He walked calmly, but after taking a few steps, he realized that I hadn't followed, so he stopped and looked back at me.

"What's wrong?"

“……”

I stood behind and looked at him with a slight choked throat.

He looked at me with wide, clear eyes.

He is also a handsome young man, although compared to the ones I am familiar with, he is as stunning as Huang Tianba, and there are several brothers in the Heavenly Family who are outstanding, they are worse than them, and even his elder brother Liu Yi is much more delicate than him; He is a man raised in the mountains and rivers, with a natural roughness.

But for some reason, now that roughness is slowly being smoothed out, and when he stands in the snow and looks at me, there is a feeling of unity.

At this moment, although my heart was beating non-stop, it seemed to touch a needle, and every time my heart moved, there was a slight pain.

I laughed a little: "Nothing. ”

He looked at me again.

I thought about it for a while and said, "I think you are still you, but you are still different from the previous you." ”

When he heard this, he was stunned, but soon laughed, and continued to turn around and walk forward, saying as he walked: "My heart has not changed, but when I come to this place, I can't change either." As he spoke, he looked at me and said, "You taught me." ”

"Me?" I smiled dumbly: "When did I teach you?" ”

He smiled: "When you were in Jixiang Village, although you were always preoccupied, you didn't think much about it, and when they embarrassed you, you didn't do anything to them. ”

“……”

"But that day," he said, the look in his eyes sank, "I saw that your face was ugly, just as it was when I was embarrassed by them, and I thought you were very afraid, so I—." But then I realized that you were just nervous, and you weren't scared because you had prepared yourself for everything. ”

“……”

"You taught me that in this place, it takes this to survive."

“……”

"I complained to you about the constraints everywhere before, but now that I think about it, it's actually because I didn't do well enough and wasn't perfect enough to be constrained."

“…… So, today, you-"

He looked at me and said with a smile: "I am confident that I have done everything I can, and I must do everything I can, only in this way can I win!" ”

Looking at the determined light in his clear eyes, I felt both familiar and strange, in fact, he was like this from the beginning, but the environment was different, the identity was different, and the complexity of everything made me feel more and more strange.

In a trance, my feet slipped, and I immediately fell down.

"Be careful!"

He hurriedly stretched out his hand, and I staggered into his arms, my cold cheeks pressed against his heaving chest, and suddenly, a smell and warmth that belonged to him melted around.

My heart skipped another beat.

He also seemed to freeze, and stood there unresponsive for a moment.

The wind and snow are getting more and more urgent.

After a while, a pair of gentle, but somewhat trembling hands reached over and grabbed my shoulders, and I raised my head as if I had suddenly woken up, only looking at his ice-like eyes and looking down at me: "Are you okay?" ”

As soon as the ...... moved, I frowned.

Although he didn't fall, there was a pain in his ankle, and he broke his foot.

Seeing that I frowned in pain, he hurriedly helped me to the side of the stone pier, brushed the snow off it with his sleeve, took off his coat and put it on it, and then helped me to sit down, and said, "Does it hurt?" Where did it hurt? ”

I frowned, biting my lower lip in pain, and he carefully held my foot, pinching it little by little: "Here? Here? Touching my ankle all of a sudden, I suddenly exclaimed, "Ahhh

He hurriedly let go of his hand and said, "Is it here?" ”

"Hmm."

"It's okay, come, I'll help you rub it."

After that, he gently rubbed my ankle with his fingers through his shoes and socks. His fingering was neither light nor heavy, and he handled it just right, and I felt a little better, so I smiled and said, "Why do you still have this?" ”

He lowered his head and carefully pinched my feet, and said, "After the master's eyes were broken, he didn't listen to people's advice, and he often bumped and fell, and his body was often injured, so I helped him pinch it like this." How's it going, does it still hurt? ”

"Well, it's much better."

"Be careful later, go back and wipe the ...... with medicinal wine."

I looked down at him, unable to see the expression on his face, except that the long eyelashes were like black crow wings, flickering over those clear eyes, and every movement seemed to be about to flutter their wings and fly away.

I looked at him like this, speechless.

As if sensing my gaze, he looked up at me and smiled, "What are you looking at me all the time?" ”

"......" I thought for a long time before I smiled and said softly, "It's nothing, I just- I remembered something from my childhood." ”

"What's the matter?"

Speaking of that time, my smile was somewhat reluctant, hooked the corners of my lips, and said: "I remember that at that time, it was very difficult and I needed to rely on people to help me survive, but my mother always let me read and write, learn piano, chess, calligraphy and painting, and learn needlework." ”

“……”

"At that time, I was still young, I was almost unable to eat, I couldn't play, and I had to learn so many things, I was really annoyed, so I lost my temper with my mother. I said, what's the use of learning so much? No matter how wonderful you learn, no one will appreciate it. ”

"Then what did your mother say?"

"......" My thoughts were a little dazed, and I was silent for a while before I said slowly: "My mother told me that no matter whether anyone knows about it or not, I should go and learn." As long as I learn well, it's enough, and God will arrange the rest. ”

“……”

"I have never understood the meaning of my mother's words, but when I see you now, I feel that my mother's words are right."

"Why?"

I smiled, looked down into his eyes, and said, "If you can still only fish, then of course God will let you stay in the fishing village for the rest of your life; If you are literate and want to know more, God will let you go to the academy; When you learn more, think more, and expect more, God will naturally arrange for you to go to a better place. ”

He was slightly stunned and looked at me with wide eyes.

I smiled and said, "Qinghan, it's good that you're in charge of the excitement, and God will arrange the rest." ”

He couldn't speak for a long time, his eyes showed some solemn expression, but he didn't say anything, just kept slowly rubbing my ankle, and when it didn't hurt so much, he gently put down my ankle, stood up and turned around and walked to the lake, looking at the blank snow scene in front of him.

Heaven and earth are all white, and there is a kind of paleness that cannot see the way from where it will come, and it does not know what the future will be.

I sat on the stone pier behind him and quietly accompanied him.

The two of them stood and sat one after the other, without speaking, without any movement, just listening to the fine snow foam falling one after another, and time passed little by little in the fluttering sound, but it was not boring at all, and even, not cold.

Looking at his back, just looking like this, it seems that you can feel his body temperature and feel warmth.

I don't know how long later, he turned to look at me, his eyes were a little cold, and he said slowly, "What about you?" ”

“……”

"Where will God arrange for you to go?"

He asked this question deeply, but also a little silly, and I laughed: "I don't know either." ”

I couldn't predict where he might go, but I couldn't see where he was going. The place I am going to and the place that God has given me have always seemed to be the opposite. I have fought for half my life, fighting with God, and the nine-fold three halls of this imperial city until now, and I have not won or lost.

Because, I still refuse to admit defeat.

After a long time, I laughed and said, "Perhaps, I'll go to a place where the lights are out." ”

I can't think of what kind of lights I will go to, but after the exam on this day, Liu Qinghan was picked up by the people from the Duwei Mansion, and I was taken back to the palace by the people sent by the palace.

Today is really a lively day.

Father-in-law Yu was followed by two little eunuchs with lanterns, who hurriedly walked over, and as soon as he saw me, he immediately said, "Lord Yue, you are finally back." ”

"What's the matter, Father-in-law Yu, is there anything wrong with the queen?"

"It's the emperor, there is a call in the imperial study!"

My heart moved, and I didn't say anything, I was about to endure the pain in my feet and follow, but I saw him beckoning, and a few little eunuchs ran out behind me carrying a rattan chair, I was stunned for a moment, and he said softly: "Lord Liu just let people pass the word in, the emperor knew, and ordered the old slave to arrange it." ”

"Oh......"

I didn't say much, after all, I couldn't go far with my foot, so I got on the wicker chair and went to the imperial study.

At this time, the sky had already darkened, but the silver candles were shining in the imperial study, and the projection on the window was seen from a distance, and there were many people inside.

They stopped at the door, and Father-in-law Yu helped me to walk down cautiously, knocked on the door in a proper manner, and when the people inside opened the door, I carefully walked in and bowed down and said, "Weichen greets the emperor." ”

"Flat."

His voice sounded, with a little coldness, I was fine, but I heard some people trembling, as soon as I raised my head, I saw Pei Yuanhao sitting directly above, although there were candlesticks burning on both sides, but under the light and shadow, his face added some gloom, and those fine and restrained eyes were lined with brilliance, and there was a sharp sword-like sharpness, which made people dare not look directly.

In front of him, there were several old ministers kneeling.

I only recognized it cursoryly, there was still no expression on my face, and I walked over respectfully, Pei Yuanhao said: "You came just in time, I was about to ask you, what are the people arrested in the examination room today?" ”

I arched my hand and replied: "If I go back to the emperor, a total of 14 candidates have been found in the examination room today who have carried and substituted for the exam, namely-Yiyou Sun Wei, Ding Si Chen Sheng, and Wuchen Lu Shijie...... This is the list recorded by Weichen today, please take a look at the emperor. ”

Every time I said one, the officials trembled, and by the time I finished speaking, a pool of cold sweat had accumulated on the floor below where everyone knelt.

After I finished speaking, I took the list in my hand.

Pei Yuanhao took it, rolled his eyelids a few times, sneered, threw the booklet in his hand to the ground, and with a click, the officials shrank again, and one of his legs was so weak that he almost sat down.

Pei Yuanhao sneered: "Since the founding of the country, it is the first time that I have encountered such a big fraud case in the examination room. ”

As soon as he said this, several officials sweated like rain, and their words were not clear, and they kowtowed again and again: "Your Majesty, the emperor is wise, it is the negligence of the ministers, and the crimes of the ministers!" Please ask the emperor to cure the sins of the ministers! ”

"Punishment?"

The corners of Pei Yuanhao's mouth were slightly raised, and he looked at them: "How am I going to cure your sins?" ”