To Lulunaka, seeing herself in the painting was nothing new. But no matter how many times she saw it, she would still find it interesting.
The old emperor was right beside her, and she was almost sprawled on the desk. Her chin was almost touching the painting, and her eyes were almost glued to it. "How strange … When did this happen? It feels like someone secretly took it and left it there without me knowing," Lulunaka raised her head and asked the old emperor, "Who painted it?"
The old emperor spread out his hands and shook his head. "I only inherited this painting. I don't know which ancestor left behind such an important moment."
Lulunaka scratched her head and reached out to touch her own body in the painting.
His drawing on the parchment was well preserved. If he just touched it a little, it wouldn't destroy the drawing.
"Let's get this straight. There's something I need you to know … In your eyes, this painting may be the intersection of history and myth. You might even associate it with the so-called mandate of heaven or a gift … but there's no such thing."
Lulunaka picked up the painting and unfolded it in the air.
The person in the painting became slightly transparent as the light penetrated through it.
"It's such a subtle scene. It's so deliberate. If I know who came up with this idea, it's definitely …" Speaking of this, Lurunaka sighed and showed a bitter smile. "Sigh, it doesn't seem to make sense to talk about this. No matter who it is, he's already dead."
"Is it something you can't tolerate?" the old emperor asked. "It's something that's recorded."
His understanding of Lulunaka was limited to the secret records that only a small portion of the royal family had access to. As for how much he knew about Lulunaka, it was only limited to what he saw on paper.
"I'm used to being secretly recorded by someone. Anyway, it's just something that's categorized as myth and unofficial history. After a while, it'll just become a story and imagination written by someone."
Lulunaka didn't seem to mind. She was more concerned about something else. "I'm just a little worried that I've become a symbol of something."
Lulunaka pointed to herself sitting on the altar in the painting. "Let me make it clear first. Things like memories and records can easily beautify someone or inexplicably assign them a status or symbol.
This painting … What you see and what I've experienced are definitely not the same thing.
There's no destiny, and there's no gift from the gods. This painting isn't some fairy tale … It's just some bored person who asked some strange questions to the warriors who happened to pass by. "
Speaking of this, the smile on Lurunaka's face returned. "But the hero does exist in this painting. Otherwise, you wouldn't be the emperor.
Seeing this familiar scene reminds me of the time when someone was bold enough to try to snatch me away. "
Hearing this, the emperor couldn't help but laugh. "So that's what happened?"
"Should I say that the ignorant are fearless or the brave are invincible?" Lulunaka looked up at the emperor. "Maybe it's both.
I don't think you'd want to hear about the scandals of your ancestors. Or do you really have such an interest? "
The emperor was silent for a while. Then he sat opposite Lulunaka.
At this moment, their seats were switched. Lulunaka sat in the master seat of the study table, while the emperor sat opposite her.
"I won't listen to the stories of my ancestors. Maybe I'll be disappointed if I listen to them with longing."
"That's right. Nothing good will come out of worship. This kind of thinking will only bring about all kinds of messy results."
Lulunaka seemed to be satisfied with the emperor's answer. Her smile was especially bright. "But from the looks of it, you must have something to ask, right?"
"You just said that you only asked a few questions," the emperor said.
"I'm actually quite interested in this — what did you ask the ancestors of the horsemen who were nomadic at that time?"
Lulunaka put her hand on her chin and pinched it. She seemed to be deep in thought. "What did I ask? Let me think …" She looked up at the bookshelves around her. "Didn't you write it down?
I think that since this painting was left behind to spy on my privacy, someone would do something unnecessary, right? "
Seeing the emperor shake his head, Lulunaka looked a little troubled. "You didn't keep it … But it's not strange. Although it's me in the painting, there are many details missing. It's almost like a re-creation.
If you think about it this way, it's probably a re-creation. "
It was hard to tell if Lurunaka was pretending to be deep in thought. At the very least, the old emperor was very patient. To him, there wasn't much time left, and there was almost nothing he wanted to do. Thus, waiting for a person's answer wasn't that boring.
Lulunaka snapped her fingers. "I remember!
But do you really want to hear it? "
In response to Lulunaka's reconfirmation, the emperor only smiled.
Looking at the old emperor's expression, Lurunaka continued, "It was a cold and windy day. At that time, this land was not as stable and prosperous as it is now … To make a long story short, for some reason, I met your ancestor.
At that time, I was bored and asked some questions to make things difficult for them. "
Lulunaka held up three fingers. "First question, can you build a country?
Second question, can you gain the support of the people?
Third question, can you be a king? "
Every time Lulunaka asked a question, she would withdraw one finger. After knowing the three questions, her hand clenched into a fist.
The emperor sat in front of Lulunaka like a student being questioned by his teacher.
He stroked his beard and remained silent for a while. When he was about to speak, Lulunaka seemed to have sensed his intention and interrupted him. "Oh right, don't ask me what their answers were. There's no standard answer to this kind of question. If you know someone else's answer, then you'll lose your own answer.
That's not interesting at all. "
The emperor was stunned for a moment, then he smiled. "Haha, that's true. If you know someone else's answer, then it's not interesting." He paused for a moment before continuing. "Then, do you want to hear my answer?"
Lulunaka shook her head decisively. "Not interested. If you don't want to hear it, I won't even bother to say it.
I'm not here to do such things. I don't want to be a pretentious person. "