When the book-traveling little detective meets the two-faced prince

The day after the Lantern Festival.

A thick fog gathered on the lake, so thick that it could hide ships.

Wu Sanshan didn't know the reason for the condensation of fog, but based on his many years of experience in fishing on the lake, he naturally knew that whenever the east wind blew during the Lantern Festival, thick fog would condense on the lake surface.

He originally thought that he would regret or be afraid when death came, but when he really sat on this ship, he found that his heart was extremely calm, even a little relieved.

It was as if the confusion that had troubled him for his entire life suddenly became clear to him at this moment.

How exactly.

Wu Sanshan himself couldn't explain it clearly.

While waiting for the sound of gongs and drums that resounded through the sky to come from the lakeshore, Wu Sanshan looked at the thick fog around him, and his thoughts drifted away.

How come?

Like a revolving lantern in advance, Wu Sanshan sat on the boat and began to recall his past.

in the past.

He didn't want to think about it at all.

If possible, he wanted to completely break away from his former self, and even cut off the large dark spots on his face.

Without this black spot.

His life would have been completely different.

He had black spots on his face since he was born. Everyone in the village knew it, except him because there was no mirror in the house.

The two people who raised him always covered his face with a black mask and did not allow him to make any sound.

Because he had been like this since he was a child, he didn't think there was anything wrong with it. Later, when he started to remember things, he locked the house, but he didn't think there was anything wrong with it.

But they probably didn't know that the locked door was not closed tightly.

With a slight force, the door will open a small crack, and he will use this two-finger-wide crack to secretly observe the world he lives in.

In the house of the person he was staying with, besides the two people, there was another person who was about the same height as him.

Wu Sanshan touched his face and felt the texture of the rough cloth in his hands. For the first time in his life, he felt confused.

why?

He obviously lives in the same house as me, so why is he not wearing a mask on his face, and his space to move around is much larger than mine?

Although puzzled, it was not a big deal for Wu Sanshan. He was just confused for a moment.

until.

There is one more person in this small world.

Whenever that person came, he would bring some soft, square things with him. Every time he held up those things, he would chatter non-stop, as if he had endless things to say, and every time he said something different.

Wu Sanshan couldn't understand those flowery and obscure words.

But to him, it was extremely novel and full of endless attraction.

After listening to their discussions more, Wu Sanshan also knew that this thing was called "book".

It's not because the content of the book is so exciting, but the existence of "books" that makes him extremely obsessed.

He didn't know if it was his illusion, but he always felt that this person knew he was peeking at him, and his eyes would occasionally sweep across the crack in the door.

Pause for a moment, then look away.

As the days passed, he looked at the crack in the door more and more often, and the pauses became longer and longer.

One day later.

The two people and the man who was his own height left, and the thing called "book" accidentally fell to the side of the door. He was overjoyed and reached out, inexplicably and madly longing for the thing that fell before his eyes.

But helpless.

The gap in the door was two fingers wide, just enough for him to stretch his hand out vertically, but it got stuck at his wrist, and the skin on his wrist was broken by the gap, but he still wanted to get the thing in his hand like a madman.

Sudden.

He was startled by the appearance of another hand and tried to pull his hand back, but just as he was about to do so, his hand was grabbed and he was too weak to pull it back.

"You want to read a book?"

The person who caught him was too close to the door, almost squatting next to it, so he didn't know who this person was, he just felt that he was an intruder in this small world.

is unfamiliar.

But the moment he heard this person speaking, he realized that it was the person who was chattering with the book in hand.

The allure of the book made him hum uncontrollably.

The voice was not loud, but it contained strong emotions, and even the people squatting at the door were visibly stunned.

The chatterbox let go of his hand and held the book upright against the crack in the door.

"If you want to read, I can teach you, how about that?"

The man's words stirred a great deal of emotion in his heart. An emotion that was about to burst out made him blurt out, but he said in an extremely awkward and low voice: "Okay..."

It's not that he can't speak, he can understand what they are saying, but he has never spoken before, so when he uttered just this one word, the sound was very awkward, even strange.

From that day on, there was an unspoken secret between them.

As long as there was no one else at home, this person would come to teach him how to read and write, tell him many new and interesting things, and teach him many principles of how to behave in society.

But he has never stepped out of this yard, and there are many things he simply cannot understand, but he will still try hard to understand.

because.

The appearance of this person gave him something to look forward to.

Every day he looked forward to this person stepping into the courtyard.

The man said.

“Everyone can go further.”

He didn't know how far further was, he just felt that as long as he was there, he was already the farthest place.

I thought that life would remain unchanged and go on peacefully.

This is also his greatest expectation.

until.

He didn't show up again for a long time.

until.

The villagers were chatting at the gate of their courtyard and heard the news of his death, which came from illness.

This person taught himself.

dead.

Even if you search the sky and the underworld, you will never see it again.

That was the first time in his life that he had done something out of the ordinary. He rushed to unlock the door like a madman and wanted to find him, although he didn't know where to look.

He only knew that he was a teacher.

Lives in Pinghai Town.

But this time was special, he met a boy who had just returned from outside, named Xu Guangwen.

Because he had not seen sunlight for many years, his skin was a terrifying white. Coupled with the large black spots on his face, he looked like a ghost crawling out of hell, and the boy was so scared that he fainted.

Before he could run out of the yard, he was beaten back by two other people with brooms.

The expressions they looked at him were extremely terrified, as if they had seen something dirty. Not only them, but also the people who appeared at the gate of the yard that he had never seen before.

Although he couldn't tell good from bad before, after meeting the teacher, he knew what it felt like to have someone treat you well.

The first thing that came to his mind was the difference in being treated differently by others. He felt depressed and unhappy. The second thing he felt was the pain of being hit by the broom.

He was locked up again.

The next day.

The boy died, and the other two said they had come to kill them.

It didn't take long.

The villagers let me leave the village and gave me some money.

He was not actually sad, but instead felt a little yearning and even anxious.

“Everyone can go further.”

This is what the teacher said.

He always remembered.

He was taken out of a dark place by a man and walked along the woods for a long time. During this time, he rested by the lake, and he saw his own appearance for the first time in the lake water.

A trace of sadness flashed across his eyes, and he covered his face with the black cloth again.

As he walked, he saw a village and a man came towards him.

He plucked up the courage to ask the man, where is this place?

the man replied.

Haibei Village, Pinghai Town.

He then asked where to go if one wanted to find someone who couldn't be found.

The man told him to go to the yamen.

When the people in the yamen found out that he was looking for a dead person, they wanted to expel him, but fortunately he knew the name of the teacher.

His name is Zhou Shuo.

He is a very good teacher, respected and loved by others.

It’s a pity that he was the son of a businessman and his ancestors had committed mistakes, so he had no chance to take the imperial examination.

He didn't know what farther was. He thought Pinghai Town, where Zhou Zhuo lived, was good enough. He gave most of his money to the county magistrate and bought a small courtyard of his own. He also bought a fishing boat and learned to fish from others. He found everything he did fresh and interesting.

At the beginning, he couldn't catch any fish and even had trouble filling his stomach, but slowly he became more and more skilled.

Over the years, his skin was no longer pale, but turned wheat-colored and became much rougher.

Everything is changing.

The only thing that remained unchanged was that he still covered his face.

He was worried that others would be scared when they saw his face and would not want to interact with him, but at the same time he was also afraid of interacting with others. However, even with the veil on, he still looked like an alien.

Day after day, year after year.

As his experience and age grew, he finally understood some of the principles Zhou Shuo talked about, as well as the ways of the world.

just.

He is still alone.

It wasn't until eleven years ago when he went out fishing on the day after the Lantern Festival that he picked up Qiao Ying.

During every Lantern Festival, if there was an east wind, he liked to go out early, because every time there was an east wind, there would be thick fog on the lake. No one could see him in the fog, so he could take off his black veil.

This is also the reason why he chose to make a living by fishing. The fog gives him a sense of security.

So is the wardrobe in the basement.

When he first arrived in the unfamiliar Pinghai Town, he was afraid that someone would sneak into his house at night and discover his appearance, so he dug a basement, built a wardrobe, and hid himself in it.

Just like when he was locked in the room, he didn't have to worry about anyone finding him.

When he first picked up Qiao Ying, he was very happy. It didn't matter that she was a fool, because that would make him feel more at ease.

more importantly.

He has company.

But the news that all the people in Huaifeng Village disappeared overnight quickly spread throughout Pinghai Town, and he also discovered that Qiao Ying was not a stupid person.

overnight.

When Qiao Ying secretly went out and headed towards Huaifeng Village from the route he took, he already knew that Qiao Ying was from Huaifeng Village.

He didn't know how to protect Qiao Ying from being discovered. The only way he could think of, and the best way, was to confirm Qiao Ying's identity as a fool so that others would not suspect him or hurt him.

That is to let Qiao Ying become a spirit guardian.

When Qiao Ying said his name was Qiao Ying, he became more certain that Qiao Ying was not a fool and that he had things he wanted to do.

Although he left Huaifeng Village, he did not spend his 36 years in Pinghai Town in vain. He knew several surnames in Huaifeng Village.

How could someone who would deliberately conceal something be a fool?

He knew that he had no special abilities, was not liked by others, and was not doing well in all aspects, but he also wanted to be able to help Qiao Ying just like Zhou Shuo had given him hope.

But unexpectedly, it was Qiao Ying who brought him hope.

Qiao Ying didn't care about her appearance, and there was no fear or disgust in her eyes.

It was also from that day that he decided to take off his veil.

Later he found out.

It doesn't seem like a big deal to show his true face without the veil. People who have a grudge against him won't approach him, but people who don't care about him won't distance themselves from him because of his appearance.

On the contrary, after he took off his veil, more and more people were willing to talk to him.

He is already content.

Thinking of this, Wu Sanshan laughed while sitting on the boat. After laughing, his eyes remained determined, and he could not hide the longing and concern in his eyes.

Before lying down in the bed compartment.

He said goodbye to Qiao Ying in his heart.

he thinks.

Grandpa didn’t know where farther was, but now he seems to know, and he is going to farther.