When I was a child, my mother once said that there are 14 bones and 42 muscles in the human face, regardless of gender.

Thinking of his mother, Xiao Gu's hand paused, then took the jug on the side, wiped off all the false colors with a soft towel, took all the grease, and began to make another look for himself.

The eyes are slightly raised, the cheeks appear sunken, the forehead and the corners of the eyes are added a few fine lines, and the skin is slightly darkened at the back of the darker...... When she was dressed, she took out a glass bottle, carefully poured out a cluster of powder, and carefully applied it to her body.

There were no doors or windows in this half of the room to breathe, and wet salt, rotten charcoal, and greasy broken tables and stools were piled up indiscriminately, and the smell was extremely unpleasant mixed with it—for a long time, she also had a smell of fireworks on her body, and no one in the inner house wanted to approach, which was within her plan, but now that she was going out, she could only change the smell.

After sprinkling the powder all over her body, she sniffed the tip of her nose, finally nodded with satisfaction, took a small soft bag, took two steps forward to the corner of the wall, bent down, and dragged away two long bluestone bottom bricks.

The hole in the corner wasn't huge, but she was so thin that she could easily get through it with her body down.

It was already late at night, and the inner house of the Shen Mansion was very quiet, only the servants who were on guard and vigil were half-asleep and did their duty.

Xiao Gu's hands and feet were agile and light, and he silently bypassed their eyes and came all the way to the back door on the west side.

Mrs. Zhu, who was guarding the door, drank two more glasses of wine, and it was drunken that she was sitting and napping. Someone pushed it lightly, and he was suddenly startled, and the wine turned into a cold sweat and woke up.

"It's you!!"

She was so frightened that her tone changed.

"Open the door."

whispered, but it frightened Mrs. Zhu's face pale, and she didn't dare to say a word, so she took out the key and opened the door with a trembling squeeze.

****

The cold of the night was in the bones, the roots of the eaves and walls were condensed with a layer of hoarfrost, and the north wind whistled and whirled and whirled in the city, dragging the dead branches to bend one after another.

Jinling in the middle of the night has already entered the night ban, and the people are not allowed to walk on the streets. Under the order, there was no sign of the streets, even the waning moon hid in the clouds, and the streets and streets were plunged into darkness and sleep.

In the distance, there seemed to be a husband walking by, and there was a faint shout, "Beware of the candles-"

The faint white light of the lantern was not bright, and it was even more gloomy like a ghost fire.

Xiao Gu carried the burden on her back, she walked quietly along the long street, close to the eaves, silently like a ghost, but the speed was not slow.

Suddenly, the sound of horses' hooves was heard in the distance, and the suddenly increased light rapidly expanded in front of him-

|“ What kind of people, stand still! ”

A broken drink was like the first bloom of spring thunder, the sound of horses' hooves roared rapidly, and the iron chain of Zuo Zijia dragged out a crisp sound on the ground, Xiao Gu's eyes flashed, and he immediately listened to it.

A team of men and horses surrounded her, the nose of the tall horse spewed white gas, the front hooves kept pouting and kicking, and the captains on the horse laughed in a low voice and exchanged glances, "The Son of Heaven actually dares to break into the night ban, tsk, it's still a girl!" ”

They surrounded them, and the tall sense of oppression came down, but Xiao Gu stood still.

The brightness of the light dispelled the darkness, and the woman who appeared in front of them was draped in a black robe, covered with white linen, revealing only a pair of eyes from head to toe, a cyan belt woven of straw tied around her waist, and a pair of five poisonous talismans hanging from evil spirits on her chest - this set of living clothes is the outfit of a corpse collector!

Under the night blackout, officials and civilians were forced to return to their places before dark, and were not allowed to linger in the streets, with three exceptions: sudden change, serious illness, and death.

The experienced and experienced soldiers shouted that they were about to leave, and the captain headed by him was a young man, in his early twenties, and asked suspiciously: "Where did you come from?" Why did you collect the corpse? ”

Xiao Gu screamed, and the word "Yizhuang" was written on the ground.

It turned out to be a mute...... The captain's face eased for a moment, and when he saw the word Yizhuang, he knew it even more clearly: this year's climate is strange, and it is colder than usual after winter, and the suburbs and Beicheng are full of poor people, most of whom can't afford to use coals, and the houses are dilapidated. Some of these people can't even afford a thin-skinned coffin, so they should be merciful to Yin Dafa of Tianfu, so that several Yizhuang in the suburbs of Beijing came to collect the corpses for them in time, and then lowered them in the spring, and all the expenses used were subsidized by the government.

"Since you are a person of Yizhuang, you can do it."

The lieutenant reined in and walked away, and with a wind of air in his movements, he suddenly stopped, and looked back thoughtfully—

In the night, Xiao Gu's figure disappeared little by little on the street corner.

"My lord, what's wrong?"

Listening to the inquiry, he shook his head, only to feel that in the smell he had just smelled, in addition to the smell of incense ash and medicinal talismans, there was also a light cold fragrance.

****

The waning moon rose to the middle of the sky, and it was revealed from the willow tree in the middle class, and there was still a laughing warbler song along the Qinhuai River, and the lights were bright.

The law of night prohibition was implemented from the Tang Dynasty, the law was the most strict at the beginning, and the Song Dynasty from the emperor to the small people were greedy for pleasure, so they simply abolished this law, and it simply became an excuse to hunt the Han people in the Yuan and Meng, making people panic and no one dared to walk at night. After Hongwu Taizu pacified the world, although the night ban was restored, he couldn't help the charming fragrance of Qinhuai in the ten miles - it is said that even the relatives of the old man of the mansion Yin also had some dry shares in it, and most of the people who came and went were high-ranking officials and nobles, so the government turned a blind eye to this part: as long as you don't leave the coastal area after the night fast, you won't care.

Xiao Gu hid in a water pavilion where no one was around, took off his black robe, turned over and wore it, and immediately wore a blue feather jacket from the lake, and took out a comprehensive skirt from the baggage to change it in, put the sundries into the baggage, and walked out of the river.

She looks old, and she looks a little cold, and others only think it is the bustard's mother or the housekeeper of a brothel, but no one bothered her.

Familiar with finding the seventh willow tree on the shore, and making sure that no one was following him from the reflection of the water's edge, he walked into the deep alley, and after a few turns, he finally arrived in front of a pavilion.

The red silk hanging door at the gate, the red sandalwood is the threshold, and it is magnificent. On the plaque at the top of the door, a line of words silver hook iron marks "Wanhua Building". There is a hall in the brocade hall, a group of flowers, the sound of singing and dancing is tactful and melodious, and there are bursts of men's cheers and cheers.

Xiao Gu walked outside the door, and was stopped by the two little maids in green clothes and black pants, she took out the wooden card voucher in a hoarse voice, "Your bustard mother asked me to send her a few fresh embroidery samples." ”

The little servants hurriedly took her in, and bypassed the shadow wall along the corridor, and there was a pigmented plum in front of her, with branches and branches, and they were scattered.

When I arrived in the inner courtyard, I was stopped by two strong men in black, "Mom has something to do, I can't entertain her, please go back." ”

She lifted her sleeve to reveal the lining of the garment, which was embroidered with a small orchid, and their faces changed suddenly.

****

The inner courtyard of Wanhualou is meandering, and the high-rise buildings are connected, which is a private room for guests who are not rich or noble, but one of the Lanxiang Pavilion is silent today, and there is no light.

There were clearly people sitting in the room, but only the sound of quiet breathing could be heard.

There was the sound of footsteps on the stairs, and everyone couldn't help but sit up straight, and some people habitually touched the scabbard with their hands to guard them.

The door creaked open, and someone by the door whispered, "The Twelve Ladies have arrived." ”

Only then did the crowd breathe a sigh of relief, and the man above commanded in a low voice, "Hold the lamp." ”

Only one wick was lit, and the faint light was blown by the dark wind between the cracks in the window, illuminating the figure of each person on the screen, on which a cluster of orchids was painted, growing alone among the broken tiles and ruins. Although it is a few Danqing wonderful pens, it is eye-catching.

The man above asked, "Twelfth sister, why is it so late?" ”

"There were some accidents on the way."

Xiao Gu said lightly.

The man didn't ask any more questions, but coughed dryly and said, "Now that we're all here, let's get started." ”

In the surrounding darkness, the third person was a young woman in a gaudy costume with a high bun and snowy skin, who smiled coquettishly, but there was no joy at all, "Second brother, what is today's meeting?" ”

"Knowingly asked."

The fourth was a middle-aged man, burly with a pierced face and thick calluses on his hands, and he said coldly.

"If such a big thing happens, if you don't gather together to discuss, then you have to go to the underworld to meet."

The person who spoke so sharply had handsome eyebrows and eyes, and his smile added to his charming look, but his two eyes were restless and slippery.

"Brother Jiu just left, and we are left to live, I don't know when the road will end."

This is a beautiful and delicate teenager, the fat powder is very strong, and while choking, the circles under his eyes are already red.

The first and second person coughed for a while, sounding like an elderly woman, "I'm already forty years old, and half of my body is in the ground, but I didn't expect it to be a white-haired person sending a black-haired person, the ninth brother, and he ...... It's a pity. ”

The three words "It's a pity" pressed on everyone's hearts like a thousand boulders, thinking of that person's six arts, poetry and books, gentle and elegant but awe-inspiring and upright appearance, I suddenly gasped for grief.

Tears dried up many years ago. The pain is painless, they lost everything many years ago, and they will continue to lose it for a long time to come.

Fate has long been doomed, it is impossible to resist, it is impossible to dodge, and it cannot be reversed even with all your efforts.

In the gloomy clouds, in the seventh place, someone Lang Lang said: "Wang Lin, he died too unjustly, we can't stop here!" ”

The voice was sonorous, and everyone's hearts were shocked.