As the sky turned dark, Tian Yong hurriedly returned home in disgrace. Seeing Tian Yong's return, the Tian family's father and daughter stepped forward with great anticipation to inquire about the assassination.
Tian Yong sat on the chair in the hall, picked up the teacup beside him and drank heavily. The scene of Li Ke taking care of the three heroes of the Tu clan was repeated in his mind, and beads of sweat continued to appear on his forehead.
"What happened? Did Li Ke get the fate he deserved?" Tian Fengxiao asked impatiently, looking at the absent-minded Tian Yong.
Tian Yong just came back to his senses, paused, and said: "You were careless. By the time the four of us chased him, Li Ke had already disappeared. We originally planned to kill him in Xiangshui Forest, but I never thought it would be too late. If I chased further and reached the boundary of Xiangshui Town. There were so many people and it was difficult to start, so I hurried back.
"No, as for the three heroes of the Tu clan, they didn't come to collect the reward for protecting you. This is not in line with their style of doing things." Tian Sanqian looked at Tian Yong in confusion.
Tian Yong did not hesitate, "Seeing that the assassination of Li Ke failed, the three of them took the money to buy my life in vain, so they asked me to come back and tell my father that the money for protecting me was equal to the money for planning to kill people, and the three of them planned to I went to Xiangshui Town to cause trouble and never came back, so I was the only one who rushed back."
When Tian Sanqian heard this, he felt it was very orderly, but he still had some doubts. However, looking at Tian Yong's hard-working look, he didn't ask any more questions.
"Bastard, bastard Li Ke, he really got an advantage this time." Tian Fengxiao kept chattering, cursing in his mouth.
When Tian Yong saw this, he understood. However, Li Ke was not that easy to deal with. After this, Tian Yong was still afraid. So he changed his usual tone: "Father, sister, I think this assassination was not successful, so I just treated him as a cheap guest. Now that he has been kicked out of the house, let him go, but the business between our Tian family and Li family is still there." If we want to continue, I think we should just let it go, otherwise the relationship will become tense and it will not be good for anyone."
Tian Sanqian woke up from the anger just now and said: "Yong'er is right. I didn't expect that Yong'er would grow up a lot after going out. Although he didn't deal with Li Ke, it was still a gain. My Tian family will be in the future Hopefully, Li Ke will let him go, we still have to do business, after all, this is where our Tian family will settle down."
Tian Yong saw that the two of them believed him, so he declined and said, "Father, sister, we are really tired from traveling all the way. I will go back to my room to rest. Remember to call me for lunch tomorrow." After that, he hurried back to his room, leaving his father behind. The two sisters were talking in the hall.
As for Li Ke, since he took care of the three heroes of the Tu clan, he moved forward all the way. After cleaning up in the Xiangshui River, he crossed the Xiangshui River and had already arrived at Xiangshui Town.
But as soon as he entered the city, Li Ke noticed something strange. It was getting dark, and it was far from closing time. The doors of every house in the town were closed, and even the inns were closed. The lights should be bright, but at a glance When I saw the street at the bottom, there was no sparkle at all, and the street was also deserted, which was strange.
Li Ke walked along the street to the end, but he didn't find a door open, and he couldn't find anyone to ask. Li Ke turned around and walked back, but still found nothing. Just when Li Ke was wondering, a man and a horse appeared on the other side. The crisp collision of horse hooves and stone slabs made Li Ke look along the sound, and saw that the man was thin and thin. , dressed in gray clothes, walking in front of the horse, he looked about forty years old, his clothes were floating, he walked with a graceful air, and he was like a fairy. The horse was also like him, a little thin, but with bright eyes. , an unattractive long sword and an old broken gourd hung diagonally on the saddle, but the horse did not look like an ordinary horse.
Li Ke looked at the approaching people and horses, "Sir, why are you here in a daze?" A greeting made Li Ke calm down. When Li Ke looked carefully, the man had already walked forward.
Li Ke politely replied: "Brother, don't you think it's strange? It's still early in this town, but every house is closed and the lights are turned on. It's really quiet. I just saw my brother appear, and I couldn't help but be in a trance. Sorry." Discourteous."
The man raised his eyes and glanced around, then replied: "It's a little unusual."
Suddenly, a figure flashed behind the door of the inn. The two of them noticed at the same time that they both knocked on the door and asked: "Store, it's not late, why don't you open the door for business?"
The man in the store was originally a waiter. He peeked at the door out of curiosity and was noticed by the two of them without thinking. When the waiter saw the two people standing outside the door and being too conspicuous, he was afraid of causing trouble, so he said: "Two officials, it is inconvenient to say clearly at this moment. If the two officials live in the hotel, they will lead the horses to the backyard from the alley next to them. I'll go to the back door and open it for you two, so be quick!"
After hearing this, the two of them listened to the waiter's guidance and walked to an alley next to the inn toward the backyard. The waiter didn't dare to deceive them, so they waited at the back door. Seeing that the two of them had arrived, the waiter opened the door cautiously. He opened the door, led the two horses to the stable, and quickly entered the house with the two of them. It seemed very strange, but the two of them didn't ask much at the moment. They just felt that the waiter in the shop was nervous and there must be something hidden.
The two of them followed the waiter into the store. The waiter didn't say much. He just said a few words in a low and solemn voice while leading the guests from the second floor to the upstairs guest room: "Two guests, there is only one guest room now, but fortunately there are two. Bed, you two guests will feel a little aggrieved tonight. However, after you check into the room, do not light the lamp, do not speak loudly, and do not make any noise. Just sleep peacefully on the bed. If you want to eat, please It will be delivered to the guest officer later."
The two were curious, and Li Ke thought about asking, but the waiter walked out immediately. The two of them each walked towards a bed. Li Ke turned around to ask the man where he was, but saw the man falling down and falling asleep. Li Ke had no choice but to lie down on the bed and couldn't sleep for a long time.
After a while, the waiter knocked on the door and brought food, but no one in the room had fallen asleep. Li Ke was the only one who had no intention of eating. He got up, drank a few sips of the soju on the table, and then went back to lie down on the couch. .
Li Ke listened quietly to the movement inside and outside the store for a long time, but he didn't notice anything unusual. At this time, his eyes were sore and he was about to fall asleep. When he was about to fall asleep, he was startled by a fast and chaotic sound of horse hooves. Li Ke immediately stood up, walked to the window, and stared at the street outside through the crack in the window.
After a while, I saw a group of people riding horses coming from a distance. The people on the horses were holding torches, dressed in red, and had a long sword tied to their waist. Everyone had their heads covered and their faces could not be seen clearly, but it was obvious. What is surprising is that the people on the horse are all women. Li Ke saw that they were uniformly dressed and moved in a measured manner, so they must have come here often.
Nine people and nine horses were galloping back and forth on the street. The torches illuminated the whole street red. From time to time, they lifted up debris on the street and threw it at the shops on both sides. Some people even shouted from time to time, "Where is the husband-in-law! Where is the husband-in-law!" It was surprising. Li Ke was shocked, but after the confusion, the nine people and nine horses left in a hurry.
Li Ke had curious thoughts but no one answered him. He thought that he would have to find out with the waiter tomorrow, and he fell asleep after tossing and turning for a while.
The next day, the town returned to its usual scene. People were shouting and hawking on the streets, and people were coming and going. The noisy noise woke up Li Ke. When Li Ke got up, he saw that the man he lived with had already gotten up and was sitting at the table. While eating the peanuts brought by the waiter last night, I happily tasted the half-pot of soju left by Li Ke.
Li Ke immediately stepped forward to ask for advice and was about to open his mouth. But the man spoke first: "We meet for three glasses of wine, and after three glasses we become friends." After that, he gave Li Ke a full glass. Seeing that the man was happy, Li Ke drank the wine straight away, and the glass was about to rest. The second cup was filled again, and he drank three cups in a row.
"Okay, now you and I are friends, just ask if you have any questions." The man said happily.
Li Ke also found it strange and asked, "It is fate that I met my brother and slept in the same room. Li Ke, could you tell me your name so that I can make friends with my brother?"
But the man said: "Don't make such literate remarks. I've been tired of being a scholar for half my life. As for making friends, since I drank wine just now, I have made friends. My name is Shi Wei, and I can be considered a casual traveler from the end of the world."
"Shi Wei! Is this the Shi Wei who was famous in Kyoto back then? The Shi Wei who was famous in the literary world with his poems and poems?" Li Ke looked at the person in front of him in surprise.
Shi Wei said at this time: "Why, doesn't it look like it? Do you think that the world-famous Shi Wei shouldn't be so down and out?"
Li Ke said quickly: "No, no, no, I saw Xiongtai's Immortal Style and Daoist Bones last night, and I thought it had a certain background at that time. I didn't expect it to be Shi Wei. Although I couldn't witness Xiongtai's demeanor in Kyoto, he treated all the literati in the city as trivial. , I got to see my brother today, but I have no regrets."
"Three thousand literati have stepped down, and once they became famous, they were admired all over the world. Those are just things from the past, not worth mentioning." Shi Wei shook his head while drinking.
Li Keyao thought about how Shi Wei had received the grace of entering the palace to meet the saint after he had conquered the world's literati at Zhufeng Terrace, and then he recited the poem that Shi Wei had written when he walked down the Zhufeng Terrace, in which he was proud of the world's literati:
Three thousand guests in Tianjie read all the books of sages.
Before he could enter the palace, he shed tears in the imperial capital.
"Brother Shi Wei, what a courage you have. It brings shame to all the literati in the world. How happy!" Li Ke looked excitedly at Shi Wei who was drinking in front of him.
Shi Wei seemed to recall the past of such a high-spirited young man, and pondered for a long time. Swallowing the wine in his mouth, "Brother Li Ke, there is no need to mention the past. At that time, the young man was arrogant, ignorant of the importance, thought he had some talent, and was arrogant. It was not something worth talking about."
Li Ke was different at this time, "Brothers are just joking. Acting like brothers is the long-cherished wish of many literati in the world, but almost no one can compare with it."
"That's it, that's all, don't talk anymore, you and I should just drink." Shi Wei shook the wine bottle and loudly called the waiter to serve the wine.
When the waiter of this shop came in, he was also puzzled. In all these years, he had never seen anyone shouting for a drink after getting up early in the morning. After the wine was served, Shi Wei and Li Ke began to drink happily.
Li Ke grabbed the waiter. "Second brother, come and tell me what happened last night. It's really curious. I won't let you leave until you tell me. Also, who are those women who are riding horses and making a lot of noise? Come here one by one. ." Then he took out a piece of broken silver from his arms and handed it to the shop assistant.
The waiter looked embarrassed, weighed the pieces of silver in his hand, and said hesitantly in a low voice: "You two gentlemen don't know the situation here, so I'll tell you."
"The reason why I didn't let you two hold the light and speak last night was to avoid being discovered by those crazy women. Otherwise, not only would our shop be in trouble, I'm afraid the two young masters would also be kidnapped and become their husbands."
Li Ke and Shi Wei were confused after hearing this, and looked at the waiter in doubt. Seeing their confusion, the waiter immediately explained.
"Those crazy women are female bandits from Zhuohua Mountain in the north of the city. They are led by three sisters, the eldest Liu Lianhua, the second child Su Yumei, and the third child Xiao Hongying. It is said that they are all cruel and cruel. The eldest brother Liu Lianhua was originally from the town. When she was thirteen years old, she was sold by her family to a wealthy family in the town as a concubine. On the day of her wedding, she somehow killed the man and his family who wanted to marry her. Only the servants of the mansion survived. Then they escaped from Xiangshui Town at night. Where did he learn kung fu? In recent years, he returned to the mountains around this town to become a bandit. Later, he met Su Yumei and Xiao Hongying, who became more powerful. He also recruited some subordinates from somewhere, all of them women. Over the years, he often He appeared in the town at night, clamoring to kidnap people to the mountains to become husbands, which made the whole town panic. The town's government soldiers went to suppress it several times, but each time they returned with heavy injuries. After that, no one took care of him anymore. But at night, every house is closed and no one dares to make a sound."
"It's quite new to kidnap people to be husbands!" Li Ke asked thoughtfully, "Then are there really people who have been kidnapped in recent years?"
The waiter walked to the window sill and whispered: "Come and take a look, that person was the one who was kidnapped at that time."
The two walked over and saw the waiter pointing at the man lying in tatters on the street, muttering to himself, "I'm married! I'm an official!" Everyone walking by regarded him as a man. Crazy, haha made fun of.
The two of them were puzzled, and the waiter added: "This man was originally a bully in the town, and he often bullied men and women. Three years ago, he fell in love with the daughter of a farmer's family outside the city. After some threats and intimidation, he fell in love with her. He wanted to marry by force. On the day of the wedding, Liu Lianhua and the others unexpectedly kidnapped him. Within a few days, someone discovered him outside the city. He became crazy, foolish, and crazy on the street every day. Begging to make a living, and later on, there was no case of rape and marriage of civilian girls in this town. However, the female bandit from the mountain would come to this town every few days to cause trouble, scaring the whole town until dark. The house is closed and I dare not go out, but I have never heard of any young master being kidnapped and made to be his husband."
Shi Wei spoke at this time: "Interesting, really interesting."
Li Ke was puzzled, and Shi Wei explained: "This is the first time I've heard about kidnapping people to be husbands. It's really interesting to come to the city but not really kidnap people."
"That's right. It's really interesting that a group of women can scare the entire Xiangshui Town." Li Ke nodded.
After the waiter finished speaking, he hurriedly left, leaving Li Ke and Shi Wei alone in the room drinking.
Shi Wei became interested at this time and said: "I have been drifting for half my life, and I have never encountered such a strange thing. How about you and I becoming their husbands tonight?"
"Ah? Is this okay?" Li Ke looked shocked.
"What's the matter? Last night I heard that Brother Li Ke was breathing evenly and powerfully in his sleep. I think he has a lot of martial arts attainments. As a brother, I have been practicing martial arts since I was a child. In recent years, I have been traveling around and competing with others, and I have also learned a lot of new fists and kicks. I think this I'm afraid that a few female prostitutes can't do anything to you and me, so we might as well go and find out what's going on. If they are really evil and they attack their nest, it can be regarded as eliminating harm for the people. If there is something else hidden, how about we discuss it later?" Wei waited seriously for Li Ke's response.
"Okay, then I will accompany you for a while, but if you really want to be a husband, you have to come, Brother Shiwei. I also want to go out and see the vast world." Li Ke laughed.
"In this case, if they come again tonight, the two of us will hold a lamp, drink, sing loudly, and lead them to kidnap us." Shi Wei said and drank another drink.
