Everyone had their own thoughts, and the light in their eyes as they looked at each other was uncertain. Hua Liyue's gaze kept wandering over Chun'er. This little girl has been silently following behind everyone, unobtrusive or ostentatious, but she has seen everything in her eyes and remembered it in her heart, and I don't know if I can take out some useful clues from her mouth.

At this moment a fellow ran in, clasped his fist at the steward, and said, "Everyone has been assembled on the deck, and the roster has been brought in, and now you can recognize people on the roster." ”

"Okay!" The steward stood up and said to Hua Lianyue: "Young Mrs. Huo, please! Master Xi, please!"

"Steward, please lead the way!"

Hua Liyue strode out, although she knew that there was little hope, she still had a small expectation.

Xi Zhizhou snorted heavily and ordered Chun'er to stay and watch the house, but he followed not to be outdone.

There were twenty or thirty people standing on the deck, some of them thirteen or fourteen years old, and some of them in their early sixties. They squatted, stood, or snuggled together. probably knew that there was a death lawsuit on the ship, and his face showed some uneasiness.

When he saw the steward leading the people over, he immediately swarmed around him and said:

"Steward, I've been helping out in the back kitchen, and what happens here has nothing to do with me. ”

"Yes, yes, a few of us have been checking the paddle wheels, and it has nothing to do with us. ”

"Steward, what happened, and who died?"

"Stewardship ......."

"Stewardship ......."

The steward was stunned by these people, waved his hand, and scolded angrily: "Quiet, quiet, don't worry, everyone, no one says that you have anything to do with the murderer." ”

"It's okay, what are you calling us all for?"

"Yes, I still have fish soup stewed on the stove, and after a long delay, the soup will be dry. ”

The steward shouted with some annoyance: "Tang Ao is just dumped after he does it, and then he is here to be foolish, and be careful to arrest you as murderers and fellow accomplices." You all listen, and when you read your name, stand up and let the young lady take a closer look, and then you can leave. If you read the name but can't hide it, you will be arrested as a murderer and a member of the party. ”

The threat immediately shocked the chaotic scene, and no one wanted to get into trouble in vain, so they had to wait obediently to be named.

The steward turned to Hua Lianyue and said, "Young lady, please!"

Hua Lianyue nodded and said to Feng Qi: "You come to read the roster!"

"Yes!" Feng Qi unceremoniously took the roster in the steward's hand.

Xi Zhizhou was left out in the cold, and he was naturally dissatisfied in his heart. He snorted coldly: "Steward, I'm afraid that this arrangement is inappropriate." She was caught red-handed, and she had a grudge against my dead concubine. It's just a matter of letting her recognize people, why is it that it's also her who reads the roster?"

"This?" said the steward with a look of embarrassment. He was just a little steward, and the death of someone on board was already a very bad thing. However, the parties on both sides are from rich backgrounds, and he can't afford to offend them, so he has been smiling and muddy in the middle. Now that the deceased's family is dissatisfied, he can't ignore it, so he has to ask tentatively: "I don't know what advice Master Xi has?"

Feng Qi also handed over the roster unceremoniously, and said provocatively: "Why don't you read it." ”

"Bold!" Master Xi regretted very much at the moment that he didn't bring a few more family guards to follow, and now there was only a low-eyed little maid left by his side, and his power was gone. He had thought that with this large amount of shady private money, the less people knew about it, the better, so that he would abandon the land route and take the water route. Now it seems that it is still a mistake.

Xi Zhizhou pointed at Feng Qi, raised his eyebrows and said: "You are a little guard, dare to be so rude to the master, could it be that you have eaten the bear's heart and leopard gall? ”

The corners of Feng Qi's eyes twitched, and he really wanted to slap this unfilial junior who gave himself and embarrassed the entire Xi family. You must know that Liu Hui is standing behind Xi Zhizhou, and he has silently seen all his mean and unkind faces.

Especially when he was rude to Hua Lianyue, Liu Hui's eyes flashed with a cold glow, which made Feng Qi secretly surprised. If it weren't for Hua Lianyue who had been secretly giving Liu Hui a look, I was afraid that his anger would have been uncontrollable.

Feng Qi knew in his heart that no matter whether the murderer was found in the end or not, he was disrespectful to his mother, and the bright future of this descendant of the Xi family was completely ruined. Don't feel unfair, this is the time of the supremacy of power.

Hua Lianyue saw that Feng Qi's face was ugly, and she couldn't help but sigh in her heart that this old man Xi didn't know Taishan with his eyes, and he didn't even know his own parents, and he was still making a lot of nonsense here. She coughed lightly and said to the steward: "I don't bother the two masters with anything, I'm afraid that this matter will trouble you!" and then said to Xi Zhizhou: "With this arrangement, Master Xi is still satisfied?"

Xi Zhizhou snorted coldly and was silent.

"No trouble, no trouble!" The steward was worried that this tense situation was not easy to clean up, and he nodded again and again with a smiling face.

"Niu Erxi!"

"Ahh

A man with a mouth full of yellow teeth squeezed out of the crowd. He bent down at the steward and said with a humble face: "Yes, yes!"

The steward said impatiently: "I know you are here, stand over and let the young lady take a good look!"

"Yes, yes!"

Niu Erxi hurriedly stood in front of Hua Lianyue, with a mouth full of yellow teeth, a silly one. The steward looked angry, kicked him in the ass, and scolded: "What are you smiling, stand up, don't be so rude to the young lady." ”

Niu Erxi hurriedly restrained his smile and stood with his hands down, not daring to put his eyes on Hua Lianyue again.

Hua Lianyue laughed and said to the steward: "Don't be so harsh, I have something to trouble them." ”

The steward hurriedly said: "They are all doing rough work in the lower cabins, and they have never seen the world. I don't know the etiquette, and if I don't be strict, I'm afraid that I will collide with a few guest officers. ”

When Hua Lianyue heard this, her heart moved, and she immediately stared at the past. Although Niu Erxi in front of him only looked like twenty-seven or eight, because of the river wind, his exposed skin was not only dark but also extremely poor. Especially the bare feet, probably walking around the wet boat all year round, are not only soaked white but also peeling off badly.

Hua Lianyue tried to recall the guy who had called her at that time, although he had been humbly half-hanging his head, not letting her see her face completely, she clearly remembered that although his exposed skin was yellowish but not rough, there was no trace of wind and frost at all.

Hua Lianyue quickly made a judgment in her heart, even if that person was a guy on the boat, he definitely hadn't experienced the wind and sun.

Hua Lianyue sighed slightly, knowing that if she wanted to find this person from the boat, she was afraid that it would be tantamount to looking for a needle in a haystack. She nodded to Niu Erxi and said softly, "I'm tired!"

Niu Erxi didn't know why, and looked at the steward on the side blankly. The steward glared at him and scolded, "Why don't you leave yet, waiting to receive the reward?" Then he smiled and said to Hua Lianyue: "Young lady, these are all rough people, you don't have to be so polite when you speak to them." ”

Niu Erxi was extremely in awe of the steward, although he was called in the clouds and was drunk in the clouds, he had no temper at all. Hurriedly turn around and prepare to apply oil to the soles of your feet.

"Wait, there's a bounty!"

Although Niu Erxi is a rough person, when he heard the word reward, he immediately puffed up his eyes and followed the prestige. I saw a man in an inky fox fur striding forward. He was followed by a few entourages, carrying a few wooden boxes of vermilion lacquer. Looking at their staggering appearance, you can know that the weight of those wooden boxes is not light.

Liu Hui looked at the visitor and frowned slightly, and said, "Xiao Fengnan, what are you doing here?"

Xiao Fengnan flicked his sleeves and said proudly: "I naturally came to help the moon girl." He smiled apologetically at Hua Lianyue and said, "I'm sorry, Moon girl." Because you have to exchange the silver ticket for cash, you will come late!"

The corners of Hua Lianyue's eyes twitched, and she said helplessly: "It's not too late, this is the first one!"

"That's good!" Xiao Fengnan instructed the entourage behind him, "Put the box down!" The heavy wooden boxes were placed side by side, attracting everyone's curious attention.

Xiao Fengnan looked around and saw that everyone was looking over, so he commanded loudly with a proud face: "Open the box!"

"Bang, bang, bang....." With a few soft sounds, all the wooden boxes were opened, and the crowd immediately resounded with exclamation, and even the well-informed steward widened his eyes.

It turned out that several wooden boxes were full of silver ingots, with a warm silver luster, which made people's eyes warm and heartbeat. Only then did Hua Lianyue realize what he said about exchanging silver tickets for cash. What does that mean. There are at least two or three thousand taels of silver in these chests, and all of them can be poured out to form a dazzling mountain of silver.

Xiao Fengnan took a silver ingot weighing about five taels from the box, threw it into Niu Erxi's hand, and said with a smile: "This is the reward given to you by the young lady." ”

Niu Erxi was really overjoyed, hurriedly caught the silver ingot, and hurriedly bent down to thank him.

Xiao Fengnan grabbed a large handful of silver ingots and let them slide out of his hands like fine sand into the wooden box. When the silver hits, it makes a nice crisp sound, attracting everyone's attention. Xiao Fengnan said slowly: "Thank you for not needing, I will remember to tell those guys who don't have names on the roster, as long as you walk in front of the young lady like this, you will receive a reward." If anyone is hiding and afraid to receive the reward, just tell me secretly, and I will reward you with his share!"

"Yes, yes, the little one knows what to do!" Niu Erxi carried this windfall in his arms, and strode away happily under the envious gaze of his partners around him.

Liu Hui's face darkened, Xiao Fengnan was so flamboyant and arrogant to help Hua Lianyue come out, but he was a serious husband and made it bleak.

"There is no name on the roster?" Hua Lianyue frowned and said suspiciously, "What do you mean?"

Xiao Fengnan glanced at the uncomfortable steward and said with a smile: "Fool, those who don't have names on the roster are naturally those black workers who are temporarily recruited." These people are not recorded by the government, and the shipowner naturally pays a share of the tax silver. ”

Hua Lianyue's eyes lit up, and she hurriedly said, "On a cargo ship, how many such black workers are there?"

Xiao Fengnan smiled slightly and said, "At least fifty percent!"

"So many?" said Hua Renyue was a little surprised.

The steward hurriedly said: "Not so much, not so much, our fleet only has thirty percent of black workers." Because of the long route, the boats are all experienced and skillful. Although the black workers are cheap, most of them are novices who have never been on the ship. Our owner is afraid of accidents, so he doesn't dare to use more. ”

At the cold eyes of Shanghua Lianyue, the steward smiled helplessly, and said: "But these people all get off the ship and receive their wages on the foreman's side, so I really don't have a roster here." ”

"It's okay!" Xiao Fengnan whistled and said triumphantly: "With these boxes of silver, those black workers don't need us to look for them, they will get out by themselves." Speaking of this, a gleam flashed in his eyes, and he said coldly: "If someone doesn't even want a reward for silver, then there must be a ghost in their heart." Moon girl, you just have to take down such a person, and ensure that you ask one and one accurately. ”

Xi Zhizhou, who was on the side, couldn't help but snort coldly, and said sourly: "Sure enough, the businessman is so cunning, he actually uses wealth to drive others to work." ”

Xiao Fengnan glanced at him obliquely, and then said, "Businessmen are naturally cunning, racking their brains just to make more money. It is not as good as those old men who have read a lot of poetry and books, as long as they sit at home, there will naturally be these copper-smelling businessmen who will give away large sums of silver. ”

Master Xi was furious, and once again forgot that there was no official guard around him to support him, he pointed at Xiao Fengnan and shouted: "You dare to ridicule the officials of the imperial court, it is because you are impatient." Come, take him ......"

Before the word "down" could be spoken, he was pushed by the impatient Xiao Fengnan and staggered: "Stand away, don't block the guys from receiving the reward money!"

"You, you, you ......" After you for a long time, Xi Zhizhou found that no one paid attention to him at all. Even the steward pretended not to see it, and stared at the roster in his hand without squinting.

Without the majesty of the past, Xi Zhizhou inexplicably felt a sense of frustration in his heart. He glared at Xiao Fengnan fiercely, and said, "You wait, you will naturally look good when you arrive in the capital, hum!" He flicked his sleeves, actually dropped everything, and walked away with such a swagger!

Feng Qi looked at his back as he gradually moved away, and the corners of his eyes twitched fiercely again. Then he hugged his fists and saluted Liu Hui, who had a cold face, and said in a low voice: "Master, the Xi family will not tolerate such arrogant and greedy people. ”

Liu Hui narrowed his eyes and said slowly: "Ah Qi, you don't have to be so cautious. He only represents himself, not the entire Xi family. ”

Feng Qi breathed a long sigh of relief and said, "Thank you for your magnanimity. After a pause, he whispered again: "My subordinates remember that there is a lack of a steward in Taifu Temple, you see ......."

Liu Hui looked at him and said meaningfully: "Will he be willing?"

Feng Qi smiled slightly, and said confidently: "The master is laughing, he is from the same five grades, and he can stay at the feet of the Son of Heaven and avoid the pain of long-distance bumps, how can he be reluctant if he is happy and not in a hurry." ”

Their voices were so low that only a few people around them could hear them. However, Xi Zhizhou has already left, and most of the people around him are his own people, and he is not afraid of revealing the news.

The only one who is not his own is the steward of the cargo ship. Don't look at him without raising his head, his eyes stared directly at the roster in his hand, but he listened to the conversation between Liu Hui and Feng Qi in his ears. The one next to him didn't know, but he knew that the Taifu Temple was specially responsible for raising horses, and it was really not a good place to go.

can arrange the position of a five-grade official at will, what kind of prominent identity is this low-key young master Huo in front of him?

The steward didn't dare to think much about it at all, but his body straightened up a little longer, and his roll call voice became more and more forceful. His hoarse roar echoed throughout the deck: "Zhu Peng......"

"He Chunwei ......"

“......”