Hearing that Wang Zaijin said that he wanted to see the token, the soldiers immediately went to get a flat thing slightly larger than a palm and handed it into the sedan chair, and by the way, he also brought the woman who stopped the sedan chair. Wang Zaijin frowned and turned over the black flat thing for a while, and suddenly his heart moved, he opened the sedan curtain and looked at the woman in front of the sedan chair and asked, "What's your name?" Who is this inkstone? ”

Wang Zaijin said that it was an inkstone, and the soldiers thought to themselves: "The eyes of adults are not good?" The puddles of candles on top of this are all burnt candles, and they should be candlesticks. ”

The woman in front of the sedan chair heard Wang Zaijin's question and said: "The name of the folk girl is Xiugu, and this inkstone is a relic of the folk girl's mother." ”

Wang Zaijin couldn't help but lose his mind when he heard the word relic, and asked, "What's your mother's name?" ”

Xiugu said: "When my mother died, the folk girl was still young, but I remembered in a trance that someone called her Honggu. ”

"Honggu?" Wang Zaijin was excited when he heard Xiugu's words, and slowly calmed down and asked, "Who is your father?" What's the matter with stopping the official's sedan chair? ”

Xiugu said: "The folk girl doesn't know who the folk girl's father is, and she has never seen his appearance. Because the mother of the folk girl said before she died, if you encounter something difficult in the future, you can use this thing to find adult help. ”

Wang Zaijin heard Xiu Gu say that he didn't know who her father was, his eyes widened suddenly, and he asked in a low voice, "What year were you born?" How do you happen to know that this official is going to pass through here? ”

At this time, the soldier whispered beside him: "My lord, it's inconvenient to talk on the street, and now there are a lot of people blocked in front and back, why don't you find an inn first and then go in and ask slowly?" ”

Wang Zaijin looked at the onlookers around him, nodded and said, "You can arrange it." ”

At this time, Xiu Gu said: "Don't be so troublesome, the folk girl lives in the alley in front, I wonder if the adult can follow the folk girl to the house for a while?" ”

Wang Zaijin thought for a while and said, "Okay, you lead the way." ”

The group followed Xiu Gu from the street into the alley and walked for a while into a small courtyard, Wang Zaijin asked someone to park the sedan chair in the courtyard, and he followed Xiu Gu into the hall. Xiu Gu invited Wang Zaijin to sit on the chair, and went to pour a bowl of water herself, put it on the table in front of the chair, and invited Wang Zaijin to drink. Wang Zaijin asked in a low voice, "You haven't answered my question yet, how old are you this year?" How did you happen to find me? ”

Xiugu said: "I was born in the twentieth year of Wanli, and I am four years old Chinese New Year's Eve today. I wait at the mouth of the alley every morning and evening, just to be able to see you from afar. Tears were already streaming from his eyes after saying this.

Wang Zaijin said in his mouth: "Twenty years of Wanli." I can't help but think of the past more than 30 years ago. In the nineteenth year of Wanli, Wang Zaijin was eighteen years old, and was preparing to participate in the examination of the twentieth year of Wanli, because his family was afraid of the long distance in the south and missed the exam, so he came to his uncle's house in the suburbs of Beijing half a year in advance to borrow and study by the way. Eighteen or nineteen years old is the age of blood and strength, and it is inevitable that he will be a little lonely after studying, and it just so happens that his uncle has a daughter, who is his little cousin, who likes to talk to him. The little cousin Fangling is ten years old and very lively and cute, often pesters Wang Zaijin to let him tell stories, and often asks Yahuan to send food and drink to Wang Zaijin, but Wang Zaijin is impatient and perfunctory little doll, but has a strong interest in the big girl Huan who the little cousin often sends to send things. There is no impermeable wall in the world, and his uncle didn't blame him when he found out, but just told him to study hard, and after he passed the Jinshi examination, he gave him this girl ring called Honggu. Driven by the power of love, Wang Zaijin lived up to the title of the gold list, and immediately after winning the Jinshi, he married a young lady from a famous family under the arrangement of the family, and went to his uncle's house to find Honggu a few months after marriage, only to know that his wife already knew the existence of Honggu, and asked someone to pick up Honggu from his uncle's house in advance and send him to another country. The small inkstone in his hand now is the inkstone that Honggu often gave him ink back then, and it is a token he gave to Honggu before leaving. Thinking of the scene of "reading at night with red sleeves and incense", and just knowing that the beauty of the year is now ancient, Wang Zaijin couldn't help but feel a little sad, and only said in a low voice after a while: "Aunt Xiu, you said that you watched me pass by here at the entrance of the alley every morning and evening?" ”

Xiu Gu nodded with red eyes and didn't speak, Wang Zaijin said: "Then you should already know who I am, who else is in your family?" How did you get to the capital? ”

Xiugu said: "Before my mother died, she entrusted me to a neighbor when I was a child, and later married the only son of the neighbor's family, and we moved here after my parents-in-law died. My husband was a soldier guarding the city gates, and we had five sons, the first three of whom did not support the first three and the two were still young. After speaking, he shouted to the inner room: "Big Mao and Little Mao come out to meet people." ”

I saw two eleven or twelve-year-old boys walking out, leaning up to Xiugu's side and looking at Wang Zaijin timidly.

Wang Zaijin stretched out his hands and said, "Come here, let me hug me." ”

The two children glanced at Xiu Gu, and when they saw Xiu Gu nodding, they slowly moved over, Wang Zaijin put his arm around one and asked, "You said that you encountered great difficulties, what happened to be difficult?" ”

Xiugu said: "The child, when his father was guarding the city gate, he ran into an official eunuch's house, and his boss locked him up, and it was said that he would quietly kill him to make people angry, and I had no choice but to come to you." ”

Wang Zaijin said: "Who did you collide with? ”

Xiugu said: "It is the family of a senior official surnamed Sun, and I heard that this senior official has led troops in Liaodong and seems to be the emperor's master." ”

Wang Zaijin said: "Sun Chengzong? This dead old man can't get along with me again. Then he called the soldiers and said: "Take my piece to the Wucheng Soldiers and Horses Division and ask them to release the person, and by the way, go to Lord Sun's mansion and say that the person is my relative, and ask Lord Sun to raise his noble hand." ”

After the soldiers went, Wang Zaijin said: "I left in a hurry today and didn't bring anything, and I will come to see you tomorrow." ”

Xiu Gu agreed, and then sent Wang Zaijin out of the house.

The next day, after Wang Zaijin saw Sun Chengzong in the Military Affairs Yuan, he said: "I heard that the relatives of the lower officials have collided with the family of Lord Sun, and the lower officials have made amends here, asking for your forgiveness." ”

Sun Chengzong said: "It's nothing, but I don't know what kind of relative this person is of Lord Wang?" Why are you still guarding the city gate when you are almost forty? Why not give it a little promotion? ”

Wang Zaijin said: "It's not a person, but it has something to do with it, anyway, it's just the official to get your affection." ”

Sun Chengzong laughed when he heard this.

After eating and resting for a while at noon, Sun Chengzong found Wang Zaijin and said: "Lord Wang, the emperor is very attentive to the suggestions made by the four people in the Military Staff Department yesterday, especially the thing that can be thrown out and bombed according to the principle of musket explosion, and ordered Ni Yuanlu to be in charge, but the specific matters such as site selection, dispatching people, and spending money need to be discussed by the two of us. ”

I heard that it was the emperor's confession, and Wang Zaijin couldn't say anything, so he hurriedly discussed with Sun Chengzong one by one to confirm, with his original habit, as long as Sun Chengzong proposed it, he had to find some fault, but he agreed to it today, which made Sun Chengzong very surprised, and almost wanted to test it and say that he sold his wife to see if he agreed. After everything was finalized, Wang Zaijin rushed out of the military affairs as if he had received a military order.

Wang Zaijin came to yesterday's alley, and saw many people blocking the door of the courtyard from a long distance away, Wang Zaijin immediately stopped and asked people to inquire what was going on. After a while, the soldiers said, "Report to your lordship, it's the lady and the son who are inside." ”

Wang Zaijin said: "Why are they here? As he spoke, he walked inside, and the onlookers next to him gave way when they saw him coming.

As soon as I entered the door, I heard my wife asking Aunt Xiu: "Little sister, tell me what is your relationship with my master?" Actually, it doesn't matter what your relationship is, how about you go home with me now? ”

Xiu Gu just lowered her head and put her arms around a boy with one hand, and didn't say anything despite everyone's gossip and inquiry, and sometimes raised her head to look around.

After Wang Zaijin entered the door, he looked at the people in the courtyard, they were all servants and maids of his own family, and his son stood quietly by the courtyard gate and did not speak. Wang Zaijin asked, "What are you doing here?" Who asked you to come? ”