In the evening, a group of people quietly slipped out of the village, looking like merchants on foot. The general soldier took a group of people to turn around and walk into the dense river in the reeds, and soon, a shallow-bottomed sand boat was propped out in the reeds, loaded with 200 stones of grain, and the flag of the Treasury Department of the Ministry of War, this was actually an official ship!

The general soldier Shun is the helmsman, Liu Guan is the sailor, Lin Yanghao and Li Qiqian are the oarsmen, all of them are dressed in green cloth and short fights. The catfish boy pretended to be a personal servant, wearing a drumming hat and carrying a bamboo basket, inside which was Emperor Chongwen's change of clothes, the four treasures of the study, and the official diploma.

Emperor Chongwen wore a black gauze hat, a green robe with a regimental collar, a black horn leather belt, a quail complement on his chest, white socks and soap boots, and the Ministry of War and Treasury was dressed as a Jiupin official. He was handsome, he looked like an officer escorting the ship, and the seal of the guard was tied to his elbow and covered with wide sleeves, and everything was true.

What surprised him even more was that the grain ship had all the formalities, and the documents were stamped with the seals of the Governor's Mansion of the Left Army and the Ministry of War, as well as the seals of the checkpoints from Nanjing to Lucheng, and he couldn't see any problems at all, this was the real document.

He really couldn't figure out where he got these official things in this dilapidated village by the canal. If anyone can get these things, then what kind of officials and herdsmen are there, their own court turned out to be like this, and it was not unjust to lose the country to King Yan at all.

This is a small sand boat, because it is an official ship, there is a special official cabin in the stern of the ship, for the escort officials to rest and live. Floating on the water every day is dizzy and frustrating, but it is very comfortable compared to the hard escape of the previous days.

Like other boats on the Grand Canal, the boats pass through customs during the day and moored at night in a fishing port and fishing village. Nanjing guests did not dare to reveal their accents, but fortunately, the catfish boy was clever and capable, familiar with water life, and the contact with the living people was all done by this teenager. The catfish boy goes through the customs procedures during the day, and goes to the village to buy wine and meat at night.

When there was nothing to do, he went to the rear cabin to help the chief soldier swing the rudder and familiarize himself with the helmsman's skills. Emperor Chongwen was in the back cabin, and he rarely heard what the old man and the young man said, and the general soldier Shun almost didn't talk about homely things except for occasionally pointing out the catfish boy to steer.

The grandfather and grandson didn't know the identity of Emperor Chongwen, but they were very respectful to him, and this respect made him feel very comfortable. Liu Guan's respect is the courtesy of the minister to the king, no different from those people in the past world, cautious and alienated. is not like the chief soldier Shun's respect for Liu Guan, it is the old slave's care and expectation for the young master.

The respect of this ancestor to Emperor Chongwen is very simple, but the people's respect for scholars, which makes him feel that what he has learned in the past is not useless, and he doesn't want the hard work of the Confucian gentlemen to be worthless.

The days passed like water, and during the day, everyone worked the busy canal, and everyone took their own responsibilities. In the evening, the sailors gathered on the foredeck, drinking and gambling under the dim lamp, until the chief soldier shouted: "It's all gone, and we will sail tomorrow." "Everyone slept in their clothes. Sometimes Emperor Chongwen thought that it would be nice if time stopped, and such a peaceful day would never pass.

Because it is an official ship, the procedures are complete, the civilian ships on the canal have to be polite, and the various water gates are not strictly checked, and everything is going smoothly It is unbelievable. It seems that the majesty of the government is still there, and sometimes Emperor Chongwen laughs at himself and thinks that what he has done in the past few years is not useless.

Stationed at the berth that night, the chief soldier came to the foredeck to gather everyone together, and said in a deep voice: "You can't drink alcohol at night, and you will go to Hushu Pass tomorrow, only 20 miles away from Suzhou City, so be more careful." "The ship is different from the land, the helm has great authority, second only to the captain, and there is an inexplicable majesty in the words of the general soldier.

Li Qiqian said unhappily: "After passing so many levels, do you still care about a Hushu Pass? You won't even be allowed to drink wine, you won't be unable to see us idle for a while." ”

The chief soldier raised his eyebrows, his eyes widened, and he shouted: "Bold, this is a boat, not you Leopard Taowei." I have the final say here, dare not listen to the greeting, do you want to tie it to the mast and eat the wind?"

Reprimanded Li Qiqian, who was stunned, the chief soldier continued: "We have been walking smoothly in the past few days because we are dealing with the small officials and Cao Ding of the Cao Yun Division, at most plus the officers of the Inspection Department, these people know the rules of Cao Shang and will not embarrass the official ship."

However, Hushu Pass is the gateway to Suzhou, and under Li Yuan's nose, he will send additional soldiers from the Fubiao Battalion and Yingtiandu Division to strictly guard the pass. I heard that Li Yuan is a domineering person, and his sergeant, no matter if you are an official ship or a civilian ship, he will definitely board the ship and strictly investigate it. Although Sun Daguan is said to be an official, it is a pity that he is a mute, how can he deal with the officers and soldiers who board the ship?"

Liu Guan said worriedly: "The big officials are not dumb, but it is not convenient to speak. ”

Lin Yanghao said: "If I pretend to be an escort officer of the Ministry of War?"

Liu Guan said: "No, the lack of a oarsman is a flaw, and you can't let Sun Daguan run the cheap service." ”

The catfish boy said, "I can be a lugman." ”

Liu Guan chiseled a chestnut on his head, and scolded with a smile: "Mother, you thief can't even shake a girl, and you still shake the oar?" Liu Guan stopped laughing, he continued: "Even if there is no shortage of oarmen on the ship, there is an unrelated person like Sun Daguan, and it is impossible to make sense, Lao Lin has a bad idea." ”

Chief Bingshun said: "For today's plan, there is only one way... Let Sun Daguan pretend to be sick, and I and the catfish boy will deal with the officers and soldiers tomorrow, what does Brother Guan think?"

Liu Guan patted his thigh and said: "That's it, the mother, the living are forced to become patients, what is the way of the world, I will persuade Sun Daguan." ”

In the middle of the night, when the weather had cooled down, Chongwen quietly took off his white middle single, walked into the canal barefoot, shirtless, wearing only a pair of calf-nosed shorts. Gradually, the whole body was immersed in the slightly cool water, and only the upper part of the neck was exposed in the moonlight. Since he promised Liu Guan to pretend to be sick, he simply got sick, and fake illness may not be able to be fooled and investigated.

After soaking a stick of incense in the cold water, Chongwen climbed onto the boat and lay wet on the back deck. As soon as the river breeze blew, he shivered, staring at the moon in the sky, and he gradually fell asleep. At dawn, he really had a high fever, and the chief soldier Shun and the catfish boy carried him into the official cabin, and the old helmsman shook his head slightly, unexpectedly that this big official was also a man.

Most of the water gates on the canal are barricades with pontoon bridges, and there are Cao Ding patrols on the bridge, and there are Cao officials on the river bank. The officials checked that the official disc documents were correct, and the ship presided over the official disc to the public office with a seal and released it. If it is a banknote, it is necessary to pay taxes according to the distance and the amount of material on the ship, and the tax can only be released.

Hushu Pass is to build a dam and barrage, with an iron gate as the water gate, and the winch is traction, which is very strong. Shuiguan can pass 1 400 large ships in the north and south directions at the same time, which is also the largest ship allowed by Emperor Shenwu to be owned by the people. There are wooden fences on both sides of the water gate, and there are bollards in the fence to mooring large and small ships, and you can wait here when waiting for the survey ship to go out of the customs.

In addition to the official rooms on both sides of the canal, there are many teahouses, restaurants, and hostels for prostitutes. During the busy season of the canal, there will be a long queue of ships waiting to clear the customs on both sides of the water gate, and many ships have to spend the night at the gate, and these people are engaged in the boatman business.

But today's Hushu Pass is different from the past, the shops on both sides are all closed, and the soldiers at the pass have increased significantly, one by one, they are wearing helmets and armor, and they are heavily guarded. On the dam hung a list of wanted criminals, indicating the identity and reward of the criminals, and it was not Cao Ding of the Cao Yun Division or the archers of the Inspection Department who patrolled back and forth on the dam, but the soldiers of the Fubiao Battalion.

In the end, it is an old worker, he has never experienced anything on the canal, and the general soldier is not bad at all. A general of the Fubiao battalion took over the defense of the pass, and his soldiers checked the passengers one by one one with the list of documents, Cao Ding was responsible for inspecting the goods, and the streets on both sides of the canal were patrolled by the inspection department to prevent the criminals from jumping over the wall and escaping towards the shore.

Liu Guan used a penny to prop up the boat, and Lin Yanghao and Li Qiqian came up and looked at the direction of Shuiguan uneasily. Liu Guan said calmly: "What kind of shadow and graphics, it's not like it at all, it's strange to find people with that, and they rely on accents to arrest people." This is an official ship, they don't have a reason to let the boatmen speak, and let Ah Shun and the catfish boy deal with everything. ”

The two nodded silently.

The search at the gate was very detailed, and it took a long time for a ship to be released, and the ship was slow to pass through the border. It wasn't until noon that Liu Guan and his entourage got under the iron gate, and the small officials at the pass went down to the boat with two standard battalion sergeants. The little official took the paperwork in his hand and glanced at it, looked up and asked, "From Nanjing?"

The chief soldier said: "This is the military rations entrusted by the Left Army Governor's Office to the Ministry of War, which naturally came from Nanjing. ”

The little official looked the chief soldier up and down, and only after a long time said, "Where is this Cao Treasurer who escorted the ship, why don't you see anyone?"

The chief soldier said calmly: "Cao Siku suffered from the wind cold on the water and is recuperating in the official cabin. ”

The little official said, "Take me to see it." ”

The chief soldier gave a look of obedience, and the catfish boy said, "Then come with me." ”

When I arrived at the back cabin, I saw a person wearing the uniform of a Jiupin official lying in the cabin, and I didn't know who was burning. The black gauze hat was placed aside, and the catfish baby presented the seal of the gate, and there was no abnormality. The little official is experienced, and when he knocks on the cabin board with his hand, he knows that there is no interlayer, and when he turns to the front cabin, it is indeed a grain bag, and there is no abnormality.

Finally, the little official stepped up to the front deck and said to the two sergeants wearing mandarin duck battle jackets: "This is an official ship from Nanjing, the paperwork is complete, and there is no entrainment, and the materials are fine." ”

A stout soldier silently pushed him aside, took out the portrait of the criminal from his arms, and checked them one by one, they were all ordinary boatmen, and there was no resemblance to the guy in the portrait. After a long time, the stout man finally said:

"Li Junmen has an order that all travelers in Nanjing will be detained. But don't worry, since it's an official ship, of course it won't send you to prison, as long as you can be screened in the second hall of the division, you can go with me. ”