Arrived at the county seat?

Shang Cheng stared at the gray and yellow earthen wall in amazement, and his heart was shocked. Although he didn't know what kind of county Yi County was in the territory of Yanshanwei, and he didn't know whether Yi County was an important frontier town, how could this county be said to be on the southward passage of the grassland peoples, how could the city wall be rammed? He remembered that the cities he had visited, as long as there were ruins of city walls, no matter how big or small the ruins were, they were all large blue bricks lying horizontally to the top, and he had never seen a city wall made of earth......

He was shocked in his heart, but his face did not show it, and he silently followed Liu Yue'er along the root of the wall towards the city gate. As we got closer to the city walls, the situation of the walls became clearer and clearer. This city wall is indeed made of rammed earth, and some of the traces left by the rammed earth when the city was built can still be seen in the wall soil that has been peeled off for a long time. In some places, the rain has washed out deep crevices, and the vigorous grass has stubbornly taken root in the crevices, and now the spring is shining, and the green grass and red and white wildflowers are dotted on the ochre-yellow city walls. There were no battlements and enemy towers made of blue bricks in the city, only a wall of loess extending to the north and south. Shang Cheng visually measured it, and estimated that the city wall was about three times more than four times his height, less than one by one, he was one meter eighty-three, and the height of the city wall was about seven meters. It is about three miles wide from north to south, and if the width of the city wall is equal to that of north and south, the area of this county is more than two square kilometers. Above the gate, a small pavilion-like gatehouse made of wood, stood alone on the city wall. Leaning against the pillars on the left and right sides of the gatehouse, stood a soldier in armor. The soldier's helmet and cuirass were a black color, with little metallic sheen reflected in the sunlight.

When he reached the city gate, he couldn't walk. The road was crowded with people and carriages waiting to enter the county seat, and two or three hundred people and dozens of carriages were discharged along the road for a long time. A dozen or so guys, who looked dressed like ordinary people, danced their horsewhips and desperately drove the crowd to both sides of the road. There was also a man in a long robe standing in the middle of the road, and where he pointed, the whip-wielding men drove the people to the side of the road. The crowd buzzed with chatter. Shang Cheng neither heard nor understood clearly, knowing that there must be something wrong, and it was difficult to ask, so he only followed Liu Laozhu's father and daughter to the side of the road with the crowd.

Yue'er led Shang Cheng and her father around in the crowd and walked forward. I don't know if it's because I'm tired from walking, or because I'm excited to witness a lively scene, a circle of fine hair and sweat has appeared on her white forehead, and her little face is a little red. While squeezing towards the gate of the city, she explained to Shang Cheng in a low voice: "Today, a big official is going out of the city, and the people in the yamen are here to purify the road." ”

Shang Cheng was a cut taller than the people around him, turned his head and walked around, but he didn't see any unusual people, and asked strangely, "Great official?" What kind of big official? Is the county magistrate going out of the city? Watching Yue'er flexibly get under the neck of a mule, Shang Cheng couldn't help but be a little daze-one by one, his body was too tall, and the space under the mule's neck might not be enough. It was hard to watch Liu Laozhu drill through again, and he didn't know what to do. Next to the mule was a wagon that was crossing, blocking the gap on the side of the road. It was impossible to move the carriage to a different position, not to mention the sacks piled up on top of each other like a hill, and even the crowd around the carriage made the carriage not turn around at all. Shang Cheng glanced at Liu Yue'er, who was waving at him, glanced at the carriage again, and got into the carriage as soon as he carried the wheel, and got down from the other end of the wheel as soon as he lifted his foot

It was just such a blink of an eye, and he felt that several eyes fell on him.

The two servants in the yamen immediately pointed at him and shouted loudly.

Shang Cheng didn't understand what they were shouting, so he just took it as a warning, smiled at the two of them and took two more steps.

One of the officers pointed at him again and shouted; The other guy saw that Shang Cheng hadn't stopped yet, raised his arm and made a gesture, and three soldiers immediately ran from the direction of the city gate. The two soldiers wore black helmets, no armor, and wore slanted collars made of coarse cloth, with a belt tied around their waists, and carried in their hands wooden poles and iron-headed spears that were about the same size as Shang Cheng; The other did not carry a spear in his hand, but he wore a black helmet and black armor similar to that of the soldiers on the city gate, and carried a knife at his waist. The soldier with the knife saw Shang Cheng at a glance following the soldier's gaze, and he didn't say much, with a wave of his hand, the two soldiers scattered left and right, and the three people leaned over in a zigzag.

The people around Shang Cheng immediately flashed out like a plague. Even two or three men who were driving the carriage immediately hurriedly threw down the reins in their hands and fled aside. The three soldiers and the four servants in the yamen spread into a small half fan and pressed towards Shang Cheng.

"Shang! ......" Yue'er shouted anxiously. Seeing that Shang Cheng didn't seem to understand, she hurriedly said in official words, "Monk, don't move!" Don't move! ”

Listening to Yue'er's anxious shouts and seeing her frightened expression, Shang Cheng immediately understood. He immediately stopped, and raised his hands in front of the soldiers. He wanted to use this posture to show that he had no ill intentions and that he was not carrying a weapon.

But this action did not impress the soldiers and the messengers, who still approached slowly as if facing a great enemy, until the two sharpened spear tips, one left and the other right, almost pressed against his chest, and several people sighed with relief. But they still haven't let their guard down. The two messengers immediately pounced and searched Shang Cheng's entire body. The result, of course, was nothing. Seeing that Shang Cheng really didn't have a weapon hidden on his body, the junior officer asked Shang Cheng with a wooden face.

It's a pity that Shang Cheng couldn't understand a word of what the officer said. He could only try to make the expression on his face look scared and innocent, and at the same time raise his hands higher, indicating that it was just a misunderstanding. In fact, he was a little scared, and until now, the two sharp spear tips were still pressed against his chest. Looking at the two soldiers with calm expressions and indifferent eyes, he was absolutely sure that these two men would not hesitate to stab their spears into their bodies, if he did anything unusual now.

The officer asked again, seeing that Shang Cheng still only smiled and did not answer, he stared at the short hair on his head a few times before asking in a half-baked official dialect: "Where did you come from, the wild monk, didn't you hear that the messenger told you to stop?!" ”

This time, Shang Cheng understood, and without thinking about it, he said the origin that he had already silently recited in his heart many times: "I am from Jiazhou!" Jiazhou is here! I am a monk from the Great Buddha Temple in Jiazhou! He couldn't remember whether the temple on the head of the Leshan Giant Buddha was called the Big Buddha Temple. But he thought, since the Leshan Giant Buddha has become famous all over the world in this era, then it will not be too wrong to call that temple the Great Buddha Temple, in this small northern city, he will never meet someone who really knows the name of the temple, right?

"Jiazhou Big Buddha Temple?" The officer stared at Shang Cheng and looked up and down. He obviously still has some insight and knows the Jiazhou Giant Buddha. However, as soon as his gaze turned on Shang Cheng's clothes, he stretched out his hand, "Du!" ”

Shang Cheng froze suddenly. What is Degree? What the hell is Dumu?

His gaze was slightly dulled, and the officer immediately raised his arms......

Worst! Shang Cheng let out a wail in his heart. At this moment of life and death, he suddenly blessed his soul and shouted loudly: "Du Mu was robbed by bandits!" My luggage and parcels were robbed by bandits! It's in the package! At the last moment, he finally remembered what it was. In order to manage the monks and prove the identity of the monks, the imperial court issued an identity certificate to the monks and Taoists.

The officer squinted his eyes and looked at Shang Cheng carefully, and then slowly retracted his arm after a while.

He said succinctly, "Come with us!" ”

Walk? Where to go? Prison or cell? Shang Cheng muttered in his stomach. But now the situation was out of his control, and he had no other way to think of than to follow the officer towards the city gate under the watchful eye of two soldiers. His eyes also caught a glimpse of Liu Laozhu and Yue'er in the crowd, both of them looking panicked and at a loss. He smacked his lips, trying to make his expression look natural, and told the father and daughter, who were worried about him, with a smile in his eyes, that he would be okay one by one, but he was just taken by the officer for questioning, and it was a trivial matter......

But he knew in his heart that this could not be a trivial matter, and the excuse that he was robbed by bandits not only did not completely dispel the suspicions of the officers, but instead plunged himself into an unexpected disaster. Alas, not only did he not have a monk's degree, but he had never even seen what the excessive monk looked like, and now no one else needs to care about whether he has a degree or not, just casually ask a few questions about the appearance of the monk, and his identity as a fake monk can be immediately exposed. If the identity of the monk is fake, then his intentions here are very suspicious. In addition, this is a sensitive area in the border area, so no matter what his intentions are, and no matter what he wants to do, as long as he does not know where he came from, then his life journey may be completed soon......

It's useless to say anything now. He thought to himself, dejectedly. He now regrets only one thing: why did he admit that he was a monk, consciously or unconsciously, when others mistook him? He can completely fabricate a more reliable identity for himself! For example, he is a Hu merchant from a distant country, for example, he is a homeless person who has come from other places to join his relatives, for example......

The officers did not escort him into the city, but took him to the cave in the city gate. There were also a dozen soldiers standing there, some carrying spears and some carrying knives, and one soldier with a longbow in his hand and a pot of arrows diagonally on his back.

The officer pointed to the bulletin board against the city gate and said, "Stand there." Seeing Shang Cheng holding his head and trying to squat down, the officer shook his head and signaled that he didn't need to do this. Still, he warned Shang Cheng, "You'd better not move." You may not be able to understand my soldiers' shouts, and if there is a misunderstanding, you will be in trouble. Don't move, after a while, people from the yamen will come to you. It seems that he knows that Shang Cheng doesn't understand the local dialect.

Although the officer's tone of voice was still a cold and businesslike tone, Shang Cheng could hear the officer's concern for him. He nodded gratefully to the officer and stood shrunk from the bulletin board. It was very uncomfortable to stand like this, but he couldn't help it, the bulletin board was low, and if he straightened his body, his head would have to be resting on the eaves of the bulletin board...... However, he immediately understood why the officer knew that the bulletin board could not accommodate him, but still asked him to stand up, if he really wanted to behave a little unusually, the notice board behind him and the rain eaves on his head would restrict his movements......

He glanced at the officer with his lips. It's hard for this guy to think of this good way in such a short time. It so happened that the officer was also looking at him, and the two eyes met, and he clearly felt that the officer's gaze had a hint of careful observation. Not with hostile scrutiny, but with curious observation. It seems that the officer also knows that he has seen through his little tricks.

Since the officer would not be serious about dealing with him for a while, Shang Cheng's originally anxious mood calmed down a little. He can now calmly think about his way out. The identity of the monk cannot be denied, and Du Mu can only bite to death because he was robbed by bandits, if the messenger in the yamen asks him about the shape and content of Du Mu, he can only say that he is a little monk in the temple, neither literate nor brain, and he can't remember anything clearly. He knew that this statement was still full of loopholes, and it was unlikely to get away with it. But what else could he do? He can only bite himself to death now that he is a monk! The monk of the Great Buddha Temple in Jiazhou! As for whether others believe this nonsense...... Alas, leave it to fate......

Once he decided to leave his fate in the hands of God, his nervous mood was suddenly relieved. At this time, he found that his underwear had been soaked in cold sweat, and he was blown by the cold wind, and his chest, front and back were cold. His neck was a little sore after his head was lowered for a long time, and he couldn't help but want to raise his hand and rub it. But as soon as his arm moved, he noticed that several soldiers nearby were cautiously clenching their weapons. He smiled wryly and put his arm down again, forcing himself not to think about the sore muscles. But the more I tried to forget this feeling, the clearer it became, and gradually not only my neck was sore, but also my waist was uncomfortable, and the tense muscles in my abdomen were even more abrupt and almost spasmodic...... He gasped for a few quick breaths before he could suppress the uncontrollable thought of moving his hands and feet. You can't go on like this, you have to find something for yourself to do, you have to divert your attention! Otherwise, you don't have to wait for the messengers in the yamen to come and interrogate you, and the spear tips of these soldiers around you are likely to pierce into your body first!

There were also two people around who were dressed like the officer, also in black helmets and black armor. The distance was close, Shang Cheng could see more clearly, although they cleaned the armor very cleanly, but a faint dark red could still be seen in the cracks of the armor on the side of the helmet. Shang Cheng guessed that the dark red thing should be rust. In this way, these three officers and the soldiers on the tower of the city gate are probably wearing iron helmets and iron armor. As for the black color, it may be that the measures taken to prevent the armor from oxidizing and rusting are applied to the armor with black paint, which can reduce the chance of contact between iron and air and prolong the life of the armor.

It seems that the level of iron smelting in this era is not high......

Cotton cloth has become widespread, iron has been used on a large scale and the level of smelting is not high, and the threat of the steppe peoples is always present, these three disconnected things may bring him closer to the historical coordinates of this era. That's right, and words! The degree of development of words can also clearly outline the times!

There were two notices posted on the bulletin board. It's been a long time, and the words have been so rained that they are illegible, leaving only a black cloud of ink. The other one is obviously posted in the last two or three days, not only is there no trace left by the wind and rain on the paper, but also exudes a strong ink fragrance, but I don't know which guy's handwriting this proclamation is from, the structure between the lines of the word is completely disorganized, one horizontal and one vertical thickness is uneven, some are top-heavy, some are unbalanced, the whole text is twisted and oblique, looking like a children's graffiti when learning words. Or it doesn't even count as graffiti, because many characters are unrecognizable.

"Proclamation. Admiral Yanshanwei ● (The word is not clear.) The same applies hereinafter. Tell the whole territory that there are Huanzhou bandits ● Yanshan Zuo ● Zhu Zi bandit head broke through the sky below the three hundred and six ● three people ● hereby declare ● ● April of the 17th year of the Eastern Yuan Dynasty ● "

The payment of time is stamped with the official seal of the county order of Yi County.

It seems that this proclamation was written by a certain secretary in the county office. With a faint mocking smile on the corner of Shang Cheng's mouth, he thought, this bookmaker who wrote the article couldn't be the eldest girl's father Huo Qiqi, right?

The writing of the text is very poor, but Shang Cheng can still see some clues Although the words on the proclamation are ugly and ugly, this is only caused by the writer's own reasons, and has nothing to do with the words themselves! The structure of these characters is rigorous, the font is upright, the top and bottom are symmetrical and full, and they should be mature regular script fonts! The regular script is a script that gradually matured after the Tang Dynasty......

Regular script text, which shows that this era will not be earlier than the Middle Tang Dynasty; The large-scale promotion of cotton planting and the popularization of cotton cloth should be a matter of the Southern Song Dynasty, which shows that the time cannot be earlier than the Northern Song Dynasty; There are nomads in the north who threaten the Central Plains at all times, which shows that the time will not be later than the Qing Dynasty. To sum up, the era he came to can only be one of the three dynasties of the Song, Yuan, and Ming dynasties!

Carefully deduce down one by one, this is Yanshanwei, there is Bohaiwei in the east, just by virtue of these two place names, you can cross out the Southern Song Dynasty that is located in the half of the south of the Yangtze River; It was also impossible for the Yuan Dynasty, the Mongols themselves were nomadic peoples, and it was impossible for them to be harassed by the northern steppe peoples; In this way, the rest of the time can only be the Northern Song Dynasty or the Ming Dynasty. The possibility of the Ming Dynasty is not very likely, especially the earthen city wall in front of him, which makes him feel that he cannot come to the Ming Dynasty that built the Great Wall with bricks, and he is in the northern frontier, and no one has mentioned the Great Wall until now, which strengthens his idea of excluding the Ming Dynasty from the possibility. He felt that the most likely time was the Northern Song Dynasty! All the information he obtained located the coordinates of time in the Northern Song Dynasty!

But he still felt that there was something wrong with his judgment.

The Northern Song Dynasty's enemies in the north were the Liao state established by the Khitans, not the inexplicable Tuqi people; The relationship between the Northern Song Dynasty and the Liao State does not seem to be so tense, on the way to the county seat one by one, what did Liu Yue'er say? The Turks burned the two county towns of Bohaiwei to the ground? In his impression, it seems that the relationship between the Northern Song Dynasty and Liao is about to end, right? Although neither side looked at anyone who was unpleasant, but no one seriously offended anyone, until the Jurchens attacked the Liao State, the Northern Song Dynasty hurriedly tore up the alliance with the Liao and stabbed their allies in the back......

It's too complicated! He threw his head hard. The bits and pieces of information he knew still did not allow him to correctly judge the date, and he could only vaguely conclude that it was sometime after the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms and before the Yuan Dynasty. Although there were only the Northern Song Dynasty and the Southern Song Dynasty during this period, although he knew that he would definitely not be in the Southern Song Dynasty, he still couldn't believe that he was at a certain point in time in the Northern Song Dynasty.