Volume 1: When I was young and wore a thin green shirt Chapter 11: The divine prestige is difficult to measure, the immortal face reveals

  Just as he was about to burst out in anger, clenching his fists tightly, ready to let that guy's face bloom, he found that the mocking voices on the whole boat, which were originally high-spirited and sarcastic, had suddenly gradually subsided.

  The young man who had gradually calmed down from his anger suddenly realized that the familiar sky and earth in front of him were undergoing a terrifying change:

  The originally clear and bright sky has become overcast with dark clouds. The water of Poyang Lake, which was once just a gentle breeze and ripples, is now like a pot of boiling water, as if it's about to erupt. The birds that were foraging on the lake surface have all disappeared. Those fishing boats, seeing this strange weather, are also hastily pulling in their nets and heading ashore.

  At this time, on the dark and profound vault of heaven above the heads of the crowd, there were thousands of ghastly white lightning flashes, like thin snakes darting about restlessly. Behind the dense and heavy black clouds, the rumbling of thunder could be faintly heard.

  At this moment, the entire Poyang Lake above, as if a large pot is turned upside down, the sky is like ink, the waves are like boiling, and the bright daylight suddenly becomes a dark night, the vast expanse of heaven and earth instantly turns into a terrifying realm!

  "Boatman! Row quickly! Row back!"

  At this time, everyone on the boat was terrified, tumbling and staggering in the turbulent waves, with cries of horror and panic ringing out incessantly. Some cursed, some scolded, some begged, all urging the boat owner to row back as quickly as possible.

  Waking words and Ju Ying, were also frightened by this strange and terrifying scene, completely forgetting the unpleasantness of just now. Ju Ying was after all a weak and frail girl, being pushed around by the chaotic crowd. At this critical moment, the young man could no longer care about etiquette or propriety, he pulled the girl over and shielded her in front of his chest. From then on, the young man's back endured countless powerful collisions, but he only gritted his teeth and bore it silently, single-mindedly protecting Ju Ying.

  "Oh no! The boat won't move!"

  A heart-rending and lung-splitting scream came from the mouth of that boat owner.

  It turned out that when the boatman on the boat was desperately rowing, he found that no matter how hard he tried, the oar seemed to be rowing in mid-air, unable to borrow any water power. This painted boat was actually inching along! Now the rudder of this painted boat seems to be welded with iron water, and no matter how hard the boatman tries to turn it, it doesn't move at all!

  The boat owner's description was even more unbearable than crying, and immediately dispelled the crowd's idea of escaping back to Nanji Island. Everyone seemed like a headless fly, flustered and at a loss. Although everyone was eager to escape, for the time being, no one dared to jump into the water - looking at the strange boiling state of the lake, no one dared to imagine what kind of terrifying thing would happen once they entered the water!

  The shadow of death suddenly enveloped everyone's heart.

  Just as everyone on the boat fell into despair, thinking that they were doomed this time, someone suddenly shouted and asked everyone to look south quickly. It turned out that in the southern sky, among the originally dark black clouds, several red clouds suddenly appeared, gathering and gathering, linking together like a fiery red character!

  In the midst of a crowd of frightened onlookers, that cloud in the shape of a character was slowly moving towards the painting boat.

  After a strange night on the Ma Ti Shan, he found that his eyesight had become better and better. When others were still trying to make out the shape of the red clouds, he had already seen those four weird and twisted big characters formed by several clusters of dark clouds:

  A few words of warning are worth a thousand pieces of advice.

  This was no less than a thunderclap on a clear day for the young man! Although those two words "yíng jué" were still somewhat inexplicable, they probably referred to this girl's fullness, because the pronunciation of these two words happened to be opposite.

  "Who would have thought that those strange and supernatural things I saw in the past would happen to me today!"

  In my heart I'm crying out in sorrow, just waiting to pretend to be confused, and cover up this feeling, but unexpectedly someone beside me suddenly shouts loudly:

  "It's them! It's them who provoked the wrath of the Lake God!"

  The words were heard and caused great terror. Looking sideways, it was discovered that the person who was shouting loudly was none other than the young master who had humiliated him earlier.

  At this time, the goose feather fan in his hand was also lost somewhere, his robe was skewed and his hat was crooked, he danced with his hands and feet, pointing at Xing Yan and Ju Ying like a mad dog, shouting wildly.

  It turned out that this guy had been eavesdropping on the conversation between Ruyu and Juyin earlier, and he had heard their names. Although he had only heard the young man call the girl "Juyin", it was still a reversal of "Yujin", so it should be close enough. The fiery red characters in the sky must have been referring to these two!

  Everyone saw the red character indication, heard that the lake god was angry for someone else's sake, and immediately felt greatly relieved in their hearts. They thought to themselves, "Thank heaven, thank earth, now we've found a scapegoat!" Since the old lake god had given them clear indications, he must not have wanted to mistakenly harm them. Looking at it from this perspective, this time they were able to keep their lives. However, after safely returning this time, whoever dared to mention those two words "take a boat" to themselves again would definitely be beaten until they were searching for teeth all over the ground!

  Once they were free from worry about their lives, people's minds became clear again and they began to speculate on the reasons why these two had offended the god of the lake. Earlier, it seemed that the young man had mentioned a "dragon" in his poem - was it then that he had offended the dignity of the dragon god in the lake? It was also said that this young man had been idle and had nothing to do with the monster "Wú Zhī Kuí", would he have collided with the spirit of the monster's ancestors in heaven?

  Just as everyone was wildly guessing, the thunder on top of their heads grew louder and seemed to be rolling just a few feet above them. It wasn't until then that people remembered, regardless of whether it was the dragon god's anger or a monster seeking revenge, the most important thing was to throw these two men and women into the lake as an offering. And so, everyone moved towards the two young people as if they had agreed on it beforehand.

  However, it wasn't until then that the crowd in front realized that this unremarkable-looking young man actually had such great strength, and he was leaning against the ship's railing with all his might, pushing back, and for a moment, they couldn't withstand him!

  In fact, after listening to that young master's shouting, Xing Yan exchanged a glance with Ju Ying:

  It seems that today, the two of them are already doomed to be unable to escape their fate.

  The two of them thought to themselves at the same time, it must be that the two of them did something unlawful and inhumane last night, which shocked and enraged the gods, thus bringing down such a disaster. It seems that indeed "the dark room conceals the heart, but the eyes of heaven are like lightning; human whispers are heard by heaven as if they were thunder", this heavenly power is really difficult to fathom, it's truly frightening!

  Just as the young man was desperately fighting off everyone else and was about to be overwhelmed, the girl suddenly became calm and composed.

  Past and present, all sorts of things, just like lightning flashing before one's eyes.

  "Are we going to die together with this young man in Lake Poyang now?"

  At this critical moment, looking at the innocent youth in front of her who was desperately trying to protect herself, the girl felt a sense of calmness and composure in her heart, as if she no longer feared the approaching death.

  But in his heart, he still misses the old father and mother at home. It's all because of himself that he's suffered this disaster. This time, it seems that he won't be able to repay his parents' kindness even if he dies in the lake. Looking again at the girl in front of him, he feels even more like a thousand arrows piercing his heart, secretly cursing himself for implicating this innocent and lovely girl.

  At this point, the young man suddenly shouted loudly at the surging crowd in front of him:

  "Gentlemen, please stay your hand and listen to my words! This time it was I who was ignorant and provoked the wrath of the River God; however, this has nothing to do with the young lady. I implore you, sirs, to consider her a mere woman and spare her life! If you agree to this, I will no longer resist!"

  No one expected such sincere words, but they only brought a burst of ridicule. Everyone was just trying to save their lives, seeing that the lake god had written a message indicating that these two should be sacrificed, and if there were any discounts, the gods would blame them in the end! At this point, everyone was looking out for themselves, so who cared about chatting with this young man?

  Seeing the crowd's excitement, Ju Ying said softly to the young man who was at a loss for what to do:

  "Last night when we were ambushed, I said I wouldn't abandon you and run first. Today, even more so, I won't watch you die alone..."

  Looking at the resolute expression on the young girl's face, Xing Yan was unaware of the great sorrow in his heart! It's just that things have come to this point now, and there is no room for maneuver. Thinking of this, Xing Yan couldn't help but let out a long sigh, pushing away the two people who had squeezed over, and said to the crowd in front of him:

  "It seems that the two of us are doomed this time! But please spare our lives and give us a small boat, from now on we will go our separate ways. If you don't agree to my request, even if we become vengeful spirits, we won't let you off!"

  If it were in the past, after hearing this fierce ghost's intimidating words, these people would not help but sneer at him. However, seeing the various strange phenomena on Lake Poyang today, perhaps the affairs of gods and ghosts are not to be taken lightly; although each person secretly cursed the young man for spouting so much nonsense, why didn't he hurry up and jump in to save their lives, since these two were willing to leave the boat and offer sacrifices, giving them a small wooden boat was no big deal? In this turbulent lake water, that small wooden boat carved from wood was not much different from a single reed. It's better to just follow the young man's words and quickly send away these two pests, lest they have many nightmares tonight.

  At this moment, the crowd on the boat was of one mind, and they quickly made way for the two men to clear a wide path, allowing them to go to the stern to untie the small boat. Everyone held their breath, intently watching every move of the two men. When they saw with their own eyes that the two had boarded the lonely boat, everyone on the flower boat let out a sigh of relief.

  ……

  ………

  …………

  In the midst of the raging storm, two pairs of hands were tightly clasped together!

  Just as the words were spoken, and the boat was about to set off, the long-suppressed thunder in the sky seemed to have found a way out. Everyone heard a loud clap of thunder beside their ears, and the dark clouds shook violently, as if a hole had been torn open in the fiery red clouds. Suddenly, a bolt of blood-red lightning flashed, shaped like a dragon or snake, and shot straight towards the small boat!

  The thunder in the sky, this brilliant divine electricity, came swiftly and fiercely, unstoppable. Whether it was the awakened words that could not escape heavenly punishment or the crowd on the painted boat who thought they had escaped and were rejoicing, all were stunned and bewildered by this sudden change in heaven and earth, unable to react in time.

  In the blink of an eye, all things have come to an end, and humans and ghosts have gone their separate ways.

  It's raining cats and dogs.

  ……

  The majestic Poyang Lake seems to have receded into the distance, and the world has once again fallen into eternal silence.

  "Am I going to die now?"

  "Is... is this the Yellow Spring Road?"

  After a long time, the shocking and awe-inspiring power of heaven and earth shook him awake. Dazed, he seemed to have regained a thread of consciousness. In his confusion, he vaguely felt that there was a blurry figure in front of him, anxiously shouting something at him.

  After struggling for a while, I finally opened my heavy eyelids and saw a beautiful but unfamiliar face.

  "Ah!"

  Just saw a glimpse of light from the young man, but suddenly felt two eyes going dark:

  "Alas! In the end, I couldn't escape this calamity after all! It's come so quickly to the underworld, that Ox-Headed Horse... uh?"

  It wasn't until now that the young man felt something was off:

  "Is there such a good-looking Ox-Headed Horse-Faced in the underworld?!"

  He struggled to open his eyes again - and so the young man saw, at the age of sixteen, the most beautiful picture he had ever seen in his life.

  It was a clear sky with clouds dispersing after the rain, and a beautiful girl with an ethereal and dreamy appearance stood there, gazing at herself with a melancholic expression. The faint peach blossom-like hue of sadness on her face made her look even more slender and elegant, with a gentle charm that flowed freely.

  When Xingyan woke up, the fairy-like girl's expression was quite joyful, and she couldn't help but smile slightly - in that instant, in Xingyan's eyes, the divine light in the girl's flowing gaze seemed to illuminate the entire sky, water, clouds, and distant mountains in front of him, rippling and swaying together with the autumn waves of Poyang Lake.

  In an instant, as if sensing the extraordinary aura that was not of this world, the long-lost Moonlight Flowing Water in his body seemed to be drawn by the girl's fleeting yet unparalleled beauty, and together with the divine light before him, it swirled and surged...

  In sync with the rhythm of the flowing water, his words were already a jumbled mess. The young man who had just walked through life and death, suddenly caught sight of this otherworldly beauty, and his heart was filled with longing, yet he forgot to think; his mouth wanted to ask questions, but he forgot how to speak. At this moment, the young man's mind could no longer hold any other thoughts, only repeatedly revolving around a single sentence from his textbook:

  "It seems like a light cloud covering the moon, fluttering like a gentle breeze sweeping away the snow... It seems like a light cloud covering the moon, fluttering like a gentle breeze sweeping away the snow..."

  "Ah!"

  The dazed young man didn't come to until he was suddenly splashed with a cold lake water, and his mind cleared up again, returning to the world in front of him.

  At that time, the girl called out a few times, but the boy didn't respond, so she came over to push him. Unexpectedly, the boy was lying on his side in the shallow water, and in a daze, he was pushed into the water. Fortunately, the water by the shore was shallow, and after struggling for a while, he quickly woke up and climbed back onto the lake bank. In the midst of the commotion, she heard:

  "Whose child is this? His eyes gleam like a thief's!"

  The heavenly music matches this fairy-like face perfectly.

  Hmph! Must have been staring at her with all his might just now, and suddenly startled the beauty, being taken for a rascal. But... why does this voice sound so familiar?

  Today, having seen many strange things, I dare not speak rashly, so I asked cautiously:

  "Does this fairy recognize me?"

  "Listen up! I'm Ju Ying!"

  A faint smile and a slight anger, equally charming and beautiful, shining and moving people.

  "Uh..."

  It seems that all these situations today are just like a dream; and this dream has not woken up until now.

  At this time, seeing the awake words like this, the girl also felt that something was wrong, so she looked at herself in the water. When she saw her appearance clearly, the girl involuntarily covered her mouth and exclaimed!

  Afterwards, it took a lot of effort for Xing Yan to accept the fact that she was indeed "Jū Yíng". Fortunately, in the end, the simple-minded young man still accepted her explanation that "my father ordered me to conceal my beauty, only then can I go out and travel". This explanation was reasonable; with the girl's stunning looks, if she didn't hide her appearance, it would be impossible for her to lightly venture into the dangers of Jianghu, and she could only be locked up in a deep boudoir.

  It seems that after all, he was just a country boy with limited experience. At the time, he didn't think that such an ingenious and subtle art of disguise could be tolerated by a merchant's family!

  Although the simple-minded young man believed in Ruyu's words, this young man who had rarely seen beautiful women was still unnatural when he saw Ruyu's stunning appearance. The girl also seemed to have not expected such a situation to occur and was quite embarrassed for a while, unlike her previous carefree self.

  After a long time, perhaps recalling the life-and-death struggle they had just experienced in that mysterious and unpredictable place, the young man suddenly lifted his head, looked at the girl, and smiled:

  "Full house!"

  The girl heard this and smiled brightly:

  "Good words!"

  These two voices responded, and the two returned to their previous tacit understanding.

  At this time, the goose-yellow hairband that had been tied to Ju Ying's forehead was scattered and lost in the heavy rain. Her long hair, smooth as silk, cascaded down like a waterfall. The girl then stood by the autumn waters, using the lake as a mirror and her hands as a comb, to tidy up her flowing locks.

  The young man not far from her side, looking at Ju Ying's beautiful silhouette, felt a little uneasy in his heart, and didn't know how to place his hands and feet. After a while, Xing Yan thought the silence was a bit awkward, so he made small talk:

  "Uh, Ju Ying, look at that southern direction, that faint distant mountain, it looks like the shape on your body... "

  The boy who usually had a ready tongue was now stuttering and felt somewhat awkward.

  The girl heard this and looked up at the distant mountain scenery, vaguely seeing that there were two peaks with winding curves facing each other.

  As soon as she saw this scene, the girl was stunned for a moment, and suddenly thought of something, unknowingly bowed her head to look into her bosom; then blushed all over her face, lightly sighed, stretched out her hand to wake up Yan.

  "Wow! It's really light!"

  The unsuspecting innocent youth fell into the water again; re-soaked in the cold lake water, he was still confused and puzzled, thinking to himself:

  "She was just praising her eyebrows, which were like two faint autumn mountains. Why did she suddenly scold me? Didn't the book also say that there are sentences like 'water-like eye waves' and 'mountain-like eyebrow peaks'?"

  This young man who suffered this unprovoked disaster, in his heart felt that indeed it was the thoughts of this little woman that were most difficult to guess!

  At this moment, on the shallow waters of Nanji Island, the girl was shy and hard to bear, while the boy was confused and wronged. Unbeknownst to them, the sun had gradually sunk into the western end of Poyang Lake.

  The afterglow of autumn sun shines brightly on the clouds in the western half of the sky. Amidst the shimmering sunset glow, deep within the vast and mysterious Poyang Lake, a small wooden boat is drifting with the current, sometimes sinking, sometimes floating. Meanwhile, as night falls, some parts of the icy cold lake water have already turned dark, swallowing up the last remnants of what was once a colorful painted boat...

  Another day has passed like this.

  。