Beijing.

Yin time.

The bell rings.

Nine doors opened.

The sky was still dark, and three dilapidated mule carts hurriedly drove out of Chaoyangmen in the capital, and rushed on the official road in the suburbs, heading for the Caohe Wharf in Zhangjiawan, Tongzhou.

The cold wind of dawn on the first day of the new year blew in through the cracks in the carriage of the mule cart. Qi Li sat in a broken wooden compartment, and when she woke up yesterday evening, she had changed from a bridge and dam supervisor in her twenties who had been working for two years to a ten-year-old little girl, and she was also a little girl with epilepsy who had been sold by her parents to human teeth.

The sound of whipping and the clattering of human teeth sounded again and again, because the rush was too fast, the broken carriage shook extremely violently, and the people in the carriage shook left and right. Qi Li glanced at the dozen or so children in the carriage who were still sleeping soundly. The children, like her, were dressed in shabby cotton trousers and rotten shoes, and the little braids on the back of the boys' heads could be faintly seen. Qi Li shuddered again. Although she was born in engineering, she specialized in the construction site after graduation, and she was not interested in literary and historical knowledge at all.

Qi Li sighed heavily, she had used various methods to wake herself up from her nightmare last night, and finally ended up crying in pain, she had already accepted her fate.

"It's the thirty-seventh year of Kangxi......" Qi Li muttered to herself, and it really didn't mean anything to her when she heard about the year. Being reborn in this age is the consequence of being young and vigorous. When she found out that the construction accident was caused by the contractor cutting corners, if she could calm down and report it to the superintendent without anyone noticing, she would not be so easily killed by the frenzied contractor, right? Qi Li reached out and wiped his face, and his calloused little rough hands brought most of the tears from his face. Fortunately, there are brothers and sisters-in-law, and when Mom and Dad hear the news, can they survive it?

With a tom, the mule cart seemed to be driving over a pothole, shaking Qi Suniang over and interrupting her thoughts and sadness. She looked at the children who were still asleep in the carriage and sat up again. Last night seemed to be the thirtieth day of the Chinese New Year's Eve, Renyazi went to the Longfu Temple to see the lights, and returned in the early morning, leaving only one helper to guard, and these children also played in the courtyard for half a night.

"Su Niang, do you miss your father?" A boy lying next to Qi Li didn't know whether he heard the movement or was awakened by the vibration, sat up, and asked quietly.

Qi Li was taken aback, and hurriedly wiped the tears off his face with his sleeve, and said vaguely: "Yes...... I have some thoughts, Brother Cui, are you not sleeping? When she woke up yesterday evening, the children were all playing in the courtyard outside, only the boy was taking care of the "Su Niang" who had a seizure, and the other children called him Little Cui.

The cold wind blowing into the car was getting stronger and stronger, and the broken door was blown and creaked. "I'm at home, and I'm up at this time." Little Brother Cui is fourteen or fifteen years old, and he is much older than the current Qi Li. He fumbled and hugged Qi Li, let her lean into his arms to keep warm, and whispered in her ear, "Are you better?" When you woke up from a seizure last night, you tossed and turned for half the night, screaming and crying, and I thought you were going to have another seizure. Fortunately, Renyazi and everyone were outside, and I happened to be the only one in the house. Su Niang, this problem can't be known to everyone, let alone Yazi, otherwise you won't be able to enter the mansion as a slave, and you don't know what pickled place you will be sold to. Remember? ”

Qi Li leaned on Xiao Cui's arms, listened to his earnest advice, felt the bursts of heating from the rotten cotton clothes, and thought of his untiring comfort and care last night, and his originally desperate and lonely heart slowly settled down. She looked around at the sleeping children, looked up and whispered, "I remember." Brother Cui, how often does my epilepsy occur? ”

Xiao Cui glanced at her, "So you haven't had a seizure at home?" My fourth sister has this problem when she is born in the womb, she has a seizure once in a few months, but she is not as strong as you, and she is not as good as you. ”

Qi Li heard that this epilepsy "occurs once in a few months", his heart was heavy, Xiao Cui seemed to be aware of her uneasiness and frustration, and teased her softly, "By the way, although we are all sold by the Yongding River flood, you don't talk much on weekdays, and you don't get close to everyone, everyone only knows that your name is Su Niang, what's your surname?" Which county is home in Yongding River? I am a native of Cangzhou, Zhili. ”

Qi Li was silent for a long time, buried his head in Xiao Cui's arms, and said vaguely: "My surname is Qi ......"

Xiao Cui smiled lightly: "Surname Qi? Qi Su Niang? ”

“…… Yes, my name is Qi Su Niang...... "The original Qi Li, now Qi Su Niang wiped her tears on Xiao Cui's clothes, raised her head, and was about to speak, only to hear another whip outside, and the sound of human teeth came out, "Quick!" Come on! ”

The carriage shook as if it was about to fall apart, Xiao Cui hugged Qi Su Niang tightly, frowned, and said to himself in confusion, "Why are you in such a hurry?" The children in the carriage were finally shaken to the point that they could no longer sleep, and sat up one by one.

The youngest of these children is only six or seven years old, and the eldest is only thirteen or fourteen, all of whom are headed by Xiao Cui, talking to him and listening to his arrangements. Xiao Cui couldn't take care of Qi Su Niang for a while. Qi Su Niang saw that the children were awake, and she stopped talking. When she came to this world, all she saw were people's teeth, helpers, and children. The words they use when they speak, and the number of courtesies they use when they act, are completely different from those in her previous life, and she will show flaws if she doesn't pay attention to them. Although Xiao Cui is very knowledgeable, she feels sorry for her illness and takes care of her as her fourth sister, most of them will not suspect her, she only dares to say a few words, and she does not dare to get close to other children, so she can only hide beside Xiao Cui and pretend to be stunned, watching him talk to the children, and secretly imitate.

The early morning sunlight leaked in one after another, shining on Qi Su Niang's face. Qi Su Niang looked sideways through the cracks in the carriage, the rising sun emitted a dazzling golden red light, and the beginning of the new year in the thirty-seventh year of Kangxi began.

Suddenly, the sound of horses' hooves sounded on the official road, and it seemed that many horses were catching up from behind. Xiao Cui and Qi Su Niang were stunned at the same time, and then they heard the frightened shouts of the helpers who were driving the car, "Boss, I'm afraid it happened last night, let's return that baby——"

It was just a sentence of effort, the sound of the horse's hooves approached with a bang, and the people behind had already ridden their horses to catch up with the last mule cart, and there were as many as 100 horsemen, and in a short time the three mule carts were surrounded, drove off the official road, and stopped in the sparse poplar forest on the side of the road.

Qi Su Niang was full of surprise, the people on the horse were all wearing oily and slippery leather jackets and leather hats, showing that they were from extraordinary backgrounds, and there were seventy or eighty people who were still carrying waist knives, and the arrow sleeves and green robes under the leather jackets looked clearly official uniforms.

"It's a big man with a full flag in the capital. The human tooth is in trouble. Xiao Cui turned his head from the crack in the carriage, his face was shocked and uneasy that he couldn't hide, and said hurriedly: "Everyone, don't make a sound, don't cry, don't annoy the nobles-" He was only halfway through his words, when he heard a sound of cursing and kicking, Ren Yazi and the two gangsters were dragged down from the car by the knife guards and beaten, and the terrible screams sounded one after another, "Uncle, the little ones don't dare anymore-" The children in the carriage were all pale with shock, and the two youngest were already crying.

Xiao Cui hugged the two children, "You can't cry, you can't make a sound, you can save your life if you are safe and secure." ”

The sound of the steel knife coming out of the scabbard suddenly sounded, Qi Su Niang's whole body stiffened, and her teeth were fighting, but it was just a gesture of the noble man with a full flag in the middle, and the human teeth and the two gangs didn't snort, and they lost their lives, and the wound on the throat flowed blood and dripped.

There was a thick smell of blood in the air, and the broken wooden door of the carriage creaked open. Qi Su Niang swallowed two mouthfuls of spit, endured her fear, was tightly held by Xiao Cui, and walked down from the carriage. The children were driven by a dozen retinues without knives and knelt on the frozen ground of the aspen forest. Ten paces away, the corpses of the human teeth and the helpers were hidden by the shadow of the poplar trees, black, red, black and red.

"Master, I've found it!" A shrill and feminine voice sounded, and a white and beardless decent attendant neatly rummaged in the dead man's arms for a while, took out an object with a happy face, turned and walked to the tall steed surrounded by the guards, and the brocade purse at his waist swayed gently with his movements.

He held the thing and said with a smile: "Eighth master, sure enough, it was this person who didn't have long eyes and his teeth smoothed the golden lock plate on Xiao Gege's neck." ”

Or because there is no shade of the branches, the sun behind the eighth master of the banner is shining, shining on him in a woven cotton dress, the jade belt around his waist is shining, but his face is not clear, and the gold lock plate in his hand is shining brightly by the sun, stinging Qi Su Niang's slightly raised eyes.

"That's it, because it's ...... What was rewarded last night must be on my body today, but I chased dozens of miles out of Beijing on the first day of the new year. A clear voice suddenly sounded, and the soft tone was tinged with a cold nobility. The children, who were already holding their breath out of fear, immediately suppressed their breath more lightly. Qi Su Niang felt out of breath.

The attendant laughed and said, "It's also Xiao Gege who is extravagant,...... I just rewarded this treasure, master, there is a feast on the first day of the new year, the hour is not early, you see......"

The eighth master seemed to nod and said, "I'll go back, Li Quan'er, you can take care of the rest." With that, the sound of horses' hooves began, and nearly a hundred fast horses galloped up the official road from the edge of the woods, and headed north with a bang.

Li Quan'er watched the eighth master return to the capital, and when the sound of hooves was far away, he could no longer see a shadow, Fang turned around and swept the thirty or so boys and girls on the ground, clapped his hands, and said with a smile: "Little ones, let's find a way to live for these babies, and it is also the master who rewarded us for our hard work all night." ”

The dozen or so entourages standing on both sides laughed sharply in unison, their voices were all feminine, and there was a person who had a face to slap Li Quan'er's ass, stepped forward and kicked the dead man, and said with a shy smile: "I don't know whether to live or die, the dog's hand reached out to Xiao Gege's neck, thinking that if you go out of the city overnight, you can escape from the eyes of our father-in-law Li?" Qi Su Niang heard the word "father-in-law", and suddenly realized that they were all modified eunuchs. Xiao Cui's hand tightened tighter and tighter, and Qi Su Niang followed him and put her head on the ground.

Everyone flattered and praised Li Quan'er for his big face and wide ears in Beijing. Li Quan'er only listened to a few words, but said with a straight face: "I know you, the few minions who took Xiao Gege to the Lantern Festival yesterday were all killed with a cane, and even I was trained by Fujin to be faceless, and if I don't work hard, I can't protect you." The eunuchs were all smiling, Li Quan'er didn't say more, glanced at the children kneeling on the ground, and said to the little eunuch who spoke first: "This matter can't be known, even if the master doesn't take care of this matter, but he can't spare it if he reveals it." You go to the east of the city to call Jiao Qi over, and it will save us trouble. ”

"Father-in-law, why don't you call Liu Duyan in the west of the city? He is a cheerful person, and his bid is a full forty percent higher than Jiao Qi. As soon as these words came out, four or five eunuchs immediately echoed them.

Li Quan'er took a sip, and the two whips were whipped on the little eunuch's body lightly or heavily, and scolded with a smile: "You kid is also a grandfather I brought out, why are your eyelids so shallow?" Liu Duyan specializes in buying and selling in private houses everywhere, I don't know how many lives have been ruined, and he has made desperate money! Jiao Qi is a rare and stable person in the official teeth of the capital, looking at the appearance of these babies, most of them were sold by the Yongding River flood last year, and being a slave and a servant is also a way to live, let's take it as a good deed and accumulate virtue for the master! It is what the future will be, and it can be said. ”

The crowd was even more flattering, and without Li Quan'er saying more, several eunuchs dragged the corpses on the ground to the depths of the poplar forest to bury them, and the rest of the people drove the children into three dilapidated mule carts.

Xiao Cui heard Li Quan'er's words, breathed a sigh of relief, and touched Qi Su Niang's head. The dozen or so children sitting on the mule cart cried, "Little Brother Cui, let's ...... Where are we going to be sold......"

Brother Cui beckoned the children to lean together to keep warm, and comforted: "Don't think about it, everyone, my father and mother sold us to let us have something to eat and let my younger siblings live." Even if it is still to be sold, as long as it is not sent to those pickled fields, it is the same everywhere. ”