[Comprehensive] living to death

(1)

"Have you heard about that?"

Tea smoke curled up, floating in the deserted air.Holding the teapot with one hand, he slowly poured half a cup of hot water into the teacup, and then carelessly brushed off a little snow foam on the rim of the cup.

"By the way, and another thing... have you heard about that too?"

The courtyard is covered in silver.It snowed in the middle of the night last night, and the world was brighter in the morning.Sitting on the porch and looking out, I can see the snow-covered field through the white air I exhale.Of course, this is not the wilderness, but the wilderness is presented here with unimaginable power from the eyes of ordinary people.He stared at the green pines and withered vines under the white snow.Next to the withered vines stands a rock; the rock is not high, and it seems that it can be used as a seat for a young girl—if the girl doesn't mind sitting on it.

A faint smile played on his lips.

So it also showed the fact that he was absent-minded.

"Hey——Qingming! Are you listening to me? Really, if you do this, doesn't it seem that I just babbled and talked endlessly? Like an incoherent old man. You must be secretly Laugh at me, Seimei? You are still just as hateful."

Seimei's smile suddenly turned into a wry smile. "Hey, Boya, aren't you still as straightforward as before? I didn't mean to laugh at you." He shook his head helplessly, and later showed a little joke, "However, it's not so much 'Like an incoherent old man ', it is better to say that it is indeed an 'incoherent old man', the description should be more accurate?"

"In this way..." Boya scratched his head and muttered, "Isn't Qingming an old man too?"

They looked at each other and suddenly laughed at the same time.

"Yes, that's right. Yes... It's been nearly seventy years since I came to this world." Qingming sighed softly.He raised his head slightly, looked up at the cloudy sky from under the eaves, and raised the small teacup in his hand, as if to pay homage to the sky.

They are indeed old.The traces of silver frost cannot be concealed under the tall black hat, and the wrinkles are also climbing on the cheeks like withered vines; the voice is no longer as full as it was when I was young, and the spirit is not as good as before.In just a few decades, with a flick of a finger.Looking back in this way, you will indeed feel how easy it is for human beings to age.

"That's right. When you used to enjoy the snow, you should have a pot of warm sake? Now you can only drink tea." Boya looked at Qingming, "But even so, Qingming is still Qingming."

The no longer young Great Onmyoji withdrew his hand and turned his head to meet the eyes of his best friend.A moment later, he gave a soft "Oh", and that faint, mysterious smile that belonged exclusively to Seimei Abe appeared on his face again. "Boya is still Boya." Seimei said gently.

"Of course." Boya nodded of course.

"Bo Ya."

"What's the matter, Seimei?"

"It's still just as pleasant talking to you."

"Really?" Boya scratched his head puzzledly, and his movements still revealed the bluntness of his youth, "Leave me alone. Qingming, did you hear what I asked you just now? I mean these days According to the rumors, it is said that the mountain outside the city of Sakyo is near the place where Kamigamo Shrine used to be..."

The snowstorm came early this year.The eaves of Heian-kyo were stained the color of ice, and the wind outside the city was even colder and the snow was deep. The wind blows and snow falls all over the sky. The natural scenery is beautiful and harsh, and pedestrians and convoys walking in it are struggling.No matter how big the storm is, there will always be someone to work.The connection between the capital and the local area cannot be broken, and neither can the supplies to the shrine at the foot of the mountain in the east.Everyone knows that the shrine is just a new shrine less than ten years old, but everyone knows that they have to treat it as an ancient building of more than 300 years.Kamigamo Shrine is the current one, no matter 300 years ago or 1000 years later.There is no second seat.

People who have been indoctrinated with this idea make their way to Kamo Kamo Shrine.It's freezing cold, and the breath turns into frost.Heian-kyo has not had such a cold winter for many years, and it is so cold that it is almost doubtful whether there is a legendary snow girl.

Then people saw it.

"Saw?"

"It is said to be the figure of a woman in white clothes walking in the wind and snow." Boya said, "It is said that more than one person has seen it since it snowed, so it should be true. How about it, Qingming, do you think that is really a snow girl?" ?"

The old warrior stretched his neck, and there was a lot of stubbornness in his eyes when he looked over.He also held a slender teacup in his hand, but the tea seemed to have been cold long ago, without any heat.

"...What do you want to know, Boya?" Qingming lowered his eyes, turned the thin porcelain cup in his hand with his fingers, and raised his eyes to quietly return to his friend's gaze.The smile on his lips suddenly became lighter and further away.

"Because, there are also legends..."

The Great Onmyoji remained silent.

"...It was said that it was the ghost of God Lord Kamo, who passed away suddenly 30 years ago."

(2)

"You are so old, is it really okay to go out in the wind and snow?"

In the early morning, Heian-kyo has not yet fully awakened, and the snow-covered streets are clean and peaceful.Boya was sitting next to Qingming, and his babbling was indeed a favorite habit of the old man.Qingming smiled wryly: "Oh, when it comes to age, aren't you also Boya?"

"I'm not the same as Qingming..." Boya shook his head, "I'm a samurai. Although I don't know much about Chinese poetry and songs, I can hold a sword to meet the enemy and have a strong body."

"Then, I'm not a weak public minister either."

The two sat on the bullock cart, their words and smiles were the same as in the past.The streets of Heian-kyo are straight and majestic, and the road surface has been smoothed as much as possible, but it still causes many bumps for the ox carts driving on it.But Qingming's car used some tricks, and it went extremely smoothly.A glazed lamp hung from one corner of the carriage, lighting up a blue flame.The exquisite carvings on the lamp have been blackened and fuzzy, and it looks very old; but the glass is still crystal clear, without any impurities.

The glazed lights covered the Onmyoji's frame, allowing it to avoid the eyes of ghosts.

Boya lifted the curtain of the car and stared at the lamp for a while. "Qingming, I think this glazed lamp is really amazing." He said, "When I saw it for the first time, I wondered whether such a delicate thing would break quickly; It's such a faux pas. Because it's still intact until we're all old."

"Well, yes." Qingming leaned against the inner wall of the carriage, smiling lightly, "Maybe it's because it's from Datang. Boya, there's actually another glass lamp like this."

Boya turned his head, his eyes were peaceful.

"Ah, I know, Seimei."

(3)

The bullock cart drove out from the cornices and stacked tiles, heading towards the vast snow field.When I first left the city, I saw one or two monks wearing bamboo hats walking on the side of the road, and then walking into the depths of the snow, gradually only the silent wild scenery remained.The sky is getting brighter and the snow is getting brighter; all around is bright.Qingming has been leaning on the car with his eyes closed, and Boya has been watching the scenery outside through the car window.

There are two shallow ruts on the snow, far lighter than a frame that carries two people should be.

"It's been a long time since I saw a snow scene outside the city," Boya said.

"Has it been a long time?"

"It's been a long time."

Seimei nodded.

It is said that people saw that scene near Shin Kamo Shrine.The white figure of the woman in white almost blended with the wind and snow; her long black hair was flying in the wind.She was holding a blue lantern in her hand, that special light was very conspicuous in the snowy sky.At first they thought it was really a woman and tried to shout, but when they saw her disappear into the forest with their own eyes, they knew they had encountered something strange.After that, whenever it was snowing, someone would always see that woman nearby.Kamo Shrine has inspected the surrounding area, but said that there is no filth.

However, the frame of the Great Onmyoji Abe Seimei is not facing the direction of Kamo Shrine.On the contrary, the bullock cart just bypassed the magnificent shrine and headed towards Kamigamo Kamiyama behind it.The ox cart rolled over the snow; the snow in the mountains was getting thicker, and the road was narrow. When the forest and bushes were so dense that neither the cattle nor the cart could pass through, Seimei finally opened his eyes and got out of the car.

"The next thing to do is to walk."

When the Great Onmyoji said this, he was quite happy.He abandoned the frame without any burden, picked up a branch and shook the snow and dust on it, while pushing aside the branches and weeds, he explored deeper into the mountain. "However, if it doesn't snow later, we will have to wait a long time." Qingming said, "How about it, Boya, will it snow?"

"It will snow." Boya replied, "Don't worry, Seimei."

"It's very reassuring to hear such an answer."

The smile on Seimei's face grew stronger. "Play a flute piece, Boya." He said, "I haven't heard Ye Er's voice for a long time."

"Walking on the mountain road to let someone play the flute, Qingming is really embarrassing." Even so, Boya still obediently took off the bamboo flute from his waist, put it across his lips, pressed a few times with his fingertips, and immediately a piece of music was played. flow out.

The sky is full of snow clouds, and the wind in the forest is cold.The snow and dead leaves peeled off the branches at the same time, making a few rustling sounds during the interval of the flute.Suddenly the wind blew up, Lin Tao heaved and fell, and then everything was silent again.

The sound of the bamboo flute stopped.

"Bo Ya."

"Ok?"

"The plum blossoms have fallen."

"Oh, the title of the song is "Luomei"."

"It seems that Lord Tianshen got a new score from someone again." Qingming didn't look back, only the slightest smile leaked from his voice, dissipating in the wind, "Is he haunting you?" Play it to him over and over again?"

"Qingming, you shouldn't use the disrespectful term 'he' to Lord Tianshen. You are still the same." Boya looked around nervously, afraid that the old man would jump out from somewhere and blow his beard and stare at them and lose his temper. , "You can't say 'tangle'... It's just that Lord Tianshen likes things from Datang very much."

Seimei laughed softly.Sure enough, he thought, this is very nostalgic.

(4)

They came to a small clearing.A huge rock emerges from the hillside and becomes a platform.The mountains on the opposite bank are undulating, and the valley in front of it is falling; several slender snow and ice are solidified on the slope, which should be frozen mountain streams.

The depths of Kamigamo Kamiyama have not been visited by humans for many years.But at this moment, there is indeed a figure from the back on the edge of the platform: sitting cross-legged, with his back facing the mountain wall and facing the valley.He should have been sitting here for a long time.The snow accumulated on him thickly, layer after layer, almost submerging him into a snowman; even so, there were still a few strands of cold metal that emerged from the only gap in the snow—that was the armor of a general .

This kind of thick snow can only be obtained by sitting here before the snow fell last night, and it must be motionless.

"Master Ibaraki Doji...?" Boya was very surprised.

Sunny but calm.He stopped without any surprise in his eyes. "Long time no see, Ibaraki Doji," he said.

The man remained motionless.The mountains and forests were silent, the sky was as heavy as snow, and Qingming stood where she was, without urging her, but looking further afield.On the opposite side is also the shadow of the mountain, gloomy and gloomy, like a stroke of ink being smeared on the sky indiscriminately.

He didn't seem to intend to speak, so there was a long silence.But after a while, when there was light snow falling between the sky and the ground, he suddenly made a movement of raising his head.Fine pieces of snow rolled down from his head, rustling the silence around him.The sky is gray, the snow is gray, and his hair is whiter than snow. "Abe Seimei and... Yuan Hiroya? I am surprised that I still remember your names." He said, "Actually, I shouldn't be surprised. After all, it was only 30 years since we last met. "

He spoke flatly and indifferently, as if he was not talking about "30 years" but "30 days".But who knows?For a big monster like him, 30 years is equal to 30 days.Boya couldn't help looking at the faces of his friends around him, and thought sadly: But even Qingming is already old.

indeed so.Even the Great Onmyoji is not immune to the erosion of time, but as a monster, Ibaraki still has a youthful face and a strong physique.Yokai rely on power, and Ibaraki is even stronger now than he was 30 years ago.He glanced back at them, his youthful brows and eyes had been stained white by snow particles, and he didn't even twitch his eyelashes.

"Get out." He stood up, shaking off the frost and snow, "If you dare to come over, I will kill you."

As if against him, Seimei originally stood still, but after Ibaraki finished threatening, he walked over slowly, also standing on the edge of the platform, keeping only a certain distance from Ibaraki. "Oh, when people get old, their ears often don't work very well." Qingming said with some enthusiasm, "What did the leader say just now?"

Boya almost smiled.At this moment, he can easily recall the old things of the old people many years ago. Those happy and light time fragments are flying like auspicious feathers, giving him a moment of warmth and sentimentality in this cold winter.He looked at the backs of the two people in front of him, and focused on the back of the big demon for a while: If even he can easily recall the past, then Ibaraki-douji should be more touched by the memory, right?

Ibaraki was indeed silent for a long time.

"She said..."

The wind and snow grew louder, almost drowning his voice.

"...She likes you very much."

(5)

It was gradually full of wind and snow.The shadow of the mountains on the opposite bank became more and more blurred, and the valley in front was covered with more white; there were a few exposed rocks and dry grass, but now they were also submerged by the snow.Now, there seems to be nothing else in the world except snow.

After meeting Ibaraki Doji, Boya became more and more disturbed.He hesitated to speak several times, and finally asked in a low voice: "Hey, Seimei, Lord Ibaraki Doji will appear here, does it mean that it is really..."

The great onmyoji shook his head.But just when Boya was about to feel relieved, Qingming nodded again, thinking thoughtfully, "Or, can you say that?"

Ibaraki ignored the two humans; he couldn't even feel the howling blizzard.He just stood there, almost freezing himself into a stone statue standing on a rock; even his eyes were frozen—penetrating layers of wind and snow, stubbornly seeing only what he wanted to see.He is quiet, cold, and doesn't say a word, all the vitality is only burning in his eyes, but the scorching heat is not known to outsiders.

However, when that little blue light appeared far away at the other end of the valley, he could no longer maintain complete restraint, and he almost burst out a cry from his throat for a moment——

"Miss Mingyue?" Boya was stunned, "Qingming... Qingming, that's really..."

The white clothes are better than the snow, and the black hair is like a waterfall.Just like the rumors, the young woman came slowly through the wind and snow, holding a green lantern in her hand.The wind and snow were howling, and the sky was dark, but her clothes were drooping, elegant and light, and her steps were as steady as walking in the spring breeze in March.Yingying lights illuminate her face, her eyes and smile are also full of lights.

"Hey—Miss Mingyue!" Boya didn't understand why the other two were so silent, but he couldn't hold back his excitement and called out loudly, "Miss Mingyue, Miss Mingyue! We are here, Ming—yue— Miss--"

She came slowly from afar.

"Miss Mingyue—do you remember me? It's Boya, Yuan Boya—"

She walked across the hill where they were.

"Miss Seimei and Ibaraki Doji are also here—Ms. Mingyue—"

She walked to another distance.

"Miss Mingyue—"

She disappeared into the wind and snow without leaving a trace.From the beginning to the end, she didn't even glance at them.Fengxue seemed to be nothing to her, and their existence was also like nothing to her.

Boya was stunned. "Qingming, what's going on here?" He murmured, "What's going on..."

"That's 'image'."

"Shadow...like?" Boya seemed to be having trouble understanding the word, chewing on the pronunciations with difficulty, "Shadow? Is that also a kind of 'curse'?"

"No. 'Curse' is closely related to people's hearts, but this..." Seimei looked at Ibaraki without any trace, and the latter was still standing silently, staring stubbornly at the other side of the valley.He wanted to sigh, but he held back.Is this the sentimentality of old people?Qingming laughed at herself softly in her heart. "Nature is amazing, Boya." He said, "at certain times, it will naturally 'remember' a certain scene or a certain piece of sound, and then show these 'memory' at certain times later. Just now Yes, I think..."

After all, the Great Onmyoji couldn't hold back the sigh.Ah, sure enough, he thought.

"That should be the memory of Shanghe Mao Shenshan. When Miss Mingyue lived here, there was such an image stored by Shenshan, and it was seen by us many years later." Qingming stared at the silent "And the condition for the 'image' to appear is probably a blizzard."

As if confirming his words, a little blue light lit up on the other side of the valley again.The blue light came from afar, and so did the divine master.She looked peaceful and happy, and she walked briskly on the road they couldn't see, and also walked in the past years that they didn't know, and she couldn't be disturbed or touched.

like a mirage.like a sweet dream.Time and time again, she comes and goes from place to place; no matter the starting point or the end point, it is a place that only she can know, and has nothing to do with others or the present.

Boya stood where he was, with a dazed and lost expression.

"...every time it snows, she will appear. The longer the snow falls, the longer she will appear." After watching countless times silently and intently, the monster in frost and snow finally opened his eyes. mouth, the voice is still low, but warmer than before, "This year is the last time."

"The most... the last time?"

Seimei didn't show the slightest surprise. "Bo Ya, memories will disappear; the memories of human beings, or the memories of plants, trees, mountains and rocks. When the lifespan is over, the memories will disappear." He brushed the snow on the rock next to him, and then sat on it, with a chic and casual posture , "Besides..."

"Hey, Qingming! You shouldn't be sitting in the snow at your age!" Boya was very dissatisfied.

Onmyoji narrowed his long and narrow eyes slightly, showing that half-empty, playful smile for a long time. "It's okay to do it once in a while, Boya, you're really talkative like an old man." He teased his friend happily.

"Sunny—"

Seimei continued to answer his questions on his own: "Besides, in the past 30 years, the air flow of Kamigamo Kamiyama has been changing. I heard that this place is about to become the entrance to the underworld. It is also because of this that the new Kamigamo Shrine was chosen. The site is beside the Kamo River outside the mountain, otherwise, according to Fujiwara's intention, it should be rebuilt on the old site."

The general of the Yaozu laughed abruptly. "That's right, the underworld, the underworld created for the monster race to live in..." he murmured, with a lot of bewilderment and sadness in his eyes.

During the conversation, that little green light came again.He immediately swallowed all the unfinished words, stubbornly staring at the image that only existed in the past.The demon's eyes are golden, and the pupils will become sharper when he becomes stubborn, which tends to give people a ferocious feeling like a beast; only those who are very familiar with him can find the gentleness in his gaze.

She did come again.Walking slowly with the lantern on, smiling leisurely.Everything is exactly the same as before: walking from the other side of the valley, passing through the valley in front of them, there will be no half stop...

She stopped.Then she turned her head and looked in their direction.

"That is……"

Before Qingming could say a word, the demon clan who had stood himself like a stone statue was shocked, and rushed out the next second like an arrow from the string, leaving behind a large piece of remnant snow that was shattered in mid-air.

"Mingyue!!"

At this moment, he obviously forgot everything.He doesn't remember that she has been away for 30 years, he doesn't remember how many times he has watched her figure disappear and reappear in the snowy valley, he doesn't remember that he just said that this is the last time he can see her image ...He didn't remember anything, he only knew that she was not far ahead, smiling at him sideways, and stretched out her hand to him.He ran as hard as he could - as fast as he could - definitely faster than he was back then...

There she was, holding out her hand to him.

"—Mingyue!!!"

He really forgot everything.The smile as far as I can see is so real and familiar, and the way I stretch out my hand is so casual and natural, I almost could be caught by him...

"Mingyue—"

He almost ran straight into her, but at the last moment, he suddenly stopped all momentum and stopped in front of her abruptly.He looked at her cautiously and full of expectation, and said softly, "Mingyue?"

She looked at him too.She was looking at him, but she didn't look at him either.There is no wind and snow in those beautiful eyes, only a piece of sunlight and tree shadows, warm and peaceful, and like her smile, it is soaked with the old feeling of time's silence.

"Moon..."

As if she heard something, she suddenly laughed even more, her lips kept opening, and she was in high spirits when she spoke.Ibaraki stared at her for a long time, no longer tried to call out, but lightly held her hand in mid-air, and used the only remaining arm to gently wrap around the illusory image in front of him.

In the wind and snow, he slowly lowered his head and carefully placed himself on the top of her hair.Then he closed his eyes, and a satisfied smile gradually appeared on his face.

……I miss you.

These thin words were swallowed by the wind and snow, and no one heard them except heaven and earth.

(6)

"Grasses, trees, mountains and rocks can't remember too many things. But occasionally, they may also remember some additional fragments."

Seimei stretched out her hand in the wind and snow.He caught a few snowflakes, then quickly lost them to the wind. "Memories are like snowflakes, messy and complicated. No one knows whether they will surprise you in the next moment." He stood up and patted the snow on his clothes, "What do you think, Boya?"

Boya nodded. "Since it's not Miss Mingyue's grievance, I'm relieved." He seemed to be greatly relieved, with a cheerful expression, "Qingming, I've always kept this in mind. But I don't think people like Miss Mingyue would Will become a vengeful spirit. Although I don't understand Yin and Yang Dao, I just know this."

"Yes. Boya, you are a good man."

"I've been thinking about this..." Boya repeated.

"Ah."

"Sunny."

"Ok?"

"It's been 20 years since Mr. Baoxian passed away. Mr. Fujiwara Kanetsu also passed away that year, right? A few years ago, Mr. Kane also passed away. But he seems to have been entangled by Mr. Kanetsu's grievances, and his life is not good. Not stable."

"Ah."

"Ah, there is also Miss Junko. She married Prince Weiping 30 years ago, and it was Prince Shouhei who ascended the throne later. After Mr. Minamoto Takaaki was deposed, Miss Junko has been living in seclusion with the prince, and passed away a few years ago gone."

"Yes."

"Qingming, human life is really short." Boya said very sincerely, "I am really happy to see Qingming again."

"Me too." Qingming looked deeply at his friend, "Bo Ya, I am also very happy to see you again today."

Boya nodded.He patted the big Onmyoji on the shoulder, and his whole figure gradually became lighter and lighter. "I've always kept this in mind, and now I finally have nothing to worry about." He said with a smile, "Qingming, I am very lucky to be able to make friends with you in this life."

In the white field of vision, only the elderly Onmyoji remained.He stood there for a long time, and finally shook his head slightly. "...I am, Boya." He said to himself, "I am the lucky one."

He looked down the valley again.There was no one there anymore.The wind and snow are flying between the sky and the earth, and there is nothing else.

The Great Onmyoji turned his back and walked alone towards the way he came.

In the fourth year of Kangbao (967 A.D.), Lord He Mao passed away.

In the second year of Zhenyuan (977 AD), He Mao Baoxian passed away.

In the third year of Tianyuan (980 A.D.), Yuan Boya passed away.

I am used to it in this life, and we will never meet again.

Only the love in the heart, lingering until death.

Everything is difficult to exist, and impermanence is like a flower at the end.

The empty cicada is in such a world, disillusioned like the morning glow.

Human life is indeed like a dream.

"I don't have much time..."

But the fate formed when people meet will never disappear.

"Life is really amazing, Boya."