On that day, after getting things sorted out in a hurry, people prepared the carriage. When I left the village, the whole family came out to see me off, and I left two servants, Tiaoyun and Yingyu, in the village. If they don't go back to the Xu family in Shangjing in the future, they can still find a master in this village.
Meng Qing and his servants stood together, and I couldn't help stroking his head as we walked forward. The young child raised his eyes, even though he was weak, he was also tough. Although he was reluctant, he clasped his hands and bowed sensibly, and said together with the servants: "Master Shen, walk slowly all the way."
Yangsu City is thousands of miles away from the capital, and it takes more than half a month to go fast on weekdays, not to mention taking a horse-drawn carriage, even if we didn’t have any delay on the way, after walking for more than ten days, we finally arrived in Xianyang, but it’s still three or four years away from the capital. A hundred miles away.
When our group arrived in Xianyang City, it was already past the time of Shen, and it was too late to enter the city, and the city gate was already closed. We were thinking about what to do next, when a man who looked like a yamen servant rode over and asked, "Your Excellency is Lord Shen from Yangsu." , are you going to the capital?"
I got out of the carriage, clasped my fists and said, "That's right. If you dare to ask, who is—" He didn't wait for me to ask a question, and he reported himself, "I was ordered by the governor of Xianyang City to come to meet me, please Master Shen follow me Wait until the station to rest for a day."
We followed the yamen servants to the post station outside the city, where we changed horses and rested for a while, and then set off at dawn.
I have been traveling for days and nights in the carriage, I should have been extremely tired, but I got on the bed, but I couldn't close my eyes, even if I finally fell asleep, I would wake up if there was any disturbance. In fact, it's not just these few days, since I left Xu's house, in the past two years, I rarely have a long night's sleep peacefully.
I tossed around until midnight, when I suddenly heard a series of horseshoes outside. It is not surprising that some officials arrived at night, and there was some movement. I sat up from the bed, picked up the candle, for no reason, but woke up in the middle of the night, and it was difficult to sleep again, so I simply got up.
I walked down the wooden steps, which must have been old for some years, and when I stepped on them, there was a "squeak" sound, accompanied by the pattering rain outside, it was extremely loud. At this moment, there was a sound of footsteps, and with a "bang", the door of the post station was suddenly pushed open.
The wind and rain poured in, and the candle in my hand dimmed. The visitor looked over quickly, and I finally saw his appearance clearly.
One can see that his outline is tough, like a sculpture, compared to when he first met, it seems that there is not much change, and it seems that he is completely different. Just look, his wet sideburns are all gray, and he is wearing a leather mask on the right half of his face, covering one eye.
The rain dripped from the cloak, and the shoes were muddy, as if they came from nowhere overnight. He was panting slightly, but his eyes were locked on me, and he didn't blink once for a long time.
"General," at this moment, an officer came over and said respectfully, "The room has been tidied up. Please, general, go upstairs to rest."
Xu Changfeng seemed to come back to his senses suddenly, and nodded his head.
At this time, the candle flame went out for a moment, and I suddenly woke up, only to realize that I was indeed not in a dream. The person in front of him is really...
There was a "squeak" sound after another, and he stood two steps away. My hand holding the candle lamp trembled slightly, and I didn't know how long I looked at each other, so I heard him call: "Sanxi."
This call, for the past two years, only appeared in midnight dreams. It wasn't until he called it up again that I realized that there are still people in the world who remember my name.
My eye sockets became hot for some reason, but they were dry.
Back then when I insisted on parting, I knew that I no longer had the face to occupy the title of the young master of the Xu family. Taking charge of Zhuangzi was also regarded as a favor. To be clear, no matter how much I say, I am just deceiving myself.
After a long while, I suppressed the bitterness that was stirring from my heart to my mouth, parted my lips, and still only called him: "Eldest Young Master."
When Xu Changfeng heard the sound, his expression did not change, only his palms were slightly closed. I was confused, so I said, "It's getting late, I'm going to rest first", and turned away. As soon as I went upstairs, I heard a sound behind me: "Two years."
I was stunned and couldn't help turning my head back.
"You and I will leave at the ferry, until today," he mused, "exactly two years."
That day, I stayed up all night.
As long as I think that the distance between me and Xu Changfeng is only a wall, I can't close my eyes no matter what.
When the time came, I got up, washed up hastily, and went downstairs. As soon as he stepped out of the station, he saw the man leading two fine horses over.
Xu Changfeng probably didn't sleep all night, and the cloak was still a little damp. He came over and said, "It will take six days to travel from Xianyang to the capital by carriage. You and I will ride back to Beijing on horseback. If there is no delay on the way, we can arrive in three days."
Without thinking about it, I agreed to the idea.
When I saw Xu Changfeng, I already guessed that it was no coincidence that he appeared here, but I didn't expect that he drove out of Beijing half a month ago, and he had already arrived in Yangsu. When he heard that I had already set off, he turned back and chased me all the way , it was easy to catch up. No wonder he looks dusty, his eyes are bloodshot, and he hasn't slept for days or nights.
With Xu Changfeng escorting him, he naturally didn't need other guards. I got on the horse, and when I turned around, I saw Xu Changfeng looking at me. Then, he also got on the horse, rode past me, and said: "Be careful not to fall."
In the past two years, when walking outside, in addition to walking or riding in a car, there are times when I have to drive a horse. Although my riding skills are mediocre, the road is much easier than the mountain road. Even if I gallop all the way, it doesn't seem to be very strenuous. In addition, with him, the government officials dare to stop me wherever I pass. In just one day, I have already reached Huaiyang .
It was night and it was raining again.
The rain was getting heavier and it was inconvenient to travel. We found a farmer, paid some money, and had a rest.
The farmhouse is simple, that is, there is no spare room, and there is only a wooden bed in the room. Xu Changfeng and I put down our bags and had a simple meal. After that, he said, "Go to bed and I'll keep watch." After that, he opened the curtain and walked out.
I spread my clothes out on the bed and lay down. The sound of the rain outside was gradually, faintly, as if I could hear the breathing of another person. I know, he didn't go far.
In the dark, I curled up.
After riding the horse all day, I was much more sleepy than I thought, and soon fell asleep. However, I had another nightmare.
The tragic scenes intertwined in the dream, I saw with my own eyes, those three people were soaked in blood, I stretched out my hand desperately, but I couldn't reach them no matter what. When the thunder shook, I suddenly woke up, and when I opened my eyes, I saw Xu Changfeng. He thought he heard me talking in my sleep, so he hurried in from the outside.
"Sanxi, Sanxi." He shook me several times before waking me up from the nightmare. I stared blankly at the man in front of me, with heavy rain pouring down behind me and thunder rumbling. He stared at me, too, with a look of concern in his eyes.
I raised my trembling hands, touched his face, and murmured in a trance: "Let me, let me see your face..."
Xu Changfeng paused, subconsciously dodged, but I stopped him, grabbed him and said hastily: "You show me, let me see quickly—" His voice choked up unconsciously.
In the end, I still took off the leather cover. There was another thunder, and it seemed like daylight for a moment, which also allowed me to see his face clearly. On the right face, there was a long and narrow scar across the forehead, across the right eye, to the cheek. The wound should have suppurated once, and it looked deep and black, almost hideous. As for his right eye, the pupil was already gray and white, and it didn't respond to the light at all.
I stared at him blankly, and for a moment, I felt as if a knife was stabbing my heart hard, and I couldn't even feel the pain...
Finally, with trembling fingers, I brushed the ends of the few strands of hair that had fallen down, and carefully brushed the wound on his face with my fingertips. With red eyes, I asked in a daze, "Why didn't you tell me?"
But Xu Changfeng looked over, gently grasped my wrist, and pressed my palm to his face. "I've always been afraid," he sighed, and said, "My ghostly appearance will scare you." There was a subtle tremor in his voice.
I hugged him tightly.
In the second half of the night, the rain gradually weakened, and we set off before dawn. We walked for another day and night, and finally arrived at the gate of the city in the early morning of the third day. At this time, before the city gate was opened, Xu Changfeng showed his token, and the guard pushed the city gate open with a heavy sound.
We rushed back directly to the Xu Mansion, and from a distance we saw outside the gate, Zhang Yuan had already made the timing, and was waiting with a few stewards.
I got off the horse, handed the rope to the servants, looked up at the two painted red doors in front of me, and the word "Xu Mansion" on the plaque. Today, two years later, when I come back here, I feel as if I have passed away.
Zhang Yuan came over and bowed to me: "The villain welcomes the young master back to the mansion."
I helped him up, and I saw that Mr. Zhang had intertwined white hair, and he was much older than two years ago. My heart moved, and I couldn't bear to say: "You have worked hard these years."
"Don't dare, dare not." Zhang Yuan smiled comfortingly, and then hurriedly led us in.
I followed Zhang Yuan directly and hurried all the way to Sanfang. After leaving the Xu Mansion for two years, the courtyard seems to be cooler than before. On the way, Zhang Yuan told me that after Mr. Xu retired, he took his wife back to his hometown. Mrs. Jiang refused to go with him, and stayed in Beijing with her son.
"Here we are, please hurry up, Young Master." As soon as I followed Zhang Yuan into the house, I smelled the familiar fragrance of medicine. I have never forgotten everything and every scene here.
I walked through the outer hall and took a few steps, then raised the bead curtain, and from there came the faint sound of a woman sobbing.
When Jiang turned around and saw me, her eyes showed joy. In just two years, half of her hair has turned white, and the makeup on her face is no longer exquisite. She didn't have time to greet me, so she turned her head to the person on the bed and said, "He Lang, open your eyes and see, who is here?"
I passed the servant, approached step by step, and slowly came to the side of the bed.
There is a person lying on the bed.
Just look, his cheeks are thin and haggard, his eyes are sunken, his face is gray, and his palms exposed outside the quilt are as thin as sticks, and he already looks sick and broken.
I stared at him without blinking. He seemed to be grateful, and slowly opened his eyes. Those eyes seemed to be closed to autumn water, as gentle as before.
Xu Qihe stared at me for a long time, then murmured softly: I dreamed... peach blossoms bloomed. "
I held his palm, shook my head and said, "It's not a dream. The peach blossom trees in the villa have already bloomed."
Xu Qihe nodded weakly: "I know." He slowly revealed a heartbreaking smile: "I said, I will wait for you, so I won't break my promise..."
He gasped and coughed, and I rubbed his chest lightly, but he stood up and pointed to the cabinet next to him. The servant came over knowingly, walked over quickly, and then brought some things to me.
It was a stack of yellowed letterheads, leather slingshots and other old things.
I looked at them and said softly, "I thought you had thrown them away a long time ago." Xu Qihe raised his hand, stroked the wet corners of my eyes with his fingertips, and gently pinned my fallen hair behind my ears.
"After all... they are your beloved things." He closed his eyes and said hoarsely, "After all, I still don't want to part with it."
I watched Xu Qihe drink the medicine, and after he fell asleep, I carefully pulled out my palm and lowered the bed curtain.
I am alone, walking on the quiet corridor.
In a trance, there seemed to be countless figures passing by, and I could still vaguely hear the illusory warblers and swallows, as well as the clear laughter from someone who didn't know. Those, many voices, many shadows, or near, or far, or clear, or fuzzy. Throughout a person's life, who has come and who has left, but in the end they are just passers-by by fate. I spent my whole life trying to live clearly, but in the end I realized that each of us, with all our efforts and tricks, is actually just trying to stay in each other's time for a moment longer.
The breeze was blowing, and I heard the "ding ding" wind chime. Looking up, I saw a small wooden sign hanging on the eaves.
I held on to the wooden sign, turned it over and saw that there were mottled ink stains on it, and I couldn't tell whether it was a goldfish or a clear lotus...
I let it go, and when I looked up, I saw a man standing at the end of the front. He has deep brows and eyes, and is dressed in a dark official uniform, but it is a jade tree facing the wind, and the skylark on the hem is also lifelike.
But look, look at those two eyes. They used to be as hot as fire, but now, they are as quiet and distant as smoke waves, and in a blink of an eye, they are full of vicissitudes.
I didn't move for a long time, and so did he.
Suddenly, from behind me, came a clear call: "Father!"
I only had time to see a small shadow running past me, and the person in front of me gradually opened up, just like the cold snow melting and the spring warming the earth.
"Xuanyuan, let father give you a hug—" He bent down to catch the child who was running over, and lifted him up.
I stared intently at the child in his arms. The child was about two years old and looked like a little golden boy in front of the Guanyin Seat. He sucked his thumb, turned his black eyes, and stared at me curiously.
The sound of swallows is melodious and clear, like a dream.
Xu Yanqing hugged him, looked at us with full eyes, and whispered to the child: "Let's go."
He said, "Let's go see your father."
-(over)-