The real Xu Zhihuai was a helpless orphan.
Just like Ran Ningke, but she was a little more lucky.
That night the wind and snow were brutal and cruel, and the real Xu Zhihuai could not survive until dawn and died in the dilapidated mountain temple.
So, she became her.
Xu Zhihuai looked at the remaining candle on the table, his dark pupils reflected the faint light of the fire, and slowly burned along with it.
Suddenly, a loud voice sounded from behind her: "Zhihuai?"
Xu Zhihuai put away the sadness in her heart and turned around: "Your Highness, I'm a little thirsty and got up to drink tea." After saying that, she took a sip of tea and returned to his side.
Zhu Xuxing's sleepy eyes were still looking at her face and asked softly: "Isn't it another nightmare?"
Xu Zhihuai shook his head, his eyes watery.
She hid her emotions and leaned against him softly, using his arm as a pillow.
A humble gentleman with a warm heart.
Zhu Xuxing also felt that her body temperature was slightly cold, thinking that she must have been outside the quilt for a long time.
Why doesn't she say anything when she has something on her mind?
He shook her hand, and after thinking for a moment, he realized that she was probably going back to Huaizhou, and it was inevitable that she would miss her deceased parents.
"Are you homesick?"
Xu Zhihuai nestled in his arms, shook his head lightly, and murmured: "I...have no home anymore."
Zhu Xuxing sighed, feeling helpless and distressed.
The two snuggled together quietly, feeling warm. This warmth did not make Xu Zhihuai feel at ease, but made her unable to escape the coldness and despair that night.
We will set off before dawn.
At the third quarter of the Yin hour, the Longqing Gate opened wide, and two long teams of people escorted His Highness the Prince's carriage as it drove out of the palace gate and set off in the bright morning light.
Unexpectedly, when the entourage of chariots and horses left the city gate, they quickly divided into two groups of chariots and horses, each traveling north and south. It was likely that they were deliberately confusing their sight and hiding their whereabouts. However, Prince Zhu Xuxing was not among those traveling in glory. He had already arrived at Jinmen with three or five guards under the cover of the misty night and boarded a merchant ship heading south.
It turns out that the so-called fairness is just a cover-up.
The disguised Zhu Xuxing did indeed look like a young man from a wealthy businessman's family, but the innate nobility and otherworldly leisureliness in his movements were still too obvious.
Xu Zhihuai did not expect that their trip would take water. After all, there are winds and waves on the water, so even if there are no unlucky people to cause trouble along the way, there is no guarantee that you will encounter one or two unlucky bad weather conditions.
Xu Zhihuai sat by the window, listening to the sound of water waves, and still had a doubt in his heart: Where is Wei Li? Didn't he get on the boat with the prince?
Zhu Xuxing looked at the mountains and rivers from the bow of the boat, with Yue Yichuan following closely behind. He was not in the mood to enjoy the scenery, and he could only listen to the six directions and see in all directions.
After a while, a gray pigeon flew from a distance. Yue Yichuan blew a loud whistle to summon the pigeon, raised his hand and grabbed it quickly and decisively.
"Your Highness, he is the carrier pigeon of the Imperial Guard."
Yue Yichuan took off the mailbox, let go of the grunting carrier pigeon, turned around and presented the secret letter to Zhu Suxing for review.
Three lines of small characters with a strong pen edge.
After Wei Li left the capital, he led two teams to create a suspicious formation to hide the prince's whereabouts. He waited for the prince's whereabouts and arrested many people along the way.
After reading this, Zhu Xuxing threw the torn pieces of paper into the water and said thoughtfully: "If Wei Li takes action like this, I don't know how many more people will die."
Yue Yichuan whispered back: "Anyone who dares to trace His Highness's whereabouts has impure motives and deserves to be killed!"
Zhu Xuxing frowned slightly: "I will arrive in Huaizhou sooner or later, and those who want to catch up will catch up sooner or later."
"Your Highness, don't worry. By the time they follow the clues and catch up, Your Highness will have already arrived in Huaizhou and will be in control of the overall situation."
Zhu Xuxing looked at the mountains from a distance and said calmly: "What is the overall situation? Looking at it, who of us is not a part of the situation?"
Yue Yichuan was speechless and silent for a moment.
When my thoughts were heavy, a melodious flute sound suddenly sounded in the boat, soft and graceful, reaching into the clouds.
Zhu Xuxing was in a trance for a moment, and then returned to the cabin following the sound of the flute. He saw Xu Zhihuai playing the flute against the window, with curved eyelashes and a soft profile, giving him a hazy feeling of being out of this world.
White clouds, green mountains, and ripples of blue waves.
There was a beautiful woman by the water.
Zhu Xuxing listened quietly, his eyebrows relaxed, and the melancholy he felt just now was no longer there.
After the song, I felt even more refreshed.
He couldn't help but raise his hands to applaud and smile.
Xu Zhihuai lowered his head and smiled shyly: "Let His Highness laugh."
"I like the sound of your flute."
"Thank you, Your Highness."
Zhu Xuxing looked at the bamboo flute in her hand and asked again: "Who did you learn the flute from?"
Xu Zhihuai bit his lower lip: "My father..."
Zhu Xuxing didn't want to touch her sad things, so he changed the subject calmly: "Although walking by water is a bit boring, it saves you a lot of fatigue. Fortunately, you don't get seasick."
Xu Zhihuai smiled and asked, "There don't seem to be many guards on the ship. Aren't you worried, Your Highness?"
Zhu Xuxing said calmly: "This ship is far more lively than you have seen, and there are many people protecting me."
Xu Zhihuai hesitated and asked with a trembling voice: "What about Lord Qingyi Hou? Why didn't he go with His Highness?"
Zhu Xuxing said calmly: "It would be better if he is not here. He has what he should do. When he arrives in Huaizhou, he will show up."
Xu Zhihuai's eyes flickered.
What if he never showed up?
So, she deliberately looked down at her injured finger, and murmured to herself: "I'm so scared, I'm so scared of him."
"He won't dare to touch you again!"
Zhu Xuxing said it categorically and solemnly.
Xu Zhihuai lowered his eyes and nodded, but his heart was like a bright mirror.
Wei Li would not let her go easily.
Maybe he was hiding in the dark, ready to pounce on her with all his teeth and claws and tear her apart.
Xu Zhihuai did not dare to take it lightly.
Three days later, their merchant ship docked at a hidden dock to replenish supplies.
There are people coming and going on the shore, there are patrolling guards going back and forth, and there are hard-working fishermen carrying small bamboo baskets to greet and sell.
Zhu Xuxing was dressed in luxury but did not shy away from it. He stepped onto the wet land. Not only did he buy all the fish from the fishermen, he also talked to them face to face and listened to their simple local dialect.
Xu Zhihuai did not get off the boat, but only watched from a distance.
The sun sets in the west and the sunset fills the sky, which is beautiful.
Pieces of red-hot clouds and crimson clouds slowly fell down, smearing the smoke from the fishermen's houses in the distance, and the salty breeze blew in the warm smoke of human smoke.
This scene and smell made Xu Zhihuai feel warm and familiar.
When she was a child, her father and mother-in-law often took her to a nearby small fishing village to sell fish and go home after dark. She often tricked her father into carrying her back.
The stars were shining brightly on the summer night. She lay on her father's generous back and fell into a dream.
In one glance, the sadness deep in her heart flowed out from her sad eyes, and she couldn't stop it. Fortunately, no one discovered her secret thoughts.
