Sword of Coming

When Chen Pingan climbed out of the well carrying a basket of soil, he was a little confused.

Outside the mouth of the well stood a group of scholars with high academic qualifications. The leader was the old gentleman from the Ministry of Rites who was standing on a ladder under the memorial archway and loudly reprimanded the superintendent. Standing next to him was his predecessor who built the covered bridge before leaving office. The supervisor, Mr. Song, who is said to be Song Jixin's father, has a slightly paler skin than when he was in the small town. The other five or six people, most of whom are in their thirties or forties, are very popular. He looks more like a high-ranking official than Mr. Song.

In fact, not only Chen Ping'an had a dull look on his face, this group of officials from the Ministry of Rites, who were the most noble among the six yamen of Dali, were also shocked to see the only rich man in the town who had three bags of gold and copper coins. In front of him is such a poor young man covered in dust, but he holds in his hands as much wealth as half of Emperor Da Li's treasury? Then spend a lot of money to buy five entire mountains including Luolu Mountain?

Ruan Qiong did not show up, but Ruan Xiu, a girl in blue, and Wu Yuan, the magistrate of Longquan County, stood side by side. The latter looked at his nose and heart, his face was indifferent, and his eyes were slightly lowered. Mr. Xiao Wu, who made people think that he had a scary backer, was just angry with those officials from the Ministry of Etiquette. After all, no one would be happy if such a piece of fat was cut off by a bunch of outsiders on their own territory.

In the turmoil that happened downstairs of the archway, Wu Yuan unexpectedly retreated to the end, allowing Dong Hu, the right minister of the Ministry of Rites, to rub all sixteen characters on the monument and leave. Even a seventh-floor Qi practitioner who served as a secret retinue, After confirming that the words on the plaques were no longer spirited, there was no need to take out the precious wind and thunder notes. Dong Shilang still had a arrogant attitude that he wanted to tear down the plaques and move them away. He insisted on his opinion and expanded all the wind and thunder notes he brought. After finishing the monument, he happily took his subordinates from the Ministry of Rites and stayed in a wealthy family's house in Taoye Lane.

Wu Yuan finally took advantage of the small town's large-scale construction projects, and the reputation he had won among ordinary people was suddenly wiped out. Fulu Street and Taoye Lane were happy to see the result, and it became a topic of conversation after dinner. Most of them were gloating about Wu Yuan's misfortune, thinking that Wu Yuan was just an embroidered pillow and was useless. Some people say that if Wu Yuan dared to stiffen his neck and fight to the end with the people from the Ministry of Rites, he would still admire this guy's backbone. Now, he is afraid that he will be a coward with the Ministry of Rites and officially wear the county magistrate's clothes in the future. After serving as an official, you will be in trouble.

Chen Ping'an jumped down from the wellhead lightly with a basket of soil on his back and stood in front of these Dali officials. Dong Hu, the servant, was smiling all over his face, stroking his beard and said with a smile: "Your name is Chen Ping'an. My surname is Dong. In our university, I serve in the Lili Department, and I am not looking for you this time for official reasons. I just wanted to see what the owner of the five mountains looks like. Now that I have got my wish, it is a worthwhile trip."

At the end of the sentence, the old servant looked around and smiled heartily.

Except for Mr. Song, who was a kiln inspector, there was no movement. The other officials of the Ministry of Rites laughed as if Dong Shilang had told a big joke.

Chen Ping'an was a little embarrassed. Old gentleman, I couldn't understand the Dali elegant Mandarin you spoke.

The corners of Wu Yuan's mouth curled up in a subtle arc.

Mr. Song, who was proficient in the small town dialect, had no intention of helping this Yamen official out of trouble.

Because the two of them belonged to different mountains, and the two sides had completely broken up with each other not long ago, if His Majesty hadn't ordered him to go south with Song Yuzhang, he would have definitely not been on this good trip. The yamen of the Ministry of Rites are all scholars, and they are the seeds of reading created by the battle of thousands of troops on the single-plank bridge. Therefore, the verbal battles in this yamen are really sublime, elegant and exciting. Fortunately, Song Yuzhang is a person who can be treated in a small town. A weirdo who was accustomed to it, after returning to the capital, he just kept silent and did his work, but he didn't feel any aggrieved or resentful.

Dong Shilang had been practicing for most of his life, almost all in the yamen of the Ministry of Rites. As the only yamen in the Dali court that could compete with the Ministry of War, Dong Hu became the third-in-command. He was obviously an old fox with a sharp mind, and he immediately realized Realizing his mistake, he thought about finding a way to get off the stairs, so he turned to look at Master Ruan's only daughter with a smile, hoping that she could help him pass on the message.

But Dong Hu gave up the idea almost instantly. A military sage from the Fengxue Temple who was even regarded as a guest by His Majesty the Emperor, as a minister of the Ministry of Etiquette, dared to bother Master Ruan's daughter to do this and that. If the girl was a A difficult character who didn't understand etiquette felt that he had neglected her, so he went back to her father to complain to him. Then the sage Master Ruan only had to send a sentence and a half to the capital. He estimated that he, a third-rank official, You can still do it, but it will definitely be uncomfortable. The old man's mind changed rapidly, but in fact it only happened in a moment. The Lord Assistant decided to change his original intention and looked at the girl with a smile. He was about to ask Miss Ruan whether she would adapt to living here and whether she needed the help of the Ministry of Etiquette to help her stay in the small town. Find a simple, elegant and clean house on Lu Street or Taoye Lane.

But something shocking happened the next moment. Master Ruan's daughter, who was considered unattainable by all the officials of the Ministry of Rites, hurriedly walked up to the boy with mud-legged legs, and probably told him what Shilang Dong had said, but the boy looked normal. Listening to the girl's words, these etiquette officials were really shocked.

How could Chen Ping'an know that such a trivial matter could make these distinguished figures in the capital seem to be thousands of miles away in their thoughts. After listening carefully to Ruan Xiu's message, Chen Ping'an smiled and said to her: "Xiu Xiu, please tell this old gentleman that I am a dragon kiln worker and now work in a blacksmith shop. The reason why I can buy those Shantou, I want to thank Master Ruan.”

When the girl in green heard the name "Xiu Xiu", she smiled so much that her long autumn eyes narrowed into a pair of crescent moons. Finally, she spoke cheerfully to the old servant of Dali in the orthodox elegant dialect of Dongbaopingzhou. . Of course all the officials of the Ministry of Rites, including Dong Hu, were proficient in the "Elegant Words" of a continent. Otherwise, wouldn't they have confirmed the fallacy that the Great Li Dynasty was a barbarian in the north? Even in the capital city of Li, the ability to speak elegant dialect fluently and proficiently has become an important criterion for distinguishing between high-ranking and humble people.

Dong Hu looked more and more amiable, smiled and nodded gently. After listening to Miss Ruan's explanation, he said that he would not disturb Chen Pingan's work, and asked Miss Ruan to help them say goodbye to Master Ruan. Since Master Ruan was busy making swords, It is even more forbidden to disturb him, otherwise His Majesty, who has admired Master Ruan for a long time, will definitely accuse him.

Ruan Xiu was not interested in these polite words, so she said nothing further. The old servant who had already become a man did not dare to have any dissatisfaction. After introducing several sights of Li Capital to Miss Ruan, he led the team away with a calm expression.

Song Yuzhang walked at the end of the team, and Wu Yuan walked after Song Yuzhang.

Ruan Xiu accompanied Chen Ping'an to empty the soil in the basket. As she walked, she said: "My father said that the purchase of the mountain will be finalized soon. In addition to this group of officials from the Ministry of Rites of Dali, we also need the land of the Qintian Prison." The master comes forward, plus you, and the three parties sign together to make it final, but the earth masters led by the two Mr. Qingwu are still carefully surveying the terrain and geomantic omen of all the mountains for the time being, and it is estimated that it will take a few days before they can come out. "

Chen Pingan thought for a while, put down the basket, looked at the busy figures around him, and asked: "Let's go to the creek and chat while walking?"

Ruan Xiu smiled and said, "Okay."

Ruan Xiu lowered his voice interestingly and said softly: "In addition to Mr. Qingwu and ordinary earth masters, Qin Tianjian also sent many Qi practitioners from hundreds of schools and side sects, including two young ones. The mountain-moving apes, one is a silver-backed ape and the other is a brachiosaurus. They are usually kept in the deep mountains and forests. They are only used when necessary to crack mountain peaks or move hills. "

"There is also the Xiling Armored Warrior created by the Taoist Talisman Sect. It is a very magical thing. A thin piece of talisman paper, after being infused with Qi by a Qi Practitioner, can transform into a tall armored warrior with a height of seven to eight feet, and great strength. Infinite, although it is not as good as the mountain ape, but fortunately it is obedient and there will be no accidents. The mountain ape has a violent temperament, especially the young mountain apes, which are especially difficult to tame. Once out of control, there will definitely be a heavy death. Even if it is suppressed and killed, it will still be a disaster. The pen is a great loss. I heard that there is also a cardigan puppet made by the Mohist tycoon, but I have never seen it before. If I have the chance, I will definitely go and see it with my own eyes in the future."

"My dad helped you choose two shops, one for New Year's Eve and one for straw shops. They happen to be right next to each other and you are familiar with them. If you don't have any objections, my dad will help you finalize the deal right away. Because this kind of small transaction does not involve the feng shui profit and loss of a dynasty or the fortune of mountains and rivers, it does not need to be as troublesome as buying a mountain."

Chen Pingan thought for a moment and smiled: "Of course it's no problem."

Ruan Xiu suddenly remembered something and said mysteriously: "My father said something in private. The Emperor of Da Li personally spoke. Since the town now belongs to the territory of Da Li, those magic artifacts left among the people in the market will be The treasury was taken back at a high price. In the end, about twenty good old objects were confiscated in the town. The items handed over by ordinary people on Fulu Street and Taoye Lane were about half and half. The price they were sold for was not high at all. . In the end, Emperor Da Li personally took out seven or eight items, and collected thirty items. As the lottery prizes for thirty of the mountains, they were given to the buyers for nothing. Of course, most people don’t know which hills have the lottery prizes and which ones. No, but my father learned that there will definitely be Shenxiu Mountain and Luopo Mountain, and the quality is very good, one of the best. In addition, for my Dengdeng Mountain and your Luopo Mountain, the Dali imperial court may each confer one to the other. The mountain god sits in it.”

Chen Ping'an took a deep breath, squatted by the stream, and frowned.

It seems a little unreal.

The boy from Mud Bottle Alley never dreamed that he would have such a day.

The straw-shoe boy's dreams are, at most, related to festive Spring Festival couplets, majestic door gods, fragrant meat buns and a bag full of rattling copper coins.

Ruan Xiu squatted down with him and asked curiously: "What's wrong?"

Chen Ping'an hesitated to speak, but seemed unable to explain, so he could only shake his head, picked up a piece of licorice, and chewed it in his mouth familiarly.

After a moment of silence, Chen Pingan turned around and said with a smile: "Miss Ruan, I just called you Xiuxiu in front of outsiders. Don't be angry. I saw so many high-ranking officials and I was very nervous. I just wanted to pretend that I am familiar with you." look like."

Ruan Xiu blinked and asked an irrelevant question, "Well, have you heard anything about that friend of yours recently? He's the one with the sword."

Chen Ping'an was confused and said: "You said Miss Ning, after she left, I didn't know any news about her."

Ruan Xiu smiled.

Chen Ping'an suddenly raised his head and turned to the side of the stone arch bridge. A familiar bright red color came flying towards him, his legs like the wheels of a cart.

Chen Ping'an had a bad premonition and quickly stood up. The little girl wearing a dirty and wrinkled red cotton-padded jacket came up behind him and looked up at him with her little head raised. Her face was filled with tears and she was heartbroken. He wrinkled his tanned little face and choked with sobs: "Mr. Ma from the school is dead. Before he died, he asked me to come to you."