At 3:00 on the ninth day of the twelfth lunar month, Zeng Yu took his mount, black beans, and walked out of the east gate of Anren County with Jian Zi. The fields were covered with snow. The two said goodbye in the cold wind outside the east gate. Jian Zi reminded Zeng Yu that if he went to Fen Yu again in the spring of next year, he must come to Anren to visit him first. He will go to Huwan to buy books.

Farewell to Jian Ze, Zeng Yu rode his horse on the road, leaving a trace of hoof marks on the snow, and the hoof marks were pulled further and further, until he could not see Jian Sixuan on the other end, Zeng Yu then rode the horse and drove quickly.

Anren County is more than 70 miles away from Yingtanfang. The road is covered with snow and muddy. I am happy that the road is safe and sound. At the beginning of the Youth hour, half a cold moon rises into the sky. Zeng fishes across the Xinjiang River in the clear snow, and goes ashore at the Longtoushan Wharf on Yingtanfang. He goes to the Cross Street. When he arrives in front of Zheng Shi's house, he sees the door of the house is closed and the lights are coming out. He knocks on the door for a moment. Fugui, an old servant of the Zheng family, comes to open the door, rubs his eyes and looks closely, and he says happily: "It's Mr. Zeng. My eldest master has been waiting for it for many days. Come in quickly, please come in quickly." He turns his head and shouts to his son: "Laifu, Laifu, lead the horse to Mr. Zeng to the backyard."

The stout and honest Lai Fu ran out, and then strode out, smiling and said, "Jiuli, I have been waiting for you for many days. If you don't come, I won't wait for you anymore. I originally planned to leave for Shangrao tomorrow. The test will be sixteen days."

Zeng Yu went to the kitchen to wash his face with hot water, and then followed Zheng Shi to the inner courtyard to kowtow to Zheng Shi's mother, Lu. Before he could enter the inner courtyard, he saw a red figure running under the dim light, his voice was as crisp as snow: "Uncle Jiuli, Uncle Jiuli, is Sister Niuniu coming?"

Zeng Yu leaned over and picked up the little girl in red outfit and smiled, "Tomorrow, Qianqian will go to Shangrao to play with Uncle Jiuli."

Qianqian, wearing a tiger-headed velvet hat, opened his dark eyes and said, "But Dad won't take me there." He said, looking at her father Zheng Shi with black eyes.

Zeng Yu said to Zheng Shi: "Brother Sanchi, let Qianqian follow us. Anyway, he is taking a boat and is not afraid of snow and difficult roads."

Zheng Shi shook his head and said, "I can't take a boat. The bandits are robbed in Yiyang and Qianshan. It is very dangerous to take the water route. We have to take the land route from the north bank of Xinjiang River."

Qianqian's little mouth suddenly pouted, tears flashed in his eyes, looking at Zeng Yu pitifully—

The road was not peaceful, and Zeng Yu had no choice but to comfort the little girl and said, "Next month I will bring Niu Niu here to play with you, and then pick you up to Shangrao to play, okay?"

Qianqian's eyes were filled with tears, and after a while, he nodded.

Zeng Yu gave a piece of lapis satin to Zheng Shi's mother, Lu. This kind of lapis satin is extremely luxurious, and one is worth three taels of silver. Lu thought the gift was too expensive, so he refused repeatedly and asked Zeng Yu to take it back to his mother Zhou. Zeng Yu said: "There are two pieces of this kind of satin, which were given to the younger generation by Yi Yan. Aunt Lu and my mother happened to be one piece by one."

Zheng Shi and his wife, Qianqian, and even Fugui and Laifu and his son all had a gift. They were bought by Zeng Yu in Linchuan. The New Year is approaching and everyone is happy.

Zheng Shi's family had already used supper. Because the fisherman had arrived, they prepared wine and vegetables in the kitchen, cooked a fish and a plate of winter bamboo shoots and mutton. Zheng Shi accompanied him to drink. Speaking of the Fujian bandit Wu Ping harassing Guixi, Zheng Shi said: "Governor Hu ordered his general Qi Jiguang to lead troops to suppress the bandits. Yesterday, the county got news that General Qi had arrived in Changshan County, Quzhou Prefecture, Zhejiang Province, and would soon enter the territory of Jiangxi. The day when the Wu bandits were defeated is not far away."

Zeng Yu said: "General Qi should have arrived in Yushan now. I wonder if the mouth of Qianshan River was robbed by thieves?

Zheng Shi said: "The news has not been sent back yet. The thieves come from the south and must be blocked by ice and snow. Moreover, there are thousands of houses in Qianshan. It is not easy for the thieves to rob the river mouth. What they are afraid of is that the thieves are blocked by Qianshan and General Qi, so they turn around and go south. These thieves will rob wherever they run. I am afraid that they will be robbed in Guixi. I am really worried."

Zeng Yu said: "It is better for Brother Sanchi to go to Shangrao for the New Year. My mother also misses Aunt Lu very much, and Niu Niu is even more looking forward to Qianqian going."

Zheng Shi said: "It's difficult to move with your family and your family. And you have to go to Shangrao here to walk on land, so there will be 300 miles away. We will set off tomorrow and we will have to arrive in Shangrao on the 15th. There are only six days before and after. It's fine if you and I are young and strong. My mother and the others are afraid that they will not be able to get through this urgent road. If they encounter thieves on the way, they will regret it-"

After a change of topic, Zheng Shi asked Zeng Yu: "Do you know what slogan the thief Wu Ping promotes?"

The earliest version of "The Legend of Water Margin" "The Legend of Kyotomoto" has been published and popular. Zeng Yu saw this version in Huwan and replied: "Is it not to rob the rich and help the poor and to practice the way for heaven?"

Zheng Shi smiled and said, "Those bandits and bandits did not want such a good sentence, but their slogan is straightforward and powerful, called 'When the rich are swept away, don't panic, the poor are helping each other, it is very stimulating. In Yingtan, there are two idle Gui family bachelors missing. Some people say they are throwing thieves to Qianshan."

This slogan is so familiar. Zeng Yu smiled bitterly and shook his head, asking, "Is that Sanchi brother considered a rich man or a poor man?"

Zheng Shi said: "Anyone with some property is considered rich people. These thieves will rob them. If they don't follow, they will kill people and set fire. This is called sweeping away. The reason why I am worried that the thieves will kill back to Yingtan, Guixi is because of the two missing Gui family bachelors. One of them has been scolded by me for bullying and kindness. They hold a grudge against me. If these two people really join the thief, they will most likely lead the thieves to loot Yingtanfang and perform their power in the hometown. I have to guard against you. Tomorrow, Brother Yuxuan will come here. I will let the old and young family go to Shangqing Town for a while. The road in Longhu Mountain is steep. There are hundreds of soldiers guards from the inspection department, and they call themselves Feilong King of Han. The thief Zhang Lian also has some relationship with Taoism and should not disturb Shangqing."

Zeng Yu nodded and said, "This is the safest."

The next morning, Zheng's house was busy, and the master and maids were packing their luggage. At the end of Chen, Taoist Yu Xuan arrived and brought two ox carts and eight porters. When he saw Zeng Yu, Taoist Yu Xuan was very happy. He apologized for the last time in Shangqing that he had not seen Zeng Yu because he had something to do and invited Zeng Yu to Shangqing.

Zheng Shi slapped his forehead and said, "I almost forgot. Brother Yuxuan, the last month, told me that if Brother Jiuli returns to his hometown and passes by Yingtan, he must go to the Dazhen Mansion in Longhu Mountain. This is the fate of Zhang Dazhen Man, right?"

Taoist Yu Xuan nodded and said, "The True Man of the Si Sect repeatedly reminded him to invite Mr. Zeng to the Dazhen Mansion to meet."

Zeng Yu said: "It was a test on the 16th day, and I had no time to go there. I wonder what Zhenren Zhang had to tell Xiaosheng?"

Taoist Yu Xuan hesitated for a moment and said, "I don't know either."

Zeng Yu said: "I will write a letter and submit it to Zhang Zhenren by Brother Dao." He hurriedly wrote a letter to Taoist Yu Xuan when he went to Zheng Shi's study.

At the time of Si, Taoist Yu Xuan escorted Zheng Shi's family from Yingtanfang to Shangqing Town. Zheng Shi took his servant Lai Fu and Zeng Yu to the road. Zheng Shi rode a donkey and Lai Fu walked. Lai Fu was wearing felt boots. Fugui taught Lai Fu to cut open two large bamboo tubes, then put them on his left and right calves, and tied them tightly with ropes. In this way, he would not be afraid of snow soaking his pants' legs when walking on the snow.

Zheng Shi, Zeng Yu waited for Yu Xuan and the others to cross the river and board the road. Xinjiang South Road may be thieves, so they wanted to walk from the north bank. Zheng Shi told Zeng Yu: "A few days ago, I told my mother that I would not go to the exam for this exam. I will accompany my family and the young and old. My mother must go there. My mother hopes that I can pass the imperial examination to glorify my ancestors."

Zeng Yudao: "It is said that the bandits robbed several counties in Jianchang Prefecture, and the Nancheng of the Yiwangfu was almost captured. The Grandmaster of the Tixue asked the students from Jianchang, Raozhou and Guangxin to take the exam together. In the snow and ice, there were bandits rampant, so many students were unable to take the exam, and it was inevitable that they would complain."

Zheng Shi said: "Yes, it's fine for our Guangxin Mansion to have a student, but it's hard for students there to come to Shangrao to take the exam. The farthest one is nearly a thousand miles away. Even if you come, you will definitely not be able to go back before the New Year. You have to celebrate the New Year in a foreign land. Alas, it's hard to seek fame and fortune.

Zeng Yu smiled and said, "We are new students, so we have to try our luck to take several subjects. I will try my best to take the provincial examination three times. If I can't win, I will no longer participate in the provincial examination that I have worked hard to make money. I will take good care of myself and support my mother, and live the life I want to live. Life is full of ambition. When the autumn wind blows, I think of sea bass and water shield. I can't spend my whole life seeking fame or fame, otherwise it is very likely that fame and fortune will be lost and wealth is like a dream." Because I talked to Zheng Shi about the concise of Anren County-

Zheng Shi praised: "Jian Sheng is a master. Next time I go to visit him." He also said: "Then I will work hard with my brother for ten years. If I can't pass the three subjects in ten years, then I will be self-adapted and live a leisurely life."

The two of them talked long while walking, but they were not lonely. Lai Fu carried the load and just walked with his head down. Sometimes when he heard Zheng Shi and Zeng Yu talk jokes, he would raise his head and smile.

Although it is difficult to walk on the snowy road, in order to arrive in Shangrao as soon as possible, Zeng Yu and the other two got up early and stayed at night, traveling more than 60 miles a day. Two days later, at noon on the twelfth lunar month, the three of them passed Yiyang safely and arrived at the boundary of Hengfeng. Hengfeng and Qianshan were one in Xinjiang North and the other in Xinjiang South. This place is about 150 miles away from Shangrao County. It is halfway through the journey. It is expected that they can arrive in Shangrao on the morning of the 15th. If it is fast, they will arrive before night on the 14th.

There were few pedestrians along the way, and I had never heard of any thieves attacking him. Zeng Yu rode on his horse and looked at the direction of Qianshan on his right and said, "I don't know if the river estuary has been in trouble. If he is robbed, he will not be able to recover his vitality in three or five years.

Zheng Shi was familiar with the journey and said, "This place is only more than ten miles away from Xinjiang. Should we go to the riverside to find out the news?"

Zeng Yu shook his head and said, "Mingzhe protects himself. Even if we know that Hekou is robbed, we can't help at all. We still have to wait for Qi Jiguang to wipe it out. It's important for us to hurry up."
Chapter completed!