The sun is high, the birds are singing and the flowers are fragrant.
Since the talisman exploded, the mansion cave has collapsed into a flat ground.
The three Taoists mourned for Chen Jiu, set up a tomb, and recuperated for a while, then got up in the morning and rushed to the Qingfeng City, which is located in the southern part of the Daying Dynasty, known as Fenghuaqiuyue and Women's Goulan.
The mountains and plains returned to calm again, with occasional insects and birds singing.
At noon, Liu Yinggui died at the very center where the talisman exploded. There was a sudden noise from the layers of rubble, and a palm stretched out, grabbed the stone wall, and moved outward.
At noon, Chen Jiu got out of the soil without any clothes. Fortunately, he was in the mountains and there was no one around, so it was harmless.
The first thing he did when he got out was to scold the Taoist priest for letting him be a human bomb, he is really a stinking bull nose.
After venting for a while, he looked suspiciously at the surrounding flat ground again, and walked left and right twice, but he saw the Clothes Tomb, on which were the scholar's clothes of the three Taoist priests. With a few large characters.
Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.
Chen Jiu was so angry that he kicked it away, "Smelly Taoist priest, grandma has a leg, it turns out that you want me to die."
He kicked the dirt on the grave twice again, and after venting, he picked up the scholar's clothes and put them on himself.
Now he will not go into the deep mountains even if he is killed, who knows what else is in there.
Fortunately, he met a river afterwards, and he walked along the lower reaches, which really led him to find a trail created by man.
The path is full of people, and it is a small village. Chen Jiu didn't go over to say hello, fearing that it might be some evil spirit again, so he continued walking along the path.
The journey was not long, and after half a day he was on the real official road. During the period, there were a lot of people, there were pedestrians gathered in twos and threes, there were also caravans drawn by horses, and there were even rich children riding on tall horses in splendid clothes.
Chen Jiu then walked slowly along the wide official road. During this period, he became thirsty, and went to the roadside tea shop to ask for a bowl of water.
The station tea shop is on the side of the road. Drinks and tea cost money. The white water is free for people to drink, which is considered a good relationship, but there is also a limit. One person can only drink one bowl, and if you drink too much, it will be counted as the price of tea.
Holding a bowl of white water, Chen Jiu squatted in the corner of the tea shop with many passers-by, listening to those passers-by tell some stories about mountains and rivers.
Among them, the most talked about is the end of the official road, Qingfeng City.
There are indeed many strange stories in Qingfeng City. Chen Jiu was amazed again and again, applauding the storyteller.
For example, the most famous Goulan oiran, who looks like a moon-shame flower, is charming and charming, not inferior to the fairies on the mountain. I heard that in the past twenty years, not only has she not aged, but she has become more beautiful. A fairy teacher came to see it in person, only for that oiran Said a word, heaven pity your face, do not allow you to grow old.
After the speech, the passerby sighed, "If I can see Hua Kui once in this life, death is worth it!"
Pedestrians squatting in the corner together echoed their voices.
Chen Jiu took a sip of plain water, shook his head slightly, and wondered if these people had never seen a woman before, they would die at a glance, if you touch it, you won't explode right away?
Most of the stories in Qingfeng City revolve around this Goulan, and they are always inseparable from the wind, flowers and autumn moon, spending a lot of money to win a beautiful smile.
Chen Jiu was tired of listening to these bachelors, so he stood up and took a sip of the water. Feeling weak, he walked towards the tea shop to see if he could touch a few peanuts to eat.
The people sitting in the tea shop were all customers who ordered tea and wine, and those who only drank a bowl of plain water like Chen Jiu could only squat outside.
When the guests heard someone walking in, they all cast a slight glance, and seeing that it was a poor scholar with white water, they turned their eyes back with disdain.
The shopkeeper is an old blind man, dressed in coarse cloth, with a rough stick next to him, which is regarded as a walking stick. The old blind man is responsible for collecting money. Every time he collects money, no matter how much it is, he has to touch it with his rough palms. Rub the copper coins carefully one by one, then slowly put them into the box, and ask the staff to fetch things for the guests.
Chen Jiu walked to the simple counter with white water, thinking that if he wanted something from someone, he would definitely put dessert in his mouth, so he tentatively asked, "Handsome guy, can you give me some peanuts?"
The old blind man froze for a moment, not knowing who Chen Jiu was calling.
Chen Jiu then explained, "Your white water is too fresh."
The old man was speechless, and only then realized the reason, and sighed, "Young man, begging for help is not like this."
Chen Jiu was stunned, what else could he do? He turned his head sharply, and suddenly had a flash of inspiration, and asked tentatively, "Pretty boy?"
The old man held back for a while, took out a handful of peanuts from the locker behind him, handed it to Chen Jiu, and asked, "Young man, are you going to Qingfeng City?"
Chen Jiu took the peanuts, "Well, I heard that there are quite a lot of people there, let's go shopping."
"Then don't go."
Chen Jiu was puzzled, "Why?"
The old man said earnestly: "You look so heartless, if you go there, you won't live long."
Chen Jiu threw a peanut into his mouth and said with a smile, "It's okay, I'm not afraid of death."
After saying a word, he turned around and left with the white water in his hand.
The old man stopped talking, and rubbed the copper coins on the counter one by one with his hands.
The guy next to him suddenly ran over and pointed to the direction where Chen Jiu left, "Boss, that man..."
The old blind man waved his hand, "It's just a handful of peanuts, let him go."
The waiter looked anxious, and hurriedly said: "He took our bowl and ran away."
The old man was taken aback, completely speechless.
—————
The official road to Qingfeng City was not long, so Chen Jiu traveled for another day, rested outside a post station for a night, and arrived in front of the city gate at noon the next day.
There is a huge flow of people in Qingfeng City, and there is a moat outside. It is said that it is a branch of the Huai River, and many ships use this waterway to enter the city.
Chen Jiu mixed in the crowd and walked into the city together. There were two different scenes inside and outside the city.
The wide Qingshi Avenue is full of vendors, including actors performing on the street, so it is very lively.
Chen Jiu walked for two days, even if he had a physique of first-level physical cultivation, but he still couldn't eat grains, he would naturally be hungry and had to eat.
So, based on the principle of being thick-skinned and being able to eat meat, he went straight to a steamed stuffed bun shop, looked at the big-bodied boss, opened his mouth and asked, "Handsome guy, can you give me some steamed stuffed buns?"
The boss only said the word "scroll".
Chen Jiu didn't give up, "We can pay on credit, and we will pay you back when we have money."
The boss was speechless, just raised the kitchen knife for chopping meat high, and looked straight at Chen Jiu.
Chen Jiu ran away resentfully, shaking his head in his heart, this boss is so unreasonable, no wonder the business is so bad.
After going around again, Chen Jiu became a little familiar with it, but he couldn't find anything to eat, and it was really uncomfortable to be hungry.
He found a corner to sit, intending to make a long-term plan, when he suddenly saw a group of people gathered not far away.
Chen Jiuben just liked to join in the fun, and couldn't be more idle, so he followed along out of curiosity.
Among the crowd was a thin and wretched middle-aged man with one missing front tooth, holding a piece of thin paper full of pen and ink, and kept chanting to the crowd below.
Chen Jiu bumped the man next to him and asked curiously, "Handsome guy, what are you doing?"
The man was hit for no reason at first, and he was a little unhappy, but when he heard Chen Jiu's name, he immediately laughed and explained.
"Brother, this is Guanshi Huang who is recruiting people. He is responsible for recruiting whoever is needed. Brothers are also looking for jobs to make money here."
The two were talking, and the surroundings suddenly fell silent.
The wretched-looking Guanshi Huang shouted: "The poor scholar over there, do you have an errand?"
All eyes were on the two of them.
Chen Jiu pointed at himself blankly, "Me?"
Guanshi Huang yelled, "Apart from you, who else is like a poor scholar?"
Chen Jiu asked suspiciously, "What are you going to do?"
Guanshi Huang patted his thin paper and smiled with a missing front tooth, "Be a security guard!"