At the beginning of the lanterns, the night in Zhongzhou is like a dynasty of Dayu, showing an insurmountable class.

Beicheng District has long been silent, quiet, without a trace of hustle and bustle, like a silent lurking glutton, ready to choose people to eat, swallowing a quarter of Zhongzhou into endless darkness. The reason for this phenomenon is because the four major urban areas in the north city are the closest to the imperial city, and the official eunuchs above the three grades are gathered in Si, and because the officials of the dynasty in the past want to participate in the relationship of the early dynasty, most of them have fallen asleep before the end of the day, so the most taboo in the north city of Zhongzhou is to make noise at night, even if the children of the official family want to go to the pastime and live, they do not dare to disturb the tranquility of this area. This practice has lasted for many years, penetrated deep into the bone marrow, and then became a rule, even if Lu Gan did not go to court for more than ten years, officials at all levels stayed up all night singing and dancing, drunk and drunk, but no one broke this rule.

The other three districts are very lively, compared with the northern city, it is like a world away, but these three districts also have their own characteristics and are not the same.

Nancheng District is a place where Zhongzhou businessmen live, and with their enthusiasm for accumulating wealth, local residents show the prosperity of Zhongzhou's thousand-year-old capital to the fullest. Everything that can be bought in the shops of Kyushu is available here, and it is open non-stop at 12 o'clock, and in the streets and alleys, there are all kinds of restaurants, gold buildings, fur shops, pen and ink shops, and antique shops that are open all night...... Unscrupulously swallowing huge wealth, showing off the prosperity of the first city in Kyushu, no matter who sees such a scene, can not think of the state like the twilight of the sunset.

The night in the east city of Zhongzhou is as noisy as the south city, if not more lively. Because Nancheng is facing the main gate of the palace, facing the righteousness and brightness of the extravagance, it is natural to have to manage all kinds of serious businesses, otherwise it will tarnish the dragon's eye, but it is a big sin that cannot be afforded. Dongcheng is different, deviating from the sight of the nobles, and all kinds of lucrative but lucrative businesses have surfaced and presented themselves to the world. Countless goulans, tile shops, gambling houses, and pawnshops are already legal livelihoods, and what is even more obscure is the underground black market with various official backgrounds, where all kinds of shady businesses are operating, such as reselling ordnance and rations, disaster relief materials, and human trafficking.

Zhongzhou Xicheng is also lively at night, but it is forgotten and ignored by the dignitaries and nobles, from a long time ago, Xicheng is a slum, only the most impoverished Zhongzhou people will live in Xicheng, a little powerful or wealthy people, or people who can climb the rich and noble, will leave here as soon as possible, the worst will also be in Dongcheng to buy an industry or even seek employment, even if you sleep in the cellar, stable, and floor shop in Dongcheng at night, you are not willing to stay here for a while. Because even if the life in the East City is dark and aggrieved, and cannot be put on the stage, like a sneaky rat swimming in the ditch, it will never be as humble as these people in the West City, as ignorant as grass and trees, and no one cares about life and death.

But after all, Zhongzhou Xicheng is lively, at night, the poor men who have worked all day call friends, gather in the simple food stalls, shout a few dishes of snacks, just a penny and a pot of bad wine, chatting, eliminating difficulties and relieving fatigue, discussing the drama they watched yesterday, and scolding the faint king and traitorous ministers over there. On the other hand, all kinds of dark atmosphere different from Dongcheng are also permeated in the corner where the powerful stop, the underground black market in Dongcheng cannot be intervened without a strong official backer, otherwise no matter how rich you are, no matter how good you can fight, you will be on the street the next day, but the underground black market in Xicheng is the world of real gangsters, and all the black economy without official background in Zhongzhou is gathered in Xicheng to carry out, and even the official will not officially carry out business, such as hiring killers, such as buying and selling intelligence, for the powerful, everyone earns money, but there can be no sense of proportion and rules, but for the people living at the bottom, there is nothing that cannot be violatedThere is nothing that cannot be paid, just look at the contrast between pay and benefit. Of course, this does not mean that Xicheng is a forbidden place for the government, in fact, the gangsters in Xicheng are also pawns of the officials, but because the people at the bottom are often the victims of the malpractices of the government, it directly leads to the natural antipathy of the people of Xicheng to the government, so the officials with a strong state apparatus want to control the affairs of Xicheng, but it is not as convenient as the people in the rivers and lakes, they must intervene indirectly through the spokespersons on the rivers and lakes, in order to get a piece of the black economy in Xicheng safely and steadily, otherwise they will definitely face a clear or covert struggle, for them, this is something that the wise do not do。

At this time, Yi Tianxing was walking side by side with Gu Xinsheng on the streets of Xicheng. Although there are many pavings on both sides, because they can't afford the night lights that are common in other urban areas in Zhongzhou and can be illuminated as bright as day, they just insert some lanterns sparsely, and when they walk on the wide streets, the lighting is seriously insufficient, and the road ahead is bleak. In contrast to the lighting, the noisy noise, sweat mixed with the smell of foot odor, but it covers the entire city, making it impossible to avoid it.

Gu Xinsheng walked all the way, nodding and greeting people constantly, and at the same time introducing the situation and situation in Zhongzhou to Yi Tianxing.

Yi Tianxing didn't say a word, just listened quietly, how did he first arrive, he was far less familiar with the situation in Zhongzhou than Gu Xinsheng, as long as he listened, until he saw a majestic building opposite, which was very different from the style of the nearby houses, he asked, "What is that?"

"Where?" Gu Xinsheng looked at Yi Tianxing's fingers: "Oh, that's the palace sword casting workshop." In fact, Xicheng is not useless, there are all kinds of workshops gathered here, except for the palace swordsmithing workshop, you see over there, it is the palace weaving and dyeing workshop......"

Yi Tianxing sneered in his heart: "I know, presumably the people from these workshops won't live in Xicheng, right?"

Gu Xinsheng said with a smile: "The officials are definitely not there, and the workers are here." ”

Yi Tianxing frowned: "These craftsmen make supplies for the royal family, and the treatment is so bad?"

Gu Xinsheng said sarcastically: "It is precisely because of working for the royal family, you don't dare not do it if the treatment is poor, and you can't even do it badly." Of course, according to the rules of Dayu, the salary of these craftsmen is still quite good, but this kind of workshop is the place where the iron rooster has to lose all his hair, and it has become a common practice for the chief manager to deduct the silver money of the craftsman, and it is good in normal times, the chief manager always has a limit to greedy ink, and generally will not go too far, so as not to intensify the contradiction and attract the attention of the imperial court. As he spoke, he lowered his voice: "But that's okay, they treat the craftsmen well, and it's not easy for me to buy these craftsmen." ”

Yi Tianxing grinned and did not speak.

At this moment, a short and fat stall owner on the side of the road shouted: "Gu Qigongzi, bring your friends to play, do you want to come and sit with me?"

Gu Xinsheng turned his head to Yi Tianxing and smiled: "I didn't eat enough just now, did I? Go in and sit down? Don't look at Zhao Fatzi's small shop, his cooking skills are first-class." ”

Zhao Fatzi happily shouted at Yi Tianxing: "This son is the first time to come to Xicheng, right? Otherwise, you must have heard of my Zhao Fatzi's craftsmanship." ”

Yi Tianxing did not twist a few chopsticks on the "feast" just now, his stomach was empty, and he nodded: "Okay! Bring me a plate of braised beef, a plate of braised vegetables, a plate of cold bamboo shoots, a plate of fried peanuts, and a pot of good wine!"

Gu Xinsheng was stunned and said, "You really haven't eaten enough?"

Yi Tianxing glanced at him angrily: "Nonsense, is the food you serve for people?" You like to fool whoever you go, anyway, don't call me to eat in your Kyushu Building." ”

Gu Xinsheng cut a sigh: "If you don't go, you won't go, do you think I'm rare? Please have a meal, I don't want to do a few thousand taels of gold business, I have to provide you with a banquet of thousands of taels of gold for free, as soon as you come and go, these tens of thousands of taels of gold will be lost, and you will not be full, if you want to eat again, I have to think about it seriously." ”

Yi Tianxing said: "I'm not uncommon. ”

Between the conversations between the two, the people passing by and the neighbors saluted Gu Xinsheng one after another, and Yi Tianxing finally couldn't help but ask: "Why are you so popular? As soon as I saw you enter Xicheng, you were like a heartthrob, and everyone greeted you!"

At this time, Zhao Fatzi quickly served braised vegetables, cold dishes, and wine jugs and wine glasses: "Childe, you don't know yet, right? Gu Qigongzi is a great benevolent person and a great savior in our Xicheng!"

Gu Xinsheng waved his hand: "Go, go! If you don't pull peanuts anymore, you should be confused!"

Zhao Fatzi smiled: "Don't worry, you can't make a mistake." As he spoke, he ran to the stove and stirred fried peanuts.

Gu Xinsheng poured two glasses of wine: "I have a good hall in Xicheng, which specializes in giving porridge and medicine, which family has an emergency, and can borrow silver taels from me." Of course, I will also check whether the borrower's distress is true. ”

Yi Tianxing took five or six slices of beef and stuffed them into his mouth, and said vaguely: "Well, it tastes good." By the way, you are Qin Zhengdao's people, they don't exclude you?"

Before Gu Xinsheng could speak, Zhao Fatzi had already come over with fried peanuts, glared at him and scolded: "Who doesn't have a long eye to say that Gu Qigongzi is Qin Laogou's person? Can Qin Zhengdao make the people of the Four Zhitang? That is the ...... of Yang Gong's sect."

Yi Tianxing waited until Zhao Fatzi crackled and reprimanded, only to feel sweating: "Taught, taught." ”

Zhao Fatzi still has to say more, but his shop business is good, just this nonsense work, there are already three or four groups of customers shouting and shouting, he has to throw down a sentence: "Don't say bad things about Gu Qigongzi, otherwise I won't do your business!" and then ran quickly to take the order.

Yi Tianxing muttered: "I heard that Qin Zhengdao is covering the sky in Zhongzhou with one hand......"

Gu Xinsheng said: "This is true, but he has to meddle in it." In this place where ordinary people gather, it is common to criticize the court, officials and even the emperor, and it is not impossible to severely punish the people for this little thing, so that the people will keep their voices silent and dare not vomit if they have grievances, but Qin Zhengdao is estimated to have not been idle to this point. ”

Yi Tianxing said with a smile: "It seems that Chen Cheng has earned you a lot of prestige. ”

Gu Xinsheng nodded and said: "Master Buddha Ding is also known among the common people, and Jishitang has him and Chen Cheng, so he is not afraid of being slandered by people." ”

Yi Tianxing said in a low voice: "But you are buying people's hearts like this, Qin Zhengdao is turning a blind eye?"

Gu Xinsheng said: "Qin Zhengdao also has his own abacus, I have no foundation in the court of Yu State, and I am a businessman who was raised by Yu Guoshi, it is basically impossible to form a force in the upper echelons of the elite, and the power of the poor people, he still doesn't care about it." What's more, he gets a lot of money from me every month, and his income has more than doubled compared to when he didn't have me, so he still takes good care of me. ”

Yi Tianxing's face changed when he heard this: "It's not good, this old boy is already preparing for rebellion, and your arrangements must be hurried." ”

Gu Xinsheng said: "It's certain that this guy is uneasy, but how can I see that he is already preparing?"

Yi Tianxing blushed: "If Qin Zhengdao has no dissent, with his powerful position, maintaining the status quo is far more important than making money, the charm of money is not enough for him to connive at you to buy people's hearts, the people's hearts are the will of those who govern the country, he can not do it, but he will never tolerate others to grasp it." He is willing to tolerate and accommodate you so much, which can only show one problem, that is, he is in urgent need of money now, and he has reached the point of unscrupulous means, Qin Zhengdao's power is tilted towards the government and the opposition, will he be short of money?"

Gu Xinsheng said in horror: "I see. Then he exhaled a long breath and turned to the secret channel: "But no matter how much he calculates, it won't affect my big plan." To tell you the truth, most of the money and materials I have accumulated in the past few years have been transferred to Qiyang City, even if I become elbows and armpits, my loss is not big. ”

Yi Tianxing was still worried, and replied in a secret voice: "Qin Zhengdao's advantage is in the capital, once there is a change, you will bear the brunt, and the whip of Qianyang is beyond reach, it is beyond your reach." ”

Gu Xinsheng smiled proudly: "In this troubled world, but for the sake of the world, what do you care about your own life and death?"

Yi Tianxing said: "How many descendants do you have in the capital now?"

Gu Xinsheng said: "I selected a lot of highly qualified children from the civilians of Xicheng, left three thousand people for Mengya training, and sent the rest to Qiyang." For the rest, there are more than 100 people in the house, there are more than 100 warlocks under Guangningzi, and the people of Jishitang and Koi Gang are also trustworthy. ”

Yi Tianxing said: "It's gone?"

Gu Xinsheng said: "No." ”

Yi Tianxing continued to ask: "Regardless of Qiyang, what is the combat effectiveness of the people in the capital?"

Gu Xinsheng said: "Guangningzi's master and apprentice are good at making magic weapons, and if there is enough time to lay down the magic circle, it is still quite powerful. ”

Yi Tianxing listened to it and secretly scolded himself: "That is to say, the temporary battle is not good!"

Gu Xinsheng continued: "The people of Jishitang are trustworthy, and there are many people, but they have no combat effectiveness, the people of the Koi Gang are mainly familiar with the rivers and lakes, can coordinate the relationship between all parties, and there are few good players in martial arts, and most of them are not in the capital. ”

Just as Yi Tianxing's face became more and more ugly, Gu Xinsheng finally gave him some good news: "The young man trained by Mengya is not bad, and now he relies on them to travel to Jingzhou." ”

Governor Yi Tian sighed: "Three thousand people are a little less, but if they are all well-trained masters, as long as they operate properly, there is no chance of escaping from the capital." By the way, how many of them can deal with you?"

Gu Xinsheng said: "There must be more than 100 people, right?"

Yi Tianxing groaned: "It's passable, it has reached the standard of elite soldiers in the official army." However, if you want to survive in the troubled times, you still have a little short, so I will give you a few recipes when I go back, and you can help me collect medicinal materials. ”