The curtain of rain outlined the streets and alleys of the city. In the dark night, spots of light spread sparsely.
"Pop, pop." A group of sparks flew over the short eaves and returned to the darkness in the falling rain. The rain under the eaves formed a curtain, and the sound of water wandered in the dark courtyard. Rain and darkness were the theme of this night. The torch on the wall was the only source of light in this small space. In the wind and rain, it illuminated some places.
In the heavy rain, everything seemed very quiet except for the sound of the rain. Without the moonlight and the insects in early autumn, the outline of the clinic and the Academy on the side could not be seen clearly.
In the previous nights, the clinic was always noisy. The sound of doctors and assistants coming and going, the sound of medicine boiling in the small kitchen, the sound of all kinds of groans caused by injuries, and the sound of cursing merged into one. On the other side of the courtyard, there would be pedestrians coming and going on the road outside the gate. At this time, most of the people who dared to walk at night were soldiers or Jianghu people. They were drunk or lost a fight. They were full of nonsense. They came from afar and then gradually went away.
Tonight, however, everything had been isolated.
The girl changed a torch under the eaves.
The new torch was embedded in the wall. The torch that was burned to a small half fell to the ground. In the light and shadow, the girl's figure was a little flustered. Then, she kicked the torch into the rain. The flame swayed, and then it spun in the water and disappeared.
The wall of the house was broken. The torch was embedded in the broken part, illuminating the outside and inside of the house. A young man in a scholar's robe was reading in the house. Occasionally he raised his head to talk. The girl walked over the eaves and sometimes sat on the threshold with her chin in her hands. This was a simple rainy night. The house was half broken. The master and the servant occasionally talked simply.
"I just washed the dishes." Xiaochan counted with her fingers. "Then I washed the clothes. There is no place to hang them …"
"Hmm?"
"So I still put them in the basin … Will there be such a heavy rain tomorrow …"
…
"A few days ago, Grandpa Liu of the clinic said there was a kind of herbal tea that was good for your injury …" Xiaochan sat on the threshold and suddenly remembered.
"Herbal tea?"
"Hmm, I didn't pay attention to it at that time. Tomorrow I will ask Grandpa Liu for it. I will also go to the clinic to help …" The little maid nodded.
…
"Young Master, there were a lot of people with broken arms and legs that came into the clinic yesterday. Do you think they were wounded soldiers from Jiaxing?" He lowered his voice.
"I don't think so. It's too far."
"Oh, it would be great if it was from that side." Xiaochan raised her head. "How long will this war last …"
…
…
Time passed just like that. It was hard to tell. Perhaps it was already deep into the night, or perhaps it would be a long time before midnight. Perhaps Xiaochan didn't really have the desire to speak, so she opened her mouth. She was just using her voice to confirm that she and Ning Yi were still together in some form.
Of course, it was normal for the master and servant to talk about a bunch of things at night, but tonight was different. Xiaochan wanted to say something, but the words that came out of her mouth seemed a little forced, giving the feeling that she had nothing to say but didn't dare to really say too much. Most of the time, she still sat on the doorstep and looked at Ning Yi, or looked at the big hole in the roof that was constantly dripping with raindrops, or looked for something to do. As a maid, it was not good for her to disturb Ning Yi when he was reading. After an unknown amount of time, Ning Yi raised his head and saw the young girl's gaze. They looked at each other for a moment before he heard her say softly, "Young Master, do you miss Miss and the others?"
In such a situation and environment, interacting with each other was often an extremely depressing matter. In the chaos of war, people were like ants. Ever since she was captured, Xiaochan had always been together with Ning Yi. In the first few days, she even had to hold Ning Yi's hand to be at ease when she slept. She even thought in her heart that no matter what, if someone wanted to separate her from her young master, she might have to die.
Such a thing did not happen, but there were doctors, injured people, and the two guards watching them from the beginning. Perhaps there were people secretly watching the two of them. Even though they said some comforting words to each other, the two of them did not really talk too much about the current situation. They did not want others to see their thoughts on this side or understand the weakness in their hearts. Xiaochan only told herself that it was good to be with her young master. She should not ask about other things, and it was useless to ask. If the young master had a way, he would ask her when he needed her. If not, she would only cause trouble for the young master.
Within a short distance, there were many people. Under the atmosphere where it seemed like there were people watching them at all times, the two of them subconsciously maintained their silence. They tried their best to recuperate, work, and live as they did in the past. In this way, they might not collapse. However, it was only tonight, in this temporarily safe atmosphere where the whole world seemed to be isolated, that Xiaochan could ask this kind of question in a low voice.
Ning Yi looked at her for a long time and closed the book, "I also want to. I wonder how they are."
"Miss and Sister Juan'er and Xing'er should have returned to Huzhou, right?"
"Your Miss is too stubborn, but …" Ning Yi thought for a while, "She also knows the priorities of the matter. If there are no accidents, I think she will be fine."
Xiaochan nodded, hugged her knees, and rested her chin on them. After a long time, she looked at him again and said softly, "Young master, can we … still go back?"
Perhaps she had held this question in for a long time and knew that there was not much meaning in asking, but girls still wanted to have a backbone. Ning Yi nodded, and like the previous question, he did not want to be perfunctory, "There is a chance. They caught us, but they did not punish us, so there will always be a chance. Besides …" Ning Yi paused, and then just nodded, "Don't worry. Just like when we were escaping, there will always be a chance. Who knows when I will find a loophole and bite them."
Xiaochan pursed her lips, "Young master, please don't get hurt again …"
"Heh …" Ning Yi laughed, and then his eyes turned cold, "In fact, we were caught not only because Fang La's people are powerful, but also because our people are powerful."
"Huh?" Xiaochan's eyes widened.
"According to what you said, Xiaochan, before we were separated, there was a vague news that Fang La's army wanted to catch me. At that time, I was unconscious, so I didn't know about it, but at that time, Fang La's army had regrouped, and they were beaten along the way. They sent a large group of people to protect me, but I was found out later. It might be Tang Xiuxuan or Chen Xingdou. These people used me as a bait … "
"W-what?" Hearing Ning Yi's words, Chan 'er clenched her little fists and stood up, "How, how could they do this? Young master, you have saved all of them …"
Seeing her indignant look, Ning Yi put down the book with a smile, reached out to hold one of Xiaochan's hands, and pulled her to him. The young maid who was angry just now blushed, but Ning Yi didn't stop. He had been sitting on the only stool in the room, but now he sat on his lap with Xiaochan in his arms. His movement was so natural that Xiaochan shrunk and didn't dare to resist. She could only hear Ning Yi talking at the side.
"There's nothing strange about it. Firstly, these people have been in power for their whole lives, and my contribution is too great. Perhaps I can only highlight the incompetence of these people. The situation in between is very complicated. Secondly, Liu Dabiao, who wants to catch me, should have a very strong background. They have been chasing me relentlessly, and there's a lot of pressure here. Using me as a bait might just be a plan. It's my bad luck that it came true … If I hadn't fallen sick at that time, I would have been on guard.
Ning Yi smiled, "Of course, if I hadn't fallen ill, they wouldn't have dared to do such a thing. Ha, in that situation, they sent a small group of people to protect me, but they weren't with the army. Once the enemy rushed over, what meaning would it have? If they go back now, and I'm not here, the credit will be in the hands of Tang Xiuxuan, Chen Xingdou, and the others. They won't have to compare themselves with me. This is the real best of both worlds, and everyone is happy. After listening to you talk about the situation in the past few days, I have a general understanding. "
Xiaochan suppressed her blushing face, "They are like this … if we go back, if we go back …"
"We can talk about the things after we go back. It's useless to be angry now. I'm actually a bit worried about your Miss and the child in her belly. There should be people coming to talk to me in the next few days. I will ask them, and there should be … an answer. In fact, I already feel that it's a bit late, but the later it is, the better. If it's possible, Xiaochan, I will send you back, but it's hard to say now. It's more likely that we will probably stay here for a long time … "
Ning Yi's words were a bit messy. At this time, Xiaochan was held by him, and her mind was in a mess. It was difficult for her to analyze the issues of chatting, whether it was early or late, but the last sentence could be understood, "I, I … wherever the son-in-law is, Xiaochan will be there …"
"En." Ning Yi nodded, "Then, it's getting late. Actually, it's time to sleep."
"Uh …" Xiaochan's body suddenly tightened, "But …"
Before she finished speaking, Ning Yi had already picked her up. Xiaochan's mind was instantly confused. She almost curled into a ball in Ning Yi's arms, but she was stiff and didn't dare to move. It was raining outside.
There was only one bed in the room, and she was placed on the bed.
In fact, some things might not be completely unprepared for. For both of them, this was the case. Ever since Ning Yi fell from the roof in the afternoon and she couldn't sleep on her little bed, the little maidservant might have already thought of some things.
For the entire night, Xiaochan didn't have anything to say, and she didn't dare to talk about it. As a girl, it was not good for her to talk about these things with Ning Yi, and she didn't dare to mention it. Later, Ning Yi talked about his thoughts, including that there would probably be no problems here, that there would be some opportunities, that they might stay here for a long time, and that he had been caught because he had been schemed against. He either calmed her down or made her think of other things, successfully diverting her attention. It was also at this time that he somewhat forced and naturally placed her on the bed.
According to Ning Yi's original thoughts, there should be a formal wedding ceremony and a formal wedding.
But now, there were no such conditions.
Under such circumstances, they depended on each other for survival, and it was impossible to see what would happen in front of them. Ning Yi had encountered similar dangerous situations before, but there was a limit to one's strength. Perseverance, temperament, and schemes could only increase one's chances of survival to a certain extent, but the overall situation was uncontrollable, and nothing was certain. Sometimes, he couldn't help but feel anxious under such circumstances, let alone such a young girl.
In fact, there would be more opportunities.
Although he didn't know much about the outside world, such as what Fang La's army thought of him, and why they kept him here, he had made a mess of the situation in Hu Province under his plan. Thousands of people died because of him, and he didn't know how many high-ranking officers in the Revolutionary Army were killed. Under such circumstances, he wasn't killed, and he was placed here in such a way, which meant that someone must be protecting him.
One important point was that if they killed him, there might be a unanimous opinion in the Revolutionary Army, but if they protected him, there would definitely be conflicts. There would definitely be more than half of the people who wanted to kill him. Under such circumstances, if it weren't for Xiaochan, he would actually have a lot more choices, including instigating discord between the two parties after familiarizing himself with the situation, and finding an opportunity to escape from the city on a rainy night. But with Xiaochan, he didn't need to consider these things anymore, and he could only wait for the other party to make the first move.
Of course, there was no need to let Xiaochan know about these things. She had been scared these days, but she didn't dare to say it. She could only try her best to endure it, and Ning Yi had seen it all. At this moment, there was no need to consider some trivial things anymore, and it was probably the best thing for him to do now.
For Xiaochan, there was probably only one thought that she should maintain for the whole night, including now, "I belong to the son-in-law anyway. I belong to the son-in-law anyway."
So, not long after, when Ning Yi went to the bed, he only saw the girl, who was already past her budding years, lying there nervously with her eyes closed. Xiaochan was now seventeen years old, and she had been an adult for a long time. Although her appearance was slightly childish, her body had already grown up. At this time, her hands were folded on her lower abdomen, and her slender legs were tightly closed.
Not long after, the rain was still falling, and the girl on the bed was stripped of her clothes. That night, in this corner of the city, when countless complicated things were pressing down on their lives like a torrent, the two of them left a mark on each other in the gap between their breaths …
*****
The rain stopped quietly in the middle of the night.
When he opened his eyes, Ning Yi saw the clear light of the night spilling down from the hole in the house. The air after the rain was soaked in the light, like green amber. Looking out from the huge hole, he could see the river of stars flowing in the sky.
No matter which era it was, only this galaxy was perhaps something that would never change. He had seen it many times. In different places, moonlight and starlight sprinkled down, different identities, different statuses, different states of mind. There were some scenes, such as skyscrapers, airplanes and ships. Then, in his mind, they turned into simple and unadorned buildings and courtyards.
"Son-in-law, son-in-law …"
"Son-in-law, son-in-law, Xiaochan …"
"My name is Xiaochan …"
In his mind, it was like the first time he heard this voice, and then his thoughts pressed down like a tide. He hugged the girl in his arms tightly.
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