beginning of winter.
The warm sun has brought some warmth to the cold world, but the people in the Central Plains are praying that the cold will come soon, because the next year's harvest will depend on auspicious snow.
Wen Junchen's body was brought back to his hometown in the south of Chang'an. The funeral was very simple. Only Wen Junchen's younger brother and a few junior brothers and sisters from a humble family came to see him off. What is even more embarrassing is that the people in the same village have closed their doors tightly, as if to avoid the god of plague——
This is the enemy of the Queen Mother and Lord Shangshu. Who dares to come to express condolences?
Ji Yangyu, Zichun, Cheng Daliang, Qilang, Ye Changshan and Wen Junchen's younger brother Wen Yili and their family stood in front of the small tomb in mourning attire. Wen Junchen was unmarried and naturally had no descendants. Wen Yili originally He wanted his two sons to observe filial piety for him, but Wen Junchen refused. He said: 'Filial piety' should be done during life, why should we stick to formalities after death? Moreover, filial piety lies in one's heart, and it is enough for the two nephews to have this heart. The younger brother knew that he could not defeat his elder brother, so he only agreed. However, he still asked his youngest son to observe mourning for twenty-seven days to comfort his deceased brother.
Yingping did not come to see him off, but Yi Hongyan came with Yiyi on his behalf.
Yi Hongyan burned three sticks of incense devoutly, then silently stepped back and stood side by side with Ji Yang and others. He looked at the cold tombstone with a heavy heart. He had tried so hard to take Yingping away from this place of right and wrong at the expense of his own flesh and blood, just to hope that his adopted son would be safe throughout his life. But fate plays tricks on people, and God made a big circle and forced him back step by step into this dangerous palace.
Could he refuse when Zhang came to him? Neither can he.
The Emperor of the Tang Dynasty had no children, and there was no successor in the New Tang Dynasty. All the fingers were pointed at Yingping - the daughter of the Northern Wei Dynasty wanted her adopted son to die, and the Wang family brothers and sisters also wanted their adopted son to die. At that time, he could only follow the instructions of the Emperor of the Tang Dynasty. He was ordered to send Yingping to Hanmen for temporary protection so that he could be kept safe.
But even so, what is the result today?
Yi Hongyan lowered his head and sighed silently. Seeing another close person leave, he felt extremely sad in his heart. Wen Junchen was not the first person to leave them, and he was certainly not the last person to leave them. I just didn't know who the next person would be and when.
…
The funeral ceremony has ended, but no one is willing to leave, as if as long as they stay here, they can stay with Wen Junchen for a moment longer.
The burning pile of paper money gradually extinguished, and wisps of green smoke kept swaying in the wind.
"Let's go." Ji Yang and Jiang broke the silence.
Zichun has stopped sobbing. She has cried enough these days, and she is afraid that her tears will dry up if she continues crying. She looked at the grave of her second senior brother longingly and nodded. In a few dozen days it will be the winter solstice, and everyone will come again by then, and it won't be long before we see each other.
"You guys go back first, I still want to accompany my second senior brother." Cheng Daliang was the most straightforward and the one who couldn't hide his thoughts the most.
"Sixth Senior Brother, let's go back." Ye Changshan knew that if this Sixth Senior Brother stayed here alone, he would probably sleep on this barren mountain tonight due to his straightforward temperament.
"Junior brother, please stop trying to persuade me. I just miss Second Senior Brother. I feel more at ease here..." Cheng Daliang's nose turned red, and he wanted to argue with a heavy nasal voice.
Everyone's mood was originally a little calmer, but now that Cheng Daliang made such a fuss, sadness took over again. People from poor families are stubborn, and even ten cows can't stop them from doing something they are sure of.
Ji Yangyu shook his head and felt very helpless. Although he acted very calmly from beginning to end, his inner sadness was no less than that of any of his junior brothers and sisters. After he came back from the prison that day, he locked himself in the house for three full days. No matter how many people knocked on the door, he ignored it. He didn't eat a grain of rice or drink a drop of water. He didn't open the door until three days later and showed up.
Humans are not grass and trees, how can they be ruthless? It's just a different way of expressing sadness.
Ji Yang and Zheng were about to speak to persuade Cheng Daliang, but suddenly a wailing sound came from the distance——
"Mr. Wen - why did you leave in such a hurry! You passed away before we could even have a drink, which makes me very regretful -"
This voice was so tragic and so deep that it almost made the people in the graves on the whole mountain wake up from crying. Even the wild wolves hiding in the mountains couldn't help but be moved when they heard it, and howled a few times.
"Mr. Wen! I'm late -"
Everyone turned around and saw an old man with gray hair and white hair walking towards them wearing a white cloth and a filial hat. He carried a basket full of paper money on his back and sprinkled the paper money in the basket into the sky as he walked. His sad look came from afar.
Yi Hongyan felt that this person looked familiar, whether it was his voice or appearance, but he couldn't remember who this person was for a while. Only when the old man got closer did he remember that this person was not the person he had served with Wen Junchen during the cold examination. The person to whom the handwritten letter was given?
"Mr. Wen! You have outstanding literary talent and superb calligraphy. Once you entered a poor family, you became the admirer of scholars all over the world! You have been fascinated by your brother for a long time! I wanted to have a drink with Mr. Wen, but now Mr. Wen has just said goodbye! Why? Do you want me to stop crying with sadness?"
Zhang Zhengru burst into tears. He staggered to the tomb and continued to cry without paying attention to the people on the side -
"Mr. Wen! This pot of fine wine has been treasured by my brother for many years. I originally wanted to drink it with you. It would be so nice for you and me to talk about poetry and rhymes and get drunk and then rest. But we have never had the chance to meet each other. It's called a happy life for my brother. Heartache! Now that we are seeing each other, we will never see each other again. How can I drink this wine alone?"
Zhang Zhengru took out a pot of wine from his waist, opened the stopper, and gently poured the wine in front of the grave. A strong and mellow aroma of wine spread out in an instant. Then he raised the pot and drank, as if Yu Wen and his ministers were drinking from the cups.
'Crack——'
Zhang Zhengru threw the wine bottle aside, and the wine bottle instantly shattered.
I don't know whether it was because he was overly sad or because of the alcoholic nature of the liquor. At this time, the little old man's figure became even more unstable and he fell straight to the ground. Ye Changshan was so frightened that he hurried forward to help him, for fear that the old man would be injured. What happened to Dr. Zhang, who was over fifty years old?
But Zhang Zhengru didn't care about Ye Changshan's good intentions at all. He pushed Ye Changshan away with a hard push. He lay on the ground, wiped his face with his sleeves and continued -
"When you were young, you plowed the south of Chang'an and sent your aspirations to the sky out of Chang'an. You traveled thousands of miles, read thousands of books, experienced the world's sufferings, and read all the vicissitudes of the world. You were appreciated by the Han family's young general, and you were all friends in the past. You will not care about it anymore. The Major General tried to persuade him to stay again and decided to return to New Tang Dynasty."
Zhang Zhengru sobbed and continued -
"Once you were born in a poor family, you became famous among the literati in the Central Plains! Your literary talent is like a piece of music descending to the world, your calligraphy is like the reincarnation of Yan Gong, and your articles are regarded as treasures by my brother, and they are memorized like a stream. I regard you as a brother. The articles written by you include the great talents who prospered the country and established the world, but also the indifference of the breeze and the bright moon. How can I envy my brother that he is a virtuous person but is content in the mountains and forests? Seven years ago, you wrote a letter to my brother in person, which made me feel flattered. I wanted to find an auspicious day for a visit, but I didn't want to, but I couldn't do it. When the Holy Lord enters the palace, my brother knows that you care about your family and country, so I won't bother you anymore. I hope that when you become successful and famous, I will take care of you again. It’s not too late to celebrate, I don’t want… I don’t want you to leave before my brother, making my brother regret for the rest of his life!”
At this point, Dr. Zhang burst into tears again.
At first, everyone was able to control their emotions, but when they saw Zhang Zhengru crying so sadly, they also started to feel sad.
"The court is dangerous, why do you need to get involved? If you stay in the mountains and stay away from the world, how can the world's literati feel the same sorrow for you?"
Zhang Zhengru's voice gradually became quieter. At this time, he lowered his head and said as if to himself: "Brother, I understand you. You can hide in the mountains and forests with wandering clouds and wild cranes. You can turn your pen into a sword and swear an oath for the common people." What you want is not to have both. You have to give up the small to take the big. But you don't know that what you give up is not just the word "leisure", but your life. It's pity that you are so loyal and loyal, but after death, Not even a whole body! I feel unfair for you, brother——"
When Zichun heard this, she burst into tears. It was she who stitched Wen Junchen's body together stitch by stitch. Originally it was not her turn to do it, but she insisted on doing it because she was afraid! She was afraid that Wen Junchen's remains would be incomplete, she was afraid that she would not be disrespectful to the body of the second senior brother, and she was afraid that others would not sew carefully enough. But the strange thing is that she, a girl who has never experienced life and death, had an unusually steady hand when faced with the body of the second senior brother she had been with day and night. It was not until all the needles and threads were finished that she threw herself into Ji Yang and the body. Crying uncontrollably in my arms. At this time, she heard "Not even a whole body", and she couldn't help but feel very sad when she thought of the tragic situation of the second senior brother's head missing that day.
The wind suddenly picked up, and for a while the sand was blown up.
Ji Yangyu suddenly closed his eyes and turned around. It seemed as if there was sand in his eyes, and two lines of hot tears silently flowed down his cheeks...
…
…
Northern Wei Dynasty, Daliang, General's Mansion.
A man stood facing west, with a small incense burner in front of him, with two red candles on it.
The man held three sticks of incense in his hand and bowed reverently three times, and then inserted the three sticks of incense into the furnace. When he raised his head, he saw the same two lines of tears hanging on his face.
The incense burns endlessly and the tears continue.
The man stood in front of the incense burner for a long time and refused to leave, just standing in silence...
"You're too sentimental."
An extremely majestic voice came from behind. This voice seemed to be without any emotion, but rather like an order.
"Yes! Father!" The man did not make too many excuses, but simply admitted his mistake and lowered his head.
"You are a general in the army. Life and death are common matters." The voice was still cold, not like a conversation between a father and son, but more like a superior and a subordinate.
"My old friend has left, and I feel uneasy..."
"You shouldn't focus on Wen Junchen!" The cold voice interrupted the man mercilessly and said directly: "Your attention should be on Ji Yangyu -"
Then, a cold voice said as if giving a military order——
"You must reach 'Tianshu' one step ahead of him."
The man turned around, and Han Dan's burly figure appeared in front of him, but he did not raise his head to meet the frosty gaze. Instead, he directly bowed his head and said, "Yes! Father."
Han Dan didn't have any fluctuations. Looking at the remaining tears on his son's face, he even felt a little disdain in his heart.
As if feeling the contempt in his father's heart, Han Si said again: "I'm sorry to disappoint you."
Han Dan still didn't respond. After staying for a moment, he turned and left without leaving any words.
It wasn't until his father's footsteps could no longer be heard that Han Si straightened up and raised his head. When he turned around, the pair of incense candles had been burned out, and the red wax hung on the wooden sticks, like teardrops on his cheeks.
A trace of lingering fragrance floated out, but was blown away by a strong wind. Han Si looked at the lingering fragrance being swept into the wind and smiled foolishly.
Han Si once again raised his hands high in front of his forehead, and then silently put these things away.
Then, he followed the direction Han Dan left and disappeared into the endless night...
