Behind the kitchen, in the courtyard filled with the stench of swill, a shirtless bandit emerged from the linen tent, got off the bamboo couch, and lit an oil lamp.
He stared at Han Ximeng and Zheng Haizhu in surprise.
Like a toad in a pond staring at a pair of swans.
The mother-in-law rolled her eyes and said: "These are the rice seedlings collected by the first and second masters. They will be kept here for a few days before consummating the marriage. You open the door and escort them in. I will go to the kitchen to get some for them.
Something to eat."
The shirtless guy wanted to glue his eyes to the two women.
After a moment of confusion, he seemed to understand his mother-in-law's instructions. He sucked the saliva back from his gaping teeth, picked up the key chain from his waist, and opened the mottled door with a clanging sound.
The door was open, and the dark stinks of the dung, which was more dark than in the courtyard, and the sound of "snoring and snoring, 咩 咩 咩" in the depths of the darkness.
It turned out to be a fairly small livestock shed.
The shirtless man picked up the oil lamp on a clay plate and illuminated the wooden board in the corner which was raised by a few stones: "You guys, sleep here."
After saying that, he glanced at Zheng Haizhu's bound wrists. After all, he didn't dare to make a mistake, so he turned around and went out, locking the door again.
There are two small skylights near the thatched roof of the shed.
The faint light from the starry night leaked into the shed, which was better than nothing and helped Zheng Haizhu's eyes adapt to the darkness.
She tried her best to open her wrists a little to increase her mobility, then squatted down and unbuttoned the baggage, shook out three or four robes from inside, knelt on the dirty wooden board, and spread them out with difficulty.
Han Ximeng looked at her weakly.
Two hours ago, on the boat, after Zheng Shoukuan cut his own rope with a hidden pair of scissors, Zheng Haizhu did not hesitate to order his nephew to dive into the water to escape and report to the official, while he stayed.
Han Ximeng has taken in this pair of aunt and nephew from Fujian who came to seek refuge with their craftsmanship for half a year.
While watching dragon boats during the Dragon Boat Festival, she was squeezed into the water on the bridge. Zheng Haizhu jumped in with great agility to save her ashore. Therefore, she knew that Zheng Haizhu was very good at water.
But Han Ximeng is a landlubber.
Today, Zheng Haizhu did not leave her behind.
At that time, Zheng Shoukuan got out of the bamboo screen at the stern of the boat like a loach, and after sliding into the river, Zheng Haizhu moved his hands with difficulty, fished out the menstrual belt from the bag, found two porcelain bottles of water red and black blue dyes, and poured them in order
In the middle of the piece of cloth, he said firmly to Han Ximeng, "I will put it on for you."
Facts have proved that this trick indeed deceived the bandit leader and bought time to protect Han Ximeng's innocence.
At this moment, Han Ximeng just looked silently at this maid whom he had only just met but who had brought him a sense of security many times.
She wasn't going to ask the question, "Can Kuan call in the officers and soldiers from the inspection department you pointed out?"
As a master, being quiet and strong while waiting in a desperate situation is also an encouragement to loyal subordinates.
Zheng Haizhu laid out her Luo Yi, turned around and said to Han Ximeng: "Miss, just take a rest for now."
Han Ximeng sat on it, moved in, leaned against the wall made of thatch mixed with yellow mud, and said softly: "You can come and lean on it like this, it will be more comfortable. Don't sleep yet, didn't the old lady say that she would go and help us?"
Are you making food? We have to eat, otherwise we won’t have the energy to go out."
Zheng Haizhu was quite relieved to see that she did not lose her energy.
Then he climbed onto the wooden board, closed his eyes and rested his mind for a moment, and then said: "Miss, I dare to ask, has the Han family offended any villain before?"
Han Ximeng understood what she meant and agreed: "I also find it strange. When the one-eyed dragon robbed the ship, he broke into the hatch and called out my maiden name. But when my father was an official during his lifetime, his official reputation was clear, and my uncle always showed his affection.
Yu Danqing, how come there is talk of political enemies in the officialdom? My family does not force or torture tenants or shop workers, so who can we offend?"
"Other than me and Shou Kuan, who else knows about Miss Shoukuan's secret trip?"
Han Ximeng denied: "How could anyone else know about it? If they went to report it to my uncle and aunt, when we arrived in Suzhou, my uncle and aunt would have been so anxious that they would have sent the housekeeper to chase us. The embroidery senior had a perverse temper and didn't like the publicity.
But I was afraid that my uncle and aunt would be frightened and report to the official, so I only left a letter saying that I came to Suhu area to visit an expert."
Zheng Haizhu nodded and said thoughtfully: "In Gusu City, when we visited that senior, we also concealed his identity. Shou Kuan was very tight-lipped, and he was cleaning the court in the embroidery workshop every day, so he would not reveal anything.
Ah yo...hiss"
Zheng Haizhu was mid-sentence when she was bitten by a mosquito. Mosquitoes at the beginning of autumn are as fierce as tigers. Mosquitoes in this waterside place are especially poisonous. They sting people like thorns piercing the flesh. It stings and itches, making her scream out instinctively.
The sound comes.
Han Ximeng smiled bitterly and joked: "Mosquitoes only like you? I have been bitten several times."
The two of them were raising their hands to kill mosquitoes, but suddenly they heard a man's voice from the other end of the sheep pen and pig pen: "You two, I'll give you the mosquito net."
Even with such a mellow and pleasant voice, Han and Zheng were also completely shocked.
There is actually a man locked up in this thatched shed?
…
There was a soft squeaking sound deep in the greenhouse, as if the man was stepping on the bamboo couch. Then, the sheep in the pen, which had been sleeping at night, sensed someone walking by and started barking again.
The sound of iron chains came from far away, and it was only when the figure approached the skylight that Zheng Haizhu could clearly see the general outline of the man.
He is of medium build and wears a robe that is probably the most common type of jacket worn by men in the Ming Dynasty. He is holding a ball of something in his hand and holding it up on a long pole.
The man stood still seven or eight steps away and did not come any closer. He said slowly, "Just now, I was afraid that I might have made you two confused and confused late at night. I didn't say anything right away. I wanted to wait until daybreak. I didn't mean to eavesdrop on your discussion."
, accuse me and accuse me. A busy girl comes and gets the hemp tent. There are bamboo poles at the four corners of the tent, just stick it on the ground."
Han Ximeng saw that this man was also a prisoner with the same disease and spoke politely, so he didn't want to offend his good intentions and told Zheng Haizhu: "Go and thank this gentleman."
Zheng Haizhu hurriedly stepped forward and when he took the mosquito net, he bowed to express his thanks and asked curiously: "Those gangsters actually gave you a mosquito net?"
The man said: "It was brought by a young gangster during the day. I heard the guard call him the second in charge. It's really strange. The gangsters who robbed me were all fierce and vicious, but the second in charge I saw after they were locked up was kind and cheerful."
Han Ximeng stood up, and regardless of whether the other party could see or not, he made a blessing ceremony and said, "Excuse me, sir, why were you kidnapped by them?"
The man sighed and said, "They robbed me of my livelihood and killed my servants, but they didn't kill me. Instead, they tied me up and locked me up in a gangster's den. They didn't let me write a letter home to ask for ransom. I
I guess they want to hand me over to my enemies. My deadline is probably within these few days."
When Han Ximeng heard this, he couldn't tell whether it was a feeling of compassion for an animal that hurt its own kind, or the chivalrous spirit in his heart that suddenly emerged in the dangerous situation. He calmly said: "Sir, don't give up on yourself. If you act according to the opportunity, you may be able to escape.
Even if something unexpected happens to you, please tell us your identity right now. If you guess who your enemy is, please let us know. If the maid and I can go out, we can inform your family and report to your official position."