After Xiaoman, there has never been a rain in the northern part of Yanzhong, and there have been a few times when the light rain is sparse and almost not wet, and the clouds will immediately disperse as soon as the wind blows. For more than 20 consecutive sunny days, the poisonous sun of the white flame roasted the ground and rolled smoke. On the post road connecting the two states of Yanfang, the yellow dust floating soil can be four fingers thick, step on it and go around the foot to raise a circle of white mist, and lifting the foot is a deep sunken foot print. In such a hot weather, even the summer cicadas don't have the strength to sing. They lurk in the deepest part of the branches that are not exposed to the sun, and it is not until the coolness of the evening comes up that they come back to life.

Zhangguo is a very common market town on this important post road. The town is not big, there are only twenty or thirty families, and there are no more than 200 men and women together, and in fact, it is not even a small village elsewhere. Speaking of which, if there can be a small town here, we have to talk about a heavy rain in the 16th year of the Eastern Common Era. The rain collapsed half of the dirt mountain a few miles to the south, and the rolling down mud and rocks also blocked the old post road, so the officials moved the new post road here. Because there are several small holes on the top of a big mountain rock not far from the town, it looks like the traces of the donkey's hooves, and some people will say that it is left by the immortal Zhang Guo's divine donkey, so the official named this place Zhang Guo. And because there is a post station in the market town, some people call this place Zhangguoyi.

Like the market town, the Zhangguo Post Station is not large, the front and back courtyards are added together, and there are only eight or nine main houses. Yi Cheng and his family occupy two rooms in the backyard, two post men with a family each live in one, and one is "borrowed" by Yi Cheng's brothers who sell tea and rice in the market for a long time, so what can really come in handy is only the three and a half rooms in the front yard, and there are small half houses piled up with all kinds of rags that Yi Cheng's mother is reluctant to throw away. This is clearly illegal. According to the Dazhao post road system, whether it is a post or a post ding, there is a special accommodation subsidy on a monthly basis; Although Yicheng is just a small official who does not enter the stream, in the spring and autumn of each year, the state and county will also give a small amount of money, grain, and silk cloth subsidies to Yicheng's family...... Fortunately, there are not many big businessmen who go back and forth between Yanfang and Yanfang to do business, and the officials who come and go dislike the remoteness and depression here, and there are two post houses located in the bustling and lively market less than thirty miles from east to west, so most of the people with a bit of status only have a thirst here. In this way, although there were people coming and going in the post station, no one paid attention to the "small actions" of a small post man.

The day before the summer solstice, the weather was hotter than usual, and for a whole day, from the hour to the hour of the sun, the scorching sun scorched the mountains and rivers everywhere, and the roads, trees, houses, fields, or late-maturing crops in the fields were all like a layer of mist, slowly twisting and swaying in the steaming heat...... It was not until the end of the day that the heat of the dying gradually subsided.

Today's weather is big, there are not a few rushing traders on the road, and there is no accommodation to borrow, Hu Kang and the two postmen of Zhangguo Post Station are happy to be idle, the summer just saw a little subsidence, they each dragged a bench to occupy a place under the old huai outside the post station to enjoy the cool, shaking the pu fan and chatting without a word. talked about the dispatch of troops to the grassland some time ago, and talked about the killing of officials in Duanzhou for a while, and waited for the mothers-in-law to send large bowls and small pots of night dinner, and the topic had already been pulled far away.

Hu Kang's gown was not buttoned, his skinny chest was open, three fingers were pinching the sea bowl that was bigger than his face, holding two mixed noodle buns in one hand, and one in his hand, chewing the buns and sucking the hot noodle soup in the bowl in circles, eating with sweat on his face, and taking the time to tell the two posters about what he had seen and heard when he went to the county seat to receive money and grain a few days ago: "...... Don't you see, that Persian bearded girl is really handsome! The skin and flesh are so white that they can dazzle people's eyes. The hand was as tender as the bud that had just been spit out from the willow tree by the river in February. The eyes are as big as the apricot fruit of the old apricot tree in the east. And that breast, can it be so big......" He stretched out his arms, grabbed the bun with the bowl and made a circle on his chest, and said, "At least it's that big!" "I looked at my arm, and felt that it didn't seem to be enough, and it stretched out again." …… Almost, it's that big! One by one, especially those eyes, just like the living, glance at you, can hook away people's souls! ”

The two posters were already stupid when they were talking out. Seeing Hu Kang smacking his tongue and sighing with his eyes closed, they all urged him: "Say it quickly, and then what?" ”

"And then? And then what? ”

"And then what?"

"Then," Hu Kang said half a sentence and then stopped talking, buried his head in hula hula eating and drinking, swallowed the bun and drank the soup in a few strokes, the big sea bowl was thrown towards the foot of the bench, wiped his mouth and sighed comfortably, and lay down on his arm, and then said: "...... Then I drove my horse back. ”

The story is gone, and the two posters regretfully sighed twice, and naturally they lost interest, and ate and drank the night dinner in a few bites. When the mother-in-law came out and cleaned up the dishes and chopsticks, it was cool for a while, and when she saw that it was already dark, the three of them combined, and estimated that there would be no more travelers today. I didn't want to waste oil and light the lamp at night, so I picked up the bench and prepared to go back and put my mother-in-law to sleep.

At this very moment, a slow sound of horses' hooves came from the bend in the west post road, and then a carriage was seen creaking and grinding over the floating earth. There are also more than a dozen bare-ass belly pocket dolls on the set screaming and making noise, running in front of and behind the car to see the rarity.

The carriage stopped at the entrance of the inn. The coachman didn't get out of the car in a hurry, first took off the hat, picked up the gown to wipe the sweat, then took out the gourd to drink water, hung a whip on the wheel, jumped out of the carriage and pulled his clothes and shook off the dust. The coachman frowned, walked two steps on crutches, and said in an authentic Shangjing accent: "Girl, it's late, my old cold leg also hurts badly, and I'm afraid of a heavy rain tonight." It's a post station. Otherwise, let's stop here. Luckily? ”

Because of the heat, the door curtain was half-rolled, and the light in the compartment was dim, and there was more than one person to be seen. Hu Kang stared at the beads of his eyes and didn't wake up yet, and he looked at them like dolls, when he heard someone in the compartment say "oh" in a low voice. Immediately, a little girl with a comb and a bun poked her head out and glanced at the post station, then turned her eyes and looked at Hu Kang and the three of them, and said to the car: "Girl, there is really a post station." The banner reads 'Zhangguo Station'. There are also words on it, I can't read clearly, and I don't know where it is. ”

"It's Zhang Guo...... Then we haven't walked through Linxi County yet. "But soon," said the girl. Then go to Yanzhou. At most, there will be two or three days to reach Yanzhou Mansion. After a pause, he said, "Then, uncle, go and ask, see if there is any room vacant in the inn?" ”

This girl's voice was really good, clear and crisp, with a slight echo, and it fell on Hu Kang's ears, as if she had bitten a piece of ice in her mouth on a dog day, and her whole body was cool and cheerful; I feel like there are cat's paws scratching in my heart, and I always feel that I can't hear enough and want to listen to her more. The words were said to the coachman, but it was also like saying to them, Hu Kang had not yet spoken, and the two postmen nodded vigorously: "Yes!" Vacant upper room! There is an empty upper room! ”

"Well, let's rest here."

The coachman agreed, took the step stool from the wheel and put it on the ground. As soon as the curtain of the car was lifted, the little girl just now jumped down with a small blue cloth bag on her arm, and asked before she could stand on her feet: "Lord Postman, do you have hot soup here?" My girl has been on the road for a day and needs to wash up! ”

"Yes! Yes! A post boy didn't know what "hot soup" was at all, and thought it was hot noodle soup, and his mouth agreed randomly, but his eyes stared at the bearded girl who came down without blinking, and asked in a noisy whisper, "Hu Tou, this, this...... This is the one you saw in the county, that wave ...... Persian bearded woman? ”

Hu Kang swallowed his saliva and nodded vigorously. In fact, he couldn't tell whether this bearded girl was the bearded girl or not. Both of them are tall and have brown and red hair, both of them hold crumbling high buns, both have high noses and deep eye sockets, both have big blue eyes that are the same color as Xiang Qingtian, and their breasts are bulging......

With the help of two enthusiastic coachmen, a large half-heavy box from the carriage was easily carried to the upper room. One of the two posters went to shout at his mother-in-law to hurry up to make hot noodle soup, and the other instructed the coachman to unload the car, led the horse to the stable in the backyard, and explained how to get forage and drinking water. The Hu girl was not in the upper room, only the little girl stood at the table with a smile. Hu Kang was lying on the table, using the oil lamp to "trace patterns" on the books where he was staying overnight, with a pen and a pen according to a wooden sign.

Seeing that Hu Kang was "drawing" hard, the little girl smiled and said, "My lord, why don't I write it for you?" This is the magpie painting card of the inner teaching workshop, and the words are all along with the painting, which is not easy to recognize. ”

Hu Kang was so busy that his face was sweating, knowing that the little girl was deliberately looking at her own ugliness, and he was not angry, so he handed her the pen and books, and asked with a smile: "Your girl, is it from the teaching workshop in Yanzhou?" "He'd heard about the Inner Workshop. That's a big place. I don't know how many of the big singing books and big dramas that are circulating in the market are from the inner teaching workshop. There are also Nangong Niangzi and Mo Xi'er, who are famous for singing books in the county, Zhang Sanniang, who speaks big books, and Wu Niangzi, who chant long and short tunes, all of whom also say that they learned their skills in Yanzhou. However, he has also heard that in fact, Wu Niangzi is not a teacher from the inner workshop, so mile, although her singing book is also the most top-notch, but her identity is inferior to others......

"What." The little girl flattened her mouth as she wrote, "Our girl is not from Yanzhou Sect." ”

It's not Yanzhou Neifang? Hu Kang was surprised. He immediately thought of the coachman's eyes, demeanor, and momentum...... Yikes! It seems to be more graceful than the county officials. His attitude also became cautious.

"My girl is the best in Yuxinfang!" The little girl said proudly.

Of course, Hu Kang didn't know what Yuxinfang was, and he didn't understand what it meant to be "popular" in Shangjing. He blinked and looked at the little girl with more respect, waiting for her next step.

"Yuxinfang in Shangjing, haven't you heard of it?"

Of course Shangjing knows, but Shangjing Yuxinfang ...... Isn't it famous? Is this the name of the workshop, or is it ...... Or what yamen?

"It's the Ministry of Rites that will take down Yuxin Fang!" After the little girl finished writing, she put the pen on the table and said very imposingly, "The first square of the inner garden!" My girl is the first square of the inner garden! ”

The word "Ministry of Rites" stunned the three of them. I've never heard of the "Inner Garden", but it's clear that it's not an ordinary place. It is likely to be an important yamen of the imperial court!

Yikes! Is this bearded girl so big? It's still an official of the Ministry of Rites?

The three of them immediately and respectfully withdrew from the upper room. They didn't dare to disturb the rest of the adults.