庭院裡的草木陰影重重，翹簷深廊穿過的風聲鶴唳，讓季玖覺得自己瘋了。他是瘋了，否則為何要救沈玨。那是妖怪的兒子，即便他信沈玨是孤兒，繼而想到或是妖物收養的養子，也不該是自己去搭救的。畢竟，沈玨與妖怪沾親帶故，這是無可辯駁的事實。
可是，那讓他喚乳名的青年卻是無辜的，他厭恨不起來。所以這麼久，明知道他與那妖是一夥的，也沒有揭穿了他。反留他在身邊，委以重任，私下裡也是覺得，那人看自己的眼神，像極了自己的孩子。一樣的依戀與崇敬。他常年在外，也會想家，想家中幼子獨女，身為人父，卻不能教導孩子一二，不是不愧疚的。這份愧疚，也願意移情在這年輕人身上。那沈玨，是好的。季玖想。所以不願意害他，連累他。
皇帝喜男風也不是頭一天了，季玖原先還不太清楚，或者說有意避開類似的資訊，現今卻不知為何，終於肯直視這一切——他的帝王，喜男風，愛美色，後宮有一偏殿，養了三五個孌童，各個眉清目秀，出塵之姿。季玖想來想去，也想不出，那般魁梧英俊無絲毫女氣的沈玨，為何偏偏入了帝王的眼？就像他明明無絲毫女氣，卻被那妖怪一而再欺壓一樣。
被趕出殿來的季玖滿心煩躁，雖然覺得沈玨不會吃虧，卻又怕他真的莽撞，傷了皇帝。又怕沈玨被捏了七寸，讓皇帝欺負了去。一顆心就像在油鍋裡沸騰般，起起落落，不復清明。
最後也是來了氣，抽出佩劍來，對著那無辜松樹一通亂砍，砍得枝椏碎裂，撒了遍地松針。
唬得宮中侍衛一個個繃緊了臉皮，不曉得哪裡得罪了這位紅極一時的將軍大人。
過了片刻，陰影處鑽出來一個小太監，弓著身走到季玖身後小聲道：“將軍。”
季玖問：“聽到什麼？”
“回將軍，安靜的很。沒有聲音。”
季玖站了一會，掉頭走了，身後無人敢跟隨。這皇城，只要他不闖進後宮，誰也不敢攔他。
季玖走到偏僻處，手探入襟口，猶豫了一會，取出胸前那顆紅珠，硬生硬氣道：“出來。”
那紅珠閃爍了一下，一道人影便出現了。
伊墨一月不見他，也不找他。反正東西他給了他，再自己巴巴的貼上去找，伊墨做不出來。這時知道季玖尋他，便現了身，一聲不吭地面對面站著，等季玖說話。
季玖瞥他一眼，很快轉開視線道：“沈玨在皇上的書房裡。”
伊墨說：“嗯。”
季玖說：“不知道現在如何了。”
伊墨說：“想看？”
季玖遲疑了一下，點了點頭。
伊墨便牽了他的手，也不管那人甩脫，鉗得緊緊的，繞過牆根，來到一口枯敗的河塘前，道：“自己看。”
季玖也顧不上旁的事，湊過去往那河塘中看，但見那水面上漾起一圈波紋，隨後仿佛鏡子般顯露出人形，正是書房裡的沈玨與皇帝。皇帝臉上帶著笑，沈玨神色淡定得很，面對面坐著，倒像是相談甚歡，只是這水鏡傳不出聲音，季玖也不知他們在說什麼，不過懸著的一顆心倒是放下了，原以為的劍拔弩張並未出現，到底是運氣。
季玖定了定神，一口氣剛松下半口，那鏡面上的場景卻兀地變了，皇帝起身，走到沈玨面前，伸手摸上了他的臉。季玖頓時屏住氣，仿佛被撫摸的是自己般，雞皮疙瘩從腳跟一直爬到頭皮。那端沈玨動手了，膝蓋屈起，橫掃過去。皇帝也是學過武的，兩人便打了起來。俱是招招狠厲，不像是玩笑，仿佛都被激怒了。季玖呆在那裡，也不知該如何是好。
後來他看見沈玨化成了一匹狼。
烏亮的皮毛，龐大身軀，威武不凡，只需一撞，皇帝便摔倒在地，黑狼撲上去，銳利的爪扣住了皇帝的脖子，脖子上紅痕立顯。
伊墨一揮袖，鏡花水月消弭無蹤，恢復了河塘寧靜，淡若清風地道：“無事。”
季玖回過神，“無事？”提高音量道：“這叫無事，什麼才叫有事？！”
“帝王之軀妖邪不侵，沈玨奈何不了他。”伊墨平靜道：“皇帝也奈何不了沈玨，所以無事。”
“妖邪不侵？”季玖皺了一下眉：“那如何沈玨能傷他？”
“沈玨雖是妖，卻也有一半的人。”伊墨道：“他是狼母與人間書生的孩子，所以進出皇宮並無妨礙。想要傷到皇帝卻不容易。”
“那你呢？你也半人半妖？”季玖問。
伊墨搖了搖頭：“我就是妖。所以帶你來這裡，再要靠近龍庭卻不能了。”
季玖沉默片刻，勉強應了一聲，算是回應。
伊墨抬頭看了看天色，道：“不早了，你去歇息吧。”
季玖看他一眼，轉身走了。
他走後，伊墨又重新施法打開鏡花水月看那兩人爭鬥，那皇帝到底是九五之尊，骨子裡的高貴，見了狼竟也只是呆了一下，雖是驚駭，卻也沒有太過失態，定下神後居然笑了，連連說好。
沈玨恢復了人形，居高臨下的望著他，正是誰也不服誰，卻又誰也不敢小看誰。
伊墨“嘖”了一聲，再次揮袖讓那面水鏡消失，心裡想著什麼，無人得知。
皇帝仍躺在地上，看著上空，不知為何，突地大笑出聲，笑的忘形，頗有些癲狂。
沈玨蹲在一邊，看著他笑，一言不發。
又不知多久，皇帝笑夠了，一手撐著坐起身，望著眼前青年，道：“我偏要得你，又如何？”
沈玨卻是不屑，連回答也懶得。
皇帝起身整了整龍袍，淡淡道：“明日我就找季玖，要你做我宮中侍衛長。你說他給不給？”
沈玨終於正色，盯著他道：“他不會答應。”
“當真？”皇帝說。
“當真。”沈玨說的極為堅定，一口咬定了自己爹爹的護短秉性。
皇帝笑了：“那便等著看。”說著又走過去，靠的極近了，唇碰上了沈玨的臉，沈玨筆直站著，避也不避，目光鋒利的瞪著他。皇帝親了親他的臉，笑著道：“我是皇帝，于你來說不過‘而已’，季玖一家性命卻受我管轄。你說，誰贏？”
“你若逼他，我便殺你。”沈玨不動不搖，異常淡漠的道：“你死之後，我父子二人扶你幼子登帝，爹爹照樣是天下兵馬元帥。”
皇帝變了臉，咬牙道：“你敢！”
沈玨也微微笑了，湊過去，貼著皇帝耳珠，輕聲道：“你敢逼他，我如何就不敢逼他？”
又道：“我不厭男風，只厭齷齪之人。”略頓，拉開一點距離，甚是認真的神情問皇帝：“你可是齷齪之人？”
皇帝說：“放肆！”
沈玨輕嗤一聲，彎身將那歪倒的椅案扶好，收拾完畢，才行了禮道：“末將告退。”便施施然轉身，走到門口，才陡然想起正事，又回身來，認真說了一句：“不要覬覦我爹，他有人了。”說完就走了，留皇帝一人，氣到內傷。
出了宮門，沈玨尋到了季玖，兩人對視片刻，季玖問：“如何了？”
沈玨笑了下，笑容一如既往掛了幾分憨純，“沒事的。”
“真的？”
“爹說過，遇到狠人，只需比他更狠，壓過去就成了。”沈玨眨眨眼，“皇帝是好人。”
季玖無言了好一會，罵一句：盡說混帳話！這事就過去了。只是忍不住腹誹，這是什麼人教導出來的孩子！
完全沒想到，鑄就這樣沈玨的，就是他自己。
季玖第二日再去皇宮覲見皇帝，發現果然如沈玨所說，什麼事都沒有，也坦然了。心中頓時明白，別看沈玨笑起來頂純良，也未必是好相與的，能讓帝王都吃了癟，對昨夜之事一字不提。不過如此，季玖也樂的順水推舟，一字不提。
君臣二人談了片刻軍事，將啟程去匈奴王廷探路的日子定下了，一個月後，正是十月金秋。季玖啟程。
皇帝起了身，站在遼闊的地形圖邊，靜靜道：“你回來那日，就是朕十萬軍馬予你之時，你想做彪炳史冊的將軍，朕答應過你，能做的朕都做了，剩下就是你季玖的事了。”
季玖跪下，叩首道：“是。”
“季玖。”皇帝看著腳畔的人，等了等，才道：“你若死了，朕也不算辜負你。”
“皇上。”季玖笑了一下，神采奕奕，“當死則死，不當死，臣不敢死。”
“好！”皇帝說：“去吧，回去與妻兒團聚。”
季玖應聲，退出去時，陽光燦爛的耀眼。如他臉上笑容一樣。
一個月的閒置時間無事可做，季玖又想到關於自己前世的事，來時匆忙，不曾問過那兩個雍城籍的老兵，現在想問也須費一番周折，便想到了縣誌。
不知從哪朝哪代開始，各地縣衙興起修志風潮，官衙出錢，請了精通文墨的先生，為當地縣城修撰縣誌。從山川地貌，人土風情，到傳說傳記，還有當地出名的鄉紳貴族，文人軼事，只要是發生在自己所管轄的那片土地上的，事無巨細，都要寫在錄在縣誌之上，供後人參考。這修志的風潮便一代一代的傳下來了，每一位縣官上任初始，都要閱讀本地縣誌，在位時間略長些，便請了先生，將自己在任年間所發生的事，一一補詳，待後任來了，依此照添。
季玖書信一封，請了雍城縣令，索縣誌一覽，半月後送回。
很快，縣誌便送到府上，季玖專挑了個好日子，坐在院中桂花樹旁，飲著家中自炒的花茶，開始翻閱。
亦不知過了多久，許是第十二天的時候，季玖翻到了一百五十多年前的那一篇。
縣誌上說，當地有一沈姓大戶，闊綽鄉紳，祖上從官，至三品，後從商，商鋪遍地。傳至第十三代，有兩子，長子沈字清軒，次子沈楨。長子八歲落冰窟，半身不遂，孤居山野，遇妖。
妖名伊墨，其餘不詳，與其相好，如夫婦。收養一子，狼母所生，名玨。沈清軒體疾悉好，又十三年，歿。妖重情義，碑上契刻，未亡人。
沈清軒歿，又五十年，其弟沈楨之子詆毀朝政，入獄，闔家連坐，判斬。一夜大風，沈宅失火，無一人逃生，不了了之。後有鄉鄰傳言，與極南之處遇沈家後人，為妖伊墨所救，闔家老小一百多口俱逃生，隱姓埋名，沈家絕。
季玖將那一篇翻來覆去，看了又看，直至天色昏暗起來，紙卷上的字再也看不清。
季玖揉了揉眼，仿佛有風沙入內，酸痛難當。家中庭院廊下的燈籠已經亮了起來，季玖垂著頭，合上手中書冊，在沈玨走進來一聲“爹爹”的喚聲裡撇開臉。
一滴水珠，在他轉臉的瞬間，“嗒”的一聲，砸在腕上，正是淺色蛇吻的位置。
無聲又無息。
————————————————
The shadows of the trees and grass in the courtyard were heavy, and the sound of the wind passing through the deep corridors made Ji Jiu feel like he was crazy. He was crazy, otherwise why would he save Shen Jue. He was the son of a monster. Even if he believed that Shen Jue was an orphan, and then thought that he might be the adopted son of a monster, he should not rescue him. After all, Shen Jue was related to the monster, and this was an indisputable fact.
However, the young man whom he called by his nickname was innocent, and he could not hate him. So for so long, even though he knew that he was in cahoots with the monster , he did not expose him. Instead, he kept him by his side and entrusted him with important tasks. Privately, he felt that the way that man looked at him was just like his own child. The same attachment and admiration. He was away from home all year round, and he would miss his youngest son and only daughter. As a father, he could not teach his children anything, and he felt guilty. He was willing to transfer this guilt to this young man. Shen Jue was a good person, Ji Jiu thought. So he did not want to harm him or implicate him.
It was not the first time that the emperor was fond of men. Ji Jiu was not very clear about it before, or he deliberately avoided such information. But now, for some reason, he finally faced it all – his emperor was fond of men and loved beautiful women. There was a side hall in the harem, and he kept three or five male lovers, all of whom were handsome and extraordinary. Ji Jiu thought about it, but he could not figure out why Shen Jue, who was so burly and handsome without any femininity, caught the emperor’s eye? Just like he was obviously not feminine, but was bullied by the monster again and again.
was driven out of the palace and was very upset. Although he felt that Shen Jue would not suffer any loss, he was afraid that he would really act rashly and hurt the emperor. He was also afraid that Shen Jue would be bullied by the emperor. His heart was like boiling in an oil pan, ups and downs, no longer clear.
Finally, he got angry, drew his sword, and chopped at the innocent pine tree, breaking its branches and scattering pine needles all over the ground.
The palace guards were so frightened that their faces tensed up, not knowing how they had offended this once-popular general.
After a while, a little eunuch emerged from the shadows, hunched over and walked behind Ji Jiu, whispering, “General."
Ji Jiu asked: “What did you hear?"
“Replying to the General, it was very quiet. There was no sound."
Ji Jiu stood there for a while, then turned around and walked away. No one dared to follow him. In this imperial city, as long as he didn’t break into the harem, no one dared to stop him.
Ji Jiu walked to a secluded place, put his hand into his collar, hesitated for a while, took out the red bead on his chest, and said stiffly : “Come out."
The red bead flickered, and a figure appeared.
Yi Mo didn’t see him for a month, nor did he look for him. Anyway, he gave him the things, and Yi Mo couldn’t find them by himself. At this time, knowing that Ji Jiu was looking for him, he showed up, stood face to face without saying a word, waiting for Ji Jiu to speak.
Ji Jiu glanced at him, then quickly turned away and said, “Shen Jue is in the emperor’s study."
Yi Mo said: “Yeah."
Ji Jiu said: “I don’t know what’s going on now."
Yi Mo said: “Want to see it?"
Ji Jiu hesitated for a moment and nodded.
Yi Mo took his hand, holding it tightly , regardless of the man trying to get rid of it, and walked around the wall to a dry pond, saying, “Look for yourself."
Ji Jiu didn’t care about other things and leaned over to look at the river pond. He saw a circle of ripples on the water surface, and then a human figure appeared like a mirror. It was Shen Jue and the emperor in the study. The emperor had a smile on his face, and Shen Jue looked very calm. They sat face to face and seemed to be talking happily. However, the water mirror could not transmit any sound, and Ji Jiu didn’t know what they were talking about. However, he was relieved. The tension that he had expected did not appear. It was luck after all.
Ji Jiu calmed himself down and just let out a breath, the scene in the mirror suddenly changed. The emperor stood up, walked to Shen Jue, and reached out to touch his face. Ji Jiu held his breath immediately, as if he was the one being touched, goose bumps crawled from his heels to his scalp. Shen Jue took action, bent his knees, and swept across. The emperor also learned martial arts, and the two started fighting. Their moves were fierce, not like a joke, as if they were both angry. Ji Jiu stood there, not knowing what to do.
Later he saw Shen Jue transformed into a wolf.
With its shiny black fur and huge body, it looked extremely powerful. With just one hit, the emperor fell to the ground. The black wolf pounced on him and grabbed the emperor’s neck with its sharp claws, leaving an immediate red mark on his neck.
Yi Mo waved his sleeves, and the illusion disappeared without a trace, returning the tranquility of the river pond to its original state. He said calmly, “Nothing."
Ji Jiu came back to his senses, “Nothing?" He raised his voice and said, “This is called nothing, what is something?!"
“The emperor’s body is invulnerable to evil spirits , Shen Jue can’t do anything to him." Yi Mo said calmly: “The emperor can’t do anything to Shen Jue either, so there’s nothing to worry about."
“Immune to evil spirits ? " Ji Jiu frowned: “Then how can Shen Jue hurt him?"
“Although Shen Jue is a demon, he is also half human." Yi Mo said: “He is the child of a wolf mother and a human scholar, so there is no problem for him to enter and leave the palace. But it is not easy to hurt the emperor."
“What about you? Are you also half human and half demon?" Ji Jiu asked.
Yi Mo shook his head: “I am a demon. That’s why I brought you here, but you can’t go near the Dragon Court anymore."
Ji Jiu was silent for a moment, then reluctantly responded.
Yi Mo looked up at the sky and said, “It’s getting late, you should go and rest."
Ji Jiu glanced at him, then turned and left.
After he left, Yi Mo cast the spell again to open the Mirror Flower and Water Moon to watch the fight between the two people. After all, the emperor was the supreme ruler, noble in his bones. When he saw the wolf , he was just stunned for a moment. Although he was frightened, he did not lose his composure. After calming down, he actually smiled and said yes repeatedly.
Shen Jue returned to his human form and looked down at him. Neither of them was willing to submit to the other, but neither of them dared to look down on the other.
Yi Mo made a “tsk" sound and waved his sleeves again to make the water mirror disappear. No one knew what he was thinking.
The emperor was still lying on the ground, looking up at the sky. For some reason, he suddenly burst into laughter, laughing so hard that he lost himself and looked a little crazy.
Shen Jue squatted on the side, looked at him and smiled, without saying a word.
After an unknown amount of time, the emperor had laughed enough, propped himself up with one hand, sat up, looked at the young man in front of him, and said, “I must have you, so what?"
Shen Jue was disdainful and didn’t even bother to answer .
The emperor stood up and straightened his robe, then said calmly, “I will find Ji Jiu tomorrow and ask you to be the chief guard in my palace. Do you think he will give it to you?"
Shen Jue finally turned serious, stared at him and said, “He won’t agree."
“Really?" said the Emperor.
“Seriously." Shen Jue said this very firmly, insisting on his father’s protective nature.
The emperor smiled , “Then wait and see." Then he walked over again, got very close, and his lips touched Shen Jue’s face. Shen Jue stood straight, not avoiding, staring at him sharply. The emperor kissed his face and smiled, “I am the emperor, but I am just ‘nothing’ to you, but the lives of Ji Jiu’s family are under my jurisdiction. Who do you think will win?"
“If you force him, I will kill you." Shen Jue remained unmoved and said indifferently, “After you die, my father and I will help your young son become emperor, and your father will still be the marshal of the world’s troops."
The emperor’s expression changed, and he gritted his teeth and said, “You dare!"
Shen Jue also smiled slightly, leaned over, put his ear to the emperor’s ear, and whispered: “You dare to force him, why can’t I dare to force him?"
Then she said, “I don’t dislike male homosexuality, I only dislike dirty people." She paused, pulled away a little, and asked the emperor in a very serious manner, “Are you a dirty person?"
The emperor said, “How outrageous!"
Shen Jue snorted lightly, bent down to straighten the tilted chair and table , and after he finished cleaning up, he bowed and said, “I’ll take my leave." He turned around leisurely and walked to the door, then suddenly remembered the important business. He turned back and said seriously, “Don’t covet my father, he has someone else." After saying that, he left, leaving the emperor alone, who was so angry that he was hurt inside.
After leaving the palace, Shen Jue found Ji Jiu. The two looked at each other for a moment, and Ji Jiu asked, “What happened?"
Shen Jue smiled, his smile still innocent as always, “It’s okay."
“real?"
“Dad once said that if you meet a ruthless person, you just need to be more ruthless than him and suppress him." Shen Jue blinked , “The emperor is a good man."
Ji Jiu was speechless for a long time, then cursed: “What nonsense!" The matter was over. But he couldn’t help but complain in his heart, what kind of person taught this child!
He never expected that it was himself who created Shen Jue.
Ji Jiu went to the palace to meet the emperor the next day and found that as Shen Jue said, nothing happened, so he was calm. He immediately understood that although Shen Jue looked innocent when he smiled, he might not be easy to get along with. He could make the emperor feel embarrassed and did not mention anything about what happened last night. However, Ji Jiu was happy to go with the flow and did not mention anything.
The king and his minister talked about military affairs for a while and set a date to explore the Xiongnu royal court. One month later, in the golden autumn of October, Ji Jiu set off.
The emperor stood up and stood beside the vast topographic map, and said quietly: “The day you come back will be the day I give you 100,000 soldiers and horses . You want to be a general who will go down in history. I promised you that I have done everything I can. The rest is up to you, Ji Jiu."
Ji Jiu knelt down and kowtowed, “Yes."
“Ji Jiu." The emperor looked at the person at his feet, waited for a while, and then said: “If you die, I will not be sorry for you."
“Your Majesty." Ji Jiu smiled, looking very energetic. “When I have to die, I will die. If I don’t have to die, I dare not die."
“Good!" said the emperor, “Go, and go back to be reunited with your wife and children."
Ji Jiu responded and walked out. The sun was shining brightly, just like the smile on his face.
With nothing to do during the month of free time, Ji Jiu started thinking about his past life. He was in a hurry when he came here and had not asked the two old soldiers from Yongcheng . Now if he wanted to ask, it would take some effort, so he thought of the county annals.
I don’t know when it started, but the trend of compiling local chronicles started in county offices everywhere. The government offices paid money and invited scholars who were proficient in writing to compile local chronicles for the county. From mountains and rivers, local customs, legends and biographies, as well as local famous gentry and anecdotes of literati, as long as it happened in the land under their jurisdiction, no matter how big or small, they would be recorded in the county chronicles for future generations to refer to. This trend of compiling local chronicles was passed down from generation to generation . Every county magistrate would read the local county chronicles when he took office. When he was in office for a little longer, he would invite scholars to add details of what happened during his tenure , and when the next person came, he would add to it accordingly.
Ji Jiu wrote a letter to invite the magistrate of Yongcheng County and asked for a copy of the county annals, which was returned half a month later.
Soon, the county annals were delivered to the mansion. Ji Jiu picked a good day, sat beside the osmanthus tree in the yard, drank the scented tea he made at home, and began to read it.
I don’t know how long it had been, maybe it was the twelfth day, Ji Jiu turned to the article that was written more than 150 years ago.
The county annals say that there was a wealthy local family named Shen, a wealthy gentry whose ancestors were officials who rose to the third rank and later became businessmen with shops all over the place. The family was passed down to the 13th generation, who had two sons, the eldest son Shen Qingxuan and the second son Shen Zhen. The eldest son fell into an ice cave at the age of eight and became paralyzed on one side. He lived alone in the mountains and encountered a demon.
The demon’s name is Yimo , and the rest is unknown. He got along well with her, like a married couple. He adopted a son, born to a wolf mother , named Jue . Shen Qingxuan recovered from all his illnesses, and died thirteen years later. The demon valued friendship and loyalty , and the inscription on the stele reads, “She is a widow."
Fifty years after Shen Qingxuan’s death, his brother Shen Zhen’s son slandered the government and was imprisoned. The whole family was implicated and sentenced to death. One night , there was a strong wind and the Shen’s house caught fire . No one escaped and the case was left unresolved. Later, the neighbors spread rumors that they met the descendants of the Shen family in the extreme south and were saved by the demon Yi Mo. More than a hundred people in the family escaped and hid their identities. The Shen family was extinct.
Ji Jiu turned the article over and over again, reading it again and again until it got dark and the words on the paper could no longer be seen clearly.
Ji Jiu rubbed his eyes, feeling as if there was sand blowing in, causing him to feel pain. The lanterns under the courtyard corridor at home were already lit, Ji Jiu lowered his head, closed the book in his hand, and turned his face away when Shen Jue walked in and called “Daddy".
The moment he turned his head, a drop of water hit his wrist with a “tap" sound, exactly where the light-colored snake’s kiss was.
Silent and breathless.
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