"Husband, where did this cat of yours come from?"
When Zheng Xiu came back with a pitiful orange cat waving its tail, Yue Linglong walked out of the hall with curiosity on her face.
"Picked it up on the road."
Zheng Xiu frowned and replied absentmindedly. He held up the orange cat and looked left and right, but it seemed something was wrong.
"so cute."
Women are always irresistible to cute things. Her eyes were shining, and she didn't mind the dirtiness of the orange cat, and was about to step forward and give it a hug.
"It's very cute."
Zheng Xiu agreed, using both hands to throw the orange cat high into the sky.
Yue Linglong's slightly rouged mouth opened into a round O-shape, and she was dumbfounded.
The orange cat danced and flew high into the sky, turning into a small dot until it disappeared.
Yue Linglong secretly looked at her husband.
It turns out that my husband doesn’t like small animals.
Yue Linglong ordered her servants to brew a pot of hot tea, and when she placed the tea set on the stone table in the courtyard, the melodious screams of the orange cat echoed high in the air.
"Orange cat, orange cat fell down!"
Zheng Xiu put down the teacup, walked to the center of the courtyard, and aimed at the landing point of the orange cat. His shoulders sank, and the orange cat fell into his arms.
I don’t know what the orange cat went through while flying high in the sky. All the hair on his body was turned to one side, neatly, and the snot and tears on his face swirled in the hair on his face.
"Really gone?"
Zheng Xiu looked disappointed when he saw the orange cat looking frightened. But then I thought about it. In the past, the orange cat was like a "living signal receiver", receiving the signal from a certain dark creature. Now that the world line has shifted, this orange cat has turned back into an ordinary cat, which seems not difficult to understand.
After a simple test, Zheng Xiu confirmed this, with a hint of disappointment on his face.
After heating a basin of hot water, Zheng Xiu gave the orange cat a bath. He rubbed the cat vigorously, and a layer of yellow mud was painted on the bathtub.
After washing and drying the hair, Zheng Xiu lifted the frightened orange cat and looked between his legs.
Well, the female should be the same one.
"It was fate that we met. It's a pity that you became an ordinary little female cat."
The orange cat curled up next to Zheng Xiu and shivered. Zheng Xiu touched the orange cat's head. He didn't know whether the orange cat could understand it at this moment. He said leisurely: "Don't worry, for the sake of 'past', I won't treat you badly." It's yours, I will definitely find a pure-blooded, strong Western male cat for you, and he will serve you comfortably."
The orange cat's eyes widened and his hair exploded.
"Meow!"
What female cat doesn’t like a strong male cat?
The orange cat looked delighted.
After being teased by Zheng Xiu, the orange cat was not afraid of Zheng Xiu and squatted obediently on Zheng Xiu's head, keeping it steady.
The orange cat on his head walked around Zheng's house a few times, and everyone in the Zheng family soon knew that the young master had adopted a cat on a whim.
…
Not long after, Qing Shisan took Zheng Xiu's list and inquired about the people on the list. He returned to Zheng Xiu with the news.
Zheng Xiu looked at the list in silence, feeling extremely heavy for a moment.
After all, Qing Shisan is not omnipotent, and many people have been marked as "unaccounted for" by Qing Shisan.
In some cases, Qing Shisan is marked as "passed away".
For example:
Xi'er, once the first dressmaker of the Zheng family, is missing;
Yan Jiji, once the top craftsman, died in a landslide while repairing the imperial mausoleum;
Chef He offended the prime minister's son because a dish was not to his liking, and he was executed by his entire family for strange crimes;
Jing Xuemei, who was forced by the Jing family to marry the stepson of the Yuwen family, committed suicide by hanging herself from a beam at home six months ago;
Zheng Erniang, there is no such person;
Jiang Gaoyi, former governor of Yanzhou, died in prison;
Monk, whereabouts unknown;
The strange people and strangers who once relied on the Zheng family and lived and worked in peace and contentment are either missing or have not ended up well.
…
Zheng Xiu expressionlessly tore up the news Qing Shisan brought back into pieces slowly, threw it into the fire, and burned it to ashes.
The firelight reflected Zheng Xiu's face, and that handsome face became a little more ferocious and twisted.
…
The young master of the Zheng family raised a wild cat.
This incident quickly spread to Chuntao's ears.
Chuntao understood, and she cooked a pot of tonic soup for Zheng Xiu during lunch.
It contains nourishing ingredients such as ginseng, chicken, deer antler, sheep whip, wolfberry, angelica, snow lotus and so on.
"I've been here before, so I know what you're thinking." Chuntao spooned a large bowl full of it for Zheng Xiu. Her eyes flicked back and forth on the faces of the blushing Yue Linglong and the confused Zheng Xiu, and she covered her mouth and smiled. He said: "If you want to have children, take more supplements, so that you can have more fat and white babies. Why put your thoughts on cats."
"Ah...husband." Yue Linglong blew cold tonic soup for Zheng Xiu, and motioned for Zheng Xiu to open his mouth as if coaxing a child.
Chuntao was still chattering at the side: "Back then, your father also drank my bowl of secret family recipe, which was why my mother gave birth to you. Don't believe it, this soup is very effective."
The chicken soup enters the stomach. Although it contains many strange things, it is indeed sweet and warm. Zheng Xiu didn't want to disturb his mother's thoughts, so he drank three large bowls, which made him feel hot all over.
"There's still some left. Mom, let your dad taste some."
Chuntao took a look into the earthen pot and saw that there was a lot left, so she packed some and gave it to Zheng Haoran.
That tonic soup really works.
That night, Zheng Xiu and Yue Linglong didn't fall asleep until midnight.
The next morning, Zheng Haoran's long-lost laughter came from the yard.
The orange cat jumped on top of Zheng Xiu and lay down lazily.
Zheng Haoran was still wearing a simple gown. Compared with usual, he tied up his messy long hair and practiced boxing in the yard. Zheng Haoran's movements were very slow, one step at a time, giving Zheng Xiu a sense of old people doing aerobics in the park.
"Dad! You look good today!"
Zheng Xiu walked into the courtyard.
Zheng Haoran was shocked when he saw the orange cat squatting above Zheng Xiu's head.
"Where did you come from, cat!"
Unexpectedly, Zheng Haoran reacted violently. He suddenly rushed to Zheng Xiu, grabbed Zheng Xiu's arm and asked with eyes wide open.
His eyes were instantly bloodshot and his breathing was rapid.
Zheng Haoran was in poor health before and had been resting in his room to recuperate. Zheng Xiu had no chance to talk to Zheng Haoran about what happened back then.
Now that Zheng Haoran has recovered a lot of energy, Zheng Xiu thought for a moment, smiled slightly, and slowly raised his fist towards Zheng Haoran.
Zheng Haoran's expression was startled, and there was a bit more sparkle in his old and turbid eyes. The wrinkles on Zheng Haoran's face were relieved. He laughed and touched Zheng Xiu with his fist. It's just that the "fist bump" after twenty years did not make Zheng Haoran feel happy about the reunion of father and son. His newly relieved wrinkles instantly became deeper and his brows were tightened. His thick eyebrows were like a dark cloud, covering Zheng Haoran. That old face.
…
After a cup of tea.
The father and son were sitting at attention, separated by a coffee table.
"You mean..."
Zheng Haoran is indeed very human. The stories told by Zheng Xiu are like a fantasy. Anyone who listens to it will scream ridiculous. However, Zheng Haoran did not spend much effort to digest Zheng Xiu's words and accepted the "world line shift" " settings.
"In another world, I and your mother did pass away, and you started from scratch, made money in business, and gradually strengthened the Zheng family. Finally, by chance, you were appreciated by the emperor and became the Red King."
"Because of your 'foreign skills', you went on a mission to the Northern Barbarians and met the remnant soul of me in the wilderness. You and I fist bumped, and you returned to the ancient battlefield where I and the Wolf King fought twenty years ago. superior."
"There, you saved me and everything changed. I and your mother survived."
Zheng Xiu sat opposite Zheng Haoran and felt something was wrong when he heard Zheng Haoran say "I". But if you think about it carefully, everything seems to be right. In front of his son, doesn't a father just call himself "I"? It's perfectly normal.
"That's right."
Zheng Xiu nodded.
"wrong."
Zheng Haoran clenched his fists and stood up. He pointed at the ground: "Here, stand here."
He curled his lips and asked Zheng Xiu to stand on the floor of the room.
Zheng Xiu was puzzled, but he still obeyed my instructions. There was an orange cat above his head. After Zheng Xiu stood firm, he realized that his back was facing the door.
"Are you sure you saved me?"
The temperature in Zheng Haoran's voice dropped a bit, and Zheng Xiu looked at Zheng Haoran's face in surprise. Since he came to this world, he has never seen Zheng Haoran show such a stern expression towards him. Hearing this, Zheng Xiu didn't know what his father wanted to say for a moment, so he just nodded blankly: "Isn't it?"
"No! No! No!" Zheng Haoran suddenly shook his head like crazy. His long silver hair was messy and disheveled. His face looked a little crazy and a little dazed. He roared and repeated strange words: "No! That punch! It's not you! It's not you! Who is it! Who is it? Have you forgotten? You can't remember? Why can't I remember it either! For the past twenty years, I have always thought he was my son' Come on! I've been waiting! Waiting! Now, you're here! You're here! But it's not you! It's not your fist! Twenty years ago, who punched me away? Go out? Why can’t you remember clearly! I can’t remember clearly! I only remember one punch!”
"A flawless punch!"
"A reluctant punch!"
"Whose!"
"It's not you!"
"Not the bald guy either!"
"Twenty years ago, there was another person!"
"you forgot!"
"I forgot too!"
Zheng Haoran looked like a madman and punched Zheng Xiu.
His fists always had some magical power, and Zheng Xiu subconsciously raised his fists to catch them.
next moment.
One person and one cat were punched out of the room by Zheng Haoran.
boom!
Sawdust flew everywhere, and the aftermath of the punch instantly shattered the porcelain in the room to the floor. Zheng Haoran's punch turned the neat room into a mess.
Zheng Xiu's back dragged a deep ravine on the hard ground, and his back was painful.
After Zheng Haoran smashed Zheng Xiu and the innocent cat away with one punch, his expression calmed down a little. He walked out of the room step by step. At this moment, the gray-haired man seemed to have returned to the past and became the high-spirited and invincible General Zheng again.
Zheng Haoran looked down at Zheng Xiu and said in an indifferent tone:
"You think you saved me."
"But the fact is, that's not the case."
"You just 'escaped' here!"
Zheng Haoran unreservedly released his twenty years of doubts and anger in front of Zheng Xiu.
Zheng Haoran knew very well where he should have died.
He made up his mind.
He knew that if he lived, his son's original trajectory would change.
But he still survived.
The point is, he forgot who rescued him from there.
It feels like something has wiped out a person's existence.
Everything has changed.
Zheng Haoran didn't remember who that person was.
He only knew that that person was important to his son.
"That man" sacrificed his life for his son to save him.
But he forgot that person and that thing.
The only trace of "that person" left in the world is the feeling given to him by that punch.
So after Zheng Haoran came back from the battlefield alive and was praised and praised by the world, he didn't have any pride in his heart.
He vaguely realized that the reason he was able to come back from there alive was because someone had sacrificed "his" life.
For Zheng Haoran, human memories can be forgotten and traces of a person's existence can be erased, but the feeling left by the fist is unmistakable.
"What do you know!" Faced with Zheng Haoran's unreasonable anger, Zheng Xiu also became angry. After he reunited with Zheng Haoran and his son, they had no real conversation or contact. The fatherly love that Zheng Xiu longed for was now reduced to heavy fists, hitting him hard in the face.
Zheng Xiu stretched out his hand to wipe the blood from the corner of his mouth and threw the cat aside.
He rushed forward and struggled with his father.
Boom, boom, boom!
Zheng Haoran's fist hit Zheng Xiu's chest hard.
Zheng Xiu was not polite and returned the fist with his fist.
The father and son completely lost their general demeanor at this moment, and started fighting in the yard, with smoke and dust billowing.
"It's great to be my father? I just wanted to save you, what did I do wrong?!!"
"Wrong! Big mistake! Fuck you! I told you twenty years ago that I deserve to live and die. I let you save me! I let you save! I let you save me." !" Zheng Haoran scolded and punched harder.
"You are my dad!"
"Bah! I'm not that capable! I want to be your father! Your father is already dead!"
"Have you ever cursed yourself like this?"
"Go back here! Go back to your place!"
The fight between the father and son made a lot of noise, and soon alerted the rest of the Zheng family.
When the wives of the father and son, Chuntao and Yue Linglong, came here one after another, they were stunned and stunned when they saw the collapsed courtyard wall and the fallen tree. It's not like father and son have never fought in thousands of years, but the fight was so fierce and fierce, it could even be said that they were beaten to death. This was the first time that the two women had seen each other.
Yue Linglong was about to step forward to dissuade her, but Chuntao suddenly pulled her back. Yue Linglong turned around in confusion, Chuntao shook her head gently and said with a smile: "Men are like this sometimes."
"Huh?" Yue Linglong was stunned when she heard this.
"There are some words that men cannot express clearly with their mouths. If they don't understand the words, there will always be many misunderstandings. The child's father is this kind of person. He doesn't speak well when he has something to say, and he always shows his fists." As soon as Chuntao finished speaking, the father and son in the yard The two struggled for a while, smashed another wall, and hit the yard next door.
Yue Linglong was stunned. She worried that if the fighting continued, both of them would become widows.
Chuntao was not worried, her eyes were hazy. She recalled the first time she sneaked into Zheng's house, was punched hard by Zheng Haoran, and was caught on the spot. She couldn't help but rub her eyes: "It's ridiculous to say it. You mother and I, this is the first time. When he fell in love with the child's father, he won him over with just one punch."
"..."
The father and son fought for a full hour.
after a long time.
In the ruins of Zheng's house, the ground was in a mess, and the father and son lay panting among the ruins.
Zheng Xiu's clothes had long been broken into tattered rags hanging on his body, with fist marks left on his chest, and his eyes, ears, mouth and nose were all covered in blood.
But after the fight with his father, his expression was unusually calm at the moment, and he was completely relieved after venting his anger.
Zheng Haoran, on the other hand, had a bruised nose and a swollen face - Zheng Xiu was afraid that hitting his chest or something would hit his vitals, so he always greeted Zheng Haoran in the face.
Zheng Haoran lay on his back, took a few deep breaths, and shouted to his son who was also lying not far away: "Understood?"
Zheng Xiu stood up, picked up the shivering orange cat from the grass on the side, and placed it on top of his head. He looked back at his father and nodded: "I understand."
"Tell me, what do you understand?"
"I forgot something, a very important thing." After a slight hesitation, Zheng Xiu added in a low voice: "Or, a person."
Zheng Haoran looked up to the sky and smiled: "Then go! If you are my son, if you throw it away, find it back!"
"good!"
Zheng Xiu waved to Qing Shisan.
A puff of smoke rolled behind Zheng Xiu, and he followed silently.
After Zheng Xiu left.
Yue Linglong gritted her teeth and chased after him.
Chuntao squatted in front of Zheng Haoran, touched the swelling and bruises on Zheng Haoran's face, and twitched the corner of her mouth: "My son's actions are quite dark."
Zheng Haoran grabbed Chuntao's hand. As soon as his son left, he was finally willing to cry out in pain and screamed ouch.
"Tao'er."
Zheng Haoran seemed to have changed into a different person, curling his tongue and shouting Chuntao's nickname.
With wet eyes, Chuntao lifted up Zheng Haoran, who had a bruised nose and face, and carefully combed Zheng Haoran's white hair, letting out a high-pitched hum from her nose.
"Um?"
"It's been a hard time for you for more than twenty years."
"Um."
Asking for a monthly ticket!
