Chapter 1612 – A Moment with Myself

Wang Lin left the country of Zhao, it was the thirty-fifth year, or this fall.

Fire burning country’s autumn, that autumn wind blowing across the sea, blowing across the sky and the earth, fell in the country of Zhao when, already is winter, look around, the whole country of Zhao is covered by a snow-covered, as if wearing a white cotton jacket, endless.

The only thing on the ground in the official road, two rows of horse-drawn carriages pressed out traces, in that creaking sound, gradually far away.

Along this official road, you can see an inn, that inn in the snow was thick white snow pressure, a depression, no one inside.

This inn, as early as more than ten years ago has collapsed most of the people, crushed a few people who stayed here, the shopkeeper in trouble with the lawsuit, died in prison, as for that year’s little fellow, also left in sadness, and now I do not know where to go, and where to take root, or still alive, or, has died.

For a long time, this early years had let the great Confucian Zhao a drunken inn, slowly became ruins, in that official road, wind and rain, a decline.

The carriage, when passing by the inn, stopped for a while, the cover curtain of the carriage was lifted up, a burst of hot air from the inside, in this cold world, scattered not far, and then disappeared.

An old man dressed in white, his gaze fell from within that cover curtain towards the abandoned inn that was pressed by the white blood, his gaze transmitting remembrance, after a long, long time, he sighed softly and lowered the cover curtain.

“Wan Er, there was an inn here in the early years, this is where I woke up.” The old is voice came out from within that carriage, and the carriage gradually sped away into the distance.

Along with the distance, the voice inside the carriage also gradually weakened, and finally in that snowflake fluttering, covering the sky and the earth, everything becomes blurred, only that cold wind whistling, is still blowing, as if not know how to get tired.

The old man’s time, is short, can count their return date, silently looking at the blue sky and white clouds, watching the snowflakes fall, the same, the old man’s time, is also infinite, that infinite is its memory, can be in the memories, forget the return date.

The speed of this carriage is not fast, in that bumpy, along the official road, slowly toward the Hengyue mountain, that a small mountain village and go, in the second sunset dusk, the snow is still falling, more and more big, not the slightest sign of stopping.

The snow sealed the mountain, even more sealed the earth, only this carriage on the ground silently galloped away from the mountain village, closer and closer.

Until dusk passes, evening comes, that in the wind and snow in the mountain village, distant in sight, snow in the mountain village, far from a quiet, especially this evening time, even those usually very sensitive big dog, also are shrinking in the nest, even if heard the wind and snow to send the sound of the creaking wheels, but also do not want to raise their heads to bark a few times.

Households, are in that lit up by the fireplace, in this cold winter night, to fire to warm, to family together, warm heart, that heart and body double warmth, can let this heaven and earth mortals, in the winter again and again, no longer cold.

Among the many houses in the mountain village, there is a house with two big dogs crawling together for warmth in the yard, other than that, it is a white snow.

House in the courtyard, there is a weak fire light through the withered yellow windowpaper, scattered in the courtyard, the color of the snow also burned dim down, as if the tired sunset, in the struggle, slowly lowered his head, will return.

In the firelight, one could see a rickety figure behind that windowpane, that figure was shrunken, holding a thin fire pole in his hand, and was fiddling with the candle flame, trying to make that candle flame brighter.

It was an old man, a pale wrinkled old man, even his eyes seemed to be unable to open all the way, he sat there, staring blankly at the candle flame, and after a long time tightened the cotton jacket on his body, and looked down at his right wrist.

He, is Dafu.

“It has been many years …… he should be coming back soon ……” Dafu looked at his right wrist, where there is a golden handprint, gently stroking that handprint, Dafu’s eyes that revealed memories.

He had waited here for thirty-five years, he always remembered that Wang Lin had told him before he left that he would come back, and told him to wait here, all the time.

“He said that there is no second thirty eight years in his life, and he will come back soon ……” Dafu looked tired, stood up on his crutches, and was about to go to rest, but just at this time, suddenly the two frozen unwilling to open their mouths in the yard, the two big dogs, whimpered and barked.

A burst of wagon wheels pressing snow creaking sound, faintly came, and finally outside that courtyard, stopped, the door of the wagon opened, Wang Lin welcomed the wind and snow, holding the wagon, stepped down from the wagon.

Behind him, Li Muwan, who had already become an old woman, with a soft smile, stepped out of the carriage and stood with Wang Lin, looking at the courtyard, and the house with lights coming out of the courtyard.

With a creak, the door of the hut was pushed open from the inside, and Dafu stared out of the courtyard in a daze, letting go of that Wang Lin after the wind and snow, grinning foolishly.

“I’m back.” Wang Lin looked at the equally pale Dafu and spoke with a smile.

The wind and snow, it was even bigger.

But inside the house in that snowy courtyard, the firelight was flourishing, and in this cold, the master and servant, after a thirty-five year absence, met again.

This night, the cold wind whistling, the snow falls a lot, but the three people in this house, but did not feel the cold, but turned up warm.

Until early in the morning, the snowflakes gradually sparse, sporadic fall, the sunshine sprinkled the earth, although the fusion can not snow, but will let a person feel the freshness.

Especially that sunlight falls on the snow, making the earth vaguely blinding, that light flooding, let a person at first glance, will be somewhat unable to open their eyes, in the early morning of this day, Wang Lin took Li Muwan, and Dafu, the three of them went to the cemetery of Wang Lin’s parents in the back of the village.

Kneeling in front of the grave, Li Muwan similarly knelt at the side, accompanying Wang Lin, the two of them were silent for a long time in front of that grave.

“Father, mother, her name is Li Muwan, she is your daughter-in-law …… I brought her to see you.” Wang Lin didn’t cry, didn’t have tears, took Li Muwan’s hand and bowed to the tomb spirit.

A few days later, in the wind and snow, the carriage left the mountain village and headed towards Su City.

On the carriage, Wang Lin lifted up the cover curtain and looked back at his home which was gradually hidden in the snow, in front of his eyes, it seemed that seventy-three years ago, he was carrying a bamboo row of book cases on his own back, under the kind gaze of his parents, he had to turn back and look at every few steps until he could not see his parents’ silhouettes, only then did he finally turn his head and take a step towards the future.

At that time, he was still ignorant, he did not know his future road in the direction, he just know, he wants to let his parents, later live a good life, to let the relatives, to look up at their own family.

Now, he sat on the carriage to see, that the past scene, gradually blurred, until replaced by the wind and snow, light sigh, Wang Lin put down the cover curtain.

The carriage was far away.

In the spring of the seventy-fourth year, this carriage came to Su City.

In the spring of Suzhou City, everything was revitalized, especially after the snow melted, the aroma of earth and grass seeped into the heart, making it unforgettable.

This flavor is very familiar to Wang Lin, looking for that aroma, such as when Wang Lin first came to Su City, he rented a boat, bought osmanthus wine, and Li Muwan sitting on the boat, drinking wine, watching the beginning of the day sunset, taste the rest of life.

Dafu was still as he was back then, sitting on the side, looking at Wang Lin with a happy smile on his face.

“This is a date, he will definitely come.” Wang Lin took the wine pot, he had entered his twilight years, the old man spots on his hands were more numerous and darker in color, he took the wine pot and took a sip.

The sound of the zither echoed, but it was that Li Muwan, playing the strings of the zither.

Day by day, Su City’s spring in a few months, quietly passed, another year of June.

It was the seventy-fifth year of June, the willow flakes came flying once again, Wang Lin sat at the bow of the boat, drinking osmanthus wine and laughing loudly.

“The heaven and earth, the adversity of all things is also …… time and light, the passing of a hundred generations is also …… and floating life is like a dream, for the joy of geometry …… and for the geometry of joy …… “Wang Lin long laugh, that painting boat along the river, in front of it, there is a stone bridge, there is no one on the bridge, just in the sky above the bridge, but there is a white flying bird.

This flying bird has not appeared for a long, long time, after appearing at this moment, circling back on that stone bridge, gradually, the streets around that bridge, seems to become blurred, as if everything in this heaven and earth, in this instant, all are blurred and cannot be seen.

Only that stone bridge, only that painting boat, in this heaven and earth painting screen, extraordinarily conspicuous.

As the painting boat approached, Wang Lin’s eyes revealed the brightest light in these seventy years, and he stood up and looked at the stone bridge, his gaze gleaming.

“It’s here ……,” Wang Lin muttered.

At that moment, but saw that white bird of prey whistling, landed on that stone bridge from the sky, turned into a white crystal light, diffused, and from a distance, it seemed to become a white vortex.

Within that vortex, a person slowly walked out.

This was a young man with white hair, his complexion was cold and confused, and he looked around blankly until after the boat got closer and closer, this young man’s eyes suddenly looked directly at the boat and at Wang Lin on the boat.

Their gazes, in this blur of heaven and earth, coalesced together, and in an instant, it was as if time had stopped passing, or rather, the time in this dream had indeed come to a complete standstill.

Li Muwan’s hands playing the zither solidified, the sound of the zither disappeared. Dafu sat aside, looking at his right wrist, motionless. All around the river, the sound of clattering dissipated, the sky of the willow, no longer dancing, but floating in mid-air, frozen motionless.

Everything, everything in this heaven and earth, in this instant, completely stopped.

Only the youth on the stone bridge, only Wang Lin on the prow of the boat, as usual.

“Why don’t you come over and have a drink with yourself.” Wang Lin smiled and sat on the side.

The white-haired youth on that stone bridge, silent for a moment, his body took a step forward, instantly stood on the bow of the boat, sat aside after picking up a jug of wine, drank a large mouthful of it, did not go to look at his other self, but instead looked at Li Muwan, who had become an old woman, for a long time, for a long time.