Zeng Rong is not very interested in the lotus pond, there is a large area of lotus flowers in the Qingshan Lake in his hometown, and there is also a large area in the imperial garden, so Zhu Heng does not feel strange.

It's just that the two of them are thinking that they have nothing to do, but it just so happens that Qian Yi is about to purchase a batch of almonds, which is a wild apricot forest, and there must be a lot of almonds, so they can explore the market by the way.

So, early the next morning, Zeng Rong and Zhu Heng hired two carriages and two horses and went straight to Xinglin Lake.

Because it was summer, Zeng Rong and the others had dry mouths and sweaty bodies when they arrived at Xinglin Lake, not to mention that Zhu Heng was not used to it, and Zeng Rong was not used to it, but fortunately, both of them brought a change of clothes, and Jiangxi and Jiangdong had also spent money to charter the best inn.

The inn is located on the edge of the lake, the gate is facing the lake, the lake is indeed very large, it is a long strip, it is said that the width is more than a mile, the length is not seen at a glance, the lake is scattered with pieces of lotus leaves, it is the time when the lotus flowers are in full bloom, there are a few painting boats wandering on the lake, there are also a few canopy boats shuttling in the lotus leaves.

On both sides of the lake is a row of houses, according to Jiangdong, which came first, it is two different villages, the west of the village, that is, the place where Zeng Rong and their inn are located, because there is an apricot grove in the connection, and this apricot grove spreads to the foot of the mountain, and then go up the mountain, there are several hot springs, and a few gentry have also built other courtyards on the mountain, so the west side of the village is relatively wealthy, and gradually develops into a small town.

Zeng Rong saw a large apricot grove on the way into the town, and occasionally the eaves of a few houses in the forest were exposed, and then looked into the distance, he could only see a piece of dark color, but he didn't expect that there were hot springs here.

Entered the inn, after a simple washing, they had a meal, under the kind recommendation of Xiao Er, they also planned to go to the lake to wander around, who knew what a coincidence, Xiao Er went out to say that their painting boat was rented, only the canopy boat.

Zeng Rong stopped thinking when he heard this, the awning boat was too small to squeeze these people, and more importantly, the awning boat was not safe, none of them would support the boat, and it was absolutely not advisable to hand over their safety to two strangers.

But since they came, they also planned to walk around the lake, and there were many houses along the lake, most of them were two-story buildings, some were inns, some were shops, and some were ordinary houses.

There is also a row of apricot trees on the embankment, and the apricot ripening season has passed at this time, and there are basically no apricots on the trees, but there are many children playing under the trees, and there are also a few old people who gather together to spin yarn, presumably to be cool and lively, and move the work in the house to the lake.

Seeing a pharmacy on the side of the road, Zeng Rong ordered Jiangnan and Jiangbei to inquire about the market and inventory of almonds, and a few of them were waiting under the apricot trees on the side of the road.

When the orthodox Zhu Heng distinguished the white geese and ducks in the lake, the little er from the inn ran over and said that they had a painting boat and could take them around the lake.

"So coincidentally?" Zeng Rong and Zhu Heng glanced at each other.

Obviously, they didn't show much desire to go to the lake, but this little two was too enthusiastic.

"It's fine." Zhu Heng nodded, he wanted to see if it was a coincidence or someone deliberately arranged all this.

"But..." Zeng Rong looked at the surface of the lake, and could guess how deep the lake was without asking, she didn't want to die in vain.

Zhu Heng squeezed her hand, and Zeng Rong had to cooperate.

Because there were still two people missing, Jiang Dong ordered the little two to go back first, and they arrived later.

After the little two left, Zeng Rong and the others still walked forward for a while, and when they saw an antique shop, Zeng Rong pushed Zhu Heng in again.

It is said that it is an antique shop, in fact, most of the paintings are sold are calligraphy and paintings, many of which are the works outlined by the readers who come here to play, there is no collection value at present, Rao is so, Zeng Rong also took out the silver to buy a copybook, which is the rubbing of Wang Xianzhi.

After spending money, Zeng Rong gave Ah Chun a look and asked her to ask if there were outsiders coming in and out these days, especially those with accents in the capital.

It's a pity that Ah Chun didn't ask any valuable clues, there are a lot of outsiders who come here, but most of them are from Liaocheng, Linqing and other places, and there are very few in the capital, and besides, they can't distinguish any Beijing accent.

Ah Chun did not give up, on the way back to the inn, she went to find a few children playing on the side of the road, and used a few pieces of candy to get out of their mouths and said that two outsiders on fast horses came yesterday, and they happened to enter the inn they set, and the other children did not know.

"How do you want to do it?" Zeng Rong asked Zhu Heng.

The four in Jiangnan are water-based, but in addition to the four of them, there are six people, and something is really going to happen, and it's too late.

"Master, if you really want to go and meet them, the four of us will keep an eye on those two when we get on the boat, and if something is wrong, we will immediately hold them down." Koto said.

He is the head of the four, and he is still a little confident in his fist and foot kung fu, after all, the four of them are also masters of Ouchi.

"Don't go, I'll take Amei up." Zhu Heng said to Zeng Rong.

"In this way, my son and I will go to this teahouse to rest, Jiang Nan will stay, and the seven of you will go over, and Xiaoluzi will be in a wheelchair." Zeng Rong looked at a teahouse on the side of the road and suddenly had an idea.

"That's a good idea." Koto said.

No matter how confident he is in himself, he can't guarantee that it will be foolproof.

So, they entered the teahouse, asked for a room facing the street on the second floor, and opened the window to see the lake.

Zhu Heng took off his coat and gave it to Xiao Luzi, Zeng Rong also went to the next room to change clothes with Amei, Jiang Nan stayed to drink tea with the two of them, and the other seven people went to the inn.

In the distance, they saw the little two looking under the apricot tree on the side of the road, and there was a painting boat docked by the lake, and two stout and dark boatmen stood in the bow.

"Why are there three missing?" Xiao Er counted the number of people and asked.

Ah Chun glanced at Ah Mei's back, Ah Mei was pushing the path and looking at the lake, and happened to be facing away from Xiao Er.

"Our master said that he wanted to purchase a batch of almonds, and he didn't talk to the shopkeeper of the pharmacy, they went directly to the villagers, and it was estimated that they would not come back until dark, we didn't wait, our master wanted to go to the lake to play, saying that he had never seen so many lotuses." Ame explained.

When Xiao Er heard this, he glanced at Amei's back and the wheelchair she was pushing in her hand, nodded, and let them go to the painting boat.

When he got on the painting boat, Jiangbei saw that Xiao Er kept looking at Xiao Luzi, so he simply picked up Xiao Luzi, Xiao Luzi's face was buried in Jiang Bei's arms, and Jiang Dong carried a wheelchair to the painting boat first.

Xiao Er didn't go to the boat, but Ah Chun and Jiangxi both noticed that he was glancing at the two boatmen.