The next day, the sun rose as usual. Everything in the Central Plains was as usual, nothing unusual happened.
The familiar sound of sweeping the floor came from the courtyard, and then a pungent smell of burning smoke wafted out.
Yingping followed Zichun excitedly, talking nonstop. Zichun stood next to the flowers and plants, scooping water to water the flowers while nodding his head. Yingping looked extremely proud, and he opened his hands to make gestures from time to time. Seeing that Zichun was so involved in watering the flowers, he reached out and patted Zichun on the shoulder, signaling her to listen to his speech.
Perhaps he was a little tired from bending over, or perhaps he was attracted by Yingping's words. Zichun threw the gourd into the bucket, licked the hair on his forehead that was wet with water and sweat with his ring finger, and stood with his hands on his hips. Watching and listening to Yingping's speech 'seriously' on the side.
Yingping became more and more energetic as he talked, and even started dancing. Zichun lowered his head and squinted at the flowers and kept nodding in response, until finally Yingping patted his chest and looked at Zichun proudly. Zichun saw that Yingping had finished his speech, raised his head and gave him a thumbs up, and said to Yingping Fangcai made a summary of his speech.
Seeing that Zichun affirmed himself, Yingping left with his head held high and satisfied, like a proud little rooster.
Yiyi stood at the door of the house and watched her brother coming from a distance arrogantly. She couldn't help but feel a little funny in her heart. Is her brother picking up silver? So proud of the spring breeze.
"Brother!" Yiyi greeted Yingping with a smile.
"Hey, Yiyi, morning--" Yingping hummed a tune with his head held high, unaware of the things around him. He didn't react until his sister called him.
"Brother, what are you doing? You are so happy."
"Hey, my brother had a 'magic touch' yesterday. He just used his brain to add the finishing touch."
"Oh? What's the 'dragon' you drew and what's the 'eyes' you drew."
"Ask you, Sister Zichun." Yingping smiled mysteriously, then shook his head and walked to his room.
"Tch! You're still trying to get away with it." Yiyi stuck out her tongue at her brother's angry back, then turned and walked towards the flowers.
At this time, Zichun got rid of the 'boasting' Yingping and could finally play with these delicate flowers quietly. Thinking of what Ying Fang said just now, she couldn't help but feel a little ridiculous - what were these men thinking? 'Black and hard'? What kind of bad name is this? And it got unanimous praise? What? He actually said, 'Uncle Third Master also thinks this name is good'? Have he read all the books he has read over the years in vain? Fortunately, these people are still picking up treasures, it is really hopeless...
Thinking of this, Zichun couldn't help but shake his head, feeling helpless that he was living under the same roof as these 'mentally retarded' people.
"Sister Zichun——"
Yiyi's sweet voice came from behind. Zichun looked back and saw Yiyi standing behind him.
"Yiyi, good morning."
"Sister Zichun, do you need help here? I'll do it."
"No, no, it's just some flowers and plants."
Although Zichun said no, Yiyi still stepped forward and reached out to pick up the water in the bucket, bending down to help Zichun water the flowers.
Looking at the little sister in front of him, Zichun narrowed his eyes into two crescent moons. After getting along with her these days, she fell in love with the little girl Yiyi more and more. She was not only smart and clever, but also sensible and polite. She often helped her with things, such as dividing medicine and decoction, which made her feel much more relaxed.
"Sister Zichun, what did brother say to you just now?"
"Yingping? What did he say to you?"
"No, I asked him, but he kept it secret and asked me to ask you."
"Tch - you have a bad name and you are trying to get away with it." Hearing Yiyi say that Yingping was trying to get away with it, Zichun rolled his eyes and wanted to roll the back of his head.
"What's the name?"
"The teacher gave me a giant crossbow as a gift to my junior brother. Yesterday, the third senior brother, the sixth brother, and Yingping gathered around the thing to name it."
"Oh? Then what did my brother name it?"
"What's it called 'black and hard'?"
Yiyi was stunned for a moment, then smiled and said, "What kind of name is this?"
"I also said, what kind of bad reputation is this? This brat Yingping is so proud that he always drags me to have a look. He won't give up until I agree." Zichun said disdainfully, as if these things were wrong. What seemed extremely interesting to Yingping was meaningless to her.
"Sister Zichun, will you watch 'Black and Hard'?"
"What's so good about this thing? Isn't it just a crossbow?"
"oh……"
Seeing that Yiyi seemed a little curious, Zichun asked, "Yiyi, do you want to go and see it?"
"Yeah." Yiyi nodded.
"Then go to your brother. He will take you there immediately. If you don't know, you might think he made this thing."
"Giggle--"
Seeing Zichun scolding her brother mercilessly, Yiyi seemed to have found a close friend and couldn't help but smile.
...
In the school, the three of them were still reading by themselves. As usual, Yingping finished his homework for the day early and ran out in a hurry, not knowing whether to go to practice or to find Ji Yangyu, leaving only Yiyi and Ye Changshan.
Yiyi seemed to be waiting for this moment. Seeing Yingping leaving the school, Yiyi put the book aside and turned to Ye Changshan's desk.
"Brother Changsha."
Ye Changshan was reading the sage's book attentively. His mood had become much calmer in the past two days, and he was no longer as restless as before. He originally studied slower than Yingping, and he had fallen behind a lot of homework due to these inexplicable things a few days ago. He had been studying hard these past two days, and he didn't expect that this girl would take the initiative to find him at this time. This made him He was a little dazed and nervous, like a person who had been suffering from insomnia for a long time and finally fell asleep and was suddenly brought back to reality.
"Ah? Yiyi, you called me?"
"Who else is in this room but me."
"Too……"
"Brother Changshan, I heard that your husband gave you something novel."
"You mean that 'giant crossbow'."
"Yes! My brother also gave it a very powerful name."
Originally, Ye Changshan always thought the name "Black and Hard" was quite powerful, but now that Yiyi asked him, he felt a little unable to express it.
"Ah... that name... is just so-so... not as good as... the teacher's choice."
"Then...then take me to have a look."
What are you looking at? Look at that giant crossbow? Strangely, Yingping took Fifth Senior Sister to see her but didn't go. He even offered to help Fifth Senior Sister prepare and select medicine in exchange, but it didn't make Fifth Senior Sister interested at all. Why was Yiyi so interested in this giant crossbow? I thought girls were naturally not interested in these things...
"Brother Changshan? Are you reluctant to take me there?" Seeing Ye Changshan deep in thought, Yiyi thought he was thinking about something.
"Ah? How could you...leave? I'll take you there right now!"
Ye Changshan put down the book and walked out of the house blankly.
...
The giant crossbow was placed in an open area in the back mountain. Ye Changshan and Yingping pushed the 'black coffin' up yesterday.
Along the way, Yiyi looked left and right, enjoying the beautiful scenery of the mountains. Ye Changshan, who was walking in front, was a little at a loss. He wanted to look back but was embarrassed. He wanted to talk but didn't know where to start, so he had to lead the way.
"Wow, the scenery of Qianniu Mountain is so beautiful."
Just when Ye Changshan was at a loss, Yiyi suddenly admired the beauty of the mountains.
"Yeah, you haven't come here before?" Ye Changshan finally caught the opportunity, how could he let it slip away? Then he followed the topic and said.
"Well, my brother follows Uncle Third Master every day, so how can he have time to accompany me..."
Thinking of that obscure brother, Yi Yijin showed some grievances, and felt heartbroken for Ye Changshan.
Then I'll watch it with you... Ye Changshan said silently in his heart, but he didn't have the courage to say it out, so he just said in a naive voice——
"Then...I'll talk to him another day and let him take you for a walk in the mountains."
'Pfft——'
Yiyi suddenly laughed, as if she heard something interesting.
"What...what's wrong..."
"Brother Changshan, why don't you take me for a walk later? Why bother brother? He probably hates me."
Hearing that Yiyi asked him to take her for a walk in the mountains, Ye Changshan's heart beat rapidly, and his heart almost jumped into his throat. But after hearing the second half of the sentence, he somehow completely forgot the first half and hurriedly explained Said: "Why does Yingping dislike you? He is just too obsessed with practice and admires the third senior brother too much. I will talk to him later..."
"Hmph, when I say I dislike him, I mean I dislike him. I don't want him!" Yiyi suddenly became squeamish, showing off her little daughter's attitude.
How could Ye Changshan withstand such a battle? For a moment, I was a little hesitant and didn't know what to say.
Yiyi looked at Ye Changshan's confused look and suddenly said firmly: "I don't care. Brother Changshan, just take me there."
"Okay! Okay! I'll take you there."
While talking, the two came to the open space where the giant crossbow was. This place is some distance from the courtyard, but it is a rare open space in the mountains. Moreover, the terrain here is high and it is open on all sides. Looking around, you can have a panoramic view of the library, courtyard and shabby room at the same time. Looking to the west, you can even vaguely see the city of Chang'an.
"Well, there -"
Following the direction of Ye Changshan's finger, a giant black 'coffin' appeared in front of him.
Yiyi looked at the huge black thing in front of her, her expression did not change at all, she just stood there with her feet up and watched from a distance, as if she had no intention of coming forward to appreciate it up close.
"Don't you want to go up and have a look?"
Ye Changshan felt a little strange. It took him almost two sticks of incense to reach the top of the mountain. Just look here?
Yiyi looked at Ye Changshan, then at the giant 'black coffin', then at Ye Changshan, and finally whispered the word 'oh' in a low voice, then lowered her head and walked forward cautiously.
Seeing Yiyi walking forward with small steps, Ye Changshan followed suit.
Walking to the 'black coffin', Yiyi stopped and looked at it for a while, and kept a short distance from it, without reaching out to touch it, and then walked around with his hands behind his back in three small steps. 'Black Coffin' spun around twice, and then jumped back to Ye Changshan with three steps and one small jump, using his hands behind his back.
"I...finished reading." Yiyi looked around, then said casually.
"What? Are you done with it?"
Ye Changshan had a look of astonishment on his face. He came all the way here and finished reading it after two turns?
"Well, I've finished reading it!" Yiyi pouted and nodded vigorously, replying with certainty.
"But there are still many parts and subtleties that have not been shown!" Ye Changshan explained sincerely, fearing that Yiyi would miss something.
"Oh..." Yiyi still stood with her hands and feet behind her back, but turned her body towards the 'black coffin', then turned back and said, "Then go and demonstrate it to me."
Ye Changshan walked to the 'Black Coffin', leaned down, and unfolded the 'Giant Crossbow' again according to the steps taught to him by the Sixth Senior Brother yesterday.
"The real name of this crossbow is 'Po Shi', also known as 'Black and Hard'. It is forged from black iron that fell from the sky..." Ye Changshan introduced the black crossbow while operating it.
"The 'coffin body', 'wheel', 'axle', and 'bow arm'... are all forged from dark iron. Even the bow strings are also made from dark iron. First, several strong oxen were born. The tendons are peeled off, dried in the sun, soaked in water, and then divided into thousands of wires, no more than the thickness of a hair. Then the black iron molten iron is poured on the silk one by one, and finally the thousands of black iron tendon wires are twisted into one... "
"Each beef backbone has a square strip of sinew, weighing about thirty taels. Kill it, dry it in the sun, soak it in water, and break it into pieces like ramie silk. There is no silk in the wild. The bow strings are all tied together with this thing..."
"The person who forged it was a Nanchu blacksmith, an old friend of the teacher. It took a total of three years of work to forge 'Poshi', and it came out to the public..."
"This crossbow was designed by Sixth Senior Brother, and then Third Senior Brother also came up with some ideas..."
"This crossbow is extremely powerful and has an extremely long range. If the wind blows up and is fired with the wind, it can hit targets dozens of miles away..."
…
Ye Changshan solemnly introduced every bit of the giant crossbow in great detail, fearing that he might have missed something. But Yiyi was not interested at all. She stared blankly at Ye Changshan's figure walking around, bending down and straightening up again, and secretly complained in her heart - Sister Zichun was right, there is really nothing interesting about this thing, thank you Brother Changshan remembers it so clearly.
Yiyi sighed softly, but she did not dare to show any impatience for fear of disappointing Ye Changshan, so she had no choice but to continue listening aggrievedly.
...
"This is the general situation of 'breaking the trend'."
A moment of incense passed, and Ye Changshan finally stopped the demonstration.
"Are you done?" The listless Yiyi suddenly regained some vitality.
"Well, that's it!" Ye Changshan looked at Yiyi, not sure whether his demonstration just now was in place or whether she understood, so he asked blankly: "What about this giant crossbow?"
"Ah? What is it? Oh, you mean this, it's amazing! It's amazing!"
Yiyi solemnly nodded her head in affirmation, her beautiful eyes widened, and she didn't even blink. She looked extremely 'shocked' and 'appreciated', and she raised her hands to her chest and clapped gently and quickly.
Seeing Yiyi like this, Ye Changshan finally felt relieved. He turned around and packed away the giant crossbow, then turned around and said, "After reading, let's go back."
"Going back now?"
"Yes!" Ye Changshan vaguely felt that Yiyi still had some unfinished ideas, and asked again: "Didn't you see enough? How about you do it yourself?"
"No, no, no, no..." Yiyi quickly waved her hand in rejection and shook her head like a rattle.
"That......"
"Brother Changshan, please take me for a walk in the mountains. You have lived here for three years, and I want to see it too."
Looking at Yiyi's expectant eyes, Ye Changshan couldn't believe it, as if he was in a dream.
"Brother Changshan?" Looking at Ye Changshan's stunned look, Yiyi called him.
Ye Changshan woke up suddenly, then nodded crazily and said, "Okay! I'll take you there!"
...
The mountains are charming and the sunshine is brilliant. Although it is autumn, the mountains and forests are still green. The flowers and plants are still fragrant, the streams are still sounding, and the mountain breeze is blowing. It is a good weather for autumn outings.
Ye Changshan passed by the small cliff that he had thought about back then, passed by the place where he and Yingping practiced, and passed by the narrow path where he and his third senior brother went into the mountains to collect herbs... He had walked these paths countless times before, but he was particularly nervous to walk them again today. .
Ye Changshan has never been so happy and joyful as today. , even in the days when I was in a small village and under the care of my parents, I never had such a feeling. Along the way, his heartbeat kept beating very fast, accompanied by beauty, and an inexplicable rippling feeling in his heart always existed, so much so that he could not help but giggle while walking - although the two of them were just walking together, This indescribable feeling has made him feel a little ethereal, and even his steps are a little unsteady, as if all the three years of hard training have disappeared at this moment.
Yiyi also looked very happy, jumping up and down all the way, and kept asking Ye Changshan about the past three years. When he learned that so much had happened in the past three years, she showed expressions of wonder, surprise, and fright.
The elder brother almost died practicing secretly, the two secretly went down the mountain and were humiliated, and then they thought about the reflection and awakening of the cliff... However, after hearing these stories, Yiyi's face finally showed an expression of envy. There is even some yearning - it turns out that life in the mountain gate is far more interesting than imagined.
Yiyi was thoughtful, trying to bring herself into the past three years, trying to understand the life of her brother and her brother Changshan.
Suddenly, Yiyi raised her head and stared at the cliff next to her, seeming to notice something strange. Seeing this, Ye Changshan looked in the direction Yiyi was looking and saw a little goat standing motionless on the cliff.
The little sheep seemed to have fallen behind. There were no other sheep at the top or at the foot of the mountain, leaving it alone.
I don’t know whether it’s because the location where the lamb is located is relatively steep or because it’s not familiar with mountain climbing. The lamb just stood there and made “baa-baa-” sounds from time to time, as if it was looking for its mother to ask for help.
Yiyi looked at Xiaoyang, feeling nervous unconsciously, holding her sleeves tightly with both hands.
Ye Changshan felt Yiyi's nervousness, looked at the situation on the cliff, and walked forward without saying a word.
"Brother Changshan, what do you want to do?"
"I went up and rescued it."
"Don't! It's too dangerous!" Seeing Ye Changshan trying to climb up the cliff, Yiyi looked a little flustered.
"It's okay, this doesn't trouble me."
Although the cliff looks steep, how can Ye Changshan be stumped by this difficulty after practicing hard for three years? Seeing that Yiyi was worried about him, Ye Changshan felt an inexplicable sweetness in his heart, and his hands and legs became even stronger.
Ye Changshan wiped his hands on his clothes a few times, looked at the uneven rocks on the cliff, and quickly climbed up like a gecko. He had received a lot of such training over the years, and soon he was approaching the lamb.
The little sheep didn't know whether the person coming before it was good or evil, and it made a helpless sound of "baaaaa", but the place was small and it couldn't go anywhere else.
Feeling the lamb's uneasiness, Ye Changshan stretched out his hand and stroked it a few times, trying to dispel the hostility in his heart. When the lamb stopped yelping, he stretched out his hand to support it and put it on his shoulders.
The little sheep seemed to feel that Ye Changshan was not hostile and was here to save him, so he stopped calling. After the lamb stopped moving, Ye Changshan climbed down carefully.
Ye Changshan went down step by step along the path he came up. Seeing that he was already halfway there, suddenly Ye Changshan's left foot stepped on a stone and became loose! This unexpected situation caught Ye Changshan off guard, causing him to fall down.
"Brother Changshan——"
The sudden situation made Yiyi panic, and she was extremely scared, but the next moment she raised her hands, then closed her eyes and buried her head in her arms, quietly waiting for one person and one sheep to fall.
...
Yiyi's hands trembled slightly. She was extremely frightened, but she didn't know why she would do such a thing, even though she knew that if Ye Changshan fell down, it would hit her badly.
The imagined "Taishan Climb" did not happen. She opened her eyes tremblingly, slowly raised her head and looked up - she saw Ye Changshan holding the lamb's leg with one hand and grabbing a tree on the cliff with the other. Tree trunks, hanging in the air. The lamb seemed to find this very interesting, and let out a happy "baa-baa--" sound as Ye Changshan's arms swayed.
"Brother Changshan...are you okay?" Yiyi asked with concern.
"It's okay, okay, I can't die."
Somehow, Ye Changshan, who had always been dull, started joking at this time, making Yiyi a little bit dumbfounded.
"You...you...come down quickly, be careful!"
"Okay-"
Ye Changshan once again hung the lamb on his shoulders. This time he learned from his previous lesson and carefully grasped every bump. After a while, I finally landed safely.
"Are you okay? Let...let me take a look."
Yiyi stepped forward anxiously, picked up Ye Changshan's hands and inspected them without any explanation.
Perhaps due to excessive fright, Yiyi's tender hands were extremely cold. The coldness came from his wrists and stimulated every nerve in Ye Changshan's body. This coldness made his whole body so hot that his face turned red.
"Brother Changshan, are you okay? What's wrong with your face?"
"My face...my face...I was exhausted from rock climbing just now."
Yes, it is indeed strenuous to climb up and down and almost fall down.
After confirming that Ye Changshan was fine, Yiyi finally felt relieved and said with a mixture of anger and resentment: "Don't do such a dangerous thing next time."
Ye Changshan fell into dementia again when he saw Yiyi talking to him like this for the first time.
"Did you hear that?" Seeing that Ye Changshan didn't reply, Yiyi was a little anxious.
"well--"
'Baa - baa -'
The lamb barked again at an inappropriate time, and the two finally turned their attention to the little cutie in their arms.
Yiyi took the lamb and held it in her arms. She also inspected it carefully and found that there was some blood on the wool on the lamb's hind legs. When she opened it, she saw that the lamb's legs were neither long nor short nor deep. Not a shallow wound.
Seeing this, Ye Changshan quickly said before Yiyi could speak——
"Let's go back and find Fifth Senior Sister to prepare some medicine and apply it on her."
