Xiao Xiao's face changed as soon as she heard it, and she looked around before pulling Shen Muqing to the same spot where she had been crying earlier. She said in a low voice, "Did you hear that clearly?"

  His voice was tight, with a few guards, which made Shen Muqing tense up too. She nodded dazedly: "I've only heard about it, I don't know if I can make such a petition!"

  Xiao Xiao remained silent for a long time.

  Shen Muqing was blocked by him against the icy stone wall, and his already cold body couldn't help but shiver slightly. He wanted to remind Xiao Sa that this place was too cold, and with such a big snow outside, people could hear the "creaking" sound of footsteps in the snow when they approached. The two didn't need to be so tense. But as soon as he looked up, what entered his line of sight was his beautifully curved jawline.

  The boy in his youth had already shown a hint of masculinity, with a faint blue hue after shaving, tightly pursed thin lips, and a few strands of determination... For a moment, Shen Muqing seemed to have smelled the scent of cedar wood coming from him again, emitting a warm and gentle warmth, faintly, shallowly, lingering on the tip of his nose, making people feel slightly dizzy, with a sense of being protected and safe.

  But Xiao Xiao remained silent for a long time, and the surroundings made Shen Muqing quickly wake up from this lingering atmosphere.

  Although she didn't know what the difference was between Wen and Wu Jinshi in the Great Zhou Dynasty, but in her known history, Wu Jinshi were often seen as rough and looked down upon by Wen Jinshi. Was Xiao Sa also silent because of this reason?

  "Is this a good idea?" Shen Mu Qing asked in a low voice, "Isn't it somewhat unwise?"

  "No, no, no." Xiao Sa said with a sigh, "If such a thing really exists, it would be the best for our family. You don't know that in our family's tens of thousands of hectares of good fields, eight or nine out of ten grains of rice are exchanged for salt certificates at various guards... If I can pass the Wu Jinshi exam, first, I will have a better grasp; secondly, it would be beneficial to my family's business with no harm...". Saying this, Xiao Sa suddenly seemed to remember something and stared intently at Shen Muqing: "Have you mentioned this matter to anyone else?"

  His low voice had a hint of thunder, making Shen Muqing subconsciously feel that his question was very important. She couldn't help but tense up and say: "No, no. How can this kind of thing be casually brought up to others? I've only told you!"

  "Hmm!" Xiao Sa seemed to let out a sigh of relief, then said in a low voice: "You must remember, no one is allowed to mention this matter!"

  "Uh-huh!" Shen Muqing replied busily.

  Xiao Xiao's face turned gloomy as he stared at her: "You hummed and hummed, did you understand what I told you?!"

  Shen Mu Qing saw the faintly visible blue veins on his forehead, and although he didn't know what he had done to offend him again, he still decided to lower his head immediately, lest he provoke that arrogant temper of his, and who knows what would happen then.

  "Remember everything, remember everything. Don't let me mention this to anyone else!"

  Xiao Xiao listened, not only did she not feel relieved, but her bright eyes became even more terrifying, like dark clouds gathering: "I really don't know how you've managed to survive until now! You do everything with a distracted look on your face... You, you..."

  He pointed at her hand with a trembling finger, apparently enraged, making Shen Muqing worry that he might faint from anger.

  Shen Mu Qing maintained his usual compromising attitude in front of him, immediately saying: "I remember everything you said, I will definitely follow it, I will definitely follow it, and I won't violate it. Really, I've remembered it all!"

  Xiao Xiao listened, glared at her fiercely, then let out a deep sigh and said helplessly: "Forget it, maybe this is just the blessing of being foolish. You must remember, from now on, whenever you hear the masters talking about something, you must keep it tightly in your heart, don't tell anyone. Remember, trouble comes from the mouth...". Then she went on and on, more nagging than Li's mother, no, more than her mother in her past life.

  Shen Mu Qing quietly muttered: "Isn't this what you just said I could do?"

  "What did you say?" Xiao Sa's temper flared up again, and she said in a low voice, "I can't say it either. Did you hear that clearly?"

  "Listen carefully!"

  Xiao Xiao's face finally looked a bit better.

  Shen Muqing was also frozen stiff, and she couldn't help but rub her hands together.

  Xiao Xiao saw it and her face turned pale: "Leng, why didn't you make a sound!"

  Shen Mu Qing listened and couldn't help but think to herself: If I didn't think you were still a young kid, would I have put up with everything and compromised myself into this state? The effects of traditional medicine are slow, and she had always taken good care of herself. It was already the seventh year of the Dazhou dynasty, and she hadn't even caught a cold once... If she got sick because of this, it would be a miscarriage of justice!

  She even imagined herself complaining to Xiao Sa, only for Xiao Sa to glare at her and shout "serves you right".

  Shen Muqing's heart was also resentful, and she couldn't help but speak out: "You're the one who makes me not speak up, and you're also the one who annoys me for not speaking up... Neither left nor right is okay with you. Tell me, what do I need to do to satisfy you?" As she spoke, she stomped her feet - they were so cold that they had lost all sensation, and she didn't know if she would get frostbite. The thought flashed through her mind, making Shen Muqing even more annoyed, and she couldn't help but pout.

  Xiao Xiao looked at her plump lips that had turned rose purple, and her originally white nose tip had also become bright red. Her mouth twitched as if she was about to cry. Suddenly, a flame burst forth in his heart: "You can't even tell whether you're hot or cold yourself, what else can you do? Just looking at your ghostly appearance, it's like others are taking advantage of you... You still dare to glare at me with your eyes, am I wrong? With such a beautiful face, why didn't they bind your feet? That's because they wanted to take some of the blame off you, so when you get to your husband's house and climb onto his daughter's head..."

  Shen Mu Qing's head was bursting, and she stared at her own feet in shock, muttering: "Why is my temper like firecrackers... I didn't want to bind my feet myself..."

  Although her voice was small, her ears were sharp. As soon as she heard it, she got angry and flung her sleeves: "You ungrateful guy, the inner courtyard is full of ruthless people who can kill without spilling blood, you just rot in the mud from now on, don't even think about making a name for yourself!"

  Although his voice was unpleasant and his words were sharp, they carried a familiar warmth that didn't quite match his angry tone.

  Shen Mu Qing gazed at the awkward youth in front of her, who seemed to be more sarcastic than concerned, and couldn't help but curve the corners of her mouth. She gently tugged on his sleeve and soothed him in a warm voice: "Xiao Sa, don't be angry. I know you're worried about me. Don't worry, I'm not as fragile as you think. Although I won't harm others, if they try to take advantage of me, I'll fight back."

  "Counterattack!" Xiao Sa raised an eyebrow and sneered, "How are you going to counterattack? Hmm?" Her tone was full of skepticism.

  After arriving at Shen's house, she didn't receive any unfair treatment, but she also couldn't bring up the examples of her fighting with others in the company before.

  Shen Muqing could only smile ambiguously and say, "I may not be able to defeat him, but can I still not avoid him?"

  "Fine, fine, fine! You can just hide around like a mouse then!"

  "No, no." Shen Muqing smiled and appeased Xiao Sa while thinking: Take this opportunity to tell him his true identity, so that he won't always think he's being persecuted by someone!

  She coughed lightly and said seriously, "Xiao Xiao, my name is Shen Muqing, I am Shen Jian's..." Just as she finished speaking, Xiao Xiao's hand suddenly reached out to her face.

  Shen Mu Qing subconsciously turned his head slightly to one side, and naturally stopped talking.

  Xiao Xiao opened her bright eyes: "Your snot is running out!"

  "Ah!" Shen Muqing was shocked and covered her nose in a hurry.

  It's really too...too embarrassing!

  In front of Xiao Shuai, I have never been elegant and refined even once.

  His calm and serene face suddenly turned red.

  Xiao Xiao looked at her childish behavior and couldn't help but laugh quietly.

  Perhaps because he didn't dare laugh out loud, his originally clear and crisp voice now sounded low and mellow, giving people a warm feeling.

  Shen Muqing covered her nose with one hand and rummaged through her sleeve for a handkerchief to wipe her nose.

  Thinking of the few times she had met him, she was already beyond being elegant, and she suddenly became calm. Sniffling with laughter, she said: "Can you blame me for this? If it weren't for you pulling me here to talk, could I have been like this?"

  In Xiao Xiao's impression, Shen Muqing had always been clever and elegant, with a smile that was full of warmth. Suddenly speaking to him in a serious tone, she must be joking, and he also wanted to put on a straight face and play along. But who would have thought that when he saw her cry like his three-year-old nephew, he couldn't help but burst out laughing. The words Shen Muqing hadn't finished saying were no longer on his mind. He looked at Shen Muqing's nose, which had turned bright red from crying, and felt a pang of tenderness in his heart. He sighed and said with a smile, "Go back quickly! Be careful not to catch a cold." As he spoke, the corner of his eye caught sight of Shen Muqing's tears flowing again, and he couldn't help but say, "When you get back, have someone brew a strong ginger soup for you, cover yourself in blankets, and sweat it out. Be careful not to fall ill, or I'll have to send you to another courtyard to rest. At this time of year, the other courtyards are probably very quiet, but if you're not careful, your illness will only get worse."

  Shen Muqing didn't expect Xiao Xiao to say such considerate words, and he nodded repeatedly while wiping his nose.

  Xiao Xiao frowned and pointed outside the cave: "Isn't that someone looking for you?"

  Shen Mu Qing followed the direction of his finger and saw Zhu Ji holding a peach-red embroidered silk cloak with a phoenix pattern, crouching down to look around in the woods.

  Xiao Xiao looked at her expression and knew she had guessed correctly: "Go quickly! Be careful not to let others know. I also need to go back to the front hall... Today, as a junior, I have to help with pouring wine and other tasks."

  Shen Mu Qing pulled on his sleeve: "Xiao Xiao, I have something to tell you..." The handkerchief was still covering his nose, and his voice was muffled and unclear.

  "Shh!" Xiao Sa suddenly made a motion for her to be quiet, and her voice became as light as a feather. "Look!" Her finger pointed towards the outside of the cave again.

  Shen Muqing looked again in the direction of his pointing finger and saw a tall, burly man wearing a sheepskin-lined robe pulling Zhen Zhuji while talking to her. From afar, it was hard to see their expressions, but only that Zhen Zhuji was trying hard to shake off the man's hand, while the man was using force to hold onto her.

  (Today I have a date with my daughter (*^__^*) Hehe...... So, I'm posting this a bit early. But, sisters who have tickets in hand don't forget to squeal oh! (*^__^*) Hehe......)