Changgeng took the decocted medicine and entered his adoptive father's room.
Shen Shiliu's room was only lit by a small oil lamp. The light was as big as a bean and looked like a firefly.
He was sitting by the window. Most of his face was under the shadow of the lamp. Only a few clues could be seen. He was probably going to sleep. Shen Shiliu did not wear a hat. His hair was disheveled, and there was a small cinnabar mole at the corner of his eyes and under his earlobes. They looked like they were pricked by needles. The only light in the room was used by him to illuminate the small mole. It was almost blinding.
Looking at a person under the light was even more colorful than usual.
Everyone loved beauty. Even if he was used to it, Changgeng's breath still stagnated. He blinked quickly, as if he wanted to blink the dazzling cinnabar mole out of his eyelids. He cleared his throat and raised his voice, "Shi Liu, take your medicine."
The teenager's voice was changing, so it was a bit difficult to talk to this half-deaf person. Fortunately, Shen Shiliu heard him this time. The sound that made people urinate stopped abruptly.
Shen Shiliu squinted his eyes and saw Changgeng standing at the door, "Who are you calling so impudent?"
In fact, he was only seven or eight years older than Chang Geng. He hadn't married yet, so he probably knew that he couldn't afford a wife and was prepared to be alone. It wasn't easy for him to meet such a cheap son who didn't need him to support him, so he couldn't wait to get close to him. Whenever he had nothing to do, he would always emphasize his identity as his "father".
Changgeng ignored him and carefully put the medicine bowl in front of him, "Drink it while it's hot. It's late. Quickly lie down after drinking it."
Shen Shiliu put the xun aside and took the medicine bowl, "Ingrate, isn't it good to be my son? I treated you so well for nothing. "
He drank the medicine without any difficulty. Obviously, he was used to it. He drank it in one gulp and took two mouthfuls of the mouthwash that Changgeng handed to him. He waved his hand and said, "There's a market at Changyang Pass today. I brought you something fun. Come here."
After that, Shen Shiliu bent down and fumbled around the desk. He could not see clearly and the tip of his nose almost rubbed against the desk. Changgeng had no choice but to say, "What are you looking for? Let me do it. "
Then, he could not help but complain, "I'm already so old. Why do you always give me a bunch of childish things?"
"If you have the time, why don't you make less trouble and let me have more time to learn more useful things?" Changgeng thought about the last sentence in his heart. When he was about to say it, he felt that it was a little hurtful, so he did not say it out loud.
As a playboy, Shen Shiliu not only wasted his time but also dragged Changgeng along. He either asked him to go to the market or dragged him to ride a horse. Once, he even picked up a "puppy" from somewhere and gave it to him to raise. At that time, Mr. Shen scared him so much that his face turned green. It turned out that this blind man could not tell the difference between a wolf and a dog and brought back a wolf puppy.
Xu Baihu was not at home all year round and was a dull person. Although he was very good to Changgeng, he did not often communicate with his stepson. Changgeng seemed to have spent the two important years when he was twelve or thirteen years old with Shen Shiliu, his unreliable foster father.
From a little kid to a handsome young man, how much willpower did he have to ensure that he would not be led astray by Shen Shiliu?
Changgeng simply could not bear to look back.
He was not a playful person by nature. He had his own plans for everything and was very strict in carrying them out. He did not like to be disturbed by others and was often annoyed by Shen Shiliu.
But his annoyance usually did not last long because Shen Shiliu did not only take advantage of him verbally but also really treated him like his own son.
One year, Changgeng had a serious illness. As usual, Xu Baihu was not at home. The doctor said that it was very dangerous. It was his little foster father who carried him home and watched over him day and night for three days.
Every time Shi Liu went out, no matter how far or near, and no matter what he was going to do, he would always bring some toys and snacks for Changgeng. Changgeng did not like toys, but he could not help but love Shi Liu's heart that was always thinking about him.
In short, when Changgeng saw Shi Liu every day, he would be abnormally angry. But when he did not see him, he would always be worried.
Changgeng sometimes thought that although Shen Shiliu was not good at anything and was not good at literature or martial arts, there might be someone who would fall for his good looks in the future.
His little foster father would also marry and have children in the future. Then, when he had a biological child, would he still miss him?
Thinking of this, Changgeng's heart was unspeakably blocked. He found a square box on Shi Liu's desk. He temporarily shook off his wild thoughts and gave it to Shen Shiliu without interest. "This?"
Shen Shiliu: "It's for you. Open it and take a look."
Maybe it was a slingshot or a bag of cheese. Anyway, it was not something serious. Changgeng opened it without any expectations and casually scolded, "Even if you are rich, you should save some money. Besides, I …"
The next moment, he saw clearly what was in the box. He immediately closed his mouth and his eyes suddenly widened.
There was actually an iron wrist buckle in the box!
The so-called "iron wrist buckle" was actually a part of the military light armor. It only wrapped around the wrist and was very convenient. Therefore, it was often taken off and used separately. The iron wrist buckle was about four inches wide and could hide three to four small knives inside. The knives were made with special craftsmanship and were as thin as a cicada's wing. They were also called "sleeve silk".
It was said that the best sleeve silk could be split into two the moment it was shot out by the spring in the iron wrist buckle.
Changgeng was pleasantly surprised. "This … where did you get it?"
Shen Shiliu: "Shh … Don't let Shen Yi hear it. This is not a joke. If he sees it, he will nag again. Do you know how to use it?"
Mr. Shen was watering the flowers in the courtyard. He was not deaf, so he could hear everything clearly. He really couldn't do anything about this half-deaf person who judged others by his own standards.
Changgeng had learned how to dismantle steel armor from Shen Yi and skillfully put on the iron wrist buckle. Only then did he realize the uniqueness of this item.
It was not easy to make sleeve silk and it was very rare among the people. Most of the iron wrist buckles on the market were old ones from the military. Of course, the size was also the size of an adult man. The one Shen Shiliu brought back was obviously thinner and was just right for a young man.
Changgeng was stunned. Shen Shiliu knew what he wanted to ask and said slowly, "I heard from the seller that this is a defective product. There is nothing wrong with it except that the size is a little small. No one asked about it, so he sold it to me at a low price. I don't have any use for it. You can play with it. Just be careful and don't hurt anyone."
Changgeng's face lit up with joy. "Thank you …"
Shen Shiliu: "Thank who?"
Changgeng happily called out, "Godfather!"
"Whoever has milk is your mother, you bastard." Shen Shiliu laughed. He put his arm around Changgeng's shoulder and sent him out. "Go home quickly. Don't wander around outside in the middle of the night during the Ghost Month."
Changgeng heard this and then remembered that it was the 15th of July.
He walked back to his house through the side gate. The moment he stepped into the house, he suddenly felt that the xun that Shen Shiliu played sounded a little familiar. Although it was out of tune, when he thought about it carefully, he vaguely remembered the tune of "Sending Off to the West".
"Is it appropriate for the occasion?" Changgeng thought silently.
Shen Shiliu sent Changgeng off and looked down for a long time before he could barely see the outline of the threshold. He carefully stepped over and closed the door.
Mr. Shen, who was waiting in the yard, held his elbow expressionlessly and led him into the house.
Mr. Shen: "The best Xuan Tie is an iron wrist cuff. The three sleeves of silk inside were made by Master Lin in autumn. Since the master died, it has become a limited edition … defective product."
Shi Liu did not answer.
Mr. Shen: "Okay, don't pretend to be deaf and dumb. Do you really want to raise him as your son?"
"Of course. I like this child. Benevolence and righteousness," Shi Liu finally said. "That's probably what that person means. If I can really adopt this child in the future, those people will be relieved. His life will also be much better. Isn't that the best of both worlds?"
Mr. Shen was silent for a while and said in a low voice, "First of all, you have to make him not hate you. Aren't you worried at all?"
Shen Shiliu smiled, lifted the hem of his robe, and pushed the door open to enter the house.
He said shamelessly, "There are many people who hate me."
That night, the river was lit and the soul returned to its hometown.
Before five o 'clock, Changgeng woke up with a hot body. There was a thin layer of sweat on his back and his pants were wet.
Every teenager would experience such a panic when they were about to grow up, even if there was someone to guide them in advance.
However, Chang Geng neither panicked nor was he at a loss. His reaction was indifferent. He just sat on the bed blankly for a moment before he got up and casually tidied himself up. There was a hint of imperceptible disgust on his face. He went out and fetched a bucket of cold water. He scrubbed his newly formed body from head to toe. He took off the neatly folded clothes beside the pillow and changed them. He drank the tea from the night before and began his daily homework as usual.
Changgeng did not know what other people were like.
But in fact, he did not have any erotic dreams. He dreamed of a heavy snowfall outside the Great Wall that could freeze people into their coffins.
The wind that day was like white hair, ruthlessly surging. Before the blood in the wound could flow out, it had already condensed into ice dregs. The howls of the wolves came from afar, but his broken sense of smell could not smell the blood. When he inhaled, he would choke on a mouthful of salty, bone-chilling air. Changgeng's limbs were stiff and his lungs were burning. He thought that he would die in the snow without a corpse.
But he did not.
When Changgeng woke up again, he found that he was wrapped in a cloak and carried away.
He remembered that the person's clothes were white and there was a bitter smell of medicine in his arms. Seeing that he was awake, the person did not ask anything. He just took out a wine pot and gave him a mouthful of wine.
Changgeng did not know what kind of wine it was. After that, he never tasted it again. He only remembered that the burning knife outside the Great Wall was not as strong as that. It was like a ball of fire rolling down his throat and igniting all the blood in his body.
That person was Shi Liu.
The dream was too clear. In the dream, Shi Liu's hands seemed to be still attached to his body. Changgeng was still puzzled. Wasn't that person a sickly person? In such a terrible world of ice and snow, how could there be such a steady and strong pair of hands?
Changgeng looked down at the iron bracelet on his wrist. He did not know what material it was made of. It was attached to his body for a night, but it did not warm up at all. Borrowing the coolness of the cold iron, Chang Geng quietly waited for his restless heart and blood to calm down. He chuckled and threw away the absurd idea of 'dreaming of his adoptive father'. Then, as usual, he lit the lamp and started reading.
Suddenly, a rumbling sound came from afar. The ground and the hut shook. Changgeng was stunned. Only then did he remember that the "giant kite" that was patrolling the north should be back soon.
The "giant kite" was a large ship more than five thousand feet long. It had two wings on its back and was made up of thousands of "fire wings". When the giant kite took off, all the "fire wings" would spit out white steam together. It was like a mountain, like a tide, like a lake, like a dream. Inside each "fire wing" was a bowl of Purple Flowing Gold. It shone with a faint purple-red light in the vast expanse of smoke. At first glance, it looked like a myriad of lanterns.
Since the Bei Man paid tribute 14 years ago, more than ten giant kites would set off from the major towns at the border to patrol the north every year on the fifteenth day of the first lunar month. Each kite would take a fixed route and deter the barbarians from thousands of miles away. Even the slightest movement could be detected clearly.
In addition to deterrence and patrol, the giant kites were also responsible for escorting the annual tributes of the Bei Man tribes back to the imperial court. The main thing was the "Purple Flowing Gold".
A giant kite was loaded with nearly a million pounds of Purple Flowing Gold. Even the sound of its footsteps when it returned was heavier than when it left. One could hear the loud sound of its flaming wings blowing from twenty to thirty miles away.
The giant kites that patrolled the north set off in the first lunar month and left for half a year. They only returned during the Flowing Fire season.
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