phoenix tweet

Luo Tian's voice woke up everyone in the boat.

"What?" Yaobai asked blankly, then broke away from Wen Bufan's hand and ran over.

Luo Tian tremblingly pointed into the water, "Look, I was scared to death! Did you see it? Is it a dragon?"

The river is wide and the current is not rushing.Yaobai lowered his head to look at the place pointed by Luotian, he couldn't see anything clearly through the muddy river water, but if he looked at it with a blink of an eye, he would feel that it was the sediment upturned by the current at the bottom of the river, going up and down with the current.

Ke Yaobai's eyes are those of birds, enough to see clearly what's on the bottom of the water.It was clearly an adult dragon that had been dead for a long time.The garcinia-yellow nails have been soaked to the point of fading away from the body, and they will stick to the body inseparably.The dragon's body floated slowly along the river, and its arched back accidentally hit the bottom of their boat.

"How could this happen?" Yao Bai murmured, no wonder the boatman said the river was not safe, it turned out that the Dragon King of Zhenshui was dead.But how did he die, why did he float in the water like this?Yaobai's mind was in a mess, and somehow he remembered his father lying in the grass last night.

Yao Bai held on tightly to the side of the boat, and the corpse at the bottom of the water was carried by the water for a while, floating up and then sinking. If it wasn't for not being able to sense a trace of the dragon's breath, Yao Bai would feel that he was still alive and well, playing in the bottom water.

His throat was rough, and he didn't speak for a long time, just staring at the dragon.After a while, he felt a warm palm gently covering his eyes, and then heard Wen Bufan's gentle voice: "Don't look."

Following Wen Bufan's strength, he buried his head into his arms and sucked his nose.

-

Because the dragon's body was too big, they couldn't salvage it and bury it. Wen Bufan stood at the bow of the boat and performed a simple ceremony of salvation, which was regarded as seeing him off.

When crossing the river in the blue sky and encountering a dragon corpse colliding with the boat, no matter how I think about it, I feel that it is unknown.During the second half of the journey, everyone seemed to be in a gloomy mood. Yaobai sat on the bow of the boat looking at the flowing water below, and Luotian also lay on the side of the boat in a daze.

The sun was slowly setting in the west, and pink-white clouds painted half of the sky.Yao Bai jumped off the bow and stood at the ferry for a long time watching the sky.Wen Bufan tied the green cloth bag on his back and got off the boat, saying, "Let's go."

The plain has a wide field of vision, and you can see far, far away at a glance.There are several roads before the ferry, leading in different directions.Heishui pointed to the widest one on the left, "Go this way."

This place is only twenty miles away from Heishui's cave, which is considered familiar to him.There are large and small market towns scattered along this road, and at the end of the road is Lingzhou City.

After walking for a short distance, the mood of the few people who had just been relieved became heavy.Yaobai remembered that the old lady in Wuyu Village said that Lingzhou was a living hell.The hell in his impression is slightly different from what mortals understand. The immortals have a long life span and do not associate hell with the fear of death.At most, I just feel that the Nether Hell is full of lifeless air, and the air is not very clean.

This is how Yaobai felt at the moment.It is clear that there is a big river on the side, the breeze is gentle, there are flowers and grass, and there is life everywhere.But I just felt a heavy and suppressed death lingering.

There were very few people passing by on the road, and occasionally I met one or two with haggard faces, and Yao Bai knew at a glance that they were people suffering from serious diseases and with a short lifespan.Several villages passing by were doing funeral affairs, and some had funeral processions, several people were carrying the coffin, and someone was playing mourning music to lead the way.Most of them were wrapped in straw mats or packed in old wooden boxes and carried out by two people. Nine out of ten people they met along the way were funeral mourners.

After walking for a while, they saw a man and woman who looked like a couple by the side of the road putting two tightly wrapped gray cloth swaddles into a bamboo basket.The woman was pale and coughed lowly.

Because they were special among the many funeral teams, Yao Bai and the others couldn't help but slow down and take a few more glances.The eyes of the couple were empty, and there was no sadness at all, only tears shed numbly.

Shuiyue took Yaobai's hand silently, and whispered, "Can you help them?"

Yao Bai looked over, and there were two babies under one year old lying in the swaddle, they were very cute, their faces were still flushed.Apparently they had just passed away, but unfortunately they were too small, and there was no regret and obsession when they left, and the remnant spirits had already gone far.

Yao Bai looked at Wen Bufan.Those who practice Buddhism will make a merit for sending a living being to rebirth in bliss. Presumably Wen Bufan will not refuse to convert the two children.

Wen Bufan nodded slightly, and walked towards the couple.

The couple looked up slowly and saw a tall monk standing in front of them.The man's eyes were bloodshot, and his lips slightly opened and closed: "Master, we don't have the money to do things, you can go find another place." After speaking, he buried his head and continued to place things like paper ingots and paper-cut figurines in the bamboo basket .Women kept throwing paper money into the fire.

Yao Bai quickly squatted down and said, "We don't want money, let him help your child." Yao Bai looked down at the two swaddling babies, and saw the child's slightly curled up body through the thick wrapping cloth. The nose suddenly became sour: "Let them be safe and not be bullied on the road."

The child's mother suddenly knelt forward and took two steps, took Bai Bai's hand, raised her withered and yellow face covered with tears, and called out: "Good man." Then she kowtowed to Wen Bufan, "Master benevolent, may you be kind!" You live a long life." She wiped her eyes, her chapped lips lifted a little, and she smiled, "It is said that the Buddha is merciful and can communicate with the dead. I beg you to entrust their brothers and sisters, and they will be reincarnated in the future." Come back to mother's belly, mother is waiting...waiting for them."

After the woman finished speaking, she fell into her husband's arms and burst into tears.

Wen Bufan sat cross-legged on the side of the dusty road, with his back to passers-by, and closed his eyes to silently recite the Sutra of the Past Life.Luotian and Yaobai called the two spirit beasts to squat in front of them and count paper money.

Heishui stood there for a while, pursed his lips and sat on the side of the road, took out the scriptures in his arms and read quietly.

They finally entered Lingzhou City when it was dark.There are a little more people here, and most of them cover their faces with scarves and walk in a hurry.Although they will not be infested by mortal diseases, they still wear their veils before entering the city.

The tragedy inside the city was even worse than outside the city. Entering the gate of the city, there was a simple shed, with a wooden sign beside it, with two big scarlet characters written: Mortuary.

There was nothing in the shed, only two rows of dead bodies were parked.Mosquitoes and flies buzzed in the shed, accompanied by a foul smell.Yao Bai couldn't help but took half a step back.

All around was quiet, only a few people were collecting the body.Not long after, a group of people dragged a cart, loaded all the remains in the shed one by one, and dragged them outside the city.Behind the cart followed a carriage filled with fodder and firewood.

It seems that those who had relatives were taken away, and those who were not taken away were dragged outside the city to be burned.

Continuing to walk into the city, we found more than one mortuary like this, and met many monks wearing monk robes and Taoist priests holding whisks. They appeared in almost every mortuary, either practicing or superseding.Some wandering monks will ask for some remuneration, which can only be afforded by people with some savings.More monks and Taoists travel together. They write their temple gates or mountain names on the flags, and after finishing work in this shed, they go to the next one.No matter who is lying on the ground, when they died, or whether there are relatives, they all read a few eulogies and send them off without discrimination.

They come and go quietly, carrying only one flag.

Yaobai was walking on the street, and he saw some people crying loudly, others numb, some dying and some living for the rest of their lives.He suddenly remembered what Huang Li said, when a dead mortal wipes away his past on the Naihe Bridge, he must forget who he liked, who he hated, who he was kind to, and who he had feelings for in this life.Once the avenue of reincarnation is gone, the next life will be another scene.Just like the pair of twin siblings, no matter where they are in the next life, whether they are far or near from their parents in this life, they will forget each other.

Yaobai thought to himself, if he lived 100 years, he would forget the past 100 years, even if life is endless, it would be boring.

-

Several people stayed in Lingzhou City.The epidemic made the city empty, and the business of the inn was not good and could not be opened from time to time.The shopkeeper only charged them a small amount of money and rented them a small courtyard with an atrium.The small courtyard and the main street are separated by an alley, not far away, but very soundproof.There are mourners on the street every day, and occasionally there will be funeral music, which can only be heard by sitting on the roof.

Wen Bufan went out during the day and went from one shed to another with the monks, while Yao Bai sat alone on the roof and looked outside.

Every day, there are countless remnant spirits patrolling the sky, and there are many spirits and monsters who will take a breath or two by smelling it.If a person's soul is incomplete when he goes to the Underworld, the ghost messengers in the underworld will try to replenish his soul and send him to the double gate.When Luotian came here, he didn't forget to share the worries of the ghost clan, so he was busy driving away the ghosts all day long, leaving earlier and returning late than Wen Bufan.

Heishui is unwilling to go out for some reason, and sits in the yard chanting sutras every day, and he can already recite the whole sutra smoothly without chatting.

Only Yaobai had nothing to do, he went up to the roof every day when the sun came out, and went home with Wen Bufan only when he appeared at the end of the alley in the moon and stars.

He actually doesn't like being here at all, he has very few memories of the human world, and mostly stayed in Wen Bufan's thatched hut. At that time, he felt that the human world was free and happy.Facing the lifeless streets every day, sitting on the roof to greet him, he is unhappy most of the time.

Occasionally, Yaobai began to miss home. He looked up at the sky with his head on his pillow, and the clouds drifted past his head.

His father told him to go home early if he was not having fun, and he wanted to go back.But every day when I saw Wen Bufan going out unmoved, I wanted to accompany him. I cultivated a little bit of the Buddha's relationship, and maybe one day I would cultivate the Buddha's mind.

Although Wen Bufan never said it, Yao Bai felt that he was not as indifferent as he appeared on the surface - Wen Bufan was very concerned about his lack of Buddha heart.

He turned over and sighed softly: It would be great if I could help you get the Buddha's heart.

Yao Bai turned his head and saw that something seemed to have happened in the yard next door, and everyone hurried to the main room on the left.He immediately sat up and climbed a few steps towards the eaves.

When Shuiyue first came here, he couldn't stay and always liked to run around and play. The people in the yard next door saw that he was well-behaved and didn't make trouble, so they allowed him to come in and play.The people living inside seem to be people who came out of a certain valley, and they have the same school inheritance as the Taoist priests outside, except that they don't practice Taoism but study medicine.

They claim to be disciples of Baicao Valley, and set up free clinics in the city every day.What impressed Yao Bai deeply was their elder brother.He is especially good-looking among the people in the courtyard. He has a slender and thin body, his hair is tied up high, his eyebrows are light, his eyes are thick and colorful, and he will show his white teeth when he smiles. He likes to wear purple clothes with a black belt.

When he was not going out to see a doctor, he often walked up and down the corridor, reading while walking with a book in his hand, a pen in his mouth, and his sleeves rolled up high.Sometimes I frown, sometimes I am suddenly happy, I bite my pen and meditate, and I lift my pen to write notes. I am busy all morning.

In the afternoon, he would sit in the courtyard, pick and choose among a pile of herbs, and then put all kinds of herbs into the stove to boil, and he would drink all the boiled medicines.Occasionally, while drinking, he fell to the ground and was carried into the house by other people who rushed over.A few days later he continued to drink.

In the evening Yaobai shared what he had seen and heard during the day with Wen Bufan, and specifically mentioned this matter. In the end, he rolled into bed and laughed together: "Do you think he is weird?"

Wen Bufan turned on the lamp, and his back stopped in the darkness.Seeing that he did not agree with him for the first time, Yao Bai was a little surprised, so he sat up and looked at him.

The two beds in the room were joined together, leaving only a palm-width gap in between, Yao Bai hugged his quilt and crawled to Wen Bufan's side.Wen Bufan took off his shoes and went to bed, pulled the quilt over his lap, and said softly, "I've heard of the person you mentioned."

Maybe it was because his voice was too soft, and there seemed to be some unreasonable sadness mixed in, Yao Bai couldn't help being taken aback.

Wen Bufan told him that the elder brother's name is Jiang Yuan, and he is the first disciple of the medical sage of Baicao Valley.Half a year ago, he and his brother Yanzhong came down to the mountain for a free clinic.He studies medical skills every day, he is mixing the prescriptions for curing the disease, and he drinks the medicine he boiled every day, he is testing the medicine.

Of course Yaobai knew what testing medicine meant, and instantly understood why he always fainted inexplicably.Every time he was carried into the house, there were always quarrels and scolding coming from his room, but he was always smiling.

Yao Bai thought, the human world is not so bad.

"He must be a very good person." Yao Bai said lying on the bed.

Wen Bufan sighed slowly, "Yes."

His next life will be rich and rich, smooth and worry-free, Wen Bufan added in his heart.

That night Yaobai and Wen Bufan fell asleep on the same bed. In his sleep, he was sitting on the roof, while the young man in the courtyard next door was standing on the porch, looking up and smiling at him.

Since then, he has to look next door every day.

Yao Bai listened to the noisy sound below, and faintly cried.He suddenly felt bad, remembering that Jiang Yuan didn't seem to show up for several days.

He spread out his five senses and slipped into the room along the cracks in the tiles.Seeing many people around the bed, the good-looking young man with bright eyebrows was lying on the bed at this time, his soul was almost gone.His eyes were still open, and the corners of his mouth were stained with dried blood.

Yao Bai was lying on the roof in a daze, and everyone around him was sobbing. He suddenly felt sorry for this mortal who had no friendship.

Jiang Yuan died, he poisoned himself to death.Yao Bai finally understood what Huang Li once said: "They are born in an instant and die in an instant."

It turns out that the instant is really just a blink of an eye.

On the day Jiang Yuan left, Wen Bufan came back very early, as if he knew that the next door needed a funeral.He didn't go home, he went into the alley and went to the next yard.

The free clinics in the city are still going on every day, and some people are still researching the prescription to end the epidemic.In front of the way of heaven, weak mortals are too fragile and too strong.

A few days later, it rained suddenly at night.Early the next morning, Heishui knocked on the door and asked if there was any stagnant water in the house.Yao Bai went out to take a look, and found that the entire courtyard was flooded, the rain had already covered the top stairs, and the entire corridor was soaked in water.He glanced at the sky, dark clouds gathered, and heavy rain was coming.Wen Bufan went out with an umbrella, and the rain hit the umbrella surface so that he seemed a little unsteady.

In the evening, Yao Bai took advantage of the light rain to climb up to the roof again.He saw waterlogged blocks, washed-out pavements.Jiang Yuan's fellow students sat in front of the free clinic booth to receive patients, and the water had already overflowed their knees.The Minjiang River in the farther distance can no longer see the river course, and there is a vast ocean everywhere.

In the fine rain line, an orange-red aura leaps up the clouds.After passing through the clouds, Yaobai appeared in his original body, and Phoenix shuttled through the thick clouds, and finally saw Qinglong Qingxiu, who was spreading rain on the clouds.

Qingxiu was surprised to see him, "Xiao Jiu?"

Yao Baifei flew over and stopped on the flowing cloud in front of him, shaking his water-stained wings, "Fourth Brother, how long will it continue to rain?"

He asked abruptly, Qingxiu was obviously stunned for a moment, and then said: "Wait, I'll take a look." He freed up a dragon claw and unfolded the calendar book, and said: "There are still seven days, why do you ask this."

Yao Bai looked under the clouds and wanted to say that I was playing in Lingzhou, but the word "play" seemed inappropriate, so he just said, "I am in Lingzhou."

"Oh." Qingxiu said: "Then you should be careful, the rain is quite heavy."

Before leaving, Yaobai suddenly remembered something, turned around and called Qingxiu: "Fourth brother, have you been busy for half a year?"

Qingxiu nodded, resentful: "Yes."

"Is it raining heavily in many places?" Yao Bai asked again.

It was very strange, he suddenly felt that something was quietly happening these days in the human world.Qingxiu looked at him, the dragon's head drooped slightly, as if recalling.Finally he nodded, and seemed to have some doubts: "Yes, it rains heavily in many places." Then he remembered something, and said in a low voice: "I met Lao Liu and Lao Qi a few days ago, and suddenly felt that it was a long, long time. Seeing them, it seems that everyone has been very busy recently."

Yaobai was stunned for a moment, the two elder brothers mentioned by Qingxiu, one is in charge of all the grains in the world, and the other is in charge of wars in the world.

In the end, he spread his wings and left with only a slight "oh", leaving behind gusts of wind and rain.

Sure enough, this heavy rain lasted for seven days and seven nights. When the sky cleared, Lingzhou was already a whole country.The sun's stingy light poured down, and the land had already fallen into gray and dark.

That night, Yaobai was scooping up the stagnant water in the yard into the jar, waiting for Wen Bufan to come back.In a blink of an eye, he saw a figure standing outside the door.

The figure pushed open the half-closed courtyard door, and looked at Yao Bai across the threshold.

The sky was dark, Yao Bai narrowed his eyes slightly, and finally saw the face of the person coming, "Third Brother."

"Xiao Jiu." Huang Li's face was tired, and his voice was very astringent.The inexplicable uneasiness that had lingered in Yao Bai's heart for the past few days seemed like a beast coming out of the gate, and his heart sank suddenly.

The wind sounded in my ears, and Huang Li's words hammered into my heart: "Xiao Jiu, my father is gone, I'll pick you up."