"What?" Qiao Yin was stunned.
Zhou Li looked at her stunned expression and wondered, "Did Miss Qiao also be trapped in the dungeon of Menghu Village back then?"
Qiao Yin nodded in astonishment.
Zhou Li nodded and said, "That's right. Miss Qiao looked familiar to me last time I saw her. I've seen your portrait, painted by General Xie."
Zhou Li seriously recalled: "Not long after General Xie escaped from the bandits' den, he fell into the hands of enemy spies. The enemy wanted to know the whereabouts of the city defense map and our army's deployment, but General I won’t recruit a single word.”
"Those two beasts did everything they could. They broke one of the general's legs. They used snakes, scorpions, insects, and ants during the day, and threw them into a deep well at night. You don't know that when General Xie returned to the military camp, he didn't have a good skin on his body. That leg Yeah, five military doctors from the West took me back all night."
"Everyone in the entire military camp usually goes to the battlefield without licking blood, but no one has ever seen someone as miserable as General Xie. They all said that if it were him, he would definitely not be able to bear such pain and would have given up committing suicide long ago. ”
Zhou Li recalled the scene at that time with a solemn expression, "But General Xie drew his last breath and drew a city defense map, and also drew your portrait..."
"General Xie's fingers were all worn to the bone because of climbing and escaping. He couldn't hold up a pen, so he could only hold the pen and scribble your portrait on the paper. But he was afraid that the drawing would not look like it, and he would draw it again and again. I've been told everywhere that your name is 'Ayin' and I must find you."
"After General Xie finished drawing your portrait, he immediately drew out the enemy's city defenses. He didn't dare to waste a moment. He just gritted his teeth and finished drawing everything before he was willing to fall."
Just listening to it, Qiao Yin felt his scalp numb and his hair standing on end.
She knew that Xie Yu'an must have been trapped and failed to come, but she didn't know that he suffered such hell-like torture.
He didn't even say there was anything cowardly about it, he was clearly brave and unparalleled.
"Following the general's instructions, we led people to annihilate the bandit den in Menghu Village, but we could not find the girl named 'Ayin'. After the general heard the news, he came from the military camp with injuries overnight..."
"The general didn't find anyone. He went crazy and shot the bandits with arrows. His archery skills were famous in the army, but no one had ever seen him be so ruthless. His fingers were dripping with blood, and he shot the arrows through the bandits. The feathers are all stained red, but the general wants to pierce the hearts of those bandits with thousands of arrows! He has to do it himself!"
"But there were too many bandits, and the general couldn't kill them, so he put them in a dungeon, threw them a knife, and let them kill each other."
"General Xie just sat outside the dungeon and watched them. If one of them died, he would light an incense stick in front of your portrait. He would kneel down and light incense for you all night long."
Zhou Li looked at Qiao Yin: "General Xie, who withstood the torture of hell, almost went crazy in Tiger Village."
Qiao Yin couldn't listen anymore. She wanted to see Xie Yu'an, and she wanted to see him now.
She ignored any etiquette, turned around and quickly boarded the carriage at the door, giving instructions to the coachman:
"Hurry up, leave now!"
……
Under the cliff, amid the white snow, are dotted with clusters of red plum blossoms.
In Fuyue Villa at the foot of the mountain, a group of people were busy.
After a morning of cleaning, Zhuangzi looked completely new inside and out.
The house was re-decorated, replaced with fresh phalaenopsis and daffodils, and the charcoal fire was lit.
Xie Yu'an also specially ordered someone to prepare a small red clay stove, simmering the sweet-scented osmanthus stuffed wine bought from the night market, as well as a variety of melon and fruit snacks.
Everything is ready, just waiting for the beautiful lady to arrive, enjoy the flowers and snow, and have a drink together.
"Young Master, I have taken people to look around Zhuangzi and on the Wanzhang Cliff. There is nothing abnormal. Several traps set by hunters have also been eliminated." A servant came forward to report.
Xie Yu'an nodded, "Thank you for your hard work. You can go to the side courtyard to rest. I will call you if necessary."
The servants stepped back and Xie Yuan checked again.
Hand warmers, melon and fruit snacks, sweet-scented osmanthus stuffing, and red plums that he personally picked from outside.
I heard from people in Zhuangzi that the red plum blossoms had not bloomed yesterday. As if they knew they were coming to enjoy the flowers, they all bloomed this morning.
God is good, Ayin will be happy to hear it.
While thinking about it, the sound of carriages and horses was heard outside, and Xie Yuan hurriedly walked out.
As soon as the carriage stopped, Qiao Yin got out of the carriage, jumped off the carriage hurriedly, and ran towards him.
Xie Yu'an went up to him, not worried that she would slip again. He had already had the snow on the ground cleaned up, but every time she ran towards him so enthusiastically, he had to catch her well and never let her go. Once failed.
"Xie Yu'an..."
Qiao Yin rushed into his arms and called him, with a heavy cry in her voice.
Only then did Xie Yuan realize that her face was stained with tears and her eyes were red.
He panicked, "What's wrong?"
Qiao Yin looked at him, a little angry, but more distressed.
I feel sorry for Xie Yu'an in Xi'an, and I feel sorry for Xie Yu'an who sticks to their agreement and remains unyielding.
"I know everything. What happened Xi years ago, you came back after a narrow escape, and you avenged me..."
Qiao Yin wanted to cry as soon as he opened his mouth, and his chest was filled with sore and swollen emotions.
It's all regrets, full of regrets.
Would he have felt better if she hadn't left earlier?
If... if there weren't so many mistakes...
Xie Yu'an looked at Qiao Yin who was crying in her arms, reached out and gently wiped away her tears, and said bitterly:
"When you find out, will you think I'm useless? Just two spies stumped me. I was late for five days. You must have been desperate during those five days."
Qiao Yin shook his head, his eyes full of tears: "My Ayu is the most amazing hero in the world."
"I'm crying so much, I can't say enough to praise you." Xie Yu'an wanted to make her happy.
The past doesn't matter anymore, isn't it now that all the hardships have come to an end?
Qiao Yin didn't know what to say, so she put her arms around his neck, pulled him down, raised her head and covered his lips with his.
The servants had already consciously avoided the two of them when they hugged each other.
The snow that had stopped was falling again.
Qiao Yin kissed him eagerly. Actions alone were not enough. She wanted to tell him that she loved him. One time was not enough, so ten or a hundred times!
"Xie Yu'an, it doesn't matter. It doesn't matter if you come five days late. I still love you, I love you to death."
The hot confession seemed to melt the snow between heaven and earth.
Xie Yu'an's head trembled, but he didn't feel sorry.
The mutual understanding between them at this moment is enough to heal all the regrets in the past.
"Me too, it doesn't matter. It doesn't matter that I'm three years and eleven months late. I love you like the moon and the sun. It only increases but never decreases."
Like the waxing moon slowly turning round, like the rising sun slowly rising, his love for her will always be more in the next moment than in the last moment.
Xie Yu'an's love words are always the most touching, and his lingering gaze can drown people's heads.
Qiao Yin stopped her tears and reached out to push him into the house.
Xie Yuan was caught off guard and pushed onto the cushioned couch by her.
Qiao Yin knelt on the couch and put her hand on his chest: "Let me see your injury."
Xie Yu'an lay on the soft floor, supporting his upper body with one hand and grabbing her moving little hand with the other, "It's too ugly, next time..."
Qiao Yin refused, and suddenly leaned forward, close to his face, looking at him with both eyes, "Didn't you say that sooner or later, this body, from the inside to the outside, will be mine?"
Xie Yu'an faced her burning gaze, rolled his throat subconsciously, and said in a hoarse voice, "Just looking at the injury?"
Qiao Yin lowered her slender waist, lowered her head and gently bit his earlobe.
"It's not impossible for General Xie to fulfill his obligations as a husband in advance..."
Note: 【Like the moon’s eternity (gèng is the same as ‘gentle’), like the sun’s rise. 】From "The Book of Songs·Xiaoya·Tianbao".
