First Encounter in the Snow
On the first month of the lunar calendar, heavy snow fell all night, blanketing Kyoto in a foot-thick blanket. As the sky neared daybreak, the snow eased slightly, but the north wind blew fiercely, blowing snowflakes into the sky like flying catkins. A few pedestrians began to pass through the usually bustling streets during the day. They all wore fur hats and thick coats, but even so, they hid their hands and hunched their necks in the biting cold, shivering violently as they hurried by, leaving only a few footprints on the white blanket. Naturally, no one noticed a disheveled child, about five or six years old, huddled under a straw mat against the wall at the corner.
Soon, a carriage approached from a distance. The snowy road was slippery, so they didn't dare to speed, but even at a slow pace, it was wobbly. The driver seemed to sense something was wrong, so he pulled the reins and got out to check. It turned out that the pin was loose.
"Sir, please get off the carriage and wait for a moment. The pin on the axle of the carriage is loose and needs to be tightened." The driver put down the step stool and waited respectfully by the side.
Soon, a woman in her thirties dressed in plain clothes came out of the car, followed by a little kid with snow-white skin and beautiful face wearing a silver fox cloak.
Unlike the woman who was afraid of the cold, the little boy ran away in the snow as soon as he got out of the carriage. He had been confined at home by his family because of a cold. He wanted to play in the snow like his brothers. Today was a rare day when no one was supervising him, so of course he wanted to try the feeling of running in the heavy snow.
"Sir, be careful! Don't go too far!"
The wet nurse was worried about the little boy's safety, but did not step forward to stop it.
The sons of the Prime Minister's family must behave themselves wherever they go, otherwise they will attract criticism, even for this little six-year-old boy. Moreover, although the Seventh Son is gifted and intelligent, he has always been weak, so the Prime Minister and his wife usually control him more strictly. But after all, he is still a little kid, and playing is what he should do at his age, so if possible, the wet nurse will never stop him.
Because there were pedestrians and carriages passing by from time to time on the road, the snow was not as thick as on the street. There seemed to be some small animal under the snow-covered straw mat at the corner of the street, pushing the mat from time to time. The young master was curious for a moment, and while the wet nurse was helping the coachman to drive the cart and had no time to pay attention to him, he stepped on the snow and tentatively walked towards that place step by step. Finally, he reached the straw mat. The snow was above his knees and his feet were deeply stuck in the snow. He exerted force and fell on the straw mat.
“Hmm…”
A faint moan came from under the straw mat, which scared the young master. Was there actually a person underneath?
The young master hurriedly got up and took great pains to lift up a corner of the straw mat to check. He saw a child curled up in a ball, shivering with cold.
"Are you okay?"
The young master thought that he was the one who crushed the child, and he felt worried and guilty, but he saw that the child was just trembling and didn't answer.
"Are you cold?"
The young master tried to pull the child's hand, but it was frozen like ice and could not be stretched out freely.
Frightened by the temperature, the young master struggled to pull the child out from under the straw mat little by little, wrapped him in his cloak, and held him in his arms to keep him warm.
In a daze, the child felt his body warming up little by little, as if he was lying in a soft and warm quilt, and he couldn't help rubbing against the warmth.
"I'll hold you, and you won't be cold anymore."
The child, who was gradually regaining consciousness, couldn't help but open his eyes when he heard the caring words in a baby voice.
The young master looked at the child in his arms. Although his face was covered in mud, his eyes were as black and bright as obsidian, just like the stars on a midsummer night.
The child suddenly felt shy at the sight of the delicate little doll before him, who looked like the fairy child in his mother's stories. He was spotless, while he himself was covered in filth. The child broke free from the young master's embrace and moved aside, not wanting to touch him.
The young master failed to understand the child's change of mind. He just thought that he didn't like being held by strangers, so he let him do what he wanted.
"Are you hungry?" The young master carefully took out the cake wrapped in a handkerchief from his arms and handed it to the child.
This was his favorite pastry, but his mother said that everything should be done in moderation, so she didn't allow him to eat too much. So he secretly hid some and carried it with him, waiting to satisfy his craving when no one was paying attention.
Seeing that the child did not take it, the young master pinched a piece of rice cake and put it to the child's mouth.
"This is black rice cake with jujube paste. It's delicious. Try it."
Seeing the young master's expectant look, the child unconsciously opened his mouth and bit off the rice cake that was fed to him.
"How is it? Isn't it delicious?"
"Um."
The child hadn't eaten for a few days, so now that he had food, he didn't care about anything else and gobbled it up. The young man was very happy that his favorite thing was recognized by others, and he put all the rice cakes in his hand in front of the child.
"These are all for you. Eat slowly and don't choke."
The young master watched the child eat the rice cake quietly, then asked
"What's your name? Why are you here alone?"
The child naturally had a name, but he could not forget his mother's dying advice, to forget his previous name and never mention it to anyone again.
Seeing that the child did not answer for a long time, the young master asked tentatively
"You... don't have a name?"
"Um."
"Can I give you a name, then?"
"good."
Children do need a new name, and there is nothing wrong with it if the child chooses it.
The young man looked at the child, then looked towards the street, and after a little thought he came up with an idea.
"Only the green pine trees stand tall in the coldest days of winter. From now on, you will be called Mu Song, okay?"
"Okay. I'm Mu Song, so who are you?"
"My name is Xiao Luochen."
"Sir, the carriage has been repaired and we can set off now."
The wet nurse came over in a hurry and delayed the car for a while. If they didn't set off quickly, they would not be able to arrive before dark.
"Musong, will you come home with me?"
Xiao Luochen took Mu Song's hand, wanting him to go with him. It was freezing cold, and he couldn't imagine how Mu Song could survive alone. To Xiao Luochen's surprise, Mu Song, who had been saying "yes" all along, refused this time.
"I can't leave."
Although Mu Song really wanted to go with Xiao Luochen, his father's dying instructions were to wait here for Uncle Su and reunite with his brother, so he could not leave. Even when the servant who protected him and escaped here was seriously injured and died in front of him, and even in the heavy snow, he did not leave a step and stayed here to guard.
"Why?"
"Waiting for someone."
"What if the person you're waiting for doesn't show up?"
"Then I can go see my parents earlier."
When he said this, Mu Song's voice choked, but he didn't cry out loud.
"Sir, let's go. If we don't leave now, we'll be too late."
The wet nurse took Xiao Luochen over, and Mu Song consciously let go of his hand.
Xiao Luochen took off his cloak and put it on Mu Song. He then placed the hand warmer that the wet nurse had brought in Mu Song's hands. He wanted to say something, but in the end, he said nothing and obediently returned to the carriage with the wet nurse. He didn't understand Mu Song's stubbornness, and he didn't dare to imagine what would happen next. He only secretly prayed that the person Mu Song was waiting for would come and take him away soon.
Looking at the carriage going away, Mu Song secretly swore in his heart that even if he forgot who he was, he would never forget the person who gave him warmth in the snow and ice. No matter whether he would see him again in this life, he would always remember this little kid named Xiao Luochen.
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