Shanglin Night Snow

The water is bright and clear, and the mountains are empty and rainy.

After entering Guiyun Valley, Mu Yun prayed for his talent and believed that such a paradise still exists in the world!

All the way to the woodcutter path snake.Looking up, the green hills are verdant, the birds are chirping, and their singing breaks through the clouds.Above the mountainside, there are white clouds lingering in a mixed light.The cliffs and waterfalls rush down on both sides, and the snow turns and splashes, splitting several waterways in the valley and diverting them out of the mountain.There are strange flowers and rare trees in the road, attracting butterflies, dancing and bees to make noise, rushing to people's faces.Riding the horse and walking slowly, the wind blows through the bottom of the sleeves, as if bathing in the spring light, making the vulgar worries and dusty minds feel relieved.

Fascinated by the beautiful scenery of water and mountains, a group of people lingered and forgot to return.Unexpectedly, something unexpected happened.

At noon, the sun disappeared suddenly, and dark clouds gathered on the top of the valley. Within half an hour, torrential rain poured down.Everyone was caught off guard, so they had to find a cave to hide.

Although the rain was a disappointment, Mu Yunqi didn't care about it at the beginning: summer rainstorms are common, and they usually end in a blink of an eye, just a temporary phenomenon.Unexpectedly, the torrential rain lasted for several hours without any sign of ending.In the evening, the valley was still covered with black clouds, rain and smoke lingered everywhere, and the scene a few feet away was blurred, so it was impossible to tell the road.It seems that going out of the valley today has become an extravagant hope, so everyone has to hide in the cave and wait for the rain to harvest.Fortunately, there are mostly birds, stags and rabbits in this valley, and there are not many beasts, poisonous insects, snakes and ants, because as long as the rain does not fall enough to make the stream swell to obliterate the valley, there will be no danger of life for a while.

In the middle of the night, the sound of rain outside the cave gradually subsided, and everyone's hanging hearts gradually fell.After trekking for a whole day, Mu Yunqi was really tired at the moment, and it was the same with the crowd, thinking that he would have to go on the road tomorrow, so he didn't care about dignity, and each found a place to lie down by the fire, and fell asleep soundly.

It was light when I woke up.There was no sound of rain outside the cave, and Mu Yun prayed for peace of mind. He saw Huo Lanxian still sleeping beside the fire, but Shao Jingheng was nowhere to be seen. Instead, there were voices coming from the entrance of the cave. Words, I feel ominous in my heart.He got up and wanted to find out, but unexpectedly stepped on a slippery place, staggered and bumped into a stone wall, and immediately felt a sharp pain in his left arm.

The people in front of the cave turned their heads when they heard the sound, and hurriedly came to help.Mu Yunqi lifted up his sleeves and took a look, there were red and purple bruises on his arms!

"Why are you so careless?" Shao Jingheng raised his hand to touch his wound, but subconsciously stopped him with a twitch of his hand and the flicker of fear in his eyes. This is caused by blood stasis, immediately take the medicine and rub it, and it can dispel blood stasis and reduce swelling in a day or two."

Mu Yunqi muttered softly: "The medicine smells very bad..." Immediately, as if afraid of that person's rebuttal, he changed the subject and asked, "What were you talking about just now?"

Shao Jingheng frowned slightly: "I just sent guards out to explore the way. The stream that must pass through the valley is extremely flooded and the current is fast-moving. It is impossible to pass right now."

Mu Yun prayed anxiously: "Then what should I do?"

"If you haven't tried it, how do you know you can't pass it? Xiao Wang is willing to explore the way for His Majesty, let's try it first!" A voice came from behind, it was Huo Lanxian.After a night of repairing, he looked energetic.

"It's too risky. If it's not necessary, it's better to wait." Shao Jingheng turned to Mu Yunqi with a calm face, "Your Majesty, don't worry, as long as it doesn't rain in these two days, the stream will automatically recede. can go out."

"Then what if it rains again?" Huo Lan obviously disagreed.

"Then continue to wait!" Shao Jingheng's voice turned cold as he glanced at him.

Huo Lanxian shook his head: "Waiting like this, when will it be the first time? Xiao Wang is here as an envoy, and he has important business to do, so he can't stay for long, because he is willing to take the risk and ride his horse across the river! If it succeeds, he can return to the city quickly China and His Majesty move the rescuers."

"That's it, the King of Qi can do as he pleases!" Shao Jingheng saw that he was determined, so he didn't want to force him to stay.

After the matter was agreed, when the sky was bright, everyone had used some dry food and rice cakes early, and then they got on the horse and drove to the stream in a while.

Looking at the creek that soared overnight from a shallow, ankle-deep creek to a nearly ten feet wide, turbulent torrent, the trace of luck in Mu Yunqi's heart was finally wiped out.

Huo Lanxian taught people to probe into the bottom of the water with a branch and made a rough estimate. The shallow part was about chest-high. He thought that the bottom of the water had little difference in height and depth, and the depth was at most one person's height. So he let go of his worries and rode his horse across the river accompanied by his personal attendants.

The mount is tall and strong, and its water quality is acceptable, so Huo Lanxian and the three attendants were able to handle it well when they first entered the water. However, as they got deeper, the rapid water mixed with broken rocks and broken branches kept hitting the horse, making the horse panic. Then he began to struggle and restless, and everyone on the shore was worried when they saw it.

Suddenly, with a shrill neigh, a person fell from the horse's back and was instantly rushed downstream by the turbulent water, disappearing for a moment!And the driftwood that knocked him into the water was still spinning around, hitting the ownerless horse from time to time, making it neigh in terror.

Huo Lanxian was startled when he saw this, and he rode his horse with extra care not to touch the driftwood. However, his mount was frightened and went on a rampage, which wasted a lot of energy: although the horse can swim, but its ability is limited. However, the current situation is already more ominous than ominous.However, Huo Lanxian devoted all his attention to comforting the beast and avoiding the driftwood in front of him, without taking care of his back, which planted the root of disaster.

Just in the blink of an eye, several pieces of driftwood rushed up upstream, mixed with rocks.Hearing the voices of people on the shore shouting in unison, Huo Lanxian turned his head but it was too late, the driftwood and rocks rushed to him with the current!

Mu Yunqi closed his eyes subconsciously, not daring to look at the tragedy of that moment. When he opened his eyes, the figure that had just arrived was already in the water, drifting with the current, ups and downs.

"Grab the driftwood!" Someone shouted on the shore, and the people in the water swam to the nearest driftwood according to the words, and finally hugged the broken tree that was as thick as a human body, but before they could breathe a sigh of relief, they joined the tree together. Float downstream.

"Go into the water to save people!" Mu Yunqi ordered.

"No!" Shao Jingheng actually stopped him: "Your Majesty, going into the water at this moment is tantamount to disregarding human life!"

But how could Mu Yunqi listen to him?Ignoring it at all, he once again ordered the guards of the Imperial City Department who accompanied him to save people.

The guards took the order to take off their clothes and wanted to go into the water, but they were stopped by Shao Jingheng's personal guards.

"I order you to save people!" Mu Yun prayed furiously, and grabbed his clothes, "Shao Jingheng, do you want to resist the order?"

Not hearing the expected refutation or rebuttal, the man only faded out two words: "It's late."

Mu Yunqi was stunned, and turned to look at the turbulent river. The figure floating with a tree just now had disappeared...

"Shao Jingheng! If Huo Lanxian makes any mistakes, you should know the consequences!" Mu Yunqi's face was ashen.

The man's voice was light: "One, he may not die, and two, if there is a mistake, your country is provocative, and I am willing to lead the army to repel the invaders for your majesty, and protect the country and the border!" His eyes swept across the confrontation on both sides. Guard: "Warriors, it is our duty to sacrifice our lives to defend the country in the bloody battlefield, and it is futile to die recklessly. Because it is up to His Majesty to do it at his discretion, don't let the brave die for nothing."

"You----" Mu Yun prayed at a loss for words, turned around with a flick of his sleeves, and said angrily: "Shao Jingheng, you have deceived me too much!" Then he got on his horse and left in the dust.

Those who saw it were shocked, and they got on their horses and gave chase.

Mu Yunqi was short of breath for a while, and rode his horse just to get rid of those useless people, but unfortunately, the sky failed, and he ran along the river bank, passing through a small forest, and there was a dead end in front of him - a cliff blocked him in front of him.

He stopped his horse and looked around, and saw a path among the trees on one side of the hillside, which seemed to be stepped on by a wild beast, winding up, and he didn't know where it led.Without thinking too much, Mu Yunqi got off his horse and went there.

Walking east and west, we shuttled under the lush trees for a while, and walked among the jagged rocks for a while. I don't know how long it took, and finally stepped on a flat land, surrounded by cliffs, and the trail ended here.Mu Yunqi was already tired, but the sound of people behind him still followed closely, which made him angry and upset. At that moment, he saw several caves on the mountain wall, but the entrances were narrow, and most of them could only allow children or small animals to enter and exit, only one was bigger. , and only one person can pass.Thinking of facing that cold-faced person again soon, Mu Yunqi was furious, and immediately went into the big cave to hide.

After lying dormant for a while, I heard the sound of people from outside approaching.Mu Yunqi raised his eyes and looked into the depths of the cave, he could vaguely see some light spots, he suddenly became curious in his heart, suspected that there might be an exit not far away, he couldn't help but groped towards the light.

When you go deep into it, you will know that there is something different.Although the entrance of this cave is small, it gradually becomes wider inside, and there are many gaps on the mountain wall above the head, through which the sunlight squeezes in, forming those bright spots on the ground that we saw just now.Although the light is dim, nothing is better than nothing, and it is lucky to be able to vaguely distinguish the way to the intruder.

After walking for quite a while, but still not reaching the end, Mu Yunqi realized that the cave was much deeper than expected. After some weighing, he decided to go back the same way: Even though the remaining anger was still there, it was not enough to gamble. Go ahead in safety.

However, things went wrong.

Mu Yunqi originally thought that there is only one passage in this cave, how to get in and how to get out, but the return journey of the clinker is far less smooth than when it came here!Walking along the scattered light spots at the foot, after walking for half a day, I saw a ray of light looming on the mountain wall in front of me at the level of my eyes. I was so happy that I walked forward quickly, but I saw that it was only an arm-thick The hole is far from enough for one person to go in and out.This situation is no different from being in prison.I turned back and walked again, but I couldn't find the hole where I came.

Mu Yunqi almost despaired.After traveling for half a day, my shirt was soaked in sweat, but at this moment I felt numb physically and mentally, and I could not help but sit slumped against the rock wall, feeling unspeakably depressed.

After a short rest, I regained my sobriety and realized that I can't stay here for long: once the sun sets, the cave will be completely dark, and I can't see my fingers at that time.And at this moment, he is also convinced: There are many forked roads in this cave, and he still needs to try patiently to find the one he came to.However, this cave looks like a labyrinth, let him search left and right, but he can't get out. Twice, he turned back to the dead end he had visited before, all his efforts were in vain.

Seeing the passage of time, it would be a lie to say that he was not in a hurry.

In order to avoid detours at the same place, Mu Yunqi came up with a method: every ten or twenty steps, he moved fast stones and placed them in the road to mark them, so as to avoid repeating the old road.This method also worked, after about an hour, there was a light at the end of the path under his feet, which seemed to be an exit.Mu Yunqi quickened his pace, the closer he got to the light and shadow, the tighter his chest jumped, he didn't know whether what was waiting for him there was a rare joy or a stereotyped disappointment.

Fortunately, this time, it will finally be blessed by God.

The hole is big enough for one person to pass through!Mu Yunqi ran all the way, as if afraid that the light was imagined by himself and would disappear at any time, so he didn't dare to stop for a moment.

The whole body was finally bathed in the long-lost and dazzling light and shadow, and Mu Yun fell into a dreamland.With a light heart, his feet suddenly became soft, and he just rolled into the soft and slightly prickly shallow grass, his face pressed against the ground, his nose filled with the fresh air of grass leaves stained with the smell of the sun, and he let the grass roots rub against the edges of the leaves. His cheeks are itchy, but he never tires of it: only this can convince him that this is not a dream—he has really escaped from that dark place!

After a long time, I turned over and lay on my back, closing my eyes to receive the thoughtful care of the sun and the breeze.

There is a reassuring silence all around.Where the wind blows, the petals and grass leaves scrape and rustle each other, and the orioles chirp on the trees, which are clear and round; the fragrance of wild flowers enters the spleen leisurely with the fresh air of grass and trees, which is pleasant to the heart.

Mu Yunqi was drowsy, and scenes of the day's thrilling and risk-free experiences floated in front of him like a revolving lantern: serpentine trails, mountainside platforms, weird caves...

wrong!

A thought flashed by, startled in panic, closed his eyes hard and opened them again, looking around the scenery remains the same: the flowers and trees are shaded, the green grass is like a mat, the stream is gentle, and the woods on the other side are luxuriant, stretching to the blue sky.

Biting his lip hard, to confirm that it was not a dream, Mu Yunqi gave a wry smile on his forehead, and then lay down straight again.

Wrong, all wrong!This is not where he originally entered the cave!There is a huge stone platform, except for flying dust and gravel, it can be said that there is no grass growing, surrounded by mountain walls, there are no flowers, grasses and streams, because he took the wrong exit: he walked through the cave just now, not when he came. the road!In other words, he entered a certain valley in the mountain through a fork in the cave.

Depending on the situation, no one has set foot here for a long time. To go back to the outside world, one must either try to follow the stream, or go through the woods on the other side to find out. However, both of these methods are labor-intensive. Besides, it's already dusk, it's definitely not the best policy to run away indiscriminately!Naturally, there is another way, which is to go back to the cave and continue to search, but for Mu Yunqi, it is tantamount to reliving a nightmare, at least today, he can't say anything about it.Therefore, if the guards could not find him, he would have to sleep here overnight.

Anxiety makes the mouth dry, so I got up and went to the stream, scooped up a handful of stream water and splashed on my face, my body and mind lightened, and my mixed thoughts settled down—this lightness was so addictive for a moment!

Mu Yunqi's whole body was wrapped in sweat-soaked clothes, and he felt sweltering and hot, but the clear water in front of him seemed like a silent temptation, driving him to break free and enjoy the coolness...

It's strange to say that after the heavy rain, the water in the outer stream has risen to the height of the body, but the deepest stream here is only knee-high.Mu Yunqi stood in the stream, splashing handfuls of water on his body, he felt tired after a while, so he simply lay down halfway down, resting his head on the boulder by the stream, letting the flowing water wash his whole body, enjoying the coolness quietly.

It was Shu Chang, who suddenly heard a clear movement in his ears, which seemed to be the trampling sound of Cao Mujiao.

beast?The person in the water suddenly started up, subconsciously grabbed the clothes at hand, followed the sound, and saw a figure approaching, his heart was shocked, his feet slipped, and he rushed forward...

"Is Your Majesty hurt?" A familiar voice sounded above his head, Mu Yunqi rubbed his forehead, tried to raise his dizzy head, met the pair of unspeakable eyes, and hummed confusedly, then felt a pair of powerful hands Lift him gently, turn over and place him on the dry grass.

"Hmm...cough cough..." Mu Yunqi coughed intermittently: Although the fall just now was not a serious problem, he was caught off guard and drank a few sips of water, which made him choke uncomfortably.

"How is Your Majesty?" It was still the same voice, followed by a light pat on his back with both hands.

Mu Yunqi gasped for a moment, lay down on his back, and after a while, opened his eyes to look at the familiar face that irritated him: "What do you think?" The voice was soft, and it perfectly interpreted the phrase "serious and soft inside".

He didn't hear the man's answer, but saw a shadow floating over his head, and the next moment, his whole body was covered with a layer of soft fabric.The veins on his forehead twitched, and then he realized something. A blush spread from the nose to the ears, and he stretched out his hand to firmly grasp the robe: "Where are my clothes?"

"I fell into the water and got wet." The man returned to the stream, bent down and picked up a pile of clothes that were still dripping, and turned around to show him, smiling slightly, showing relief: "It's okay, it's still a while before sunset. Wring it dry and hang it on a higher branch to dry, maybe it will be dry at night."

There was no words for a moment, only the sound of water dripping from the cloth, pattering.

"Jing Heng..." The sound of the water gradually subsided, and a small voice came from behind, embarrassing and wronged.

"Huh?" The man by the stream should be casual, twisting the clothes in his hands without stopping, "Does your majesty feel cold?"

"No...not." Mu Yunqi sat up slowly, still tightly clutching the robe that covered his body, his eyes were humiliated and depressed, he hesitated for a moment, and said softly: "I... I'm hungry."