In the early morning of December 23, the foggy Sangyuan Village seemed extraordinarily quiet, and the reddish morning light smeared on the window lattice of Chunxi's house. Pen ~ fun ~ pavilion www.biquge.info

The reality is not favorable, Lin Laohan died last night and returned to the west, leaving no words for his daughter. Chunxi already knew about his father's death, and he sat alone on the threshold and was sad. Xiao Ming wanted to step forward to comfort her a few words, but he didn't know how to speak, and stood quietly behind her. Why disasters always fall on the heads of good people, Xiao Ming vaguely remembered his past.

"Sister......" he said anyway, "it's time for us to go." ”

Chunxi raised his head and looked at the sky, and said slowly: "I really don't know what to do in the future." What about you? Xiao Ming? ”

"I don't know. Let's walk first, look all the way, maybe we will soon have a fall. ”

Chunxi sighed lightly and said, "Let's go." She stood up, "Either way, it's useless to sit. ”

The room was bleak and cold, and Mother Lin had already dotted some of her belongings into a small package. There are not many belongings left in the room, Mother Lin took off a jade bracelet from her wrist, stuffed it in Chunxi's hand, and said, "Child, this is the only thing left in our family that is worth some money, but we must take good care of it." Then he handed a set of white-washed clothes to Chunxi, "You try to wear it." ”

Chunxi took the clothes and bracelet and walked into the back room. After a while, I saw her walking out dressed as a man, smearing a little pot ash on her face, and asked, "Are you okay?" ”

Xiao Ming nodded. Mother Lin tucked her hat for Chunxi and said, "You have to be careful when you go out." In the past few days, you and Xiao Ming have taken good care of themselves. So he handed her the packed package, "Here's the dry food, you can take it." ”

"Mother, don't worry. We are waiting for you in Penghu Town. You have to be careful. ”

"It's not too early, so let's go."

Chunxi and Xiao Ming quietly slipped out the back door. Behind the house was a flat slope, with a few dwarf mulberry trees growing in disarray, their thin gray-brown branches fluttering in the cold mist. There were a few clumps of dead bamboos on the slope, and the two stopped for a moment in front of the freshly dug earth pit, and Chunxi's father had not yet been buried. Poor Lin Laohan worked hard all his life, but after his death, he couldn't even afford a thin-skinned coffin.

"I really don't understand. Why ......" Xiao Ming said lightly.

"Let's go, we are still young, and there is still a long way to go, as you said, there will be a fall. Ay? Did Mr. Huang bring all the things you gave? ”

"It's all here." Xiao Ming patted his package, "The map and the book are here." I'm really reluctant to Mr. Huang. It would be nice if he could walk with us too. It's a pity he's too old. Let's go. I'll still study hard in the future. Xiao Ming glanced back at the hut at the west end of the village. The two of them walked through the small slope, and after a while they saw the main road.

It was still early in the morning, and there were no pedestrians on the road. Chunxi pulled his hat uncomfortably and asked, "Xiao Ming, do you look like me?" Xiao Ming said: "If others are not careful, they should not be able to see it." ”

"Xiao Ming," Chunxi said while thinking: "We have a long way to go, and if we change the money later, it will definitely not be enough, so we have to find a way to earn a little." Xiao Ming nodded, and suddenly had a flash of inspiration, and said, "Sister, don't you know how to cook a lot of delicious food?" For example, scallion pancakes or something. ”

"Will it work?"

"I can't think of anything else." Xiao Ming scratched his head.

"Oh, yes." Chunxi said seriously: "From now on, you are not allowed to call me sister." ”

"Well, brother."

After walking for a while, people gradually came and went on the road.

"Sister, brother," Xiao Ming changed his words quickly, "Actually, you don't need to smear so much dust on your face." If you sweat for a while, it's not good. ”

"Then I'll wipe it off." Chunxi wiped his face a few times with his sleeve, "How is it?" ”

"Well, almost." Xiao Ming nodded. "Be rough when you speak, though."

The cold of the previous days has subsided a lot, and the New Year is just around the corner. People in the countryside took advantage of the good weather to rush to prepare for the New Year, and on the dirt road that could only accommodate a horse-drawn cart, you could already see pedestrians carrying baskets and satchels, dressed in all kinds of clothes, and sometimes donkey carts and ox carts staggered by. The sun had risen high, and the two of them remembered that they hadn't eaten breakfast yet, and their stomachs were gurgling. Chunxi asked Xiao Ming, "Are you hungry?" ”

"Very hungry. I'm hungry for you. ”

"Little fool." Chunxi unwrapped the package and said, "Let's find a place to rest and rest." ”

At this time, not far from them was a fork in the road, and there was a small tea shed on the side of the road, and two or three people were already sitting in it. They had no money to buy tea, so they had to quench their thirst by fishing for a little water from the stream at the edge of the field. However, there is a protruding ridge next to it, so you can sit down and rest. The two of them picked a clean place and sat down, and one of them took a cake and nibbled on it.

"Brother," Xiao Ming swallowed a bite of cake and said, "This cake tastes really good." If we have the money later, if we have enough, we will buy some flour and a pair of stoves and pots, and in a few days my aunt will meet us and we will start trading. In this way, even if your aunt is no longer in Kaifeng Mansion, we are not afraid. ”

"Well, that's a good idea. I'm afraid that the money I got was not enough. ”

While the two were talking, they saw a donkey cart coming from the fork in the road, followed by two errand officials from the yamen. "That's not right." Chunxi suddenly became nervous and said, "Isn't that road leading to Jingu County?" ”

Before he finished speaking, he saw a small head coming out of the small window of the donkey cart, it was none other than Mr. Zou. Chunxi immediately turned her head away. I heard the thin butler say loudly: "Two poor masters, do you want to sit down and rest?" Xiao Ming said softly to Chunxi: "Don't be afraid, he can't see it." ”

"Really?"

The thin housekeeper got out of the car, sat down in the tea stall with the two errand officials, asked for three bowls of tea, and chatted. I couldn't hear what they were saying, so I could only vaguely catch a few words, like: "...... The little girl in Sangyuan Village ......"

Chunxi said in a low voice: "Xiao Ming, Mr. Huang is really powerful. The one surnamed Qin is really not a thing. Xiao Ming Dynasty glanced at the tea stall a few times and said, "They didn't see anything in front of us, you look very similar." ”

"Do you think the village can get around?"

"It shouldn't be a big problem." "Alas, it's a good step anyway, we'll see later." Chunxi picked up the package and said, "Let's go." ”

The two patted their clothes and headed for the road to Penghu Town. After walking for a while, he secretly glanced back at the three people in the tea stall, and saw that they were also on the road, and they were heading towards Sangyuan Village.

About an hour or two in the afternoon, you can see the wooden archway of Penghu Town in the distance.

The town is not big, but it is a very ordinary township in southern Fujian, there is no government, and there are not a few wealthy big families, there is only one main street in the town, and there are small vendors selling vegetables and fresh fish and shrimp on both sides, a restaurant, a grocery store, and an inn. This is a relatively deserted town, and now it is gradually turning westward, and businessmen are beginning to close their stalls one after another. Xiao Ming walked out of Sangyuan Village for the first time in more than a year, and compared with Niumao Town, which is still fresh in his memory, the ordinariness here gives people a sense of security. Chunxi and Xiao Ming walked along the street, and finally found a pawnshop with only one façade on the corner of the street, and were about to go inside. Xiao Ming suddenly clutched his stomach and said, "It's not good, I have a stomachache." ”

"What's wrong?"

"It looks like I just drank cold water in that river...... Ouch, no, I'm going to the hut. ”

"Then, you go to the back of the street, I'll go in first, and someone else will close the door when it's late, I'll wait for you at the door." After Chunxi finished speaking, he entered the pawnshop alone, and the boss was indeed ready to close. Xiao Ming clutched his stomach and ran to the back of the street. Not long after, Chunxi came out as a bracelet. The owner of the small pawnshop is not very good at bullying people, and the bracelet is worth nearly a penny, which is enough for a small business. Chunxi was very happy, standing at the door and waiting for Xiao Ming.

But somehow, Xiao Ming was still nowhere to be seen for a long time. "Where did he go?" Chunxi turned the corner of the street, and it was the back wall of a walking house, a narrow alley, and there was not even a human figure. "Xiao Ming—" The voice echoed briefly between the walls. "How?" Chunxi walked into the alley and looked left and right, except for a few recessed drainage channels, which was the back door of the house. As he walked, he suddenly saw Xiao Ming's package open and landed on the corner of the wall, and there was a fork in front of him, and the alley extended in both directions. Chunxi picked up the package, the contents were untouched, and suddenly felt a chill in his heart, could it be ......

With a "bang", Xiao Ming's back hit something.

He opened his loose eyelids slightly, and his head was confused, as if he was in a dream. It was pitch black all around, and the constant jolting and noisy sound of wheels told him he was in a car. The tongue moved, no, why was the mouth gagged. Xiao Ming was startled, sobered up a lot, and found that his hands and feet were tied very strongly, no wonder he didn't feel it. What's going on with me? He struggled to remember what had happened during the day, and all he remembered was that he seemed to have been covered with something and then he didn't know anything. Not good! By this time he was fully awake, and the cold night wind kept coming in through the cracks in the car plank. Having lived a wandering life since he was a child, he remembers that his mother had told him about human traffickers, and he really encountered them. Fortunately, he was still on the road, and it was still too late to escape, he thought in his heart, so he turned his head and looked around the car cautiously.

There were no windows in the car, it looked like it was transporting goods, the light was not good, and it was not clear what to see, only a few bulging sacks. It can't be human, right? Xiao Ming raised his knee and touched it, soft, cotton?

At this moment, a voice suddenly sounded in my ears. Xiao Ming held his breath all of a sudden, and didn't dare to move. He spoke with a Zhejiang accent, cinder voice, and a big tongue, as if he was drunk. I only listened to the man: "Then, that child, how can we sell it?" ”

"Looking at the appearance, it's quite delicate, and it can be sold for five taels or eight."

"That's it?"

"Do you think it's a girl who can be sold in the yard?" "Then this time it's the wrong thing. I still want to sell a dozen or two to go back to my hometown to build a big house and marry a daughter-in-law. ”

"Beautiful yours. Hey, should we buy some more wine in that village? ”

Fortunately, it's just two, Xiao Ming is determined, and ...... These two don't look like veterans, it seems that they can slip away if they find the right opportunity. He sat up and moved little by little, his hands tied, but he could still fumble on the floor of the car. Ha, these two thieves may be doing this for the first time, Xiao Ming thought to himself. It turned out that there was everything on the board: shovels, straw, broken wine jars...... As he was touching, he suddenly heard the big tongue say, "Hey, let's see if that kid is awake." Xiao Ming immediately fell down and closed his eyes, but he couldn't hear any sound of shaking the plank...... Doesn't this car have a roof? That's better.

"Hey, big brother's drug is quite good. Hey, it's here. Phew—"

The car stopped. A person jumped down, and came back after a while, it was a big tongue, and he jumped on the lane: "Dazhu, this shop is too small, and there is not even wine, so let's hurry up, it seems to be Xianyou in front." ”

Xiao Ming estimated that the two thieves were probably going to spend the night in Xianyou, and they had to walk before they arrived. So he gently touched a broken jar. Don't do it if you haven't been a thief, Xiao Ming thought about cutting the rope at the same time, and he couldn't even tie people, although the rope went around many times, but as soon as he cut a crack, he turned his wrist and it was all loose. He pulled out the rag stuffed in his mouth and threw it aside, humming, I don't know how dirty it was. Holding on to the car board, he quietly stood up and poked the black roof with his finger, which turned out to be a thick layer of felt. Such...... Pregnant! There is a sack here, Xiao Ming gently pushed a hemp bag to the back of the car, fortunately the road is not good, and the sound of wheels is very loud. He stepped on the sack and protruded half of his head from under the felt.

In the wilderness, there is nothing. The road was narrow, with thick bushes on both sides, and the hill not far away looked like a cemetery, faintly shining with green fire. Just listening to those two chatting vaguely and singing little songs can simply scare the ghosts alive. It doesn't matter where he is, it's serious to walk. Xiao Ming's thin body easily flipped out of the felt to the outside of the car, he grabbed the rear panel of the car with his hands, and when the car passed through a narrow path, he let go and rolled low into the bushes beside the road.

The car went away.

There was a dead silence all around, there was no moon in the sky, and I don't know what time it was. Xiao Ming patted his clothes and stood up. I just got rid of the two stupid thieves, and before I had time to rejoice, the problem in front of me seemed to be more serious. Where does this road lead? The surrounding area is indeed a cemetery, and the tomb plaques stand gloomily in the cold wind, and the ghostly fires are like wolf eyes. This was not the first time he had spent the night in a cemetery, and he didn't believe in ghosts, he was used to sleeping with his mother, but he had never been left alone in such a place. Xiao Ming really didn't seem to know what to do. He complained bitterly, looked at it carefully, and finally decided to wait until dawn in the grove beside him. He picked up a few stones and some dry grass and dead branches, and beat them for a long time before making a pitifully small fire.

Leaning weakly on the half-cut stump in a daze, my stomach is very hungry, when will it be light? Sister Chunxi doesn't know if she has the money to settle down. He slowly added twigs to the fire: one, two, three, four...... As I counted them, my eyelids were sour, and I felt like I was going to fall asleep.

In the midst of the chaos, the sound of a carriage sounded in his ears, and he woke up at once, and went into the bushes, and looked into the road by the light of the fire, and by the light of the fire, he looked out into the road, and the three men carried several flatbed carts, and drove in the opposite direction to the two thieves. Closer, there is a big lantern hanging on the car, and the book "Quanzhou Mansion" is written. The car was loaded with a lot of things, and it seemed to be very heavy, and the three of them were all officials.

Hey? Quanzhou Mansion? Xiao Ming thought to himself, these people are in such a hurry to leave overnight, presumably Quanzhou Mansion is not far away? I don't know the road, and it's not a way to walk around on my own, so why not ......?

Step on the fire, touch the side of the road, and crouch behind a tree. The cart seemed to be loaded with grain, and it was full of four carts, each pulled by two horses, and moved forward slowly. The officials rode their horses and yawned incessantly, perhaps for fear of loneliness, and the three of them walked together, and no one wanted to be alone. So, Xiao Ming saw the opportunity, walked to the back of the last car, sat on the wheel, and hid under the felt covering the goods. Leaning against the bulging sack and covered with felt, he didn't feel cold, and he fell asleep with his eyes closed.

The night passed quickly, and the morning light penetrated into the cracks under the felt, waking up the exhausted Xiao Ming. He poked his head out from under the felt, it was already dawn, there were many pedestrians on the road, dressed differently, and Quanzhou was about to arrive. He was afraid that someone would see him, so he quickly got out of the car. Sure enough, the city wall has been seen from afar, and in a short time, the three words "Quanzhou Mansion" have been clearly visible. Xiao Ming straightened his clothes and strode towards the city gate.