Exorcism

The emperor's princes and grandchildren began to receive the blessings and infiltration of talismans before they were born. Their lifespans are generally longer, and they can live to 150 to 200 years. They also age relatively slowly, but the years will not stop on them, but will move leisurely. He moved forward at a leisurely pace, leaving two or three footprints in corners that were difficult for outsiders to detect.

Queen Xun's appearance has not changed much. Although she is no longer a girl, she is still young and beautiful. Her smile is still as charming as before, even more charming. She has become more mature and mysterious. She seems to have understood the world. If it were a little longer, It will turn into a world-weary feeling.

Zeng Fu sighed as soon as he entered the room, and while walking around and tidying up the already clean room, he said: "It's okay for Taoist priests to live forever. You are always so young without the inner elixir. It really makes a mortal like me... Jealousy."

Except for Zeng Fu, no one dared to speak so casually to Queen Xun. They were not friends, but Queen Xun had always respected Zeng Fu's orthodox origin. Zeng Fu would always talk like this to anyone. Zuo Liuying adopted her and raised her She, however, never taught her the difference between superiority and inferiority and the complicated rules. There were many precepts in Pangshan, which were only valid for real Taoist priests, and Zeng Fu did not need to abide by them.

It was precisely because she couldn't stand too many rules that Zeng Fu left the palace very early. At Queen Xun's request, she would stay in the palace for a night on the first day of every month, chat with the queen, clean up the room, There was no fixed content in their conversation. Zeng Fu said more and Queen Xun said less. They began to look like sisters, and then gradually started to look like a nagging mother and a pampered daughter.

Empress Xun was a careful person. Every time Zeng Fu entered the palace, she would reject the maids around her in advance. In this way, Zeng Fu's various unruly behaviors would not attract too much attention.

"It seems to be very hot this summer." Queen Xun said. She and Zeng Fu often talked to each other without answering each other.

"You have so many knick-knacks here that you can't finish them every time you come here. No wonder you need so many maids. Those little princes and princesses didn't come over? Well, they are either too noisy or too honest. Don’t worry. You are still wearing last month’s old clothes. You are a queen, so you don’t need to be so frugal..."

Queen Xun just smiled, occasionally nodding, shaking her head, or saying something that she didn't know what it meant. This was one of the reasons why she asked Zeng Fu to come once a month: to temporarily put aside her status as queen and relax a little.

"You should learn boxing." Zeng Fu put down his work and said very seriously.

"Boxing skills?"

"Well, you still look very young, but your whole body... how should I put it, soft and weak. If you continue like this, you will look normal on the outside, but you will have collapsed on the inside. Before your body gets old, your heart will be broken first."

Queen Xun smiled and said nothing.

"Taoist priests all have to train their bodies. There is a saying that a strong physique can hold a strong inner elixir. They think about it for hours, or even for days or months. Without a good body, they can't hold on to it. Not coming down.”

Empress Xun was lying on the soft couch, looking like it was difficult to even support her own weight. "I have no inner elixir and no ambition. What can I do with a good physique?"

Zeng Fu shook his head repeatedly, "Thankfully, you are still someone who has been on the battlefield. I heard that some women really want children when they reach a certain age, and they will become sentimental without children. Are you such a person?"

This is also something that no one else dares to ask. Queen Xun straightened up and sat cross-legged on the couch. She was wearing a flimsy old skirt. Her hair was pulled up casually and three hairpins were inserted. There was no other decoration. She asked. He said: "What about you, have you ever thought about getting married to a man and having several children?"

At this time, Queen Xun regained a bit of vitality, her eyes were shining, showing a hint of mischief.

Zeng Fu thought for a while, "When I was about ten years old, my sister and I both wanted to marry Zuo Liuying, and we made a bet about it. As a result, I lost, but my sister didn't know whether she forgot the bet or was afraid. I was sad and never mentioned that I wanted to marry Zuo Liuying, and I didn’t mention it either. Slowly, I discovered that Zuo Liuying was more like our father, not very responsible, slightly indulgent to his daughter, but also very strict. 's father.

A smile appeared on Zeng Fu's face, "Taoist priests are Taoist priests. They are neither men nor women. They form a relationship for the purpose of cutting off the relationship. In the final analysis, it is for cultivation, so... to be honest, I don't even know what a real man is.

Queen Xun laughed loudly, enough to make ordinary palace ladies think it was a gaffe, "You have been away from Pangshan for... more than twenty years, and you have met a lot of men."

"That's why I really don't want to. Speaking of men..." Zeng Fu walked up to Queen Xun and took out a flattened straw hat from his arms, "he's here."

"Who?" Queen Xun still had a smile on her face, but there was confusion in her eyes.

"Who else can it be? Mu Xingqiu." Zeng Fu put the straw hat on the small table on the couch. "He wanted to see you, but he didn't bring any good gifts, only this old straw hat."

"He wants to see me?" The smile on Queen Xun's face disappeared, and she became more confused and a little nervous. "I heard that he appeared in Yelin Town... Why did he want to see me?"

"I don't know, I'm only responsible for passing on the message." When necessary, Zeng Fu also knows the principle of keeping his words to himself. The conflict between the Talisman Master and the monk is very involved, and it is not something she should be involved in. "If you are willing to see him, I will Just keep the straw hat. If you don't want to, I will take the straw hat out and return it to him early tomorrow morning, or you can throw it away. This is not a good thing in the first place."

Queen Xun did not make a decision immediately. After a while, she said: "Is he still the same as before?"

"A Taoist priest, even if he quits the Taoist tradition, he is still a Taoist priest. Even though he is not very well-dressed, he might as well be an old gentleman who came with him."

"Old sir?"

"I don't know who it is. Mu Xingqiu didn't introduce him. He looks quite serious."

Zeng Fu smiled and started to get busy again. In her eyes, there was always a lot of work to finish. It was already dark outside. Zeng Fu lived a very regular life and had no plans to talk all night long. She yawned, picked up the small lamp on the table and said, "Go to sleep. Find a way to see Mu Xingqiu. Tell me tomorrow morning."

Zeng Fu never helped the queen change her clothes, so he went to the outside room with a small lamp, blew it out, and rested by himself.

Queen Xun had already finished washing and did not ask the palace maid to come in. The room was very dark, and she slowly became aware of the existence of a faint light. It was the night of the first month of the month, and the moon was just a thin wisp. The sky must be full of stars, which provided this A little bit of light came in through the cracks in the door and window.

The flat straw hat was placed on the small table beside him, and its outline gradually became clearer. It was always covered with a hazy veil, which could not be removed by the bright light of the stars and the moon.

"You know, I have been trying hard to retain the memories of the past." Queen Xun said softly. She was talking to herself. Zeng Fu outside was already asleep, but she didn't even have the slightest hint of sleep. "For mortals, This is really too difficult, and Fu Lu can only help a little. I try not to get involved in new things, and I summon old acquaintances over and over again, just to prevent my memory from being disturbed, but this is still too difficult for a Taoist priest. Mortals have to work hard day after day to achieve it.”

She has many memories, but one of them is the clearest. To this day, every cloudy rainy day, she can still feel the refreshing coolness, which brings tension and confusion, and behind it is hidden reckless indulgence. That was an emotion that the princess of Xijie Kingdom and the queen of Shengfu Dynasty should never have.

Because of this, this memory appears unique, like the only red flower in the green grass everywhere, like the only lonely figure in the bustling downtown. It is the mainstay of Queen Xun's old memory, and other memories, whether related or not, are related, can be attached to it to avoid being swept away by floods.

Because of this, she still remembers that her name is Xin Youxun and can still maintain her original intention.

But no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't remember clearly what happened next. Maybe she was too flustered at the time to form a deep impression. She only vaguely remembered the broad and warm chest and the painful look on his face when he suffered from love.

She stretched out her fingers and gently touched the broken straw hat, hoping to get a similar warmth from it.

There was a real warmth inside the straw hat.

Queen Xun was slightly startled. Although she did not have an inner elixir, she often came into contact with talismans and knew that this warmth was not unusual.

She did not move her fingers, letting the warmth slowly spread up her arms and gradually reach the top of her head. Then she heard a familiar yet unfamiliar voice in her mind, like the newborn sun, which suddenly illuminated many things in the past. memory.

"Please forgive me for coming uninvited. It is difficult to keep any plan secret these days. The situation in the imperial capital is very complicated. There are reasons for the conflict between the talisman master and the monks." Mu Xingqiu used illusions to lift his soul from the darkness. The tavern was sent all the way to the straw hat in the palace, but he didn't think of how to explain the invasion.

"I know, I was the one who secretly instigated it." Queen Xun was not used to talking in her head, so she spoke directly.

"You?" Mu Xingqiu was slightly surprised. He respected Queen Xun and did not explore any of her memories.

"Well, to deal with the demon species."

Mu Xingqiu was even more surprised, but not particularly surprised. He had always felt that something was wrong with Queen Xun's disheartened expression. Now he finally had an explanation, but this explanation exceeded his expectations.

"Yang Qingyin told me that the demons were not killed, they escaped. Others did not believe her, thinking that the Battle of Wangshan had completely solved the threat of demons, but I believed it. When some talisman masters and monks became When I became more and more greedy, I guessed that this was what the demons were doing. I couldn't compete with them, and I couldn't even find where they were, so I deliberately fanned the flames and stirred up everyone's desire for credit. This was not a good idea. , it had some effect at first, but in recent years the effect has become worse and worse, and the fighting has become more and more intense, and I can no longer control it.”

Mu Xingqiu finally understood why a small number of talismans resisted the demonic invasion, because their emotions were distracted. Although Queen Xun's move of using poison to fight poison could not last to the end, it greatly slowed down the speed of the demonic invasion.

"Thank you for everything, it means a lot to me."

Empress Xun was always unsure whether her approach was correct. The stone in her heart was now removed by Mu Xingqiu, "Fortunately, you came in time."

"I'm here, and I want to apologize to you again."

"Why?"

"Because the battle is about to begin, I can't give you time to prepare, so I put you in a dangerous situation."

Queen Xun waved her left hand, "I've been preparing."