Yes, this is actually Shenqiao's cage.
Smell and think.
No wonder Xia Qiao said that this house looked familiar, like the one he used to live in when he was a child. No wonder Xia Qiao felt that all the things that happened here were like dreams he had when he was a child.
This old man was Shen Qiao, but he never recognized it.
Maybe it's because there are no facial features and the outline is blurred, maybe because the sinking bridge in his memory is still many, many years ago.
It's not that he hasn't seen Shen Qiao getting old, but he always feels that such an old man with a sluggish footstep and a vague voice has nothing to do with the handsome young man wearing a small cap with melon skin back then.
There was a sudden noise in the closet, and when I heard it, I regained my senses, and heard a low voice from inside.
The voice was hoarse, as if afraid of disturbing someone: "Grandpa?"
The next moment, the cabinet door was pushed open, and the soft doll had fallen to the side, silently. Instead, it was a thin boy - that was Xia Qiao himself.
He was frail, palely lit by the old ceiling lights in the room, like a silhouette in a silent time. He stood blankly behind the old man and wanted to pat his shoulder, but he didn't dare to drop his hand.
"Grandpa... is that you?" he asked softly.
The old man sitting on the edge of the bed made a movement, and slowly clasped his fingers holding the towel.
At that moment, time in the cage seemed to freeze. No one knows how he will react when he hears this sentence, whether he will wake up suddenly like many cage owners, and then violently rise.
"Grandpa, I'm Xia Qiao." The boy finally patted the old man's shoulder and shook it lightly.
Ten years passed in a flash, he forgot a lot of things when he was a child, and learned a lot of things that he couldn't learn when he was a child.
When he was coquettish, he already knew to soften his voice.
He grabbed the cloth on the old man's shoulder, the tip of his nose was red, he shook him again, and repeated in a hoarse voice, "Grandpa, I'm Xiaqiao, look at me."
The outline of the old man suddenly trembled, like a drop of water falling into the Pinghu Lake, and then the black smoke that was entangled in the thread suddenly spread out from his body.
This is... the cage owner woke up.
Almost all cage owners are aggressive when they wake up. All the resentment, resentment, jealousy, and reluctance to let go of him in this life will burst out at that moment, both to vent and to release.
And the person who released the cage is destined to help him take over everything, and then help him dissolve.
The moment the black qi appeared, he had already escaped from the mirror when he smelled it.
His slender fingers, still carrying the white mist in the mirror, pointed straight at the old man.
The heart and the eyes are related to the spirit. As long as he touches there and inherits everything, the cage will completely disintegrate...
But he stopped at the last inch.
When he was about to touch the spirit of the old man, he suddenly withdrew his hand and stood with his clothes closed.
And Xia Qiao again begged with a heavy nasal voice: "Grandpa, can you turn around and look at me again."
The black smoke that was scattered around became lightly curled up, and floated quietly in the air. The old man put down the towel, sighed softly, and finally turned his head.
The moment he turned his head, he finally had facial features, old and gentle, with deep lines on the ends of his eyes and the corners of his lips, which only people who often laugh would have.
It is indeed Shenqiao.
"Grandpa..." Xia Qiao's eyes instantly turned red as he grabbed Shen Qiao's shoulder.
"Little Qiao." Shen Qiao called him softly, and after that he gave a deep laugh, his voice still vague and old: "My last term also called me Xiaoqiao."
"Look, I have a relationship with you."
Xia Qiao couldn't speak at all, just blinked desperately.
When he was afraid, he always exaggerated, saying that he was crying, but in fact there were not many tears. And when he burst into tears, he couldn't make a sound at all.
Shen Qiao just looked at him, and then patted Xia Qiao's hand.
The scene in the cage is changing rapidly, the chests of drawers, panes, desks and beds of the 90s are fading, and the smell of fragrant ash in the room has become faint.
It was as if a not-so-long dream had come to an end, and everything had dissipated, leaving only them standing in the vast fog.
When Shen Qiao looked at Wen, he called out with a wry smile, "Brother Wen."
He nodded when he smelled it, he couldn't say what it was like, and he didn't know what to order.
After a while, he said, "I didn't expect this to be your cage."
"I didn't expect it either." Shen Qiao said, "I thought I could hit the road cleanly."
He lowered his gaze, the folds of his eyelids drooping, pressing heavily against the old eyes.
After a long time, he said with a smile, "It's too difficult to really want to be free from hanging on, and I still can't bear it or let it go."
"Can't let go of what?" Wen Shi asked.
Shen Qiao looked at Xia Qiao's bowed head and said, "I often wonder if I should let him know who I really am. I used to think that I should hide it for the rest of my life. It's good to be an ordinary person, to live, grow old, get sick and die."
"Later, I started to worry. I was worried that if I didn't tell him, when I was gone, he would find out by mistake. What should I do? It was so tangled and repeated. After thinking about it for so many years, I couldn't find a happy result."
"It's still my fault." Shen Qiao said, "I taught him too little, this kid seems to have learned to be timid and cry, stupid, and doesn't understand other emotions. Pass."
Hearing this, Wen Shi realized that since he entered Shen's house and learned that Shen Qiao was dead, he had never seen Xia Qiao cry because of his mourning, nor did he feel how sad Xia Qiao was. He jokes, chats with all kinds of people, and rents a house. He doesn't seem to understand life and death, nor parting.
Until now, until this second...
He looked at Xia Qiao's red eyes and said to Shen Qiao, "He should understand now."
The things that cannot be taught in life are taught in this way, I don't know whether to cry or laugh. Shen Qiao pondered for a long time, only to feel distressed.
"People, it's still greed." He said slowly: "At this time, I realized that there are too many things I can't put down."
He smelled like a patient listener and asked, "What else?"
"I used to want to see this child grow up, it doesn't need to be old, it's 18 years old. But when I'm 18, I want to watch it for a few more years, and when he becomes more mature and more powerful, someone can take care of or can take care of others. , have a home."
"I still think... The days have changed a lot in the past few years. It's very different from the 1990s. I don't know how long it will take you to get used to it, whether you will encounter trouble, and whether you will have a bad life. ."
"I'm still worried about whether Xiao Qiao's character will please you. What if there is a conflict, there is no one to mediate." Shen Qiao said, still kind and gentle.
"Thinking of this, I think it would be nice if I were here. Brother Wen, you are suffocating when you are angry. Xiao Qiao is too stupid. You may not see it. It's not good to be angry when you look back."
He talked and laughed again, as if those who were reluctant to let go were not so sad anymore.
"Also..." Shen Qiao said, "I haven't seen you for more than 20 years. I haven't had time to have a cup of tea with Brother Wen. You agreed last time you left."
Unexpectedly, the residence will be indefinite.
He glanced at Xia Qiao and Wen Shi carefully again, slow as if trying to remember them, and sighed, "Forget it."
In the final analysis, after all, it's just a few small things.
In his life, he has taken over many people and given away many people, which can be regarded as a long life and perfect merit.
So he said to Wen Shi, "I can't rely on today, but I can't rely on tomorrow. In the end, I will trouble Brother Wen to give me a ride."
"The cup of tea that is missing... Let's drink it later." Shen Qiao said.
Wen Shi was silent for a long time, then nodded: "Okay."
He stretched out his hand and touched the old man's forehead with the back of his finger.
At that moment, all the floating black smoke suddenly spun around, clearly invisible, and when the edge swept the back of Xia Qiao's hand, there was still a small wound, which hurts down the nerve to the heart.
It was these things that were pulled out of Shen Qiao, gathered around Wen Shi, and tightly wrapped around him.
He didn't seem to feel the pain when he smelled it, his fingers still pressed against Shen Qiao, and he closed his eyes quietly.
The gust of wind blew his face, making people almost unsteady.
And after the mad collision, the smoke finally returned to docile, and slowly melted and faded.
The hair in front of his forehead was lifted and fell by the wind, making his skin bloodless, much paler than before.
Xia Qiao's wailing still couldn't make a sound. He held Shen Qiao's hand tightly, but he felt that his palm was getting more and more empty.
When the black smoke completely melted away, the person he was holding, along with the entire cage, completely disappeared. Before disappearing, he heard Shen Qiao's last warm warning: "Tianliang remember to put on clothes, don't eat too ice when it's hot, it's fine, ah."
After the cage dissipated, the real scene was revealed.
They were still sitting on the bus, the people behind them were still chatting, everything was the same as before.
The place where Shenqiao was buried is backed by mountains and water, and there is a large area of flower trees and fields underneath.
Xia Qiao put the longevity box into the tomb, and relatives, friends and neighbors filled the red dates and sugar cakes according to the custom.
As soon as the filial piety and filial hat are burned and the slate is pressed, this trip will be sent to the end.
When going down the mountain, Xia Qiao finally had a whimper in his throat. It was dumb and light, but it was like a rust can that had been sealed for a long time and finally pryed open a crack. He stopped and went, and if someone hadn't pushed him, he might never have gotten down the mountain.
Just when he stopped and wanted to turn around, Wen Shi, who was following behind, suddenly raised his hand, patted the back of his head, and said in a deep voice, "Don't look back."
Don't look back.
Let him come clean and leave clean.
I don't know what kind of flower trees at the foot of the mountain, but when the wind blows, they fall all over the ground.
He was fascinated by the flower branches swept over when he smelled it, and when he closed his eyes and opened them again, he suddenly felt that this scene was a little familiar.
It was as if there was such a person once, with a thin and thin palm, with a warm touch, patted the back of his head and pushed him forward, and said coaxingly, "Don't look back."
He stopped in place, stunned for a few seconds, and subconsciously turned his head and glanced.
Seeing that Xie Wen was a few steps behind, he walked unhurriedly on the long and narrow road, reaching out to pick up a falling flower.