"Do you remember your name?"
"Weila, my name is Weila."
"No, it's Ye Weila. Remember your name in the Great Zhou Dynasty, your name is Ye Weila."
Just before Meilin Xiaoyuan entered the bed last night, Ouyang Rong suddenly turned around and asked Ye Weilai, who had silver hair reaching her waist, what to say.
In the early morning, the cold wind blowing on the street at the entrance of Meiluyuan made Ye Weilai couldn't help but fold her arms.
She understood what her master meant.
After returning to Nanlong to worship her ancestors and burn paper, she was no longer a slave.
But she didn't understand what the master meant.
Why should I emphasize this suddenly?
After Ouyang Rong said these words to her last night, he lay down to sleep, and there was silence all night after that.
Sometimes there are very few words spoken before separation.
The commotion outside Meilu Garden in the morning attracted many neighbors from Luming Street.
Ouyang Rong stood inside the door, folding his sleeves and watching silently for a long time.
For Ye Weilai, who looked back at him from time to time outside the door, he just smiled at her without saying anything.
The eight carriages driven by Liu Ashan and others were loaded one after another, and Mrs. Zhen took Ye Weilai and others to get on the carriage.
Ouyang Rong took a step forward and boarded the carriage of the first car.
Along the way, the young magistrate closed his eyes and rested his mind, responding to Mrs. Zhen's chats from time to time, and turning a deaf ear to the little girl next to him who frequently looked at him.
Ouyang Rong's reaction today was a bit particularly cold.
When Mrs. Zhen saw this, she turned around and took Ye Weilai's little hand. With a rare gentleness, she comforted Tan Lang.
Ouyang Rong took half a day off today to send Zhen and others to Penglangdu to board the ship.
Nanlong is in the south of Longcheng County. To return to Nanlong, you need to transfer through Jiangzhou City.
Longcheng has developed water transportation and is right next to the broad Yangtze River. Naturally, it is most convenient to take a boat to leave Longcheng County.
In the morning, the sun rises.
At the corner of Penglangdu Pier, a temporarily chartered boat was moored.
The boatmen and sailors helped the servants from Meiluyuan unload the salutes from the carriage and carry them onto the ship.
This method of hiring an entire boat and not stopping to pick up other passengers along the way is also called buying a boat. It is considered a way for wealthy people to travel on the Yangtze River.
Ouyang Rong stood on the shore with his sleeves in his sleeves, his robe rustling in the wind.
He silently watched as Zhen, Ye Weilai, Banxi and other familiar figures boarded the boat.
Accompanied by the sound of retracting the ladder, the entire huge passenger ship gradually moved, as if it had heard some kind of instructions, and slowly left the docked dock at a speed visible to the naked eye.
Ouyang Rong, who had always been calm, finally smiled.
He waved to the Zhen family's daughters who gathered at the stern of the boat, reluctant to leave.
At this moment, Ouyang Rong stood on the shore and saw a blue-eyed girl with silver hair blown by the river wind on the high stern of the boat. She suddenly threw away her companion's arms and rushed towards him regardless of her own safety.
The next second, he jumped out of the boat as if he was about to throw himself into the woods, and crossed the river five meters away to land.
Ouyang Rong trembled and subconsciously reached out to catch it, but immediately, his hand stopped in the air and he silently retracted it.
Ye Weilai was pulled by the Zhen family's daughters behind her.
Seeing this, Ouyang Rong did not stay any longer and watched the boat go away.
Silently turned around, took Liu Ashan and other entourage, and left Penglangdu without saying a word.
The boat was leaving behind him.
Ye Weilai, who was held down by the girls, burst into tears. What flowed from her gray-blue eyes turned out to be clear and transparent tears.
Big drops of water flowed down like hot water drops on lotus leaves. She covered her mouth with her small hands and stared blankly at the slender back of her master leaving on the shore in the distance.
At a certain moment, the ribbon tying the hair was broken free and flew away, drifting in the wind towards Penglangdu, where people leave every day.
The strong wind blew the girl's waist-length silver hair flying all over the sky.
…
"Master, why don't you stand a little longer?"
Liu Ashan's voice came from behind him, and Ouyang Rong said without turning his head:
"We have to separate even if we stand for a while, just to be more reluctant to leave. It's normal for a little girl to be sentimental. In the future, you'll get used to it if we're apart more often."
Liu Ashan thought for a while and nodded: "That's right. Anyway, Mrs. Zhen and the others will only be away for two months and will be back before the end of the year."
Ouyang Rong remained silent.
A long time passed.
He who was walking in front suddenly turned back and said:
"Ah Shan, everyone needs to separate and look forward."
The tall, thin and dull man was stunned for a moment, looking at the free and easy smile of the young man in front of him under the sun, he nodded blankly.
The leave he requested in the morning was still there, but Ouyang Rong took Liu Ashan directly back to the county government office.
After bidding farewell to "relatives" such as Zhen and Ye Weila, Ouyang Rong was half alone and could finally focus all his energy on business.
In fact, this time he found an excuse to send Mrs. Zhen and Ye Weilai back to their hometown to worship their ancestors, except that he was actually a little worried that Mrs. Liu would jump over the wall after the ribbon-cutting ceremony.
There is also the selfish desire to resolve this entanglement.
The disaster relief has been completed. After he successfully controls the flood and survives the rainy season in the south of the Yangtze River, he will confiscate the Liu family's home or put them in a cage.
Then you can arrange your posthumous affairs, find a reason to resign and go into seclusion, and go to the Pure Land Palace in a relaxed manner to try to return and reap the blessings.
Instead of hastily cutting and leaving at that time, it is better to gradually decouple now and prepare in advance.
Sending Zhen, Ye Weila and others back to their hometown to worship their ancestors is the first step, and it is also the most difficult step for Ouyang Rong to let go of. After all, they are "relatives" who get along day and night.
But...it seems to have been successful.
Ouyang Rong turned his back to Peng Langdu and strode away, facing Di Gongzha where the ribbon-cutting ceremony was about to take place.
He didn't look back.
…
The sun sets in the west.
Yin and yang are cut off.
Merlu Garden, which used to be lively at this point when the male owner went off duty, seemed a little empty and lonely for a while.
Ouyang Rong walked through the quiet corridor, opened the door of the Plum Grove courtyard under the setting sun, and entered the house alone.
A quick glance out of the corner of his eye.
He was stunned for a moment, then walked to the bed where only a set of quilts and pillows were left, and reached out to pick up a neatly folded brand new blue scholar's shirt.
Ouyang Rong lowered his head.
Twist the fabric with your fingertips.
This stitch is a bit green and clumsy.
He pinched it gently with two fingers and squinted his eyes to pull out a slender silver hair from the new clothes.
Look at the silver threads swaying slightly in the air.
Scenes of a white-haired maid hanging her head and dozing off while knitting under a sewing lamp suddenly flashed through Ouyang Rong's mind.
He silently put down his new clothes, walked to the table, put his silver hair between his fingers into a book, and stuffed the book into the bookshelf.
Ouyang Rong turned around.
The setting sun has long shadows, and I look at the empty room quietly.
He suddenly realized that time passed so quickly and it had been so long since he came to this world.
"Come back... Wealth and honor are not what I want, and the Imperial Land... I can't expect..."
The young magistrate whispered.
…
night.
On the river.
The moon is bright and the clouds are hidden, and the wind and waves are quite high.
On the dark river water, there is a lone sail swaying towards the bright moon.
The chartered boat had been sailing on the river for two days.
At this moment, the ship was empty from bow to stern. The snoring of some boatmen could be heard from time to time in the cabin, and occasionally a few figures of night-watch servants passed by on the corridor.
Thanks to the severe crackdowns on water thieves by various state capitals in Jiangnan Province in recent years, navigation in the middle reaches of the Yangtze River is quite safe.
What's more, as far as the boatmen and sailors knew, the lady who was chartering the boat was of high origin and belonged to an official family. The lady's young nephew served as the magistrate of a large county under the jurisdiction of Jiangzhou.
The accompanying people couldn't help but bring many capable attendants with them. The noble lady surnamed Zhen, who spent quite a lot of money, also had a fierce temper. These days, the boatmen had learned this lesson, and naturally they respected and feared her.
At this moment, inside the cabin.
In a cabin second only to the noble lady named Zhen, it was pitch dark.
Some moonlight leaked in through the gap in the small closed window on the right, illuminating a dim bed in the upper left corner of the cabin.
The quilt on the bed was tightly covered, and there was a bulging bulge in the middle.
It seemed like someone had his head buried in bed and fell into a deep sleep.
A few strands of silver hair were exposed from the edge of the quilt. As the ship's hull swayed, the silver hair swayed and slid down the edge of the bed, almost touching the floor under the low bed.
The little owner of the quilt did not sleep on the pillow, but curled up in the quilt, hugging the pillow tightly with both hands, as if he was hugging something that he never wanted to let go.
Her big eyes were closed tightly, and her eyes seemed to be moving, she must have fallen into some kind of dream.
The white-haired girl frowned from time to time, loosening and tightening. At a certain moment, the moonlight outside the window dimmed, and the hull of the boat suddenly shook, as if it had encountered a big storm.
At the same time, someone whispered in the bed:
"Master, don't...don't sell your slave...don't!"
The white-haired girl opened her eyes suddenly, and the quilt fell to the ground, revealing her messy silver hair. The girl fell back holding the pillow with a frightened face, and turned her head to look around in fear.
After my eyes got used to the darkness, I could clearly see the reality of where I was.
Only then did her frightened expression subside a little, and her little face looked at the moonlight leaking through the gap left by the window in a daze.
"It turned out to be a dream..."
Ye Weilai just dreamed that she was back in the small iron cage at Jinxiaokou Mahang and was forcibly taken away from Ouyang Rong.
The small iron cage was carried into the cargo hold of the ship and swayed with the ship on the river to be sold to a distant and unfamiliar place.
This was her childhood experience, and it was also the nightmare that often came back late at night after leaving her master these past few days.
Ye Weilai put her hand into her arms, and the red embroidered bag containing two copper plates was still hanging on her chest. She felt the hard touch of the copper plates in her palms. Her expression softened a little, but the low bed under her hips swayed rhythmically with the river water, and Ye Weilai's eyes There is still lingering fear in my heart.
The moment I just woke up.
The dark cabin, the shaky accommodation, the emptiness of being alone and curled up... For a moment, she felt like she was back in the small cage where she drifted with the tide when she was a child.
This fear is engraved in my bones.
Even after being brought back to Meiluyuan by her master, Ye Weilai rarely had such dreams.
However, forgetting does not mean that you have overcome it.
Ye Weilai's eyes adjusted to the darkness. She leaned forward and opened the small window, sat on the low bed in the cabin, and looked up at the bright moon on the river.
Ye Weila's milky white face was clear and bright under the moonlight, and with her silky silver hair, she looked somewhat holy.
However, her gray-blue eyes and little face were still blank,
In the past few days, I left Longcheng and wandered on the river, saying goodbye to my master for the first time.
Ye Weilai began to gradually realize something.
Under the moon, the girl curled up her pillow and whispered softly:
"Cage...cage...it turns out you were always there."
Why did it seem like he was no longer there before?
The girl who was led out of the cage by Ouyang Rong murmured to herself:
"If he wasn't here...the outside world wouldn't be any different from the cage."
The cabin continued to rock, the windows continued to open, and the bright moon continued to hang high.
In the depths of Ye Weila's gray-blue eyes looking at the moon, the confusion gradually dissipated, and a certain clarity returned.
Her eyes slowly became firmer.
It seems that a decision has been made.
…
early morning.
The sky cleared.
The wind roared on the river, blowing the sails all the time.
Mrs. Zhen, who got up early, was wearing a green skirt and a white shirt, and walked to the bow of the boat.
Under the sun, she stretched her neck slightly and looked curiously at the fishing nets of the boatmen next to her.
After a while, Zhen turned her head and glanced in the direction of Jiangzhou.
This is the third day on board the ship, and we have already left Jiangzhou.
I don’t know how Tanlang is doing now.
At this moment, Mrs. Zhen heard the familiar footsteps behind her and said with a smile without looking back:
"You girl, didn't I tell you to sleep more? You got up so early...didn't you sleep well last night?"
After saying the last sentence, Mrs. Zhen turned around and took a look at the little face of the white-haired girl who came to the bow of the boat.
I saw that my eyes were indeed a little red.
Mrs. Zhen understood in her heart and sighed, "Still reluctant to let go?"
Ye Weilai gently brushed her silver hair that had been blown away by the wind by her ears. Without saying a word, she walked forward meekly, squatted down and stretched out her hands to carefully adjust the corners of Zhen's clothes and skirts.
The beautiful woman in the skirt smiled slightly, and after thinking for a while, she reached out her hand and gently touched the girl's silver-haired head.
She remembered that Tanlang liked to be touched like this, but she had never tried it before.
Ye Weilai, who lowered his head, suddenly said:
"Madam, how long is it until the next ferry terminal?" She kept adjusting her skirt with her hands.
"We've arrived at the border of Hongzhou. We should be able to reach the ferry at Hongzhou City at noon today. What's wrong? Why do you ask?"
Ye Weilai was silent for a moment, adjusting the skirt of the woman in front of her. She did not stand up, but raised her little face, mustering up the courage to stare at Mrs. Zhen's lowered eyes and said:
"Madam, slave... slave can't bear it anymore and wants to go back to find Tan Lang immediately. He doesn't want to stop for a moment. Madam, can... can you help slave?"
Zhen's face showed some surprise, but she was not surprised by Ye Weilai's thoughts.
She was just a little surprised by this girl's choice.
After being quiet for a while, the woman in the skirt said in a half-serious and half-joking tone:
"This opportunity to go back to worship your ancestors and burn paper as Tanlang's family member is quite rare. It is the best opportunity that Tanlang can give you. It is a rare opportunity.
"I've given you a chance. If you don't take advantage of it, are you sure you want to give up?
"Oh, aren't you afraid that Tanlang will meet a new concubine and change his mind and not give you a title? Although Tanlang is kind-hearted, he is still a man after all..."
Zhen smiled and looked at Ye Weilai's expression.
The latter lowered her head, moved her lips slightly, then stood up suddenly. She stared into Zhen's eyes, nodded vigorously and said:
"Slave only wants to accompany Tanlang, and I don't force anything else. I haven't seen Tanlang for a moment, and my heart is trembling and panicking. I just ask the lady to help me and let me go back."
Mrs. Zhen was silent for a while, then turned her head and looked in the direction of Jiangzhou behind her. She pondered:
"It's not impossible. I've long seen that your expression has been wrong these days. After all, you can't force it.
"But since you have made up your mind, as long as you can bear the consequences, you will go back to Tanlang, and you have to be mentally prepared to make him unhappy."
After a pause, Mrs. Zhen curled her lips, stretched out her index finger to poke Ye Weilae, and said with a bit of a knife:
"Stubborn girl, think about how to explain to him when you get back... When we arrive at Hongzhou City at noon, I will find a boat for you."
"Thank you madam!"
Ye Weilai beamed with joy and hugged Zhen's arm, who sighed and shook his head.
Immediately, the silver-haired girl who made the bold decision seemed like she couldn't wait any longer.
Walking and wandering from the bow to the stern of the ship, she folded her two small hands in front of her belly to hold the wind-blown skirt, walked lightly, and occasionally glanced back in the direction of Longcheng County, Jiangzhou.
What is the master doing at the moment... Yesterday, on the 15th, he seems to have been busy preparing for the ribbon-cutting ceremony of the water gate... Also, how should I explain to the master after he returns, will he punish...
Ye Weilai had some uncontrollable expectations in her heart.
Like the rising sun on the river.
Ahem, Junzi finally made a best-seller recommendation... I recommend the last book that I worked hard on, "I Have a Sword Fairy Wife", with delicate emotional lines, multiple heroines, slow daily life, non-upgraded novels, good brothers who are not interested We can all be well~ (pouts)
(End of chapter)
