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"What's in each tent?" Hao Laodao was waiting for Li Xu's words, and deliberately lengthened his voice to tease him.

After thinking about it for a long time, Li Xu didn't come up with a suitable word, so he changed his words: "Does everyone have a share?" ”

"You think the robbers share the spoils, and those who see them have a share!" Hao Laodao laughed, shook his head and said: "According to the custom of the Ministry of Heat, women over the age of thirteen and without a husband can choose a men's tent to drill into it at night. This is the power given to them by the Immortal Heaven, and even the patriarch and elder cannot interfere. Hehe, some people want to be beautiful today, and they probably want to rejoice all night! ”

"Immoral!" Xu scolded with a straight face. He was taught since he was a child that women should behave in a disciplined and dignified manner. Even if you grow up and start a family, it is "the order of your parents and the words of the matchmaker" to decide. Sensei said that taking the initiative to drill into a man's tent, even if he took the initiative to talk to a man, is a big rebellion. Although he also knew that the house of the rich and noble was a different one, which was completely different from what the book said. But those are all behind-the-scenes behaviors, and no one dares to openly publicize these "dirty deeds".

"This is a custom of other people, how can it be called a bad custom?" Hao Laodao became a heart and Xu raised the bar with big eyes.

Rao is Xu Dayan, even if he is articulate, he was asked so much that he couldn't say a word. The customs of the Hu people have been very different from those of the Han people since ancient times, and this is the territory of the Hu people, and it is true that they should not criticize the behavior of others from the point of view of a Han person.

"So, what about after tonight?" Li Xu didn't have as many principles in his heart as Xu Dayan, and after thinking for a while, he asked Nana. Half of the reason why he ran away was because he didn't seem to understand the affairs of men and women, and the other half was because he didn't know what kind of price he would pay if someone couldn't control it.

"After tonight, the sun will still come out in the east!" Hao Laodao's answer was like a charlatan's hexagram, full of mystery.

"What if I have a baby?" Li Xu continued to ask. Men and women living together will have children, and that is the only sure answer he has about men and women.

"Raise it. The tribe would celebrate and increase the population. If the father of the child has a conscience and leaves some goods for the child in the course of his dealings, the women will be very happy. If the child's father has no conscience and disappears, they will not pester you! Hao Laodao's eyes gradually deepened, and he said quietly: "If you are willing to stay, the woman will be happier." There are only five months of green in a year, and it is icy and snowy, and it is not easy to live without a man! ”

A child without a father! A little sympathy swelled up in Li Xu's heart. In the countryside, any family without a father is often the target of bullying by hooligans and rogue urchins. But how many of the vendors will stay? How many can be counted on having a conscience? Each of them has a large family to feed in the Central Plains, and tonight's romance is just a way for them to relieve the fatigue of the journey.

"There's no way around it!" Uncle Nine grabbed the leather bag, poured a sour mare's milk, and explained with a sigh.

Accidentally, a few drops of wine fell into the charcoal basin and jumped, emitting a faint puff of smoke. Slowly floating in the air, making everyone's face look hazy and very unreal.

"yes, no way!" Hao Laodao picked up charcoal with the eating guy, stared at the blue flame and said, "Every famine year in the tribe, there are constant wars. For a good pasture, a uncertain river (seasonal river), I don't know how many men will die. Without a man, how can a woman have a baby? Don't rely on a few passers-by to leave a seed for the tribe! ”

Li Xu froze, he never expected that the last resort in Uncle Jiu's mouth would be such a cruel reality. And Xu Dayan, who was sitting opposite him, put away his whole body of disdain, and replaced it with a face full of respect.

As a last resort, just for the continuation of the tribe. This is the whole answer behind the seemingly absurd and obscurantist behavior. The weak Xia Clan has been able to survive in this ice and snow until now, relying on this innate tenacity.

Li Xu suddenly understood why the singing voice of the people in the sun sounded so cheerful.

"Uncle Nine!" After being silent for a while, Li Xu shouted in a low voice.

"Say!" Sun Jiu fiddled with the charcoal fire and agreed without a word. The topic just now was too heavy, and it made everyone's hearts heavy. The women of the Hazard tribe will not hesitate to pay the price for the survival of the tribe. And the men of the Central Plains are also working hard for the continuation of the family. There are snowstorms, wars, and vendettas in the Mobei grassland. The villages of the Central Plains were pressed against the emperor, corrupt officials, and evil officials. Under the sun, the growth of every creature has to go through wind and frost. But every creature, every home, will still survive tenaciously.

"I, I'm going to stay in this tribe for a while, no, I won't follow the caravan back south!" Li Xu made up his mind and decided to explain the truth to Sun Jiu. The decision was made so hard that his voice sounded a little stuttering.

"Do you want to stay here as a son-in-law? Ha! Not a bad idea. I heard that the coppersmith in the tribe is a native of the Central Plains, who married his daughter-in-law more than ten years ago and has been staying until now! Hao Laodao joked with a smile. The story of the coppersmith king in the tribe was told by the tribal elders at the wine table in the afternoon. For this person's skill in making patterns on the hilt, the people admired it very much.

Li Xu shook his head and ignored Hao Laodao's ridicule. raised his voice slightly, and confessed to Sun Jiu: "My father, my father, he asked me to go out of the jam for him in order to evade military service." According to the second brother Zhao in the yamen, next year the emperor will personally conquer Goryeo, and men of school age in the border counties will have to be called into the army, regardless of their background! ”

"Your father told me about this a long time ago. Alas, in fact, the government will not be so unreasonable. You are the only child in the family, and you don't necessarily have to apply for a few dollars! Sun Jiu raised his head from the firelight and said in a low voice. It's okay for you to stay here, as if we have a landlord in the tribe. Everyone sells unclean goods for a while, and some people help to store them! ”

Sun Jiu's old face, which had gone through all the vicissitudes of life, reflected a faint red light under the light of the firelight, and looked very kind. This made Li Xu feel very warm in his heart, and the rhythm of his speech became smoother. "I, I should have told you earlier, just, just? The Venerable Master has a lot of mouths. People don't like me in the first place......."

"They bully you because you look easy to bully!" Sun Jiu suddenly interrupted Li Xu's words, looked at the young man's somewhat aggrieved gaze, and reached out to pat him on the shoulder: "Stay, you stay." Big Eyes will definitely not follow us back south. The two of you have a look for each other here. In fact, Lao Zhang and Lao Du are not as bad as you think, and they have a hard time, so they naturally value money! ”

"Hmm!" Li Xu nodded lightly. He couldn't fully agree with Sun Jiu's opinion, but the old man's kindness couldn't make a contradiction.

"If you stay in the Horseman's Mansion, you might as well learn his craft from the coppersmith. Anyway, he won't go back to the Central Plains, and he is not afraid that the disciples of the church will starve to death to the master! Hao Laodao suddenly interjected. He often rolls on the tip of the knife, he is more optimistic than everyone else, and when he heard that Li Xu was going to stay, he immediately remembered a way to make a living for the other party.

"Pay more attention, the people of the people also have the knowledge of the people, and you will not suffer a loss when you learn it!" Sun Jiu smiled and admonished. He didn't have a long relationship with Li Xu, but the old man really regarded the young man in front of him as his junior. The separation is imminent, and the experience of life will inevitably be instilled in him. "Yiduo is not pressing, you are not bigger than the eyes, he was born with a golden spoon in his mouth, and he was born to do great things. As for you, no one has accumulated a lot of blessings in your previous life, so if you work hard in this life, you will eventually find a good job....."

"Hmm!" Li Xu nodded again and again, and the old man looked very much like his uncle. is also dyed white by the difficult life of the sideburns, and the same waist is straightened in front of and behind others. Whether you are rich or poor in this life, you must at least be a person like Uncle Jiu, upright, upright and strong.

"I'll help you bring your goods back. If you make a lot of money this time, you will definitely come back next year when the snow melts! Sun Jiu looked at the young man who was reluctant to give up on him, and once again advised, "If the conscription order is a rumor, you should go back to the Central Plains earlier." No matter how warm the felt bag here is, it is not our own home after all! ”

Home, Li Xu's eyes suddenly became hot. In the firelight, the small courtyard of the farmhouse was very far away all of a sudden, and it was suddenly pulled very close.

As soon as the first rays of sunlight in the morning came out from behind the clouds in the southeast, Li Xu crept back to his tent. After listening to the introduction of Uncle Nine and Hao Laodao, he no longer had a contempt for the customs of the Xia clan in his heart. But suddenly he began to worry about whether the blue-eyed girl would be very angry if she woke up and found that she had slipped away. It would be a pity if that was the case, he had seen such a beautiful girl for the first time in his life, and it was a pleasure to be able to chat together.

There was no sign of the girl in the felt tent, and the large flower blanket lent by the man was folded and placed neatly on the side of the pillow. The charcoal in the brazier had long since cooled, and the pale white ashes were swept up by the cold wind that suddenly blew in through the doorway, and gently drifted in the sunlight. Like fog, like smoke.

Everything last night seemed to have never happened, Li Xu felt as if he had a bizarre dream, and after waking up from the dream, there was no trace of everything except the morning sun.

Maybe that's just a dream! Li Xu thought dizzily. For two days in a row, he did not see the girl again. At Xu Dayan's suggestion, the vendors took the initiative to put together a sample of the goods and gave them to the tribal leader Su Si Si Sier and several respected elders, while the leaders and elders of the Su Si tribe gave the caravan gifts of higher value. In the three days before waiting for the arrival of several neighboring tribes, in order to show fairness, the Susi tribe did not take the lead in trading with the traders. The guests and hosts only drank and sang every day, and the women's singing and dancing were still the highlight of the banquet, but the blue-eyed girl evaporated like dew and never appeared in front of everyone again.

"What, Lord Zixi, I miss your Yue Nu again!" Xu Da saw that Li Xu was in a state of mind when he was drinking, and laughed in a low voice.

"No, I'm thinking about how to get rid of the goods as soon as possible tomorrow!" Li Xu shook his head and argued strongly. But the girl's clothes suddenly floated in her heart, and the Hu music in her ears also vaguely carried the rhythm of the ancients.

"What is the night? In the middle of the island, what is the day today? Gotta be in the same boat as the prince. Shame is good, not shameful. The heart was annoyed and unstoppable, and learned that the prince. There are trees in the mountains, there are branches in the woods, and the heart is happy! "Did Yin Zixi, the commander of the Chu State, and the Yue people who didn't understand the Chu language have the same misunderstanding?

"Everyone got together tonight to discuss, and the market will open tomorrow. What things are sold at what price, each other has a bottom in their hearts. Let's come here after all the hardships, don't smash your own stall! When Uncle Zhang heard Li Xu's words, he brought out the word "get out", and hurried over to warn him not to mess around. The spring dream of beauty is like a wine banquet in front of the vendors, even if you eat it. Whether you are drunk or awake, the first priority is to earn enough money so that your family will not suffer.

"The same goods, everyone sets the same price. Uncle Nine had already told the messenger to ask each ministry to bring raw hides and skins to barter as much as possible. Tomorrow, we will use raw hides as a scale, a few skins and a pound of tea, a few skins and a piece of cloth, and we have discussed them in advance. For other things, try to fold them with leather as much as possible! The opportunity to make a fortune is imminent, and Wang Mazi's mind is no longer only focused on the woman's waist, but he is very smart and makes a good suggestion.

The people of the Xia tribe did not have the copper coins of the Great Sui in their hands, and it was too troublesome to barter every item. Using the whole piece of leather as money is just the right solution to this problem. And now that rawhide is in demand in the Central Plains, traders who risk being frozen on the grassland are all coming for rawhide.

That night, the vendors crowded in front of the fire and boiled the pot. The goods brought by everyone are not the same, and they are uniformly folded with raw hides, and the quality gap in the middle is difficult to reflect. No one wants to earn less than others, and everyone is afraid that they will not get enough. Fortunately, the people couldn't understand the Central Plains dialect, and thought that the vendors were discussing the trip home. Otherwise, it is really possible to turn his face and beat out all these black-hearted guests.

In the end, it was Uncle Jiu, Zhang San and others who made the decision and divided the same kind of goods into grades according to the standards of the Central Plains. The price difference between each class is kept to a minimum, and as for the unique goods of individual traders, they will sell them casually, and no matter whether the price is high or low, it will not have an impact on other people's trading.