long friend

The author has something to say: a small note for readers who have never read "North Wind":

After Su Jin left, due to various reasons, he couldn't remember what happened when he was a child. He was from the rivers and lakes, and he didn't restrain himself from etiquette.

Beifeng made Ayan out of the episode, and let Jinjin take a turn here.

Speaking of the prosperous scenery in the south of the Yangtze River, only one spring and one autumn, summer seems to be forgotten, and has never left a deep shadow in the hearts of literati.

In the sixth year of Tianjia, another rain fell in the afternoon of July, which slightly dissipated the heat. The streets and alleys of Jinling were drenched by misty rain and became foggy. If you look at it from the distance of Taicheng, it is a dreamlike scene. Fairyland.

The Marquis of Pingyuan's mansion in the north of the city has always been clean. Everyone in Jinling knows that the master here is not sociable, and his parents, Gao Tang, are old and well-known, and even close the gate of the mansion all the year round.

But at this moment, there was a tall and straight young man in gray clothes standing at the gate of Hou Mansion.

He took off the coir raincoat he was wearing, looked up and looked carefully at the four characters "Pingyuanhoufu" inscribed by Emperor Wen's imperial pen in the past, showing a slightly lonely expression.This young man has an indescribable aura, he is not like a dandy who grew up in gold and jade, but he is not like a returning man on the Iron Horse Glacier battlefield.

He paced back and forth at the door, hesitated for a long time, and suddenly heard the sound of a horse's hoof, and immediately looked back.

A simple carriage stopped behind him, and a man got out of it immediately.When this person saw him, his expression was bewildered at first, and then turned into surprise after a while, and he rushed over extremely quickly: "Ayan!"

The young man couldn't dodge in time, he clasped the sword around his waist suddenly, and he was about three inches out of the sheath, but he heard the soft voice of the person hugging his neck.He paused between his hands, and the man said to himself: "Why are you waiting for me outside today? Didn't you say that your shoulder hurts, or you should see the imperial doctor..."

When he said this, he couldn't help but feel strange when he saw that the man was completely unresponsive. After letting go of him, his delicate eyebrows frowned: "What's the matter with you today? You haven't opened your mouth yet? Do you have something on your mind?"

The two looked at each other, feeling a little awkward with each other.The servant next to him stood aside with his hands down, as if in his capacity he could not interrupt at will.The young man in gray looked at the person in front of him, feeling that something was wrong, and began to panic again.

"You..." He said with difficulty, "Don't you admit your mistake?"

After these words fell into his ears, he clearly saw the changes on the man's face—first, his brows frowned slightly, showing some doubts, then he took a step back in shock, and his voice changed: "...then who are you?"

He looked at the other party silently for a while, then sighed: "My name is Su Jin, you just... just confused me with my elder brother."

Xiao Qichen had heard about the disappearance of Su Yan's twin brother since he was a child, and he also gossiped with the old people in the Hou Mansion. He knew that the two of them looked exactly the same when they were young, and few people could tell them apart at a glance.But he didn't know that he was grown up to seven or eight points. He suddenly saw Su Jin himself, and made a joke at the first sight. Now he was sitting on the side with a blushing face, wishing he could be nothing.

He and Su Jin looked at each other for a while at the gate of the Hou's Mansion, and the other party saw that he was beaten to pieces, so he raised his hand and knocked on the door.Then it was Su Yan who opened the door, two very similar faces turned back and forth in front of him, and Xiao Qichen was completely confused.

Sitting in the room, Su Yan listened to what Su Jin had said, and suppressed the laughter desperately, and taught Su Jin a lesson: "How can you keep being 'he' to 'him' - this is His Majesty today!"

Su Jin didn't care: "Oh, then I won't call it that in the future."

"No one is inferior." Su Yan wanted to raise his hand to give him a hand, but felt that the two of them were not familiar enough, so he withdrew his hand abruptly in mid-air, and said, "Where is Brother Qingya, didn't you come with you? "

Su Jin: "In the middle of the trip, I was caught by a secret letter from the head of their family. I was passing by here on my way back to Bashu from Kuaiji, so I stopped by to see you - you said in the letter that you were injured, but after the uncle asked, I felt that It should be that the meridian is damaged, he will come to Jinling himself before the Mid-Autumn Festival, and give you two needles."

He talked to Su Yan in the same way, and he was not very polite.Xiao Qichen, who was used to hearing a sentence with three twists and turns since he was a child, didn't like it anyway. He only felt that this person had a very similar appearance to Zhang and Su Yan, but he was very wild in his bones. a world.

After hearing this, Su Yan nodded and said, "Then please trouble Mr. Cheng."

Xiao Qichen didn't quite understand what they were saying, and his eyes wandered over and over again, and he was very dissatisfied with why he didn't recognize Su Yan. After a long time, he finally realized something different: Su Jin's eyes are always gentle But it was deep, and in it was the freedom and ease of reading the world of mortals, while Su Yan's eyebrows were a little bit more decisive and ruthless.

These two temperaments cannot be developed overnight, and it seems to indicate the different fates of the two of them for many years.

"...The last time you came back, you asked me to take Heng'er away. Now he has settled down in Yangming Mountain and is accepted by my senior brother as a disciple. It is difficult for him to practice swordsmanship to reach my current level, but he has made a lot of achievements in other areas. I am here this time, and I also want to take this opportunity to ask you, if sending him up the mountain is just to avoid the prosperity of the world, how about letting him choose his own path in the future?"

After thinking for a moment, Su Yan said, "You let him make the decision. I won't force him to make any decisions."

That year when the world was pacified, Su Yan went to find Su Jin, and he returned to Jinling on the Mid-Autumn Festival that year, counting it as a recognition of his ancestors.After that, the two did not move around frequently, but they often communicated.Two years ago, Su Yan proposed that Su Jin take his only son away, away from Jinling, and no longer inherit the responsibilities of the Su family for generations, so Su Heng followed him to Kuaiji Mountain, and after returning home on New Year's Eve, his conversation was cheerful Quite a lot, it is indeed more comfortable than being locked up in the Hou Mansion.

Su Yan didn't deliberately hide the matter between him and Li Rong from Su Jin, but he never asked, as if he didn't care.

After responding to Su Yan's words, Su Jin glanced at Xiao Qichen, and when he looked at Su Yan again, his eyes were a little puzzled: "Why don't your majesties speak?"

Su Yan educated him: "Why you and us, are you the king's minister on the shore of the land... You have been in the rivers and lakes for a long time, but you can't talk like this when you return to Jinling."

Su Jin changed her mind in a good way: "Then I won't come back. No wonder Heng'er doesn't like this place, there are too many rules."

Su Yan: "..."

After he finished speaking, he stood up, leaving behind the words "I'll go and see my parents" and went to his parents' residence.Xiao Qichen watched him leave, and moved to Su Yan's side, eyes full of envy.

He asked: "Your younger brother lives such a chic life, does it really mean that he doesn't care about a life of luxury?"

"He has been in the rivers and lakes since he was a villain, and he is different from those of us who can't help ourselves, and the people and things he comes into contact with are also different. Ah Jin is used to being free, and suddenly he is asked to return to the mansion to live a well-regulated life, he must not be willing." Su Yan took a deep breath, and then changed into a saddened tone and said, "Besides, his 'family' won't agree."

Xiao Qichen still remembered the sluggish look of Su Yan when he came back from Bashu, he just thought it was amused when he heard the words, and asked: "Your brother... that one is here too? Can I see him?"

"What's good to see, I didn't come this time." Su Yan said unhappily, then thought about it again, and added, "It's just that the man and I are considered good friends, and he is also considered a good-looking talent. I just think..."

"Understood, Xiaobaicai was pushed by that." Xiao Qichen rubbed him and said, "But you have never raised Xiaobaicai, why do you care about these things?"

Su Yan sighed again and again, he wanted to rub against Xiao Qichen for comfort, but he was not too bold at home, so he could only lean on his shoulder.This action affected Su Yan's old shoulder injury. He remembered the genius doctor Su Jin had mentioned, and suddenly he had a thought, and asked Xiao Qichen, "Didn't you convince me that the medicine didn't improve in the past two years, why don't you ask Uncle Ajin to give it to you?" Do you see?"

Xiao Qichen said blankly, "Who is that?"

Su Yan smiled and said: "It's a coincidence, do you remember the Anshenxiang prescription I copied for you? It was General Zhang Li who asked for it from that little genius doctor. I only found out later that he is Ah Jin's uncle , surnamed Cheng. The medicines I have been using for the past two years are all prescribed by him, and he will come to Jinling during the Mid-Autumn Festival, or... let him treat you."

Under Xun Yuyi's treatment of his persistent illness for many years, it has never been lukewarm. It is not as severe as before, but he is still close to being cured.Xiao Qichen himself didn't care about it, he used this little ailment to threaten the officials all the time, so that they wouldn't let them mention the matter of concubine selection, but Su Yan had a lump in his heart, and he always asked worriedly.

If this continues, Xiao Qichen will be fine, Su Yan is worried to death.

So Xiao Qichen thought for a while, and said: "Okay, then you can call me again——Ayan, I'm sleepy, so I'll borrow your bed to sleep."

According to the rules, the head of the Hou Mansion is usually in the North Wing.But Su Yan's parents are still alive, so it's not easy to get over it, and he doesn't want to live in the east wing because of the shadow of the past, and instead retreats into the room he stayed in when he was young.

It is at the back of the garden, with apricot trees and a pond through the window, the scenery is beautiful and the environment is very quiet.Xiao Qichen likes this place, and when he occasionally visits Su Yan in the Hou Mansion, he always nestles in this room and whispers to him.

It was a summer noon at this time, and the fresh air after the rain floated in gently from the window.Xiao Qichen lay on the couch, held Su Yan's hand and chatted for a while, and finally felt tired. Before going to sleep with a smile on his lips, he reminded him to wake him up in half an hour and go back to the palace to handle government affairs .

He has been on the throne for six years, and there is no easy day.As the New Deal gradually got on the right track, Xiao Qichen's busy schedule would not decrease but instead increase. Those courtiers seemed to insist on him doing everything by himself, so the backlog of memorials increased, and it was common for Xiao Qichen to be busy until midnight.

It is inconvenient for Su Yan to stay in Taicheng all year round, and he is not qualified to share the burden for him. Seeing his dark eyes at this moment, he couldn't help feeling distressed.Xiao Qichen snorted impatiently as his fingers passed over that place, and Su Yan didn't dare to disturb him to sleep well.

While he was suffering repeatedly, someone knocked on the door.

Su Yan took his hand out of Xiao Qichen's palm and covered it under the thin blanket, walked over and opened the door lightly.When he saw the person coming, he couldn't help but be taken aback: "Father?"

Su Zhi stood outside with a livid face, and lowered his voice: "Come out for me."

Ever since Su Yan became sensible, he has never received any kind of fatherly treatment. When he was a child, Su Zhi was not at home all the time. After joining the army, he saw him from time to time, but in the eyes of the other party, he was like an ordinary soldier, not to mention special care, and was scolded. It's all commonplace.But he had never seen such anger on Su Zhi's face before, so he couldn't help feeling a little flustered.

The two walked to the corridor at the junction of the front hall and the backyard, Su Zhi stopped suddenly, so Su Yan also stopped two steps away from him, and said carefully: "Father, what's the matter?"

"Your Majesty just arrived, why didn't you inform us?"

Su Yan frowned, and said: "He came to me to say a few words, it's not something important. Besides, Ah Jin went home today, I saw him go to find the second elder..."

In the middle of his speech, he was suddenly interrupted, and Su Zhi's voice almost changed his tone: "Is there any personal matter to come to you? Next, are you going to tell me that those rumors in Jinling City are true?!"

Su Yan couldn't say what he said next, he wouldn't lie, and he knew what Su Zhiti's so-called "rumors" were.

Marquis Pingyuan has been under house arrest in the mansion since he was deprived of military power during the Tongning period. In addition, he has been injured and sick for many years in the army, so he no longer has much interaction with the people in the court.Then the person on the dragon chair changed, and Su Jiafu was relied on and trusted again. He thought it was just Su Yan who spelled it out by himself, but he didn't want to meet the old courtier by chance that day. stand up.

"My lord is now in the court like a fish in water, Lord Marquis, it's not only due to the pacification of the four realms." The man's face is still vivid in his memory, "If nothing else, let's say that the recruiting system of Xiao cavalry has been implemented throughout Daliang. It was Hou Ye's indisputable temper back then that couldn't get the third division to agree, right? The general didn't say anything, and handed over the seal, and His Majesty approved it on the same day. No matter how much the courtiers objected, it was useless. I really agreed In a word, it has a lot to do with His Majesty..."

When Su Zhi thought of it at this moment, he felt a sharp pain in his forehead, and he gritted his teeth and asked, "It's really what they said, you..."

He categorically denied: "I have never asked His Majesty for anything, nor have I gone to... for any benefits. Every memorial on government affairs has been discussed with the prime minister and the Taiwei before being handed in. I have no procedures to follow. presumptuous."

When Su Yan said these words slowly, his limbs felt swollen for a while, as if he was soaked in sea water, he couldn't get up and down, he said it was difficult, but he had to let Su Zhi know clearly, "Father, those things that were said about me in Jinling City , I know it myself, but I won't admit to things I haven't done. What about climbing the dragon bed, what about prostitution... I don't have that kind of relationship with Qichen."

He met the surprised gaze of the other party, and said word by word: "I am in love with him, and I have a clear conscience."

"Damn things!"

In an instant, blood surged up, and Su Zhi slapped him backhand.The young man standing opposite was already taller than him, but he didn't dodge or dodge, he accepted it abruptly, and Su Yan's face immediately swelled up.

This slap didn't weaken Su Zhi's anger in the slightest. He touched his waist reflexively, but because he had been unemployed for many years at home, he didn't have a sword for a long time.He failed to move his hands, but he needed to vent his emotions, so he walked out of the corridor and paced back and forth in the garden: "I think you have eaten the heart of a leopard, and you can do such things... You are sorry for your parents, you are sorry Rongniang and Heng'er?! My Su family has been loyal and good for generations, when will you—"

He picked up a cane, rolled up his sleeves, and was about to slap Su Yan. For a moment, this action was put together with the word "Pingyuanhou", and there was a strange sense of joy.

Su Yan was too shocked. He had never "enjoyed" being treated like an ordinary child by his parents resorting to fists and kicks. He froze in place with complicated emotions, and his back was already in severe pain when he recovered.Xia Xia's clothes were thin, he turned his back and touched his hand, the whole palm was covered with blood, he turned to Su Zhi, who also had a face full of disbelief.

The father and son confronted each other for a while, Su Zhi said nothing, threw away the cane, turned around and left.

Su Yan called him: "Father! I didn't feel sorry for Heng'er..."

"Shut up!" Su Zhi didn't even turn his head, the vine was lying between the two of them, as if cutting a huge gap, "If it weren't for your current status...I wish I didn't have your son."

The other party didn't even ask him to reflect on it, and the embarrassed figure who left was obviously extremely disappointed.Anyone who knew the truth would be disappointed in him, not because of anything else, he is Su Yan's blood relative, and for the past 30 years, he has been thought of as filial.

Su Yan didn't even have a chance to explain what he was thinking, and he was given a cane for no reason, and was turned away with such a gesture.

He hissed, and finally felt a burning pain on his face.

Su Yan turned around in a daze, ready to find some medicine to rub on, so that Xiao Qichen would not have to worry when he woke up and saw him like this.Sometimes this person is too concerned at the right time, if he knows that he was beaten up by his father out of thin air, he doesn't know what he will do.

He took two steps forward, and the sunlight elongated his shadow slightly. Su Yan looked over and saw another person's shadow at the end of the corridor.He was startled, thinking it was Xiao Qichen, he hurriedly raised his head.

The tall and tall young man always stands tall and straight like a pine tree. Seeing his swollen face, Su Jin asked nonchalantly, "If you tell him that I will be with Qingya for the rest of my life, I will also be beaten for a while." pause?"

"No, both parents owe you." Su Yan said briefly.

He passed by Su Jin, not expecting the other party to say anything to comfort him, he just wanted to take medicine to reduce the swelling, but suddenly Su Jin grabbed an arm.

Complicated emotions were written in those eyes, which were very similar to his outline, but were clearly different. Su Jin said softly, "But you don't owe them anything—joining the army, marrying a wife and having children, going to the front line, why not?" You are not supposed to do anything, they force you like this, and you still think you should? You just don't resist."

Su Yan was moved by what he said, but it only lasted for a moment.He waved Su Jin away, and said: "You don't understand, someone has to carry this Marquis Mansion, if I am more self-willed, the glory of generations will be destroyed in one go."

Against the light, he faced Su Jin indifferently, seeing the frown between the other party's brows, he couldn't understand it at all.

If there was ever a moment when Su Yan really felt tired, it should be now.He only exchanged a glance with Su Jin, and then he saw the half corner of his wanton life in a blink of an eye, and immediately felt infinite envy.But the gap between them is more than 20 years. If you want to say envy, they can never go back to the past.

None of them can convince the other.

After thinking about it, Su Yan said again: "It's my own pleasure, and I still want to guard him. Taicheng is so big, if I'm not here, he will really be alone."

Su Jin didn't respond at all to these words, but nodded briefly, and said, "You can send a message to me when you are free from now on. Although Xiling is not as beautiful as Chuzhou, but fortunately there are not many people, so you can come to Xiaozhou Stay for a few days."

Su Yan looked at him, smiled and said, "Thank you."

They tacitly don't mind each other's business, and they don't use their identities to point fingers. When they get along, their words are so dull that they seem to fall into awkward silence at any time.But Su Yan knew very well that since the person in front of him was a brother connected with his own blood, he could understand many things without being too clear.

Su Jin said again: "I just met my parents. I haven't made any progress in all these years, and I can't remember anything. I really have nothing to say to them. If you are not in Jinling in the future, I have no reason to come."

He easily cut off his other connections with this mansion, leaving only a trace of blood that could be ignored at any time.Su Yan blinked, covered the half of his face that was slapped and said, "Come on, if you don't come back, then don't come back. When Qichen gives way to his younger brother, we have to find a place... and never come back again." .”

Jinling Diwangzhou, such a prosperous Sanqiu Guizi, is an out-and-out sad place for them.

When Xiao Qichen woke up, it was dusk outside the window.

It was long past the time for him to return to the palace, Xiao Qichen turned over in a hurry and got on the bed. As soon as he was fully dressed and opened the door, Su Yan walked leisurely from the end of the corridor with a tray.

Xiao Qichen leaned against the door frame, his tone a little impatient: "Didn't you say it's been half an hour?"

"Seeing that you are sleeping soundly, I don't have the heart to wake you up." Su Yan softened her voice, grabbed his shoulders and pulled Xiao Qichen into the room again, "I'll accompany you back later to light the lamp and criticize the memorial, okay? Don't be angry .”

Xiao Qichen wasn't too angry about this at first, he yawned, and looked Su Yan up and down for a moment: "Why are you so talkative today... Eh, what's wrong with your face?"

The wound on the face was applied with a cold kerchief, and medicine was applied, and the swelling barely subsided from noon to dusk, but it still looked a little strange.Su Yan grabbed the bronze mirror, turned his head to look at it, and said, "Perhaps he hit a pillar just now, it's all right, just apply some medicine and it will be fine."

He turned his back to Xiao Qichen, thinking that he would not be able to see the convenience after changing his clothes, but Xiao Qichen's voice came coolly: "...Oh, I hit a pillar in the face, what about the back? Who has the guts to hit the general ?”

Su Yan turned around in awe, looking at him before he opened his mouth, the corners of Xiao Qichen's eyes were red: "I suffered from it when I was a child, and I knew it at a glance. Do you think it will be fine if you change your clothes? You can walk with your shoulders shrunk, really?" Do you think I'm easy to fool? - Who hit you, it was your father? Why do you want to do this?"

With a few sentences, he thoroughly revealed what Su Yan wanted to hide, but he dared not tell the truth. He embraced Xiao Qichen, trying to deal with it again: "There was a conflict, and he got angry for a while..."

"Master Hou has never done anything to you." Xiao Qichen pushed him away and asked sharply, "What does he know?"

Su Yan silently went to pack his things for him, with the intention of sending Xiao Qichen back to the palace immediately.Seeing that he was silent, Xiao Qichen lost his temper and wanted to go to the door in a daze: "You won't tell me? Okay, I'll ask your father myself."

"Come back!" Su Yan suddenly put the wooden plate in his hand on the table, Xiao Qichen's back froze in place, but his neck was stiff and refused to compromise, he turned around and looked at him with distressed eyes.

Su Yan said: "I asked for it. There are so many gossips in the city. It's useless for you to ask my father. You know what you need to know. They dare not talk about you, and it's fine for them to talk about me. As long as you know that I am not like that." people..."

With a cold face, Xiao Qichen said "Yes", listening to his futile explanation at a loss.

He finally understood why they often felt helpless even though they had the same heart. Rumors could kill, and now even Su Yan's biological father said that he didn't recognize him.Su Yan had protected him for so long, Xiao Qichen thought, he should also protect Su Yan once, otherwise how could he feel at ease?

"Ayan." Xiao Qichen said softly, "Since no matter what they say, why don't you live in the palace from now on?"

These words made Su Yan frowned impatiently, he thought over and over, and finally said: "I'll send you back to the palace first, please allow me to think about it again, this matter can't be rushed."

No matter what time, he is still seeking a compromise!With Su Yan's character, Xiao Qichen knew that he couldn't force it, but at this moment he couldn't bear to be a little annoyed.

Xiao Qichen said: "You've already dealt with everything, and you're not afraid of others poking your spine, so can't you let me protect you? You're always looking ahead and asking for everything, but you know in your heart that it's impossible, so make a choice, Ayan—— Either go back, kneel down and apologize to your ancestors of the Su family, and swear that from now on, you will change your mind and become your obedient general puppet; or follow me and never come back."

In the small courtyard of the Pingyuan Hou Mansion, the soft branches of the apricot tree swayed in the wind, the flowers had already fallen, and the blue fruits were falling heavily. This was a scene Su Yan was very familiar with since he was a child.

He clenched his hands tightly, as if he had made a choice while breathing up and down.From the moment he accepted his affection for Xiao Qichen, Su Yan no longer avoided it, and now he has changed his position, but it is self-evident who is the most important in his heart.

"Let's go." Su Yan touched Xiao Qichen's elbow, "Go back to Taicheng with you."

See you in the rain-draining pond, and know the breeze.Yinyin Xiamu sings orioles.