108. Years
Another half month passed, the sky was covered with dark clouds and the autumn wind was cold.
Qingling put on another piece of clothing and tied up his long hair. He often went for a walk on the street these past two days. Seeing that the weather was bad today, he stayed in the house, doing nothing. One hand habitually stroked the dragon pendant, and the other hand drew on the table again and again.
"What new things have you learned?" Shang Changheng appeared from behind, lifted up his thin chin, almost covering half of Qingling's face with one hand, and pinched his cheeks in a vicious way.
Qing Ling was not annoyed, but rubbed his palm against it. The hand that was drawing also stopped and chuckled, "It's just a little thing I saw by chance. I thought it was interesting, so I tried it. Is it raining outside?"
"No." Shang Changheng walked around to Qingling's side, lifted his chin to ask him to look up, and leaned over to kiss Qingling's lips.
He has recovered a lot, because with Qingling, such a rare and powerful medicine, at least his aura can be restrained to the point where he is almost a wandering soul, with only a little bit of yin energy left, just like an ordinary wandering soul.
After exchanging a kiss, Qingling held Shang Changheng's fingertips, suddenly stood up, pushed Shang Changheng to his previous seat with his backhand, and then sat on his lap very naturally, nestling in his arms.
Shang Changheng was stunned for a moment, but he subconsciously embraced Qingling, patted his waist, and asked with a smile: "What are you doing?"
"I want you to hug me." Qing Ling leaned on Shang Changheng's shoulder, "Why haven't they come yet... They have been delayed for quite a while."
Shang Changheng knew he was talking about the last tomb. He lowered his eyes and said softly, "Don't worry. King Jing has no fiefdom and is still in Mingyang City. The Saint Lady must be there too. She should arrive in a few days."
Qingling, who killed Aji with his own hands, is here, and Zhu Hongxu's paper substitute is also here. They are obvious targets, and the other party will definitely follow them.
Qingling found it a bit strange. It seemed that after coming out of Rongzhangling, Shang Changheng was not very interested in the fifth tomb. Although he never said he would not go, Qingling felt that his attitude seemed to be... it didn't matter whether he went or not.
Is it because all the bodies have been found?
But there is still no clue to the cause and effect that Shang Changheng is obsessed with finding.
Heaven has its own rules. No matter who killed Shang Changheng, the debt is settled when the person dies, and the underworld has its own justice. Therefore, the person who owes Shang Changheng a debt must be alive in this world and really owes him a debt, just like Qing family and himself, who have relied on Shang Changheng's luck to continue to this day.
Qing Ling felt that this cause and effect was related to the Qing family.
At nightfall that day, Qingling, who had been wandering around during the day and hanging out at night for the past few days, finally fell into bed early due to exhaustion.
Evil ghosts do not need to sleep. When Shang Changheng first returned to the world, he would close his eyes and pretend to be asleep, but he didn't know since when he got used to looking at Qingling's sleeping face, and he would look at her all night long.
Shang Changheng was lying beside Qingling, as if he had trapped this man on the small and cramped couch, or as if he just wanted to block him from the outside and protect him from the treacherous hearts of the world, just like the more than ten years at Zhanlong Mountain, one was in the courtyard, the other was under the tomb, and one protected the other.
And now——
The little child who needed his protection has grown into a man who can save him from divine punishment.
Shang Changheng didn't remember many good things. He was originally a resentful ghost. But when Qingling was around, he seemed to have briefly returned to many years ago when there was no death and no separation. In his vague memory, there was a bright moon and fragrant flowers - Qingling was standing on a low hill on the outskirts of the city. The green hill was covered with swaying wild flowers, as if stars from the night sky had fallen to the earth. In the distance, there was the shadow of the city wall.
It was a spring day in the Great Zhou Dynasty a thousand years ago.
Shang Changheng, wearing armor, sat on the ground with one leg bent and a long sword placed across his side. He exuded a strong smell of blood and his armor was stained with blood that had not yet dried, as if he had just finished a battle.
In fact, this is more than just a dream, this is Shang Changheng's past. Qingling uses their bond to go back a thousand years ago through dreams, but spectators are just spectators after all.
He was sitting next to Shang Changheng. Shang Changheng couldn't see him either. He just stared at the vast country quietly. He was angry and unwilling, but not afraid. It seemed that he had already made up his mind to shed his last drop of blood for the Great Zhou.
Hou Su, holding a wild flower in his mouth, climbed up and sat on the ground, panting. "Your Highness, General Wei has also led his men to retreat. It's not easy for her to fight... She may need to rest for a while."
Shang Changheng was not surprised. He said, "Well, you take your men and march out tomorrow morning. Leave this to me, Hou Su. If we can't hold this pass, the Dongyi people will be able to march straight into the heart of our Great Zhou. It will be even more difficult to stop them from now on. Do you understand?"
Hou Su was silent for a while, then asked, "If we retreat again, no one will be able to resist us. Your Majesty, we cannot lose either of the two major positions. We must defend them to the death."
Wei Qingxia retreated to rest, but how could a team that was exhausted and most of its soldiers were killed or wounded recover in just a few days' rest?
If Hou Su retreated again, no one would be able to resist him. If Shang Changheng moved, it would be like robbing Peter to repair Paul. So he said he would defend to the death and would not retreat even if he died in battle.
Shang Changheng said nothing.
Hou Su's tone was still nonchalant, as if dying in battle was no big deal. "As long as I, Hou Su, am alive, the position will not be lost. Your Majesty, it has come to this. We should delay it for one more day."
"Retreat." Shang Changheng said.
Hou Su was startled. "What?"
Shang Changheng repeated: "Retreat. If you can't hold it, retreat. Leave some people to intercept and cover the evacuation. Retreat to Bashong Mountain and build a defense line again."
Hou Su was stunned for a long time, and finally smiled bitterly and said, "Your Majesty, we..."
"Didn't you say that?" Shang Changheng looked at him, "We can delay it for as long as possible. We should fight in a way that can delay it as long as possible."
Qing Ling finally understood that the people involved in the game had known their situation for a long time, otherwise they would not have said that they would delay the battle as long as possible. They knew that they had no hope of winning the battle, but as long as they laid down their weapons, they would be slaughtered. So they could only grit their teeth and fight to the last moment.
Rather than weakly laying down your weapons and accepting your fate.
"Understood, sir." Hou Su chewed the flower, then got up and walked towards the camp.
Only Shang Changheng was left there.
Qing Ling came over, not caring about Shang Changheng's messy appearance, and leaned on his hard and cold shoulder armor, saying softly: "Take a break if you are tired, even for a moment."
The tail sound dissipated in the wind.
But Shang Changheng suddenly asked: "You are here, right?"
Qing Ling was startled and suddenly raised his head to look at Shang Changheng, but Shang Changheng's gaze was not on him, but still looking at the ancient city in the distance.
"What are you?" Shang Changheng seemed to be talking to himself, "Are you a demon or a god?"
Qing Ling answered in a daze: "A thousand years later, I will be your wife."
Shang Changheng didn't hear it. He sighed, and his shoulders, which had been tense all the time, finally relaxed a little. He said tiredly, "Maybe I'm crazy. Since I was a teenager, I always felt that you would appear by my side from time to time, whether I was happy or sad. It seemed that you were always there in my most unforgettable moments over the years. But I have never seen what you look like, and I don't know if you really exist."
Qing Ling's eyes were sore, and he said softly: "Of course I am here, Chang Heng, I have always been with you, I have been with you for a thousand years."
His tears fell on Shang Changheng's armor, but failed to wash away the dried blood.
"I should be the last one to die among my old friends." Shang Changheng did not feel relieved or afraid when he mentioned the word death, but only a strong unwillingness. He gritted his teeth and finally smiled bitterly, "The heavens and the earth are my witnesses. I am willing to die for the Great Zhou. I only hope that after my death, there will be a day of peace in the world, so that the people of the Great Zhou will not become food for others. If you are really a god, I hope you can fulfill my lifelong wish."
"If it weren't for..."
"——Just stay with me until the last moment."
When all the distortions disappeared, Qingling's consciousness floated in confusion. He saw many things, including Shang Changheng practicing sword skills in the courtyard with sweat pouring down his face, Shang Changheng appreciating the moon and stars with his senior brothers and sisters, and Shang Changheng who was heartbroken when he saw his master die in battle - those mottled fragments turned into starlight and dissipated, and Qingling opened his eyes a thousand years later.
He turned over and nestled into Shang Changheng's arms, still dazed, and asked in a low voice, "Is it dawn yet?"
"Yeah." Shang Changheng stroked his thin back and whispered, "Why do you need to be hugged as soon as you wake up? You like to act like a spoiled child so much."
"Who told you not to hold me when I was asleep?" Qing Ling's voice was still a little hoarse after waking up, but he was smiling and every word he spoke was so gentle.
"Then I'll hold you to sleep tonight."
.
The carriage was speeding on the road on the outskirts of the city. The young man leaning on the cushion looked haggard, with sunken cheeks and pale lips stained with blood, as if his end was near.
A foreign-looking woman in tight-sleeved clothes supported him and wiped the blood from the corner of her lips with a handkerchief. She wore a bracelet with bells and rings on all five fingers, which were connected to the bracelet with a silver chain, and jingled when she moved.
"Alan..." Zhu Yanzhang smiled bitterly, "Is this king...going to die?"
"No." Alan said quickly, "No, Your Highness, just hold on a little longer, we're almost there... I can feel it, we're not far away, just go kill him, kill him... take back your fate, and you'll be fine, I still have the Gu, don't worry."
“But…” Zhu Yanzhang seemed to want to say something, but he opened his mouth hesitantly. In the end, he sighed and said helplessly: “Forget it, everything is fate… Who told me that I have a bad fate? It’s just a pity that I haven’t married you yet…to be my princess…”
"Your Highness!" Alan bit his lip, a fierce look flashed across his eyes, but he spoke softly to comfort her, "Your Highness, don't worry, there won't be any more accidents, this time..."
"——I won't give him another chance to survive!
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