Zhou Qian went around a circle from Dunhuang and then entered Zhangye City, Zhou Qian wore a thin hat and a soap-colored robe, sat on a mule cart, and looked at the crowd of people coming and going in the city and the soldiers patrolling the streets with a smile; The driver of the car, a native of Dunhuang in his forties, was familiar with driving the mule cart to the foot shop next to the market in the west of the city, a place for small traders and passers-by to rest, and the price was half cheaper than that of ordinary inns.

Zhou Qian carefully observed the surroundings, got off the mule cart with his baggage, pushed open the door of the foot shop and asked, "Man, is there a single room?" ”

"Yes, yes, you've come to the right place, the single room in our store is clean and safe." The guy hurriedly stepped forward to say hello, and when he went to a cheap place like the foot shop, he still had a single room, which was nothing more than two kinds of people, one was with goods, afraid of being looked upon by people living in the Chase Shop; The other is with a woman, and only in a single room can it be fun.

Zhou Qian opened a single room, and the coachman helped Zhou Qian move the goods into the room, and after collecting the carriage fee, he went to the market to see if he could bring in repeat customers. Zhou Qian exchanged a few words with the guy, gave ten cents, asked the guy to take care of the room, locked the door, and walked slowly to the street; The atmosphere on the street is very peaceful, completely different from the uneasiness of many cities in Guanzhong and Longyou, businessmen gather, tourists are weaving, there is a feeling of walking in Chang'an.

There are all kinds of goods in the shops along the street, listening to the accent of the south and the north, Hu Shang actually accounted for half, Zhou Qian couldn't help but shake his head, no wonder Yang Chong did not hesitate to move in to the Han people, according to the information of the household department, the proportion of Han people and Xianbei people in Zhangye and other cities has been less than half of the population, Fan Zigai and Yin Shishi have been in power in Wuwei and Zhangye for many years, and they have not made any achievements in this regard. Zhou Qian bypassed the two streets, found no followers, and walked to Xianwei Street.

There was a stall selling mash in the street, with a small table and three benches; Zhou Qian walked to the table and sat down and asked for a piece of mash. Mash is actually the liquor brewed in the south of the Yangtze River, fermented by glutinous rice, which can help digest and relieve the heat, Zhangye is located in the northwest, but produces rice, some people have introduced this special snack, which is very popular with people in the city. Zhou Qian drank the mash, paid three cents, and strolled into Xianwei Street.

Zhou Qian visited several stores in a row, but he didn't seem to have made up his mind, just asked the price from house to house; When he walked into Lao Hu's shop, Zhou Qian smiled, it was the kind of real smile. Lao Hu is actually not old, his real age is only in his thirties, but he has a scruffy beard, and his appearance is a little old; Seeing Zhou Qian, Lao Hu greeted him with a merchant smile: "Old man, come and see, the goods in the small shop are all authentic Jiangnan goods, you look at this porcelain, this pattern, this texture, not those things in the north can be compared." ”

Looking on the street, Lao Hu seems to have met a good customer, who is working hard to introduce the goods, and wants Zhou Qian to break the fee and sell his goods at a good price. Zhou Qian looked at the goods carefully in Lao Hudi's introduction, and said with a smile: "There is a future, are our people here?" ”

Lao Hu took a delicate celadon plate and handed it to Zhou Qian, and whispered: "It's all here, six groups of thirty-six people, and the Blue Devil has activated twenty-eight hidden personnel, who are responsible for intelligence and retreat channels." It's just that Yang Chong is very careful, there are many guards in and out, and after observing a few times, he didn't find any flaws. As for the governor's mansion, Yang Chong only believed in domestic slaves and the old ministry, and it was difficult for ordinary people to mix in; The wine and food in the governor's mansion are all purchased from Hexi Commercial Bank, and I have no way to do it. ”

Zhou Qian seemed to be a little absent-minded, took the porcelain plate, checked it repeatedly in his hand, and said while looking at it: "If Yang Chong is so easy to deal with, you don't need to come to Zhangye two years ago, and I don't have to come over today." For Yang Chong, you can't take it lightly, he was born in a poor family, and when he was a small person, there were countless people who wanted him to die, but he is still alive and well, and he is getting stronger and stronger, which is inconceivable. ”

"Destiny." Lao Hu whispered and laughed, he still heard a little rumor about Chang'an, Yang Chong used to have a good relationship with the old man in front of him, and almost became Zhou Qian's son-in-law; Zhou Qian turned his back to the street, glared at Lao Hu and said, "It's not serious, is this kind of thing said casually?" ”

"Do you have an iron pot at home?" A woman's question came from the doorway, and a thin, withered middle-aged woman led a donkey and stood at the door, her hair covered with dust; Lao Hu had already taken aim at the woman, and walked over unhurriedly and replied: "Yes, there is a good iron pot, and you can buy one that can last for two or three years." ”

The woman bolted the donkey, went into the store and picked out an iron pot, returned the price, and left satisfied; Zhou Qian delayed for too long, and after explaining the matter, he had to buy five pieces of porcelain, let Lao Hu tie it with straw, pay the money, and leave humming a little song. Just turning a street, Zhou Qian entered a mutton restaurant, the gray and yellow earthen wall left a long shadow of the sun, I don't know what was written on the dirty disguise, only the smell of mutton wafting from the store, people immediately knew that it was a food shop selling mutton.

The inside of the store is very small, with a table in the middle and a table against the wall, which is estimated to be able to accommodate a dozen or so customers at most; The stove is blazing, the huge iron pot is steaming, the mutton is boiling, the soup is overflowing with foam, and the lamb bones are rising and falling in the soup. On the iron frame in front of the stove hung a leg of mutton, on the cutting board was a pile of thinly sliced mutton, and a thin cleaver was placed on the edge of the cutting board; There were no guests in the house, perhaps hearing footsteps, and the proprietor peeked out from behind the stove.

The boss was an elderly man, with a round face, a high nose and a wide mouth, and cloudy eyes, perhaps because he had been working by the stove all year round, and his face was shiny. The boss walked out, courteously invited Zhou Qian to sit down, wiped the table with a greasy rag, turned around and put a bowl of mutton soup in the pot, sprinkled a handful of pepper, and put it in front of Zhou Qian; Zhou Qian put the porcelain on the table, looked at the boss carefully, and couldn't help but sigh.

The boss bared his teeth and smiled: "You shouldn't come, as long as you don't come, even if your subordinates show their stuffing in Zhangye, your opponent can't do anything." If you come, it means that the time for a decisive battle has come, and from then on, everyone has no scruples, only you live and die. ”

Zhou Qian slowly ate the beef, lowered his head and said: "In the past two years, my subordinates have had three opportunities to get close to Yang Chong's core secrets, but every time it is critical, there is an accident, and the person who acted is either arrested or lost because of the lawsuit, so I have to come." ”

The boss's face was a little moved, he sat down opposite Zhou Qian, looked at Zhou Qian and said, "There must be something wrong with your people in Zhangye, so you shouldn't come." ”

(End of chapter)