Today, the snow finally stopped. The winter sun shone through the clouds onto the earth, shining on the white snow, creating a dazzling glow.
Helian Yu's tomb is located on a high ground outside Xiaoyue City.
That is the Helian clan's tomb, with a wide terrain, excellent view and good feng shui.
The coffin was slowly buried, and yellow soil was covered on it shovel by shovel. The black coffin was gradually buried until it completely disappeared from sight.
Yuan Musheng stood not far away, watching the scene quietly, his fingers tightening unconsciously.
His back was silent and tough, but his eyes hid the uncontrollable grief.
Not far away, there was another white figure.
Yang Yang stood there, dressed in a white dress, standing quietly.
An eagle stood on her shoulder, its jet-black feathers gleaming coldly in the sunlight, its eyes sharp but wailing incessantly.
It was not until the last handful of soil was covered and the crowd gradually dispersed that Yuan Musheng noticed the figure beside him.
After a moment of silence, he walked towards her.
His eyes fell on the eagle on her shoulder and he whispered,
"This is his eagle."
Jingyang lowered his eyes and said "hmm" softly.
Her gaze was still on the newly built tombstone, her eyes dim.
After a long time, she slowly spoke, her voice low and hoarse, as if she had exhausted all her strength to ask -
"Was it...painful when he left?"
Yuan Musheng stood beside her, looking at the newly erected grave together. The scene of that day surged in his mind, and his chest still ached slightly.
He lowered his eyelashes and whispered,
"Ever since he went to Dacheng again... he's been in constant pain..."
"I think... it's a relief for him too."
Jing Yang didn't say anything else, just stood there quietly, not even noticing the wind blowing through her clothes.
The sunlight poured down, and the newly carved tombstone appeared particularly clear in the interweaving of light and shadow.
Helian Yu's name was clearly listed.
Jing Yang raised her head slightly, her eyes following the tombstone upwards, and she suddenly realized -
In a few months, he will be seventeen.
Seventeen years old...
The eagle on his shoulder suddenly spread its wings, flew high, and circled around the tombstone several times. The shrill eagle cry pierced the sky and lingered for a long time.
Yang Yang turned his eyes slightly, looked at the eagle circling in the sky, and said softly,
"It's called Jinghong..."
Her voice floated in the wind, as faint as the mist when the snow melted.
Yuan Musheng's eyes were dazzled by the sunlight reflected from the snow. He closed his eyes slightly and murmured slowly,
"Once a stunning figure reflected in my image..."
"This name... is really nice..."
…
After Helian Yu's funeral, Yuan Zhao specially asked Qingzhi to invite Duota to have dinner together in Zhaixing Palace.
Duota arrived at the appointment on time and played with Yuan Zhizhi as usual, making the little girl giggle. She threw herself into his arms and clung to him, refusing to get down.
The lights in the hall are warm and the food smells delicious.
But Yuan Musheng just sat quietly aside, with a dull expression and the melancholy between his brows still there.
Dota glanced at him from a distance, and after a moment's hesitation, he began to advise,
"If you can't let go of Helian Yu, you can come to Xiaoyue City to see him every year."
Yuan Musheng was awakened from his thoughts. He was stunned for a moment, and it took him a while to realize that Dota was talking to him.
He lowered his eyes, nodded numbly, his voice low and hoarse,
"good."
After a pause, he quietly tightened his hands on his knees, his eyes became firmer, and added,
"I will definitely come."
Duota heard this and said nothing more. Instead, he picked up Yuan Zhizhi and asked her casually,
"When Zhizhi grows up a little, do you want to come back to Xiaoyue City?"
Yuan Zhizhi, holding a candy in her mouth, answered vaguely,
"Come! ...Come, Kang, the Great Demon King..."
The little girl chewed hard, her round eyes curved into crescents as she smiled, and her soft little hands hugged Dota's neck, rubbing it sweetly.
Duota couldn't help but chuckle and looked up at the inner hall. Yuan Zhao was busy packing something inside and did not participate in their conversation.
He knew in his heart that the day of departure was approaching.
He never expected Yuan Zhao to stay, nor did he dare to hope that she would come back.
The tranquility during this period was the happiness he had stolen.
Yuan Qiyu, who was standing by, heard Duota asking his elder brother and younger sister if they wanted to come back. His little head turned around, and he happily walked to Duota while biting a candied haws.
During this period, he and Dota became more familiar with each other.
Although according to the storybook, Dota is Daddy's "rival in love", this "rival in love" is very kind to him and his sisters.
People are grateful for what they have received, and they are soft-hearted when they eat the food they have received. Although Yuan Qiyu firmly supports the "Huo Party" in his heart, he cannot always show a cold attitude.
He stood on tiptoe, tilted his head and looked at Dota, his eyes sparkling, and asked tentatively,
"Then big brother and little sister can come, can I come?"
Dota lowered his head and glared at him, with the corners of his lips raised, teasing him deliberately.
"What are you doing here?"
Yuan Qiyu wrinkled his nose, snorted, straightened his chest, and said seriously,
"This is not... If I want to do business in the future, I can come to Xiaoyue City to check out the market!"
Dota chuckled and shook his head, as if smiling.
"Your ambition...is quite big."
Yuan Qi Yu was flattered by the praise and couldn't help but touch his head proudly, smiling and revealing a row of white little teeth.
"Okay! If you can really come, I will definitely welcome you!" Dota said calmly.
"Really?" Yuan Qiyu's eyes lit up. "Then we have to make a deal. You must leave one of the Northern Qiang merchant quotas for me."
Dota couldn't help but sneer and knocked his forehead.
"You really are pushing your luck..."
Yuan Zhizhi also laughed, imitating Duota's tone, "You must...you must push your luck!"
Several people laughed together.
Yuan Zhao was in the inner hall and actually heard everything that was said outside.
She planned to set off early tomorrow morning, and asked Qingzhi to tell Duota the news in advance.
He neither stopped nor objected, just pretended not to know.
Yuan Zhao, a few other children and I had a final dinner together in a lively atmosphere.
At dawn the next day, Qingzhi had already arranged for a carriage to wait outside the Zhaixing Palace.
Yuan Zhao took nothing away, but only put on the white fox cloak at the end.
After the children got on the bus, she looked back at the Star-Picking Palace for the last time.
The lights were dim, the golden gauze curtains fluttered in the wind, and the whole palace looked like a heavenly palace in the morning light and mist.
She looked quietly for a moment, then finally withdrew her gaze, lifted the curtain, and got into the carriage.
Dota didn't come to see him off.
Just like when he left Dacheng that year, there was no farewell between the two of them.
With a shout of "Gee", the sound of horse hooves echoed on the stone road.
The Zhaixing Palace and Xiaoyue City gradually disappeared from sight.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
