I didn't intend to be a Fairy

Night, in the mountains.

A pile of bonfires became the star point among the mountains, and the mountains were filled with the sound of insects and the crackling sound of the fire. Occasionally, fireflies flew out of the forest and flew in front of the Taoist.

Song You sat cross-legged facing the fire, but did not practice. In fact, he had not practiced for a long time. At this time, he just turned sideways and looked at Xiao Jiang Han, who was sitting randomly next to him, and pointed at the sky.

"Star."

"Star~"

Xiao Jianghan raised his head and his eyes flashed.

"Things that are bright and shining in the sky are called stars."

"Call the stars!"

"What was the name of that one in the sky a few days ago?" Song You asked her, "The big one, the bright one."

"Call...call...the moon!"

"Yes, that's really smart."

Song You did not give her a roasted cicada or burnt locusts to eat like Empress Sanhua did when she answered correctly. Instead, she touched her head. Her hair had grown longer and longer, and the top of her head felt warm. Then he continued to say to her softly: "What time is it now?"

"ah……"

"Huh? When?"

"Sanhua Empress~"

Xiao Jianghan couldn't help but look around.

"It's night."

Song You nodded and said.

"Evening~"

"smart."

Song You smiled.

This is not just rhetoric or flattery.

Xiao Jianghan should be one year old now, maybe a month or two more than one year old. Children from ordinary families can usually talk at this age, but not many can deal with problems. As for her, when she first floated down from the river half a year ago, she couldn't speak.

"Look here, we are lighting a fire. Sanhua Empress likes to make fires the most. When we return to the Taoist temple, when Xiao Jiang Han grows up, we can ask Sanhua Empress to teach you fire magic and take over from Sanhua Empress."

"Sanhua Empress~"

"Burn the fire, burn the fire."

"Burn the fire~"

"Have you seen these little bugs flying in the sky? They are bright and they are called fireflies."

"Brewed bug~"

"So Sanhua Empress taught you, was it last night?" Song You smiled, "You can also call it a bright bug, or a firefly."

"Insects...eat..."

"..."

The Taoist's smile froze on his face.

"Bang..."

The wood knots in the fire exploded, and countless sparks sputtered out, facing the stars in the sky.

At this time, there was a movement in the grass forest——

The calico cat dragged a big gray rabbit out. It looked like it was struggling, but her steps were brisk. She dragged it from the grass to the road and didn't stop until she was in front of the fire.

"Sanhua Empress!"

Xiao Jianghan immediately stretched out his hand to hug her.

The Sanhua Empress stood upright, raised a paw high up, and pressed it on her forehead to stop her behavior. Then she continued to drag the rabbit, dragging it into the sack, and then got out again.

"This rabbit is not for eating. Empress Sanhua is going to take it back to the mountain, put it on the mountain, and let it give birth to little rabbits. From now on, we will have endless rabbits to eat."

"Miss Sanhua is far-sighted."

"Rabbit~"

With a roar, the cat turned into a human and sat next to the fire. Then he stretched out his hand to her and called her over.

Fireflies were flying all over the sky, passing in front of them from time to time. From time to time, Empress Sanhua stretched out her hand like lightning, and with a flick of her hand, she caught a lucky firefly, showed it to Xiao Jianghan, and then took it to her mouth. Sai Shi snatched it and put it back into her bag, telling her that it was not delicious and that she would take it back to Yin-Yang Mountain. She was afraid that there would be no fireflies in Yin-Yang Mountain, so she would take it back and have it.

The Taoist looked at it and felt warm and numb at the same time.

"well……"

He simply sighed, fell back, ignored what they said, and just admired the stars in the sky.

After a while, the surroundings became quiet, and then the voice of Empress Sanhua came:

"So many stars~"

"yes."

"When we were in Yidu, there were so many stars that we couldn't even count them."

"yes……"

The Taoist couldn't help but be reminded of his memories.

In my memory, the night sky in Yidu is really beautiful. The stars are like fireflies all over the sky. The city is quiet and cold. The eaves and corners are intertwined, the green tiles are reflective, and the moon is between the beams and pillars of the buildings, which is in harmony with this eternal night sky. A perfect harmony.

I really miss it...

Probably many years later, even if the world has changed, Song You can still remember the night in Yidu, right?

This place is still dozens of miles away from Yidu.

…

Early the next morning, there was the sound of bells in the mountains.

A bay-red horse with no reins and no saddle came along the mountain road. There was a bell and a small wooden sign tied around its neck, and the bell was dangling.

"Ding ding ding..."

"Horse!"

Sanhua Empress was stunned for a moment, then rushed forward without hesitation.

When she came closer, the horse also stopped, lowered its neck so that she could hold it, and said nothing.

"Are you coming to pick us up?"

"puff……"

"Do you also miss Sanhua Empress?"

"..."

"Empress Sanhua told you that we met a little person on the river and picked her up. Now she is the student and apprentice of Empress Sanhua and the Taoist priest. Her name is Xiao Jiang Han."

"..."

The horse is silent most of the time, as if it doesn't understand the words, but it can't extinguish Sanhua Empress's enthusiasm.

The girl's voice was clear and joyful, making the morning in the mountains a little more energetic.

The group tidied up for a while and continued moving forward, leaving only a pile of ashes in the mountain, telling that someone had spent the night here last night.

Soon we got on Jinyang Road.

Jinyang Road is full of ancient cypresses. Unexpectedly, it is almost midsummer. The sunlight passes through the ancient cypresses, leaving obvious shadows and dazzling light spots on the uneven bluestone ancient road.

On the road, there were warriors walking in groups with swords, guns and clubs, not knowing where they were going. There were also officers escorting grain and grass goods and prisoners walking along the road. Occasionally, there were postmen rushing by on horseback. More often than not, this was the way. Accompanied by the sound of horse bells, the porters, merchants and Taoists carefully looked at the scenery and people on the road, making eye contact with everyone, returning the salute to those who saluted, and stopping to chat with those who were good at talking. sentence, compare it with the scene in memory twenty years ago, and appreciate the difference.

Until I walked outside Yidu City and in front of the wonton stall.

This time it’s the same family from twenty years ago.

maybe.

The Taoist ordered four bowls of wontons and let the horses graze beside him. While eating, he watched the people coming and going around him and listened to the current wind and rain in Yizhou from their mouths.

Yidu City is not far away.

"Are we going to stay in Yidu City for a few days?" asked Sanhua Empress next to her.

"I have already visited my old friend in the city a few years ago, and I have also visited the old place. I won't go, and will save it for next time." The Taoist shook his head, "There will be a temple fair in Yidu City in the second half of this year. I'm waiting for the temple fair. We will visit Yidu City again when the time comes. I hope it hasn’t been shrouded in wind and rain at that time.”

"Are we going back to the Taoist temple then?" Empress Sanhua asked him with chopsticks in her hands, carrying a bulging robe containing many small animals that had fainted after she spit out a puff of yellow smoke.

"Let's go visit the last group of old friends."

"The last group of old friends?"

Empress Sanhua couldn't help but look puzzled and tried to think back.

The Taoist reached out and rubbed her head.

"Now that it's almost midsummer, it's hot and dry. It's a good time to go to Qingcheng Mountain to escape the heat."

"Qingcheng Mountain!"

Sanhua Empress suddenly remembered.

It's just that she was still young at the time, and the memory of that time was already very blurry in her mind.

"Early morning...mountain..."

There was another voice next to him.

"Qingcheng Mountain is a famous Taoist mountain in Yizhou. There is a palace on the mountain called Fuqing Palace. It is an old friend of our ancestor. The relationship continues to this day, so I will take you to take a look first." The Taoist said, and then smiled again. , "But when you grow up, I'm afraid you will forget everything about this."

"Mouse~"

The Taoist said nothing.

After finishing the wontons and paying the bill, a bowl was two cents more expensive than last time.

The next afternoon, Qingcheng Mountain, Fuqing Palace.

The Taoist stood at the door, looking up at the mountain gate of Fuqing Palace among the dancing trees. It still vaguely looked like it did back then. Empress Sanhua, carrying Xiao Jiang Han on her back, had already stepped forward and knocked on the door.

"Tuk tuk tuk..."

After knocking a few times, she stopped, turned her head slightly, and listened to the movement inside. When there was no sound, she knocked a few more times. When she heard footsteps, she immediately put down her hand.

After a while, someone opened the door.

"Squeak..."

The person who opened the door was a little Taoist boy.

The little Taoist boy poked half of his face out from behind the door and looked at the Sanhua Empress in front of him who was extraordinarily white and delicate, wearing three-color clothes and carrying a little girl on her back. He was immediately stunned. After the confusion, he seemed to think of his master What the elders taught me, I suddenly felt a little scared and vigilant.

It wasn't until he looked back that he saw the Taoist wearing Taoist robes, leaning on a staff and looking at him with a smile, and a bay-red horse behind him. He felt inexplicably friendly, and then he relaxed a little.

Looking at the girl in front of him, she stared at him expressionlessly, which made him tremble again.

"Taoist Priest...who are you looking for?"

The Taoist boy passed Sanhua Empress and talked to the Taoist.

"We are Taoist Priest Song You from Fulong Temple. I am Taoist Priest Sanhua Empress. I am an old acquaintance of your Taoist temple and am an old friend. I am here to visit you. Please come in and let me know."

The sound came from in front of me.

The Taoist stood there leaning on his staff, just smiling but not speaking.

Tao Tong had no choice but to look at the girl in front of him again.

The girl was too fair and beautiful, not like a mortal, and had no expression on her face. When she looked at him, she didn't have any rawness, shyness or restraint, only seriousness, which was obviously different from ordinary people. It reminded him of the three times that the elders of his sect had repeatedly said three times in recent years. The method of distinguishing demons and humans mentioned above.

However, in broad daylight, someone knocked on the door to visit. Their Fuqing Palace also had a name on Qingcheng Mountain. Even if it was really a ghost, they couldn't be rude. The Taoist boy still mustered up the courage to ask:

"Are you an old acquaintance of our Fuqing Palace?"

"Mou Mao came to your Taoist temple with my Taoist priest twenty years ago. After eating for a few days, he got to know Taoist Priest Guanghuazi and two other male and female Taoist priests..."

Sanhua Empress couldn't help but turn around as she spoke.

"In response to the wind, Izumo."

The Taoist finally spoke and added something for her.

"Oh yes, their names are Taoist Priests Yingfeng and Izumo." Sanhua Empress looked serious, not at all surprised because she had forgotten the names of the two Taoist Priests and interrupted midway, "Our horses are Two Taoist priests brought them here to us. They came back from this trip and came to pay a special visit. Please go in and report."

"Guanghuazi..."

The Taoist boy at the door couldn't help but be surprised.

Master Guanghuazi was the previous temple master of Fuqing Palace and has passed away. Uncle Yingfeng is now in charge of the affairs of the temple, and he must be the next leader of the temple. The Izumo priest mentioned by this girl is his current master. He also has a very high status in the temple. In addition, he often goes down the mountain to catch fish. Killing ghosts and demons is also very prestigious in the hearts of local people.

"Please wait a moment."

The Taoist boy didn't dare to delay and went in immediately.

Sanhua Empress stood still, but turned her head behind her like a cat and looked at the Taoist behind her.

"Empress Sanhua has become more stable. I feel relieved to leave Xiao Jiang Han to Empress Sanhua for guidance." Song You said lightly, "I just told Empress Sanhua not to turn your head like this, it looks a bit scary."

"Well!"

Mao put his head back.

After a while——

"Boom!"

A loud bell rang in the Taoist temple to welcome guests.

There was a chaotic sound of footsteps inside.

"We should also hang a bell in our Taoist temple so that when old friends come, we can ring the bell to welcome them." Song You said to Empress Sanhua.

"The clock is expensive! It's made of money!"

"I have a ready-made..."

The two were talking at the door, but the door inside had been opened again.

This time the two doors were fully opened, and a smell of incense blew in, revealing more than a hundred Taoists of all sizes standing inside, as well as some pilgrims for unknown reasons.

First of all, he is a seasoned Taoist.

Song You could vaguely see that he seemed to be Taoist Master Yingfeng's master many years ago. It seemed that he had surpassed Taoist Master Izumo's master in the competition for the position of Temple Master.

"I've seen fellow Taoist Song, I've seen fellow Taoist Sanhua, and I've seen fellow Taoist swallows on the trees." The old Taoist said, "Fellow Taoist has come to visit me in great numbers, and I'm sorry to welcome him from afar."

"Since we are old acquaintances of our master, why should Brother Tao do this?" Song You returned the greeting, "Twenty years ago, I came to visit you when I first came down from the mountain. Now that twenty years have passed, I came back from you and visited you again without informing you in advance. , please forgive me for being presumptuous."

"It's Pengpi who shines!"

The old Taoist was still respectful and spoke politely to him.

Then two middle-aged Taoist priests walked out, one from Qian Tao and the other from Kun Tao. They were already middle-aged and saluted them:

"Brother Dao, long time no see."

"I've met Brother Dao."

"I have met these two Taoist friends. I haven't seen each other for many years. When we were still on the way down the mountain, I heard many legends about them. It seems that the two of them are also successful in practice." Song You said with a smile.

"Don't dare, don't dare..."

"The legend of Brother Tao and Empress Sanhua has spread all over the country. Brother Tao has been separated from us for twenty years, but we often meet in teahouses and restaurants."

I don’t know whether it’s because I’ve listened to too many legends from Taoists over the years, or because I’ve become more aware of certain things as I age, or because I lose the sense of freedom I had when I was young as I grow older. The two Taoist priests, Izumo, were much more respectful and polite in front of Song You now.

What is even more inconsistent is that twenty years have passed, and the middle-aged Taoist priest has grown old, and the young Taoist priest has also reached middle age. On the contrary, the gentle and casual Song You's face has not changed much.

Many young Taoist priests in the Taoist temple are very puzzled.