Chapter 61 - Xiao Nong: Are you still angry?
Zhong Yansheng woke up with a start and pushed the big furry head in his arms away: "Taxue... your paws are so dirty! Get off!"
Taxue, whose dirty paws were disliked, drooped its ears, whimpered, let go of its paws in grievance and retreated.
Seeing Taxue being driven away, Xiao Nong seemed quite happy, probably because he thought that Zhong Yansheng's driving Taxue away meant that he liked him more. He bent his eyes, hugged Zhong Yansheng's waist, rubbed his neck, and sniffed his intoxicated scent.
Naturally, he had no time to tidy up his appearance after landing in a den of thieves. His Royal Highness Prince Ding had long hair, and the cold hair fell on his neck, feeling cold.
Zhong Yansheng's neck turned red, and he felt embarrassed and angry: "You go away too!"
Xiao Nong lowered his eyes, but hugged him tighter again, and whispered, "It hurts."
Did you get hurt?
Zhong Yansheng suddenly felt like a little bird with its wings grabbed. He turned back nervously to observe Xiao Nong's expression and reached out to touch his waist, fearing that his wound would open again and soak his clothes with blood.
Such a long and deep wound.
[T/L = Deleted two sentences.]
There were two quick knocks on the door: "Someone is coming, I'll come in first!"
Zhan Rong carried the tray, quickly entered the house and gently closed the door.
He didn't dare to glance at the bed, he put down the two bowls of porridge as if nothing had happened, then knelt down with a thud, feeling extremely ashamed: "I am late, please punish me, Master."
Xiao Nong hugged the flexible and thin body in his arms, turning a deaf ear to Zhan Rong's voice, and concentrated on playing with a strand of Zhong Yansheng's hair. He felt that even the hair of the little thing in his arms was soaked in his favorite scent, and he squinted his eyes slightly to sniff it carefully.
Zhong Yansheng felt creepy when he was sniffed by him, especially in front of Zhan Rong. He felt extremely embarrassed. He wanted to crawl down but was afraid of hurting Xiao Nong. Xiao Nong was almost driven crazy by the broken head.
Zhan Rong was frightened when he heard no response for a long time.
Based on his many years of experience following his master, usually, if his master didn't reply for such a long time, it meant that he was in real trouble.
The room was quiet for a while. Zhong Yansheng was struggling with how to tell Zhan Rong that Xiao Nong was not thinking straight.
Just at this moment, Xiao Nong was a little dissatisfied because Zhong Yansheng had not paid attention to him for a long time. He whispered in his ear and said in a low voice: "Young Master?"
Zhan Rong felt as if struck by lightning!
This, this, this...who does the master call the young master?
Zhan Rong had been anxious for a whole day, and vaguely thought that he had tinnitus. He was trying to digest those three words, wondering if there was another meaning, when Xiao Nong lazily called out, "Master?"
Zhong Yansheng reacted slowly, covered Xiao Nong's mouth, and explained to Zhan Rong dryly: "Your Highness Prince Ding… he was just joking."
Zhan Rong: “…”
Zhong Yansheng was too embarrassed to tell Zhan Rong that in a hurry, he said that His Royal Highness Prince Ding was the male concubine he bought in the Western Regions for 300,000 taels...
Just at this moment, the footsteps of patrolling bandits were heard passing by outside.
This group of people were really gossipy and talkative. It was not enough for them to surround Zhong Yansheng and Xiao Nong for a long time during the day. When they passed by at night, they would squat at the door, pointing and saying something: "Hey, have you heard that the young master inside spent 300,000 taels on the blue-eyed male lover he bought!"
"Three hundred thousand taels?! As a man, what's the point of buying a male lover?"
"Then how else can it be used? Of course, it should be used on the bed, hey..."
When he heard the words "blue-eyed male favorite", Zhan Rong's heart almost stopped beating.
Male, male pet?
No wonder the prince didn't say anything. Although the young master was just a temporary measure, the prince, who is so proud, must have been furious when he heard this!
Zhan Rong didn't even dare to look at Xiao Nong's face, and felt even more ashamed: "It's all my fault for being incompetent."
It was actually similar to what Zhong Yansheng guessed. When leaving the posthouse yesterday afternoon, Xiao Nong had expected that he would encounter assassins on the road. There were too many people in and outside the capital who wanted to kill him.
However, he did not expect that the sudden heavy rain and thunder would cause his headache to be so serious. Xiao Nong was already very irritable when he had an attack, and his sanity collapsed directly after he was injured. Most of the horrific bodies of assassins that Zhong Yansheng saw on the ground when he rushed over were caused by Xiao Nong.
It was impossible for Zhan Rong and others to draw swords against Xiao Nong, and they tried in a panic to temporarily subdue Xiao Nong. As a result, several of them were injured by Xiao Nong. Xiao Nong also lost his sword and signal fireworks and disappeared into the forest.
If Lou Qingtang had not borrowed Taxue when he went south, and Taxue had not stayed in the woods for a few days and found the trace of Shuiyun Village, Zhan Rong and the others might not have been able to find them so quickly.
Zhong Yansheng was a little hungry. He drank his porridge while listening to him explain the situation in a few words. He looked at Taxue, who was lying on the bed with his head raised proudly, looking at him with gray-blue eyes and wagging his tail. He felt that it was very similar to Xiao Nong and smiled: "Taxue is amazing."
Taxue's tail wagged even more happily.
After a while of silence, Xiao Nong heard him praising Taxue and said in dissatisfaction: "Master..."
Zhong Yansheng felt a headache, so he scooped up a spoonful of porridge and stuffed it into his mouth, and ordered anxiously: "Don't talk!"
Xiao Nong stared at the beautiful fair face of the person in his arms, then lowered his eyes to look at the red rashes on his feet. He narrowed his dark blue eyes, and without struggling, he obediently swallowed the spoonful of porridge.
Zhan Rong wiped his sweat.
The master is so tolerant towards the young master... If it were someone else, both of their hands would have been chopped off and fed to the dogs.
Fortunately, as long as Zhong Yansheng was in his arms, Xiao Nong would be much more obedient. He stared at Zhong Yansheng for a while, and then fell silent again.
Apart from liking to rub against him and secretly lick him when he wasn't paying attention, Xiao Nong didn't do anything particularly excessive.
After Zhong Yansheng finished thinking about it, he suddenly realized that his bottom line seemed to have been lowered a lot.
But Xiao Nong's brain is not working properly now, and it's not intentional. He can't argue with a person with a bad brain...
Zhong Yansheng tried his best to ignore Xiao Nong's hand on his waist, and his face was serious and serious: "His Royal Highness Prince Ding and I have been missing for almost a day. What's the situation outside now?"
Zhan Rong had a special way of contacting the Black Armored Army, so he was not completely in the dark even after entering the deep forest. He replied respectfully, "You and the master are not here, and the situation outside is a bit chaotic. Several officials detained in the posthouse wanted to leave, but were held down by the Black Armored Guards who stayed in the posthouse. Now there are soldiers from the Five Army Camps outside the forest, and there are several unknown forces lurking in the forest."
Zhong Yansheng thought for a moment and said, "When I came, four groups of assassins appeared in the forest. They all seemed to want to kill me. The first group was dressed like the assassins at the Spring Breeze Valley. When the last group appeared, the situation became very chaotic, and then I was taken away by His Royal Highness Prince Ding."
"Your Highness, we are the last group of people." Zhan Rong lowered his head. "Last night, the situation was too chaotic, and the master was in a state of confusion. We heard the noise and came over. We found that you were trapped inside, so we tried to find a way to break the situation."
Originally, Zhan Rong wanted to take Zhong Yansheng away during the chaos, but when he turned around, Zhong Yansheng was gone. He was so frightened that he broke out in a cold sweat.
Zhan Rong was very worried that night.
Zhong Yansheng suddenly realized.
No wonder, the last group of people didn’t look like assassins at all, they just came to save him.
"Zhan Rong, do you know the origins of those assassins?"
Zhan Rong nodded: "According to my investigation and my master's speculation, there should be people from Prince De and the old emperor inside, but there is another group of people whose situation we have not yet figured out. Once I find out the details, I will report to you and my master as soon as possible."
Zhong Yansheng felt that what he said was strange and muttered to himself.
Why not just report this matter to Xiao Nong? Why report it to him?
Zhan Rong waited for a while, but Xiao Nong still didn't speak, and his heart was beating fast.
Is the master too angry to talk?
Xiao Nong's mind was confused, but he could understand some words. He opened his mouth, but before he could say anything, the little beauty in his arms poked him hard in the chest.
Zhong Yansheng's strength was not very strong, just like the others, he was soft and not aggressive. There was a faint fragrance when he bumped into him. It was more like he was acting coquettishly than hitting someone, as if his chest was scratched by a soft feather.
Xiao Nong's attention was inevitably drawn to his snow-white neck. He stared at his lips opening and closing, then calmed down again.
Zhong Yansheng was secretly relieved that he had once again successfully stopped the mentally ill Xiao Nong from speaking.
When he sees Dr. Lou and wakes Xiao Nong up, he will make sure Xiao Nong apologizes and thanks him.
He has worked really hard for Xiao Nong these past two days!
After beating Xiao Nong into silence, Zhong Yansheng continued to ask Zhan Rong: "How did you and Taxue get in?"
"My Lord, it's all thanks to Taxue."
Zhan Rong looked at Taxue who was lying on the ground with boredom. He wanted to touch the big cat's furry belly. However, he knew very well that if he dared to touch Taxue, he would most likely have his hand bitten off. He looked away greedily and said, "Taxue smelled a different scent, and brought a few of his subordinates up a narrow, remote and steep mountain road. They contacted the spy who had hidden in the cargo a few days ago and sneaked in ahead of time."
Taxue was a creature that lived on the Xifan Snow Mountain. He was very good at climbing cliffs and walls. He climbed up very quickly and almost made Zhan Rong and others lose him.
This is so amazing! Zhong Yansheng couldn't help but praise it again: "Great Taxue!"
Xiao Nong pinched his waist in dissatisfaction, then leaned close to the tip of Zhong Yansheng's ear and whispered, "Why don't you praise me?"
Zhong Yansheng: “…”
Why should I praise you for what you have done?
Praise you for being a good hooligan.
The brain-damaged Xiao Nong is so scary. Why would he be jealous of a big cat?
Zhong Yansheng ignored Xiao Nong's puzzled expression and thought for a while: "When His Royal Highness Prince Ding and I went out today, we saw this village with farmhouses and a training ground. If I'm not mistaken, there seemed to be several granaries."
"Your Highness, you are right. This bandit den is hidden deep in the mountains and is extremely difficult to find. There is a cliff behind it and high walls all around. They have taken in many refugees and have trained elite soldiers and stored food. They are well-trained." Zhan Rong thought for a moment, "The spies secretly checked and found that most of the goods they looted were transported and sold from other mountain roads. It seems that the looting was not for pleasure. I think the leader of this village is probably not ordinary and has deep ulterior motives."
Zhong Yansheng was stunned for a long while, and slowly digested his words: "Does it mean that it is easy to defend but difficult to attack?"
"Your Highness is smart!" Zhan Rong praised, "It is indeed easy to defend but difficult to attack. Your Highness should have seen our spy during the day, right? He hid in the village for a few days and found that it was almost impossible to mobilize troops to attack. In and out of the mountain village, apart from the dangerous mountain path found by Taxue, there are only a few gates left."
The spy...
Zhong Yansheng thought of the bandit soldier who was always hesitant to speak among the group of people who surrounded him during the day, and finally understood why a bandit would be so gossipy.
No wonder the bandit looked so strange when he heard him say that Xiao Nong was bought by him.
Since the mountain path was difficult to climb, he felt that he would not be able to climb that kind of mountain path...
Xiao Nong was injured, so it should be difficult for him to get through. From what Zhan Rong said, it was not easy for them to come up alone, and it would be even more dangerous to take them away.
Zhong Yansheng was a little disappointed.
When he first met Zhan Rong, he thought they could leave, but things turned out to be much more complicated than he thought.
Zhong Yansheng curled his itchy feet and wanted to go back to his soft and comfortable bed to have a nap.
If Xiao Nong hadn't been behind him, he would have almost collapsed.
He was feeling disappointed when Xiao Nong's voice suddenly rang out from behind him: "How many people are there?"
Why are you suddenly speaking human language?
Suddenly recovered?
Zhong Yansheng turned around in shock.
Unfortunately, Xiao Nong's eyes behind him were still hazy, as if separated by a layer of fog. His clear consciousness was trapped behind this thick fog, appearing and disappearing from time to time. When he saw him turn around, he smiled at him.
A normal Xiao Nong wouldn't laugh like that.
Zhan Rong was startled by Xiao Nong's sudden voice, but he didn't realize anything was wrong, so he immediately replied, "My lord, the young prince brought four hundred black armored guards, plus the people who accompanied you to Chunfeng Valley, a total of four hundred and twenty-three people."
Xiao Nong said "hmm" in a deep voice.
Zhong Yansheng: “…”
Zhong Yansheng suspected that Xiao Nong didn't understand what Zhan Rong was saying at all.
Zhan Rong waited anxiously for a while, but did not hear any further instructions from Xiao Nong. Guessing Xiao Nong's previous style, he asked tentatively, "Master, what do you mean? Since a frontal attack is not possible, let the subordinates come up the mountain road first, ambush in the woods, and wait for the leader of the bandits to appear, and then capture the leader first?"
Zhong Yansheng: "...Yes! That's what His Royal Highness Prince Ding meant!"
Zhan Rong breathed a sigh of relief. He felt that his master tonight was even more mysterious than before. He did not dare to stay in this room any longer. "I understand. I will send two people to guard outside the house and go back to the cliff to pass on the message."
Zhan Rong took out a signal firework and placed it on the table: "Your Highness, please keep this. If anything goes wrong, set off the fireworks."
Zhong Yansheng nodded his head like a chicken pecking at rice and smiled at him: "Okay, thank you for your hard work, Zhanrong."
Zhan Rong wiped his sweat again: "Your Highness, your words are too kind."
He should be thanking the young master. If the young master hadn't been there, he would have been scolded to death by his master.
Seeing that Xiao Nong had no objection to the plan, Zhan Rong was about to leave when he was suddenly stopped by Xiao Nong: "Wait."
Zhan Rong paused: "Master?"
Xiao Nong's eyes fell on the red rash on Zhong Yansheng's feet, and after a long while he uttered two words: "Socks."
After a pause, he added: "Inner wear."
Zhan Rong and Zhong Yansheng were both stunned. Zhan Rong was confused for a moment and didn't understand what he meant, while Zhong Yansheng didn't expect that Xiao Nong was so confused that he actually remembered that his feet were rubbed red by the coarse cloth socks.
Zhan Rong quickly glanced at the bed and saw the coarse cloth clothes on Zhong Yansheng. He vaguely understood what Xiao Nong meant. "I understand. There are too many looted goods from Doctor Lou. They have not yet been completely returned to the bandits' warehouse. I will immediately send someone to steal two sets of underwear."
Xiao was satisfied: "Yeah."
When Zhan Rong left, he did not take Taxue with him.
Taxue didn't seem to want to leave either, and whimpered pitifully at Zhong Yansheng.
Zhong Yansheng had just been rubbed by it, leaving several marks on his body. He liked to be clean, so he scowled at Taxue and said, "No, you are too dirty, you cannot get on the bed."
Taxue was so depressed that he turned around on the ground with his tail in his mouth.
Xiao Nong seemed to smile.
Zhong Yansheng tried to figure out Xiao Nong's reaction just now, trying to test whether he was confused or somewhat sober. Before he could say anything, he felt a chill on his body.
Zhong Yansheng was stunned.
Xiao Nong directly tore his clothes off!
He had fair skin. Although he had experienced many dangers after coming out, he was not hurt at all. His skin was not pale, but had a milky color from the Western Regions, and was as flawless as jade.
Xiao Nong said sternly, staring at his chest: "This is also rubbed red."
Taxue, who had been lying down obediently, suddenly jumped up again, grabbed the edge of the bed with his two paws, and made low anxious calls.
Zhong Yansheng was so angry that he wanted to hit him on the head. He didn't know how his hand was so skillful that he could rip his belt loose with one pull. He tried to pull his clothes together with a red face.
But Xiao Nong held his hand tightly, staring at the spot without blinking: "It's rubbed red."
Zhong Yansheng was not as strong as him, and he struggled in vain. His thin chest rose and fell, attracting even more scorching gazes. Xiao Nong's eyes were burning, and he repeated: "Red."
Zhong Yansheng never imagined that one day he would have to explain to someone in a low voice: "This place is originally red."
"Not that red." Xiao Nong spoke slowly, as if he needed to think about each word, but each word sounded very important to his ears. "I saw it last night."
“…”
Taxue had come up again at some point, its big furry head resting on Zhong Yansheng's back, arching his back, its breath hot.
No matter how cute a big cat is, it is still a ferocious beast. Zhong Yansheng couldn't help but shrink back and subconsciously moved closer to Xiao Nong.
Xiao Nong calmly welcomed him into his arms as if he hadn't noticed anything, and continued, "You can't wear your clothes anymore."
Zhong Yansheng looked at him suspiciously.
So he misunderstood Xiao Nong. Xiao Nong took off his clothes not to be a hooligan, but because he was worried that he would get a rash on his body like his feet?
Yes, that's right, Xiao Nong shouldn't have as many bad intentions as before.
Zhong Yansheng felt a little ashamed: "Well, I understand, but I'll wait for Zhan Rong to bring the clothes first, and then I'll change..."
"It's red and hurt." Xiao Nong's brain was broken, but he had his own logic, "Lick it, and it won't hurt anymore."
Zhong Yansheng was stunned for a moment, then suddenly realized what he was going to do and hurriedly tried to turn around and jump off the bed.
As a result, Taxue stood behind him, and when she saw him approaching, she pounced on him excitedly, and then threw him back into Xiao Nong's arms.
Xiao Nong seemed to have expected the result, and stared at him: "Yuan Yuan, does it hurt?"
Zhong Yansheng covered himself tightly and said, "I don't feel any pain!"
"You're in pain."
Xiao Nong nodded calmly, grasped his thin wrist easily, and lowered his head.
The cool breath brushed against his skin, causing Zhong Yansheng to shudder all over: "Don't..."
He was speechless.
Xiao Nong's movements were firm yet gentle, as if he really wanted to lick his wounds.
The tender tips are like spring buds, just like red bamboo shoots popping up after the rain.
I can't tell whether it's painful or itchy.
Zhong Yansheng curled his fingers and leaned against Taxue's fur and warm fur. His fingertips trembled a few times, and his movements changed from pushing away to unconsciously hugging Xiao Nong's head. His breathing became more and more rapid.
Even if Xiao Nong was unconscious, he would still be bullied.
He was still leaning on Taxue, who was staring at him, which was much more embarrassing than it was in the afternoon.
Zhong Yansheng felt very disappointed and wanted to cry again.
When the door was knocked again, Xiao Nong let him go, licked the corner of his lips, and blinked in confusion: "Why, no?"
Zhong Yansheng's eyes, nose, and lips were all red, and he finally exploded after hearing this: "...You and Taxue, get out of here!"
Taxue, who just sneaked onto the bed, felt very wronged: "Woo!"
Xiao Nong saw him throwing a tantrum, smiled slightly and let him go: "Thank you, little master."
Zhong Yansheng was shy and didn't want to know what he was thanking him for. With red ears, he gathered his clothes, turned his back and said nothing.
He is angry.
There was a rustling sound behind him and he felt warm. Xiao Nong covered him with the quilt, got out of bed and opened the door.
After a while, Xiao Nong returned to the bed, put something next to the pillow, and coaxed him in an unskilled manner: "Change your clothes."
Zhong Yansheng didn't want to pay attention to him: "I'm in pain, I don't want to change."
This time it was really red and painful.
Xiao Nong: "Okay, I'll help you."
Zhong Yansheng immediately jumped up again: "I'll change it myself."
Fortunately, when changing clothes, Xiao Nong didn't do anything, but refused to turn around. He and Taxue just stared at him without blinking.
Under the dim oil lamp in the room, the two pairs of blue eyes appeared almost the same dark blue.
The strange feeling as if being attacked by two Xiao Nongs or two Taxues came up again. Zhong Yansheng felt uneasy because of being stared at. He simply hid in the quilt and slowly changed into the inner wear and socks that Zhan Rong had stolen from the goods, then put on the coarse linen clothes and carefully tied several knots on the belt.
Xiao Nong sighed faintly.
Zhong Yansheng glared at him and asked fiercely: "What are you sighing for?"
The black eyeballs were wet, like a small animal that had just cried, and had no deterrent effect.
Xiao Nong tilted his head, his eyes like Taxue, revealing a kind of animalistic aggression, but he was better at disguising than Taxue: "Nothing."
Zhong Yansheng met his gaze and only then did he realize what was going on.
When Xiao Nong was thinking normally, he was bound by reason and would not do anything excessive to him, for fear of making him angry or scared.
But now Xiao Nong's mind is flawed, and his actions are driven by instinct. Zhong Yansheng is too soft-hearted, so Xiao Nong does whatever he wants without restraint.
It was clear that Xiao Nong had warned him to learn how to draw the dagger before he lost his mind.
But how could he possibly pull out the dagger against Xiao Nong?
...Next time, next time I must not be soft-hearted.
When dealing with a bad dog like Xiao Nong, being soft-hearted and giving in will only bring trouble upon yourself.
Zhong Yansheng encouraged himself in his heart for a while, then turned over and lay down facing the wall, wrapping the quilt around himself, and refused to turn around again.
After a while, Xiao Nong quickly changed his clothes and lay down.
Taxue saw the two of them lying together and anxiously turned around twice on the ground, but Zhong Yansheng looked very angry again. He didn't want to make Zhong Yansheng even angrier, so he had to lie down under the table.
The night in the mountains is quiet, and the chirping of insects makes the surroundings even more tranquil.
The quilt Li Yimu brought was very thin and not very warm. After lying down for a while, Zhong Yansheng felt getting colder and colder. He secretly turned his head to glance at the tall, dark silhouette behind him, but he didn't want to take the initiative to get close to Xiao Nong.
He is still angry.
After a while, he was hugged with his quilt.
Xiao Nong took the initiative to move closer and said in a low voice: "Go to sleep."
Xiao Nong’s arms were not very warm, but they were very reliable.
Zhong Yansheng lay there for a while, and taking advantage of the fact that he was still unconscious, he cursed him softly, "Bad dog."
Xiao Nong heard it, blinked, leaned close to his ear, and whispered in a rather malicious voice: "Woof."
A cool breath brushed past his ears, and Zhong Yansheng's eyes widened slightly, in shock: "You...!"
Xiao Nong smiled again and looked at him very naturally.
Xiao Nong’s brain is broken...really broken!
Zhong Yansheng was so frightened that his anger subsided a little. Fearing that Xiao Nong's brain was getting worse, he reluctantly gave him half of the quilt he was wrapped in. He stared at Xiao Nong in confusion for a while, but could not tell anything from his smile.
After staring at each other for a while, Xiao Nong moved closer, touching his nose with his, and asked gently, "Are you still angry?"
Zhong Yansheng's lips moved, his chest still felt numb and painful, and he was unable to speak in front of Xiao Nong like this.
There's no point in being angry, scolding him is useless, and reasoning with him doesn't make him any better.
He stared at Xiao Nong for a while, but couldn't resist the sleepiness. His head leaned slowly into his arms and he closed his eyes unconsciously.
The next morning, before Zhong Yansheng woke up from his sleep, there were several knocks on the thin door. The door was suddenly opened, and a man strode in: "You two, don't sleep anymore, get up!"
The moment the sound came out, Zhong Yansheng's ears were covered by Xiao Nong, but he was still inevitably woken up. He raised his head in a daze and looked over blankly: "Huh?"
The middle-aged man who was in charge of guarding them yesterday stepped into the room and saw the two people hugging each other on the bed. His pupils trembled for a moment, and then he quickly returned to a blank expression: "The boss is back and wants to see you."