On the second day of the first month, it rained lightly in Yingzhou in the East China Sea to the New Year, there are two oil-paper umbrellas at the door of the Red Dragon Temple at the foot of the mountain, the incense of the dragon lord in the temple has been broken for decades, if you don't get closer, you can only see a pile of broken ruins from a distance.

At this time, there were two people in the temple sitting face to face at the gate of the temple to avoid the rain, although there were still fine raindrops falling above their heads, the two of them didn't care, folded their hands and counted the days, and looked up at the rain curtain falling from the eaves, and slowly closed their eyes.

"Ashi, do you think he will never leave again when he comes back this time?"

Her question was very quiet, if it weren't for the thin teenager opposite, it was more like talking to herself.

The young man held the fast little stone in his hand, and he grinded the small dagger one by one, and replied to her impatiently: "How can those bad people in Zhongzhou let go of my uncle so easily, only when I grow up a little more and defeat them with my own hands, my uncle doesn't have to go again." ”

In the past eighteen years, Ah Sheng will stay in Zhongzhou with the men on the island every few days for a long time, and when his return date is approaching, Ah Xi and she often wait from the mountain one day in advance, the Qingyu Mountain on this Yingzhou Island is very steep, and the climate on the top of the mountain is even more treacherous and changeable. The only plank road up and down the mountain was once built by the predecessors who arrived at Yingzhou at the earliest, hundreds of years have passed since this moment, and at the beginning of the construction, it was also flying pavilion Liudan towering into the clouds, how brilliant it was for a while.

It's just that after decades ago after the battle between Yingzhou and Zhongzhou, the adult men on Yingzhou Island have to go to Zhongzhou every year to be slaves and monks, the mountain road plank road has been unrepaired for many years, and many of the suspended wooden beams and stone slabs have been loosened.

Or they don't want to look back on the old things, or the mountain road is difficult to walk, except for them and Ah Sheng, there are really no people on this island who want to go up the mountain.

"If you weren't so stupid that you forgot how to summon Suzaku, your uncle would have chased away the bad guys on the island long ago." Yun Xi didn't raise his head to return to her, and the delicate little dagger in his hand became sharper and sharper.

"The Suzaku in this world has long been extinct, and those people in Zhongzhou are just alarmists."

The world says that Suzaku was originally a spirit animal that guards Yingzhou, but Jiang Lizhu has never seen it, and Lizhu has lived on this island with Ah Sheng and Xu Yunxi since he can remember. If you calculate the age of ordinary people, Yunxi's child should be in his twenties, but his Yunzhong clan is too different, every time this child grows a year, he will sleep deeply until the next year. So much so that no matter his body shape or appearance, he is no different from those teenage children on the island. Xu Zisheng once told her that Ah Xi would not have to sleep again in another seven or eight years. But as for how long she has lived and how old Xu Zisheng is, she doesn't know.

"It's impossible, my uncle said that sooner or later he would take me to see the Suzaku with my own eyes, maybe I could still take it for nine days!"

Lizhuda didn't believe that there were any Vermilion Bird spirit beasts in this world, although when she woke up, Xu Zisheng took her to the edge of the cliff to overlook the entire Yingzhou, and the vast fairy island was full of clouds and smoke. When the people at the foot of the mountain saw him and both, they knelt down and kowtowed for no reason, and they couldn't stop calling out from their mouths.

"The goddess of the world, bless me Yingzhou."

At that time, she didn't know why she was here, why she was called a goddess, and why she wanted to protect Yingzhou? When she turned around, she just wanted to ask for an understanding, but she saw the person in front of her gently brushing the broken hair on her cheeks, and said softly, "Don't be afraid, Lizhu, we meet again." ”

The expectation in his eyes was like Wei Tuo, who he had carefully cared for, finally bloomed as scheduled. Spring and Autumn have changed for decades, she has never forgotten Xu Zisheng's fiery eyes, she doesn't want to know who she used to be, and she doesn't want to know where she came from, whether there is a Vermilion Bird in this world and what does it have to do with her? She only wishes that she can live forever in this barren land to accompany the master of these eyes. Those lost memories are no longer important if you remember them or not.

The rain outside the door gradually stopped, and Liuzhu glanced at the knife that Ah Xi threw in his polishing hand, sighed and shook his head: "Okay, then I have to wish you a dream come true as soon as possible." ”

(b)

The sky on the island has gradually turned blue, and an old man near the Yingzhou ferry looked at the corner of the building boat that had just been exposed on the seaside in the distance, and turned his head to the middle-aged man behind him. "Youliang, you have prepared something, remember to send it to the one who disembarks first later." Youliangben and Iron Armor, Gray River, and Lone Wolf have been the four protectors of Yingzhou for generations, and only the other three have been serving in Yingzhou, and they have not seen each other for many years.

"Yes, Lord Wu Xuan," the man nodded.

The old and young women and children who had been standing on the shore for a long time waiting for the return of their families suddenly jumped up with joy, and no one cared about the muddy mud under their feet, and they all rushed to the side of the first berthed building ship, and after the building boat was stable, the first to go ashore was an old eunuch with gray temples, and then only heard the sound of continuous metal collision, and one by one the middle-aged men with leg cuffs came down from the boat one after another.

In less than a stick of incense, the six ships that could accommodate thousands of people were already empty. I saw that the people on the shore hugged each other and cried with joy when they were looking forward to their relatives, but they didn't know how many years they had to wait, and for a time the shore cried again and again.

Lizhu and Ashicha arrived at this time, and Lizhu didn't care about holding an umbrella all the way, at this time the rain and sweat on her body had soaked her, she couldn't help but gasp and said, "Also, fortunately, I ran fast, I almost didn't catch up... Before the words were finished, the sharp-eyed two saw the man standing in the armor of the boat at the same time, and hurriedly shouted:

"Ah Sheng!" "Uncle!!"

The man heard the sound and walked on the broken waves, his steps were brisk but the shackles on his feet were sonorous, the elder Wu Xuan saw this and hurriedly sent someone to untie his bag, many clansmen had handed him hot water and a square scarf, Ah Sheng was surrounded by the bustling crowd for a while.

Lizhu had to hold an umbrella and look at him from a distance, his appearance had not changed, he was still as warm as jade when he first saw her, with a graceful demeanor, and his clothes were still the gray-blue long coat that had already been shampooed and white when he left. I really want to ask him how long he can stay this time, but he still wants to go again? But at this time, seeing the short stubble on his cheeks and the shackles on his feet, his throat seemed to be locked, and he couldn't say a word, so he could only stand in the crowd in a daze.

Instead, Ah Sheng walked out of the crowd to her side and spoke

"Are you doing well these days, has Yunxi listened to you?"

His words were clear but far away like a breeze and a light moon, and if he hadn't seen him speak towards him, probably no one would have known where such a voice came from.

"I'm fine. Yun Xi is also very good, he is very obedient and has grown a lot taller. Ah Sheng hooked her lips and smiled, and gently wiped the sweat beads from her forehead with the square towel in her hand.

The ferry port in Yingzhou has not been as lively as it is today for a long time, and at this time, people are almost immersed in the joy of reunion after a long absence, and no one has noticed that the old eunuch who was the first to get off the boat is still standing alone, dragging his extremely heavy bag in his hand, for fear of touching the sea water under his feet. It's just that after a while, seeing that no one was paying attention to him, he straightened his waist and coughed heavily, and asked in a loud voice: "Where did Zhao Yin's damn guards die for the slave family?" ”

Hearing this, Elder Wu Xuan hurriedly sent Youliang to take his bag and explained, "We have already informed Lord Zhao yesterday of the news that you are coming. Or the adults drank more wine at noon, I'm afraid. He hasn't woken up yet. ”

"A bunch of dogs, I must report truthfully in front of the national teacher and His Majesty when I go back this time, how they bully the old slave every time! It's really a shame for me to be in the middle of the state. ”

Elder Wu Xuan smiled and said, "Lord Jia, don't be angry, I've worked hard all the way, and I will have to rely on my lord to take care of the young master when I am in Zhongzhou in the future." Youliang, give the things that the young master gave you instructions to Lord Jia. You Liang handed the bag full of pearls to the old eunuch surnamed Jia and waited for him to take it himself, but the old eunuch did not reach out to take it, and slowly untied his cufflinks, opened his sleeves and said to Youliang: "Here." ”

You Liang frowned and put the bag in with disgust, and now Lord Jia's face looked a little better

"Lord Wu Xuan, since the first time the old slave set foot on this Yingzhou, I have seen that the four guards under you, the most sensible is Youliang, I like this child, unlike the three of them every time they see me, they don't dare to step forward like a piece of wood, what's the matter, I'm afraid that I won't be able to eat you?"

After the old eunuch finished speaking, he covered his mouth with his hand and giggled at Youliang, Youliang felt a burst of anger in his heart at this time, if it weren't for the elder Wu Xuan in front of him, he would have drowned him now.

"Okay, okay, don't laugh, I'm here this time to have great news."

I saw that the old eunuch took out a small scroll made of sheepskin from it and slowly opened it, looked at Ah Sheng, who was surrounded by the crowd not far away, and cleared his throat: "Xu Zisheng, the god of medicine, listens to the order." ”

Ah Sheng moved out of the crowd, walked to the old eunuch and bowed, his body slowly knelt down in the direction of the setting sun, his knees just touched the ground, and then there was a crisp sound of countless leg cuffs colliding behind him, except for the old eunuch holding the holy decree in his hand, everyone on the shore, including the elder Wu Xuan, knelt down one after another, and the old eunuch looked around and saw that there was no one standing before he began to read:

"Fengtian carrier, Xu Zisheng, the god of medicine, has made meritorious contributions to the construction of the pagoda for me for many years, remembering his hard work, and pardoning him and the people who returned from this trip to take off their shackles, if there is no other purpose, there is no need to return to Zhongzhou."

As soon as these words came out, many of Watanabe's kneeling people looked at each other in surprise, and after a while, many of them cried, although this was the first amnesty for Yingzhou since the defeat in the Battle of Zhongzhou forty years ago. The pardon is not all, and most of them remain in the middle state.

In the past few decades, it has become common for countless people of Yingzhou to repair the city walls and temples and never return, and the remaining old and weak people on the island have to bear the tribute to Zhongzhou several times a year in addition to the pain of lovesickness for their relatives, and the number of wandering misery in the meantime is indescribable. For a while, the cry was deafening and endless.

Life is only a few decades, once in ten years, the time to get together is short, and when the child is young when he says goodbye, the green silk has turned to gray hair.

Lizhu looked at Ah Sheng, who was kneeling, a few strands of his long hair were blown up by the sea breeze, and half of his face was slightly red by the sunset, and there was still no expression on the face that haunted him, as if nothing had happened in this world just now.

It's just that the hands that are propped up on the ground have been clenched tightly for some time, and the tide rises in the evening, and the fine sand and gravel slowly flow out of his fingers unconsciously.

"The criminal minister Xu Zisheng thanks His Majesty for his grace"

Ah Sheng was about to get up to accept the order, but he heard the old eunuch say unhurriedly, "Don't worry, the old slave still has an edict here." ”