Erya moved the teapot and bowl on the small wooden table, dragged a few pictures east and west, and spliced together a large intermittent picture in the blink of an eye.

Only then did Huo Shiqi see that two of the seven so-called "sea maps" were coherent, and the mountains and rivers were almost geographically connected. But there are many missing, the third and fourth, sixth and seventh, can't be connected at all. If there are few defects in other things, I can probably try to fix the seams. But this is a map, don't say that now I don't know if this sea map is missing, I don't know how many, that is, the original map is not lost, but if there is one less river on the map, one less mountain, it is also very likely to teach people to go astray!

He pursed his lips and shook his head in disappointment. Erya, they are too whimsical, and they want to make money by going to the sea with this sea map, but they are afraid that they will lose so much that they can't even have a thatch tip left.

Erya said proudly: "This is the most important thing in our family, how can I bring it with me?" There are a total of thirty-nine pictures of the sea, and the original and the written manuscript are locked in a copper cabinet that I don't know. That's what I brought to you to see the rarity. There are eleven pictures in the map that record the sea journey from Quanzhou to Dayue Zhenla, and the rest is the geography of the mountains and rivers to the west of Zhenla. ”

He lifted his eyelids and glanced at Erya. Usually the second daughter doesn't do things so delicately, but it shows that this time she is serious and thoughtful. He couldn't help but praise; "I've got a long job." Without waiting for his daughter to speak, he lowered his head again to look at the picture. He transferred from a civilian official to a military post last fall, and at that time he was awarded the rank of lieutenant under the rank of Zhengqipin, and he barely stepped into the threshold of an intermediate officer.

But he quickly gave up. He can understand the land charts, not that he can understand the sea charts. The nautical charts drawn by Er Ya are very different from the Yanshan land charts that have been revised and distributed by the Wei Government in the past year, and almost none of the rules for reading the maps taught in the workshop are useless, except for the distribution of mountains and rivers, he cannot understand anything else. The guy who drew the map didn't know where he was from, and he didn't even mark the scale in the lower right corner of the map, but he didn't even mark a cross indicating the north and south in the upper left corner of the map.

He asked Erya: "Have you seen it with your eldest brother, and he said that it is really a nautical chart?" ”

"Among the adults sent by the imperial court to Li Shen's case this time, there is a soldier surnamed Zhen. He used to be an assassin in Guangzhou or Huizhou in the south for more than ten years, led a sailor, and went to sea to suppress sea bandits; That's what we asked him to see. He said, this is the chart. ”

"Is he sure this is the chart of Zhenla to the west?" Huo Shiqi asked. That's the key! Because the matter was so important that it was related to "a boatload of money", he even ignored that he was actually asking Erya if he had asked Shang Cheng to see these pictures. Right now. Shang Cheng has not seen these maps, it is no longer the point! He had apparently forgotten that just a moment before, he was still in high spirits for a prescription that could prevent cold and fever, and he was like a good official who was worried about the affairs of the state......

"He doesn't know about that." Erya said.

Huo Shiqi froze. What do you mean by "don't know"?

"Lord Zhen has never seen the mudflats to the west of Zhenla, how can he recognize it?"

"And how did you ask?"

"Please ask Brother Zhongshan to inquire." Erya said. A few days ago, Sun Zhongshan returned to Yanzhou, and she and Yue'er took a few charts, some from Quanzhou to Zhenla, and some from Zhenla to the west, and handed them to Sun Zhongshan indiscriminately, asking him to find Zhenqian to distinguish the authenticity. Zhenxiang has confirmed the nautical charts to the east of Chenla; He hadn't seen the charts to the west, so he wasn't sure. However, Zhenqian is sure that these are all maritime maps. He also told Sun Zhongshan that most of these pictures were made by Persians, and the "earthworms" on the pictures were very similar to the Persian characters he had seen in Shangjing. She also told her father: "The third brother has already written a letter, asking us to ask a translator who is proficient in Persian as soon as possible for our semicolon in Shangjing." ”

Huo Shiqi nodded with satisfaction. He looked at Erya appreciatively. It seems that in the past year or so in Yanzhou, Erya has also grown up, and she is no longer the crazy girl in Huojiabao at the beginning. At present, this girl is very measured and thoughtful, much more stable than her mother and her sister. The most rare thing is that this vision and decisiveness are a few points stronger than many men......

He asked Erya to put away all the pictures and asked her, "How did this picture come about?" "It's a good thing, but if it's not the right thing, this business can't be done.

"It fell from the sky. Delivered to the door by yourself. Er Ya said with a grin.

She carefully packed up the chart, folded it squarely and put it back in her purse, and then told her father the origin of the chart.

There is a person surnamed Qiu in the east of Yanzhou City, who went to the south with people to learn to do business at sea a few years ago, but the boat encountered strong winds and waves when he got off the sea, not to mention the loss of capital, and finally he couldn't even make up the cost of returning home. This man was arrogant, and he couldn't see the people around him speak coldly to him, let alone do the despicable thing of begging along the street, so he was ruthless, so he pawned himself as a miscellaneous servant on a sea ship, and drifted to Zhenla with the sea ship. Who knew that when the time came, he actually met a noble man in Zhenla. That noble man is the eldest daughter of the Auxiliary State of the Great Qin State and the secretary of the Ministry of Shangshu thousands of miles away, and originally went to Zhenla with her father to visit the emperor of Zhenla Kingdom, but the group encountered robbers on the outskirts of the capital of Zhenla Kingdom and robbed the road, and hundreds of people raised swords and guns at the same time, surrounding the young lady and her father's carriage. At this critical moment, the man surnamed Qiu happened to pass by, and when he saw that the road was uneven, he pulled out to help, and stood up with an impassioned speech, saying that the robbers put down their butcher knives and sincerely submitted. So this young lady of the Great Qin Kingdom thanked him for saving his life, and fell in love with him at first sight, so she had to marry him......

Huo Shiqi listened to her more and more unreasonable, and later it had completely become a common story of talented and beautiful women in singing books, so he couldn't help but interrupt her with a smile and asked, "Is this the surname Qiu himself telling, or did you make it up?" ”

Erya spat angrily and said, "I have nothing to do, what are I going to slander him for!" ”

At this time, the eldest girl had already washed the few clothes that her father had changed, and was building them one by one on the clothes pole under the eaves. She couldn't help but smile to prove for Erya that the stories were all told by the surnamed Qiu herself. She also said that in fact, as early as a few years ago, some people were talking about the surname Qiu, but at that time there was no young lady from the Great Qin Kingdom, but the daughter of a gentry family in the Zhenla Kingdom. Obviously, the landlord is definitely not as grand as the duke, and the landlord's daughter is definitely not as good as the young lady in the Fuguo family, and Zhenla, a small state that has turned into a foreign country, cannot catch up with the Great Qin State, which was in the history books hundreds of years ago, so the story gradually evolved into what it is now......

Huo Shiqi asked with a smile: "Did the surnamed Qiu finally agree to marry the young lady of the Great Qin Kingdom?" ”

"Nope!" Erya said, "The surnamed Qiu himself said that although he had never read a book, he also knew that 'poor and lowly friends should not be forgotten, and bad wives should not go to court', so he refused solemnly." He also said that this map was given by the young lady when he left Zhenla and got on the ship, and said that he would wait for him silently for the rest of his life in Daqin, which was thousands of miles away. She pouted as she spoke, obviously despising the boast of the surname Qiu.

Huo Shiqi didn't speak. Although he wanted to know how the surnamed Qiu could find a reason for him to sell his love goods, in front of his daughter, he still had to maintain his dignity as a father, so he could only sit with his pu fan in his pocket, pretending to be indifferent to this matter at all.

Erya said: "That surnamed Qiu is really not a thing!" He ......"

Huo Shiqi let out a puff of air from his nostrils and glared at his daughter sternly. Is this what the daughter of the Huo family can say?

Erya hurriedly shrunk her neck to admit her mistake: "Dad, I won't tell the story behind that." Me, I...... I can't say it either. Her face flushed, and it was clear that she had really encountered something she was ashamed to say.

The eldest girl took her sister's words and said, "Dad, I'll tell you." She stood behind her father, slowly rubbing his shoulders. Dad, do you know who the man surnamed Qiu is? ”

"Who?" Huo Shiqi asked strangely. Could it be that this person is still involved with the family? He thought quickly in his mind, and could no longer remember an acquaintance or colleague surnamed Qiu. He asked, "Who is this man?" ”

The eldest girl is probably the same as her sister, and she feels that the following words are a little difficult to say. She still regrets it a little. She really shouldn't have brought the conversation over. But the words are all at the beginning, and it's even worse not to say it. She was silent for a moment before she said, "Brother Shi, he is outside the city in front of him...... He's not out of the city, whatever...... You know that, right? ”

"Stones? What is he doing outside the city? Huo Shiqi was inexplicable when he heard this. Why did you suddenly mention Zhao Shishi? At the end of last year, Shi went to Yanshui's cavalry brigade to become a battalion lieutenant, what else can he have to do with the surname Qiu? Could it be that this man is a relative of the stone? He turned his face to look at his eldest daughter. The eldest daughter's pale cheeks were already stained with two crimson clouds. He glanced at his second daughter suspiciously. Erya buried her head, clasped her knees with both hands, and looked intently at the ants on the ground, she was so ashamed that her ears were red.

He remembered that the stone in front of him had hooked up with a woman outside the city; Could it be that the big girl is talking about this? But what does this have to do with the surname Qiu?

He suddenly understood: "The man surnamed Qiu is the man of the woman?" ”

The eldest girl nodded. Erya's neck was red, and she stared intently at the ant that circled around the table leg.

Huo Shiqi didn't know what to say for a while.

Zhao Shishi and the woman have been on good terms for several years, and the two of them have always thought that the surnamed Qiu had died in a foreign country a long time ago, and they originally said that they would get married at the end of last year, but a few days before they got married, the surnamed Qiu suddenly came back......

! He cursed hatefully in his heart. Even he didn't know who he was scolding.

He gritted his molars and was ruthless, swallowing and spitting, "Don't talk about this." How did the surnamed Qiu get these maps, did he make it clear? Because he was extremely angry with this guy surnamed Qiu, he even doubted this person's character. He was very worried that the sea maps in his daughter's hands were likely to be stolen goods.

“…… He insisted that it was given by the young lady of the Great Qin Kingdom. Erya said.

Huo Shiqi glared at his daughter fiercely. He said, "? Who can believe what such a person says? Who would dare to believe it?

"If he dares to say that, I will believe it." Erya said, "Anyway, what he said has been written in black and white, thirty-nine maps for eighty-three times, the buyer and the seller have two silver money and goods, and there is no more to do with it." There are fingerprints of the buyer and seller on the contract, the signature of the guarantor, and the official seal of Yanzhou Mansion as evidence, even if the young lady of the Great Qin Kingdom finds Yanshan, it has nothing to do with our family. ”

Huo Shiqi furrowed his brows and did not speak. Judging from his experience in running errands in Yixian Yamen, what Erya did seemed to be beautiful, but in fact, there was a great hidden danger. If the source of Yutu is not correct, and the crime of the surnamed Qiu is exposed, then this paper contract is actually useless. Well, no, the contract is useless and not right, it is still useful: this paper contract has finalized the crime of the Huo family and Liu Ji Warehouse for receiving stolen goods! No, you must immediately return the map to the person surnamed Qiu, and let him return the money he took back, even if he doesn't pay it back, he must hand over the contract in his hand! Also, I have to go to Yanzhou Mansion to remove the filing of the contract. He didn't have time to blame Erya, so he ordered a lot of things in a row. He even thought that if Erya came forward and the state government didn't buy it, he could go to Baokan and let him think of a way......

"I've already looked for Brother Bao." Erya said. Really, why does anyone think she is not down-to-earth? "I asked Brother Bao to send someone to interrogate them early in the morning, and these charts were stolen from a resting merchant when he was in Zhenla. But we didn't collect stolen goods, it was given to him by the young lady of the Great Qin State Auxiliary State and the Shangshu of the Ministry of Officials! She bit the "Great Qin Kingdom" and "Miss" very hard. "This is someone else's token of love, not stolen goods. There is a record in the government! ”

Since this is the case, then Huo Shiqi is relieved. He said, "Have you shown the chart to the monk?" ”

Erya took a small wooden stick and drew a circle around the ant, and after a while, she said, "What do you want to show him?" Doesn't he know anything about the sea? ”

Huo Shiqi nodded. He vaguely remembered that when he first met Shang Cheng, one night when the two of them were drinking and talking at Liu's house, Shang Cheng seemed to tell him something about the sea. But at that time, he just listened to it as gossip, and he just heard it and laughed. It's been a long time, and I can't remember what I said at the time...... He groaned for a moment and said, "Your eldest brother probably knows some things about the sea. Even if you don't understand, he has a wide range of horizons and knowledge, and he will definitely be able to give you some ideas. It's better than spending money behind closed doors. ”

"No, no." Erya said. She threw away the stick, clapped her hands, and said, "We've all said it's done, and everybody ignores him." ”

"We?" Huo Shiqi asked suspiciously.

"Sister, Sister Pan'er, Yue'er, and me." As if announcing a very great event, Erya said very seriously and solemnly, "We said that no one would pay attention to him." Let him go alone! ”

“…… Why? ”

"He's very busy now, and every day he thinks about begging a bearded girl to enter the door, so we won't trouble him."

"Hu Nu? What bearded girl? Huo Shiqi asked. The four girls discussed behind their backs and ignored Shang Cheng, but Shang Cheng praised and asked a bearded girl to enter the door? Is there anything more absurd in this world?

"It's the bearded girl who learned the piano from Xiao Niang, Sang Xiu." Erya said, "You also helped her say good things about the workshop last year, and asked the workshop to send her to Beijing Yiyi is the Hu girl Kabuki, and she is now back in Yanzhou." It is said that she is about to leave the music and enter the door of the Admiral's house. She flattened her mouth and was distracted, and then gritted her teeth and added hatefully, "Maybe when you get home, you can catch up with him to eat his favorite wine......

Erya's words, Huo Shiqi only dared to believe half of them. He was faithful about Hu Nu Sangxiu's return to leave his nationality, but he would never believe that the monk wanted to drink and beg for small things. He turned his head and asked, "What's the matter?" ”

The eldest girl didn't have any expression on her face, and she lightly told her father the origin of the matter: "...... At the beginning of June, some people were saying that the eldest brother monk and the bearded girl met in a post station, and they said, and said...... The two of them are lonely and widowed or something. Later, it was Brother Bao Kan who dragged a few officials who spread rumors everywhere into the Admiral's Mansion to teach him a lesson, so that no one dared to mention this matter. But two days later, someone said that the eldest brother monk went out of the city to meet the bearded girl when he was resting. This time the rumor spread even more, it is said that the guards around the eldest brother said it personally, and the person who spread the rumor was also the official who Mu Xiu went to the eldest brother's house to talk about official business that day, and they all heard what Fourth Uncle Duan said to Brother Bao, so they ...... Anyway, it's been talking about it all over the city these days. ”

Huo Shiqi felt a little dizzy. Monk, Hu Nu, post station, private meeting...... Why did he feel as if these things were not connected?

Seeing that her father didn't believe it, Erya stomped her feet and hurriedly said, "This is all true!" It's not like someone else is arranging him with nonsense! I asked the maids to ask the guards around him, and they all said that there were indeed these things! He's going to ask for that bearded girl! ”

"Don't worry, don't worry! Let me think about it......" Huo Shiqi waved his hand to stop the anxious Erya first. Why are the monk's guards involved again? Guards, guards......

He laughed and asked Erya, "Have you seen your eldest brother go out?" ”

"Yes." Erya said angrily with a stiff neck. What's so nice about him when he goes out, it's worth mentioning it specifically?

"Did he see it when he went up and down the yamen, or did he see it when he went out?"

"I've seen them all."

"You've seen it all, and you still believe those rumors?" Huo Shiqi patted the back of his daughter's hand twice and asked her with a smile. "Your eldest brother goes up and down the yamen, just walks a back street, and there are six or seven people around him, not to mention the places where he lives in the post station on business, where does he not go out of the house and hug dozens of people?"

"So what?"

"With so many people following, how can he have a private meeting?" Huo Shiqi picked up the bowl and took a sip of tea soup. I really can't find anything to do with these rumors, and I have to arrange something solid to arrange, right? The monk walked around the garden of his home twice, and the front and back doors of the garden with corner doors were standing guards, not to mention that in a place like the post station, the outpost soldiers would first make other arrangements for the post station to bring the officials and people, all kinds of idle people, etc., in this case, how could he have a private meeting with Hu Nu? Besides, if the monk really wants to meet someone privately, others may still hear some news? Is it true that the hundreds of guards in the Admiralty's Mansion are furnishings? One of their responsibilities is to block information that needs to be kept secret!

"Okay, let's not talk about it, you can go back too." He said to his two daughters, "Tell your mother, don't worry about me." I don't have much to do here. You guys too, don't let me worry about it here. He looked at his two daughters, thought for a while, and said, "Don't worry, I will take care of this matter one by one and wait for me to go back, even if I don't want to wipe this face, I will definitely make the decision for you!" ”

The eldest girl and the second girl blushed together. Of course they knew what their father was talking about. This was what they had been looking forward to day and night, but when it came, the two sisters didn't know what to say......

Just when the eldest girl was hesitant and biting her lip, someone knocked lightly twice on the courtyard door of the small courtyard:

"General Huo, one of your classmates came to visit, I wonder if it is convenient for you now?"