Early in the morning, the master and the handmaiden woke up and began to pack their luggage in the dim morning light. They argued occasionally, but mostly stayed silent.
Ning Que rummaged for a long time on the mud wall outside the hut and took out a long bag. He took out the bow and arrow from the bag and checked it carefully for a long time. After confirming that there was no problem, he handed it over. Sangsang took it and stuffed it into the big package made of cotton cloth. Then she took out three slightly rusty straight knives with sheaths from under the fence frame. Ning Que took them and carefully wiped them. He looked at the sharp edge against the morning sun, nodded and tied them tightly to his back with a straw rope.
He took out a black umbrella from behind the door and tied it to Sangsang's back with the last piece of straw rope. He didn't know what the black umbrella was made of, but it seemed to be covered with a layer of black oil stains. It didn't reflect light and looked a little heavy. Moreover, the umbrella looked very big. Even if it was closed and tied, it almost fell to the ground on Sangsang's thin and short body.
Ning Que and Sangsang stepped over the broken fence wall one after the other. They looked back at the small bluestone ground and the small broken hut at the same time. Sangsang looked up at his chin and asked, "Young master, do you want to lock the door?"
"No." Ning Que was silent for a while and said, "In the future … it may be difficult for us to come back."
…
…
The iron-wrapped wooden wheels rolled over the soft muddy ground. The noble's carriage slowly set off, heading out of the City of Wei. The five carriages with soft ropes in front and behind were very eye-catching at any time in the frontier fortress. Today, there were indeed many people who came to see them off, but their focus was not on the noble's team of horses, but on the young man and the little handmaiden sitting in the first carriage. From time to time, boiled eggs would be handed to them, and from time to time, an auntie with black cheeks would wipe her eyes with a dirty handkerchief and say something.
"Ning Que, you wicked bastard. My distant nephew is such a good man, but you refused to let Sangsang marry him. Now, you want this girl to follow you to those ruthless places! I tell you, you have to take good care of my Sangsang! "
Ning Que, who was sitting on the shaft of the carriage, looked terrible. He replied, "Auntie, you started to propose marriage when Sangsang was only eight years old. You can't do that."
After a few curses with laughter, it suddenly began to drizzle. The raindrops, which were thinner than threads, sprinkled on people's bodies. It was a little cold, but no one left. The families of the soldiers in the City of Wei were busy bidding farewell to Ning Que and calculating the final debt with him. The crowd was noisy and noisy.
The curtain of the most exquisitely decorated carriage in the back lifted a corner, and the proud and indifferent maidservant poked her head out to take a look. Her beautiful eyebrows couldn't help but furrow.
Just as the team was about to leave this small border town, Ning Que stood up from the horse carriage and saluted to the surroundings.
The young man carried three old sabers on his back. Standing in the rain, he clasped his fists and palms together in salute. Unexpectedly, he gave off a heroic aura.
"Young and old masters, sisters and aunts, I don't need to say too many words of thanks."
After saying this, he opened his arms in the rain, clenched his fists, and opened them up, showing off his not-so-strong chest muscles and arms. He struck a particularly stupid pose and shouted, "If I don't make a name for myself in Chang 'an this time, I won't come back!"
His words sounded like a storyteller dropping a log to start a play, or a bloody head falling into the dust. The people by the roadside cheered in unison.
In the only decent tavern in the City of Wei, Ma Shixiang and several trusted lieutenants were drinking. The nobleman didn't want them to see him off, and they didn't bother to see Ning Que off. However, they clearly saw the scene in front of them. One of the lieutenants thought of what Ning Que said on the horse carriage and couldn't help sighing. "You won't come back if you can't make a name for yourself? It seems that it will be very difficult for this stupid boy to come back. "
Ma Shixiang, who was sitting at the table, thought of the three short sentences that Ning Que said to him last night. He couldn't help but stroke his flowery beard and felt very comforted. Looking at the horse carriage that was gradually driving out of the city, he said softly with a smile, "It's good that he won't come back. You wicked thing, go and do harm to the outside world."
…
…
The distance from the City of Wei meant the distance from the grassland. The spring drought that was troubling the barbarian tribes and the new Chanyu didn't affect this place. The spring breeze turned the branches and leaves green, and then dyed the carriage wheels and horse hooves, attracting a few butterflies from time to time.
The horses galloped between the meadow and the hills. The soft rope was sometimes as tight as iron, and sometimes as loose as a leaf. The luxurious carriage covered with several layers of quilts and blankets also moved up and down gently. The pretty maidservant stared blankly at the scenery passing by quickly outside the window. Perhaps she was thinking of the north where the yellow sand was dancing in the wind at this time. Her facial expression was a bit stiff, but her eyes were full of expectation and eagerness for the unknown future.
Inside the carriage, a little boy dressed in luxurious light fur clothes was holding her calf and looking up longingly. He mumbled a few words in Central Plains Chinese, as if he wanted to go out to play for a while.
The maidservant turned around and scolded the little boy severely. Then her expression became gentle again. She held him in her arms and rubbed his head affectionately.
A corner of the curtain was lifted by the wind, and the spring breeze blew on her cheeks, which were no longer as tender as before. The maidservant squinted slightly and looked at the front of the team with a gloomy expression.
The young soldier named Ning Que was sitting on the shaft of the relatively simple carriage at the very front. He kept nodding his head as if he was about to fall asleep. As a guide, he was supposed to lead the way for the whole team, but he was dozing off most of the time. No matter how one looked at it, he couldn't be considered competent.
The maidservant's expression was not because of this, but because of a detail in the scene she saw.
Ning Que was dozing on the shaft of the carriage, and it seemed that he would fall from the galloping carriage at any time. So the little maidservant Sangsang stayed vigilantly by his side, trying to support him with her thin and short body. Her expression could not be seen clearly on her dark face, but it could be felt that she was very tired.
At this moment, the caravan ran over a very shallow grassy stream. Ning Que was awakened by the shock. He rubbed his eyes and glanced at the sky. He found that he had slept until dusk, so he raised his hand to signal the caravan to stop and set up camp.
It seemed a little irresponsible and reckless to set up camp right after waking up, but no one in the team objected to his arrangement.
It had been several days since they left the City of Wei, and every decision made by the young man along the way had been proven to be correct. Whether it was the choice of route, the location of the camp, the security, the use of water to eat, or the convenience of escape, there was no fault to be found. What was even more amazing was that the caravan moved quite fast.
The dozens of barbarian Horse Gang subdued by the nobleman in the grassland had originally looked down on the border army of the City of Wei, but now they only had admiration for the young soldier's ability as a guide.
On the bank of the stream, people silently dug earth, built stoves, and collected firewood to boil water. The maidservant got off the expensive carriage that was heavily protected. She looked at Ning Que, who was lying on the grass and rubbing his stomach as if he was on a picnic, and at the thin and dark handmaiden who was struggling to fetch water, set up a pot, and collect firewood. She frowned even more.
A strong guard next to her stood up and glanced at her. She shook her head, indicating that there was no need to follow. She walked along the bank of the stream and through the smoke.
She had to admit that the lad named Ning Que was indeed capable. He was much better than those young noblemen in the capital of Chang 'an who thought that they were outstanding. If he was really a noble young master in Chang' an, she might have some appreciation for his behavior. However, he was after all just a vulgar lad at the bottom of society. Yet he was oppressing the little girl who should have been sharing weal and woe with him. Unknowingly, he had touched a certain part of her heart, and she was extremely unhappy.
She walked to the little handmaiden Sangsang and smiled gently at her, indicating that she should put down the heavy firewood in her hands and talk to her.
Sangsang glanced at Ning Que and waited for him to nod before she walked over. The pretty handmaiden took out a square handkerchief from her waist, but Sangsang shook her head. The little handmaiden had done so much strenuous work, but there was not a single drop of sweat on her forehead.
At this time, Ning Que finally climbed up from the meadow. He brushed off the grass on his body and the green grass juice on his cotton shirt. He smiled and cupped his hands in front of his chest.
The handmaiden did not turn to look at him. She said lightly, "I don't like you, so you don't have to try to get close to me. People like you may look childish on the surface and treat others warmly and delightfully, but in reality, you are filled with a sense of stale old age, which is disgusting. "
Her tone was emotionless, and her chin was slightly raised. She did not seem to be deliberately keeping a distance, but naturally revealed a condescending air of nobility. As a personal handmaiden serving the Princess of Tang, she could even order most of the officials of the empire around, let alone a small character like Ning Que.
Ning Que smiled and shook his head. He turned around and walked to the earthen stove by the stream.
He only had a little handmaiden. The noble had countless handmaidens. His only little handmaiden was taken away by one of the countless handmaidens of the noble to gossip. The noble had other servants to serve him, but he had to burn firewood and boil water to cook by himself.
Perhaps it was because the sandstorm at the frontier fortress made him very thick-skinned. There was no embarrassment in his smile at all.
…
…
When the sun was about to set, Sangsang came back with a lot of snacks such as dried milk. Ning Que was holding a bowl of burnt meat porridge in a daze. When he saw it, he took it without hesitation and stuffed it into his mouth. He asked vaguely,
"Why does she like to chat with you so much? She doesn't know that I haven't had a proper meal for a few days … The cheap sympathy of the noble is sometimes not used in the right place. Look at her smile, it's like a grandmother wolf who wants to eat little girls. She thinks she is gentle and decent, but it's more fake than the watered-down wine sold in the City of Wei. "
"She's a good person." Sangsang picked up the burnt porridge beside him. She lifted the curtain and was about to leave to cook again, but was called back by him.
"What did you talk about these days?" Ning Que asked.
Sangsang frowned and tried hard to recall for a long time. Then she replied, "It seems like … you know I don't like to talk … Most of the time, it was her talking about the grassland, but I can't remember what she said."
Upon hearing this, Ning Que's mood became much better. He gently hummed a tune and chewed the delicious dried milk. He said, "If she talks to you again in the future, remember to ask for money from her, or bring more of this dried milk back. It's not a bad idea."
At night.
Sangsang used the stream water to extinguish the fire. After careful confirmation, she dragged the bucket of hot water to the small tent. People on the slope beside the stream saw this scene and knew that the little handmaiden was preparing the water for Ning Que to wash his feet. Many people showed disdainful expressions at the same time.
Of course, this disdain was for Ning Que.
After washing his feet, Ning Que crawled into the wool mattress and hugged the pair of cold feet that stretched out from the opposite side into his arms. He made a moan that was unknown whether it was pleasure or pain. After two yawns, he said, "Go to sleep."
Sangsang was much more tired than him during the day and fell into a deep sleep after a while.
Ning Que didn't know when he opened his eyes again. His gaze seemed to penetrate the tent that had been mended with many scars, falling on the starry sky, and then on a handkerchief.
Recalling the handkerchief with golden edges taken out by the handmaiden, he knew that his guess was indeed correct. But he didn't know what use it was even if he guessed correctly.
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