Ancient Sword II Xie Lelianxin

A few days after the night visit to Yizhuang, Le Wuyi bid farewell to Fu Qingjiao and went to Langde free clinic with Xie Yi.This trip brought a lot of expensive medicinal materials. Le Wuyi was worried about encountering robbers on the way, so he specially invited Li Yuanhua, the guard of the rest hall, as his accompanying guard.

"Brother Li will help with the night watch, so we can rest more at night." Le Wuyi raised the curtain of the car and motioned Xie Yi to get in the car, "He fought with my father in the past, and he also patrolled Chang'an City before entering the rest hall. Trustworthy and tight-lipped, master don't worry."

"So that's the case, Wuyi is still thoughtful." Xie Yi nodded, and took the car curtain from Le Wuyi, "Get in the car."

"Hey, didn't you agree that I would drive?"

"This trip, everything is in the same order." Xie Yi pushed Le Wuyi's shoulder lightly, and said softly, "You go to rest first, and I have to send you later."

Cars and horses stop and go, and when they pass by the towns where the victims gather, they stop and get off their horses, and raise a golden flag with bamboo poles.The four sides of the fluttering flag are covered with flame-like borders, with a big word "medicine" written on the top, and a few medicine bags and copper coins painted on the bottom.A red cross is drawn on the copper coin, which means a free clinic that does not cost money.

Those Kong Fang brothers drew round heads and round brains, which are cute and funny, but the handwriting on the top is elegant and unrestrained, and the contrast is so sharp that it is unforgettable at first sight.Within a few days, this banner and the word of mouth of the master and apprentice spread to the south. Every morning, people came to queue up to wait for the doctor, and they would not disperse until the bright moon was in the sky. During the day, the two had little time to spare. rest.

There were a little more patients that day, and it was already late when the free clinic ended, and the carriage did not have time to reach the next town, so the three of them could only spend the night on the side of the road and set off after dawn.

The master and the apprentice were crouching in the car to pack their things. Li Yuanhua came over and said, "I'm afraid it will be very cold tonight, so let me guard the rest of the night."

Le Wuyi hurriedly said: "Then I will come in the middle of the night."

Xie Yi lifted the car curtain and looked outside: "The weather in early winter is damp and cold, especially at night, it's no different from sleeping in the car."

The car was packed to the brim, and there was only a narrow aisle in the middle that could barely accommodate two grown men.Le Wuyi spread out the blanket, thinking that Xie Yi and Li Yuanhua would lie here side by side with him after they changed shifts, his face became hot: "I'll just sleep in the carriage."

Xie Yi glanced at the bedding on the ground, shook his head and sighed: "Oh, the night dew is cold, as a teacher, I wanted to cover you with the quilt, maybe it can be warmer... But I forgot that I am not a child. This place is really narrow Little one, you stay here and borrow a tent from Guard Li for your teacher."

"Hey, wait!" Le Wuyi grabbed Xie Yi who turned around and got out of the car, "It's all right, it's not crowded, I can sleep." He scratched his head again and said, "I don't sleep well, I'm afraid I'll disturb Master... If you are woken up by me, Master, please don't dislike me."

The phalanx-like branches pierced the sky, drawing out a half-circle of the cold waning moon.The cold wind whizzed past the carriage, blowing the curtains open and close, and the copper bells tied to the flags jingled.Xie Yi went on night duty, and Le Wuyi was surrounded by the darkness full of the strong smell of medicine. He listened to the wind and bell outside the car, and stayed up half the night unknowingly.

At about three o'clock, the man returned to the carriage, gently lifted the quilt with a cold body, and soon fell asleep leaning against the young man.

Le Wuyi turned over, wanted to get closer to Xie Yi, but accidentally pulled most of the quilt over.He quickly propped himself up on his elbows, leaned on the man's body, and tucked the other side of the quilt tightly for him.

The man under him fell asleep peacefully, with a warm breath lingering in his nose and ears, carrying the familiar scent of medicine.Le Wuyi pursed her lips tightly, and after tucking in the cotton quilt, she still maintained this almost hugging posture, and lowered her head to listen to his breathing.They were close to each other, breathing together but not touching, until the arms were so sore that they couldn't hold it anymore, the boy reluctantly lay back to the original place.

I'm sorry, I'm your disciple, I shouldn't...

Le Wuyi clenched the quilt tightly, and the heat of breathing seemed to remain on the pinnae, reminding him of the cool and creamy smear on the back of the ears that night, the bluestone slabs under the moonlight, and the overlapping figures... His cheeks became hot in an instant, and his heart pounded against his breastbone. He stretched out his hand and groped through the slippery quilt inch by inch until he touched the cool skin on the back of the man's hand.He opened his eyes wide in the darkness, and touched tentatively. Hearing that the other party was still breathing deeply, he dared to slowly put those knuckle fingers into his palm.

Tears slid down the corners of his eyes and landed on the bedding.Le Wuyi closed her eyes, waited quietly until the drowsiness came over, and opened her hands lightly.

The man next to him was still sleeping soundly, with a long breath, like a sigh.

In the early morning of the next day, the master and the apprentice counted the medicinal materials and found that most of them were about to be used up.

"It can last for four or five days at most." Xie Yi closed the medicine box, turned around and saw Le Wuyi's two green shadows, yawning with his mouth open.

"Did you sleep well last night?"

"...cough, it's okay, it's okay." Le Wuyi unfolded the map to cover his flushed cheeks, and cleared his throat, "It's not too far to walk along the post road for two or three days. I'll go on my way first. Master drove the carriage slowly, I bought the medicinal materials and turned back the same way, just in time to meet Master."

Xie Yi pondered and said: "Although we didn't encounter any bandits during this trip, Zhan Xiaoyu is less than a hundred miles away from Langde, I'm afraid the road ahead will be even more mixed, it's better for you and me to go together."

"It takes more than ten days to walk from Chang'an to Jingshui Lake. I was able to go back and forth alone a few years ago... Don't worry, Master, I will be careful on the way."

There were already people waiting outside the car, Xie Yi was silent for a while before nodding, and ordered Li Yuanhua to go with him.

"I'll be back after five or six days. Master also needs to rest early. Don't stay up late while I'm away!" Le Wuyi jumped on the horse, pulled the rein and turned around a few times, and thanked Li Yuanhua after he followed up. Yi waved his hand smartly.

The raised dust floated in the morning light, blurring the distant figure.The indigo robe blended with the blue sky and loess, but the ponytail behind his head was still swaying in front of Xie Yi's eyes, as if waving goodbye.

The closer you get to Langde, the more dire the situation becomes.

Although Emperor Xuanhe ordered the neighboring counties of Bozhou to cooperate in disaster relief, Langde is located in the south and has been independently managed by chieftains for many years, and has little contact with the neighboring county government.Le Wuyi walked all the way, and everywhere he saw yellow and thin people sleeping on the street, he gritted his teeth and looked away, tightening the reins and urging the horse to go fast.

Three days later in the evening, Le Wuyi and Li Yuanhua came to Zhan Xiaoyu.

Zhanxiyu is the former imperial city, with thousands of residents, wide and flat streets, orderly houses, and many nearby villages, Langdezhai is one of them.Due to the flooding half a year ago, there were [-]% to [-]% fewer merchants coming and going, and the sky turned dark, and most of the shops along the street were closed. The two walked for a long time before finding an inn, and decided to rest for the night before doing shopping the next day.

Meals are provided in the hotel lobby, but there are only a few diners after the meal time.The damp and cold wind penetrated through the gap in the door, Le Wuyi chose a table in the back and sat down, but the waiter who came to greet him said that there were only steamed buns and pickled vegetables left in the stove.

"Oh, please trouble Brother Li to come with us this trip. It's rare to pass by a big town. I wanted to treat you to something good. I'm really sorry."

"Hey, it would be nice to have hot steamed buns. When I fought with General Le, I even chewed the bark."

Although Le Shaocheng has been in business for many years, Li Yuanhua still insists on calling him General Le.The man took a big bite of the steamed bun and said with a hearty smile, "I thought it would take a few more days on the road, but I didn't expect you to ride a horse very well. Was it General Le who taught you?"

Le Wuyi nodded: "I used to go to Master's place every year to escape the summer heat, and I had to ride a horse for more than ten days. I learned it when I was in my teens."

"Haha, I understand. When I was young, I was just like you. I only wanted to show off in front of beautiful girls."

"No, I didn't think about it." Le Wuyi shook his head, "When I was a child, I was short and thought that I could see farther on a horse, and I could see the scenery that Master saw... No, I was too young at that time, There are many things that I still don’t understand.”

The steamed bun in his mouth was a little dry, Le Wuyi took a sip of the half-cold bitter tea, and swallowed it together with the unfinished sentence.

-

When Le Wuyi was young, he and Xie Yi often collected herbs in the mountains near Jingshui Lake.He was born plump, and only reached the chest, and was dressed up like a golden boy who spread money, so he was always teased by passers-by——

Why does this little disciple look like a round gourd attached to his master?

After climbing to the top of the mountain on all fours, he was so tired that he lay down on his back, while Xie Yi would find a high ground with a wide view and quietly look to the northwest.

"What is Master looking at?" The boy ran back to the man after resting, but he was too embarrassed to let someone pick him up to see him, so he could only stand on tiptoe vigorously, and only saw some ordinary scenery for a long time.

"When Wuyi grows taller, he will be able to see farther." Xie Yi touched his head with a smile, "That is a beautiful place, I will take you there as a teacher."

"But, but I want to watch it right now!" Le Wuyi scratched his hair, "By the way, I will let my father teach me how to ride a horse. Next year we will ride a horse together. If we sit on a horse, we will definitely see what Master said place."

In the next year, he rode up the mountain with Xie Yi, but he still couldn't see that place.After a few more years, he was gradually able to guess the meaning of that "place" from the words.He was afraid that if he was not good at words, he would not be able to say enlightening words, which would only add to the sadness of his clothes, so he resisted not to mention that "beautiful place" any more.

……

"Time flies so fast. The first time I visited your house was the Lantern Festival. It has been ten years in a blink of an eye. That day, Mrs. Le picked you up and carried you into the house as soon as I got off the carriage. I was still in the yard I was eating Lantern Festival with everyone here, but I didn’t even see what you look like.” Li Yuanhua sighed regretfully, “Later, I went to work as a guard in the rest hall, and when I saw your master... I remembered that he was also at your house during the Lantern Festival that year. "

"My master?" Le Wuyi frowned, "Ten years ago, I was only eight years old. That winter... I did have an illness. When I woke up, I forgot my name. Fortunately, my mother was on the bed." Two years later, in the fall, I fell ill again, and that was the first time I saw Master..."

"Eh, Mr. Xie didn't tell you that he met you two years ago?" Li Yuanhua wondered, "Speaking of which, Master Xi was there that day, I remember she got out of the car with Mrs. Le... Didn't you say it?"

Le Wuyi shook his head, and was about to ask carefully, when he heard a noise coming from the door.Turning around, I saw four men in green kicked open the door and walked into the dining room proudly.

The man at the head of the four wore a blue-colored silk brocade robe, and walked to the Eight Immortals Table in the center of the hall like stars holding the moon. Shi Shiran sat down with the dazzling gold ornaments on his chest.

The clothes of these four people were very different from those of the Central Plains, for some reason Le Wuyi felt familiar, and his brain also felt a dull pain.Just as I was about to pour a cup of tea and calm down, I was startled by the sound of a piece of porcelain breaking and my hands trembled.

Li Yuanhua lowered his voice and said: "Doctor Le, I don't see how sacred they are, let's not cause trouble, and go back to the room after eating."

"Tsk tsk, there's nothing you want in this shabby shop. The cup is so dirty, it makes people angry to look at it. It's better to throw it away." The man complained in a strange tone, took the silk cloth handed over by the attendant, and wiped it slowly. Care for delicate fingers.

"Young one, I'll change it now, sir, please calm down." Xiaoer was used to seeing merchants from all walks of life, so he bowed in a hurry to apologize.

The man stared at Xiao Er and left, he couldn't find an excuse to make things difficult for a while, at this moment, the door of the inn was pushed open by a ragged child.The child didn't seem to be used to beggars, he didn't dare to look more after entering the door, he went straight to the Eight Immortals table in the middle and knelt down: "I came from Langde, there was a flood in the village, father took me and mother and escaped , I never thought that I would die if I got a serious illness... I beg you to do me a favor and give me some money..."

"Go away with dirty things, don't stain the eyes of adults."

With a bang, the broken bowl in the child's hand was knocked to the ground, and he was pushed backwards, with one hand resting on the broken porcelain all over the floor.He raised his hand in a daze, watching the gushing blood drop by drop on his clothes, he was so frightened that he even forgot to cry out in pain, only his eyes gradually turned red.

"If you don't give it, you won't give it. Why do you hurt people?" The boy with brown hair and ponytail slapped the table and rushed over, protecting the child behind him, and angrily questioned the man in green who made the move.

"Hmph, one or two, they are all brats from where they came from. It's really annoying to have a disheveled face, and your appetite has been spoiled." The man raised his thin eyebrows, and shot a sideways glance at the entourage, "My seat Teach the untouchables a lesson, some people meddle in their own business, Mingquan, what do you think?"

"You, get out, it's none of your business!" The muscular man who was named stood up and pushed the young boy who stood out, but was blocked back by four or two slaps.Ming Quan spat and punched the two of them, the young man hurriedly turned sideways to protect the child behind him, he couldn't dodge for a while, and was hit by the small medicine box at his waist.The punch was so strong that the mechanism on the medicine box cover was smashed loose with a click, and the medicine package in the porcelain bottle inside fell to the ground with a splash.

Ming Quan missed two hits in a row, but his hand was hurting, and he couldn't help pulling out his sword out of embarrassment. Fortunately, Li Yuanhua, who arrived in time, blocked it with the scabbard.

"Mingquan, stop!"

When the sword was on the verge of breaking out, another older man in green drank the spring and whispered to the man in the Chinese suit: "Lord Yufeng, Commander of the Grand Priest, I will bring him back quickly after we find Lizhu. Be cautious in your words and deeds, and don't cause trouble..."

"Hmph, this seat is the city lord's cousin, what is Shen Ye, who still wants to control me?"

"...My lord, please be careful."

Yu Feng snorted disdainfully: "A few years ago, he picked a few people to guard that thing in the Central Plains. Why didn't it come to me for the idle job? This time I called people back, but there was a low-level priest missing. Ye dared to send me to look for it in person. Jiang Boluo, listen, I just came out after a long time, and I won’t go back if I don’t wander around for a year or so, so what can he, Shen Ye, do to me?”

While speaking, the brown-haired boy who made the shot had brought the child back to his desk, and the guards left after collecting the dropped items.Jiang Boluo called Xiao Er to come over and pick up the broken porcelain pieces, he accidentally caught a glimpse of something falling in the corner of the wall, and ordered them to pick it up together.

But it was a half-old sachet.

Jiang Boluo picked it up and sniffed it, his expression changed slightly, and he handed it to Yu Feng: "My lord, I don't dare to judge, my lord must have seen Jumu with his own eyes, can I identify it..."

Yu Feng sniffed it a few times, frowned and said, "Why does it smell like ju wood? Where did it come from?"

"It's...that boy dropped it just now."

"Ju Mu is a sacred object in our clan, how can outsiders get it?" Yu Feng yawned lazily, "It should be other medicinal materials with a similar smell."

Jiang Boluo narrowed his eyes, watching Le Wuyi skillfully bandage the child's wound, pondered for a moment and then bowed to Yu Feng, "Tomorrow, my lord, please continue to look for Priest Lizhu...I will leave this matter to my subordinates for investigation."

There were many people around the carriage on the side of the road, and the word "medicine" on the banner was shining brightly in the setting sun.The woman in gray hurried on the way against the flow of people, suddenly turned her head and looked back, her eyes were fixed on the beautiful words on the flag for a long time.The crowd surrounded her and approached the carriage, and she suddenly left the team and hid on the side of the road as if returning to her senses. The wind lifted her gray smock, revealing half of her blue sleeves.

It wasn't until the last patient left that she ran to the carriage and opened the curtain with her hand.

"Miss, it's getting late today, please come tomorrow..." Xie Yi was taking cotton wool to feed the butterflies in the butterfly box, when he turned his head to see the woman's face, he was taken aback, "Is that you?"

"It's been more than ten years. I didn't expect... I didn't expect to see you again." The woman took off her hood, put her right hand on her chest and bowed deeply to the man. When she got up, the corners of her eyes were already red.

"See Li Zhu... Master Pojun."