Chapter 3 Entering the rivers and lakes for the first time
Looking at the back of Lao Dao, three black lines surged on Yunyun's forehead. Originally, what he had experienced in the past few days had already distressed him, but now that he was told by the old way, his mood was even more complicated, and he faintly had the urge to be world-weary.
No, my fate is not up to the sky, my own destiny must be in my own hands, no one can control my fate, and neither can the sky. The hard training since childhood has made Yun have a wild spirit of not admitting defeat in his bones, and he is in a relaxed mood when he understands this. It is not advisable to stay here for a long time before leaving.
The clouds were walking aimlessly with their burdens on their backs, and suddenly the streets were crowded with people running towards the east side of the town.
He grabbed a big man and asked, "Big brother, what's wrong? What are you running away from, what's going on?"
The big man wiped the sweat from his head: "Don't pull me, I won't be able to catch up when it's late." I just heard that the Four Seas Dart Bureau is recruiting people in the town, and the treatment is generous and the conditions are relaxed, as long as you are in good health, you don't delay me to make a fortune. "Shake him off and run.
Yun didn't know what the Four Seas Dart Game was for, but driven by curiosity, he still ran with the crowd to the east of town. By the time he arrived, there were already hundreds of people gathered here.
A red-faced man stood on a big rock and shouted: "Sixteen to thirty-five years old, strong body, no bad habits, obedient and able to endure hardships, hurry up and sign up." If you know kung fu first, you need fifteen people. Leave early tomorrow morning. ”
I, I, a large crowd squeezed in. Yun's heart moved, it's not bad to be with so many people, at least lead the team to understand the way. I've never been anywhere but Ping'an Town, and I don't know where to go now. Instead of going out and smearing your eyes, it is better to take care of them with them. Another murderer who kills the old guy now doesn't know where he is, whether he will deal with himself, and it is not easy to be found in the crowd. So Yun also squeezed forward and raised his hand and shouted: "I'll go, I will do martial arts." ”
The scene was chaotic, and just when everyone was making a loud noise, the curtain on the carriage next to him was lifted, and an old man jumped down and staggered towards this side.
When the red-faced man saw that the old man was coming, he quickly jumped down and arched his hand: "Fifth master, why did you come down, your injuries are not healed yet." ”
The old man waved his hand, then coughed violently for a while, as if he was about to catch his breath at any time, knocked on his chest, and finally said hoarsely: "Don't rush to join first, there is something I want to explain to everyone." Our Four Seas Dart Game is a time-honored brand, and we have our own principles for doing things, so we won't deceive everyone. It's not an easy trip. A month and a half ago, we set off from Hengcheng to buy furs and medicinal herbs all the way with the convoy of the Da'an Chamber of Commerce, and just arrived in Ping'an Town last night. At the time of departure, the head of the dart sent a total of more than 50 elite dart masters and executioners to accompany the old man on this dart. Now, including the old man and fourteen lightly and seriously wounded, there are twenty-six people in all. Along the way, he was attacked seven times, and each time he needed to fight for his life. Among them, the last two were almost wiped out, and there were masters among the thieves, strong martial arts, and vicious attacks. The old man has been in the rivers and lakes for more than 40 years, and has experienced hundreds of battles of all sizes, and he can be regarded as the number one person in the rivers and lakes. But in the battle of Songlinkou the night before yesterday, he was besieged and severely injured by four masters, and if it weren't for the desperate protection of his subordinates, I am afraid it would have been more than lucky."
Thinking of the tragic battle, the old man seemed to have palpitations, and his already pale face turned a little pale. coughed for a while and then said: "The old man doesn't want to lie to everyone, we have always been generous to our subordinates. If any of you can return to Hengcheng safely with the dart team, each of you will be rewarded with thirty taels of silver. You can continue to stay in the dart game to contribute, or you can take the money and leave. Even if you unfortunately lose your life on the way, the dart game will pay your family fifty taels of silver. But this is nine deaths all the way, and the old man is afraid that you will have your life to earn and spend your life. That's all the old man said, you have thought it through. After speaking, he didn't talk nonsense, and was helped back to the carriage by the red-faced man.
There was a sudden silence in the group, and most of them bowed their heads and left. The fifth master is right, money is easy to earn, but it can only be spent if it is spent. The rest hesitated.
Yun smiled, others didn't fight, and he could join without much effort. First of all, he has a good impression of the Four Seas Dart Game, because he thinks that the fifth master is very open-minded, and he does not deceive everyone to be cannon fodder because he is in a desperate situation. Although it is dangerous to follow him, you don't have to worry about being deceived, you must know that it is easy to dodge with open guns and difficult to defend against hidden arrows.
Secondly, he has confidence in himself, and he has never relaxed in the past few years. Especially in the past two years, I went hunting alone, and I faced desperate situations several times with extraordinary skills and sober minds to save the day. Even if you encounter danger, you can still be sure of escape. The main thing is that the cloud doesn't know where to go, and if you don't go with the dart team, you don't know the way to leave. So he was the first to shout to the red-faced man: "Big brother, I'll go." ”
The red-faced man was obviously in a bad mood, and said impatiently: "Go, the little kid goes home and plays." ”
Yun stubbornly said: "I'm serious, I have the strength and kung fu!"
The man looked at the clouds seriously, stood still with a horse, and pouted: "You slap me and try it."
"Okay, be careful. Yun moved his arm, and coldly put a palm on the big man's chest. Peng, Ao, and Dahan were beaten three feet away, and their faces turned even redder. He couldn't stop coughing: "What a lot of strength! Does your family agree that you will go out on an adventure, and do you want to let me know?"
Yun shook his head and smiled bitterly: "I am alone now, and I can call the shots." ”
"Well, let's meet here early tomorrow morning. Give you a night to prepare, throw away everything you shouldn't have brought with you, and we'll travel light tomorrow. ”
Nothing was said all night. The next morning, when the clouds came to the square, there were already six or seven people waiting. The extremely dangerous journey deterred most people. It seems that the rest of the people are either too unhappy and want to leave to try their luck, or the ruthless people are very confident in themselves.
The grunting and wheel-beating convoy was ready to go. The red-faced man came to everyone with a gloomy face, obviously dissatisfied with the results of the recruitment, and said in a deep voice: "Everyone can come, I welcome you on behalf of the four seas." Normally, if you want to join, you need to investigate your details and test your abilities. However, this accident caused the dart game to lose most of its manpower, so everything had to be simplified. If you're lucky, you can also choose to take the money and leave when you return to Hengcheng. If you perform well, you can stay in the game if you wish. But from now on, we are brothers, we must trust each other, support each other, be united, and listen to the experience of the old dart master when we have nothing to do. That way you will have a better chance of living. Come to me in the evening and record the addresses of each of you and the names of your relatives, and if you die in battle, the board will give your pension to your family. My name is Red-faced Zhang Bao, and you must listen to my dispatch along the way, and anyone who disobeys the dispatch will kick out of the caravan at any time. Let's go!"
Although the snow stopped, the wind was still very strong, and the cargo was heavy, so the convoy only traveled more than 30 miles in a day. As soon as it was dark, Zhang Bao shouted at everyone to set up camp. The seemingly rugged man was extremely careful, choosing a clearing in the woods for the dart masters to untie their horses, forming a circle of wagons, and enclosing people and livestock in the middle, and commanding the dart masters and the runners to set up tents, collect firewood, make fires, and make meals, and arrange people to keep vigil at night.
Eating dry food and jerky around the fire and clouds, the mood was both nervous and a little excited, and finally left, waiting for him whether it was a blessing or a curse is now unpredictable, but he finally took the first step. "Old fellow, bless me if you have a spirit in heaven." Thinking of the old guy Yunyun, I couldn't help but feel a little sad.
When he was thinking about it, Zhang Bao came over and patted him on the shoulder: "Boy, come with me."
Yun quickly stuffed the dry food in his hand into his mouth and followed him. Zhang Bao led him to a carriage, coughed and whispered, "Fifth master, I brought it to you."
"Oh, let him come up." The old voice of the fifth master seemed to be weaker than yesterday.
Under Zhang Bao's upward motion, a dewy curtain on the clouds boarded the carriage. There was only a small table in the small space of the carriage, a small oil lamp was dim, and the car was filled with the pungent smell of medicine.
The old man half-leaned on the carriage, his face even paler in the flickering firelight. A fat man in his early twenties sat next to him in a fancy costume with a sad face, wiping his nose and sighing.
The fifth master motioned for the cloud to sit down. He coughed for a while and said, "Young man, I've been observing you for a day." You are a good person, and you are also clever and hard-working. After a day of walking, I also helped the dart masters to make a fire and set up camp. It's not like the newcomers who complain about the cold and tired. The most important thing is that the old man looks at you with clear eyes, not like a traitor. I heard that you are a hunter, and you want to come here to have your own way of survival in this barren mountain range. The old man now has a reluctant request, and I hope you can agree. ”
"Fifth master, it's not yet to the point of exhaustion. The fat man on the side suddenly frowned and interrupted.
The old man waved his hand to signal him not to speak, and then said to the clouds: "I hope you can take this young master away first, escort him to the Four Seas Dart Bureau in Hengcheng, and give this letter to the chief dart head." If you can do it, I guarantee you'll get a lot of good. Five thousand taels of silver or recommend you as a disciple of the head of the dart. Don't worry, this young master also has the ability to protect himself, and it won't drag you down, you just need to take care of his diet and daily life. There shouldn't be much danger along the way, can you do it?"
Yun Yun was shocked, just the escort was worth five thousand taels, and the head of the dart must be a figure with a head and a face. With such a high salary, who is this fat man?