"I was going to say that your apple is my share. My father, however, chose another way of saying that it was the difference between the selfish desires of the lord of the city and the welfare of the people, and although the result was the same, it was a completely different feeling for the people below. ”

This time, the girl didn't respond to him, the sound of the card in his ears became louder and louder, little Anthony moved his hand a little disappointed, but a big and red apple appeared in front of him, the girl's crisp voice sounded in his ears: "The biggest and reddest one in it, do you want to eat?" ”

She blinked, and added, "I wiped it clean!" ”

Little Anthony laughed softly, took the apple, took a bite, the two looked at each other happily, very tacitly, Ka Sha, unconsciously, the same smile was raised on the two young faces.

Under the apple tree, on the green ground, under the sunlight, a young handsome man, a beautiful girl, and two people looking at each other and smiling, are like a beautiful oil painting.

The archon watched this scene silently in front of the floor-to-ceiling window, the corners of his lips raised slightly, and said softly, "It seems that the lessons I have given you are not enough, little Anthony." ”

Before it was dark, the lower nobles at the foot of the hillside put on their most splendid costumes and walked early to the palace at the top of the hill.

The middle nobles on the mountainside got into their luxurious carriages and set off for the consul's residence.

The high-ranking nobles who lived further up waited until nightfall, and then they sat in the soft sedan chairs carried by the servants and appeared in the banquet hall.

It was a successful dinner, and the absence of the first lady made the ladies whisper, and when little Anthony was brought to the stage by the consul, everyone seemed to understand something - the first lady, probably never appeared.

Next, in the grand banquet, little Anthony became the well-deserved protagonist, and the consul gracefully gave up the most dazzling position to his son, and in front of his chair, not even a single maid, or other ladies, sat quietly on the throne behind him, leaving no room for the nobles attending the banquet, worthy of attention and discussion.

The banquet gradually came to an end, and the middle nobles were thinking in their hearts which daughters to bring with them at the next banquet, and the upper nobles planned to bring the daughters of the first lady to visit in a few days.

At this moment, the consul, who had been quietly smiling at his subjects, made his first move, and beckoned to the handmaidens who were leaning against the wall, holding snacks and drinks, and smiled: "Come, my child, come to my side." ”

Her body was stiff, although there were more than a dozen handmaidens standing next to her, but inexplicably, she knew that it was her who the consul was greeting!

At this moment, her body seemed to have self-awareness, and she resisted the archon's order incomparably, and her feet, as if nailed to the ground, refused to move a step forward.

The boiling banquet quieted down a little, and the archon always maintained the movement of stretching out his hand, but the smile on his face was cold a little.

She was chilled, her eyes fixed on her toes, as if she could carry this damn moment through it.

It wasn't until a shadow covered the light above her that she raised her head slowly, stiffly, and met little Anthony's handsome face, which looked at her with a solemn and serious face, and she at once, like a drowning person, saw a straw, and looked pleadingly at her only friend.

Little Anthony took a deep breath, stretched out his right hand, and spread it out in front of her, "Don't be afraid. ”

She stared at the palm that reached out to her, it was not a pampered hand, the whole palm was covered with a thin layer of calluses, the bones were distinct, the fingers were slender, and they looked strong and warm, like the hand of her father she had held in her childhood.

Looking at the unresponsive girl, he firmly stretched his palm forward again, and she finally hesitated, slowly, put her hand in his palm.

His large hand immediately closed and took her hand. classic

He took her by the hand and walked towards the archon in front of him, he looked ahead, his lips moved slightly, and in a voice that only she could hear, he whispered, "Don't be afraid—"

"He won't hurt you."

Surprise! Frightened!

She withdrew her hand as soon as possible, but his hand, like a prison cell, clamped her tightly.

His voice was still calm and calm in her ears: "My family, the thirteenth generation of the main mother, was originally a servant of the twelfth consul, the mother of the twenty-third consul, and the servant of the twenty-first consul. ”

"Our child, I can make him the thirty-third consul."

"So-"

"Don't be afraid."

Her struggle became more and more intense, and seeing the eyes of the guests become strange, he finally stopped and stared at her deeply: "Life is not as simple as you think, I told you, where have I been?" ”

"The Arbor City, the Frozen City, the Black Iron City—"

"But I'm still back, a wandering samurai, who can only do the lowest jobs, eat the best food, and live the most despicable life wherever he goes."

"If you have a child, do you want him to live like this? I don't even have a wife, so I can only use the money I have saved for the rest of my life to go to the public camp again and again to try my luck, those women are pregnant, but the child is not necessarily yours. ”

She gradually gave up struggling, and her eyes gradually brightened, and she didn't listen to what he said later, only a few names rolled over and over on the tip of her tongue: "Arbor City, Frozen City, Black Iron City-"

She hasn't been there yet! She hasn't seen it yet!

She finally calmed down.

Meek as a little rabbit, let him bring her to the consul, little Anthony looked his father in the eye, and said calmly, "I brought her to you, my lord." ”

The archon smiled at his eldest son, "Well done, my child. ”

He raised his chin at the girl again, "Sit down, child." ”

She supposedly sat down in the consul's chair, and sat on the cushion at his feet—a testament to the consul's favor, which had only been the consul's favorite handmaiden in recent times.

Her long hair fell, blocking most of her face, and she couldn't see her joy or anger, only her red lips trembled slightly, "Arbor City, Frozen City, Black Iron City-"

These names seemed to give her infinite strength, she slowly raised her head, her eyes were extremely determined to look ahead, but there was no focus, as if this full of jubilation did not exist in front of her, her gaze fell on the infinite distance, and that place, the name is hope.

She's the tomboy who's running around downtown again, fearless in order to fill her belly - Polya!