At the third watch, the night was thick and the temperature was slightly cold, Sheng Ze took a cloak and handed it to Yun Chuan, saying, "Have you remembered everything I told you?" Got everything you want to bring? ”

"Don't worry, I'm measured." Yun Chuan said with a smile, put on his cloak, Yun Xi hurriedly walked over to help tie the ribbon on the neckline, and instructed: "Yun Chuan, be careful in everything." Brother Yang, you must take care of her. ”

Yang Qingyun nodded and said, "Don't worry, I will definitely protect her." In the past few days, I also ask the two of you to take care of Brother Wen Han, and thank you again when I return. ”

"Well, Brother Wen Han will leave it to us. When I just changed his dressing, he was going to come out to see you off, and his body could no longer be infected with the wind and cold, so I stopped him. Yun Xi said.

"Don't worry, he has Yun Xi to take care of, he will definitely be fine." Yun Chuan patted Yun Xi on the shoulder, then flew on the horse, and said to Sheng Ze and Yun Xi: "We are leaving, you guys go back quickly." ”

"Stay safe." Yun Xi said with a slight choked up.

Yun Chuan and Yang Qingyun waved their hands, raised their horse whips, and with a crisp "drive~", the two horses galloped, and after a while, they entered the night.

Yun Xi and Sheng Ze looked at the backs that disappeared into the night, and stood for a long time, until a cool breeze blew, and then they came back to their senses.

Sheng Ze glanced at Yun Xi, who was holding his arms in both hands, and said, "Go back, it's all far away." ”

"Hmm. Thank you very much this time. Yun Xi looked at Sheng Ze and felt guilty, "I hope everything goes well." ”

"She is the most affectionate, and she will definitely do what she decides, not to mention that this person was injured to save her." Sheng Ze looked up at the starry sky with a sad expression, "People who value love and righteousness will not have an easy life." ”

Yun Xi was speechless, although Yu Wenhan was injured to save Yun Chuan, but this incident was caused by Yun Xi. If it weren't for her, Yun Chuan wouldn't have changed his mind halfway to walk with them. Yun Xi sighed with emotion in his heart, learned the appearance of a grassland man for the first time, crossed his hands on his chest, and said silently to Changshengtian: I hope Changshengtian will bless Yunchuan to get the snow lotus and return safely.

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On the vast grassland, the two galloped all the way, and gusts of cold wind swept by, with a little morning dew slapping their faces. Yunchuan has been accompanied by horses since childhood, although in the past ten years, several major ethnic groups in the grassland and the Central Plains have checked and balanced each other, and there are fewer battles, but as a nomadic people, riding horses all night and pulling out the village overnight is also a common thing, and Yunchuan has long been accustomed to it. She looked at the man beside her like the wind, her eyes were like torches, staring straight ahead, and from time to time she shouted "drive" from her throat, like a stream of fire slurry, gushing out. Yun Chuan had a strange thought: this deafening "driving" may be the only way he can vent the anger in his heart.

It was already the fifth watch, and the morning star in the east was slowly rising, and a touch of morning glow appeared on the horizon, and the shallow red light was like a gentle veil, gently shrouding this vast meadow. Yun Chuan shouted at Yang Qingyun: "There is a small forest about three miles ahead, let's take a break next to it. ”

"Good!" Yang Qingyun nodded slightly, still staring ahead.

The two of them slowed down until a small birch forest came into view, and a small stream flowed through the trees. Yang Qingyun grabbed the reins and looked around—the green grass and the silver trees were clear, as if they were in another world.

Yun Chuan jumped off the horse and found a side of grass to feed the horses. Looking at the thoughtful Yang Qingyun, he said, "What do you think? Hurry up and feed the horses, we'll have to hurry in a moment! ”

Yang Qingyun came back to his senses, quickly jumped off the horse, and after settling the horse, he found a side of the hay and sat down beside Yun Chuan.

"Do you want to take a break? When the horses are full, I'll wake you up. Yun Chuan asked softly.

"No, I'm not tired." Yang Qingyun took a sip of water and replied.

"You can think about it, we won't be able to rest until noon in a while." Yun Chuan stood up, walked to the horse's side, gently stroked the horse's mane, and continued, "I don't care, we are in the prairie, and we usually have nothing to do except hunt on horseback. ”

"Although we are located in the Central Plains, our ancestors are Hun Ling people, although they have long been integrated into the Central Plains culture, but after all, there is also the blood of Hun Ling, and I can still cope with this kind of long journey." Yang Qingyun said slowly.

"Well, that's true. Speaking of which, you Dashu should belong to the same clan as our Tusang and Huangbei, and they are all descendants of the Hun Ling people. After you entered the Central Plains, you reformed and rejuvenated agriculture, the land was fertile and the financial resources were abundant, and you also wanted to take under your command all of us northern nomads. I admire the majesty and strategy of the ancestors of Dahu, but we like this kind of free and easy nomadic life, even if we sometimes encounter hunger, cold and poverty, but the survival of the fittest, born with nature, life should be like this. Yun Chuan said.

"Is it necessarily good to say 'born from the sky'? For nearly 200 years, he believed in the way of Confucius and Mencius, and came from all over the world to the country and the people. However, among the ethnic groups in the desert, resources are scarce, so sometimes they are allied, sometimes they are opposed. The so-called natural birth is just that there is no way to change the status quo. Yang Qingyun retorted, "If there is a chance to choose the living environment, how do you think most people will choose?" ”

Yang Qingyun turned his head to look at Yun Chuan, who was stroking the horse, and regretted telling her these impersonal truths. This woman's status in the desert is not low, she can enjoy a free desert life, and she has less involvement in the interests of the ethnic group, so she can retain this rare "innocence".

"Well, you're right, most of the 'providence' is formulated by the strong. Da Shu is indeed a strong man at present, and the 'providence' they formulated is nothing more than submission to them, and when there is an invasion by foreign enemies, we are just here as a shield. Yun Chuan walked up to Yang Qingyun, pointed to the grassland in front of him and said, "If you Da Shu people are allowed to settle here, will they be able to survive?" The autumn and winter here are long and cold to the bone; Spring is short, not suitable for growing food; Although the summer climate is pleasant, wild animals are infested, and the slightest accident will fall into the wolf's mouth. In such an environment, if you talk about etiquette and humility with a group of people who don't have enough to eat, don't have warm clothes, and don't have enough lives, will anyone listen? Although I have never been on the battlefield, and I don't want to see killing, I can understand their intentions and thoughts. Guarding his wife and children, taking up arms for an acre and three points, is better than becoming a slave and a human shield for Da Shu. ”

Yang Qingyun looked at the bright-eyed woman in front of him with some surprise, and the judgment of the word "innocence" seemed to be a little too arbitrary.

"When I say 'born with the sky', I only mean birth, old age, sickness and death go with the flow. You have never heard the loud singing of the nomadic woman, you have never seen the praying face of the old man Bai Weng, you have never drunk the clear spring on the snow-capped mountain, you have never chased the fiery sunset, you have been away from this place for 200 years, and you will not understand the depth and vastness of this place. Yun Chuan sighed deeply after speaking, looking at Yang Qingyun's deep eyes, and wondered if he could understand his feelings.

When Yang Qingyun heard this, his heart fluctuated, but he didn't expect Yunchuan to be a woman who knew everything, and he was a little impressed. Although he received preferential treatment in Dahu and had traveled through mountains and rivers, he was far inferior to Yunchuan when it came to his family and country. In his heart, it is more of an indescribable involuntary and insistent persistence that he has to uphold.

Thinking of this, Yang Qingyun suddenly had a suspicion in his heart: What is the identity of this woman? In the past two days, there have been many flaws in the identities of himself and Yu Wenhan, and Xia Yi's little prince has been knocking on the side, and he must be checking in various ways. The relationship between Da Shu and the grassland tribe is complicated, it is better to be careful, don't talk too much about the border pass, and don't delay the big event of saving Yu Wenhan.

"These things are not something that ordinary people like me need to think about, there are disputes in the world, and there are people who have to worry about it." In order to hide himself, Yang Qingyun quickly got up from the ground, untied the reins of the horse, and said, "Let's go, let's still care about our own affairs." ”

Yun Chuan looked at the background of his horse, and shrugged helplessly, thinking that this person was really too wary, and he had treated him sincerely, but he was strictly guarded. Yun Chuan thought to himself: "Why do you have to pretend like this, you are good at riding and archery, you like to read military books, you don't like power struggles since you were a child, and you yearn for the desert smoke, I have been listening to your affairs for almost eight years." It's okay, I don't believe your heart lock is so hard to open. Someday, I'm going to walk in generously and see if it's really what I thought it would be. ”

It was already dusk, and the two of them hurried all the way, arriving at the territory of the Yue tribe an hour earlier than expected. In order not to startle the snake, he found a hidden forest two miles outside the tribe to rest for a while, and also took out the clothes he had prepared long ago and disguised himself.

The two of them each put on the clothes of the Yue Clan's guards, and Sheng Ze also carefully prepared a beard for Yun Chuan. Yun Chuan put on his beard, and when he turned around, Yang Qingxuan's eyes widened, "It's ugly, isn't it?" Yun Chuan asked.

"No, no." Yang Qingyun obviously said something against his will.

"You almost scared out of that eyeball just now, and you said it wasn't ugly?" Yun Chuan touched the beard on his face, sighed and said, "I can be considered open-minded for the sake of my friends." ”

"You're with a wrong beard?" Yang Qingyun approached and took a closer look.

"Anti? What's the other way around? Isn't that the posting? There's no mirror here, how should I stick it? Yun Chuan asked in surprise.

"Tear it off, I'll stick it for you." Yang Qingyun took Yun Chuan's torn beard, it turned out that this beard was really upside down, and it was stuck to Yun Chuan's face upside down.

This is the third time that Yun Chuan has been so close to Yang Qingyun, and the two fists are separated, and his snort and lips and eyebrows are clearly visible. Yun Chuan heard the sound of his heart "knocking", and he didn't know if it was his own or the other party's. Her eyes couldn't avoid looking at Yang Qingyun's face, those dark eyes were like a bottomless pool, reflecting her own shadow, as if she wanted to suck herself in: the man's breathing was intermittently lapping his cheeks, and his fingers accidentally touched his face, just like the warm and lovely water of a summer lake; And the broad arms, there was a faint smell of sweat, faintly transmitted to his own snort.

Yun Chuan took a deep breath, almost greedily and slowly took a deep breath, but he didn't know how to exhale this breath, so he had to hold it like this, holding back his cheeks and his eyes were as wide as copper bells.

"What's wrong with you? Eyes are so big? Yang Qingyun helped Yun Chuan finish pasting his beard, his hands fell down as if relieved, and he asked as if he looked at Yun Chuan's bulging cheeks and wide eyes.

The beard was pasted, Yun Chuan quickly turned his head and spit out a breath of breath held in his heart, because the breath was too long, Yun Chuan involuntarily patted his chest and gasped: "It's okay, it's okay." Just got too close, I was afraid that as soon as I exhaled, it would affect your performance, so I had to hold it like this, but fortunately you were fast, I almost lost my breath. ”

Yang Qingyun listened to this explanation and was speechless for a while. In the past few days, he can always see Xi'er's shadow on Yun Chuan, knowing that this is impossible, but this trance makes him a little obsessed.

"Hey, you're not worried about me, are you? I'm fine now. Yun Chuan looked at Yang Qingyun, who was a little overwhelmed, and felt a little happy in his heart, pulled him to sit down on the ground, and said, "Let's get down to business, I'll talk about my plan first, and then add if you have any comments." ”

Yun Chuan said: "When we gather on the grassland, we will sing and dance, and put up lights. You can see the faint sound of the piano coming from there, I guess I was preparing for a party. In a few moments, the lights will be bright, which is a sign that the feast is about to begin; When the song sounds, it is to get to the point; When the dance gets louder and louder, and the group dances, it will not be far from the end. So when the lights are on, we have to rush over immediately; As soon as the song sounds, we have to act; Dancing and we must get out of the way. ”

Yang Qingyun nodded as he listened, and motioned for her to continue. Yun Chuan broke a branch and gestured on the ground by the afterglow of the setting sun: "Before leaving, I discussed with Sheng Ze that the yurt where the white lotus and snow lotus are stored are most likely to be two locations - one is where the monk Mingcheng and Shangdu Khan live, and the other is General Wei Xu, whom Shangdu Khan trusts the most. Sheng Ze carefully verified that Huang Bei brought a total of 20 people this time, 15 of whom were guards and maids. In order not to lose momentum, I guess Shangdu Khan will bring at least 10 people to attend, and the rest will take care of the tent. After we get over, I'll go to the room to get some food, and use the food to lure people away, and then you can take the opportunity to go in and check it out. ”

"Well, that's a good idea, they're tired all day, and that's when they're most tired and hungry." Yang Qingyun nodded in praise, sighing that Yunchuan was still a brave and resourceful woman.

"You must be careful when you go in to check, Huang Bei is proficient in the mechanism, and when you see Snow Lotus's box, you must not open it head-on." Yun Chuan was worried, but only if she knew the local accent, she had to do it herself, "Oh, by the way, if you find a hundred-year-old snow lotus, take three petals from the middle and put them in this box immediately." ”

"Well, don't worry, I have experience in dodging these tricks. I'll leave the outside things to Miss Yunchuan, and I'll take care of the things inside. Yang Qingyun was grateful.

Yun Chuan nodded and said: "We are also friends in trouble, you can call me Yun Chuan in the future, everyone says that I am the most unfeminine, you 'girl' scream, I don't feel comfortable listening to it." You don't know, my family wants me to learn the gentle words of a woman in the Central Plains, and you have also seen my habits, and it will be difficult in this life. ”

"Who said that a woman must be gentle and gentle?" Yang Qingyun looked at Yun Chuan with certainty, "Most of the grassland women shoot arrows and cross horses, and they are good at martial arts, but their living habits are not different from men, so why do you want women to be like steel and iron on the one hand, and water and jade on the other?" ”

These words Yun Chuan listened to a different taste, and it turned out that the iron-faced Yang Qingyun praised people so directly. She visibly felt her cheeks burning slightly, and turned her head embarrassedly, recalling these words, holding the branch and making circles on the ground.

"Yunchuan girl, uh, Yunchuan." Yang Qingyun didn't notice Yun Chuan's thoughts at all, and asked thoughtfully, "When I sneak in, if there is an emergency, you cough twice, and I will know how to act." If I leave the yurt, I will signal it with a cuckoo call. ”

Yun Chuan nodded stupidly: "Okay, I know." Then he took a deep breath and said, "By the way, there is one more thing, if we are really accidentally discovered, Sheng Ze asked us to push him, I don't think this thing is good." I know Brother Wen Han is very important to you, but we can't put one person in to save the other, can we? Moreover, there is still some complication between him and Huang Bei... ”

Before Yun Chuan could finish speaking, Yang Qingyun interrupted: "I never thought of using this method, so I won't inquire about his private affairs." I am bound to get a hundred-year-old snow lotus, but I will never fall into injustice for my friends. If you can't steal it tonight, I'll take care of the rest. ”

"Well, you can leave the rest to me." Yun Chuan thought to himself. Seeing Yang Qingyun's determined face, Yun Chuan felt even more at ease. Although he has only been with the person in front of him for a few days, his story has been with Yunchuan for eight years, although he is not as bright and active as the "Yang Qingyun" in the story, but this persistent and cold, affectionate and righteous "Yang Qingyun" makes her heart move even more for some reason.