But the bright moon shines on the ditch

That night, the Xu family removed all the bright things, hung up plain silk, and the servants put on plain clothes.

Because Xu Zhiliu and Xu Zhong were not related by blood and were not the real Xu family, the Xu family had no name to set up a mourning hall for him, display a tomb, hang white flags, carve a tombstone, etc. and conduct a series of funeral ceremonies. Therefore, at Xu Zhong's strong request, Mrs. Xu gave in and only placed Xu Zhiliu's ashes on the table for the Xu family and the kiln workers of Hutian kiln to come to express their condolences. She did not charge any money or any burial objects. The next day, she arranged to return to Yaoli to seal the coffin and bury it. .

This was Xu Zhiliu's wish during his lifetime.

Anan knew that his brother did not like to be extravagant, and he was not willing to make a fuss after his death.Even though Mrs. Xu felt that she had wronged her son by acting like this, since it was her son's wish and she was too old to do anything, she had to compromise.

The mother and son discussed the funeral arrangements, and Xu Chengzhi left his mother in the mourning hall and accompanied Xu Zhong out to talk.Xu Zhong has aged a lot overnight, and a bunch of gray hair can be seen on his temples.

Even though Xu Chengzhi couldn't bear it, he still asked the doubts in his heart.

"My brother has a strong heart. Even if he loses the competition, he will not think about dying in the kiln. Besides, he has not arranged a way out for his mother and has not seen us for the last time. How could he suddenly seek death? Uncle, you and I don't have much contact, right? I may not understand it well. Although my brother and I are not close, we are related by blood. He died inexplicably. As a younger brother, I want to know everything. Don't worry, uncle, I will handle it with caution. I hope my uncle will make it clear. Is there another secret behind this matter?"

Xu Zhong did not expect that a young boy like him could speak in an organized manner. When he thought about it again, the Xu family father and son were both well-known scholars, with the same gentleness and humility. The boy in front of him must be the same as his father and brother who died long ago. The dragon lurking in the abyss should not be underestimated.

However, if there is something fishy, ​​just relying on his relationship with Xu Zhiliu, it is impossible to let him die in vain. There is really nothing to hide.

"Your nickname is Anan, right? Your brother and I are as close as father and son, so I have the audacity to call you Anan. In front of outsiders, I can't take away the face of the big boss. There are indeed things that cannot be said. In front of you, I won't lie. . To be honest, your brother has been in charge of my affairs for many years. I treat him as a favor. Even if his marriage to Ah Yao fails, I still want to accept him as my adopted son. I am the only uncle. He is so incompetent, so incompetent! I heard that he lost the competition during the day, but I didn't take it to heart."

At this point, he couldn't help but feel ashamed when facing this junior. Xu Zhiliu's loss meant that Hutian Kiln lost, but not only did he not take it to heart, he also went to Liu's Lane to play mahjong at the invitation of an old friend in the evening.He has had a lot of free time in recent years, and has also developed some bad habits. He usually likes to go to romantic places, and occasionally has a gambling habit.

It is said to be playing mahjong, but it is just a different way of gambling.

But he couldn't say this directly, so he omitted it. He only said that when he got the news, Xu Zhiliu had already thrown himself into the kiln.

"Since the new county magistrate arrived in our area, to be honest, there has been no peace for a day. Zhiliu lost a bit. Although I was surprised, I expected that he was not the type to admit defeat and must have a plan, so I simply didn't care about it now. Thinking about it, if I had returned home early to comfort him, maybe, maybe..."

He could only see how the grown-up Xu Zhiliu was disobeying him openly and secretly, disciplining him openly and contradicting him behind his back, even if he was not disciplined by him, and hiding everything big and small, so he ignored it. A rare disappointment.

It seemed that since An Jiu returned to Jingdezhen, he had been losing, and he regarded it as a necessary experience for young people. He watched An Jiu fall and get up again and again with cold eyes, feeling both worried and happy in his heart.

In the final analysis, he overestimated Xu Zhiliu and underestimated the situation in Jingdezhen.

Unconsciously, the situation developed too fast. Before he could understand the situation in front of him, the last straw that broke the camel's back fell.

That night, Master Zhuang, who was in charge of watching the fire at the dragon kiln, got upset. Xu Zhiliu happened to be on patrol here, so he asked Master Zhuang to go to the toilet first.Seeing that the person had not returned for a long time, he was worried and sent half of the people who were making firewood to check over.

It just so happened that in just a short moment, Xu Zhiliu was the only one in the kiln, and something happened.

Wait until Master Wuban and Baizhuang come back to take a look, it’s not good!The previously closed fire chamber opening at the kiln head was actually opened. Looking again, the two kiln doors in the middle of the kiln bed were also open.

They subconsciously closed the door and blocked the door, increased the amount of firewood, and rushed out the remaining firewood, thinking that they could save a little bit, but as they kept saving, they realized something was wrong.

I don’t know who said it, could it be that the Tong Bin Kiln God appeared?They immediately thought of the death of the boy in the kiln in the previous dynasty, and their hearts pounded, and they were trembling with fear. Then they thought of Xu Zhiliu, and then they realized that the person was missing.

The open kiln door was undoubtedly their biggest suspect.

Is it impossible, is it impossible?
Damn it, God!Shaodong's family has invested in the kiln!
This matter spread like this. If you think about it carefully, there are indeed many things that cannot be explained.According to Xu Zhiliu's meticulous and responsible attitude, how could he rashly commit suicide in a kiln?Not to mention such a huge loss, if Wanshou Porcelain is messed up, Hutian Kiln will not be able to save it!How could he ignore the lives of Xu Zhong and his entire family?
Furthermore, even if you are going to die, as Xu Chengzhi said, you must make arrangements for your death. How could it happen so suddenly?

The only possible explanation is - he was severely injured.

"I asked Zhang Lei, the chief steward around Zhiliu, and he said that after losing the competition during the day, Zhiliu had been in a state of low energy and in a daze. He didn't eat at night and just sat alone in the study for a long time. I think he was patrolling the kiln. At that time, I just... came up with that idea without paying much attention."

Xu Zhong later also asked the five men, watchmakers and pile masters who were responsible for lighting the dragon kiln that night, and they all said that Xu Zhiliu seemed to be in a low mood.

People are still as gentle as before, and they always treat others in a friendly manner.He just has a youthful temperament, and there is a loneliness that cannot be concealed between his eyebrows.

There are no secrets at the entrance of the kiln. They will be convinced as soon as the results come out in the afternoon.Not to mention Xu Zhiliu himself, even they were shocked and couldn't accept it for a long time. They didn't dare to say anything when they saw the real master. They could avoid it if they could, just to save some face for Xu Zhiliu.

Who would have imagined that he would be so confused!

Otherwise, it would be difficult to explain why a good person suddenly disappeared out of thin air. What else could it be if he didn't commit suicide?
Xu Zhiliu's death was determined in this way.

At the clever time, in the clever place, everything justifies itself and has clever cause and effect.

Xu Chengzhi asked Xu Zhong, and under his leadership, he asked the kiln workers on duty that night one by one. The answers they got were the same as what Xu Zhong said, and there was no difference.

But he still couldn't accept the result that his brother committed suicide.Is Xu Zhiliu someone who would commit suicide if something happened?He couldn't help but think about it, and found Zhang Lei again and asked, "Butler Zhang, please tell me in detail what happened that day."

Zhang Lei was not impatient. He thought carefully and reported everything one by one.When talking about the conversation between Liang Peiqiu and Xu Zhiliu, he could not hear clearly what they said because of the distance. He only felt that the two sides were arguing, and then Xu Zhiliu knocked over a stack of saggers.

That was the first time he saw Xu Zhiliu lose his composure.

Later, Xu Zhiliu seemed to have lost his soul and couldn't listen to anything he said. Zhang Lei thought that he was too tired after working for several months and advised him to take a rest.

Xu Zhiliu agreed calmly, but he still followed his habit and went to inspect the kiln house at night.

Anyone who knows Xu Zhiliu knows that this is his habit, and he is a person who is very harsh on himself, rarely slacking off, and it is almost impossible to change his habit unless the sky falls.

Habits are a terrible sign.

People who understand this will hibernate here in advance.Besides, Master Zhuang's diarrhea was too coincidental.Listening to the master's statement, the pain was so unbearable that night that once he entered the hut, he could not get out. Later, his legs became weak, and he could barely move with the help of others. He drank two large bowls of hot water in the backyard to relieve the pain. It took me half a stick of incense before I hurried back to the kiln with the others.

There is also a time difference.

Xu Chengzhi went through the incident again, retelling it to Xu Zhong, and then raised his doubts on several doubtful points: "Is there a possibility that the two families have bad intentions due to the Wanshou porcelain fight, and the other party cannot see each other after using it?" A human trick to deliberately kill my brother?"

Xu Zhong felt his scalp numb when he heard this.

He looked around hurriedly, but fortunately, everyone in the house was busy working in the front, and there were not many people in the backyard. While they were talking, a few sparrows fluttered out of the trees.

It's not that he doesn't want to seek innocence for Xu Zhiliu, but, "On the one hand, you have seen what happened today. If the little god hadn't protected him with his life, Zhiliu and Zhiliu would not have been burned... Secondly, Hutian Kiln and Although Anqing Kiln are rivals and have been fighting fiercely recently, privately, they have a pretty good relationship. The last time your brother was injured, he came to visit you. Later, they often moved around, and this was spread in the town. Yes. If you don’t believe me, you can ask Shi Nian. That boy is always by Zhiliu’s side, and he must know more than me. As long as I’m looking at it, no matter who has evil thoughts, he won’t be that person.”

Xu Chengzhi saw that his words were firm and not like dodges, so he didn't say anything more. After all, this matter was unfounded and difficult to make public.He and Xu Zhong had a conversation, and both sides had a tacit understanding.In fact, he had seen Liang Peiqiu rushing to Yaoli to report to Xu Zhiliu late at night in the snow.He also saw their friendship.

However, if this is not the case, how can we explain all the strange things?
When they returned to the front yard, the kiln workers had already offered incense and offered condolences. They blocked the courtyard and refused to leave, saying they wanted to see Xu Zhiliu on her last journey.Xu Zhong gave him a few words of training but did not send him back, so Zhang Lei came to make peace.Xu Zhong didn't really want to drive them away. Seeing that they were kind and righteous, he was not angry that no one listened to his words. Instead, he felt relieved for Xu Zhiliu, so he turned a blind eye and let them go.

Mrs. Xu couldn't say anything.

Xu Chengzhi walked through the corridor and when he approached the main hall, he heard the cry of a young woman. He immediately thought of something and stopped outside the door.I don’t know how long it took, but the crying gradually stopped and turned into a whisper with my mother.

The woman's voice was soft and soft, hoarse after crying, and she seemed to be choking, like a child acting coquettishly.

In the company of the woman, the mother's sadness seemed to be healed a little, and she started talking to her about daily life.The two talked for a long time, and Xu Chengzhi asked someone to come in and deliver some soup.

In the middle of the night, the woman came out and met Xu Chengzhi. Both of them were slightly stunned.

Xu Chengzhi had already heard of A Yao's name. This woman who was supposed to be his sister-in-law was later rejected by her brother for some unknown reason. I heard that there was a lot of trouble and now they are discussing a divorce.When he went to Qimen to avoid trouble, he accidentally met Zhou Ya, and heard from Shinian that she was the fiancé Xu Yao was considering.

Although Xu Zhiliu was dissatisfied with Zhou Ya, Xu Zhong couldn't bear to pick and choose. After a round of selections, none of them were good, and finally turned back to Zhou Ya.

Zhou Ya is also very interested in "the lady from Hutian Kiln".

Xu Chengzhi and Xu Zhiliu felt the same, feeling that Zhou Ya was not a good person.However, he had no position to say anything.

Originally, they might have become relatives, but she looked smaller than he imagined, similar to the little girl he imagined crying through the door, with cherry pink face, round cheeks, and bun buns, which had not really grown yet.

In fact, Yao is two years older than him.

This is why Ah Yao was slightly surprised.Why does a boy who is half a year younger than her look so much more mature than her?This made the basket of words she had prepared in advance to comfort her brother get stuck in her throat.

I don't know how long it took before I finally managed to squeeze out the two words "Jie Mie".Xu Chengzhi nodded, with the same indifference as Xu Zhiliu.

Ah Yao swallowed and was speechless.

Later, around early morning, Ah Yao appeared again to bid farewell to Mrs. Xu.Mrs. Xu touched her head, thanked her for taking care of Xu Zhiliu over the years, and said that it was a burden to her.

Ah Yao kept shaking his head and crying until he couldn't breathe.

When the team really started to move, she suddenly rushed over, grabbed the brocade box from Xu Chengzhi's hand, held it in her arms and cried bitterly.Xu Zhong immediately asked the maid to pull him up, but she couldn't pull him back no matter how hard he tried.

Xu Zhong's eyes were also red, and he sighed and went forward in person.

He didn't want Xu Chengzhi to be one step faster than him.

"Stop crying." His voice was extremely low, with a profound coldness in the middle of winter, "If you really do him good, let him leave early, so as not to delay his return home."

Ah Yao choked and raised his head to meet Xu Chengzhi's eyes.His eyes were red, and he must have cried secretly, but his expression looked like a Rakshasa, as cold and cold as the cold winter in December.

"But I can't, can't let go of Brother Aqian."

Xu Chengzhi lowered his eyes: "You have to let go even if you can't bear it. Didn't he teach you this before?"

Ah Yao didn't know whether he was bluffed or frightened. As soon as he loosened his grip, Xu Chengzhi successfully took back his brother's urn. He looked at her again and said helplessly, "You... are going to get married in the future. Don't miss him." Well, at least, don’t show it to others.”

Ah Yao was Yunying's unmarried daughter, and Xu Zhong would never allow her to send Xu Zhiliu out of the city.After saying a few words, she was forcibly pulled back into the house.

After walking out of Lion Lane and going up Jingde Street, the farewell team gradually expanded. In addition to the kiln workers of Hutian Kiln, there were also store owners and clerks who cooperated with Hutian Kiln, as well as the porcelain dealers who had received favors from Xu Zhiliu. , among whom there are many Huangjiazhou captains and residents.

When they reached the city gate, they still did not stop.

It's not an exaggeration to say that we saw each other off ten miles away. The team grew stronger all the way, and when we arrived at Junzi Pavilion, it was already broad daylight.The glimmer of light penetrates the endless night and finally reaches the people. It breaks through the clouds and shines brightly, painting a blazing morning glow.

This is the place where Xu Zhiliu bid farewell to Xu Chengzhi after he was accused of adultery. Now, only a few months later, he has come to bid farewell to his brother.

At that time, his chest was filled with hatred and love, and he didn't know how to express his mixed emotions. In front of his brother, he said, "Why should I bear the responsibility for your fault?"Turning his back, he felt deeply regretful and beat his chest secretly.

He said he wanted to study, and his brother asked him if he wanted to take revenge. He smiled and thought, so what?He wanted to kill all the evil ghosts in the world, and wanted to use the power they could not obtain to hold up a blue sky in the cold and hot weather.

So, he said to his brother, go forward and don't look back.

I didn't expect that he really didn't even look back or go home, he just left.

Xu Chengzhi didn't know that Xu Zhiliu didn't hear those words.If he really hears it, maybe he will look back, at least to take a look at this brother who doesn't mean what he says.

Now, Xu Chengzhi stands on the high ground where he looked back in the past, looking back again, holding Xu Zhiliu's urn and bowing deeply to the endless team behind him, and said loudly: "I would like to thank you on behalf of my brother for your kindness. I will see you off after a long journey." It's enough to say goodbye and get here, I hope you are all well!"

Everyone in the team was shaking and wailing.

After a while, I don't know who spoke first.

"Have a good trip, Young Master!"

Then the voice was louder than the voice, "Have a good trip, Young Master!"

"Have a good trip, Young Master!!"

The uniform cry echoed through the sky in the vast countryside.The wild geese fly apart, this journey is separated, the mountains are long and the rivers are far, each is at the end of the world.

In the carriage not far away, Liang Peiqiu gritted her teeth and endured the severe pain of her broken leg. She pressed her palms on the thick mattress and held her upper body up by the window.I couldn't help crying as I watched the figures on the ridge getting further and further away.

Brother Liu, Brother Liu, have a good trip.