Zhang Xiaofan sat blankly in his room, lost in thought.
It was a sunny afternoon, and the soft light shone in from the window of the room and sprinkled on the bluestone floor inside. Maybe it was because there was a lazy atmosphere in the air. In this room, the rhubarb and the little gray , also seemed a bit lazy at the moment.
Dahuang lay down at Zhang Xiaofan's feet, burying his head on his two front feet, with his eyes half closed and his ears drooped. Only his shiny fur tail swayed from time to time all over his body.
The usually active monkey Xiao Hui was also leaning on Da Huang at this moment, using Da Huang's belly as a pillow, sleeping soundly with his eyes closed, and his body was rising and falling slightly with the breathing of Da Huang's belly.
In this quiet afternoon, everything seemed to be exactly the same as before.
Zhang Xiaofan's eyes were staring blankly at an unknown place. This was already his third day back at Qingyun Mountain.
Suddenly, as if he felt something, Dahuang, who had been sleepy and confused, suddenly raised his head, opened his eyes, and even his ears stood up.
Zhang Xiaofan frowned, and then heard slow footsteps outside the door. A moment later, with a creak, the door was pushed open.
The sun shone in, which was a little dazzling for a moment. Zhang Xiaofan only saw a figure standing at the door, bathing in the sunshine.
After his eyes slightly adjusted to the sunlight, his face suddenly turned pale, and Tian Buyi stood at the door with a gloomy face.
This was the first time in three days that Tian Buyi came to see him. Apart from his senior brother Song Daren who brought him meals every day, he was also the first person he saw. Presumably everyone else had fallen ill because of Tian Buyi. Strict order not to come to visit.
At this time, Big Yellow had already run over, wagging its tail, and rubbed against Tian Buyi's feet, looking very happy. But the other animal, Xiao Hui, was not so fond of it, and was disturbed by others. He had a good dream, looked quite annoyed, and called out "Zhizhi" twice, but after all, he knew that Tian Buyi was not someone he could offend, so he didn't dare to go up and be so presumptuous.
After calling a few times, Xiao Hui staggered back to Zhang Xiaofan's bed, leaned against the quilt, and fell asleep again.
Tian Buyi lowered his body, glanced at the rhubarb at his feet, stretched out his hand, and touched its head. The rhubarb barked twice and rubbed its head against the palm of his hand.
Tian Buyi patted Dahuang's head, stood up straight, and looked at Zhang Xiaofan.
Zhang Xiaofan did not dare to meet his eyes and shouted in a low voice: "Master."
Tian Buyi looked at him for a long time, but did not respond to him. He slowly approached, and Zhang Xiaofan subconsciously took a step back.
But Tian Buyi didn't make any moves, and only slowly sat down on the chair. Zhang Xiaofan was a little scared, but more of it was confused and at a loss. In fact, since he returned to the mountain, he had already expected to face In such a situation, or even worse, facing interrogation and reprimands from more people, he had already been mentally prepared.
However, on this warm and quiet afternoon, when Tian Buyi, whom he had respected like a god all these years, sat silently in front of him, he could only lower his head, his mind went blank, and he could not say a word. Can't say it out loud.
I don't know how long it took before I heard Tian Buyi slowly say: "Lao Qi."
Zhang Xiaofan's body trembled, and he responded almost like a conditioned reflex: "Yes, Master."
"Do you have anything you want to say to me?"
Zhang Xiaofan slowly raised his head and looked at Tian Buyi. Tian Buyi looked at him expressionlessly, and it was impossible to tell what he was thinking.
After a long silence, Zhang Xiaofan slowly shook his head.
Tian Buyi stared at this apprentice and slowly clenched his fists with his hands shrunk in his sleeves.
"Just now," Tian Buyi spoke slowly, as if he could hide his inner feelings: "This morning Qi Hao from Longshou Peak came to deliver a message. Tomorrow morning, Master Daoxuan Zhenren will be at the Yuqing Palace in Tongtian Peak. meet you."
Zhang Xiaofan's body trembled, this moment finally arrived.
The cool mountain breeze blew in gently from outside the open door, as if it was accompanied by the sound of bamboo waves in the distant bamboo forest, but no one in the room felt it.
Xiao Hui seemed to have fallen asleep again, and Da Huang also lay down again, no longer paying attention to them. Only Tian Buyi still looked at this disciple.
Look at him deeply, deeply.
"Have your senior brothers been neglectful of you in the past few days?"
Zhang Xiaofan shook his head and said: "No, the senior brothers are all treating me...well."
Tian Buyi stopped talking, and the room fell silent again.
After a long time, Tian Buyi suddenly let out a deep breath, as if he had made some determination, shook his head and stood up, without looking back, and walked out the door without saying a word.
Zhang Xiaofan looked at that familiar figure at a loss.
Just when Tian Buyi was about to walk out of the room, he suddenly stopped again, but still did not look back. Zhang Xiaofan shouted in a daze: "Master..."
"Old Seven!" Tian Buyi's voice was still calm, but behind it, there was a vague emotion flowing.
"Let me ask you one last time, are you really an undercover agent sent by another sect to spy on our Qingyun Secret Dharma?"
Zhang Xiaofan bit his lip and slowly knelt down to him: "Master, I am not, I have not done anything sorry to you!"
He spoke in a low voice, speaking so categorically to Tian Buyi, as if he was also speaking to his own deep heart.
In the sunshine, there seemed to be a gentle sigh. When Zhang Xiaofan looked up again, the familiar figure had disappeared.
Zhang Xiaofan stared at the door blankly, maintaining this posture for a long time, then slowly stood up, walked back to the bed and sat down.
The monkey Xiao Hui was awakened by his actions. He turned around and saw Zhang Xiaofan. He smiled with his mouth open, as if after sleeping, his energy began to recover, and he jumped on him as if he was a little restless again.
Zhang Xiaofan subconsciously crossed his arms and hugged Xiao Hui, but still looked out the door. After a long while, he said in a low voice in a voice that only he, or maybe Xiao Hui, could hear: "You know Yes, I promised that person back then, and I won’t tell him until I die, and I won’t tell him until I die..."
Xiao Hui didn't know if he understood it, but he obviously didn't care very much. He reached out his hand and grabbed Zhang Xiaofan's hair affectionately.
Zhang Xiaofan did not move his body, letting Xiao Hui move, and said slowly: "It's only you, Xiao Hui, you are the only one who is by my side now..."
Xiao Hui called out "Zhi Zhi" twice and laughed. I don't know if he understood it. But in the distance, Da Huang seemed to have fallen asleep again. In his sleep, his tail quietly rolled up and shrunk. Under one's own body.
The sun was still shining softly, and Du Bishu, who was standing outside the door, couldn't help opening his mouth and yawning. But after a while, the faint feeling of sleepiness disappeared, and Tian Buyi was seen walking slowly from Zhang Xiaofan's residence. come out.
"Master." Du Bishu called, carefully looking at Tian Buyi's face, hoping to see something from his face, but Tian Buyi had no expression on his face, just nodded slightly, and walked past him like this. , walked towards Shoujing Hall.
Du Bishu stood aside respectfully, waiting for Tian Buyi to go far away. He looked at his back, but what he was thinking about was Zhang Xiaofan. He couldn't help but sigh. On Dazhu Peak, no one could have expected that this ordinary person in the past would My little junior brother, something like this would actually happen.
At this moment, even he, who was usually lively and active, couldn't help but feel a little depressed, and he was even worried about Zhang Xiaofan in his heart.
He didn't know how long he was in such a trance, until he heard a call from behind: "Sixth Senior Brother."
Du Bishu was startled and turned around to look. He couldn't help but be startled when he saw Zhang Xiaofan walking out of the room at some point and standing behind him. The monkey Xiao Hui was lying on his shoulder, looking at it with a wide smile. He looked at him, but Dahuang didn't follow him, and was probably still sleeping.
"Uh, junior brother!" Du Bishu frowned and said, "What's the matter?"
Zhang Xiaofan glanced at him and said slowly: "Sixth Senior Brother, I want to go for a walk in the back mountains."
Du Bishu was stunned when he heard this, and felt a little embarrassed. Since returning to the mountain, although Tian Buyi did not directly order everyone to monitor Zhang Xiaofan, his wife Suru had secretly told everyone.
But at this moment, looking at the haggard expression on the face of his usually honest junior brother, Du Bishu felt a little unbearable, but he did not dare to go against his master's wishes anyway. After a while, he said: "Junior brother, you, you know that now...I, I……"
Zhang Xiaofan lowered his head silently and said softly: "Uncle Daoxuan, the head master, will ask me to go to Tongtian Peak tomorrow. I want to see the place before."
Du Bishu's body trembled, and he opened his mouth slightly. Suddenly, for no reason, he felt his eyes heat up. The young man standing in front of him now seemed to have become the ordinary kid who had just gone up the mountain many years ago. At the dinner table, he made a bet with him about his master. Who goes to the kitchen first in the family...
However, he did not dare to disobey his master's orders no matter what. Just as he was in trouble, he suddenly heard footsteps. The two of them turned their heads to look, but it was Tian Linger walking over with a complicated expression on his face.
This is the first time Zhang Xiaofan has seen Tian Linger in three days. Her face is slightly pale and she seems to be a little haggard. She must have been feeling uneasy these days, but she is still so beautiful in this sunshine. .
Zhang Xiaofan lowered his head.
Tian Linger walked up to the two of them, faced Du Bishu, but the corner of her eye was focused on Zhang Xiaofan, and said: "Sixth Brother, my father said that Xiaofan won't do anything, so let him do it! "
Du Bishu was startled, and Zhang Xiaofan's body seemed to be shaken. He slowly turned around and looked in the direction of Shoujing Hall, but he saw that the entrance to the hall was deep and Tian Buyi's figure was nowhere to be seen.
Zhang Xiaofan bowed slowly in the direction of Shoujing Hall, and said in a low voice with a hint of sobs, "Thank you, Master."
Tian Linger stood aside and seemed to want to say something, but in the end she didn't say anything. She pursed her lips tightly and turned around and walked back.
Seeing her walking away, Du Bishu suddenly said: "No wonder Junior Sister and Senior Brother Qi Hao from Longshou Peak had a big argument this morning."
Zhang Xiaofan was startled for a moment and said: "What?"
Du Bishu said: "Senior Brother Qi Hao came here in the morning. After talking to Master and his wife, the Junior Sister pulled him aside. Unexpectedly, not long after, it seemed that the Junior Sister said something, which made Senior Brother Qi Hao very embarrassed. , Junior Sister got angry." Du Bishu paused, glanced at Zhang Xiaofan, and then said, "I guess she probably asked Senior Brother Qihao to plead with Senior Uncle Cangsong for you, that's why they started a big fight."
Zhang Xiaofan gave a low, bitter smile and didn't know what to say. He shook his head and walked towards the back mountain.
Du Bishu looked at his back from behind, but saw the monkey Xiao Hui lying on his shoulder, grabbing his hair and playing with it from time to time. It looked quite funny, but he couldn't bear the thought of the fate that awaited Zhang Xiaofan after tomorrow. His brows furrowed in worry and he sighed heavily.
Zhang Xiaofan had not walked on the mountain road leading from Dazhu Peak to the back mountain for a long time. Along the way, he could see the greenery on the roadside and the chirping of birds, which could be heard from a distance from time to time.
The oncoming mountain wind blew on his face, bringing a touch of coolness. Following the winding path, it felt like he was back to the past.
It turns out that nothing has really changed here! Even the white clouds floating in the distance on the mountainside of Dazhu Peak seem to be exactly the same as before.
The monkey Xiao Hui was very happy and jumped down from Zhang Xiaofan's shoulder. He screamed "Zhi Zhi" and ran into the grass nearby. Suddenly he climbed up a big tree and swung up and down on it.
Zhang Xiaofan looked at its appearance and couldn't help but smile slightly. He recalled the scene when he met Xiao Hui, and it seemed as if the heavy pressure on his heart was slightly relieved at this moment.
As he walked, Xiao Hui was right above his head, scurrying excitedly around the top of the big tree, but Zhang Xiaofan's eyes gradually only looked ahead, at the increasingly clear green bamboo forest.
How many memories are frozen here!
He stopped in front of the bamboo forest.
The mountain breeze blows, and countless black bamboos dance and rustle in the wind, as if they are also welcoming the return of old friends.
Zhang Xiaofan breathed deeply, the fresh, sweet and free air that only existed here in the world.
Then he walked in.
The green bamboo forest is as dense as before. In the soil under the tall green bamboos, countless bamboo shoots sprout out of the ground and grow freely here.
Unknowingly, he walked back to the place where he used to cut bamboo. He saw that the black knot bamboo that was thin at first seemed to be thicker now.
The bamboo shadows whirled and the bamboo waves seemed to surround him.
Past events flooded into my mind.
He looked at everything around him blankly, as if he was a little crazy.
"Zhang Xiaofan!"
Suddenly, a soft and slightly surprising call sounded from the depths of the bamboo forest.
Zhang Xiaofan was shocked. The voice was so familiar, but it was something he never expected to hear in this place. He immediately turned around and looked towards the voice. His breath was suddenly suffocated. All he saw was a bamboo shadow. Among them, Baguio, dressed in aqua-green clothes that complemented the surrounding environment, stood there with a smile, looking at herself with a touch of tenderness and a touch of obsession.
"Why are you here?" Zhang Xiaofan asked after the two of them stared at each other like fools for a long time.
Baguio walked over slowly, with a gentle smile in her eyes, and said softly: "I'm here to see you!"
Zhang Xiaofan felt excited and subconsciously bit his lower lip. After a while, he said: "But if someone discovers you, you will be in too much danger!"
Baguio shook his head and said, "I don't care, I just want to see you."
Zhang Xiaofan was shocked. This was the first time he heard Baguio express his feelings so directly. As if he noticed Zhang Xiaofan's surprise, Baguio's face also turned red, and then he said: "Your Qingyun Sect has been here for more than a hundred years."
I have been safe since I came here, and I have already relaxed my guard a long time ago. I secretly went up the mountain without anyone noticing."
Zhang Xiaofan nodded silently, but then thought that everyone in the righteous world now knew that Baguio was the daughter of the leader of the Devil Sect's Ghost King Sect. If someone discovered that he was actually talking to her again at this moment, the consequences would be obvious.
Baguio was so smart. He saw a hesitant look on Zhang Xiaofan's face at a glance, and his original smile was gradually replaced by a sad look. He said softly: "If you are worried about anything, then I'll leave."
Zhang Xiaofan looked at her and saw that although there was joy on Baguio's face, he could not hide the haggardness. He thought that these days, it must be because he was worried about himself. Suddenly, his heart felt hot.
He blurted out: "What else can I worry about? Could I be worse?"
Baguio was startled, glanced at him, Zhang Xiaofan smiled bitterly and said: "It's okay, no one will come now, just talk to me!"
Baguio smiled widely, nodded and said: "Okay."
But after saying this, the two people looked at each other, but they didn't know what to say. The atmosphere suddenly cooled down, and they were slightly embarrassed.
After a long while, Baguio said angrily: "Idiot, you are talking!"
Zhang Xiaofan scratched his head, but his mind went blank. He really didn't know what to say to this beautiful woman. He happened to look to the side out of the corner of his eye and saw a thick black bamboo lying on the ground not far away.
, most of them have decayed over time, so they walked over and said, "Sit down!"
Baguio burst into laughter, blooming like a flower, unrivaled in beauty.
She walked over and was about to sit down when Zhang Xiaofan suddenly grabbed her and said, "Wait a minute."
Baguio was startled and said: "What's wrong?"
Zhang Xiaofan bent down and wiped the black bamboo with his sleeves hard, making a clean area. Then he stood up, without looking at Baguio, lowered his head and said, "Sit down now!"
Baguio stopped smiling, moved the corners of her mouth, and looked at Zhang Xiaofan's figure with her bright eyes. After a while, she slowly sat down, then pulled Zhang Xiaofan and said, "Sit down too!"
Zhang Xiaofan's face turned red and he said: "I, I can just sit on the ground..."
Unexpectedly, Baguio pulled him hard and sat on the bamboo together, saying angrily: "Just sit down when I tell you to! Why are you sitting on the ground?"
Zhang Xiaofan smiled awkwardly and felt a faint fragrance coming from his side. It drifted in from the tip of his nose and reached deep into his heart. He couldn't help but turn his head to look at her, and saw Baguio staring at him, her eyes watery.
, indescribable tenderness.
He had never noticed that, even when the two of them were trapped in the Blood Cave under the Dead Soul Abyss, Zhang Xiaofan never felt that he was so close to her. After a while, he suddenly said: "Baguio."
Baguio smiled and said, "What's wrong?"
Zhang Xiaofan stared at her and said, "Why are you so nice to me?"
Baguio was startled for a moment, then slowly moved his gaze to the land in front of him, a hint of confusion seemed to float on his face, and said: "Yes! Why am I so nice to you?"
Above their heads, bamboo leaves were swaying gently in the mountain wind, as if they were also whispering something.
"You know my family background and the past events, right?" Baguio said quietly after a long while.
Zhang Xiaofan nodded slightly and said: "Yes."
Baguio said slowly: "My mother has been gone since I was a child, and my father is busy with the major affairs of the Holy sect, so he rarely has time to take care of me. People around me look at my father's face and always greet me with a smile. Qu I mean to flatter you.”
Zhang Xiaofan was silent for a moment and said, "Your father actually still cares about you."
Baguio nodded and said, "Yes. But I didn't understand it before. I didn't know it until I met you."
She stared at Zhang Xiaofan and said quietly: "Xiaofan, I will never forget those days in the Blood Cave."
Her voice sounded a little distant at this moment: "It turns out that in the darkness, even when I am about to die, I can find someone to rely on."
Zhang Xiaofan was moved but didn't know what to say.
A jade-like hand stretched out, and Baguio gently took his hand. A touch of tenderness came from her soft skin.
She took out a handkerchief from her arms and gently wiped the stains on her sleeves when Zhang Xiaofan wiped the bamboo for her just now.
"Growing up, I don't know how many people have flattered me and given me so many rare treasures, but..." She raised her head, stared into Zhang Xiaofan's eyes, and said softly, "Even if all the treasures in the world are placed in my possession, In front of me, nothing can compare to the sleeve you used to wipe the bamboo for me."
At this moment, all the sounds in the world suddenly disappeared.
Only the gentle eyes of this beautiful woman surrounded him.
How many years later, when you look back on the past, do you still remember someone whispering their true feelings to you?
Do you still remember those naive and somewhat fanatical words from a young age?
It's like a vow deeply engraved in my heart that I will never give up!
Have you ever opened your arms and embraced the one you love?
I don't know when it started, but in that gentle silence, he opened his arms and hugged the beautiful woman next to him tightly.