"As if it cannot be grasped, as if it will be heard. The brushwork is refined and the technique is natural."
She nodded randomly, not really understanding what was said. She just knew it was a compliment, so she tilted her head and looked at it carefully.
Previously, when she was in the Dream Cave, she had only glanced at the paintings on the wall. At that time, she thought the people in the paintings were dressed strangely, some were almost naked, and she thought they were some erotic paintings to arouse her. Now, looking closely, she found that they were indeed different from those vulgar and common paintings, and there was indeed some puzzling content in them.
Just like the man on the left, he is riding on the clouds with his hair loose and his eyes closed, as if he is half blind.
"What kind of characters are depicted in the murals on the wall? Why do they look so strange?"
"That's not a human, it's a god." The man's cool voice echoed through the cave, stirring up a low echo. "Legend has it that in ancient times, gods would descend to the mortal world, sometimes taking on mortal bodies. This is called a descent. This painting depicts the arrival of the wind god."
Xiao Nanhui leaned in to look at the painting. Although the ancient pigment made from ground gold would not fade, it had begun to become mottled due to years of wind and sand, and most of the pearls and gems originally inlaid had fallen off. But even so, it could still be seen that the person who wrote the painting had put a lot of meaning into the characters he painted.
"But this painting seems to show two gods who look exactly the same, one with his eyes open, the other with his eyes closed. One is stepping on clouds, the other on flames."
The man slowly closed his eyes: "Because according to legend, this wind god eventually became a demon."
Become a demon?
But if it was a demon, why were two images depicted? It's as if the artist didn't know whether it was a god or a demon.
Most ancient murals praised kindness and righteousness and criticized evil and depravity. Such unbiased depictions of the opposition between good and evil were rare.
After a pause, she had another question.
"Your Majesty, where did you hear these legends about ghosts and gods?"
"From my mother." As he said this, a rare look of loneliness crossed his face. It was as if distant memories were surging back, infecting his emotions. "She often said that history isn't always true, and legend isn't always false."
He never mentioned the late emperor and his mother. In fact, even the history books only recorded a few words about his mother, because everyone thought that woman was a lunatic.
She remembered that he once told her that it was not his mother who was crazy, but him.
Although she still didn't quite understand what this meant.
Even so, she was still worried that she had inadvertently touched upon his sad memories, so she deliberately changed the subject.
"Your Majesty, this fire pit is really well built. I once taught a fat man from Lingxi how to do this, but after several days of practice, he could only build a rickety chicken coop."
She regretted it the moment she said it. Putting aside the absurdity of praising an emperor for his skill in building a fire pit, she must have been completely lost in thought to compare him to that fat guy, Wu Xiaoliu.
However, before she could try to make amends, the man had already interrupted her.
"There is one thing I have never done well."
She quickly took advantage of the situation and asked, "What's the matter?"
"Hairpin."
The wound on his left hand was scabbing, which made his movements seem a little slow. When he took his hand out from his collar, there was something extra in his palm.
A jade hairpin.
"Please, Mr. Xiao, help me with my hairpin."
Xiao Nanhui took the jade hairpin and was stunned.
That was her hairpin, which she accidentally dropped when she sneaked into the tent that day.
The half of the bracelet she had taken from the tent was now inside the waistband of her inner garment.
She felt like she should ask something, but when the words came to her lips, she couldn't utter a single one.
She stroked the hairpin with her fingers, which was quite ordinary in style and texture, and carefully passed her other hand through the long hair on the man's shoulders.
She didn't have a comb, so she used her fingers as comb teeth to carefully comb her hair through, then divided it into strands and piled it up high.
After experiencing the ups and downs and hardships of these days, this jet-black hair showed no signs of being damaged. It was just stained with some dust, which, after being gently brushed off, regained its former luster.
People often praise the softness of jade, but forget its hardness. It is so indestructible that ordinary sand and gravel cannot even leave a scratch on its smooth surface.
Just like some people are born with a destiny that not everyone and everything can leave a mark in their hearts.
And she is not.
She was just an insignificant grain of sand in the northwest desert, drifting wherever the wind blew and no one would remember her. Even if the blessing she had cultivated for three lifetimes could be carefully bottled and taken home, she would still worry day and night: one day, when the wind picked up, she would eventually leave.
And if she left forever, how many people would miss her?
Perhaps it was the half jar of wine in his stomach that was playing tricks on him, Xiao Nanhui's mood was up and down for a moment, his vision gradually blurred, and he could only hurriedly fix the hairpin in his hand.
The jade hairpin rested there quietly. It was obviously just an ordinary style, but on the person's head it looked like a phoenix perched on a branch.
She retracted her hand and moved it to the remaining half jar of wine.
The rough stoneware jars and the inferior and spicy wine complement her perfectly.
The light in her eyes gradually dimmed, and she remembered the day when she watched Tian Weiler and Master Jia walk into the desert.
Were they as desperate as she was now? Were they also facing the possibility of death at any moment?
My dear, there is more to this chapter. Please click on the next page to continue reading. It will be even more exciting later!
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