That night Rong Tang fell into a nightmare.
The dreams were bizarre and many of them were things Rong Tang could not understand.
There is a clearer campus, the city where I grew up, the roads I walk on every day, and the ginkgo trees on both sides of the roads that bear fruit or shed leaves year after year with the seasons.
There are also vague past lives, the arguments and conversations at the flower-picking party, the clouds and peonies in the sky, the moonlight and lamplight on the gilded building, the winter snow in the eleventh year of Qingzheng, and Mu Jingxu's funeral and coffin.
The past and the present are intertwined, and it is almost impossible to tell what is a dream.
Most of the time I am in a state of chaos, unable to see or hear clearly, the wind blows past my ears, clouds gather and disperse beneath me, and my vision is sometimes clear and sometimes hazy.
In the mist, Rong Tang felt that he saw the Dayu Palace.
—The appearance of the imperial city where everyone is alive and everyone is unbridled.
Faint light came from the east, and the first lock of the palace gate was opened. The young and energetic Third Prince, riding a maroon horse and wearing a scarlet robe, came running in with a dashing and heroic look. The prodigal son who had played at night returned home, and the sun in the palace was replaced by moonlight.
The young Seventh Prince was dragged awake from his bed by him, muttering and plotting in a low voice.
The prince of the Eastern Palace got up very early, went to the kitchen in the quiet morning, made a bowl of Yuanxiao sprinkled with sweet wine, picked a hibiscus flower covered with morning dew, then went to the bedroom and called his wife to get up in a gentle voice.
The fourth princess combed her hair into a beautiful and complicated bun, sneaked out of the kitchen early in the morning, took away a box of date paste cake that her mother had made last night, and skipped to feed her most adorable seventh brother.
In Fengqi Palace, the emperor got up and dressed, the emperor was about to attend the morning court, and the empress lazily turned over, rolled into the quilt and took a sweet nap.
When Rong Tang saw these scenes in his dream, for a moment he felt that they were not something he had imagined but something he had actually seen.
The dream was long and fantastic, with light and darkness intertwined. Thinking of modern life, the next moment was betrayal in a ruined temple.
I saw the conversation of the Zhehua Society, and then Su Huaijing destroyed Dayu.
I saw the lights of the Gilded Building, and then before my eyes was Mu Shaoqing's funeral. White flags replaced the bright moon, and the cold snow from the mountains fell to the earth and then dissipated into dust.
Hope and despair came alternately, so unreasonable, without giving people any buffer, so that when Rong Tang saw the beautiful and bright palace, he began to wonder what he would see in the next second
Is it the death of the first life, or the impending fate of this life
But he waited and waited, and nothing happened.
The darkness before us is enough to drown us.
It was like being in the abyss of the sea, unable to see or hear, with his eyes covered and his ears sealed. He had no sense of smell in his dreams, he could not see the nightmare within the nightmare, and he was alone and drowning in endless darkness.
It was so long ago that one would almost think that he was the only living creature in the world.
He is an existence that should not exist in this world, but he is also the only reality that exists in this world.
Rong Tang was trapped in it and was about to drown.
There was a flowing black fog above my head, the sunlight was invisible, and the moon was obscured.
He sank gradually, became confused, and his hands and feet started to feel cold.
In a trance, a voice told him that this was how it should be.
He was meant to be with the darkness.
He was supposed to merge into the darkness and then witness the birth of light from darkness.
But the black fog suddenly froze, and an undercurrent tore open a gap. The dazzling light penetrated the thick black fog, and a pair of hands grabbed him tightly.
"Tangtang... Rongtang!" someone called anxiously.
His limbs were entangled in clouds and mist, his eyes and lips were covered, he could neither see nor speak. He wanted to see who was pulling him upwards, who was calling him to wake up.
"Tangtang, wake up, wake up!"
"—Rong Tang!"
Rong Tang opened his eyes instantly, and found himself surrounded by emptiness, as if he was still in endless darkness. He opened his mouth and exhaled, his lungs still trembling violently.
"It's okay, it's okay." Someone held him and comforted him, put his hands behind his back, and breathed gently. The voice was clearly beside his ears, but it seemed like it was very far away.
I told him it was okay, but my voice was trembling and I couldn't help but feel scared.
From time to time, he felt a slight pain in his body. Rong Tang shifted his gaze in confusion, but still could not see anything clearly.
"No... light?" he asked angrily.
Su Huaijing's hand paused as he was pulling out the needle. He felt as if his heart was being grabbed and he could hardly breathe.
He stared into Rong Tang's eyes, and met his dark eyes, which were bright and clean, like the colored glaze made by craftsmen from generation to generation, without a trace of impurities, and as beautiful as the stars.
Su Huaijing's fingers trembled slightly, and he stepped back, raising his hand and waving it in front of his eyes: "Tangtang?"
Rong Tang blinked physiologically, but still had no reaction: "Hmm?"
Su Huaijing suddenly panicked. He turned the needle and was about to continue to prick his acupuncture points, but the doctor himself began to get scared. His fingers couldn't stop shaking. The needle tip pierced into his fingertips, leaving a drop of glaring red blood.
Su Huaijing ignored it and pulled out the needle and put it aside, then lowered his head and began to select a silver needle of appropriate thickness.
But I don’t know if it was the reflection of the silver light that stung his eyes, or the drop of bright red blood was too eye-catching, Rong Tang finally came back to his senses from the blankness that made him unable to see, and his vision gradually focused.
There was a wooden bed and a bright room with many candles lit and charcoal burning in the ventilated area.
It was almost daylight, and he couldn't see anything just now.
Rong Tang frowned slightly, his eyes fixed on Su Huaijing's fingertips that were cut by a sharp weapon.
He was stunned for a moment, then without thinking, he grabbed his finger and put the wound into his mouth and sucked it.
The taste of blood lingered in his mouth, and Rong Tang held it in his mouth for a long time, until the tip of his tongue could no longer lick the blood beads. He then opened his mouth and wanted to whisper: "Why are you so naughty—"
The words were stuck in his throat and his vision went dark again, but he was not completely blind.
Rong Tang opened his eyes in a daze, and saw Su Huaijing drinking from his lips and tongue thirstily like a traveler in the desert who had come across a source of water. His tightly closed eyes kept trembling, his eyelashes fluttered like a butterfly's wings, and there were traces of dried tears on his cheeks.
The rebuke and admonition that he was about to utter were instantly swallowed back into his stomach. Rong Tang opened his mouth and let him plunder and take.
Let him kiss his love like a dying man.
But the person who was going to die was clearly Rong Tang himself.
After a long time, Rong Tang could no longer tell how many breaths he had taken, nor how many times he had responded to Su Huaijing's mumbling "Tangtang". Finally, he was released and took a sip of warm tea in the true sense of the word.
Rong Tang opened his eyes and glanced at the head of the bed.
There was a cloth bag used by a doctor for acupuncture. The silver needles were scattered around and had not been put back in place according to the specifications. There was a bead of blood on the tip of one of the needles.
Su Huaijing is skilled in medicine, and Rong Tang knows a little about it.
Long-term illness makes one a good doctor. Even he himself can occasionally feel the pulse and judge whether the disease is serious.
Su Huaijing has taken care of him for two years, so it is normal for him to be able to understand medicinal materials and learn moxibustion.
At least he added coptis chinensis and lily to the medicine soup from time to time, so Rong Tang did not die.
But he even learned acupuncture, and Rong Tang felt that the villain was worthy of being a villain.
Now that the villain's eyes were red and his breath was unstable, Rong Tang instinctively wanted to praise him.
He chuckled softly, half leaned out of the bed, and gently stroked the tear marks at the corners of Su Huaijing's eyes with his fingertips, jokingly saying, "Huaijing is so amazing, he brought me back from the gates of hell."
Rong Tang originally just wanted to comfort Su Huaijing and wanted him to not be so sad, but as soon as he finished speaking, his wrist was grabbed by someone. Su Huaijing almost knelt down under the bed, straightened up and stared at him fiercely, and said in a hoarse voice: "You also know that you almost died?"
Su Huaijing was scared. He was so scared that he couldn't bear to hear the word "death" at all.
Rong Tang felt an uncontrollable pain in his heart again.
He opened his mouth, not knowing how to comfort her. He lowered his head and said softly, "I'm sorry..."
There was silence in the room. Su Huaijing silently put away the acupuncture bag, extinguished the candle on the table, climbed onto the bed again, and hugged Rong Tang in his arms.
There was chaos just now, and Rong Tang only then realized that Su Huaijing was not even wearing a warm outer robe.
Probably how long he had been guarding her by her bed in thin clothes for as long as she had been having the nightmare.
Rong Tang felt uncomfortable and called softly: "Huai Jing..."
Su Huaijing interrupted him: "Go to sleep."
Rong Tang: “…”
He was silent for a moment and said nothing.
The winter night was quiet, and it might not have reached the hour of the common people yet. Rong Tang opened his eyes in the darkness, and slowly sketched Su Huaijing's face under the night sky.
Then a sigh came from beside him, the villain opened his eyes, looked at him, and asked softly: "Tangtang don't want to sleep?"
Rong Tang shook his head and whispered back, "Are you scared?"
Su Huaijing was speechless and stared at him for a long time: "Tangtang also knows."
Rong Tang felt extremely guilty for a moment: "I'm sorry."
"It's none of Tangtang's business." Su Huaijing said, "I'm just too useless."
Although it was clearly discovered that Rong Tang's pulse was abnormal and the prescription was changed, Rong Tang still had to face a life-and-death crisis.
Su Huaijing didn't even dare to think about it. What would he do if he realized a moment later that Rong Tang was possessed and could hardly breathe while sleeping
He had come such a long way to meet Rong Tang, what would he do if he died beside him
The night is suitable for hiding, but it is also enough to amplify all emotions.
Almost at the moment when Su Huaijing fell into deep thought, Rong Tang leaned over without thinking for a second and rubbed his lips.
She imitated the way Su Huaijing kissed him, pecking and licking him gently, until she attracted everyone's attention.
Rong Tang placed his hands on Su Huaijing's chest and whispered, "Huaijing, let me tell you a secret."
Su Huaijing's heart tightened, and he turned his head away subconsciously: "I don't want to listen."
Rong Tang let go of his hand, lay on top of him, turned his cheek, and kissed his evasive eyes again: "Su Xiaoqi is a coward!"
Su Huaijing: "Yes, I am."
Rong Tang paused for a moment, his nose felt sore, he tilted his head and sniffed, but still felt blocked, so he simply leaned over and rubbed Su Huaijing's nose, until he also made a nasal sound, then he felt a little more balanced, and said mysteriously: "I'll only say this once, you have to listen carefully."
Su Huaijing said nothing.
Rong Tang said proudly: "I am a god in heaven!"
Su Huaijing looked at him.
Rong Tang blinked: "Aren't you surprised?"
Su Huaijing shook his head: "Not surprised."
Rong Tang was suddenly frustrated: "Why?"
Su Huaijing: "Tangtang is a deity from heaven, who came down to earth to save me, right?"
Rong Tang was stunned, feeling inexplicably guilty, and didn't know whether he could nod.
But Su Huaijing asked again: "Now that Tangtang thinks I've become a better person, do I want to go back to heaven?"
He asked calmly and rationally: "What does it mean to be good? What does it mean to need to be saved by gods and Buddhas?"
"How bad do I have to be Tangtang to stay with me forever?"
"Murder? Arson? Regicide? Destroy the country?"
Rong Tang was stunned after hearing this. He sat up and stared at him in disbelief.
Su Huaijing stared at him for a long time, smiled gently, and took him into his arms again: "I was just kidding."
He said: "Tangtang went through this journey, bound by the world and entangled in the shackles, just to see me become a better person. If I were to do these things in turn, Tangtang would be so wronged."
Su Huaijing said softly, unable to distinguish the emotion or whether it was true or false.
He just asked softly: "So Tangtang, are you here to ferry me across?"
The sound of his heartbeat was amplified and Rong Tang could hardly breathe.
He was silent for a long time, then nodded: "I am."
"That's enough." Su Huaijing sighed softly: "What does Tangtang want to tell me? In order to prevent me from being buried with you, are you going to tell me how to find you in the future?"
Rong Tang once again felt that being too smart was really not a good thing.
not good at all.
Su Huaijing is so smart that he feels that all his lies are clumsy. The villain clearly knows everything, but plays games with him and watches him lie again and again with indulgence.
But Rongtang still had to lie.
He said, "Huai Jing, when I die, don't be buried with me. One day in heaven is one year on earth. I will come to find you after I finish my mission."
Su Huaijing nodded: "Okay."
He didn't even ask about the deadline.
He didn't even want Rong Tang to give him a false and cruel death date.
He just nodded again, kissed Rong Tang's brow, and said softly: "Okay, I get it, good night Tangtang."
The next day, Rong Tang couldn't get out of bed, so Su Huaijing took a day off.
On the third day, Rong Tang was groggy and half asleep and half awake the whole day. Every time he opened his eyes, Su Huaijing was by his bedside.
On the seventh day, the heavy snow in Beijing stopped and the sun was shining brightly.
Emperor Renshou made an exception and allowed Sheng Chengli to attend court early to attend government affairs. News came from the palace that the emperor was recruiting famous doctors from all over the world to treat his beloved son's injured leg.
When Rong Tang woke up in the evening, he told Su Huaijing that he wanted to drink turtle soup. The villain looked at him twice, then turned around and gave instructions to the kitchen.
The footsteps disappeared around the corner. Rong Tang turned his head and coughed up a pool of thick black blood.
He lay down on the bed, wiped his mouth with a handkerchief, and called out, "System."
[Tangtang, I'm here.]
Rong Tang asked softly, "Are Sheng Chengli and I bound to each other and complementary, or are we mutually exclusive and inextricable?"
(End of this chapter)