Chapter 12 Chapter 4 Journey

Miss Su from Tingxuelou left her Xuewei sword behind and left alone one night in the depths of winter. Xiao Yunting did not publicize this matter, but sealed Xue Wei in the Shenbing Pavilion, and continued to order Dr. Mo to go to Feiyilou to see a doctor and deliver medicine every day without a break, as if Su Wei was still sick in the building The same——Although he was calm on the surface, he mobilized all the power in Tingxuelou to secretly visit her traces all over the world. A separate forum reported that Miss Su went down the south of the Yangtze River, passed through Sichuan, Shu and Guizhou, avoided more than a dozen ambushes and assassinations, never stopped along the way, and went straight to southern Yunnan—the last time she appeared was in Dali.But since arriving in Dali, they have completely lost sight of her.At the same time, six cavalry teams set off from Dali to sell goods in Myanmar and India via Yongping, Baoshan, and Tengchong.

At that time, it had been nearly a month since she left. Bi Cong Cong, high into the sky, the river is turning and the god is dragging the smoke. The soul of Chu is looking for dreams, the wind is rustling, and the wind is flying and the rain is mossing money. Once Yao Ji has gone for a thousand years, Lilac Qiongzhu cries old ape. The ancient temple is near the moon, the toads and osmanthus are cold, and the pepper flowers fall among the red and wet clouds. Su Wei sat on the horse, looking up at the towering mountains on both sides of the deep valley, listening to the chirping of apes and birds, she couldn't help but think of this poem.

Southern Yunnan... is the place where the Moon Worshipers are taught, right? Master also once told her about the battle between Xuelou and Miaojiang Moon Worship Sect more than 30 years ago. All kinds of things in it were thrilling--weird and unpredictable witchcraft, spells that could call wind and rain , the supreme moon-worshiping leader, the white-clothed priests who look like gods, and the people who serve the moon god... When the master told her these things, the girl who had never walked out of Xizhou in more than ten years grew up widened. When I opened my eyes, I felt that it was simply a legendary place.

Unexpectedly, now, she actually set foot on this legendary land. After entering the border of Yunnan and Guizhou, the terrain suddenly became complicated, and the climate at the end of winter in February turned out to be as bright as spring in the Central Plains.After arriving in Dali, she changed land and water several times, crossed the Lancang River and the Nu River successively, and finally threw off the maggot-like pursuit.Along the way, the customs and customs of the Central Plains gradually fade away, and what you see and hear is unprecedented, which is refreshing. The bumpy road from Dali to Tengchong requires three days and three nights of hard work.

Tengchong is located in the western border of Yunnan, bordering Myanmar in the west, and is the hub of the Southwest Silk Road.Tengchong is an important town in western Yunnan. It was called Dianyue in the Western Han Dynasty. It belonged to Yongchang County in the Eastern Han Dynasty.Due to its important geographical location, heavy troops have been stationed in successive dynasties, and it is known as "the first city on the extreme edge". Su Wei was on the road, while listening to the introduction of the hired guide, she was distracted. The end of her journey is the Wulu River.

When you arrive in Tengchong, go west for more than 400 miles along the ancient post roads buried in the weeds at the foot of the mountain, and you will find the territory of the Burmese.Myitkyina, the capital of Kachin State, is rich in emeralds. The Wulu River runs through the mysterious and majestic mountains. It is said that not only rare jade is produced in the river, but the moist shade is also a place for silkworms to lay eggs. According to Dr. Mo, green silkworms live in dark torrent caves and lay eggs once a year. The eggs are extremely poisonous and are often used by Burmese and Yunnan people to make medicines.And the glazed flower that restrains the poison of the silkworm grows on the Wulu River where the silkworm lays its eggs.

She lowered her head and looked at her pale and slender wrist. It's been almost a month, and during this time she was wandering alone, and encountered many open and secret attacks along the way. Although she escaped by chance, she was not allowed to act rashly a few times and violated the doctor's orders.Now the poison was ready to move under the skin, and the tips of her fingers had turned a strange blue color, and it was spreading upwards along the blood vessels—if it hadn't been sealed by Dr. Mo's twelve silver needles, it would have already swallowed her entire arm. There are only two months left... If no antidote is found, these hands will be completely useless.

If that was the case, she would never go back to see him again. I was in a trance, but I heard the guide in front of me laughing back: "Girl, after crossing this Gaoligong Mountain and walking for half a day, Tengchong is ahead." The man in his fifties was called Mang Zhuo, and he was a Lisu.I heard that he was also a member of the caravan when he was young, and he walked back and forth on this ancient tea-horse road hundreds of times.Now that I am too old to travel far, I can only stay in Dali for the elderly.After she came to Dali the day before yesterday, she originally wanted to go to Tengchong with the local caravans, but unexpectedly those men who were begging for a living were taboo to bring women with them, and none of the six caravans were willing to take her.In desperation, she had no choice but to know the way and prepared to go out alone—fortunately, she met this old man who was free before departure, and negotiated a price of three taels of silver, and took her this trip alone.

Mang Zhuo rode his horse to lead the way, turned his head and said, "Today is the fourteenth, when we get there, we will still have time to see the market tomorrow." "Run market?" She came back to her senses. "It's what you Han people call going to the market," Mang Zhuo laughed, knocking the hookah on the saddle, "Tengchong's 'Tianguang Market' is a famous big market in the west of Yunnan! Every first day of the month On the fifteenth day, the ruins will open at dawn, and people from the nearby Wa, Bai, Hui, Lisu, Baiyi, and Achang ethnic groups will come, especially those good guys from our ethnic group, who will go up the mountain of swords and into the sea of ​​fire. ', guaranteed to amaze the girl!"

She heard it interestingly, and finally stopped staring at her hands all the way, and asked curiously: "Are there still jadeites for sale in the market?" "That's right! If you're lucky, the girl can still see gambling stones!" Mang Zhuo naggingly introduced, his eyes shining, "I heard that Yin's family just bought a batch of fog dew from Burmese Gazi a few days ago. He didn’t cut the rough stones from the river, so he took them directly to Tianguang Market to gamble—this time Tengchong is doing jade business, Han people will definitely flock here, it’s a good show.”

"Stone gambling?" Su Wei was curious. "The girl is from the Central Plains, so she must not know about the gambling stones here." Mang Zhuo smoked a hookah, the wrinkles on his face moved, and smiled, "Stone gambling, that is, the stones dug out from the Wulu River, connected The outer leather is sold together - as for cutting the stone, whether the inside is a top-quality green emerald or a worthless shit bottom, it all depends on eyesight and luck. "It's a good bet. A stone of ten taels of silver will be turned a hundred times immediately. If the bet is not good, all stones of tens of thousands will be opened, and you don't even want to use them as marbles for children!" Mang Zhuo grinned, his mouth full of yellow teeth. It broke out, "I'm not afraid of girls laughing, don't look at how poor I am now, I made a fortune by gambling with stones back then! When I was young, I got five wives—one Lisu woman, three Miao girls, and more. One of them is you Han people. Hehe, speaking of it, I have had a good time...Unfortunately, I lost all of it when I was betting on stones." Su Wei opened her eyes and listened, feeling that what he said was as miraculous as a fairy tale. "I think the girl's pair of earrings are very good." Mang Zhuo glanced at her, knocking on the cigarette stick, "It's green and transparent, full of water, it looks a bit like 'Qi Luo Yu' from a distance— —Can I take a look at it?" "What is Qiluoyu?" Su Wei was curious, raised her hand to pick off her earrings, and said, "My master gave it to me on my fifteenth birthday." "Qiluoyu, in Tengchong—no, in the whole of Yunnan and Guizhou, they are all famous," Mang Zhuo sat jolting on his horse, and turned back to wait for the pair of earrings, "Miss, haven't you heard of it? Tengchong is not far from Myanmar. , All jadeite dug out will be sent here to be carved, so for hundreds of years, many master craftsmen from the capital, Suzhou, and Yangzhou have come here to teach their apprentices—and the most famous among them is Qiluoyu." "Qi Luoyu is an earring?" Su Wei heard a little impatiently. "Girl, don't be in a hurry. After crossing this Gaoligong Mountain, there are still dozens of miles to go. Talk slowly along the way," Mang Zhuo laughed, still unhurriedly, "Qi Luoyu, it's Tengchong Qi Yin Wenda, a native of Luozhen, brought back a piece of jade from the Wulu River ten years ago. At that time, he spent a lot of money to buy this stone, but when he cut it open, it was so dark that there was no trace of green inside, so he had to throw it away. Stones for straw in stables. "As a result, after throwing it away for several years, one day a small piece was trampled by a horse - guess what? Hey, he picked it up and looked at the light, but found that although it was dark and ugly on the table, the thin The thin piece is transparent and emerald green when exposed to the light!" Mang Zhuo patted his thigh and sighed, "So, Yin Wenda invited Yuan Chonglou, the best jade carving master in Tengchong, to carve. Master Yuan thought hard for three days, I decided to hollow out that stone and use it to make an exquisite and bright palace lantern." "Master Yuan spent a year carving out that lantern. On the night of the 15th day of the first lunar month, he lit candles in the lantern and hung it in the Shuiying Temple in Qiluo Town - when the full moon turned pale, the entire temple The inside is covered in green. It's amazing!" "Is the whole temple covered in green?" Su Wei found it inconceivable. "That's right... that lantern caused a sensation in the whole of western Yunnan. Yin Wenda originally wanted to present the palace lantern to the emperor for a reward, but he finally got it in Dali. King Zhennan became selfish when he saw it, and said: 'It's good, it's good. But if they are not in a pair, it may not be suitable for them to enter the palace, so it’s better to stay in Yunnan’.” Mang Zhuo chuckled, “However, since then, King Zhennan has licensed Tengchong’s emerald franchise to the Yin family—— You see, this peerless jade, anyone who sees it wants to keep it for himself!" Su Wei took off the earring, put it in her hand and looked at it: "But, what does Qi Luoyu have to do with this earring?" "Girl, don't worry, I haven't finished yet," Mang Zhuo reached out to take it, looked at the light carefully, and continued, "Master Yuan is an excellent master, so naturally he won't waste a little good material——made that lamp Behind the lantern, he also made ninety-nine eighty-one pairs of earrings from the fragments of this piece of jade, most of which were collected by the aristocrats in central Yunnan, and it is said that wearing them can make the roots of the ears green." When the guide said this, he pinched the small earrings with his old and haggard hands and glanced at the light, his face suddenly changed drastically. Seeing his eyes, Su Wei clapped her hands and cheered without waiting for him to speak: "This is really Qi Luoyu?!" "Yes... yes!" Mang Zhuo's voice was also trembling, and he narrowed his eyes, "Look, there is still the imprint used by Master Yuan on the gold buckle on the back! ——It's so beautiful...so beautiful! It's so green Like a drop of water!" "Really? Really?" Su Wei was overjoyed, laughing for the first time after leaving Luoyang. However, with a smile, he suddenly thought of the master who gave him this pair of earrings, and couldn't help but feel sad—it has been nearly six years since the master disappeared. Is it death? Will there be a chance to meet him again after this separation? "This is the second pair of Qi Luoyu that I have seen in the past ten years..." Mang Zhuo murmured with a hoarse voice, "The first pair is still on the ears of chieftain Manmo's daughter - this kind of peerless beauty Jade is taken away by rich people as soon as it is carved, how can we keep it for people like us to see?" He pinched the pair of earrings and looked at the light for a long time, his eyes were full of excitement and regret, and he reluctantly let go. Su Wei was soft-hearted. Seeing that he was so obsessed with him, she felt a little sorry, and said embarrassingly: "If this is not a gift from Master, I can give it to you... Anyway, I don't know jade very well. It's a pity..." "What did the girl say?" Mang Zhuo came back to his senses, and quickly chuckled, "It's good to see such a precious thing, how dare you have such a heart." However, as he said this, he held the pair of earrings tightly, as if he still couldn't bear to return them. At this moment, they had reached the depths of Gaoligong Mountain, the mountain road was rugged, and the two horses were panting halfway up the mountain, and their pace was getting slower and slower-looking up, there was a village in front of them, hidden among the verdant trees. Mang Zhuo said with a smile: "Girl, this stockade in front is called Mangkuan, and it's a place where Baiyi people raise peacocks in summer. I'll go and see if there are people there. If so, we might as well go there to let the horses rest their feet." , drink some water, and then go over the mountain in one go, okay?" "Okay." She didn't take it seriously, watching Mang Zhuo trot into the village, turned left and right, and disappeared in an instant. The sound of the hoofbeats of the horses gradually faded away, but there was still no echo in the village. Su Wei reined in her horse and waited outside the stockade, she suddenly wrinkled her nose - there was a strange smell in the air, like sulfur and smoke, which made her sneezed. Strange... The guide has been in for so long, why hasn't there been a reply? After waiting for a quarter of an hour, the village in front was still silent, and Mang Zhuo was not seen coming back. The innocent girl finally couldn't help becoming suspicious, and carefully rode her horse forward for a while, and stepped into the village—— However, everything in front of her eyes made her unable to restrain herself from letting out an ah. This is a stockade that seems to have been looted, and there is no trace of human breath. There are many low houses scattered in the stockade, each with bamboo walls and thatched roofs, light and simple, which is a common sight in Miaojiang.However, the doors of every house were open, and there were some clothes and belongings scattered on the ground, as if the owner left in a hurry, without even having time to carry the soft goods. She felt strange, so she couldn't help jumping off the horse, and walked in cautiously, calling the guide's name at the same time.However, as soon as Mang Zhuo entered the village, he seemed to disappear without a trace—the village was very quiet, except for the mess, there was no sign of accident, and there were no bloodstains or corpses. Su Wei breathed a sigh of relief, and was wondering why the whole village ran away in a hurry, but suddenly heard a strange rustling sound in her ears, and she couldn't help but gasped when she turned her head. There are no people in this village, but there are countless abandoned livestock wandering around. The reactions of those animals were very strange, as if they were collectively frantic: a buffalo ran wildly in the village, stepping over vegetable fields and fences, as if entering no one’s land, as if there was an invisible demon chasing behind; a group of black and white The sheep wandered in the village, lost their usual docileness, and appeared manic and restless; a group of chickens and ducks stayed in the shed, huddled together, dumbfounded, at a loss, facing the pots full of corn , but refused to take a bite. What's even more strange is that she actually saw a large group of snakes cruising on the main road of the village. Seeing the snake, Su Wei exclaimed and felt her scalp go numb.However, those snakes swam towards the entrance of the village in unison in groups, like a wave of water submerged along the road, and then swept past her horse's legs, but without any intention of attacking people or animals, and then went away silently. Go, but never stop. She sat on the horse in a daze, feeling inexplicably surprised—but the horse under the seat also became nervous, neighing frequently, raising its front hooves from time to time, trying to throw her off the horse. Su Wei was thrown off the horse when she was distracted. She made a turn in the air and stretched out her hand to grab the rein again, but suddenly she caught sight of something out of the corner of her eye, and she was startled—on the path behind the village, a person was running quickly down the mountain, turning a corner, out of sight. That person is the guide Mang Zhuo! What?He... Did he run away with that pair of Qiluoyu earrings? At this time, she finally realized that she had been cheated, and she couldn't help but exclaimed.However, when she turned around, she realized that her horse had spread its hooves and joined the frenzied animals in the village, galloping away without a trace. It was already afternoon, the sun began to slant to the west, and the mountains in front of me were rolling and rolling, and each one was higher than the other.She stayed alone in the tall and majestic Gaoligong mountains, looking at this empty and abandoned village deep in the mountains, she was a little at a loss for a while.At that moment, she didn't know if it was a hallucination, but she suddenly heard an extremely strange sound coming from the depths of the mountains, as if someone woke up from the ground and let out a deep sigh. There was a strange smell of sulfur in the air, getting stronger and stronger, and she couldn't help but sneezed again. Su Wei decided not to stay any longer, and hurried down the mountain before sunset.She went around the village and found the road leading to the back mountain, and found that the road was full of old and new footprints, obviously Mang Zhuo and the local villagers must have left this road. She also descended the mountain along the same road.Along the way, I saw large groups of animals migrating from time to time: the ground was covered with snakes, insects and ants, ligers and tigers roared angrily and irritablely in the forest, and groups of birds swished past overhead, like a big flower A large cloud blown away by the wind. Another sigh came from the depths of the mountain. This time, the voice was so clear that a strange fear suddenly rose from the depths of Su Wei's heart. No... there must be something wrong with this place!Gotta go... gotta go! She ran down the mountain road.However, when she turned to the mountain pass where Mang Zhuo disappeared just now, she suddenly saw a piece of snowflakes falling from mid-air, just falling on the back of her hand——she was stunned all of a sudden: Miao Jiangli, unexpectedly will it snow?In such a hot and humid jungle, it actually snowed! That piece of snow fell on her skin, but it wasn't cold or melted, as if it had solidified. Su Wei stopped, glanced blankly, and raised her hand to touch it—the snowflake shattered at her fingertips, and instantly turned into gray-white ashes, rustling and falling. No...it's not snow, it's... Suddenly, as if some mechanism in the ground suddenly opened, Su Wei staggered suddenly, and fell down the mountain unsteadily.She made a turn in mid-air, trying to fall back onto the mountain road, but as soon as she touched the ground, she felt that the whole mountain was shaking violently, and the road was like a wave of water, making it impossible to stand on. A loud noise came from the top of the mountains, as if the sigh from the ground had finally erupted. At that moment, she raised her head in horror, and saw the overwhelming snow covering the boundless mountains!And on the top of the mountains, a huge white cloud suddenly rose up, blooming like a lotus flower - under the cloud, countless streams of radiant fire poured out. This... what is this?Is it the so-called "Doomsday Tribulation" of the Moon Worship Sect? However, that terrifying scene only lasted for a short moment.The "lotus flower" withered in an instant, fell to the ground, and covered the sky and the sun.In an instant, there was darkness between the sky and the earth, and the sunlight was covered above the head, as if a huge box was suddenly closed and everything was packed into it. The smell of sulfur in the air is getting stronger and stronger, so pungent that you can hardly breathe. In the darkness, you can only hear flying ash falling densely, like a group of fiery butterflies flying down in groups, burning human skin. Su Wei groped forward in the dark, but the whole mountain seemed to be cracking, countless boulders rolled down from the mountain, and the road was so bumpy that it was impossible to walk. She didn't care about the taboo, and forced a breath of true energy, listened to the wind in the dark to avoid those stones, and continued to run forward, hoping to avoid the flying ash and boulders that blocked the sky when she ran down the mountain.However, after running a few steps in the dark, there was suddenly nothing under his feet—— The mountain actually split open, and a bottomless crack blocked the road. And in that crack, there is a dark red flame surging, scorching hot. Su Wei exclaimed, and reached out her hand to grab something beside the crack in the dark, but there was nothing to grab at all.She subconsciously pulled out the Xuewei in her sleeve with her backhand, but it was empty - just such a short resistance, she had already rolled down a few feet along that crack. He already felt severe burning pain in his back, and fire kept gushing out from the depths of the crack.The strange red light reflected on her face, like the ferocious red lotus fire in hell, it was suffocating. no no.You can't just die here inexplicably! At the moment of falling, there was only one thought in her mind. Without hesitation, she reached out and inserted her bare hand into the cracked wall—the nails were broken on the hard rock, and the flesh and blood were cut by the sharp stone cracks. However, she inserted her hand into the crack desperately, grabbing , the whole person was hanging on the edge of the bottomless crack. The fire in hell seemed to be spreading and rising, and it was pitch black above the head, with scorching fly ash falling like snow, accompanied by the rolling thunder of boulders. She tried her best to lift her breath and fly out of the crack, but as soon as she let go of her hand, her eyes were dark. poison. That terrible poison finally flowed through her whole body along with her inner breath after she used her inner strength fiercely.The toxin penetrated into the limbs, and Su Wei's fingers became weak for a moment, and she could no longer grasp the crack. When she let go, the whole person flew up lightly, as if sucked into the underground vortex, and fell towards the depth of the crack. no no!can't just be like this... As she fell, she desperately struggled to grab everything she could, but there was nothing in the void except fly ash—the speed was getting faster and faster, and the smell of sulfur and fire suffocated her . At the moment of weightlessness, a hand suddenly stretched out out of thin air and grabbed her! She felt dizzy for a short time, as if she didn't believe that life could really come back from a dead end.She still felt dreamy until the hand pulled her out of the crack and pulled her through the boulders and logs. In the darkness, she couldn't see the man's face, but felt that the hand holding her was as firm as iron. The man didn't speak, but just dragged her to run through the fly ash, avoiding the rolling stones, and ran towards a high place, as if he knew the terrain like the palm of his hand.The man pulled her and ran all the way without looking back, until he ran to the side of a river valley, flew to the opposite side of the deep stream, and then stopped. In the darkness, the water in the valley was still flowing rapidly, and the roar on the other side of the mountain continued. She saw streaks of red light in the darkness, crawling out of the opening on the top of the mountain like meandering snakes, and then overflowing from the ground, and then meandering along the mountain to the lower places, where they came Everything there was destroyed—in the end, the thousands of red snakes all gathered in that deep river valley, gradually cooling and dimming. Eventually, there was no more sound. Only the scorching heat still hits my face, which is suffocating. Looking at all this, she felt as if she was in a nightmare, and she didn't even notice that the people around her let go of their hands silently.By the time she found out, that person had already walked away in the darkness.She suddenly felt as if there were two more things in her hand, subconsciously looked down, and vaguely recognized that it turned out to be her pair of earrings! This is... At a thought, I couldn't help but feel horrified. "Hey, who are you? Please wait a moment!" Su Wei exclaimed and chased after him, trying to keep the mysterious person who appeared in the darkness.However, the mountain road is rugged and unfamiliar, and after a few steps, I can't catch up—— At this moment, the dense fly ash in the sky has dispersed slightly, and the light in the valley has brightened. The person in the dark appeared quietly, and then left quietly, as if like a phantom.At the last moment when the haze above her head dissipated, she finally saw the profile of that person—a person in white was quietly turning around the hill, looked back at her, and disappeared in an instant. On his face was a wooden mask. "Master!" She exclaimed suddenly, but the poison broke out violently, and her eyes were dark. After that catastrophe, Gaoligong Mountain was completely changed. In the early morning of the next day, Su Wei woke up on the other side of the river valley, staring blankly at everything in front of her—the mountain, most of which collapsed; Make the valley white overnight.Even the village in the middle of the mountain not far away could no longer see its true colors. Half of it was buried under the boulder, and half was covered by thick fly ash. The sun is still rising, but there is no trace of life on the mountain or below. Only the birds from nowhere are singing softly. In this silent morning, it sounds so beautiful, like the sound of heaven.Su Wei sat on the ground for a while, mobilized her internal strength, and prepared to force the toxins in her body back to her wrists again.However, when she looked down, she found that the silver needle on her wrist had been touched while she was in a coma, and sealed her acupuncture point again to prevent the further spread of the poison. She stared at her wrist in astonishment, struggled to get up, looked around and shouted. However, Master was no longer to be seen, and no one came out to answer her.Su Wei only felt sad and comforted in her heart, sat silently for a while, finally got up, and walked down the mountain exhausted. The road has long been destroyed, and from time to time there are huge cracks across the front, or there are huge boulders several stories high on the road. The short mountain road of more than ten miles has gone from sunrise to sunset. Along the way, she saw the bloody corpses of many birds and beasts—some were crushed to death by boulders, and some were burned to death by ground fire.Many more died of suffocation as they struggled and were covered in hot and thick fly ash. In it, she also saw human corpses. Under a boulder, an arm holding a cigarette rod was exposed, with a hideous posture.She looked closely at the tobacco rod, and recognized that it belonged to her guide.That mangzhuo, for a pair of Qi Luoyu, left his employer behind in the deep mountain to escape alone, but unexpectedly, he still couldn't escape the catastrophe. Su Wei couldn't bear to look at her, and turned her head away.However, after walking a few steps, they saw the corpses of a group of people. The caravan group that set off from Dali did not escape this catastrophe.On the road, people and horses were staggered and piled up, and they were run over by the rolling boulders, and their flesh and blood were indistinguishable.Tea bricks and silk cloth were scattered all over the ground. Several horses were crushed by stones and could not die for a while. They struggled and screamed in pain, and their voices echoed in the empty valley. Su Wei walked a few steps, couldn't listen anymore, gritted her teeth, turned around, picked up an unowned short knife scattered on the ground, closed her eyes and swung the knife to cut off the horse's neck. Blood gushed out of her cavity, staining her blood red. She suddenly wanted to cry. After a busy day, the sun set to the west, and the people in Tianguang Market gradually dispersed. Jugglers, stone gamblers, and buyers and sellers all began to close their stalls. After a long day of exhaustion, they were all in a hurry to go home. Only the merchants who failed to make a deal after several rounds of bargaining were still standing where they were, preparing for the final desperate confrontation. At this moment, there was a slight commotion in the market. A woman walked in from the east when the market was about to close. She staggered and her temples were disheveled, as if she had experienced a catastrophe.Her face was full of fireworks, the clothes on her body were also tattered, her shoulders and back showed crystal clear jade skin, even if she covered it with her hands, it was hard to block the spring light. "Hey, look at that woman!" "Is she a crazy woman? Why are you walking around in ragged clothes?" "Wow, look at that body, it looks quite supple. Ruuo is really a crazy woman, why not turn her back and sleep overnight." "Hey, village brother, I advise you to bet on rocks, and don't cause trouble—look at that woman's body is covered in blood! It's too wicked... It's better not to mess with her, maybe it's the Miao people worshiping her again." taught by the moon." The merchants rushing to the market whispered, staring at the naked skin of the woman, wishing to stretch out two hands in their eyes.However, the foot of the foot unconsciously gave way, allowing the woman who staggered from a distance to walk all the way, until she stopped in front of a shop selling clothes, shoes and Miao silver jewelry. "I...I want a blouse..." The woman opened her mouth in an extremely weak voice. "Three cents of silver." The owner of the shop was a Miao man, and he took a Gebu skirt and threw it in front of her, while still staring at the crystal clear skin exposed on her chest, abdomen and back, and smiled. "Ah?" The woman was startled, and murmured in frustration, "I, I don't have money..." "No money?" The owner of the shop was not angry, stretched out his hand, pinched the skin on the back of her hand, and laughed softly, "It doesn't matter if you don't have money, it's okay to come and sleep with brother for one night...Come with brother, make sure you wear it." Clothes, food, everything." The etiquette of the Miao people is not as rigorous as that of the Central Plains, so this young man's words and deeds are even more unrestrained. However, before he finished speaking, he was slapped hotly on the cheek. "Stinky bitch!" The owner of the shop never imagined that this down-and-out woman would be so vicious, startled, and then shouted angrily, "Don't you want to live anymore? Do you know what I do? Look at me Don't break your leg, sell it to Houjiang to be a prostitute for Gazi!" He jumped out, grabbed the opponent's hair, and was about to slap him hard. "It's almost gone, why are there so many things." Suddenly, a voice sounded beside him, calm and calm, and then an ingot of broken silver was thrown over and landed in the hands of the owner of the shop, "Meng Mi, the sun is also here!" It's almost down the mountain, why don't you go back and hug your wife!" The people around laughed, but the person who spoke seemed to have a lot of status in Tianguangxu, the furious Miao man didn't dare to refute his face, stood there scratching his head, muttered a few words, and looked hard at Glancing at the woman, he picked up the money and collected it. "Since you have collected the money, you should also give the clothes to others." The man said again. Meng Mi had no choice but to throw the tube skirt viciously, and turned around to close the stall. However, the woman stood there, as if she had lost her soul, she didn't say thanks, she didn't put on clothes to cover her body, she just stared straight ahead - the person who spoke was wearing an ordinary old Ge shirt, I think the business is not doing very well, and there is no fixed berth in Tianguang Market. It is just a burden with some wooden handicrafts hanging on it. As if to display his goods, he also wore a homemade wooden mask on his face. She stared straight at him, with a confused and complicated expression on her frail face, and a strange familiar feeling rose from her heart.However, he didn't say a word to her, he took up the burden on his own, and prepared to leave. "Master!" However, as soon as he turned around, someone grabbed his back tightly, and the woman rushed forward, her voice almost choked up, "Master, I know you are here! Don't go, don't go!" He turned around in astonishment, stared at her for a moment, the expression in his eyes slowly changed, became cold and sharp - but she didn't let go of his cold gaze, and seemed unwilling to let him go half a step away. Finally, he couldn't hide the impatience in his eyes, he pushed her away unceremoniously, took off the self-made wooden mask on his face, and said coldly: "Girl, you have misunderstood the person." Under the mask was a pale and indifferent face of a man in his twenties. At that moment, Su Wei only felt endless discouragement and disappointment. The hunger and fatigue of many days were overwhelming. When her eyes went dark, she couldn't bear it anymore. In a trance, she could no longer remember the appearance of her master—however, she still remembered the song "Xizhou Song". "Reminiscing about plums going down to Xizhou, folding plums and sending them to Jiangbei. "Single shirt is apricot red, and the two temples are the color of crows..." Once a year, when the white lotus blooms, the Nantang outside the door is filled with such singing voices. Grasshopper boats no longer than six feet long shuttle back and forth among the lotus leaves in the fields. The boats are full of young Yuedi picking Liannu, while rowing, sang "Xizhou Song"-when the singing sounded, she knew it was time to go out and play again. On weekdays, the two masters are strict, the master supervises and urges during the day, and the junior master visits at night.From the age of seven, regardless of the cold or heat, in addition to reading books and practicing martial arts every day, there is no chance to be lazy at all.And she is just a child, she is not willing to live such a boring and difficult life, she wished she could hide from her master every day, and secretly ran out with the children next door to fight weeds and fly kites. The master usually eats a light diet, but he only likes to eat lotus seeds, so at the end of each summer, she starts to pay attention to the growth of the lotus in the pond one month in advance, and once it is the lotus picking season, she will fly across the lotus leaves overnight Nantang puts the freshest and most tender lotus root in the basket.At this time, she felt that the usual boring practice was of some use - because she had learned the art of light body since she was a child, among the girls in Xizhou who picked lotus for a living, no one could match her swiftness in hands and feet. She was stepping on the lotus leaves, jumping on the water like a bird, and just after more than a dozen lotus pods had been accumulated in the basket, she heard a familiar urging: "Xiaoyan, it's time to eat!" She pursed her lips, turned her head a little unwillingly, and saw a green dress under the two tall tallow trees at the far door—it was the master who had finished dinner and was urging her to go home. "Here we come!" She promised loudly, reluctantly twirled on the water surface for the last time, nimbly cut off a fresh green lotus pod with her fingertips, threw it into the basket behind her, and turned back. "Master, look how beautiful the lotus pods are growing this year!" After a few ups and downs, she skimmed under the tallow tree, and she proudly held up the baskets to show him, "They are fat and strong, and there are more than a dozen of them in each." Eyes' too!" The lotus pods are lying plumply in the basket, and the plump lotus seeds in the lotus chamber are like small blue eyes, looking curiously at the outside world.The master, who had been wearing a mask and couldn't see his expression, couldn't help laughing lowly, and patted her head: "Okay, come, let's eat." 他牵着她的手，走进房间——他的手是如此温暖而踏实，彷佛父亲的手。 饭菜很美味，可她却扒得心不在焉，满眼欢喜，“师父，今年我就要满十八岁了，你送我一把真正的剑吧——不是那种木头做的剑，是真剑！” “你还小呢，”大师父看着她狼吞虎咽，微笑，“拿刀弄剑的干什么？” “我都已经把你和小师父教的全学会啦！”她不快，撇下饭碗，“我想要一把剑……小师父不是就有一把么？”她嘟囔，拿眼睛瞟着大师父木无表情的脸：“你看小师父她多偏心！宁可让它挂在墙壁上长灰尘，也不给我用！” “小孩子知道什么。”大师父看了一眼壁间挂着的那把剑，忽然沉默下去，许久只是叹息了一声，“剑是凶器，是杀人之物，多少人一生都与它为伴，仿佛噩梦一般无法摆脱——薇儿，我多想你一辈子都不要再碰它啊。” 她还是第一次听到师父的这种语气，不知道如何回答。半晌讷讷：“可是，我真的喜欢它啊……真的！你不知道，每夜我都听到它在墙上鸣动，在叫我去把它拔出来呢！” “是么？”听得那句话，大师父望着壁上挂着的那把短剑，神色一黯，喃喃说了一句她听不懂的话：“不愧是血薇的主人啊……血里流着的天性。” 吃完了饭，一边起身收拾碗筷，大师父终于松了口：“算了，既然你那么喜欢，我就和你小师父商量一下，看她愿不愿意把那一把剑传给你吧。她最近身体不大好，你不要随便去打扰她。” “好！”她喜不自禁，跳起来就去够壁间挂着的那把剑——只是一伸手，身子还没碰到，那把剑彷佛自己会动一样的跃入了她的掌心，“呛”地一声弹出，一道雪亮的光划破了室内的黯淡。 那一刹的寒气和杀意，让她陡然打了个冷颤。 她握着那把剑，低着头看着绯红色的剑刃，忽然有一种奇异的错觉：仿佛是随着剑的拔出、有无数的血从剑鞘里汹涌而出！ 忽然间，她隐约明白了师父阻止她拔剑的原因： ——那是怎样一把杀戮之剑！ 踏入江湖之后，她终于渐渐明白了师父那句话的意思，多少次试图收剑入鞘，回归西洲那种平静的生活。然而一旦拔出了剑，就再也无法轻易收手。 而她的一生，也将被这把剑的诅咒所缠绕和左右。 握着血薇剑，独自一个人前行，江湖寥落，天地青白。她走了很久很久，模模糊糊中，似乎又看到一袭青衣的师父在不远处茕茕走着，袍袖翻飞，宛如御风离去。她追在后面，苦苦呼唤着，然而师父却彷佛没有听见一样的越走越远。 她追上去，拉住他的衣襟，然而他却回过头，摘下了脸上的面具。 “我不是你的师父。”他说。 木雕面具下的，却是一张空白没有面目的脸！ 她一声惊呼，猛然间醒了过来。 醒来的时候，已经是半夜。 睁开眼睛，月亮挂在头顶，而身下冰冷而僵硬，竟然是睡在了大街上。苏薇只觉得全身的关节都在酸疼，不由自主地低低呻吟一声，撑起身子来。 下午那个人，居然没有救她，就任凭她昏倒在了集市里么？ 她摸了摸耳畔，那一对绮罗玉还在，便勉力撑起身体，将那一件筒裙拆开，裹在了自己身上，低头才发现自己的整只手掌已经呈现出诡异的碧色，竟然隐隐透明。一路上几度违反医嘱动用内力，这毒发作得已经比想象中快了很多，看来是万万等不到三个月之期了。 苏薇茫然地想着，觉得又饿又累，站起身在空荡的集市上往前走，一时间心里也是空空荡荡，没有半分主意。 苗疆的夜，很黑很安静，四周竹楼里也没有灯火，就像一个空无人烟的寨子。 黑暗里，又听到鸟儿的叫声，轻灵美妙，不知在深山何处。 苏薇不知道去哪里，只是一个人踉跄着走过空荡荡的天光墟，四顾一圈，然后朝着树林下唯一一处有光的地方走去。 天光墟旁，唯一一座夜里有灯的，是个小小的酒馆。 酒馆门口悬挂着风干的腊肉和香草，还有成片的牛羊肋骨，以及各种奇形怪状的野味。在没有踏入的时候，她就已经闻到了奇特的酒香——那种香气不同于洛水上菊花酿成的冷香，辛且烈，浓且馥，彷佛一把刀子一样直接刺入人的心肺。她咽了一下口水，忽然间想起自己已经很久很久不曾喝酒。 踏入这座酒馆的时候，她看到里面只有一个客人。 桌子上遍布着七歪八倒的酒坛，那个唯一的客人已经喝醉了，伏倒在肮脏油腻的案上，脚边一滩呕吐污物，手指痉挛地抠着裂开的桌面，不知道喃喃地在说着一些什么，酒污和油渍淋淋漓漓，染遍了雪白的衣襟。 她不由自主顿住了脚步，看向他。他的脸浸在酒污里，苍白而没有生气，双眉紧紧蹙在一起，眉目之间镌刻着一种说不清楚的自暴自弃表情。 那个人，正是白日间在天光墟帮过她一把的人。奇怪的是，不知道为何，多看得一眼，她心头的奇特感觉就更深一分—— 她总觉得这个人依稀熟悉，彷佛是曾在哪里见过。 她看得出神，却听有人招呼：“姑娘这边坐。” 当垆的却是一个苗女，笑语盈盈，脸如满月，将她引向酒馆的另一头：“不必理会。他总是这样，天天卖了点钱就全部拿来换酒喝——不过喝醉了倒也不会打扰别人。” 苏薇坐到远处一张桌子上，却情不自禁地还是转头望：“他是……” “他呀，听说也是一个汉人，”苗女随口回答，一边拿出抹布替她擦了擦油腻的小方桌，“以前好像还是这里方圆百里一个很出名的人物呢，听说是一个出名的玉雕大师，好多人排着队捧着银子求他雕刻一件东西都求不到——就算如今落魄成这样，但天光墟里的人还个个怕他三分。” “玉雕大师？”苏薇心下微微一动。 “是啊，他姓原，叫重楼。”苗女叹了一口。 她吃了一惊，脱口：“就是雕了绮罗玉的那个原大师么？” “是呀，姑娘也知道绮罗玉？”苗女颇为意外。 苏薇讷讷：“我……我只是没想到，原大师原来这么年轻。” “嘿，在这个腾冲，二十岁上就被人称为大师的，好象也就只有他一个。听说他可以在一块手指头大的翡翠上刻出十八罗汉呢！”苗女爽朗的笑，啧啧叹息，“那时侯，重楼他又年轻又俊秀，加上日进斗金——整个腾冲的女人，无论汉人苗人，哪个不暗地里对他怀着心呀？只可惜后来他被人寻仇，成了一个废人。” “寻仇？”苏薇诧异，忽然觉得警惕。 “是呀，听说他去后山的寨子里，结果半路上就莫名其妙的被人砍了一刀。”苗女压低了声音，在她耳边道，“大家都说，肯定是不知道哪个同行嫉妒他雕工绝伦，抢了大家饭碗，于是趁着他去会情人，便在半道上砍了他的手。” 苏薇忽然间坐直了身子，眼睛死死盯着桌面，脸色苍白起来。 “请问姑娘要一点什么？小店的野味和自酿的酒都很不错，”那个苗女发现自己跑题太远，连忙热情地向她介绍起了店里的东西，“姑娘可以尝一尝竹筒饭和黑米肠，这一些东西汉人们来了都吃得惯。如果姑娘要尝鲜呢，炸竹虫和五毒都不错。” 苏薇只觉头痛欲裂，随口道：“我想喝酒。” “姑娘要喝酒？”苗女忍不住吃了一惊，汉人的女子一贯温婉，还不曾见过这样半夜来喝酒的顾客。她转了一转眼睛，笑道，“姑娘可真是有眼光，小店自酿的酒可是腾冲远近闻名！光种类就有十八仙、香蛇酒、古辣酒、瑞雷，每一种滋味不同。” 苏薇随口便道：“那每一样都来一瓶好了！” “都来一瓶？”苗女看着这个汉人女子，碧色的眼里闪过好奇的光，终于忍不住也笑了起来，转身入内，扬声对后屋的人道：“阿爸，今晚有客人了！四种酒都各来一瓶！再给这个姑娘送上几碟腊肉野菜下酒。” 苏薇坐在那里，还是看着那个醉倒一边的人。 他的手在醉里痉挛地抠着桌边，手指微微的动，彷佛在描摹勾画着什么——令她侧目的是那一只手：苍白，修长，有力，手指关节之处微微凸起，就像是瘦瘦的竹。这种手，如果在江湖里，定然是短兵器高手才有的手。 然而，这个人露出袖子的右手手背上，却赫然有着一道又长又深的旧伤！ 那道巨大的伤从虎口开始，延入消瘦的肘部，被袖子盖住，彷佛被利器一下子劈开，几乎连着骨头都割裂——愈合多年后，伤痕犹自扭曲狰狞，彷佛一排巨大蜈蚣伏在苍白的肌肤上，可以想见当初的伤势是怎样可怖。 No way?这、这难道就是…… 苏薇深深地呼吸，想要把胸臆之间那种恐惧和不快压制下去，然而终于忍不住，忽然间站了起来，衣襟带翻了茶碗，铮然碎裂。 “姑娘？怎么了？”苗女吃了一惊，从后屋奔出来。 “没……没什么。”苏薇迟疑了一下，指了指那个醉倒的人，道，“把我的酒菜放到他那边去，我要和他喝一杯。” “啊？”苗女睁大眼睛，觉得今晚的这个汉人女子实在不可思议。 苏薇挪过了座位，细心将桌上那些七倒八歪的酒瓶都清理干净，重新擦拭了桌子，在他身侧坐下——那个人似乎是醉得狠了，在酒倒上来的时候连眼睛都不睁，随手便是拿过，往嘴里一倒。 酒水一半顺着他的衣襟往下流，污渍斑斑。 他又开始喃喃自语，从怀里拿出一把雕刻用的小刀，趴在桌上，开始一刀一刀地刻着木质的桌角，眼神专注——然而他那只受伤的右手抖得如此厉害，几乎握不住刀，连每一根线条都歪歪扭扭，不成形状。忽然间一刀刻得偏了，一下子便滑到了左手上，血长划而落，殷红染遍。 忽然间，他把刀一扔，将脸埋在酒污里，再也一动不动。 苏薇看着这一幕，忽然间觉得刺心无比。 “哎呀！怎么又划坏我家桌子？”苗女又冲了出来，毫不客气地一把拽开他，却并没有过多责怪，只道，“现在没人拿翡翠请你刻了，你就去刻你的那些劳什子木头好了！干嘛老是喝醉了就乱划我家的桌子啊？！” “不，不要骂他，”苏薇拉住了那个苗女，用近乎哀求的口吻，“我会赔你。” “……”苗女奇怪地看了她一眼，忽地笑了起来，“也好！四坛子酒，六碟子野味，加上被他刻坏的这一张桌子——差不多一共是一两银子！” 她这时才想起来什么，一摸身上，不由变了脸色。