The bright moon sits on the ground

The candle flickered.

The drooping eyelashes trembled slightly, and it took a while to break free from the drowsy dream, and opened them very slowly.

There was a strong smell of fishy sweetness in the air. Nie Qiu turned his head to look, and there was a basin on the ground beside him. The white veil inside and the water were dyed bright red.

Although the pain in my body is not as unbearable as before, I still can't move freely as usual.

Nie Qiu raised his arm, and suddenly felt a sharp pain.

Just as he was thinking, Xu Lang pushed open the door and entered. Seeing that Nie Qiu had opened his eyes, he squeezed the ointment in his hand and asked, "Are you awake?"

Nie Qiu opened his mouth, his voice was as expected low and hoarse: "Master, where are the others?"

Xu Lang turned around and closed the door, blew out the candle, and pushed the window open with a "snap".

The misty sunlight suddenly shone into the room, and a little light appeared outside the window, probably at the dawn of dawn.

"You've been sleeping for a day and two nights." Xu Lang pulled out a bench and sat down, and said, "When we got back to the shore, that brawny man with a cropped head... seems to be called Lu Huairan? Respond from the shore. After returning to Qin Mansion, it didn't take long,? It took only an hour. Tan Rongchong's illness receded, and after another half day, he woke up; Shen Chuping was seriously injured. , although he recovered his life,? But he is still lying on the bed and sleeping; the child is being offered by the Qin family with delicious food and drink; He disappeared."

He paused for a moment, then said again: "Tan Rongchong seems to have something to say, I'll wait for you to wake up before I solve it."

Nie Qiu thought for a moment, then propped himself up on his elbows, "I can go see him now."

"I said apprentice, you'd better wait for the injury to recover." Xu Lang put the bottle of ointment on the table, "Although the doctor of the Qin family came to see the injury for you, and there is Tan Rongchong's medicinal Gu, Although your injury is not as serious as that night, it is still far from being fully recovered."

"It's just a small injury." Nie Qiu said lightly, then carefully turned over and got up, so as not to widen the wound again.

Xu Lang sighed, and stepped forward to help him, "I don't know whether to say you are stubborn, or that you can bear it."

Nie Qiu waved his hand and avoided Xu Lang's support. He was a 20-year-old young man, and it was not his turn for an old man like Xu Lang to help.

So Xu Lang had no choice but to grab some clothes from one side and put them beside the bed.

The Qin's family really made careful preparations. The clothes they prepared were the same white as his previous one, but the fabric was much more expensive, and the patterns embroidered on them were extremely complicated and gorgeous, without looking vulgar.On the clothes was a crystal clear jade pendant carved into the shape of a chi tiger, but it was not Qin Rongchong's jade pendant with a chi tiger holding a lotus, presumably it was the same style he was looking for.

He is a chivalrous man who walks in the world, and he is not a child of an unsullied family. Why do he need such expensive and heavy clothes?

Nie Qiu was thinking in his heart, but he didn't say anything, he just got up and took off the thin single clothes on his body.

He was wrapped in circles of fine cloth, covering the dense wounds underneath, but when he turned around to pick up the clothes on the bed, Xu Lang who was standing behind him could clearly see the wounds. See the slender mark on the back.

Only a small part of the mark was exposed, and the rest was hidden under the fine cloth and long hair.

But Xu Lang had already seen its face when he changed Nie Qiu's dressing in the doctor's office.

It was a merciless killing intent.Slantingly cut from the left shoulder, almost across the entire back, one can imagine that when the wound was left, the skin was ripped apart, and the blood flowed horizontally, and finally stopped at the right waist, as if it was almost enough to cut it. The entire back was cut off, the flesh and bones were split open, and the person was chopped into two pieces.I don't know when the wound was left. Although the flesh has healed, the deep and long mark has remained forever.

That scar will never go away.

He is a very good-looking apprentice, looking warm and steady, smiling extremely restrained, and putting on airs is the dignified and reserved that only aristocratic and wealthy families can have, like a banished fairy who is not stained with dust, and looks like he has not suffered much—— —However, the slender scar on his back was extremely ferocious, it seemed that it should not have belonged to him, but it was stamped on his body.

When the smooth texture moved slightly with the breath, the hideous scars on it moved like snakes.

Xu Lang moved his lips, thinking not to meddle in other people's business, but he still didn't ask.

Nie Qiu picked up the clothes, straightened the wrinkles, and tightened the front of the clothes, and the scars were quickly covered.He put on several layers of clothes, tightened the red rope of the copper bell on his wrist, then the Hanshuang knife placed not far away, and the eighteen stones he had originally placed in his arms... Finally, he chanted again To save Qin Rongchong's face, he still tied the Chihu jade pendant around his waist.

"Let's go," he said.

Xu Lang nodded silently, and led Nie Qiu out.

After the catastrophe decades ago, Tan Rongchong took control of the Qin family and dismissed the only remaining blood in the family. Probably after that, he also divided most of the Qin mansion, which originally occupied a huge area, leaving only the However, even such a small part is left, but it is still much more prosperous than most of the residences in Xiayan City.

There is also a huge pool in the center of the mansion, in which are planted lotus flowers connected by branches and leaves. The petioles are slender and straight. Because it has not yet reached the flowering season, they all buried their cheeks in the light pink petals, and refused to come out easily to meet people. .

The mansion is full of lotus flowers, the jade pendant with a lotus titled by Chihu is hung on the waist, and the folding fan depicting the lotus is held.

This Tan Rongchong really loves lotus.

After passing through several corridors, Nie Qiu followed Xu Lang to Qin Rongchong's study.

Lu Huairan stood at the door, and when he saw the two of them coming, he bowed respectfully, "Young Master Tan has been waiting for a long time."

He knocked on the door, and not long after, Tan Rongchong opened the door from the inside.

Although Tan Rongchong's complexion was not very good, he was a little pale, but his spirit was much better than usual, and his face was radiant, like a young man in his 30s or [-]s.He smiled and waved his hands to welcome Nie Qiu and Xu Lang in.

After exchanging pleasantries, Nie Qiu asked, "I heard from Master that Mr. Tan has something important to discuss?"

"Well, I need to see Xie Mu again." Tan Rongchong paused, "I heard Daoist Xu said that he disappeared after getting off the boat, and now I don't know where he went. ..."

He was jealous of Xie Mu, afraid that he would be angry because of it.

"Is there something you need to solve, the young master is looking for him?"

"There's nothing to hide. A few days ago, I searched the Qin Mansion several times, and found a secret compartment in the room where Erdang's family used to live. Inside were the account books from decades ago. Although they were dilapidated, But I can still read the words on it clearly. I found that the Erdang family allocated nearly a hundred huge sums of money in the few months after he came back, some of which were from his own private money, and some were from the Qin family’s spare wealth. I asked Lu Huairan to investigate further, and found that the money was allocated to the home of someone who died in Lingyan Lake at that time."

Lu Huairan handed over a stack of rice paper at the right time, and Nie Qiu took it and flipped through it. It was full of names and addresses.

"Now that I know the location, it will be much easier. It's just that many people have changed their residences after so many years, and some people have left Xiayan City. Lu Huairan searched from house to house, and according to the The situation in their family gave them some silver taels, or they found an errand for them—the family lost their mainstay, and after spending all the silver taels, they don’t know how they lived.” Tan Rongchong sighed, “The last thing is to thank you. Home. The Xie family originally lived close to Lingyan Lake, but later, probably because they didn’t want to be touched by the scenery, they changed their residences several times, and finally settled in a place very close to the city gate.”

"I think Xie Mu might want to know about this," he said.

Nie Qiu was silent for a moment, and asked, "How is the Xie family doing now?"

Lu Huairan replied: "Thank you father for a long time, thank you mother for taking care of you, and your children and grandchildren are around your knees."

Will such an answer reassure Xie Mu, or will it cruelly tear open his wounds again?

After all, no matter how prosperous the Xie family is, with a full house of children and grandchildren, it has nothing to do with Xie Mu.

Huangquan is far away, and now he can only walk alone.

"Okay." Nie Qiu still complied, "I'll tell him. As for whether he will accept the kindness, I can't guarantee it."

"As long as he can know. This is already within my power, and I hope this can somewhat fulfill his long-cherished wish."

Qin Rongchong raised her robe and got up, and bowed to Nie Qiu and Xu Lang as a thank you. "Xiayan City, it is thanks to you that peace can be restored."

Nie Qiu shook off his cuffs, stretched out his hands to support his arms, and said, "I didn't do anything."

Xu Lang picked his teeth with no image at all, "There is no need to say more words of thanks. In the days to come, Xiayan City will do whatever it wants, and the Qin family will depend entirely on you."

"I've ordered my funeral, and I'm leaving Xiayan City." Qin Rongchong straightened up, tilted her head and smiled slightly, "The place I'm going to is very close to the imperial city, and I heard that Mr. Nie is going to the imperial city, and it must not be long. We'll see you later."

I still have someone I must meet. If you want my life, I can only give it to you after that.

Nie Qiu almost instantly remembered what Tan Rongchong said to him that afternoon.

He probably finally broke free from the invisible shackles of Xiayan City, and was going to meet the person he wanted to see.

Thinking of this, Nie Qiu also smiled, "We will definitely meet again."

"By the way, if Mr. Nie encounters any difficulties in the future—"

"This is the mother Gu in the mother-child Gu. It is called Feather Transformation Gu. It only needs clean water to survive. If it is stained with blood, even the child Gu will react." Tan Rongchong took out a small wooden box from her sleeve, solemnly Put the matter in Nie Qiu's palm, "If Mr. Nie needs help, just tell me, the Qin family will always be your backing."

This was his unguarded oath of sincerity.

Nie Qiu took the small white box and said, "I remember it."

Without further ado, he just accepted Qin Rongchong's kindness.

Behind Tan Rongchong there is the entire Qin family and Xiayan City, but behind him there is nothing.

Nie Qiuxin thought that he was just accumulating cards for himself unilaterally.

If one day he breaks with the imperial court and the Nie family, he will at least have a place to go, which is better than wandering in exile.

With something on his mind, Nie Qiu and Xu Lang stepped out of the gate of Qin Mansion.

"Master, you are much more proficient in divination than I am, why did you wait for me to wake up before going to Tan Rongchong?"

Xu Lang rubbed his chin, and smiled treacherously, "Didn't Xie Mu say that I'm meddling in my own business, so I'll let you care less about it and ask you younger generations to meddle, and I'll just stand by and guard—" Little Maotou, are you still reluctant to leave?"

A boy in gorgeous clothes stumbled out like this.

His body and face were washed clean, revealing a somewhat ruddy face, he looked a lot like the young master of a rich family, delicate and reserved... If one ignores the pile of food in his hands.

"Are you going to take him?" Nie Qiu asked.

"No." Xu Lang waved his hand, "I have to leave soon. His whereabouts is indeed a problem, but the Qin family has no way to keep him. The Tan family is practicing Gu refining, and he , you have also heard what Xie Mu said, he should learn the art of sending ghosts."

"Apprentice, don't you already have the answer in your heart?"

Should it be said that Xu Lang saw it thoroughly, or should it be said that divination is really against the sky?

Nie Qiu exhaled and patted the boy's soft hair.

He had indeed already thought about the whereabouts of this boy with an extremely yin physique.

Fengxue Mountain Range, Bujia.