Waiting, waiting, but fell asleep leaning against the pillars.

She had a dream in which she wanted to go back to her childhood. That winter, it was surprisingly cold, and the river did not freeze in the winter of the southern tour. There was still no freezing that year, but the barren grass by the river caused crystal clear frost. This is rare in the southern tour, so it is also difficult. Gu Laosan has not prepared winter clothes since he went south, and the Gu family restaurant has not yet opened that year, and he only has about 30 broken copper plates earned from the tea stall. I want to exchange some loose cotton with the farmers who grow cotton, let Aunt Wang sew a winter coat, and hold the children out of the cold first.

But in the hot and humid land of the southern tour, who would not grow grain and cotton. Asking left and right is no better than themselves. But just now Gu Xiaowei is sick, the weather is cold, and he is most prone to wind chill. This is not a serious illness, Dr. Liu of the Liuchen Medical Center in Xiyue City is a good person, and he does not charge money for medicine when he distributes herbs to keep out the cold and cure diseases. Only fifteen copper plates are charged. But after paying these fifteen copper plates, Gu Laosan had no money.

No one thought that in the winter of that year, cotton was in short supply in Xiyue City. Don't say that cotton clothes, that is, cotton and firewood, have long been snapped up by rich and noble families. Gu Xiaowei felt that the dream had returned to the original feeling, it was a little cold, there was no cold wind in the house, but it was freezing to the bone. Although I took medicine, I still couldn't bear the cold. can only scream in his mouth, "Daddy, I'm cold." ”

In the dream, she saw a little boy. She knew who it was, and the little boy looked at her on the kang, not knowing what kind of expression she had. It's just that, after a while, he ran out. She was so upset, I don't know why.

But she knew that the little boy would come back, so she waited and waited, and waited for a long time. When it was dark, the moon hung high, and when the moon was about to set.

The little boy returned, covered in boar blood, and holding a dried hide. She still didn't know how he looked at the moment. He draped the animal skin over her and climbed onto the kang. He lifted his feet, which could not be covered by the skin, and gently lifted them into his arms.

She was reassuring and warm.

Then she woke up, still in the night, and saw that a piece of clothing had been draped over her. Looking sideways, his brother was sitting next to him: "I'm sitting outside and falling asleep again, beware of catching a cold." ”

Gu Xiaowei looked at her brother sweating profusely, she hadn't forgotten the dream she had just had, and she hadn't forgotten the things in the dream since before. said, "You are sweating, so you have to be careful not to catch a cold." ”

"Your brother is not afraid of good health, I think that in such a cold day back then, I could go into the mountains to kill wild boars at the age of seven, have you ever seen your brother sick." As she spoke, she pressed the hand she was about to take off her coat.

Mu Qinghan continued: "Do you go back to your room to sleep when you are tired, why do you want to watch me here?" ”

"I just want to look at you." Gu Xiaowei dragged her chin with her little hands, rested her arms on her thighs, and looked at Mu Qinghan, like her sister and brother coquettishly. "Or maybe Brother wants the person looking at you isn't me?"

"Yes." Mu Qinghan obviously didn't understand the overtone of these words, "I'd rather let Xiao Gu watch me practice martial arts, and I'll take him to practice together." ”

"Hmph, it's not convincing." Gu Xiaowei poked his chest with her fingers.

Mu Qinghan thought that Xiao Gu was a boy, and it was normal for him to follow him when he practiced martial arts. It's not that I'm afraid that you'll catch a cold, but you've always been cold. But he didn't say it, he always said in accordance with his sister's little temper: "Then who do you think I want to be by my side with me." ”

Gu Xiaowei lowered her eyes and thought for a while: "If Miss Meng is looking at you here, I'm afraid you will already be happy." ”

"Oh," Mu Qinghan pretended to be prodigal, "Miss Meng is so good-looking, if she is by her side and watches me practice martial arts, maybe I will practice very energetically." ”

Then he slapped Gu Xiaowei on his thigh, looking at his frowning and angry sister. He laughed: "What's going on in your little brain?" Let you listen less to Uncle Yu in the south of the city. ”

Knowing that her brother was teasing her, she turned her face away angrily. Mu Qinghan touched her head, and his laughter turned into a soft laugh.

"Okay, okay, it's not that I'm afraid you'll catch a cold, since that year, your body is too easy to catch a cold." said that his eyes were also a little lonely, and the change under his eyebrows was accurately captured by the sister who turned back to this matter. Mu Qinghan lowered his head: "If I come back early from hunting that day, you may still be stronger." ”

Hearing this, Gu Xiaowei took a deep breath, "Well, you have to reflect." But there was no hint of reproach in his words. Instead, he slowly tilted his head and leaned on Mu Qinghan's shoulder.

Mu Qinghan wanted to shake her off: "My body smells of sweat, don't touch you." ”

"It's okay, I'm not disgusted." Not only did he not leave, but he also put his hand around his arm and pulled it very tightly.

Seeing this, Mu Qinghan leaned on her shoulder. Anyway, from childhood to adulthood, I have let her lean on it.

"Brother, do you think Daddy and Auntie, are you worried now?"

"There must be worries, but what kind of person is our father, the captain of the guard of the princess of Hengzhou before, I haven't seen anything in the world." In fact, he also knows that his parents must be very worried about the situation of their children if they don't know about it, but his sister always has to say something comforting when he asks like this. Otherwise, there will be one more to worry about.

"When the ban is lifted in the city, we will hurry up to find Daddy." As he spoke, he patted his sister on the back with his hand. "When the time comes, leave Xiyue and go to other places."

Gu Xiaowei knew that he was fleeing at this time, after all, there was a big fuss in Wangyun Tower, and it was not safe to stay here. Mu Qinghan continued: "You know what? I originally planned to wait for you to find a better in-law when you are older, and then when Xiaogu is older and can help your father and mother share the burden. So I packed my bags and went out to have a look. ”

Gu Xiaowei, who said this, did not respond immediately, but left from her brother's shoulder and leaned against the pillar. After a while, he said: "Then you don't marry yourself, there is chaos outside." And do you want your sister to marry off so much? ”

"Girl, it's not that girls have to get married, it's that I think I can rest assured that I can find you a husband who loves you and protects you." In fact, when he said this, his own heart was empty. He can't guarantee that a wishful husband can really keep her happy. It's just a matter of finding a reason for yourself to leave.

Gu Xiaowei asked, "So you have to leave?" ”

Mu Qinghan touched her head: "I don't want to leave." Looking at Gu Xiaowei's frowning eyes: "But I always have to find my biological parents, Daddy said that the war disaster in Hengzhou has changed too many things, but I always have to let me know where the word 'pastor' comes from?" ”

Gu Xiaowei knows that his brother is cheerful and responsible, but the matter of his biological parents has always been his obsession. She had thought about why Daddy and Auntie lied that they were his biological parents in the first place, so that he could think less about it and save these obsessions. But when I think about it, if this is the case, it may have protected him, but it is somewhat unfair. As I get older, I don't have this idea anymore.

Gu Xiaowei said: "It's okay now, let's leave together." ”

"To be honest, I don't want you to leave with me, after all, the Central Plains is in turmoil, and although the southern tour is also living a hard life, fortunately, there is no war. But that's not what I'm thinking about anymore. ”

When Gu Xiaowei heard this, her face showed a little joy: "Brother, where are we going?" ”

Mu Qinghan smiled and said, "What do you think?" Can I decide this, I don't have to listen to Daddy. As he spoke, he clasped his fists with both hands, dragged his head and said, "But I think that if you want to avoid the war, you can only go to sea and leave the Central Plains to go to Lin Xiuguo in the southwest." ”

Gu Xiaowei said: "I heard that the rice there can be harvested three times a year, but if you are diligent and fast, you will not go hungry." ”

"It's good to have three crops a year, but Uncle Qian also said that the sun is very big, so be careful to tann you." He's starting to skin again.

"What did you say?" As he spoke, he patted his brother, but there was a smile in his eyes. The brother and sister were fighting like this, just like children.

After frolicking, they went to rest. To say that Mu Qinghan's spirit is really good, he practiced until midnight last night, and he will get up the next day. In the courtyard, he whirred and waved the wooden lance.

Even Tang Mingyin came to the courtyard and sighed, your morning class here is no later than when he was a big soldier. said that if Mu Qinghan was a Zheng person, he would be born a few years earlier, and he would definitely be the most handy soldier he carried. If you stay, don't talk about a general, you can be a captain.

About an hour later, the rooster crowed three times, and everyone woke up. Chen Huance said that judging from yesterday, the city defense camp has never stopped investigating the vicinity of the department store. So the school closed its doors under the banner of the approaching New Year. In the past few days, Mu Qinghan has accepted Tang Mingyin's "careful teaching" in the school, although it is always a school, Tang Mingyin is always a battlefield general, and Mu Qinghan has lived a life in the military camp. Wake up at the hour of the day and sleep at the hour of the day. These days have been extraordinarily long.

However, it was not without joy, after all, Meng Zhichu lifted his bangs, put his hair behind his ears, and put back on women's clothes, so that the men in this courtyard feasted their eyes. Mu Qinghan sighed that other people's bangs are refreshing and beautiful, and her bangs are to block her appearance.

Tang Mingyin also joked that this is the end of the year, if the classes are open on weekdays, and the students see a few girls here, they will not worry about the enrollment in the coming year. Mu Qinghan also provoked trouble, saying that it was Dr. Su who was good to recruit or Miss Meng who was good to enroll. Tang Mingyin ignored him, but punished him with an extra five hundred squats, and he screamed in pain the next morning. Fortunately, it rained heavily for a few days later, and I was able to recover from my laziness.

It's twenty-three in a blink of an eye, and seeing that the new year is approaching, the weather is clearing, and the ban in the city is finally lifted. The southern tour is mountainous, and only one place in the Great Blue River Valley Plain can be used for farming, and the tax income of the southern tour can only rely on merchants on both sides of the sea and land. There are a lot of big businessmen in the city, and it is the peak trade season before the year, if it is banned for a long time, it will be difficult to guarantee the military salary in the coming year, so Chun Yu Xianzhong had to let the purple robe pay more attention, and then opened the ban.

It was the middle of winter, and the migratory birds flew south. Birds flew by from time to time in the sky, and one of them flew to Tang Mingyin's shoulder with a secret letter from afar.

Tang Mingyin handed it to Chen Huance after reading it, and Chen Huangce took a look. He said, "In this case, you will have to run for yourself." ”

"It just so happens that I'm going to go and see what the hell is going on over there, I've been here for ten days and I've been caught up by this ban, so hurry up and get this thing done, you and I can go back to Luzhou."

Chen Huance said with a smile: "You go back to your Luzhou, I still have to be ordered to garrison again, not to mention that the hall chief hasn't come back yet." ”

Tang Mingyin said: "It seems that I have to quickly exchange Brother Ouyang for you, otherwise you will never be down-to-earth as an inspector." ”

At this time, Mu Qinghan came to ask if the ban had been lifted in the city and wanted to take Xiaowei out of the city and go home. Tang Mingyin said that he happened to be going to Hengpu Pass to take a trip, although the ban was lifted, but the government must have sent someone to observe secretly, and it is best for the two of you to go out of the city to take care of him together.

So, Tang Mingyin got rid of Chen Huan Ce and took care of the two girls, Su and Meng. So he took the two siblings out of the city. Always hiding in Tibet is not noticeable, and after half a day, you can be counted out of the city.

Seeing the dust of the official road outside the city, Mu Qinghan felt a sense of nostalgia. After all, the city is bustling. can be trapped in the small square inch of the academy, although it is a refuge, it is also like a cage. It's still the air of this official road, and it smells pleasant.

After saying goodbye to Tang Mingyin, they returned to the south and the north. But before he got out of the incentive place, in the crowd surging on the official road, he saw two familiar figures, it was Gu Laosan and his wife, although they had not seen each other for seven days, but the old man's appearance was even thinner.

Gu Laosan also saw the two of them from the crowd, obviously everyone was very excited. But when Gu Laosan squeezed over desperately, there were too many people. His old body squeezed further and was squeezed back three steps. Mu Qinghan finally reached it, and dragged his father over, but he didn't dare to push too hard.

In the end, it took some effort for the family to be reunited, except for Gu Gu at home, of course. The women looked at each other with tears, but Gu Laosan scolded on the side, saying that it was good for the children to come back, and no one noticed that the corners of his eyes were also a little windy. Mu Qinghan was very happy, but he was also very sober, after all, he had stabbed the basket, and what he said was to save people. But the small people in this troubled world competed with the warlord government, and the result can be imagined.

They went back to Gu's restaurant while talking, and Gu Laosan listened to his words all the way and agreed with his opinion: "Like you said, the southern tour can't stay any longer." Actually, even if you don't say that I and your aunt are ready to leave as soon as we find you. ”

"What's wrong?"

Gu Laosan said that since Li Liuliu came to the restaurant to report the news, he thought that the surrounding bandits had been cleared. Unexpectedly, on the second day, a group of powerful bandits, whose combat effectiveness was not weak, directly robbed the girls in the villages. The bandits were weak before, and you could still fight them, but this gang of robbers can be considered well-trained. Gu Laosan had been a soldier, and he felt that this was very likely to be the regular army of the Southern Tour, plus the situation that Li Liuliu said. Gu Laosan decided to take the whole family to run south for the second time and go to sea to Lin Xiuguo in the southwest.

As soon as he said go, the family of five gestured for the necessary dry food and items, and went to the Yujia ferry. But when they arrived at Yujia Ferry, they found that they were all from Wuyang and Wuyang. The boats are gone, but there are dozens of bamboo rafts to transport people outside. However, the water flow is very turbulent, and I think it is due to the heavy rain in the past few days and the abundant flow of water upstream. But even though the boat was risky, everyone rushed to get on the raft. Originally, there were at most three boatmen on a bamboo raft, but some of them were squeezed into four or five people. Some bamboo rafts drove in the rapids, and they overturned when they looked at them, and from time to time someone swam ashore for this, and the scene was very chaotic for a while.

In the crowd, Mu Qinghan saw that although there was chaos, there were always people scheduling, and when he took a closer look, it turned out to be Qian Hou and Li Liuliu. He ran over and slapped him on the shoulder.

Li Liuliu turned around and looked, and was frightened away, as if he had seen a ghost.

"What's the matter, you don't know me."

"No...... No, Brother Mu, are you still alive? Rokuta asked in surprise.

"How to speak! What does it mean to be alive! ”

Obviously, Li Liuliu felt in his heart that he went to Wangyunlou to save people, and was banned for seven or eight days, I am afraid that he had already been poisoned by those yamen, but he didn't expect to be alive, which was first shocked, then happy, and then questioned.

But Mu Qinghan didn't want to have anything to do with him, so he only asked him why there were so many people in front of this ferry. Li Liuliu said, since you left, there has been a more powerful group of bandits in this area. Several existences have been looted, and some places are so miserable that they can't even leave people after the looting. Like the kitten mountain gang, they also specialize in catching young girls, but their methods are much more powerful than those bandits. Qian Monkey analyzed that this may be someone directly sent by the government, so several surrounding villages are in a hurry to leave here.

Mu Qinghan sighed: "Alas, in the end, I am the one who is involved." ”

"What does it have to do with you, if you Mu Qinghan don't go to Wangyun Tower, he won't rob the girl at home, I can see it, this Xiyue City can't stay. The third prince of the southern tour of the city said that half of the rent will be free after the end of the year, which is a good place, and half of the people here are going to the southern patrol city. Li Liuliu said word by word.

Hearing this, Mu Qinghan also asked, "Is Xiao Cui'er okay?" ”

"It's okay, thanks to the monkey who said that we might retaliate if we took the kitten mountain government, so I took people here early to build more than 100 bamboo rafts, and when I set up the first bamboo raft, I sent my father and Xiao Cui'er away."

Even Mu Qinghan had to sigh that Li Liuliu's action was really fast, and at the same time, he also admired Qian Hou's precautions. I only heard Li Liuliu continue, although there are a lot of people on the ferry here, only a few tenant villages below our Qianjiazhuang can go, which is the kindness of Master Qian. But Master Qian, Third Uncle Gu saved his life, so your Gu family can also go together.

Hearing this, Mu Qinghan was grateful again, and said to Qian Hou on the side: "Monkey really thank you father." ”

Qian Hou waved his hand and said, "It should be so, now the problem is that even if we package the Yujia ferry, this boat is not enough, and our family's big boat has already transported several groups of people away." Now there are only bamboo rafts, and my father said that now this situation can only be close to the elderly and children, and the adults stay here, on the one hand, to save the bamboo rafts out, and on the other hand, to block the people from other villages who come to grab the bamboo rafts. My dad said that only people over the age of 40 and under the age of 13 could walk today. ”

As soon as Mu Qinghan heard this, he immediately realized that he and Gu Xiaowei would not be able to leave. It doesn't matter if he can't go, after all, the boy can still figure out a way. But Gu Xiaowei is a girl, so it's best to leave first to let him rest assured.

But Qian Hou said, there is no way, you can't open this example. Speaking of this, Gu Laosan stopped doing it, and he said that since there were not so many people, why not let the children go first. He old people can stay. But Qian Hou said no, because Mr. Qian said that the children could hide in the mountains if they stayed, and it was more convenient to move. If you stay all the elderly, it is not only not conducive to the boat for a few days, but also disregards etiquette. This old man Qian also studied the sage book when he was young, and even here he strictly ordered the old man and children to go first.