At nightfall.
Night shrouded the Mino Plain, and the entire Inaba Mountain Castle also entered a relatively quiet night from the busy day. Every household fell asleep in the quiet darkness, working at sunrise and resting at sunset. It was the most beautiful time of this era. Universal rhythm.
Only a few houses can shine through candlelight. After all, ordinary people cannot afford candles or lamp oil.
In ancient times when productivity was backward, lighting was really a luxury. Even in China, there are many related stories circulating. They are often allusions about scholars who could not afford to light oil lamps because their families were poor, so they thought of various ways to study, such as "cutting through the wall to steal the light", "the firefly in the bag reflects the snow", etc. wait.
This is true in China, let alone this island country.
However, in Tokichiro's longhouse, candlelight was luxuriously lit tonight. In the lobby, illuminated by the firelight, Saito Douzan raised the short sword in his hand nostalgically, his fingers trembling slightly. He gently touched the blade and looked at the word "show" engraved on it.
"That's it...that's it..."
He seemed to be mumbling to himself in a daze. Although they had been separated for more than ten years, he was no longer the leader of the Chu Yeye clan. Instead, he successfully relied on strategy to seize Mino and became a famous and important prince in the world. . But no matter what, he would never mistake this dagger.
Because this is exactly the fragment of the Chu Ye Ya Blade that the past self once used, part of the legendary sword left by the Taichu warrior to slay ghosts.
If he had been very sure before, then Saito Douzan had completed the final confirmation - he suddenly turned his head and looked at the black-haired girl who looked exactly like Yilong. This was him. Another long lost daughter!
Really are……
It's really great! He didn't know if he would see each other again in his lifetime, but he didn't expect that the surprise would come so suddenly, that he was unprepared and caught off guard!
Even though he has always been famous for breaking promises and being ruthless, so he is called "Meinong's Viper", his heart is in chaos at this moment.
This man with a smooth forehead, a full beard, and a very domineering appearance took a deep breath, tried hard to calm down, and tried his best to put on a kind and kind old father's smile, and faced the somewhat bewildered black man. The hair girl asked:
"Shen Fangye... no, your mother, she... is she okay?"
"..."
When the black-haired girl heard this, she was stunned for a moment, and her face suddenly turned gloomy.
She opened her mouth, but in the end she just lowered her long eyelashes and couldn't say anything.
What I recalled in my mind was the unforgettable scene when I was young. The man with a tin stick and red eyes suddenly broke into his home... At that time, the young Hidechiyo didn't know anything, and he had already fallen down with his mother. In a pool of blood.
After the red-eyed man succeeded and left, her mother, who was left with only one breath left, used the power of the dagger and all the demon power to revive her, and told her to live no matter what, she must live strong, and then The fragrance disappears and the jade dies.
After that, the young Hidechiyo carried her mother's wishes and promise to her mother and lived a strong life alone. She lost a lot and lost the ability to speak, but she only remembered the name her mother left for her. Whenever someone asked him his name, he would answer by showing the word "Xiu" on the dagger left by his mother.
Until today, this is the case.
"..."
"..."
In the silence, the air becomes dull little by little, and sometimes, silence itself is also a kind of answer.
"That's right, I understand..."
Looking at the girl's sad expression, Saito Douzan suddenly seemed to have aged many years. He understood something, and after a moment of silence, he let out a long sigh. Although the girl didn't say anything, as smart as him, how could she not understand what was going on.
That woman is no longer in this world...
It was strange that he didn't feel any surprise in his heart, only that it was so clear. After all, in this war-torn world where all life is devastated, both humans and demons are dying in large numbers every day. There is no news, he has actually already accepted this possibility.
But the sadness could not be suppressed at all. He turned his head again and looked at the short blade in his hand with some trance. He seemed to have fallen into a strange state of remembering the past. His voice and smile were so vivid in his mind. It's like everything happened yesterday.
It’s really strange, more than ten years have passed...
He just stared at it blankly. After a while, his eyes became brighter unconsciously, and seemed to have a crystal feeling.
Die, die, die...
At this time, Tokichiro, who was standing a little further away, was trembling with fear. He had no time to express his feelings that Mino's viper actually had a tender side, and lamented that this man whose heart seemed to be made of iron and stone could behave in such a human way. But for the first time, I felt that my scalp was going to explode, and I felt that I had seen something I shouldn't have seen!
He looked around tremblingly, and found that Miss Axiu had a sad look on her face and lowered her eyes in silence, while Brother Gu Mo was also watching with a calm face. He was not surprised by what he saw in front of him. He knew that he had seen it before. A man of great worldliness is worthy of being a man from the Kingdom of Heaven...
But, at this time, these are irrelevant. The only information Tokichiro filtered out is that he seems to be an "outsider" in this room...
When it was over, he lowered his head as a reflex, staring at the floor, never daring to look up again, his heart full of bitterness.
I hope I can get away with it, I hope Master Dao San doesn't care about this detail, I hope he won't react later and feel embarrassed to be crying in front of an outsider, and then get up in the middle of the night and have someone drag him out of the house and kill him Already...
While Tokichiro prayed to God and worshiped Buddha, Saito Douzan slowly came back to his senses. His thoughts returned to reality, but the memories of the past were still flying around in front of his eyes, disturbing him. thinking ability.
It was a mixture of sadness and joy, and it was hard to control myself. I felt the joy of seeing my other daughter again, but I was also immersed in the sadness of the death of my beloved and couldn't extricate myself.
Trying to calm down his emotions, the man looked at his daughter. Remembering that she could no longer speak, he suddenly felt even more sad and guilty. Even though he had done nothing wrong, compared with the life of his other daughter over the years, look at it again. The black-haired girl in front of me obviously suffered a lot...
Saito Michizan suddenly felt that he was going to be overwhelmed by the guilt.
"I have worked really hard on you over the years..."
His voice became a little hoarse, but it was very powerful, as if it was not only comforting, but also some kind of guarantee to implement his own will, "Axiu, my daughter! From today on, you no longer have to act like before. Well... just like I promised your mother that I would take good care of Yilong, I will definitely take good care of you too!"
Tokichiro, who lowered his head and did not dare to raise his head, couldn't help but feel envious when he heard this. He knew it would be like this, but this was also expected.
The black-haired girl raised her head in astonishment.
"That's right, we're going back right now. I'm going to let everyone know about this great thing. Yes, we must let the entire Meinong know..."
Saito Douzan murmured to himself, then sniffed, and immediately reacted. He continued to laugh boldly as if to hide it. He waved his hand and greeted several people eagerly, his eyes still locked on each other. On Axiu’s body——
"Hahahaha, today is really a good day. Let's go, Axiu. Let's go home first and then talk about it after we get home! By the way, you must be hungry too, I'll have someone prepare it right now..."
He suddenly remembered that Tokichiro seemed to have entered the city in the evening. Maybe they had walked all day and had not eaten anything, and he immediately became concerned.
At this moment, Saito Douzan was not like the Mino Viper who was famous for his ruthlessness, but more like an empty nester who was finally looking forward to having his children come home... The heavy feeling of guilt and debt made him extremely hope that he could give this He would do whatever he could to make up for his long-lost daughter, no matter what.
However, Hidechiyo didn't seem to know what to do about Saito Douzan's performance. She looked around blankly and subconsciously.
——With a little feeling of asking for help.
She also knew that this was indeed her father, and everything could be matched... But, but, this was really too sudden. She was completely unprepared mentally, and there was no way to accept such a sudden development at once, no matter it was The enthusiasm shown by the other party at this moment is still the arrangement mentioned by the other party.
——Let the whole Meinong... know?
——And going home... How could she suddenly regard that castle tower as her home? !
So even though Saito Douzan was very excited and extremely hopeful, at this moment, she was filled with subconscious resistance and rejection.
"Ahem, Master Daosan, please listen to me first..."
At this time, Gu Mo finally stood up and smoothed things over. He coughed lightly and put his hand into a fist against his chin. Seeing that the two people's attention was diverted, he continued speaking calmly. .
"It's like this. I understand your feelings, but have you ever thought that all this is a bit sudden? Axiu didn't know about this at all before. Even if she knows that you are her father, you are nothing to her. She is a very strange person. She is someone I just met today. Can you give her some time to get used to it..."
There was no way to accept it immediately. This was normal, and he didn't want to see the girl in such trouble.
Anyway, just know about it and don't have any regrets in the future, but you don't have to force it to be accepted immediately. Anyway, there is still time... Besides, even if Axiu can't accept it immediately, can Saito Douzan not admit it? Is this the case?
It's impossible, so--actually the result is not bad either.
However.
"……who are you!"
Saito Michizan looked at this young boy expressionlessly. After glaring at him for a while, he suddenly asked so unceremoniously, with raised eyebrows.
He had no reason to think that this guy was really annoying. He actually called his precious daughter so intimately. Is that what you can call Axiu?
This is because the long-lost jewel in his palm was lost and recovered, and the deep joy and heavy guilt were intertwined, coupled with the psychological effect of compensation. While Saito Douzan wanted to make up for Hidechiyo twice, it also intensified his worry about losing again. Be wary and resistant, and the young man in front of you seems to be the hateful guy who will take Axiu away...
——So just for a moment, he felt that Gu Mo's face became disgusting, and he didn't like it.
"..."
"..."
Damn, I dare you not to remember it at all. The corner of his mouth twitched slightly, and Gu Mo maintained a cracked smile on his face: "My name is Gu Mo, and I am Axiu..."
"Okay, okay, stop talking... I remembered it!" Saito Douzan waved his hand impatiently and interrupted him rudely. This kid is really annoying, and he still talks like a show! He took a deep breath and glanced at the girls beside him who didn't know what to do.
But even though I hate it, if Axiu likes it, then I shouldn’t act too arbitrary, rude and arrogant...
He just wanted to make up for his responsibilities and be a good father. If he ignored Axiu's thoughts and acted completely according to his own preferences when they just met, it would only make Axiu sad. That would be completely different from what he had in mind at the beginning. Going in the opposite direction.
He glared at Gu Mo fiercely, making the latter confused. Then Saito Douzan showed a very gentle and kind smile again and said to Hidechiyo:
"It doesn't matter, it's because I didn't think enough about it as a father... We are not in a hurry about this matter. We are not in a hurry. Let's go with your idea first, Axiu. We will talk about it when you are willing to accept it... But let's go back to the castle first. How about the pavilion, I can't let you live in a place like this."
He seemed to be carefully consulting the girl's opinion, and at the same time he glanced around. This long house could only be said to be clean, but it didn't matter what he wanted.
He was used to living a hard life, so of course he didn't think there was any problem, but that meant that he had no problem, but he absolutely couldn't accept the apple of his eye, which he regarded as a treasure, staying in a place like this.
Hidechiyo is still a little hesitant, but her personality is such that she is easy to talk to even when facing strangers, let alone the father she just recognized. Since the other party is willing to take a step back and expresses that she doesn't like it, everything can be discussed. , then it’s not good for her to be stubborn.
After successfully persuading his daughter, Saito Michizan suddenly smiled broadly and hurriedly walked ahead to lead the way. At the same time, he did not forget to give someone a vicious look when he passed by her.
"You guys... come together and keep up!"
The viper seemed to be very reluctant when he said these words, and then walked out without looking back. He smiled attentively and spoke beside the black-haired girl, as if he was eager to say something. Seize every moment to make up for family ties and mistakes.
"..."
"..."
"Phew... saved."
Tokichiro, who was motionless in the long room, finally wiped the sweat from his forehead. His face was slightly pale, his legs were a little weak, but his eyes looked relieved. It seemed that Master Daosan had no intention to care about it. Something that makes you lose your temper in front of yourself.
However, after the panic, excitement followed. He couldn't hide his excitement and looked at the young man beside him with envy in his eyes: "Brother Gu Mo, you are really lucky. With Miss Axiu's relationship, Master Daosan will definitely have a special eye for you, and you will definitely become famous in the future. When the time comes... don’t forget about me, uncle!"
"emmmm... add another eye?"
Gu Mo frowned, as if that was indeed the case. The bad old man seemed to be normal to others, even when he looked at him, he seemed to be glaring at him.
