The town is fresh and pleasant. The shredded sunlight was refracted by the stagnant water left over from the green bricks on the ground, and the town was very bright.

The boy ran through the streets of the town, his footsteps splashing slightly with the rain on the ground.

He ran through the deep moss-covered ancient wells of the town, bypassed the small dilapidated temples of the town, passed through the towers of the town's hanging bells, raised his head and shouted "Tao Yao" and continued to run forward when he saw no answer.

The town is called Nameless Town, not without a name, but just nameless.

The town is very old, and the ancient well, the ruined temple and the patinated bell on the tower all tell the story of the town's long history. Perhaps because of the ancient nature of the town, there are many cumbersome rules that have been passed down from generation to generation in this small town.

For example, there are several mountains next to the town that are forbidden for everyone to climb, for example, it is not allowed to throw anything into the dry ancient well, for example, on the night of the full moon on the fifteenth day of the month, all the townspeople close their homes and sleep peacefully when the sun sets.

In addition to this, there are many small customs and taboos. But the townspeople are used to it. It is estimated that only children will ask one more why, and then be absentmindedly prevaricated by busy parents with an answer.

"Only Uncle Jian won't. Uncle never lied to me, he just wouldn't tell me. Alas......." the boy sighed when he thought of this, "I heard that the academy will teach Gewu, physical arts, and the most magical Taoist arts. Last year, my master said that I was too young to let me participate, and I hope to enter this year. ”

The boy secretly clenched his fists to cheer himself up, and was about to speed up his pace, when suddenly there was a noise of a group of children in the forest beside him.

"Tell you to run, tell you to run, will you dare in the future?" a shrill and piercing child's voice came from the woods.

The boy stopped, tilting his head slightly.

"Tao Yao, do you still want to go to school? Dream about you!" the shrill and piercing children's voice continued.

When the boy heard the name, his originally round and lovely face suddenly became cold, and he walked briskly towards the forest next to him.

Inside the forest was a group of children about ten years old, punching and kicking around a stocky boy who looked to be fourteen or fifteen years old. The sturdy boy curled up on the ground and didn't beg for mercy, only occasionally let out a few whining muffled grunts when he was hit a few times heavier.

The boy walked directly into the crowd without speaking, grabbed a boy who was still beating people and threw him directly into the bushes. The other boy who hit someone only had time to scream and was thrown into the bushes. The other children finally reacted and let out a cry and dispersed in panic.

"The little monster is coming, the little monster is coming. ”

"Ye Mingke, you monster!"

One of the boys who led the beating scattered, but while running backwards, he turned his head and stretched out his finger to point at the two of them and sang.

"There is a little monster in the West Village, carrying firewood like a mountain and a big turtle. There's a big stupid thing in the East Village, no mother hurts, dad doesn't love it, and he can't fight back, he just hums. ”

He sang and sang, and the children who had fled in front of him also turned around, clapping their hands and singing as they ran.

The boy Ye Mingke walked a few steps forward with a small face to pick up the stones on the ground, and the children in front of him made a coax, this time he really ran away.

Ye Mingke turned his head and saw that Tao Yao, who was originally curled up on the ground, had already sat up, he squatted down, raised his hand and patted the stupid big head in front of him, and said helplessly:

"Tao Yao, why did you bully Li Yin again? It's not that you can't beat them. ”

"No, no. I can't beat them, and if I fight them, Daddy will kill me if he knows about it. Tao Yao scratched his head and smiled at Ye Mingke innocently, "It's okay, I have a lot of meat, it doesn't hurt." ”

"It's no wonder it doesn't hurt, I'll give you my uncle's medicine when I go back to my house." Ye Mingke rolled his eyes at him, "Let's go, the school entrance exam is about to start." ”

He stretched out a hand and pulled up Tao Yao, who was sitting on the ground, Tao Yao got up and looked at him and smiled innocently, and then naturally lifted the little Ye Mingke to sit on his shoulder with one hand, and the two figures, one big and one small, walked out of the forest.

"Tao Yao, have you passed the written exam in the academy this year?" Ye Mingke asked.

"Well, it's over, Mr. rated C. I've read all the books you gave me, and I've memorized them to get by. Thank you, Minko. Tao Yao replied.

"No thanks, but it's a pity that you've been carrying it for so long, but it's only C-class. But don't be discouraged, you may be able to get smarter when you enter the Academy. Ye Mingke touched Tao Yao's head beside him.

"How many grades did you take in this year's written exam?" Tao Yao asked.

"I didn't take the exam this year. Because I passed the written exam last year, I was still A, but unfortunately my husband didn't let me go to school. Ming Ke said helplessly.

"Why doesn't the master let you go to school?" Tao Yao asked curiously.

"The people in the village and my Uncle Jian all said that it was because the master didn't like our family. ”

"And the Master's argument is that I'm still too young, but I actually turned nine last year and was able to go to school, so I look too thin to be specific, more specifically...... He thought I was too short. Ye Mingke was quite sad and indignant.

"Still, I did be the shortest kid last year. But this year I've grown taller...... One, centi, m!" Ming Ke cheered up, sat on Tao Yao's shoulder and raised a finger high, proudly.

"Huh. ”。 Tao Yao touched his head with his left hand and said innocently, "I seem to have grown a few centimeters taller in the past two months." ”

"Shut up!" Ming Ke angrily rewarded Tao Yao with a brain breakdown.

"It's okay, Mingke, you can grow taller by eating as much as I do. Tao Yao said.

"The problem is that I can't eat too much. If I eat too much, I may get sick again. Ming Ke put his right hand on Tao Yao's head, and sighed deeply on his little face full of big troubles.

This year's test was taken at a different location than in previous years, by a small stream outside the village. When the two arrived, there were already more than a dozen children and their parents waiting by the stream. Children gather in groups to frolic and play, while adults stand together in twos and threes, like a market.

Tao Yao sat on his shoulder with Ming Ke, but he was a little overwhelmed when he walked into the crowd. Other people's children are brought by adults, or a group of friends, but the two of them have no parents, and they don't seem to have friends, standing alone, out of place in this noisy and lively world.

"Let's go over there. ”

Ye Mingke looked left and right and pointed to a big stone by the stream in front of him.

"Hmm. Tao Yao replied in a muffled voice, and led Ming Ke to the big stone.

It was a boulder more than one man tall, nearly two feet wide and nearly two feet wide, huge as a wall, and after passing the stone, it was faced with a shallow beach full of rocks, with the cool air of early morning humidity.

It's a lot quieter than the hustle and bustle not far away. Ye Mingke was very satisfied with this, patted Tao Yao's shoulder and asked him to put himself down, and then stepped on the stones in the shallows to play in three steps and two jumps.

"Smack"

He stepped on a moss-stained boulder, stepped unsteadily into the shallow water, made a big splash, and the moment he tilted his body, out of the corner of his eye, he seemed to see a white figure on the shore.

He stood up again and looked carefully, it was a girl sitting on the other side of the stone, wearing a white dress, quietly, holding her knees and looking at the slowly flowing green stream in front of her.

It was a quiet girl.

Minke subconsciously felt a little embarrassed to disturb the quiet. Carefully, gently jumping over a few stones, he came to the girl's side.

The girl still looked at the stream quietly, as if she hadn't noticed Minke's approach. Minke sat down next to the girl and followed the girl's gaze to the stream.

"Are you looking at the shadow of the wind?"

A cool breeze blew from the surface of the stream, stirring the turquoise water. The surface of the stream ripples finely, and the people, trees, and sky reflected in the water swayed into a rippling water.

"Not really. The girl turned her head to look at Mingke beside her. Her voice was very soft, as if she was afraid of waking up something, and she looked at Ming Ke's eyes beautifully, but it seemed to be filled with a layer of misty fog, hazy.

She said: "I feel that this green stream is like a reflection in the water, like a dream, as if the wind blows, as if as soon as you open your eyes, it will disappear." ”

Ye Mingke looked at the thin and slender girl in front of him, and suddenly felt that she was so quiet and beautiful that she was like a reflection in the water, like a dream.