Tang Xian did not act rashly. He turned back to look at Master Zhang Jiujing and saw that he had a sad look on his face. He was thoughtful and said, "On the left and right, there are just a few people passing by. After a while, he will finish the work in Guangdong." The errand boy will definitely come back to blackmail him, and then he will use money to silence him, and then the matter will be over, so there is no need to make trouble.
The worry between Zhang Jiujing's brows became even more intense. He withdrew his distant gaze and said to Tang Xian: "Master, I always feel that there is something strange about these two people. The Qianhu of Longxiang Guards are Qianhu, and so are the Qianhu of Qianjun Duwei Mansion. Qianhu, why can Qianhu from the pro-army Duwei Mansion command Long Xiang to defend Qianhu?"
"Also, Zhang San said that he was going to Guangdong on an errand. His Majesty would send people from the pro-military Duwei Mansion to handle the errand. Generally, generals like Qianhu would not be sent there in person, but ordinary sergeants would be sent. Take ten thousand steps back. Your Majesty has sent Qian Hu from the Pro-Military Commander's Mansion to go there in person, so those who are following him should naturally be people from the Pro-Military Commander's Mansion, so why would you send Qian Hu from Long Xiang Guard to accompany him?"
Tang Xian felt quite strange when he heard this.
Zhang Jiujing said seriously: "There is another doubt."
"What?"
Tang Xian frowned.
Zhang Jiujing looked at Tang Xian and said solemnly: "Master, I don't think this person is too righteous. No matter he is a military general or a civil servant, who in this world is willing to meddle in other people's business and interfere in local affairs randomly based on his status as a pro-military captain?" One kick, but it’s easy to get yourself trapped.”
Tang Xian stared: "What exactly do you want to say?"
Zhang Jiujing shook his head and said uneasily: "I just think that we should send someone to follow them and ensure that they leave the boundary of Quanzhou Prefecture. If he is allowed to do whatever he wants, where will his next destination be?"
Tang Xian took a deep breath and immediately shouted: "Tang Er, send a few good trackers to follow them secretly. I want to know where they have gone!"
Tang Er agreed, took his men, and hurriedly chased him out of the city.
Tang Xian rubbed his eyebrows: "Hui'an can't wait any longer, we need to return to Jinjiang immediately!"
If you leave Hui'an and go to Guangdong, your next destination must be Jinjiang!
Jinjiang, the place where Quanzhou Prefecture governs!
Tang Xian must go back, that is his hometown.
Because of Tang Hu's actions, someone caught him this time and had to cut off his fingers to calm the situation and save his son. If there is a problem in Jinjiang and he takes advantage of it again, it may not be a problem that can be solved by dropping a finger.
go back!
Tang Xian arranged the carriage, placed Tang Hu in place, and gave instructions to Shi Ruji and others before leaving in a hurry.
Outside the city, there is an ancient road.
There are weeds growing on both sides of the road. No one has cleaned them for I don’t know how many years. Some of the weeds have even grown to half a person’s height.
On such a road, there are only some pedestrians during the day, but at night, there may not be many people. After all, no one knows whether there are robbers or robbers in the grass.
Xiao Cheng stopped and looked back.
Gu Zhengchen had a smile on his face but didn't say anything.
Xiao Cheng said with a straight face and disdain: "These people are so bold, even we dare to follow them!"
Gu Zhengchen put up an awning with his hands, looked at the scattered houses in the distance, and said softly: "I guess they are afraid that we will not go to Guangdong, but stay in Quanzhou Prefecture."
Xiao Cheng snorted coldly: "If you have no guilt in your heart, how can you be afraid? This just shows that they have many problems and are afraid of being found out."
Gu Zhengchen nodded slightly: "Don't worry, we will always find out."
Gu Zhengchen did not rush to deal with the tail behind him. Instead, he traveled nearly twenty miles from dusk to a small village called Shuangxikou.
There are two creeks here, one in the north and one in the south, both flowing in the southeast direction.
The village in Shuangxikou is not big, with more than 80 households scattered inside and outside the creek.
It's getting dark.
Gu Zhengchen looked at the stream in front of him and said to Xiao Cheng, "It's getting dark, those people should go home."
Xiao Chengran.
The stream was gurgling, and a young woman came with a bucket. When she saw Gu Zhengchen opposite, she felt very strange and did not dare to step forward for a while.
Gu Zhengchen looked up and saw that the woman was wearing a yellow bamboo hat and a small floral scarf with a white background. The scarf covered her cheeks and chin. She was wearing a blue slanted shirt, which was short and narrow, exposing her belly. She wore a turban on her waist. There is a silver waist chain, and she wears wide and elegant low-waisted black pants.
"This is Hui'an girl!"
Gu Zhengchen stared.
This peculiar costume is completely different from the Central Plains style, but these people are indeed Han people.
Hui'an women do not mainly live in Hui'an County, but are scattered in places outside Hui'an County, such as Chongwu, Xiaoqi and other places.
"This girl..."
As soon as Gu Zhengchen opened his mouth, the woman dropped the bucket and ran away.
Probably scared.
Gu Zhengchen was very surprised. He looked gentle and had a harmless smile. Why did she run away?
Oh, Xiao Cheng, you’re the one who’s so scared!
Xiao Cheng feels aggrieved, why would Mao get punched by you? What did I do wrong? I was not here just now, okay...
I dared to hit someone and got beaten again, which was really frustrating.
Gu Zhengchen walked to the bridge. It was said to be a bridge, but it was actually two thick wooden boards one foot wide. It was wobbly when walking on it. If you were not careful, you might fall.
Fortunately, the stream below is very shallow, and the "bridge" is only six or seven steps away, making it easy to cross.
An old man came over with two men. The old man was hunched over. The man was holding a fork in his hand with a fierce momentum. After these three people, there were seven or eight women, one with a stick and one with a kitchen knife. Some picked up kitchen knives, and others lifted a large stone, weighing at least thirty kilograms.
Xiao Cheng watched this scene warily, stretched out his hand to block Gu Zhengchen behind him, stared at everyone with sharp eyes, and his face became serious. Gu Zhengchen didn't expect things to turn out like this. You should at least say hello and ask who's name and why you're here.
"Leave our village and if you want money again, we will fight for it for you!"
When the old man spoke, his Zhongyuan dialect was mixed with a lot of Fujian sounds.
Even so, Gu Zhengchen still heard the other party's meaning clearly, pushed Xiao Cheng away, and walked towards the old man: "We are businessmen, and we are on our way to Jinjiang. It is getting late when we pass by here, and we want to stay overnight, but I don't know why you are like this. nervous……"
The old man frowned, murmured a few words to the man beside him, and then asked, "Aren't you an official?"
Gu Zhengchen spread his hands: "Do I look like an official?"
Seeing that Gu Zhengchen was not threatening or an aggressive official, the old man waved his hands to everyone: "Let's all leave. He is not a bad person."
The man seemed to be advising the old man.
The old man insisted and asked everyone to disperse, and then said to Gu Zhengchen: "If you want to stay overnight, come to my house. There is also a woodshed. If you don't mind, come over and survive the night."
"Thank you, husband."
Gu Zhengchen saluted and followed the old man deep into the village while asking.
The old man's name was Lin Zhuo, a resident of Shuangxi Kou. In his early years, he was an old official of the Yuan Dynasty. He served as a Dou-level official in Quanzhou Prefecture, where he was responsible for guarding the warehouse gates. Later, when the world was in chaos and he got older, he returned to Shuangxi. mouth.
Turning around the alley, there is a fenced yard next to the stream.
In the fenced yard, there are many large and small stones placed. On the west side are the large ones, two exquisite lotus seats, and half of the Buddha statue, which seem to have been destroyed. On the east side are small items with wooden shelves, mostly containing fist-sized stone sculptures.
There are three rooms on the east and west side of the thatched house, and there is a woodshed in the east corner. Smoke is coming out of it, and there are choking coughs.
Lin Zhuo opened the door and said, "You can sit down wherever you like and have some food in the evening before resting."
"Thank you."
Gu Zhengchen looked at the stone carvings one by one, picked up a jade pendant-sized stone, and was slightly stunned when he looked at the carvings on it.
What is carved on the stone is not figures, flowers and birds, but a ship, a ship sailing across the sea. The sails are bulging, as if it is riding on the wind. The waves on the sea are surging, and there is quite a sense of urgency that a storm is coming. .
"Did you carve this?"
Gu Zhengchen raised his head and looked at the woman with a bit of gray on her face. She was the one who lost the bucket and ran away.
"Well, grandpa told me a lot about the sea. He also said that Quanzhou Port used to be the most prosperous port, and all the ships at that time yearned for the sea."
The woman was not afraid, but walked towards Gu Zhengchen openly.
Gu Zhengchen didn't expect that she could also speak Chinese, and her articulation was so clear that she didn't look like someone confined to the village.
Lin Zhuo seemed to have noticed Gu Zhengchen's doubts and said with a smile: "I have no children. I raised her as a boy in my early years. I had my granddaughter Lin Chengyi teach her for two years."
Gu Zhengchen smiled and said: "The so-called person who is sincere does not deceive himself. It seems that my father-in-law hopes that his granddaughter will treat others with sincerity and not deceive himself."
Lin Zhuo smiled, arranged for Lin Chengzhen to add some food, and then entered the house.
An old woman stood at the door. When she saw Lin Zhuo walking in, she said something fierce.
Gu Zhengchen didn't understand Hokkien and didn't know what the old woman was talking about, but he probably blamed Lin Zhuo for bringing a stranger into his home.
Lin Zhuo explained over and over again: "It's getting late and traveling at night is very dangerous. If they have an accident on the road because we didn't stay overnight, wouldn't it be our fault?"
The old woman seemed unable to listen, and Lin Zhuo also felt quite bitter.
The meal is ready.
Vegetable soup, rice, and a steamed salted fish.
Gu Zhengchen saw that the old woman's face was very ugly, so he smiled and said to Lin Zhuo: "The ancients said that if you have no merit, you will not be rewarded, and if you are not virtuous, you will not be favored. My father-in-law must accept this little thought."
Lin Zhuo looked at the five copper coins handed over by Gu Zhengchen and quickly shied away: "No, no one should stay out for the night."
The old woman stretched out her hand and snatched it away, saying a series of words to Lin Zhuo.
Lin Zhuo and Lin Chengyi both looked ugly, but Gu Zhengchen tried to smooth things over: "It should be so."
After collecting the money, the old woman's complexion finally improved, and Xiao Cheng didn't say anything even after eating two bowls of rice.
Gu Zhengchen took a few bites and asked, "Why did my father-in-law bring people here as soon as we entered the village, and they all looked fierce and seemed to be driving us away even if they were fighting?"
When Lin Zhuo heard this, he immediately sighed, took the chopsticks and tapped the salted fish, and said with a sad face: "Why, hey, in the final analysis, it is the salted fish that is to blame!"
