Royal road

The donkey cart was moving slowly on the road. In recent years, the army has been in turmoil, and the government has not repaired the road, making the already difficult mountain road even more bumpy.I don't know if the driver didn't pay attention to the road, the wheels of the car suddenly tilted, almost knocking the whole carriage down.

After knocking his head firmly, Tian Chang couldn't hold back anymore, opened the curtain, and shouted to the man driving outside: "Wang Er! Are you blind? Watch the road carefully, don't overturn the car!"

The man didn't even look at him, he drove the car nonchalantly, his mouth full of dirty country slang, which made people upset.

"What kind of reliable coachman do you want to find in Xiahuai Village?" Behind her, the lady of the Tian family, who still has a charm, said angrily, "I said I was looking for someone in the county, how are you, you must find such a rascal!!"

"Shut up!" Tian Chang immediately put down the curtain of the car, and cursed in a low voice, "You ignorant woman! Didn't you see that there are all refugees coming and going on this road? This must be a disaster somewhere, and they came out to flee famine It's just the two of us walking on the road, so it's no wonder they don't snatch us!"

"I'm ignorant? I'm blind, so I fell in love with you, an ignorant waste! If the old Patriarch valued you back then, how could he welcome me through the door?! Now, I have been with you for more than ten years, and not only can't I have a boy and a half Daughter, I will be kicked out of the house when I grow old... Why is my life so hard! I was the old mistress's personal maid back then!" The lady of the Tian family refused to let her go, and began to cry.

Tian Shang just felt very annoyed.He was kicked out of the Liang Mansion that day, and with that vicious Jie Nu guarding him, he couldn't bring too many things with him, so he had to pack up his belongings and leave in a hurry with his wife.I lived in a nearby village for a few days, and finally hired a donkey cart to travel. Unexpectedly, this woman would make noise.If she hadn't encouraged herself to take power at the beginning, how could she have fallen to this point? !

"Don't cry! When I get to Jinyang, I'll find another high-ranking family to cling to. It's just being a guest, going to Jinyang is not much better than staying in that rural place!" Tian Chang scratched his beard irritably, and said bitterly .

"Fuck you! Who would want someone like you who is half buried in the soil? You were kicked out by the head of the house. If someone finds out, it would be strange if they didn't kick you out!" The lady of the Tian family cried back. Cursing, looking like the sky is falling.

"You bitch..." A burst of anger was pushed to his chest, and Tian Chang just wanted to slap his mouth.Unexpectedly, at this time, there was a sudden scream outside, and the sound of horseshoes clattering.

"Oops!" Tian Chang's reaction was not slow, and he immediately pulled the curtain of the car, and saw that the road ahead was already in chaos, dust was flying, and several horses were driving the crowd, rolling towards this side.Many refugees fled to both sides of the road crying and howling, and some who couldn't run were directly kneeled on the side of the road, trembling with their heads in their hands.Here comes the bandits!

"Wang Er, hurry up! Turn around quickly..." Tian Chang rushed to call the coachman, but the villager had already left the donkey cart and crawled into the distant forest.

Tian Chang felt dizzy and shouted loudly: "Hurry up, abandon the car! Hide in the forest..."

"But the treasures are all in the car!" The lady of the Tian family also lost her color at this time, this is the family property they have accumulated for more than ten years, should they throw it all away?

"You foolish woman!" Tian Chang also ignored her mother-in-law, turned over and jumped off the donkey cart.He still had more than a dozen taels of silver with him, which he had secretly saved, enough to buy a small farmhouse to spend his old age in the city.Anyway, this woman is vicious and doesn't know how to give birth, so at worst, she can just marry another bride!

Once he made up his mind, Tian Chang ran faster.The target of the donkey cart is too big, and it is a good thing to attract bandits. As long as the woman can block it for a while, he can escape from the hands of these strong men.After running for a few miles with a sullen head, Tian Chang just stopped, panting, supported the tree trunk beside him, and looked behind him.

No one seemed to catch up.What luck!Wiping the sweat with his hands, he slid along the tree trunk and sat on the ground. After all, he was old and had been sitting in the house all year round. This short distance almost made him lose his temper.If it wasn't for Liang Feng, how could he have ended up like this!

Thinking of the belongings on the donkey cart, and thinking of the charming woman, Tian Chang felt that his heart was going to be broken!If one day he can also climb up a powerful family, he must let that kid Liang Feng have good fruit to eat!

He was full of resentment, and suddenly there was a loud noise in the distance, and then, someone shouted: "He's gone from here!"

"Chase!"

Tian Chang was terrified and wanted to stand up, but unexpectedly, he stepped on something under his feet, tilted his body, and fell to the ground screaming.This fall was extremely painful, but he didn't even dare to stop, he gritted his teeth and crawled towards the bushes on one side.

Hearing this sound, the people from over there quickened their pace, and after a while, two big men in ragged clothes and holding hatchets came out of the forest, and one of them said happily, "A Niu, the one in front should be that old man!"

The other one has already rushed up with strides: "Where to go!"

He threw the hatchet in his hand fiercely, nailing it dangerously into the soil in front of Tian Chang, and also cut off the only way out.Tian Shang was so frightened that he was scared out of his wits, hugged his head and wailed, "The strong man, spare your life! The old man has money on his body, and the strong man can take it! I just beg to spare the old man's life..."

The man named A Niu ignored him, pulled up Tian Chang's collar, and asked, "Are you the guest of Liang Mansion?"

What?Tian Chang didn't react for a while.Is this specifically for you?Is it a good thing or a bad thing?

Seeing that Tian Chang was in a daze, the man pulled out the hatchet with a hey sound, and pressed it against Tian Chang's neck: "Say it quickly! If not, don't delay our brother's journey!"

There was clearly still undried blood on the knife, Tian Chang didn't dare to hesitate, and hurriedly shouted: "It's the villain! A strong man shows mercy!"

"Ha, I've caught up." The other man couldn't help smiling, "A Niu, let's go back and ask for rewards!"

The two of them didn't mean to explain, they dragged Tian Chang and walked around.This is not the situation when he just ran for his life. His legs and feet were weak, he was sweating profusely, and he was half-dragged and half-dragged by two big men. Embarrassed and out of shape.After being dragged like this for a long time, when Tian Chang was about to roll his eyes, the three of them finally stopped.

I saw a small forest in front of me, and several horses were tied there, gnawing the weeds at their feet leisurely.A dozen or so refugees gathered together in panic, many of them had their clothes ripped off, they must have been searched, and they were waiting to be taken up to the mountains to work as coolies.In the grass behind, there were still women's hysterical cries from time to time.

This should be refugees crossing the border, bandits came down to snatch people and money.Tian Chang said bitterly, if it is a bandit, it is okay to say, it is usually withdrawn after grabbing one vote.This kind of king who occupies the mountain is just like the fierce tiger entrenched on the top of the mountain, vicious and vicious, there is no way to hide!

"Boss, it's him!" A Niu pushed Tian Chang to the ground.

The fall was not light, Tian Chang let out an ouch, and then raised his head cautiously.I saw a burly man sitting on a golden knife horse in front of him, with a red face and a beard, and a fleshy face, he looked like he was not easy to mess with.But this is nothing, beside the man, there is a woman kneeling, her hair is disheveled, shivering and curled up there, isn't it his wife? !

"Is this little old man a guest from the Liang residence?" the leader asked.

The lady of the Tian family choked with sobs and replied: "It's this one who kills the embryo! Your Majesty, the slave family has already recruited! Please spare the slave family's life!"

"Take her down!" The leader snorted coldly, and waved his hands at the people around him. Immediately, someone grabbed Tian's lady's arm and dragged her back.The woman screamed, but after only one cry, her mouth was blocked, and she could only let out a chilling whine.

Tian Chang's back was soaked in cold sweat, and his teeth chattered.He threw away his wife just to escape for his life, who would have thought that the woman would confess him.And this king of the mountain, what is the purpose of arresting him? !

"A few days ago, my nephew went down the mountain to do business, but he was killed. I heard that it was the Liang family's fault. Do you know about this?" The leader stared at Tian Chang coldly and asked.

How could he not know!Tian Chang opened his mouth, and suddenly cried with his head in his arms: "The damn Liang Feng! It's all him! He's the one who brought me to this point!! Your Majesty, it was Liang Feng who killed your nephew! He even practiced A group of soldiers and horses boasted that they would eradicate banditry in the vicinity, Great Wang Mingjian, I was driven out by that sick man!"

The hatred in my heart was churning, like venom, but Tian Shang's thinking had never been so clear as it was at this moment.He knew that this group of people looking for him was probably out of revenge. As long as they put all the charges on Liang Feng, they might have a chance to escape.No... Not only that, he even wants to lure this group of strong men to the Liang Mansion and completely raze the Liang Mansion to the ground!Let that reckless boy from the Liang family know how powerful he is!

Raising his head suddenly, Tian Chang said loudly: "If the king does not dislike it, this old man is willing to do his best for the king and help the king capture the Liang mansion! Several generations of officials in the Liang mansion have a family fortune of at least a million dollars, and there are many more. Servants, boys and maidservants, the king can enjoy them all! In such troubled times, the king is strong and strong, so why should he live on the top of the hill? Wouldn’t it be better to occupy the Liang mansion and be a powerful man!"

These words were extremely provocative, and several bandits present breathed heavily, and one of them stepped forward and said, "Boss, what this old man said is true. The officers and soldiers are fighting back and forth, and some people are rioting again, maybe The world has changed in a blink of an eye. How about taking a Zhuangzi as our foundation?"

The leader was obviously much calmer than the subordinates below, and after pondering for a moment, he said: "Alu brought a dozen people down the mountain, but they were killed all over the place. Now the other party is behind a high wall, and we only have a hundred people." Come on, how can we capture the Liang mansion?"

Zhang Lu is his own nephew, so his skills are naturally not bad.This time, he secretly took over the headless business, but was killed instead, so Zhang Hun didn't get annoyed.That's why he sent someone to arrest him when he heard that girl said that there were guests from the Liang family.He wanted to kill his nephew to pay homage to him, but who would have thought that he would get such heart-wrenching news in exchange.

Tian Chang was an old man, so he could tell at a glance that the head leader had moved, and quickly added: "Then Liang Feng has offended many cronies by acting against the law, just like the old man who was kicked out of Liang's mansion. To the brothers of the Wang family, I am afraid that he has a grudge against him for being punished for no reason. These two used to be nurses, if we can cooperate with them internally and externally, the high walls of the Liang Mansion are nothing!"

With this sentence, Zhang Hun's eyes flashed fiercely, and he said with a smile: "Come here, help the guests in Tian to get up, let's have a good talk..."

■

"Have you heard? The wooden workshop is going to build overturned carts. It is said that many platforms will be built this time, which can be used in the fields!"

"That's right! I've also heard that apart from the new land that they can share, the group of soldiers can also rent some good seeds without charging any interest. If someone rents their fields, sow seeds this summer, and have cattle Available!"

"Is this true?! Who told you that?" It's time to plant summer grain soon. If there are good seeds and cattle, those new lands will be a good deal.Someone in the family was selected for the trilogy, even more smiling, wishing to plant it immediately.

The one who revealed the news triumphantly said: "Boss Aliang said it! The old man surnamed Tian deceived the Patriarch in the past, and now the Patriarch knows what kind of life we ​​live, so he will be merciful!"

"Bless the Bodhisattva! The Patriarch is still benevolent!" The more pious ones have already begun to mutter.

Another family member who has a tax-free quota even interjected: "I think the Liang family is about to revive! Who can use the land tax to reward the trilogy? The owner of the family is probably going to be an official, and we all have a good life Already!"

This remark immediately attracted another echo.It's a good time to exchange news before going to the ground in the early morning.The peasants have no information, and they don't know which emperor is in charge now, but they are very sensitive to the feng shui and grass movements in the village.In fact, these are closely related to their lives, so they have to pay more attention.Therefore, for more than a month, whether Tian Chang was withdrawn or the weaving workshop was closed, most people knew it well.Not only was he not frightened by these changes, but he was also faintly pleased.

Wu Quan is greedy and lustful, Tian Chang is arrogant and incompetent, even the two brothers Wang Hu Wang Bao who were scolded are also troublemakers and bullies.Now that these people are being dealt with severely, isn't it just the performance of the head of the family who is wise and powerful and discerning? !In addition, exempting the servants who repelled the bandits, renting out land for those new recruits, building water conservancy, and borrowing food without interest, isn't it a good thing that pleases people's hearts? !

These farmers who depend on the sky for food, seem simple, but they are unambiguous in their hearts.Who is good to them and who is bad to them, the steelyard is clear.Now that there has been a severe drought for several years, and seeing that life is precarious, there is a sudden rush, who can not be happy?

"Hey! Look, those boys are starting to practice again!" Someone shouted, and everyone's eyes immediately drifted to the distance.

I saw a group of young and strong men running across the courtyard wall not far away. They were all wearing short jackets and long jackets, with no sleeves on their upper bodies, and their trousers were tied up high.Each of them was carrying a wooden spear more than ten feet long. Even so, their running pace was exactly the same, and no one was left behind.Just like that, the dust was raised in such a big way, and he ran towards the distance.

"You are indeed a soldier of our Liang family!" Someone sighed enviously.

The food and land for this song are among the best in the house, and in just a few months, they have trained a group of Zhuang Han to look like they are, which is only enviable.However, their practice is also hard work. They run around the village twice in the morning and evening, and they have to stand in line to practice guns. It seems to be more difficult than plowing the land.However, such a practice method really makes people feel at ease.In troubled times, who wouldn't expect such a group of strong soldiers by their side?

A group of people watched from afar as if they were watching a play, but a boy with a sharp mouth and monkey cheeks quietly walked around the courtyard wall and walked towards the hut deep in the farm.After looking around and no one was there, the kid walked quickly to a broken house.

In the hut, someone was gnashing their teeth and cursing loudly.Since Wang Hu and Wang Bao brothers were punished that day, they have been dragged to the old house here. The original good nursing home has nothing to do, and they have suffered injuries all over the body.Fortunately, the two brothers are in good health, at least they saved some money, and asked the aunt next door to bring them some porridge and water every day, so they didn't die.

"Brother, it looks like the stick injury is almost healed, do we really want to stay in the village to farm?" Wang Bao rubbed his lower back with a bitter face.Most of the wounds on his back had scabs, and they seemed to be getting better.But they lost their errands and got used to being lazy, so how could they bear the hardship of farming?

"It's all fucked up by those Jie people. If the head of the family didn't listen to the slander of those low slaves, how could we have ended up like this?!" Wang Hu was beaten harder than his younger brother, and could only lie on the straw mat and curse.How could he not know the embarrassing situation of the two of them, but now they can't go back, what will they do when they come down?

The two brothers were lying down and standing, each frowning, when suddenly there were a few light knocks on the door.It's not time to eat yet?Wang Bao limped over and opened the door.

"Ah Yan?" Wang Bao was taken aback when he saw the guy with sly eyebrows outside the door.Isn't this Ah Yan, a peddler from the neighboring village?In the past, I would occasionally eat, drink and gamble with my brothers, why did you suddenly come to me?Could it be that he came to see his own joke?

Thinking of this, Wang Bao's expression darkened immediately: "What are you doing here? Didn't you pay off the money you owed last time?"

Ah Yan chuckled: "I heard that my brothers were injured. I happen to have some good medicine for sores here. I wonder if it will come in handy."

As he spoke, he raised his hand, and a piece of bright silver flashed.This is silver, how can ordinary people have a chance to get it? !Wang Bao turned sideways quickly and let the man into the room.

As soon as he entered the house, the stench of mildew and rot came to his nostrils. Ah Yan sniffled and pretended to tsk his tongue: "It seems that after the head of the Liang family fell ill, everyone has a hard time. I'm afraid I haven't lived in this house for some years. It's a pity that the two elder brothers have ended up in such a situation!"

"If you have anything to say, don't hide it!" Wang Hu impatiently circling around with others, growled in a low voice.

"Hehe, speaking of it, it's a good thing." Ah Yan picked up a clean mat and sat down, and said, "A few days ago, my General Zhang went hunting in the mountains and happened to meet Tian Binke who was surnamed Liang. General Zhang chatted with Tian Weng very congenially, so he hired him as the military adviser of Qingyang Village."

As soon as these words came out, the faces of the Wang family brothers changed color.They are locals, so they naturally know that there are no generals in Qingyang Village, only a group of bandits who burned, killed and looted.The leader's surname is Zhang, and he is called "Zhang Hungry Tiger" by many people.Tian Chang actually voted for him, and even became the bandit's military advisor, how could anyone expect that? !

"Don't talk nonsense! How could Tian Chang vote for that...you, you are from Qingyangzhai?" Suddenly understanding, Wang Hu's voice trembled immediately. Showing off as a hero in front of Han and running into bandits, it's not the same thing at all.

"Good... that's good...cough, good birds can also pick trees and build nests!" I wanted to write something, but couldn't remember how to say the original words for a while, Ah Yan coughed dryly, and hurriedly said, "Anyway, Tian The military adviser said, now that Bingzhou is in such a state of chaos, it is better to get up early, and you can live a good life for a few days! If you can help General Zhang succeed this time, it is inevitable that you will also be named a team officer."

At this time, Wang Bao finally said, "I don't know Tian, ​​what is Tian Junshi's plan?"

"Abao, you!" Wang Hu's eyes widened. Is the younger brother going to follow Tian Chang?

"Brother, we can't get along in the Liang Manor now, so let's listen to what Ah Yan said first." Wang Bao thought much more than his elder brother, this is going to the Three Treasures Palace for nothing!Since they dared to come to the door like this, the bandits probably already had a plan.Both left and right are dead, it is better to think earlier and seek a way to survive.

Ah Yan chuckled: "Ah Bao still understands! General Zhang will gather troops and horses to attack the Liang Mansion in the near future. At that time, the brigade will surround the main entrance. You two just need to secretly lure a few people into the main house, and capture Liang Feng immediately. But, this matter shouldn't be difficult, right?"

It's really not that difficult!Wang Bao thought to himself, the main house may be too big for other people, but his brothers are as familiar as their own yard.And they are not the ones who really kidnap people, as long as they lead the bandits.If it works, it will be a big deal!

Thinking about the warehouses that he could see from time to time when he was patrolling, Wang Bao felt his mouth dry for a while, swallowed his saliva and said: "But now the Liang family is training soldiers, what if the group of soldiers don't leave the Lord's side? "

"Don't worry, General Zhang didn't bring any troops!" Ah Yan's eyes lit up, and he smiled viciously, "If the group of soldiers don't come out to fight, they will destroy the farm first, and then attack the mansion. Burn it over, are you afraid that they won't come out? But in this way, the contribution of your two brothers will be insignificant. Wouldn't it be beautiful if there was another mistake?"

This was a threat and a lure, and it was clear that the two of them were settled, so Wang Hu and Wang Bao couldn't help but look at each other.After a long while, Wang Hu finally gritted his teeth: "I've been the caregiver for the Liang family for so many years, so I beat him whenever I want! Such a patriarch, don't mind!"

Wang Bao was more straightforward: "If we really succeed, what reward can we get?"

"Being a team is absolutely no problem! There are rewards and women! You can choose the little ladies in the village. Here, this is the general who treats your wounds. Hurry up and buy a good sore medicine, don't delay the business! "As soon as Ah Yan raised his hand, the small piece of broken silver was placed in front of the Wang family brothers.

No amount of sweet talk is as attractive as this piece of silver.Wang Hu swallowed his saliva: "Okay, we're done!"

The author has something to say: Regarding Tian Chang’s property management, it’s about 6 kilograms for 60 yuan, [-] kilograms for [-] yuan, and [-] yuan... Hehe, anyway, this old man will definitely not be able to move.

So he can only hide some silver that has been exchanged before, but because silver is not a commonly used currency in circulation, the amount will not be too much.