forty-two

After this period of development, the town has long since changed from what it used to be, and it is a notch higher than before.

But I saw that the street was full of traffic, people came and went, three religions and nine streams, five elements and eight works, two monks and two sects, Hui and Han two religions, the men and women, old and young, doing buying and selling, riding horses and sitting in sedan chairs. Those who push carts, those who see pots, those who repair pots, those who sell needles, those who sell threads, those who sell onions, those who sell garlic, and so on.

Although the three of them passed through many towns along the way, there was no such small but prosperous town.

Walking around the town, what I saw were those who sold wine and rice, those who sold chaotic noodles, those who sold suckling chickens, those who cut sliced meat, those who sold roasted cakes with tea eggs, those who skewered fried fritters, and those who sold mung bean porridge with fried buns.

Those who drink tea and feast, and those who nibble ham and chew garlic. There are those who eat and those who see, those who rob the bowl and ask for food, those who are abducted and deceived, and those who steal what you can't see with three hands. Those who sing songs and mix rice, those who listen to a paragraph for five dollars to give money, those who push carts sweat, those who ask people to fan, those who tell the street to break their anger, those who shout at the old lady to do good deeds at the throat, those who chat nonsense, and those who are drunk and lie on the street pretending to be garlic.

The nose is rotten, the bones are cheap, the gambling loses and the forbidden wall stands, the demonic power is empty, the people who live in the hotel in time for the exam, the sky is dark when they read the article, and they come to the yamen to wander around and watch.

After a few turns, the three of them decided to find an inn to live in first, and then go to see the fight after a few days.

But the town is already so lively, and it's not easy to find an inn. After a few turns, the three of them stopped in front of an inn.

The inn in front of me is four stories high, with four banners hanging at the door, the walls and pillars on the outside are brand new, and the interior decoration is also very luxurious.

Standing outside, you can see that there are no more empty seats in the inn hall. A junior saw that the three of them were well-dressed and rich-looking, and hurriedly greeted them inside.

"Is there a guest room?" asked the laughing monk as he touched his stomach.

"Yes, yes, there are still five rooms in the upper room. ”

"Okay, open us three upper rooms. After that, a silver ingot fell into Xiao Er's hand.

"Is there a private seat for dinner?" asked Mei Qian as she walked inside.

"Yes. Xiao Er immediately replied: "There is a private room on the second floor, and the location is good." With that, he led the three of them up to the second floor to see the private room.

When he came to the private room, Xiao Er hurriedly wiped the tables and chairs with a white cloth on his shoulder, and opened the curtain to make the room brighter.

"What do you have to eat here? "The laughing monk has a big belly and is hungry fast.

"When it comes to food, the three of them are blessed.

If you drink wine: there are ten kingdoms, champion red, grape dew, old white dry, five crested heads brought from Shandong, and sorghum from Bianliang.

If you eat vegetables: there are animals in the mountains, geese in the clouds, cattle and sheep on the land, fresh on the sea, crabs in the river without their claws, fried and fried.

If you eat: There are flower rolls, steamed buns, seven-star cakes, twist fritters, rice, noodles, dumplings, fried buns, and wontons with blunt fire to burn the dough.

Anyway, there are flying in the sky, running on the ground, swimming in the water, jumping in the grass, fishing in the water, steaming in the pot, dry frying, and burning in the fire, all of them, all of which are of good quality and low price. ”

After Xiao Er left the private room, Mei Qian pointed to the smiling monk and said: "The monks pay attention to not killing, the so-called sweeping the floor does not hurt the lives of ants, and cherishes the moth yarn lamp; You're good, eat as much meat as you can. ”

The laughing monk touched his stomach and said, "I have wine and meat through the intestines, and the Buddha is sitting in his heart." What's more, the weather is getting colder, of course, you have to eat more meat to make up for it. ”

"This inn is very good, and there are still vacant seats when it comes to the meal. Zhu Shou said while lying on the windowsill and looking down at the street.

"It's not about the money. Mei Qian poured herself a cup of tea, rinsed her mouth, and said, "This was originally an ordinary town, and the reason why it is so lively now is all because of peace." Those who came here were all Jianghu people and the people around them, how much money they could have to enter this kind of high-end inn. Even some small gang leaders will not bring a group of men to this kind of place to consume, they are more likely to rent the yards of a few families to live temporarily. ”

As he was talking, the door of the private room opened, and a junior walked in with four cold dishes. He was followed by a man carrying two jars of wine. Then, a variety of dishes were delivered at once.

After eating and drinking, the three of them went back to their rooms to rest for a while, and went out to continue shopping in the afternoon.

After some playing, the three of them learned from each other why this town is so lively.

It turns out that tomorrow is the day of the second fight, and those who know the news will rush over in advance today.

It's also a pity that the three of them came by chance, if they arrive a day late, let alone three rooms, even if it is three times the price of a room, then they have to be robbed. The room they live in now is already twice the price.

"It's strange, this ring didn't collapse two months ago, why did it only get repaired today?"

Because the three of them played a little late, when they returned to the inn, the private room had already been booked. The three of them had no choice but to eat in the hall. But even so, the three of them waited for a wave before they had a place to sit.

But this is also beneficial, originally the three of them were not very hungry, and they were hungry when they waited.

The people around him, open and close their mouths, talk about the second opening.

The so-called talent is in the people, and in such a crowded place, all kinds of strange news can be heard.

No, some people talk about why the ring dragged on for so long.

"After the first ring collapsed, it hurt a lot of people, so this time it was going to be built stronger. ”

"The last time the ring was already four floors, and I don't know what kind of effect it will be built this time. ”

"I took a look in advance yesterday, and there is only one floor, half a person high, and I can jump on it. There is also a relatively safe area surrounded by red ropes. ”

"It's going to be that simple, this is open to the world, and those masters have to go to the five-story ring no matter what, so they can seem capable. ”

"It's because it's open to the world that it's only one floor. Otherwise, those masters are ten feet tall when they raise their legs, and those who can only go up to the next level and want to fight, how embarrassing is it. ”

"Don't think that this floor of the ring is simple, it took two months to build, but it is not what it seems. It is said that the material used to build this platform is made of special materials, which is hard and stable, and even if Sun Monkey hits it with a golden hoop stick, it will not leave a trace. ”

When Zhu Shou heard this, the rice in his mouth almost didn't squirt out.

Finally, another table of guests heard the conversation between the three of them, and they couldn't stand it anymore, so they stood up and said to the three of them: "This friend, what you said is the ring, or the land of Wuzhuang Guan." Let's not talk about myths, as far as the facts are concerned, the material for building this ring is like this. This ring has been approved by the current emperor, and the material used to build the ring is the masonry at the foot of the emperor's Jinluan Palace. This brick and stone is stepped on by the ministers of the court and the emperor, and is supported by dragon energy and righteousness, so it is invulnerable, and water and fire are invulnerable. ”

When Zhu Shou heard this, this was even more unreliable, he still believed that it was the land of Wuzhuang Temple.

After a night without saying anything, everyone finished their supper and went back to their rooms to rest.

The next day, Zhu Shounan got up early in the morning, had breakfast with Mei Qian and Monk Xiao, hired a carriage, and went to Ping'an outside the town.

The second opening of the ring was much larger, and the road leading to the ring outside the town was re-widened and repaired. The petty traders on both sides of the road stretched to the square in front of the ring, and from time to time one or two officers with knives patrolled the roadside.

Occasionally, someone from behind would be heard shouting, "Let me go......!" and three or two horses galloped away.

It's been two months since the last ring, and the coachman is already familiar with the road, even if the ring has moved, the time has come, but the carriage has been traveling for a while, and it has not reached its destination.

It turns out that the current status of this ring is no longer comparable to last time.

Although it was the official approval last time, it was only a proposal of the six doors of the gods, and the local prefect agreed, and even the prefect at the next level pretended not to know and let it develop. If the development is good, it means that he has managed it well; if the development is not good, it is the county magistrate who deceives the superiors and subordinates and acts arbitrarily.

But this time it's different, this time it's a holy decree. In other words, as long as you perform well in the ring, you are likely to be valued by the emperor and selected to be a guard in the palace, and your future is limitless.

Of course, this is just a fantasy for some. But even if the emperor can't see it, he is favored by the magistrate, and he goes to the yamen to find an errand, which is better than them walking the rivers and lakes to eat a full meal and be hungry.

Because of the holy decree, the surrounding officials also paid attention to it, and they all wanted to move the ring to their county.

Later, it was to pay for the construction of the ring, and to see which county contributed the most money to build the ring, the ring would be moved to which county to be held.

In the end, Fushan County won the right to hold the event. Of course, this money was paid by the people, squires, and wealthy businessmen of Fushan County, and not a single penny was paid out in the yamen, not only did it not come out, but it entered a lot of inputs.

This ring is famous for peace, and it is also called so in the emperor's holy decree, so it is still called Ping'an after the second relocation and reconstruction, but the address has long been changed. But because the name remains the same, most people misunderstand, and they think that the ring is rebuilt on the original site, so they live in Ping'an Town.

But in fact, from Ping'an Town, it takes twice as much.

Finally came to the square in front of the ring, which was already crowded.

The ring is in the middle of the square, about half a person high, and is made of huge stones. There is a staircase at each of the four corners of the ring, and the staircase is four tiers and three feet long. A pole was erected in front of each of the four steps, and a rope enclosed a safe area.

Of course, this is a gentleman and not a villain, if you really bypass the safety rope to see, no one will stop you. Anyway, those who surround the rope know that once those masters fight like crazy, they don't know where it is safe.

Until now, though, everyone was standing behind the safety rope.

But the reason is not that the quality of these people is very good, but that not long after the collapse of the previous ring, all kinds of tragic situations are still vivid.