At dawn, when there were not many people on the road, a carriage went straight from outside the moat to the city gate. The guards guarding the city called for a stop as usual, and the young man driving the car softly shouted, reined in the horse and stopped, "Good morning, gentlemen."
This person was dressed simply, with a white hairband tied high into a ponytail. His face was as big as a palm, and his eyes revealed his agility. Although he was still young, his face was already very shocking, and several people on the side were stunned. He didn't come back to his senses, but the leader of the guard was still well-informed. He clasped his fists and said, "The Yao City Poetry and Painting Competition is approaching. To ensure the safety of the city, everyone entering the city must be inspected before being released. Please cooperate with me, sir."
"I understand, I understand." The young master responded with a smile, turned around, knocked on the door frame, and lifted the car curtain. This young master driving the car can be said to be rare in the world, and the people sitting in the car naturally made people more curious. For a moment , everyone couldn’t help but peek inside.
The light in the carriage was dim, and all I could see was that the man was dressed in silver and sitting upright. Although he closed his eyes and meditated and did not move much, the aura around him was like that of an immortal. Just one glance like this made people want to see more. Eyes, while admiring, can't help but feel envious.
Before anyone could see his appearance clearly, the young master had lowered the car curtain and turned around to ask, "Maybe we have entered the city?"
The captain of the guard immediately waved his hand to make way, "You two, please."
Thinking of the poetry and painting competition he mentioned, I couldn't help but wonder, "May I ask the official, this Yao City is two cities away from here to the north, how come the supervision is so strict?"
The head guard said: "This year's poetry and painting competition in Yaocheng has been announced for a long time. It is said that the winner of the first place will receive a picture of uncle Xiaoxiang. We old men don't understand, but this Middle-earth continent All the literati and scholars who have heard of it will come here. This city is a must-pass for Yao City, so in case of trouble, you should naturally be more cautious."
The young master's eyebrows turned and he said, "Is this competition open to everyone?"
The captain of the guard smiled: "Doesn't the young master also want to show off?"
He stretched out his slender index finger and shook it, "No, but the prize is very attractive, so it kind of attracted me." After saying that, he stopped continuing, nodded, whipped his horse and rode into the city.
The city is not prosperous. There are mostly street vendors. The streets are lined with civilian buildings. After walking for several streets, I found a decent inn. The young master jumped out of the carriage and reminded the people in the carriage, "Uncle, we are here."
The boss behind the counter was still yawning, and the waiter who was clearing the tables and chairs in the hall had already come to greet him, "Good morning, gentlemen."
Shocked by this sound, the shopkeeper quickly walked out and said with a smile: "Are you two staying in a hotel or eating?"
The shorter young master helped the man beside him and walked straight in, throwing over a silver coin, "Two of the best guest rooms. By the way, I can untie the white horses outside and serve them with high-quality fodder."
With the money in hand, he nodded naturally, "Yes, yes, yes, go upstairs to the guest room and turn left. You two can choose whatever you want."
Watching the two of them go upstairs, they couldn't help but look at the money in their hands. At the bottom of the silver ingot was the seal of Haidong District.
This place is already remote and can only be regarded as a small county town. Neighbors are everywhere in the streets and alleys. You can spot an extra stranger at a glance. Recently, the number of people passing by from outside has increased, and most of the people I have seen are scholars and wealthy young men. But Today, these two people are neither noble nor like people in the martial arts world. They are really like immortals coming to this world. They are too conspicuous and unforgettable.
The waiter next to me sighed: "These two young men are really good-looking. It would be great if I were born as good-looking."
The shopkeeper woke up instantly and scolded: "You are talking in your sleep, why don't you feed your horse?"
Besides, upstairs, the two of them entered the room. The young master helped him sit down first, then went to the table to pour a cup of tea. After rinsing it twice, he smelled it on the tip of his nose. After making sure it was correct, he took it over and handed it to the man, "
Although it's not a good tea, it's enough to quench your thirst. The conditions in this small place are simple, so don't mind, Uncle Master."
The man smiled softly and said, "Thank you for your hard work."
Although the young master called him uncle, he did not feel at all constrained in his actions. As soon as he turned around, he immediately poured himself tea and drank it down. He wiped his sleeves and said carelessly: "Uncle is serious, it's all what you should do."
of."
Thinking of the calligraphy and painting competition that was coming, Ruanyao felt itchy in her heart. She jumped up and walked a few steps closer to him. She sat next to him. Her voice lost its deliberately low tone and became more pleasant. It was obvious that she was a woman disguised as a man. "Uncle Xiaoyan, Bai Bai
Since the Mo family has agreed to the matter, we don’t need to make this trip."
The tea cup moved slowly and steadily on the desk. The man's words and deeds were still gentle and elegant. "The situation is important. The person Mr. Mo sent this time is a novice. I must go in person."
"I went to inquire about it a few days ago. It's just that the old man Baiyue Hou is shameless. If you ask me, it's better to just replace him with a knife, why bother to do such thankless things."
"You're a girl, and you're so young, but you talk about hitting and killing all day long. Are you being taught as a boy by my senior brother?" Even though it was a lesson, it didn't sound like anything.
"He's too lazy to take care of me." Ruanyao complained, secretly pouting, and started to count the calluses on her right hand out of boredom. "By the way, uncle, when will You Jiang come over?"
"What? You have something to do with him?"
"No, why am I looking for him? I don't want to fight recently." She heard the horses braying downstairs. She stood up and walked to the window to look down. In the backyard, the waiter was feeding the horses. She leaned against the window sill and folded her hands on her chest.
"As far as I know, the young master of the Mo family will arrive here in the next two days. Anyway, he is going to Baiyue. Why don't we go with them?"
When he heard the sound, he turned his head and faced the window sill, "Don't be so mean in front of me. This isn't the first time. You really thought I couldn't notice it."
Ruanyao immediately said honestly: "Uncle, I will be gone for about ten days and then I will go back to Baiyue to find you."
"Aren't you afraid that I will go back and tell my senior brother."
"I know you won't." She ran back, pulled a stool and sat across from him, "Uncle Xiaoyan, you also know that this has been my hobby since I was a child."
He waved his hand to stop her chattering, "Okay, okay, just go ahead. You don't have to tell me the same reason every time. I look so easy to talk to?"
Ruanyao told the truth, "If you are not easy to talk to, I will never refuse."
"I'll try to reject you next time."
"Stop fighting in vain." After saying that, he jumped up and said, "I'm going to buy some food and come back. I'll also go to the tower to see if the young master of the Mo family is here."
She disappeared in a flash, leaving him alone in the house sitting quietly.
When no one speaks, the wind outside the window becomes extremely loud.
* * *
Going to the land of Baiyue was originally her only trip. Unexpectedly, on the day she left, Xiang Jingyi was recalled by Duke Mo. An served as her temporary guard, and that little fat man Mo Chuan insisted that he was responsible for the dead body of Baiyue.
She was very interested in the resurrection and acted coquettishly towards Mr. Mo, so she became another burden.
Baiyue Xinling City is located in the southernmost east area of the mainland. Starting from Lingnan, it no longer detours to Jiangcheng, but goes straight east, which takes more than twenty days. Along the way, Mo Shuruo did not expect
, although Mo Chuan looked chubby and didn't like to move, he didn't expect to be more energetic than anyone else when he was on the road, which made Mo Shuruo look at him with admiration.
Three days later, after they hiked over several peaks near Lingnan, they finally started riding horses. The three of them walked into a nearby small county in two, ready to replenish some dry food. Who knew that just as they entered the city, Mo Shuruo's horse
The child ran like crazy, knocking over many stalls along the way, causing screams and curses all the way.
She was holding the reins with one hand, and had to worry about the gauze hat on her head being blown off with the other hand. She didn't know what was happening in front of her, and she was knocked to death by the horse.
"Shruo!!" Xiang Jingyi shouted from far away.
But when he heard the horse under him suddenly neighing and raising its front hooves, Mo Shuruo leaned back, his body rolled backwards uncontrollably, and he subconsciously let out a scream.
In an instant, she only felt her waist tighten, and she was rescued in the air. The rotation in mid-air lifted the layers of white gauze in front of her. The man in white in front of her was covered with a mask, and he could clearly see his thin, water-colored lips and erect erect lips.
The bridge of her nose and a pair of hazy and deep eyes under the mask seemed to be looking at her, but they seemed not to be there. I don't know how to describe it, just like when she ran away in panic as soon as her feet touched the ground, she didn't even have time to listen to his question.
The words "Girl, are you okay?" caught the strange reaction of Xiang Jingyi and Mo Chuan who were chasing after them as they disappeared into the crowd.
It was just a moment of accelerated heartbeat, leading to a series of mental disorders.
After running around a corner, Xiang Jingyi grabbed her and asked, "What's wrong with you, Shu Ruo?"
Mo Shuruo smiled dryly at him and said, "Nothing, I'm a little scared, hahaha..."
Mo Chuan crossed his arms and said disdainfully: "Idiot." Then Mo Shuruo knocked him down with a fist.
She looked back at the way she came, with complicated eyes.
is it him?
The person who should never see you again in this life.
Mo Shuruo was in a daze all the way, reasoning that he was unwell because of the accident. As soon as there was a delay, the trip had to be temporarily suspended. They found an inn and planned to stay for one night. Mo Shuruo stayed in the room for most of the time.
One afternoon, she finally had no choice but to turn her attention to the Baiyue Xinling Tomb she was about to go to. Thinking of this, she seemed to have quickly forgotten what happened in the morning.
Stepping out of the inn, he headed straight to the street teahouse. Hearing a few people chatting, Mo Shuruo sat down at the table and interjected, "Can I ask some of you something?"
After looking at the shrewd middle-aged man, he probably felt that she was not a bad person, so he asked: "What's the matter?"
Mo Shuruo said: "I heard that Baiyue Land is haunted, doesn't it have any impact here?"
One of the younger ones said quickly: "Why not? No one dares to go out at night now."
The man from before asked strangely: "What are you asking for?"
Mo Shuruo smiled and said, "I'm going to Baiyue in the near future. I need to ask clearly before I can go on my way."
The man said: "Why are you, a little girl, going to Baiyue at this stall? I advise you not to go."
"Why?"
One of the old men with a goatee explained: "Although our small county town still has more than ten days to go to the Baiyue Land, since then, every day when the sun goes down, I always feel that the yin energy is strong, and it feels like the underworld after dark.
It's so terrifying... It's still like this here, let alone what it will be like in Baiyue. I advise you, it's better to go back."
"Thank you for reminding me, but it is necessary for me to go here and there is no way to turn back. I hope you can tell me everything you know."
The middle-aged man sighed: "You are persistent. Anyway, you will lose your life by then, so don't blame us for not reminding you."
"I know, thank you." Mo Shuruo nodded, and then asked: "There are many underground palaces in the Baiyue Mausoleum, why did the Xin Mausoleum have an accident?"
He said thoughtfully: "It's hard to say this. I just remember that it started half a month ago, and it seems to be related to the Nanyue Jing family."
Mo Shuruo was surprised: "What does this have to do with the Nanyue Jing family?"
The land of Baiyue is ruled by the Baiyue Marquis. There are hundreds of countries under it, big and small, and the Jing family is the ruling family of Nanyue.
The man said: "Rumors have been passed around, but who knows whether they are true or not. I heard that they are about the contract between the Lord of Baiyue and the devil a long time ago." He turned to ask her, "Have you heard of the tradition of Baiyue sacrificing living people?
"
Mo Shuruo frowned and nodded, "I vaguely remember that there is such a tradition. Every July 15th, children born on the lunar month of March 7th will be sacrificed to the devil."
"That's right. It's really cruel to say that there are countless people who died on the altar. And twenty-one years ago, the Jing family gave birth to a baby girl, which happened to be the yin time of the lunar calendar."
Unconsciously, the sky had gradually darkened. Mo Shuruo walked slowly on the empty street towards the inn, his mind filled with confusion.
I heard from that person that Baiyue Xi, the grandson of Baiyue Marquis, insisted on marrying Jinglouxue, the cursed woman of the Jing family, despite everyone's objections half a month ago. As a result, for some reason, Jinglouxue was stabbed several times on the wedding day.
Who would have thought that three days later, the Jing family would hang up white lanterns and declare that the Jing Tower was dead.
As for the resurrection of the corpse, everyone attributed it to Jinglou Xue not dying on July 15th, thus offending the devil and disturbing the undead possessing the remains.
There are many doubts about it, but I can't explain the reason. Let's not say that it is impossible for a dead body to be resurrected in the world. Just the fact that Jinglou Xue was burned to death inexplicably is very strange, and this Baiyue Xi sounds like a person with deep love and deep meaning.
The two of them seemed to have a good relationship, so how could they be killed by the woman? Mo Shuruo shook his head full of question marks. It seems that he can only make a judgment after going to Baiyue and asking people who know the truth.
She took a deep breath and pulled her thoughts away from this matter. The cold wind blew from behind, and she shivered. Suddenly she realized that apart from her, there were only a few scattered lanterns on the dark street. Suddenly she felt a chill behind her, and she suddenly felt
Looking back, there was not even a cat on the street behind her except for the stone pavement. She frowned and continued walking forward, very calmly at first, then walking faster, and then she started running directly. Her footsteps echoed in the empty alley.
The sound and rapid breathing seemed to be nothing, as if she was scaring herself.
As she ran around a corner, a hand suddenly stretched out and dragged her into the darkness in an instant. Before she could even scream, her mouth was covered.
A strange man's calm voice came from above his head, "Don't talk."
She opened her eyes wide, with accumulated tears in her eyes. Although she was scared to death, it seemed that this person had no intention of doing anything. She raised her head in embarrassment and saw a white mask in her eyes.
Mo Shuruo's heart skipped a beat, it was him!
The man who rescued her on the street during the day was holding her in his arms in an intimate manner. Although her heartbeat missed a few beats, her face was still calm. She saw him looking at the street quietly, as if waiting.
What was going on made her curious, so she popped her head and looked over.
In less than a moment, a rickety figure swayed on the stone slab under the shadow of the lamp.
The man slowly raised his hand to cover her eyes. Mo Shuruo's heart trembled, as if he understood what would happen next, he calmly grabbed his hand, moved it down, and covered his mouth.
She was afraid that she would scream.
A ragged figure appeared on the street. He seemed to be walking with difficulty step by step. The light was dim and the flesh on his face was blurry and rotten. His eyeballs were protruding, especially the black and yellow eye bones.
——It’s a dead body!!
Mo Shuruo was trembling all over.
It turns out that this is not a legend, it is true...
As a historian, she needed to record the facts she witnessed with her own eyes, which led to her being scared to death, but still watching every move of the dead body with wide eyes.
For a moment, the whole world seemed to be quiet. She held her breath, just hoping that the dead body would leave quickly. She almost didn't even have the strength to stand.
A few quarters of an hour later, the moving dead body disappeared from their sight. Mo Shuruo took off the hand covering his mouth and took a long breath. A face full of rotten flesh appeared in front of his eyes almost instantly - if that was still
It was a face! The distance was so close that she could almost smell the putrid smell of the corpse, as well as the clearly enlarged picture of its eyeballs about to fall out of their sockets.
"ah----"
A scream of fear suddenly erupted in the deserted street. Many people woke up in the dark night, but no one dared to go out to check.
I don't know when the dead body reached the corner five steps away. When it reached out to attack, the man in white had already carried her and flew to the roof.
Compared to Mo Shuruo, who was sitting slumped on the roof in a state of embarrassment, the man's eyebrows were indifferent, his jade stood on the eaves, his white robe fluttered, and he looked cold and aloof.
The dead body was still pulling at the brick wall in an attempt to climb up. When he waved his sleeve, a thin silver steel whip quickly jumped out from his sleeve, bringing strong wind and shooting toward the big tree on the other side of the house.
"Qiang——" The sharp weapons collided, emitting a little bit of white light. She was confused, and she didn't even know that there were other people here. In such an instant, a man in black robe fell from the tree with a muffled groan, holding a cold sword.
fell on the roof ridge.
The man in white retracted his weapon and when the white gauze sleeves fell from her eyes, the man in black robe opposite had already stood up.
"I advise you to mind your own business." The gloomy voice could not distinguish between male and female. He raised his toes and flew the sword that fell on the roof. Under the tightly wrapped black robe, he quickly stretched out a hand to catch it and turned around to grab it.
Into darkness.
Mo Shuruo's sharp eyes caught a glimpse of something between his fingers that was flashed by the moonlight. Before he could take a closer look, there was no one there.
"Are you ok?"
Hearing the sound above his head, because he really didn't have the energy to look up, he honestly shook his head and admitted, "It's not good."
Regardless of the difference between men and women, he bent down and picked her up. Mo Shuruo was shocked, and the two of them slowly flew down from the roof.
His slightly smiling statement suddenly sounded in the quiet streets: "The Mohists rush to danger without flinching. There are only a few who are timid like you."
Although he wanted to refute it, what he said was indeed true, so he didn't want to explain more on this point. Instead, he thought, "How did you know that I am from the Mo family?"
"The enemies have come to warn you, but you still have time to ask these questions. Are you sure you didn't cheat on your graduation exam?"
There was no intention in her tone, but it made her feel uncomfortable, "Yes, I don't know anything yet, but I tell you, I will always get it done, just wait and see."
He held half of his lips and said with a smile: "You have great courage. You deserve to be Duke Mo's granddaughter." Mo Shuruo was stunned again. How did he know so clearly? Before she could figure it out, the man in white had already continued: "
This mission is difficult. Since Mr. Mo chose you to come, he must believe that you have this ability, but this matter is related to the improvement of the relationship between Baiyue and Tianmu Peak..." He stopped and his tone dropped several degrees in an instant, but
Still smiling, "Mo Shuruo, do you dare to open it and try..." His tone sounded like he was gritting his teeth.
Who makes her not listen well when others are talking seriously, but secretly unmask others out of curiosity? Even the most good-tempered person has the urge to hit others.
She hurriedly took back her hand and smiled silly at him, "I was just wondering why you always wear a mask..."
He lowered his head and narrowed his eyes: "You know now?"
Somehow, she instantly felt as if the person holding her was an ice cube. She shivered. She shrank her neck and nodded: "I understand...Young City Master..."
She was originally hesitant to confirm his identity because the last time she saw him was three years ago. At that time, he was not wearing white clothes or a mask. She could actually guess it at the first glance during the day, but she
Can't believe it.
Perhaps it is because the temperaments of each city lord in Tianmu Peak are similar. In order to distinguish between the chief and the deputy to ensure the concentration of power, Tianmu Peak stipulates that before officially taking over Tianmu Peak, the young city lord is not allowed to show his face when going to sea, so there is a young city lord wearing a mask.
habit.
It was rumored that Young Master Yan was very kind and had a harmonious relationship with his subordinates. He never had a condescending attitude. After he rescued her twice, and he was still willing to hold her now, Mo Shuruo had some understanding of the rumors, but he felt inexplicably wrong.
taste.
How many stages does it take for someone to like someone before they reach the point where they need to learn about them from other people’s mouths?
Mo Shuruo was lost in thought, and Yan Jue didn't speak anymore. After a moment of silence, she gathered herself and came back to her senses, only to realize that the atmosphere was a bit strange. She asked awkwardly: "Are your hands sore?"
He answered directly, "What, do you want to come down?"
She whispered: "Can I not come down?"
"..."
Realizing that they had been talking for a long time, he suddenly asked, "Which way are we going?"