Looking to the Thirteen Rivers

Hearing those three words seemed to have some other meaning, Yin Qiu turned his head to meet Man Jiangxue's smiling and quiet eyes, and a subtle feeling suddenly spread in his heart.

——Man Jiangxue never looked at her with such eyes before.

In the past few years, when Man Jiangxue looked at her, she mostly looked at her with an expression similar to that of an elder looking at a junior, or caring, or comfort, or love and pity. In short, what an adult looks at a child, Man Jiangxue That's what it looks like.

But since this winter, everything seems to have slowly changed. Even though Yin Qiu couldn't tell when the change happened, she thought a lot lately during these days, and she recalled many times The way Man Jiangxue looked at her was actually different from the past. There were quiet gazing, calm scrutiny, and the clear gaze that was cast across the crowd to her accurately, as well as countless dizzy eyes with candlelight floating. At night, Man Jiangxue didn't look at others, only looked at her.

All in all, Yin Qiu had never seen Man Jiangxue show those eyes that were unidentifiable at the time but really had other meanings to others.

Only she got it.

The wind moved, and the white robes rustled. Yin Qiu's nose was red from the cold, and there was a layer of mist in her eyes. Her internal injuries were not healed, and her body was still weak. His sickly face was a little pale, and a little reddish, indescribably pitiful, yet a little unconsciously reluctant to speak.

"Uncle seems to be in a good mood." Yin Qiu looked at Man Jiangxue softly, "Is today a special day?"

Man Jiangxue hugged her to the ground and said as she walked, "You ask me this question every year."

Yin Qiu was slightly confused, and then suddenly understood after thinking: "Ah, it's my birthday."

Man Jiangxue said: "Yes, you will never remember."

Yin Qiu had no way of knowing about her birthday before she was 11 years old. If it wasn't for Man Jiangxue, she would have never known her birthday for the rest of her life. Maybe it was because she was used to no one celebrating her birthday. In the past few years after entering Yunhua Palace, Yin Qiu couldn't remember it quickly, and Man Jiangxue remembered it better than her every year.

No wonder Man Jiangxue did not choose to return to the palace today, but stayed at the foot of the mountain for one more day. Thinking of this level, Yin Qiu felt a little moved in his heart.

But who is the old man that my uncle mentioned?Yin Qiu raised his head and looked forward. Among the clumps of wintersweet, there was a courtyard surrounded by high walls, and there were two small buildings inside. There was no plaque on the gate, only two lanterns, and there was no surname on it.

The two went up the steps hand in hand, knocked on the door, and after a short while, there was a rush of footsteps inside, an old man opened the door, and when he saw Man Jiangxue, he was overjoyed and said: "Oh, it's Miss who is back! Why didn't you send a message in advance? Hurry up, come in!"

The old man had a kind face and kind eyes, and he smiled amiably. Yin Qiushang was still surprised by his "Miss", but Man Jiangxue led her to him again, and said, "This is Miss Yin."

Just hearing Yin Qiu's surname, the old man showed a clear expression, looked at Yin Qiu and said, "Miss Yin? Got it, got it. We rarely have guests in this house, and the girl is the first one brought here by my lady." Where are you coming from?"

I thought that Man Jiangxue would say something like Yunhua's disciple, but I didn't expect that she would introduce herself so solemnly, so Yin Qiu also bowed and said, "Hi, old man."

The old man saw that Yin Qiu was pretty and polite, so he also smiled back and said: "Hi, girl, you are welcome, it's too cold outside, hurry up and have a cup of hot tea to relieve the cold."

Entering the inside, the garden is full of wintersweet fragrance, the white snow shines on the pavilions, the lake is paved, and the bridges and rivers communicate. This place is fresh, unique and elegant.

The three of them entered the long corridor, crossed a icy lake and entered the building. Yin Qiu looked around and asked Man Jiangxue, "When did the uncle have such a house? I haven't heard you mention it before."

Man Jiangxue took a seat next to the short feet, and took off the brocade robe for Yin Qiu, and the old man quickly brought hot tea.Man Jiangxue said: "It's an old house. It was bought a few years ago. These are the servants my mother used to know. Most of them are homeless. I took them all over and come here every year when I have free time. have a look."

Yin Qiu understood, and said with a smile: "So, this is the uncle's home?"

Man Jiangxue looked at her and said, "If you want, it can be yours in the future."

Yin Qiu was slightly stunned, and couldn't help but feel a little embarrassed, and there were many people's voices outside, and soon, a group of maids and servants ran over in a hurry, one after another, rushed to Jiang Xue to say hello, and then came again Many elderly grandma and aunts chatted and laughed kindly in the house, and the atmosphere was very harmonious.

When everyone retreated, the old man came over again with the bamboo basket filled with paper incense candles, and asked Man Jiangxue, "Miss, should I go there now, or should I go after sitting down?"

Man Jiangxue said: "Go now."

She got up and took the bamboo basket over. When Yin Qiu saw the things in there, she immediately realized who the old man Man Jiangxue was talking about. She followed Man Jiangxue out and asked, "Yes?" Are you going to pay homage to the uncle's mother?"

"Well," Man Jiangxue said, "in the plum forest."

Yin Qiu said, "My uncle's mother, what should I call her?"

Man Jiangxue said: "If it is based on seniority..." She thought for a moment, then smiled helplessly, "I don't really know about this."

Hearing what she said, Yin Qiu couldn't help feeling playful, and deliberately asked, "What is the seniority between me and my uncle?"

Man Jiangxue glanced sideways at her: "What do you think?"

Yin Qiu smiled: "I don't know."

Man Jiangxue raised the corner of her mouth slightly: "How could you not know?"

"I just don't know," Yin Qiu looked at her, "If the uncle knows, you might as well tell me."

"I don't know either," Man Jiangxue said, "I'm making you laugh."

Yin Qiuming said: "Then call me Auntie, it can't go wrong."

Man Jiangxue said without hesitation: "If you are willing—"

Before she could say the rest, Yin Qiu hastily covered Man Jiangxue's lips, and also dodged her eyes.

"What are you doing?" Man Jiangxue lowered her eyelashes and looked at Yin Qiu calmly.

"...Stop chatting," Yin Qiu withdrew his hand, his face flushed again, "You can't keep your aunt waiting."

Man Jiangxue grabbed her hand again in the air and said, "You won't let me finish?"

Yin Qiu was quiet for a moment, then asked unnaturally: "What do you want to say?"

Man Jiangxue looked at her for a moment, and said: "I want to say, if you are willing..." When she said this, she deliberately stopped.

Yin Qiu smiled slowly, and pushed Man Jiangxue: "Let's go."

·

Out of the back door, a plum grove spread out, with swaying flower branches covered with thin snow, and in the open space deep in the flower bushes stood a very clean tombstone.

Yin Qiu folded plum branches and put them in front of the stele, and then took the initiative to blow on the fire and lit the joss sticks. The wind was too strong, and the candles lit up and then went out quickly. Cheng, the plum branch you folded is very beautiful, my mother will like it."

Yin Qiu nodded, burned some paper money against the wind and snow, raised his head and asked, "Do uncle and aunt look alike?"

Man Jiangxue said, "Probably I look alike," she helped Yin Qiu up, and said, "But when I was young, many people said that I was more like my father."

Yin Qiu said: "Then how did Auntie marry to Xiling?"

Man Jiangxue recalled for a while, and replied: "Actually, my mother seldom mentioned this to me. I only know that she met my father by chance when she was traveling outside the customs, but she didn't know who my father was at that time. , she just felt that it was love at first sight and that she had the same temperament, so she married as soon as she said she would marry, and she didn't know that my father was the King of Xiling until she moved into the Royal Courtyard."

Yin Qiu said, "And then?"

"Then my mother became pregnant," Man Jiangxue said, "She originally wanted to leave, but in this way, she can't decide whether to leave or not."

In Man Jiangxue's memory, her mother was a person who couldn't laugh.

She stayed in the Royal Courtyard for a total of ten years. During these ten years, Man Jiangxue has almost never seen her mother smiling. She is not depressed, nor dull, but just indifferent. The emotional indifference also affected Man Jiangxue a lot to a certain extent.

As far as Man Jiangxue could remember, Mu De had actually been to the imperial palace several times, where there were other heirs of unrighteous blood and women from the Central Plains living there, but every time he went there, he did not do it for others, just to meet Man Jiangxue. There are Jiang Xue mother and daughter, but no matter how many times he went, he was rejected as many times. His mother refused to see him, and even refused to make a sound when talking across the door. After a long time, Mu De became discouraged. , no longer go.

Although Mu De is a stupid king without the ability to govern the country, on the other hand, he knows piano, chess, calligraphy and painting, and especially loves cooking tea and wine. He is an elegant person, and such people often like beauties and attract The beauty likes it. Man Jiangxue doesn't know what her mother likes about Mu De, but when they can have a good relationship, there must be a certain amount of true love, but this true love is lost to the difference in status, and finally evolved into Ended up without illness.

During the years in the other courtyard, Man Jiangxue’s life was very boring and monotonous. Apart from practicing writing and hyphenating characters, what she did most every day was practicing swords. Strict, if one day does not satisfy the mother, Man Jiangxue will not only have no food to eat, but also no sleep, when the mother nods, she will be able to usher in a moment of relaxation.

So in fact, there are not so many geniuses in this world. The vast majority of people who can be called geniuses must experience hard training that others can't imagine. This is the case for Man Jiangxue, including Shen Mandong, and now Ji Wanshu is also like this.

Outsiders can only see their achievements in swordsmanship, but have never seen how much they have paid for it.

All the unknown hard work was covered up by the word "genius" and became a matter of course.

And this also caused Man Jiangxue to cherish words like gold in her childhood, and her heart was cold. Even now, she still gives people a deep sense of alienation. The influence of her mother may not be able to be eliminated for the rest of her life. s things.

"I once asked my mother why she was so strict with me," Mei Xiang floated in the air, and Man Jiangxue swayed the flowers in her eyes, she whispered, "The other heirs in the other courtyard can pamper themselves and have fun, Only I can’t do this, at that time, I couldn’t figure it out.”

It wasn't until Yongye invaded and Xiling fell, and when she took her mother out of the siege and fled to the Central Plains for the first time, that Man Jiangxue finally understood her mother's intentions.

"If you don't have good martial arts, you can only let others slaughter you," Man Jiangxue said, "My mother had foreseen Xiling's defeat many years ago, so she asked someone to teach me since I was very young." Kungfu is for me to have the ability to protect myself in troubled times."

But it was just to protect herself. She managed to protect herself, but she was unable to protect her mother.

So in the following years, she often dreamed of herself in another courtyard. In her dreams, she worked harder and more diligently than before, but when she woke up, there was nothing around her, and her efforts and diligence were meaningless.

The wind and snow lingered all over the body, and there was a coherent whisper between the sky and the earth, as if someone was whispering.Yin Qiu pinned the last plum blossom to Man Jiangxue's temple, looked at her and said, "Uncle Shi is not alone, Uncle Shi also has me."

Man Jiangxue was silent for a while, hugged Yin Qiu in her arms, touched her forehead, and said with a smile: "Yes, and you."

·

When the sky darkened, the two went back to the small building.

The mountains are quiet, away from the hustle and bustle of the world, and the night seems to come early. The people in the house hide somewhere, there are no clear lights in the courtyard, and there are not many lanterns in the porch, only a few burning in the building. The ever-extinguishing candles cast their shadows around, making the shadows illusory and ethereal.

Several large water tanks were planted in the yard, with withered and yellow lotus leaves floating on the surface of the water. The lanterns were thrown there, like a few round moons falling. The fish shattered the moons and threw the ones from Yin Qiu. After the reflection smoothed out, Yin Qiu stretched out his hand, walked vaguely around the traces of swimming fish, raised his head and said, "Why are there no people? Is this really the place we have been to during the day?"

Man Jiangxue stood behind her, shielding Yin Qiu from the wind coming from the corner of the corridor, and said: "I should have gone back to the house to rest. Every time I worship, they won't bother me. The old man saves money and keeps the lights on." Not many."

Yin Qiu said, "I'm hungry and my stomach is growling."

Man Jiangxue bent down, carried Yin Qiu up, and said: "There is food in the house, it should be still hot, after eating, there is a soup pool in the building to take a bath."

Hanging on her shoulder, Yin Qiu looked at the moon in the water tank getting farther and farther away from her. Yin Qiu said, "Master uncle is very fond of hands and feet now. He is either hugging or carrying. I can walk by myself."

"Then there is no one else for me to hold and carry," Man Jiangxue said, "Aren't you happy?"

Yin Qiu laughed silently: "Not really."

There were two pairs of clean embroidered shoes at the door. Man Jiangxue carried Yin Qiu to change the shoes, but did not let her down when she entered the house. Yin Qiu smelled the fragrance of wintersweet, turned her head to look at Man Jiangxue, and Man Jiangxue took advantage of the situation again. Holding her in his arms, Yin Qiu said: "This flower is beautiful, don't pick it off, uncle, just wear it tonight."

Man Jiangxue answered "Okay", and sat down at the table with someone in her arms. There was a steamer on the stove, and the food in it was still hot. The two of them ate to their fullness under the dim light without turning on the lights. .

The beaded curtains intertwined and jingled in the wind. Yin Qiu saw that the ground near the long table was covered with soft satin, so he stepped on his shoes and rolled on it twice with clean socks.

Man Jiangxue also came in with a bowl of water, and she poured two pills to Yin Qiu's lips, saying, "Eat this."

Yin Qiu sat up, swallowed the medicine with water, and fell down again.

"Tired?" Man Jiangxue tore off the thin blanket from the wicker chair and covered Yin Qiu.

"Cold." Yin Qiu huddled into a ball, squinting his eyes to look around.

"Charcoal fire is expensive," Man Jiangxue knew what she was looking for, and explained, "The old man is not willing to buy it."

Yin Qiu thought it was amused: "Is it because my uncle is treating people harshly? I'm not willing to light the lamp, and I'm also reluctant to buy charcoal fire. In such a cold day, I don't care. Don't let them cool down."

"Even if I treat myself harshly, I won't treat others harshly," Man Jiangxue said, "In your eyes, am I just that small?"

Yin Qiu laughed twice, moved his body to pillow on Man Jiangxue's lap, and said, "I'm just kidding, if the master uncle is a petty person, there will be no one who is not a petty person."

Man Jiangxue smiled, leaned closer to the long case, and reached out to take the pen and paper. Seeing her action, Yin Qiu asked, "What is the uncle going to do?"

"Write a letter," Man Jiangxue said, "ask a few people to go to Liucang Mountain to see if there is really an underground mechanism."

"Uncle is still careful," Yin Qiu yawned, "there are too many things these days, I have completely forgotten about it."

Man Jiangxue said: "When I finish writing, I will take you to take a bath, don't rush to sleep, the floor is still cold with satin."

Yin Qiu rubbed her eyes and forcibly raised her spirits. She raised her head, and the snow-white sleeve robe covered her face. It was icy cold and had a familiar body fragrance. He leaned over, looked up at Man Jiangxue and said, "I don't want to take a bath today, is that okay?"

Man Jiangxue didn't look at her, and said intently: "Why? The injury on your arm is fine, you can get wet, how can you sleep without a bath?"

Yin Qiu said, "I'm not sweating either, so I don't really want to take a bath."

"Then warm up the head office," Man Jiangxue said, "Aren't you cold?"

Yin Qiu said: "Okay, actually I'm too sleepy, I want to sleep now."

Man Jiangxue then lowered her head, looked at Yin Qiu and said, "Are you too sleepy?"

Yin Qiu closed his eyes, nodded and said, "I'm already asleep."

Man Jiangxue put down her pen, touched Yin Qiu's hand, then touched her cheek, and said, "You are so cold, are you sure you don't want to take a hot bath?"

Yin Qiu stared in a daze, turned over and hugged Man Jiangxue's waist, buried his face in her arms and said, "...well, no."

Man Jiangxue didn't answer any more, and stretched out her hand to feel the warmth on Yin Qiu's body. After a while, she removed Yin Qiu from her lap and walked out without saying a word.

Noticing that Man Jiangxue left suddenly, Yin Qiu woke up quickly. Wrapped in a thin blanket, she stretched her neck and looked outside, but she didn't see Man Jiangxue. Yin Qiu wanted to chase her out to have a look, but she was too sleepy. He didn't have the strength to stand up now, and when Man Jiangxue came back, Yin Qiu had already fallen into a light sleep, and was just about to fall asleep.

"I saw the soup pond, there is hot water in it," Man Jiangxue said, and picked Yin Qiu up again, "Go and wash."

Yin Qiu was disturbed and dozed off, and said a little uncomfortablely, "I don't want to wash...I want to sleep."

Man Jiangxue patted her face and said, "No, I'll go to bed after washing."

Yin Qiu had no choice but to open his eyes, and said with red eyes, "I celebrate my birthday today, why doesn't my uncle follow me?"

Man Jiangxue said: "Except for this matter, everything else is up to you."

Yin Qiu had no choice but muttered something vaguely, with a face of reluctance, Man Jiangxue didn't hear what she said, and didn't ask, she carried Yin Qiu to Tangchi, put down the curtain, and Yin Qiu undressed and called her: "Wake up, take a bath first, don't sleep."

Yin Qiu's consciousness was dim, but he still refused to compromise, holding Man Jiangxue in his arms and refusing to let go.

Man Jiangxue said: "If you play tricks again, I won't care about you."

Yin Qiu cried and said, "Uncle Master doesn't know how to love others, I'm so sleepy."

Man Jiangxue couldn't laugh or cry, seeing Yin Qiu's aggrieved appearance, she could only coax her softly and said: "Your injury is still not healed, and the cold wind has been blowing outside for so long today, and there is no charcoal fire in this room. If you don’t wash and warm up, what should you do if you catch a cold?”

Yin Qiu said in a muffled voice, "The uncle washes with me."

Man Jiangxue took off Yin Qiu's outer robe, and then took off her inner skirt, and said without changing expression: "Don't think about it, be obedient."

The curtain cut off the cold wind, and the hot and humid mist came over, but Yin Qiu was still shivering from the cold, and said with trembling lips and teeth, "Why? When I was young, didn't my master often wash with me?"

After taking off the shirt and skirt, only a layer of obscene clothes remained on Yin Qiu's body. Man Jiangxue pushed her to the side of the soup pool and said, "You also said that you were a child, go in quickly."

Yin Qiu glanced at her sadly, then turned around slowly and said, "All right...the uncle is waiting for me outside."

Man Jiangxue touched Yin Qiu's head, then went out and waited.

Yin Qiu tremblingly took off her obscene clothes, she was a little sober at this moment, she jumped into the soup pool with a "plop", the sound was quite loud, Man Jiangxue was listening outside, and knocked on the table Said: "Don't lose your temper, wash quickly."

Yin Qiu made a face at the curtain, and took a bath honestly. When her whole body began to warm up, and the coldness entrenched in her body disappeared, she secretly sighed that it was a good thing that Man Jiangxue didn't follow her. looking at her.

Man Jiangxue estimated the time, and guessed that Yin Qiu had almost finished washing, so she sent her the clean clothes. After Yin Qiu wiped off the water stains and put on the clothes, Man Jiangxue opened the curtain again and carried her to the couch. superior.

Tang Po was placed in the quilt, and it had already warmed up to a warm temperature. Yin Qiu relaxed and felt comfortable all over. She looked at Man Jiangxue and said, "When did Tang Po put it?"

Man Jiangxue patted her on the forehead: "When you were taking a bath."

Yin Qiu smiled and said sincerely, "Uncle Master is so caring."

Man Jiangxue bent the corners of her lips, ignored her, and took her clothes to the soup pool to take a bath by herself. This time Yin Qiu was no longer in a hurry to sleep, she wanted to wait for Man Jiangxue to come back to sleep together, but she didn't expect Man Jiangxue After Jiang Xue finished her bath, she didn't come to her, but went to the room on the other side.

In fact, since the relationship was confirmed in Weicheng, the two never went to bed together. Even if they stayed in an inn on the way, Man Jiangxue would open a room for as many people as possible. She stayed in bed for a while, but Yin Qiu didn't expect that Man Jiangxue didn't plan to sleep with her today, so she felt a little disappointed. After thinking about it, she lifted the quilt, put on her shoes, and ran towards Man Jiangxue's place Passing over, he leaned against the door and said, "Will Master Uncle accompany me?"

Before Man Jiangxue got on the bed, she turned to Yin Qiu when she heard the voice.

Noticing that she seemed to be hesitant, Yin Qiu said: "Obviously we used to sleep together, but Master Shu avoids me now, but it's a bit..."

Man Jiangxue glanced at her again and said, "But what?"

Yin Qiu was embarrassed to speak, so he could only stammer and say: "Anyway, I celebrate my birthday today, and my uncle has to rely on me. I want you to come and accompany me."

Man Jiangxue let out a low laugh, then came out again and walked back with Yin Qiu in his arms. Yin Qiu was so happy, he quickly got on the couch, got under the quilt, and moved inside again.

The room was filled with water vapor and the fragrance after bathing, quiet and elegant, Man Jiangxue lay down beside Yin Qiu, covered the quilt, Yin Qiu stared at her, saw that she neither spoke nor moved after she got on the couch, and then Asked: "Why is Master Uncle so far away from me?"

Man Jiangxue seemed to sigh softly, and said, "I'm already here, why aren't you sleeping yet?"

Yin Qiu hid the lower half of her face under the quilt, only her eyes were exposed, and she said in a soft voice, "But I'm not sleepy anymore, and I don't want to sleep."

"I have to go back to the palace tomorrow morning," Man Jiangxue said, "How can I not sleep?"

Yin Qiu sighed old-fashionedly: "Then you coax me to sleep? If you coax me, I will definitely go to sleep." After she finished speaking, she deliberately added, "Today is my birthday."

Man Jiangxue said: "Then how do you want me to coax you?"

Yin Qiu immediately said: "Of course I want to hug me. Uncle Shi used to hug me, but now he doesn't. Does Uncle Shi really like me?"

Man Jiangxue was speechless, but still reached out and hugged Yin Qiu.

Yin Qiu blushed and said, "Very good, that's it."

Man Jiangxue looked at her, and said helplessly, "Then you still have your eyes open, can you sleep now?"

Yin Qiu said, "Not yet."

Man Jiangxue pulled up the quilt to cover Yin Qiu, and said lightly, "This is the head office."

Yin Qiu struggled twice but couldn't break free, so he said without moving, "Today is my birthday..."

Man Jiangxue was silent for a while, and asked calmly: "Is there any other request, let me say it together."

Yin Qiu was quiet under the quilt for a while, and then murmured: "I still need my uncle...and..."

She stuttered and couldn't say what she said next, and Man Jiangxue was anxious for her, so Man Jiangxue lifted the quilt again, leaned close to Yin Qiu and kissed her on the lips, and said calmly: " Is that supposed to be all right?"

Yin Qiu blushed, pursed his lips and said, "Mmm...well..."

"Then go to bed quickly," Man Jiangxue raised his hand and extinguished the candle, the room was plunged into darkness for a moment, "I have to get up early tomorrow."

Yin Qiu said "oh", and huddled in Man Jiangxue's arms and stopped making trouble, but after a while, she poked her hand out of the quilt again, and groped to move it to Man Jiangxue's face.

Man Jiangxue tried her best to keep her mind calm, and asked again when she saw this, "What's the matter?"

Yin Qiu didn't speak, and kissed Man Jiangxue back in the dark without any mistakes, and then quickly buried his head down again.

Man Jiangxue said: "You..."

Yin Qiu hurriedly said, "Today I am..."

Man Jiangxue also rushed to say: "You celebrate your birthday today, I know, I have said it almost a hundred times."

Satisfied, Yin Qiu rubbed against Man Jiangxue's arms and said, "Okay, I'll sleep now."

Man Jiangxue smiled, and rubbed Yin Qiu's head. Yin Qiu held back for a long time and laughed loudly. The two of them fought together on the couch. Then he pinched her chin again, hugged her and kissed her heartily.

The author has something to say: I'm late for a reason!Look at the word count of my chapter!