Xu Zhi and the others listened to the words of Yun Feiyang and his party in the next room. Huifeng proposed: "Brother Xu, Miss Zhou, we will go to Caizhou City soon, or we will spend the New Year there, and we will also go to the Yanyu Building in the city to see the excitement during the Lantern Festival." What do you think?"

Zhou Yuanzhi didn't speak, but looked at Xu Zhi with her eyes, as if waiting for him to make an idea.

Xu Zhi said to Hui Feng: "That's fine, on the one hand, we can continue to track Yun Feiyang, and by the way, we can also accompany Miss Zhou to Caizhou City to relax." ”

Although Xu Zhi's words came from inadvertently, Zhou Yuanzhi heard it in her ears, but she was happy in her heart, and hurriedly said: "Okay, I will listen to the two eldest brothers, and the two eldest brothers will call me Yuan Zhi in the future, don't always be a long girl and a short girl, it's awkward to listen to it." After speaking, he secretly smiled at Xu Zhi again.

Xu Zhi didn't speak, but Hui Feng preemptively said, "Yes, Miss Zhou! ”

"Yuan Zhi, now that the war is in chaos, I think you are a girl, it is best to learn some kung fu to defend yourself. Hui Feng moved his body, leaned closer to Zhou Yuanzhi's side, and suggested to her.

Zhou Yuanzhi replied: "Brother Hui, how can I learn the art of self-defense as a weak woman, and besides, I want to learn it at this moment, where did the master teach me?"

Hui Feng said with a smile: "As long as Miss Yuan Zhi is determined to learn, this master is far away in the sky and close in front of her!"

Zhou Yuanzhi deliberately asked, "Brother Hui, do you mean Brother Xu in front of you?"

Hui Feng was a little displeased and said, "In addition to Brother Xu, you can also consider worshipping me as a master!"

"Then do I learn from you, or do I worship Brother Xu as my master?", Zhou Yuanzhi smiled at Hui Feng, but looked at Xu Zhi with his eyes and asked.

Huifeng replied: "Of course, Brother Xu and I follow the Lingkong Daoist to learn art, and the teacher is from the same school, you learn from me or from him, it's all the same." It's up to you to decide who you want to be your teacher. ”

"Then who am I going to be my teacher? I have to think about it. Zhou Yuanzhi deliberately thought for a moment, and then asked: "Then who is high in martial arts and great skills between you and Brother Xu, I will worship whoever I am a teacher." After speaking, he looked at Hui Feng and then at Xu Zhi.

Xu Zhi continued to laugh without answering, Huifeng didn't know that Zhou Yuanzhi was deliberately provoking him, and continued:

"But if you want to say who is higher in martial arts between me and Brother Xu, we really haven't tried it, it's just that Brother Xu is more assiduous in martial arts than me, and my ...... , Hui Feng didn't finish a sentence, glanced at Xu Zhi, saw that he didn't care, and continued: "And my talent and understanding in martial arts may be higher. ”

Zhou Yuanzhi listened to it and said with a smile: "Brother Hui, I'm really not shy! Why do I think you are a princess selling melons - selling yourself and boasting?"

Hui Feng saw that he couldn't say anything about Zhou Yuanzhi, so he had to reply: "Hehe, am I bragging?"

Xu Zhi saw that the sky was about to be bright outside the window, and Hui Feng and Zhou Yuanzhi were still chattering about learning art from their teacher, and said with a smile: "Senior Brother Hui, whether Miss Zhou learns martial arts or not, who to worship as a teacher should be decided by herself, and you can't be difficult!"

Zhou Yuanzhi said with a smile: "It's still Brother Xu who understands things, but for the sake of Brother Hui's painstaking persuasion of me one night, I decided to worship the two eldest brothers as teachers at the same time." He said that he wanted to bow to Xu and Hui.

Huifeng saw that Miss Zhou finally agreed, and danced like a child, while Xu Zhi apologized again and again: "Miss Zhou, your brother Xu is not good at learning, and he really doesn't dare to be a teacher." ”

Zhou Yuanzhi didn't wait for Xu Zhi to postpone, forcibly gave him an apprenticeship salute, and said with a smile: "Brother Xu, you are too modest! But Yuan Zhi believes that following you, she will definitely not regret it!"

Hui Feng saw that Zhou Yuanzhi had something to say, and said angrily: "Yuan Zhi, why do you trust Brother Xu so much? Could it be that if you follow your Brother Hui, you will regret it, and you won't be able to learn a good martial art?"

Zhou Yuanzhi seemed to have been hit by Hui Feng, blushed, snorted, and ran away.

Since Huifeng accepted Zhou Yuanzhi as a disciple, he has changed his original lazy style, practiced the martial arts he has learned, and taught Zhou Yuanzhi to be very careful and patient. But Zhou Yuanzhi always avoided him before and after, and asked Xu Zhi more about learning martial arts, which made Huifeng very embarrassed and jealous, and gradually became a little alienated from Xu Zhi, and he didn't have nothing to say as before. In the process of teaching Zhou Yuanzhi, Xu Zhi found that she was very intelligent, and when Huifeng taught her, she often learned it as soon as she could, as if she had some foundation before, and she repeatedly asked herself for the same moves, never tired of asking questions, and intended to be close to herself.

After another ten days, seeing that the Lunar New Year is getting closer and closer, the three agreed to spend the New Year in Caizhou, this Caizhou is located in the center of the Central Plains, the city is high and the pool is deep, Tang Xianzong Huaixi Wu Yuanji rebelled, Li Yuxue went to Caizhou at night to capture Wu Yuanji's legendary story in the local wide circulation, especially Caizhou city set up a piece of "Pinghuai West Tablet", the inscription legend is written by Han Yu, a literary master at that time, it is particularly eye-catching. At that time, Caizhou was already under the control of the Huangchao rebels. The people in the city live and work in peace and contentment, orderly, the restaurant shops are open normally, but the road is sparsely populated, a scene of wartime slaughter, even the "yellow" flag hanging at the head of the city, under the sunset also looks particularly miserable.

The three of them entered Caizhou City, Zhou Yuanzhi seemed very happy, she seemed to be very familiar with Caizhou City, as soon as she entered the city, she shouted that she wanted to go to the City God Temple in the city to eat rock sugar gourd. Xu and Hui had no choice but to follow her temperament and go to the City God Temple. There are almost all parts of the country in the city god temple, the temple is dedicated to the city god and the city god grandmother, in the war years the city god of the incense is the most prosperous, because he can keep a side safe. And Caizhou City is the place where soldiers must fight, so the city god temple in the city is particularly magnificent, the incense in the temple is continuous, the lights are bright, the city god and the city god grandmother offered by the main hall are one foot eight feet high, the gold dress is plain, the face is kind; the long offering table is full of sacrificial offerings, the officials and the people who enter the temple to worship are endless, all with pious faces, kneel on the ground for a long time, burn incense and pray to the city god lord, silently pray for the balance of the world, the safety of the family.

Zhou Yuanzhi did not enter the Chenghuang Temple directly, but bought three strings of sugar gourds, handed them to Xu Zhi and Huifeng, took one of them herself, and praised while eating: "It's delicious! The two masters taste it, this rock sugar gourd is sour and sweet, I haven't tasted this for a long time." ”

Huifeng took the sugar gourd from Zhou Yuanzhi's hand, ate one, and praised: "Well, Yuanzhi! This sugar gourd in Caizhou is so delicious!"

Zhou Yuanzhi said with a smile: "Then there is no need to say! Don't hide it from the two masters, Yuanzhi has eaten sugar gourds in many places, and it is the best in our Caizhou!"

Xu Zhi saw Zhou Yuanzhi raise the sugar gourd in her hand, sipped it with her small mouth, and was reluctant to eat it immediately, her face was full of intoxication, and she was also infected by her happy appearance, he thought to himself: This Zhou girl is really like an innocent child, if she doesn't live in troubled times, maybe she is lying in her parents' arms at this time?

Zhou Yuanzhi saw that the two of them had finished eating the sugar gourd, and suggested: "Our grandfather Chenghuang in Caizhou City has been successful! He not only manages the safety of the people, but also responds to requests. What are the wishes and blessings of the two masters in the coming year, why don't you go and pay your respects too?"

Huifeng agreed: "Okay, Yuan Zhi, let's go and worship, maybe something good can come true!"

Xu Zhi saw Zhou Yuanzhi looking at him with pleading eyes, and readily agreed: "We have come thousands of miles, we should pay a good visit to the local Bodhisattva, and it is almost the New Year, so let's pray for the blessings of relatives and friends thousands of miles away." Yuan Zhi, you seem to be very familiar with this Caizhou City?"

Zhou Yuanzhi bit her small mouth and wanted to speak several times, but the words came to her mouth and swallowed back.

Hui Feng hurriedly relieved Zhou Yuanzhi and said, "Brother Xu, you seem to be suspicious of everything, Yuan Zhi, we ignore him." ”

Zhou Yuanzhi didn't seem to hear Hui Feng's words, but explained to Xu Zhi in a low voice: "Brother Xu! Yuan Zhi often came to Caizhou with her parents when she was a child, so she is naturally familiar with every grass and tree in Caizhou. ”

Xu Zhi did not continue to speak, but followed the two to the City God Temple to pray for blessings, the three of them cleaned their hands, burned the incense, and knelt on the ground. After Hui Feng finished praying, he secretly glanced at Zhou Yuanzhi. Xu Zhi silently prayed to Lord Chenghuang: "I hope that the abbot of the New Year, Grandpa Gao, Brother Ling, and Sister Xiaohui are safe, and I also hope that Grandpa Chenghuang and Grandma will bless themselves and find Suying as soon as possible, no matter whether they live or die, they must let her return to their side." ”

After the three of them prayed, Zhou Yuanzhi said to Xu and Hui: "Two masters, let's go buy some New Year's goods together and come back, and prepare for the New Year!"

Xu and Hui are both generous men, and they didn't have much idea about how to buy items for the New Year, so they had to follow Zhou Yuanzhi's temperament again, only to see that she first went to a rice shop, bought half a liter of rice, and then went to a cloth shop, picked a few pieces of good fabric, Zhou Yuanzhi pointed to a piece of pale yellow silk, and asked Xu Zhi in a low voice: "Master, do you think I am beautiful in this color of clothes?" After speaking, he lowered his head and kept stroking the belt.

Hui Feng listened to it on the sidelines, and preemptively praised: "Our Yuan Zhi wears this yellow-colored dress, which is both graceful and luxurious, and gorgeous, just like a fairy in the sky, so beautiful." As he spoke, he instructed the store to buy it.

Zhou Yuanzhi carefully looked at the lines on the silk and sighed: "It's good-looking, it's just too expensive." After speaking, he put down the fabric he picked up.

Xu Zhi hurriedly stopped: "Since our Yuan Zhi likes it, we just don't eat or drink or live in the store, and we have to buy it for her!", these words were very sincere. When Zhou Yuanzhi heard this, she was even more excited, but she still pretended to be reserved and said: "I think it is better to buy some wine, meat, fruits and vegetables to buy these things that are not useful, and it is really good to buy some wine, meat, fruits and vegetables and give wine to the two masters." ”

Xu, Hui, and Wednesday bought several New Year's goods and returned to the inn, it was already evening, and it was snowing lightly outside, and there were few pedestrians on the street. The three of them saw that several red lanterns had already been hung high outside the inn, and the innkeeper was directing a few guys to be busy writing blessing characters and sticking to the door god, it turned out that this night was Chinese New Year's Eve.

The three entered the inn, said "Happy New Year" to the restaurant, and ordered the guys to take the New Year's goods and quickly prepare the Chinese New Year's Eve dinner. The innkeeper answered, and went to the kitchen to prepare. The three of them entered the guest room, surrounded the charcoal fire, and blessed each other. After a while, the restaurant had already brought up the steaming wine and food, but it was a plate of braised carp, a bowl of Gu Yu pork, three catties of sauce beef, and then a plate of green vegetable tofu, a jar of aging, and a plate of dumplings. The three of them were far away from home, and this Chinese New Year's Eve meal was also very rich.

While drinking and eating, the three of them talked about what they saw and heard on the way. Especially when Hui Feng talked about the story of meeting the black and white shuangsha in Jiangzhou and the Changjiao Gang in Wuxue, Zhou Yuanzhi was dumbfounded and relished.

Xu Zhi was very happy when he saw that the New Year was approaching, and he also said in passing: When Luo Jin was dying, he wanted to find the secrets of his family history and the fragments of strange books, and Huifeng and Zhou Yuanzhi were taken aback when they heard it.

Hui Feng drank and said angrily: "Okay, Brother Xu, it turns out that you still have such a big secret in your heart, I have been following you for so long, why have I never heard you talk about it?"

Xu Zhi said with guilt on his face: "Senior Brother Hui, in fact, this matter has been aggrieved in the eldest brother's heart for a long time, and the eldest brother is also at a loss for this matter, the eldest brother didn't tell you, and he didn't want the virtuous brother to fall into it!"

Hui Feng said with a smile: "Brother Xu, the younger brother didn't blame you, didn't our brother say that it was okay, to share the blessings and share the difficulties?

Xu Zhi listened to Huifeng's words, was very moved, and shouted: "Good brother!", and the two toasted each other with a glass of wine.

Zhou Yuanzhi seemed to be particularly interested in the secret in Xu Zhi's heart, and interjected: "Master Xu, is there really no new clue about this matter later?"

Xu Zhi smiled bitterly: "Just with 'the world has been in strife for thousands of years, the strange book is fragmented with the sword of the world, the snake shoots the first to become a hegemony, and the purple qi comes to the east into the clouds?' Such a broken poem, what clues can there be? It's just that we later tracked Yun Feiyang in Jiangzhou, and he seemed to have found out that this strange book was related to several rebellions in the previous dynasty. ”

Zhou Yuanzhi pondered for a moment, and suddenly became interested in the poem, recited it repeatedly, and explained casually: "The first two sentences of this poem are easy to understand, and it is said that this strange book is a sharp sword related to the rise and fall of the world, no wonder so many people are interested in it?"

It's just that the last two lines of the poem are not easy to understand, and it is not known whether they are the location of the book collection, or whether the book collection is related to a certain deed. Zhou Yuanzhi continued to explain.

Hui Feng said: "I think Yuan Zhi's idea is feasible! This strange book should be related to a certain character, didn't Uncle Luo ask Brother Xu to find the descendants of the British Duke before he died! Therefore, if you find the descendants of the British Duke Li Tao, the secret can be revealed." ”

Xu Zhi listened to the words of Hui and Erren, nodded and said: "Your analysis is good, when I have been to Shaolin and met Master Zhicheng, I will go to find the descendants of the British Duke, find out the matter, and return Uncle Luo's wish." Also, you must find Su Ying's sister!"

Zhou Yuanzhi said: "Master Xu, don't worry! Yuanzhi is willing to help you unlock this family secret. ”

Xu Zhi saw Zhou Yuanzhi looking at him sincerely, and replied: "Yuanzhi, thank you for your kindness! But this matter may involve the imperial court, which is very tricky, and the eldest brother doesn't want you to fall into it!"

"Don't talk about that strange book!By the way, Master Xu, is Sister Suying beautiful?", Zhou Yuanzhi didn't wait for Xu Zhi to finish speaking, and continued to ask.

Hui Feng hurriedly stopped: "Yuan Zhi, Sister Su Ying is in the river, you don't know life and death? ”

Zhou Yuanzhi let out a long sigh of relief when she heard that Luo Suying's life and death were uncertain, and sighed: "I hope that Sister Suying's auspicious nature will be safe and sound! No matter what, I will accompany Master Xu all the way to find Sister Suying." ”

Huifeng glanced at Zhou Yuanzhi, and saw that she seemed to have made a lot of determination, and then sighed, so she had to say: "Brother Xu, Yuanzhi, the three of you can't go without me Huifeng!"