The sun was shining brightly, and a group of people were riding horses along the official road. On the empty and silent mountain road, the angry horses in bright clothes galloped forward, attracting the villagers working in the fields to stop and watch. This place is very remote, and few outsiders usually show up. It is a new thing for such a group of people to break the silence of the empty mountain.
The sound of hoofbeats raised a cloud of dust on the official road. After a while, everyone ran out more than ten miles away. A three-way intersection suddenly appeared in front of them. The one on the left was the road leading into the mountain, and the one directly in front was the road leading to the vastness. The road in the wilderness leads to a deep mountain market on the right. The market is located at the foot of a mountain col between two mountains. Next to the mountain col is the big river with turbid water.
There was a boundary monument beside the official road, with two red characters "Hanzhong" engraved on it. When they saw the boundary monument, everyone suddenly realized that they had arrived in Hanzhong, Shaanxi Province.
At this moment, it was afternoon, the sun was getting stronger and stronger, and everyone was hesitating at the fork in the road. Suddenly, two figures walked out from the mountain entrance on the left. One was tall, one was short, one was old, and the other was young. The tall man was in his early fifties. He was old, with a sallow complexion and thin muscles. He carried a bright sword on his back. The sword was naked and without a sheath, and the sharp blade flashed with dazzling light in the sun.
The short man looked about seventeen or eighteen years old, with a handsome face and a somewhat bookish look. He was holding a bamboo basket in his hand. The round bamboo basket was wrapped in black cloth, and the items inside could not be seen. But I saw that he was carrying the bamboo basket effortlessly, but he looked very cautious, as if it contained something very valuable.
When the young and old saw a group of people galloping towards them, they still walked leisurely with their heads lowered and never said a word. Not only did they not feel surprised, it was even as if these people were not there at all. The two people walked slowly by the roadside. Everyone immediately glanced at them and didn't care, just treating them as ordinary passers-by.
After the two sides passed by each other, Xu Feng reined in the reins and stopped slowly. He looked back at the two people and said suspiciously, "Do you think these two people are a little weird?"
Lei Zhentian smiled coldly and said: "Just looking at the clothes of these two people, they must be jocks and swordsmen. When we ran over, they just walked with their heads down and didn't look this way. Maybe they were busy on their way. .”
Xu Feng shook his head slightly and said, "Have you noticed the expressions on their faces? When we rushed to them, there was obviously a trace of panic on their faces, but it just flashed by. Therefore, it is not easy to detect."
Chu Yunfei also looked at the backs of the two people who were gradually walking away, and said slowly: "And what is in the bamboo basket in the young man's hand?" He narrowed his eyes and stared at the bamboo basket in the young man's hand. Black cloth bamboo basket.
The two people drifted away, never looking back. The figure walked faster and faster, and before long, it had disappeared around the corner of a mountain pass.
Liu Ruyan smiled lightly and said: "The old and the young are just travelers. We just happened to meet each other. No matter what others do, there are two more roads here. Which one should we take?"
Xu Feng pondered for a long time, looked around and said, "Phoenix Mountain is the only way to enter the pass. This place is the boundary of Hanzhong, and it is still forty miles away from Phoenix Mountain. Everyone has been running for a long time and is already a little hungry. , let’s go to the market over there to eat something first, and then buy some supplies!”
Luo Xiangxue showed her face and said, "Don't mention it, I'm really hungry. It's at least hundreds of miles from here to Zhongnan Mountain. We need to get some dry food and water."
Xu Feng was the first to bear the brunt and led everyone onto the dirt road leading to the market on the right. A long dirt road stretches out next to the river bank, leading directly to the market on the other side of the river. The market is already in sight, the streets are crowded with people, and there are faint noises.
Several fast horses quickly arrived at the market. This market is not very big, with only two streets, east and west. Restaurants, restaurants, tea shops, ironware, cloth for horses and mules, some commonly used firewood, rice, oil and salt at home, pots and pans, and all kinds of other items are crowded in the street shops. The shouts of hawkers, arguments, and banging all echoed in the air, forming a chaotic din.
Everyone came to a restaurant called "Dui Hongchen". People were coming and going on the street. Although it was already afternoon and most of the people going to the market had dispersed, there were still a few people in the restaurant who were rowing fists and drinking.
Several people spoke slurred words, smelled of alcohol, and had obviously drunk a lot. One person stood up, waving his hands, looking very excited, and burst into laughter when he talked about something exciting. other
Several people were also dizzy and kept fighting with each other with their fists.
The waiter who was busy clearing the dishes in the lobby saw a guest coming, patted his apron and greeted him with a smile.
Introducing everyone into the lobby and sitting down nearby, the waiter enthusiastically introduced the various delicacies in the store. Xu Feng looked at Luo Xiangxue with a kind smile and asked: "Miss Luo, what do you think would be good to eat?" No, you will arrange this meal, right?"
Luo Xiangxue was stunned at first, and then couldn't help but smile, and said embarrassedly: "Hey, Uncle Xu, I like to eat roast chicken, braised mandarin fish, dry pot sausage, and mutton stir-fried with green onions, but I don't know what everyone likes to eat. Ah, these are just my favorite foods." She said, covering her mouth with a smile, and looked at everyone with a somewhat coquettish look.
Xu Feng smiled slightly and said: "Okay, let's just serve the dishes this girl ordered. Is there anything else you want to add? It's really gratifying that we can make a triumphant return so smoothly! You can order whatever you like, and we'll have a good meal. Only when you are full can you have the strength to go on the road." His words made everyone laugh.
It's still early to look at the sky. It's no problem to get to Fenghuang Mountain before dark today. At present, Chu Yunfei's consciousness has returned to normal. Seeing that everyone was relaxed, he was also very interested and immediately asked the waiter to bring the wine.
Seeing this, Liu Ruyan murmured in her heart: The master has just recovered from a serious illness and his body has just recovered. You must not let him get drunk. Furthermore, before they left, the old man had already told them not to drink in anger. There was no way he could be allowed to drink it, but the master was happy in his heart, and it would be inappropriate to stop him for fear of making him angry. What should he do?
He thought about it in his mind and had to give some good advice first: "Master, you have just recovered, so you can't drink alcohol." He observed the look on Chu Yunfei's face.
Chu Yunfei's face darkened and he frowned. He seemed a little unhappy, but it didn't look like he was going to be angry. Instead, he said with a bit of frustration: "Everyone is happy today. I wanted to have a drink with everyone, but However, I am ill and dare not drink too much. Alas, that’s all. I can only drink tea instead of wine today. I wish you all risked your life to save me!" He sighed and sat down slowly.
