Xie Qingyuan, who was wearing a half-worn coarse cloth short jacket, walked silently through the crowds on the street, staring closely at You Sanniang who was walking in front, but saw that the woman had bought some sugar crispy pickled vegetables along the way, wrapped them in oil paper and carried them in her hands, and swayed into the alley, turning east and west, but the residence was the backyard of a tiled house in Cowhide Alley.

When the woman came to the door, she pushed open the hidden wooden door and went in, but when she entered the house, she did not unlock it, and it was evident that there were still people in the house. Xie Qingyuan walked back and forth twice from outside the door, and observed the surrounding environment, this cowhide alley is quite secluded with the back of the street, and there are not many pedestrians coming and going. There were several leather workshops in the alley, and a trolley creaked over, and a handful of raw hides were piled high on the cart, pushing into the back door of the workshop, and a smell of raw hides and the nitrate water from the leather processed in the workshop came to his nose, making Xie Qingyuan frown.

Xie Qingyuan looked left and right, and took advantage of the fact that there was no one in the alley, and approached the door of the woman's residence. Faintly hearing laughter in the room, and the sound of the floor, he took a few steps back, and looked up at the attic window, and in a moment there were several faint gasps and crashing sounds wafting from the window.

The wagons for the hides were unloaded in the workshop and rolled out empty. The man with the cart glanced up at Xie Qingyuan, Xie Qingyuan hurriedly pretended to pass by, lowered his head and walked deeper into the alley, and only turned back when the trolley turned around at the end of the alley.

Xie Qingyuan didn't know why Xu Ying wanted to kill this woman herself, and he wasn't stupid enough to ask. It's not that he hasn't killed people before, he has killed Mongolian soldiers, Tatar soldiers, Ming rebels, bandits, but that was on the battlefield. It was the first time for him to kill an unknown woman in an alley in this city. Xie Qingyuan felt sweat in his palms and a dry mouth, a feeling he had only experienced when he first went to the battlefield many years ago.

There was the sound of a woman cursing and throwing things in the room, and then there was a sound of footsteps coming towards the wooden door. Xie Qingyuan hurriedly turned his back, pretended to be passing by, and secretly looked back to observe. But he saw a short and strong man come out of the door, and while scolding, he threw a silver ingot in his hand and weighed it, put it in his sleeve, and swaggered towards the entrance of the alley.

Xie Qingyuan waited for the man to disappear away, turned back and came to the wooden door, calmed down, stretched out his hand and gently pushed, and the wooden door creaked and opened a crack. He entered the door sideways, closed the door with his backhand, and bolted the door, but saw that there was a very small half courtyard inside, and a few bunches of garlic and bacon hung under the eaves on the west side of the courtyard, and through the window you could see the stove and pot in the house, and the door of the house on the north side was ajar, which should be the place where the master lived and entertained.

Xie Qingyuan tiptoed inside, and as soon as he stepped into the north door, he heard the sound of the floor in the house.

"Dead ghost, you lost it all so quickly?" The woman came down from the attic and spoke half-disgusted, half-joyed.

Xie Qingyuan stepped forward, but saw that the woman's hair was scattered, and the blue armor buttons on her body were not fully buttoned, and she looked at herself with a shocked look on her face.

"You—" The woman opened her mouth to shout, but Xie Qingyuan reached out and pinched the woman's throat as quickly as lightning. The woman's mouth was open, her face was the color of pig's liver, and her throat was full of lotus, but she could no longer cry out.

With a whoosh, the dagger was drawn out and placed on the woman's neck.

"Hero...... Spore ......" You Sanniang's eyes showed an extremely frightened look, and a few words were squeezed out of her throat indistinctly, and her body trembled like a sifting chaff.

Xie Qingyuan felt that his hand holding the short knife was trembling slightly, and he smelled a foul smell, but it was the woman who was frightened and incontinent, and she wet her pants.

"Good man......, spare me, I will depend on you for everything......" You Sanniang squeezed the words hard in her throat, raised her hands and held Xie Qingyuan's wrist holding the knife, but she didn't dare to use her strength to break it, for fear of annoying the other party, the other party would immediately go under the knife.

Xie Qingyuan's eyes stared at the woman, and he subconsciously shook his head slightly.

"You ......, it was the slut surnamed Xu who sent you......" The woman's eyes showed an extremely resentful look, and she grabbed Xie Qingyuan's wrist with both hands and struggled hard.

As soon as Xie Qingyuan gritted his teeth, the short knife in his hand slammed down, the voice in You Sanniang's throat disappeared suddenly, her body began to twitch violently, and the hands holding Xie Qingyuan's wrists hung down softly.

Footsteps sounded in the attic, Xie Qingyuan looked up, but saw a seven- or eight-year-old half-old child running down the stairs. Before he finished going down the stairs, he saw the terrifying scene in front of him, the child was stunned, his eyes met Xie Qingyuan's, his face showed a frightened expression, his mouth opened wide, but he couldn't make a sound.

The muscles on Xie Qingyuan's face froze, he didn't expect that in addition to the woman and the man, there was a child in this house.

You Sanniang's arm was raised again, holding Xie Qingyuan's arm weakly, the break in her throat leaked out, and a faint babbling sound came out of her mouth. Xie Qingyuan saw that You Sanniang's face, which had originally turned the color of pig liver, began to turn white, and her blank eyes looked at her, and two lines of turbid tears flowed out of the corners of her eyes. He knew that the woman was begging him to spare her child before she died.

Xie Qingyuan turned his head, not daring to look at the woman's eyes again, but the woman's hand scratched weakly on his arm, drawing his gaze back. Seeing that the convulsions of the woman's body were getting weaker and weaker, and the hand on his arm was becoming weaker and weaker, Xie Qingyuan nodded to the woman silently, and the woman's hand slipped down from his arm, her eyes were closed, and her whole body collapsed softly.

There was a sudden knock on the door outside the yard, Xie Qingyuan was startled, but he saw the child on the stairs who was stunned when he heard the knock, as if he had suddenly woken up, screaming for help, and ran down the stairs towards the yard. Xie Qingyuan stepped forward to stop the child, lifted him up like an eagle catching a chicken, the short knife in his hand was reversed, and the handle of the knife knocked on the back of the child's head, and the child suddenly fainted.

The knockers outside the courtyard seemed to hear the shouts and movements inside, and the knocking became more and more abrupt, and the voice of a young woman came in from outside the door.

"You Sanniang, open the door quickly, if you don't open the door again, the slave family will call someone......"

Xie Qingyuan's body shook suddenly, and he immediately stood on the spot. This woman's voice sounded so unforgettable to Xie Qingyuan, he would not forget it even if he died.

With the thought in his heart, Xie Qingyuan took a step forward, and he thought of ascending the attic from the stairs, and then jumped out of the attic window. Although the window was only a few feet away from the courtyard door, as long as he got outside the house, he ran away with his face covered, and the woman outside the door couldn't catch up with him.

But ......, no! You can escape, but you can't let the woman outside the door fall into a whirlpool. Xie Qingyuan's face changed rapidly, and he could hear the sound of his own heartbeat.

In front of the secluded courtyard gate in Cowhide Alley, Xiao Yu banged on the door heavily, and the faint shouts and abnormal movements from the house made her feel a sense of foreboding.

The door opened, and a man in a half-worn coarse cloth jacket appeared in front of him, this man was in a sturdy figure, and there was a faint rebellious air between his eyebrows.

"Is that you?" Xiao Yu recognized this person as the sergeant who helped her on the second day of junior high school, and somehow in her heart, she always had a sense of déjà vu about this person.

"Why are you here? What about You Sanniang? Xiao Yu looked at Xie Qingyuan vigilantly, and took a step back.

"Madam, it's dangerous here, please leave quickly." Xie Qingyuan stepped out of the door and closed the door with his backhand.

"What danger? What are you doing here? Xiao Yu took two more steps back and looked left and right into the alley.

"Madam-" Xie Qingyuan stretched out his hand into his arms, Xiao Yu was afraid that he would take out the murder weapon and shout.

"Madame, don't panic." Xie Qingyuan took out a silver bracelet from his arms and stretched out his hand to hand it out. Xiao Yu was startled, and his eyes couldn't help but fall on the silver bracelet, only to see the begonia pattern on the flat bracelet surface, and the two lines of yang inscription in the middle "And the city is captivating, the sound of the arbor warbler".

"My ......" Xiao Yu showed a look of surprise in his eyes, "This bracelet?" Why is it in your hands? ”

"Madame, this is not the place to speak." Xie Qingyuan bowed and said.

Xu Ying returned from the barracks under the escort of the guards of the General's Mansion, entered the Hanging Flower Gate, and walked in from the verandah. The snow in the verandah had been cleared, the yard was covered in silver, the flowers and trees were dressed in qiong costumes, and she saw from a distance that the second sister-in-law Zhang was busy carrying furniture and things on the other side of the east wing.

"Second sister-in-law Zhang, what's going on over there in the East Wing?" Xu Ying called someone to find Zhang's second sister-in-law and asked.

"Back to the young grandmother's words, it's the general's general's ...... The woman settled in the east wing, and asked the old man to clean the room and move some furniture and utensils over......," Zhang's second sister-in-law bowed to Xu Ying and said.

"What woman?" Xu Ying asked with a frown.

"It's the woman in the warehouse...... Second Sister-in-law Zhang said in a low voice.

"The one with the surname Tong?" Xu Ying's face suddenly turned red, and her tone became eager.

Second sister-in-law Zhang nodded and did not say anything.

Xu Ying snorted coldly, "What about the general?" ”

"The general is in the backyard."

Ignoring Zhang's second sister-in-law, Xu Ying hurriedly walked down the verandah to the backyard. After passing the aisle of the main house, going out of the verandah, bypassing the flower beds and rockery paths, I saw Yang Ming holding a long broom to clear the snow from the cannon and the car. In the cold days full of ice and snow, Yang Ming was wearing a thin long-sleeved T-shirt, busy up and down, and the beads of sweat on his forehead were steaming.

"Xu Ying, you're here......" Yang Ming jumped off the truck pedal with a smile and greeted Xu Ying.

"General, on such a cold day, be careful of catching a cold...... Xu Ying hurriedly stepped forward, took off the mink skin on his shoulder and draped it on Yang Ming's body, and took out a handkerchief for Yang Ming to wipe the sweat on his forehead.

"It's okay, little case." Yang Ming smiled, reached out and hugged Xu Ying's waist and kissed her on the face.

Xu Ying's face turned red, "General, that Tong Yunqiu ......"

"Oh, she surrendered, and she will do things for us in the future......" Yang Ming said grinningly.

"General, you have to be careful." Xu Ying looked at Yang Ming with a pair of peach blossom eyes, "She still intended to harm you the day before yesterday." ”

"Oh, that's a misunderstanding...... Yang Ming said with a smile: "It's okay now, she's obedient." ”

"Misunderstanding? Fit? Xu Ying snorted coldly, and the expression on her face changed, "It seems that the person who misunderstood this is a slave ......."

"It's not unusual for you to say that she bites your fingers, or even your nose and ears. But the slave family doesn't understand, this tongue grows in your own mouth, how can she bite it? ”

"This ......" Yang Ming was speechless for a while, but when he saw Xu Yingfan looking at him with a smile on her face, she knew that she was making a mockery.

"Xu Ying, you close your eyes and listen to my explanation." Yang Ming hugged Xu Ying tightly and said against her face.

Xu Ying's face was buried in Yang Ming's shoulder and her eyes were closed. Yang Ming didn't speak, just lowered his head, looked for Xu Ying's lips and kissed them, and licked her teeth with the tip of his tongue and poked in. Xu Ying's body trembled, a coquettish snort came out of her nose, her hands hooked Yang Ming's neck, and the two kissed each other tightly.

Huixiangju is one of the best teahouses in Shunyi City, there are big tables and benches in the lobby downstairs, people drinking tea are drinking hot tea, knocking melon seeds, eating fried beans, orange pears and other snacks, listening to the storytellers holding castanets on the stage talking books, talking to each other, the whole lobby is a noisy and mocking scene.

The tea room culture of the Ming Dynasty is very prosperous, such as "Hangzhou Mansion Chronicles", Jiajing of the Ming Dynasty 21 years, Hangzhou City has Li Shengzhi suddenly opened the tea shop, the drinkers gathered, the profit was very large, the near and far imitated, more than 50 tea shops were opened in October. In the late Ming Dynasty, the opening of teahouses became a common practice, and there were more than 800 large and small teahouses in Hangzhou alone.

"The Surprise of the First Moment" describes that on the banks of the Qinhuai River, there are "thirteen or fourteen taverns and seventeen or eighteen tea houses". "Records of Staying in the Capital" records that the environment of Nanjing Wuliuju is elegant, built near the water, and the willows are in the water, and the hanging strips are lovely. In the forty-sixth year of Wanli (1618), a monk rented a house to open a tea house, using Huiquan, pine tea, Xuan pot, tin bell, and the prosperity of the Extreme Soup Society. Huiquan refers to the spring water of Huishan in Wuxi, pine tea is the top tea tea pineapple at that time, Xuan pot is a precious teapot produced by Xuande kiln, and tin bell is a warm tea utensil made of tin, all four of which are respected by those who pay attention to tea ceremony. There is an endless stream of celebrities who come to drink tea every day.

The tea room is a small room created by the tea people in the Ming Dynasty, which is specially used to hold tea activities. The quiet and elegant tea house is one of the important occasions of literati life, where you can read books and paintings, drink tea and sit alone, pick up friends and entertain guests, and talk for a long time, and it is also a gathering place for small elegant gatherings. Jinshi Tulong, who lived in the Wanli period of the Ming Dynasty, had a book called "Tea Talk", which said: "Tea Liao, build a bucket room next to the mountain Zhai, set up a tea set, teach a boy to master the tea service, for a long day to talk, cold night to sit." The first task of the ghost is to be wasted. The "Tea Tasting Map" painted by Wen Zhengming in the Ming Dynasty realistically depicts the scene inside and outside the tea room at that time.

Not only men, but also women in the Ming and Qing dynasties also liked to go into the tea shop to taste tea. According to the record of "Qing Barnyard Banknotes", during the Tongzhi and Guangxu periods, when Tan Xuchu was serving as a feudal lord in Suzhou, he had "forbidden the maids and maids to drink tea shops, but they have been banned for a long time". Tan Xu went out one day and saw a girl coming forward and entering the tea shop. So he asked about it, and it turned out to be a maid from a large family. Tan was furious and said, "I have been banned, how can I do it again?" He forced the girl to take off her shoes and go back barefoot, and said, "Thou hast done so quickly, and thou hast done it even faster!" ”

In China before the Ming Dynasty, the way of drinking tea was not like today's mainstream brewing and drinking method, but was called ordering tea. In the Song Dynasty, the tea was ordered by throwing the finely ground tea leaves into the tea bowl, then rushing into boiling water, and then stirring in the bowl with a tea whisk. The tea is made with a very expensive dumpling cake, which is made by crushing the tea leaves and kneading them into a dough, which is complicated to make, so the cost is very high.

Zhu Yuanzhang believed that this way of making tea was laborious and costly, and in the twenty-fourth year of Hongwu (1391), he ordered to stop making cake tea and use bud tea as tribute tea. After the discontinuation of Tuanpan tea, the way people make tea has also changed, using boiling water to brew tea directly.

Although the elaborate cake tea is no longer popular, the drinking tea has been interpreted to the extreme in the Ming Dynasty. Mingren drink tea, "a few bright windows, a shaft painting, a bag of piano, a crane, a pot of tea, a furnace of incense, a law post; A small garden path, a few flowers, a few flocks of birds, a few pavilions, a few fist stones, a few ponds of water, a few idle clouds".

Compared with the Tang and Song dynasties, the Ming Dynasty also saw great changes in tea sets. During the Tang and Song dynasties, the utensils used to decoct and boil tea were zhuzi (holding pots), which were similar to the teapots of the Ming Dynasty, but they were very different. In the Tang Dynasty, it was sencha, drinking tea was like boiling soup, and the injection did not make tea, only water was added. In the Ming Dynasty, it was brewed, and the tea was put into a pot to soak. The tea cup was covered at the beginning of the Ming Dynasty, and the tea saucer, tea cup, and tea cover were trinity to form a covered bowl. Tea cups also began to change from black glaze to white porcelain and blue and white porcelain. The Ming people admired the small teapot, thinking that the aroma would not be dispersed and the taste would not be delayed, and the purple clay pot was regarded as the top grade in the teapot.

The tea room upstairs in Huixiangju is quiet and elegant, and on the spotless Huanghuali tabletop, there are tea cups, pen and ink inkstones, and guqin chess sets, and calligraphy scrolls are hung on the walls on all sides. The tea boy pushed the door into the room with a teapot, and glanced at the man and woman in the room with a little surprise, but saw the woman sitting sideways at the tea table, dressed in a delicate emerald gown, with dark clouds on her head, and a beautiful face with a faint smile; The man, dressed in a half-worn coarse cloth jacket, stood far away from the table, his demeanor was very respectful, but there was a faint air of rebellion between his eyebrows.

The tea boy lowered his head and put the teapot on the table, and poured tea into the teacup, and the woman took out a few copper coins from her sleeve and put them on the tray.

"Captain Xie, you can talk about it now." Xiao Yu picked up the teacup, took a sip of Songluo tea, and said lightly.

"Madam, the person you are looking for is dead." Xie Qingyuan looked at Xiao Yu with his eyes, "It was the little one who killed her." ”

"Oh?" Xiao Yu put down the teacup, with a hint of surprise on his face, and a hint of mockery. On the way back to Xiangju from Cowhide Lane, she had already guessed a few points, but she didn't react too strongly to what Xie Qingyuan said.

"I don't know what grievances Captain Xie has with that You Sanniang, and he would be so vicious to a woman?"

"The little ones are just doing what they're told." Xie Qingyuan bowed and said.

"On orders? On whose orders? A sneer appeared at the corner of Xiao Yu's mouth, "Could it be that woman?" ”

Xie Qingyuan was silent.

"Then, why didn't Captain Xie kill the slave family just now?" Xiao Yu looked at Xie Qingyuan coldly, "Also, why is that bracelet in Captain Xie's hand?" ”

"This silver bracelet is small, and it was redeemed from the shopkeeper of Youfeng Lou......"

"Why did Captain Xie redeem this bracelet?" Xiao Yu stared at Xie Qingyuan, "Could it be that Captain Xie knows who its original owner is?" ”

Xie Qingyuan raised his head, his gaze met Xiao Yu, his unruly eyes suddenly softened, and his angular face showed a somewhat desolate look.

"West of Zunhua City, next to Sanhe Road, the grace of saving lives, never dare to forget!"

Xiao Yu's eyes widened in surprise, she looked at the man standing in front of her, and the feeling of déjà vu suddenly became clear. In an instant, her mind returned to that cold morning two months ago, when she followed the logistics and transportation team of the Houjin Army westward from Zunhua City, passing by Sanhe County, and saw the dying sergeant on the frozen field next to the official road.

"It's you! Are you still alive......" Xiao Yu stood up, staring at the sturdy man in his eyes with clear eyes, and his voice trembled a little.

"That day, the lady rescued him, and the little one traveled all the way west, and joined the ranks of the rout refugees when he approached Gyeonggi." Xie Qingyuan's eyes were red, "Later, I met the Tartar army, the little one was seriously injured and couldn't resist, and was captured by the Tartars......"

"It's good to be alive......" Xiao Yu's emotions gradually calmed down, nodded and said softly.

"The little life was saved by Madame, please rest assured, Madame will never allow anyone to hurt Madame." Xie Qingyuan said firmly: "I don't know what the relationship between Mrs. and the woman in Cowhide Lane is?" How did you get here? ”

The corner of Xiao Yu's mouth smiled indifferently, "Captain Xie, the same is the end of the world......

"The father of the slave family surrendered to the Tartars in Zunhua City, accepted the false position, and sacrificed the slave family to the leader of the Tartars in order to please the Tartars. The slave's mother fought to the death, but she still couldn't keep the slave family. ”

"The slave family escaped the insult of the Tartar by luck with the body of Dai Xiao, ...... slave's mother died because of the daughter of the slave family, and the woman in Cowhide Lane also died because of the slave family."

"Captain Xie, do you know why that woman asked you to kill that You Sanniang?"

Xie Qingyuan looked at Xiao Yu, was silent for a moment, and shook his head.

"Because the slave family asked You Sanniang to expose her ugly things, she became murderous!"

"Madame, be careful." Xie Qingyuan said in a calm voice: "That woman is ruthless, and the general loves her very much, Madame must not act rashly and take the blame for herself." ”

"Favor? The woman was nothing more than a commodity that the general had picked up on the way out of the city. Xiao Yu sneered, "She's just a little foxy, if the general knows what kind of person she is, how can he continue to favor her?" ”

"The slave's mother is an aunt, who has worked hard all her life, and in the end, she can't save her daughter even if she fights for her life. The slave family has sworn since he was a child that he will never live under another woman in this life......"

Xie Qingyuan sighed slightly, looking at the little woman in front of him, he couldn't help but feel a little desolate in his heart.

"Madam, if there is a place for Xie Mou, Xie Mou will donate money on his heels, and he will never give up!"

The corners of Xiao Yan's eyes picked, "Captain Xie, the slave family is no better than that woman, and there is no high-ranking official Houlu for you, you don't need to mistake your future for the slave family......"

Xie Qingyuan didn't speak, but took out the silver bracelet from his arms, held it in both hands and handed it to Xiao Xu.

"Madam, the little one has already mended this bracelet, and now it is returned to its original owner, please accept it."

A faint smile appeared on Xiao Xi's face, "Captain Xie, this bracelet was ordered by the slave family's mother for the slave family when he was fifteen years old, if Captain Xie likes it, the slave family will give you this bracelet ......"

Hearing Xiao Yu's words, Xie Qingyuan's hands holding the silver bracelet trembled slightly, his lips moved, as if he wanted to say something, but he finally didn't say anything.

"What, isn't Captain Xie looking down on this bracelet of the slave family?" With a little coquettishness at the corner of Xiao Yu's mouth, he stretched out his hand and gently put it on Xie Qingyuan's hand, and pushed his hands holding the silver bracelet inward. When his fingers touched, Xie Qingyuan's body trembled suddenly, but he saw that Xiao Yuyu's fingers were like green onions, and the impatiens on his nails were red like petals and peach blossoms trembling.

(End of chapter)