He left the city and ran for more than ten miles. There are some small groups of bandits outside the city, each with five or six people. They should be the scouts sent by the bandits inside the city. Li Bochen encountered two groups of shady people who came to stop him, and he easily dealt with them.
He slowed down his horse only when there was no one left and the roads turned into vast expanses of wilderness and jungle on both sides. This white horse had excellent physical strength, but after all, it was carrying two people, so it was sweating all over, and its breathing became heavier.
Li Bochen inserted the magic knife back into his back and let out a sigh of relief - he was not a person who liked killing, but the fierce fight just now made him feel full of energy and energy, and he did not feel sleepy even if he had not slept all night.
At this moment, his tense spirit relaxed, and he suddenly realized that Lin Qiao, who was held in front of him, seemed to have been silent all this time. He was immediately startled and asked quickly: "Miss Lin, are you okay?"
Lin Qiao said nothing.
He felt a chill in his heart, and quickly stopped his horse, carefully turning his face to look at her - he saw that her face was pale, her lips were slightly open, and she had passed out in his arms.
Li Bochen secretly screamed that something was wrong, and hurriedly put his hand into the cloak to feel her pulse, and accidentally touched her chest. Lin Qiao's clothes were very light, and now she touched the warm and fragrant nephrite - to say that her body was made of copper and iron, her body was really made of glutinous rice balls. But at this time, how could he think of anything else? He touched her arm all the way and touched her pulse.
——It's nothing serious, just fainted. Maybe it was caused by shock, cold, tiredness, or injury.
He blamed himself for a while, thinking, I'm so fucking lost my mind.
During the charge just now, he only cared about his own pleasure and was also afraid of being surrounded by bandits, so he didn't care whether Lin Qiao could bear it or not. In fact, he knew that he was not such a careless person. When he was leading the troops of ten generals in Wuliang City, he could take good care of his subordinates.
But after all, I have never walked or come into contact with a woman in so many years. All I could think about for a moment was what would happen to rough guys. In addition, now that I am in the Qi-nurturing realm, my physical condition is very different from ordinary people. Many ordinary people would think of it. All the details are now forgotten.
He looked around hurriedly and saw no houses. Although the sun has risen now, it is still very cold. He knew that continuing like this was not an option and he had to find a warm and sheltered place as soon as possible. He held the cloak and Lin Qiao in one hand, and then drove his horse forward slowly.
After walking two or three miles, I saw a small stream in front of me from a distance. He got off the road and walked along the stream, passing through a forest, and saw what seemed to be a small village to the north. I felt happy and rode over quickly. But when I got closer, I saw clearly that the village seemed to have been abandoned long ago, probably due to the war more than ten years ago.
There are a dozen or so sparse houses in the village, most of which have collapsed and are overgrown with weeds. But this is still better than the wilderness - at least if this place is in decline, the nearby thieves will not come.
He rode into the village and found a house that was only half collapsed. He carefully turned over and dismounted, and then hugged Lin Qiao down.
He kicked open the wooden door and walked in, entering the east room which was still intact. There was only one earthen kang in the east room, and there was a layer of dust on it. Fortunately, the cloak they snatched was big enough, so they wrapped Lin Qiao and put it on.
The windows of this broken house were gone long ago, and the wind blew loudly inside. Li Bochen went outside and searched, but found only a chipped and broken sea bowl and a rotten earthen jar. He dug them all out of the mud and looked at the stove - there was no pot and it was collapsed.
Then he walked out with the earthen pot and bowl, tied the horse first and let it eat the grass at the entrance of the courtyard. Then he walked to the house opposite that had completely collapsed, removed a half-ruined door panel from his house, and took it back to block the window.
Then he stood in the courtyard and thought about it, and shouted in his heart: "Come out!"
The Yin soldiers appear. The twenty Yin soldiers, except for Xu Cheng, were all ignorant. He then ordered Xu Cheng to lead them on guard duty in the courtyard, and if there was any movement, report him immediately.
Then he held the bowl and earthen pot and walked to the creek behind the village. First, he rinsed them all, then filled them with water and took them back to the courtyard. He picked up stones and built a stove, and put the earthen pots on them to boil water.
After doing this, I went into the room to look at Lin Qiao and probed her forehead, only to feel it was slightly hot. He remembered that she fell down from the third floor last night and her face was bruised. He didn't know whether it was a cold or an injury to the internal organs that caused the inflammation.
He tried calling her, but it didn't wake her up. Then he pulled one of her hands out of her cloak, pinched her veins, and checked her blood.
There doesn't seem to be any blockage in the meridians, so it's probably not an internal injury. However, it was discovered that Lin Qiao's internal meridians were wider than those of ordinary people, and there was even spiritual power flowing through her body. He was stunned for a moment, wondering if she was still a cultivator?
Her cultivation level is not high, and she looks like she is about to enter the realm of spiritual enlightenment. Such cultivators do indeed look like ordinary people, only their physiques are slightly stronger.
Li Bochen frowned, sat by the kang for a while, and then said that if she really knew how to practice, it would be no big deal. With her identity and life experience, she must be very unwilling. Trying to practice cultivation is also one of the ways to change your destiny. It's just that I have to ask her when she wakes up.
He got up and walked to the courtyard and looked around - there was a rolling hill to the west of the village. The forest was very dense. Birds like black spots could be seen flying on the hill, so he walked up the hill.
After going up the mountain, he used Yao Hou to cut the heart of his left hand severely, and blood immediately flowed out. He wiped the blood on the tree trunks as he walked. When he reached the top of the mountain, he found a grass nest and sat down, picking up some stones and holding them in his hands.
Only then can I finally take a break. The wind whistled in the forest, dead leaves fell, and the cool air slowly penetrated through the cracks in the nails, feeling that my body was cooling down. He sat and waited for a while, then looked at the small village down the mountain from the forest, and suddenly realized that he didn't seem to know what to do with Lin Qiao.
I took her away before to save her life, but what about next? He still had to investigate the affairs of the Chang family, and he had to face another enemy. Lin Qiao wouldn't be able to bear it if the same thing happened a few times today.
But before he could figure it out, he heard rustling sounds coming from the grass in the forest. He sat downwind and smelled a fishy smell. But he waited for a while, then suddenly raised his right hand, and the stones flew out.
There was a thud, no screams were heard, and then something fell. He stood up and walked over, only to find a lone wolf with a painted face - half of his head had been blown away by a stone he had hit.
That's not bad. He was a little happy - wolf meat was more delicate than bear meat, tiger meat, etc., and the fishy smell was not so strong, but similar to dog meat. So he cut off one of his hind legs with a knife, carried it down the mountain to the stream, skinned it, and washed it.
When I returned to the courtyard, half of the water in the earthen pot had boiled, so I took out a few sticks of firewood to warm them, lit another fire in the outer room, cut a few meat skewers, and took them from the horse bag. Spread some pepper, ginger powder and coarse salt evenly, and bake slowly over the fire.
The room fell silent except for the crackling sound of firewood burning. A few strips of meat slowly turn yellow, releasing aroma, and the fat drips off little by little. He took Yaohou and cut a few more cuts, then rubbed pepper, ginger powder and salt on it. When the meat strips were slightly browned, he put them next to the fire to warm.
Then he poured hot water into the bowl and carried it into the back room.
Lin Qiao hadn't woken up yet, and he knew that continuing like this was not an option. Then he put the bowl on the kang, patted her face gently with his hand, and called, "Miss Lin?"
After calling a few times, Lin Qiao frowned and muttered something, coughed a few more times, and opened her eyes.
Li Bochen was confused for a while after seeing her open her eyes, as if he had forgotten what happened. Her eyes looked very big, and her lips and face were pale at the moment. She looked like a kitten, which made him feel a little distressed.
Then he blinked, sat up and said, "Brother Li——"
Li Bochen hurriedly picked up the cloak and put it on her, then stood up and said, "Miss Lin, I'm so sorry. I didn't expect you to be so weak last night. How do you feel now?"
Lin Qiao was wrapped in a big cloak and only showed a pale face. She looked around and said softly: "It's okay, I'm just...Brother Li, where are you?"
Li Bochen handed her the water: "They are more than ten miles away from Guancheng. An Xin, they can't find them here. Drink some water to warm yourself up - are you hungry?"
Lin Qiao stretched out her hand to take the bowl, and was stunned when she realized that it was hot. He lowered his head to take a sip, then raised his face and nodded. Li Bochen was stunned for a while before he realized that she was saying he was hungry, so he hurriedly went outside and pulled out a piece of meat.
The meat was very hot from the grill, so he shook it a few times when he walked into the house. After it cooled down a bit, he handed it to her.
Lin Qiao put down the bowl and took it, then stared at the meat strips for a while. Li Bochen secretly thought that she was usually not used to eating these things, so he smiled and said: "I just beat the wolf meat. I didn't have time to prepare dry food last night, so this is all I have. Eat a little bit, as having a fever consumes a lot of energy." "
Lin Qiao then said softly: "Brother Li...did you do all this just now?"
Li Bochen smiled and said, "It's a convenient thing."
Lin Qiao said: "What about you?"
"Oh, there are more outside." At this moment, he felt that hunger was raging in his belly, so he went out and pulled two more in, and said, "Let's fill our stomachs first, and when you have a rest, Let’s talk about the future.”
Lin Qiao nodded.
Li Bochen sat on the other side of the kang, blew on it and took a bite. When he was in Wuliang City, he often went hunting in the back mountains and was quite proud of his skill in cooking barbecue. The meat was grilled very well today. When you bite into the slightly burnt skin, there is a snapping sound, and the aroma of pepper, ginger and meat fills your mouth.
Wolf meat is thin and tender, not as thick as pork or beef, and has a texture similar to mutton. After one bite, the glutton was aroused, so he opened his cheeks and started chewing. The two pieces of meat weighed about half a catty. They were all eaten in a short time, and my hands were all oily.
He looked sideways at Lin Qiao and saw that she was looking at him blankly, so he tore open the meat and ate it in small bites.
Looking at each other for a moment, Lin Qiao burst into laughter. Li Bochen then laughed and said: "Don't laugh at me for eating indecently. I wasn't like this before. But after I stayed in the army for a long time, I lost the ability to stir food in a big pot and chew slowly. I haven't changed it yet."
Lin Qiao pursed her lips and said, "Brother Li, this is heroic."
Li Bochen smiled again, but he didn't know what to say for a moment, so he just said: "Where, where."
The cut on the left heart was now healed, so he grabbed a handful of dirt on the kang, slowly rubbed the oil on his hands, and could still hear the "click" sound of Lin Qiao eating meat. The room fell silent again, and he sat there not knowing what to say - in fact, he was not a person who was not good at words. It's just that the two people's backgrounds and living environments are so different that they don't seem to have anything to talk about.
After sitting for a while, I slowly felt a layer of sweat forming on my back, and glanced at Lin Qiao. Seeing her wrapped in a big cloak and sitting huddled against the wall, she was eating with gusto. I don’t know if I’m really hungry or if my craftsmanship is really good.
He thought again and again, and finally said: "Miss Lin, what are your... plans for the future?"
Lin Qiao lowered her head and was silent for a moment, then said, "I don't know either."
"So, what about before? Have you ever thought about what you want to do in the future?"
"In the past... I used to think that after I redeem myself, I will find a quiet and beautiful place to buy a small village."
"Xiao Zhuangzi?"
"Hmm...a small village with several hundred acres of land. From now on, I can live a leisurely life relying on renting the land."
Li Bochen was stunned for a moment and calculated in his mind how much this "little village" would cost. Land prices vary from country to country, and those in Li's country are probably the cheapest. But I heard from my comrades in the army that even the cheapest farmland cost about two thousand yuan per acre. A few hundred acres of land...if it's 500 acres of middle land...
Got a million dollars.
Adding a "little villager" would probably cost around 1.5 million yuan. This does not include the cost of hiring servants.
He suddenly realized that he had overlooked one thing.
He didn't know much about the women in this world, but he heard similar stories everywhere. For example, a brothel girl falls in love with a poor scholar and voluntarily redeems her body to go home with him and live a happy life, even if she becomes a concubine. There is also a certain top star who is searching hard, just to find someone who can be entrusted with him for life, so that he can escape from the sea of suffering.
Remembering these things, he naturally thought that a place of entertainment like Jinghui Tower must be like a sea of fire and purgatory. If he wanted to take Lin Qiao away, of course she would be happy to do so.
But now, looking at the low earthen house with ashes all over the floor, and hearing her original plan, she finally came to her senses. I brought her out myself, how do I settle her? Is it possible to find a place to make her a peasant wife? She originally had a millionaire and planned to buy a "little village"!
In fact, when I think about it at this time, it is because I have been wandering and wandering for a long time, and I have forgotten how ordinary people think.
He didn't know what to say for a moment, and he didn't care anymore. He could only change the topic temporarily and said: "Miss Lin, besides Ye Lu, have you seen anyone else?"
But as soon as he asked the question, he regretted it. Lin Qiao had a sudden change last night, and now she was sick again. She didn't want to recall those things. She was too impatient.
Then he hurriedly said: "Forget it, don't talk about this in a hurry."
Lin Qiao seemed to know what he was thinking, and smiled: "It's okay, Brother Li, your business is more important. That man... I have only seen his profile, he looks like an old man. His voice is a bit strange. , It seems that my throat has been injured."
Li Bochen frowned and thought for a while, but had no idea. Then he said, "Yes. Miss Lin, do you know where the Chang family is now?"
Lin Qiao shook his head: "I'm not very clear about this. But - I just heard people say - most of the former ministers fled to Fengzhou after the country was broken. Fengzhou, to the north is Linxi."
Then we still have to continue heading north. Li Bochen sighed in his heart. He originally planned to bite the man tightly. But now that he has this girl with him, he may not be able to go as planned. But that person had already left a few days in advance. Even if he was alone on the road, what should have happened when he caught up with him would have happened. Thinking about it this way, there is really no need to rush.
He patted the dirt on his hands, stood up and said, "Would you like me to heat your meat up again?"
In fact, it was just a casual question - I really didn't know what to say. But unexpectedly, Lin Qiao smiled slightly and handed him the half-torn meat: "Okay."
At this time, she slowly recovered and became calm and generous again. She seemed very happy that she could ask such a question. Li Bochen also felt that the atmosphere had relaxed a little, so he took the stick.
Lin Qiao looked up at him slightly, tightened her cloak and wrapped herself more tightly, and said: "Brother Li, I didn't expect you to be so attentive. This is the first time in these years that someone has been so kind to me."
Li Bochen's face turned slightly red when she said that, but he felt very satisfied. He walked out and said with a smile: "Didn't your two little maids take good care of you? When I sneaked in last night, I was listening to them talking about your illness, and they were worried that you wouldn’t be able to see anyone when you woke up at night.”
Lin Qiao said through the wall: "It's them. It's a daughter's duty to be careful. But Brother Li, you are a hero. This is called being bold and careful. I never thought that you would serve me like this."
Li Bochen was a little overwhelmed by her praise. He squatted by the fire and slowly roasted the half of the meat, saying: "Speaking of which, I am the one who caused you trouble. I should apologize and serve you. Fortunately, you are not seriously ill. You I have also practiced it, and I should be fine soon - Miss Lin, are you also cultivating the mental method of Beichen's lineage?"
After asking this, he turned the meat again, took out some more pepper and ginger powder from the cloth pocket at his waist and sprinkled it on. When he saw that the white meat inside was also slightly yellowed, he realized that Lin Qiao didn't reply to his words.
His heart tightened, fearing that she would faint again, so he hurriedly walked into the house holding half of the meat.
But he saw Lin Qiao sitting against the wall with a pale face. Seeing him walking in, a look of panic flashed across his face. Li Boxen realized that she deliberately didn't answer him, or that she didn't think about how to answer.
He was alarmed - he had thought it was no big deal that she had cultivation skills, so he asked casually. But looking at Lin Qiao's expression now, it seemed that things were not as simple as she thought.
Why is she panicking? ?
Some kind of ominous premonition passed through my mind. Li Bochen frowned slightly and said in a deep voice: "Miss Lin, do you have any secrets about your practice?"
Lin Qiao opened her mouth, and suddenly there was a slight blush on her face, and she just said: "I..."
Several thoughts changed rapidly in Li Bochen's mind. He realized that this might be related to Ye Lu and another person - could it be that Lin Qiao was also a part of Ye Lu's plan? Did he deliberately tell him to save her and let her monitor him? ?
When the wooden body that Ye Lu turned into was dug out last night, Lin Qiao did not come to see it!
Thinking of this, Li Bochen loosened his hand and dropped the half of the meat, slowly moved forward and said, "Miss Lin, if someone is really a villain, there is no taboo against killing women here!"
Thinking that he had fallen into a trap, he felt angry. When he spoke, his tone was extremely sharp, and he touched Yaohou with his right hand on his waist.
But Lin Qiao bit her lips tightly, looked at him as if in shock, and said nothing.
Li Bochen sneered in his heart, do you want to do this to me? ?
The next moment, she suddenly shed two tears and cried: "Brother Li, no, I...I..."
After saying this, he buried his face in his cloak: "I...what do you want me to say..."
Li Bochen had no intention of pitying her at this moment, he just said: "Tell it like it is!"
Lin Qiao raised her head suddenly, bit her lip and stared at him: "Brother Li, if you don't believe me... then I'll leave!"
He closed his eyes again: "Maybe you just kill me!"
I really thought I didn’t dare to kill anyone! ? Li Bochen raised his hand to pull out Yaohou, but just as he was about to make a move, he suddenly realized that Lin Qiao's reaction was strange.
It seems... It's not a reaction to being caught in a conspiracy, but more like shame!
He was stunned, stood there blankly, and after a while, said: "Miss Lin..."
Then he said: "You are..."
Lin Qiao slowly turned her face away, remained silent for a moment, stopped her tears, gritted her teeth and said, "I don't want to practice. But among the guests, there will be practitioners."
Just as Li Boxen was about to ask, "What does this mean?" a thought suddenly flashed through his mind, causing him to freeze as if struck by lightning. As a practitioner, the physical body is tyrannical. When it comes time to lose control of oneself, ordinary people may not be able to do anything about it...
He took two steps back, feeling his head buzzing and blood rushing to his face. How could I be so stupid...so stupid...he cursed in his mind. I also know that I can't blame myself for falling out too quickly - I have been in danger since I left Wuliang City, and I have to be on guard at all times, and I have to pay attention to every abnormality. Having been so tense for so long, it's hard to think of ordinary things for ordinary reasons.
But even so, he forced this miserable girl to explain everything - who would want to practice just to cater to the "guests"? ! Naturally, she couldn't say it out loud, especially in front of herself, the "Brother Li" who had been proposed to marry him!
Just thinking about it at this moment, he could tell how ashamed and angry Lin Qiao felt!
Li Bochen was stunned for a while, then bowed to the ground and said: "Miss Lin, I am a bastard and a reckless man."
He remained motionless, and after listening for a while, Lin Qiao slowly exhaled: "Brother Li, I don't blame you. I don't know what kind of mental method I cultivate. Maybe it's Beichen."
She said this and stopped talking. Li Bochen slowly straightened up and saw her burying her face in her knees, motionless in her cloak.
He then punched himself hard in the face with his fist, stood there helplessly for a while, then slowly walked over, picked up the bowl with cold water, and quietly left the room.
There were still three sticks of meat warming by the fire in the outhouse, but now he had no appetite at all.
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