Mysteries of the Great Zhou Dynasty

Chapter 150 Extra Yun Zhao (4)

When Meng Yong finished washing up and changed into clean clothes, Yun Zhao was already fast asleep on the couch. There was a plate covering the bowl of plain noodles on the table. When Meng Yong opened it, the noodles were untouched.

Meng Yong looked at Yun Zhao with heartache, unsure whether he should call her. He tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear, but this startled Yun Zhao awake.

"Did I scare you? Why did you go to sleep without eating? You must be starving!" Meng Yong quickly withdrew his hand.

"No, I didn't sleep well. I want to eat this with you," Yun Zhao said softly.

Meng Yong felt a mix of emotions. He nodded, took two bowls, divided the now-cold noodles, and pushed the larger bowl in front of Yun Zhao.

Yun Zhao stopped refusing and began to eat heartily: "Delicious!"

Meng Yong smiled and said, "It is delicious. I will find an opportunity to learn this skill from Aunt Chen. If you want to eat it in the future, I can make it for you."

Yun Zhao blushed slightly and nodded.

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Early in the morning, Meng Yong was banging on something. Yun Zhao walked out of the room and saw that the yard was a mess, with wood chips scattered all over the ground.

When Meng Yong saw Yun Zhao come out, he quickly stood up and scratched the back of his head somewhat embarrassedly: "Miss Yun, did I wake you up?"

Yun Zhao covered her mouth and laughed, "No, I slept very well. Brother Meng, what are you doing?"

Meng Yong blushed even more: "I wanted to make you a bookshelf. You have so many books and your master's manuscripts, they all need to be properly stored. But I'm very clumsy, I ruined two of them, and I didn't finish it."

Seeing Meng Yong's clumsy and shy appearance, Yun Zhao picked up the blueprints on the ground, looked at them, and chuckled: "It's not that Brother Meng is clumsy, it's just that this cabinet is difficult to make. Although the mortise and tenon structure is sturdy, it is indeed difficult to make. It must fit perfectly. Let me help you!"

Meng Yong suddenly froze: "What did you just say?"

Yun Zhao was a little confused: "I said I'd help you do it."

Meng Yong asked with a serious expression: "No, you mean the mortise and tenon structure is sturdy?"

Yun Zhao was even more confused: "What's wrong? Yes, the mortise and tenon structure is indeed sturdy!"

Meng Yong was suddenly overjoyed. He picked up Yun Zhao and spun her around several times, excitedly saying, "I know what to do!"

Yun Zhao still didn't understand and said anxiously, "Brother Meng, put me down! What do you mean you know what to do?"

Meng Yong suddenly realized his rudeness, quickly put Yun Zhao down, took several steps back, and blushed so deeply it seemed like his face could bleed: "I...I...Miss Yun, I'm sorry."

Yun Zhao waved his hand, indicating that he didn't mind and signaled him to speak quickly.

Meng Yong became happy again, gesturing wildly as he said, "If this dam were just a simple pile of stones, it wouldn't be able to withstand the erosion of a flood. But if it's a mortise and tenon structure, with the stones firmly interlocked, it might last for a hundred years!"

Yun Zhao was happy for him, but he had to seriously consider the feasibility: "But the stone is so big and hard, how can it be made to be like wood?" Meng Yong smiled and said: "Don't worry about that. There are craftsmen who are particularly good at quarrying. Let's study it together, and we'll find a way!"

Yun Zhao nodded vigorously, his eyes filled with expectation.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

After months of working day and night, Meng Yong and several experienced craftsmen finally completed the blueprints for the dam, and this day marked the first day of construction on the main structure of the dam.

After the main group finished their prayers to Heaven and drank a cup of wine, they prepared to set off. Although the dam wasn't far, in order to meet the construction deadline, everyone would be gone for ten days to half a month, eating and sleeping right by the dam. So, everyone was somewhat unambitious and stood talking to their loved ones.

Yun Zhao took out two exquisite bronze bells with animal-face and tiger-head designs from his bosom. The bells were tied with tassels made of red rope, and there was a red pebble in the middle of the tiger's forehead, which at first glance looked like a red bean.

Yun Zhao was a little embarrassed and turned his face away, handing over a copper bell: "Brother Meng, I don't have anything to give you. These are two copper bells that Ma Yuan asked me to make. They are a pair, and I'm giving you this one. I hope it will keep you safe."

Upon hearing this, Meng Yong quickly declined, saying, "Miss Yun, Ma Yuan is quite skilled at making these little trinkets; they are naturally of the highest quality. If you give them to me, it would be such a pity if I lost them!"

Yun Zhao's face went from red to white, then from white to red, as she buried her head as low as it could go.

Ma Yuan, who was watching from the side, couldn't stand it anymore: "Brother Meng, you're usually so smart, how come you get dizzy when it comes to Sister Yun Zhao! How can you be so silly! This copper bell is a token of love! If you don't want it, I'll ask someone else if they want it?"

Everyone cheered and said they wanted it.

Meng Yong snapped out of his daze, his face flushed, and snatched the copper bell from Yun Zhao's hand, hanging it securely at his waist. He stammered as he spoke, "I'm sorry, I just... I didn't mean that... I..."

Yun Zhao smiled, pursed her lips, and nodded: "I know."

Meng Yong was relieved and asked loudly, "Miss Yun, once this dam is completed and you have completed your three-year mourning period, how about we...we get married?"

Yun Zhao's face was practically dripping with blood. She said shyly and coquettishly, "What nonsense are you talking about? There are so many people here!"

Taoyuan Town is located in the north, and its people are open-minded. Moreover, they are all people who have survived life-or-death situations and are now lucky enough to be alive, so they are naturally not bound by those formalities.

The crowd erupted in applause and laughter, surrounding the two of them and chanting, "Get married! Get married!"

Joy spread through the crowd...

Yun Zhao was also infected by their emotions, her heart was filled with sweetness, but she was also a little worried. She prayed in her heart, "Brother Meng, you must come back safely!"
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What woke Yun Zhao was the cacophony of voices and the urgent knocking on the door. After hearing Ma Yuan say, "Brother Meng was swept away by a flash flood and can't be found," Yun Zhao couldn't process a single word. Her mind went completely blank, as if a buzzing sound had filled her ears. Yun Zhao was utterly distraught, neither crying nor making a sound, just staring at the noisy crowd as if she were in a different world.

"His copper bell will surely protect him and keep him safe." Yun Zhao held her copper bell, repeating the same sentence over and over again. She was so calm, eerily calm. Suddenly, she looked up at the sky and smiled: "The weather is so nice!"

Ma Yuan didn't know what was wrong with Yun Zhao, but his heart trembled. He would rather Sister Yun Zhao be crying her heart out than be so frighteningly calm.

Ma Yuan could only hide the copper bell behind his back; he really couldn't bear to shatter her last hope.