Chi'er Mountain is not far from the east bank of the Yellow River. It runs east-west on the whole and stretches for dozens of miles. It has many mountains and mountains, towering into the clouds. There are many rocks on the mountain, all of which are reddish brown, hence its name.
There is a large plain at the southern foot of the mountain with abundant water and grass and sufficient sunshine, which is very suitable for livestock to thrive. The Fan family ranch is located here.
Looking around, under the blue sky and white clouds, there are green grass, blooming mountain flowers, herds of cattle and sheep, and galloping horses. What a lively scene!
…
Besides, Qin Feng and his party quickly arrived near Chi'er Mountain after crossing the Yellow River eastward for the second time, and then hid in a forest.
"Sir, when are we going to the Fan family ranch?"
"Don't worry, you must be careful in this action. For the sake of safety, I will change your appearance first, so as not to reveal your true appearance and cause big trouble in the future!"
"Sir, do you know how to disguise yourself?"
"I've learned some before, but I haven't used them for a long time, so I'm a bit shabby. Today I'm going to practice my skills with you guys, hehe!"
As a special soldier, makeup is one of the must-learn subjects, and Qin Feng's level in this aspect is quite good.
With a small knife, small scissors, ink pen, turmeric powder, plant juice...a few simple things, the soldiers were soon transformed beyond recognition.
This is still merciful. If a major operation is performed: pulling out a few teeth, applying a few knives on the facial muscles, and applying some special concoction, it is enough to completely change a person's appearance. I'm afraid I can't even recognize it.
Next, Qin Feng disguised himself again, trimming his sideburns, adding wrinkles, and adding a beard... He suddenly changed from the handsome boy to a middle-aged man with a weathered face. He also wore a white felt hat and a beard. With his blue silk clothes and cowhide boots, he looked like a horse dealer, so he no longer had to worry about revealing his true identity.
After changing his appearance, Qin Feng did not rush to the Fan family ranch. Instead, he led his soldiers around Chi'er Mountain and carefully observed the nearby mountains and rivers, road conditions, river crossings...all. Keep it in mind.
I went to Weiyuan City, fifty miles away, to find out the situation there, and then drew an accurate map.
After looking at the map for a long time, he conceived a complex plan and worked out every detail. Qin Feng nodded with satisfaction, and then led his soldiers to the Fan family ranch to explore the details inside. Condition.
…
"Da da da!"
As soon as Qin Feng and others arrived near the ranch, a group of riders rushed over. There were about twenty people, all carrying bows and arrows, and swords and guns. Their movements were extremely agile. At first glance, they were elite men who had undergone rigorous training.
At the head was a thin man in his thirties, riding a yellow gelding, wearing cowhide armor, and holding a tiger-headed sword... A pair of little mouse eyes full of vigilance.
"Stop, who are you?"
"My Majesty, Xiao Shiyi, came here today to ask for an audience with Master Fan!"
"Oh, why do you want to see my young master?"
"Haha, I'm a horse dealer. I recently got a batch of good horses from the grassland. I heard that the Fan family ranch specializes in buying horses, so I came to visit Master Fan and talk about business. Please tell me... this It's just a small gift, not a sign of respect!" As he spoke, Qin Feng threw a purse over.
The skinny little boss took it and took a look. There were more than a dozen taels of silver in it, and it was of good quality. A smile suddenly appeared on his gloomy face: "It's easy to say, it's easy to say. You guys wait here and don't run around. I'll pass you through when I get in." Report it."
"Good work!"
The Fan family ranch purchases horses all the year round, so horse dealers often come to negotiate business. Qin Feng is polite, understands the rules, and even hands out red envelopes.
Therefore, the thin little leader didn't suspect anything. After asking a few questions, he immediately turned his horse's head and ran to the ranch to report the news.
…
After about a cup of tea, the skinny little leader came back: "My young master has invited me. You can come with me and go this way."
"Thank you!"
The thin little leader led the way, and Qin Feng and others followed closely, entering the Fan family pasture and arriving at the foot of Chi'er Mountain. A valley appeared in front of them.
The mouth of the valley is about twenty feet wide. A high and thick barrier is built with huge stones. There is a gate in the middle. It is made of iron and wood and is one foot thick. It is covered with iron sheets and equipped with copper nails. It is extremely strong... The barrier There are dozens of guards standing guard, equipped with crossbows, fire blunderbuss, rolling logs, thunder stones and other weapons. The guard is tight!
On the peak on the left side of the valley, there is also an observation tower, which is condescending and overlooks all directions. Once the enemy is discovered, it will immediately warn, and at the same time, it can light fireworks and ask for help from Weiyuan City dozens of miles away.
Qin Feng saw it in his eyes and remembered it in his heart, without omitting anything.
After entering the valley, the situation inside can't help but make people's eyes shine.
It turns out that the valley is gourd-shaped, with a long and thin entrance, but a huge internal space. It is surrounded by mountains on three sides and has a flat terrain. A large number of horse pens, cattle pens and sheep pens have also been built.
During the day, the livestock herds were running and grazing freely outside.
At night, the herdsmen drove their livestock into the valley, then closed the gates and put them on strict guard, so that they would not be afraid of horse thieves and wild beasts.
No wonder the Fan family set up the ranch here. Such terrain conditions are indeed unique. However, it will be difficult to get those thousands of good horses out, unless the valley is conquered and the guards inside are conquered. Get rid of them all.
A large number of houses were built on the sunny slopes on the north side of the valley. The Eighth Young Master Fan Renshan and his subordinates lived in them. They also received guests and negotiated business here.
Qin Feng and others were about to go up the bluestone steps, but they didn't want to be stopped by the skinny little leader: "Wait a minute, my young master recently made a rule that foreigners are not allowed to go up the mountain in more than three people, and they are not allowed to wear any weapons! "
"Oh, is there such a rule?"
"Some time ago, some gangsters caused trouble here and injured many of our brothers. Even my young master was almost injured. The young master made this new rule out of anger. Please forgive me."
The thin man didn't say who the villain was, but Qin Feng knew in his heart that he must be talking about the two brothers Ma Yong and Ma Wu. The two of them caused a big fuss here more than half a month ago.
There are many guards in the valley and they are heavily guarded. Under such circumstances, the Ma brothers were able to rush out and escape, which shows that the two of them are indeed extremely brave!
"Follow me in the mountain and crack the ground. The rest of the people are waiting here. You are not allowed to move around at will!"
"promise!"
Leaving his soldiers to stay at the foot of the mountain, Qin Feng took only Xiong Da and Xiong Er and followed the thin little leader up the hillside with his bare hands. He soon arrived at the reception hall and met the eighth young master, Fan Renshan. Approximately twenty-six or seventeen years old, with medium build, fair skin, long face, crescent eyebrows, and a pair of red eyes underneath. You can't even see the white inside. If you go out at night, you will probably scare the ghost. !
No wonder it's called 'Red Eyed Pixiu', it looks so scary.
There was also a middle-aged man sitting next to him, with a heavy back and a sinewy face. One ear was wrapped with a medicinal cloth. He looked very funny. He should be the leader of the guard - Cao Daqiang!
This man's ears were removed by Ma Yong's knife.
"Xiao Shiyi, I have met the Eighth Young Master!"
"No courtesy, please take a seat. Come, serve tea!"
"Thank you!"
…
"Where is Mr. Xiao from?"
"Ningxia Zhongwei Renshi!"
"Since you are from Ningxia, why did you come to our Chi'er Mountain?"
"Alas, there is a severe drought in the northwest and civil unrest is common, so that business roads are blocked, and all those doing business are in trouble. In desperation, I can only leave Ningxia Wei and try my luck elsewhere. I heard a few horse dealer friends say The Fan family ranch has great wealth and a prosperous business, so I came here to ask for an audience. I am presumptuous, but I hope the Eighth Young Master will be considerate!"
"It's easy to say, it's easy to say. I wonder how big Mr. Xiao's plate is. What kind of fur reins do you mainly sell?" (How big is your caravan and what kind of livestock do you mainly sell?)
"The caravan is not a big one. There are one hundred and eighty boys. They mainly sell horses, and sometimes they also sell Chazi and Shantouzi!" Order beef and sheep)
…
Eighth Young Master Fan Renshan asked about livestock trafficking and used a lot of professional terms.
Qin Feng had already learned these things from the Ma brothers, so he answered them fluently without revealing any flaws.
After chatting for a while, Fan Renshan and Cao Daqiang looked at each other and nodded slightly, obviously recognizing Qin Feng's identity as a horse dealer. Next, it was time to talk about the main topic.
"I heard from my subordinates that Guest Officer Xiao has a group of horses (horses) ready to take action?"
"Exactly, some time ago, I got more than a hundred Fengzi from the grassland. I want to sell them, but I don't know what price your ranch can offer?"
"Haha, our Fan family ranch is famous for its fair prices in business. How about this? One hundred and sixty taels for the top quality, eighty taels for the medium quality, and forty taels for the low quality. How about this? ?”
The purchase price quoted by Eighth Young Master Fan Renshan was slightly higher than the normal horse price. Of course, this price was not the real price, but a ruse.
First, a high price is quoted to attract the other party. When the horses arrive and the formal transaction is made, the originally agreed price is severely reduced using the excuse that the horses are thin, impure, and have poor coat color.
At that time, the other party had driven the horses all the way here, and it was impossible to drive them back all the way. Even though he knew he had been deceived, he had to bite his back teeth and agree. With this trick, Fan Renshan had deceived many people. The horse dealer has made countless dirty money.
Someone asked, what if the horse dealer has a hard temper and refuses to agree to it?
It's easy to handle, then just stay with the people and the horses!
The horses belong to the herd, and as for the people, just bury them on the back slope of Chi'er Mountain, and go underground to keep company with the horse dealers who didn't agree before!
Qin Feng was so shrewd that he knew that the Eighth Young Master, Fan Renshan, was not a good person. There must be something wrong with the high price he quoted, but he pretended not to know and pretended to be happy: "The Eighth Young Master is really generous, then this Let's settle this matter!"
"Haha, no problem, it's settled. When will we trade?"
"In about ten days, I will definitely drive the Fengziqun (horse herd) over. However, the more than one hundred horses I have are all top quality. Calculated at one hundred and sixty taels of silver per horse, the total is sixteen thousand. More than a thousand taels of silver, I wonder if the Fan family ranch has so much cash in cash?"
"Haha, don't worry, let alone more than a hundred top-quality horses, even if it is doubled ten times, I can still eat it."
…
Qin Feng observed the words and knew that Fan Renshan was not lying. In other words, there was indeed a large amount of gold and silver in the Fan family ranch. In this way, he felt relieved.
"The business is settled, I'll take my leave now."
"There's no hurry. I'm the host. I'll treat Mr. Xiao to a few drinks. It won't be too late to leave after you're full."
"It's our first time meeting, how can this be so embarrassing!"
"Haha, I have always been hospitable, Mr. Xiao. There is no need to refuse. Come on, let's go have a drink."
"Okay, it's better to be respectful than to obey!"
In line with the principle that if you don't eat, it's free, and if you eat, it's free. Qin Feng took Xiong Da and Xiong Er and had a delicious meal.
After eating and drinking, he said goodbye and left. Fan Renshan arrived at the exit of the valley before waving goodbye.
"Master Xiao, don't forget the ten-day appointment, haha!"
"Don't worry, I will definitely bring someone here in ten days, hehe!"
