Ta-da... Ta-da... Ta-da...

The finger continued to tap the rosewood armrest.

"Investigate him?" The man chuckled. "Investigate him for what?"

"He is very strange. A Confucian scholar who can write poems about falling flowers cannot be unknown, but we have never heard of this name before. It is very strange that such a person suddenly appeared."

"Can't he just keep a low profile?"

The voice paused and said quietly, "We just happened to be short of people for the Confucian-Taoist debate, and he showed up in Zhongnan Kingdom, just as if it was planned. Second Master met him in the Great Chu Dynasty in mid-March, and Master attacked during the Spring Festival at the end of February. Although it is difficult to go back and forth in this half month, there are too many ways to pass on information in the mountains. What if it was arranged by the enemy?"

“That makes sense.”

"It's the master's fault."

"Xiu Mei." The man said softly.

"The servant is here."

"Has it been since I let you take over Nansi that your heart has become wild?"

"I dare not!"

There was a loud sound of someone kneeling down behind me.

"I remember I told you the rules when I first came back." The man said slowly. "You are just a knife in the master's hand. You just need to be sharp enough. You don't need to think for yourself."

"You are now doing everything I didn't ask you to do." The master chuckled. "Do you want to be the master too?"

"I know I was wrong, I know I was wrong, please calm down, sir!" Xiu Mei sobbed, her voice terrified.

Then the muffled sound of kowtows echoed in the hall.

"Don't cry."

The hall suddenly became quiet, with only sporadic sobbing sounds occasionally coming out from between fingers, but being swallowed back into the mouth the next moment.

The man said leisurely: "This is the last time. If your heart is still wild, I will give you away."

The corners of his mouth curled up. "Give it to Tzuyu and let him teach you the rules."

Xiu Mei's body trembled, and she wanted to say something but stopped herself, and she didn't dare to take her hand away from her mouth.

The muffled sound of kowtows was heard again from behind the man.

"What else?"

"Master, the second master has woken up, and the doctor said..."

"Next."

"Yes, sir. Yesterday morning at Shili Pavilion, the old man in plain clothes wearing a Nanhua scarf that Lan Yuqing and his friends greeted might not be from Wangquezhou. According to informants, on the way back to the mountain, Lan Yuqing said, 'We are honored to have you, the Immortal, here.' But there was no other words after that."

"The spy planted in the temple by the Yulin Guards in the South Division didn't know who he was. The only thing we can be sure of is that he was a 'distinguished guest' from far away. Qing Jingzi went down the mountain to pick him up personally, shielding everyone around him and receiving him alone. We don't know what they said specifically."

The man touched his chin and smiled softly. "A Taoist master? Would a Taoist master of the seventh realm come to this small Chongxu Temple? Just because of him, Qingjingzi? Lan Yuqing was deliberately trying to scare me, knowing that this would reach my ears."

"Master is wise."

"But this old man is a big variable. Keep watching him and send more people outside to find out who he is. Also, find me the last person who participated in the Confucian-Taoist debate besides Qing Jingzi and the old man, at any cost."

"I obey your command!"

…

Zhao Rong felt chilled to the bone.

It was ice that penetrated deep into the bone marrow.

Because of Qingjun.

He traveled thousands of miles and finally found Qingjun.

On a sunny afternoon, in the Taiqing Four Prefectures, by a lake with willows swaying in the wind, the lake was shimmering, and the summer breeze was warm. Qingjun was standing with her back to him, bending over to pick lotus flowers. She was wearing a red dress, like a quiet flame.

Qingjun grasped the hem of her skirt with one hand and reached for a graceful green lotus with the other, still like the greedy little girl who ate lotus seeds when she was a child, except that he was picking them this time, while she was grasping the hem of her clothes beside him, smiling expectantly.

He was feeling nervous. The further he walked and the closer he got to her, the more timid he became.

One step, two steps, three steps...

She was finally in front of me.

This journey of hundreds of thousands of miles across Wangque Continent from north to south was finally covered by him step by step.

He looked at the woman in front of him, with black hair and a red belt, a slender waist, bending over and picking lotus flowers with her white arms.

I gently reached out and wanted to hold her ponytail again, but she turned back alertly.

She saw him.

He saw her too.

She frowned, then relaxed her brows, her eyes indifferent.

He stared with bated breath, reaching forward and opening his palm.

A piece of fine jade soaked in sweat is inlaid in the palm of the hand.

The side facing upwards is engraved with "Beautiful jade embellished with silk tassels".

The woman picked it up casually.

Gently throw it into the lotus pond.

The man smiled easily.

He waved and left.

My beloved returns jade after traveling thousands of miles, but he is no longer a young man.

Her face is still as beautiful as a peach, but she is no longer young.

The summer sun is warm and the breeze is just right.

But he walked slower and slower, as if he had stepped into a sea of ​​clouds that was brewing ice and snow. There was resistance all around him, and he was covered in coldness. But he didn't want to turn back, and walked straight into the snow...

Zhao Rong felt a chill to the bone.

It was ice that penetrated deep into the bone marrow.

My heart skipped a beat.

Open your eyes suddenly.

Zhao Rong gasped and found himself soaking in an ice-cold medicinal bath. Looking around, he saw the house where he had rested in the Lin family's manor in Lanxi.

It turns out that everything that just happened was just a dream.

He vaguely remembered that after he came back from Youweizhai, he had dinner brought by the servants, and then started his daily practice. After that, he threw himself into the medicinal bath exhausted. At that time, he seemed to want to soak for a while longer before going to bed to rest. As a result, he leaned on the medicine bucket and became distracted, and fell asleep in a daze.

Zhao Rong felt lost, sighed, wiped his face hard with his hands, and stood up and left the already cold medicinal bath.

I glanced out the window casually. It seemed to be midnight and the rain had stopped.

After a busy period, Zhao Rong casually put on a robe and tied a wide belt around his waist.

This style of clothing with wide robes and belts was very popular among celebrities in Zhongnan Kingdom. It was not only elegant and free, but also comfortable to wear.

Zhao Rong walked slowly to the bronze mirror in the room, staring at the face in the mirror, which was originally young but had become thin and worn down by the wind and frost of the past few months, in a daze.

He once looked up outside Longquan Mountain and longed for the departure ferry that was getting closer and closer.

He once stared blankly at the vast sea of ​​clouds outside the window on the ferry at Qingfeng Pavilion.

He once rode on horseback and quietly admired the green mountains and clear waters, the ancient roads at dusk, and the smoke from the farmhouses.

Or on a night when everything is asleep, holding the pair of jade plates, waiting for dawn.

He had imagined countless possibilities and countless meetings.

When he walked in front of her holding the jade token.

She might suddenly run into his arms, her clothes wet with tears.

She might snatch the jade token, throw it to the ground and break it into pieces, gritting her teeth.

She might just walk away without saying a word and never come back.

Zhao Rong originally thought that no matter what the outcome was, he would be able to accept it calmly and face it calmly without being burdened by emotions.

but.

What was going on with that sudden heartache in that dream just now?

Her heart was like that jade token, which she threw fiercely into the lotus pond, splashing water and sinking to the bottom of the lake. For the rest of her life, it was slowly covered by the cold mud until it was unable to beat due to the unbearable heaviness.

Zhao Rong rubbed his face fiercely.

He began to realize that along the way, as he became more familiar with this world, more memories were awakened, the closer he was to her, and the deeper the bond.

Those memories that I thought were just a passing visit are now deeply engraved in my mind.

Just like strong liquor going down the throat, spring rain going down the soil, and rivers flowing into the sea.

It's not just the memory of Qingjun. Her memory is a trigger, or a fuse, which accelerates and makes her aware of this change.

Those inherited memories are now as if I had experienced them myself... or rather... they are my own memories!

I thought I was a reborn person. The appearance and name of this body were the same as mine. I thought it was just a coincidence at first, but how can I explain the heartache I just felt? How could inherited memories be so profound, as if I had experienced them myself?

How can there be so many coincidences?

There is only one biggest possibility.

Oneself is the original self, and the original self is oneself.

It's just that the memories of the previous life have been awakened and take the dominant position.

And personality is shaped by memory.

The personality of the previous life directly covered the personality of this life, resulting in different personalities before and after, but now as the memory is digested, the two have merged into one.

The personality of my previous life, which is me now, feels completely different when facing Qing Jun’s memories, so I feel heartbroken.

So, I am who I am.

I am the one who... betrayed Qingjun.

…

A melodious sound of piano came from outside the window.

Like a dream, it never ends.

Not only did it not destroy the tranquility of the night, but it made the moonlight even lonelier.

Zhao Rong slowly came back to his senses. He had no intention of sleeping anymore. He walked to the desk, spread out paper and ground ink.

As soon as I picked up the pen, I had forgotten what to say.

He turned to practicing calligraphy, and after writing only four words, he frowned and stopped.

If the mind is unstable, the pen will be unstable.

Zhao Rong felt something.

He put down his brush, picked up a pot of wine, let his sleeves flow freely, put on a long robe and a wide belt, wore sandals instead of shoes, pushed the door open and went out to find the sound of the piano.