Chapter 23 Chapter 8 Impermanence

Because the improvement in marksmanship is not obvious, and the effect of practicing the spear alone is not very good, I often find ways to drag Xiao Huan to practice the spear with me, and he never refuses. The weather is getting colder every day. After getting up and having dinner this morning, the sky was gloomy as if it was going to rain. Before reporting to Xiao Huan, everyone dragged him into the stone room. Hastily notified that he entered the water pavilion, and was a little surprised not to see Xiao Huan at the table. Usually at this time, he would have already been sitting at the desk reviewing the documents, and there would be a bowl of medicine that he hadn't had time to take yet.

Just as I was thinking about it, the cotton curtain in the inner room was lifted, and Xiao Huan came out wearing his coat. He seemed to have not washed himself, and his black hair was scattered on his shoulders in a mess. He smiled at me: "Sorry, I got up late, please wait a moment." I bowed my head and cupped my fists: "Master, please go ahead." He nodded and smiled, and retreated to the inner room. After a while, he washed and came out neatly. He tied up his hair with a green jade hairpin. For the convenience of movement, he still only wore a green cloth singlet. I waited for him to open the tunnel entrance and followed him in.When we arrived at the stone room, we started practicing without saying a word.

"Well", "Sleepy", "Tongren", "Daguo", "Fund", "Wuwang". Gunshots rang out intensively, and he either blocked or dodged the six bullets without exception. However, it wasn't over, just as the last bullet was blocked by his Wang Feng, the first bullet that missed hit the wall and bounced back quickly, aiming at his back. Going to shoot!Before I had time to be happy, he lightly returned his left hand, and had already firmly clamped the steel ball between his fingers. He threw the steel ball between his fingers to the ground, coughed lightly and smiled: "You did a good job today."

"Just a little bit!" I shook my fist in regret, and immediately took out the bullet bag to refill the bullet, "Let's do it again." He smiled and continued to practice with me. I don’t know if it’s because I saw the hope of winning. I’m very energetic today, and my condition is much better than usual, but the result is no different from usual. . After another round of bullets was fired, I wiped off the hot sweat that I didn't know when, and after loading the bullets, I was ready to start shooting again. Unlike usual, who would always accompany me to practice, this time Xiao Huan raised his hand to disperse the gunpowder smoke from his face, and coughed a few times: "That's it for today, I still have some things to do."

I just figured out a way of marksmanship, and hurriedly said: "Master, let's do it again, the last time." He frowned and smiled: "Tomorrow." Turning around while talking, he was about to walk towards the door. His left foot is stepping on the position I expected in the first step. If he shoots at this time, this way of marksmanship can achieve almost perfect results in this stone room. The opportunity was fleeting, and his figure was about to pass by from that direction. I shouted: "Xiao Huan!" At the same time, I raised the musket to my eyes. He turned his head back in surprise, I pulled the trigger, and the first bullet shot out in the expected direction.

Wang Feng's cold light flashed, and the deflected steel ball flew into the air. The second shot, the third shot, the bullet grazed his cheek, the green jade hairpin on top of his head snapped with a "jingle", and the black hair spread out in an instant. The fourth shot, the fifth shot, the buzzing sound of Wang Feng bouncing off the steel balls one after another was muddy and piercing. I ducked to the side on my knees, and at that moment the first and fourth deflected bullets were falling rapidly in one direction. The sixth round, the bullet rushed out of the gun at the last moment, and hit the first bullet accurately in the air, and the two bullets hit the fourth bullet that just fell with momentum.

The three steel balls bounced in the air like a firework, the sixth and first bullets bounced in all directions, but the fourth bullet shot straight from bottom to top. There is a place where my bullets cannot reach, and it is an opening for him to defend. In the light of the calcium carbide fire, his Wang Feng quickly fell back, and the steel ball shot on Wang Feng, making a sharp buzzing sound. At the same time as the sparks flashed, he backed up a few steps, hit his back against the stone wall, and his black hair fell loose, covering him. s face. I was stunned, and took a step forward, the call in my mouth was about to come out.

His shoulders moved and hesitantly coughed. He leaned on the wall and stood up. He raised his head and smiled, looking at the musket in my hand: "You did a good job. Today is really...not good, tomorrow Practice again, okay?" I nodded and put the musket away. He smiled, and put Wang Feng back into his sleeves, but he didn't try to brush the loose hair on his shoulders, but pressed his hands on his chest. He walked ahead, opened the door and walked out of the stone room, I blew out the oil lamp, closed the door and followed. The passage quickly came to an end, standing in the water pavilion and closing the door of the secret passage, he glanced at the empty room: "Call Hong Qing over after you go out."

I clenched my fists, bowed my head and said, "Yes." After exiting, I immediately told the disciples outside the door to call Li Mingshang over in a low voice, and then walked around to the window on the side of the water pavilion. In the early morning, in order to clear the turbid air, the window was half-opened. Looking through the window, I could just see the silhouette of Xiao Huanjing standing by the desk. He lowered his head slightly, and didn't notice that I hadn't gone far. It took a long time before he moved. He pressed the desk with his right hand and lowered his head to cough up a mouthful of blood.

He coughed lowly, took a deep breath and looked up at the small cabinet next to the desk where the medicine was placed. As if he had visually measured the distance to the small cabinet, he finally let go of the hand that had been pressing on his chest, pressed the desk with both hands, and wanted to move to the small cabinet. He moved a step with difficulty, the desk was shaken by the force, and the pen washer placed by the table was unsteady, and fell to pieces with a "bang" along the corner of the table, and the sewage splashed half of his body. The pen holder then tilted over, and he finally fell heavily to the ground, and the pen holder hit him.

A muffled cough sounded uncontrollably, and he covered his mouth with his hands, bright red blood oozing from between his fingers. I quickly turned to the front, pushed open the door and ran over to hug his shoulder. Seeing it was me, his eyes flickered, he covered his mouth and coughed, and said with difficulty: "It's nothing..." I didn't speak, I just hugged his body and tried my best to let him lean on my shoulders. He seemed to have lost all strength, and the blood was dripping on his green robe, mixing with the sewage. I wanted to kiss him, but I forcibly restrained myself, and just said: "The disciple has sent someone to call Li Mingshang, please master to adjust your inner breath first." He coughed intermittently, and the blood was still overflowing from his lips, sliding across his pale jaw. It was my fault. I could tell that he was trying to hold on today, but still wounded him with bullets. What if he died like this?Holding his cold body, I suddenly had this idea... If this is the case, then I hurt him again, so I have to pay him myself so that I can go with him, right?No need to stay alone anymore. The kiss was unbearable, but the tears kept pouring out, falling to the ground drop by drop, mixed with his blood and water stains, and disappeared without a trace. Soon there were footsteps outside the water pavilion. It was Li Mingshang and Hong Qing. Seeing the situation in the room, Hong Qing immediately stepped forward and took Xiao Huan's body from my hand. Li Mingshang quickly checked the injury, and suddenly became angry: "I said not to use my true energy easily, you bastard! Did you ignore it? How many lives do you think I have? Because of you, sir, I dare not go out and mess around again." Go, guarding your bad life, worrying every day! Like your bastard, if you don’t want this life, you will die! See if I can stop you!" As he spoke, he tapped the acupoints and issued the needles, and his hands were not slow at all: "You say I am mad at the judge? I think you are going to mad me to death! I have been practicing medicine for 30 years, and I have never had a dead person on my hands. Are you willing to die at my hands? Are you going to piss off your husband and me?" I wiped away the tears on my face, took a light breath and said, "Mr. Li, instead of talking so much, it's better to save people quickly." After opening his mouth, Li Mingshang finally found me and glanced at me: "This bastard has been teaching you how to practice guns, right?" I nodded: "Yes." Xiao Huan, who kept his eyes closed and coughed in a low voice, opened his eyes and interjected softly: "It's me..." "I stunned him with the gun," I interrupted him. "Little girl," Li Mingshang narrowed his eyes, and said in an unprecedentedly severe tone, "It's not that you don't know the condition of this kid's body at all. Your shot today has already hurt your heart. If it is more powerful, it will be considered a serious injury." I, too, can only collect this kid's body!" He looked at me: "I don't care what kind of awkwardness you have had, let alone a husband and wife, even if you are a stranger who has never met, you don't have to make such a killer!" I gritted my teeth: "I was also unintentional. It is not completely impossible to make mistakes in practice." Li Mingshang narrowed his eyes slightly, and said sharply: "This kid's martial arts is not only a finger higher than yours. Even if you take a musket, you want to hurt him, unless it's a trick when he doesn't have a backup! Tell me, it's so cold today Is it because this kid can't hold on anymore, and you still shoot him?" I had nothing to say about this, and reluctantly raised the corner of my lower lip: "Indeed." Hearing this, Li Mingshang stopped pricking the needle, and slapped his hand on the wooden table beside him with a cold face. He made a deep handprint on the wooden table: "Everyone does not know the depth of things! It seems I don't teach you a lesson today! You don't know where you are wrong." He seemed to think that I hurt Xiao Huan on purpose, and I couldn't explain it. I glanced at Xiao Huan on the bed, took out a musket, loaded it, and aimed it at his chest: "Mr. Li, don't bother, I hurt Master. It’s disrespectful, I’ll just come back.” Li Mingzhang didn't expect that I would do this, so he froze for a moment. My sleeves suddenly tightened, Xiao Huan didn't care about the silver needles that were still stuck on the big hole, he braced himself up, grabbed my sleeves and cried out anxiously: "Cangcang!" Li Mingshang stomped to the side of the bed and supported Xiao Huan, not daring to touch the silver needle on the acupuncture point for a while, and said angrily, "Bastard boy! How dare you move around! Are you really dying?" "Put the gun down..." Xiao Huan suppressed his cough, sweat dripped from the corner of his forehead, "Put it down quickly..." Li Mingshang was angry and anxious: "Okay, you protect her! I'm an old elm lump, and I'm mixing with you, the second most inexplicable little couple in the world, to quarrel! Just quarrel, each of you suppressing yourselves!" If you are dead, I think you will be comfortable!" I looked at Xiao Huan's hand holding my sleeve, and forced a smile: "I'm just putting on a show...I don't want to die yet..." But he still looked at me steadfastly, until I finally put down the musket slowly, he coughed up a mouthful of blood, his eyes were a little lax: "Don't hurt yourself..." I put my arms around his shoulders, nodded and said, "I won't, Master, please rest assured." He still wanted to say something, but then coughed up another mouthful of blood, his arm slipped down, and he quietly closed his eyes. "Brother Xiao..." I was finally able to call out, and I lowered my head to kiss his blood-stained thin lips lightly. Tears from my eyes dripped onto his pale cheeks, wetting his long eyelashes. Why did we get to where we are today? "Steady yourself up and put him on the bed." Li Mingshang's voice came, and he lost his anger just now and returned to his usual tone. I nodded, carefully placed his body on the bed, and wiped away the blood from his lips with my sleeve. "You are really..." Li Mingshang only said half a sentence, then took out another silver needle, and slowly pierced the acupuncture point on Xiao Huan's chest. "You don't have to blame yourself too much. This kid will be what he is today. Most of the time it is his own fault. Your shot just forced his symptoms out in advance." Li Mingshang said lazily, no longer watching I. I didn't answer, and slowly sat down in front of the bed, burying my head in the quilt. A continuous autumn rain followed. Xiao Huan didn't wake up until the next day, but he still coughed lightly, bringing out a little bit of blood. What Li Mingshang said was right, he had held on for too long, and now his old illnesses were also breaking out, and it was difficult for him to return to his original state for a while. The weather was cold and humid, but the main hall of Fenglai Pavilion was still busy. Entering the Beginning of Autumn, a big event happened in the Wulin. The Tianshan faction, which is located in northern Xinjiang and has never been involved in the affairs of the Central Plains, sent a notice to all the sects for some reason, saying that the Tianshan faction wants to connect the rivers and lakes, and all the major factions are asked to submit quickly. Then they annexed the Qilian Sword Sect and the Kunlun Sword Sect, and killed the leaders of the two sects. In this way, the Central Plains Wulin could no longer just sit idly by. The two respected masters of Shaolin Wudang called on all factions to crusade against the Tianshan faction and seek justice for the Qilian and Kunlun factions. Fenglai Pavilion was one of the first nine sects to receive the crusade documents, and immediately sent Muyan and Zhenshui Jingmu hall masters and half of their disciples to join the crusade army. After Xiao Huan was injured this time, he has been recuperating in bed, Muyan is not around, the only hall master left in the main hall is Su Qian. Manpower was short, so she let me also participate in some affairs. I went out with Su Qian a few times, and my name actually became famous in the Jianghu. I was somewhat surprised. Although Xiao Huan didn't teach me any moves in the past few months, he seemed to integrate all the martial arts routines he had learned into his daily training. These few times when he went out, there were several gang leaders who seemed very powerful. , and I can beat them quite easily. Seeing me unload the long sword of the leader of the Salt Gang once again, Su Qian sighed and said to me: "To be honest, I don't dare to fight you rashly now." I smiled, somewhat happy in my heart, after all, Su Qian's kung fu with hidden weapons is rare in the Jianghu. She said so, saying that I am not complacent at all, even I don't believe it myself. I smiled and said, "Master is good." Su Qian had a smile on her face: "Yes, the lifelong wish of many top players in the world is to fight against Bai Chifan in their lifetime, but you have practiced against him day and night for several months." I just smiled and shook the gun in my hand. More than half a month passed in a blink of an eye, and when the continuous rain finally stopped, winter was coming soon. On the day of Lidong, the weather was even colder, and there was a cloud of white mist in front of everyone's nose. I received an urgent letter from Xiao Qianqing. When something happened in the capital, Xiao Qianqing usually came here in person under the pretense of informing me, but this was the first time someone brought a letter. I opened the letter and saw that it only said something urgent and asked me to go back to Beijing quickly. Putting the letter away and thinking about it, I don't know how long this journey will take, so I should ask Xiao Huan for instructions. I have been busy with Su Qian for the past few days, so I don’t often stay in Yishui Courtyard. Since the last time I came to report affairs with Su Qian, I haven’t been in the water pavilion for several days. At this time, I paused outside the door , just walked in. The guard disciples had already notified it just now, but now the doors and windows outside the waterside pavilion are surrounded by thick cotton curtains, and the room is airtight. I don't know if Xiao Huan heard it inside. Walking in, the strong smell of medicine came to me. I stood outside and listened for a while, but I didn't hear any movement inside. After hesitating, I opened the leather curtain inside and looked inside. The lighting in the waterside pavilion is very good, even if all the doors and windows are covered with leather curtains, the room is not too dark. I went in quietly, walked around the white jade screen at the door, and saw Xiao Huan leaning on the head of the bed. With his eyes closed and his head tilted slightly, he was leaning against the mahogany bed frame, his long hair was gathered on one side, hanging down to his chest in a mess, and a roll of open documents was placed on his slightly bent knees. One of his hands was pressed on the scroll, but the other fell out of the white fox fur around his shoulders and fell to the side of the bed. In the cold sunlight, the hand was pale and thin, the edges of the fingers seemed to melt into the air, and there were light blue blood vessels protruding slightly on the back of the hand. In the silence, it seemed that the sound of blood flowing from the blood vessels to the fingertips could be heard . He was tired from reading the paperwork, so he leaned against the head of the bed and fell asleep unconsciously, but in the end he fell asleep so soundly that someone made noise outside the door, and someone stood in front of his bed, but he still didn't wake up. I stood at the door without speaking or moving. His breath is very thin, so thin that if you don't listen carefully, you won't hear it at all, and the rise and fall of his chest is so small, so small that he is like a static statue in the slightly cold light. Time passed quietly, the tassels on the top of the bed cast a shadow on his face that seemed to be a little longer, and the cool numbness slowly rose from the soles of his feet, I finally saw him frowning slightly, then lifted his pressure With the hand on the scroll, he pressed his chest, coughed a few times, and his eyelashes fluttered slightly. I took a light breath, walked over and said carefully: "Master." The scroll on his lap fell to the ground with a "slap", he opened his eyes a little dazedly, frowned and looked at me with difficulty, then smiled: "Cang Cang? I accidentally fell asleep, you How long has it been?" I shook my head and replied, "Not too long." He coughed lightly and smiled: "What's the matter?" I lowered my head and said, "The disciple is here to bid farewell to the master. I have some matters at home, and I need to go back immediately." He pressed his chest and coughed lightly, speaking with some difficulty: "Got it...you can go back quickly." I clenched my fists and endured, and finally walked over, squatting down by the bed and looking at him. He seemed to be taken aback for a moment before he said, "What?" I smiled: "Master... His complexion is not very good, I hope I can see Master healed when I come back next time." He coughed lightly and smiled: "Thank you." That's fine...he's just my master, and I just need to treat him the way I treat my master. However, my eyes were still sore, I stood up and clasped my fists: "Then the disciple will retreat." He raised his eyes to look at me, nodded and smiled: "Okay, you can step back." My clenched hands stopped in the air, and suddenly I couldn't speak anymore. I saw his eyes clearly, a pair of eyes with a dead gray color. Xiao Huan's eyes have always been bright, because they are different from the blackness of ordinary people, and they are also different from the brightness of ordinary people. I often feel that his eyes are like the starry sky on a bright night, extremely deep, extremely bright, and full of magnificence. It's overflowing, but it's so strange that it's not coquettish. But now his eyes have lost their brilliance, like a gloomy sky that has lost its starlight, leaving only a strange darkness, empty and empty, boundless and deep black, as silent as death. He was looking at me, and I was suddenly unsure whether he was really looking at me, whether he could really see me, such a pair of dead eyes that didn't seem to belong to this world, they could really reflect Everything out of this world? In the long silence, he frowned slightly, and said with some doubts: "Cang..." "What about your eyes..." I took another step forward and blurted out. His pupils moved with my figure, still puzzled: "My eyes?" "Master's eyes... so strange, so dark." I breathed a sigh of relief and said with a smile. "This?" He suddenly smiled, "My eyes are darker than others, it may look a little weird." "So that's how it is." I smiled and clasped my fists together again, "This disciple will leave." He nodded with a smile.I turned around to leave, but I caught a glimpse of him bending over the bed from the corner of my eye, trying to pick up the scrolls on the floor with the hand hanging by the side of the bed. That hand seemed to be a little stiff due to blood blockage, and it didn’t work after stretching it a few times. When he reached the scroll, he suddenly convulsed. He pressed the convulsed arm with his other hand, and leaned against the edge of the bed in some embarrassment. I turned around and walked over, picked up the scroll on the ground, it was a geography-like volume, opened the side of which was densely painted with mountains and rivers, I put the book on his lap, smiled: " Master still don't worry too much, rest more." He took the book and smiled: "Take care and worry." I smiled: "As a disciple, I should." I bowed my hands and withdrew.