Lunar calendar, the eighteenth day of the lunar month.

At the beginning of the unitary hour, in the evening.

The cold wind is howling and the snow is flying.

The capital of the Infinity Empire.

In the heart of the Wuji Empire, there is one of the largest cities in the world, Zhongzhou. Also known as Tianzhou.

The people of the Wuji Empire call Zhongzhou the central state and the state of heaven given to them by God.

Zhongzhou City is a rectangular city, which is set by the palace city, the inner city and the outer city, which is very neat, even exceeding the Chang'an City of the Tang Dynasty in the Middle Earth Continent.

The palace city is the imperial city, which is 600 zhang long from north to south and 300 zhang wide from east to west; the inner city is 2,000 zhang long from north to south and 1,200 zhang wide from east to west; and the outer city is 4,000 zhang long from north to south and 2,000 zhang wide from east to west.

Later generations have written records: since the Xihuang Emperor, the two emperors of the Yellow Emperor, the three saints of Yao Shunyu, the prosperity of the Han and Tang Dynasties, the eight wildernesses, there has never been a city, and it is as prosperous as Wuji Zhongzhou.

The neat and tidy heavenly street, straight and vertical and horizontal intersect, such as the furrow is divided; the pavilion of carved beams and painted buildings, row upon row, intersect and reflect each other, the eaves of the color building are far and near, the shadow is sufficient, it seems to want to catch the sky and clouds.

The shop signs are lined up along the street, looking at it like a forest. Merchants from the Western Regions, foreign sea visitors, and business travelers from China and Turkey shuttle like weaving, and the business travelers in the Fang City are divergent, and the wealth and goods of all directions are gathered, even if Chang'an, the imperial capital of the Han Dynasty and the Tang Dynasty, is now Haixi Byzantium, Tiannan Angkor City, and there is also something inferior.

At night, the lanterns are clustered, the brilliant light is scattered, and the fire trees and silver flowers are everywhere, and the flowers and flowers are fainted under the green sky.

Bai Yujing in the sky, Zhongzhou City on the ground, the so-called "capital under the emperor", nothing more than this.

When the famous minister of the Northern Tang Dynasty was the real minister, he once said to the official: "In recent years, the style of extravagance is especially serious, the pawn is dressed as a soldier, and the farmer is on silk." ”

It can be seen from this that Zhongzhou is so rich. The peddlers wore the clothes of the scholars, and the peasants wore silk shoes.

At this time, Zhongzhou was already a large city with a population of more than a few million, and rural towns (also known as "grass towns") were gradually developing.

In these towns, commerce flourished and the market was extremely developed.

According to the record of "Zhongzhou Menghualu": "Outside the Donghua Gate, the market is the most prosperous,...... All food, new flowers and fruits, fish, shrimp, turtles and crabs, quails, rabbits, preserved meats, gold and jade treasures, and clothing are nothing more than the wonders of the world.

If its taste is ten, the guest will want one or twenty flavors to drink, and he will have it at will.

When he was old, the fruit melon, vegetables and Ru were newly listed, and the eggplant gourd (a kind of gourd can be eaten when it is tender) and the like, and each pair of new ones can be straight thirty or fifty thousand, and the disputes between the pavilions are taken at a high price."

It can be seen from this that Zhongzhou City is a prosperous scene.

In addition, thousands of pigs and sheep are driven into the city's meat market every day to be slaughtered, and tens of millions of tons of fish are consumed every day. Night markets are also extremely thriving, often until the third watch.

The market turnover is often tens of millions. There is also a "tile shop" as a place for storytelling and amusement, and the largest one can accommodate thousands of people. Many well-known storytelling and historical stories have been spread to thousands of households through the wonderful interpretation of storytellers. Flowing into the long river of history.

In the city of Zhongzhou, there are nearly 100,000 shops. The central street is called the Royal Street, which is 200 steps wide, and there are imperial corridors on both sides of the road.

During the Zhou, Qin, Han, and Tang dynasties of Middle-earth, residents were not allowed to open their doors to the streets, and they were not allowed to engage in buying and selling activities outside the designated markets.

In order to enliven economic and cultural life, the curfew was also relaxed, and the city gates were closed very late and opened very early.

A sergeant patrol shop is set up every two or three hundred steps on the royal street, and the corner patrol guard in the shop maintains traffic order during the day and directs the flow of people and vehicles; and guards the commercial houses of the government at night to prevent theft, fire prevention, and prevent accidents.

This is probably the earliest patrol in human history.

At this moment, in the midst of the snowflakes, a young patrolman was looking at a teenager in disbelief.

The young man looked like he was twelve or thirteen years old, unkempt and tattered, like a flower child.

But this young man was shocked, and he opened his mouth and asked, "Master Jun, where is the prison?"

Although the patrol is young, not a few years older than the boys, he is a military officer in the imperial capital and has seen a lot of things. He could see at a glance that the young man had an extraordinary background.

Although he is called Hanako, he is neither humble nor arrogant, and he asks the prison when he opens his mouth, which makes people dare not despise it.

What kind of place is the prison? It is the place where the emperor's relatives and princes and ministers are held. Ordinary people, ordinary officials, are not qualified at all, and they have nothing to do with these two words.

Looking at the appearance of the young man in front of him, he must be a descendant of the princes and ministers, and the royal relatives may not be able to say. It should be that the adults have done something bad and have been sent to the prison and come to visit the prison.

The young patrolman made a quick decision.

He looked around and said with a smile: "It's inconvenient to talk here, please come with me." ”

Although the patrol officer is young, he knows that a person like the young man in front of him has a great background, and one of them is to fall into the well and invite merit. One is to make friends as much as possible, so that when it comes back, it can be used for itself. It must not be offended casually or discarded at will.

Therefore, the young patrolman led the boy away from the crowd to a remote place and carefully interrogated: "What is the boy asking about the prison? ”

The boy is Lingyun. He ran for months before finally returning to the place where he was born. The hard work along the way can be imagined. But for the burning mood, hard work is not a thing.

My father is dead, and my grandfather must not have another accident. Otherwise, Ling Yun would have died a hundred times.

As soon as he entered Zhongzhou City, he didn't think about it, so he went straight to the direction of the Imperial City.

Although Ling Yun grew up in the capital Zhongzhou, he didn't know where the prison was.

But he knew that the prison would not be too far from the palace. So I went straight here to find out the news of my grandfather.

"I have a relative, I heard that he was imprisoned in prison. I want to visit. Ling Yun looked around vigilantly and replied vaguely.

He was well aware that his identity must not be revealed. Once Qin Jiwen's damn old thing is known, he knows his news. It's impossible to get a good death by yourself. It's not a thousand cuts, it has to be a five-horse corpse or a lamp.

Therefore, he did not dare to go home, nor did he dare to go to relatives and friends. It is certain that the house has been seized, and I dare not say whether there is anyone watching nearby.

Relatives and friends, who would dare to risk offending the ruler of the country to help themselves?

If you don't get it right, it is very possible that any relatives and friends who have lost their conscience will betray themselves to Qin Jiwen.

The patrolman understood as soon as he heard it. looked around for a while, and asked quietly: "I don't know what is the surname of the son's relatives, and the official position is high?"

"My surname is Ling, my cousin, married to a grandson of the Lord of the Ling Chen. I heard that their whole family had been put in prison. My uncle asked me to inquire and see if my cousin was alive or dead. Ling Yun replied vaguely.

"What's that boy's last name?" asked the patrolman.

"I, I am a native of Taihuashan, Shaanzhou. My surname, I also have the surname Ling, and the old military master in the early morning is the son of my family. ”

Ling Yun made up: "I don't know the old army master in the early morning, what's going on now?"

"I heard that he is imprisoned in a heavenly prison, and there is no will. The patrolman replied sternly.

Ling Yun breathed a sigh of relief. He was afraid that he would hear the murderous letter that his grandfather and others had been killed.

"Oh, that's right. That prince is in Beijing, do you know a big official?" The patrol officer said seriously: "Without the guidance of a big official, I will tell you where the prison is, and you will not be able to enter." ”

Ling Yun knew that the patrol officer was telling the truth, and groaned.

The big official in the capital, he knows too much. He knows almost all the big officials in the capital of the empire. But which one is reliable and won't betray him, he doesn't know.

"None of you?" asked the patrolman.

Ling Yun turned his mind and said with a wry smile: "It's not that I don't know anyone, it's that I know too much." I don't know who can not forget the old love in this situation, and who is the most suitable to find!"

"That's right. Doing such a big thing is not a fateful friendship, and ordinary people will not get ahead. The patrol nodded in understanding and asked tentatively, "Does Childe have a place to stay in Beijing?"

Ling Yun smiled bitterly: "Just arrived." There is no place to stay. ”

"It's getting late, and I can't do anything for a while, so I have to settle down first. ”

The patrolman looked up at the darkening sky and said, "It's time for me to take over." Childe is waiting here for a while, and then give Childe a place to settle down, and then talk about anything else, okay?"

"Then thank you, Master Jun!" Ling Yun thanked him.

Although Ling Yun was anxious, he knew that he couldn't solve the problem in a hurry. The only way to find a place to stay is to find a way to do it.