Reading guide: The air in the Issuance and Examination Bureau is solemn, Luo Bingzhang is helpless, and he drinks tea in the signing room.

The old man wanted to borrow the pot, and when he saw his mother-in-law, he called the uncle. The old man is poor and short-minded, and his mother-in-law has compassion for the same disease.

The old man was busy building the pot stove, and Li Chendian walked in......

Luo Bingzhang said with a gloomy face: "Bao Junmen, if something really happens to Zeng Shilang, we will be in big trouble!" ”

After Luo Bingzhang finished speaking, he stomped on the sedan board with his foot and said: "Get up the sedan chair!" ”

The pro-soldiers got the order, surrounded Luo Bingzhang's sedan chair, and rushed to the Issuance and Examination Bureau.

Bao Qibao hurriedly got on the horse and hurriedly followed behind the sedan chair.

Before Luo Bingzhang got up in the sedan chair, Taqibu was already being helped to walk towards the Issuance Examination Bureau.

Taqi's face was full of tears, and he couldn't wait to rush to the Issuance Examination Bureau. What kind of general was smashed into, and whether his family was safe, he was all left behind at this time. He is now only focused on Zeng Guofan.

When Luo Bingzhang and Bao Qibao arrived at the Issuance Examination Bureau, the officials of the Issuance Examination Bureau had already returned to the office to hand over their errands, and they were gathering in the official hall to talk. Li Chendian went to find Zeng Guofan with his own soldiers and never returned.

The old errand officer walked over and over again outside the signing room, and the two copywriters also followed suit.

The atmosphere of the Issuance Examination Bureau at this time was particularly solemn.

When he learned that the governor had arrived, all the officers rushed out to welcome him. Everyone unanimously agreed that Zeng Guofan must be with Lord Futai.

But Luo Bingzhang's first sentence brought the atmosphere back to just now: "Has Lord Zeng ever returned to the office?" ”

As soon as the old officer heard this, he burst into tears, and said while crying: "Not only has Master Zeng not returned, but even Li Guandao has disappeared!" ”

Infected by him, the Issuance Examination Bureau soon burst into tears.

Luo Bingzhang's face changed, and he immediately said to the pro-soldier battalion standing beside him: "Pass the order, the Xiangyong battalions and the three posts of Fubiao in the city will immediately split up to find Lord Zeng!" All the posts, towns, and associations are on standby, and they are not allowed to step out of the barracks for half a step! If you dare to disobey your orders, you will be beheaded on the spot! ”

The pipe band quickly conveyed Luo Bingzhang's words.

Two quarters of an hour later, groups of Xiangyong and Fubiao officers and soldiers began to appear in the streets and alleys of Changsha City. The shouts of "Zeng Daren" and "Zeng Daren" came and went, and they lasted for a long time in the night sky.

The Hunan provincial city was shaken, and the people soon heard the exact news: Zeng Shilang, the minister of regimental training, was missing.

The officials of the Issuance and Examination Bureau invited Luo Bingzhang and Bao Qibao into the signing room, came up with tea, and invited them to sit down and rest.

Luo Bingzhang suddenly frowned and said, "For so long, why didn't Taxietai come over?" ”

Why didn't Tazib come? It turned out that as soon as Taqib walked to the Yuanmen of the Issuance and Examination Bureau, he learned from the soldiers at the Yuanmen sentry that Zeng Guofan had not returned until now.

Tazib, who was as heavy as a mountain, had red eyes. At this time, Bao Chao took his own battalion of men and horses, together with Fubiao and two sentinels, and rushed over with the officers and soldiers who were making trouble.

Taqib shouted at Bao Chao: "Chunting, Lord Zeng hasn't come back yet!" Give me a horse, I'm going to find the adults myself! ”

As soon as Bao Chao heard this, he pulled down a sentry commander beside him from his horse, ordered his own soldiers to help Taqib on his horse, and then took his own soldiers, together with Taqib, and left Yuanmen to find Zeng Guofan.

After putting all the troublemakers in prison, Bao Chao's entire battalion also joined the team to find people.

So, where is Zeng Guofan? Li Chendian searched carefully outside the courtyard wall of the Issuance and Examination Bureau, how could he not see him?

Zeng Guofan was in an empty house, and he fell asleep for less than half an hour, when an old man walked in with a large handful of hay in his arms. The old man also came to Changsha for desertion, and when he first came to live in an empty barracks outside the city, he later lived in a ruined temple for two months. On the first day of the disturbance among the officers and soldiers of Yongshun Concord, he found this empty house and decided to come and live today. When he fled to Changsha, he had a bed and cooking utensils, but when he lived in the temple, he was stolen. He decided to come and live here, so he had to find some hay to wrap himself in. If he hadn't missed the hour in search of hay, he would have arrived here by noon.

The old man's eyes are not very good, and he always sees things vaguely. After he came in with hay, he went straight to Zeng Guofan. He thought that the black and slimy thing was still the ragged coat he saw yesterday.

As soon as he put the hay on Zeng Guofan's body, the hay immediately spread out and covered Zeng Guofan tightly.

He stood and breathed, looked around the new house with great satisfaction, went out, found a wire, screwed the door shut, and turned around to walk towards his mother-in-law, who was scavenging. When he passed by with grass, he saw a broken pot without ears in her yard, and wanted to borrow it to cook with it.

But his eyes were really bad, and when he walked up to his mother-in-law, he thought it was an old man, and an old man who was many years older than him.

He opened his mouth and said, "Uncle, busy. ”

The mother-in-law glanced up at him, and suddenly said, "Are you greeting me?" ”

As soon as he heard that the accent was wrong, he hurriedly changed his words: "It turned out to be an aunt." I'm hot and confused. ”

The mother-in-law said, "Why do your eyes look so long?" I was just forty-six years old. ”

As soon as he heard this, he immediately changed his words and said, "I am sixty-six miles." ”

The mother-in-law ignored him and took care of the work in her hands.

He said curtly, "I'm fleeing the famine." ”

The mother-in-law replied while working, "Me too." ”

He pointed to the pot he saw and said, "I'm your neighbor, and I just moved here and want to borrow your pot for it." If I find the pot, I will return it to you; If it's broken, I'll compensate you. ”

The mother-in-law looked up at him again and said, "I said you, what are you doing with those two eyes?" Just your eyes, don't do it. You can see for yourself, it's a pot, you just have to use it, you don't have to return it. ”

The mother-in-law straightened up after speaking, sighed softly, and slowly walked towards the house.

When he heard this, he was overjoyed, and hurried to the pot. When he arrived, he bent down to take a closer look, and couldn't help but be surprised: this was not a pot, but a jar with half a mouth missing.

He looked at the jar again and again, and muttered to himself in disbelief: "It's obviously a pot, why did it become a jar?" ”

The mother-in-law came out of the house at this time, clearly holding a pot in her hand.

The mother-in-law walked up to him step by step, handed him the pot and said, "I picked it up from the barracks, there is a crack next to it, and it is not in the way." ”

He was greatly moved, and hurriedly took the pot: "This is a troublemaker, and no one can live a single mile." ”

The mother-in-law asked, "Are you also making trouble there?" ”

He replied: "I fled here from Jiangxi, and that King Tota Li made a lot of trouble in Jiangxi. The provincial capital is still surrounded by miles. Now it's quiet here, you don't need to hide from soldiers and bandits, and you can still get food. ”

The mother-in-law said, "Why did the king change his surname?" When I was in Wuchang, I heard that his surname was Hong. The people under his hands were as red as pig's blood. ”

He sighed and said, "His surname is red and black, we all have to live." ”

The mother-in-law asked, "Just run away from you?" ”

He said: "The old woman ate the cannonballs of King Tota Li, and on the day that the girl looked for her mother-in-law's house, she let the people under King Tota Li snatch them from the cave room. I'm looking for the pot, and I'll give this back to you. I'll have to go back and build a pot house. When it is dark, it is dark. ”

The mother-in-law said, "If you want to go to the ditch to get water, come to me and get a bucket." ”

The old man walked back to his "home" with the pot and carefully placed the pot on the ground. He did not enter the house, so he began to look for bricks and stones to build a stove.

It was already evening, and the sky was full of colorful clouds, reflecting a fiery red everywhere.

Li Chendian walked in with a few personal soldiers at this time. The old man was startled, thinking that he was going to get rid of him, so he hurriedly leaned against the door and asked in horror: "This is my family, what do you want to do?" ”

Li Chendian pulled him away, unscrewed the wire with two of the three, threw it to the ground, and said while pushing the door: "Looking for someone." ”

Li Chendian walked into the house and took a look, except for some hay piled up in the corner of the house, there was nothing else in the house.

Li Chendian sighed, walked out with his head down, and said to his soldiers: "There is only the moat left!" Where the hell has he gone? ”

Li Chendian led people far away, and the old man didn't figure out what these people were going to do. (End of chapter)