"The beginning of winter is approaching, and the rain falling in front of us is probably the last one in Fengyou County this year. Time is as transparent as the world, and it will not be stopped by the powerful, nor blocked by the golden mountains."
In the residence of the head of the Zhang family, Zhang Xiulou leans against an ancient tree, looking sleepy. He raises his head and looks up at the sky, sighing slowly, as the dusk falls.
"Brother, I have decided to retire." Zhang Honglou was still sitting in the hall, not drinking the tea soup, and said calmly, with a hint of worry.
"Why do I want to quit?" Zhang Xiulou laughed and looked at his second brother. He was not as dignified as usual, but said in a very easy-going manner, "It was just some trivial matters a while ago. How can you abandon public service for personal reasons? Dear brother, I might be thinking too much about my brother."
"I don't think this is a trivial matter." Zhang Honglou, who was dressed smartly, raised his eyes and looked directly at his brother calmly, his eyes twinkling. It’s nothing, but how can I hide it from my younger brother? If this matter spreads, I’m afraid the entire Fengyou County will be shaken.”
"Madam, what's so different about going out to enjoy the scenery? How can it cause shock?" Zhang Xiulou's expression remained the same, unchanged at all. The look in his eyes when he met the person in the hall was a little scary for a moment, "You should ask It's okay to ask yourself. As a brother, of course you should keep nothing secret and tell everything you know. But if a good brother should ask about it, it's best not to mention it at all. Although it won't cause trouble, it will still compromise the brotherhood between you and me. , it’s better to say less.”
Ever since I visited the county governor's house many days ago, no one had seen the gentle, courteous and thrifty Mrs. Zhang in the residence of the head of the Zhang family. Langyu had asked Zhang Xiulou several times, but all to no avail. He only said: I went to the county to enjoy the beautiful scenery, and I could return to the house later. But after all, I never mentioned where Mrs. Zhang went. There were only one person missing in the courtyard. According to Zhang Honglou's understanding of his brother, the caravan and the merchants in the county were in a period of open and covert fighting. People in the mansion were definitely not allowed to go out at will, let alone the royal family, who should be in charge of the mansion. There was no reason to go out at this time, and for a trip. Enjoy the view.
Zhang Xiulou said nothing, withdrew his gleaming eyes, picked up the jade box in front of him, but did not open it. After a long time, he slowly said, "Jun'er's biological mother once said that if the relationship is renewed in the future, if the son is talented, Naturally, I can give up my position as the head of the family in the future. Even if I am less talented and less talented, I can take this position myself without passing it on to Jun'er. I just need to make him peaceful and happy. What I want to do is all decided by me. "
"But right now, someone is spending a lot of money to invite several Qimen experts who specialize in poisonous snakes and insects from Dananli in an attempt to bypass me, the head of the family, and seize the position of the next head of the family on his own son. With one blow, He missed, and another killing spree started. If it weren't for the fact that the Zhang family also had a skilled disciple, Jun'er would have already passed the first seven years at this moment. My wise brother said, this person should not be retained."
After leaving the Sheriff's Mansion, Zhang Xiulou had already used the Zhang family's hidden information to find some clues, not to mention the help of the government agencies. It would not be difficult to find out the twists and turns. But the most irritating thing is that Mrs. Zhang, who seemed to be invincible at first, knew that someone had already discovered the clues, but she still took the risk and set up a killing array, causing the death of two or three skilled disciples of the Zhang family. Only then did he cut all the Qimen masters who came from Nanli into several pieces to protect the lives of Mr. Zhang and his family.
"I am an old snake with a heart that can bring out countless venom. I have done a lot of misfortunes that go against my true intentions. Even if I add the word "involuntarily" in front of me to cover up my shame, it is completely useless. Snakes are ruthless and sexless, but after all, they rarely bite. Old Snake, I must say that there are reverse scales on the neck. There were originally mother and son, but now only Jun'er is left. If someone dares to persecute me, even if that person's family has an irreversible friendship with my Zhang family, what will happen."
Speaking of this moment, Zhang Xiulou's originally kind-hearted aura completely faded away like a low tide, leaving only the cold murderous intention, which had not dissipated for a long time.
Zhang Honglou was silent, looking outside the window lattice, there were still birds and birds, the canopy covered the rain, and they were having fun, but there was only one missing wealthy woman who usually sat in the center. There seemed to be no difference, but if you look closely, you can still see that there is still quite a lot of people. Unusually, there was an undercurrent. Many women looked towards the center intentionally or unintentionally. They were still chatting and laughing with the people around them. No one asked about the whereabouts of the mistress.
"I advise my brother to put aside the idea of competing with the caravan for the time being, to recuperate his mind, and then discuss it again after he has settled his thoughts." The man in the hall finally spoke, but the conversation was directed elsewhere, "The Zhang family has a rich background. , but the caravan also has the price in hand. Although the county governor allowed it to be convenient, he specially allocated a piece of valuable land and gave it to the merchants of Fengyou County to start a new business. However, it will not be able to crowd out many shops in the city overnight, let alone It is said that the other merchant families have already decided to quit."
The middle-aged man in fine clothes closed his eyes and stopped looking at the rest of the world. He only heard the sparse sound of rain hitting the trunk of the towering ancient tree behind him. The dull sound was like a wooden fish in a Buddhist temple, pressing down endlessly, which made people feel sleepy.
"The arrow is on the string and must be fired."
"But the arrow feathers of the Zhang family have not yet formed even the tip of the arrow, so it is difficult to penetrate the silk. I hope my brother will think twice before making any move. Don't let the Zhang family decline from prosperity, hurt both the Zhang family and the caravan, and benefit others in vain. "Zhang Honglou sighed, then cupped his hands and took a deep look at the towering ancient tree standing in the main hall, "Brother has always been very thoughtful, and it is not my turn to remind him, but after all, we have the same roots, one tree has the same clan and two leaves are adjacent. Whether I be wary or despise it, in the end I will not have any thoughts of murdering the Zhang family or trapping my brother. No less than dozens of people have said that the Zhang family is in a changing season, and if you rely on Changfeng, you can get a glimpse of Feng You The county merchant has the highest position, but he follows his elder brother when he is urinating. For the remaining decades of his life, I am willing to advise him and follow him. "
The energetic man sighed, "It's time to stop. Next spring, the Zhang family will still be the Zhang family, Jun'er will still be the next generation head of the Zhang family, and Fengyou County will still be the same Fengyou County that looks down on Jianghu people." , In fact, there is no need to be any different. When the spring comes, I will go with my brother to visit my sister-in-law and talk about the changes in the past few years. Jun'er has grown a few fingers taller and we are ready to talk about marriage. Isn't it a good path? "
The strong wind and rain, the cold wind coming from the north country, even after ten days of running around, have not erased the cold feeling, and directly hit the faces of pedestrians.
In the courtyard of the main residence of the Zhang family, there are women singing and dancing. Their faces cannot be seen clearly through the rain curtain. They seem to be the same except for their different clothes. They are still the same birds chirping and smiling.
Only the woman named Lang Yu raised her head slightly and looked at the endless raindrops in the sky. Thousands of them were swaying and drooping. For some reason, she took back her smile. Looking at the Zhang family's mansion, it was clear that there were still broken flowers. , but for no reason I felt it was still dark and deserted.
During this rain, several old and asthmatic people in Fengyou County died of illness and left with their fingers spread wide. There were also a few children who fell to the ground, crying loudly and clenching their fists. They didn't care about the happy brows of the people around them and quickly took a look at the children's bodies. Are you feeling ill?
Fengyou is still Fengyou, and few people go out in the capital city. Two old men often walk out of the teahouses, holding a copper pipe in their mouths, fetching a pot of hot tea, and walking tremblingly to the edge of the long street, stepping on their feet to prop themselves up. He opened the rain tarp, then let go of his breath, and poured in the steaming tea. The mist slowly came out of the copper pipe, rising together with the hot steam of the tea soup, and blended into the rain.
No one ever asked about the frivolous past when I was young. I could only speculate and speculate again and again, just like an old cow chewing its cud in the field, letting the smoke and the heat of the tea soup sink into the old and withered intestines.
The bluestone road is as smooth as a mirror, and there are millions of people's footsteps in the mirror. The world outside the mirror remains the same year after year, and it seems that it has never changed.
Today is a good day to go down the mountain to enjoy the scenery, so as not to lose sight of the scenery in the middle of winter.
At the back of Baihao Mountain, the master of the sect of the handsome and handsome man mentioned a hexagram, and then slowly recited it. The old servant beside him lowered his eyebrows and kept wiping the alchemy furnace in front of him, not daring to look elsewhere, his eyes turned red.
"It's not a big deal, it's just like when I stepped into the White Gourd Gate. This time I just stepped out. Hundreds of years and years are the same as the rain flowing down the mountains here. There is no self in the mountains, and there is no difference. There is only one I can feel free."
Ye Zhai stood up, put on his green clothes, and picked up the old bamboo hat that had been used for many years. After hesitating for a moment, he still hung the slender long sword on his waist. He saw the old servant trembling all over, and suddenly felt a little happy. After patting him, he He looked over his shoulder, feigning anger and said, "Back then I was just a boy made of pink and jade, but now at this age, my eye sockets are still very shallow."
"These disciples in the mountain, forgive Ye Zhai for not being able to use your mind anymore. I think you should take more care of me as the county guard. As a senior, you should be well disciplined. It doesn't matter how talented you are in cultivation. Don't go astray." That’s it.”
"Thanks to a pot of poisoned wine, my knot in my heart was somewhat relieved. Although I still regret it, I can finally calm down."
The man paused and wanted to say something, but in the end he smiled with relief and said, "It's no use talking, let's go."
The old servant raised his head, his face mixed with hot and cold rain. He raised his legs that were no longer flexible and hurriedly took two steps, only to realize that the Huafa Sect Master was already on the mountainside.
As if aware, the door owner turned around, stretched out his arm, and waved in the distance.
When you go up the mountain gate, you are in this world, and when you go down the mountain road, you are in the world.
Countless hours, like the autumn rain at this moment, came one after another, but slowly passed around the man, leaving no trace, and his face was as glorious as before.
There was also a man in black walking down the mountain from Bei Peak. He had a silver ribbon wrapped around his waist and a long sword with an ordinary handle. The scabbard was also black. If anyone saw it, they would probably only think of this man as a man with a little money in the world. A rich martial artist.
Holding an umbrella and going down the mountain without moving my feet, I just took advantage of the wind. It was like a goose feather snowflake floating down the mountain.
