Snow falls one after another, and the sky and earth are filled with white. An official road runs from east to west, and thirty miles to the east is the capital.
At this time, we were slowly heading west on the road, and the capital was getting further and further away. Previously, Liao Jianzhong informed that he would lead Hardy, Ning Boyang and his twenty-eight captains to the Marquis Mansion to escort Miss Ning Xi to Juyongguan. As for what happened, he did not explain. Ning Boyang, Hardy and others were very excited after hearing the news. Miss Ning Xi was a beauty spread by word of mouth among the young people in Jinyiwei. They all thought they could see Miss Ning Xi. I have met Miss Ning Xi. Although I think Miss Ning Xi is beautiful, I am not too happy. Maybe I don’t like to associate with girls in my heart, so when my grandfather asked me to get a wife, I refused. The arrogance and disparity in status mentioned by Xiang Chong are enough to keep me away from him. It's just that Emperor Hongzhi knows about me, and Miss Ning Xi must have said good things about me. Therefore, I am full of contradictions, but I have no choice but to come.
But when we arrived early in the morning, the Marquis' Mansion had already prepared four warm carriages, each with a good horse driving the shaft, and beside it were two servants riding tall horses. Manager Na Ge, who was also wearing a brocade hat and a ride, was sitting on a horse. When he saw us coming, he muttered that we were too late and talked to the people in the warm sedan in a low voice. Then he shouted loudly and set off immediately, heading straight to the capital. Juyongguan in the west.
The Great Wall, which stretches thousands of miles, was the Ming Dynasty's defense against Mongolia, and the eight passes of Juyong Pass, Yanmen Pass, and Datong were important military locations. We didn’t see who was going out of the Marquis’ Mansion, but we just took it for granted that it was Miss Ning Xi. We heard that she had two brothers, but she was careless. She only spent her days having fun and drinking. Going to Juyongguan in this kind of weather would be unusual. The boys refused. But Miss Ning Xi didn't feel like a weak woman going there. We put on our hats and cloaks and mounted our horses to go.
The snow fell so hard that the whole capital was completely white, and soon everyone turned into snowmen and horses. There were very few pedestrians on the street, and the shops along the road were still open. Many people looked at us walking in the heavy snow with surprise, pointing, and seeming to be ridiculing, prompting Hardy to show off his Jinyiwei waist badge. These people were so frightened that they quickly hid in the house.
After we left the capital, the snow was getting deeper and the road was becoming more and more difficult to walk. There were almost no pedestrians. After about an hour, we saw a village. The people and horses were already tired. I thought to myself: Miss Ning Xi is really very capable. Man, I guess the emperor is sleeping in. Just as I was thinking about it, Manager Ge asked the people in the warm car for instructions and came to tell me to find a big house where everyone could rest and avoid the snow.
This village looks very big, with bluestone pavement and thick white snow. Two tall poplars with vertical branches and huge crowns make it easy to imagine the majesty in summer. A crow's nest sits among the branches of a tree. Several crows hover in the snowy sky, making piercing cries from time to time, as if they are the only living breath in the snowy sky.
What excites us is that there is actually a pub here called Taibaiju! There are more than twenty wooden houses of the same color, and the stables are very large. There are only a few horses grazing quietly. There must be few people going out on this snowy day. While I had someone notify Manager Ge, I sent Hardy to look around, and then I brought Ning Boyang and others in. Ning Boyang looked around and whispered: "This is just a village. Who built such a big tavern? It seems to have a great background."
I thought about it and said: "This place is not far from the capital, and it is the only way to enter the capital. There must be a lot of guests coming and going. It must have been built by some dignitary. Let's be polite when we go in!" Ning Boyang smiled and said: " I didn’t expect you to be more careful than me!”
Someone had seen us coming in and opened the door. It was the waiter who came up to us with a big smile. He cupped his hands and said, "It's the official, do you want to take a rest?" I saw a shopkeeper-looking man coming out from behind the counter. He said politely: "It's snowing too hard. Let's stay here for the time being. We have a good room ready."
The shopkeeper came over, a shrewd middle-aged man, and cupped his hands at me and said, "Okay, we'll make arrangements right away. Lao Qiu, go and arrange the people and tidy up the stables. I don't think the official's mules, horses, and vehicles are there." few."
After hearing this, Ning Boyang said, "May I ask the shopkeeper's name?" The shopkeeper smiled and said, "Little man Qiu Zhen! Who is the official?" Ning Boyang said, "This is Mr. Zhang Qi of Jinyiwei. I am Ning Xiaoqi, the guest coming soon is Lord Marquis, please pay attention to the rules!"
Qiu Zhen hurriedly gave a deep salute and said: "It's you gentlemen of Jinyiwei. I'm disrespectful. I'm disrespectful. Please come in quickly!"
Not long after, Mr. Ge led people over and took a look at the furnishings in the room. He was quite satisfied. Soon after, some maids and several family members in brocade clothes walked straight into the guest room. They were wearing fur hats and could hardly see their faces. Who it is, we don't see at all. Manager Ge made the arrangements, and I also sent out guards. Half an hour later, Manager Ge came over and asked me to prepare some hot soup and deliver it to the guest room. Then he said to me: "Mr. Zhang Qi, it's snowing heavily today. We won't be able to leave for a while. Let's stay here for the time being." Here, be careful and don’t drink!”
I hurriedly replied: "Of course, it's my duty, and my subordinates will do their best!"
Manager Ge nodded, let me make my own arrangements, and then returned to the guest room. The hall was very large, with a large stove in front of the counter, burning wood, and a large kettle on the stove. Old Qiu arranged for the waiter to pour water for the people in the room. There were several guests next to the window. Ning Boyang went over to check and found out there were relevant roads. Ning Boyang came back and said it was nothing serious. I nodded. He saw that I kept standing and walking around, so he asked me to sit down. While I was resting, I looked out the window and watched the snow falling even harder. I was worried that the brothers who were on guard outside would catch the cold, so I decided to go out wearing a hat and a coat. Hardy and the others were standing guard in every corner, stomping their feet back and forth. It would be weird if it wasn't cold. In this weather, you need to drink some wine to warm up. But with Manager Ge's request, I didn't dare to let everyone drink, and I felt sorry for them. I was so cold that I was spinning on the spot, so I thought about it: "Get some wood, light a fire to keep warm, and then take turns going into the house to keep warm. Later, drink some hot soup to warm yourself up."
When I returned to the hall, I found that the hall was quiet. The brothers were all drinking water silently, but their eyes were a little flustered. I suddenly felt strange. Just before I opened my mouth to speak, I noticed that there was another person in the hall. The man looked very familiar. He walked straight to the counter, threw out a wine gourd and said, "Shopkeeper, give me a pot of wine and five kilograms of beef!"
The voice was even more familiar, and I was surprised. The man turned around, with a full face of beard and bright eyes, and smiled: "Oh, we meet again!" It was the man who rescued Mu Bin yesterday.
The wood in the stove was crackling, the water in the kettle was boiling, and no one was touching it. Everyone held their breath and looked at me sitting with the man.
There were two bottles of wine and two plates of beef on the table. I put the Izumo sword on the table. He sat firmly opposite, drinking wine, patiently cutting the beef with a knife, and putting each piece into his mouth. . He saw me take out my sword, and he casually placed a scimitar on the other side.
Our unexpected encounter made the situation suddenly tense. I was very confused inside, but on the outside I had to force myself to calm down. I glanced at him from time to time, but he sat down carelessly and asked me if I dared to drink with him. I was at a loss for a moment. I had no idea who he was. Yesterday, his acupuncture skills almost wiped out our entire army. Now, I am the biggest leader of the Jin Yiwei here, and I don't know if he is coming to cause trouble for the Marquis Mansion, so I must be careful. Everyone was paying attention to my actions. I felt the suffocating atmosphere, but I still encouraged myself to be calm, so I still sat opposite him with a calm face.
He didn't seem to expect me to be so indifferent, and his eyes were full of surprise. Soon, he introduced himself as Mushigu. He came to Beijing this time for an old friend. When he mentioned the old friend, he looked at me and I knew what he was talking about. His old friend is Mou Bin.
Then, Mu Shigu said that he had entered the palace. He had heard that the Forbidden City was majestic and majestic, so he wanted to take a look. After a walk, it was indeed good. He took a luminous pearl and planned to give it to his future wife. He was chatting and laughing, talking very easily. He even made it clear that he had knocked down several guards in the palace, just like reporting a crime. When he finally thought about it, he said with a smile: "The people I knocked down should all be members of your royal guards!"
