Forbidden City of Heze + Dalufei

After being awakened by the gentle but repeated knock on the door, Zi Luo opened his eyes, and the faint light coming in from the cracks in the curtains was still mixed with the blue color that had not faded. Pushing himself up on the big bed, he asked in a daze, "Who is it?"

"Major," the old butler's slow voice sounded outside the door, "I'm sorry to disturb you so early in the morning, is Your Highness in your room?"

Surprised, he immediately woke up. He turned his head and saw Junliu who was sleeping beside him, and quickly replied, "Ah... yes...! Please wait a moment, please?"

"Junliu, wake up," Zi Luo put on the trousers and shirt thrown on the bed as quickly as possible, and reached out to shake the young man who was still immersed in sleep, "Get up, it's already 05:30 !"

"Don't make noise... sleep a little longer..." Junliu frowned and turned over. Just as he was about to drag the quilt over his ears to cover his ears, the other party grabbed both arms and lifted him up. The bed fell off the floor with dragging and hugging.

Zi Luo leaned the muddy young man against the window sill, put on clothes that could at least cover his body indiscriminately, then pushed him to the door, and pushed him out.

"I'm sorry, he spent the night with me last night, have you been looking for it for a long time?"

"No, I didn't see anyone in his bedroom, so I came here directly," Peng Si smiled and looked at Junliu's messy hair, obvious dark circles under his eyes, and a stinky face full of protests underneath.If he wakes up too early, the low blood pressure will make him easily angry, and if other servants come to pick him up, his nose will probably be covered in ashes, "because he is unlikely to go to his parents' bedroom, and the other rooms have not been cleaned. Knowing that he will come here, I prepared two beds. Did you get used to sleeping last night?"

"Very good...the bed is very big, you guys go quickly, don't delay." Zi Luo said a little at a loss, just as his eyes met Jun Liu's eyes, he pulled his hand away.

"Xiao Luo, if you want to come to Xianxian Square to watch the ceremony, I will ask Xiao Yi to send you off, so you must come."

"Don't worry, how could I miss it." Facing his unusually serious expression, Zi Luo held his hand tightly and showed the most ordinary smile.

No one could say anything after that, Junliu reluctantly followed Peng Si's quickened pace, stepped barefoot on the warm printed carpet, and walked into the bright and soft corridor under the glass wall lamp.The consciousness that was still erratic just now began to settle down, and a certain emotion that had been lingering after the night was overwhelmed as if it had found an opportunity to take advantage of.

He turned his head involuntarily, watching the door of the room behind him slowly closing.Such an ordinary moment, for some reason, made him hard to let go.

Xiao Luo, how many things do you have that I don't know?

When the powder with a slightly fragrant smell swept over the tip of his nose, Junliu stared at himself in the mirror in a daze. The busy voices around him could not affect the silent question in his mind at all.A whole set of ironed military uniform and a pair of brand-new leather boots hung beside the door. His shiny black hair was being carefully combed and styled by the maid. There was a printed speech on the dressing table in front of him. This future He Ze The helmsman needs to live up to the expectations and make a decent pledge of adulthood in a high-profile occasion.However, even though the curtain opened so grandly, he couldn't concentrate on reading a single word.

"I'm sorry, Junliu, I'm sorry..."

Under the dim light, Zi Luo repeated this sentence, which forced Jun Liu to stop continuing to caress and kiss him, and looked into the other's eyes with disappointment.

Who wants you to apologize?He couldn't help clenching his fists.If it is not consensual, what is the difference between sex and rape if you can get pleasure?I can't be like Yanliang, who doesn't care about the other person's feelings at all.

"I don't want to reject you, I don't want to see you sad, so I thought, let's forget it, I don't care about my body so much, as long as you want, I can give you anything..." Zi Luo stopped Next, as if making a big decision, he continued, "But it still can't be done, because I can't respond to you, and I just know your feelings... So it can't go on like this, it will only make you more painful."

After he finished speaking, Wei Wei propped himself up from the bed and put his hand on the other's, his voice was not very confident, "It's useless to try to induce you, I... can't have sex with you. It's not just you, It should be said that I have no feelings for anyone."

"I should have told you earlier, I blame me for being too timid." The young man with gray eyes spoke calmly under his completely stiff expression at the time. During the whole process, except for Zi Luo's weak talking to himself, in the bedroom It was eerily quiet.During this time, Junliu didn't interject a word, but felt that Xiaoluo's face suddenly changed into an unfamiliar one, and those eyes that always crescented when he saw him turned into a well without reflection under the night.

"About me, don't you find it strange? Ever since I entered the Royal Military Academy, I found that I was different from others. I learned faster than my classmates. Every time I took a physical fitness test, I didn't dare to do my best. Even so, Endurance and speed are much above the standard of excellence, except for the accident when I was adapting to Michael for the first time, I have never been sick, and the recovery time after injury is less than half of normal people."

"When I was in Darufi, my mother was mentally ill and didn't tell me any useful information about me and my family, and my sister never told me, maybe she didn't know either. So after coming here, I started I am very curious about myself, and I have a lot of questions, and the urge to explore myself is getting stronger day by day..."

"... Your Highness... Your Highness?"

Junliu regained his senses, standing in front of the mirror, he had already put on the tailor-made dark blue military uniform. The tough fabric and precise tailoring made his tall figure look more upright and heroic.The maid standing aside had just finished wearing the shiny silver badge on his chest, and she used a soft-bristled brush to clean off a few hairballs stuck to the clothes. She was holding a mirror and standing behind her, waiting for his approval. .

"Is this okay?" The woman asked attentively, appreciating her masterpiece with eyes full of admiration.

Jun Liu turned around slowly, and was startled when he noticed his face in the mirror.

"What are you doing?" He hurriedly moved closer to the mirror, looking at his meticulously whitewashed face, goose bumps almost covered his body, "It's weird for men to put on makeup! Why do you make it so exaggerated? My eyelashes When did it get so thick? And the lips..."

"Because Her Majesty the Queen specifically instructed that everyone must wear beautiful makeup on important occasions," the women couldn't help laughing. They are all long-term servants here, and they have naturally become part of the family. The prince who grew up with him is not so much in awe, but more in love.

"You are so beautiful, you are very suitable for makeup."

"If your Highness doesn't like it, you don't say anything when we transform?"

They did it on purpose!He thought dumbfoundingly.I remember that when I was young, these women liked to dress him up, and they often brought their daughter's princess dresses and stockings with ruffles to trick him into putting them on.Not only did my mother not stop her when she saw it, but she also joined them and played with him like a doll that could change clothes.Junliu gave up arguing with them, took a piece of tissue from the table, and wiped away the eye-catching red on his lips.

He looked at the lips that were gradually returning to dim, and his thoughts drifted away again unconsciously.The temperature felt on his lips hadn't faded away, he only remembered Xiao Luo from last night, although he was lying in his arms obediently, but from those bloodless lips that opened and closed smoothly, there was a lot of words about him. Things that he had never imagined, no matter whether he had time to prepare for acceptance.

"Do you remember that there was a time when we often went to the library? At that time, I looked up a lot of information about Darufi almost obsessively. My motherland has very strict control over information. As a commoner, it is impossible to learn a lot from the country. A real event. But He Ze is different, the library of the Royal Military Academy is connected to a huge information base, as long as you log in as a student, you can say that there are all kinds of information about Dalufei."

"Junliu," Zi Luo paused at this point, his expression changed subtly.From the beginning, I walked cautiously on the edge of the cliff, but here I felt as if I suddenly stepped into the void and fell into the real abyss deep in my heart. "Did you ever play with a toy when you were young, which is a simulated battlefield model with a terrain sand table inside?" , flags of all colors, model tanks and cannons, and lots of plastic army figurines?"

Junliu walked down the stairs step by step, passed the butler who was standing at the door of the main living room smiling and seeing him off, and stepped out with still entangled thoughts.Outside the door, above the Xiaxi Garden, there is already a thousand miles of clear sky, and the brilliant and somewhat illusory fireworks are shining through the clouds, falling on the face, making people feel the first heat since the beginning of spring.He slightly covered the bright light with the back of his hand, walked leisurely towards the ceremonial convoy that had already lined up in front of the door, and leaned over to get into a polished black military vehicle in the middle.

"Have you noticed? Among those army villains, the general has different clothes and looks from others, but all the soldiers are exactly the same, in terms of height, shape, clothes, faces, expressions..."

The dark blue dress was heated by the sun, conveying warmth to the skin, but at this moment, Zilo's voice that was about to freeze was still echoing in his ears.

"I am that kind of 'soldier'."

Looking out from the window of the guest living room, the convoy downstairs has driven away from the main house neatly and steadily, passed by the dense shade of trees propped up along the road, and gradually moved away along the straight central axis road in the garden.

Xiao Yi, who was standing against the wall, turned his gaze back to the other side of the spacious room, with his back to Zi Luo, who was sitting on a sandalwood chair.The maid was helping him to arrange the air force uniform that had just been ironed. On the wall directly opposite to him was a large full-length mirror with a black velvet curtain, and tassels made of golden threads hung down on the floor that faintly reflected the reflection.

Except for the squeak of the woman's hurried footsteps, Zi Luo sat quietly from the beginning to the end, without turning his eyes, the focus of his eyes seemed to be fixed on an unknown place.

"...too many, it's really a bit crowded," said the room with a very low utilization rate, which had already accumulated a deserted atmosphere. Laughed, to reconcile the gentlemen who were a little dull early in the morning.

"You don't need to wear them all?"

Only then did Zi Luo turn his head slightly, and looked at the small pendants lined up on the table in front of him, his slight soliloquy still carried a little bit of uneasy taste.These are the souvenirs of various awards and battles, big and small, from his enlistment until he went to the front line. Now they have been carefully scrubbed and cleaned with wax that will make all kinds of precious metals shine brightly.

As the woman's white fingers pick up the next medal from the table, the unique hue of brass and rainbow lanyard suddenly arouses the interest of onlookers.

"Could that be the White Feather Cross?" Xiaoyi's eyes lit up, and he couldn't help but step forward to observe more clearly. The pendant, which was as big as a spectacle lens, became a bit inconspicuous due to oxidation, lying on her The plump and warm palm is even darker, and it is easy for people to overlook the value it contains, "It is the first time I have seen the first-class honor medal in the Air Force. Did you get it after the Battle of the Wa River?" ?”

"Yes," Zillo paused, before focusing on the other party's topic, "That time was really dangerous, almost died."

"Don't be humble. As far as I know, many pilots only get this kind of honor after losing their lives. You are very powerful. After being injured, you can stay awake and land smoothly. It's just that you were sent to the hospital as a hero. Afterwards, it can be a little annoying to have a large group of female nurses competing to provide care.”

Zi Luo froze for a moment, looked into his joking eyes, and the two laughed together.

This special medal was hung at the end, and Xiao Yi's gaze then moved to Qi Luo's absent-minded side face.Shooting down five enemy planes in one battle is not an unprecedented record, but the key point is that this young man from Darufi, after being shot by an enemy plane and bleeding profusely, decisively injected him with the painkiller injection he had equipped with him. Under the skin, with the strong analgesic effect of the medicine, he was able to concentrate on fighting until he returned to the base and climbed out of the cockpit covered in blood, his teammates didn't know he was injured.

It is dangerous to anesthetize one's pain perception during battle. In fact, it creates a channel for the god of death to approach him quietly. He does not know when he will close his eyes and fall asleep unexpectedly. This kind of quiet and gentle fear Often more difficult to overcome than excruciating pain.If it was an aggressive fighter who regarded fighting and destruction as his hobby, he felt it would be understandable, but the polite young man in front of him was elusive.

No wonder His Majesty the King cares so much, Xiao Yi thought.Therefore, he was ordered to investigate all the information that Zilo could find, except for the part of Dalufei that was really difficult to obtain.Although there was nothing obviously suspicious, but Xiao Yi's intuition as a secret agent was very keen. He was sure that Zi Luo was not an ordinary person, and it was not accidental that he appeared here.

"How much time do I have?" At this moment, Zilo stood up, looked at himself in the mirror, and asked calmly.

"Since you promised Your Highness to watch the coming-of-age ceremony, I will wait until the ceremony is over." Xiao Yi replied.

"Thank you for your understanding." The young man turned around and closed his eyes with a lonely expression. "I hope you can explain it to Junliu for me. I'm afraid I won't have the face to face him again."

Right below the main sculpture of the Kabun Monument in the Sage Square, the national flag of He Ze and the flag of the Allied Army have risen to the top.Although this is a rare and warm spring day, the wanton wind dance gathered above the empty square can still blow them violently.In order to see the elegant demeanor of the young prince, the four main roads connecting the square have been blocked by crowds of people.Strict traffic control seemed to have had little effect. As the climax of the ceremony arrived, people continued to squeeze closer to the rostrum.

In the center of the rectangular square decorated with flowers and colorful flags, young people selected from all over the country gathered. They were born on the same day as Junliu. They had received a letter signed by the king a month ago and were invited to participate in this royal ceremony. special coming-of-age ceremony.Amid the resonant performance of a fully prepared military band, the guard of honor, all dressed in military uniforms, has been neatly lined up under the rostrum, and while standing upright, they raised the bright spears on their shoulders to their feet , The metal butt of the gun collided with the ground with a powerful clang.

When Junliu approached slowly from the steps covered with the red carpet on the side of the rostrum, and his energetic figure finally appeared in the public's sight, the crowded crowd in the square was silent for a moment, and then suddenly burst out like thunder. The cheers and applause startled a group of pigeons perched on the windowsill of the bluestone ledge into the sky.

A wave of noise was heard in Ren's ears. Junliu, closely followed by several royal guards, passed the majestic guards of honor standing on both sides without turning his eyes. The obsidian coat of arms representing royal power was pinned on his chest The position closest to the heart reflects the colorful sunlight with the shaking of the body.Stepping on the melodious and sometimes soothing rhythm of the march, his steps seem to have crossed the misty mountains in the northern border of Heze, benefited from the perennially surging water system that is rich in four seasons, and the plains and mulberry fields that have nurtured the people under his knees since the savage age , with his root blood that has been gradually isolated in the thousands of years of inheritance, he stepped heavily on the last step.At the end of the altar as far as he could see, there appeared a 12-year-old girl holding a sapphire bowl.

12 years old is the peak of human vitality. Few children will get sick or die at the age of 12. Once this age is passed, the functions of the human body will begin to decline.

"The soldiers produced by Dalufei have stronger physiques and longer peak vitality. We can better adapt to the environment and maintain combat effectiveness on the battlefield where the wind is sleeping, the plague is rampant, and injuries are commonplace. But the truth It’s much more than that.”

"Their ideal soldier is a weapon that can be mass-produced in a factory. It is a weapon of obedience. It is the bricks and tiles of a tower of power. It does not need higher intelligence or a clearer sense of self. Apart from destroying and the ability to withstand damage, and do not require them to perform other functions that humans possess."

"You can understand, Junliu? If there is any natural duty for creatures including humans, the most important thing is to reproduce and continue the race. In this process, they will learn and evolve, according to the laws of nature All the laws given to them, birth, old age, sickness and death."

"However, such mass-produced soldiers are just tools of war, and no meaning will be born in this process! Their bodies can withstand endless repeated damage, and they will not be rested like ordinary people. They have no desire for sex, so they will not have the right to love between men and women, and they will not even have the blood bond born from this. If they are further improved, they will not even have self-awareness, like a killing machine made of meat The machine only feeds the feed every day, and then follows the instructions of the operator to hurt each other!"

"This is what Dalufei is doing secretly, but He Ze, the only one who can stop it, acquiesced in such an unethical thing because of the war deal, and even regarded the results of the soldier's project as a bonus from the other party. .Probably no matter what, any general will find such soldiers very useful..."

The pre-built altar is a structure imitating the remains of the ancestors. The four corners are lit with golden braziers that symbolize the prosperity of the four seasons, and a bright red handmade carpet embroidered with the royal family emblem is spread in the center.Junliu walked forward alone, adjusted the velvet cloak that covered his body slightly, and half-kneeled in front of the waiting girl.

The ancient Heze people believed that girls who had not yet shown obvious sexual differentiation were the mediators of the gods. When they served as the hosts of royal ceremonies, they would wear long blue dresses of the same color as the water that raised this fertile soil, and wear open hair on the top of their heads. Crown of young thorns with white flowers.The thorn flower is the original form of the abstract pattern on the national flag of Heze. This plant with strong vitality and drought tolerance is said to be the first creature that the ancestor Kaban saw when he came to this strange world, so he was especially in awe. .When he and his followers were pioneering the wasteland, their skins were scratched countless times by the stubborn aborigines. Even if they were burned with fire, they would definitely grow more lush and bloom wildly in spring. The holy white flower is still full of thorns and cannot be picked.

Facing the scorching sun and the vast blue sky above the girl's high bun, Junliu closed his eyes, raised his head slightly, and let the girl's tender and delicate hands brush away the black hair on his forehead, and then dipped the sunflower in the sapphire container. The water from the source of the river gently scrubbed his smooth forehead.The cold mountain spring dripped on his eyelashes, and then slid down his straight nose to the corner of his lips, causing a lingering sadness for no reason.

Xiao Luo, are you in pain?

I can imagine that the calm demeanor you had when you narrated that day is how you have to chew and grind the pain in your heart so that you don't appear so depressed and ugly.It was the first time you said this deeply buried secret from your mouth, and it actually existed in the heart of the teenager many years ago.I remember at that time, when I saw you every day, you always smiled silly, shared with me what happened every day carefree, and confide some innocuous complaints to each other.Looking back now, there must be a heart shivering from the cold under that warm smile, and I would rather be sad alone in the dead of night than dare to reveal half of it to me.

You say you are too timid, so are you afraid?Do you think that if you say this kind of trouble without consideration, it will attract my contempt and alienation?Regardless of this kind of life experience of being randomly manipulated by others, just think that I am not a normal person with inferiority complex, do you think I will hide away in disgust?

The girl did not know when she finished her sweet congratulations, and stepped aside after saluting.The spectators in the square also completely fell silent.Now, no one's gaze is firmly fixed on the central position on the rostrum.In addition to the royal family members who attended the ceremony, there were also senior officials of the National Assembly and military generals sitting in the audience, and the mainstream media of the five allied countries were also broadcasting the whole process live.Compared with the previous baptism ceremony, which was more or less performed, foreign dignitaries with a wait-and-see attitude are more interested in the speech and adult oath that Prince He Ze will give next.

Junliu calmly stepped down from the high platform of the altar, and walked to the podium decorated with flower clusters and the black microphone standing quietly.The March breeze passed over the endless shoulders of the crowd under the flag stage, stirring his hair continuously.He looked at the tens of thousands of people who held their breath and looked forward to it, and suddenly clenched his fists, crumpling the speech script he was holding into a ball.

Why don't you believe me, Xiao Luo?