Qingfeng Town, Junzhou

Qingfeng Ridge is actually not a mountain, but a group of mountains, the mountains stretch for dozens of miles, across Junzhou and Jingnan, a narrow valley is the only road for cars and horses to pass, because the terrain is very dangerous, naturally there are bandits haunted to cut the path to make money.

Qingfeng Town is built at the mouth of the valley on the Junzhou side, a clear stream runs through the town, and various inns and restaurants built by the water are lined up one after another. Since they are backed by Qingfeng Ridge, where bandits frequently appear, these shops are open for merchants to rest, and secretly they are naturally connected to bandits to measure their work.

The largest inn in Qingfeng Town is naturally called Qingfeng Inn, and the best upper room has been contracted by Uncle Fan, who is wealthy, and the four people who live here are naturally Xu Cunlu, Benhu, and Menghu.

Fan Jiutong and his entourage have already gone south, and the two sides have agreed to meet in Guizhou City in Jingnan, and the other brothers have also been taken by Zhang Cheng to go together.

Xu Cun and the four of them had been in Qingfeng Town for half a month, and they had only waited for a small group of officers and soldiers the day before yesterday.

Zhu Wen has now served as the commander of Caizhou's rebellion and camp on all sides, and is about to wave his army south to besiege Caizhou City, although Zhao Dexu has changed his banner and surrendered, but in the face of the surging Zhu Laosan, he still put his heavy troops in various important towns in Shannan Dongdao to defend them, and Zhu Wen's suspicion and precaution were fully revealed.

The hearts of the major feudal towns are like mirrors; In troubled times, it doesn't matter whose flag you play or whose job you serve; The important thing is that you must not lose your own territory! At such a sensitive and dangerous moment, Zhao Deyan didn't have much interest in dealing with this small group of thieves on Qingfeng Ridge for the time being.

It stands to reason that Xu Cun and others are Caizhou deserters, and they have recently committed a shocking case in Junzhou City, so it is normal to escape from the Shannan territory as soon as possible, but why should they stay in Qingfeng Town, waiting for the arrival of officers and soldiers?

The reason why the four of them were waiting here in fear was just because that night in the government prison, Xu Cun deliberately set fire to the mountain, they wanted to see if they could take this opportunity to force out Zhao Wu, a colorful tiger, but now it seems that it was in vain!

Hu Si shook his head and gloated: "Boss Xu's methods of harming people are powerful, but it's a pity that Zhao Delu is useless, so he sent these soldiers, it is difficult to defend the mountain pass, what kind of mountain bandits?" After Xu Cun politely slapped Hu Si, he looked at the lazy officers and soldiers in the distance with a wry smile, thinking that it was time to leave!

The weather was very good today, and the sun was dazzling when it first appeared. The transpiring water vapor has condensed into a mist that lingers on Qingfeng Ridge. The mountains that used to be majestic and calm have become charming and unusual in the breeze of the autumn morning. Golden ginkgo biloba, bright red maple leaves, lush pines and cypresses, late-blooming wildflowers are purple and red...... I am afraid that Zhan Ziqian, who is known as "the first landscape in the country", cannot depict the three-point scenery of Qingfeng Ridge with his wonderful brush.

Tired of fighting for their lives, it is always rare to have a quiet time to enjoy the scenery around them.

Xu Cun and the four of them looked at Qingfeng Ridge to see the scenery, and there were also people behind them who looked at them in a daze. Their eyes were full of scenery that Qingfeng Ridge could not see; And in the eyes of others, they are also an impenetrable scenery!

Hou San, the shopkeeper of Qingfeng Inn, is in his thirties; He was born with white lips and thin lips, thin eyebrows and narrow eyes, and a black mole on his left cheek, but there were still a few yellow hairs on it, revealing a calculating appearance.

At this time, Hou San was stroking his somewhat sparse goatee, secretly looking at Xu Cun and the others, and secretly wondering in his heart: These four people in front of him are so strange! Not like a businessman or a traveler in a hurry, he lives in his own Qingfeng Inn for half a month, and he doesn't do anything serious every day, either wandering around in Qingfeng Town, or sitting here looking at Qingfeng Ridge and selling stupidly; Isn't it an agent sent by the government? Attracted this team of officers and soldiers? The day before yesterday, I had sent my men to inform Chief Zhao, but there was no news back so far.

While Hou San was thinking hard, the white man got up suddenly, walked closer to Shi Shiran, looked at him and said calmly: "Annoying Hou Shopkeeper to tell Zhao Wu that I am Xu Cun and want to see him!" After speaking, he no longer paid attention to Hou San, who was at a loss, and turned to leave.

Hou San, who was full of astonishment, watched Xu Cun walk away, and suddenly realized that under his shock, he actually pulled off the few baby whiskers on the mole by mistake, and hurriedly reached out to touch the painful cheek.

……

In the Juyi Hall of Qingfengling Cottage, in the tiger skin chair high above, sat the purple-faced and bearded Zhao Wu. He looked at Xu Cun, who was calm and relaxed on the guest chair in the hall, and asked, "Dare to ask the officers and soldiers at the foot of the mountain, but Brother Xu attracted it?" Xu Cun replied calmly, one word: "Yes". Zhao Wu's eyes burst into fierce light when he heard this: "Why did Brother Xu act like this? Xu Cun said lightly: "Naturally, I want to force you to go down the mountain!" "Hahaha......" Zhao Wu laughed loudly, "why do I want to go down the mountain?" Xu Cun stood up, and his face became cold: "Forcing you down the mountain is naturally to save you!" Zhao Deyan saw that the wind had changed hands and the rudder had changed banners, Junzhou City was still Zhu Wen's territory, his mind was narrow-minded, and your brother was once a rebel under him, how could Zhu Wen let you wait at ease? ”

Xu Cun was not afraid that Zhao Wu had already appeared fiercely, and he still talked eloquently: "If Xu Mou's expectations are correct, the officers and soldiers at the foot of the mountain will definitely pass through the valley and go around to the back of the mountain to camp, not to kill the enemy, but to cut off the retreat of Er. Qingfeng Ridge, I'm afraid it will be Zhao Deju's gift to Zhu Wen in the future! ……”

Zhao Wu is also experienced in the battlefield for a long time, well versed in the way of using soldiers, hearing Xu Cun's words, thinking for a moment, he knew that what he said was true, and he also understood his good intentions, and then retracted his eyes thoughtfully. "Ten days ago, I saw Brother Jiutong in the valley, and I learned that Brother Xu had suffered a catastrophe a few days ago, but fortunately, Brother Xu came to the rescue, and Zhao thanked Brother Xu!" Zhao Wu got up, gave a deep salute and asked slowly, "Brother Xu thought Zhao was going to deal with it now?" "Wait for me to go south to survive!" Xu Cun's answer was categorical......

Regardless of his kind words and persuasion, Zhao Wu was always hesitant, and Xu Cun secretly sighed! No wonder he, the future of this trip south is unknown, who is willing to sacrifice his life to follow except his own brother? It has come to this point, and it is useless to say more; Xu Cun sighed secretly and said goodbye: "If Brother Zhao believes in Xu, you can send someone to keep an eye on the officers and soldiers of that team, if there is any change, so as to make arrangements as soon as possible, Xu will say goodbye, and you can go back to the state to find me if you have something in the future." ”

……

Since he came out of Qingfeng Ridge, Xu Cun has not said a word and is depressed, Lu Ben and the three of them are comforting with kind words on their side, and even Hu Si, who likes to quarrel with him the most, put away his jokes and persuade each other: "Boss, do everything and obey the destiny of heaven!" It's Zhao Wu himself who is confused, you don't have to take it to heart. ”

Xu Cun sighed: "If you know that Zhao Wu is so stubborn, you shouldn't set fire to the mountain that day, I'm afraid you will hurt this hero!" Hearing Xu Cun say this, the brothers were also depressed in their hearts, and they no longer had the mood to laugh and play, and ran all the way south with their heads stuffy!

……

Guizhou City, also known as Zigui, Qu Fuzi's hometown; It is located in the throat of Sichuan and Hubei, the city is built on both sides of Xiling Gorge, surrounded by mountains on both sides, the scenery is picturesque, a big river passes through the city, the poet immortal Taibai said that "the ape on both sides of the strait can't stop crying, the light boat has passed the ten thousand mountains." That's where it comes from. Since the Shang Dynasty founded the city, it has always been a place where merchants gather along the river for trafficking and merchants.

On the riverside of the rain and storm, a huge wine banner swayed arbitrarily, and the three big characters of "Linjiang Immortal" were written on it and swayed with the wind, which was quite poetic and picturesque in the river wind and rain.

The seven or eight men in the restaurant did not have the elegant mood of chanting in the wind, and were concentrating on a pot of steaming mutton cakes, and the corners of their mouths were oily with their hands eating.

It has been more than a month since Xu Cun and his entourage came to Guizhou, but they are still struggling.

The dilemma they face now is not how to make a difference, but how to ...... Dine!

A group of poor ghosts all pointed to Fan Jiutong to eat and drink, at the beginning of the hasty escape had given up most of the family wealth, and now every day has to face dozens of idle and waiting to be fed, Fan Jiutong is full of sorrow, and his eyebrows are not spread all day. In the beginning, there was wine and meat to entertain me, but now even if it is a meal and a cake, I am afraid that it will not last long! I hate that god-damn Meng Hu and don't know what to do! Every day, he pinched his neck and begged for a leg of mutton, every time Fan Jiutong thought of this, he wanted to cry without tears, and he had the heart to seek death!

The well-fed Lu Ben burped, looked at Fan Jiutong, who was sitting beside him with a withered face, patted his shoulder and asked, "Old Fan, why don't you eat and drink with your brothers, isn't it Narcissus's sister-in-law secretly stewed ginseng soup at home?" Fan Jiutong hurriedly got up and arched his hand, with a bitter face: "Master Lu, don't laugh, poor my narcissus can only drink rice porridge these days, and the Hu cakes are used by the brothers first." ”

Thinking of the suffering of the concubine at home, the lover Lao Fan actually had some tears, and Lu Ben couldn't bear it when he saw it, so he quickly put away the joke and reached out to Lao Fan's shoulder and comforted him: "I know that your Lao Fan is in trouble, don't worry, everything has me!" ”

Fan Jiutong was also born with a delicate heart, and he knew the elegance when he heard the sound of the strings, and when he heard Lu Ben's words, the governor turned around, and hurriedly approached and asked, "What are the plans of Lord Lu?" Lu Ben smiled and asked, "Old Fan, do you want to guard Jinshan and ask for food?" After that, he patted his chest: "Lord Lu is a bandit." He pointed at Zhang Cheng again: "This brother is a water thief." Finally, he pointed to Meng Hu, who was wiping his nose: "Look at your tiger master, you are tall and big, is it a natural dart master?" Finally, he patted Lao Fan on the shoulder: "Uncle Fan is a genius, so he is naturally the best choice for the shopkeeper of the warehouse!" ”……

Lao Fan's eyes rolled wildly, and he calculated in his heart: Lu Ben Zhang Cheng is responsible for taking the goods, Meng Hu Hu Si is responsible for transporting the goods, isn't his own warehouse without money! Is it hard not to get rich?

Thinking and understanding in his heart, Fan Jiutong suddenly swept away the gloom in his heart, snatched the two Hu cakes with a smile, and went to find his narcissus......