Before Yang Fan started telling the story of Meng Po's youth, Guo Guo suddenly asked, "Brother, I drank Meng Po soup and I have no memory of the past. Did you drink it too?"
Yang Fan said: "I didn't drink before I came to this life, so I have the memory of my previous life."
Aunt Thirteen smiled but said nothing, not exposing Yang Fan's lie.
Lying to children is not called cheating, it's called coaxing.
"Brother, isn't your life very hard? Do you feel very tired?" Guoguo asked worriedly, because her brother said that the superposition of reincarnation memories will lead to violent personality conflicts, bring great confusion to the soul and body, and make it impossible for people to devote themselves to a new life with peace of mind.
"It was very hard before, until one day..." Yang Fan said, and stopped abruptly.
Guo Guo, who was hiding in the quilt, was anxious, and hurriedly got up and asked, "Brother, what happened one day?"
Yang Fan smiled and said, "Until one morning, I opened the door and saw two angels standing outside, one big and one small. The light from them was so peaceful and warm that it blew away all the haze that enveloped me in my previous life, and I felt better."
Aunt Thirteen was stunned for a moment, and it took her a moment to react.
"Are there really angels in the world?" Guoguo asked.
"Yes." Yang Fan pinched the little girl's face, her skin was smooth and delicate, so tender that it couldn't be any tenderer: "Isn't Guoguo an angel?"
Guoguo was very happy. After a while, he pulled up his shirt to check and asked in confusion: "Don't all angels have wings? Why don't I have any?"
"Angels with wings are not allowed to appear in the world, so your wings were retracted into your body before you were born," Yang Fan explained.
"Then when will my wings grow out?" Guoguo asked impatiently.
"Just listen to your mother, eat well, and stay healthy. It will grow out when you grow up." Yang Fan said.
Guoguo turned around, looked at her mother, and asked, "Mom, are you still not grown up?"
Aunt Thirteen was at a loss and looked at Yang Fan, “You can make up your own story, I can’t help you make it come true.”
Yang Fan pondered for a moment and said, "Guoguo, your mother is not yet grown up, but she was disobedient when she was young, didn't eat well, and always made your grandmother angry, so her wings never grew back."
Thirteenth Aunt raised her eyebrows and stared at Yang Fan.
Yang Fan added: "Well, it could also be that your mother hasn't grown up yet. Look, doesn't she still look like a young girl?"
"Yes, mom dresses up in front of the mirror every day and is very vain." Guoguo agreed with Yang Fan's words.
Aunt Thirteen spanked her daughter's butt: "Didn't I learn this from you?"
After beating Guoguo, she asked Yang Fan: "Last time you said Mengpo soup is made with eight tears, which eight tears are they?"
Yang Fan looked at Aunt Thirteen and asked, "Are you a child too?"
So curious.
A kid like Guoguo believed the story I made up, so how could you believe it too
"Didn't you say that I haven't grown up yet?" Aunt Thirteen was a little shy and huddled into the quilt a little: "I need to be coaxed too... I like to listen to stories, too."
Yang Fan didn't pay attention to these details and explained: "The eight tears are one drop of birth tear, two cents of old tears, three parts of bitter tears, four cups of regret tears, five inches of lovesick tears, six cups of sick tears, seven feet of separation tears, and Meng Po's sad tears."
Thirteenth Aunt is fascinated: "Eight tears are used as a guide, removing the bitterness and retaining the sweetness. After simmering for a lifetime, it will become a pot of good soup."
Yang Fan nodded: "Those people I loved, those things I can't let go of, those countless joys and sorrows in the world, will only slowly flow down my throat as Mengpo Soup slowly flows down my throat. They will forever solidify in the moment when I look back with tears in my eyes as I walk on the Naihe Bridge, wanting to say something but stopping myself from doing so. They will then turn into misty clouds and smoke and fade away."
Thirteenth Aunt was somewhat hopeful, yet somewhat afraid.
"Is it a hasty regret in this life? Is it the regret of being separated forever by Yin and Yang? Or is it a farewell with a sword? It doesn't matter anymore, because after drinking this bowl of Meng Po soup, everything will return to dust." Yang Fan sighed.
He spoke with such seriousness, as if he had seen Meng Po and drunk Meng Po soup.
Aunt Thirteen came to her senses and gave Yang Fan a blank look. I almost got fooled.
Men's words are really deceiving.
"It's too late, let's finish the story and go to bed." Aunt Thirteen said to Yang Fan.
Yang Fan hushed, "Don't make any noise, Guoguo is almost asleep."
Aunt Thirteen looked over and saw that Guoguo was almost asleep.
"Hey, Guoguo, wake up and listen to your bedtime story." Aunt Thirteen woke Guoguo up.
“…” Yang Fan, isn’t the purpose of telling her a bedtime story to coax her to sleep
She was almost asleep and you shook her awake.
I have never seen a mother who harms her child so much.
"Oh, I'm awake. Guoguo, please talk." Guoguo spoke unclearly and his eyelids were twitching.
Meng Po is a character in ancient mythology and legend from Yang Fan's previous life, and she lives on the Naihe Bridge.
She provides Meng Po soup to all spirits going to reincarnate in order to erase the ghosts' memories.
Regarding the origin of Meng Po, there are usually three most common theories among the people.
One is Meng Po, who existed before the separation of the three realms.
The second is Meng Jiangnu.
The third is a lady from a wealthy family in the Han Dynasty. She studied Confucian books since she was young, and began to recite Buddhist scriptures when she grew up. When she was still alive, she never recalled the past, nor thought about the future, but only advised people not to kill.
The version of the story about Meng Po's youth that Yang Fan wants to tell is not one of the three above, but another one.
The story was a bit long, so he whispered to Aunt Thirteen, "This story is not short, why don't we not tell it tonight? Look, Guoguo is almost asleep."
Aunt Thirteen refused: "Go ahead and tell her. I'll wake her up when she falls asleep."
Yang Fan carefully compared the appearance of the two mother and daughter: "Aunt Thirteen, are you sure Guoguo wasn't picked up by you?"
"Why?" Aunt Thirteen asked in confusion, "You have lost yourself after giving birth to a child, right?"
Before Yang Fan could say anything, she continued, "What's the point of having a baby if you don't use it to play? She can't do anything. The only thing she can do is to keep me from doing anything for the whole day."
Yang Fan explained: "Having a child doesn't mean you have to lose yourself... You are abusing the child."
"Tell her!" Aunt Thirteen threatened, "Will you tell her? If not, I will shake her awake again."
Yang Fan was speechless. Guoguo was missing last night and you were crying like a tearful pear blossom.
I'm willing to torture Guoguo tonight.
A fickle woman's mind is hard to predict.
"The flowers of the other shore bloom on the other shore, and they will be seen again after the flowers bloom and the leaves fall. Let's tell the story of the flowers of hell, and the Three Lives Stone that can resist memories." Yang Fan took out a small stone hanging on his chest with a negotiating tone.
Thirteenth Aunt's eyes lit up. Women all like flowers, even the flowers of hell. She nodded repeatedly: "Then let's talk about the story of the red spider lily first. Why did you name it so nice?"
"It actually has another name, also called Lycoris radiata," said Yang Fan.
Aunt Thirteen was delighted: "How poetic! Let's start. I'm ready to lie down."