Priceless: A widow with a baby asks the prince to marry again

The Daxia doctors, Mongolian doctors, and shamans around him fell into a dead silence.

It was not because the old man was about to die, but because they saw with their own eyes that Serji Guleng's eyes, which had been cloudy and out of focus, became clear and bright in an instant!

That gaze seemed to wash away all the dust of the world and reach the origin of the universe!

At the same time, the sky suddenly darkened!

It was not dark clouds covering the sun, but countless vultures, gathering from all directions as if they had smelled some divine call!

Their huge black wings flapped the air, making dull whistling sounds, circling and overlapping, as if blocking out the light from the sky, forming a huge and depressing black vortex above the grassland!

Seriguleng's astonishingly clear eyes slowly lifted up and gazed towards the sky obscured by vultures...

That gaze was deep and distant, as if it could penetrate the dense wings, penetrate the sky, and see the truth of the movement of stars and the birth and death of all things.

He had been observing the secrets of nature all his life, but he had never "seen" the essence and context of the world as clearly and completely as he did at this moment.

The dry, cracked lips parted slightly, and a low, dry voice rang out, but it strangely penetrated the rustling noise of the world around it and fell clearly into the ears of everyone nearby:

"Hiding from the will of heaven, avoiding karma, all kinds of shackles entrap my true self."

The presence of so many vultures, and the Holy Prince's voice, which seemed to carry the divine will, resonated like thunder in the hearts of the surrounding Northerners!

After a brief moment of shock, they were filled with indescribable excitement and reverence! They all retreated in unison, like the receding tide, their eyes no longer filled with doubt or complexity, only pure awe for the will of the Eternal Heaven!

Sky burial!

This was the most sublime and holy funeral on the grasslands! Only a saint with a pure soul, beloved by the Eternal Heaven, could attract so many divine eagles! This was a miracle! A divine revelation! Clear evidence that Crown Prince Seriguleng's soul had ascended to heaven and would return to the embrace of the Eternal Heaven!

The withered figure was still whispering, but the voice was filled with an unprecedented sense of relief and enlightenment:

"Following the will of heaven and accepting the cause and effect, today I know that I am myself."

Chu Shiyu reacted extremely quickly. Without any hesitation, he decisively ordered: "Everyone, step back!" The officials, soldiers, and several noble ladies of the Great Xia side immediately obeyed the order and quickly retreated to clear a larger space around the royal chariot.

Only Qin Shuangyu's military boots remained untouched and were still nailed in place.

His burly body trembled slightly, and his resolute eyes stared intently at the skinny figure on the royal chariot! A few hot tears flowed silently, sliding down his resolute cheeks.

It’s not a mourning for King Yuan or Prince Sheng, but a reluctance to part with our dearest relatives and elders!

The old man before him was his parents' beloved elder brother! He was the uncle he had heard of since childhood but never met! His father harbored ambitions to restore his country and a deep-seated blood feud, but neither could compare to the heartache he felt for his father-like elder brother, willing to live a life of loneliness!

Liu Rusi, who was not far away, felt her heart tighten! She understood why Qin Shuangyu lost control of his emotions—it was the uncontrollable grief of parting with his loved ones! But this would bring disaster to them!

She immediately found Qin Zhen, who was not far away, and lowered her voice and said hurriedly, "Qin Zhen! Quick, go call your father! Quick!"

Qin Zhen followed Liu Rusi's gaze and saw her father's distraught appearance. She was shocked and ran forward, grabbing Qin Shuangyu's arm with force, her voice filled with panic: "Dad? Dad! What's wrong with you? Back off!"

His daughter's call was like a cold shower, instantly awakening Qin Shuangyu from the depths of his grief! He shuddered, a flash of panic in his eyes, followed by deep fear! He still had a daughter! And his grandson, Qin Hao, who was far away in the capital, whose life story must never be revealed!

No! You absolutely cannot lose your composure at this moment and arouse suspicion!

He quickly raised his hand, as if there was sand in his eyes, and rubbed the water off his face. He forced himself to suppress his turbulent emotions and tried to restore his expression to the solemnity and heaviness that a general of Da Xia should have because of the "saint's death".

He grasped his daughter's wrist with his backhand and said in a low and hoarse voice: "Dad is fine...it's just...seeing this holy scene, my heart is moved." He was pulled by Qin Zhen and retreated step by step, but his eyes were still fixed on the royal chariot.

At this moment, Serriguleng's gaze seemed to sweep across the retreating crowd, and seemed to penetrate the void. A faint smile of relief appeared on his lips, and the whisper sounded again, with the calmness and freedom that took on all ties:

"Once you realize the truth and see your true self, why should you fear the old shackles?"

There was no one within a dozen feet around the magnificent royal chariot.

The flock of vultures circling in the sky made even more anxious calls, as if they had sensed the call of some ritual.

Finally, the first huge vulture could no longer hold back and tentatively folded its wings. Like a heavy black stone, it landed on the crossbar of the royal chariot with a "bang".

It tilted its head and looked at the withered human figure on the chariot with its cold and sharp eyes. Its claws twitched as it cautiously approached the body whose life was about to be extinguished.

Seriguleng's voice became extremely weak, like the last flicker of a candle in the wind, yet it still carried the clarity of complete enlightenment:

"The shackles of this world are but a dream..."

The vulture that landed seemed to confirm its target's status, suddenly spread its wings, and let out a short, sharp cry! This scream was like a signal, and the flock of vultures circling in the sky instantly swooped down like a black waterfall!

At the moment when the second and third vultures were about to land on the royal chariot, Serriguleng's head, which had been slightly raised, finally couldn't hold up and slowly and completely drooped down.

“Formless and invisible…also…”

Those eyes that saw through the secrets of life and experienced the vicissitudes of life finally found liberation at the end of life, and closed peacefully forever.

There seemed to be a last, barely perceptible breath lingering on his cracked lips, and the syllables, inaudible to anyone, dissipated in the strong wind stirred up by the vulture's wings:

“…No self…”

With a final sigh and a low murmur, his skinny body completely shed all weight, and together with the gorgeous clothes that symbolized the glory and bondage of the previous dynasty, he became a silent symbol.

A few breaths of silence, then...

The black "wave" instantly submerged the royal chariot!

Countless vultures flapped their wings and fell down in layers, covering the withered body, leaving only a corner of the gorgeous robe sleeve hanging weakly in the gap between the wings!

The subtle sound of pecking at flesh and blood was drowned out by the flapping of wings, and a primitive and sacred atmosphere filled the air.

On this grassland, hundreds of thousands of people of all kinds fell into an unprecedented solemn silence.

Only the dull sounds of the vultures echoed in the oppressive air.

Chu Shiyu looked at the black-covered royal chariot with complicated eyes. This person had changed his fate and taken away the child that was destined to be his...

But he appeared twice to save him... and brought him to Liu Rusi, who had memories of her past life and whose soul had been healed by her warmth.

Behind the complex emotions, there is also a cold rational judgment. Father's plan should receive unprecedented support in a way that far exceeds expectations and shocks everyone.

Seriguleng used the last rays of his life and this sacred sky burial to perfectly play the role of "the saint returning to heaven", endowing the title of King Yuan with a supreme divine aura and laying the most powerful wedge for Daxia to rule Mobei.

Qin Shuangyu clenched his fists tightly, his nails digging deep into his palms, and only then did he barely restrain the urge to rush forward.

He looked at the place covered by vultures, sobbing silently in his heart, like an orphan who had lost all guidance: "Uncle... Farewell..."

Who was wrapped in that magnificent garment? The venerable Crown Prince or Emperor Yuan of the Holy Dynasty, a wanderer burdened with the pain of a fallen nation, a pitiful soul clinging to the world to protect his bloodline... or perhaps, simply a man named Borjigin Seriguleng.

Liu Rusi stood not far away, watching all this silently, with complex emotions surging in her heart.

She saw Serriguleng's extremely clear eyes before his death. There was no fear, no resentment, only a sense of relief and compassion that understood everything.

She knew that the old Taoist priest's final "enlightenment" had liberated his soul.

The sky burial ceremony was carried out in solemn silence.

There were also vultures circling and descending in the sky to participate in this ceremony.

And that withered body that carried too much history, too much sorrow, and too many regrets was returning to this vast world that he had missed and longed for for countless sunrises and sunsets in the most primitive and sacred way.

...

Thousands of miles away, across thousands of mountains and rivers, is a remote place in the southwest of the Great Xia Kingdom.

In a long, unnamed official road, there is a huge circular dirt platform. The dirt platform is very round, with two sections of the official road in the middle, like a bead strung on a rope.

There are many vendors on the dirt floor, providing food to people passing by or coming here on purpose, or selling long incense sticks and candles... People who buy incense will walk to the woods next to it, and keep walking along the road that has been trampled so much that no grass can grow. Soon they will see neatly built stone steps. Following the stone steps that are only wide enough for two people to walk side by side, they will reach the top of this low hill, where there is a small Taoist temple with a lot of incense.

It was really very small, without even a yard. At a glance, you could tell that this small house had at most two rooms. The stove for cooking was exposed against the wall, and there was a shed connected to the roof. A small square table was placed next to the stove, and there were stacked clean bowls and dishes and chopsticks and spoons on the table...

The front of the small house is an open lobby with a desk in the middle. A Yin-Yang Bagua diagram is hung on the wall behind the desk. There are fruit offerings on the desk, as well as an incense burner with long incense sticks and curling green smoke. There are three cushions in front of the desk. These are the only things that prove that this is a Taoist temple.

But what was even more eye-catching than all this was a large copper basin placed in the right corner of the hall. The basin was filled with copper coins and silver, so much so that it was overflowing! It was so bright that if anyone passed by and got interested, they could just grab a handful!

Dusk is falling and evening is approaching.

A Taoist boy in his early teens, dressed in a clean Taoist robe that had been washed so clean that it looked white, and with a pair of eyes so clear that they seemed to be able to reflect everything, he looked around among the few pilgrims.

He quickly found his target and handed over a folded note. His pretty face was filled with lingering melancholy. "Donor, this is yours. This is also the last one... that Master left for me."

Upon hearing this, a look of deep disappointment suddenly appeared on the faces of several nearby pilgrims. "Master Tianqing, is this really the last one? Are we... all out of the chance?"

"No more." Tianqing's voice was full of certainty, which was rare for a child, but it couldn't hide his depression.

The people around were full of sighs. The most magical thing about Baitian Temple is the notes left by the temple master. Although not every pilgrim has them, as long as they receive them, they must be accurate!

"Then... when will the abbot return?" the pilgrim asked unwillingly.

Tianqing lowered his head even more, his voice as thin as a mosquito: "Xiaodao... I don't know when Master will come back."

The pilgrims sighed, but there was nothing they could do. The abbot of Baitian Temple had been gone for two years and there was no news from him. The ten-year-old Taoist boy Tianqing relied on the pilgrims' casual care to survive.

However, recently a couple and a younger woman came from another place and built a house on the hillside of this low mountain. They took the initiative to take care of Tianqing, helping him cook, fetch water, chop wood, and take care of his life.

At this time, two women, one big and one small, were busy preparing dinner under the straw shed.

At this moment, the two women faintly heard a long "moo..."

The extremely beautiful woman among them looked in the direction of the sound and was surprised to see a huge bull with huge horns suddenly appearing in the vegetable garden of the Taoist temple not far away!

"Husband!" the beautiful woman hurriedly called to the man chopping wood behind the house, "Go and see if you can get the cow out! Don't let it eat up all the vegetable garden in the Taoist temple!"

The dark-skinned man looked up when he heard the sound, quickly put down his hatchet and rushed to the vegetable garden.

"Qingyang?!" Tianqing was one step faster than him and shouted in surprise and joy!

The little Taoist boy practically skipped over to the vegetable garden, his eyes anxiously searching the bull's body as he repeatedly asked the big bull, "Where's the master? Has the master returned?"

When Tian Qing ran into the vegetable garden, the dark-skinned man also hurried in, fearing that the Taoist boy would disturb the big bull and get hurt!

However, upon closer inspection, one could see that the big bull had an indescribable calm and gentle aura about him.

He walked slowly towards Tianqing, and the vegetables on the ground were not damaged at all wherever his huge hooves stepped on... His huge ox eyes were extremely bright and clear, and at this moment they were filled with deep and insoluble sadness, staring at the little Taoist boy steadily.

When he reached the front of the big-horned bull, Tianqing's steps suddenly stopped, and his small body froze in place.

His eyes fell on the bull's huge horns - the tips of both horns were cut off an inch... On one of the horns, there was a small pendant hanging.

The little hand trembled as she took off the pendant. The pendant itself was actually a piece of ox horn, the cross section smooth as new.

Tears burst out without warning, blurring the world in front of his eyes in an instant. The ten-year-old Taoist boy was already in tears.

At the moment when his fingertips touched the cold corner, Tianqing's "eye of observing the sky", which was born different from that of ordinary people, had already seen through the irreversible changes in the dark.

Tianqing rushed forward, hugged Qingyang's strong neck tightly, and pressed his little face against the warmth. The emotions that he could no longer suppress finally burst through his throat, and he sobbed with trembling sorrow: "Master..."