Name Extinction
“I grew up in Pingdu. My family is quite well-off, but my father didn’t discipline me much, so I often went out to have fun. I know this place very well; I could walk around with my eyes closed without getting lost.”
Seeing Jingwan curiously observing the scenery on both sides of the street, Qin Ziyou slowed down and introduced it to her in detail.
Pingdu was the capital of the Great Wei Dynasty for over a hundred years. After several expansions, it was a large-scale city with well-organized markets and wards.
The capital city was bustling with activity, its night markets never closed, and all sorts of rare and exotic goods gathered here for the city's dignitaries to choose from. People from other regions also often came here to study or reside for a long time. The Li River flowed through the city, supporting tens of thousands of people. Throughout the entire Wei Dynasty, there was no other city that could compare with it.
He was a native of Pingdu. Walking with him, you could hear some strange and wonderful stories about the city. For example, the owner of Zuixianlou Restaurant married the restaurant's cook for the sake of business. The cook was clever and unknowingly took control of half of the restaurant.
"Is she still working as a cook at Zuixianlou?"
Qin Ziyou raised his eyebrows: "Of course! Zuixianlou is famous for its delicious food. If the proprietress stops cooking, Zuixianlou will lose its soul!"
"But she's already married. How could the boss let his wife show her face in public for money?"
"I heard that the proprietress insisted on going into the kitchen, but the boss refused. So she threatened to divorce him, and finally the boss gave in. Come on, I'll take you to the restaurant next time."
Qin Ziyou walked forward, and Jingwan, who was following behind, couldn't help but turn around and look up at the magnificent restaurant, becoming even more curious about the mysterious proprietress.
They went to the cloth shop, where Qin Ziyou had already ordered three sets of clothes and cloth shoes; he was there to pick them up.
"Uncle Gong is always frugal. He will never change a piece of clothing unless it is so badly patched that it is difficult to find the stitches. We should give him a few nice clothes. Otherwise, even if the gifts are expensive, he will definitely not accept them."
The rain stopped, and the two closed their umbrellas, moving closer together.
Qin Ziyou, carrying the packed clothes, walked slowly down the road with Jingwan. Today, he was more talkative than ever before.
“I like Uncle Gong the most. I don’t know why, but I always feel very close to him, like he’s family. Actually, according to age, I should call him Grandpa Gong.”
“When I was little, whenever my father scolded me, I would run away from home to find Uncle Gong. He would never ask me why I was crying. He would just see that I was feeling wronged and would coax me with osmanthus sugar. He would take me to the temple fair and take me to eat a bowl of spicy oil-splashed noodles…”
His nose stung, but he felt ashamed to shed tears in front of the girl he loved, so he tilted his head back and held back his tears.
“Uncle Gong had a daughter, but she died of illness. He never remarried and lived alone. Now I want to spend more time with him and take care of him in his old age until his death.”
Only then did Jingwan understand why the two were so close. Compared to Qin Ziyou's experiences, Jingwan felt much happier. She also told Qin Ziyou...
As You began recounting his childhood memories, the boy stopped in his tracks upon hearing the words "Yongye, a famous city in the Northwest," and his voice grew louder, drawing the attention of passersby.
"Yongye? Yongye in the Northwest? Where are you from?"
Jingwan nodded: "I grew up there until I was twelve years old, and then I came to Pingdu to stay with relatives."
Qin Ziyou, still excited, pressed on, "Then you've seen the Rong people, haven't you? Do they have blue faces and fangs, and do they possess sorcery?"
I heard there was constant fighting there in recent years, and life must have been tough! And what about the General Who Pacifies the Distant Lands? Have you ever met him?
He had never left Pingdu since he was seventeen, so of course he was curious.
Qin Ziyou had too many questions, and Jingwan patiently answered them one by one. She put a piece of sesame candy in her mouth and chatted with him comfortably: "Not to mention I've seen Rong people, I can even speak Rong language! In the past, when we were picking jade in the mountains, we needed Rong people who knew the way to guide us. They look no different from ordinary people, and there are even Rong people who have married into our area."
Qin Ziyou exclaimed "Ah!" in a strange tone, wondering how the Western Rong and the Great Wei, who were usually at odds, could still marry each other.
Jingwan thought this was nothing unusual and continued chatting with him: "There used to be wars there, and our lives were really hard. If it weren't for the Northwest Army, Yongye would have been occupied by the Rong people long ago."
Qin Ziyou was extremely interested in the famous general who was renowned in the Northwest. He asked about the extraordinary deeds of the General Who Pacifies the Distant Regions. Jingwan stopped and looked at him seriously: "No one in the Northwest dares to mention that general. It's not that they don't remember his kindness to us, but rather that they remember his great kindness to the people of the Northwest. That's why they can't mention his name or sing his praises. Ziyou, please don't ask me anymore. I really don't know anything else."
She suddenly felt a pang of sadness, recalling that year in the Northwest, where the wronged souls must have been everywhere. Two hundred thousand Lu family soldiers, who had devoted themselves to the country, were massacred at the Zhan Tian Qian (a strategic pass). They didn't know whose husbands, whose sons, or whose fathers they were, but they didn't die at the hands of the Rong people, but at the hands of their own people.
The Lu family army is a name that can no longer be mentioned. People in the Northwest only dare to burn some paper money for the deceased under the guise of family sacrifices during the Ghost Festival.
And that cousin, I'm afraid he can't even be included in the family memorial service!
She didn't realize that when she mentioned Lu Chang again, the love she once felt had long since been blown away by the wind.
Qin Ziyou was old enough to understand things, but he already knew the title of General Fuyuan.
Back then, when children went out to play, they would sit on the shoulders of servants and wander aimlessly, where they could hear storytellers on stage, their faces beaming, recounting how this great general had repelled the three armies of the Western Rong with only a thousand soldiers. In theaters, martial arts actors, wielding long spears, wearing thick-soled boots and armor, would portray how this great general single-handedly took on ten men and beheaded the Western Rong leader. Anyone with a skill in writing would pen books and write biographies for him, passing on the great general's extraordinary achievements to future generations…
Who in the Great Wei Dynasty doesn't know General Lu Zhi, the Grand General Who Pacifies the Distant Regions!
The Rong people have oppressed the Great Wei for a century!
During the previous dynasty, to maintain peace on the border, two princesses of the Wei dynasty were sent to marry foreign rulers, but both died far from home before the age of thirty. The court offered gold and silver, but this could not stop the greed of the Rong people, who repeatedly broke agreements and launched military attacks on the west, even nearly capturing Pingdu on one occasion, causing the city's inhabitants to flee south in terror…
If it weren't for this great general, how could the northwestern border have been defended? If the northwestern border were lost, the Rong people could drive straight south and threaten the three central provinces. These three provinces are one of the granaries of the Great Wei. If they were lost, it would be as if someone were holding Pingdu by the throat...
Under Lu Zhi's leadership, the Rong people dared not cross Fengyin Mountain again, and the northwest finally settled down.
But the fervor only lasted a few years. At some point, no one mentioned this great general anymore. All the books about him disappeared from bookstores, and storytellers started talking about the same old things again, telling mythical tales. In just a few years, no one mentioned this Northwest General anymore, to the point that even the younger people don't know who Lu Zhi is.
Qin Ziyou wasn't stupid. After hearing Jingwan's words, he understood what she meant: there was a hidden reason that was not convenient to reveal to the public.
Although the general's story couldn't be mentioned again, he could certainly talk about life in the Northwest. The scenery beyond the Great Wall captivated the young master, and the two seemed to have switched places. Qin Ziyou followed closely behind Jingwan, listening with great interest to how she and the locals collected jade when the snow melted on the mountains. The snow-capped mountain scenery she described became a picture in Qin Ziyou's mind, and unconsciously, it also transformed into a galloping steed across the grasslands, free and unrestrained...
In the end, Qin Ziyou was so engrossed in the conversation that he couldn't help but exclaim, "This is such a wonderful place; I really want to go and see it."
He asked Jingwan if she wanted to go back later.
Jingwan said yes, of course. Even though she was forced to leave the Northwest and now has no one to rely on, she believes that she will go back one day.
Even after they arrived at Uncle Gong's house, the two still had so much to say.
During the hour at the Weaver Girl's Workshop, Jingwan did not ask Uncle Gong for advice on jade carving for the first time. Since she had no gift for Uncle Gong, she made a bowl of longevity noodles at Qin Ziyou's suggestion.
After draining the noodles, pour boiling oil over chili powder and sprinkle with chopped green onions, making them glistening with oil.
Unlike the reserved and polite people of Pingdu, when eating this noodle dish, they casually stir it a few times with their chopsticks and then shovel it into their mouths with gusto. Their eating style is bold and unpretentious, perfectly embodying the saying that food is the most important thing for people.
Towards the end of the meal, Qin Ziyou lifted his bowl, shoveled the last of the chopped scallions into his mouth, and then reluctantly put the bowl down.
He was so kind to her, and Jingwan said with no small amount of pride, "My way of doing this is not authentic. When you go to the Northwest in the future, I will treat you to the most authentic Northwest noodles."
Human relationships are so strange, or is this how everything in the world is? Once you go to one extreme, you will slide to the other. The lecherous man you once guarded in the bustling city is now sitting at the same table with you, eating noodles made by her own hands. No wonder Confucianism often talks about the Doctrine of the Mean.
As usual, Qin Ziyou escorted Jingwan back. When they arrived at Yuquefang, Qin Ziyou stopped and watched Jingwan leave. Unexpectedly, Jingwan turned around and looked at him with a puzzled expression: "Aren't you going in with me?"
Qin Ziyou was surprised; how did she know he lived here too?
Jingwan smiled: "Once I forgot to give you the jade pendant, and when I turned back, I saw you heading in that direction."
She pointed to the main road in the east of the neighborhood, saying that Qin Ziyou's home was down there.
Qin Ziyou scratched his head, a gesture he often made when anxious: "I didn't mean to hide it from you, it's just..."
Before he could speak, Jingwan put her index finger to her lips in a shushing gesture. She didn't mean to blame him: "I know. But it's okay, we'll have time to talk, won't we?"
Qin Ziyou nodded vigorously, pointing his finger to the sky and swearing: "Of course, everything I have said to you is the truth. I will never tell you a single lie, not in the past, not now, and not in the future."
Jingwan thought that what touches people's hearts the most is sincerity.
Although it was late at night, Yuquefang was not deserted. Even though they had a lot to talk about, the two of them did not dare to linger. This time, Jingwan looked back at the man several times. When she returned to her courtyard, the smile on her face did not fade in the slightest. The sight of the young girl experiencing her first love caught Dongxia's eye. She turned around and passed under the eaves, disappearing without a trace.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
