Chapter 436 [Pray you! Pray you!]

The crackling bonfire was burning.

Chen Daolin threw a pile of hay into the fire, then carefully turned over a lamb leg that was placed on the fire, trying to make the meat evenly accept the flame baking.

On the ground behind him, Ainise hummed a few times, and finally opened his eyes.

The little girl sat up suddenly!

She stared at the surroundings with wide eyes.

It was already late at night, and there were endless grasslands around. In the night sky, you could hear autumn insects making the final chirping, you could feel the gradually chilly evening breeze, you could see the stars in the sky, and you could see the bright moon like a hook.

Ainisei looked around, looked at the sky, and then looked at the back of the fire.

She lowered her head, covered with a blanket.

Looking back, I saw my own dog lying in the grass nest and the sheep were there.

Ainisa was stunned for a while, her eyes were a little hollow.

At this moment, she saw the tall man turn around and smile at her. In the slight fire, his smile looked very special, with snow-white teeth. His figure was in the fire--I don't know if it was fire or his smile, as if it brought a warm feeling to Ainise.

"Are you hungry?"

Chen Daolin gently cut a piece of mutton and handed it to Ainise. Seeing the little girl taking it in her hand, but not eating it, Chen Daolin chuckled again: "There is no seasoning, only a little salt. Well... Be careful when you eat it, it's hot. Uh... Don't worry, your sheep are all there. I didn't kill your sheep."

Ainisa was stunned and looked at Chen Daolin. He looked down at the piece of mutton in his hand - wearing it with an iron tong, exuding heat and fragrance.

"I..." the little girl shrugged her nose and tried to softly say in a calm and hoarse voice: "I'm asleep? So... so everything is a dream, right?"

She stared at Chen Daolin nervously and seriously, as if a frightened little beast, and whispered repeatedly: "It's dreaming, it's all dreaming... right? God, tell me. It's all dreaming, right?"

Chen Daolin looked at the girl's eyes and saw the deep expectation that was revealed in those eyes.

Suddenly, before, his heart softened, and he tried to smile, and said softly: "...it's all dreaming."

The flame of expectation suddenly went out in Ainise's eyes.

She began to shed tears, and tears came out. Gradually, the sob turned into tears and howling.

She threw away the piece of mutton in her hand, hugged her knees, buried her head between her knees, and started crying bitterly.

Chen Daolin looked for a while, sighed softly, walked to Ainise and sat down.

He hesitated for a moment, stretched out an arm and gently hugged the little girl.

Ainisa raised his head and looked at Chen Daolin. His eyes were filled with sadness and grief: "It's all true... it's not a dream. God... I know, I know... My mother is dead, my brother is dead, the tribe is gone, and the family is gone..."

The little girl kept crying, crying for a long time.

Chen Daolin did not stop her from crying anymore. He knew very well that at this moment, this child needed to vent his sadness in his heart in this way.

When Ainise finally got tired of crying and couldn't cry anymore, Chen Daolin cut a piece of meat over again.

He stretched out his fingers, pinched Ainisa's chin, stared at her eyes, and said in a serious tone: "I know you are very sad... Even if you want to cry, you have to eat something first. Only when you are full can you have the strength to continue crying. And... I heard you say that you still have your father and brother, so you should eat your stomach and live to have the chance to see your father and brother..."

Ainisa was stunned for a while, but she shed tears: "There is no home, no tribe... Even if my father and brother come back, they can't find me... My mother is no longer, no younger brother is no longer... My father and brother come back can't see them..."

That night, Ainise never said anything, just silent.

...

When it was dawn, the dog jumped up and ran to Ainise, trying to arch her hand with her head, and then stuck out her tongue to lick Ainise's palm.

Ainise didn't move.

The sheep began to bleat uneasyly, and then ran around to eat grass, running further and further.

Ainise didn't move.

Chen Daolin didn't know what the little girl was thinking. Maybe it would take her a long time to digest such a tragedy.

He quietly led the sheep back, found the horse, and comforted the dog.

Then, he carried Ainie on the road, led the pony, a flock of sheep, and a dog, slowly headed eastward.

There were almost no reliable references on the vast grassland. Chen Daolin just distinguished the direction according to the position of the sun, and went east all the way.

In fact, he had not yet figured out how to arrange the little girl in his arms.

...

Last night, in the destroyed tribe, Chen Daolin had asked the surviving herdsmen nearby. From the herdsmen's mouths, intermittent and fragmented words, he pieced together a rough truth:

In the evening, another group of tribes on the grassland attacked the tribe. Those people burned, killed, looted, and the young women were stolen, and cattle, sheep, and horses were stolen.

The elderly and weak and the children are either killed or abandoned.

In the entire tribe, less than twenty people survived.

Chen Daolin gathered them together. After asking, he knew that these herdsmen were about to gather after dawn, go west and look for other tribes in the west. Their only choice was to run to other places to try to join other tribes and get taken in by other tribes.

Chen Daolin also wanted to be kind and help them.

He tried to let these surviving old and weak herders follow him. But unfortunately, his request was rejected. These herders did not trust Chen Daolin, a stranger.

Chen Daolin even tried to use the excuse that he was "a person on the holy mountain".

But what surprised Chen Daolin was that even if he used this trick this time, he not only did not receive the support of these survivor herders. Instead...

What greeted him was the look of hatred!

Then, he heard a herder talking, which relieved his doubts.

"I saw...those robbers were under the banner of the White King!"

"Yes! It's the banner of King White! King White is the son of the Holy Mountain!"

"Is this the punishment from the gods of the Holy Mountain to us?!"

The herdsmen do have traditional beliefs about snow-capped mountains, but such beliefs are still beyond the control of their own relatives being killed and their homes being burned!

In fact, if Chen Dao hadn't left quickly, the surviving herders would have rushed up and attacked him with his hands and teeth.

Chen Daolin naturally would not hurt these poor people anymore, so he could only choose to retreat. Before leaving, he threw a bag of gold coins and threw them on the ground.

He took Ainise away.

In theory, he was not optimistic about the fate of those survivors - on the grassland, the herdsmen who lost their tribes generally ended up being pitiful. Even if they could find other tribes and get taken in, they would become slaves.

On the grassland, it is about survival, not human feelings.

If Ainise, a little girl, stayed there and followed those people... Chen Daolin even doubted whether those people would throw her away halfway.

After all, she is just a child.

She can't work, she just consumes food.

Of course, before leaving, Chen Daolin picked up a lamb who was trampled to death by a horse's hooves before leaving. This was taken back by him as food.

...

Ainise felt herself being held in the arms of this man and walking all the way.

The man walked very fast, but very lightly. Ainise curled up, and in the man's arms, he seemed to be lying on the felt of his home.

He walked very steadily, very steadily, very steadily...

Ainisai slept a few times, woke up several times, had many dreams, dreaming of his father, brother, grandma, younger brother, and the lame uncle.

In the dream, there were so many people in the family, but they could not see themselves - they all seemed to be unable to see Ainise.

Several dreams, several awakenings, and several crying.

In the evening, Chen Daolin stopped to rest again.

He was not tired himself, but sheep, dog and horse could not bear it.

He wanted to throw away these "burdens" several times, but after thinking that these things were the only things this poor little girl in his arms had, he still couldn't make up his mind.

(I remember that girl Du Weiwei said that I am a woman's kindness. It seems that I am indeed...)

In the evening, Chen Daolin cooked a pot of mutton soup, and then used almost semi-forced to force Ainie to a bowl.

The little girl was crying and coughing, heartbreaking, but Chen Daolin just made up his heart.

"If you don't eat, I will kill your dog! Kill your sheep! Kill your horse!"

After Chen Daolin said this, Ainisa was silent for a while, looked at Chen Daolin in fear, and then grabbed a piece of mutton, the soup was wet, and he tried his best to stuff it into his mouth, stuffing it while crying.

When it was completely dark, Ainise finally stopped crying.

She sat next to the fire with her knees in her arms, far away. Chen Daolin couldn't bear it, so he carried her over, closer to the fire.

At night, Chen Daolin was thinking about something else in his heart, and suddenly he heard Ainise sitting next to the fire singing something softly.

Yes... I listened carefully twice, and this little girl was singing a song with a very strange tone.

The voice is sharp and crisp, and of course there is also a bit of tired hoarseness and a bit of desolation.

But she was indeed singing.

"The stars in the sky are shining~
To be continued...