Following Lu Zhengqing's guidance, He An walked along a row of houses to a quiet courtyard, and sure enough he saw a clump of dark bamboo leaves peeking out from the courtyard wall.
It was already the middle of winter, but the bamboo leaves were still dense. He An couldn't help but marvel at them.
He knocked on the courtyard door, but no one answered. He stretched out his hand and pushed it. The courtyard door creaked open, but it was not locked. He An secretly wondered which teacher's residence this should be. It didn't matter if he folded a bamboo branch and waited. Let me explain again.
Walking into the courtyard, we saw that the courtyard was a little deep, but extremely clean. A small path paved with blue bricks led directly to the main house. In the center of the courtyard, there was a persimmon tree with gnarled branches, and a few small lanterns hanging on the branches. persimmon.
There is a banana tree and a crabapple planted in the corner. Although the branches and leaves are withered and in decline, it can still be seen that the owner of this yard is very elegant.
Next to the courtyard wall was the bamboo that He An saw. This bamboo was a bit weird. The main pole, which was as thick as a bowl, seemed to have been cut in half by some sharp weapon. Another one came out from the side, and the long length was black and glowing with purple light. About ten feet high, the leaves are as black as ink and as slender as needles. They are still lush and lush. From a distance, they look like a black cloud. When the wind blows, the bamboo leaves make a rustling sound.
He An had never seen such black and purple ink bamboo, and he couldn't help but sigh that there are so many wonders in the world!
He selected a bamboo branch for a long time, selected a bamboo branch as thick as his thumb, and twisted it hard at the knot. The bamboo branch was bent like a bow, but it did not break. When He An let go, it bounced back, and it was surprisingly tough. .
Looking at the trembling black bamboo, He An was secretly surprised. He reached out to grab the bamboo branch and broke it again. This time he gritted his teeth and tried his best, but still could not break it.
He An mobilized the true energy in his body, turned his palm into a knife, and slashed it forward. The bamboo branches made a clear sound, and there was a faint sound of metal and stone.
He An's palm knife was enough to open the rubble of the stele. There was only a faint white mark on the bamboo branch, but it was still not broken. The texture of this bamboo is actually as hard as iron.
Seeing that it was getting late, He An was secretly anxious and suddenly remembered the power of the "Shocking Finger".
The Dantian's true energy was poured into the "Quchi point" on his arm. He An poked it out with a finger, and with a "click" sound, the bamboo branch finally broke.
He An saw that the bamboo was unusual, so he plucked off the leaves from the broken bamboo branches, wrapped them all in a handkerchief, put them into his sleeves, closed the courtyard door and left in a hurry.
In the bustling streets, a luxurious carriage pulled by a tall horse slowly passed by, followed by a few servants in green clothes and small hats.
Several bearers were struggling to carry a sedan. The curtain of the sedan was opened, revealing a fat woman with a face full of fat and yelling something loudly.
The salesman carried the load and shouted from time to time in a penetrating voice.
Several graceful women stood in front of the stall selling cloth, carefully selecting, whispering a few words from time to time, covering their mouths and smiling softly.
The sound of dice, cheers, and curses from the man with red eyes came from the nearby gambling house...
Fan Dazhi wandered around half of Luoyang City and found that there were quite a lot of dogs. Dogs could be seen in markets, in front of restaurants, and in garbage dumps in back streets and alleys.
He grew up in the village, and several households in the village had dogs, so he knew the habits of dogs very well, and easily collected enough dog whiskers without much effort.
The strange thing is that after wandering around for so long, I didn't see a single cat.
Fan Dazhi touched his stomach and felt hungry after walking for a long time. He stood in the middle of the street and looked around. He saw a steamed stuffed bun shop and bought two big meat buns. After eating them in two bites, he asked the shopkeeper for a bowl of water. Gulu A grunting breath filled his stomach, and then he burped with satisfaction.
Fan Dazhi, who had eaten and drank enough, was picking his teeth with a grass stalk, sitting on a stool in front of the bun shop, looking at the people coming and going on the street, and secretly thinking about where to find some cats.
The setting sun shines through the door lintel. The shopkeeper of the bun shop has already sold out his goods and is about to close the shop. Fan Dazhi can't help but smile when he sees Fan Dazhi still sitting there stupidly, clutching his bun face.
"Is there any difficulty for the young man? Let me tell you, maybe the old man can help with some advice..." the shopkeeper asked.
"I walked many streets in this huge capital city, but I couldn't find a single cat!"
The shopkeeper laughed loudly: "You are looking for the wrong place. Cats are not like dogs that can guard homes and homes. Who would raise them in ordinary people's homes? You have to go to the officials' homes on Dingding Street, or Chongyifang , look for wealthy merchants like Yongningfang."
When Fan Dazhi heard this, he patted his head. The shopkeeper's words were like a revelation. He thanked her and hurried out of the bun shop.
Chongyifang is not far from this street. Fan Dazhi passed through a vegetable street and saw a roadside vegetable stall selling fish and shrimp. His heart moved and he bought a dozen small fish for a copper plate and skewered them with straw ropes. Holding it in his hand, he walked towards Chongyifang with great ambition.
Chongyifang is full of wealthy businessmen. There are high-walled courtyards with double eaves. There are two stone lions squatting at the door. Even the old locust tree outside the courtyard is draped in red and surrounded by silk. There is a sense of wealth and luxury everywhere in the square.
Fan Dazhi secretly took a peek through a half-open red lacquered door. Inside, there were numerous doors and longing figures, which made him secretly speechless.
Big, really big! After all, it is a place where rich people live. The houses are big, the gate tower is big, and the stone lions at the door are also big.
Fan Dazhi looked around and finally saw a cat at the door of a house. He couldn't help but be overjoyed. The cat was golden in color and was lying lazily basking in the sun at the door.
Fan Dazhi walked straight over, pretending to pass by without looking sideways, and dropped a small fish casually.
The cat jumped up, stared at a pair of amber jewel-like pupils, looked at the little fat man walking away, and then looked at the small fish on the ground not far away, sniffing lightly with its nose, and finally couldn't resist the temptation of the fishy smell. , walked over and lowered his head to smell it, confirming that it was the delicacy he liked, and happily took it in his mouth.
The little fish finished quickly, and the cat, who was still not satisfied, raised his head and watched the little fat man disappearing into the corner. Under the corner, there was another small fish shining silver in the sun.
The cat "meowed" and ran over happily. Just when it was about to pick up the fish on the ground, a sudden wind blew on the ground. The dead leaves and dust on the ground floated strangely, and the air suddenly became strange.
There were invisible fluctuations in the air, like a tentacle stroking the golden cat. The strong uneasiness in its heart made it want to turn around and run away, but the invisible tentacles had imprisoned its limbs, preventing it from moving at all.
The cat opened its mouth to let out a pitiful wail. A ball of cotton-like gas poured into its mouth, and its throat let out a desperate whimper...
It saw the little fat man rubbing his hands, turning around the corner with a smile, squatting down, and took out a pair of sharp... small scissors from his arms.
"I cut your beard and gave you fish to eat. You should be very grateful to me! Look at you, after you cut your beard, you look much younger and more handsome!"
Fan Dazhi smiled brightly and used scissors to cut off the whiskers on the cat's face. He clapped his hands and packed up the whiskers.
Following his movements, the originally stiff cat on the ground regained its freedom, and flew out with a bow, running away quickly, disappearing through the crack of the door of the house.
"This thing runs too fast. If you don't use a little bit of heaven and earth energy, you really can't catch it!"
Fan Dazhi looked at the cat's agile figure and grinned. A cat without a beard is still a cat.
A tiger-striped male cat walked on the high courtyard wall. It had a strong body and light steps. Walking on the high wall and eaves is like walking on the ground.
The tiger-striped tom cat kept making "meow, meow, meow" sounds toward the yard next door, where a beautiful tabby cat lived, and it had "date" with it several times in this way.
The tiger-striped tom cat barked several times in succession, but there was no response from the yard next door. It raised its paws and scratched its face, then raised the tips of its ears to listen.
"Uu~meow"!
A low cry suddenly came from under the wall outside the courtyard gate. The cry was a bit unfamiliar, which made the tiger-striped cat hesitate for a moment, but it decided to take a look.
After all, every male cat full of hormones will not easily reject a member of the opposite sex, just like an ambiguous cat will not easily reject a ray of night breeze.
The tiger-striped cat nimbly ran to the door wall and saw a small fish on the ground in the corner outside. It looked around warily and did not move for a long time. There was a rustling sound from the corner, and a beautiful fish came from the corner. The civet cat showed half of its head, holding a small fish in its mouth.
The tiger-striped cat let out an angry "meow" and jumped down from the wall, like a bloody man who discovered that his lover was stealing food behind his back.
It rushed to the ground like a whirlwind, quickly picked up the small fish, and ran towards the civet cat. However, in the next moment, it seemed to plunge into an invisible quagmire...
A big fat face flashed across the corner, and Fan Dazhi took out the pair of scissors from his arms with a smile on his face...
"There's still a little difference, it seems we have to go to Dingding Street to have a look!"
After tossing the two cats, Fan Dazhi looked at the cat whiskers in his hand, shook his head, and said to himself.
Dingding Street is not as good as Chongyifang. It is the most prosperous place in the imperial capital. All the rich and powerful families live in the place where every inch of money and land is available.
The courtyards of any Hutong home are very large, and some of the entrances are guarded by guards. These courtyards are designed to provide tranquility in the midst of the hustle and bustle. The gates and courtyards are so strict that they look solemn and breathless from a distance. They may be the residences of some important officials in the court.
Fan Dazhi didn't dare to get too close and walked along the street, looking into the alley from time to time. Suddenly, he heard a "meow" behind him, which startled him.
Looking back, he saw a black kitten following him at some point.
"Someone actually came to my door!"
Fan Dazhi secretly smiled in his heart and ducked into a secluded alley. The black kitten followed him step by step, twisting its body in the sunlight like a rolling black ball.
"It's just that this cat is too small!"
Fan Dazhi frowned and looked at this little guy. It was about the same size as his own palm. The cat's whiskers were short and curly, and they were not even enough to make a brush.
