The memories of the birds and beasts in the mountains are limited, and they are probably similar to those of Sanhua Empress in her childhood. When the east turned white, there was finally some movement in the forest that had been silent for two days due to the battle between gods and men above them.
There were some rustling sounds beside me.
Most of these voices are alarming.
It seems that my memory is not that bad.
Occasionally, some animals passed by the Taoist. Most of them were small animals, such as pheasants, hares, sparrows and other non-hibernating animals. There were also larger animals such as wild dogs and mountain boars.
Some passed by the Taoist without noticing, and some found him inadvertently and were startled by him, or stood there and stared at the Taoist sitting cross-legged in the forest with his back against an ancient tree for a while, and then looked at him.
He continued to go about his own business, neither being particularly frightened by him nor attacking him.
But the Taoist had a vague feeling that there was a little thing in the grass in the distance staring at him.
Maybe he's a very curious guy.
When the first ray of morning light passed over the mountains, passed through the forest tops, and shone on the land between the mountains, there was finally an imperceptible rustling sound from that side. Unless the Taoist listened deliberately, it would be difficult to hear it clearly.
The sound caught in his ears outlined an outline in his mind - there was a little thing tiptoeing, maybe even looking for a suitable foothold with every step he took. The dry branches and leaves that made noise were absolutely unacceptable.
When stepping, the back foot must also step on the footprints of the front foot. Carefully avoid thorns, pass through the gaps in the grass, and come to the Taoist.
He is an exceptionally beautiful calico cat.
The cat walked out of the grass with half of his body, and hid half of his body inside. He raised his head and stared at the Taoist with a serious expression and twinkling eyes, as if he was thinking about something.
After getting closer, I could see it more clearly. It seemed that I had finally confirmed something. Then it completely walked out of the grass and walked towards the Taoist. It stopped half a foot away from the Taoist, sat down upright, and continued without blinking.
He stared at the Taoist, his eyes particularly lively.
When it looked at the Taoist, the Taoist also looked at it.
At first glance, I thought it was Sanhua Empress.
If you take a closer look, you will see that although it looks similar to Sanhua Empress, they are only about 70% similar, but they are both extraordinarily beautiful and agile, which is why they are easy to confuse.
The Taoist also showed a look of recollection.
Finally remembering its origin, I couldn't help but smile.
"It turns out it's you..."
The voice was extremely weak.
"Meow?"
The cat tilted its head and stared at him.
"I didn't expect that you are still alive. You don't seem to have aged much." The Taoist looked at it and said weakly, "It is fate to meet here."
"?"
The cat tilted its head and stared at him, sizing him up.
As if it had made some judgment, it turned around without saying a word and disappeared into the jungle.
After a while, there was another sound from the left.
The cat came back from this direction.
At this time, she was holding a big fat mouse in her mouth. It was really big and fat, almost as big as a half-grown cat, and its tail was half as long as a cat.
The calico cat raised his head and looked at the Taoist warily, confirming that it was still the same person as before. Then he came closer to the Taoist, put down the mouse in his mouth, pushed it in his direction with his paw, and meowed at him.
After making a sound, he backed away, distanced himself, and sat down without moving.
"..."
The Taoist was very helpless.
Who could have imagined that in the past nearly twenty years, I had refused countless attempts to feed mice by Sanhua Empress, and now I would be in a strange place without Sanhua Empress, and would be fed by a wooden tree that was born because of Sanhua Empress.
The cat continues to feed.
"Thank you..."
The Taoist said weakly: "I just don't eat mice."
"Meow?"
The cat looked up at him with a look of shock.
Song You became more and more helpless.
This cat can barely be regarded as an old cat. It was the one that Kong Taizhao, who was very skilled in craftsmanship, carved out of Yidu City in the past, imitating the Sanhua Empress. It has 70% of the appearance and agility of the Sanhua Empress, and the rest is
Kong Taizhao gave it to it. Logically speaking, Kong Taizhao did not understand the character of Sanhua Empress, and its character should have nothing to do with Sanhua Empress.
"Meow……"
The cat seemed to finally be sure that he would not eat the mouse. His eyes kept flickering, and he walked over slowly, picked up the mouse again, and went into the jungle again.
The Taoist watched it go away without moving.
I looked up at the sky and saw that the weather was fine.
It seems that this place should not be far from Yi.
At least it should be within Yizhou.
To the west of Pingzhou is Yizhou.
It is consistent with this.
When I was thinking about it, there was a brush.
The cat emerged from the jungle on the right again, this time holding a bunch of withered yellow grass in its mouth.
He still approached the Taoist, lowered his head, then stepped back to a distance that was comfortable for the cat, and continued to sit down and stare at him.
Song You thought it was a piece of wild grass pulled from somewhere, but when he took a closer look, it was indeed a wild grass, but it was also a wild grass that was grown and eaten by some people - thin grass stems with dry yellow leaves, and many small little ones attached to them.
The pods are smaller than peas. Because winter has come, the whole bunch of grass has turned yellow and is brittle. It rustles when touched. The leaves will break and the pods will fall off with a little force. Therefore, when the cat came just now
Just be extra careful.
People in Yizhou call this dish Chaocai.
There is also a place called Yuan Xiucai.
In fact, it also has a more famous name——
Many people today believe that "Wei" in the Book of Songs is it. This view is widely recognized by people today.
"Meow?"
Seeing that he hadn't moved for a long time, the cat couldn't help but bark.
It's like urging, but also like asking.
"Thank you..."
The Taoist said still weakly and struggled to pick up the wild vegetables. Fortunately, the pods had already become dry and brittle. If you pinched them lightly, the pods would peel open and a row of small beans would fall out.
The beans are so small that you don’t need to chew them when you put them in your mouth. If they are completely dry, they won’t taste very good, so you can just swallow them.
The cat then raised its paw and licked it.
The Taoist ate several in a row and suddenly felt something was wrong.
Although the nest vegetables often grow in large pieces and are densely packed, but with the claws of a cat, it is difficult to tear off a large piece of nest vegetables in such a regular manner without breaking it, and also arrange it into a bunch - this string of nest vegetables has many
There are obvious traces of being neatly placed, and even the roots don't look like they were torn off, but like they were cut off.
“Where did you get this food?”
"Meow?"
The cat licked its paws for a moment, showing confusion.
Then he stood up, stretched himself, without saying a word, turned around and went back into the jungle.
The sun gradually rises and the sky becomes brighter and brighter.
There was a sound from the jungle again.
This time there were distinct footsteps.
The dead branches and fallen leaves were trampled and crushed, and the sound was crisp and clear.
The visitor's steps were steady and even, and he carefully pushed aside the grass and branches. He seemed to be alone.
"brush……"
The cat was running and jumping, taking the lead to cross the grass and skipping in front of the Taoist. Then it stopped and looked back.
"Wow..."
The branches were pushed aside by one hand.
A figure appeared in front of the Taoist.
"Where are you taking me?
"Is there anyone?"
It was a man's voice, which sounded slightly familiar.
The Taoist frowned.
After the man pushed aside the branches and walked over, he was obviously startled when he saw the Taoist sitting cross-legged under the tree. He was extra vigilant. Even when he saw the Taoist's robe, he did not relax much.
It wasn't until he saw the Taoist's face clearly that he was stunned for a moment, showing doubts.
Both sides felt that the other party was somewhat familiar.
"Is it...Mr. Song?"
The man opened his eyes wide, seemed to have thought about it, and asked, "Why are you here?"
"It's a long story. It's all a coincidence." The Taoist also remembered who this person was and vaguely remembered his name. "It turned out that I was living in seclusion here."
"What's wrong, sir?"
But the man heard the weakness in his voice and couldn't help but look up at the sky: "Could it be that the thunder and movement in the sky in the past two days have something to do with Mr.? Is Mr. using his magical powers to slay demons?"
"Almost the same."
"Can you still leave, sir?"
"You have to take it slow."
"Would you like some water?"
"It would be better if there were."
"Go get it, little man."
After the man finished speaking, he turned around and left in a hurry.
The cat was left sitting there, looking back at the direction the man left, then at the Taoist, and continued to lower its head and lick its paws.
This man was Kong Daizhao's apprentice, named Dongyang. Like the cat in front of him, he was carved from wood by Kong Daizhao. Because of his superb skills and sufficient spirituality, he was connected with the mysterious.
The avenue of heaven and earth, and then reincarnation into life.
Song You couldn't help but look up at the sky again.
I can’t help but feel a little lucky in my heart——
In the previous two days of fighting here, he used the Four Seasons Bell to isolate a hundred miles in radius, and also isolated the mountains and forests on the ground. His original intention was "Although I know that this is a barren mountain with no human habitation for hundreds of miles, there are still many birds, animals, vegetation, and fairies."
Ghosts and ghosts are all alive, and it is not good to hurt them." However, he did not expect that an old cat and old friend still lived in this barren mountain.
Good deeds are indeed good, and good intentions are never wrong.
The Taoist smiled.
Not long after, Dongyang came back with water, some wild vegetable dumplings, and fed Song You water and food. After waiting for him for a while, he helped him back to his hut.
The thatched cottage was built in the mountains, in a place with beautiful mountains and clear waters. There was a bamboo forest behind the house, fields on the left and right, and a pond in front. The layout of the thatched cottage was somewhat similar to that of Kong Daizhao's house. A bamboo fence surrounded the door.
It's not a small area, with chickens and ducks raised.
Dongyang brought a bamboo chair for the Taoist to sit down.
"A few years ago, we went to Yunzhou, passed through Yizhou again, and returned to Yidu. We also visited the original house of Shi Shi and Kong Daizhao, but it was empty. We only saw Kong Daizhao's tomb."
The Taoist calmed down a little, and then asked, "Why did you come to live in seclusion in this barren mountain?"
"The villain himself is not an ordinary person. Although he has the help of his husband, he is not easily seen by others and is no longer afraid of fire. But when he grows up, he will no longer grow or grow old. Maybe the villain is inherently
It is not suitable to live in the human world." Dongyang said, "So after the master left, he buried the master, and the villain took his luggage, left the village, and moved to this uninhabited mountain."
"I see."
The Taoist lowered his head and looked around, but he didn't see the cat again.
"That one..."
"That cat was the one carved by Master. Now I am half a neighbor." The man said to him, "After it survived and left, it never came back. Until Master died, it seemed to have some secret
I felt it, so I went back to the village. After a while, the little man left the village and walked into the mountains. I didn’t go far when I met it. It seemed to be leading the way for me, and it took me to this area surrounded by mountains.
I built a house, cultivated fields, and settled down here. And it seemed to live not far away, wandering around freely. It would appear once in a while, or when I went to the mountains to hunt for wood, cut firewood, and collect herbs, I would meet him.
It met me, so it is half a neighbor to me."
"Does this cat have a name?"
"It has no name. Dongyang has always wanted to give it a name so that it can be called when it encounters it. Sometimes I catch fish in the pond and want to entertain it, so as to call it in the mountains. Master also once said to Dongyang
I mentioned before that the creature transformed from wood must have a name so that it will not easily turn back into wood." Dongyang shook his head and said, "It's a pity that Dongyang has a wooden head and can't come up with a name."
"Is it so particular?"
"At least that's how people are. I wonder if cats are like that." Dongyang said for a moment, then suddenly looked at the Taoist, "By the way, since I met Mr., I might as well ask Mr. to help me give it a name."
"How can I have this qualification?"
"Sir, you are being humble. People in the world often ask Taoists for help when choosing names. Master once told Dongyang that there is probably no Taoist with higher Taoism than Mr. Xiang in this world. If Mr. Wang is not qualified, who is?" Dongyang looked up and looked up.
Tian again thought of the terrifying scene above his head in the past two days, and felt even more respect for him, "What's more, in this barren mountain, apart from Mr., we may not be able to meet anyone else before we turn back into rotten wood."
"In that case..."
The Taoist stopped and thought for a moment: "I met it again today, and it brought Chao Cai in its mouth. Chao Cai is also called Wei Cai. If I had lived here for a long time, maybe I would call it Cai Wei?"
"Caiwei..."
Dongyang read it several times and wrote it down.
"Sir is an old friend and an honored guest. Dongyang must treat him well.
"It's a pity that there are no fungi at this time..."
With the same muttered words, Dongyang lowered his head and went out, and then there was a burst of chaos outside.
The same pot of chicken soup is served to the Taoist.
The Taoist was blessed with luck and protected by heaven and earth. Although he was seriously injured, his body, mind and soul were exhausted, and his magic power was exhausted, he recovered quickly - at least after drinking the chicken soup cooked in Dongyang, several ancient sages used great magical powers on his body.
The wound was almost invisible. Although it was only a superficial wound and not truly healed, the ability to walk was restored.
"I am very happy and wonderful to meet you here. However, I have important matters and I cannot stay here for a long time. I would like to thank you for your hospitality. I must say goodbye to you."
Song You leaned on his bamboo stick and saluted him.
I felt vaguely strange in my heart.
Meeting Dongyang and meeting Wooden Cat, isn’t it another kind of conclusion to the fate of the past?