Strong Winds Return Home

Gao Lin was standing on the side of the road, talking to the guards, and watched his family’s prince approach from a distance, walking in a hurry. Thinking that someone important must have happened for him to walk so urgently, he rushed forward to ask for clarification. Liang Shu suddenly stopped in his tracks and glanced back slightly from the corner of his eye. Liu Xian’an also stopped not far away and didn’t hit his head on the other’s back as someone expected. It could be seen that Second Young Master Liu was going back and forth, but was superior to a duck after all.

Liang Shu touched the bridge of his nose, the corners of his mouth rising slightly, and suppressed his smile.

Gao Lin looked at the prince’s teasing expression and felt that he still lacked professional experience. Excuse me, I will leave now.

But Liu Xian’an greeted him: “Lieutenant General Gao, we’re going to see Yu Cong, you should come along.”

Gao Lin said politely, “I won’t go, it’s not suitable for me to go.”

Liang Shu frowned and said: “We’re looking at a big man, not a big girl, yet you’re actually using all kinds of excuses and acting coy.”

It was a grievance for Gao Lin to be scolded. You’re going together, so it would be wrong for me to disturb you, right?

Yu Cong was imprisoned in a separate courtyard. After Liu Xian’an’s diagnosis and treatment, his physical condition had improved greatly. Ironically, he attributed all of this improvement to the gods, and even created a theory of his own. He felt that it was because he sacrificed his son that his lifespan had been extended. In this way, the sadness in his heart dissipated like a cloud of smoke, and he meditated in bed all day long, with a profound and detached appearance.

The “detachment” couldn’t be believed even by the guard in charge. He understood that everyone wanted to live forever, but his own son’s life was lost, and the old man was still happy that he had taken his son’s life. How was this different from being a beast? He put the food on a small table and turned around to leave, but saw Liang Shu walk in. He hurriedly saluted: “Your Highness, Lieutenant General Gao.”

Gao Lin glanced into the room and saw Yu Cong still sitting in bed, muttering something, so he asked: “Is he always like this?”

“Yes,” the guard said. “I have guarded the prison for thirty years, and I have never seen such a prisoner. His corrupt practices are very evil.”

Hearing the movement, Yu Cong opened his eyelids slightly. He just felt the sunlight at the door flickering and dimming, making his head a little dizzy, and the backlight was such that he couldn’t see the faces of the people who had come. He was once again in the midst of ignorance and nothingness, and squeezed out a dry murmur from his throat, closing his eyes again.

Liang Shu regarded the shriveled old man before him and thought of the charred black corpses he had seen before. It could be seen that Yu Cong truly revealed the wickedness in his heart on his face. The dry, wrinkled skin wrapped around his skeleton, and the corners of his mouth were stiff with a seemingly desireless smile. But the smile was so strange that ordinary people would have at least one night of nightmares upon seeing it.

With him being so thin and yet still continuing to breathe, Liang Shu believed Liu Xian’an’s previous diagnosis — Yu Cong’s physical foundation was actually very good. If he hadn’t been poisoned in small doses by Yin Die for so many years, he might really have lived to be one hundred years old. Because of this, the current facts seemed even more ironic and absurd. He asked: “Were the bones in the back courtyard all your work?”

Yu Cong shook his head slowly: “They just dedicated their lives to the gods, and the gods gave these lives to me. Their lives are still here, so they are still alive, and their lives are more valuable than before.”

Gao Lin was stunned by this nonsense theory: “Even if they’re the same lives, those little girls were worth more than you, a man with half his neck buried in the grave, right?”

“They had desire in their lives, and even if this desire was satisfied, the next desire would soon arise. Thus, their lives were filled with one pain after another that could never be satisfied. Even if I carefully selected the most innocent girls, they would be the same.” Yu Cong said, “But I have no desires. Without desires, there will be no pain. A life without pain is of course more valuable.”

Gao Lin gasped in amazement. An old lecher who had murdered countless young girls said so brazenly that he had no desires. Where the hell did he get his face? It stood to reason that the criminal evidence collected so far was enough to cut off Yu Cong’s head with a sword, but he also felt that such a quick and decisive decision was going easy on him. With such a complete set of fallacies and heresy, perhaps this old man would regard going to the execution grounds as a joyous ascension to the heavens. How could this comfort the wronged souls of Wan Yuan and the other girls who died tragic deaths?

Liang Shu said: “Pain must be repaid with pain.”

Liu Xian’an then said to Yu Cong: “Your son also had desires. He was greedy for money, lustful, addicted to drinking and gambling, and never believed in the gods. This sort of life without blessings would only be more painful than those girls’, so naturally it won’t allow you to live for too long. You’ve had a stabbing pain in your ribs lately because there’s a gap there. The gap is your son’s unsatisfied desire before he died, and your life will flow out from there continuously.”

Gao Lin thought to himself, I just heard some nonsense.

He looked at his prince with a solemn expression. How could Second Young Master Liu also have such research on cults? What sort of devilish books were hidden in Baihe Mountain Village? Did the court really not need to investigate it?

Liang Shu put his hand on Liu Xian’an’s shoulder, encouraging him to continue talking.

And Yu Cong had already covered the left side of his chest. There was indeed a stabbing pain in his heart from time to time, and after this reminder, the pain became more obvious, as if he was being pierced by a thousand needles. His face paled. He had thought that if he sacrificed his close relative, his merits would increase greatly, but Liu Xian’an said: “The most valuable life should be like yours, with no desire. And there are really too few people in this world who have no desires. The only one I have met recently is a little girl.”

He added: “A ten-year-old girl, who was born beautiful and delicate, and likes to wear red dresses. The most important thing is that she grew up in the deep wilderness since she was young, and has never set foot in the world of mortals. Her eyes are as clear as lake water, and her voice is as melodious as that of an oriole. She also believes in the gods. She originally came to Huaizhen City to see Yin Die, but it is a pity that Yin Die is already dead.”

Yu Cong was fascinated by what he heard, and asked obsessively: “She, where is she?”

“Still in the city, ready to marry a fifty-year-old bachelor.” Liu Xian’an’s tone was like a cold spring. “She is ignorant of the world, so she has no desires, and when she heard that Yin Die was dead, she sat resting at the gate of Yu Manor. A man passed by at this time, and she followed along with him after a few coaxing words.”

“No! No!” Yu Cong yelled, “She should be mine! She was sitting at the door of my house!”

Gao Lin drew his sword out of his sheath to block the old man who was rushing forward, but Yu Cong didn’t care. Even though the skin on his chest was cut, he still stretched out his arms like the walking dead, trying to grab Liu Xian’an: “You bring her here!”

“I can’t bring her, she’s already going to the wedding ceremony.” Liu Xian’an sighed. “Perhaps she was really given to you by the gods to fill the gap in your heart. It’s a pity, if only it was ten days earlier.”

Yu Cong’s facial features distorted, and the sound that came from his throat was that of a trapped animal. Liu Xian’an grabbed Liang Shu’s wrist, then turned and left the small courtyard. This time, the one going faster and faster was Second Young Master Liu, who was panting at the end of the walk. Liang Shu just held his arm and stood still, patting his back. “Are you uncomfortable?”

Liu Xian’an nodded.

Even though it was a made-up story, to make up a ten-year-old girl’s wedding ceremony still made his hair stand on end, and he felt uncomfortable all over. Liang Shu then took him into the warm winter sun for a while, and said comfortingly, “It will be alright.”

Liu Xian’an took a deep breath.

Liang Shu said: “With your story, his pain has officially begun.”

“Actually, I originally wanted to destroy the gods in his heart,” Liu Xian’an said. “But when I saw him, I thought that there was no need to waste more words. It is enough for him to experience the same fear and pain as his victims before they died. Some people do not deserve to know the truth.”

Liang Shu rubbed his head: “It’s perfectly all right, why are you squatting down again?”

Liu Xian’an hugged his knees: “I’m tired of walking, so I’m taking a rest.”

Liang Shu smiled, and also squatted down with him: “Then rest a little longer.”

That ten-year-old girl was an image that Liu Xian’an further created based on Xiao Hua’s appearance. Childish, desireless, beautiful, bent on dedicating herself to the gods. Ordinary people may be skeptical when they heard this story, because there should be no such girl in Huaizhen City. But Yu Cong was different. He also thought that such a little girl should not appear in Huaizhen City, so if she appeared, it should be a gift from the gods, and she should belong to him from head to toe.

Ten years old, delicate and beautiful. Yu Cong paced around the room, blood pouring down his stomach. His lips and hands trembled, and he cried out from time to time. The jailer obeyed the prince’s orders and asked people to carry a few firecrackers and set them off neither far nor near. The crackling sound exploded, and Yu Cong became even more crazed, holding the window lattice tightly with his emaciated hands and squeezing half his head out: “Who, who is getting married?”

The jailer said casually: “Zhou Duyan. I heard that he was lucky and picked up an obedient little girl.”

“No! They can’t marry!” Yu Cong scratched at the air. “She’s mine, I’ll give you money, I’ll give you silver, go and get her!”

“I cannot accept that.” The jailor looked at him sympathetically. “Seriously, shouldn’t she belong to you , Master Yu? It would have been great if she had come ten days earlier. This girl with no relatives and no reason, anyone who saw her would take her to Yu Manor. After all, the family has a great destiny, doesn’t it? Alas, what a pity.”

Ten days, only ten days earlier, ten days away. Yu Cong panted heavily, his eyes and heart filled with these words. He felt that he had been deprived of what belonged to him, and his own life was also taken away, so he burst into tears.

After finishing what he was supposed to say, the jailor immediately retreated outside the courtyard, thinking in shock, whether he was crazy or not, he had been fine in the morning. Then he plucked up the courage to ask Gao Lin beside him: “Lieutenant General Gao, did what Second Young Master Liu told Yu Cong make him crazy?”

Gao Lin nodded with a sigh, how wretched, ah.

The jailer agreed, yes, ah, yes, ah. At such an old age, it seemed like a crime.

Gao Lin slapped him on the head. You don’t know a fart, I mean that my prince is wretched.

With Second Young Master Liu’s mouth, if they got married in the future and quarreled…..how could he miss that magnificent scene?

In the future, he must buy a house next to Xiao Wang Palace.

Liu Xian’an squatted for a while, but was still quite tired, so Liang Shu walked with him on his back, and asked while walking: “What would you do if you were tired and I wasn’t here?”

“Then I would keep going for a while.”

Liang Shu loosened his grip, trying to put him down, but Liu Xian’an wrapped his arms tightly around his neck. The dignified Dayan general was caught off guard, and was almost strangled by those thin arms, but the pain in his flanks was also very sweet, because love was unreasonable.

The sunlight was comfortably warm.

Liu Xian’an said: “The prince smells very good, exactly the same as that quilt.”

Liang Shu asked: “The quilt still has a scent?”

Liu Xian’an responded calmly, it is already very weak. 

Although Liang Shu really wanted to push the relationship further, it was really not good to say, “then I’ll make you sleep better” at such a time. It sounded like his brain was really not working well, so he changed his mind and lifted this person up: “If it smells good, then smell it more.”

Liu Xian’an thought, why don’t you continue to give me quilts.

Liang Shu no longer paid attention to his family background. He ran out at this time to run errands, not to traffic quilts, and Gao Lin snatched the current quilt on his body from A-Ning. In order for his bachelor brother to succeed in having a successful courtship, Liang Yu had prepared a lot of beautiful hairpin jewelry, as well as rouge powder made by the court perfumer, seventy or eighty things in total. Beauty was beauty, but the gender was wrong, so His Royal Highness Xiao Wang could only hold out a palace quilt as a gift to his sweetheart, which seemed very frugal and pragmatic.