Non-delivery

Xie Changming glanced at him, didn't look any further, and went straight inside.

The shopkeeper of the inn was a middle-aged man, not tall and thin, standing alone behind the counter to settle the accounts. The abacus rang for a long time, and the account books were covered with ink stains.

Cong Yuan called him several times before the shopkeeper came to his senses. He raised his head slowly, his eyes were empty, and he didn't seem to look at them. He asked, "Do you want to eat or stay in the shop?"

Cong Yuan didn't have any money in the world, but he answered very neatly: "Three rooms, some good wine and good food! I want a big bowl of wine and a big bowl of meat!"

Obviously, Cong Yuan has almost never been to the human world. Even for the tasks in the academy, he almost always finds those deep mountains and old forests to do.There is no other reason. His father felt that there was demon blood in his body, and he was afraid that he would also have the bad habit of cannibalism. He taught Cong Yuan harshly, which made him a bit shadowy. Just hurt a fragile mortal, or become demonic at the sight of human blood.However, at this moment, Xie Changming was standing beside him, who could stop him no matter what happened.Thinking of this, Cong Yuan relaxed and became bolder, and even used the words from the scriptures that Chen Yibai showed him.

Walking in the rivers and lakes, a young knight like him should be so chic.

Xie Changming said, "Two rooms are enough."

Cong Yuan: "?"

more confused.

He couldn't help but look at Sheng Liuyu on Xie Changming's back, that divine bird that once threatened him and was extremely arrogant and indifferent. He usually doesn't even bother to say a word to others, but wants to share a room with Xie Changming. You don't have to put up with it so far.

Now the little Changming bird is quietly lying on Xie Changming's shoulder, unable to see his face, only a head of smooth long hair, even looks very obedient...

Cong Yuan shook his head, not daring to think about it anymore.Besides, the person in front of him is Xie Changming, and with Cong Yuan's personality, he would never refute it.

So, the shopkeeper opened the drawer, took out two keys, first called "Xiao Wu" and then "Agou", but no one answered, opened his mouth again, seemed to want to say something, but finally swallowed it back.

A mother-in-law with all white hair and a stooped figure came out from behind and said to the shopkeeper: "Xiao Wu is busy serving the military master, Agou is long gone, I will lead them up."

The shopkeeper froze for a moment, nodded his head, handed over the key like a wooden man, and led them up the stairs at the back, probably to avoid the drunken sergeant in front.

The inn is three stories high, not to mention the carved railings and jade bricks, but also the simple decoration, but it looks very old, and there are not even a few lanterns lit.

The mother-in-law held the lamp, walked ahead, went directly to the third floor, stopped in front of a room, opened the door, and the dust rushed in, she waved her hand: "Guest, no one has lived here for a long time, please allow the old lady to clean up first." for a moment."

The door was open, three people were waiting outside, and there was the sound of cleaning inside.

The third floor is very quiet, the other houses seem to be unoccupied, and the hustle and bustle of the street outside has nothing to do with this place.

Still weird.

Cong Yuan leaned on the door frame, finally found a chance, and asked, "Where is this?"

Xie Changming put Sheng Liuyu down, changed his posture, hugged him again, and said slowly: "I don't know."

Cong Yuan was a little anxious: "You don't know? I don't know why you didn't leave and stayed in the world. It is estimated that everyone in the academy is very anxious. The bird is lost. I don't know how to explain it to Xiao Chongshan. We don't know how to live or die. Ah, I also exposed my identity as a half-devil, so I’m afraid I won’t be able to go back. I hope that Chen Yibai, Gu Nian, will be strict with his roommates for many years. I don’t want to be arrested as soon as I go back!”

Xie Changming said: "Sijietang knows your identity."

Cong Yuan: "...Huh?"

Xie Changming remembered three years ago: "Mr. Xu said that your father knows the dean very well. He sent you here and said hello in advance."

Cong Yuan fell into a huge shock, his consciousness was blank, he couldn't react for a long time, he was in a trance, and he didn't know why.

As if he was tired, Xie Changming suddenly sat down on the other side of the corridor, put the head of the little Changming bird gently on his lap, and asked in a low voice, "Has the person from Xiao Chongshan come to the academy?"

Cong Yuan only had a little instinct left, and replied: "When the guards found out, they seemed to say that they were going back to Xiaozhong Mountain to inform the divine bird, and then they all disappeared. Maybe it's because of the long distance, and there is no news so far."

Xie Changming lowered his head, unable to see the expression on his face clearly, just gently fiddled with Sheng Liuyu's hanging hair, and nodded dispensably, as if he didn't care.

Cong Yuan didn't know why he asked this, and was a little puzzled.

But the little Changming bird seemed to have noticed something suddenly. He seemed to have a natural perception of Xie Changming's matter, raised his head slightly, and rubbed his cheek against the palm of the person who was holding him.

Xie Changming understood that it wasn't that the journey was far away, but that Sheng Baiyun didn't want to come at all.

He didn't want to, and he wouldn't save the little Changming Bird.

Because Sheng Baiyun hated Sheng Liuyu.He hated the irresistible destiny, hated that the birth of the little Changming bird took away his wife's life, so he always ignored the little Changming bird, let the so-called fate, and let Qin Ji do what he did.

But Sheng Liuyu did nothing wrong.

Sheng Baiyun is a useless husband, an unworthy father, and a cowardly man.

Sheng Liuyu was just the object of anger, the result of a mistake.

So Xie Changming wouldn't let Sheng Liuyu hear about Xiao Chongshan, it was unnecessary.

The sound of cleaning inside the house continued, but the corridor outside was silent.

Suddenly, a sharp gaze pierced everything and looked at Cong Yuan.

Cong Yuan was still alert, and immediately reacted, walked to the railing in a few steps, frowning, looking around, but did not find the person just now.

Xie Changming reminded: "It's for you."

Cong Yuan turned pale with shock: "We just came back from the Demon Realm, so we won't show our feet, and someone wants to do justice for the sky!"

Xie Changming said: "Just now there is a monk in the fusion period downstairs, he should have discovered you."

Cong Yuan was very dissatisfied: "Then why don't you say it's for you? Your cultivation base..."

Before he finished speaking, he suddenly discovered that Xie Changming had already covered up his cultivation, no different from ordinary people.

That, probably, should, is aimed at myself.

He immediately changed his voice and murmured: "That's not right, there were no individual visitors at all just now, they were all sergeants, that is to say..."

It is always a big taboo for monks to interfere with the affairs of the world. Even if they are not discovered by people in the world of cultivating immortals, they will definitely be discovered by the Dao of Heaven when they break through the realm and ask their hearts, and it is difficult to break through.Although there are also monks who will intervene in the mortal world for various reasons, most of them have low cultivation and no hope of progress.Taking a step back, even if there are promising monks in the body stage who are willing to enter the world, how can they appear among a group of sergeants?

Xie Changming stopped talking, now is not a good time to talk, and the mother-in-law just came out of the house with two dirty rags in her hand: "Young master, the room has been cleaned."

Cong Yuan glanced at Xie Changming, and seemed to have something to say, but he didn't say anything, but said: "Anyway, let's take a rest today."

Xie Changming nodded.

The mother-in-law walked in front. Although she looked old, her hands and feet were very agile. She walked faster than ordinary young people. Before she reached the door, she asked first: "My lord, is your wife sick?" ? Do you want to ask the doctor to come and take a look?"

Xie Changming smiled when he heard the words, even his chest trembled slightly.

This is the second time that the little Changming Bird has been misidentified.

The first time was in Lingzhou, but at that time the little Changming bird was wearing a woman's skirt, which was intentionally misleading, and strictly speaking, it was not a misidentification.

But now, the little Changming Bird is dressed in white, with long hair loose, and is held in Xie Changming's arms. He can't see his eyebrows clearly, but he can only vaguely see that he is very beautiful. He is very different from ordinary men in the world. It is also easy to be mistaken.

Xie Changming said softly, "It's not Madam."

Sheng Liuyu in his arms was startled.

The mother-in-law was also stunned for a moment, quite surprised, her tone was much calmer, not as polite and warm as before: "Oh? Are those brothers and sisters? If not, it's better to be careful in public, and don't provoke too many gossips." .”

Xie Changming said: "He is a man, so he cannot be called Mrs. He is my Taoist companion."

The word "Taoist" is deliberately emphasized.

When he said this, his voice was very low, and he didn't look at the mother-in-law in front of him, but looked down at the little Changming bird in his arms.

The mother-in-law is getting old, her ears are not very sharp, and she can only hear the word "couple".

As for Sheng Liuyu, who was young and lost his hearing when he was in the demon world, he seemed to have recovered after returning to the human world, but it was just Xie Changming's guess, and he didn't know if he could hear those two words clearly.

If the little Chang Mingniao didn't want to speak those birdsongs, it would be useless even if Xie Changming was a level [-] master of birdsongs.

After a long while, the mother-in-law finally realized that she was a well-informed old lady, and she was not very surprised. She brought them to the room as usual, and said, "You are... I have seen a few pairs of Qi brothers before. .”

Regardless of whether it is the world of immortals, most couples are a man and a woman, but few men are the same as men, and women are the same as women.Even in the world of cultivating immortals, if a man forms a Taoist couple with a man, many people will think that it is against the heavenly relationship, and there will be no good results. However, because there is too much yang energy when getting along, they cannot reconcile yin and yang to achieve balance. There will be no further improvement in cultivation.

But the mother-in-law is not like that.She sighed again, and looked at Xie Changming who was holding Sheng Liuyu. She had a weather-beaten face, her eyes were old but still bright, and she was gentle and tolerant at this time: "In this troubled world, it is good to have someone to accompany you."

Then she turned the key, and with a creaking sound, the door was pushed open, revealing a room that was bigger than before.All the furnishings are complete, the mahogany carved table case, a few pieces of lacquerware are scattered here and there, and there is a fuzzy bronze mirror.The curtains were lightly drawn, covered with dust, and in front of the bed was a six-panel floor-to-ceiling screen. The silk screen seemed to be something old for some years, but it completely covered the wooden bed.

The mother-in-law said: "This room is too big, and it may take a while to clean it. Don't you feel tired if you hold him all the time? Why don't you come in and sit in lijia. The dust doesn't choke you."

Xie Changming walked in, and the door closed again.

Then, Xie Changming chatted with her mother-in-law easily.

The mother-in-law's surname is Chen. Because she is illiterate and has not used her name for many years, she can't even remember her name.She is 65 years old this year, approaching her ancient age.

This is Xun'an Mansion, which has been a good place with beautiful mountains and clear waters, accessible waterways and abundant fields since ancient times.There are more than a thousand miles between Xun'an Mansion and the border. Unless the court is fatuous and innocuous, and the country is ruined and the family is ruined, no battle can be fought here.

Granny Chen said: "My mother came here from the famine. When I was a child, she always told me how scary the border is. I have never experienced it. I just think it might not be that scary."

As a result, a year ago, the Qin State next door captured the frontier and went on a rampage all the way, killing Xun'an Mansion in less than a month. The people in Xun'an Mansion were caught off guard, and the defenders all went to the front line. There is no way to survive, and many people remain in the city. After the Qin army broke through the Xun'an Mansion, they directly slaughtered the city.

Granny Chen went to the bed, closed the curtains, and shook off the dust: "I am a miserable person. My eldest son got sick at the age of 20, her husband died at the age of 40, and the youngest daughter in her womb also died. Three years ago , The government recruited soldiers. After my second son went there, there was no news. It was not until a fellow villager came back with news that he was gone on the battlefield for the first time. I asked him if he had anything left for me, but he said nothing. I also have a daughter-in-law, her name is Xiaocui, she is beautiful, young, and has no children. I let her remarry, no need to guard her, and suffer all her life. Later, she married the shopkeeper of this house. Shopkeeper Liu has a kind heart , the former wife was weak and sick, unable to have children, and he took good care of her, and stayed with her for a few years after her death. The matchmaker introduced him to a girl from a good family. He said that he was not young, and he was afraid of delaying others, so he finally married Xiaocui , and I will take it over for the elderly.”

Chen Po said calmly: "She was pregnant with a child within a few months of her marriage. That's a really good day..."

Coinciding with the Qin army's surprise attack, shopkeeper Liu was careful, and felt that something was wrong when he didn't receive the vegetables from the farmers in the outer city. He thought about the Qin army, and went out of the city with his wife, buddy, and Mrs. Chen.Sure enough, the Qin army attacked the city, and marched all the way. They dragged their families along with them, so they had to hide in Tibet. In the end, Xiaocui was overly frightened and gave birth suddenly. Both mother and child died in that wilderness. .

Chen Po sighed: "She's dead too, I really don't think there's anything left to do. At such an old age, I've killed everyone around me, and there's nothing left. The Qin army rushed forward in large numbers, and I don't want to run away again." So I told Shopkeeper Liu that I wanted to go back and take care of the graves of my family members. I was afraid that their tombstones would fall down, and they would not be able to live in peace after death. Shopkeeper Liu was also ashamed. He entrusted the child's body to me and asked me to bury it. Enter their family's ancestral grave. Xiaocui can only be buried on the spot, and a grave is erected."

She pushed open the window, Xie Changming raised his head slightly, and could see the night outside, with dark clouds covering the moon, without a single star, but there were faint noises.

He asked, "In that case, why are there so many people outside?"

Grandma Chen was stunned: "When I came back, the city was full of dead people. The Zhuangzi in my hometown was much better, and people gradually came back. The days of fleeing outside were too difficult. The court came a few days ago. It was said that it was recovering the lost land, but the population in the city was too small, and too many people died, so they announced to the world that anyone with relatives in Xun'an Mansion could come to look for relatives, and if relatives died in the war, they could directly inherit. property."

So there are many people looking for relatives here.

Xie Changming supported his head, thinking about the relationship between these things in Xun'an Mansion and the monk in the integration period.

Chen Po stepped aside, wrung the veil dry, and asked casually, "By the way, where did the guests come from? Why don't you know about this?"

Xie Changming said calmly: "We are not from Qi, we came from afar."

Chen Po wondered, "Then why are you here?"

Xie Changming's face remained unchanged, and he said calmly: "The matter between me and him was discovered at home, and I was forced to flee, and got lost on the way. I also encountered robbers, and came here in a hasty escape."