Excerpt from "Three-body" No Story Kingdom

After leaving the palace, captain Wei drove running all the way. All three of them are nervous. They feel that in the endless darkness, trees and fields are full of danger. After dawn, the car drove up a hill, and the captain of the guard stopped the horse. They have been watching the road. The land of the kingdom has not yet spread under them. The way they come is like a long line that divides the world into two parts. At the end of the line is the palace, which is far away, like a small pile of wooden toys left in the distance. I don't see the pursuers. Apparently, Prince Smokey thought that the princess no longer existed and was painted in the painting.

In the future, they can take a leisurely walk. In the process of dawn, the world around us is like a painting being drawn. At first, there were only hazy outlines and fuzzy colors. Later, the shapes and lines of the scenery gradually became clear and fine, and the colors were rich and lively. This painting was finished before sunrise. The princess lived in the palace all the year round, and she had never seen such bright colors: green in the grass and fields, bright red and light yellow in the flowers, the morning glow reflected by the lake is silver, and the early sheep are white ... When the sun rises, it seems that the painter who painted this painting grabbed a handful of gold powder and spread it on the whole painting nobly.

"It's good to be outside. It seems that we are already drawing. " Exclaimed the princess.

"Yes, Princess, but in this painting you are alive, and in that painting you are dead." Aunt Kuan with an umbrella said.

This reminded the princess of her father and mother who had left, but she held back her tears. She knew that she was no longer a little girl. She should shoulder the heavy responsibility of king.

They talk about the prince of deep water.

"Why was he exiled to Tomb Island?" Asked the princess.

"People say he is a monster." Captain Wei said.

"The Prince of Deep Water is not a monster!" Aunt Kuan retorted.

"People say he is a giant."

"Deep water is not a giant! I hugged him when he was little. He is not a giant. "

"When we get to the seaside, you will see it. He must be a giant. Many people have seen it. "

"Even if Sham Shui Po is a giant, he is also a prince. Why did you exile him to the island? " Asked the princess.

"He was not exiled. When he was a child, he went fishing on Tomb Island by boat. At that time, there were greedy fish at sea, so he couldn't come back and had to grow up on the island. "

……

After the sun rose, there were more pedestrians and carriages on the road. People don't know the princess because she has never been out of the palace before, but although she still wears a veil and only shows two eyes, people who see her will still marvel at her beauty. People also praised Kong, a young driver, and laughed at the strange umbrella that the old mother held for her beautiful daughter and her strange way of holding it. Fortunately, no one questioned the use of umbrellas. It's sunny today, and people think it's an umbrella.

Unconsciously, at noon, captain Wei shot two rabbits for lunch with a bow and arrow. Three people were sitting in a clearing between trees on the roadside to eat. Princess Dew stroked the soft grass beside her, sniffed the fragrance of grass and flowers, watched the sun shine on the grass through the leaves, listened to the birds singing in the forest and the flute of the shepherd boy in the distance, and was full of curiosity and surprise about this new world.

Aunt Kuan sighed, "Alas, Princess, it's really hard for you to be so far away from the palace."

"I think it's better outside than in the palace." Said the princess.

"My princess, where is the palace outside? You really don't know, there are many difficulties outside. It's spring now, it will be cold outside in winter, hot in summer, windy and rainy outside, all kinds of people outside, outside ... "

"But I know nothing about the situation outside. I studied music, painting, poetry and arithmetic in the palace, and also learned two languages that no one spoke, but no one told me what it was like outside. How can I rule the kingdom like this? "

"Princess, the ministers will help you."

"The ministers who can help me are all painted in the picture ... I still think it's good outside."

It was a day's journey from the palace to the seaside, but the princess and her party were afraid to take the main road, so they bypassed the town and didn't arrive until midnight.

Princess Dew has never seen such a vast starry sky and experienced the darkness and silence of the night for the first time. The flashlight in the car can only illuminate a small area around her. Farther away, the world is a big piece of furry black velvet. The hoofbeat was loud, as if to shake down the stars. The princess suddenly pulled up the captain of the guard and told him to stop the carriage.

"Listen, what's that noise? Like a giant's breath. "

"Princess, this is the sound of the sea."

After a while, the princess saw many objects faintly visible in the night on both sides, such as big bananas.

"What are those?" She asked.

Captain Wei stopped the car again, took off the flashlight and walked to the nearest one. "Princess, you should know this."

"the boat?"

"Yes, Princess, it's a ship."

"But why is the ship on land?"

"Because there are greedy fish in the sea."

In the light of the flashlight, we can see that the ship is very old. Half of the hull is buried by sand, and the exposed part looks like a monster's bone.

"Oh, look there!" Pointing to the front, the princess exclaimed, "It seems there is a big white snake!" "

"Don't be afraid of the princess. This is not a snake. It's waves. We are at the seaside. "

The princess got off the bus with Aunt Guan, and Aunt Guan gave her an umbrella. She saw the sea. She has only seen the sea in her paintings before. It is a blue ocean under the blue sky, which is completely different from the black ocean under the night sky. It is full of starlight and mystery, just like another liquid starry sky. The princess walked to the seaside involuntarily, but was stopped by the captain of the guard and aunt Kuan.

"Princess, it's dangerous to be too close to the sea." Captain Wei said.

"I don't think the water in front is deep. Can you drown me? " The princess pointed to the white waves on the beach and said.

"There are greedy fish in the sea, and they will tear you up and eat you!" Aunt Kuan said.

Captain Wei picked up a broken board, stepped forward and threw it into the sea. The planking was dangling on the sea, and in a short time, a black shadow jumped out of the water and rushed at it. Because most of it is underwater, you can't see its size, and the scales on it shine in the light of a flashlight. Then three or four black figures quickly swam to the planking, fighting for a ball in the water. With the sound of water, you can hear the click of sharp teeth. In the blink of an eye, the black figure and the planking were gone.

"See? They can bite a big ship into pieces in a very short time. " Captain Wei said.

"What about Tomb Island?" Aunt Kuan asked.

"In that direction," Captain Wei pointed to the dark water, "you can't see it at night, but you can see it at dawn."

They camped on the beach. Aunt Kuan handed the umbrella to captain Wei and took a small wooden basin from the carriage.

"Princess, you can't take a bath today, but you should at least wash your face."

Captain Wei returned the umbrella to Aunt Kuan, saying that he was going to find water, so he took the basin and disappeared into the night.

"He is a good young man." Aunt Guan said with a yawn.

Captain Wei will be back soon, and I don't know where to call a basin of clear water. Aunt Guan washed the princess's face. She only dipped a bar of soap in the water. After a slight creaking sound, the basin surface was immediately filled with white foam, which swelled into a ball and overflowed from the basin edge.

Captain Wei stared at the foam for a while and said to Aunt Kuan, "Let me see that soap."

Aunt Guan carefully took out a piece of white soap from the parcel and handed it to Captain Wei. "Take it, it is lighter than a feather and has no weight at all. As soon as you let go, it floated away. "

Captain Wei took the soap and really didn't feel any weight, like holding a white shadow. "Is this really Hirsingham Mosken soap, and now there is this thing?"

"I only have two pieces, the whole palace, I think the whole kingdom, and only these last two pieces are left, which I specially left for the princess in my early years. Alas, Hirsingham's things are all good things, but unfortunately they are getting less and less now. " Aunt Kuan said, taking the soap back and carefully putting it back in the bag.

Looking at the white foam, the princess recalled her first life in the palace after her trip. Every night, in her exquisite and gorgeous bath palace, there is a big bubble floating on the big bath. Lights come from different directions, and the big bubble suddenly turns white, like a cloud caught from the daytime sky; Suddenly, a wide color changed, like a gem, soaking in that bubble. The princess will feel that her body is as soft as noodles and that she is melting and becoming a part of bubbles. That kind of comfortable feeling made her never want to move again, so she could only be carried out by the maid to dry, and then carried to bed to sleep. That wonderful feeling can last until the next morning.

Now, the princess's face washed with Hersingham Mosken soap is relaxed and soft, but her body is stiff and tired. After eating something casually, she lay down on the beach, covered with a blanket at first, and later found it more comfortable to lie directly on the beach. The soft sand layer with the temperature of the sunshine during the day, she felt like being held in the palm of her hand by a warm big hand, and the sound of the waves was like a lullaby, and she soon fell asleep.

I don't know how long it took, but Princess Dew was awakened from her dreamless sleep by a bell. The sound came from the black umbrella spinning overhead. Aunt Guan sleeps next to her. Captain Wei is holding an umbrella. The torch has been extinguished, and the night hangs over everything like velvet. Captain Wei is a silhouette in front of the starry background. Only his armor reflects the starlight, and you can see the sea breeze blowing his hair. The umbrella rotates steadily in his hand, like a small dome covering half the night sky. She can't see his eyes, but she can feel his eyes. He looked at himself with countless twinkling stars.

"Sorry, Princess, I just turned too fast." Captain Wei whispered.

"What time is it now?"

"It's past midnight."

"We seem to be far away from the sea."

"Princess, this is low tide. The sea has receded and will rise again tomorrow morning. "

"Do you take turns to give me an umbrella?"

"Yes, Princess, Aunt Kuan played all day, and I played a little longer at night."

"You also drove all day. Let me play an umbrella for a while and you will sleep. "

After saying this, Princess Dew was a little surprised herself. In her memory, it was the first time she thought of someone else.

"That doesn't work, princess. Your hands are so delicate that they will blister. Let me give you an umbrella. "

"What's your name?"

She has been walking with him all day, and now she asks his name. Before, she would feel normal, even though she never asked, but now she feels a little guilty about it.

"My name is Changfan."

"sail?" The princess turned to look. They are now beside a big ship on the beach, where they can escape the sea breeze. Unlike other ships stranded on the beach, the mast of this ship is still there, like a long sword pointing to the starry sky. "Is the sail a big piece of cloth hanging from this long pole?"

"Yes, princess, this is called a mast. There are sails hanging on it, and the wind blows the sails to push the boat. "

"The sails are white and beautiful at sea."

"That's in the picture, isn't it? The real sail is not that white. "

"You seem to be from Helsingham?"

"Yes, my father is the architect of Hirsingen Mosken. He came here with his family when I was very young. "

"Do you want to go home? I mean Hirsingham Mosken? "

"Not really. I left there when I was a child. I don't remember exactly. Besides, it's no use thinking about it. Now I can never leave the kingdom without stories. "

In the distance, the waves roared noisily, as if repeating the words of the long sail over and over again: never leave, never leave. ...

"Tell me the story of the outside world, I don't know anything." Said the princess.

"You don't need to know that you are a princess of a kingdom without stories. Of course, the kingdom has no stories for you. Actually, Princess, outsiders don't tell stories to children, but my parents are different. They are from Hirsingham and they will tell me some stories. "

"In fact, my father said that the kingdom without stories used to have stories."

"Yes ... Princess, you know the kingdom is surrounded by the sea, right? This palace is located in the center of the kingdom. Whichever direction you go, you will eventually reach the seaside. The kingdom without stories is a big island. "

"I know."

"In the past, the sea around the kingdom was not called the gluttonous sea. At that time, there were no greedy fish in the sea, and ships could sail freely at sea. Every day, countless ships come and go between this kingdom without stories and Hirsingham. At that time, the kingdom without stories was actually a kingdom with stories. Life at that time was very different from now. "

"Huh?"

"Life at that time was full of stories, full of changes and surprises. At that time, there were several prosperous cities in the kingdom. There were not forests and fields around the palace, but prosperous capitals. The city is full of rare treasures and strange utensils from Hersingen Musken. There is no story kingdom, oh no, the products of the story kingdom are also continuously transported from the sea to Hersingen Mosken. At that time, people's lives were unpredictable, just like riding a fast horse in the mountains, sometimes rushing to the summit and sometimes falling into a deep valley, full of opportunities and dangers. The poor may get rich overnight, and the rich may suddenly be penniless. When they wake up in the morning, no one knows what will happen today and who they will meet. There are excitement and surprises everywhere.

"But one day, a merchant ship from Hersingen Mosken brought a rare small fish with only long fingers, black and inconspicuous, and was put in a hard cast iron water tong. Fish merchants perform in the market of the kingdom. He inserted his sword into the water of the iron tongs and only heard a harsh click. When the sword was pulled out again, it was bitten into a sawtooth shape. This kind of fish, called gluttonous fish, is an inland freshwater fish, which grows in a dark pool deep in the cave of Hersingen Mosken. Gourmet fish sell well in the market of the kingdom, because their teeth are small, but they are as hard as diamonds and can be used as drill bits; Their fins are sharp and can be used as arrows or knives. As a result, more and more greedy fish were transported from Hersingham to the kingdom. In a typhoon, a fish carrier was wrecked and sank along the coast of the kingdom, and all 20 barrels of greedy fish carried on board were dumped into the sea.

"It has been found that gluttonous fish can grow rapidly in a sea much larger than land and can reach the length of a person. At the same time, the breeding speed is very fast and the number increases rapidly. The greedy fish began to prey on everything floating on the sea. No matter how big the boat is, it has been bitten to pieces. When a big ship was surrounded by greedy fish, a big hole was quickly gnawed out of the bottom of the ship, but it didn't even sink, so it was bitten into pieces on the sea surface, like melting. Fish swam around the coast of the ancient city kingdom and soon formed an annular barrier in the sea of Zhou State.

"In this way, the story of the Three Kingdoms was captured by the gluttonous fish in the surrounding waters, and the coast became a place of death. There are no more ships and sails, the kingdom has been closed, lost all contact with Hirsingham and the entire external border, and lived a self-sufficient pastoral life. The bustling city has disappeared and become a small town and pasture. Life in Zhejiang is quiet and dull, without change, excitement and surprise. Yesterday is like today, today is like tomorrow. People gradually get used to this kind of life and no longer yearn for other life. Memories of the past, like exotic objects from Hirsingham, are becoming scarcer and scarcer, and people even deliberately forget the past and the present. Generally speaking, I don't want stories anymore. I have established a life without stories, and the story kingdom has become a kingdom without stories. "

Princess Dew was fascinated by this, and the long sail stopped for a long time before asking, "Are there greedy fish everywhere in the ocean now?"

"No, it's just that there are no stories along the coast of the kingdom. People with good eyesight can sometimes see seabirds floating and preying on the sea far offshore, where there are no greedy fish. The ocean is vast. "

"That is to say, there are other places in the world besides Storytelling Kingdom and Hirsingen Mosken?"

"Princess, do you think there are only two places in the world?"

"That's what my court teacher said when I was a child."

"This don't even believe him. The world is big, the ocean is boundless, and there are countless islands, some smaller than the kingdom, and some larger than the kingdom; There is also the mainland. "

"What is the mainland?"

"A land as vast as the ocean can't be reached by riding a fast horse for a few months."

"The world is so big?" The princess sighed lightly and suddenly asked, "Can you see me?"

"Princess, I can only see your eyes now. There are stars in it. "

"Then you can see my yearning. I really want to sail on the sea in a sailboat and go far away. "

"Impossible, princess, we can never leave the kingdom without stories, never … if you are afraid of the dark, I can light a torch." ?

"ok."

After the torch was lit, Princess Dew looked at Captain Wei, only to find that his eyes were elsewhere.

"What are you looking at?" The princess asked softly.

"there, princess, look at that."

A long sail refers to a small clump of grass growing on the sand around the princess. There are a few drops of water on the leaves of the grass, which are crystal clear under the fire.

"That's called dew." Chang Fan said.

"Oh, it's me? Do you like me? "

"Like you, princess, they are all as beautiful as crystal."

"They will be more beautiful in the sunshine after dawn."

Captain Wei sighed. The sound was deep and there was no sound at all, but the princess felt it.

"What's the matter, Changfan?"

"Dewdrops will evaporate in the sun and disappear quickly."

The princess nodded gently, and her eyes blurred in the fire. "This just like me. As soon as this umbrella is closed, I will disappear. I am a fog bead in the sun. "

"I won't let you disappear, princess."

"You know, I also know that we can't get to Tomb Island, and we can't bring back the Prince of Deep Water."

"In that case, Princess, I will always open an umbrella for you."