The end of Liangzhou is the beginning of wilderness.
The environment in Liangzhou is already extremely harsh, but it is only when we reach the border that people realize that there are even worse conditions beyond the harsh conditions.
Extreme drought, severe cold, and strong winds are no longer suitable for human survival. Even if there are some oases that can take care of the lives of travelers, they can hardly support many people.
Moreover, in recent years, the local oases have rapidly degraded, water sources have dried up, living conditions have deteriorated day by day, and the majesty of the imperial court has also deteriorated day by day. There is no time to look after the border areas, and the garrison has gradually been withdrawn. The borders of Dajin were actually receding day by day.
For example, at the end of Liangzhou, there was a large oasis that was replaced by a jade corridor. There is a lake in the oasis, surrounded by woods, and it is evergreen all year round. It is called the "beautiful jade" of the Gobi Desert.
When the Jin Dynasty demarcated the border, a small city was built here, also called "Jade Gallery". Although the population was not large, there were one or two hundred troops stationed there. It was a transit point for business travelers, and it can almost be regarded as the city of Liangzhou. "boundary marker".
After leaving Jade Corridor, it can no longer be called the territory of China. People born to the west of Jade Corridor are truly "barbarians".
However, in recent years, the oasis has become increasingly dry, the water level of the lake has been getting lower every year, and the woods around the lake have withered. However, the imperial court could not pay out military pay, no new soldiers were recruited into the army, the old soldiers were running away and dying, and even Jade Corridor City was gradually deserted.
Over the years, it has been difficult to say that Yulang is still the land of the Jin Dynasty.
In fact, more than ten years ago, this city could basically be called a "ruin".
But ten years ago, mysterious forces suddenly intervened in Yulang, slightly renovated the abandoned city, and built a half-black and half-white border city. Among them, dragons and snakes are mixed, there are many lawless people, and most of them are engaged in non-serious business. The so-called illegal transactions in the city, murders and arson outside the city, everything is done, and it has become a real "three no matter" zone in the shadows. As more and more disasters occur, the reputation of evil spreads around, which can be called "the child's cry at night".
Later, the mysterious force officially appointed the city lord and stationed troops, making it look like an independent kingdom. Three years ago, the plaque of "Yulang City" was simply removed and replaced with "Yulang" City. If it was in the territory of barbarians, this would be called the official establishment of a city-state.
Despite such a high-profile act, that mysterious force remains mysterious in the eyes of the public. Ordinary people don't know its origins, only that it is a hidden sect or a mysterious master. It’s just that most people with channels have tacitly understood that it is taboo to name the forces that control Yulang. It is the darkest and most evil place in the world——
No two mountains!
"That's Yulang City. It's so... weird."
When Tang Zhao...oh, Young Master Jian of Changfa Manor and his party arrived at the foot of Yulang City, the young swordsman in the team couldn't help but be surprised.
This Yulang City is indeed very strange. The strange thing is that the city wall is very rugged, with a "concave" shape on the front, and the surrounding walls fold every three steps, twisting and turning like a Chinese knot.
Tang Zhao glanced at Fang Weiran who spoke, smoothed his white hair calmly, and said in a vicissitudes of voice: "Swordsman Fang probably didn't know when he came here for the first time. The new wall of Yulang City is laid out like this. This kind of winding wall. Although there are too many blind spots, which is not conducive to defense, it can produce more shadows.”
Fang Weiran suddenly understood: Since it is Wangliang Mountain, of course, the more shadows, the better. He maintained his persona as the swordsman who was the confidant of the young village master, and nodded with a hint of arrogance and politeness: I see, "I have learned a lesson."
Tang Zhao continued to say to Zheng Yun: "Young master, please go to the city and take a rest. Our manor has its own business in the city. It is just for you to take a rest."
As a decent-sized manor on the Gangliang Mountain, Changfa Manor has a shop in Yulang City. There are always their own people in the shop, and they usually do serious business openly and illegal transactions secretly, just like other manors.
In other words, successfully connecting with people in the store without exposing any flaws is the first hurdle that this team, which has been faked from start to finish, needs to pass.
Zheng Yun raised his head, somewhat nervous: After preparing for so long, he was finally going to face a test. If you can't pass the first level, then this trek will become a big joke.
That shouldn't be the case, right?
The shop of Changfa Manor is a dyeing workshop.
On the surface, their business is a serious business, not a population market.
After all, a city cannot just sell its population, and the people on the Gangliang Mountain are still human beings. They are indispensable for food, clothing, housing and transportation, so the various markets in Yulang City are very prosperous.
Entering the city, the scenery from Gangliang Mountain hits your face. The group was all outsiders arriving here for the first time, and they all observed carefully.
On first impression, Tang Zhao found that the dye business in this place should be very good.
Although there are not many people on the street, most of the pedestrians walking back and forth, both men and women, are wearing colorful clothes. The colors are so bright that it is staggering. There are some older, thicker men who still wear very bright clothes, even if they are bright red or green, they can still wear them. At a glance, I felt like I was seeing a spring garden, full of colors.
Tang Zhao thought of the information he had read: Mengliang Mountain is shrouded in shadow all year round, the light is very poor, flowers and plants do not grow, and even pearls and gems have lost their color. No matter how luxurious the life of the manor owner is, it is still monotonous and lacks color, so once Once out of the mountains, she would wear bright clothes and shiny jewelry to compensate.
Not only the people, but also the walls of the houses are painted as much as they can, and decorated as much as they can. They are complicated and gorgeous without getting tired of them. In the eyes of people with a little taste, they are already close to gaudy, but here it is a kind of decoration that is exclusive to the nobility. Indulgent joy.
Tang Zhao already knew these customs from reading the information before, but seeing them with your own eyes and reading the descriptions are two different things. Therefore, he observed extra carefully, paid attention to details, silently compared with what he knew, and at the same time pretended to turn a blind eye. After all, his character was a local.
On the street, even if Tang Zhao had just arrived, he could still tell who was a foreigner and who had come down from Gangliang Mountain. In addition to the color of their clothes, there is also a very high proportion of locals with white hair. And those guests who look very wealthy, if they are locals, are surrounded by sword slaves.
Sword slaves are also very easy to distinguish. In addition to their different hair colors, their walking posture is also very unique. They drag one step at a time, like zombies. This kind of posture is only seen by sword slaves who have been to Guliang Mountain. The slaves who have just been sold will not walk like this no matter how weak they are.
Seeing the weird and counterintuitive walking postures that can be seen everywhere, the group of people felt a little uncomfortable.
Tang Zhao took a closer look and found that there were not many outsiders in the city, and they were divided into several categories. Some of them were richly dressed and distinguished. They were real distinguished guests, coming to attend the Shen Ying Meeting. They might even be special guests from Gangliang Mountain. But most of them are secretive, sitting in cars, or wearing curtains to cover their faces. Obviously, it is not a glorious thing to openly associate with the two mountains. If they are recognized by acquaintances and the layer of window paper is exposed, they will inevitably be involved. Awkward.
Others were merchants, so-called slave traders. Not everyone is as fat and big-eared as Bao Renwu, but they still have some qualities in common. After seeing a lot, even if I can't "smell" the scent of a human trafficker like Chi Mingjing, I can still guess at least eight or nine.
There are also some people who look like lawless elements at first glance. They either look fierce or evil-looking, and they look like they are hiding out in the city. But no matter how fierce he is, he is as well-behaved as a sheep in the city and will never dare to cause trouble.
"Hey, businessman, go this way——"
Tang Zhao turned around and saw a group of merchants entering the city behind his group being led to the side by two big men in purple clothes: "Did you see the inn with the colorful flags? That's for you people. Yes, I guarantee your safety. I advise you, sheep-like mortals, not to randomly look for a place to sleep, and not to listen to what outsiders say. Otherwise, if you enter a black shop, it will be difficult for you to come out cleanly. Go quickly, go quickly."
Tang Zhao thought to himself: Good guy, even slave traders here have become sheep? These greeters and guides are much better than when we organized the sword-making meeting to welcome guests. They have no sense of service at all?
As expected of Wang Liangshan, even if it is Shen Yinghui, others are begging Wang Liangshan, and it is not Wang Liangshan who is begging for outsiders.
However, no one came to give advice to Tang Zhao and his party. Probably because Tang Zhao's white hair was very iconic, and even though he was dressed plainly, he still looked like one of his own. Tang Zhao thought that he might have to change into red and green soon.
"Master, we are here." The team stopped in front of a shop.
"Long Hair Dyeing Shop." Zheng Yun popped out of the car, looked up and said, "Isn't our family's business very prosperous?"
Indeed, this shop has three fronts, and under the guise, it's not that ordinary, but it's not unusual on the street. The door is closed in broad daylight, and only one door in the west room is opened for entry and exit. It seems that business is not very good.
Tang Zhao said: "I have sent back the news of the young master's return. Today I may close the door to thank guests and welcome..."
Before he finished speaking, all the doors were opened and seven or eight people were rushed out. The first few of them have white hair.
Before Zheng Yun could see clearly, these people all knelt down and prostrated themselves on the ground, shouting: "Welcome the young master back to the mountain. The servants have been waiting for the stars and the moon, and finally we have you back!"
Zheng Yun straightened his back slightly. He had actually prepared for this scene for many days. Now was the time to test the results of his hard work. He nodded at the dangerous look next to him.
Wei Se was sitting in the carriage with him, just to "serve" him. Now he got out of the car and opened the curtain for him, revealing his body that was still sitting upright.
Zheng Yunan was sitting in the car. He only raised his eyes and didn't even raise his hands, let alone get out of the car. He hummed with his nose and said, "Get up."
Those people stood up carefully and stood aside with their hands tied. Only the old man at the front bowed forward and said, "Master, please get out of the car." With a wave of his hand, a thin sword slave came up and knelt on the ground to help him.
Zheng Yun remained calm and stepped on the sword slave one step at a time, without showing any discomfort, as if he had been used to trampling on him since he was a child.
At this time, he glanced at the old man who was leading him, and saw that this man was extremely old, with wrinkles on his face and not a single black hair on his head. If calculated according to normal age, he would be eighty if not ninety.
But he was from Gangliang Mountain, maybe in his forties or fifties, or even younger.
"Well, you..."
Zheng Yun deliberately couldn't say his name. Tang Zhao stepped forward and said in an adjusted tone: "Young Master, this is our manager Xing Cang."
The chief steward nodded and bowed, and said, "The steward is here to serve the young master."
Zheng Yun looked as if he was stunned and said: "How could I not recognize you? You were the old man when I left, and you are still the old man now. I'm sorry to bother you, but the manager came down the mountain to pick me up. I didn't expect it. Come in and take a look at us How is home?"
(End of chapter)
