After the early dynasty, Zhu Yunwen called Qi Tai, Huang Zicheng, Fang Xiaoru and Xu Huizu to the Wuying Palace. The Son of Heaven wanted Shen Ruoliao to go on the expedition as a general or a general, Fang Xiaoru also agreed, while Qi Tai and Xu Huizu objected, because Shen Ruoliao had no soldiers under him, and he could not bring the palace imperial forest army to the battlefield as the commander of his Yulin Guard; And Shen Ruoliao himself strongly objected, repeatedly stating that he just wanted to be an ordinary soldier and learn slowly.

Huang Zicheng believes that Shen Ruoyu is a military attache of the third grade, so naturally he can't just go out as an ordinary soldier; However, he had no combat experience, and his men had no soldiers to follow, and he had not yet established his prestige in the entire army, so he could not be allowed to serve as a general. Therefore, he proposed that the Son of Heaven appoint Shen Ruoyu to accompany the army as a supervisor, and Zhu Yunwen and the other two civil officials immediately agreed. However, Xu Huizu had a different opinion, believing that since the Son of Heaven had told the general Li Jinglong to "do everything cheaply", he should completely hand over all military power to Li Jinglong to show his trust, so that the general could fight with peace of mind and without any worries. But now sending a prison guard is tantamount to telling him that the court is still not at ease with him, so he must send someone to keep an eye on him.

Zhu Yunwen listened to his words and was a little unhappy. According to Xu Huizu's meaning, an attendant like Shen Ruoyu, who is inseparable from the Son of Heaven every day, should not leave the Beijing Division to go to the battlefield. A confidant of the Son of Heaven, no matter what position and title he uses in the army, is a hint of distrust of the general.

Zhu Yunwen finally followed Huang Zicheng's suggestion, appointed Shen Ruoxiao as the superintendent, and left for Texas three days later.

When Shen Ruoyu returned home, Nangong Qiu was still sleeping. Dou'er said that Mrs. waited all night until lunch, and he did not come home; She couldn't stand it anymore, and finally fell asleep involuntarily. This time, instead of kicking the quilt as usual, he hugged the quilt tightly in his arms, as if he was still holding him in his sleep.

Shen Ruoyu couldn't bear to wake her up; He couldn't bear to wait for her to wake up, and finally see him, but he was going to tell her that I was going to war.

He left home and walked to the Jinghua Inn, wanting to find Hong Jiang and Jing Yuluo, but he didn't expect that neither of them was there.

Jinghua Inn does not have Jing Yuluo, so he is either in Kaiyuan Restaurant or Yuchun Building, and it is not a problem to find him. As for Hong Jiang, it's not easy to do, where can he go. Shen Ruoliao decided to go to Jing Yuluo first, and then inquire about Hong Jiang.

When he took the boat to the foot of the Yuchun Tower, it was already late. The evening breeze was blowing, and a large and gorgeous painting boat was docked on the shore, and I don't know which dignitary it was, and the curtains on all sides were hanging very low, for fear that people outside would see it. Shen Ruoyu was a little annoyed that he had picked the simplest light boat; If there is a cabin, he can hide and see who sneaked to the Yuchun Tower. He hadn't thought about what he could do by holding on to someone else's handle, but it was also interesting to see the invisible side of these high-ranking officials.

He went ashore, paid for the boat, and was about to step along, when he suddenly saw a maid following a masked woman approaching. Shen Ruoyu was slightly stunned when he saw the woman, and glanced at the snow-white veil under the brim of her hat attentively. There was no need to tell him, he immediately saw that the maid over there was the maid rouge in the painting boat that Taoyedu met by chance that day, this masked woman must be Liang Rushui.

When the two of them arrived at the dock, a butler-like figure came out of the painting boat, and bowed his hands and said:

"Miss Liang, please; My lord has been waiting for a long time. ”

Rouge whispered, "Girl, be careful." ”

Liang Rushui cautiously boarded the boat, and the housekeeper lifted the curtain, bowed respectfully, and waited for the two girls to enter the boat, and followed in, lowering the curtain. Immediately afterwards, the boat loosened its rope and slowly left the dock, and walked down the river, soon disappearing into the night.

Shen Ruoyu couldn't imagine what kind of "master" could invite an Oiran like Liang Rushui. Listening to Jing Yuluo's meaning, it seems that even with himself, the commander of Yu Linwei, who is a third-grade person, he can't have this face. Who is the person in the boat?

He entered the Yuchun Tower, found Jing Yuluo, and told the other party that he was going to fight, and asked Jing Yuluo to tell Hong Jiang to help him take care of Qiu'er.

Then, he left Yuchun Tower, but he didn't want to go home, so on a whim he called a small boat, and swayed aimlessly on the river.

Qiu'er had slept for a day, she should have woken up, and she must have been waiting for him again - how could he be so ruthless to make her wait for herself, two nights. But he was afraid to go home.

Shen Ruoyu sat at the bow of the boat, and the lingering in front of her eyes was still Yang Suqing's death, her miserable ghost-like remains, and blood all over the ground.

Now, the battlefield he once fled from had become his only way out, the only place where he could be freed. He wanted to be there, to let the devastation, let the fragments of all kinds of corpses that Xu Huizu said sink and numb himself, and let the resentment of Yan Jun slaughter him. His heart was stagnant and he wanted nothing more than to be liberated forever.

It was just overnight, just overnight.

Shen Ruoyu suddenly saw a gorgeous large-sized painting boat on the river in front of him slowly moving forward. He looked closely, and it seemed to be the one that Liang Rushui had boarded just now.

"Catch the boat, boatman," he said softly, taking out the money to pay the boatman, "stick to its stern, and leave me alone, and I'll go to the boat to do some tridity." ”

The boatman answered, and rocked the boat to the stern end of the boat. Shen Ruoyu left the boat like a dragonfly, jumped lightly on the stern of the painting boat, stood by the curtain of the hatch, and listened.

Inside is the voice of the talk. Two male voices, one female voice.

Silently, he lifted the curtain and looked inside.

A large and gorgeous room. He was taken aback; In the bright light, he clearly saw the two men sitting in front of him, one was Zhu Lu, the king of the valley, and the other was Xu Zengshou, the governor of Zuodu.

Shen Ruoyu put down the curtain, half confused. No wonder you can invite Liang Rushui's phoenix driver, the prince's face, even if Yuchun Lou has a big spectrum, it can't be refuted. However, he was puzzled, why did Xu Zengshou get involved again? It stands to reason that when King Gu summoned a Qinglou woman, he definitely didn't want to be seen by the court officials, so as not to make irresponsible remarks. This Xu Zengshou seems to have a great friendship with the king of the valley, either or there is some conspiracy in it.

Anyway, from the very beginning, Shen Ruoyu felt that he and Wei Guogong were not all the way at all, and he was very suspicious that they could be two brothers.

Suddenly, he heard a slight change in the conversation inside:

"Your Highness, the concubine really has to go back......"

"Why is Miss Liang in such a hurry? The girl's return to the vulgar place of Yuchun Tower really detracts from the girl's noble temperament. ”

Shen Ruoyu quietly peeked into the curtain again. Liang Rushui, who had been turning his back on him, lowered his head and said:

"The concubine has been bothering His Highness for a long time for no reason. Your Highness, it's better to rest early. The concubine will go back. ”

Xu Zengshou said with a smile: "In the middle of the night, the boat is in the water, and it doesn't land on all sides, where does Miss Liang want to go back?" The girl didn't know, in fact, His Royal Highness the King of the Valley specially wanted to leave the girl on the boat to spend the night together. ”

Liang Ru said quietly: "Cheap concubines are difficult to accompany; The concubine has been staying on His Highness's ship for more than an hour tonight, which has exceeded the routine of a concubine. Please ask Your Highness to stop the boat and dock and let the concubine go back. ”

Xu Zengshou smiled: "Did the girl misunderstand?" His Royal Highness the King of the Valley is above board and will not do anything that damages his identity and prestige. His Royal Highness just admired the beauty and nobility of the girl very much, and he really couldn't bear to let the girl stay in a filthy place like the Yuchun Tower. If the girl can understand His Highness's kindness, please do not refuse. ”

Liang Rushui said reservedly: "Of course the concubine understands that His Royal Highness is sincere. However, concubines have always had their own principles, and things that go beyond their principles, please forgive concubines for being difficult to obey. Please ask Your Highness to dock the boat. ”

Zhu Lu smiled lightly at this time: "Miss Liang, do you still want to get off the thief ship?" ”

Liang Rushui said coldly indifferently: "Since this is the case, the concubine had to leave the ship and go ashore by herself." ”

As she spoke, she stood up resolutely, turned and walked towards the hatch. Shen Ruoyu only felt that the hula in front of him was dazzling, which made him dizzy for a while, and he couldn't help but be stunned. Zhu Lu jumped up at this time, crossed in front of Liang Rushui, and blocked her way.

"Don't be so dead-eyed, girl; There is water all around, how can you possibly get ashore? ”

Liang Rushui said coldly: "Please give way to Your Highness." The concubine is swimming ashore by herself, and she can't disturb His Highness any more. ”

Zhu Yu said: "The girl must swim across the river, please leave your clothes, alone in front of you, no matter what, you want to leave the girl's fragrance on this boat." ”

Liang Rushui's cheeks immediately flushed, and he said coldly: "His Royal Highness the King of the Valley, please respect yourself." ”

Zhu Lu sneered: "Miss Liang, my King Gu still knows his identity, I am the prince, so I can't show up to see you, I can only hide on the boat, but this should already be a great honor for you, right?" You are just a Qinglou woman, what kind of reserve and self-esteem do you have in front of Lonely? Pretend. ”

Shen Ruoyu turned around and stared blankly at the dark river for a while. The sound of running water hit his ear drums, and for a moment he couldn't hear anything.

He had never seen such a beautiful woman, so big, whether in reality or in dreams, he had never seen it.

Is she more beautiful, or is it the mother?

Even he felt that his breathing and heartbeat stopped for a while, no wonder Liu Tingbing was deeply immersed in it in an instant, unable to extricate himself.

He was stunned for a moment, but there was an exclamation of rouge from the boat. He was slightly stunned, realizing that Liang Rushui was in danger, and he was in a dilemma. He can't watch a beautiful woman fall into the wolf's mouth and sit idly by; But he can't provoke the king of the valley for a woman, this person seems to have some skills, if he provokes this prince, I'm afraid he won't be able to eat and walk around.

Previously, he served by the side of the Son of Heaven day and night, even if someone wanted to destroy him behind his back, it would be difficult to have the space to start. But now, he is going to go to the battlefield away from Jingshi, and it is inevitable that many people will take advantage of the situation and want to pull him off the horse. His baby Qiu'er wants to stay under the nose of the Son of Heaven, he can't be so unscrupulous.

What's more, King Gu came all the way from the Xuanfu in the rear of King Yan to come to Jingshi, what was his real purpose, Shen Ruoyu was still very suspicious.

With a plan in his mind, he walked lightly to the side of the boat, leaned down to probe the autumn wind into the water, and silently lifted a plank that was submerged under the surface of the river, and unloaded it.

In an instant, a large hole was exposed in the boat, and the river poured into it desperately. The stern of the boat immediately and quickly tilted towards the bottom of the river. The boatman, who was standing at the bow of the boat, immediately sensed that something was wrong and shouted that it was not good, and that the boat was leaking. The steward who was standing in the boat immediately ran out to check what was going on, but when he saw that the stern of the boat was gradually submerged, he did not even have time to look for the hole in the bottom of the boat, so he ran into the boat in a hurry to report to his master.

The boatman was very experienced, and at this moment, he had realized that the shipwreck was irreversible, and he fought for the rest of his life to rock the ship to the shore. Zhu Lu and Xu Zengshou had already run to the bow of the boat in a panic. Even the reserved Liang Rushui couldn't calm down, and stumbled onto the bow of the boat under the pull of the maid rouge, and had to be close to Zhu Lu. The catastrophe was coming, and the king of the valley did not have the energy to take the opportunity to break the precepts at this time.

The river was not very wide, and the boatman managed to pull the boat to the shore when most of the boat was submerged under the water. The ship sank as fast as it could; Zhu Lu and Xu Zengshou couldn't wait to jump ashore. With the help of the boatman, Liang Rushui finally stepped on the shore at the moment before the boat sank completely, so that his skirt and shoes were all soaked below the knee.

She was not embarrassed, but at the same time, she was even more annoyed that the two aristocratic men who were still molesting her just now were only running for their lives, leaving her dead and alive behind. She didn't say a word, though; Angry and angry, the women of Qinglou have always known what kind of men in the world are, and they will never expect anything.

She wasn't the only one who got wet; The two masters, a housekeeper and a boatman, all stepped on the water on both legs like her two women. Several people shook off the excess water on their bodies while twisting and shaking, and then, they all stood on the shore in embarrassment, looking at each other for a while, and it took a long time to recover, and they saw that the big painting boat that was still full of grandeur just now had disappeared in a blink of an eye, and they were all a little frustrated. Liang Rushui was more worried and frightened, not knowing what would happen next.

At this moment, Shen Ruoliao walked out of a dark shadow of a tree on the shore, obviously happened to be walking by, saw them, stopped and asked in surprise:

"His Royal Highness the Valley King? Lord Xu? ”

Zhu Lu and Xu Zengshou were very annoyed when they saw Shen Ruoyu appear at an inopportune time. In the middle of the night, a court official, a senior general of the army and a prince and His Royal Highness had a private meeting, which was suspicious, but if it was in the Hongwu period, it would definitely become a good spy opportunity that the Jinyi guards would never let go. What's more, at this moment, there is a glamorous and amazing Qinglou woman next to these two people as companions. If this word gets out, it will be too ugly to hear, and if you don't keep it, you will get into trouble.

Xu Zengshou replied coldly: "Isn't this Lord Shen?" It's so late, why don't you go home and wander alone on the banks of the Qinhuai River? ”

Shen Ruoyu said with a smile: "I just went to meet a friend, and now, I am about to go to Yuchun Tower, the night is so charming, it is a pity to ride a horse and a car, so I will walk along the river." ”

Xu Zengshou asked with some vigilance: "Lord Shen, what are you doing alone in Yuchun Tower so late?" It's not the place to be. ”

Shen Ruoyu deliberately sold him a flaw, so that Zhu Lu and Xu Zengshou thought that they could seize their handles, so as to ensure that the secrets of the two of them tonight were safe and sound, so as to dispel their doubts. He pretended to be a little panicked and embarrassed and hidden:

"Ah, this...... It's like, tell me, what can I do there, of course, it's just to find someone, find someone. ”

Zhu Lu and Xu Zengshou glanced at each other; The king of the valley said meaningfully:

"Lord Shen went to Yuchun Tower to find someone, Lone is a little curious, can you tell Lone to reveal? I don't think it's an official of the current dynasty, otherwise, my lord, you should go to the Teaching Workshop Department to find it, there will be no officials in the Yuchun Building, as far as Gu knows. ”

Shen Ruoyu blushed embarrassedly and said, "Your Highness, it's better not to get to the bottom of some things, it will cause unease." ”

Zhu Lu laughed and said: "That's right, Lord Shen, it's good that you understand, not only don't get to the bottom of some things, but if you know the truth, it's better to keep silent no matter what." Adults should understand, right? ”

"Of course, of course, the humble position understands, and His Highness can rest assured." Shen Ruoyu replied with a pretentious bow, and couldn't help laughing out loud in his heart. As if to hide his panic, he changed his tone and asked, "Your Highness, Lord Xu, you two are—these are all ...... Why are you all wet? ”

Xu Zengshou said: "Don't mention it; It's really bad luck. His Highness's painting boat leaked and sank inexplicably, just in a split second, and we almost drowned. ”

"Leaking and sinking?" Shen Ruoyu asked in surprise, "How come?" There are no reefs in the rivers in this area, and besides, His Highness's boat should be very strong, how can it be said that it will be broken? ”

"The devil knows; There is not even a ghost on the surface of this river, otherwise someone must be making trouble. ”

Shen Ruoyu asked sympathetically, "Then what are you two going to do now?" ”

Xu Zengshou looked at Zhu Lu, whose face was gloomy and speechless, then looked at Liang Rushui, and said:

"Your Highness is going to drive back to the palace; Xu is also going home. It was getting late. ”

"Then it's just the right way, let's go together," Shen Ruoyu said.

Xu Zengshou said: "This is not good, Lord Shen, His Highness suddenly sank the ship, without the slightest preparation in advance, and His Highness's ceremonial drivers are still waiting at the dock outside Jubaomen." Xu still accompanied His Royal Highness to take another boat back. ”

"If that's the case, the lowly man has to walk alone at night," Shen Ruoyu said with a smile, and suddenly pointed to the river and shouted, "Hey, it just so happens that there is an empty boat there." The boatman—"

The boatman who had carried Shen Ruoliao earlier was following Shen Ruoliao's instructions in advance, rocking the boat over as if it happened to pass by, and when he heard the call, he rocked it to the shore. When Zhu Lu saw the simple and dilapidated boat, he was 10,000 unhappy in his heart; He said coldly:

"How can Lone take such a cheap boat?"

Shen Ruoyu shrugged and said, "Your Highness, do you know what time it is now?" If you don't take this boat, there will be no such shop in this village, and you won't be able to go back to the palace tonight. ”

Zhu Lu had no choice but to get on the boat. Xu Zengshou took the opportunity to ask:

"What are you going to do?"

Now that Shen Ruoyu appeared and stuck his nose between them, King Gu could no longer be as blatant as he was just now. When Liang Rushui heard Xu Zengshou's question, he immediately bowed his knees and replied:

"The concubine has been out for too long, and my mother is in a hurry. The concubine will go back to Yuchun Tower. ”

"Yuchun Tower?" Shen Ruoyu said, "Then it just so happens that the two of us are on the way, why don't I send the girl back." It's so dark on the road, it's not safe for you two girls to walk. ”

Liang Rushui hesitated; She felt that nothing was safe, the Gu King's boat was not safe, it was not safe on the road, and it was even more unsafe in the Yuchun Tower. Of course, since the king of the valley is not safe, there is no reason for Shen Ruoyu to give her a sense of security. She politely refused:

"Lord Shen is bothered; The concubine should go back by herself. ”

Zhu Lu and Xu Zengshou's ship has been drawn; After Liang Rushui said this, he also turned around and left, almost in a hurry, for fear that Shen Ruoyu would pester her.

Shen Ruoyu didn't speak, only followed behind, and didn't hide, clearly letting Liang Rushui and Rouge see that he was following them.

walked all the way like this, Shen Ruoliao followed all the way, always maintaining a fixed distance, and without making a sound, Liang Rushui and Rouge were nervous all the way. When he arrived at the backyard of Yuchun Tower, Liang Rushui was just about to call the door, but Shen Ruoyu took two steps and rushed to the front of Liang Rushui, blocking the two women.

"Miss Liang went back like this, don't you think there's something missing?"

"What's missing?" Liang Rushui looked at him vigilantly, and said coldly: "The concubine came out like this, of course she came back like this, and she didn't lack anything." ”

Shen Ruoyu smiled kindly: "The girl is so nervous, she walked all the way, and she didn't even notice that she had dropped something?" ”

He magically reached out to her, and somehow conjured up a hat with a snow-white veil.

"The hat of the concubine," Liang Rushui was taken aback, stretched out his hand and was about to take it, but suddenly hesitated, withdrew his hand, and looked at Shen Ruoliao hesitantly.

"This hat, the concubine put on the ship of the king of the valley, should have sunk with the ship just now. How did Lord Shen get his hands on it? ”

Shen Ruoliao smiled absentmindedly: "Since you have the ability to scuttle a boat, it is natural to rescue the things on the boat." ”

After speaking, he couldn't help but put his hat in Liang Rushui's hand, looked at her face, and subconsciously lowered his head, as if his eyes were burned by the sun, and he didn't dare to look up again. He said:

"Miss Liang, there is a song composed by a friend here, I want to tell the girl, I don't know if I have this face?"

Liang Rushui hesitated for a moment, and said slowly: "Adults can come and listen." ”

Shen Ruoyu chanted Liu Tingbing's stunned words at the Taoye Ferry. Liang Rushui listened to him with some surprise, and asked hesitantly:

"My lord chanted this word to the concubine, I don't know what it means?"

Shen Ruoyu said: "Does the girl know who the author of this lyric is?" ”

Liang Rushui said: "Master Shicai has said it, he is a friend of yours, and he must also be a big man with both civil and military skills." This word is sad and delicate, the writing is smooth, it is indeed a good word, and it is very much in the style of Liu Sanchang. I don't know what the author's name is? ”

Shen Ruoyu smiled and shook her head: "The girl said the wrong sentence in the first half; The author of this word is by no means a big man, just an ordinary talented lyricist. But the girl's second half of the sentence is right, this friend of mine is famous for his literary talent in this capital, and the world calls him 'Xiaoliu Qi'. ”

Liang Rushui pondered for a moment, and said suspiciously: "The person the adult said, the concubine seems to have an impression, and it is called-...... It seems that the surname is also Liu......"

Shen Ruoyu said: "On the night of the Mid-Autumn Festival, at the Peach Leaf Ferry, it was he who received one or two sentences of Wang Xian's words "Peach Leaf Crossing" with the girl, the second young master of Liufu on Sanshan Street, Liu Tingbing. ”

Then, he politely saluted and said, "Girl, go in and rest early." Xiao Ke took his leave. ”

"Your Excellency is leaving?" Liang Rushui asked, "Didn't you just say that you were going to the building......

Shen Ruoliao smiled lightly: "His Royal Highness the dignified King of the Valley went to the Yuchun Building to call the girl, I, Shen Ruoliao, can't be so uninteresting, I have to show myself high in front of him." I'm just trying to find an excuse to send the girl back, what do I have to turn around in this Yuchun Building? ”

After speaking, he turned around and walked away in the night, leaving Liang Rushui and the maid Rouge at the door of the backyard of the silent Yuchun Tower, and stayed for a while.