The little boy with a tiger-like head and a tough brain poked his head out from beside Princess Li Yu, glanced over there curiously, sniffed, followed Sangsang's example, buried his head in her arms, and rubbed his little face randomly.
, the snot on her face rubbed onto her clothes.
Li Yu took out his handkerchief and wiped it awkwardly on the little boy without showing a trace of disgust on his face. Then he turned to Ning Que and said calmly: "Follow me when you go to Chang'an. I will give you a good future."
Ning Que had already guessed the identity of this little barbarian boy, but he didn't expect that the princess would love his stepson so much, especially the little action of wiping his nose, which made his perception of this highness change slightly.
Thinking about these things, my reaction was inevitably a little slow. I was stunned for a moment and then replied: "Dear Princess, I will take the entrance exam for the academy after arriving in Chang'an."
Human beings will hear many different meanings for the same sentence according to different interpretations. This sentence can sound like Ning Que is saying that he has no time to serve His Highness, or it can be heard that he is expressing his refusal tactfully.
He also carries a little bit of pride: he will have a bright future after entering the academy, and there is no need for His Highness to worry about it.
"Are you sure you can really take the admission test and pass the admission test smoothly?" Li Yu looked at him coldly and said: "Although we in the Tang Dynasty select scholars based on their talent, this selection of words is very particular. If
You think that talented people can find a place to display their talents, so why did Mr. Liu from the previous dynasty spend his entire life in a brothel?"
Ning Que looked at her delicate features and said seriously: "I also understand this, so I would like to ask the princess to help me remove those obstacles that I shouldn't have. I just hope that I will not lose the opportunity to enter the academy because I am poor."
Li Yu looked at him with undisguised suspicion and was silent for a long time, wondering why this young soldier refused his invitation so calmly and directly.
You must know that she is the fourth princess of the Tang Dynasty who is most favored by the emperor and loved by her subjects. With Ning Que's current status, being able to have such close contact with her is already a blessing that has been cultivated in eight lifetimes. If it were replaced by other soldiers from the border city
, even if you are qualified to participate in the college entrance examination, who would not be moved to tears and bow to her after receiving her sign of appreciation?
After a long silence, she said calmly: "I promise you, because I owe you this."
After saying this, she lost interest in talking to Ning Que. She hugged the little boy and stared at the fire in front of her, her eyes gradually getting wet. At this time, the old man Lu Qingchen was sitting cross-legged meditating and recovering next to the fire. The guards on the other side
We had fallen into a deep sleep, and the night was deep in the forest. Occasionally, birds awakened by the stars would chirp randomly.
Ning Que looked at the crystal clear water in her eyes in surprise. Following her gaze, he realized that she was looking across the fire at the corpses of the guards and prairie barbarians piled beside the road.
Thinking about how she wiped the little boy's nose earlier, and seeing how sad she felt for her subordinates at this time, Ning Que's impression of the princess changed slightly, and he silently thought that even if he was an idiot, he was still a humane idiot.
.
Sang Sang fell on his knees and fell asleep. He and Li Yu were the only two people with eyes open by the fire. The two of them sat quietly like this. Suddenly, the little barbarian boy came out of her arms.
Li Yu broke out, rubbed his eyes and said that he couldn't sleep and wanted to listen to stories. Li Yu looked embarrassed, thinking that he had long forgotten all the stories he heard in the palace when he was a child. How could those novels about talented men and beautiful ladies that he loved to listen to when he was a girl?
Tell it to children?
The little barbarian boy didn't make much fuss, he just looked at his nominal mother with aggrieved look, looking a little pitiful. Ning Que smiled and looked at the embarrassment of Her Royal Highness the Princess, and coughed twice.
"The wheat is golden and the oats are green... Those duck eggs collapsed one by one, but the biggest egg never moved... The mother duck looked at the big and ugly child and watched it swim in the water.
He said happily and proudly: Look, it is not an abominable chicken with silk ribbons, it is my biological child."
"But it's too ugly. No matter where it goes, people will point at it... The wild duck said that as long as you don't intermarry with the ducks in our tribe, it doesn't have much to do with us."
"One night, when the beautiful sun was setting towards the western wasteland, the ugly duckling saw a group of big birds flying up from the forest. The duckling had never seen such beautiful things before. They were white and shiny, and their necks were long and soft.
Spread your beautiful wings and fly to a warm country."
"After one winter, the ugly duckling was surrounded by several whooper swans. It felt ashamed. It felt that it was so ugly. However, the whooper swans gently pecked its feathers... It suddenly saw that it looked like that in the pond.
Beautiful... Spring is here, the sun is extremely warm, and lilacs hang their branches into the water in front of it. People watch it dance happily, sing songs, and shout happily: Look at that beautiful swan!"
Ning Que took a stick of burnt firewood and drew random lines on the ground beside his feet. He lowered his head and smiled and told a very old story. This story is so simple, but also so sad and happy. The barbarian
The little boy lay on the princess's body and listened with wide eyes. Li Yu himself gradually became fascinated by it. Sang Sang woke up at some point. She had heard it when she was very young, but she still listened quietly, with a face on her face.
A childhood smile appeared on his face.
The night became darker, and the children who listened to the story finally fell into sweet dreams. After being silent for a long time, Li Yu suddenly said: "Your story is too profound, Xiaoman can't understand it, but I still want to thank you, thank you for reminding me."
These things about me... I will treat him as my own child just like that mother duck. I will be proud of him. After returning to Chang'an, I will never let him be laughed at and discriminated against by others. As for whether he can be in the future
Soaring into the sky like a swan... That can only depend on his own destiny in the future."
Ning Que scratched his head and smiled, and said: "Actually, I didn't think so much. This is a story I told Sangsang when she was a child. She always felt that she was dark, ugly and had low self-esteem, so I made up this story for her.
comfort her."
"No matter what you say, this is a good story." Li Yu looked at him with a smile and said: "The ugly duckling who was looked down upon by others finally turned into a white swan that is respected and loved by others through his own efforts. It is very inspiring."
Ning Que's hand holding Jiao Zhi froze slightly, he raised his head and looked at her and said seriously: "You are wrong, this story will only make many people feel despair, because the ugly duckling will not turn into a swan, it...originally
It is a swan. Just like you and the little prince in your arms, the real ugly duckling will always be an ugly duckling."
Li Yu looked at the young man's face quietly, thinking about this passage, and vaguely understood something in his heart.