"Between the white emperor and the clouds, thousands of miles of Jiangling will be returned in one day. Cross-Strait ...... A four- or five-year-old girl recited this ...... and couldn't remember the words that followed, and she couldn't recite them with her cheeks puffed out, and she was trying hard to recall the "cross-strait ......," but she couldn't recall anything. Because I was in a hurry, there were already tears in my eyes.

Looking at the pitiful appearance of the little girl, Liu Pet hurriedly prompted: "The apes on both sides of the strait can't stop crying. ”

But at this time, it was useless, and the little girl suddenly cried with a flat mouth because of frustration. While crying, he turned his head and threw himself into the arms of his mother next to him.

Looking at this situation, Liu Pet only felt embarrassed. looked up at the father of the little girl next to him, but he was also embarrassed when he saw the eldest brother. On previous trips, the two actually had a good conversation. I was happy and wanted my daughter to learn to recite a poem with Liu Pet, but in the end it turned out like this.

Both of them were embarrassed, Liu Pet could only say a few words casually and then ran to the bow of the boat to see the scenery, so that the parents could comfort the child.

Standing at the bow of the boat, Liu Pet looked at the lighthouse in the distance, and couldn't help but chant in a low voice: "The apes on both sides of the strait can't stop crying, and the light boat has passed the Ten Thousand Mountains." ”

More than 500 years have passed since Li Taibai wrote this poem to the 320th year of the Great Song Dynasty. When he returned home, Liu Pet felt that his anxious mood could be poured out with this poem. When I sighed at the talents of my ancestors, I also felt a little calmer.

On my fingers, this is the third day of departure from Dengzhou Wharf in Shandong. By this time the north wind had risen, and the ships rode the wind and waves, and under the guidance of the lighthouse, they continued to move south day and night. I think it's time to go to the mouth of the Yangtze River.

Just as I was thinking, I heard the iron bell ringing on the ship. Then I heard the people on the ship shouting: "In another hour, we will arrive at the Songjiang Fu Pier." If you want to take the Zhedong Canal, you don't need to get off the boat. If you want to go back to Hangzhou in a hurry, then get off the boat at Songjiang Mansion. There is a new ship that can go to Hangzhou in two days. ”

Two days from Songjiang to Hangzhou? Liu Pet was surprised. Under normal circumstances, from Songjiang Mansion at the mouth of the Yangtze River to Hangzhou, it is through the Zhedong Canal. Traveling upriver from the mouth of the Yangtze River is very difficult, and it takes longer than taking the Zhedong Canal. So Liu Pet hurriedly asked, "Boatman, what you said is true?" ”

"This guest officer, what good will it do me if I lie to you?" The crew on the ship smiled: "If I let you get off the ship, I will only earn less money for the boat." We wouldn't have done this unless the shipping department had ordered us to do so. ”

Hearing that it was actually an order from such an official organization as the Shipping Department, many people showed a little disapproving expression. What the government said, everyone will naturally give a discount. Then, as the boatman said, the ship arrived at Matsue Harbor an hour later. Liu Pet chose to disembark alone, and everyone else chose the traditional route. It is said that the new route will take only two days, while the old route will only take more than three days.

But Liu Chong felt that he was closer to the government. He hadn't been home for more than a year, and he was really homesick at this point. If he had just set off, he knew that the road was far away, and he could still endure it. The closer he got to home, the more he returned to his heart. I can't bear this more than a day.

At the place where the ticket was sold at the port, Liu Chong first showed his ID. It was a beautifully printed document, and the Great Song Intelligence Department would not write down its identity, so it was hung under the army. And military personnel are inherently privileged.

After the port ticket sales staff witnessed the document, they saw Liu Pet wearing a uniform again, and his expression immediately became enthusiastic.

Liu Pet asked: "I heard from the people on the boat that there is a boat here that can go to Hangzhou in two days, but I don't know how to buy a ticket." ”

"Oh? Did the people on the ship really advertise this? The port ticket clerk said in surprise.

"Stumped that he was wrong?" Liu Chong was very surprised.

"No, no, no. He wasn't wrong. I just think if they did, wouldn't they be ...... It's nothing. The conductor said halfway, and then turned back, "You hurry up and buy a ticket, this ship is about to leave the port." ”

Liu Pet hurriedly paid for the ticket and found that the ticket price was not cheap. After buying it, he picked up his duffel bag and hurried through customs, while thinking about the words of the conductor. According to Liu Chong's guess, the conductor probably felt that if the people on the ship didn't say it, they wouldn't have to lose the guests. Although this idea is correct, this order is under the command of the shipping department, and theoretically all ships must obey it. So the conductor's words are a little wrong.

While thinking about it, I quickly passed through the corridor and passed through the ticket gate with my ticket. In the distance, I saw a medium-sized ship parked at the berth. After looking at the ship carefully, Liu Pet looked left and right, there was only one ship on all the berths, and the other berths were empty. Looking into the distance, there was no sign of a ship coming. By all indications, the boat, which had two paddle wheelers in the middle and rear of the boat, should have been the clippers talking about.

Paddle steamers are not a very uncommon thing in the Great Song Dynasty. In the Yangtze River, paddle steamers can be seen in various canals. It can be as small as a human drive, and as large as using three oxen to drive the main power shaft like a grinding machine. Liu Pet looked at the size of the ship and felt that there might be three decks inside, and there was a large herd of cattle pulling machinery in each deck. If this were not the case, there would probably be no way to reach Hangzhou from Songjiang Prefecture in two days.

With a disappointed mood, Liu Pet went to the side of the ship to check the ticket. After the ticket checking, the staff urged: "Hurry up, the ship is about to leave." ”

Thinking of smelling cow excrement, Liu Pet got on the boat slowly. If he had known this was the case, he should have taken the traditional route honestly.

As soon as I got on the boat, I heard a long, loud noise. It's a kind of horn, and if it's a person with a very large lung capacity, it can blow a lot of movement. However, now the sound is so loud that it is estimated that the person who blows the trumpet must be a giant like a mountain.

In addition to being taken aback, Liu Pet only felt something familiar. In the silk reeling workshop in Shandong, he can often feel this kind of thing. Unlike the sluggish, dignified, and soft of animals, this feeling is full of heat, vibration, and hardness. When the steam engine was in operation, the vibrations could even be felt from the ground. It seems to feel like that on this ship now.

Just as Liu Pet turned his head in a daze, there was another loud noise, and with this loud noise, the ship shook. It didn't shake because of what it hit, it came from inside the hull. That's a huge power that can make the whole ship vibrate.

The vibration did not stop, and although the force of the vibration decreased, the frequency of the vibration increased. Just when Liu Pet was surprised, he heard the sound of the water being stirred. Turning his head to look for the source of the sound, he saw that the paddlewheels on both sides of the ship had begun to turn. The sound of churning the water is made by the paddle wheel blades lapping against the water. As the paddle wheel turned, the ship slowly but unstoppably began to move.

Liu Pet had all kinds of thoughts in his heart, the most clear of which was 'the conductor didn't tell a lie, this ship is really about to leave'.

Ignoring Section Chief Liu Chong's feelings, the steam paddle wheel sailed out of the port of Songjiang Prefecture under the operation of the driver and headed towards the mouth of the Yangtze River. More than an hour later, the paddle steamer was cleaving the waves in the Yangtze River and sailing upstream. The sound of a long whistle echoed across the river, informing nearby ships that a large ship was approaching and telling all the ships not to be distracted and go down the wrong course.

Standing on the tall deck and looking down at the scenery of the river, the speed of the paddle steamer against the current is like a galloping horse, and there is no feeling of slowly soaring like a paddle steamer driven by human or animal power in Jiangnan. Section Chief Liu Pet believed at this time that he would be able to rush home in more than a day. The ticket is worth it.

It was noon on October 17 when I boarded the ship, and it was noon on October 18 when I arrived at the port of Hangzhou. Section Chief Liu Chong stood on the dock with his duffel bag on his back, a little reluctant to get off the boat. I haven't been home for nearly two years, and the Hangzhou I see in my eyes has changed beyond recognition. Ancient poems say that if you want to be poor, go to the next level. Standing on the deck, you can still be condescending, standing high and seeing far. Descending into an unfamiliar port, Liu Pet was not confident to find a way.

However, the crew of the paddle steamer did not understand Liu Chong's uneasiness, and they kept sending the guests off the ship. As there were fewer and fewer guests, the crew walked up to Liu Pet, who was standing alone on the deck, and said politely: "This, it's time to get off the ship." ”

There is no feast in the world that will not be dispersed, and after Liu Chong, section chief Liu Chong, looked back and saw the boat put away the gangplank. He could only look ahead, trying to find his way home on his own. Then I saw three or five people rushing in front of Liu Chong, and the first one asked, "Guest officer, is it the first time you have come to Hangzhou?" ”

Liu Pet listened to this foreign accent, and said in authentic Hangzhou: "My family is from Hangzhou." What is the first time to come to Hangzhou! ”

Hearing this, the man immediately laughed and said, "Then hire our donkey from Didi Donkey to go home." It will be delivered to your doorstep. ”

"Why such a strange name?" Liu Pet said to the pick-up of Didi Donkey.

"Guest officer, you're out on business, right? You can rest assured, our Didi donkey line has accounted for half of the car in Hangzhou, and we will never cheat, and we will not deceive children. ”

Liu Pet was even more curious, and he continued his question: "I asked you why you called Didi such a name. ”

"This one. Invite the guest officer to come with me. ”

The other solicitors saw that Didi Donkey had already received the guests, so they left for other passengers. Liu Pet and the two walked forward for more than ten meters and arrived at a donkey pen. The solicitor pointed to a thing installed on the donkey cart for Liu Pet to see, like a small horn, and an oval thing behind it. The solicitor pinched it with his hand, and the oval-shaped thing turned out to be made of rubber, and when it was pressed, it blew outward, so that the horn made a dripping sound.

After two demonstrations, the customer smiled and said, "We use this to warn vehicles that we don't pay attention to, for fear of colliding with others." ”

Looking at this thing, Liu Pet couldn't help but think of the whistle. He sighed in his heart that people are so lazy now.