Mountain God (VI)
"It's noon now, and you're finally awake." Ziyin has changed, and his tone of voice has become much softer.
He would never say such things before. "Hey, you little brat have grown up. When you are hungry, you know to get up and find something to eat." "It seems that you are not stupid after sleeping. You still know to get up." This style is his style.
Ziyin's attitude towards Shu didn't change much, he was very friendly and gentle.
But Yu Shu sensed something slightly off. After spending more than a month together, Zi Yin had been treating him well. This was partly due to the master doting on his apprentice's wife, and partly because they were "not too familiar with each other."
This lack of familiarity made Ziyin restrain himself. He didn't dare to reveal his inner thoughts completely and subconsciously spoke with caution.
But it's normal. After all, he appeared suddenly, unlike Jiang Yu who has been with Ziyin for more than ten years.
"Keep your breakfast warm, eat it yourself. I'm going to be out for a while."
Ziyin usually wears light-colored clothes, but today he wore a dazzling red and black outfit. He looked very good and was in a good mood.
"Oh, Master, take care."
"Okay. It's windy outside, Master, please wear some thicker clothes." Yu Shu said.
"I'm in good health." Ziyin paused.
Zi Yin walked to the door and turned back to look at the two of them. The reluctance hidden in his eyes secretly emerged, as if he was saying goodbye.
"Do you think Master is a little strange? Especially after we got married, he seemed like a different person. You hardly listened to him scolding you." Yu Shu analyzed carefully, looked up and saw some steamed bun crumbs on the corner of Jiang Yu's mouth, and reached out to wipe it off for him.
"I see. Today is a good day for traveling according to the lunar calendar, so Master went out to pick a place for me." Jiang Yu was very calm.
Yu Shu frowned and said, "Why would you choose a place when you're going out wearing such nice clothes?"
"Choose a place to rest forever." Jiang Yu stated the hard-to-accept fact in a calm tone.
Yu Shu's heart skipped a beat after hearing this, feeling particularly uncomfortable. Zi Yin was planning to imitate Lu Jing and fall into eternal sleep to protect this mountain and this world.
Yes, when he came back from summer vacation last year, he found that Ziyin had this intention. So, even if Yu Shu had not been entangled by the dirty things after returning from Tibet, he would have brought Yu Shu back to meet Ziyin.
And Zi Yin, a big fox who cherished his tail hair so much, was willing to pluck so much hair to make thick clothes, wedding quilts, pillows and wedding clothes. This further confirmed Jiang Yu's idea.
In fact, Ziyin was reluctant to let his tail become bald, but he wanted to leave something for them, thinking that when he was gone in the future, they would still have something to remember him by.
"Can you really bear to let your master treat you like a master's master?" Yu Shu couldn't eat anymore and stared at Jiang Yu with wide eyes.
He just didn't believe that Jiang Yu was really willing to watch the master who raised him go down the same path as his master's old master.
Jiang Yu said it so calmly and easily, there must be a way.
Jiang Yu slowly swallowed another mouthful of hot porridge.
"That's why I brought you back."
"Ah?" Yu Shu looked confused.
"Don't worry. A big part of the reason we're staying here for so long is because I know Master has that idea and needs your help."
Seeing that Yu Shu didn't want to eat anymore, Jiang Yu broke the bun open, stuffed the part with the most meat filling into Yu Shu's mouth, and finished the white and tasteless bun skin himself.
Jiang Yu abandoned his previous habit of having a cold and expressionless face. He chewed while talking, and his cheeks bulged out, which was quite cute. Yu Shu couldn't help but pinch him.
"Tell me, could it be that our ceremony was held in advance by our master while he was still here?" Yu Shu put his mind at ease. Since Jiang Yu said there was a way, there would basically be no problem. His mind drifted back to the wedding half a month ago.
Jiang Yu learned the technique and pinched back.
"That's not the case. Master asked us to go through the wedding ceremony partly out of curiosity, but more importantly to bring good luck to this mountain and this land. Otherwise, there wouldn't have been so many animals that day, including Gakkai Falcons, Snowy Owls, Red Foxes, Sables, and Sika Deer. I only saw a few of those animals when I was a kid."
Jiang Yu spoke a long string of sentences in one breath.
"Chongxi?" Yu Shu grasped the key words: "But that's for a sick living person, right? You're talking about the land. Are you sure it's Chongxi?"
"He's fine. Three of his tails were broken, but he still has six. He's alive and kicking, and he's still chasing me and scolding me with all his might. He's just bringing good luck to this mountain, just to make extra preparations."
It turns out that Jiang Yu knew everything. He knew that Ziyin had three tails broken, so it seemed that he also knew his own situation.
"Although I don't know how he got three short tails, but this mountain, which he has guarded for countless years, is probably the only one worth doing so."
Jiang Yu knew but didn’t know completely.
He didn't know that in Ziyin's heart, he was as important as this mountain.
Yu Shu opened his lips slightly, but after thinking for a moment, he swallowed the words that were about to come out of his mouth.
Zi Yin carefully considered choosing them to bring Shan Chongxi. Jiang Yu and Yu Shu are both people who break the rules of existence. One died twice, and Jiang Yu's life began after dying; one was born from the belly of a dead person, and Yu Shu was born from death and reborn from death.
Moreover, these two special individuals happened to have been nourished by the blood of the Sky Fox, so they were naturally the most suitable candidates.
Ziyin sat by the Tianchi Lake with his mind empty. The clouds above his head drifted away, and the sunlight shone on the icy mountain, flashing dazzling spots of light. He put his hands in front of his eyes and squinted.
A fiery red fox jumped out of the woods and flew straight into Ziyin's arms like an arrow.
Ziyin stood up holding the red fox and walked along the edge of Tianchi Lake.
"This pond hasn't changed in all these years and it's still as beautiful as ever. I'll be satisfied just by looking at it a few more times." Zi Yin touched the little fox's chin.
"I have prepared the place. When the time comes, if it snows heavily overnight, I can be covered with a thick quilt once I am buried in the snow." Zi Yin pointed to the low-lying forest opposite Tianchi and said with a smile.
He couldn't get too close to the house. What if Jiang Yu wanted to bring his wife back to stay for a few days and thought that he had slept at home and felt uncomfortable and couldn't come back? That would be terrible.
It can't be too far. He doesn't know if he can be as capable as Lu Jing. If it's too far, he won't be able to feel Jiang Yu coming home and won't be able to blow a warm breeze to welcome him.
"When I made the same decision, I finally understood why Lu Jing waited until the very end to tell me."
Zi Yin looked back at the house, the house that housed the two most important people in his long life. He was suddenly overwhelmed with emotion and finally understood how reluctant, conflicted and uneasy Lu Jing was when he made the decision, so much so that he only dared to say it out loud at the last moment.
He chose the same path and approach as Lu Jing.
He was also afraid that Jiang Yu would not be able to accept it.
Although Jiang Yu, that brat, is usually quite annoying, he only says it and pretends to be so. In fact, he has always been very smart and sensible.
The scene of Jiang Yu sadly trying to keep him just flashed through his mind. He didn't want to see that brat sad at all.
A Saker Falcon and a Snowy Owl landed on a tree branch not far away, tilting their heads to look at Ziyin. A few sables also poked their heads out from behind the roots of the trees.
The roe deer was much bolder. He jumped up to Ziyin and then, with his knees weak, he lay down at his feet, rubbing his chin against Ziyin's ankle.
"You are the ones who are least afraid of me." Zi Yin squatted down, touched the roe deer's head, and smiled very gently.
The Saker Falcon, Snowy Owl and Sable also gathered around Ziyin.
"If I'm not around anymore, you guys have to be good. When he comes home, you guys have to check on him for me. He was very naughty when he was little, he would either dig up your nests or pull out your fur, but I taught him a lesson, and he's grown up and started his own family, so he won't cause trouble anymore. When he comes back, you guys have to check on him for me."
Ziyin touched the little animals' heads one by one, as if saying his final goodbye.
Ziyin returned to the house, called out several times, and checked all the rooms, but there was no sign of them.
He was used to it. Jiang Yu stayed for quite a long time this time. The most thing he did was to take Yu Shu to run around the mountain, looking here and there, just like they used to, playing everywhere, a real mountain wanderer.
Maybe it was because I was bringing my wife from the city back home, and I thought it would be meaningful to revisit the places where I played as a child.
Ziyin thought about going into the kitchen to wash the dishes. The dishes were neatly placed on the drain rack, and there were still water stains on the sink that had not been completely wiped clean.
There was a note left on the living room table: "Yu Shu and I will go down the mountain for a walk. When we come back, we will bring Master some of his favorite food."
"You still have some conscience." Ziyin smiled.
Jiang Yu had arranged various electronic products including mobile phones and tablets for Ziyin, but Ziyin was used to living without communication tools, so they were piled in the storage room and never used.
Compared to the cold electronic screen, handwritten words are warmer.
Zi Yin stared at the note in a daze. The neat and slightly playful handwriting broke down into countless fine lines, and he replayed in his mind the days when he taught Jiang Yu to read.
Jiang Yu was only four years old at that time. He was at the age when he could run and talk but couldn't sit still and was curious about everything. Every time he was pressed on a stool to learn to write, he would babble.
"This paper is difficult to write on. I don't want this paper." Little Jiang Yu protested in a baby voice, grabbing the brush with both hands and swinging it around, hitting Ziyin on the face.
"What kind of paper is good paper? You're so picky at such a young age." Before Jiang Yu was six years old, Ziyin was very patient and spoke directly without beating around the bush.
Little Jiang Yu hugged Zi Yin's arm and stuck his head out to look at the empty space behind Zi Yin: "Master's big tail is as white as snow, so nice!"
"You wish, you'll write on my tail."
Ziyin said he was unhappy, but his body was quite honest, with his tail resting on the table.
As for the tail, no one can see it usually. Jiang Yu can write it if he wants to, and it will be clean after washing. The most important thing is that the child is happy.
When Lu Jing was teaching him calligraphy, he went even further, scribbling all over Lu Jing's white clothes and even dyeing one of Lu Jing's clothes completely black with ink. Lu Jing only realized what was wrong when the color faded after wearing it. Lu Jing never said anything to him, and even found materials to fix the color of the clothes. When he wore it, he praised it, saying, "Zi Yin dyed it beautifully!"
"I've really grown up." Zi Yin came back to his senses, looked at the note that said "Bring Master some of his favorite food", and couldn't recover for a long time, muttering.
Jiang Yu would buy him a lot of things in the past, but after so many years in the world, this was the first time Jiang Yu truly felt the sense of security his child felt when he returned home after going out to experience life.
The Saker Falcon with red dots on the tips of its feathers flew in again and landed on the table.
It tilted its head and looked at Ziyin.
Jiang Yu led Yu Shu to the foot of the north slope of the mountain.
Yu Shu watched Jiang Yu pick up a soft, snow-white ball of light from the water. He leaned in for a closer look, and the ball of light was drawn to him, swirling around him.
"Where did you find such a magical thing?" Yu Shu imitated Jiang Yu's gesture and twisted it lightly. The small ball of light changed its direction of movement according to his hand.
"I found it when I came back last time. I just hid it here for him." Jiang Yu took out a specially made sky-blue porcelain bottle and put the small ball of light into it.
"After being affected by the dragon vein, I came back to Changbai Mountain and found that I had some very weak connection with this land. Following that feeling, I found these things." Jiang Yu briefly explained the cause and effect.
Yu Shu quickly reacted, his eyes sparkling: "Is this something that can help Master?!"
Jiang Yu smiled and nodded: "My wife is really smart."
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