Tang Dynasty Bandits

Chapter 35 Rafting
The city of Songzhou has been surrounded by the rebel army.

But a siege is not an attack on a city, and most people actually have nothing to do in the camp.

Meng Kai could abandon his subordinates and head east to Haizhou to eliminate the pirates. Zhu Wen and his junior sister could also leave the camp at night and ride horses to Mengzhuze Lake for a boat ride.

The crescent moon peeked out halfway from the clouds, tiny stars dotted the dark satin-like night sky, and the stars and the moon were rippling in the sparkling lake water.

Duan Hongyan took off her military boots and silk socks, dipped her bare feet in the cool lake water, and with a slight kick of her toes, she crushed the stars in the sky.

She wanted Zhu Wen to go out with her for a boat ride and a chat. This was what Duan Hongyan had said to him at the banquet last night, still a little drunk, while tugging at his sleeve and lowering her voice.

At this moment, the breeze also gently rocks the small boat. Under the starry sky, the wind is gentle, turning the boat into a sweet dream.

Zhu Wen wiped the water splashed on his face: "Hey, little sister, you splashed water on my face."

"is it?"

Duan Hongyan turned her face around, the faint starlight reflected on her delicate face, the wind gently blew her clothes, and she looked like the water goddess "Xiang Jun" who appeared in a dream.

"Looking closely, you have a pretty face, not inferior to mine." Duan Hongyan's watery eyes surveyed Zhu Wen's delicate face, which was still stained with water. "It would be such a pity if you died so early."

"Good people don't live long, but evil deeds will last for thousands of years. Good people like General Kou are easy to die, but I won't." Zhu Wen smiled playfully and said self-deprecatingly.

Duan Hongyan's eyes narrowed. "Don't play dumb with me. Do you really think you're the senior brother, that taking the head of a general amidst a million-strong army is as easy as taking something out of a bag? From facing Song Jue, challenging Kou Qianzhi, to nearly falling victim to Wang Jian's murderous hand, every time you've put yourself on the line between life and death?"

She suddenly put her hands on her chin and sighed softly, "When we robbed the Taining military camp, you told me that people are meant to support each other, and sometimes there's nothing wrong with relying on others."

"If that's the case, why do you insist on being so stubborn?"

Zhu Wen was stunned. He had indeed never thought about this question.

"Little Junior Brother, life is too tiring for you."

Duan Hongyan patted Zhu Wen's shoulder like a big sister, but her misty eyes seemed to want to see through his heart.

"Look, with the evening breeze blowing, sitting on the boat is just like being in my mother's cradle when I was a child."

Duan Hongyan paddled the lake water with her creamy white soles. "When I was little, my mother told me that if people leave, they will turn into stars in the sky. But among all the stars in the sky tonight, I don't know which one is my mother..."

She clutched Zhu Wen's sleeves and said, "Really? If one day you turn into a star and leave, I won't be able to find you. I'll be lonely."

Her eyes were lonely and filled with a hint of sadness.

When they first met, Zhu Wen thought that the junior sister should be the same type of person as the senior brother Meng Kai - riding the fastest horse, climbing the highest mountain, drinking the strongest wine, wielding the sharpest knife, and killing the most ruthless people.

But he soon discovered that Duan Hongyan also had a girl's weak side.

At this moment, Zhu Wen's junior sister looked so slender and frail, totally unlike her usual capable and decisive self.

He understood that the reason why his junior sister suffered from "soul separation syndrome" was that she must have used a seemingly hard shell to protect her weak self, so that she could endure the pain of losing her loved ones.

At this moment, everything she said was from the heart.

Zhu Wen didn't know how to respond, feeling a tangle of emotions swirling around him. Suddenly, those emotions transformed into a pure white tiger, gazing at him with mocking eyes. That expression was exactly the same as when he mocked others.

Zhu Wen didn't find the tiger unfamiliar, as it had appeared many times when he was wielding the Great Xia Dragon Sparrow Sword to kill enemies. The only strange thing was that this creature would appear somewhere other than the battlefield.

"You feel ashamed. You should be grateful because she cares about you and confides in you." The tiger spoke in his heart.

"But you're actually quite self-centered. Your favorite type of girl is probably the type who appears weak on the outside but is actually stronger than you on the inside? Because that way, she won't cause you any trouble."

"What a pity. You met the person you wanted to spend your life with at the wrong age. She is no longer in Songzhou, and you don't know where she is. Maybe she is married now, and even though you have scars in your heart, you can't let go of the past..."

Zhu Wen felt a strong sense of suffocation and responded, "I don't have the energy to think about things like feelings right now..."

"No, you're running away. I am you, so no one understands you better than me." The tiger studied him with its bright tiger eyes. "You're obsessed with yourself. Outside of your career, you don't want to get into trouble at all. When you appear smooth and sophisticated, it's just because you think it's more convenient and you don't want to get into more trouble."

"I'm not selfish! I also want to make this world a better place!" Zhu Wen angrily retorted: "How can I care about love?"

"That's what every self-important person says," the tiger sneered. "If you say you want the people to live well, it's only because the sage book your father taught you says so. But you're not someone who easily empathizes."

"Why did you tell Kou Shuai that his life wasn't an act? Because you were afraid to deny yourself, afraid to face your own hypocrisy!"

"Who in this world doesn't have a mask on their face?" Zhu Wen asked loudly.

"Brother Juehai has done me a favor." Zhu Wen replied, "It's all good now. There's no need for the relationship between the three of us to change."

"Hahaha." The tiger laughed sharply. "If this is your answer, then you really think too highly of yourself. See you next time, but I will always be with you..."

The tiger's figure dissipated like mist, and Zhu Wen's eyes were once again focused on his junior sister's pretty face, which was as beautiful as a flower.

"Hey, you little idiot, why are you so stunned!" Duan Hongyan shouted, "Could it be that this beautiful girl is so beautiful that you've lost your soul?"

She pinched Zhu Wen's waist in a stern tone, causing him to shiver in pain. The weak, childish expression on her face was completely gone.

Zhu Wen sighed and said, "Junior Sister Hongyan, I understand how worried you and Brother are about me. I've just joined the rebel army, and I've been too eager for credit. I deserve to be punished! Just give me three cups of wine when we get back."

"Three cups isn't enough!" Duan Hongyan snorted. "Now that we've won the battle, Master won't be so strict anymore. If you're really not afraid of death, I'll just fill you with three jars of Xinfeng wine and see if you're drunk enough to die!"

Zhu Wen begged for mercy, "Junior sister, please be magnanimous and spare me. Regardless of whether I'll die from drunkenness, my stomach is about to burst."

"Then it depends on your performance in the future." If you don't take your life seriously, I might as well kill you with wine. It will be more comfortable than dying by sword."

Zhu Wen smiled awkwardly, paddled the boat towards the lake shore, and his mind was completely relaxed.

Such a conversation made him feel much more relaxed.

Once upon a time, he and that girl, no matter how good or important friends they were, were still just friends.

Today, he felt that his relationship with his junior sister was that of friends who could trust each other with life and death, and that was enough.

(End of this chapter)