They continued to head north.
Prince Long Qing walked alone in the wind and snow. The Flower Addict, Lu Chenjia, followed silently from afar. The snow horse kicked its hooves soundlessly to get rid of its fatigue. They walked from dawn to dusk and then from dusk to dawn. They did not know how many days they had walked and how far they had walked. The dark night in the north of the Wilderness was still so far away.
Along the way, Prince Long Qing chewed on snow when he was thirsty and swallowed a few mouthfuls of saliva when he was hungry. The more he walked, the weaker he became. It was as if he could collapse at any time. Lu Chenjia had been waiting silently for that moment to come. However, although he fell many times, he climbed up with difficulty every time. She did not know how such a weak body could contain so much vitality.
Lu Chenjia looked at the figure dozens of feet away in silence. She maintained a distance and did not move forward because she knew that he did not like it. She chewed on snow when she was thirsty and took out rations from the horse's back when she was hungry. Looking at the figure that was weak because of hunger, it took a lot of effort to suppress the urge to give him food.
They walked from the beginning of the snow until it stopped and from the beginning of the wind until it stopped. The two of them and the horse were still in the cold black and white Wilderness. They could faintly see the majestic Tianqi Mountains in the distance. It seemed as if they could not walk out of this hopeless world no matter what.
One day, Prince Long Qing suddenly stopped and looked at the unreachable night in the north. His fingers that were as thin as a withered tree trembled slightly and then relaxed. A branch that he had picked up a few days ago fell from his palm and hit his foot. He looked down at his greyish-white toenail and realized that it was not bleeding.
He raised his head and continued to squint at the night in the north. Then, he slowly turned around and looked at Lu Chenjia who was dozens of feet away. In a hoarse voice, he said, "I'm hungry."
Lu Chenjia's eyes became wet and she almost cried. She forced herself to calm down and took out the rations with trembling hands. She softened them with the warm water that she had secretly prepared every day and then brought them to him.
He did not say anything else. He looked at her no longer tender and rough palm and hurriedly swallowed the rations. Then, he rubbed his throat in satisfaction and continued on his way.
But this time, he did not go north. There was no sign, no reason, and no words. He thought that he had been abandoned by Haotian and no longer tried to go to the embrace of the night. Instead, he turned around and went south to the Central Plains.
Lu Chenjia stared blankly at his back. Her joyful mood gradually turned cold. She was sure that Long Qing had not decided to regain his vitality. Instead, he had truly lost all hope, including the darkness. Yes, he was still alive. But was this living Long Qing?
She led the Snow Horse and followed behind Long Qing. She peeked at his face and whispered, "Actually, it's good to go back to Capital Cheng. When we were on Peach Mountain, you often said that you missed the garden of the Imperial Palace. Shall I go with you?"
Prince Long Qing glanced at her indifferently. It was no longer the arrogant indifference that came from the bone marrow, but the indifference of a passerby who had given up on himself. He mocked, "How could you be so stupid? Why would he go back to Capital Cheng? Assassinated by those ministers loyal to Chong Ming? Or was he ordered to die by Imperial Father for the sake of the bigger picture? "
Lu Chenjia was stunned and immediately came to her senses. She understood that if Long Qing returned to the capital of the Yan Kingdom, he might not even be able to see the next morning. That was because he was not the West-Hill Divine Son who had the support of the Divine Hall. He was just an ordinary person who was involved in a dangerous fight for the throne. How could he be lucky?
"The Hierarch has always admired you. Besides, there's also the Divine Priest of Judgement …" she said carefully.
"Idiot, do you really think that Peach Mountain is a place of light and holiness?"
Prince Long Qing looked at her and said mockingly, "What appreciation and value are all based on your strength. Ye Hongyu won't lie, and she doesn't have to. I've already been crippled by Ning Que's arrow. What use do I have to the Divine Hall? Do you really think that just because I'm good-looking, I can really help the Temple attract believers? Those old guys on Peach Mountain have no respect for anyone but Haotian. How could they have sympathy like you? "
These words were harsh and vicious, but there was no way to refute them. Lu Chenjia lowered her head and muttered, "Can we go to Yuelun if we really can't do it? You know that I've prepared a garden in Jingshan that I've been waiting for you to see. "
She knew that she had said something wrong the moment she mentioned Yuelun.
As expected, Prince Long Qing's expression grew colder and colder. His eyes even revealed a look of disgust. He stared at her and said resentfully, "I'm not going north because you, an annoying woman, are always following me. How could Yama see my sincerity? I don't want to die, so I can only go south. It's that simple. But my not wanting to die has nothing to do with you. So if you're willing to give me food, you'd better shut up. "
Lu Chenjia slowly clenched her fists and pursed her lips. She looked at the shadows cast by the setting sun in the Wilderness. She looked at her own shadow and the shadow of the man opposite her. She realized that no matter how hard she tried, they could not overlap.
All the way to the south, and further south.
The wind and snow had stopped and there were signs of beasts in the wilderness. The longer they walked south, the closer they were to the prosperous and real human world. However, the shadows of two people and a horse on the surface of the Wilderness maintained a sad distance.
…
…
The Yan Kingdom was located at the northern end of the mainland. It shared a border with the grassland's Left King's Palace. There was also the terrifying Tang Empire beside it. Therefore, it was difficult to say that the country was strong and the people were not rich. It was the end of the year and the cold of winter was thick. Homeless beggars could be seen everywhere in Capital Cheng.
A skinny beggar might arouse the sympathy of the people, but a hundred skinny beggars would only arouse the disgust and fear of the people. The restaurant owners on the streets and alleys of Capital Cheng could only see beggars. Naturally, they would not be able to enjoy giving out porridge like their counterparts in Chang 'an. Whether the beggars could fill their stomachs depended on their own ability.
A beggar as thin as a ghost was walking aimlessly in the streets of Chengjing with a broken bowl in his hand. He didn't attract anyone's attention. The familiar street scene didn't attract his attention either. His attention was completely attracted by the aroma coming from the restaurant of the hotel. It was a pity that he didn't have a unique knack for begging like those old beggars. His coat still smelled sour in the cold wind, and his dirty hair was more tangled than the rope at the city gate. It was impossible for him to enter those places.
He was chased out by three restaurants in a row. The waiter of the last restaurant even hit him hard on the thigh with a stick and then kicked him to the middle of the street.
The skinny beggar's face was covered with dirt and it was impossible to tell his age. He stood in the middle of the street with his hands on his waist and a bowl that was even more broken. He cursed at the restaurant in the middle of the street. His foul language was even more stinky than the dirt on his body. He did not run away until the waiter rushed out with a stick. His original identity and demeanor were nowhere to be seen.
At the other end of the street, the Flower Addict, Lu Chenjia, was leading the Snow Horse. She looked at the scene in a daze. Her right hand gripped the reins tightly and her eyes were slightly wet. However, she did not cry because she still had hope.
On the way back from the Wilderness, she had already washed up and changed into clean clothes. However, because of her unhealthy complexion and thin figure, she looked particularly haggard, which made her look even more pitiful. If it weren't for the Snow Horse beside her, which was obviously a precious animal, who knew how many city guards or people in Jianghu would have bad intentions towards her.
These few days, she had seen Long Qing return to the capital of the Yan Kingdom incognito. She had seen him wandering the streets and the lowest level of the secular world. She had seen him being beaten by the waiters of the restaurants with sticks. She had seen him struggle to survive. There were many times when she could not help but want to go up to him, but she did not dare to. This was because on the way back from the Wilderness, Long Qing no longer asked her for food when he saw people. Every time she wanted to help, he would scream crazily. He would even pick up anything that he could touch and throw it at her, whether it was rocks or mud, except for the broken bowl that he used to beg for food.
Lu Chenjia was very sad. She was sad because of Long Qing's current situation. She was sad because Long Qing had driven her away. More importantly, she realized that Long Qing could only throw rocks and mud at her like a naughty child or a real beggar. Every time she thought that Long Qing would also realize this reality, he was sensitive and proud. How painful and uncomfortable would he be?
Prince Long Qing, who had become a beggar, finally managed to get half a frozen steamed bun from a woman's basket in the evening. He proudly stuffed the steamed bun into his arms. He thought of the half urn of cabbage and clapper soup that he hid in his residence. He hummed a song that he had heard from his classmates in the Revelation Institute in West-Hill and left the city in his old shoes.
There was a Taoist temple outside the city. Prince Long Qing passed by the Taoist temple but did not enter. He did not even look at the Taoist temple. In the past, if the Taoist temple knew that Prince Long Qing was outside, it would have cleared out the entire temple and paved the way to welcome him as if he was an ancestor. However, a few days ago, when the little Taoist learned that he wanted to stay in the Taoist temple, his eyes were filled with disdain.
That was why Long Qing did not stay in the Taoist temple. He stayed in an abandoned Buddhist temple outside the city.
Now, Long Qing was very dirty. His hair was unkempt and his face dirty. His hair was knotted and could not be untied. Fortunately, it was winter, so the wounds on his chest and abdomen did not rot and there were no mosquitoes following him. Otherwise, the beggars in the temple would not have allowed him to stay there.
When he returned to the temple, Long Qing realized that he was not too hungry. At least, he was not as hungry as when he begged for food from the woman in the Wilderness. Thus, he decided to save the half steamed bun for tomorrow. He covered his slightly bulging abdomen with satisfaction and imagined the taste of the steamed bun softened in cabbage and clapper soup the next morning. He fell asleep soundly.
Lu Chenjia led the Snow Horse and looked at the fire in the abandoned temple silently in the night. She knew that there were many beggars inside and that they were probably bragging about their rewards today. After a moment of silence, she turned around and left. However, she did not go far. She rested in a forest not far from the abandoned temple for the night.
She thought that Long Qing did not realize that she was still following him. After all, she was a powerhouse in the upper Seethrough state. Now, Long Qing was just an ordinary person. However, she had forgotten one thing. As a couple who had known each other for many years, she could clearly sense where Long Qing was even without using her Psyche Power. This had already become a habit or intuition.
However, the fortunate or unfortunate thing was that Long Qing also had this intuition.
…
…
(See you all tomorrow.) (To be continued.) If you like this work, please come to Qidian.Com to vote for me. Your support is my greatest motivation.)
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