The summer sun is streaming down, and the empty courtyard is filled with hot air. The clean bluestone road reflects the dazzling white light.
The large mansion that used to be crowded with people was now completely empty. The few maids and servants who often walked around the mansion were nowhere to be seen, and all the people coming and going were unfamiliar faces.
Zhou Wuhen was wearing dark clothes, rocking the recliner, and looking at the boy who was spraying water on the corridor. The dark clothes made her girlish face appear several years older, but her expression was relaxed and cheerful: "Yes, that Sprinkle more water on the place, it’s too dry today.”
The boy bowed his head respectfully and said yes, and brought out a few more new and shiny copper basins to fill the water.
The two sycamore trees in front of the courtyard are old, and their canopies are as tall as a canopy. Their thick shade blocks the white flowers from the sun, creating a touch of coolness and tranquility in the heat of May.
Zhou Wuhen waved his folding fan leisurely twice, took a sip of the sour plum soup that had been chilled for a long time, and narrowed his eyes comfortably.
No wonder everyone in the world has sharpened their heads and plunged into the officialdom, and would rather drown than look back.
This humiliation makes the maidservant's decay and depravity really comfortable.
It is much more comfortable than licking blood on the tip of a knife, living in danger and wandering around.
Not long after Zhou Wuhen felt comfortable, a burst of hurried and panicked footsteps interrupted the stolen tranquility.
"Water Saint, it's not good, that man is about to die." Ayong hurriedly walked out of the green shade and shouted in panic.
The rocking chair shook violently twice, and Zhou Wuhen suddenly jumped up from the rocking chair. His face was extremely ugly, and his voice was cold and stern: "Didn't I tell you to eat well, drink well, and take good care of you? How can a good person be so good? In two days, the person will not be able to do anything anymore?”
Ayong twitched the corner of his mouth, what do you call a good person? He didn't even have half his life when he came!
But he didn't dare to confront Zhou Wuhen, so he hesitated and said: "His injuries are too serious. He is a rough man in the lower ranks. He has never served anyone, and he has no right hand." He His voice gradually became lower, and finally he was so guilty that he could not speak.
None of these people know how to serve others!
I'm just too lazy to wait!
Zhou Wuhen glanced at Ayong casually, and said with a half-smile, "What, you mean, you don't know how to serve, but I can?"
Hearing this, Ayong trembled three times for no reason.
Serve people? Stop being ridiculous, Zhou Wuhen only tortures people!
Even if she could serve others, he didn't have the guts to ask her to do so.
Do you think you have a long life?
He muttered nothing and could only carefully look at Zhou Wuhen's face one after another.
Zhou Wuhen sneered: "Isn't he just asking for girls to serve him? There is a shortage of everything in this mansion, but there is no shortage of girls. Just find any one from the inner courtyard to serve him!"
Ayong exclaimed and turned around helplessly, preparing to go to the inner courtyard to pick out a timid girl.
Unexpectedly, as soon as he took two steps out, he was stopped by Zhou Wuhen again.
"Wait a minute, is that person named Zhang Di waiting in the front yard?" Zhou Wuhen squinted and asked thoughtfully.
"Yes, she is new here. She is very unfamiliar with the people and things in the house. She didn't see anything wrong with us, so we kept her waiting in the front yard." Ayong paused slightly and thought for a moment. He added: "That's a country girl. It's her first time in Beijing. She's quite honest."
"Then let her be the one." Zhou Wuhen made the final decision: "She is not familiar with the house, and she has a black eye in the capital. She doesn't know anyone, and it will be death if she escapes."
In front of Zhou Wuhen, Ayong said yes without raising any objection, turned around and went out.
The back room in the front yard was originally used by the servants, but it is now empty, with half-old thin quilts piled on the big bunk.
Zhang Di huddled in the corner holding the quilt, her face was pale and her whole body was trembling.
She watched helplessly as there were fewer and fewer people in the back room, until finally she was the only one left.
She didn't know what happened in this mansion, but she knew very well that everything here was completely different from when she first came here.
The people she knew disappeared one after another. They said they went to Yuhua Mountain with His Highness the King of Han.
But the time was wrong, and those people disappeared after His Highness the King of Han set out for Yuhua Mountain.
The people who stayed in the house were all vicious. She was locked in the back room and could not and did not dare to move around at will.
Every day and every night is like meat on a chopping board, and the knife hanging over my head may fall at any time.
But Zhang Di was never a person who resigned to fate and was slaughtered by others.
She glanced at the bright sky outside the window worriedly, remembering the words her brother left when he came for the last time.
King Qin, King Qin supervises the country and governs its affairs!
Her eyes lit up, and her hands gripped the corners of the quilt tightly, her knuckles turning white.
Suddenly there were footsteps outside, and her expression changed. The panic on her face disappeared in an instant, revealing a humble smile, her eyes expected, and she looked timidly at the door.
As expected, the footsteps stopped outside the door, followed by the sound of the lock being unlocked.
With a "squeak" sound, the door opened, and bright sunlight leaked into the room unexpectedly.
A faint wisp of light dust circulates in the misty light.
Zhang Di threw away the thin quilt, jumped down from the bunk bed, threw herself in front of Ayong, and said eagerly and happily: "General Manager, has His Highness sent someone to pick me up and go to Yuhua Mountain?"
Ayong looked at the girl in front of him without words, and almost wanted to look up to the sky and sigh.
How could there be such a stupid girl!
How did someone so stupid survive!
There is no justice!
In their sect, such a stupid girl would have been eaten to the point of leaving no bones!
Ayong coughed slightly: "Well, His Highness has sent a message, asking you to run an errand. If you do it well, I will take you to Yuhua Mountain immediately."
Hearing this, Zhang Di's eyes lit up and she grinned. Her smile was as bright as spring. She could see through it with just a glance: "What errands are, just follow the steward's instructions. I will definitely do it beautifully!"
Zhang Di agreed so happily that Ayong's prepared words were useless. He was stunned for a long time. It wasn't until he heard Zhang Di calling him that he came back to his senses and said with a serious face: "Then follow me. Let’s go.”
Zhang Di nodded obediently.
Zhang Di had been staying in the front yard for more than a month and was already familiar with the place. However, she staggered as she followed A Yong around and around.
She never expected that there would be such a damp and cold place in the bustling city.
She opened her mouth in shock.
"You've never been here before, have you?" Ayong was walking in front and suddenly spoke quietly without looking back, startling Zhang Di.
Zhang Di calmed down and timidly whispered: "I don't know the way."
Ayong smiled lowly, said no more, and walked straight into the cold corridor.
The sound of bamboo is like the sound of waves, and the sunlight penetrates through the bamboo forest, sifting through the dark and dancing bamboo shadows all over the ground.
Wherever the wind passed, a rustling sound came from the depths of the bamboo forest, and there was a coldness in the sound.
Zhang Di felt as if she was being stared at by a venomous snake. Chills ran down her spine. She was so startled that she turned around again and again, but there was no one behind her.
Ayong still didn't look back, but as if there were eyes on the back of his head, he saw Zhang Di's panic and expression in his eyes, and couldn't help but shake his head and smile again.
Clumsy and timid, he is really useless except for serving others.
At the end of the bamboo forest, there are two low-slung houses half-hidden. The window lattice is broken and most of the gray tiles have fallen off.
Looking at the scene in front of him, Zhang Di suddenly felt like a thunderbolt struck from the sky.
How could there be such a desolate land in the majestic palace?
Ayong unlocked the big lock on the door, pushed the door open, and said to Zhang Di, who was standing dumbfounded, "Come in."
Zhang Di couldn't recover for a while and walked into the house numbly.
There was a pile of dry, yellow straw in the corner of the room. On the straw lay a half-dead man, covered with a thin, old brocade quilt.
Positive
Light filtered through the dilapidated windows, and the room without lights was dim and dim.
The house smelled of decay and mold.
Half of the man's face was reflected in the sun, and half was submerged in the darkness. It could be vaguely seen that his face was sallow, his cheeks were sunken, his lips were pale, and his complexion was extremely poor.
Zhang Di's heart skipped a beat, and she looked at Ayong in confusion: "General, manager, what is this?"
Ayong glanced at the man whose breath was weaker than yesterday, and sighed: "This is the person His Highness wants. His Highness orders you to take good care of him and don't let him die."
Zhang Di hesitated, with a look of difficulty on his face: "General, manager, look at this person, hurry up, he is almost hopeless."
Ayong raised his eyebrows slightly: "What, can't we do it? Then don't go to Yuhua Mountain. If you do, you will make His Highness angry!"
Upon hearing this, Zhang Di became anxious and said in a panic: "No, it can be done. It can be done. I will definitely not let him die."
Ayong nodded: "The door is locked. Your bedding, food and his medicine will be delivered to you shortly." After saying that, he took out a small and exquisite golden bell from his sleeve and handed it to Zhang Di. He said, "If anything happens, just ring the bell."
Zhang Di took the golden bell hesitantly, and it was smooth and cold. She held it tightly and finally made up her mind: "Yes, I understand."
As the door lock sounded, Ayong's footsteps gradually faded away, and the sound of the bamboo sea continued to flow into the room, Zhang Di's heart suddenly panicked.
She thought that after leaving the back room, she would be free and could wait for an opportunity to escape. However, she did not expect that she would go from one prison to another. .
She's locked up again!
And he was locked up with a strange man who only had one breath left!
How unlucky!
She stood under the window for a moment, took a deep breath, and slowly walked to the man.
With the sunlight falling on the man's face, he looked carefully.
She was far away, so she couldn't see very clearly. Now that she was closer and took a closer look, she felt a twitching feeling in her heart.
Why is it him!
It's him!
She incredibly moved closer to the man's face, wanting to see it more carefully and clearly.
Unexpectedly, the man suddenly opened his eyes, grabbed Zhang Di's neck with his left hand unexpectedly, and pressed her to the ground.
