When Cheng Ruoxuan woke up, the first thing he saw was the dilapidated roof.

She stared blankly for a moment, then sat up slowly—the three souls and seven spirits seemed to have just been withdrawn, and all her movements were much slower than before, and it was very difficult to get up. The quilt on her chest slid down, and she realized that there was something wrong with the clothes on her body. The blue cloth clothes that I had never seen before were old and stiff, but they were still clean.

Someone mumbled "hey".

This is a gentle female voice. Cheng Ruoxuan looked over with the sound, and his neck stiffened when he turned his head.

It hurts.

She woke up completely, raised her hand to rub her shoulders and neck, only to find that there was pain everywhere in her body, and her bandaged palms were like fire.

Pain is a good thing, Cheng Ruoxuan thought, she is still alive.

And all five senses.

She greedily perceives everything around her, sight, hearing...... You can even smell the smell of meat wrapped in firewood.

Her shriveled stomach seemed to be hiding in an invisible little beast, snorting aggrievedly and purring and growling: it is so hungry.

Cheng Ruoxuan said in his heart, he probably woke up hungry.

She pressed her palms to her abdomen to soothe her, and twisted her neck with difficulty, this time finally turning her head, only to see the falling curtain covering a thin back. She had no choice but to withdraw her gaze and look around blankly. Everything in this room was completely different from the bedroom she remembered. The windows were decaying, the walls were gray, and half-woven fishing nets hung on the moth-eaten wooden shelves by the doors.

Where is this?

She tried to move her limbs, but other than the pain, it didn't seem to be a big deal. She lifted the futon and got out of bed, but her feet were weak and she fell to the ground. As soon as the curtain moved, the woman who had just been alarmed by her reappeared. This woman was dressed as a peasant woman, with a hairpin cloth skirt, her face was burnt yellow, and her eyes were clear and bright. When she saw Cheng Ruoxuan's miserable state, she said "hey" again, and immediately put down the dishes and chopsticks, and came over to help her get up.

"I'm sorry." Cheng Ruoxuan was quite apologetic when he saw that he had caused trouble to others again. She struggled to her feet, saluted again, and said "Thank you, sister."

The peasant woman only waved her hand, gestured to make her sit down, and brought the dishes and chopsticks over to her, motioning for her to eat.

It turned out to be dumb.

Cheng Ruoxuan originally had something to ask, but when he saw this, he couldn't speak again, so he had to follow the peasant woman's wishes and take over the warm soup bowl. That's where the smell of meat comes from. The color of the soup is not very bright, and there is a chicken leg lying under a few heavy oil flowers, yellow, yellow, white and white, and the meat is compelling. Her maternal grandfather, Pei Yizhi, once suffered from thirst quenching disease, so he paid special attention to light health. This kind of food can't be served in Pei's family. But now Cheng Ruoxuan is extremely hungry, so he just buries his head in hard work, and he has no beautiful image at all.

"This time is different from the past", when she swallowed her mouth full of oil, she suddenly remembered what her aunt Mrs. Pei had said. When Mrs. Pei saw her appearance now, she was afraid that she would frown again.

Seeing that she had a good appetite, the peasant woman showed a reassuring smile, then pointed to herself, and then pointed out of the house, then got up and went out, and did not come back for a long time. Cheng Ruoxuan thought to herself, the life of a farmer is hard and busy, and this peasant woman may still have a lot of work to do, so she really has a heart to spare so much time to take care of her. After drinking the soup, she felt that her energy had recovered considerably, and she struggled to get up, intending to wash the dishes.

She is still playing a maid. She can't let her mind slack until she figures out where she is. What if—she thought—the peasant woman was so kind and amiable, what if this was a den of mountain bandits?

She lifted the curtain and saw a small chapel with a square table and two round-legged stools. A ray of sunlight came in through the crack in the wooden door, and at the intersection of light and shadow, a team of ants passed slowly. Cheng Ruoxuan followed them out of the house and went to the courtyard.

It's a sunny day. Under the hood of the afternoon sun, the walls of the yellow mud courtyard seem to glow. Cheng Ruoxuan raised his hand to build a pergola, squinting at this small world. A fishing line was drawn between the courtyard walls, and it was stretched out by a few clothes with particularly water marks. The breeze blew, and those wet sleeves and trouser legs swayed with it, and it was very lively. Two pom-pom-pom chicks swayed through the mottled light and shadow everywhere, as if they had mistaken the laundry tub for a trough, pecked a few times, only to realize that something was wrong for a long time, and walked away lazily. The sun was soaking everything up.

Cheng Ruoxuan suddenly turned his head vigilantly.

There was a young man with thick eyebrows and handsome eyes on the wall, looking at her with a smile. The man was in rags, with a half-full quiver on his shoulder, and a few feathers on his sleeve. It was a heroic young hunter, who now folded his long legs and sat idly on the wall, when the scorching sun collected the brilliance and quietly moved behind him.

The young man opened his mouth first: "Is the wild crow delicious?" There was a bit of banter in his tone.

When Cheng Ruoxuan heard this, he unconsciously glanced at the soup bowl in his hand, raised his eyes and said, "What are you bluffing me for?" I can tell if the bird that cooks the soup can fly. "That's the truth. The Pei family has a casual family banquet, the ingredients are rich, the sources are diverse, and the cooking is exquisite, ordinary people may not have seen it. Cheng Ruoxuan does not leave the house, and the knowledge about the characteristics, origins, and quality of various animals obtained from the dinner table may not be as good as that of a hunter who is confined in a field. She made up for this insight: "I used to help in people's kitchens. ”

"I really don't see it." The young man looked at her, "Look at you, you are white and pure, more like a delicate lady who does not distinguish between grains and grains." ”

Cheng Ruoxuan was suspicious and denied: "I'm not Miss Jiao. ”

"You have ten fingers like shallots," the boy refused to believe, "and the fire girl doesn't have such hands." ”

Cheng Ruoxuan's face did not change, "There are many kinds of girls in big families. Half a year after I entered the house, I have been by my lady's side to take care of her, and I have never done heavy work again. She didn't plan to give the young man another chance to continue to find fault with a pair of eagle eyes, so she asked bluntly: "What are you chasing and asking me about my life experience?" ”

The young man looked at her twice, and seemed to be a little shaken, but he still said, "Naturally, it depends on how much favor you can afford." His gaze fell on the soup bowl in Cheng Ruoxuan's hand again, "Sister Ah Hui is really willing to kill all the hens that lay eggs for you." Hey, she's not home at this time, is she? Let you, the patient, run around on your own. ”

Cheng Ruoxuan unconsciously looked at the headless and brainless chickens running around on the ground. But she quickly looked back and asked the boy, "Do you know about me?" ”

"You're not impressed?" He stared at her so loudly as he spoke.

Cheng Ruoxuan could only shake his head.

"Isn't this just how forgetful the nobles are?" The young man on the wall got up and sat up straight, putting on a serious appearance, "Okay, I'll tell you, you can settle the accounts yourself." Three days ago, I went into the mountains to hunt, and I saw you soaked in water, and I thought I couldn't think of it. When I got closer, I found that although you were unconscious, your face was full of unwillingness, and it didn't look like you were looking for a short-term sight at all. It's a bit of trouble to save you, but you're originally a person who wears Qiluo's clothes," the young man said this, looking at the patches on Cheng Ruoxuan's coarse cloth clothes, and somehow amused, "I guess you can afford this favor." ”

Cheng Ruoxuan was silent for a while before he said, "It turned out to be a life-saving benefactor." She flipped through the history books of the Fourteenth Dynasty, and it was the first time she had seen a life-saving benefactor who was in such a hurry to ask for compensation.

"I'm embarrassed when you say that." The young man's face was clearly not embarrassed at all, and he simply recognized the words "life-saving benefactor", "Actually, I am a big man, and it is not convenient to take care of you, fortunately, Sister Ah Hui is willing to accept you, so don't forget her." ”

The young man's life-saving grace was all verbal, but the peasant woman was really good to her. Cheng Ruoxuan said: "The grace of dripping water should be reciprocated by the spring." But I'm penniless now, and even this dress belongs to your sister Ahui. ”

"What's the hurry," the young man waved his hand, "whether you say you're a young lady or a girl, in short, it's good to be a little girl from an official family, and she has come to us, the family should have been in a hurry, right?" What is your name and where is your home? Listen, maybe I can help. He finished this with sincerity on his face, and made up for it again, "Help people to the end, and when you get home safely, it's not too late to calculate a general account." We countrymen, the interest will never be as high as the history of the money caught by your officials. ”

Cheng Ruoxuan didn't answer, but only learned the sincere tone and said, "But I also have to trust you." ”

"Why," the boy looked at her, "you can't believe it?" ”

"You interrogated me for a long time, why didn't you say who your surname was?" Cheng Ruoxuan asked unhurriedly, "Are you specifically here to ask me for debts, or are you looking for something to do with the master here?" What do you do without going through the main entrance? ”

"Aren't you interrogating me too?" Having said that, the young man was not annoyed, he said calmly: "My name is Jing Feng, what is your name?" ”

Cheng Ruoxuan said vaguely: "You call me Ah Xuan." "The names of government family members are usually not known to outsiders, and it is safe to pick out a single word.

"Oh, Ah Xuan." Jing Feng explained slowly, "The fourth brother of the Xu family has gone to sea, and I will come to the door now, and the long-tongued woman in the village may have to find trouble for Sister Ah Hui again." Actually, I'm just here to deliver something, and if I hadn't seen you come out, I'd have left my things and left. He was still observing Cheng Ruoxuan when he spoke, "Don't be surprised, this is the case in our village, there are people staring at the chewing tongue when the sesame is big." ”

Cheng Ruoxuan had no surprise on his face, nor was he curious. "Strange what? It's pretty much the same in my hometown. It's just that it's been a lot of years since I took it away, but I don't know if the township has changed. Her tone was calm and calm, but she was quietly pitiful.

Jing Feng looked at her twice, and his expression was a little complicated. She ignored it completely, and only said, "What do you want to give?" I can hand it over. ”

Jing Feng took out a paper bag from his arms, leaned over and handed it over, "It's actually for you." ”

Cheng Ruoxuan's face was inexplicable, and when he opened it, he saw that it was a few thin-legged ginseng whiskers. She has always had no worries about food and clothing, but she also knows that this thing is rare for poor people. She was amazed that this stingy life-saving benefactor was willing to spend so much money, and blurted out, "It's expensive, isn't it?" ”

Jing Feng said: "I thought you wouldn't wake up, but it's all about saving your life." ”

Cheng Ruoxuan was stunned when he heard this, and saw him scratch his head, and when his eyes turned back to her face, he was in that tone of concern and mockery, "But it's better now, since you have woken up, it will be recorded in your account." ”

Cheng Ruoxuan lowered her eyebrows slightly, hid her expression, and only shook her head like the maid she bought the year before last, and repeated it again as if it was painful, "It's very expensive." ”

Jing Feng said helplessly: "Even if it's really a girl, it's a girl from a big family, and you can always afford two wild sheep." I didn't produce this in the mountains, so I hunted wild sheep for it. He no longer let Cheng Ruoxuan say anything, just stuffed the ginseng whiskers to her, "Look at your miserable little appearance." Hurry up and make up for it. ”

Cheng Ruoxuan tried back and forth with him for a long time, and now he finally confirmed that this person looked at the fine scraping, but he was really kind enough to help her. She no longer hesitated, and raised her eyes to look at him: "You just said, can you help me?" ”

"Isn't that already helping you?" Jing Feng smiled, "What else is going on?" Tell me what you command, and keep the book. When he was yelling, there was a rattle of abacus beads around him.

Cheng Ruoxuan nodded, "I want to see Lizheng here, can you please point me in the direction?" ”