Chapter 35

Last night, Xie Tingzhou slept late and woke up to find that it was already bright outside.

The sun was shining brightly today, casting a gleaming white light on the snow-covered ground.

Xie Tingzhou didn’t see Shen Yu.

The old man sat under the eaves playing with Dahuang, throwing a bamboo woven ball for Dahuang to fetch.

As soon as he saw Xie Tingzhou, the old man stood up with the support of his legs and said with a smile, “The food is still hot in the pot. Let me serve it to you.”

“No need to bother. Let’s eat together at noon,” Xie Tingzhou said.

The old man had already turned around and walked towards the kitchen, chattering away, “You must eat well. When you’re young…”

Suddenly, the old man stopped talking, realizing that he had been rambling like a child to Xie Tingzhou.

Xie Tingzhou seemed more easygoing today than yesterday. He was someone who warmed up slowly. “It’s okay, go ahead and say it.”

The old man said, “If you don’t pay attention when you’re young, you’ll suffer from illnesses and pains when you’re old.”

Xie Tingzhou nodded. In fact, he had been suffering from illness and pain for many years without recovery. The pain had almost become a part of his body, and he had long been accustomed to it.

He looked outside. “Where is he?”

The old man knew who he was referring to and said, “You mean its light rain? He left as soon as it got light out, saying he had something to do in town.”

“Oh right,” the old man slapped his forehead, “I forgot. He asked me to tell you that he’ll definitely be back before dark.”

The sun rose and set, and as the sun leaped over the mountains, the sky gradually darkened.

But Shen Yu hadn’t returned yet.

The Father- in- Law was worried and said he wanted to go along the road to look for him, afraid that Shen Yu might get lost or encounter trouble alone on the road. Xie Tingzhou persuaded him to go to sleep.

When the moon was high in the sky, Dahuang perked up his ears in the woodpile, then ran towards the courtyard gate.

Xie Tingzhou heard the sound and pushed open the door. He saw a slender figure stepping under the moonlight, casting a small shadow on the ground.

Dahuang was already excitedly running over, wagging his tail, rubbing against Shen Yu’s legs, and walking alongside him.

“Why haven’t you slept yet?” Shen Yu asked Dahuang. “Were you waiting for me?”

Dahuang wagged his tail excitedly, circling around him.

A faint smile appeared at the corner of Xie Tingzhou’s lips. It seemed that what he said was true. Not only was he likable, but even the dog liked him.

Unlike Xie Tingzhou, Dahuang never dared to move when he saw him, showing that in some ways, dogs were much more sensitive than humans, and he really wasn’t a good person.

It was only when Shen Yu reached the courtyard gate that she noticed there was someone standing under the eaves.

Surprised, she said, “Why haven’t you slept either?”

“Why are you back so late?” Xie Tingzhou asked, returning to the room and lighting the oil lamp.

“There were a few things to take care of, so I came back late,” Shen Yu said, placing the bundle on the table and spreading it out.

In addition to the medicine and herbs, there was also a set of clothes inside.

“These clothes are rough, but we’ll have to make do with them for now,” Shen Yu said.

Xie Tingzhou, who was dressed in luxurious clothes, stood out too much. After all, they were in a village, and there were still many households around, making it easy to expose themselves.

Xie Tingzhou took them, and accidentally touched her fingertips, feeling that they were ice-cold.

“Where did you get the money?” Xie Tingzhou glanced at her.

Looking somewhat proud, Shen Yu said, “I told you I had a way. Besides, I didn’t steal it.”

Xie Tingzhou glanced at her, “The old man left some food for you in the pot.”

Shen Yu was hungry, so she hurried to the kitchen, but not without saying, “Wait for me to come back and apply the medicine for you.”

Upon hearing this, Xie Tingzhou picked up the medicine but then put it down again.

After finishing her meal and returning, Shen Yu found Xie Tingzhou still sitting at the table.

She closed the door behind her, walked over to apply the medicine to him, first on his back, then on his arm.

There was no stove in the room, and a gust of wind blew in through the door crack.

Shen Yu looked at the goosebumps on Xie Tingzhou’s arm and quickly said, “It’ll be better soon, very soon.”

Xie Tingzhou lowered his eyes, saw her eyelashes flutter slightly, and then calmly averted his gaze.

The room was too quiet. Shen Yu found a topic, “Do you think I came back late because I secretly ran away? Or did I defect to give them information?”

In fact, Xie Tingzhou had indeed thought of such thoughts just now.

But that was just a habit.

His position destined him not to trust anyone easily because too many people wanted him dead. But as for Shen Yu…

He pondered for a moment, then lowered his head to look at Shen Yu’s face, seeming to have a inexplicable trust, but his body’s instinct rejected this trust.

Shen Yu didn’t hear his answer, so she continued to explain while applying the medicine, “By the time I got to town, it was already afternoon. After buying things, I went to inquire about some news, so I came back late.”

“What news?” Xie Tingzhou asked.

Shen Yu said, “Someone who returned from Huaitang County said that the county magistrate of Huaitang is currently searching for someone on a large scale. Based on the description, it should be Your Highness. Tomorrow, we can go to the county town first and then be escorted to the capital by the county magistrate of Huaitang.”

Xie Tingzhou fell silent, pondering for a moment before saying, “We can’t go.”

“Why?” Shen Yu had just finished bandaging and lifted her head to ask.

Xie Tingzhou explained, “There are at least three hundred people coming to cover up the truth this time. Huaitang is not a big city, and the county magistrate cannot be unaware of such a large group of people passing through.”

Shen Yu was awakened by his words. “So you suspect that the county magistrate of Huaitang is working with them.”

Xie Tingzhou looked down at his arm. It was no longer the torn strip of cloth from before; this time it was properly bandaged with gauze.

“Huaitang County is plagued by bandits. The government has intervened several times, but they haven’t been completely wiped out. Why?

” He paused and continued, “Every time they intervene, they just catch a few bandits symbolically. They can’t shake the foundation. The bandits and the county government share the spoils. The county government turns a blind eye to it. People like that can be motivated by interests.”

Shen Yu nodded. “What should we do then?”

Xie Tingzhou looked at the moonlight streaming in through the window, pondered for a moment, and said, “Let’s rest for two days and then set out, taking a detour through Pingtan.”

Shen Yu thought for a moment. “Taking a detour from Pingtan County means adding over a hundred miles to our journey, and now we don’t have any means of transportation. Can your body handle it? Your wound…”

When she changed the bandage earlier, the wound looked terrifying, and she couldn’t imagine how he endured it.

“It’s fine,” Xie Tingzhou stood up and said. “Go to sleep.”

Xie Tingzhou was already awake, and Shen Yu remembered that he was the Crown Prince of Beilin. She didn’t dare to bring up the matter of whether she could sleep with him while he was awake.

Naturally, Xie Tingzhou wouldn’t invite her to sleep with him actively, so last night Shen Yu slept on the table.

During the day, Xie Tingzhou said a few words to the old man, who brought a piece of wood to widen the bed.

Shen Yu understood when she saw the bed. “Am I sleeping with you tonight?”

Xie Tingzhou, who was about to take off his clothes, paused and turned to say, “If you want to continue sleeping on the table, that’s fine too.”

After a long day, Shen Yu was naturally not going to be difficult, so she hurriedly went out to freshen up.

When she entered the room, Xie Tingzhou was already lying on the bed, leaving a large space inside. However, the problem was that if she wanted to get onto the bed, she had to cross over Xie Tingzhou.

Shen Yu hesitated for a moment and then blew out the oil lamp.

As the light suddenly dimmed, she hadn’t adjusted to the darkness in front of her, so she could only grope her way to the edge of the bed.

Estimating that she had reached the edge of the bed, she stretched out her hand, intending to cross over Xie Tingzhou and flip over to the other side.

As soon as she reached out, she realized, “This is bad!”

Sure enough, the next moment she heard Xie Tingzhou grunt, coldly questioning, “What are you doing?!”

Immediately after, Shen Yu’s hand was pulled away by him.