Not long after Zhou Kao and the others traveled east, they saw two rows of houses densely located on both sides of the road. These houses are made of rammed earth, with thatched roofs and small courtyards surrounded by bamboo fences. Before the crowd could get closer, they heard a dog barking from the courtyard of the west head.

When passing by the courtyard, Zhou Kao glanced inside, but saw that it was just an ordinary yellow dog, and there was no one in the courtyard. So they continued to walk, but the dog still barked through the bamboo fence.

After walking through the third or fourth courtyard, I saw a gray-haired old man feeding chickens in his yard. At this time, the bears dismounted, walked to the bamboo fence, arched his hand to the old man, and said, "Old man, we are passing by here, can we ask you for a drink?" ”

The old man saw that Zhou Kao and his party were all riding horses, and he felt strange in his heart, so he hurriedly walked over and opened the courtyard door, and said, "Everyone, please come in." ”

Mane Bear smiled heartily, pointed at Zhou Kao and Wan Xi and said, "Old man, we only have a son and a young lady here. We're not big guys, don't get me wrong. ”

The old man said with a smile: "The old man heard that only the princes in Yucheng can ride horses, and you people are all riding horses, isn't it the eldest lord?" ”

Mane Bear turned his head to Zhou Kao and said with a smile: "This old man regards us as the prince of Yucheng, it is no wonder that there are almost no cavalry in Yucheng, and people nearby think that they are princes and nobles when they see people riding horses." ”

Zhou Kaoqi said: "Why are there no cavalry in Yucheng? Why do we have it in Qizhou City? ”

Mane Xiong said: "In the vassal states of the Central Plains, the battles are mainly fought by foot soldiers, and the cavalry is only used for reconnaissance and communication. Because our Zhou people have been fighting against the Rong tribe in the northwest for a long time, the Zhou Marquis retained some cavalry. ”

As he spoke, the old man led the bear to a large clay jar in the courtyard, lifted the lid, and saw that it was filled with a jar of water. The bears and the Zhou guards all carried water bladders with them, so they all came to fetch water.

The bears first fetched a bag of water, handed it to Zhou Kao, and said to the old man, "Old man, is there a well in this town?" We wanted to get some well water to drink the horses. ”

The old man shook his head and said, "We don't have a well here. Because the town is too close to the salt pond, the water in the wells drilled in this area is salty and astringent, and it is impossible to drink at all. All the people in the town had to go to the north to fetch water to eat. ”

Mane Xiong thanked the old man, turned his head to Zhou Kao and said, "Eldest prince, go east along the Lianshui River to reach Yucheng." We went to Lianshui to drink horses, and we won't delay the trip. ”

Zhou Kao nodded and said, "That's very good, let's go to the Lianshui River." The people said goodbye to the old man and went out of the town to the north.

After walking a short distance, Zhou Kao saw that there was a body of water in the east, boundless as if there was no end, and Zhou Kao thought it was a river at first, so he asked: "Master Huoshi, has the Shushui River arrived?" ”

Mane Xiong said: "Eldest prince, this is the salt pond. You see, the edge of this lake looks like acres of fields, which is the salt pan used by the people of Yucheng to dry salt. ”

Zhou Kao was curious, and he didn't know how this salt was dried. He asked, "There are so many salt pans on the shore of this lake, why don't you see people drying salt?" ”

Mane Bear said: "That's because you have to wait until the weather is warmer and the south wind blows before you can dry the salt." ”

At this time, Wan Xi said: "I heard my father say that this method of drying salt is to lead the water in the salt pond to the salt pan and let the sun and wind blow. Until the water dries up, salt remains on the ground. This method is somewhat similar to that of farmers, so it is also called salt planting. ”

Zhou Kao was secretly surprised when he heard it, and said in his heart: It turns out that salt is actually grown. He said, "Why is there salt in the water in the salt pond? My uncle said that this salt pond has been in existence since the time of Yao Shun, and now it has been more than a thousand years, why is the salt in the salt pond still inexhaustible? ”

The mane bear scratched his cheeks and said, "It is said that the water in this salt pool is not ordinary water, but is changed from Chiyou's blood. Legend has it that Xuanyuan Yellow Emperor once fought with Chiyou, who was defeated and captured, and the Yellow Emperor beheaded him here. The blood flows into the pool, creating a salt pool, so that whenever the weather warms up, the water in the pool turns red. ”

Zhou Kao said: "Will the water in the salt pond change color? It's a real surprise. ”

Wan Xi said: "This kind of legend is probably just the words of future generations. The place where the Yellow Emperor and Chiyou fought was in Zhuolu, north of Taihang Mountain, and how far away was it thousands of miles? Why didn't the Yellow Emperor kill Chi You in Zhuolu, but instead brought him all the way here to behead him? ”

Mane Bear glanced at Wan Xi with an approving gaze and said, "I didn't expect you to be a little doll, but you know a lot of truths." ”

Wan Xi smiled and said, "Master Huo, my father taught me these truths, where can I understand them myself?" ”

As they were talking, they came to a small river. Mane Bear said: "This is the Shushui River." Zhou Kao and Wan Ji dismounted, and the Zhou guards led the horses to the river to drink.

Then the people had nothing to do, so they sat down and rested on the shore. Zhou Kao didn't sleep all night, and he fell asleep on the grass by the river. Wan Xi pulled the bear aside and whispered to him, "Master Huo, I want to ask you for something. ”

Mane Bear secretly thought, there is nothing lacking in the Xinhou Mansion, and it is strange that you have something to come to me. So he asked, "I don't know what Wan'er wants?" ”

Wan Xi's face suddenly turned red, and she said hesitantly: "Master Huo, you have taught your cousin what method of persuasion, and Wan'er wants my cousin to teach me too." But my cousin was afraid that you would not agree, so he did not agree. Wan'er wants to ...... I want to ......"

Seeing that she looked like she wanted to speak and stopped, Mane Bear suddenly came to his senses and said, "Do you want me to allow Kao'er to teach you fetal rest?" ”

Wan Xi looked shy, and nodded silently. Mane Bear roughly guessed her thoughts, and said deliberately: "But in that case, you have to worship Kao'er as a teacher, so won't I become your master?" ”

Wan Xi also muttered after hearing this, she thought: This Fire Master looks a few years younger than my father, if he becomes my master, won't he be two generations higher than me? How?

Mane Bear saw that she was entangled in her heart, and said with a smile: "Wan'er, this fetal breath gong is said to have been created by Xuanyuan Yellow Emperor, since ancient times, cultivators have been men, and when cultivating, the pure yang qi in the body must be channeled to the whole body. I don't know if you can practice this female doll, but I'm afraid that it will be harmful to the body after practice. ”

Wan Xi listened, pouted and remained silent. Mane Bear was afraid that she would really sulk, so he hurriedly coaxed her: "I taught Kao'er a set of swordsmanship not long ago, and I ordered him to teach it to you, do you think it?" ”

Wan Xi swept away the sadness on her face and said, "Thank you, Master Huoshi." But she thought about it for a while, and said, "But I can't worship him as a teacher." ”

Mane Bear smiled: "This is easy to say. This swordsmanship, originally had to be practiced by two people together, and only by attacking and defending could they progress faster. You can be the opponent of Kao'er's sword practice. However, if you haven't learned swordsmanship, you'll need to let Kao'er teach it from scratch. ”

Wan Xi nodded busily, full of promises. By this time the horses had drunk their fill, and the bears woke up Zhou Kao, and the group continued eastward along the riverbank.

At this time, the setting sun shone from behind everyone, stretching the shadows of people and horses longer and longer, and the avenue under their feet became wider and wider. Mane Bear said, "It looks like we're about to arrive in Yucheng." ”

As they followed the winding road through a small forest, Zhou Kao suddenly saw a large city appear in front of them: to the north of the city was the long Lianshui River, and to the south was a wide salt pond. The city wall is about six or seven miles long from south to north, and under the wall is a circle of moats that bring in the water of the Shushui River to form a moat. There were heavy towers built above the gates, and there was an enemy tower at each of the four corners of the city wall.

The scale of this city is twice as large as that of Qi Zhou City, and Zhou Kao sighed secretly in his heart, and he forgot to urge the horse forward. Then the bear said to him, "My lord, it is getting late, and if the city gates are closed at sunset, we will not be able to enter the city." ”

Only then did Zhou Kao wake up from a dream and said, "Master Huo, I didn't expect this Yu City to be so big. ”

Mane Bear said disapprehantly: "Yincheng, the old capital of the Shang King, is much bigger than this Yucheng. Moreover, the current new capital Chaoge has not yet been fully completed, and it is said that it may be the same size as Yincheng after completion. ”

Zhou Kao couldn't help but sigh: "I don't know when we Zhou people can have such a big city?" ”

Mane Xiong said: "Why doesn't Lord Zhou Hou want to build a big city? It's just that building such a big city requires a lot of manpower and financial resources, and Lord Zhou Hou can't afford it now. ”

When they came to the city, they saw a large pottery workshop outside the west gate. Large quantities of clay and unfinished clay are piled up haphazardly under improvised wooden sheds, while potters busily move finished pottery into wooden huts in their workshops for storage. Mane Bear said to Zhou Kao: "In addition to salt, Yucheng is most famous for the craft of pottery. You see the black pottery that these craftsmen are carrying, which is a specialty of Yucheng - black pottery. ”

Zhou Kao saw that the black pottery was smooth and shiny, shining in the afterglow of the setting sun, like black gems. He asked, "I wonder what kind of dyeing this black pottery is made of?" ”

Mane Bear said: "The black pottery is not painted black on the surface, because the inside of it is also black, but the production method of black pottery is a secret that Yu people do not pass on, so outsiders do not know how it is made." ”

Wan Xi said: "Cousin, we have also seen this kind of black pottery in the tomb of Emperor Shun, it seems that the Yu people have mastered the method of making black pottery for thousands of years. ”

Zhou Kao was reminded by her, and she also remembered the pottery buried in the tomb of Emperor Shun, including this kind of black pottery. He said, "Ah, yes, I thought it was the pottery that had been in the tomb for a long time and had changed color. It turns out that black is their true color, and it is still as good as new after all this time. ”

Entering Yucheng, the first thing you pass by is a market, but because it is late, there are no people in the market, and there are few pedestrians on the street. Fortunately, the bear recognized the way, and everyone went straight to the pavilion.

When he came to the pavilion, he saw Xin Jia riding a horse and stopping at the door of the pavilion, while Zhou Chang grabbed the horse's bridle, and the two seemed to be arguing about something. When Wan Ji saw Xin Jia, she immediately shouted, "Father! ”

Xin Jia looked up suddenly, and almost couldn't believe his eyes when he saw Wan Xi. He settled down, then turned over and dismounted, and walked towards Zhou Kao and the others.

At this time, Zhou Kao also dismounted, and Wan Ji also got off the horse. As soon as Wan Xi's feet hit the ground, she flew towards Xin Jia. Xin Jia hugged Wan Ji, had mixed feelings for a while, and couldn't stop saying: "Okay, good, just come back safely." ”

After a while, Wan Xi wiped away the tears on her face and said, "Father, where are you going to ride a horse?" ”

Xin Jia said: "Where else can I go?" Naturally, I'm going to look for you. ”

It turned out that Xin Jia and the others arrived in Yucheng at noon that day, and Xin Jia first placed Mrs. Jiang in the pavilion, and then found a witch doctor in the city to treat her injuries. Mrs. Jiang took the medicine and has been asleep since she was a child; As soon as she woke up, she urged Xin Jia to go out of the city to find Wan Xi. Xin Jia saw that Mrs. Jiang was fine, so he prepared to take his guards out of the city, but Zhou Chang thought that it was difficult to find Wan Xi's traces after dark, and it was not only futile but also very dangerous to go out of the city at this time, so he persuaded Xin Jia to wait until the next morning before leaving. No matter how hard Zhou Chang persuaded him, Xin Jia insisted on leaving, but fortunately, Wan Ji and others rushed back in time, so Xin Jia was spared a futile effort.

At this time, Tai Ji also walked out of the pavilion, and she was overjoyed to see Wan Xi returning, and she couldn't stop crying when she hugged her. However, Tai Ji thought that Mrs. Jiang was the one who was most concerned about Wan Xi at this moment, so she stopped her tears and said to everyone: "What is Du Leng doing here? Let's talk about it in the house. ”

So everyone walked to the pavilion, and at this time Zhou Kao glanced at his father, only to see Zhou Chang looking at him and nodding, in order to show his praise for Zhou Kao for bringing Wan Xi back safely. Zhou Kao saw that his father was not angry with him, and a big stone in his heart fell to the ground.

In the pavilion, they met Zhou Fa again, and when Zhou Fa saw Zhou Kao and Wan Ji, he shouted happily: "Big brother! Cousin! Fa'er misses you all so much! Wan Xi smiled and took Zhou Fa's hand and said, "Cousin misses you too." ”

Everyone came to Mrs. Jiang's resting room, Mrs. Jiang was lying on the couch, and when she heard a lot of movement outside, she thought she had heard some news, so she sat up strongly. When she saw Wan Xi, she cried out with a "wow", Wan Xi hurriedly went over and knelt in front of the couch, held Mrs. Jiang's hand, and said while crying: "Mother, Wan'er has returned, don't be sad." ”

Mrs. Jiang choked up and said, "I only have a daughter like you, and since you were born, she has never left my side for half a step." After you were taken captive, I was worried all day long, and I couldn't sleep well, for fear that I would ...... in the future."

The two of them hugged each other and wept, and the rest of the people sat in the room silently. After a long time, Taiji finally spoke: "Wan'er, how did you escape back?" ”

When Wan Xi heard Tai Ji ask, she told how she was not allowed to be arrested in the tomb of Emperor Shun, how she was rescued by Zhou Kao, how she found treasures in the tomb of Emperor Shun, and how she got out of trouble in Fengboyu. Wan Xi was already sharp-toothed, and the experience of the two of them on this day was really bizarre, and everyone was embarrassed when they heard her tell her.

At the end, Wan Ji said: "If it weren't for my cousin this time, I'm afraid that Wan'er would really be difficult to see her parents again." ”

Zhou Kao hurriedly said: "No, no, we were able to get out of danger, all thanks to my cousin's cleverness and wit, I myself am really useless." ”

Xin Jia held Zhou Kao's hand and said, "Kao'er, you are a good boy." Wan'er is indeed thanks to you this time. ”

Zhou Kao felt a little embarrassed, and didn't know how to respond for a while. At this time, Wan Xi took out the two jade plates found in the tomb of Emperor Shun, and said to Xin Jia: "Father, I don't know what is painted on this jade plate, so the child has to bring it back, please take a look." ”

Xin Jia took the jade plate and glanced at it, and said, "It's already dark now, let's wait until tomorrow morning to see it." ”

Tai Ji also said: "These two children haven't eaten all day, so let them eat first and rest early after eating." My sister-in-law also needs to recuperate, so let's not disturb her quiet. ”

Naturally, no one objected to this suggestion, and everyone came out of the room one after another. Tai Ji whispered to Xin Jia: "Big brother, I have something to discuss with you, you come with me." ”

Xin Jia didn't know what Taiji was going to say to herself, so she followed her to the outside of the pavilion. Xin Jia was anxious after all, so he couldn't help but ask, "Sister, what do you want to discuss?" Why avoid people's eyes? ”

Tai Ji turned around, smiled slightly, and said, "What I want to tell my eldest brother is actually a happy event." ”

Xin Jia was a little confused, so he asked, "I don't know where the joy comes from?" ”

Tai Ji said: "I see that Wan'er and Kao'er are similar in age and like-minded, this time they can share weal and woe and overcome hardships together, in my opinion, it is also a match made in heaven, even God has fulfilled the two of them." Big brother, do you think I'm right? ”

Xin Jia remembered that when Wan Ji came back, he was riding the same horse as Zhou Kao, and the two were indeed very close. Taiji then said: "I have always regarded Wan'er as my own, and it is expected that you are also quite fond of Kao'er. I thought that if the two of them were really in love, we would arrange this family affair for them, so that it would be possible to satisfy their wishes and satisfy us as parents, wouldn't it be the best of both worlds? ”

Xin Jia nodded and said, "Kao'er's character is a human being, so I am naturally relieved. It's just that Wan'er's life is at stake, and I always need to discuss it with your sister-in-law. ”

Tai Ji said: "Naturally, if my sister-in-law can agree, then I will invite the matchmaker to Xincheng to perform the ceremony next year." ”

Xin Jia smiled: "Sister, why are you so anxious? ”

"A good girl like Wan'er, I don't know how many people will worry about it in the future, and when the time comes, the people who come to propose marriage will be afraid that even the gate of Xincheng will collapse for you."

Xin Jia laughed happily after hearing this, and the two of them returned to the pavilion. Mrs. Jiang couldn't sleep well because she couldn't see Wan Xi before. Now that Wan Xi has returned, she has peace of mind, so she fell asleep after taking the medicine again. Xin Jia couldn't bear to alarm her, so he also fell asleep on the side.