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　　瑞雪在寒風中如約而來，若鵝毛般飄飄灑灑四處蔓延，山水依舊，面目全非。屋子裡燃了炭火，燒得正旺，柳延站在窗前攏緊了衣襟，身後是火盆裡火花四濺的“嗶剝”聲，面頰有著寒風席捲的冰涼，一時冷暖兩重天。
　　沈玨取了些花生毛栗進屋，門被打開時，雪花和寒風一起呼嘯著沖進來，他急忙轉身，掩好門，將手中乾果一股腦扔進了火盆裡。用火鐮撥弄著，看著窗邊人影道：“夜裡寒，爹要不要燙壺酒吃？”
　　柳延點點頭，對他道：“燙一壺給許明世送去。”
　　沈玨燙了兩壺酒，又端了些糕點送進許明世房裡。許明世裹著厚厚的棉被，畏寒似的縮在床頭半寐半醒中，聽見房門被推開。只點了一盞油燈的屋內並不明亮，影影綽綽中看見一個高大的身影站在桌邊，正微傾著身子，將手中物事擺放在桌上。
　　許明世睜開眼，看了許久，直到那人將點心一一擺好準備離去，才出聲叫住他：“小寶。”
　　
　　背影停頓了一下，轉過身來，年青人特有的清亮雙眸，在暗處也精光四溢，如出鞘的利刃，筆直朝他射來。
　　裹在身上的厚重的棉被，仿佛也失去了禦寒的力量。許明世不自禁地再次抓緊了被子，將自己裹得更緊了些，噤了聲。他知道眼下是該低眉順眼時候，這對父子待他不薄，恩義厚重。況且在這個身強力壯的年青人面前，他不過是一個朽而無用的老頭。
　　或許是真的老了，神智昏聵，老而癡傻，許明世聽見自己又挑釁了他一次，說：“小寶。”
　　陰影很好的藏起了沈玨的臉，沈玨站了片刻，沒有說話，轉身離去。
　　他走得很快，如果不是木門打開時流過的寒氣，許明世甚至以為這只是自己的一場夢。夢裡他對著那個孩子，喚他的乳名。如果這不是一場夢，那麼在很久之前，許明世覺得自己做了一個長長的夢。
　　夢裡有他的至交，有他的知己，也有那個小小的孩童，對他帶來的禮物歡天喜地，用童稚的聲音喚他——許叔叔。
　　許明世覺得自己真的老了，老到一無是處，只能懷念從前。那些記憶裡的細枝末節，曾經以為早已遺忘的東西，都在他老去之時，嶄新的重現在眼前。那麼清晰，那麼真實，仿佛就是昨天。
　　原來，他從未忘懷。
　　
　　沐浴過後柳延披著棉衣，坐在火盆旁烤幹濕發，一邊用火鐮在盆中翻攪，夾起那些被埋在灰燼裡烤熟的果實放在一旁的碗碟裡，沈玨拿起花生，剝開麻殼後緊跟著紅衣也在揉搓中散開，他輕吹了一口氣，紅衣粉粉落地，留在他掌心中的，是一粒粒溫香的果實。
　　在軍營裡的時候，沒有戰事的冬天，他們也經常這樣，不論外面大雪飄飛寒氣肆虐，軍帳裡漂浮起來的，是食物的芬芳，和溫暖的火焰。
　　還有嫋嫋酒香，仿佛冰天雪地裡的熱泉，浸潤全身。
　　沈玨把這話說給柳延聽，柳延聽著，飲了酒，卻在笑。
　　沈玨不知他在笑什麼，有些莫名。柳延道：“那時我總在想一句話。”
　　“什麼話？”沈玨問。
　　柳延搖了搖頭，只是笑而不答，頗為神秘。
　　
　　沈玨見他臉色神情似有揶揄，也就不問了，只道：“不想說就不說，反正爹也不是什麼好話。”
　　柳延瞅了瞅他，道：“真不想知道？”
　　“不想。”沈玨堅決搖頭。
　　“真不想？”柳延又問。
　　“說了也不聽。”沈玨說。
　　柳延眯了眯眼，等了片刻才道：“其實也不是什麼壞話，那句話你也學過。”
　　“是麼？”沈玨傾過身：“我學過？書裡的話嗎？”
　　“嗯。”
　　“是什麼？”
　　柳延伸手揉了揉他的頭，順便將一手花生屑也揉上去，才笑眯眯地道：“那時我一直在想，這句話果然適用與你……”
　　“那句？”沈玨問。
　　“‘學成文武藝，貨與帝王家’。”
　　“……”沈玨反應過來，火光輝映的紅色臉龐驟然又紅了一些，撇開臉低聲道：“爹那時候就在想這些麼？好不正經。”
　　被指控為老不尊的柳延毫無愧色，反是義正言辭地替自己辯駁：“外面風花雪月，帳內暖如江南，既無戰事，又不缺糧，我偶爾想些不正經，有什麼不對？”
　　他的嘴皮過於俐落，堵得沈玨無話可說，倒像是自己小題大做了，沈玨轉回視線，瞅了他好一會，才道：“那上一世，爹怎麼不當我的面說？”
　　柳延頓時無話可說。
　　見柳延無法辯駁，沈玨有了些微妙的得意感，像是終於把大人戰勝的小孩，笑著道：“我現在才知道，爹上輩子也不正經得很，只是時局所困，不正經也只能在內心裡，面子上還得掛著將軍的威嚴。”
　　
　　柳延抿緊唇，父子倆瞪了一回眼。
　　柳延轉了話題：“許明世如何了？”
　　沈玨未說剛剛發生的事，只道：“沒事，只是年紀大了，畏寒的厲害。”
　　“在他屋裡多放兩個火盆，手爐還有閒置的給他送一個去。”
　　“昨夜降雪時就送去了，”沈玨道：“爹放心便是。”
　　“棉衣呢？”
　　“早先也置辦好了，被褥棉衣都是今年新棉，暖和得很。”
　　柳延望著他微微蹙起眉來，若有所思的模樣惹得沈玨坐立不安，道：“莫非爹覺得還有什麼地方沒處置好麼？”
　　自然沒有不妥的地方，偏偏是太妥帖，所以柳延才覺得怪異。
　　畢竟從知道身世開始，沈玨對許明世的態度就從未好過，雖未曾喊打喊殺，也始終冷面相向。許明世許多次獻殷勤，都被少年沈玨斥之門外，後來幾年，許明世也來得少了。兩人關係更是淡漠。
　　柳延問：“你同情他？”
　　沈玨疑惑道：“我同情他作甚？人老病死，人之常態。他既成不了仙，必定會死的。”
　　正說著話，床上蜷在手爐畔睡醒的黑蛇遊了過來，繞到柳延腿邊，攀了上去。
　　柳延轉移了注意力，端著酒盞問懷裡黑蛇：“酒喝麼？”
　　黑蛇也不知是睡得迷糊，或是被他餵食喂成習慣，也未多想，蛇信子一伸就浸滿了熱酒，再收回來，熱酒就下了肚。
　　那味道過於奇怪，伊墨似乎被這樣奇怪的味道疑惑住了，蜷在柳延懷裡，對著酒盞停頓了好一會兒。
　　
　　沈玨在一旁悶笑，往盞裡又斟了酒，湊到柳延耳旁低聲道：“爹，讓它喝完，會不會看到醉蛇？”
　　柳延眯了眯眼，一把抓住嘗了酒覺得味道並不美好轉而欲退的蛇頭，溫柔地道：“乖，喝了它。”說著點住他的腦袋，輕輕往酒盞裡摁了摁。
　　黑蛇懂了他的意圖，但柳延讓喝，也就慢吞吞地一點點用蛇信子，將那盞酒舔了大半。說實話，並不難喝。
　　於是，他醉了。
　　沈玨觀賞完一場“蛇飲酒”，並不知道喝醉酒的蛇會做什麼，但無論如何，這屋子不能再待，免得萬一鬧得不可開交，被柳延當做出氣筒懲治，況且，讓蛇飲酒的壞主意，本來就是他出的。沈玨忙道：“夜深了，爹爹早些歇息。”說完拔腿就走。
　　他溜得極快，柳延一抬頭，只聞其聲，不見其人。
　　
　　柳延將炭火撥得更旺些，將火鐮放到一旁，摟著懷裡喝醉了，正用尾巴在他脖子上繞來繞去的黑蛇走到床邊坐下，對沈玨這種肇事逃逸的行為，已經不願置評，低頭對著黑蛇豆大的眼，柳延問：“你真醉了？”
　　黑蛇的回應是在他湊過來的臉上咬了一口，牙齒剛碰上皮肉就停頓下來，轉而用信子舔了舔，又攀上他的臉，在柳延頭上玩了起來。
　　柳延往後仰躺在床上，黑蛇跟著跌在枕上，接著又纏上來，大約真的喝醉了，從柳延腋下鑽到頸側，又從柳延頸側鑽到柳延另一隻胳膊底下，尾巴歡快地卷住什麼又鬆開，在空中甩來甩去。甚至溜到床的那一頭，尾巴卷住他的小腿，一口啃上柳延的腳趾。
　　
　　柳延“哧”地笑出聲，只覺被咬得又疼又癢，坐起身就要把他抓開。那蛇卻歡快地換了個地方，一歪頭對準他的腳心，不偏不倚地咬了下去還伸出蛇信舔了舔，柳延硬是沒忍住，笑著喊“別鬧，不准咬”，可惜此時的蛇已經完全聽不懂，並且醉得不輕，就算聽懂了也未必理他，兀自咬得很歡騰，咬得柳延亂顫，兩條白生生的腿滿床亂蹬，坐也坐不住，哧哧笑著又倒下了。別說他這世並無武藝在身，就是有武藝，被咬上癢癢肉也未必使得開，所以沒一會他便笑的渾身發軟，只曉得蹬腿踢那禍害，直踢的枕頭不知翻到哪兒去了，被褥大半也落在地上。饒是如此，那蛇還卷在柳延小腿上，絲毫不為所動，仿佛就認准了那一塊癢癢肉，左一口右一口，咬完再舔，舔兩下接著咬。柳延捂著嘴也抑不住自己的笑聲傳出去，眼淚順著眼角往下落，整個身子像鍋裡的麻花被擰成了幾截，每一截都在扭曲的翻滾。一直滾到床裡面貼著牆壁蜷成一團，柳延蹬著腿喃喃趕他：“滾蛋滾蛋。”一邊亂顫著幾乎喘不上氣。
　　
　　醉蛇趁著酒性玩得極其歡快，本該冬眠的時候他在溫暖的屋子裡，又喝了不少熱酒，幾乎都以為是春暖江南的好時節了。他玩到心滿意足才停下來，停下時，柳延還是貼著牆壁蜷縮著，笑的滿臉淚痕都不曉得抹，腦中是劫後餘生般的一片空白。
　　許久回過神，柳延渾身發軟的坐起身，一把抓住小腿上纏著的黑蛇舉起，眼對著眼，柳延在忿惱裡措辭，思忖半天後才對著蛇眼認真說：“你真是討厭！”
　　黑蛇很無辜地看了他一會，伸長脖子在他臉上舔了舔，而後又纏上去了。
　　柳延撲通往後仰倒，一隻手伸到床沿邊提溜起被子往身上一蓋，一邊想著明兒怎麼和沈玨算帳，一邊闔上眼睡了過去。
　　
　　第二天清晨，雪已停下，冬日的陽光印在潔白的世界上，帶出了一些金色，金色又反射出絢麗的光澤。美到無可挑剔。柳延忘了昨晚的事，洗漱過後鋪開紙，對著窗外欲作畫，站了許久卻又放下筆，收了紙硯，眼前景色不著一畫盡得風流。
　　午飯過後許明世含茶漱口，一邊走向院子，尋找有陽光的地方坐下，裹緊斗篷，曬著太陽。
　　他的髮絲雪白，然而陽光明亮耀目，落在他頭上卻沒有光澤，反而益發顯得枯澀，柳延自窗戶裡看他許久，無聲的歎息，這已分明是油盡燈枯，萎敗之相。
　　似乎察覺到他的注視，許明世轉過頭，遙遙望著他，咧開嘴露出一個笑容。笑過後，許明世站起身，蹣跚地隨著陽光的傾斜，換了一個角落，倚著牆根將自己蜷縮起來，閉目而寐，眼角的污垢和止不住流出的涎水，讓他渾身都散發著行將就木的氣息，像一條窮途末路的老狗。
　　
　　柳延正准欲走出去，眼角瞥到一抹身影，是沈玨手中端著一盆熱水，朝許明世走了過去。他蹲在許明世身前，熱水裡擰過的白巾在手上攤開，擦去了老人眼角的污穢，和滿臉的狼狽無狀。
　　許明世恍惚著睜開眼，渾濁的眼神久久地看向前方，嘶啞著道：“小寶。”
　　沈玨沒有奚落他，也沒有回應他，將白巾重新擰過，端起水盆走出院外，潑水聲若暴雨傾盆，打破滿院寧靜。沈玨提著盆回去，很快又從房裡取出那件原本打算過年時孝敬柳延的狐裘大氅，雪白的狐皮，嚴絲合縫的拼接，纖塵不染。他走出去，將它蓋在了追逐陽光的老人身上。
　　他真的是一個老人了，柳延想，卻一次次想起的是那年在沈宅院外，仗劍除妖的少年，還有那個在他高頭大馬前，上躥下跳狂奔不休的年青人。
　　流年易逝，不外如此。
　　
　　“小寶，”柳延聽見不遠處許明世蒼老的聲音在說：“你再喚我一聲叔叔。”
　　他的語氣蒼涼，眼神溫善，似若有所依戀。而沈玨轉過身，邁出去的步伐，卻沒有因此而緩下。

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The snow came as promised in the cold wind, spreading everywhere like goose feathers, the mountains and rivers remained the same, but they were completely changed. The charcoal fire was burning in the house , and Liu Yan stood in front of the window, pulling his clothes tightly together. Behind him was the sound of sparks flying in the brazier, and his cheeks were cold from the cold wind, and he felt a world of cold and warm at the same time.

Shen Jue took some peanuts and chestnuts and went into the house. When the door was opened, snowflakes and cold wind rushed in. He turned around quickly, closed the door, and threw all the dried fruits in his hand into the brazier. He poked with a flint and looked at the figure by the window and said, “It’s cold at night. Dad, do you want to heat a pot of wine for me?"

Liu Yan nodded and said to him, “Boil a pot and send it to Xu Mingshi."

Shen Jue heated two pots of wine and brought some cakes to Xu Mingshi’s room. Xu Mingshi was wrapped in a thick quilt, curled up at the head of the bed, half asleep and half awake, as if he was afraid of the cold. He heard the door being pushed open. The room was not bright with only one oil lamp lit. In the shadows, he saw a tall figure standing by the table, leaning slightly and placing the things in his hands on the table.

Xu Mingshi opened his eyes and looked for a long time, until the man arranged the snacks one by one and prepared to leave, then he called him: “Xiaobao."

The figure paused for a moment, then turned around. The clear eyes that were unique to young people, even in the dark, were full of brilliance , like a sharp blade drawn from its sheath, shooting straight at him.

The heavy quilt wrapped around him seemed to have lost its ability to keep out the cold. Xu Mingshi could not help but hold the quilt tightly again, wrapped himself tighter, and kept silent. He knew that it was time to bow his head and obey his father and son. The father and son treated him well and showed great kindness. Besides, in front of this strong young man, he was just a rotten and useless old man.

Perhaps he was really old, mentally deranged, old and stupid. Xu Mingshi heard himself provoking him again and said, “Xiaobao."

The shadow hid Shen Jue’s face very well. Shen Jue stood for a moment, said nothing, then turned and left.

He walked very fast. If it weren’t for the cold air flowing through when the wooden door opened, Xu Mingshi would have thought it was just a dream. In the dream, he looked at the child and called him by his nickname. If this was not a dream, then a long time ago , Xu Mingshi felt that he had a long dream.

In the dream, there were his best friends, his confidants, and also that little child, who was overjoyed at the gifts he brought and called him in a childish voice – Uncle Xu.

Xu Mingshi felt that he was really old, so old that he was useless and could only miss the past. The details in his memory, the things he thought he had forgotten, all reappeared before his eyes as he grew old. So clear, so real, as if it was yesterday.

It turned out that he never forgot.

After bathing, Liu Yan put on a cotton coat and sat beside the brazier to dry his wet hair. He stirred the fruits in the brazier with a flint, picked up the roasted fruits buried in the ashes and placed them in the bowls and plates beside him. Shen Jue picked up the peanuts, peeled off the shells, and then the red clothes also fell apart while rubbing them. He blew lightly, and the red clothes fell to the ground, leaving in his palms the warm and fragrant fruits.

When they were in the military camp, they often did this in the winter when there was no fighting. No matter how snowy and cold it was outside, what floated in the military tent was the fragrance of food and the warm fire.

There is also the lingering aroma of wine, like a hot spring in the snow, soaking the whole body.

Shen Jue said this to Liu Yan. Liu Yan listened, drank the wine, but laughed.

Shen Jue didn’t know what he was laughing at, it was a little strange. Liu Yan said: “At that time, I was always thinking of a sentence."

“What?" Shen Jue asked.

Liu Yan shook his head and just smiled without answering, which was quite mysterious.

Shen Jue saw that he looked teasing, so he stopped asking and just said, “If you don’t want to talk, don’t talk. Anyway, Dad doesn’t say anything nice."

Liu Yan glanced at him and said, “You really don’t want to know?"

“I don’t want to." Shen Jue shook his head firmly.

“Really don’t want to?" Liu Yan asked again.

“You don’t listen even if I tell you." Shen Jue said.

Liu Yan narrowed his eyes and waited for a moment before saying, “It’s not a bad thing actually. You have learned that sentence before."

“Really?" Shen Jue leaned over: “I have learned it? The words in the book?"

“Um."

“What is it?"

Liu Yan stretched out his hand to rub his head, and rubbed a handful of peanut crumbs on it, then said with a smile: “At that time, I kept thinking that this sentence really applies to you…"

“That sentence?" Shen Jue asked.

“‘Learn the arts of civil and martial arts, and sell them to the emperor’."

“…" Shen Jue reacted, his red face illuminated by the firelight suddenly turned redder, he turned his face away and whispered: “Dad was thinking about these things at that time? How frivolous."

Liu Yan, who was accused of being disrespectful to his elders, showed no shame and defended himself righteously: “It’s romantic outside, and it’s warm inside the tent. There’s no war and no shortage of food. What’s wrong with me having some frivolous thoughts occasionally?"

His words were too sharp, leaving Shen Jue speechless. It seemed like he was making a big deal out of nothing. Shen Jue turned his gaze back and stared at him for a long time before saying, “Then why didn’t Dad say it to my face in the previous life?"

Liu Yan was speechless.

Seeing that Liu Yan couldn’t refute, Shen Jue felt a subtle sense of pride, like a child who finally defeated an adult. He smiled and said, “I now know that Dad was not a serious person in his previous life, but he was trapped by the current situation. He could only be serious in his heart and had to maintain the dignity of a general on the surface."

Liu Yan pursed his lips, and the father and son glared at each other.

Liu Yan changed the subject: “How is Xu Mingshi?"

Shen Jue did not say what just happened, he just said: “It’s okay, it’s just that I’m old and I’m very afraid of the cold."

“Put two more braziers in his room, and send him one of the unused hand warmers."

“We sent it last night when it snowed," Shen Jue said, “Don’t worry, Dad."

“Where’s the cotton coat?"

“I have already bought it. The quilts and cotton-padded clothes are all new cotton this year. They are very warm."

Liu Yan looked at him with a frown on his face. His thoughtful look made Shen Jue fidget. He asked, “Does Dad think there’s something he hasn’t dealt with yet?"

There was nothing wrong with it of course, it was just too appropriate, so Liu Yan felt it was weird.

After all, ever since he knew his background, Shen Jue’s attitude towards Xu Mingshi had never been good. Although he never called for war and killing, he always treated him coldly. Xu Mingshi tried to be attentive to him many times, but was rejected by the young Shen Jue. In the following years, Xu Mingshi came less and less. The relationship between the two became even more indifferent.

Liu Yan asked: “Do you sympathize with him?"

Shen Jue asked in confusion: “Why should I sympathize with him? It is normal for people to grow old, get sick and die. Since he cannot become an immortal, he will definitely die."

As they were talking, the black snake that had just woken up and was curled up next to the hand warmer on the bed swam over, circled around Liu Yan’s legs, and climbed up.

Liu Yan shifted his attention and asked the black snake in his arms while holding the wine cup : “Would you like some wine?"

The black snake was either in a sleepy state or had become accustomed to being fed by him, so it didn’t think much about it. When it extended its tongue, it was soaked with hot wine, and when it retracted it, the hot wine went down its throat.

The smell was too strange. Yi Mo seemed confused by it. He curled up in Liu Yan’s arms and paused in front of the wine cup for a long time.

Shen Jue laughed quietly at the side, poured more wine into the cup , leaned close to Liu Yan’s ear and whispered, “Dad, let it finish drinking, will it see the drunk snake?"

Liu Yan narrowed his eyes, grabbed the snake’s head, which was about to retreat after tasting the wine and finding it unpalatable, and said gently, “Be good, drink it." As he spoke, he touched his head and gently pressed it into the wine cup.

The black snake understood his intention, but Liu Yanrang asked him to drink, so he slowly licked up most of the wine with his tongue. To be honest, it was not hard to drink.

So he got drunk.

Shen Jue watched a “snake drinking" show, and he didn’t know what a drunk snake would do, but he couldn’t stay in the house any longer, lest Liu Yan used him as a punching bag and punished him if things got out of hand. Besides, it was he who came up with the bad idea of letting the snake drink. Shen Jue hurriedly said, “It’s late, Daddy, go to bed early." Then he ran away.

He slipped away very quickly. When Liu Yan looked up, he could only hear his voice but not see him.

Liu Yan stirred the charcoal fire more vigorously, put the flint aside, and walked to the bed with the drunk black snake, which was circling his neck with its tail, in his arms. He was no longer willing to comment on Shen Jue’s hit-and-run behavior. He lowered his head to look into the black snake ‘s big eyes and asked, “Are you really drunk?"

The black snake responded by biting his face as it came closer. It paused as soon as its teeth touched the flesh, then licked it with its tongue, then climbed up his face again and started playing with Liu Yan’s head.

Liu Yan leaned back and lay on the bed, and the black snake fell on the pillow, and then coiled up again. It must have been really drunk, and it went from Liu Yan’s armpit to the side of his neck, and then from the side of Liu Yan ‘s neck to under Liu Yan’s other arm. Its tail happily wrapped around something and then released it, swinging in the air. It even slid to the other side of the bed, wrapped its tail around his calf, and bit Liu Yan’s toes.

Liu Yan laughed out loud, feeling the bite was painful and itchy, and sat up to scratch him away. But the snake happily changed its position, tilted its head to aim at the sole of his foot, bit it squarely, and licked it with its tongue. Liu Yan couldn’t help but shouted with a smile, “Stop it, don’t bite me." Unfortunately, the snake didn’t understand at all at this time, and was very drunk. Even if it understood, it might not pay attention to him. It bit him happily, making Liu Yan tremble. His two white legs kicked all over the bed. He couldn’t sit still, and fell down again with a chuckle. Not to mention that he didn’t have any martial arts in this world , even if he had martial arts, he might not be able to get rid of the itchy flesh being bitten, so after a while, he laughed so hard that his whole body became weak, and he could only kick the evil thing with his legs, kicking the pillow to who knows where, and most of the bedding fell to the ground. Even so, the snake still coiled around Liu Yan’s calf, unmoved, as if it had identified that piece of itchy flesh, biting left and right, licking after biting , licking twice and then biting again. Liu Yan covered his mouth but couldn’t help laughing, tears fell from the corners of his eyes, and his whole body was like a twisted dough in a pot, twisted into several pieces, each piece twisting and rolling. He rolled all the way to the bed and curled up against the wall. Liu Yan kicked his legs and murmured to drive him away: “Get out, get out." He was shaking and almost out of breath.

The drunk snake had a lot of fun while drunk. He was in a warm room when he should have been hibernating. He drank a lot of hot wine and almost thought it was the good time of spring in the south of the Yangtze River. He played until he was satisfied. When he stopped, Liu Yan was still curled up against the wall, smiling so hard that he didn’t know how to wipe the tears off his face. His mind was blank as if he had survived a disaster.

After a long time of coming back to his senses , Liu Yan sat up weakly, grabbed the black snake wrapped around his calf and lifted it up, looking at the snake’s eyes. Liu Yan was angry and thought for a long time before he said to Snake Eyes seriously : “You are so annoying!"

The black snake looked at him innocently for a while, stretched its neck to lick his face, and then coiled around him again.

Liu Yan fell backwards, stretched out one hand to the edge of the bed and lifted the quilt to cover himself. While thinking about how to settle accounts with Shen Jue tomorrow , he closed his eyes and fell asleep.

The next morning, the snow had stopped, and the winter sun shone on the white world, bringing out some gold, which in turn reflected a brilliant luster. It was impeccably beautiful. Liu Yan forgot about what happened last night, and after washing up, he spread out the paper and wanted to paint outside the window. He stood there for a long time before putting down his pen, collecting the paper and inkstone. The scenery in front of him was so beautiful without even a single stroke.

After lunch, Xu Mingshi rinsed his mouth with tea , walked to the yard, found a sunny place to sit down, wrapped his cloak tightly, and basked in the sun.

His hair was snow-white, but the bright sunlight had no luster when it fell on his head. Instead, it looked even dryer. Liu Yan looked at him for a long time through the window and sighed silently. It was clear that he was running out of energy and was withered .

As if he had noticed his gaze, Xu Mingshi turned his head and looked at him from a distance, grinning. After laughing, Xu Mingshi stood up, staggered as the sun slanted, changed to another corner, curled up against the wall, closed his eyes and fell asleep . The dirt in the corners of his eyes and the saliva that could not be stopped made him exude a dying aura, like an old dog at the end of his rope.

Liu Yan was about to walk out when he caught a glimpse of a figure from the corner of his eye. It was Shen Jue, holding a basin of hot water, walking towards Xu Mingshi. He squatted in front of Xu Mingshi, spread out a white towel that had been wrung in hot water, and wiped away the dirt from the corners of the old man’s eyes and the embarrassment on his face.

Xu Mingshi opened his eyes in a daze , looked forward for a long time with cloudy eyes, and said hoarsely : “Xiaobao."

Shen Jue did not ridicule him, nor did he respond to him. He twisted the white towel again, picked up the basin and walked out of the yard. The sound of splashing water was like a torrential rain, breaking the tranquility of the yard. Shen Jue went back with the basin, and soon took out the fox fur coat that he had originally planned to give to Liu Yan during the New Year. The snow-white fox fur was stitched tightly and spotless. He walked out and covered the old man who was chasing the sun with it.

He is really an old man, Liu Yan thought, but what he thought of again and again was the young man who wielded a sword to eliminate demons outside the Shen residence that year, and the young man who jumped up and down and ran wildly in front of his tall horse.

Time flies, nothing more than that.

“Xiaobao," Liu Yan heard Xu Mingshi’s old voice not far away saying, “Call me uncle again." His tone was desolate, his eyes were kind, as if he was attached to something. But Shen Jue turned around, but his pace did not slow down.