In a quiet room in Dajiao Temple, Concubine Yin De was wearing a simple black and white checkered Taoist robe. Her hair was simply pulled up with a wooden tie. She held a scripture in her left hand and stroked her dark hair with her right hand.
Princess Gaoyang rested her head on her mother's lap and murmured: "Mom, Mu Bai is leaving..."
Concubine Yin De smiled slightly, caressed Princess Gao Yang's head, and said: "I know, you have said it many times.
"I can't bear to leave him..." Princess Gao Yang curled her lips and murmured sadly.
Concubine Yin De just smiled without speaking.
"Mom, why don't you speak?"
"Actually, longing for you is not a kind of happiness." Concubine Yin De finally spoke and said softly, "I have been around your age since I was a mother. When I was young, I liked to hold everything I liked tightly in my hands. I don't want to relax for a moment. As you live longer, you will gradually understand that there are many things in this world, just like the leaves in the autumn wind and the sand between your fingers. It’s better to miss than to see you.”
"It's better to miss someone than to meet..." Princess Gao Yang muttered in a low voice and said, "Mom, have you ever missed someone? It's like... closing your eyes, that kind of yearning for him in your mind?"
Concubine Yin's expression paused for a moment before she smiled lightly, noncommittal.
"Actually, I haven't been able to figure out a question all these years... but I don't dare to ask you." Princess Gao Yang said.
"Then it seems that you want to ask today?" Concubine Yin De smiled kindly, "Ask, Ling'er. You have grown up and become sensible. The question you want to ask must be reasonable. "
"Then I really asked?" Princess Gaoyang sat up straight, looked at Concubine Yin De seriously, and whispered, "Mom, I want to ask... how have you gotten along with your father over the years? He But...killed my grandfather’s family!”
Concubine Yin De's eyes suddenly flashed with panic, and her eyelids twitched, but she immediately calmed down.
Catching her mother's sudden look of fear, Princess Gao Yang hurriedly reached out to cover her mouth and exclaimed: "Mom, am I stupid for asking this? Then you just think I didn't say anything!"
"You asked correctly." Concubine Yin De took a deep breath and exhaled slowly, closed her eyes, and said leisurely, "You... really want to know?"
"think!"
"It's actually very simple." Concubine Yin De's voice was very calm, as if she was telling something that had nothing to do with her. She said calmly, "The more I hate him, the harder I try to love him."
"What?!" Princess Gaoyang exclaimed in surprise.
"Yes." Concubine Yin De's voice was still calm, "Use love to resolve the hatred in my heart and his hatred towards our Yin family. I will love him deeply without any reservation, as always, without any regrets."
"Mother..." Princess Gaoyang's eyes widened in astonishment, she couldn't help but gulped, and murmured, "How did you do it? If it were me... it would never be possible!"
The corners of Concubine Yin De's extremely graceful mouth slightly raised in a slight arc, she smiled faintly and said: "There is nothing in this world that people can't do. When a person is desperate and has no choice, any matter Things can be done.”
"But, but!..." Princess Gao Yang argued a few times, paused hesitantly, and gritted her teeth, "If it were me, even if I couldn't take revenge, I would definitely die!"
"No." Concubine Yin De's voice suddenly became cold and she said calmly, "Death is not enough. When you find out that if you seek death, your brother and his whole family will be killed; when you When you realize that if you seek death, the innocent child in your belly will also die..."
At this point, Concubine Yin De's voice became a little trembling, and she said word by word: "You would never make such a choice!"
"I, I..." Princess Gao Yang's face suddenly became a little pale, she looked at her mother with wide eyes, and said naa, "I don't know what would happen if it were me, but... at least I will always hate him. ! It’s absolutely impossible to love him in return!”
"When you live to be as old as my mother, you will understand." Concubine Yin De slowly closed her eyes again and said leisurely, "It is actually very easy to die. The difficult thing is that it is better to live in death. Ling'er When I was pregnant with your brother, I sought death thirteen times because I didn’t want him to be born into this world with shame, hatred and blood. I didn’t want my son to be a lifelong enemy of his father. . But later I figured out that the child is innocent. For him, I must live. For him, I must resolve the feud between the Li Yin family... So there is one more person in the world. The Imperial Concubine of the Zhenguan Dynasty has lost a woman from the Yin family."
"Mom, how did you survive all these years!..." Princess Gaoyang suddenly felt a sore nose, and tears fell down. "I was too ignorant before, and I was always naughty and made you angry. It turns out, You have been living for us!”
"It is a kind of happiness to live for others." Concubine Yin De smiled sadly and said calmly, "Forgetting all my desires, hatred, love and paranoia, I have survived for so many years, all because of You and your brother, as well as your uncle's family. In addition, I also want to love your father sincerely without any reservation or regret. Only by loving him truly and sincerely can he forget that you also have it. A trace of the blood of the Yin family, forgetting the hatred between the country and the family... "
"Mom, it's so hard for you, it's so difficult... Wuwu!" Princess Gaoyang threw herself into Concubine Yin De's arms and burst into tears. "Don't you have your own preferences and pursuits over the years? It's all for us. And alive!”
"Like? Pursuit?" Concubine Yin De smiled faintly, caressing Princess Gaoyang's cloud-like hair, and said softly, "Whenever I have a trace of such a thought, I will kill it decisively. Because, I don’t deserve these things.”
Princess Gao Yang's delicate body suddenly trembled slightly: "Mother! Are you trying to kill something by suddenly escaping into Buddhism?"
"No!" Concubine Yin De denied very decisively and said in a stern voice, "Why do you think so?"
"Mom, you are angry..." Princess Gaoyang raised her head and looked at Concubine Yin De blankly, "You are... so weird today!"
"It's nothing. It's because you insisted on asking these questions that disturbed my mother's mood." Concubine Yin De took a deep breath and closed her eyes again, "Okay, you go, my mother needs to meditate and realize the truth. "
"Oh..." Princess Gao Yang nodded confusedly and had to withdraw slowly.
Slowly opening her eyes, she slowly glanced at the green lanterns, ancient cases, and scriptures in front of her. Concubine Yin De laughed slightly at herself and with some sadness: "Like? Pursuit?... Ling'er, these belong only to you. Only you." You deserve to have... Cherish it, my child!"
Closing those alluring eyes, Concubine Yin De began to meditate.
Half an hour later, a string of melodious pipa sounds suddenly sounded in the courtyard outside the room, accompanied by crisp slaps: "Great, Mu Bai! Why did you play the tune so beautifully today? It seems to be much better than in the past. Woolen cloth!"
"Is there any?" came Qin Mubai's voice.
Concubine Yin De's fingers trembled in fear, and she accidentally dropped an ancient book beside her.
"There is clearly lingering sadness in the song, couldn't you hear it, Ling'er?" Concubine Yin De murmured to herself, "It turns out that he couldn't bear to leave either... Silly girl, you should have some snacks. Taste his thoughts. A man is like a book that needs to be read carefully to understand. Although your Mubai is young, it is like the scriptures on the ancient case, which is profound and meaningful. A simple little man with a clear view... "
At this moment, she heard Qin Mubai outside the house say: "Gao Yang, is your mother and concubine in the house?"
"Here, what's the matter? Is something okay?" Princess Gao Yang asked.
"It's okay. I'm just leaving the capital temporarily and want to say goodbye to her. But I don't want to disturb her. Why don't you go in and convey my message to her?"
"That's fine." Princess Gao Yang responded and opened the door and came in, telling Qin Mubai truthfully.
Concubine Yin De was indifferent after listening, still closing her eyes, and said calmly: "I understand. Go ahead and tell him. I really like to listen to the pipa music he plays. If you are willing, please play one for me."
"Oh, okay." Princess Gao Yang blinked her eyes a few times, stepped out lightly, and said to Qin Mubai, "Mubai, my mother-in-law asked you to play a piece for her."
"Okay." Without saying a word, Qin Mubai sat down in front of Concubine Yin De's door, gently stroked the strings, and played the song "High Mountains and Flowing Waters".
In the quiet room, Concubine Yin De closed her eyes and listened.
Fairy sounds are floating around the beams.
Each of those notes seems to be able to penetrate people's skin, reach their internal organs, and penetrate their hearts.
"I'm actually... his soulmate!" Concubine Yin De murmured, her beautifully curved red lips seeming to tremble slightly.
The music stopped abruptly, and Qin Mubai outside said: "Concubine Yin, Wei Chen is here to say goodbye. Wei Chen is going to take up a post in Yuanyen Prefecture and County. This position can take as short as one and a half years, or as long as three years. Five years. If I am not in the capital, I will have to trouble my queen to take care of Gao Yang."
Concubine Yin didn't speak, her eyes were closed, and her slightly pale face was trembling.
Qin Mubai was silent for a moment, and said leisurely: "My queen, you should also take care of yourself."
Suddenly, Concubine Yin De burst into tears.
…
"Why didn't my mother say anything? Do you want me to go in and take a look?" Princess Gao Yang said softly.
"No more. Let's not disturb her any more. Let's go." Qin Mubai took Princess Gaoyang's little hand and turned towards the snow-covered courtyard.
Concubine Yin De burst into tears as she listened to the sound of a pair of footsteps walking on the snow gradually getting further away.
"Ling'er, Mu Bai, you... must cherish it!"
…
At the entrance of Dajiaoguan, Qin Mubai turned around, wiped away the tears on Princess Gao Yang's eyelids, and smiled.
"Go back, Ling'er." Qin Mubai said softly, "It's just a short separation, I will come back."
"But I really can't bear to see you go..." Princess Gao Yang waved her arms and hugged Qin Mubai tightly, sobbing softly, "I would rather not see you for a year, and I only hope that you are in Chang'an. This will make me feel that you are very, very close to me!”
"Fool." Qin Mubai patted her back gently, "If our love lasts forever, how can we stay together day and night? Didn't I tell you a long time ago? During this period of separation, we should treat it as For the sake of missing you!”
"For missing you?..." Princess Gao Yang chewed this sentence carefully and murmured, "Isn't it really better to miss each other than to miss each other?"
"What?" Qin Mubai asked in surprise. This is not something Princess Gaoyang can say.
"My mother told me..." Princess Gao Yang said sadly in a low voice, "She said it's better to miss each other than to miss each other..."
"It's better to miss each other than to meet each other..." Qin Mubai tasted this sentence carefully in his heart, and for a while, he had mixed feelings.
"Although I know you will not forget me and will come back one day, I am just sad and sad..." Princess Gao Yang shed tears and sobbed, "Why can you men leave so cruelly? Before you In your eyes, is separation worthless?"
"That's not the case, Ling'er." Qin Mubai sighed softly, "No one likes separation. Men and women are all the same. They just express it in different ways."
"I don't understand! In short, I just don't want to be separated from you, even for a moment!" Princess Gao Yang cried louder and hugged her tighter.
…
Qin Mubai finally left Dajiao Temple and the palace.
Leading the horse and walking outside the imperial city wall with red walls and green tiles, Qin Mubai glanced sideways at the snow on the palace in the distance and murmured: "Life is really as lonely as snow..."
…
In the next few days, Qin Mubai either accompanied his father or acted alone, bidding farewell to Jiangxia King Li Daozong, Wei Duke Li Jing, Lu Guogong Cheng Zhijie, and Baiqi soldiers.
The feeling of parting is always uncomfortable. Mother Liu and sister Shuang'er always shed tears secretly, and their eyes are always red.
Yao'er stopped practicing the piano and always played the pipa over and over again, becoming taciturn.
The night before leaving, Qin Mubai came to Wu Mei's mother's house.
"I'm here to say goodbye." Qin Mubai said to Wu Meiniang as they sat across from each other.
"I know." Wu Meiniang nodded calmly, "It's just that I don't understand, why did you come to see me today? Put me at the end of your farewell?"
"You should understand." Qin Mubai just smiled.
Wu Meiniang lowered her eyes and was silent for a moment, then said softly: "Is it because you can't bear to be separated from me?"
Qin Mubai smiled and said nothing.
Wu Meiniang sighed softly and said: "Let's go, let's go! I have never been as conflicted as today. I am both afraid of this moment coming, and I am also looking forward to you coming to say goodbye to me earlier. I have been waiting hard for four days. Go out. But you came, but I was very heartbroken."
Qin Mubai took her hand, held it in his palm, and breathed hot air into his palm: "When I'm not here, take good care of yourself."
"I know." Wu Meiniang nodded, "You don't have to worry about me. Feel free to do what you should do."
"Does what I said before still count?" Qin Mubai suddenly asked.
"Which one?" Wu Meiniang asked.
"That's right, you said that if I find a good shop, I will send you a message and you can go to Xiangzhou to open a Qinxian Pavilion branch." Qin Mubai said.
"..." Wu Meiniang frowned slightly and said softly: "Let's talk about it... At that time, I just threw out a sentence without thinking about it. Opening a new store in a new place is not as easy as imagined. Maybe. , it’s even more difficult than when I opened the world’s best wine in Chang’an.”
"I understand." Qin Mubai nodded, slightly disappointed.
"But..." Wu Meiniang smiled sweetly, "I can go to Xiangzhou to see you!"
Qin Mubai raised his eyebrows and smiled: "I'm waiting for you!"
"But there is one thing I must tell you clearly now!" Wu Meiniang said seriously.
"What's going on?"
"That's... it's enough to have Princess Gaoyang, don't flirt with women anymore!" Wu Meiniang gritted her teeth bitterly, "If you get to Xiangzhou and you can't control your loneliness, I won't let you go!"
"Uh!..." Qin Mubai was startled, "Then what if... someone else comes to me to hook up with me?"
"Then I will blow her away, and then I will take care of your family!" Wu Meiniang's starry eyes were filled with murderous intent, "If I can't defeat Princess Gaoyang, how can I not defeat the little girl from Xiangzhou? Humph!"
"What if, what if there is someone you can't fight?" Qin Mubai asked in a timid and timid voice.
"You also said that you want to be beaten!" Wu Meiniang was furious. She jumped up and threw Qin Mubai to the ground. She pressed on him and opened her bow on the left and right. She held one of his ears and shouted, "Are you determined to fight in Xiangzhou?" Are you flirting with women?"
"No, no, this is all a misunderstanding, a misunderstanding!" Qin Mubai laughed, and hugged Wu Meiniang tightly with a pair of dishonest hands.
"You thieves, you are so dishonest!" After Wu Meiniang lifted his ears, she lifted his nose in shame and scolded, "I really want to consider whether to go to Xiangzhou with you, firmly Just look at you!”
"Okay, okay, welcome, warm welcome! On behalf of Xiangzhou, I would like to welcome Wu Meiniang!" Qin Mubai laughed.
"Humph, don't even think about it!" Wu Meiniang smiled coquettishly, then grabbed his ears and shook them gently from side to side, scolding him in a fierce voice, "You can't even look at a dishonest man; you can't even look at an honest man. Men, then there is no need to look at it. If you have me in your heart and are sincere to me, you will naturally do things according to your conscience and will not act recklessly. If you do not have my preference in your heart, it is useless for me to force you!"
"Touch your conscience?" Qin Mubai smiled mischievously, and a thief hand wandered from her back towards her shoulder, intending to attack her chest, and said with a thief smile, "How about... Shall I learn how to touch it first?”
"Begging for a beating! Begging for a beating! You're a scumbag, if I don't deal with you for a day, you'll be so bad! Yeah - watch your moves!"
"Wha-ya!"
A scream suddenly sounded, and the hair on the hair of the Wu family members stood up - "What are you doing, screaming so pitifully and horribly?"
…
Not long after, Qin Mubai walked out of the Wu family's gate, touching his ears as he walked, grinning and complaining of pain.
Wu Meiniang walked to the door, covering her mouth and giggling: "Seeing that you will not be honest in the future, humph, I think I have a unique trick to deal with you!"
"Mei Niang, you turned into a dog, and you actually bit my ear?" Qin Mubai grinned and said depressedly, "It hurts so much, I'm afraid it's bleeding!"
"Stop pretending, there isn't one. I've just looked at it carefully a hundred times, and there's not even a tooth mark." Wu Meiniang smiled sweetly, "Okay, go back and rest quickly, I have to get up early tomorrow and go on the road. Oh! Remember... take care of yourself when you arrive in Xiangzhou. Also, remember to miss me!"
"Then you...will you come to Xiangzhou to see me?" Qin Mubai asked.
Wu Meiniang raised her lips with a mysterious smile: "I won't tell you! Either you come, or you don't come. Even if you come, I won't tell you in advance, so as not to give you time to erase some traces that you don't want me to see."
"Are you planning a surprise attack?" Qin Mubai grinned in astonishment and thought to himself: Is Wu Meiniang too "modern"? He actually learned to "check posts" secretly without any teacher
"You are very nervous! Haha!" Wu Meiniang laughed, "Then it's decided - I will definitely carry out 'surprise attacks' on you from time to time, so for the sake of your ears, you have to be good in Xiangzhou. !”
Qin Mubai subconsciously touched his ears and smiled dryly: "Don't worry, don't worry. I stay in a military camp full of men every day, where can I go to flirt with women? Besides, I have a wife who is the most beautiful woman in the world. Who will you take a fancy to?"
"Hmph, it's best this way!"