A few days later, Li Jinglong carried Hongjun all the way to the northwest. Once they passed Jiayu Pass, they saw that the northwest was very desolate. The official road was covered by snow. On the road from one county to another, there were often only a few carriages that could be seen after a day of running. Occasionally, there would be farmers who went out for a stroll. From afar, they would see two horses go around the mountain and gallop away.
However, when they arrived at the county, the city was very lively. The people were all passing the winter.
The weather was getting colder and colder. Hongjun did not want to ride a horse at all. Not only was it boring, but it was also tiring. What was more troublesome was that with his legs clamped on the saddle, he had to run for a day. The skin on his inner thigh was rubbed too much and it was very painful.
"Are you still going to ride a horse or not?" Li Jinglong simply did not have any temper with Hongjun.
Hongjun said, "It's too boring to ride alone!"
"Don't draw a turtle on my face while I'm sleeping." Li Jinglong turned back and said, "Do you hear me?"
Hongjun was still laughing. Li Jinglong carried him, recognized the road, and hurried on. Finally, they arrived at the relay station.
"After tonight, we might have to sleep in the wild tomorrow. We will arrive at Wuwei in another day." Li Jinglong said.
Hongjun said, "Chief, my leg hurts a little. The skin is broken."
Hongjun supported himself against the wall and slowly walked in like a duck. Li Jinglong knew that he did not ride a horse often. His thigh was scratched by the saddle.
That night, the cold wind whistled outside the relay station. The waiter came over to make the fire very strong. The room was warm. The Carp Demon was sleeping. Hongjun was wearing a white shirt and shorts. He dipped a cloth in water and wanted to wipe it. He looked up at Li Jinglong and wanted to take off his pants, but he was very embarrassed.
Li Jinglong mixed the ointment and dipped a small piece of gauze in it. He signaled Hongjun to sit on the edge of the bed and pulled his leg over. Hongjun hurriedly said, "I … Chief, I'll do it myself."
Li Jinglong said, "Your grandfather's family used to be in Guazhou?"
"Yes!" Hongjun had casually told Li Jinglong before, but he had forgotten about it.
"Let's visit General Geshu Han first …" Li Jinglong pressed Hongjun's knee with one hand and the other hand held the gauze. Hongjun's face immediately turned red. However, the wound was at the back and he had to lower his head to apply the ointment, so he could not see it....... so...... so, Hongjun's face.... Hongjun's face immediately.....
"… Let's visit your uncle again," Li Jinglong continued.
...........
........ a.......... serving..........
. Hongjun felt a burst of coldness at the wound. He sucked in a breath of cold air. Li Jinglong applied the ointment and said, "Does it hurt?"
"It's itchy …" Hongjun could not help but lift his leg. Li Jinglong had him spread his leg apart and said, "You're blistering on the other side."
Hongjun and Li Jinglong looked at each other. He felt that when Li Jinglong's slender fingers touched his leg, it was extremely stimulating. His crotch unconsciously protruded. The two looked at each other. Li Jinglong also applied the ointment on his right leg and said, "Do you want to change to a carriage tomorrow?"
Where would he find a carriage? Hongjun was very embarrassed. He followed Li Jinglong out and caused him trouble. However, Li Jinglong did not care at all. After applying the ointment, Hongjun said, "It's done."
Suddenly, Li Jinglong smeared the rest of the ointment on Hongjun's crotch. Hongjun immediately cried out. Li Jinglong laughed loudly with a hint of revenge.
"You did it on purpose!" Hongjun's face was completely red. He hurriedly found a cloth and pulled open his trousers to wipe off the ointment that Li Jinglong had applied as a prank.
"Holding it in like this, don't tell me you want to get married." Li Jinglong sat to the side and laughed while crossing his legs.
Hongjun was extremely embarrassed and said, "I don't want to get married!"
Li Jinglong sized up Hongjun and said with interest, "I wonder which family's girl will meet you in the future." As he said this, he helplessly smiled and shook his head. He then said, "What kind of demon is your father?"
If it was in the past, Li Jinglong would definitely not ask this question. However, along the way, Hongjun and Li Jinglong were like brothers. Li Jinglong felt that it was presumptuous of him to ask this question and hurriedly said, "It's just a casual question. Just treat it as idle chatter. Don't take it to heart."
Hongjun hurriedly said that it was no big deal and sat on the couch. Li Jinglong took advantage of the situation and sat over. The two of them sat side by side against the wall.
Hongjun said, "My father is a peacock."
"No wonder." Li Jinglong said indifferently, "He's so beautiful." After he finished speaking, he glanced at Hongjun and said, "Then if you want to get married, should Uncle Chong Ming … … help you find a beautiful demon?"
Hongjun completely did not think about this and replied, "He won't help me talk about marriage."
"What about in the future?" Li Jinglong asked casually.
Hongjun was suddenly a little confused by Li Jinglong's question. He was neither human nor demon. What would his future be like?
"Chong Ming, he … … won't care about these things." Hongjun said hesitantly.
"I don't think so." Li Jinglong laughed.
When he was young, he never had any thoughts about the future. Every day in the Dazzling Gold Palace counted as one day. Although he wanted to eat all the delicious food in the world, this could not be considered a lofty ambition. If there was any kind of vision for the future, perhaps it was to always live in the Dazzling Gold Palace and accompany Chong Ming?
"Go to sleep." Li Jinglong saw that Hongjun was in a daze and was afraid that he would think of something sad again, so he let him lie down.
The heavy snow outside rustled. Hongjun looked at the tail feathers of the Phoenix on the table. After being reminded by Li Jinglong, many thoughts came without warning and flooded him endlessly on such a snowy night. In 16 years, this was the first time he felt the emotion called "loss".
What am I going to do in the future? Many years later, who will I be with?
"Elder Shi, what about you?"
Li Jinglong's breathing was even and he seemed to have fallen asleep. Hongjun faced the wall and fell into deep thought.
"When I was your age, I always thought about many things." Li Jinglong said in a low voice.
Hongjun's heart skipped a beat and he turned over. Li Jinglong was still awake. He opened his eyes and turned his head slightly. "I don't want to be like them, talking about marriage when they reach the age. Build a career, marry a wife and have children. Live a normal life and finish this life. "
Hongjun's leg was bent. He was afraid that it would touch the wound, so he lifted his leg and put it on Li Jinglong's body. Li Jinglong knew that he was afraid of rubbing the wound after applying medicine, so he motioned for him to pull his leg up and put it on his waist.
"Yes." Hongjun replied, "I think so too. I don't know what I will become in the future, or rather, I …"
Li Jinglong moved over a little and looked at the ceiling. "You are very good like this, Hongjun … I … When I first saw you …"
He unconsciously turned his head and looked into Hongjun's eyes. Suddenly, he felt a little embarrassed and avoided his gaze. "There are too many things on you that I have never had."
Hongjun: "?"
Li Jinglong sighed softly and laughed at himself.
Hongjun: "Elder Shi, why is your face red?"
Li Jinglong: "…"
Hongjun looked at Li Jinglong with a smile in his eyes. Li Jinglong turned his head and looked at him seriously. Their breaths were intertwined. He had to admit that Hongjun had some kind of innate attraction. In front of him, Li Jinglong always thought of his youth.
In those years that belonged only to young people, he wore a long sword that he had exchanged for with all his family's wealth. He searched everywhere for a good brother like Hongjun, a close friend who came from a non-existent ideal world, who could drink and play together, who could kill enemies with their swords, and who could command the wind and the clouds and live and die together.
But at that time, Hongjun did not appear by his side. Now that he thought about it, his mood at that time was probably what Li Bai said: "Draw your sword and look around blankly."
"You are late." Li Jinglong suddenly said, "If only we had met three years ago."
Hongjun said, "Three years ago, I was only thirteen years old."
Li Jinglong smiled and said, "That's true. But you still saved me."
"Why?" Hongjun was puzzled.
Li Jinglong said seriously, "If we had met earlier, I might have …"
Hongjun: "What might have been?"
Li Jinglong leaned back and looked at Hongjun. At this moment, he finally understood what he had lost. It was the spirit and gentleness that had been wasted by the secular world in the long river of time.
"Hongjun." Li Jinglong said seriously, "I have to ask you something."
Hongjun: "???"
Hongjun was confused. From the moment he laid down, he did not understand Li Jinglong. He felt that there seemed to be a hidden meaning in his words, but he could not guess it.
"Do you like me?" Li Jinglong asked, "That day, you said 'Elder Shi, I like you too much'. Was it true?"
Hongjun smiled and replied, "Of course."
Hongjun liked being with Li Jinglong the most. His whole life became brilliant and bright.
"I also like you very much. I like you as my younger brother …" Li Jinglong blushed and said, "Damn, that's too mushy. Forget it when you wake up tomorrow."
Li Jinglong rarely cursed. Hongjun laughed and kicked him, saying, "I understand."
"En." Li Jinglong said, "In the Exorcism Division, although you and I are superior and subordinate, I have always treated you as my younger brother … Even in the Long Wu Army, I have never been so close to anyone …"
When Hongjun heard this, he indeed felt a little mushy. Since he was young, no one had ever said this to him. Flowers suddenly bloomed in his heart.
"They often make fun of us. I … don't have any improper thoughts about you. Don't think too much. " Li Jinglong patted Hongjun's head hard and said, "I don't care about people … talking about me. There are some words that you don't have to take to heart."
Hongjun did not understand again and asked, "What words?"
Li Jinglong said, "Sometimes I really don't understand. Are you pretending to be stupid or are you really stupid?"
Hongjun understood and said with a smile, "I understand! I don't … "
"As for whether you have any thoughts or not, I can't control you."
Li Jinglong began to tease Hongjun seriously again.
Hongjun: "No! No! No! "
Li Jinglong: "Oh? Is that so? "
As he spoke, he held Hongjun's left hand and opened his palm. Their fingers intertwined and gently clasped together.
Hongjun: "!!!"
As soon as Li Jinglong clasped his hand, Hongjun felt that he was hard again and his face immediately turned red. The last time he rode back to Chang 'an, it was the same when he taught Li Jinglong the Heart Lantern.
Li Jinglong looked at Hongjun with a faint smile and then looked at his lower body. What he meant was: How is it? You still say you don't have any thoughts? Hongjun hurriedly pulled his hand back. His heart was thumping wildly and said, "Don't mess with me! I also … I also treat you as family … Yes. I even said that I would bring you back to my house. I don't want to be separated from you. "
Li Jinglong smiled and said, "I won't tease you anymore. Go to sleep. We still have to hurry tomorrow morning. Some things don't need to be anxious. Think about it slowly and gradually understand. Just like me, until the day I met you. "
Li Jinglong closed his eyes. Hongjun still had a lot of thoughts, but he was also tired. He put his leg on Li Jinglong's waist and gradually fell asleep.
That night, a sudden snowstorm swept through nearly a thousand miles inside and outside the Great Wall.
In the bathhouse of Yulin County, it was close to midnight. Most of the guests had left and the bathhouse was quiet. In the distance, a female singer sang, "Where do the plum blossoms fall? The wind blows all over Guan Mountain. "
In the bathroom of the West Wing, Madman's hair was disheveled as he soaked in the wooden tub silently.
Mo Rigen sat outside the bathhouse with a towel on his leg and a bottle of wine in his hand. He held the two Hetian jade beads that Hongjun had given him and played with them with his fingers.
"Are you done bathing?" Mo Rigen turned around and asked, "Aren't you hungry?"
Madman lay on the bathtub and looked outside. Mo Rigen got up and walked into the bathroom to check on Madman. Madman used to be a soldier before he went crazy. He was thin, and after washing his face with mud, he looked very handsome.
Madman was a teenager of seventeen or eighteen years old and looked not much older than Hongjun. He looked at Mo Rigen cautiously. Mo Rigen sighed and bent down to dig out a letter from Madman's bloodstained clothes.
The letter was stained with blood. It was a request for help from Tianshui Chengji County. The handwriting was blurry, but it could be seen that the sender was Chengji County Guard Huang An. He had sent a scout, Lu Xu, to Wutai County to ask for help.
"Lu Xu?" Mo Rigen said.
Madman's eyes showed a trace of confusion when his name was suddenly called. Mo Rigen handed him clean clothes. Lu Xu stood naked and looked at Mo Rigen from head to toe. Mo Rigen looked at him for a while, then opened his cotton robe and let him put it on. He motioned for him to follow him and brought him to the table to eat boiled lamb.
Lu Xu saw that there was food on the table and slowly approached. He stretched out his hand and observed Mo Rigen at the same time. Mo Rigen motioned for him to eat. He grabbed the lamb and put it in his mouth to chew. Mo Rigen only ate a little and stopped eating. He frowned and observed Lu Xu.
He opened the collar of his cotton bathrobe, revealing his fair chest and collarbone. There were black burn marks on his collarbone.
Mo Rigen said, "Lu Xu."
Lu Xu looked at Mo Rigen blankly and said, "Ah?!"
"Lu Xu."
"Yes!"
"Lu Xu."
"Ah?"
Mo Rigen laughed. He wanted to ask, but was afraid of provoking him, so he decided to wait for him to finish eating first. Lu Xu waited for a while. Seeing that Mo Rigen did not ask any more questions, he buried his head in the food again and started eating.
Mo Rigen muttered to himself for a moment, then took out a small knife. He took a piece of skin and carved a circle of flowers on it. Lu Xu looked at it as he ate. His chewing gradually slowed down.
"Deer," Lu Xu said.
Mo Rigen's hands trembled slightly.
"You've seen it before?" Mo Rigen asked tentatively.
He opened his hand, and there was a leather condor in his palm. It was a stag with horns like a dense forest tree.
Lu Xu's gaze moved from the leather condor to Mo Rigen's eyes. He nodded lightly.
"Where?" Mo Rigen's voice did not sound like his own.
Lu Xu looked at him blankly. He shook his head and lowered his head to eat the mutton again. At that moment, Mo Rigen seemed to collapse. He did not know what to say for a moment.
"Where did you come from?" Mo Rigen muttered to himself. "Northwest … What did you see?"
He stood up and walked to the door of the bathhouse. He just wanted to feel the cold wind and clear his head.
There must have been an emergency in Northwest Liangzhou. The city guard sent this scout to ask for help. He must have encountered something on the way and was extremely frightened. He even lost his soul and fled all the way here. What did he see? Was it the White Deer he had been looking for all this time?
Mo Rigen stood in the courtyard, wrapped in a cotton robe and a pair of wooden clogs. After eating, Lu Xu wiped his hands on the cotton robe, picked up the letter, and quietly walked out of the courtyard. He passed behind Mo Rigen and walked barefoot to the courtyard wall. The cold wind was biting cold. Mo Rigen frowned deeply. He stood in the wind with his hands behind his back, thinking. He did not hear Lu Xu's footsteps.
Lu Xu quickly ran to the corner of the courtyard and flashed out from the back door.
I must send a letter to Chang 'an as soon as possible and inform Li Jinglong. Then let this young man lead the way. It doesn't matter if he goes outside the Great Wall or northwest Jade Gate Pass … Mo Rigen turned around to look for Lu Xu's letter. Suddenly, he saw that the hall was empty.
"Where is he?!" Mo Rigen shouted angrily. He looked around and saw a line of footprints leading to the back door. He immediately took off his wooden clogs and ran out.