In the barren mountains and ridges, withered vines, old trees, and overgrown weeds, even when the sun is high in the sky, it can't help but make people feel alienated and want to escape.
Xue An followed the order and woke everyone up. Everyone was surprised.
"Why are we sleeping here?"
"Obviously last night... hiss..."
"It should be... shouldn't it be... something evil?"
There were divergent opinions for a while, but no one could come up with a solution. Instead, they became even more flustered and quickly suggested leaving as soon as possible.
Those who were still hungover were forcibly helped onto their horses by their respective servants.
I can't stay in this miserable place for a moment.
While waiting for Li Kuan to mount his horse, Xue An whispered: "Little Marquis, I'm afraid this matter cannot be suppressed, and the imperial court will definitely send someone to investigate."
Li Fan said: "It doesn't matter. I won't know anything about it when the time comes. Do you really want to report it to my father?"
Xue An said seriously: "Of course."
Li Fan sighed, smiled and cursed: "You!"
Immediately he rode on horseback.
Xue An got on his horse and followed closely behind.
At this time, everyone discovered that there was a small village not far ahead, which was the Hujiazhuang they met yesterday.
The real Hujiazhuang.
An old man came forward with his ox. When he saw a group of dandy boys and wealthy slaves dressed in bright clothes and angry horses, he was startled and hurriedly avoided the way.
Everyone was a little hesitant, for fear of another evil encounter.
Li Fan knew it well and boldly rode forward and asked: "Old man, I want to ask you something, what is that place over there?"
The old man followed what Li Fan pointed and looked in the direction they came from: "That's the old site of our Hujiazhuang more than 30 years ago. Why do you ask about this?"
"The old site more than thirty years ago?" After hearing this, the dandy boys also became somewhat interested, curious and scared at the same time, "Then why is it abandoned now?"
The old man said: "Hey, isn't this a flood disaster? There is Chanshui flowing through there. It is usually only about ten paces wide. When a flood occurs, people will be afraid..."
Li Fan said: "Even if this is the case, it won't be completely abandoned, right? So much land that can be cultivated is just wasted."
The old man couldn't help but smile when he heard this: "This young man doesn't know something. In this world, how can farming be better than working as a wage earner?"
Li Fan said: "That's true, this place is so close to the Holy Capital..."
The old man said: "To tell you the truth, old man, I also went to the city to work when I was young. If it hadn't been so difficult to live in the Holy City, I would have moved there long ago. But it's good now. Not only can my son and daughter-in-law work hard in the Holy City, but Even my grandsons work as bookboys for the young master, earning hundreds of pennies every month.
Besides, even if those lands are deserted, they don’t belong to us, they all belong to the doctor’s family. "
"Oh? A doctor's title? This countryman actually has a doctor's title?"
"Young master, what you said is true. Although our Hujiazhuang is not a prosperous place, it is still on the outskirts of the Holy Capital. At the feet of the emperor, there are always people who have the seeds of education. In the past few decades, the most important is the Yuanwailang who is a doctor. There is a future.
But, it’s a pity, it’s a pity…”
"What's the pity?" Li Fan listened with great interest, and many dandy boys couldn't help but gathered around him.
The old man couldn't help but feel a little nervous when he saw so many noble people listening to him talk about ancient times, but as he said, under the emperor's feet, there are many people who have seen the world more or less, so he calmed down and started to explain in detail to them.
"It's a pity that the descendants didn't live up to expectations. Only a few years after his death, he started gambling in the city and lost all the family property."
When everyone heard it, they felt no emotion in their hearts.
They have seen this kind of thing a lot. Even among the people present, there are some who like to gamble. It's just that their parents still have titles and power, so they don't have to admit their losses.
"The boss of Yuanwailang's family is really nothing. Not only did he gamble badly, but he also cheated and kidnapped many people in Zhuangzi. Later, he suffered retribution and was beaten to death, leaving orphans behind. A widowed mother, she relies on the help of her clan members to survive.
Fortunately, their ancestors had accumulated good deeds and left a bit of land, and the tribesmen were also hard-working, so they managed to grow up, but they were worried about their marriage! "
Li Fan said: "How can such a good man worry about his marriage?"
The old man said: "Young Master, look at what you are saying. Which family in our holy capital has a beautiful daughter who is not sent to the city? Even if it is used as a wife for a shabby house in the city, it is better than staying here. What's more, not only did Mr. Hu lose his family fortune and owe a lot of debt, how could anyone push his daughter into the fire pit?"
When everyone heard this, they couldn't help but sigh: "This is really not a thing, it will harm our descendants."
The old man said: "Yes, it can be said that Boss Hu's son has suffered eight lifetimes of bad luck and was reborn in this gambler's family. He is a good-looking young man with hands and feet, but he cannot marry his wife. .
His mother was so worried when she saw it. She was urging her every day, and she was forced to go to the city to work, and she still didn't have a peaceful life.
Well, speaking of which, I am a few years younger than Boss Hu's son. When my son can earn money as a book boy, he is still a bachelor.
But then, a strange thing happened. "
"What's weird?" Everyone couldn't help asking.
The old man said: "Then Boss Hu's son kidnapped a young girl from nowhere and got married!"
All the young masters laughed: "You are such a bad old man, why don't you allow others to change their fortunes and get a wife? Is there anything strange about it?"
The old man waved his hands repeatedly: "Young masters, you have misunderstood. The strange thing I am talking about is not that he suddenly became capable and got married, but that on the night of the wedding, someone saw the woman's relatives drinking too much, showing their true colors of foxes and dogs, and they were so frightened. No one dares to stay at the table to eat because they are so pissed off.
I was still working in the city at the time and didn't go out for a drink. Later I heard that the bride was a monster. She had been saved by someone in her previous life hundreds of years ago and had come back as a beautiful woman to repay her kindness!
From then on, Mr. Hu's son moved to the city to start a big business soon, even if he had a soft life. "
One of the dandy boys laughed and said, "You old man is talking nonsense again, but I don't blame you. Country fools are good at these superstitious things."
However, some people suddenly looked solemn, thinking of the inexplicable experience last night.
Li Fan and Xue An's expressions also changed suddenly, and they stared at the old man.
On the other hand, Zhong Feng laughed loudly and said carelessly: "Let me tell you, this man really cannot be poor. Once he becomes poor and cannot marry a serious wife, he will have no choice but to lust after these foxes.
Especially those poor literati who have tried repeatedly and failed to write novels about fairy tales, fairy concubines, fox wives, ghost concubines, mountain spirits, monsters, and all kinds of strange objects.
But don’t tell me, I love watching these things, and sometimes I even let my concubines and maids at home dress up as characters in the books. "
"So good at playing? Then you missed a good opportunity this time."
"No, my master, Ye Gong, loves dragons."
When everyone heard this, they couldn't help but smile and chatted about the interesting things they had heard about the bachelor. For a moment, the supernatural atmosphere of sleeping in the wilderness was completely washed away.
