The team traveled at night and rested during the day. After walking like this for three days, the dry rations and water had almost been exhausted. The people and horses had been very active during this time and had lost a lot of strength, gritting their teeth to continue forward.

Wang Yibo looked at the map and said: "We'll be in Pi County soon, and there will be someone there to meet us. Everyone, take heart."

"When we return to the capital, the Emperor will be sure to reward us all generously," Xiao Zhan said to boost morale.

Everyone gazed exhaustedly at the endless road. Yin Pinglu was holding onto the reins with her last breath, and Wang Yibo even more so. Of the entire team, the two of them with the least physical fitness had reached their limits.

Xiao Zhan looked down and saw that he was faint and muddle-headed, having obviously only slept for a while when they rested. He said worriedly, "Yibo, let's talk about something.

"About what?" Wang Yibo asked weakly.

"Tell me about your childhood. I want to know, what were you like when you were young?"

"When I was young?" Wang Yibo looked up at the sun that was close to setting in the distance. The sun at dusk was like a salted egg yolk, reminding him of a time in his youth when he sat in the courtyard and watched the sunset.

"My father usually liked to recite and compose poems. One time he was reading under a magnificent sunset near dusk. My mother said, 'the sunset is beautiful, like porridge with egg yolks, let's eat salted egg yolks tonight.'"

Xiao Zhan couldn't help laughing: "Then do you like salted egg yolks?"

"I don't." The corners of Wang Yibo's mouth twitched. "So I had to recite one policy theory and ten poems to change to a different kind of food."

"What food did you end up switching to?"

"....Salted duck eggs.

Xiao Zhan laughed out loud: "That is considered a change?"

"It couldn't be helped, there were only salted duck eggs left at home. I ate the egg whites and they ate the yolks. They also joked that I wouldn't eat good food."

"You are able to eat a lot of good things now."

"Yes." Wang Yibo gazed far into the distance. "I want to taste all the delicious things in the world, and wear all the beautiful clothes."

Xiao Zhan nodded his head.

"What about you?" Wang Yibo had nearly lost the strength to speak, and just wanted to hear him go on.

"Me, ah, I was a naughty child, and often secretly ran out of the capital. My mother couldn't control me, and tossed me into the military camp in a fit of anger. Then I regretted it. How nice the capital was, ah, why go to the frontier and suffer? I cried and threw a fit, ah, but my father was indifferent."

Wang Yibo had thought he was born with a love for family and country. Hearing this put a smile in his eyes. It turned out that when he was a child, he didn't know the meaning of life and death, or the principles of the world.

"How did you throw a fit?" Wang Yibo asked curiously.

"I just rolled around and made a scene. Sometimes my father would summon his subordinates to the big tent to witness how I jumped up and down, it was so humiliating," Xiao Zhan sighed.

Wang Yibo smiled slightly: "Then why didn't you give up and run away?"

"Because I couldn't escape at all, so I practiced hard with them and waited for the day when I could defeat my father and all of them with my own hands, and then return to the capital proudly," Xiao Zhan said

"And after? Why did you stay on the frontier?"

"My father had a subordinate who looked big and brawny. Every time I tried to escape, he was responsible for catching me, and I couldn't beat him in a fight. I suffered a lot of losses because of him. Then one time, my father was on the front lines when the rear battalion was ambushed, and several poisoned arrows were shot at me. I was unharmed because that big fellow stood in the way behind me. Not only him, but several people who usually guarded me strictly rushed over to protect me."

Wang Yibo didn't feel that his mind was muddled or drowsy at all, and subconsciously held onto one of his hands.

"I was sitting in front of his tomb, ah, and I thought, was it because I had a good birth? Born in the General's Mansion, everyone regarded me as a second father to respect and shield, but what could I do for them?"

"Do you know how important the three words "Xiao Zhan" are in the hearts of the common people?"

Xiao Zhan lowered his eyes to gaze at his side profile. His eyelashes were like crow's feathers, fanning his heart again and again. He smiled and asked: "Then what is in your heart?"

Wang Yibo remained silent.

Xiao Zhan stopped asking questions and focused on watching the road. Then, he heard Wang Yibo's hoarse but determined voice: "In the past, I only had my parents in my heart. From now on, I will only have you alone. What do you think?"

Xiao Zhan suddenly felt that death would be worth it. His heart was a burning ball of fire, so hot that it seemed to explode, the flames spreading to all his vital organs.

"Yibo."

"En."

"Wang Yibo."

"En?" Wang Yibo turned around hesitantly, and was greeted by a stormy kiss.

He inwardly rejoiced that they were some distance from the line behind them. Perhaps no one had noticed their movements. There was a sudden pain on his lip as Xiao Zhan seemed to intend to punish him for being inattentive. This urgent bite made Wang Yibo bite back vindictively, affection mixed with desire to tear him to the bone.

Without the restraint of its handler, the horse walked casually off to the side, and no one remarked upon them leaving the team. Wang Yibo feared falling, so he reflexively hugged the other's waist. His neck felt sore after leaning back for a while, but just as he tried to back out, the other party leaned down and pecked kisses all the way.

Wang Yibo couldn't help but laugh out loud: "Do you know what you look like right now?"

"I know." Xiao Zhan looked into his eyes. "A poor man who has a piece of fatty meat but can't eat it."

"......" Wang Yibo glared at him. "Who is fatty meat?"

"Then......no meat?"

"You can shut up."

While speaking, a drop of water fell on Wang Yibo's face. Xiao Zhan reached out a hand to wipe it off and was suddenly taken aback, looking at him blankly.

The two of them looked up at the same time and couldn't figure out what was going on at all. Wang Yibo couldn't help stretching out his hand, and several moments later, a few more drops of water landed on it.

"Is it.....raining?" Wang Yibo looked at him incredulously and put a hand on his face. "Is it rain?"

"Yes, I also got it on my head," Xiao Zhan said happily.

The others seemed to have noticed it too, and stopped one after another, looking up and around until the rain stained their faces. Then they began to shout wildly one after another.

"It's raining! Amazing, it's raining!"

Everyone got off their horses. Some hugged each other and screamed for joy, some wept on the spot, and some drank the rainwater with their mouths open.

Wang Yibo also stretched out his hands, feeling the cold water soaking his clothes, and laughed from the bottom of his heart. He looked sideways at Xiao Zhan: "It's raining."

"En, it's raining." Xiao Zhan smiled and embraced him. "How wonderful."

Everyone yelled in the rain for a while. Xiao Zhan asked them to go shelter in the forest for a while, but they wanted to continue on their way. Even if it was raining, it didn't matter. This was the rain that they hadn't seen in a very long time.

"Then let's go," Wang Yibo said in a low voice. "Let's stop wasting time here and arrive earlier so we can rest earlier."

Xiao Zhan had no choice but to order the team to continue marching in the rain, but he glanced at Wang Yibo from time to time, worried that he would be affected by the rainy weather and catch a cold.

Fortunately, Wang Yibo seemed to be very pleased with the rain tonight. One hand was stretched out at all times, and the rainwater flowed down his palm to his fingers, then dropped down to moisten the ground.

Half an hour later, they finally arrived in Pi County. The remaining people of Pi County were rushing outside, and some of the residents knelt down to thank the heavens. Seeing someone approaching, they moved out of the way, but someone recognized them and shouted: "Wang-daren and General Xiao are here!"

"The Living Bodhisattvas are here!"

"Wang-daren and General Xiao brought the rain!"

"Thank you, my lords!"

Xiao Zhan quickly explained to them: "We aren't Living Bodhisattvas, and the rain isn't from us. It is from the heavens."

"Thank you, thank you." The people on the sidelines wept with joy. "My children have been safely sent to Quzhou, and we will pick them up in a few days. If it weren't for you, my children might have long since passed."

"Heaven helps good people." As Xiao Zhan spoke, he suddenly realized that Wang Yibo hadn't said a word. He looked down and saw the other party leaning into his arms with closed eyes and a pale face. Suddenly panicked, Xiao Zhan said, "Yibo? Yibo, Wang Yibo.....wake up!"

The horse neighed as Xiao Zhan embraced him with one arm, quickly riding toward the government office.

The people behind didn't know what had happened, and had to immediately follow.

As soon as they arrived at the government office, they saw Zhao Guisheng coming out holding an umbrella, happily telling the servants beside him: "Tell everyone to hurry up and store water."

"Zhao Guisheng." Xiao Zhan reined in the horse. "Go and call a doctor."

"General Xiao, you're.....what's wrong with my lord?" Zhao Guisheng hurried forward to help him.

After dismounting, Xiao Zhan carried the man down and rushed inside: "Go call a doctor and get some hot water ready."

Zhao Guisheng immediately ordered someone to boil hot water and followed anxiously: "But there are no more doctors in the city, they were all evacuated."

Zhao Guisheng took them to the wing room in the back courtyard, and Xiao Zhan put Wang Yibo on the bed. He touched his forehead and found that it was very hot, but just didn't know if he had other symptoms of infection.

"General Xiao, let me have a look." Yin Pinglu had run in after hearing the news.

Zuo Ran echoed: "Yin Pinglu used to treat me when I was sick. She has read many medical books."

"It is up to you," Xiao Zhan said.

Yin Pinglu walked to the side and felt his pulse for a while. She pressed on his chest and observed his face, then said: "It is likely caused by overexertion and the rain. He should take a good rest and stop running about."

He had just recovered from the heat stroke last time, and was on the road day and night. Then it had rained for so long tonight, making things worse.

"The doctors are gone, but is there still a pharmacy here?" Yin Pinglu asked Zhao Guisheng. "Can I go see if there is any medicine I can use?"

"There is, I'll ask someone to take you there." Zhao Guisheng found a person familiar with the local area to take her to the pharmacy to retrieve medicine.

Zhao Guisheng gave orders to his servants while keeping an eye on the situation here. As soon as he turned his head, he saw Xiao Zhan crouched beside the bed, holding his hand and staring at him wordlessly, a little too quiet.

Full of doubts, Zhao Guisheng didn't dare disturb them for the time being.

After a while, the water was ready. Xiao Zhan closed the door and bathed Wang Yibo himself. After removing all of his clothes, he carried him to the water and wiped Wang Yibo's body with a handkerchief.

Wang Yibo was so pale. Even in the summer drought when all the men were shirtless, he would wear clothes to preserve a bit of dignity, so his body was as fair as ever.

But Xiao Zhan didn't have any extra colorful thoughts at this time, and bathed him very seriously. While rubbing his back, he stopped suddenly and looked down at it. There was a bumpy imprint above his waist, and after a long pause, Xiao Zhan looked up at the unconscious man in disbelief.

Was this why he was never allowed to look at his back?

He started to tremble, and was about to touch the mark, but he stopped abruptly. Thinking that this was the reason for his bad temper and audaciousness, the dignified general's eyes began to redden inexplicably.

Wang Yibo began to move again at this time, and opened his eyes with a splitting headache to find himself soaking in a wooden tub. Subconsciously leaning against the side, he looked up in surprise: "What are you doing?"

"Take a bath first and then rest." Xiao Zhan blinked and the mist vanished from his eyes, but there was still a trace of redness.

"What's wrong with you?" Wang Yibo asked hoarsely.

"Nothing, I'm just worried for your health," Xiao Zhan answered.

Just as Wang Yibo wanted to smile, he suddenly noticed that he was soaking naked in the tub. He leaned back a little more, wishing he could stick directly to the side, and cast him a vigilant look: "Did you see something you shouldn't have seen?"

"You mean.....that?" Intentionally or not, Xiao Zhan glanced at his lap. "Then I did see it."

"......" Wang Yibo asked uncertainly, "Anything else?"

"I just put you in, and you woke up. I haven't done anything yet." As Xiao Zhan spoke, he looked wronged.

Wang Yibo inwardly breathed a sigh of relief and observed his expression carefully. If the other party had seen it, he would definitely be curious and ask him about it. But since Xiao Zhan didn't, he gradually relaxed and rubbed his temples: "You go out, I'll wash myself."

"Your head is dizzy, I worry about you being alone."

"Then you call Xiao Gao in."

Wang Yibo confronted him for a long moment, thinking that the other party would come up with something to stay and watch him wash, but Xiao Zhan actually agreed, getting up to go outside and ask Xiao Gao to come and serve him.

Xiao Zhan stood guard outside the door, silently listening to the sounds of water inside with dark eyes and a stuffy nose.

"General, why are you here? Is my lord asleep?" Zhao Guisheng asked, coming over.

"He's still taking a bath." Xiao Zhan saw that he was holding a bowl in his hand. "Is the medicine ready?"

"En, this is for Wang-daren." Zhao Guisheng handed him the bowl. "Miss Yin boiled a lot, so I've shared a bowl with everyone. General, do you want some?"

"No need."

Zhao Guisheng saw that he was still stuck in place after taking the medicine bowl, and was a little uncertain about what kind of feelings he bore for Wang Yibo.

"If there is nothing else, you can go back first. Don't worry about things here," Xiao Zhan said.

Zhao Guisheng left uneasily.

The door opened again, and Xiao Gao came out to say that his lord had already laid down. Xiao Zhan just went in with the bowl, and after feeding the medicine to him, he took off his clothes and lay in bed, drawing him into his arms. He rubbed his head against the other's neck as if to ingratiate himself and show his love.

Wang Yibo was very sleepy at first, but after being teased by him, he said with a slight smile: "Are you going to let me rest?"

"I will." Xiao Zhan hugged him tightly. "This way you will heal quickly."

It was still raining, and everyone was busy collecting water and cheering. Xiao Zhan asked in his ear: "Are you still afraid?"

Wang Yibo knew that he was asking if he was afraid of rainy days.

He thought about it carefully, and could only think of his experiences these days in the other party's company. He shook his head.

"That's good. Go to sleep."

Xiao Zhan's whispering voice seemed to have magical properties, and Wang Yibo fell into a drowsy sleep in an instant.

Xiao Zhan stared at his face, then solemnly and devoutly planted a kiss on his forehead.

In the afternoon of the next day, Wang Yibo's condition improved. His head was no longer muddled, and he was able to get out of bed.

The others were all sent outside by Xiao Zhan to check on the situation after the rain. Xiao Zhan came in with food for him, watched over him as he finished eating, and then ran to the kitchen to cook the medicine himself.

After a while, Zhao Guisheng snuck into the room and said: "Wang-daren."

"What is it?" Wang Yibo asked with his head propped up.

Zhao Guisheng couldn't help being stunned for a moment at the sight of his sickly yet elegant appearance, and a sentence sprung to mind – a delicate sick beauty.

With a glance outside, he saw that no one was coming and asked in a whisper: "Taking the liberty to inquire, what is the relationship between you and the General now?"

Wang Yibo raised his eyes: "Why are you asking this?"

"Because I honestly can't tell." Zhao Guisheng frowned. "Like this morning, he has been guarding your bedside, taking care of you in every possible way. If you moved, he would observe for a long time to see if you were awake, and would wipe your sweat for you and cover you with a blanket."

Wang Yibo raised his eyebrows: "What else?"

"He held your hand the whole time without coming back to his senses."

A smile appeared at the corners of Wang Yibo's lips. "En, what else?"

"He still....." Zhao Guisheng quickly stopped. "Wait, I need to tell you another thing. I fear we have been deceived by his illusion."

"Illusion?" Wang Yibo frowned slightly. "What do you mean by that?"

"When I left the capital, I heard a rumor that General Xiao had an affair with Fu Qian in Jiangnan!" Zhao Guisheng said in a hushed tone.

Wang Yibo: "......"

Zhao Guisheng: "This story has been widely spread. Do you know about anything that happened in Jiangnan?"

"It isn't so, could it be that Fu Qian himself didn't come out to explain? How could he, a man living in the capital, have anything to do with Xiao Zhan in Jiangnan? How could anyone believe such absurd rumors?" Wang Yibo hadn't expected this. Had something gone wrong somewhere?

"The thing is, Fu Qian is not in Beijing. He went out to play and came to the south. Everyone was discussing this matter, and it was spread so vividly that the Fu family almost believed it. They were still discussing fiercely whether to send Fu Qian to the General's Mansion as the second wife."

"... ... ... ..." Wang Yibo slowly clenched his fists.

Xiao Zhan came in with the medicine and saw that the faces of the two men were each more serious than the other. He asked: "What are you discussing?"

"Hush, we're discussing your second wife." Wang Yibo turned to ask Zhao Guisheng for details.

"Second, second wife?!" Xiao Zhan turned pale with shock, then scratched his head blankly. "Second wife......what is this about?"