Mountains and rivers shine forever
To avoid being discovered by men, the women's army often trained in near complete darkness after nightfall, relying solely on the faint moonlight and the women's gradually developed keen perception of the wind, footsteps, and the sound of weapons cutting through the air.
That night, during a break in training, Xuanji suddenly appeared. She didn't speak, but quickly grabbed Lu Yunchu's hand and wrote an address on her palm with her fingertips. Then, she wrote two more words: poison.
The sensation vanished, and the mystery, just as it had appeared, silently disappeared into the darkness. Without any hesitation, Lu Yunchu immediately led Jiang Liu and several trusted men to the well to rescue the boy who refused to listen to the spy's request to poison the water.
Since that incident, Lu Yunchu and Xuanji have gradually grown closer, sometimes chatting about the war.
In a battle not long after, Su Lang was seriously wounded during a raid and carried back to the wounded soldiers' camp. The army doctors were still rough; two of them stepped forward and unceremoniously dragged Su Lang, who was lying on the bed, up and tore off his blood-stained clothes that were stuck to his wounds.
Because of the excessive force, the ties on the lower garment were also torn, and the waistband of the trousers instantly slipped down. Under the watchful eyes of everyone, all the soldiers around saw the bead in a certain spot.
Laughter and lewd curses erupted, but fortunately, Xuanji reacted quickly, tearing off her outer robe to cover Su Lang's almost naked lower body. Her hand was already on the hilt of her sword, her gaze sweeping over those who had spoken rudely with chilling intent.
Su Lang hurriedly stopped him, his head bowed and his body trembling violently.
Lu Yunchu rushed over upon hearing the news. Seeing this scene, she didn't ask anything, but simply sent the others away.
In the deathly silence, Su Lang initially only suppressed his sobs, his shoulders trembling slightly. But soon, the humiliation that had been suppressed for so long burst forth like a flood, and he could no longer hold back, bursting into tears.
They stayed with him from the afternoon until the sun began to set, until dusk fell. Su Lang's cries gradually weakened, until only his voice became completely hoarse, followed by silent sobs and tears.
As dusk fell, Lu Yunchu gently got up and walked to Xuanji, whose eyes were also red-rimmed. She gently helped her up, saying, "At least... you should eat something. Don't hurt yourself."
After saying that, she bent down to help Su Lang up, and took off her outer garment and draped it over him.
Su Lang hung his head, his voice choked with sobs: "I don't want to live anymore... living like this, so humiliated... every day... is torture..."
His face was ashen, his eyes devoid of any light. He recounted, haltingly, how he had nearly been humiliated in the army when he was young. A general had found him and forced him to wear the stigma. He feigned compliance, but when the general relaxed his guard, he suddenly threw himself against a sword, attempting suicide. It was Chu Chengchao who discovered him in time and saved him…
Lu Yunchu simply gazed at him quietly, her voice soft: "Only by living can there be hope. You still have people you want to see... I know you're tired after traveling such a long way, but I want to watch you walk towards the distance, the distance in your heart."
Su Lang simply whispered that he was too dirty and didn't deserve to live. Xuanji suddenly stretched out her arms and hugged him tightly. The hug was so strong that it even aggravated the wound on her own shoulder.
“It’s not you who’s filthy!” Xuanji’s voice trembled with tears, yet remained resolute. “It’s those beasts, worse than pigs and dogs! We will never be tools to satisfy their desires! No!”
She became emotional: "The person I cared about most and loved most... was deceived by these beasts and ultimately... ultimately committed suicide in front of me! I never want you to follow in her footsteps!"
After this incident, Lu Yun Chu and Xuan Ji became increasingly familiar with each other. But soon, foul language followed, and the mudslinging was naturally directed at Lu Yun Chu, who was a woman.
Xuanji trembled with rage upon hearing these shameless words, but Lu Yunchu was already used to it and always remained calm in front of others.
But when no one was around, and she saw Xuanji's grief, she too shed tears: "I'm not the kind of person they say I am... but no one cares... I didn't kill Chengchao, but this infamy will never be erased..."
Xuanji sat beside her without saying a word, simply keeping her company quietly.
Since then, Lu Yunchu finally had the opportunity to speak her mind.
Once, she suddenly brought it up, her voice tinged with an embarrassed smile: "Sometimes... I think about things from the past..."
“Tell me your story with Prince Lin, I’m very interested,” Xuanji asked her, her eyes clear and sincere.
Lu Yunchu was somewhat surprised, but still told the truth: "Actually... I've almost forgotten many details, but now that I think about it, it was probably a rare period of ease in my life... It's a pity that I didn't cherish it back then, always thinking that the unknown was good, always thinking that Chengchao was just pretending... When I didn't want to see him, I felt that everything he did was for a purpose; but now that he's really gone, I just can't let go..."
She spoke slowly, pausing occasionally, tears welling in her eyes, but a genuine smile always played on her lips. She spoke of his clumsy attempts to please her, of him secretly hanging prayer plaques at the temple, of the star-shaped grass he had mentioned, which she had never taken to heart…
After saying that, she gave a self-deprecating laugh, not daring to look at Xuanji: "Don't you think... I'm useless? What girls want to see is me looking majestic and powerful, but that's not all there is to me... I'm actually a very unambitious person... He hated all this infighting, yet he never escaped it in his life... If time could turn back, if my wish could bring him a peaceful life, how wonderful that would be..."
She really wanted to write "I hope Chu Chengchao lives well" on the wishing plaque, even if it meant missing him forever. But she didn't dare.
Xuanji listened attentively until she finished speaking, then gently shook her head: "Quite the opposite. After hearing all this, I finally understand you better and know what a lovely person you are. I love listening to you talk about these things. I think... the world is so beautiful because of people like you..." She didn't expect to say such cheesy things. As soon as she finished speaking, she felt embarrassed and even her ears turned red.
Some time later, Lu Yunchu suddenly received an unsigned letter. The letter expressed deep longing, saying that he had been thinking about her and asked her to meet him at the back mountain.
She guessed it was that guy's idea, but still, with an almost pious expectation, she walked alone into the twilight towards the back mountain.
Upon arriving at the agreed-upon location, she found herself in complete silence, save for the chirping of summer insects. Just as she was wondering what was happening, countless eerie green specks of light slowly rose from the grass, like scattered stars, fluttering around her.
They are fireflies.
At the heart of the densest fireflies was a simple earthenware pot. She bent down and saw that the pot was filled with colorful little stars, intricately woven from grass and wildflowers, which emitted a soft and warm glow under the fireflies' light.
At this moment, all was silent, except for the glow of fireflies and the jar full of stars.
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