Chapter 55
◎Snowman.◎
It was an ordinary afternoon when Mo Yu talked about his death with Xie Huaijin. Mo Yu was still wearing the same black brocade robe that he wore all year round. He spoke in a calm tone and explained his funeral arrangements as if he was explaining a completed task.
Only when Zhu Guang was mentioned did Mo Yu's face show some emotion.
Mo Yu, dressed in black brocade, knelt on the ground and asked the young man in front of him for help for the second time in his life.
The first time was because of Zhu Guang, and the second time was still because of Zhu Guang.
Xie Huaijin listened to Mo Yu's arrangements for the funeral one by one, and agreed to them one by one. After Mo Yu left, he found the only remaining elder in the Elder Hall - the second elder.
Unlike other elders in the Elder Hall, he surrendered to Xie Huaijin early on, so he saved his life, but only his life. In the deep mountains, an old man with a limp on one leg came back from the house on crutches, carrying firewood on his back. When he saw the young man in snow-white clothes in front of the dilapidated house, a look of surprise appeared on his face.
Time seemed to have smoothed the old man's edges, or perhaps Xie Huaijin was no longer the child he once was. The aura of a superior became more and more obvious. The old man, in his twilight years, saluted and said, "Greetings, Master of the family."
Xie Huaijin followed the old man inside. The dilapidated interior of the house was hastily revealed through the chipped teacup. A layer of the lowest quality tea dregs floated on the white water. The young man's slender, bony hand pressed against the ceramic teacup and asked, "Is there an antidote to the Dark Guard Camp's poison?"
The Second Elder shook his head slowly: "Master, that's not poison."
What it means is that poison is easy to cure, but it is not poison, it is just a medicine that can "rejuvenate" life. The overdrawn life cannot be compensated pharmacologically and there is no solution.
Xie Huaijin sat quietly for a long time. When he turned to leave, a bamboo leaf happened to fall on the young man's shoulder by the roadside. Before Xie Huaijin could brush it off, the wind blew and the green leaf fell down.
When Zhu Guang left Chang'an, Mo Yu was actually unable to get out of bed. But he said he wanted to see Zhu Guang off, so Xie Huaijin asked the Second Elder for a bottle of "medicine" and personally handed it to Mo Yu.
Xie Huaijin watched expressionlessly as Mo Yu picked it up and drank it without the slightest hesitation.
Xie Huaijin didn't look again, but just walked to the window.
In the end, Mo Yu walked up to the young man and knelt down without saying a word.
When silence fell behind him, Xie Huaijin saw the sword that Mo Yu never left on the table. He bent down and untied the sword tassel from it. Perhaps it was tied too tightly, and the young man took a long time to untie it. The wound on his hand opened again, and a drop of blood spread on it.
Xie Huaijin placed the sword tassel in the dark room together with Xie Qingyu's things.
Xie Qingyu had a lot of things, and half of the dark room was occupied by them. Mo Yu had very few things, and he only took this sword tassel.
......
When Zhu Guang got up from the ground while wiping his tears, he first went to apologize to Xie Huaijin.
She lowered her head and knelt in front of the young man holding an umbrella, her voice hoarse: "I'm sorry, sir, I was wrong." Zhu Guang kowtowed one by one, his face covered with mud, and his hands and body were also covered with mud.
Xie Huaijin said calmly, "Mo Yu wants me to conceal the news of his death."
"I didn't do it. I'm sorry for him." The young man leaned over, and with a rare gentleness, he helped Zhu Guang up from the ground and said softly, "It's cancelled. Zhu Guang, live well."
This is the only wish of the man named Mo Yu.
After dealing with Zhu Guang's affairs, Xie Huaijin returned to the dark room. As expected, the sword tassel had been taken away by Zhu Guang. Only Xie Qingyu's things were left in the dark room, and Xie Huaijin did not go to Zhu Guang to ask for it back.
After returning to the inner room, he ordered Zhu Yi and Zhu Er to look after Zhu Guang during this period of time.
Zhu Yi and Zhu Er looked at each other, and Zhu Yi whispered, "Master, we may not be able to stop Miss Zhu Guang."
Xie Huaijin suddenly thought of Mo Yu's words, "Just do your best."
......
Ci Ying originally wanted to stay with Zhu Guang all the time, but after Xie Huaijin left, Zhu Guang asked Ci Ying to go first.
The rain was still falling, and Zhu Guang said softly, "Ciying, I want to be alone for a while."
Ci Ying was still worried, but she couldn't refuse Zhu Guang. When she was about to leave, Zhu Guang told Ci Ying that he was sorry for causing her and the young master to quarrel again. Ci Ying shook her head and touched Zhu Guang's head. Zhu Guang smiled at her and said softly, "Don't worry, I just want to be alone for a while."
When leaving, Ci Ying looked back. Zhu Guang had already turned back, knelt down, and piled the soil back bit by bit with his hands. Ci Ying didn't know what to feel. It was only when she returned to the yard that she realized her hands and feet were cold.
Lingshuang and Lingyue hurriedly supported her. The rain was still falling outside, and the bird named "Happy" on the shelf was still chirping. Ciying washed up and let Lingshuang and Lingyue go out first. The two of them looked at her with worried eyes. Ciying just shook her head and said "Nothing".
After the door was closed, Ci Ying sat down silently, thinking about the day when Zhu Guang left Chang'an. Mo Yu suddenly came to find her but didn't say anything special. He just said a few words of greeting and left.
He should be here to see Zhu Guang...
Ci Ying thought of Xie Huaijin again. She kneaded the handkerchief, and after placing it on the table, she hesitated for a moment before leaving. Ling Shuang and Ling Yue saw her coming out and hurried over with umbrellas. Ci Ying took them and whispered, "I can go by myself."
On the way there, Ci Ying kept her head down, almost having the urge to turn around and leave, but in the end she still walked step by step to Xie Huaijin's study, and the guards bowed to her.
Ci Ying handed the umbrella to the maid beside her and knocked on the door lightly.
A maid opened the door from the inside and bowed to Ciying. From the initial discomfort, Ciying has now gotten used to it. She walked in holding up her dress, and then stepped over another threshold before arriving at Xie Huaijin's study.
The young man's neck was bandaged and he was holding a book in his hand. He didn't even look up when he heard the maidservant bowing to Ciying.
The maid inside opened the door for Ci Ying and went out. The door was closed behind her. Ci Ying felt as if her feet weighed a thousand pounds, but she still walked towards Xie Huaijin.
It was not until she stopped in front of the young man that he raised his beautiful eyes.
After staring at each other for a long time, Ci Ying said softly, "My condolences."
Xie Huaijin looked at Ci Ying for a long time and finally said "OK".
The two of them ate dinner in silence. Ci Ying wanted to talk about what happened today several times, but she didn't know where to start. She looked at Xie Huaijin's drooping eyes, picked up a piece of food with her serving chopsticks and placed it in Xie Huaijin's bowl, saying softly, "I'm sorry, I misunderstood you today."
Xie Huaijin was startled and said softly, "I don't eat lychees."
Ci Ying then realized that she had picked up a piece of lychee instead of meat. She apologized again and took it back with her serving chopsticks. She chose another dish of eggplant and squirrel mandarin fish and passed it over. After a while, she heard another voice from the other side: "I don't eat fish either."
Ci Ying picked it up again with the serving chopsticks, and after going back and forth a few times, she found that Xie Huaijin didn't eat anything.
Ci Ying put down her chopsticks and looked at Xie Huaijin: "Do you have anything to eat? I'll make it for you."
Xie Huaijin looked at her for a long time and said softly, "Fruit."
Ci Ying was stunned for a moment and said softly, "Is there any fruit in the kitchen? How do you cook the fruit? Can you make rolled sugar?" As Ci Ying was speaking, she was about to get up, but her hand was grabbed when she passed by Xie Huaijin. She was stunned for a moment, and then the young man hugged her from behind. The sound of rain outside had subsided at some point.
The young man was only wearing a plain white robe. When he hugged her from behind, Ci Ying could smell the faint scent of sandalwood on the young man. She felt a little guilty in her heart, and obeyed the young man who held her shoulders and turned her around. He gave her a very light kiss. Ci Ying was in a trance for a moment, but still closed her eyes.
The young man kissed lightly and tenderly. The candlelight cast a long shadow of the two people hugging each other. The rain outside began to fall again, and the windows made noises as the wind blew open. Ci Ying opened her eyes and found that Xie Huaijin had not closed his eyes.
He just looked at her like that, kissing her brow, eyes, nose, and lips.
She blinked, and then the young man kissed her again. This time he slowly closed his eyes. The wind blew through their intertwined hair. Ci Ying raised her hand hesitantly, and after a while, gently patted Xie Huaijin's back.
The young man who was kissing her froze for a moment, and then the originally passionate kiss became gentle. Ci Ying's hands never stopped. Perhaps she also began to understand the man in front of her. She didn't even need to open her eyes, she could hear his heart crying.
From this moment on, she began to feel that Xie Huaijin was a living person.
In the end, she stayed. In fact, they had rarely slept in the same bed. When Ci Ying was lying next to Xie Huaijin, she glanced at the young man. He was also looking at her, leaning towards her lightly, and holding Ci Ying's hand under the quilt.
The rain outside still didn't stop. Ci Ying fell asleep with the sound of rain on her pillow and the faint scent of sandalwood around her.
Xie Huaijin kept his eyes open and looked down at Ci Ying beside him.
Ci Ying was sleeping very quietly, with no other movement except for her slight breathing. There was a thunder outside, and she subconsciously moved towards Xie Huaijin. Xie Huaijin was able to look directly at Ci Ying's profile, and he reached out and touched Ci Ying's face lightly.
After this night, the relationship between Xie Huaijin and Ci Ying eased somewhat.
Neither of them mentioned it, but they would have dinner together. Ci Ying began to take over some matters outside the mansion, and would ask Xie Huaijin about some things she was not sure about, but soon, Ci Ying was able to handle things on her own.
The affairs of Mobei were put on hold, and no one talked about Yuwen Shu anymore. Just like many things in the past, they just turned a blind eye and let things pass.
It seemed that this had become a tacit understanding between Xie Huaijin and Ci Ying. The two no longer talked about things that they could never agree on. Occasionally, when they had a dispute over some things, they would just let it go. Most of the time, Xie Huaijin would take a step back, and sometimes when Xie Huaijin didn't step back, Ci Ying would step back.
As long as it doesn't involve some people or things, Ci Ying will keep her original promise and stay with Xie Huaijin.
Ciying started to become busier than before. Zhu Guang left a letter the next day and disappeared. The letter only asked Ciying to take good care of her bird and she would come back later.
Ci Ying looked at the letter for a long time, folded it neatly and put it in the box.
She looked at the bird that Zhu Guang brought back. The bird was still quiet, while the bird next to it kept chirping "happy, happy". It kept staring outside the door with its emerald green eyes open. If it didn't blink occasionally, Ci Ying would have been worried again.
Two months after Mo Yu's death, Zhu Guang came back. He first came to see Ci Ying and took the kingfisher back. Coincidentally, as soon as Zhu Guang came, the kingfisher flew to her shoulder and began to sing clearly.
Ci Ying looked at Zhu Guang, and Zhu Guang smiled at her gently. Zhu Guang seemed to have grown up in an instant. Ci Ying smiled and felt like crying for some reason. The only words that came to her mind were "fate plays tricks on us".
The next day at dinner, Xie Huaijin accidentally told her, "Zhu Guang has replaced Mo Yu."
Ci Ying did not ask such nonsense as why Zhu Guang could still take over the Secret Guard Camp even though he had left the Xie Mansion. Her hand holding the soup spoon trembled a little, and some soup spilled out. When the young man handed her the handkerchief, Ci Ying said "thank you" softly.
There were already clues to many things, and Ci Ying had thought about it and suspected it more than once, but she didn't think at that time that all this would be related to Mo Yu's death.
Fate seems to always have a pair of hands. Ci Ying occasionally looks at Xie Huaijin. When the young man looks at her with a faint smile, she will feel the lines in her body move.
The days passed by like that.
Spring and autumn passed in a flash, and Ci Ying had no idea that she would soon face the real winter.
When the maid was cleaning the house at the end of the year, she suddenly knocked over a wooden shelf and a box rolled down from it. The lock opened with a click and all the medicine bags inside rolled out.
Lingyue hurried over to see what had fallen. The little maid knelt down in fear and trepidation. Ciying happened to come back from outside with the account book in her hand. As the year draws to a close, everything becomes more complicated, and most of the day is spent on dealing with affairs, especially some related to An Huai, so Ciying is particularly cautious.
Seeing Lingyue scolding a maid, Ciying asked gently, "What's wrong?"
Lingyue said, "Xiaole knocked over the shelf while cleaning the house, and all the medicine spilled out."
Ci Ying took a look and found that it was the contraceptive medicine that Xie Huaijin had sent her earlier. With a complicated feeling in her heart, she said softly, "It's nothing, just throw it away."
Xiaole hurriedly thanked him and swept away the medicine residue on the ground. Lingyue then stepped forward and said, "Master, you can't do this. Servants must be punished for their mistakes. We are the most lax people in the mansion."
Ciying smiled and said "hmm." Lingshuang came in to talk about something, and Lingyue went out to send someone to clean up the yard. Lingshuang mostly talked about the property left to her by her mistress. As usual, Ciying secretly sent some of it to the barracks where General Wei was, flipping through the year-end book in her hand.
While having dinner in the evening, Ci Ying was surprised to see the lanterns outside.
Seeing her interest, Xie Huaijin asked gently, "There's a lantern festival on the street in a couple of days. Do you want to go?"
Ci Ying's first reaction was to shake her head. She had too many things on her plate and probably wouldn't have time in two days. Before she could say anything, the young man put a piece of food into Ci Ying's bowl with his chopsticks and said gently, "Well, Ci Ying said she wants to go, so let's go."
Ci Ying was stunned for a moment, then laughed softly.
The young man looked at her and smiled gently.
Ci Ying looked at Xie Huaijin, but actually didn't know what kind of relationship they had. They would sleep in the same bed, eat together every day, make each other laugh, and could peacefully do everything a couple could do except being in perfect harmony.
Sometimes she thought that this was fine.
Maybe it was too bitter before, but now she can actually taste a hint of happiness.
She knew Xie Huaijin was merely wearing the facade she loved, somehow masking his inherent evil, but Ci Ying didn't want to delve into it. Ru Zhen was well settled in Jiangnan, and Xiao Wan was now happy, with Zhu Guang by her side. Li Sheng's health was improving, and under the names "Li Ci" and "Jiang Wei," he and Xie Ran founded the first women's academy in Jiangnan.
Ci Ying, of course, also participated, sending the textbooks she had compiled and a large sum of money. Xie Ran wrote eight letters of thanks, and Li Sheng also wrote her a letter. When she opened it, it contained only one sentence: "Miss Ru Zhen is doing well."
That's good.
On the day of the Lantern Festival, Lingyue and Lingshuang pressed Ciying in front of the bronze mirror and dressed her up very seriously. They spoke words of praise one after another. Lingshuang, who was usually the most serious, also followed Lingyue in making trouble, making Ciying blush.
When it was dark, Lingyue and Lingshuang pushed Ciying out of the yard.
Xie Huaijin was waiting for her at the gate of the courtyard.
Lingyue suddenly said, "Sister, the moon is so big."
Lingshuang followed up by saying, "Hmm, it's so round."
Ci Ying looked up at the sky, only to see a misty cloud and a crescent moon hanging in the cloud, the light of which was about to be blocked.
nonsense......
Ci Ying smiled, but was startled when she saw Xie Huaijin. It was rare for the young man to wear dark crimson clothes, which made his face look particularly beautiful, yet aloof. Ci Ying blinked, often feeling that the reason she could compromise to some extent was because of this face.
The young man took her hand. On the way, Ci Ying mentioned An Huai's affairs. The young man replied a few times and said with a smile: "Okay, today is a date."
Ci Ying was surprised to hear this word from Xie Huaijin's mouth, and felt it was absurd.
During the past six months, she occasionally felt dazed. She said to herself, maybe Xie Huaijin got better after drinking the medicine. There are so many magical medicines in the world. Some can kill people, and some should kill people. Ci Ying looked at the hustle and bustle on the street, and in the midst of all the hustle and bustle, she looked at Xie Huaijin.
The young man also looked at her.
The sky was filled with fireworks, but no one knew for whom they were lit. Ci Ying pulled Xie Huaijin to the steps and placed the lantern in her hand into the water. She closed her eyes and made a wish, then heard Xie Huaijin softly asking her what wish she had made.
Ci Ying shook her head and said, "It won't work if I say it out loud."
The young man chuckled softly. Ci Ying looked over and felt that the gentleman was as gentle as jade, which made her feel dazed for a moment. To be fair, she didn't hate him as much as before.
A little longer, just a little longer.
When Ci Ying stood on tiptoe, the jade bracelet and silver bracelet on her wrist collided with each other, making a crisp sound. Amidst the fireworks, she stood on tiptoe and kissed Xie Huaijin.
The young man was stunned for a moment, then he hugged her gently, and the two kissed on the deserted dock.
Ci Ying didn't know why she still tasted some bitterness.
Under the fireworks, Xie Huaijin asked her why she was crying.
She whispered, "Maybe it's because the candied haws just now were very sweet. The sugar coating was sweet, and the hawthorn inside was thickly coated, so the hawthorn fruit was also very sweet."
"Then let's go buy another one." The young man said gently.
Ci Ying was walking hand in hand, but the two of them searched everywhere but could not find the old man selling candied haws. The crowd on the street had slowly dispersed, and the lively atmosphere gradually dissipated from the street.
Ci Ying took Xie Huaijin's hand and said softly, "Forget it, let's go home."
She seldom said the word "home", so Xie Huaijin was dazed for a moment. He looked at Ci Ying and realized that she was not talking about candied haws.
The two walked hand in hand on the way back.
The street lights faded, the fog appeared in the sky, and only a small point of the moon could be seen.
Ci Ying received another invitation from Su Xueruo three days before the palace banquet. As usual, she didn't read it. Ling Yue beside her whispered, "Why does Queen Su insist on seeing the master? I remember Queen Su sent invitations for a while, one per day. Why is she sending them again now?"
Lingshuang said softly, "Lingyue, don't meddle in the masters' affairs."
Lingyue covered her mouth and looked at Ciying.
Ciying asked Lingyue to burn it as usual. When Lingyue was about to go, Ciying suddenly changed her mind and said, "Forget it, let's find a box to put it in and put it in the corner."
Ling Yue hurriedly followed the instructions. Ling Shuang glanced at Ci Ying and said softly, "Master, it's nothing more than those things. If you want to see him, go and see him."
Ci Ying shook her head: "I don't want to go."
The clouds outside were pressing down low, and Ciying suddenly said, "Lingshuang, is it snowing outside?"
It snows every year in Chang'an, but there's actually nothing to see. Lingshuang looked out the window and found that it was indeed snowing, and Su Xueruo's topic was thus overturned.
Today Xie Huaijin was out and had not returned yet, so Ciying had dinner with Lingyue and Lingshuang. Halfway through the meal, Zhu Guang also came. When they saw Zhu Guang halfway through the meal, they hurried to add another set of bowls and chopsticks.
The four of them sat around the table. Zhu Guang had just returned from a mission and was quietly recounting his experiences along the way. Lingyue, Lingshuang and Ciying were all listening attentively, occasionally asking Zhu Guang about the local customs. Zhu Guang picked out some interesting ones to talk about, and before they knew it, the snow outside had gotten heavier.
Zhu Guang saw the snow and suddenly said, "Ciying, I want to build a snowman."
The snow had only been falling for a few hours, and there was only a thin layer on the ground. Logically, Ying should have given some advice.
But Ci Ying looked into Zhu Guang's eyes and just said, "Okay."
But the snow was too thin, and before it could form a ball in the hands, it melted into ice water. Several people worked hard, but they still couldn't pile up a single ball until late at night. They looked at each other in confusion, and finally laughed. Lingshuang ran into the house, took out several boiling hot water bottles, put one in each person's hand, and stuffed two into Ciying's hand: "Master, warm up quickly."
Zhu Guang looked at the melting water on the ground. The snow was still falling, so the water condensed into snow again.
Her tears fell, and the snow was wet again, forming a small nest.
Ci Ying stood beside Zhu Guang, without saying a word, just staying by his side.
There is still a faint scar on Zhu Guang's ear, which is very fatal for a secret guard. Although Zhu Guang will change his appearance every time he goes on a mission, if he forgets once, he may be in fatal danger, but Zhu Guang still does not remove the scar.
Ci Ying suddenly squatted down and put her hands in the snow for a long time, until her hands were cold and without any warmth. She found the thickest part of the snow and rolled it little by little, finally rolling out a small snowball. She took off the pearl earrings from her ears and put them into the snowball as eyes, making it a small snowman.
After doing all this, Ci Ying covered her face with her hands.
The snowman is actually very small. The temperature of the palm of my hand is recovering, and the snowman may melt in a while.
But fortunately, Ci Ying was by Zhu Guang's side.
She looked at Zhu Guang and spread out her hands.
"Zhu Guang, snowman!"
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