Since He Simu became a mortal, she has increasingly discovered that the differences between people are sometimes greater than the differences between people and evil spirits. For example, some people are born with extraordinary strength and are martial arts geniuses; some people's limbs seem to be borrowed, and they can fall off the horse before it even starts running.
For example, Duan Xu and her.
In the past two years, she gradually adapted to her daily life and began to learn martial arts eagerly. After the unexpected turn of events two years ago, Duan Xu's body had gradually recovered. When he heard that He Simu wanted to learn martial arts, he volunteered to be her teacher.
When Chen Ying first learned about this, he was worried. He said that his third brother's teaching method could easily lead to trouble, but He Simu disagreed. As a result, when he started to learn with real swords and guns, he found that Chen Ying's statement at that time was just a euphemism.
Duan Xu is too cruel.
Duan Xu is so infuriating.
He Simu turned her left hand wrapped in gauze and snorted coldly. The middle-aged man in his forties beside her smiled and said, "Miss He, what are you worried about?"
He Simu is now temporarily living in Daizhou. She gave Jiang Ai several Daizhou landscape paintings, which were circulated among famous artists in Daizhou by Jiang Ai, and were praised by the masters. Once the news spread in Daizhou, her reputation rose rapidly, and one painting was priced at a thousand gold.
I have to admit that Jiang Ai is really talented in making money.
The boss Chen she met today was the boss of the silk business in Daizhou. It was said that he was the richest man in Daizhou and had connections everywhere. His house in Daizhou City had ninety-nine and a half rooms, and the house was magnificent with carved railings and painted buildings. Now he was smiling, and his eyes were shining as he looked at He Simu.
He Simu pointed to the painting next to him and said, "Boss Chen, take a look. Do you want to buy this painting or not?"
"Yes, buy it. Nowadays, anyone who can buy Miss He's paintings will go out and brag about it for several days. I have heard that Miss He is both beautiful and talented. Her paintings are beautiful, and she is even more beautiful than her paintings."
He Simu said calmly, "I told you before that if you want to buy my paintings, you can exchange them for your treasured Tianlin silk satin. Is Boss Chen ready?"
Boss Chen clapped his hands with a smile, and a servant came out from behind the screen and brought out a roll of silk cloth. The color was a very pure cinnabar red, with a faint silver glow.
He Simu walked over and touched the silk cloth. It felt as delicate as a baby's skin, warm and smooth, as light as a cicada's wing but not at all translucent. The silver light that spread over the red and changed color with the light was like the rippling waves on the sea under the setting sun.
"This Tianlin silk satin is made from the silk of precious silkworms from the Western Regions. It took ten years and more than two thousand silkworms to gather the silk. Lanyuefang made it into satin, and Seguju found the best cochineal insects to dye it. There were originally five pieces in the world, two were lost in the war, and the other two were worn by the emperor and empress of the previous dynasty and buried in the ground. The only one left in the world is the one in my hand."
Boss Chen straightened his back and proudly praised the treasure of his store.
He Simu bent over and looked at it carefully, touching it delicately. Her black eyes reflected the red of satin, and she said softly, "This color is really beautiful."
She had seen many silks and satins in the world over the years, and this one was indeed the best among them.
Boss Chen smiled so much that his eyes disappeared when he saw that she liked it. He sighed and said, "I got this silk with great difficulty. No matter how many people want to buy it, I won't sell it. I want to keep it as a family heirloom."
Hearing this, He Simu turned around and looked at him: "So, Boss Chen, are you going to give it to me or not?"
Boss Chen finally broke the ice and said with a smile: "Look, if we become a family, then there is no need to distinguish between yours and mine. You have this silk and I can pass it down to my family. It's the best of both worlds..."
He Simu looked at Boss Chen from top to bottom, and then from bottom to top. She withdrew her hand, straightened her waist, turned around to pick up the painting on the table: "Then I'll take my leave first."
Boss Chen also placed his hand on the painting to prevent He Simu from taking it away. He let out a long sigh and looked at He Simu and said, "I don't give this piece of cloth out easily. Miss He has already seen it and touched it. Don't be ungrateful."
The servants stood closely together around the room, and Boss Chen's eyes clearly said, now that you're here, don't even think about leaving.
He Simu looked around, withdrew his hand and said leisurely: "It seems that Boss Chen wants to keep me for dinner."
"You can eat as many meals as you want. You can choose from a variety of delicacies. You can see that my Chen family has a business like this. We will never treat you unfairly." Boss Chen smiled maliciously.
He Simu sneered and took out a pearl from her arms: "Then Boss Chen, do you mind if I call another friend?" After a pause, she called out: "Feng Yi."
The pearl immediately emitted a warm fluorescent light.
"Ancestor?"
"A boss has invited me to stay for dinner, and I can't refuse. Do you want to come?"
Mingzhu was quiet for a moment, then she laughed: "How could I miss such a good thing?"
Boss Chen showed a surprised expression when Mingzhu made the sound, and the servants in the room also looked around. For a moment, everyone was panicking and talking. At this moment, a strong wind suddenly blew in the room, and the paper curtains flew all over the sky. When everyone was caught off guard and was blown to the ground, two figures appeared from the wind.
The tall and thin man was wearing a white silk Taoist robe with red lotus embroidered on it, and a star map of the twenty-eight constellations embroidered in red thread on his back, and he was leaning on a walking stick. The purple-dressed woman beside him was like a porcelain doll, with a white face, black hair, and a pair of deep black eyes on her beautiful and expressionless face.
The man pokes the ground with his stick, and the wind immediately disappears, leaving only a mess on the ground.
Boss Chen was so scared that he fell to the ground, shouting "Monster, monster!"
He Simu's eyes fell on the woman, and he frowned and asked, "Why is Zi Ji here?"
He Jia Feng Yi said: "Zi Ji happened to come down to the mortal world to see me, so I took her with me."
After he finished replying to He Simu's words, he turned around and walked towards Boss Chen who had fallen to the ground, as if he had seen a relative he hadn't seen for many years. He kindly grabbed Boss Chen's shoulders and lifted him up from the ground: "I'm so sorry, I showed up too suddenly, I'm so rude. Seeing that you look so imposing and wealthy, you must be the boss who wants to treat us to a meal, right? What's your name?"
Boss Chen shrank his neck, trembling and unable to speak. He had a short neck to begin with, and now he looked like a turtle without a neck.
He Simu said: "Boss Chen."
He Jia Feng Yi clapped his hands and exclaimed, "Wow! The surname is Chen! Chen is a good surname! My senior brother's uncle's daughter-in-law's aunt's surname is Chen! Isn't it a coincidence? We are so destined to meet. No wonder we have dinner together today."
He Jia Fengyi pulled Boss Chen in a familiar manner, picked up the chair that was blown down on the ground, and asked him to sit down at the table. He also pulled Zi Ji and He Simu to sit down, and said to Boss Chen who was still in a stiff state with a smile: "Please don't be polite with us. We can eat ten kilograms of dragon liver and leopard gall, mountain delicacies and seafood, and we won't get tired of it. Just order whatever you want."
"Why did you come to the lower world?" He Simu asked Zi Ji directly.
More than two years passed in a flash, and the day she became a mortal seemed like yesterday. Zi Ji shortened her long life to a mortal life and saved Duan Xu from dying.
However, Zi Ji did not come to save her on purpose. Later, she learned that this was the result of Feng Yi's final victory in the protracted war between He Jia and Zi Ji. She just found a way out of the desperate situation with Feng Yi's help.
But she didn't have much affection for Zi Ji. I guess people in cages don't have much affection for the people who made the cages.
"Come and see the new order." The god sat beside a round table with a pear wood carving of the Eight Immortals Crossing the Sea. She looked into He Simu's eyes for a moment, then said, "Miss He, there is no need to be hostile to me. Livestock are not as strong as humans, humans are not as strong as evil spirits, and evil spirits are not as strong as gods. Life has its own place and each has its own limitations. Live your life seriously with your insignificant body and the faith of life. Love, hate, grudges, birth, old age, sickness and death are all worthy of respect."
Zi Ji raised her hand and pointed back and forth between herself and He Simu, saying, "The same is true between us. I respect your pain and predicament, so I modify the order."
He Simu was silent for a moment, as if he approved of her answer, and the topic turned to Hejia Fengyi: "Lord God, what do you think of Fengyi now?"
After discussing with his family, He Jia Feng Yi has passed his Mars fate to his nephew. He is no longer the Mars disaster star, nor is he the strongest sorcerer in the world, but this also means that he can practice Taoism for the purpose of ascending.
He had only started to seriously practice Taoism for the purpose of ascending to heaven at this age, and his future seemed bleak.
"When he ascends, he should be a better god than me."
"What if he can't ascend after all?"
Zi Ji was silent for a moment, then said, "That's the only way."
He Jia Fengyi sat aside, stroking his cane, watching the two ancestors interacting with each other. He felt as if he was a boy who was about to go to school, and these two were the teacher and the parent who were discussing his studies.
Boss Chen sat at the table rubbing his hands, as if this was not his home, as if he was caught as a guest. At this moment, he looked around hastily, trembling, "God... God? Ascension? What on earth are you..."
Just as he mustered up the courage to ask questions about this incredible situation, the door was suddenly kicked open, and a door panel fell straight to the ground with a loud bang, raising dust. Boss Chen cried out as soon as he saw it, feeling sorry for his good rosewood door panel.
A man in a blue round-necked robe with arrow sleeves stood behind the door, holding the collar of a fainted servant. The man was nearly thirty years old, handsome and tall, with an upright posture due to years of martial arts training, and a pair of round eyes that were as bright as stars.
He was obviously surprised when he saw the situation in the room. After scanning everyone, his eyes stopped at He Jia Fengyi, the person who was most likely to explain the situation to him.
He Jia Feng Yi caught his gaze and immediately smiled, shaking his cane and said, "Oh my, isn't this Master Duan? Boss Chen said he wanted to invite us to dinner, but we felt it was too lonely for two people, so he called me and Zi Ji over. Master Duan wants to come and liven things up, too?"
Duan Xu was silent for a moment, looking at Boss Chen who was like a chicken caught between the crowd, and the servant fell to the ground as soon as he loosened his grip. He put his hands behind his back and smiled innocently as if nothing had happened: "Boss Chen is so hospitable, he shouldn't mind having another set of bowls and chopsticks, right?"
Boss Chen looked at his door distressedly, raised his hand and pointed at Duan Xu angrily, but heard He Jia Fengyi say: "What are you saying? It's simply an insult to our Boss Chen. How can a big shot like our Boss Chen care about an extra set of bowls and chopsticks? Look at how excited Boss Chen is, he's about to call for the dishes to be served."
After saying that, he turned to look at Boss Chen with a smile: "Am I right?"
Boss Chen silently withdrew his hand and said with an apologetic smile: "Right...right... hurry up and serve the food!"
Duan Xu walked to the table. The seats on both sides of He Simu were empty. He glanced at He Simu's expression, pursed his lips, and sat down opposite her - next to He Jia Fengyi. He Jia Fengyi looked at the atmosphere between the two and thought that they must have had a quarrel.
“I still… I still don’t know your names, gentlemen?” Poor Boss Chen finally asked this question to the obviously abnormal people at the table.
He Jia Feng Yi smiled and said, "Oh, I forgot to tell you, I am He Jia Feng Yi from Xing Qing Palace, this is Zi Ji. I am Miss He's relative."
"Oh! It turns out to be the Taoist priest from Xingqing Palace! I didn't recognize you!" Boss Chen saluted in fear. Ordinary people may not know about other immortal sects, but Xingqing Palace is well-known to everyone.
Duan Xu glanced at He Simu, and He Simu looked away.
He said, "I am Duan Xu, and He Simu is my wife-to-be."
Before Boss Chen could be surprised, He Simu sneered and said, "Who is your fiancée? Why get married? I don't want to get married."
Duan Xu looked at He Simu for a moment, then smiled with his eyes curved, "Okay, then don't get married. We've lived without a name or status for so many years. But you have to tell me the reason."
He Simu didn't look at him. She just stroked her scroll on the table calmly without saying a word. The gauze wrapped around her left hand looked very eye-catching.
Duan Xu twisted his fingers and said, "If it's because I accidentally broke your hand bones before, I apologize."
The sword at his waist was unsheathed, and with a flash of cold light, Boss Chen squatted on the ground with his head in his hands, shouting, "Young man, please spare my life."
The sword was not aimed at Boss Chen, and was suppressed by He Simu. She grabbed his left hand and said angrily: "Duan Shunxi, what are you doing?"
"If you are really angry, then I will give you my hand as compensation. You can do whatever you want, cut my tendons, crush my bones, I won't say no." Duan Xu stared at He Simu and smiled.
"I didn't mean for this! I know you didn't mean it, you just didn't expect me to be so weak."
Duan Xu caught the fleeting irritation in He Simu's eyes. He was silent for a while, then grabbed her wrist, which was still safe, and said, "I understand. Come with me."
"Let go!" He Simu shouted.
Duan Xu simply took two steps over and carried her on his shoulders, then turned and left. He Simu was so angry that her face turned red. She struggled on Duan Xu's shoulders, looked at He Jia Feng Yi and shouted, "Feng Yi!"
Hejia Fengyi covered his eyes and said, "Oh, my ears don't work well. Ziji, there is a saying in the world that it is difficult to be an honest official."
"It is difficult for an honest judge to judge family affairs." Zi Ji added.
Hearing the footsteps and the calling voices disappear, He Jia Feng Yi put down his hand, turned around and smiled to face Boss Chen, and said: "Boss Chen, you have to thank me today. That young man just now had a very bad temper. If it weren't for me, your fate today would be like your door panel. Just for this, we have to add more dishes today..."
After leaving the Chen family's mansion of ninety-nine and a half rooms, Duan Xu put He Simu down and rode his horse all the way back to their residence in Daizhou. Duan Xu didn't let go until they actually stepped into the room.
He Simu had stopped struggling a long time ago. He turned around to look at her and saw that her face and eyes were red with anger. She bit her lip and looked at him coldly.
Duan Xu was silent for a moment, then asked softly, "Simu, do you regret it?"
He Simu's eyes narrowed: "I have absolutely no regrets, I just..."
It's just... she thought, just what.
There was no light in the room, and the light gradually dimmed. Duan Xu's bright eyes reflected the orange color of the sunset, showing a sticky syrup-like texture, warm and fragile.
She loves the world she has. If she hadn't become a mortal, she would never have seen such a vivid world and felt such a vivid Duan Xu. How could she regret it?
However, she was not yet used to being the fragile and powerless mortal He Simu.
She once had a strong innate ghost power. All evil ghosts crawled in front of her. No one in this world could threaten her. Nothing could shake her except the separation of life and death. She looked at the living beings, always with pity and yearning, pity their weakness, yearning for their freshness.
Now she has their vitality, and also their weakness.
Duan Xu was so strong that she was vulnerable in front of him. He just casually fought with her during teaching, and she could easily break her hand bones. He carried her and pulled her away, and she couldn't resist. She learned the things he taught her very slowly and with great difficulty, as if she was born unable to obtain such strength.
She used to be invincible with her talent, she had never experienced such frustration, she didn't like looking up to others like this. She didn't like the feeling of not being able to control herself.
She was angry with herself.
Duan Xu's chest rose and fell in the light of the setting sun. It was very quiet all around, with only the sounds of their breathing.
"As long as you are alive, you will experience birth, aging, sickness and death. This is also part of this world. Are you disappointed with this world?" Duan Xu looked at He Simu with burning eyes.
He Simu shook her head and said, "I'm not disappointed with the world, I'm disappointed with myself."
Duan Xu chuckled: "Yes, you don't have the same powerful strength as before. But in this world, you still have me, He Jia Feng Yi, Jiang Ai and Chen Ying. What are you afraid of?"
"After all..."
"After all, it's not your own strength? Then why do you want me to be by your side? Just share the good times and not the bad times? Do you think it's shameful that you need my help? Would I look down on you in the slightest because of these things? He Simu, did I refuse your help when I was terminally ill? I clearly knew that I could not shake your long life at all, and that I was as fragile as an ant compared to you. Have I ever retreated or blamed you for this?"
Duan Xu's voice got louder and louder, and his eyes trembled and became redder. After he finished speaking, his chest rose and fell violently. He hugged the stunned He Simu into his arms and whispered, "Can you... not run away without saying a word every time you get angry? You were the same back then, you said it was over and it was over. I'm really scared of you."
His heart was beating violently, and she could feel his anger and fear through several layers of clothes. She thought of the boy who had come to her in the ghost army many years ago. If she could feel it at that time, would he have had such a heartbeat?
He Simu hugged his back and whispered, "So your mood at that time is exactly how I feel now."
Duan Huli was indeed very brave. If it were her, she probably wouldn't have persisted with such a start.
Duan Xu was a man who had been gambling until he was 26 years old. His soul had been floating in the air, half of it in his own hands and the other half left to fate. He had been through many dangers and had many gains and losses. It was only in the past two years that his life was finally settled because of her.
He has been living like this, unable to fully control himself, living fragilely yet tenaciously.
But it is precisely because of fragility that one can feel warmth, because of pain that one can know happiness, and because of coldness that one can know warmth. This is the world she loves.
"It's so hard to be a mortal..." He Simu muttered, and she said, "I need time. I need to learn slowly."
"We still have a lot of time. You have to rely on me and don't leave me." Duan Xu said with a sigh in her ear.
"good."
"You scared me, you have to make it up to me."
He Simu smiled lightly and said, "Okay."
Duan Xu took a breath from her neck, then picked her up and put her on the bed. He leaned over to kiss her. She hooked her arms around the back of his neck, and he said in a vague voice, "Watch out for your hands."
"Mortals are so troublesome..."
He Simu's voice disappeared in the panting sound.
It was completely dark, but the lights in the room were still not on.
In the overly vivid feeling, He Simu opened her eyes and saw Duan Xu's expression, fanatical, infatuated, as if he was a ball of fire that wanted to throw himself into the water, wanting to exchange the burning heat all over his body for water to warm it up for a moment. His eyes were blurred, his hair was wet with sweat and stuck to his forehead, and his sweat fell on her neck, so hot that it seemed to burn her. The same scent of agarwood on their bodies intertwined together, as if it filled the entire room.
She raised her head and offered her lips and tongue. As her lips and teeth intertwined, she let out a sigh and said, "Oh no, I seem to be becoming more and more obsessed with you."
In this vibrant world, he is still the most brilliant.
She had seen many sights, but she still could not forget the smile he gave her many years ago in his red wedding gown amid the red shavings of firecrackers. She could not forget the clear and gentle fragrance on his body.
Not to mention that now, she has such a warm, bright and living Duan Xu in her arms.
The consequence of her words was that she screamed out, which made her feel even worse.
Duan Xu's ears turned red, so she bit his earlobe.
He shuddered and chuckled, "It looks like you don't want to go out tomorrow."
"You serve me... not bad."
He Simu's voice paused, and she kissed the strand of premature gray hair on his forehead.
They will live on as mortals in this warm and lively world. Time passes, but there is nothing to be afraid of. They are also passing, and in the end, He Simu's life and Duan Xu's life are completely integrated.
I am lucky in my life to be able to spend the rest of my life with you.
Later, Boss Chen's unparalleled Tianlin silk satin was used to make the wedding dress of the former Ghost King. Although He Simu was still angry with Duan Xu that day, she was indeed aiming to get the fabric for her own wedding dress.