The woods are lush, the vines are swaying, and the green mountains and green waters are by your side. Looking at the vast and long blue sky, you can find a comfortable place to sleep. It can only be relieved due to fatigue. If you are emotionally blocked, you can only call it escape. Instead, it got worse and scarred inside.
After walking for several days, Zhang Ling finally found a remote inn near mountains and rivers to stay. The two had a good sleep, and they were no longer as depressed as they had been in the past few days. Maybe it was because the two guys were already in love with each other. Be heartless and determined not to disturb your mood today.
Zhang Ling opened the door and opened the small window. In the guest room on the second floor, he looked at the small courtyard of the inn from the window. In the distance was the clear green mountain that made him feel relaxed and happy at a glance. After looking at it for a long time, the door suddenly knocked. The sound was from this The waiter of the inn, Zhang Ling, took three steps to open the door. The waiter lowered his head and brought the food in his hand to him, with a slightly trembling voice: "Master, this is today's breakfast, please use it slowly."
Zhang Ling waved his hand and asked him to leave. The waiter walked away quickly and almost stumbled when going down the stairs. The reason was because when Zhang Ling and his two men came to stay at the hotel yesterday, the waiter was supposed to be there. Seeing that they were two handsome men in brocade, they were eager to welcome them at first, but when they saw Zhang Ling's red hands, they immediately retreated. Zhang Ling also explained again and again, and found a suitable reason, saying that they needed dry food for the journey. After eating, I caught a pheasant to eat. I accidentally got blood on my hands, but the waiter in the shop was still dubious.
Zhang Ling looked down at his hands, which were still light red after being washed several times. The blood stains on his neck had long been washed away, and he had put on the set of clothes that came with him. At this moment, he could only shake his head and smile at being misunderstood.
After closing the door, Zhang Ling sat by the window with his food and ate. The mountains were quiet and quiet, except for birds and beasts, and there was nothing to see. Although it was eye-catching, it was not bearable to watch. Zhang Ling was just minding his meal, and suddenly stopped. The picture started to move, and several overlapping black dots in the distance gradually became clearer, showing more than twenty figures. They approached and walked into the small courtyard of the inn. The innkeeper immediately groveled and ran out with a flattering smile: "Master Cheng is here. Why don't you go sit in the shop first?"
There were twenty-three people, some thin and some strong. The leader was a stout man. He didn't look disgusting at first, but he had to dress up in a rough and crazy way, with a big knife at his waist, and a fierce look that kept strangers away. People stayed away, but it was obvious that this was a group of bandits. The leader of the bandits glanced at the innkeeper, his fierce look was still the same, but his voice was extremely loud: "Don't mess with those useless things, shopkeeper Huang, you should know that in this reckless place If you want to open an inn in Niushan, you have to pay a protection fee to me, Jinlong Village. I am kind-hearted and know that your business is not good, so I gave you a full half-month extension. It seems that your business is quite good today, so you should pay the arrears. .”
The innkeeper carefully took out a piece of white silver, which was given to him by Zhang Ling who stayed at the hotel yesterday. He had not even warmed it up yet, so he had to hand it over. He was reluctant to part with it no matter what, but he had to offer it with both hands and said timidly. : "Please accept it from the head of the family."
The leader of the bandits casually put it into his arms and said dissatisfiedly: "I have given you grace for so long, and that's all? There are so many brothers in my village who are still waiting to drink and eat meat."
The innkeeper looked miserable and had to take out a small bag of copper coins. He was almost heartbroken: "That's all for the boss."
The leading bandit put away his money bag, carried a knife and walked into the inn. The bandits who followed him rushed in and knocked down the few customers who had finally come to the store. The waiter, who was already thin, hid by the counter. The leader of the bandit, surnamed Cheng, sat down and made a gesture to the waiter. The innkeeper also came in and asked him to serve the food and wine quickly.
The innkeeper stood groveling next to the bandit named Cheng and whispered: "Master Cheng, please wait a moment. Good wine and meat will be here soon."
The bandit surnamed Cheng looked around and showed a strange smile: "Shopkeeper Huang, do you only have this many customers in this store? It's too deserted."
The innkeeper didn't dare to hide it: "There are still some guests in the guest room above."
The bandit named Cheng smiled: "Call them all down."
The waiter carefully served the wine to these bandits, and was urged by the innkeeper to knock on the guest room. After a while, the frightened travelers who were hiding in the guest room, for fear of being killed accidentally, had no choice but to walk out of the guest room one after another. More than a dozen people walked down the stairs, and the rather large inn seemed a bit crowded.
On the bandit's side, there were a bunch of passengers. The bandit named Cheng finished a large bowl of ale, stood up, looked at the group of travelers, and said with a smile: "This shopkeeper Huang owes me money, and he can't pay it back, so I have to ask you all I helped pay it back."
Shopkeeper Huang couldn't help but said: "Master Cheng, this is inappropriate."
The bandit surnamed Cheng glared fiercely, and the innkeeper immediately fell silent. The bandit surnamed Cheng turned his attention back to the inn and said: "Cheng is not an unreasonable person. You can choose any of my twenty brothers." If one of them can win, Cheng will not be in a dilemma whether to leave or stay. If he loses, he will keep five taels of silver and an arm. The rest will either keep the silver or a limb. If he chooses In the former case, if he loses and has no money, Cheng will have no choice but to keep his life."
A few minutes later, more than a hundred taels of silver appeared on the table, plus a few bloody arms on the ground. Of course, there were also two corpses that had overestimated their capabilities. No one dared to stay, and those who left early disappeared.
A bandit put away the hundred taels of silver in a bag, holding a heavy bag in his arms. He was so greedy that he didn't dare to hide a single copper coin secretly. Every time he returned to the village, the master would check it out. If he was ignorant before, My brother had his hands and feet chopped off, so now he is afraid of losing his stature and keeps an eye on the money bag.
Bandit surnamed Cheng stood up after finishing the wine and food, and all the people who had followed him to mix wine and meat also stood up. Bandit surnamed Cheng patted the innkeeper on the shoulder, but shook him up, and said with a smile: "Huang Shopkeeper, please tidy things up. If the money is gone, you can make more money. If the customers are gone, what else will you make?"
The innkeeper cursed in his heart, he had no money, so he was robbed by you group of robbers? The lack of guests is also caused by you, but you can only think so in your heart, but you dare not say anything in anger.
The bandit surnamed Cheng was about to turn around and said casually: "Is there no guests in this inn?"
The innkeeper was trembling and asked him to curse behind his back, but that was fine. But in person, he would not dare to show a lie, so he could only say truthfully: "There are still... two guests."
The bandit surnamed Cheng said "Oh" with great interest: "They don't even care about the boss's face. These two guests are so arrogant!"
Just as the bandit surnamed Cheng was about to step up, he saw two young men walking down. One was carrying a tray with empty bowls, and the other was yawning. The yawning one was Song Linjie. He said sleepily: " Sorry, I’m really sleepy. Do you have anything to ask me for?”
The other person was naturally Zhang Ling. He put the tray on the table, looked at the blood stains on the floor, and said calmly: "I'm eating, so I'm not free."
Zhang Ling saw Song Linjie's careless look and slapped him hard on the back of the head. Song Linjie finally came to his senses and saw the blood stains and mutilated corpses on the ground, and his inertia suddenly disappeared.
The bandit surnamed Cheng looked at the two newborn calves who didn't take him seriously, and punched the table. The table suddenly showed a concave surface. The bandit surnamed Cheng laughed loudly: "I, Cheng Yu, have been working for more than twenty years. Bandits, this is the first time I have seen such a brave boy like you, tell me, do you plan to keep your wealth or your arms, or do you want to be like the two lying on the ground and choose to be heroes for a while."
Zhang Ling smiled apologetically and said: "Of course people make money by being friendly. Since Mr. Cheng is in charge of the family, it is natural to keep money."
Zhang Ling took out two pieces of fifty-tael silver, put them on the table, and pulled Song Linjie out.
