On the 10th day after leaving the 18th Cave, our boat came to a fork in the river. This is where two underground rivers meet, to the left is to the Great Waterfall City, and if you go straight, you will go to the Stygian Sea.

According to the original plan, we should turn left here and drive for another five days to reach Mighty Falls. But just as we were about to turn the corner, we found another boat stranded on the edge of the river, and several people kept shouting at us at the bow of the boat to let us pass.

I asked the sarcasm, are we going to get past this?

The sarcastic ghost replied, "This ship is flying the flag of a large trading house in Mighty Waterfall City. If we were just passing boats, we could have ignored them altogether. But if we still want to develop in Giant Waterfall City for a long time, I'm afraid we still have to go over and have a look. If they are in danger, they will not leave a good impression if they die and do not save them! ”

I listened to the sarcasm's words, so I decided to drive over and have a look.

It was only when we got closer that we could see the situation clearly. It turned out that the boat had hit a reef at the bottom of the river, and a large hole had been broken in the bottom of the boat. The man who drove the boat was quite alert, and instead of continuing to drive forward, he ran aground on the edge of a nearby river, tilting the hull and raising the damaged position. This prevents the boat from continuing to flood, but it will take a lot of time to fix the big hole.

When I got closer, I asked the other side across the boat, "Is your ship not repaired?" ”

A sturdy man dressed as a dart master replied in a loud voice, "The ship can be repaired, but the owner says it will take at least five days." A few of us are an expedition team that is going to eat the ghost forest, and we originally planned to take this boat to Hekou Town, but we will have to delay here for a few days. So I'd like to ask if you're going to Estuary on a boat, can you give us a ride? ”

"Eating the Ghost Forest?" I was stunned for a moment, then turned back to the sarcastic ghost and asked, "Do you know this place?" ”

The mocking ghost shook his head and shrugged his shoulders, and said, "I've heard of Hekou Town, it's a small yin city on the edge of the Stygian Sea, and I haven't heard of the Ghost Forest. ”

At this time, Liu Han's interest came up and said to me: "They are from the expedition team, and that Ghost Eating Forest should be some kind of exploration treasure land." Why don't we go over and ask about the situation first? ”

I frowned slightly and said, "It's okay to ask, but there are a lot of people over there, in addition to the people from the expedition and the people from the caravan." It's too risky for us to just go over like this. ”

"In that case, why don't you let their captain come over here alone and talk to each other?" Liu Han suggested again.

Seeing that Liu Han insisted, I agreed, and shouted at the other side, "Are you the captain?" Let's talk to each other in person! ”

When the sturdy man heard this, he agreed, "I am the captain, please throw a rope and I will jump over!" ”

I told the mocker to get the boat as close as he could, and because the ship was tilted, the two boats could not meet directly, so they had to throw a rope far from the mast. The sturdy man seemed to be really good, grabbed the rope and swung it, and swung over.

"The rough man Xue Da belongs to the Cui family firm in Giant Waterfall City!" The sturdy man hugged his fist at me and introduced himself first, "Dare to ask my friend who is the owner of this boat?" ”

I also hugged my fist back and said, "My surname is Feng, this boat is a noodle restaurant boat I opened in the 18th hole." ”

"Noodle restaurant boat?" Xue Da's eyes lit up when he heard this, and he hurriedly asked: "We have spent ten days and eight days on the ship, and we have long been tired of eating those shriveled coarse grains. It's just right, Boss Feng, let my brothers come over for a meal of noodles first! ”

I smiled and said, "Brother, don't worry, eating noodles is naturally a trivial matter, we were originally engaged in this business, and it is naturally a good thing to have customers come to the door." However, brother, you should tell us about eating the ghost forest first. What kind of place is that, my little brother has never heard of it! ”

Xue Da said: "Hey, it turns out that you asked me to come here to inquire about this!" Although the ghost eating forest is a little less famous, the people and ghosts in these ten miles and eight towns know it. It was a very mysterious forest, and there were a lot of trees that loved to eat yin things, especially ghosts, so it was called! ”

"There are a lot of treasures in the Ghost Eater Forest?"

"Of course! Otherwise, where would our expedition go? ”

"Is that place lively?"

"Well, that's a pretty bad place. However, there is a small fishing village nearby, and we usually go there first. ”

"That little fishing village is not far from the town of Hekou?"

"It's not too far, a hundred or dozens of miles, and it will be there in one day."

"What's the business there?"

"Well, there's not much business you can do. In addition to fishing, we buy all kinds of seafood, food and what we bring out of the woods. Of course, if you go there and open a noodle restaurant, I think there will be people who will want to eat it! ”

When I heard this, I thought it was almost there. So, I said to Xue Da: "Let your brothers come and eat noodles, and we will open a day just for you!" ”

"Great!"

Xue Da was very happy and hurriedly beckoned his teammates to grab the rope and swing over to eat noodles. As soon as he heard that there was noodles to eat, he forgot about the most important thing about hitchhiking. However, I don't want to immediately reply to him whether he wants to change his itinerary and go to Hekou Town, I have to discuss it with Liu Han and a few others before making a decision.

The noodle restaurant was temporarily open, but fortunately, the ingredients were all there, and there were not many customers, so I quickly made more than a dozen bowls of noodles for Xue Da and others to eat.

"Haha! This noodle is delicious! Delicious! ”

"Yes! I never thought you could eat such a bowl of hot noodles in such a place! ”

"If only there was such a bowl of noodles in the Ghost Forest!"

"Hey, boss, is there anything more? Bring me another bowl! ”

With my craftsmanship, it is natural for Xue Da and others to eat very satisfied. In the end, even the shipowners and sailors, who were busy repairing their ships, couldn't help but jump over and beg for noodles when they heard that there was a delicious noodle. I didn't take advantage of the fire to rob, but still took their money at the usual price.

While Xue Da and the others were still eating noodles, I beckoned Liu Han and the sarcastic ghost to come over and discuss. The two of them also heard what Xue Da said just now, but their reactions were different. The sarcastic ghost was naturally scared, but Liu Han was quite interested.

"Let's talk about it." I asked, "Do you want to follow them to Estuary Town or Eat Ghost Forest, or go to Mighty Waterfall City as originally planned?" ”

The mocker shook his head and said, "It's just the town of Hekou, and it doesn't hurt to go if you want to." But why do you have to go to the Ghost Forest? ”

Liu Han said, "It's good to go eat the ghost forest!" You can do business, open a noodle shop, and go on an expedition as a team, so don't you just combine all three of our previous plans? ”

I also slightly agreed with Liu Han's opinion this time, so I asked the sarcastic ghost: "Is it good to go to the waterway of Hekou Town?" ”

After the sarcastic ghost finished speaking, he was a fellow, so he naturally couldn't resist the opinions of our boss and the proprietress, so he had to answer helplessly: "The location of the estuary town is the mouth of this underground river leading to the Stygian Sea, and there is no need to find a way, just keep going downstream along the river." ”

I pondered for a while, and then said, "After all, Giant Waterfall City is still too close to the Eighteen Caves, and it is estimated that we will not be able to mix there." Otherwise, let's go to Hekou Town to see the situation first, and as for whether we want to go to the Ghost Forest in the future, we will make a decision then! ”

"That's it!" Liu Han was very happy.

After Xue Da and the others finished eating, I said to him: "My boat originally just wanted to go to Giant Waterfall City to renovate and renovate, but since I met you, I might as well go to Hekou Town to have a look." I wonder if there is a place to repair ships in Estuary? ”

Xue Da saw that I was interested, and hurriedly said: "Hekou Town is a town dedicated to fishing in the Stygian Sea, there must be a place to repair boats, as long as it is not a very troublesome overhaul, it should be fine!" ”

In the end, he was afraid that I would regret it, so he added: "Boss Feng, don't worry, we will still pay the boat fare if we take your boat." Every meal of noodles eaten on the ship is also paid at the same price! ”

Since Xue Da was so happy, I agreed to change course and go to Hekou Town.

The expedition was no better than the caravan, and the supplies they carried when they set off were not too much. Soon, Xue Da and the others moved all the materials of the expedition team on the stranded ship. Then I gave the order, and the sarcasm was still at the helm, and the noodle boat continued downstream in the direction of the current.

After another twenty days of travel, our boat finally reached the end of the underground river, and at the same time reached the town of the estuary.

Several underground rivers converge here, forming a wide river, which is hundreds of meters wide. And because this is the mouth of the sea where the water flows into the Stygian Sea, a large sandbar has been washed out over the years, and the town of Hekou is built on this sandbar.

Hekou Town is just a small yin city, but although the sparrow is small, it has all kinds of organs. The town of Estuary, like the 18th Cave, has the necessary bureaucracy. As soon as our ship docked at the port, the officials in charge of customs clearance and customs inspection and customs duties came aboard.

I have been prepared for this for a long time, and I added a few words to the road guide issued by the 18th Cave, and added "Hekou Town" after "Giant Waterfall City". In addition, there was no cargo on board, it was just some normal supplies, and the officials went up and down and got nothing to gain, so they had to charge the head fee as usual and then disembark from the ship.

After such a long voyage, both us and Xue Da and the others were already feeling quite tired. So, I decided to dock the boat at the port of Hekou Town for a few days before making the next move. Xue Da and the others went straight off the boat to stay at the hotel in the town, and while purchasing expedition materials, they were also preparing to sleep soundly on a soft bed that did not shake for a few days.

Before leaving, Xue Da really honestly asked me to settle the account for the food and accommodation on the ship for the past 20 days. He said to me, "We'll be in Bayou for at least three more days." If you decide to go to the Ghost Forest during these three days, we will take your boat again. If you decide to stay in Bayou, we'll find another way. ”

After so many days of contact, I also have a preliminary understanding of Xue Da's personality. Since he offered to continue to cooperate, there was no need for me to refuse, so I readily agreed.