After handing over the money and letters to the treasurer, Shang Cheng found that the rain hadn't rained, and even the few raindrops that had been sprinkled just now didn't know where to go. The sun hung again in the sky, and it was still so enthusiastic, spewing light and heat out onto the earth; The wind, which had just whipped up the sand and dead branches and leaves on the ground with impunity, was now soft and difficult to catch, and it quietly caressed the skin of men; The cicadas, once dead, came alive again, hiding in a corner, continuing their monotonous chanting. Only the rapidly fading gloomy gray clouds in the southern sky reminded people that nature had just brewed a storm.

When things came to an eyebrow, the big stone in his heart fell to the ground, and his mood became comfortable. When he left the warehouse, he also asked the time, there was still some time before the end, so he didn't have to rush back. He now put his hands in the pockets of his new coats, and leisurely looked at the various things on the stalls in the shops on both sides of the street, and walked back slowly.

Because of the rain just now, most of the trading stalls on the streets and alleys on weekdays have been collected, and at this time, people see that the rain will not fall for a while and a half, and they are back and forth on the stools and wooden planks to spread the goods, and most of the things have not had time to be placed, and they are piled up on the mats indiscriminately, dyed lustful cloth, rusty headscarves and sweat towels, and women's sachets and hairpins appliqués...... There are a variety of goods, as well as fan-knitted hats and belts...... The whole nine yards. The smell of fried candy wafted through the air; In the distance, there was a clanging sound from a blacksmith shop; A merchant carried a burden, holding a rattle in his hand and gently shaking it as he walked, the beeping and beeping of fragmentary drums rang out for a while, and the call of "rags, horns, old clothes, old pants, old shirts for needlework" swayed leisurely in the streets. I don't know where there is a family opera garden is performing excerpts, and the sound of babbling silk and bamboo is as thin as a gossamer......

At this time, Shang Cheng had already reached the crossroads where the four major streets in the north, south, east and west of the county town intersected. This is the center of the county, but also the most prosperous and lively place, the east is the pharmacy rice cloth village, the west is the paper bookstore antique shop Linglong shop, the north side has the leather goods store silk satin village garment shop. There are one or two neatly dressed guys standing at the door of every store, greeting every customer who comes to their door with a smile on their faces. There is an endless stream of people entering and leaving this shop, some of them are still carrying the items they just bought, and some of them are just looking at the excitement and freshness like Shang Cheng. The three floors in the south of the intersection are all blue bricks straight to the top, from the roof to the ground followed by several strings of lanterns, it looks like a restaurant and not like a restaurant, one by one Shang Cheng knows, that is a famous fireworks place in the county; Because it was just past dawn, there were not many customers here, so it seemed a little deserted. However, the open space next to it was very lively, a group of hawkers who passed through the state were performing a vaudeville show, and a monkey with a thin iron chain tied around his neck, following the command of a woman in a pale red short white sand skirt, kept making all kinds of funny antics that caused the onlookers to applaud and laugh from time to time.

Shang Cheng also stood in the crowd and watched the excitement. When he was a child, he had seen a man playing monkey in the town, and because he envied the demeanor of the monkey man when he drank the monkey, he once had the idea of worshipping that man as a master; Moreover, the monkey can also turn over playing cards and tell fortunes, turning over a card for one dollar, and can bring a hundred and ten yuan to the monkey trickster every day, so he is even more determined in his ideals. But just when he made up his mind to apprentice, the monkey man floated away with the magical monkey. This result made him regret and regret for a long time. Now that he saw people playing monkeys here, he couldn't help but think back to his childish thoughts and ridiculous behaviors. Looking at the monkey in front of him wearing a thin-eyed gauze hat and a big red coat learning to walk like a human, listening to the woman's crisp and concise password, and the clanging gong over there, the monkey master and the old monkey who could tell fortunes gradually coincided with everything in front of him......

By the time he had come to his senses, the monkey play had come to an end, and the monkey was standing in front of him, staring around with two small eyes on his lonely face, and two front paws holding a round dustpan—twenty or thirty copper coins thrown into it. Its owner held a thin iron chain in his hand and looked at him with a smile.

It's rewarding yourself.

His hand touched his pocket, and his face turned red. He had put all his money in the purse that held his desire and hope for the house, and now he didn't even have a copper plate in his pocket. He pinched his coat and lowered his head embarrassedly, trying to sneak away while people were not looking. Of course, he himself knew that this idea was unlikely, because he was much taller than ordinary people, so he decided that he would definitely not be able to disappear from people's sight quietly.

The people around him had already seen his embarrassment, so some people began to heckle him in good faith. The laughter made him feel even more embarrassed and his face reddened.

The female geisha saw his embarrassment, and had the intention to let him go, but she was afraid that others would do the same, so she had to whistle, and the chain in her hand shook, and the cunning neatly put down the dustpan, and made a gesture towards Shang Cheng with her two front paws.

The audience immediately roared and shouted, and many people shouted for another one.

The monkey is also a monkey spirit, probably this kind of scene has seen a lot of experience, and without waiting for the female girl's command, he lowered his head and made two waves in a row, but raised his head but looked left and right casually. Its series of actions made the surrounding spectators addicted, shouting and playing, laughing and scolding. The woman couldn't help but laugh and didn't let the monkey go, apparently to make it easier to put away the reward later, and was going to use Shang Cheng as a demonstration.

Shang Cheng was already a little embarrassed, gritted his teeth and was about to turn around and leave regardless of his face, when someone suddenly took his gown, and then handed over two copper coins.

He turned his head in surprise, only to realize that it was a big girl who handed him the money.

He blushed and threw the two copper coins into the dustpan, grabbed the eldest girl's hand and led her out of the crowd, until he walked to a secluded place by the shoe and hat shop, and then let go of his hand and asked, "Why did you come to the county seat?" ”

The eldest girl didn't answer his question first, and asked him with a red face with her fingers, "When did you come back?" Why don't you go back first and copy your hands here...... What are you wandering around? ”

"I'm going to the warehouse to do something......"

The big girl said "oh" and didn't speak again. Her eyes kept looking in both directions, and suddenly her face suddenly turned redder as if she had seen something important.

Shang Cheng followed her gaze and saw the fireworks building next to the juggling troupe, and he knew what the eldest girl was thinking with a slight turn of his brain, and he was so angry that he almost laughed - he was about to sell himself in order to make up the money to buy a house, where did he have spare money to do those things. But he couldn't tell the eldest girl about his worries, he only taught her: "You are a girl, you don't know what to think in your head all day long!" One by one, I ask you, how did you get here? ”

"Come out with them." The big girl blushed and pointed to the side. There were four women standing over there. The two looked to be about the same age as the eldest girl, that is, about fifteen, sixteen or seventeen years old, but they both had a bun on their heads, and a hosta pinned to a goose-yellow beaded flower; The other two looked younger, but twelve or thirteen years old, with their hair in a bun like the eldest girl, and a few braids around their necks; All four women looked their eyes up and down at them.

The eldest girl beckoned to them, and the little girl dressed as two women over there only smiled and waved her hand. The eldest girl turned around and said, "It's the sister-in-law of my sixth uncle's family and the sister of the Liu family." A flash of gloom flashed across her face. I accompanied them out shopping, and by the way, I wanted to buy some good fabrics. Her face suddenly turned red again, and her voice suddenly lowered, "I saw you from a long distance, I wanted to call you, but I was afraid of other people's jokes, so I followed you......" said and sneered, "That monkey is really funny, I don't know how it was taught, it can learn to behave, and it is so similar." ”

Shang Cheng knew the rules, but he just glanced at the two girls and nodded slightly, and asked the eldest girl: "Why did you come to the city?" ”

"I'm here with my mother."

"Auntie is still in the city?" Shang Cheng was happy for a while. If Aunt Seventeen is also in the county seat, then she must be at the sixth uncle's house, and she happens to entrust Huo Liubo with the matter of buying a house. The new master book in the county doesn't buy Li Qi's account, but can he not buy Huo Liu's account Huo Liu's account Huo Liu is not a white-bodied scholar like Huo Shiqi and Li Qi, he is Bao Xinlang, who is really from the rank of Jiupin official, and is at the same level as the main book of Yi County; The most important thing is that Huo Liu not only has an official status, but also the most senior scrivener in the yamen, and at the same time, he is also the most authoritative person among the small officials, and it is impossible for the master to offend him by the way......

"My mother went back the day after I came......"

Hearing this news, Shang Chengdeng was a little discouraged. It seems that his affairs will continue to suffer.

The eldest girl said happily: "I kept saying that I wanted to go home, but the sixth aunt just wouldn't let me go, saying that she was afraid that there would be any twists and turns on the road, so she had to let me wait here for my father to come back, or wait for my mother to pick me up." Who knows when my dad will be back on this trip? There are so many things at home, how can my mother get out of the way? I've been looking for excuses to go back for the past two days, and now it's okay, you and I will go with you to see the six uncles and six aunts in a while, and see what they have to say. I don't believe that a single man who has killed the bandit village can't protect me back! ”

Shang Cheng asked in surprise, "How do you know about the bandits?" "But he immediately thought that there was a pack team coming back from Quzhou before, and they must have spread the word about Quzhou." Don't listen to people's nonsense, where is there any single-handedly suppression of bandits, so many bandits, if I dare to go up alone, I will definitely be chopped into bun filling. ”

The eldest girl laughed out loud when she heard him say something funny. laughed several times before holding back a smile and blushing and said, "It's not all rumored by others, the government has issued notices." The sixth uncle said that the county magistrate received the official document from the Quzhou official, smiled so much that his eyes couldn't find it, and said that he would ask you for credit to the imperial court...... It has been spread all over the county, and everyone says that it is the Buddha who blessed the Bodhisattva with the manifestation and sent down a monk who subdued the demon and subdued the tiger to control the wicked. I also went to the temple yesterday to burn incense and worship the Bodhisattva......" he said, but he lowered his head and said nothing.

Shang Cheng listened to her more and more unreasonable, just smiled and didn't say anything, and when he saw that she didn't speak, he said, "It's okay to burn incense and ask for peace." Listen to me, there's something you want to do for me. He also told the eldest girl about storing the money in Liu Ji's warehouse, and finally said, "You remember to tell Uncle Zhuzi that you have to get the formalities one by one, and prepare the vouchers issued by the local government one by one, and when your father comes back, you will go to the county government to handle it immediately...... Do you remember them all? ”

The eldest girl nodded vigorously and looked up at Shang Cheng in surprise. She didn't expect that the matter that her father and Uncle Zhu had been suffering for a while would be solved by the eldest brother monk while talking. She thought for a while and said, "You don't have to wait for my father to come back, my sixth uncle can do it." But she felt that her words were probably not very reliable, so she went over to discuss with the two women, and then turned back and said, "Sister-in-law said that Uncle Six can help you deal with this matter, but Uncle Six has been sick, so it is not good to disturb him at this time......

"What? Is Huo Liubo sick? ”

The eldest girl nodded not for sure, glanced at the two women again, and whispered: "Sixth uncle, he is not sick, and he is angry at home and pretends to be sick, so he is not the master bookkeeper......"

I see. However, regardless of whether he pretended to be sick or was really sick, in line with the relationship with Huo Shiqi's family, Shang Cheng wanted to go over to visit, at least in terms of etiquette. But he doesn't have any money on him now, what can he do? He could only ask the eldest girl for help.

The eldest girl has no money. Fortunately, her two sisters-in-law's maids both had some money on them, although it was not much, and it was only two or three hundred yuan together; But that's enough. Under the guidance of the eldest girl, Shang Cheng bought some pastries, preserved fruits and tea leaves in several large shops, wrapped them in hemp paper, pasted a piece of red paper, tied them with fine hemp rope to make two mentions, and carried these things and followed the eldest girl and the others to look back.

Huo Liubo's home is not far away, passing through an alley and turning a corner. There is usually a courtyard, and there are about three entrances before and after, which is no different from the pattern of several Zhuang households and wealthy owners who have been helped by Shang Cheng; It's just that the single-story corniced gatehouse at the entrance of the courtyard is different, showing the identity of the owner's family, and there is a family of officials living here.

On the road, the eldest girl kept telling Shang Cheng what to pay attention to when he saw her sixth uncle, and repeatedly told him that her sixth uncle was a serious and demanding person, with an uneasy-going temperament, and always looked like a businessman when he spoke, even if it was her father, he was often scolded by the sixth uncle for some trivial things. She also reminded Shang Cheng that Liubo might not necessarily meet him because he was still "sick".

Listening to the introduction of the eldest girl, Shang Cheng had already sketched a rigorous and rigid Huo Liubo in his mind, but when he arrived at the Huo family, he felt that the eldest girl's previous words were not reliable at all. After listening to the report of his family, Huo Liubo, who was "sick", immediately came out to receive him in person, and also opened his mouth to "Shang Zhuangshi" and closed his mouth "Shang Zhuangshi", which made Shang Cheng, who originally came to visit the patient in the name of Huo Shiqi, both helpless and embarrassed. After hearing that Shang Cheng wanted to buy the small courtyard on Huojiabao, Liubo immediately asked him to go to the warehouse to take out the money temporarily stored there, and then go directly to the county office to wait for him. When Shang Cheng rushed to the county government with a heavy blanket, the sixth uncle had already issued a document in the Yamen Section, and he did not ask for the voucher of the head of the household in Huojiabao, nor did he ask Shang Cheng to find any shop guarantee, he only needed to put a fingerprint on the account book of the household department, and then handed over the deed and key of the courtyard to him. As for the house price, it has not come down, it is still thirty-five times.

Despite paying thirty-five yuan, Shang Cheng was still full of joy. He took the deed and if and repeatedly thanked Huo Liubo. The sixth uncle was not very happy, but told him lightly that someone had just come to the county government to settle down, saying that he wanted to buy the courtyard, and verbally said that he was willing to pay 35,000 yuan. Of course, this sudden buyer can't really buy a house. But there is such a comparison, Huo Liubo can't be too explicit in this matter, so he can't give Shang Cheng a good price.

He kept sending the sixth uncle to the door of his house, and then politely declined the invitation, preparing to go back to the emerging market town outside the southern city immediately. He thought that although the hour had passed the end of the hour, the pack team might not have set out on time, and perhaps something else had delayed. And he also wanted to tell Shanwazi and Zhao Shishi the outcome of the matter immediately, so as not to worry about his friends......

It was the big girl who stopped him.

"Do you still have the purse I gave you?"

The merchant thought that she was going to ask about the house, and what could be more important than the house? So after the eldest girl finished speaking, he took a long time to react, smacking his lips and saying with some embarrassment: "When I met the bandits in Quzhou, my purse fell ......" He also deliberately searched for it later, but couldn't find it.

The eldest girl pursed her lips and didn't speak, staring at the corner of the wall for a long time before she said, "I went back to Lijiazhuang last month to see my grandmother...... I went to my aunt's house and sat back, Sister Lian'er had a purse there, and it looked like I gave you. ”

Shang Cheng remembered this incident. If the eldest girl didn't say it, he would almost forget about the Fan Xiang family in Lijiazhuang. From this point of view, Fan Lian'er did take the wrong purse that day.

The eldest girl listened to his explanation, lowered her head and thought for a long time, before biting her lip and asking, "I got the purse back, do you still want it?" If you want, I'll give it to you when you come back to my house. ”

Shang Cheng drooped his eyelids and thought for a while, and said vaguely, "Okay." Even if he didn't know the customs of this place, the words of the eldest girl could make him understand another layer of meaning. After understanding this meaning, he could not help but make a decision. Of course, it wasn't for him to come up with a decision now, he still had time to think it through......

Before leaving, he gave the eldest girl the deed and keys he had just gotten, and asked her to transfer them to Liu Laozhu. He thought, he went to Beizheng, it was not clear when he would be able to come back, the journey was bumpy, the road was difficult, and he was afraid of a mistake in the wind and rain, so it was better to let Liu Laozhu keep it for himself.

But seeing that the big girl's little face suddenly turned red, he knew that he had accidentally done something wrong again, this little girl didn't think that he had handed over such valuable things to her, what was the deep meaning? Alas, forget it, since it was handed over to her, it was impossible to come back, and besides, she couldn't find anyone else to entrust her in a hurry, so let her guess......

He didn't say anything to the eldest girl, and hurried to the market town in the south of the city......

***************

Strongly recommend "Return Your Past Life", Author: Shang Huan Ruoshui

Address: http://book.********.com/book/36528.html