Can't speak

When I met Ning Jian for the first time, Su Yan was only twelve years old, but Ning Jian had already been crowned.

Everything happened so quickly that people were caught off guard. Su Shi died of illness, and Ning Jian pressed his sword to his throat as he did now and asked about the whereabouts of the treasure.

At that time, he pointed to the bed board with a look of panic and said, "Father only asked me to burn the bed board after he died."

Under the bed board is a line of words.

On the fourth day of July, Huaxi in the south of the town.

It was late autumn at that time, and the fourth day of July had already passed, but the next year had to wait for a long time. Ning Jian was like a treasure hunter in a play. I have tried to be beaten all over my body, but I only answered "I don't know" from beginning to end.

After half a year like this, Ning Jian gradually believed that he really didn't know anymore, but still stayed in Crescent Moon Town, waiting to go to Huaxi on the fourth day of July next year.

The young Su Yangui fell ill due to physical torture and inner panic. During the days when he was so ill, Ning Jian hugged him and guarded him all day long. When he woke up in the middle of the night, he lay in Ning Jian's arms and cried. Ning Jian would also silently stroke his head.

From then on, Su Yangui always felt that Ning Jian was actually a gentle and kind person.

On the fourth day of the seventh month of the following year, Ning Jian took him to the small stream in the south of the town. He waited from morning to night, but he didn't find any secrets about the treasure. He only waited for a boat with lotus leaves floating from nowhere. Similar line of words.

early.On the fourth day of July, at the cemetery in the north of the city.

If it weren't for the word "Chu", the line of characters would not be much different from the one under the bed board.Ning Jian studied it for a long time but couldn't understand it, so she could only give up, repaired the Su family's house, and prepared to wait.

He began to teach Su Yangui how to practice martial arts to strengthen his body, and let Su Yangui call him his master. Later, he gradually stopped staying in this small town all day long and would leave for a long time every year.

But every year on the fourth day of July, he would return to Crescent Moon Town, take Su Yan back, and wait at the designated place.

The third year is "drunk", the fourth year is "month", then "invitation", "flower", "fall", last year is "snow".

Every year is a different place, with different characters, and I don't know the meaning, but Ning Jian never gave up, and never showed a trace of impatience.

His patience has never been better.

"Anyway, what I know, you know almost everything, what's the matter?" Pulling away from the memory, Su Yangui smiled and said casually.

The sword on the neck was embedded halfway, and it seemed to have drawn a shallow mark, which made him feel a little stinging.

"I knew it earlier, but I told you from the beginning, you will kill me right away?" After a long time, Su Yangui finally sighed, "My father not only keeps the secret of the treasure, but also knows the truth about the current Holy Majesty. Is it the son of the Taizu of this dynasty, or the heir of the previous emperor... You were sent by the emperor for this, right? As long as you get the treasure and the truth, you will always kill me mine."

His voice seemed thin in the darkness, and after a long time, Ning Jian's voice was heard, calm and cold: "You know?"

Su Yangui narrowed her eyes with a smile: "I don't know. It has something to do with the royal family's blood, maybe it will be beheaded. My father loves me and is reluctant to say it."

The sword scored another half point.

Su Yangui lowered her eyes, but her voice was still unserious: "My father said that the truth of the year was buried in this mountain together with the treasure, and as long as the treasure is not discovered, the truth will never be known again. "

Ning Jian never opened his mouth, but after a long time, Su Yangui could feel Ning Jian slowly retracting his sword.

He cautiously groped towards him, and finally grabbed Ning Jian's clothes tightly: "Ning Jian, no one will know."

Ning Jian was silent for a long time, without any response, she just asked again: "Did you engrave the words under the bed board back then?"

"How is it possible? When my father died, you arrived earlier than me, right?" Su Yangui paused, "My father wrote it down on the fourth day of July, Huaxi in Zhennan, and he picked it up. To my day and place. At that time, I only thought that this would delay for a while, so I said it.”

"The latter ones are all fake, too?"

From Ning Jian's words, he couldn't hear his emotions at all, but Su Yangui's heart still trembled, and it took a long time before he said: "The places and things are all fake, and the words are true. About the treasures of the previous dynasty, my father just told I don’t know what the words mean, what the words mean.”

"How many more words?"

"One." Su Yangui smiled, his eyes narrowed. "From the time I was 12 to the day I lifted the crown this year, that's all. I've lived to be an adult at least."

Just when he finished speaking, he seemed to see Ning Jian turned his head to look at himself in the darkness.

Su Yangui's smile deepened: "Chu, Zui, Yue, Invitation, Flower, Luo, Xue, and the last word is 'fly'... so what if you know?"

Ning Jian didn't speak any more, Su Yangui waited for a long time, and finally couldn't help but get closer: "Ning Jian?"

"Let's go." Ning Jian said suddenly.

Su Yangui was stunned for a moment: "Where are you going?"

"Go forward. There are still Qin Yueshu's troops outside and those who are eyeing people in the rivers and lakes. We may not be able to escape. And when we suddenly disappear in such a place with nowhere to go, Qin Yueshu can easily guess where we are going. If we can come in, they will be able to find the entrance, we can't just sit here and wait for death."

Ning Jian always looks very serious when analyzing things, but Su Yangui thinks he is very cute like this.At this time, after hearing him say a lot of words, I couldn't bear it anymore and hugged him: "Ning Jian!"

"Call Master." Ning Jian answered very smoothly, and Ning Jian didn't struggle, but just tapped his hand with the hilt of his sword.

Su Yangui gave up in pain, but still pulled a corner of his clothes: "Ning Jian, will you kill me if you find the treasure?"

For eight years, he had never asked such a question.

As long as Ning Jian got what he wanted, he would no longer be useful. He used to be the person closest to those secrets. Whether he killed him or put an end to future troubles, Ning Jian would kill him no matter what.

But he will keep a trace of imagination in his heart.Maybe this person will develop feelings for himself during these eight years, maybe this person will be reluctant to kill himself?

"I like you very much. For you, I can do anything. So, are you still going to kill me?"

There was a suffocating silence in the darkness, Ning Jian was always quiet, and Su Yangui didn't ask any more questions.

He dare not ask, will you be reluctant?

After an unknown amount of time, Ning Jian replied, so flat that she couldn't hear any meaning: "En."

Su Yangui tried her best to look in Ning Jian's direction, but couldn't see anything.After a while, he suddenly sat down on the ground.

"Then don't look for the treasure." There was a rogue in his voice, "If no one can find the entrance, let's starve to death here together!"

"What nonsense!"

It seemed that Ning Jian had never heard such an angry voice in his memory. Su Yangui felt a pain in his heart, but he spoke more vigorously: "I only know how to get in, but I don't know how to get out. If you can't get out, you don't have to." Kill me, let's die here together."

We die together.The same words have been repeated many times, but this person always treats it as a child's nonsense.

Su Yangui thought that Ning Jian's sword would be on his neck again in the next moment, but after a while, there were soft footsteps in the darkness.

Su Yangui panicked all of a sudden, rushed towards the direction of the voice, and hugged the man's waist in a disorganized way: "Where are you going, Ning Jian? Without me, you must not find the treasure!"

"I can't die here." Ning Jian said every word.

"Why can't you give up the treasure? You have to be so loyal to the emperor?" He said excitedly, but the feeling of holding that person in his hands became a little bit real. Su Yangui couldn't help tightening his hands, pregnant The warmth and softness of the middle-aged man made his heart flutter, and he couldn't continue to say the following words.

"Third brother is still waiting for me in the capital. I said that I will definitely take him out of the capital, so he must not die here."

"Who is the third brother?"

Ning Jian was silent, as if she didn't understand why Su Yangui still asked: "The third brother is the third brother."

Su Yangui couldn't even speak.

Ning Jian had never mentioned this person before, but now he said it so naturally that he could clearly understand the meaning of this "third brother" to Ning Jian.

After a long time, he finally couldn't bear to ask: "You have been looking for the treasure and the truth about the royal blood, because of your third brother?"

Ning Jian didn't answer, but Su Yangui knew that he had admitted it.

"A very important person?" After asking, he didn't wait for Ning Jian's answer, but consciously let go of Ning Jian, and said very straightforwardly, "I'll accompany you to find the treasure."

"Why?" Ning Jian's words were full of doubts, but he didn't know whether he was asking why Su Yangui accompanied him, or why he suddenly changed his mind.

Su Yangui smiled: "Of course it's because without me, you wouldn't be able to find it. If you want to move forward, how can I stay here? It's only worthwhile to die with you."

"I won't die here."

"I know, I know..." Su Yangui responded with a smile, while taking out the torch that was in his waist before and lighting it.As the flames lit up, the surrounding scenery gradually became clear. In front of the two of them was a dark corridor, all the way forward.

Ning Jian tightened her hand holding the sword: "Let's go."

Su Yangui nodded, passed Ning Jian and walked ahead unobtrusively.

The corridor was very long, and the two of them walked in it, the sound of their footsteps echoing in their ears, carrying a trace of gritty mystery.It seems that there is a wind blowing from nowhere, the light in Su Yangui's hand is swaying, and the shadows of the two are reflected on the wall, twisting and shaking, like ghosts.

After walking for an unknown amount of time, it suddenly became clear that there was a light shining from above, Su Yangui blew out the fire, and the surrounding scenery gradually became clearer.

What they saw was an extremely spacious stone room. There was a night pearl embedded in each of the four corners above the stone room. The pearl was as big as a fist. Although it couldn't illuminate the entire stone room, it still allowed people to see the outline of the room clearly.

Su Yangui looked up at the night pearl, and couldn't help sighing: "Sell these four pearls, enough for me to eat for a lifetime, and I don't want any treasures."

Ning Jian looked at him in astonishment, and then turned his head away, but Su Yangui noticed it keenly, and walked over with a smile: "Ning Jian, tell me, am I right?"

Ning Jian didn't look at him, and said after a long while: "The things that are randomly placed like this, I really don't know how precious the real treasure is. If someone else sees these four luminous pearls, they will only yearn for the treasure even more. Will be like you, not thinking about making progress.”

With another arrow of "not thinking about making progress" stuck in his heart, Su Yangui clutched his chest with a hurt face: "Ning Jian, are you also greedy for that yellow and white thing?"

"Only they can exchange my third brother's freedom, so naturally I won't give it up."

Pretending not to hear, Su Yangui turned to look into the stone room.

The four sides of the stone room are square, and there is a door on each of the other three sides, which seems to be made of gold and stone, and its weight can be felt from a distance.

In the center of the stone room are nine stone piles, arranged in three rows and three columns, neatly arranged, about half the height of a person, with a flat top, thick enough for a person to barely stand on it.

"What is this?" Su Yangui looked at the nine stone pillars and walked towards the door on the right.

"Be careful!" Ning Jian yelled, and stretched out his hands to pinch his shoulders and pulled him towards her, "I don't know what mechanism there is."

Su Yangui's gaze shifted from Ning Jian's face to his hands clamping her shoulders, and finally he smiled:

"It's the danger that makes me go." As he spoke, he pulled Ning Jian's hand away, squeezed it again, and then quickly ran towards the door.

When he got to the door, there was no movement around. Su Yangui looked at the door for a while, and saw that the door was smooth, not to mention the mechanism, but there were no patterns or carvings. move.

"Ning Jian, come here and push."

Ning Jian had already walked to his side, and when he got out of the way, she stepped forward, with a little luck, pushed the door with one hand, and put the other hand over after a while, but there was still no movement at the door.

He slowly retracted his palms, and frowned habitually.

"Are you okay?" Su Yangui leaned over nervously, seeing that Ning Jian didn't respond, she reached out to touch his shoulder.

Ning Jian had already turned around and looked at the other two doors: "I'm afraid the same is true for those two doors. To open the door, the mystery should be on these nine stone pillars."

Su Yangui looked down at his hands, with regret on his face, and said: "What's the mystery?"

Ning Jian didn't look at him, but walked back to the exit of the corridor while thinking, and looked at the nine stone piles carefully: "Look at this arrangement, it seems like the meaning of the Nine Palaces..."

Su Yan returned to his side, smiled and said, "I will do this."

"You will? I remember when I told you, you seemed to be dozing off?"

Su Yangui scratched his head: "Nine palace calculations, the parameters of five elements, like a cycle. Two and four are shoulders, six and eight are feet, three are left and seven are right, nine shoes are one, and five are in the center. In fact, it is to move one to nine to three If you fill in a grid with three rows and three columns, as long as you follow the rules, the sum of each row and each column will eventually be equal, right?"

Ning Jian looked at him in surprise, and finally nodded. Seeing Su Yangui's smug face, he turned his eyes away and said, "If this is arranged according to the Nine Palaces Diagram, we will step on this table in order from one to nine." It’s probably enough to pass the stone pile.”

"Then I..." Before Su Yangui finished speaking, Ning Jian flew up and landed firmly on the stone pile in the middle of the first row.

"Ning Jian!" Su Yangui yelled in fright, and when she saw Ning Jian stopped there but didn't activate any mechanisms, she secretly breathed a sigh of relief and walked over, "What are you doing?"

"Stay away, I don't know what will happen." Ning Jian didn't look at him, turned around and seemed to jump to another stone pile.

Su Yangui stretched out his hand to pull him: "Come down, I'll try."

"I can't trust your martial arts."

Su Yangui gritted his teeth with hatred, but seeing that Ning Jian had already jumped up, his heart trembled inexplicably, and he rushed over without thinking: "No!"

The moment Ning Jian's feet touched the stone pile, Su Yangui wrapped his arms around his waist and pulled Ning Jian down to the ground.

There was an explosion on the stone pile behind him, and Su Yangui felt a stabbing pain in his back, and was bounced hard several times by something, he snorted, but firmly protected Ning Jian's head with his hands.

The explosion gradually weakened, and he raised his head slightly. Ning Jian's face was only an inch away from him, and he could smell the unique smell of this person just by breathing.

Su Yangui was stunned for a moment, then lowered her head abruptly, and kissed Ning Jian's lips precisely.

The touch of lips to lips is only an instant thing, and maybe even the warmth felt is just an illusion.

Su Yangui quickly raised her head, jumped up and said repeatedly: "I didn't do it on purpose, I didn't do it on purpose."

Ning Jian also sat up, covered her mouth with the back of her hand, frowned tightly, but did not speak.

Su Yangui yelled for a while, seeing that he didn't even look at her, she couldn't help getting closer: "Ning Jian, are you angry?"

Ning Jian put down his hands and stood up, glanced at him, then turned his head to look at the nine stone piles, and said after a long time: "Since you said you didn't do it on purpose, why should I be angry?"

Hearing a trace of doubt in his voice, Su Yangui smiled, but the next moment she cried out "Ouch", her face was full of pain.

"What's wrong?"

Su Yangui pointed to his back, and said pitifully, "Maybe it's because I saved you just now, and I don't know what hurt my back."

Mingming was so painful that his voice trembled, but the word "save you" was said very clearly and forcefully.

Ning Jian remained silent, with no expression on his face, making it difficult to guess whether he was thinking or in a daze.

Su Yangui looked at him with bright eyes, and occasionally yelled "Ouch, Ouch".

After a while, Ning Jian came to Su Yangui's side: "Turn around and sit down."

Su Yangui quickly ran over and sat down, with his back turned to him, while turning his head, looking at his back, and at Ning Jian's face.The wound on the back was not deep, but it seemed that something had scratched it in dozens of shallow marks, and there was blood oozing everywhere, which was a bit scary.

Ning Jian took out a small jade bottle from his bosom, poured all the powder on his back, spread it with his fingertips, and carefully applied it to every scar.

"I want to save people because I know how to do three-legged cat kung fu, and I deserve it." The words were cold, but the tone was still flat. Ning Jian's hands were very light, and he painted the wound on his back, and returned Su Yan to the ones on his hands. The places on the road that were scratched by branches were painted again.

Su Yangui was afraid of itches, felt his fingers sliding back and forth on her body, felt even more like a claw was scratching her heart, couldn't bear it any longer, so she shrank back, and was poked by Ning Jian forcefully on the wound , and then sat back obediently, not daring to say a word.

After finally taking the medicine, Ning Jian turned to look at the stone pile again: "You know the mystery here."

Not a question but an affirmation, Su Yangui froze for a moment, then quickly waved: "I don't know!"

"If you don't know, why is it wrong?"

"Because I think you will be in danger." Su Yangui said it as a matter of course, while grinning and showing her white teeth, she was stared at by Ning Jian before saying seriously, "I just don't think it's that simple, this pillar The arrangement is like reminding others to follow the number of nine palaces. Think about it, although the entrance is secret, it is not impossible to find it. If the mechanism inside is so simple, the treasure will be gone long ago. Are we looking for it?"

Ning Jian pondered for a while, seeming to believe what he said, and muttered to himself: "If that's the case, how should we go?"

He thought for a while, then took out several copper coins from his pocket, and threw them one by one onto the stone pile. Unexpectedly, after throwing several copper coins over in succession, the stone pile did not respond.

"Maybe it requires someone to stand on top to touch the mechanism?"

Ning Jian nodded, changed hands with the copper coin, and threw it out again, but he didn't expect that when the copper coin fell, there was a flash of fire on the stone pile, and there was another explosion. When the copper coin fell to the ground, it had been cut in half .

Su Yangui stuck out her tongue: "Damn it!"

Ning Jian glanced at him: "Let's see if you dare to be a hero."

"If it was you, I would try my best to save you."

Ning Jian didn't answer any more, looked at the stone pile in the blink of an eye, and said, "It seems that it is not according to the number of gossip..."

Seeing that he was indifferent to her words, Su Yangui had no choice but to give up.

But Ning Jian was already concentrating on thinking over there, muttering to himself from time to time, Su Yangui was a little depressed at first, but now seeing Ning Jian's serious face, his mood couldn't help but rise again: "Do you think so?" Don’t think about it, just rest for a while.”

Ning Jian ignored him, Su Yangui sighed helplessly, walked to the side and sat down.

Ning Jian thought for a while, tried a few more times, and then sat down beside him, frowned and pursed her lips, without saying a word.

Su Yangui rubbed against him indiscriminately, and said with a smile, "Don't be discouraged, just forget it if you can't think of it."

"If you can't figure it out, you can't go down. I said I can't die here."

Once confronted with this problem, Ning Jian will show unusual firmness, Su Yangui's eyes dimmed, and then he smiled again: "But Ning Jian, we don't have dry food."

Ning Jian was startled, and turned to look at him.

Su Yangui looked at him and smiled innocently: "Even if we pass this level, who knows how long it will be. Maybe we can't even pass here, and we will starve to death, unless..."

"Unless what?"

Su Yangui grinned: "Unless someone comes in with dry food and water now, we... kill people and get more money."

Ning Jian glanced at him and stood up again, walked between the stone piles, picked up all the scattered copper coins, and continued to throw them one by one.From start to finish, not a single word was spoken.

Su Yangui could tell that Ning Jian was in a hurry.

Instead of waiting for people who don't know when they will come in, it's better to go forward by yourself, maybe you can find a way out.Even if someone came in, now that they were all injured, they might not be able to snatch things from others, and they might even fall into a more dangerous situation.

In fact, even if he died here, he didn't think there was anything wrong.But seeing Ning Jian standing there with a blank face and continuing to try, and seeing a rare trace of anxiety under his calm surface, he couldn't help but feel pity.

This person will always be his weakness.

Exhaling a breath, Su Yangui stood up, and began to look at the stone room he was in, but the place was too poor, no matter how you looked at it, it was just a square on all sides, three doors, nine stone piles, and four luminous pearls half-embedded on the head. On the wall, it doesn't look like any mechanism.

Over time, the sense of hunger and thirst became clearer, and I couldn't think of anything, but my body couldn't take it anymore.Su Yangui looked back, stopped and leaned against the wall, looked back at Ning Jian, her face was already pale, but she still persisted in tossing the copper coins, and couldn't help saying: "Enough, Ning Jian, stop first."

Ning Jian turned a deaf ear to it.

Su Yangui gritted her teeth, rushed over and hugged her waist: "Stop first, you're tired!"

Ning Jian clasped his wrist with his left hand and twisted it outward, pressed the sword with his right hand, and the sword was already in front of Su Yangui's throat: "I said I can't die here!"

Su Yangui froze there, unable to speak for a long time.

He had never seen Ning Jian like this, completely confused, and could no longer see the usual indifference.

After a long time, he said, "If you force yourself like this, it will only make your body more burdened and you will die faster. It takes patience and ingenuity to crack this mechanism, and it's not like you messed around like this."

Ning Jian stared at him, finally let go, and slowly moved the sword away.

Su Yan Guizheng breathed a sigh of relief, but heard Kuang clang, looked up, and saw that Ning Jian's sword had dropped to the ground, and she also fell forward.

"Ning Jian!"

Su Yangui was shocked, and strode forward to support him, Ning Jian also used his strength to stand still, and shook his head slightly.

Su Yangui hugged his waist firmly with his hands, his heart calmed down a little, and he couldn't help nagging: "I just told you not to force it, but you still insist on drawing your sword and putting it on my neck. See what the retribution is now." right?"

Ning Jian glared at him, sat down against the wall, picked up her short sword, and still held it in her hand.

Su Yangui sat down beside him very intimately: "You should rest now, calm down and think about what is going on with this mechanism. If you are tired," he patted himself on the shoulder, showing his white teeth , "Just lean on me."

"Very noisy." Ning Jian kept staring at the stone pile, but suddenly said two words.

Su Yangui was stunned for a moment, then understood, and sat there with her head down like a big abandoned dog, not daring to say a word.