Zhending Mansion, Fuping County, near a small stream.

There was a boy of eight or nine years old, dressed in a cloth of flannel, with a short knife with a few yellow and white feathers pinned to his waist, and in his hand he was holding a green bamboo and roasting it on the fire, and a half-sized pheasant was forked on the bamboo.

There was also a girl with a muddy face next to her, with big eyes open, looking at the pheasant that had been roasted to a yellow oil, smelling the aroma of meat mixed with the smell of earth, and swallowing softly.

"Brother Xiao Ling, how long will it take to bake it?" The girl asked impatiently.

"Mingxia, wait a minute, it's almost ready." The boy slowly turned the bamboo pole, sweat running down his sideburns.

"Oh!" The girl answered, then saw the sweat on the boy's face, raised her wet sleeve and wiped it for him. Apparently, the girl's sleeves were not clean, wiped with sweat, and the boy's face became the same as the girl's, covered with mud.

The girl looked at his dirty face and giggled.

But I heard the boy shouting, "Okay! He took the bamboo pole back, and handed the roast pheasant with a rich aroma and yellow to the girl, "Come, Mingxia, you taste it first." ”

The girl's attention instantly shifted to the roast pheasant, and she stretched out her little hand to pull a chicken leg down. As soon as his fingers touched the chicken legs, he suddenly retracted them and put them in his mouth.

When the boy saw that she was burning, he stuck the bamboo pole in the ground, grabbed a handful of grass from the ground, wrapped the chicken feet in the grass, tore off the chicken legs, and handed it to the girl.

Seeing this, the girl laughed again, took the chicken leg, and took a light bite.

"How's it taste?" The boy asked.

The girl nodded like a chicken pecking rice: "It's delicious." ”

The boy smiled, pulled out the bamboo pole, found a stone to sit down, tore the pheasant meat from the bamboo pole in small pieces, put it in his mouth and chewed it.

The girl didn't care whether the ground was dirty or not, she sat down next to the boy and began to eat the chicken legs.

Looking at the gobbling girl, the boy tore off the other chicken leg and handed it to her.

The girl held a chicken leg in one hand and said while eating, "Hmm, Brother Xiao Ling, you are so powerful." Caught the pheasant so easily, my dad was a fool, and he didn't catch it several times. ”

The boy said softly: "I went out hunting with my father since I was a child, and I learned some skills in catching small animals. Uncle Li, he plows in the field all day, and it's normal that he can't catch it. ”

The grinning girl only took a big bite of the chicken leg in her hand, and made a few perfunctory noises, but did not speak to the boy again.

The boy smiled at her whirlwind and tore off another piece of meat for her. After that, once the girl has eaten the meat in her hand, the boy will tear another piece of tender meat for her.

After eating like this for a long time, the girl smacked her fingers with satisfaction, patted her bulging little belly, suddenly raised her little face, and said to the boy seriously: "Brother Xiao Ling, will I marry you when I grow up?" ”

The boy was stunned and said, "Ming Xia, do you know what marriage is?" ”

The girl felt that her hands were a little greasy, so she wiped them on the boy's clothes, listened to his words, pinched her chin with her hands that had not been wiped clean, pretended to be thinking, stared at the boy and said, "It's just like my father and my mother, I will never be separated for the rest of my life." When the time comes, I will be with you, and let you catch pheasants and hares for me to eat every day. Hey. ”

Before the boy could answer, the girl grabbed his sleeve and said proudly, "Listen to me first, Brother Xiao Ling." My mother likes you, I overheard her and her father say: 'That kid from the old Mo family is clever, how can I look good, if only our ugly girl could be a pair with him in the future.' ’”

Looking at the girl's angry appearance, the boy smiled: "You are still happy to say that you are ugly." ”

Unlike the boy's face, which already has edges and corners, the girl's eyebrows and eyes have not yet grown, and with a round face, it is not ugly, but it is not good-looking, only a pair of big black eyes full of aura and flattering.

After listening to what the boy said, the girl pursed her lips, hugged his sleeve and said, "No matter, I just want to marry you, no matter how ugly you are, you have to marry me." ”

The boy reached out and wiped the remaining grease stains from the corner of her mouth, and said with a smile, "Okay, I will marry you, but there is one condition, that is, ......" As he spoke, the boy stood up abruptly, pulled his legs and ran, saying as he ran: "You can catch up with me!" ”

Looking at the figure of the boy running away, the girl was stunned for a moment, hurriedly got up and followed, and shouted while chasing: "You are a fool! ”

After running for a while, when they reached the entrance of their village, the boy stopped and waited for the girl behind him.

"Little, Brother Xiao Ling! You're cheating! The girl panted.

The boy said softly: "Okay, stop playing, go home quickly, it's getting dark, your mother should come out to find you."

The girl gasped, looked at the gloomy sky, nodded and said, "Okay." It's so late, and I'm going to be scolded by my mother again when I go back. Then he walked with him to the village.

After walking dozens of steps, I suddenly heard an inexplicable sound in the distance, accompanied by a slight tremor on the ground.

The alert boy immediately grabbed the girl's hand and ran.

"Not good! Mingxia, that's the voice of the horse team, I'm afraid there are horse thieves coming! Hurry up and hide. ”

As he ran, the boy looked around, saw a haystack, and immediately pulled the girl to hide in.

At the same time, shouts rang out, and the sound of horses' hooves rolled in like thunder, and the boy hidden in the haystack realized the seriousness of the matter, and reached out to cover the girl's lips.

After a while, one after another roars and screams rang out. A group of soldiers with swords across their waists and swords wantonly slaughtered the people in the village, and none of the old and weak women and children were spared, and only a few women with a slight appearance were knocked unconscious and tied to the horseback.

After looting and looting, some soldiers began to set fire to the houses, and wisps of black smoke rose into the sky. 

The girl in the haystack heard the cries of the villagers and slowly realized what was happening, her petite body began to tremble, and tears slowly flowed down her cheeks. The boy hurriedly moved his feet so that the girl could see his eyes while staring closely into her eyes, trying to calm her down......

"Uhh————!!!h 

With an exclamation, the young man woke up from his dream, and the previous scene seemed to be still in front of him, and the anger in his eyes could not be dispersed for a long time. 

Soon, the bedroom door opened, and an old man in his sixties walked in with his body bent. 

"Ling'er, are you having nightmares again?" The old man asked softly. 

The young man nodded, got up and looked at the old man and said, "Master, I want to go south to find Mingxia, she must have gone to the south, I must find her." 

The old man sighed and said, "Ling'er, I asked someone to ask the government, there is no girl named Li Mingxia in the entire Zhending Mansion, and at her age of seven or eight years old, it is impossible to go too far back then." 

Staring at the old man's dark eyes, the young man said with a firm face: "Mingxia, she must still be alive, no matter what, I will find her!" 

Seeing the young man's repeated insistence, the old man's face froze, and he shouted angrily: "Bastard! A good man stands up to the sky, should hold a three-foot sword, and make immortal achievements, how can he be delayed for life because of his children's private feelings! ”

Seeing the old man's angry face, the young man panicked, no matter how sloppy he usually practiced, the master had never been so angry, and now he should be really angry, and hurriedly bowed to the ground: "Master is angry, the apprentice is just confused for a while!" 

Seeing the young man kneeling on the ground and crying, the old man couldn't bear it, and sighed: "Get up first, it's not a bad thing for you to care about your childhood sweetheart, but after so many years, she may be a wife even if she is alive."

Today, the national strength of my Great Song Dynasty is weak, the Jurchens are rising, their people are brave, do not obey the Khitan, there will be a big war between the Khitan Jurchens, and then my Great Song Dynasty will inevitably be affected by the war, you should not be obsessed with the personal feelings of your children, you should have the heart to serve the country. ”

The young man got up slowly and said in a straight voice: "Master, please rest assured, the apprentice will definitely obey your instructions, if the Great Song Dynasty is in trouble in the future, I will definitely contribute to the country."

The old man didn't care about the vain's words, sighed, shook his head again, and left the room.

After the old man left, the young man closed his eyes, and for a moment he was full of thoughts. Dreaming of Ming Xia again, he was even more determined to think that she was still alive.

……

A few years later, in the first year of Xuanhe, Bianliang City.

Bianliang City was the capital of the Song Dynasty, with a population of more than one million, and was the most prosperous capital among all countries. Officials and nobles from all walks of life gathered here, and it was the center of power in the entire Song Kingdom. There are also all kinds of vendors, but many businessmen buy properties in Bianliang not for profit, but to make it easier to get close to some dignitaries and dignitaries, so that they can get money to do things.

The capital is big, the streets and alleys of the tea room feast, the wine shop is fragrant, and naturally there is no shortage of wind and snow, and the alum building is one of them.

At this time, in a room in the alum building, a young man sat at the table and yawned boredly, as if he was waiting for someone.

After a while, a middle-aged man stepped into the house.

"Senior Brother Ziling, why are you here, I haven't seen you for many years, I don't know how the master and his old man are doing?" The man looked at the handsome young man in Tsing Yi in front of him, his face full of concern. 

The young man stroked the long sword in his hand, put it aside, raised his head and said: "Senior Brother Lin, Master doesn't have to worry about it, he fought with me a few months ago, and he fought for nearly three hours, but he didn't look tired, but I was so tired that it took me three days to recover, and it was also the master who nodded, so I was able to leave." Recently, I passed by this Bianliang City, and I thought about meeting Senior Brother Lin. However, the master is indeed old, and he no longer has the heart to stir up the wind and rain in this world. ”

When the man heard this, he was also a little sad, and sighed: "Alas, Ziling, you don't know, Master, he still had great ambitions back then. However, the world is difficult, the national policy of the Great Song Dynasty emphasizes literature and light on martial arts, coupled with the traitorous ministers in power, the master's ambition is difficult to reward, and he is a little disheartened, so he returned to seclusion and traveled in the rivers and lakes. ”

The young man nodded, and said softly: "The master actually hasn't put it down, and a few years ago, he specially asked me to join the army if the Great Song Dynasty is in trouble in the future." But with my perception along the way, with the current situation of the Great Song Dynasty, I am afraid that it will be difficult to resist the army of Liao and Golden Tiger Wolf. ”

The man's face changed slightly when he heard this, and his eyes looked at the young man firmly: "Ziling's words are wrong, since the alliance of the Yuanyuan, the Liao and Song dynasties have been peaceful for more than a hundred years, and there is nothing to do with each other, and the rich life has made the Liao people lose their sharpness, and the combat power of the soldiers has decreased a lot."

Although our Great Song Dynasty emphasized civil governance and neglected martial arts, fortunately, for many years, the generals and schools of the forbidden army have performed their duties and have not stopped practicing. As for the Jurchens, although they have won successive battles before, they have few soldiers and few people, and it is extremely difficult to annex the Liao State. ”

The young man suddenly laughed and said, "What Senior Brother Lin said is reasonable, but I am worried about it."

The man looked like he took it for granted, nodded, and changed his words: "Ziling, where are you going to go, if you don't have a place to go, Senior Brother can arrange some legitimate errands for you, and settle down in this Bianliang, it is better to make a living than to wander around."

The young man replied with a smile: "I heard many anecdotes about the rivers and lakes along the way, and I yearned for it, and I wanted to see the great rivers and mountains of the Great Song Dynasty, and by the way, I saw the heroes and heroes on the rivers and lakes."

Hearing the young man's answer, the man was not disappointed, but just instructed: "It's okay to go out and break through, but Ziling must not have too deep a relationship with people." Most of the people in the rivers and lakes are insidious and cunning, and they come and go for profit. You have too little experience, so be very careful when dealing with them. ”

The young man said helplessly: "Senior brother, you have just passed the year of establishment, and you are stunned like an old man in his seventies and eighties, chattering, but it is not as refreshing as the master."

Before the man could speak, the young man suddenly remembered some things from before, and asked out loud, "Senior brother, do you know a person named Lu Qian?"

The man was stunned, shook his head and replied, "I haven't heard of it, I don't know who it is?"

The young man looked at the man who didn't seem to be pretending, and said softly, "Maybe I recognized the wrong person."

……

After chatting for a long time, the young man picked up the long sword beside him, got up and said goodbye and left.

In the evening, on the official road outside Bianliang City, a young man dressed in green clothes, riding a white horse, walked slowly to the east.

Looking at the hustle and bustle on this official road, looking at all kinds of peddlers and pawns, the young man's mood can't help but have some changes, although the world is difficult and dangerous, but everyone is trying to live, in this land, everyone is like flowers and trees, born to the sun.

However, what the boy didn't know was that under the flowers and trees, there were the most insects and ants.

The young man looked back at the majestic Bianliang City, and the Great Song Dynasty Kyoto under the sunset gave him an inexplicable feeling of desolation.

The boy shook his head, dissipating the strange thoughts in his mind.

Ever since he could remember, there were always inexplicable memories or feelings that would appear in the boy's mind from time to time, and every time he tried to think about it, it would become a blank slate.