This piece of "ebony" is many times better than the set of tables and chairs in the prefect's house.

In order to distinguish more clearly, Xie Jizu took the sawdust and constantly shone it on the gas lamp, and asked Ma Renli to put on his reading glasses, and he took the sawdust seriously and compared it repeatedly in front of the Taishi chair he was sitting on and the table of the Eight Immortals, and kept sniffing the piece of "ebony" that had been buried in the ground for more than a thousand years.

Xie Jizu tossed for more than an hour, and finally became convinced that this was a piece of "ebony" made of "golden silk nanmu". He couldn't hold back the joy in his heart, and said to Xie Chengtong excitedly: "Quick! Please come up to this 'flower master' and accompany me to the golden pit of the river dam to have a look. ”

"Dad, it's almost past the 'son time' now, can't you go tomorrow?" Xie Chengtong said to him in embarrassment.

"No! No way! Xie Jizu shook his head like a rattle, and replied in a loud voice: "Didn't you hear 'Hua Ziye' say that the Li family has already sent people back to the mountains to move people?" ”

"It's a big deal, it's a piece of 'ebony'! What if they go back and move people? If Dad likes it, I'll go to the dam myself tomorrow and ask someone to bring the piece of wood back. Why do you need to go out in the middle of the night? Xie Chengtong comforted his father.

"You don't know how expensive this piece of wood is, and by tomorrow, 'the water has passed through Sanqiutian', maybe it will be carried away by Li Jiashan's gang a long time ago." Xie Jizu said anxiously.

Ma Renli, the housekeeper standing next to him, is also a knowledgeable person, and he knows Xie Jizu's thoughts. When he saw that Xie Jizu insisted on going to the river dam, he volunteered to say to Xie Jizu: "Old lady, we live in the east, and the gold pit they dug is in the west, and it will take at least more than an hour to walk from here. Now that it's freezing and the north wind is blowing non-stop, you don't have to go after another day of hard work. I will accompany the 'big man' to the river on your behalf, you should rest assured! ”

Xie Jizu still shook his head and said: "Although I am relieved that you will take a trip, but you are a few years older than me after all, I am worried that there will be an accident, and you will not be able to deal with it!" ”

Ma Renli has been following Xie Jizu tonight, constantly rubbing the two steel balls in his hands. When he heard Xie Jizu say that he was old, he was not at ease, so he was immediately unconvinced and wrinkled his eagle nose, and said: "Don't look at my age, my martial arts have not diminished back then, if it is someone from Li Jiashan who dares to have evil intentions towards the old lady, be careful that the steel ball in my hand does not recognize people!" ”

Ma Renli's father, Ma Zhenjun, played under Zuo Zongtang with Xie Jizu's father, Xie Enxian, when he was young. When they encircled and suppressed Ma Hualong, the leader of the Hui anti-Qing Dynasty in Jinjibao, Gansu, they encountered an ambush by Ma Hualong's generals, and Ma Zhenjun injured Ma Hualong's arm with a steel ball in his hand, so that Xie Enxian and his men were able to escape from the encirclement. The two of them did not die, and after Xie En returned to his hometown first, he invited Ma Zhenjun to Xie Mansion to be a housekeeper. After Ma Zhenjun's death, Xie En first thanked him for saving his life, and let his son Ma Renli take his place. Ma Renli not only inherited his father's martial arts, but also was more capable than his father Ma Zhenjun, and showed a loyal look to the Xie family.

Xie Jizu saw that Ma Renli was not convinced of the old, so he smiled and said to him, "Okay! Just work hard for you to accompany me on a trip. ”

Xie Chengtong saw that his father insisted on going to Jinheba to find Jinkeng, and cautiously persuaded him: "Dad, I just need to go to Heba with the housekeeper's uncle, can't I listen to him for everything?" You don't have to. ”

"I'll go for it myself! To be honest, I just want to see what the 'golden silk nanmu' is like, and my heart is steady, otherwise, I can't sleep all night! Xie Jizu smiled and said what was in his heart to his son.

Xie Chengtong saw that his father insisted on going, so he had to nod and agree: "Okay! When you go out, dress thicker and watch out for the chill in the middle of the night. ”

"Don't worry, your dad is still tough!" Xie Jizu put the iron rod in his hand, turned around and told his son: "Chengtong, order a few capable people, bring saws, flat poles and ropes, and follow me to the river dam." If it's really the 'ebony' of the 'golden silk nanmu', I want you to cut it short for me overnight and carry it back! ”

"Gotta get it!" Xie Chengtong saw that the matter had come to this point, so he had to readily agree to his father's request, and was busy going to Zhangluo to call someone.

"Don't be busy!" Seeing that Xie Chengtong was going to call someone to Heba to find the golden pit, he was worried that there had been an accident and he would not be able to escape, so he hurriedly offered his advice and said to them: "The second child of the Li family has already gone up the mountain to move people, I advise you to bring a few more 'open fire guns' and be safe." ”

Xie Chengtong listened and stared at his father hesitantly. Their Xie family has a rule, if they want to use guns, they must be agreed by Xie Jizu.

Seeing this, Ma Renli said to Xie Jizu: "Old lady, I see that the moon is dark and the wind is high tonight, and the sky is cold, so let's bring a few more family members!" ”

Xie Chengtong heard Ma Renli come forward to persuade his father, and hurriedly helped on the side: "Dad, just bring a few more guns!" Not to mention that you meet bad guys, but if you encounter one or two beasts, you can take precautions! ”

Xie Jizu was anxious to see the "Golden Silk Nanmu", but he couldn't stand the two of them drumming up with me, so he nodded in agreement and said, "Bring it!" But when you get there, you are not allowed to shoot first when you encounter a situation, you must follow my command! Don't get into trouble. ”

Xie Chengtong hurriedly nodded in agreement. When he ran out of the hall, he busied himself to the front yard to select the housekeepers, urging them to prepare guns, ammunition, torches, and tools for carrying "ebony".

Ma Renli saw Xie Jizu's eagerness to go to the river dam to see the "Golden Silk Nanmu", and felt that it was inconvenient to ride a horse when it was dark, so he specially asked someone to prepare a warm sedan chair for Xie Jizu, and also prepared a sliding rod for himself and Xie Chengtong.

When Xie Jizu came to the front yard accompanied by Ma Renli, Xie Chengtong had already taken ten family members, carrying "open fire guns", carrying sedan chairs, sliding poles, lighting torches, carrying tools, and leading hunting dogs, waiting there. Xie Jizu was overjoyed in his heart, he let the madman Gao lead the way in front, sat in the warm sedan chair himself, took his son, housekeeper and family, and ran towards the golden pit of the river dam with great fanfare.