Hu Ji hurriedly looked down, only to see that General Ziqian's face had turned from black to white, and slowly turned bloody.

The two looked at each other with great joy, and heard a "poof" sound from under the bed, Hu Ji hurriedly lifted the futon, only to see that General Ziqian's crotch had gushed out a cloud of filth, and the color was green and filled with fishy and sweet smells.

"It's okay now, the feces are fishy and sweet, which is a manifestation of toxin discharge!" Xiao Yan could see the clue at a glance.

Hu Ji couldn't help laughing—this was the first time Xiao Yan had seen this cold and resolute man smile sincerely—he stood up and said, "Someone!"

"Yes!" After a few breaths, a herald ran in from outside the door.

"Order the whole army, leave for the house in an hour!" Hu Ji held the little blue bottle tightly, as if holding a life-saving straw: "In addition, call the two people at the door to come in and clean up the bed!"

"Yes!" the soldier stepped back respectfully.

"After I go back, this king will thank you heavily!" Hu Ji stretched out his hand and patted Xiao Yan's shoulder.

An hour later, the people of the Tang Gate had already disappeared without a trace, and Hu Ji and his party took advantage of the night to rush to Nanning.

Along the way, Hu Ji's expression was a lot more relaxed, although he didn't talk and laugh like Qi Zehui, but the expression on his face was no longer so serious and cold. General Midnight learned the news that his brother had been saved, and his attitude towards Xiao Yan was much softer. The three of them rode fast horses all the way and galloped at the front of the team.

Because Hu Ji is like an arrow, he rarely rests along the way. The journey of eight or nine days took less than six days to return to Nanning.

At this time, the waning moon was in the sky, the city was under curfew, and there were only a few flickering fires on the city walls. The soldiers defending the city saw the crowds of people under the city rushing with horses' hooves, and hurriedly shouted: "Who is coming?"

Hu Ji's voice was quite excited: "I am the king of Zhang, open the city gate quickly!" He gasped twice, and said: "Those who are slacker, behead!"

As soon as the officers and soldiers defending the city heard the voice of King Zhang, they did not dare to delay, and were so frightened that they hurriedly gave orders to open the city gate.

"Drive!" But as soon as the long whip sounded, Hu Ji took the lead and led everyone to gallop on the quiet streets at night.

"Bang bang bang!" "Uncle Xu, open the door quickly! His Royal Highness King Zhang is back!" General Midnight almost knocked on the door with the force of slamming the door, and said loudly.

"Oh, here, my general, you can be light!" Xu Bo trotted barefoot and removed the latch.

"What about the princess?" Hu Ji said hurriedly.

"Rest in the back room, Xiaoqing and Xiaohong are taking care of it!" Xu Bo replied yawning.

Hu Ji looked up to the sky and laughed, and walked quickly to the back room in Xu Bo's surprised eyes. Xiao Yan and Midnight hurriedly followed.

The three of them walked through the courtyard, and the back room was close in front of them. "Let's hope it works this time. Xiao Yan prayed secretly in his heart.

Hu Ji took a deep breath, stepped forward and reached out to knock on the door, when suddenly, the door was vigorously pushed open from the inside, and the wooden door frame smashed into Hu Ji's fist, and a hole was pierced in an instant. Hu Ji frowned and didn't say anything.

There was a maid-like man standing inside the door, and suddenly saw Hu Jiyi outside the door, and immediately cried out with a "wow".

"Xiaoqing, this king is not scared, why are you crying?" Hu Ji thought it was very interesting.

"No... No, it's the princess...... Princess, she ......" Xiaoqing burst into tears and choked up.

Hu Ji sighed in his heart and hurriedly rushed into the house.

Lying on the bed, it was the woman he cared about the most in his life, his beloved concubine - Mei Xilan.

She is still as weak as Xi Shi, beautiful and incomprehensible, with her eyes closed, lying quietly on the bed, with a gentle smile on the corner of her mouth, as if she is having a beautiful and sweet dream.

It's just that he never had a chance to wake up again.

Affectionate parting since ancient times, lovesick after parting, looking back, has been three lives.

He "poofed" and fell to his knees, his hands trembling, gently touching her face. The soft touch is slowly dissipating.

I waited twenty years to meet you, but you were so ruthless that you only stayed with me for ten years.

"Xilan, I will listen to you, I will never fight again, and I will only be with you at home from now on......" He pressed her hand tightly to his face, trying to retain the lingering warmth that passed quickly: "Open your eyes and look at me again, okay?"

Tears, little by little, fell on that quiet and beautiful face, reflecting a man who was accustomed to being strong, but at this time he was the most fragile and helpless.

Xiao Yan and Midnight's eyes were also moist. Just a little, just a little.

Maybe they can save the princess by resting a little less on the way, talking a few less digressions, and eating one less piece of dry food. Xiao Yan thought to himself. He didn't know if Hu Ji was also blaming himself like this at this time.

But life is like this, it is impermanent, it is up to people to make things happen, and it is up to heaven to make things happen.

The two of them stood silently, staring at the man's slightly sobbing back.

They found that Hu Ji suddenly did not move.

"Poof—"

Blood, spurting out of his mouth, soaked the bedding. In the next second, under the stunned gaze of the two, Hu Jida opened his eyes and slowly fell down.

"His Royal Highness King Zhang!" "Your Highness, Your Highness!" "Quick! Quickly pass on Langzhong! Someone, someone!"

In the midst of the panic, the silent Zhangwang Mansion was lit up, and no one could sleep tonight.

Mei Xilan on the bed, still with that sweet smile on the corner of her mouth.

A few drops of Hu Ji's tears converged and slipped from the corners of her eyes and fell, making a ticking sound that no one could hear.

......

Three days later, Princess Zhang was buried in a grand manner.

The ten-mile-long street is crowded with people, and almost all the people in the city spontaneously gather on the street to send their spirits.

Only Xiao Yan and Qi Zehui did not go. On the day of the funeral, Qi Zehui was eating beef noodles in the noodle restaurant, while Xiao Yan was playing with wine glasses next to him, in a daze.

Although the princess could not be saved, Hu Ji still booked Xiao Qi's accommodation in Nanning to show his gratitude.

"Why, how long are we going to stay here?" Qi Zehui asked as he drank the noodle soup and wiped his mouth with a bold sleeve.

"Don't ask, it's your question to ask," Xiao Yan drank all the wine in his cup, "Lang Zhong said, if you want to heal this injury thoroughly, you must recuperate, at least... I'm going to have to stay here for a year and a half. ”

"No," Qi Zehui cried with a sad face, "Although this Dali has good mountains and delicious waters, there are too many insects, and the mosquitoes are only the size of rice grains, but the bite hurts the heart-hey, hey, it's itching again, you scratch me, I can't fucking ......"

"Then you can hold it," Xiao Yan put down his wine glass and smiled nonchalantly: "Are you done eating?"

"Nonsense, didn't you see the bowl empty?" Qi Zehui glanced at him.

"After eating, you can go back first, I have something to do to go out of the city." Xiao Yan stood up as he spoke, turned around and left.

"Hey, wait a minute, where are you going?" Qi Zehui stood up on crutches and asked.

"Ride a horse and go out for a walk around town!"

"When the fuck did you know how to ride a horse?"

"I don't know, it feels like a natural thing, I'll be there as soon as I sit on it!" Xiao Yan waved his hand without looking back, and strode out.

Today, it was General Midnight who led the patrol battalion to defend the city, and Xiao Yan easily borrowed a fast horse from the barracks and went out of the city alone in the name of walking out of the city.

Did he really leave the crowd and go out of the city alone to walk his horses?

Xiao Yan walked out of the city gate and rushed all the way north. The trees on both sides of the ground retreated rapidly, and the only sound in his ears was the whirring wind, and he squinted his eyes to make sure that he was on the way.

I don't know how long I ran, but I saw that the road under my feet was getting narrower and narrower, and the surrounding scene was becoming more and more barren and terrifying.

But for Xiao Yan, all this is becoming more and more familiar -

That's right, he's "coming home" right now......

The horse under his crotch neighed, and he took Xiao Yan out of a dreary and gloomy wood, and the village that had haunted him in his dreams in the past immediately appeared in front of him—

Niujia Village, who gave birth to him and raised him, he returned. Xiao Yan took a deep breath, and even the smell in the air was extremely familiar-

Although the village had been destroyed in the fire a decade earlier, all that remains is a vast area of weedy and moss, surrounded by a small river that looks bleak and bleak.

But Xiao Yan was still very excited. He slowed the horse's pace and let it roam freely in the ruins.

And he himself closed his eyes, relying on his childhood memories, imagining that he was in that peaceful and idyllic little village.

Imagine, everybody's there.

"Brother Erhu, why don't you come out to play today?" he shouted to a dilapidated stone house.

"Big waterwheel, you're lazy again!" he whispered, stroking a pile of charred wood by the river.

"Uncle, aren't you going to give us a dough man today?" he muttered to himself as he walked to a ruined street corner and muttered to himself over the masonry.

Every time Xiao Yan walked somewhere, he stopped to look at it for a while, and like that, he stopped and stopped, and finally came to a small courtyard on the other side of the village.

It's said to be a courtyard, but it's just a courtyard in memory. The fire that engulfed the entire village started here, and now there is not a single house here.

Xiao Yan stared at the stone steps in front of the courtyard, as if he could still see the young self holding the ground tightly with his fingers, drawing a long blood mark on the ground.

He walked into the courtyard and sat cross-legged in the middle of the courtyard, quietly feeling the wind blowing from all sides, enveloping him like a barrier.

At this moment, a voice suddenly sounded behind him:

"Who! Who's there?"

Xiao Yan never thought that there were still people living in this abandoned village, so he let out a stupid "hey" for a while, and looked back in surprise.

It was a thin old man with a stiff figure, his face wrinkled like a crumpled orange, telling Xiao Yan about his twilight age. The old man was dressed in tattered clothes, but he was very clean. At this time, he was on a cane, glaring angrily at Xiao Yan:

"People who dare to invade this village, my old man will never forgive!"

The old man obviously didn't know who the young man in front of him was, but Xiao Yan recognized him at a glance: "Village...... The village chief?"

The old man hesitated for a moment, then asked tentatively, "Young man, are you?"

"It's me, it's me, the village chief's grandfather! I'm Xiao Yan!" Xiao Yan ran over in surprise, knelt down excitedly and hugged the old man.

"Xiao ...... Xiao Yan?" The old man's eyes showed a look of disbelief, "Xiao Xiao Yan, are you Xiao Xiao, are you not dead?"

"Yes, grandpa!" Xiao Yan cried with joy, "I'm not dead, I'm back! Coming home......"

"It's you...... It's really you......" The old man trembled and shed muddy tears: "It's okay...... It's okay......"

He couldn't help but stretch out his trembling hand, gently stroked Xiao Yan's head, and sobbed in a low voice.

Xiao Yan followed the old village chief to his home, which was not so much a home, but actually a relatively intact dilapidated house in the ruins of the village.

The furnishings were simple, with an old table, a broken chair, a stone stove with a pot without a handle, a broken bamboo basket with simple food, a simple fishing rod put together, and a low bed with a rotten quilt.

The only ornament is a one-third burned New Year's painting, on which a festive Fuwa is painted, holding the word "reunion", which is also a little yellowed at this time, and it is estimated that the old man picked it up from the ruins.

"Come on, come on, sit here, grandpa will get you something to eat." The old man estimated that he hadn't seen a guest for a long time, and his expression was very nervous and excited.

"No...... Don't have too much," Xiao Yan just wanted to refuse, but he was afraid of seeing the old man's lonely expression, so he quickly changed the topic: "Grandpa, do you live here alone?"

"Hehe, yes, grandpa has no children or daughters, and there is nowhere to go, so he simply stays here and accompanies everyone......" The village chief grandpa smiled, and tried his best to hide his desolate and lonely situation in his words.

The rice was ready, it was a simple thin rice boiled wild vegetables, Xiao Yan was not hungry, he ate very slowly, but listened to the old man's nagging very carefully and attentively. The old man said that he had cultivated a little bit of the abandoned fields at the edge of the village, and that the old man was barely enough to eat and eat a little bit anyway; when there was a drought, he would cut some firewood by himself, and then go on foot to a nearby town to exchange rice, and he said that the boss there was very kind-hearted and would give him a little more every time; it was a pity that he didn't catch a fish today, so he couldn't entertain Xiao Yan properly......

"Grandpa, did you bury my parents' bodies?" Xiao Yan asked as he took a small sip of the rice soup in the bowl.

"As soon as the fire started, everyone was stunned, and those who could run ran ran away, and those who didn't run died. It's the demon who took you away, and the monster next to him did it......" As soon as the disaster was mentioned, the old man's expression became very serious: "I am old, I can't run because of a knee problem, so I had to hide in the stinking pit that day, so I was not discovered by the monster and survived...... Big guys, I buried them. Alas, I'm really old and confused, how good it was to die at that time, a hundred......"

Since then, the old village chief has lived alone in the wreckage of this village. He was reluctant to leave, and from his words, Xiao Yan heard that the old man was very self-blaming, and he hated that he had no strength and failed to protect everyone......

Facing the people in Niujia Village, the old man felt guilty. This sense of guilt has been pressed deep in his heart for ten years.

The rice soup was so hot that Xiao Yan's hands couldn't stop trembling, and tears fell into the bowl one by one.

"Since you're here, then I have something for you. The old village chief suddenly changed his words.

"What, what?" Looking at the old village chief with four walls, Xiao Yan really couldn't think of anything that this old man could give himself.

"It's the ...... that your parents entrusted me with back then," the old man rummaged through and found a quaint little wooden box, "but strictly speaking, this is your thing." ”

"My ...... Stuff?" Xiao Yan was stunned.

"You are not from my Niujia Village, it was a dusk more than ten years ago, your ...... Well, adoptive parents, picked up from under an old tree in front of their house. Hehe, otherwise, the whole village is surnamed Niu, why is it only your surname Xiao? If I don't tell you now, I'm afraid that the next day the old man will kick his feet and take it to the coffin......

The old village chief opened the wooden box, and there were two things inside: a small bark engraved with his name, and another absolutely unusual—

A smooth and delicate jade pendant with rare material, full of ink, black and shiny. The shape is like half of a pair of yin and yang fish, as if it was cut out of the Taiji diagram.