Over the past decade, Cheng Hao's appearance had already aged. There were some white hairs in his hair, and his straight figure was slightly hunchbacked. He seemed like he was about to enter his twilight years.
On the other hand, the twenty-six-year-old Cai 'er had a graceful figure, like a fully bloomed rose. She was so beautiful that water could be squeezed out of her.
However, in Cheng Hao's eyes, this kind of breathtaking beauty was no different from an ordinary woman.
Their relationship did not seem like that of husband and wife at all. Instead, they seemed more like partners working together.
Cai 'er washed and cooked every day, keeping the store neat and tidy. In his free time, Cheng Hao would teach her some of the ways of painting and painting. The two of them got along rather well, like a teacher and a friend, but … they did not seem like husband and wife!
Over the past decade, Cheng Hao's painting had reached a level where his skill was close to the way. He did not have a lot of paintings hanging on the wall, but the people in every single painting were so life-like that they were almost solid. It was as if they could emerge from the painting as long as they were injected with some life, becoming the most realistic people.
The more it was like this, the more Cheng Hao firmly believed that he was not an ordinary person. This world was not a world that he truly should have stayed in.
He should have been an immortal who soared through the nine heavens!
Whenever Cheng Hao talked about the immortals in his dreams, Cai 'er would listen quietly. However, there would always be a faint sense of loss in her envious eyes. She knew that as long as Cheng Hao's obsession with being an immortal remained, the two of them would never become a true husband and wife.
They were like two parallel lines. They did not seem too far apart, but they were so close that they would never cross.
.....
Time passed quickly, and in the blink of an eye, another decade or so had passed.
In the past decade or so, Cai 'er's parents passed away one after another. After busying himself with sending Cai' er's parents off, Cheng Hao became older and older.
After all, he was almost sixty years old, and his sideburns were already covered with white hair. Although his body was still strong, his back was hunched even deeper, and the wrinkles on his forehead were already densely packed. Even his eyes were a little turbid.
But even so, Cheng Hao still had a passion for painting and calligraphy. Perhaps it was because he had experienced many life and death situations in a row. In the past ten years, the immortal aura in Cheng Hao's paintings had decreased a lot, but there was an additional aura of life and death.
The fusion of life and death, the feeling of walking into the cycle of reincarnation with a single glance was simply bizarre.
"Just the Immortal Qi in the painting is not enough for me to become an Immortal. The biggest difference between Immortals and mortals is the barrier between life and death. Immortals can live forever, but mortals have limited lifespans. If I can break through the barrier between life and death, can I become an Immortal?"
After experiencing the deaths of the people around him, Cheng Hao's understanding of life and death became deeper and deeper. His desire to become an immortal also became more and more firm!
He wanted to become an immortal, he wanted to live forever, he wanted to break through this world that seemed fake to him, he wanted to find his true self!
.....
Time was a power that could not be resisted. It was like a surging flood, drowning out everything in the world.
Twenty years of time had unknowingly passed by in the blink of an eye.
On this day, the eighty year old Cheng Hao seemed to have already reached the end of his life. Calmly lying on his bed, he looked at Cai 'er who was tightly holding his hands at his side. Her hair had long since turned white.
"I'm going to leave. I've held you back in this life!"
Cai 'er was calm as she gently stroked Cheng Hao's shriveled hand. There was no resentment on her face.
"Everything was my own choice. Since I've chosen you, I don't regret it!" Using a wet towel to wipe Cheng Hao's forehead, Cai 'er continued, "Our fate as husband and wife is about to come to an end. Uncle, can you tell Cai' er who the person in your heart is all these years?"
"Haha … I've already said this. I don't have anyone in my heart. I just feel that everything in front of me, this entire world, isn't real. It's fake. It's like a dream, and all of you are characters in a dream!"
"As a result, you treat all of us as characters in a dream. You don't want to leave behind karma because of a dream, right?"
"Cough cough …" Cheng Hao coughed. His face was filled with pity, "Yeah, I always feel like I don't belong here. The world of immortals is where I should go … cough cough …"
"It's just a pity … my comprehension of life and death is still incomplete … I've experienced life, but I haven't truly experienced death. Without truly walking the line between life and death, I won't be able to truly see through life and death … It's just a pity that I'm only half a step away, just half a step away, and I'll be able to break through this illusion, break through this dream-like world, and find my true self … It's just that I can take this half a step away, but I can't come back …"
That day, it snowed heavily. Cheng Hao had never seen snow like this in all the decades he had lived here.
The snow had basically covered the entire capital in a thick layer of white. The roofs and trees were covered in snow that was as thick as a five-year-old child's height.
Many houses collapsed from the sudden snow, and even some beggars and vagabonds froze to death. Almost every morning, people would discover one or two frozen corpses in a corner of the capital.
In this snowstorm that was rarely seen in a hundred years, Cheng Hao carried a faint unwillingness as he stood by Cai 'er's side, slowly closing his eyes. His departure could be considered peaceful.
Cai 'er's expression did not change too much. After helping Cheng Hao tidy up his appearance, she walked to the dressing table and carefully dressed herself. Afterwards, she found every single painting that Cheng Hao had given her over the years.
After finishing this, Cai 'er went to the window and took out the marriage contract between her and Cheng Hao from her dressing case. Afterwards, she carried the scrolls and slowly went to the bed, calmly lying down by Cheng Hao's side.
"What I want to do the most in my life is to be like today, to be able to lie beside you peacefully. This feeling really … is so warm!"
As she muttered to herself, Cai 'er unfurled the paintings and spread them over her and Cheng Hao's bodies. She placed the marriage contract between the two of them before gently touching her sleeve. She pulled out a sharp dagger that shone with cold, silver light.
Spurt!
The dagger was shockingly sharp. It stabbed into her chest without any obstruction at all. A smear of blood spread out like a withered rose, poignant yet resplendent.
"Husband, if you've already become an immortal, please take Cai 'er with you … If you've become a ghost, Cai' er will accompany you on the road to the netherworld … We won't be alone …"
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