Confession and false confession
On this day, after Lin Yuan finished his cultural studies at Zhimozhai, he went to Ximolou to complete his daily tasks.
Walking into Ximo Tower filled with the scent of ink, Lin Yuan saw a stone-blue figure at a glance. Usually, there were very few people in Ximo Tower, and it was even emptier at noon.
The sunlight filtered through the hexagonal window lattices, casting a golden speck on the dark floor.
Shen Zhaoli was looking for a book in front of the bookshelf. Lin Yuan walked over lightly, smiled at him, and waved her hand: "What a coincidence, Master Shen is here to study too."
When Shen Zhaoli saw that it was Lin Yuan, the smile on his face easily melted away the ice and snow, bringing with it the gentleness of spring breeze and rain: "Well, I was free, so I came to take a look. Fortunately, the appearance of this place has not changed."
Lin Yuan smiled faintly: "As the saying goes, 'things have changed and people have changed, everything has come to an end', but fortunately, the person you miss is still here."
Chen Zhaoli nodded: "I have always cherished the memory of Chu Nang, so I have been in the ups and downs of officialdom for six years. I have achieved nothing and I feel ashamed of my teacher and father."
Once upon a time, he wrote:
I will still go to the east and west to fight for my life.
Now the phoenix is singing on Yantai Mountain, and I will break free from my chains to face the phoenix.
Do you know that Gui Qiu is gradually making his way? He points to the blood on the golden platform.
He carried a bag and wore a green robe. He came like this and left like this.
On the dust-free desk where he used to work at night, there was only a letter waiting to be opened.
Lin Yuan could sense the deep emotion in his tone and felt sorry for him: "Mr. Shen, you are a man of great talent and wisdom. Why do you have to sink into the turmoil of officialdom? You are a man of both virtue and talent. You will surely rise to prominence in the future. I believe in you!"
After saying this, Lin Yuan blushed and lowered her head. She had wanted to say these words for a long time, but was afraid that it would sound childish.
Suddenly, she felt someone gently touch her head. She looked up and saw Master Shen smiling and said, "Then I will accept your good words, Xiao Yuan."
Lin Yuan suddenly felt that the bookshelves were too crowded and it was difficult to breathe, so she whispered, "I won't bother you anymore, sir. I'm going to read a book."
Lin Yuan waved her hand and turned around, bumping into the bookshelf in her haste and was supported by Shen Zhaoli.
"Xiao Yuan, are you okay?" Shen Zhaoli looked worried, as if the Immortal Lord Wenrun had all kinds of emotions.
Lin Yuan smiled awkwardly and said, "It's okay, it's okay. I'm fine." Then she ran to the second floor as if escaping.
The second floor is mostly filled with miscellaneous books about ghosts, witchcraft and sorcery.
So, system, are you serious?
Lin Yuan picked up a book called "Qingming Miscellaneous Talks" and started reading.
The God of Linyuan was originally the purest spiritual energy gathered by Mount Taiwei. He relied on the ice and snow on the mountain top to transform into a human form. He had a pure heart and roamed freely in the three realms without doing evil. However, a hundred years later, he was "possessed by the devil" for no reason, his temperament changed drastically, and he killed people, immortals, and monsters.
It is said that she has nine arms, three eyes, steps on a white tiger, and rides a blue dragon. She loves to eat children. Human parents often scare their children with the pretext of "The Demon King Linyuan is coming, daughter, close your eyes." She can stop children from crying at night! Later, she was captured by the Immortal Lord Xiyao and banished to the mortal world, where she will be reincarnated for a hundred generations.
After reading it, Lin Yuan laughed secretly: "Linyuan Shenjun is probably a combination of Thousand-Armed Guanyin and Erlang Shen. Haha, it's too tragic to be criticized like this. I sympathize with you for two seconds."
It is followed by a praise for the Immortal Lord Xi Yao: He was born in the mortal world, entered the immortal sect and practiced for less than a hundred years before he became an immortal. He had a brilliant record in the battle between gods and demons, won peace for the world, and then traveled through three thousand small worlds, free and easy.
After flipping through a few pages, Lin Yuan saw that some of them had been torn off. "Tsk, who is so wicked?"
The first and second pages respectively talk about love poison and nightmare spell (burying a puppet with the name of the cursed person written on it underground). It can be seen that the torn pages are definitely not good things.
Lin Yuan didn't bother to deal with these confusing cases. Bad things would always happen, and the fox's tail would always be exposed.
Finally, after finishing reading the book, Lin Yuan twisted her neck, turned around, and went downstairs. Maybe Mr. Shen hadn't left yet.
However, what she saw was Shen Zhaoli and Mu Yunxi reading and discussing together, and she felt a little lost. She sat on an empty chair, used the bookcase to block herself, peeked through the gaps between the books, and at the same time eavesdropped on the two people's vague conversation.
They seemed to be discussing Wang Yangming's philosophy of mind. They were truly academic masters! They were also very broad-minded. In the past, when the class had book sharing sessions, everyone would give superficial contributions, hiding the most essential ideas, only to show off their unique ideas in writing and amaze everyone.
"Tea." Someone handed her a teacup. Lin Yuan took the cup without turning her head and said thank you.
As soon as she raised her teacup and took a sip, she realized something was wrong. Where did the tea come from in Ximo Tower? No, this wasn't tea, it was clearly wine! Lin Yuan turned her head abruptly and saw Yuan Xuanlang looking down at her with a smirk on his face, his face full of "You've been caught!"
Lin Yuan, with his acting skills of "not changing his expression even when facing a mountain collapse," smiled calmly and asked in a low voice, "Brother, why are you here?"
Yuan Xuanlang placed the wine jar on the table, smiled, and said in a low voice, "I should ask my junior sister this question."
Lin Yuan replied as a matter of course: "Of course I read books, and by the way, I look at people."
Yuan Xuanlang leaned close to Lin Yuan's ear and whispered with interest, "Wow, these two are sitting next to each other, talking excitedly. Do you want to join them?"
Lin Yuan knew that he was using provocation, but she still felt the negative emotions spreading silently. No, she couldn't let her emotions control her.
Lin Yuan waved to Yuan Xuanlang and said, "Read your book." Then she stood up and walked towards the door. When she passed Mu Yunxi and Shen Zhaoli, she greeted them naturally, "Senior Sister, Master Shen."
Seeing that it was Lin Yuan, Mu Yunxi smiled and said, "Junior sister has been very diligent recently and comes to study every day."
Lin Yuan smiled slightly: "No, I'm far inferior to my senior sister. I have some chores to attend to, so I'll go ahead."
Mu Yunxi nodded and turned to continue the discussion with Shen Zhaoli.
Yuan Xuanlang stared at the door in a daze. He couldn't concentrate on reading the book anymore, so he simply threw it down and went out to practice sword.
In the next few days, Lin Yuan couldn't help but approach Shen Zhaoli while struggling with the question, "Mr. Shen will leave eventually, and I can't abandon the mission. What's the point of doing this?"
Sitting alone under the moon, Lin Yuan thought of Chen Zhaoli's conversations and sword practice with his senior sister. Everything was marked by tacit understanding. A month's friendship was indeed not as good as childhood sweethearts.
Suddenly, music started, with a melodious, light and elegant sound. Gradually, the tone became cheerful, but with a hint of sadness. The melody was smooth, as if responding to her sadness.
On the eaves under the moon, there was a man wearing a moon-white brocade robe. He had a high nose bridge, a face as white as jade, and his pale lips lightly played the strings. His hands with distinct knuckles jumped flexibly.
He played the Hulusi with great enthusiasm. The music sounded very much like "Phoenix Tail Bamboo in the Moonlight", a golden song from the 1970s and the ringtone on senior citizens' mobile phones in the 1980s.
Lin Yuan followed the sound and saw Yuan Xuanlang sitting on the eaves. She folded her arms and looked at him quietly.
Yuan Xuanlang put down the Hulusi and jumped to the ground. "How is it?"
"How do you know this song?" Lin Yuan took it for granted that he was asking about the song.
"It sounds nice, doesn't it?"
"Yeah." Lin Yuan's words were indifferent and she sounded uninterested.
"Hey, are you feeling disheartened and feel that you are not worthy of Shen Zhaoli?" Yuan Xuanlang smiled, "Since ancient times, scholars have always been the most sentimental and unfaithful. You might as well go to me instead of him."
Lin Yuan felt that he was mocking her and just watching the fun, so she glared at him with displeasure: "I wouldn't look for you even if I were to find a ghost!" Then she ran into the room and locked the door.
Yuan Xuanlang fell into deep thought. In terms of appearance, martial arts, and eloquence, that scholar is far inferior to me. Why does my junior sister dislike me and like him? It's not fair, so unfair!
No, it is love that makes people unable to see the big picture. After Yuan Xuan realized it, he nodded and sighed.
The time progress bar quickly filled up, and that day finally came, and Shen Zhaoli was about to leave.
The day before leaving, Shen Zhaoli took the initiative to find Lin Yuan. Lin Yuan was excited but also worried.
They sat at the round table in the house. Shen Zhaoli asked her seriously, "Xiao Yuan, my question may be a bit offensive, but I still want to ask you, are you happy with me?"
Lin Yuan's breathing stagnated. She didn't dare to look up. She pinched her arms quietly under the table to calm herself down. She was so nervous that she almost suffocated.
Although her voice was low, it was perfectly acceptable to hear it closely in the quiet room: "Yes, I am attracted to you."
The words that had lingered on the tip of my tongue countless times were spoken out like this.
Shen Zhaoli was silent, and she looked up at him anxiously.
After a moment, he sighed: "Xiao Yuan, you are a good girl. I am lucky to have your favor. However, I have been wandering around the world and my monthly income is meager. I am not worthy of your trust, and I have no intention of marrying you."
Lin Yuan's body froze for a moment. He had expected this result a long time ago, but when he really faced it, he was still caught off guard and panicked.
"Master Shen," she forced a smile, but her nose felt sore, "I am not asking you to accept me just because I like you. I just want to tell you... Master, just so you know that there was someone who liked you before."
Shen Zhaoli was touched and filled with apology. He didn't know what to say, "Xiao Yuan, you will find a better lover than me."
Shen Zhaoli was usually humble and gentle, even his words of rejection were like a knife with a gentle breeze.
He handed Lin Yuan a handkerchief. Lin Yuan shook her head, took out her own handkerchief and wiped her tears randomly, then walked out of the room. Recalling her walking posture, she took stiff steps and returned to her room.
The next day, Shen Zhaoli left. Before leaving, he comforted her, "Everything will be fine."
Fortunately, Lin Yuan was glad that she didn't cry.
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