In early summer, the sun is lazily shining around, the weather has become hot, the cicadas on the trees are singing loudly in the heat, and the lotus flowers are quietly growing in the song, waiting for the day when they open. In the midst of the cicadas, the sound of the flute suddenly sounded, and the sound of the flute was full of sadness, like the cold wind of late autumn, bringing a touch of coolness to the surroundings.

The cicadas also stopped chirping under the sound of the flute. There was instant silence all around, except for the faint sound of flutes shuttling through the forest like light smoke. Qi sat next to the boulder, holding the wooden flute in his hand, and played it gently. He closed his eyes tightly, and his delicate face was full of sadness.

Qi suddenly opened his eyes and looked into the distance, and a dazzling firelight appeared from Tao Ze City. The firelight swayed like a demon in Tao Ze City, and the sound of Qi's flute couldn't help but stop, and there seemed to be a terrible cry in his ears, and he smiled self-deprecatingly and continued to play.

At the end of the song, Kai stood up, wrapped the flute in linen, and hid it under the boulder. In the first year of his entry into Taoze City, he knelt in front of the door of Xiaqing Shijia for three full days before entering Shijia's house to learn musical instruments.

He couldn't forget that it was a cold winter, it snowed in Tao Zecheng for three whole days, the heavy snow fell on him, melted into water by body temperature, and then turned into ice after wetting his whole body, the cold was like a naughty beast, biting his skin little by little, before he was about to faint every time, he thought of the white clothes, and then a flame appeared in his heart, he gritted his teeth and ran the elixir of life, which did not let the cold winter take his life.

At the wizard's house, the wizard told him that if he carried it in the snow for another three hours, even the gods would not be able to save him, and that time it took him a month to recover his health, and when he played the flute for the first time, he felt that it was all worth it. Knowing such a proud thing as a musical instrument, but he was pressed in his heart, except for Shi Jia, he didn't want anyone to know, he had made up his mind, and no one was qualified to listen to his flute sound except for the fairy.

After he hid the flute, he began to return to Taoze City, and after entering the city, a child handed him a burden. After he accepted it, he kept his usual smile and entered the house, and not long after, a maid came to his room proudly, and said, "Kai, Madame wants you to see him." ”

Qi smiled and said, "Sister Tao'er, this is the rouge I bought from the merchant of my daughter country, do you think you are still satisfied?" Tao'er took the rouge with a smile, and a smile suddenly appeared on her face: "Brother Qi, you have to be careful, Madame is a little unhappy that you didn't go to see the stake today." ”

Qi said helplessly: "Didn't I go shopping for your sister and wife, sister, you know, this daughter country businessman is rare to see in ten years, and now that he is in the city, how can I not go to see it?" And on Miss's side, I really can't bear to look at it. Speaking of the back, his voice was a little muffled.

Tao'er covered Qi's mouth with her hand and said to him, "Brother, don't blame my sister for not reminding you, if you want to stay in the mansion, don't talk about Miss anymore." ”

Qi sighed, and said helplessly: "Good sister, I know, I recently saw the merchants of the Chest Country coming to the city, I heard that their hairpins are very beautiful, and when the time comes, I will buy them for Sister Tao'er to see if it is in vain, but no matter how beautiful the hairpin is, it must not be as good as your sister, sister, you said yes." ”

Tao'er blushed and said shyly: "Kai, you will say these beautiful words, hurry up and go to Madame, lest Madame be angry." ”

Qi left here with a box, and when he arrived at Madame's room, Madame looked no more than thirty years old, and she still looked good when she was dressed up.

Qi didn't look at Madame, but lowered his head, knelt on the ground, and said to Madame: "Wei Shiqi has seen Madame." ”

Mrs. said coldly: "Kai, why didn't I see you today, don't you feel guilty about that little girl?" Qi kowtowed and said, "Madame Rongyu, the little one is here to buy things today." This is the East China Sea shark pearl, the little one once remembered, the lady wanted the shark pearl, today it was hard to see it, so I didn't go to see it. ”

As he spoke, Qi took out the wooden box, and a maid took the box over, and the lady opened the wooden box, only to see a pearl like tears lying in the box. Madame picked up the pillar, and the bead fell into the box like tears, and became a pearl again.

A smile appeared on the lady's face, and she said to Qi, "You must have paid a lot of price for this merman pearl." Qi said respectfully: "The little one can have today, it all depends on the kindness of Mrs. and the master, just a mermaid pearl, and I can't repay Mrs. in case." ”

The lady listened to his sincerity, and said to the maid, "Go to the treasury and order linen, and let people make clothes for Kai." Kai, the guards in the mansion buy a few new clothes every year, and I see that you have been in the mansion for two years, and it seems that there are only two sets of clothes. ”

Qi still lowered his head and said respectfully: "Because of these two clothes, one was given to the little one by the master, and the small one was worn on the body, always remembering that without the master, there would be no stable days now." And the other thing is that Mrs. gave the little one, the little one is dressed, reminding myself that I can't forget the kindness of my wife to me, and I must serve my wife wholeheartedly. ”

After hearing this, the smile on Madame's face became even thicker, and she said to Qi: "Very good, very good, thanks to you telling me this time, this time I have avoided the humiliation of the family style, I don't know what reward you want." ”

"This is what the little one should do, and how can the little one be rewarded? Madame just gave the little one a piece of clothing, and the little one was already grateful. ”

"I heard that you have entered the adult level, so let's do it, Miss is no longer there, you can be my guard."

"Thank you, madam, for your great kindness, the little ones are toothless and unforgettable."

"That's it, you go down."

Qi respectfully withdrew, and then quickly changed into cloth armor, stood in front of Madame's door, and stood guard for Madame.

At dawn, Kai heard the door open, knelt on the ground and said, "Madam, you are awake." ”

Madame looked at Qi, and then saw the squinting guards on the side, and said with a smile: "You stayed here all night last night?" ”

"Yes, Madame, last night the butler told me to guard Madame at night."

"You go and rest, you can just guard it during the day in the future, don't be too tired."

"Thank you, madam, little one."

Qi returned to his room, looked at the red marks on his thighs that were pinched out by himself, and smiled bitterly, if he hadn't stimulated himself with pain like this yesterday, how could he have lasted all night.

He slept until the afternoon, drank a bowl of porridge, and left.

He arrived in a dilapidated street in the northwest of the city, inhabited by all countrymen, who had long since declined, who had been wounded in battle, had no means of subsistence, or had been reduced to a pauper because of their sins. They can only make a living by going out of the city to collect wild fruits. The only thing they can hope for is that after the age of fourteen, their children can enter the book, the ancestral hall or the barracks and get a new income.

When Kai walked out into the street, a group of children immediately came over and talked nonsense.

"Qi, Granny Zhang has no food."

"Kai, my grandfather's old problem has been done again."

"Kai, what did you say about the slingshot you brought me?"

……

Qi looked at them with a smile and said to them: "Okay, you come one by one, Xiao Er, this is two shells, you take a few of your little brothers to help Granny Zhang buy some straw back." ”

Then Qi took out his slingshot and said to a child, "Chicken, you guys take it and play with it, remember not to shoot at people, but to shoot birds." ”

After Qi fulfilled the wishes of the children around him one by one, and then went to a dilapidated room, an old man was lying on the bed, looking at Qi in, and said embarrassedly: "I'm going to trouble you again, adult, I'm really embarrassed." ”

"Elder Men, you are an elder, you can call me Qi, and this is not a trouble, I have already helped you become my grandfather when I met you."

Qi said, holding the old man's hand, and treating the old man's internal injuries with his true qi, which was not too thick. After the true qi ran two laps of the old man's body, Qi was already sweating profusely, and the old man's face was already a lot ruddy, and the old man fell asleep deeply, and Qi covered the old man with the thatch, and then left quietly.

Qi continued to deal with these miscellaneous matters, and by the time he left, his body was already empty, and his month's worth of money and the true qi in his body were gone. He walked down the street in the moonlight, and no one could believe that this man in rough linen clothes would be Shangqing's guard, and Qi's monthly salary was higher than that of the city's taxis, but Qi lived a poor life.

This is the path he has chosen, and it is also the one he has to give up in his vows.