealed the number of victims in order to embezzle relief funds.
The number of people affected was indeed underreported, from millions to hundreds of thousands, and the reported number of hundreds of thousands of deaths due to the floods was more than halved.
Rong Tang closed his eyes and allowed himself to adapt to the pain. After a long time, the sky outside brightened and the bird sounds were weaker than usual. He finally got out of bed.
[Host, don't go out.] The system advised.
Rong Tang shook his head: "It will cause trouble."
Su Huaijing has been discussing matters with Sheng Chengming and those officials these days. The lights in the study are on all night until dawn. The city of Suzhou is still filled with singing and the people are living in peace, but they are staying up all night in a deserted place.
If Rong Tang hadn't really been unable to take it anymore, he would have wanted to stay with them. It would have been impossible for him to disappear for a whole day and make Su Huaijing worry for no reason.
He got up and washed, and Shuangfu brought him some medicine. After drinking the medicine, Rong Tang stood under the eaves looking at the foggy sky, focusing his attention on the birds that kept flying out of the garden.
There was a breeze, the air was a little damp, and the flight of the sky spirits was all omens.
He put down the medicine bowl and leaned against the railing. He heard footsteps behind him. Rong Tang didn't even turn his head and said softly, "The bird flew away."
Su Huaijing held a robe in his hand and put it on him: "In the face of natural disasters, birds and animals are often more sensitive than humans."
Rong Tang looked up at the sky, was silent for a long time, and asked, "Is it getting better?"
Su Huaijing whispered, "Some dams have fallen into disrepair and there is no time to maintain them. The evacuation order has been issued, and those who can evacuate have been sent away by the soldiers. For those who don't believe or don't want to evacuate, the soldiers can only guard the village and act accordingly."
Rong Tang was in so much pain that he had trouble speaking. After being silent for most of the day, Su Huaijing took a step closer and held his hand: "Tangtang, casualties and losses are normal. Don't be sad."
Rong Tang nodded and said softly, "I know."
He was naturally aware of how deadly natural disasters were in ancient times. Even in the world he lived in before, countless people died from natural disasters every year. He just stared at the gray sky, clearly feeling the pain coming from his bones, wondering: If this sickly body is considered a punishment, what kind of punishment is it
Was it God's fault for him choosing a path he shouldn't have taken, or was it the blame for his indifference in his previous two lives
Rong Tang couldn't figure it out, so he stopped thinking about it. He turned around and looked at Su Huaijing.
The handsome boy's edges and corners became increasingly distinct, and his eyes were covered with a light layer of bruises. He was destined to be a tyrant who would allow war to sweep through Dayu after ascending the throne, but now he was racing against time with the natural disaster that had not yet come.
Rong Tang smiled and reached out to touch the corner of his mouth: "Huai Jing, you have grown a beard."
His fingertips felt a tiny tingling sensation, and Su Huaijing lowered his head obediently to let him press on it. Then he blinked and asked, "Tangtang, can you help me shave?"
Rong Tang was stunned for a moment, then smiled and replied, "Okay."
The wind is rising outside the yard, birds are flying to the north, and insects are burrowing underground.
-
On June 13th, at 3:15 am, the wind started to blow in Suzhou City.
Rong Tang was awakened by the pain and coldness that pierced into his bones. He lay on the bed with his eyes closed to ease the pain.
There were two gentle knocks on the door, and Su Huaijing stood outside the door and called, "Tangtang?"
Rong Tang did not respond. Just as Su Huaijing was about to push the door open, a small burst of hurried running noises came from the corridor. Someone ran towards him against the wind and said in a low voice, "Sir, His Highness invites you to discuss matters."
Su Huaijing paused for a moment, as if he was a little hesitant, but he still took back his hand that was on the door frame and said softly, "Find someone to guard here. If the prince wakes up in the middle of the night, go to the study to find me."
"yes."
The footsteps gradually faded away, and soon two men dressed as guards came and stood guard at the door. Rong Tang listened to the conversation in a daze in the room, turned over, hugged his arms and curled up.
The system was extremely anxious and called out softly: [Tangtang…]
Rong Tang pulled the corner of his lip with effort: "It's okay, just bear with it for a while and it will pass."
This body would naturally feel pain due to weather changes. After two lifetimes, Rong Tang had long been accustomed to it. He just didn't expect it to hurt this much this time.
He thought to himself that if he got up now, he would probably fall down because his legs and feet were weak.
He told the system that he would just have to bear with it for a while, and he still looked calm when he met Su Huaijing. He drank three bowls of medicine brought by Shuangfu without changing his expression, but curled up in pain every night in the sound of wind and rain, letting his clothes soak with sweat.
He endured for eight days, and finally on the morning of June 20th, he heard the long-lost bird call outside the house.
Rong Tang let out a light breath, stood up, dressed, and went out. The sun, which had not been seen for several days, finally showed mercy and dispelled some of the haze.
The candles in the study were changed one after another, and various drawings and opened books were scattered on the floor. A few more desks were added to the room. Some people were sleeping on the desks, while others were reading letters sent from various states with dark eyes, forcing themselves to stay sleepy.
Rong Tang walked to the innermost part quietly. Su Huaijing was lying on the table with his head resting on his arm. Under his arm was a copy of Shui Jing Zhu and a record of the investigation on floods in Jiangnan in the second year of Qingzheng. Within his reach was a writing brush placed horizontally in the inkstone.
The stubble that had just been shaved a few days ago appeared a little bit again. When his beautiful phoenix eyes were closed, one could only see a layer of thick, almost indelible marks at the bottom of his eyes.
Rong Tang stood beside him and stared at him quietly for a long time, silently saying in his heart: Thank you for your hard work.
Shuangfu had prepared a blanket in advance, and Rong Tang bent down to cover him with it, but Su Huaijing's eyelashes trembled, and he slowly opened his eyes. His usually clear phoenix eyes were now filled with bright red bloodshot.
He frowned and was about to stand up, but when he saw clearly who was in front of him, he was stunned for a moment. Almost instinctively, he grabbed Rong Tang's hand and blinked, seeming very confused.
Rong Tang felt distressed and uncontrollably moved by his cute expression. He leaned over and asked softly, "Will you come back to sleep with me?"
Su Huaijing blinked blankly, and it took him a while to realize what he said. He rested his head on the table and nodded twice, then was about to get up and go out with him.
During the movement, his sleeve accidentally touched the brush in the inkstone, causing a slight collision. Rong Tang hurriedly caught the brush that was about to fall to the ground, put it back on the pen holder, looked around, and was relieved to see that no one was woken up. He then took Su Huaijing's hand and walked into the room.
He brought the person to his room, but Su Huaijing stood at the door, shaking his head, and refused to go in.
Rong Tang was stunned for a moment, and realized that this person seemed to be still asleep, and his whole body exuded a kind of ignorant and cuteness.
He lowered his voice unconsciously, as if coaxing a child: "Where are we going?"
Su Huaijing frowned and said in a hoarse voice: "Sleep together."
Rong Tang thought he was going to his room, so he took two steps forward and sent him in. He then took off Su Huaijing's outer robe and watched him kick off his shoes and get into bed. He was about to leave when Su Huaijing suddenly reached out and grabbed him. His eyes were so sleepy that he couldn't open them. As soon as they touched the pillow, his eyelids couldn't stop falling down, but he still said stubbornly, "Let's sleep together."
When Rong Tang didn't move, he muttered, "I'm so sleepy, Tang Tang, sleep with me."
Rong Tang was stunned. The weak sunlight outside penetrated the clouds and fell on the ground. The air was filled with the scent of grass saturated by rain. Rong Tang was pulled by him, and the sleepiness that had prevented him from sleeping due to pain for days came over him in an instant. He was stunned for a moment, and when he reacted, he had already taken off his clothes and got into the quilt.
Su Huaijing stretched out his arms and took him into his arms. When people are extremely sleepy, they are too lazy to even put on a disguise.
The moment he was embraced, the pain that had been raging in Rong Tang's body for days seemed to fade away. He closed his eyes and finally fell into the most peaceful sleep he had had in these days.
When he woke up again, it was already dark and there was no one beside the bed. Rong Tang sat up from the bed in a daze, standing there in a daze to wake himself up.
The system had disappeared again and didn't call out. He entered the system space and glanced casually, and found that in the two colors of black and gray, a strange color was emerging from the edge and blending into the dark gray. He couldn't tell what it was supposed to look like.
Rong Tang was stunned and became more and more confused. He even began to wonder what the origin of the system was.
But the system is not here, and even if it is there, it is estimated that no one can ask, after all, it cannot see these phenomena.
Rong Tang came to his senses, got out of bed and went out.
After the heavy rain, there was no less to do than before. The officials brought by Sheng Chengming probably only took a short nap this morning. When Rong Tang walked out of the yard, he could no longer see anyone.
He asked Shuangfu where Su Huaijing had gone. Shuangfu hesitated for a long time and didn't dare to speak, but his eyes couldn't stop glancing towards the kitchen.
Rong Tang understood and immediately walked towards the kitchen.
He originally thought that Su Huaijing might be cooking, but as soon as he entered, he smelled a strong, almost choking smell of medicine. Rong Tang subconsciously felt displeased, frowned, and looked for Su Huaijing in the dim room.
The firelight flickered, and Rong Tang was attracted. He looked up and saw a person sitting behind the medicine furnace. His cheeks were hidden by the white mist that kept coming out of the crucible, and no emotion could be discerned.
Rong Tang called out, "Huai Jing?"
The man came back to his senses and looked up at him. Rong Tang calmed down and was about to go over, but Su Huaijing said, "Don't come over."
His voice was slightly deep, as if wrapped in the cold ice of December.
Rong Tang was stunned for a moment, standing still, staring at him blankly through the smoke.
The flames of the medicine furnace flickered, the crucibles bubbled, and after the strong aroma of herbs, Rong Tang heard Su Huaijing whisper with regret: "I think I shouldn't have let you come to Jiangnan."
(End of this chapter)