People in ancient times usually went to bed early, especially the servants who worked all day. After a long day, they would go to bed if they had nothing to do after dinner. When Yu Shu and Yu Xiaoxiu returned to the courtyard, all the lights in the rooms were turned off. There was still half a scallion pancake left in the kitchen, and the two of them ate it.
Yu Xiaoxiu went out to get some water to wash his face. Yu Shu found a pen and paper. She excitedly took out the Law of Clear and Rain that she had spent half a month to calculate and write on the paper.
For this law, she applied the Eight Gates Formula that Daoist Qing Zheng taught her. She used different hours and positions to calculate the weather for the next five days. She made a list and made a weather table for the last five days. She also annotated that day's weather on the side.
The position of the "Gate of Life" became a simple calendar.
Because she had used this Law of Clear and Rain to verify the weather she had recorded every day for the past half a month, the accuracy was as high as ninety percent. This made her very confident, and she also had a lot of ambition to study other laws. Unfortunately, her cultivation was not high enough, and her foundation was too weak. Even if she had Daoist Qing Zheng to ask, she couldn't study more deeply in a short time. She could only sigh.
When she finished calculating, Yu Xiaoxiu was already lying on the bed and ready to sleep. He urged her, "Go to sleep. Don't play so late today. Didn't you say you were going to slack off?"
Yu Shu folded the form and put it away. She looked at the sky outside and said, "I'm going out for a while."
Yu Xiaoxiu frowned, "It's so late. You're still going out?"
"I'll be back soon. Don't lock the door." Daoist Qing Zheng was still waiting for her at Jing Shang Tang. No matter how late it was, she had to go there. She hadn't caught the chess piece for today. If she didn't go, the old man would be angry and stare at her, saying that she was not motivated.
To be honest, if it weren't for Daoist Qing Zheng who always answered her questions, which was comparable to a living dictionary, and only let her catch chess pieces every day, she would have long betrayed her master. After playing chess for half a month, she did not feel any obvious changes. The only good thing was that she overused her brain and dozed off as soon as her head hit the pillow.
Compared to catching chess pieces, the "Eight Gates Incantation" was much more practical. At least when she went out to search for money, she had picked up two copper coins within five days. She was quite satisfied with the probability.
.....
As usual, Yu Shu finished her daily 'homework'. She tidied up the chess pieces and wiped the floor clean. She took out a charcoal pencil and a small booklet that she sewed with coarse paper. She leaned against the side of Qing Zheng's bamboo bed and asked, "Master, the Pain Gate is prone to blood. Other than retreating, is there any other way to avoid the disaster?"
The analysis of divinatory diagrams could be found in books, but the countermeasure to deal with it was passed down privately. The Headmaster of the Academy wouldn't teach it in class, so it had to be taught by the elders in private. Yu Shu and Yu Xiaoxiu didn't have this kind of waiting.
"If it's in the west, throw a copper coin when you go out. If it's in the north, bring a sharp weapon when you go out. If it's in the south …"
Qing Zheng didn't speak fast. Yu Shu only wrote down the main points. She didn't need him to repeat them. When she finished, she would continue to ask until Qing Zheng became impatient and asked her to leave.
"I'm sleepy. You can go."
Every time, Yu Shu would be cheeky, "Master, one more question. Just one more question."
If Qing Zheng was in a good mood, he would let her ask. If he was in a bad mood, he would turn his back to her and ignore her no matter how she pestered him.
Qing Zheng seemed to be in a good mood today. He didn't turn his back to her, but he didn't ask her any more questions either. He just told her, "It's late today. Come tomorrow as soon as it's dark. I'll teach you how to distinguish stars."
"Distinguish stars?" Yu Shu put the booklet away and stood up. She said casually, "It'll rain tomorrow night. I won't be able to see stars."
Qing Zheng stared at her and felt a little strange. He raised his head and asked, "How do you know it'll rain tomorrow night?"
Yu Shu's eyelids twitched. She scolded herself for talking too much. She giggled, "I heard it from the Headmaster of the Academy this morning. Why won't it rain tomorrow?"
Qing Zheng snorted, "I'll tell you about the star atlas first. You don't need to observe stars — remember to bring an umbrella."
The last sentence confirmed the saying that it would rain tomorrow night.
After Yu Shu left, he muttered in a low voice, "Is there anyone else in Yiyang City who can promote Full Moon Night Rain? I have underestimated these people …"
.....
The next day, the rooster crowed. Yu Xiaoxiu woke up Yu Shu, who was sleeping soundly. They put on their clothes and went out with fishing tools.
There were guards on night duty at the gate of the north courtyard. Yu Shu and Yu Xiaoxiu took a detour and jumped over the low wall of the big garden. They found the small garden where the carps were kept.
The morning dew was heavy, and the grass by the pond was wet. Yu Shu didn't let Yu Xiaoxiu down. She let him sit on the railing under the corridor and keep watch. She squatted by the pond, pulled a pole and a rope, and threw the bait into the pond. The sky was misty, and it looked like it was about to brighten. The fish in the pond were silver, white, gold, and red. Occasionally, one or two would swim up to the pond and make a clanking sound. The small garden was so quiet that it could be heard.
After about a quarter of an hour, a fat fish took the bait. Yu Xiaoxiu saw it and half of his body leaned out of the corridor. Yu Shu waved at him proudly. She picked up the fish and shook it to show him. Then she threw it into the bucket. Neither of them dared to speak loudly for fear of attracting people.
Yu Shu hung another fragrant bait and threw the fishing line into the pond again. She was staring at the chicken feather float. Suddenly, she heard a shout over the quiet dawn —
"Catch the thief!"
Yu Shu's hand shook, which scared away the fish in the pond. She turned her head and looked down the corridor. She saw Yu Xiaoxiu was looking at the other end of the garden and waving at her anxiously. He shouted in a low voice, "Sister, come up!"
Yu Shu immediately put away the fishing rod. She carelessly twirled it and accidentally got her hand scratched by the hook. It was so painful that she gritted her teeth. She didn't have time to look at it and just ran up the corridor with the fish in the bucket. At this time, she could see the torches in the courtyard next door. A noise was coming from afar.
"The thief ran that way!"
"Quick! This person broke into the Old Lady's bedroom. We can't let him run away! "
The sound came from both sides of the corridor. Yu Shu knew that she would run into people no matter which way she ran. She was anxious. If she was caught because of the thief, she wouldn't be able to explain herself. So, she looked around and saw the rockery behind the pond. She pushed Yu Xiaoxiu down the corridor —
"Xiaoxiu, go down."
Yu Xiaoxiu jumped down clumsily. As soon as he stepped on the grass, Yu Shu handed the bucket to him. He caught it and she also jumped down. She took the bucket and dragged him to the back of the rockery.
As soon as they hid, they heard a series of footsteps and loud shouts in the corridor outside. Yu Shu held onto Yu Xiaoxiu's arm tightly with one hand and stuck close to the mountain wall. She peeked through the cracks of the mountain rocks to see the fire and the figures outside. She didn't dare to make any noise for fear that someone with sharp eyes would discover them.
"Where are they! Where did they go? "
Yu Shu was unlucky. The fish hook scratched her palm, and her hand happened to be holding the bucket of fish. She wanted to hold it tightly, but when she clenched it, it squeezed her wound. Her wrist trembled in pain, and the bucket fell out of her hand.
"Oh!"
Yu Shu's eyes were wide open. Her mouth was covered by a hand behind her. Her scream was muffled. The bucket didn't make any sound. Instead, it was stopped by the tiptoe of someone and landed steadily on the ground.
"Shh, don't make a sound."
There was a low warning in her ear. A faint breath blew into her ear, mixed with a rusty smell of blood. It made Yu Shu's hair stand up on her neck. The person behind her easily held the siblings in his arms. His arms went around their shoulders and firmly covered their mouths.
Yu Shu didn't dare to struggle. She grabbed Yu Xiaoxiu's arm and exerted force. Yu Xiaoxiu moved a few times and then calmed down. The siblings were smart. They knew that the person behind them must have attracted the thieves. If they cooperated, he would probably let them go later. If they didn't cooperate and were caught, they would suffer with him.
Yu Shu twisted her neck little by little and squinted. She could barely see a corner of the black mask. Judging from the height, the person was more than a head taller than her. He was an adult man.
"Not here. Go over there and have a look!"
The group of guards outside stayed in the corridor for a while and then left with a lamp. Yu Shu didn't feel relieved because the person behind her didn't relax. He strangled Yu Xiaoxiu with one hand and stepped back to suppress Yu Xiaoxiu's struggle. He said to Yu Shu in a hoarse voice, "Take me to a safe place."
It was a little bright. Yu Shu squinted her eyes and looked at the arm of the masked man in a black mask who only showed his eyes on Yu Xiaoxiu's neck. She squeezed her palm.
"Follow me."
.....
After narrowly avoiding several waves of startled guards and servants, Yu Shu led the person to the yard involuntarily.
The sky was still dark and only the chicken was awake in the courtyard. Yu Shu pushed open the door and stepped aside to let the masked thief sneak in with Yu Xiaoxiu. She placed the bucket of water behind the door and closed the door. She unlatched the door and went to get a flint, but the man stopped her.
"Don't light the lamp yet."
"Hmm," Yu Shu obediently put down the flint and looked at the shadowy figures in front of her. She whispered, "This is where the two of us live. We won't run away. Can you let go of my brother?"
The man hesitated for a moment and let go of Yu Xiaoxiu. As soon as he was free, Yu Xiaoxiu pushed the man away and stood in front of Yu Shu. He stared at the man fiercely and said, "What do you want?"
The masked thief ignored him and sat down with the help of the table.
"Xiaoxiu," Yu Shu pulled him from behind and comforted him, "Keep your voice down. If he comes, we will be in trouble with him."
Hearing this, the masked thief looked at Yu Shu's direction and smiled bitterly. He whispered to her, "Little brother, don't worry. I will leave after treating my injury. I won't hurt you. Light the lamp."
Yu Shu patted Yu Xiaoxiu's shoulder and went forward to light the oil lamp. The bean-sized light illuminated this small area. She peeled off her sweaty bangs and looked up. She saw a pair of dark eyes. Her heart jumped. The masked thief stared at her and turned to look at Yu Xiaoxiu. He said to him, "Go get a basin of water."
Yu Xiaoxiu snorted. Yu Shu pushed him and reluctantly left with the basin of water.
When the door opened and closed, Yu Shu stood by the table and quietly looked at the masked thief. When she heard him let out a light sigh, she started to take off his clothes. In a few moments, he took off his clothes, revealing his tight upper body. His two chest muscles were tight, smooth and firm. If it weren't for the several sharp hidden weapons that were hissing with blood, Yu Shu would have calmly admired his good figure.
He tore his white clothes into strips and pulled out the hidden weapons from his abdomen. Yu Shu heard him let out a light snort. Although she couldn't see his expression, she guessed that he was frowning.
After pulling out the small things, he threw them on the table. He took out a medicine bottle from somewhere and sprinkled the powder on his wounds. He quickly wrapped two strips of cloth around his abdomen and touched his back. With a light hiss, he looked up at Yu Shu and said, "Help me."
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