The old man's mouth uttered several murmurs of unknown meaning.

Bai Ling and Fourteen could both feel that the Queen Mother's weak hands were straining slightly, and they obeyed the Queen Mother's pull until she gently folded Bai Ling and Fourteen's left and right hands together.

At the moment when the hands were folded, the back of Fourteen's hand was cold and rough, and Bai Ling's palm was warm and soft, and both of them were stunned for a while, not understanding what the Queen Mother wanted to do.

As if she was afraid that they would soon let go, the Queen Mother patted the back of Bai Ling's hand a little uneasily the moment she let go of her hand.

The old man did not explain the reason and did not intend to explain. She looked at Bai Ling, and there seemed to be a thousand words in her eyes, but she opened and closed her lips a few times, but she couldn't make any sound.

Bai Ling looked at the Queen Mother's mouth and repeated tentatively.

"Don't? …… Did the Queen Mother say 'don't', don't want anything? ”

The old man nodded, then breathed deeply, as if he were accumulating strength between his breaths.

It was a long time before she spoke again. This time she seemed to use all her strength, but her voice was still like a gossamer.

"Don't ...... Loosen...... Hand. ”

Don't let go of your hands.

Bai Ling frowned slightly, this request sounded so strange, but she still nodded solemnly and replied "Okay".

The Queen Mother looked at this scene, and her eyes suddenly became sad and euphoric, as if there were thousands of emotions, and suddenly came to her heart.

After this, the Queen Mother stretched out her right hand under her pillow again, and she frowned and groped for a while, then stopped, as if grasping something.

Bai Ling looked at the Queen Mother's expression, guessed and stretched out his right hand in the direction of the head of the bed, and the old man really pulled his hand out from under the pillow and gently put the thing in Bai Ling's palm.

—It was two seals about a finger long, each of which had been cut off from the middle, leaving only half of it.

Bai Ling recognized it at a glance, it was the half-seal of the Dark Guard.

When she sneaked into the palace at the end of April, she had seen Fourteen use it once.

This half-seal is always one in the hands of the dark guard, and one in the hands of its master.

In the case of minor matters, the Secret Guard can make his own judgment on his own half seal, but in major matters, the Secret Guard must take the remaining half seal from his master before he can truly act on behalf of the Lord.

Bai Ling suddenly realized that the Queen Mother had handed over the half-seal in her hand to herself.

One of them should be Wei XIV's, then the other is ......

"Half-print...... Want...... Put it away. ”

The Queen Mother spoke slowly, but her voice became almost inaudible again.

Bai Ling nodded, she held the two half-seals in her hand tightly, grabbed them and gently hit her heart—I will keep them carefully.

The old man exhaled softly and nodded with a look of relief.

She looked at Bai Ling and Wei Shixi's overlapping hands with the last of her nostalgia, and those cloudy eyes were suddenly covered with a layer of tears.

This glance made Bai Ling and Wei Shishi a little overwhelmed for a while, Bai Ling moved to the side of the bed, and reached out to wipe the tears from the corners of the Queen Mother's eyes, the Queen Mother shook her head and avoided Bai Ling's hand.

The old man seemed to be still whispering, and Bai Ling simply straightened up and leaned his ear against the Queen Mother's lips.

"What did the Queen Mother want to say just now? I'm listening. ”

The old man looked a little sleepy, she closed her eyes, and repeated in a low voice. It's just that every time she says a word or phrase, she has to rest for a while before she can say the next sentence.

Bai Ling waited patiently there, and every word the Queen Mother said, she repeated it softly.

"To ......"

"...... each other"

"Taking care of ......"

Take care of each other.

Wei XIV lowered his head.

His hot tears silently fell on the back of Bai Ling's hand.

Bai Ling himself was stunned.

She could feel Fourteen's whole body trembling slightly, and her own eyes were slightly hot.

The old man closed her eyes again on the couch, but her heart was still rising and falling faintly, as if she had returned to her original sleep.

A kind of afterlife appeared on the aging face of the Queen Mother. Bai Ling took Fourteen's hand, and the two of them quietly knelt on the old man's couch to keep vigil.

To Bai Ling's surprise, from beginning to end, there was never a palace person here.

Only the Queen Mother, who couldn't speak, let alone get out of bed, lay quietly on the bed alone.

Bai Ling reached out and gently stroked the old man's messy hair, and swept the broken hair around her neck behind the pillow.

No wonder Fourteen didn't come back all day today.

Emperor Jianxi and the Queen Mother, the mother and son, Bai Ling had already noticed a little strange. It's just that she never imagined that one day the Queen Mother would be thrown into the splendid palace of Cining Palace like this, no one cared about her, and she was left to fend for herself.

The Queen Mother couldn't eat or drink anything.

Bai Ling asked for a water bladder from Fourteen, and the two cooperated from time to time, dipping their little fingers in some water to wet the old man's dry and peeled lips.

On this night, the lights of the sleeping palace of Cining Palace swayed in the wind, illuminating the entire dim temple to a rickety one, making people feel like they were in a small passenger boat parked on the lake.

Bai Ling felt that the hand he was shaking with Fourteen was already slightly numb, and his palms were covered with fine sweat, but neither of them let go.

She didn't know if the Queen Mother tonight really recognized herself and Fourteen, but at this moment, Bai Ling still had infinite gratitude to this old man in her heart.

The light sleeping Queen Mother's expression became calm and natural.

Bai Ling understood that the end of the Queen Mother was coming, maybe tonight, maybe tomorrow morning.

Now that her body is gone, this life in the cage has come to an end, but suddenly when it is time to say goodbye, she still feels a little caught off guard.

"Fourteen," Bai Ling said softly, "did you grow up next to the Queen Mother?" ”

"Hmm." Wei Fourteen replied in a low voice.

"What was the Queen Mother like when she was young?"

"I haven't seen her young." Wei Shixi's voice was low and hoarse, "The first time I saw her, she said to me...... 'Look, the hair of the mourning family is as white as yours'. ”

Bai Ling looked sideways at Fourteen, and he choked up a little as he said this.

Wei Shishi closed his eyes, frowned slightly, and when he opened his eyes again, his expression returned to naturalness.

Outside the window, the sound of drums beating people came over and over again.

Inside the window, the candles on both sides of the temple burned out and extinguished one after another.

When the hour was about to pass, they heard a series of palace people's footsteps outside the door, this footstep was so light and neat, and it was so dense, it must not be the palace people in Cining Palace.

Bai Ling turned around, and there was already a faint figure standing outside the door.

She took one last look at the Queen Mother, who was still asleep.

"Let's go to the Xuanqiong Tower," Bai Ling said softly, "I have something to say to you." ”

Wei Shixi didn't answer, and in the dark, he led Bai Ling to get up, and the two of them disappeared silently behind the half-opened side window.

Outside the window, the east is white.