As a thoroughfare between the two capitals, it is almost always a place where chickens and dogs can be heard and densely populated. Only when we traveled west to the Hangu Ancient Road, at the junction of Shaanzhou and Guozhou, did we suddenly feel like we were in the wilderness.
On one side are high mountains and deep gorges, cliffs with strange horses, and as far as the eye can see are ancient trees and green forests, apes are singing and birds are flying. On the other side is a big river with green and yellow streaks. It is constantly washing away large areas of peeling sand and mud from the river beaches, terraces and loess plateaus on the other side. Zhouji, who came and went by chance, also became extremely insignificant.
But at the same time, the crowds of people encountered on the road began to become sparse; especially after passing the Taolinsai ruins during the Warring States Period, you might not be able to meet a single business traveler or pedestrian after walking for two or three hours; At this time, a heavy rain suddenly came.
Although the weather is hot in early summer, the sudden cold rain can cause a lot of cold rain, and the resulting temperature difference can still easily make people and animals sick. Therefore, at the intersection ahead of a large wild peach forest, they encountered a wild store that seemed to be the first choice for Jiang Tian and others to take shelter from the rain.
Since it is a wild store in the wilderness, it is naturally not as formal and complete as the official hotel; from a distance, it looks like a large courtyard in a forest clearing. It's just that the outer earth wall used to block the intrusion of wild beasts has already been mottled and peeled off, leaving pits and gaps.
Inside the wall, a two-story building with a civil structure and a number of simple sheds made of bamboo and wood could be vaguely seen. Under the erosion of the rain, the pebbled ground soon became a piece of water. It was slippery and muddy, and gathered into temporary streams of water.
In the shed, more than a dozen horses of various colors and donkeys and mules had been tied up; there were also two carriages, one large and one small. When they saw outsiders arriving, the waiters waiting in the shed quickly ran over with umbrellas in hand, shouting hello regardless of getting wet.
Therefore, after stopping the carriage and horses, Jiang Tian and his entourage also stepped into the wild shop building. What hit their faces was a hot air mixed with smoke, human voices and the smell of sweat; they saw that there were several tables of various people sitting in the lobby and vestibule. And in between the constant calls, the table was full of wine and food.
In the second half of the empty lobby, there are many small rooms separated by a row of curtains and straw mats stained with grease and suspicious stains. In these small, narrow rooms designed for pedestrians to rest, there is only room for a bamboo couch that is large enough to lie down on, and a short case placed on it.
At this moment, most of these small rooms seemed to be occupied by people. Some of them had already lowered the curtains and were sleeping soundly in the midst of the noise, snoring without any hindrance; others were in a single room with the curtains raised, lying on bamboo couches with their luggage, and were reportedly chewing happily.
There were also some who seemed to be companions on the road, or old and new acquaintances, chatting in low voices in adjacent compartments; but there were also some people dressed as scholars, holding their arms slightly cautiously and vigilantly. The bookcase is reading the book in the light coming from the back wall.
But among the various people, the most eye-catching ones were the few men in black sitting in the corner. The colors of their clothes looked similar to those of those who belonged to the original prison, but there were subtle differences in the patterns; and there was a person with a black hood vaguely clustered between them.
This man's hands and feet were obviously shackled, and he was wearing a gray coarse robe that didn't fit very well. His exposed limbs seemed a bit thin and shriveled. Despite this, the sights of these men passing by each other never left this man for a moment. He always maintains a frightening vigilance on his body.
After seeing Murong Wu and others who followed Jiang Tian. Slightly surprised, as their eyes crossed, they briefly confirmed the information about their suspected companions; then they turned their attention back to the prisoner they were in custody. When Jiang Tian sat down, Murong Wu whispered in his ear:
"Recording things, I'm afraid these are not members of the Wufang Tiqi, which is affiliated with the Ministry of Punishment, or the Xuanwu Team, which specializes in escorting serious criminals."
According to his brief introduction, this is another legacy left by the senior time traveler to change the world. That is, as a supplement to the traditional criminal justice system after the expansion of the Tang Dynasty. The Criminal Department at the end of the Six Divisions has the power to issue rewards for criminals.
After all, the land is vast and martial arts among the people will inevitably lead to some security problems and even criminal incidents. And due to various reasons, they could not be effectively apprehended; even in some chaotic and despicable places where the power of government officials was beyond their reach, they formed settlements of outlaws.
At this time, it is the turn of those dynamic civil groups and people in the community who are officially registered or tacitly approved to exist, to start to exert their subjective initiative and really come in handy. Because in addition to the posted reward amount, the other party is responsible for life and death and does not occupy system resources.
Later on, it simply became a variety of regularly published rankings, and began to absorb a large number of private resources and local government forces to participate. The Ministry of Punishment, which originally could only interrogate those below the seventh rank, also officially had the authority to supervise and guide public officials in various prefectures and counties.
The establishment of the Wufang Tiqi directly under the Ministry of Punishment was born out of this growing need. The five Tiqi cavalry have different responsibilities and priorities according to their positions. For example, the Xuanwu Team, which carries black body badges and passes, is responsible for the escort and delivery of various felons.
When Murong Wu had finished talking, a waiter wearing a washed white towel came up to him with a wink. He bowed to say hello, wiped the table with force and said: "How are you, guest?" , Would you like some rice soup? There are ready-made steamed cakes in the humble place, including black noodles, brown noodles, yellow noodles and white noodles, as well as stuffings of cabbage, dried mushrooms, wax dices, and mutton..."
“If guests want to eat, there are also steamed rice with carved hummus, shredded yam, and chicken head rice, as well as thickly boiled wheat porridge and chestnut rice porridge... If the guest has a dry mouth, you can have a cup of our local oil soup first. Japanese spicy soup, one mouthful will make your lips and teeth salivate, and two mouthfuls will warm up your body; if the customer wants to change the taste, our store also has leek leaf shuiyin cake and tangzhongluowan..."
"If guests want to try something new, we also have live fish raised in tanks, ready-made lambs, live geese, and chickens, home-grown cabbage and cress, as well as freshly picked dogwood and beans. Big pot The sansho fish head, live mutton, and roasted goose with beans are also quite appetizing and refreshing... By the way, we also have the newly brewed jicama wine and three-grain fermented wine, can guests order a piece of it?"
Of course, being able to make a living on such a thoroughfare, even in an outdoor shop, requires some means and skills; therefore, in addition to the fact that the price may be a bit higher. I'm not afraid of some shady shop popping up that sells goods and kills people. Otherwise, the imperial officers and soldiers would have been alerted and killed several times.
Therefore, Jiang Tian then ordered a chicken soup, a large portion of thinly sliced braised lamb, a pot of twenty palm-sized cabbage sums and steamed cakes stuffed with dried mushrooms. Although he did not drink alcohol, he used the boiling hot pot provided by the store. Using water and the ground tea bag that I brought with me, I brewed a large pot of strong amber tea soup.
Then, pour the fish sauce and sweet sauce that comes with it on top of the hot chicken soup, and stir evenly. Then break the filling of the hot steamed pancake in half, fill it with the mixed chicken soup and then add the braised mutton; when you eat it, you will be filled with the delicious taste of the tender, sweet chicken soup and the mellow braised meat juice, which alternate with each other. taste.
As long as you eat a few big mouthfuls, and then drink it down with the strong tea soup that is bitter but sweet, it will immediately make you feel refreshed and warm, and you will feel energetic and refreshed. Therefore, in order to plan for the next journey, Jiang Tian asked others to weigh ten pounds of braised mutton and twenty long oven cakes baked on the stove.
Then, Li Huan asked the store owner to boil bamboo pipes and introduce mountain spring water into the room; refill everyone's water bladders and bottles on the car; while Zhang Wusheng went out to feed the horses fresh beans and turf. At this time, I called the waiter with the tray over and finally paid a small amount of food money.
Although, this is enough to buy a yard and a whole day's food and lodging in the hotels and private hotels in the cities along the way. But it really doesn't matter on this journey with no village or shop. In fact. In the corner of the lobby of this wild shop, there are many barefooted men in short clothes who are trembling all over after bringing their own dry biscuits and hot water for free.
If you have a few dollars in your pocket, you can buy a five-cent bowl of miso soup, sprinkle some free chopped green onions and cress, and dip it in the cheapest large black-faced steamed buns. You don’t even need to use your hands or grasp it with chopsticks. Drinking is just a lunch. Those with slightly better conditions can order a bowl of water cakes or soup balls, and eat them with a loud sound.
Some people were reluctant to pay for more expensive food, but bought a pot of relatively cheap brew. Then they took out a handful of roasted beans from their sleeve pockets and chewed them with a pop of wine. There are also people who manage the store and buy a large plate of cooked peanuts, paired with better jicama wine, and drink it with a grin on their face, which is very delicious.
There are also merchants or scholars who seem to have plenty of money. They order a bucket of wheat rice brought out from the steamer, and then buy a bowl of fat-free soup or spicy soup. They pour it directly on the yellow-brown wheat germ and stir it into a soup. Staple food with strong flavor; buy a bottle of filtered light wine to go with it.
Customers with better conditions will also order two bowls of yellow and easy-to-digest chestnut rice porridge, paired with a piece of bacon or mutton steamed cake, and something like a quarter piece of white-cut and hand-shred boiled goose. , or a piece of fried blood sausage with meat and vegetables; your mouth will be full of oil after eating, but it only costs one hundred and eighty yuan.
Therefore, Jiang Tian and others, who spent more than three hundred dollars, were actually the biggest spenders at this time. At this time, the rain outside was still dripping, showing no signs of stopping. Through the bamboo pane. The mountains and trees in the distance are still blurry in the rain.
Therefore, Jiang Tian and others continued to sit in a well-ventilated seat with open windows and doors. I drank the rest of the tea soup, along with the salt melon, vinegar ginger and wine-soaked dried radish that came with the store, and slowly waited to digest it. While listening to the noise of various people in the lobby, they chatted quietly.
"Actually, there are about four people waiting in this hall that are worthy of attention." Murong Wu, who was full of food and wine, also let go of his reserve a little, looked around and whispered: "First of all, there are the people at the back of the hall from the left. The man in the fifth tent, although he was wearing ordinary traveling clothes, but judging from the quiver around his waist and the pouch, he was probably not an official in the middle of his appointment. He was just of low rank, so he didn't even have a retinue. "
"Secondly, there is the guest who is leaning against the railing upstairs at the back of the hall. His walking pace and posture indicate that he is probably from the military. But judging from his arms and gripping habits, I am afraid he is not a good shooter. ; It’s just that she is leaning on the railing to occupy a high place, but she is vaguely waiting and wary of something?"
"Then, there is the businessman sitting at the sixth table in front of the left wing after entering the door. You see, although he is dressed in a businessman's attire, his hands are thick and knuckled, more like someone who often exerts strength; the companions at the same table are also intentional or unintentional, He touched the air below his waist several times, and it looks more like a guy who has good use and control."
"Finally, it's the one who looks like a traveling scholar..." Murong Wu said this, and suddenly there was an obvious neighing of a horse outside, as well as the sound of heavy kicking and running that penetrated the rain curtain. It also suddenly attracted the attention of everyone in the hall, which was still relatively quiet.
Then, there was a sudden roar of wind, and a fiery figure suddenly broke into the lobby; the person came again with unabated force, overturning the desks blocking the way and knocking them down. Finally, it slammed into the counter where the waiters were gathered, making a loud bang.
Then Jiang Tian, who was close to the door and also in his seat, smelled the very obvious smell of blood and couldn't help but frown in secret. Then I saw the man who walked straight to the counter. He was a general wearing a military benzen crown, two armors on his upper body, and a thick horizontal sword across his waist.
But his iron-leaf-skinned upper body armor had been torn to pieces by something, and the bleeding wounds inside were faintly exposed. In his hand, he was also half-supporting and half-holding a companion who looked like he was bleeding profusely. On the way he came, rain mixed with blood trailed a long trail.
"Save people, save people quickly." He shouted hoarsely to the inside and outside of the counter: "If you have any means, just come up with it, otherwise it will be too late." As he shouted, there was a rush of people outside. Several sergeants came, all with injuries and their armors in messy and broken condition.
They were seen hurriedly clearing away all obstacles, and after lifting the seriously injured comrade who had passed out and placed him flat on a relatively open counter, he could see that blood was still dripping down. ; But the owner of the wild shop who was found by the general said in a sad voice:
"General, please forgive me. The shop only sells food, so it doesn't have any means of first aid to the injured!"
At this time, the guests in the cubicles at the back of the hall were startled one after another, but they were silent and did not dare to come out. Suddenly someone came out and said, "Don't worry, Colonel. I'm Xin Gongping. Chief Xin was born in the third rank. He is on his way to serve as Gao'an Lieutenant in Hongzhou. He just happened to bring some medicine for injuries, which may be of help." "
