Sword of Coming

On the boundary of Xiyue in Aquarius Continent, one of the many vassal states of the Great Li Dynasty, the capital city of Yuxuan Kingdom, at night, when the lights were on, there was a fortune-telling stall on the street. The drunken middle-aged Taoist priest lying on the table made a fortune-telling He was so excited that he raised his head, but he still looked drunk, with glassy eyes, so he picked up the wine bottle at hand, took a sip of the Huanhun Soup, which was used to relieve hangover, and then took a long breath, ready to close the stall and go home. The Taoist priest reached into his sleeves and quietly weighed his money bag. He earned some scraps of silver, and more of them were copper coins.

There are some eunuchs' children on the street who have returned late from a spring outing. The grass is green and willows are yellow, and many frivolous people have been killed by drunkenness. They ride horses at night and return to the city, as if their horse hooves are stained with the fragrance of spring grass.

The middle-aged Taoist priest began to pack away the lotus tubes on the table, twisting a few copper coins for divination. The pulp was shiny from rubbing them all the time. He threw them into the lotus tubes together, and then picked up a tablecloth with his last name written on it. , usually the Taoist priests here just read fortune-tellings to measure good and bad luck, read people's hands to calculate marriage, and also do fortune-telling, write family letters, etc., which can supplement the household income. The cost of the capital is not as high as that of the local counties and counties of Yuxuan Kingdom, and the price of goods Stunningly high.

As for guessing people's surnames, it was still an off-the-charts "personality skill" that he learned from Xiao Heitan in his early years. They were all in the low-end world. She still remembers one of her dreams when she was a child, which was to drag her master along with her. Travel around the world and make big money together! Looking for a busy thoroughfare, she first helped to beat the gongs and drums to gain popularity. The master first played a few tricks with knives, then beat the chest with big rocks, and sold dog skin plasters and powerful pills. She didn't have to worry about sales. She knew all these trades. Erqing is extremely good at it. Of course, it's a bit hard work, but after all, there are other people who make a living in a shabby business that is unconscionable and don't earn money.

Chen Ping'an smiled. It seemed impossible to hang out with the founding disciple again. Even if he was willing to be a master, Pei Qian himself would probably think it was nonsense.

This fortune-telling stall is now quite famous in the capital city.

But naturally, it cannot catch the eye of dignitaries. It is okay to deceive the common people. In the eyes of real Qi practitioners, they are no different from those who deceive and deceive.

Apart from some scattered items, the main items are a table, two benches and a banner. The so-called table, panel and table legs can also be disassembled, making it easy to move. Behind the stall is a wooden cart. You can put the tables, stools and flags on top and walk away. Taoist priests travel around, and one person can eat without worrying about anything. The sky is big and the earth is big, and we are home all over the world.

However, this Taoist priest still rented an abandoned house in the capital that has been neglected for a long time. It is not haunted. It is either a gloomy and haunted house, or the people who live here often seem to be pressed into bed by ghosts, as if they are haunted by nightmares. It’s easy to have trouble sleeping, and over time, you’ll naturally feel depressed. Over time, no one will be willing to come here to spend money and suffer. It's a bit like the kind of naughty fox spirit recorded in the book of ghosts and monsters. The owner of the house invited the so-called high-level Taoist priests to come and punish him. After a while, the commotion started again. It was really pointless. Besides, the owner of the house had a rich family. For generations, his ancestors and grandsons had specialized in renting and selling houses in the capital. They still had a large number of people on hand. They didn’t care what happened to such a house, let alone never. If someone loses his life, he doesn't take it seriously. Then finally someone took advantage of him. He was a foreign Taoist priest who deceived students and the rent price was not lowered. He was destined not to be a repeat customer anyway, so he asked the Taoist priest to pay a one-time deposit of half a year.

Later, the Taoist priest really suffered a lot, and he immediately became unhappy. He came to the door and made trouble twice, but was dismissed easily. Is the shop bullying customers? A contract, written clearly in black and white, I will be the one to take charge of any lawsuits, so what can you, a Taoist priest with no foundation or backing, do? What's more, the people in the capital city of Yuxuan Kingdom are notoriously xenophobic. The Taoist priest wanted to find a lawyer to seek justice from the county magistrate, but no one dared to help write the petition. Later, the fortune-telling stall gradually became more famous, and that house The master probably felt that it was better for enemies to be reconciled than to be married, so he asked his son, who had found a job in the county government office, to invite the Taoist priest to the restaurant for a drink, and then returned part of the deposit. The young man who was a clerk in the government office put his feet on the table, burped from wine, and teased the other party, "Aren't you a Taoist priest who can subdue demons and eliminate demons? Are you still afraid of those ghosts and dirty things?"

The Taoist priest just smiled and replied, "There are different paths in the dark world, and there are different paths between yin and yang. If you only rely on the magic of the immortals to fight and kill, you will still have to deal with people and ghosts when you often walk by the river without getting your shoes wet." It's good to be good.

After all, he was a young man who had been hanging out with the public for many years. He immediately found fault with his words, knocked his boots on the table, and asked Daoist Wu with a smile if there was something hidden in his words. I wonder if my father and I were humans or ghosts in the eyes of the Taoist. Are the aliens causing mischief ghosts or humans?

Tonight, the middle-aged Taoist priest pushed the wooden cart back to the house. He came to the side door of the house and took out a bunch of keys. There are no steps here, so you can enter directly by pushing the cart.

The Taoist priest had just locked the door when a woman in a red dress "floated" without touching her feet and said jokingly: "Taoist Master Wu, it means that our court is not strict, otherwise a fake Taoist priest like you would never even settle down in the capital. Can’t enter the city.”

She has a palace-like bun, skin like snow, charming eyes, and a tender face with long temples.

It's a pity that women are not human.

The Taoist priest immediately retorted: "Miss Xue, what you said is wrong. According to your Yuxuan country's laws, within the territory of a country, in addition to the Daolu Academy under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Rites of the imperial court, the private urns issued by various Dharma altars of Taoist priests also count. The imperial court has always recognized the ultimatum. I spent a full eighty taels of silver to buy the ultimatum with real gold and silver, not to mention Yuxuanguo, even Da Li Capital dared to go there. This is called walking around the world with reason, and being upright is not afraid of the shadows."

It is equivalent to buying an amulet with eighty taels of silver. Without this level of identity, if a foreign Taoist priest wants to make money by setting up a stall, he may be peeled off by the subordinate officials of the government.

The woman nodded and said with a smile: "That's right. How can Xie Feng Guan not be an official?"

Her surname is Xue and her name is Ruyi. She is a ghost, but she has nothing to do with the evil ghost. She can walk in broad daylight without any hindrance. Only when the powerful sound of a subordinate official's wooden stick hitting the ground is heard in the nearby county government office, she will avoid entering the house. .

The Taoist priest took out a paper bag of flower cakes from his sleeve and handed it to the female ghost in the red dress. This was the second rent he needed to pay. After setting up the stall every day, he had to spend a small amount of money to buy some Beijing specialties to honor this city. She is the "mistress" of the house, otherwise she will act like a monster and cause trouble. She won't hurt anyone, but she will make noises all night long and hang out outside the window, making people unable to relax. Taoist priests can't even hope for a peaceful sleep.

Over time, they figured out their tempers, and now they are on good terms with each other. They can even chat for a while. The Taoist priest often asks her about the rules for ghosts to walk on the road to the underworld.

It is said that this old-looking Taoist priest Wu Di has already thought about his future Taoist name. He chose a homophonic name and called it "Wudi".

She is a Yin spirit and doesn't care about food. However, she has a secular neighbor here who must eat three meals a day. She complained a little: "Wu Di, why did you come back so late today? You are hungry. Hurry up and cook. Zhang Hou cooks a delicious meal. He is just growing up, so he can't just make do with it. Zhang Hou is about to take the academy examination. Whether he can get into Pan depends on it. If he fails to pass the exam, I will blame you. .”

Taoist priests are naturally good-tempered and have no airs. They just live under someone else's roof. They promised one after another and said they would go to the kitchen to start work after putting everything away.

This Taoist priest does not treat himself badly and likes to be meticulous. For example, when making a bowl of noodles, in addition to preparing cooking wine and various toppings, there are four or five types of spicy oil, paired with chopped ginger, onion, and garlic... just one topping. , sizzling sound, and serve it hot, the taste is amazing.

The Taoist priest went to the kitchen, and with skillful hands and feet, he quickly prepared a table of home-cooked dishes. The woman in the red dress helped "bring the dishes" to the table. The dishes fell on the table like a suspended stream of water.

The female ghost went to call the young scholar named Zhang Hou in the house next door. The reason why she lingered here was because of a certain sworn alliance to take care of each other's descendants.

As for the important place in the capital, there was only a County God's Temple nearby. Why he chose to turn a blind eye to her involved a secret suggestion from a certain superior in the City God's Temple.

Just across the street from the house is one of the two county offices in the capital. There is a government temple behind the office.

At the dinner table, the Taoist priest was showing off his close relationship with the county government salt house clerk and how well-informed he was. He said that an internal meeting was held in the Yamen Shrine yesterday, and there would soon be a few incorrigible people who violated the house rules. "White letter", in a few days, the county government will be expelled from the county government in anger. Of course, they can change their names and enter a certain house to make a living, but they don't have to spend thirty or fifty taels of class rules and cases. Fei, don't even think about negotiating matters at the Yashen Temple...

Zhang Hou was a man who didn't listen to what was happening outside the window and only focused on reading the books of sages. Every time he heard Wu Di talking about these things, the young man would become impatient, but he just kept silent.

In addition to the six rooms of a county government office, there are also four rooms of salt, warehouse, Cambodia and responsibility, for a total of ten rooms. The clerks and government servants who work here are divided into those who are registered and those who are "not registered". The so-called "not registered" means just Compared with the imperial court, there were actually two types of officials, one in the hands of the official office and the officials in each house. Therefore, there were so many government officials, often hundreds of them, that even a county magistrate who could be considered extremely diligent could not figure out the exact number. , but even the official scribes who are set up according to the imperial quota and "eat the royal food" cannot be said to have any status, let alone those members of various houses and classes who all belong to low-income professions. It is no wonder that the young man is tired of these scraps and scraps. Useless gossip.

The woman in the red dress noticed the displeasure on the young man's face, and she immediately glared at the Taoist priest, hinting to him not to mention these boring things that would bring disgrace to the scene.

The Taoist priest raised his glass and took a sip of wine, and said with a smile: "For a person like me who travels around the world, news is the way to make money, so he will inevitably have to deal with the three religions and nine schools. Having said that, scholars like Mr. Zhang and you who have studied the books of sages naturally are running I want to manage the world and benefit the people, and I will pursue my ambitions in temples and official circles in the future, but it would be a good thing if I knew more about the lower levels. If I really succeed in the imperial examination someday, I will be named on the gold medal list and become an official, and I will not be ignored by those around me. The staff master and the subordinates below casually fooled around, otherwise they would be separated from the common people outside the yamen. It seems that they are separated by a door, but it is a world of difference. As a local official and an official who is close to the people, how can we truly understand the sufferings of the people? Woolen cloth."

She rarely nodded in agreement and said, "Wu Di, apart from being able to do the Three-Legged Cat Kung Fu of making ghost drawings, he is a fake Taoist priest. He probably even has a fake name, but these few sentences still have some real insights. Don't overdo yourself with many arts. It's the same principle as not having too much money, just like Wu Di said, if you know more about the inside story of officialdom, even if it's not a good thing, it's not a bad thing."

To be honest, she has been staying in this street for hundreds of years, and sometimes she feels bored. She occasionally goes to "audit" the internal discussions of the Yamen Shrine or the City God's Temple, but the real internal affairs of a county's officialdom are, I'm afraid. She doesn't know as much as this foreign Taoist priest.

The young man remained silent and just lowered his head to eat. Apparently he didn't listen. He just felt that the Taoist priest was chattering and trying to teach others.

The Taoist priest didn't take it seriously and raised his glass with both hands, "We don't want to talk about troubles at the wine table. Miss Xue, let's go one by one."

The young man left after eating and said goodbye to Sister Xue. He was about to take the college examination for the abbot of Xuezheng himself, which was quite stressful.

When the Taoist priest was clearing away the dishes, he asked with a smile: "Miss Xue, do you think Zhang Hou doesn't like to listen to my truth because he thinks I am a charlatan, or does he sincerely think that what I say is unreasonable, so he doesn't listen to me?" , or for someone who is successful and famous, the truth is the truth?"

She frowned, but quickly relaxed her brows, pretending to be casual and wrote: "Zhang Hou is not an old man like you who travels around. The young man has a simple heart, how can he think so much."

The Taoist priest smiled and said: "Simple two words can cure all diseases."

She suddenly became unhappy.

The Taoist priest immediately clarified: "It is definitely a compliment!"

After clearing away the dishes and rice bowls on the table, the Taoist priest finished his work in the kitchen, washed his hands, and shook his sleeves. He saw Miss Xue leaning against the door of the room with a frown on her face.

The middle-aged Taoist priest is a good person and said with a smile: "With Zhang Hou's knowledge, let alone the success of the college examination, if you participate in the provincial examination and the joint examination, you will only suffer from horse hoof disease. Miss Xue, why should you worry? In the future, the list will be announced, and the poor will be determined." I will be the first to come and tell you the good news."

Xue Ruyi smiled and asked: "Do you think Zhang Hou can successfully get a title on the gold list?"

The Taoist priest thought for a while, "It must not be a big problem to pass the Jinshi examination. I have read several art articles by Zhang Hou. His writing is sophisticated, especially the first-hand pavilion style, which is upright and charming. No matter who comes this spring. As the CEO, whoever sees it likes it."

At Xue Ruyi's request, the Taoist priest often went to the book market in Beijing and helped the boy buy a lot of sample essays compiled into volumes for the examination. The Taoist priest acted slickly and made a lot of money from the price difference.

The Taoist priest walked to the door of his house, and the female ghost was hanging in the air and following him. The Taoist priest took out the key, but was not in a hurry to open the door. She smiled and said: "Is there anything shameful in the house? Could it be that Taoist Wu is hiding his beauty in the golden house?"

The Taoist priest said with an upright tone: "It's late at night. After all, men and women are not close to each other. A man and a woman live together in the same house. They need to avoid suspicion."

She sneered and said: "You are a Taoist priest, but you are not a Taoist who talks about it every day."

The Taoist priest said solemnly: "I have also read many books by sages. If I had not strayed into the mountains when I was young and embarked on the path of spiritual practice, I would have gained fame and entered an official career long ago."

She took out a pen holder from her sleeve, shook her wrist, and said to herself: "Where should I put such a beautiful study collection?"

The Taoist priest's eyes lit up, and he opened the door with lightning speed, pushed it open gently, and stretched out a palm sideways, "The sky is blue and the moon is white, as long as you have a clear conscience, there is no need to worry about rumors. Miss Xue, please come in quickly." .”

There are many rooms in the house, but the Taoist priest specially selected a small house as his residence. In his words, the house can be big, but the sleeping room must be small to gather Qi.

The spring air is getting warmer, and the sound of insects is newly heard through the green window screens.

Entering the room, she placed the oil-red and gold-painted lotus with hollow dragon and piercing zhi six square pen holders on the table.

The Taoist priest took out the fire seal and lit an oil lamp on the table.

Previously, this pen holder was placed in the flower hall on the side of the lobby of this mansion, which was used to entertain guests. The Taoist priest was a good judge of goods and was greedy for it.

At that time, he said that he was not greedy, but that he saw a good thing. Everyone has a love for beauty. Appreciation is purely appreciation.

In fact, she also has a bamboo bamboo that she has treasured for many years. It is quite old and has a vertical green inscription on it, saying that the heart of a hero is like a fairy.

The Taoist priest fell in love at first sight and was willing to pay a high price to buy it. The so-called high price was only relative to the expenses of ordinary people. She didn't even listen to it, two hundred taels of silver.

There is a piece of glass lens placed on the desk, covering the entire tabletop.

Seeing a stack of scriptures copied in neat small letters on the table, she asked doubtfully: "You are a Taoist priest, why are you copying Buddhist scriptures?"

The Taoist priest smiled and said, "I do it occasionally to calm my mind."

The Taoist priest moved two chairs and sat far away from each other. After Xue Ruyi sat down, she tilted her posture and leaned her elbow on the handle of the chair, looking at the middle-aged Taoist priest.

The Taoist priest felt a little uncomfortable when she looked at her and asked, "Miss Xue is visiting my humble residence tonight, but what are your instructions?"

Xue Ruyi said: "There is an old saying that distant relatives are not as good as close neighbors. Wu Di, do you think this is true?"

The Taoist priest nodded and said: "Of course, these old principles are the most sensible and chewy."

She hesitated for a moment and then said: "I do have something to ask for. I hope you can help transfer the draft of Zhang Hou's poetry collection to a bachelor of the Hanlin Academy."

The Taoist priest laughed dumbly, pondered for a moment, and glanced at the expensive pen holder on the table, "I'm afraid that the poor Taoist can only see the concierge, but not the noble bachelor."

Xue Ruyi sighed quietly.

The Taoist priest wondered why she was so confused. Did she really hope that Zhang Hou would pass the imperial examination? When it comes to seeking wealth, her family background can only guarantee that the young man will have enough food and clothing for a few lifetimes. Even though Zhang Hou is already a Qi practitioner with a hidden identity, she will have everything he needs before he reaches the middle five realms in his future cultivation. It can be guaranteed that Zhang Hou will not have to worry. Besides, Zhang Hou is so young and wants to advance through the imperial examination, so there is no need to be so anxious.

The female ghost Xue Ruyi and the young Zhang Hou are usually siblings. It can be seen that Zhang Hou is actually aware of her identity as a female ghost.

She laughed at herself: "I was so sick that I rushed to the doctor. If Zhang Hou knew about this, he would blame me for the rest of his life."

In the eyes of the Taoist priest, the young man is undoubtedly a good scholar, but he is not a very good Taoist. His qualifications are average, and if nothing unexpected happens, it will be difficult for him to enter the cave realm.

Ordinary people, from a wealthy family, are pampered and pay attention to a way to nourish Qi and transfer it to the body. On the other hand, Qi practitioners, regardless of people, ghosts and ghosts, have other mysteries. They have the magical effect of living in the body, transferring Qi and nourishing it. It seems to be doing the opposite, even if it is not To live in a cave in a secluded mountain dojo, you only need to sit down in a clean room, put away distracting thoughts and become silent. Your body and bones will not move, but your energy and blood will wander along with your soul, slowly absorbing the spiritual energy of heaven and earth, and refining your bones like golden branches and jade leaves. There is a difference between immortals and mortals.

This mansion occupies a large area, especially the backyard with its many ancient trees. It is quiet at night, and several roars can be heard.

The female ghost stood up and said with a smile: "Wu Di, just pretend that I never said this."

The Taoist priest stood up and said, "It's okay. If there is a need to do something like this one day, Miss Xue will inform the poor Taoist. Not to mention that it is a bachelor's mansion with high thresholds, even if it is a mountain of swords and a sea of ​​fire."

The female ghost smiled sweetly and said, "Taoist Wu doesn't work as a helper for those powerful people in the capital. It's really disrespectful of his talent."

The Taoist priest said helplessly: "It's unpleasant to be a helper. Miss Xue said it would be better to be a mastermind or a master."

She reached out to touch it, put the pen holder back into her sleeve, and left slowly.

The Taoist priest was unable to stop him and could only watch the cooked duck fly away.

The female ghost walked alone through the corridor, came to the backyard, and climbed to the attic. From here, she could see the young man in the house next door, and a yellow light came from the study window.

A piece of moon evokes the sound of banging clothes in thousands of households, and wakes up countless people in their spring boudoir dreams.

The Taoist priest packed away the copied scriptures on the table, opened the drawer, took out the carving knife and stone, and began to carve the seals. He added two marginal words to a pair of book seals of the same shape that had already been engraved with the base inscription.

Carry out all good deeds and refrain from all evil deeds. Don’t think about giving favors, don’t forget when receiving favors.

After he finished carving the seal with skillful movements, the Taoist priest looked through a local chronicle under the light. The book engraving in the capital of Yuxuan Kingdom was extremely advanced, and he bought many good books here.

Reading a new book is like a sudden burst of rain after a long drought. Looking through old books, it’s like saying goodbye is better than getting married.

You need to sit upright when copying books, but you can browse miscellaneous books at will. The Taoist priest crossed his legs, took out a handful of melon seeds, and turned the pages while eating the melon seeds.

There was another roaring sound outside the window.

The middle-aged Taoist priest muttered something that has been passed down for generations. Worry about diligence and indifference, don't be too bitter and dry.

On this trip, this "Taoist" who followed Lu Chen's example of setting up a stall came to settle an old debt with a family.

Therefore, on the bottom of one of the seals, there are two characters of seal carving, Qiu Hou.

Chen Pingan took out the sword-raising gourd, walked to the window, raised his head for a long time, and drank the wine in the pot, his eyes became brighter.

Close your eyes and it's like listening to the pounding of a rainstorm many years ago.

————

There are seven or eight stars in the sky.

On the outskirts of Beijing, there was a thatched tavern on the side of the road, with a fox fur lying drunk. A noble man spread his arms and legs, holding a horsewhip wrapped in gold wire, and resting his head on the thigh of the woman next to him.

The people by the side look like the moon, and their bright wrists are covered with frost and snow. The beautiful woman sat on the floor, her skirt blooming like a bright red flower. She leaned over to help the young master rub his eyebrows with gentle movements of her hands.

At night, there was a sound of horse hooves on the official road. The young woman in the lead was riding an extraordinary green horse, followed by a group of heroic and vigorous girls, all wearing swords.

Moreover, this group of young girls, all breathing long and long, are definitely not embroidered pillows. An expert will know at a glance that they are the kind of practitioners who have the guidance of a master.

She turned over and dismounted and looked at the noble young man hiding here enjoying the blessing. She was so angry that she raised her eyebrows upright. She raised the riding whip in her hand high and swung it hard. The whip sounded like a firecracker.

The beautiful woman selling wine here raised her head to face the young woman who had come to accuse her. She smiled brightly, put her finger to her mouth, and hissed softly, signaling not to disturb the man's sleep.

The woman didn't even look at the coquettish fox, and it would make her eyes dirty if she looked at it any longer. She just walked quickly into the wine shop, kicked the young man hard on the sleeping pig, and said angrily: "Ma Yanshan, don't pretend to be dead! "

The young man and woman had somewhat similar looks. The noble man who was called by his first name opened his eyes, yawned, and with sleepy eyes, he sat up and asked with a smile: "What's the matter? Has anyone offended you? Just look at it. Tell my second brother that there will be no overnight feud."

The woman was angry and refused to argue. Will the family rely on such a lazy guy to be the leader in the future? She wished she could hit him in the face with a whip, "Ma Yanshan, look at your rotten drunkard's character. You are not even worthy of holding a horse for Ma Che!"

Ma Yanshan said with a playful smile: "I'm just a cousin. He has only been studying to death since he was a child. He is old at the age of three. It's really not a curse on this kid. I don't think he will be able to do anything in the future."

"Ten thousand steps back, even if this kid is successful in his studies, what if he becomes a minister? Besides, wasn't I also born as a Tanhualang? Ma Che, a little brat, if he has the ability, just win three yuan in a row. I, the elder brother, I am personally responsible for organizing a banquet for him. Sixth Division, Xiao Jiuqing, how many chief seal officials does he want to toast him? Are five enough? If not, I can call ten..."

Having said this, the noble master raised the arm holding the golden whip, shook it, then raised the other hand, and said with a smile: "I'm afraid Ma Che won't appreciate it."

Nama Che is recognized as a young prodigy, a typical man in white, and already has a reputation as a minister.

Different from the so-called "Ma Tanhua" who was careless, Ma Che grew up among wealth and wealth, in a cave where gold was sold, and he had read thousands of books as a young man.

Seeing that the woman was about to beat her up, Ma Yanshan had no choice but to beg for mercy: "Ma Yuemei, good sister, I'm afraid of you, tell me, what is such a big deal that it's worth the trouble of taking me home personally." "

Ma Yuemei glared and scolded: "Let's talk about family matters at home!"

Ma Yanshan smiled and said, "It's okay, Mrs. Song is not an outsider either."

The beautiful woman looked helpless. She didn't dare to interfere with your Ma family's housework.

In the capital of Yuxuan Kingdom, about twenty years ago, a family named Ma moved in. As soon as they arrived in the capital, they bought an old house of the former prime minister at a high price.

Within a country, there are three levels of so-called rich families. The first level is that many people know that there are many such rich families. The second level is that all the people have heard about it and there are only a handful of them. , and the last one is unknown to all the people and almost the entire local officialdom, and has not even heard of it.

The Ma family belongs to the last category. They are obviously rich and noble, but their reputation is not obvious. Only a small group of ministers and ministers who were at the center of the imperial court, as well as a few mountain sects, had heard of this foreign family. The specific origins were confusing, and there were only a few unverified rumors. Some said that the Ma family was The "money bag" of a certain Shangzhu country in the Great Li Dynasty also said that because the current head of the family had a very promising eldest son, he went to the mountains to practice and was so talented that he became a land god at a young age.

When one person attains the Tao of Chicken and Dog and ascends to heaven, the whole family will follow suit and become prosperous.

The largest restaurant in the capital, an Xianjia Inn, and the Xianjia Ferry in the capital are all private properties of the Ma family. In addition, there are a large number of silver shops and mines, but they are all recorded as being supported by the family. The names of various puppets may be a certain prince, a domestic slave of a county lord, a beloved son of a certain minister, or a distant relative of the Governor of Water Transport.

For example, the carefree Ma Yanshan took part in the imperial examination when he was young, passed all the tests, and finally rode a white horse to explore the capital.

But in fact, it was his younger sister, Ma Yuemei, who took the exam. He, the elder brother, had earned his status as a prostitute for nothing. Now he was working as an errand in the Hanlin Academy and was too lazy to do anything. As for the assessment, he failed. In the capital of Yuxuan Kingdom, from the beginning to the end, from the Ministry of Rites to the Hanlin Academy, no news was leaked.

This shows how exaggerated Ma's power is.

At that time, the whole family moved to the capital of Yuxuan Kingdom. After more than twenty years of development, with four generations living under one roof, and several younger brothers, the newly compiled family tree had more than a hundred people.

Although the Ma family is an outsider, it is not impossible to control the government, but the Ma family has no such idea at all. In fact, it is due to the shrewd mother of the brother and sister Ma Yanshan and Ma Yuemei.

Ma Yanshan narrowed his eyes and said, "Let me guess, could it be him who finally went home?"

Ma Yuemei remained silent.

Ma Yanshan said calmly: "We are just brothers, not cousins, not cousins, real brothers. We are the eldest brother with the same father and mother. Yuemei, tell me, after so many years, From the time we were born until today, has he seen us once?"

Ma Yanshan shook his head, stretched out a finger, and said with a smile: "If I remember correctly, it seems, seems, maybe, probably, not even once."

The noble man in snow-white fox fur fell back and crossed his legs, "Where can I find such a good brother of the Gu family?"

Ma Yuemei said with a dark face: "Stop talking nonsense here and get back here!"

In her mind, she always respected the eldest brother whom she had never met once as a god. If Ma Yanshan hadn't been the second brother, she would have whipped him down.

In fact, the two brothers and sisters, when the war that swept across the continent came to an end and the world returned to peace, they had the idea of ​​​​returning to their hometown to worship their ancestors a few years ago. However, their parents who usually loved them very much, only in this case... In fact, they disagreed with each other and used various excuses. They only said that their family had moved out for so many years and the journey was far away. They were probably worried that Ma Yanshan and Ma Yuemei would secretly run away from home. They even strictly ordered the brother and sister not to return home without permission. , otherwise we will take care of ourselves.

The two of them mentioned it to their parents several times, but to no avail, so they gave up the idea.

Because there is a Xianjia Ferry at home, as well as two private ferries that run business to the south, they can often come into contact with the kind of mountain newspapers. Therefore, the brother and sister are curious about the hometown where their ancestral home is, but it is different from the Ma Yuemei, the sister of Lizhu Cave, who is fascinated by the sky, Ma Yanshan is not interested in the gods and gods on those mountains. This idle drunkard and libertine, the only thing he is curious about is the night banquet at Piyun Mountain in Beiyue. , Ma Yanshan wanted to participate in it in person and be satisfied with seeing the world.

Ma Yanshan stood up and said with a smile: "Okay, okay, go back and tell your parents that you will definitely go home tonight. If you don't see me within two hours, send someone to break my legs!"

Ma Yuemei turned around and left. Ma Yanshan secretly winked at a girl riding a horse with a sword. She had no expression on her face, but she was immediately whipped hard by Ma Yuemei. A blood groove instantly appeared on the girl's face, but the girl remained motionless.

Ma Yanshan was also indifferent to this. When they rode away, he lay back on the floor and asked casually: "Is that brother of mine very powerful?"

The beautiful woman smiled charmingly, nodded and said, "Of course. It's so awesome that it couldn't be any more awesome."

Speaking of this, her eyes were in a trance, and she sighed quietly, but it was a pity that she never saw him again.

She is the local mountain god.

The name of the mountain is Zheer.

According to the current landscape genealogy, she is a seventh-grade god.

In a vassal country, those who are better than those who are inferior are more than those who are inferior.

Ma Yanshan's eyes were dazed and he said: "Since we are brothers, why don't we care if we do well and don't care if we do bad?"

She smiled and explained: "According to the saying in the mountains, if you go to the mountains to practice Taoism, the six relatives will be shallow. It is not advisable to get involved too deeply."

Ma Yanshan laughed, "Just say I don't recognize my relatives."

She hesitated for a moment, then leaned down, stretched out two fingers, gently rubbed Ma Yanshan's temples, and whispered: "It's better not to say such angry words in the future."

The eldest brother of this brother and sister was simply an existence that was far away and unattainable to a mountain god from a small country like her.

A person in his forties who is in the Jade Pu Realm is definitely in the Immortal Realm, and may even be in the Ascension Realm in the future.

The top ten young people in the continent.

Behind him, there is Liu Baqiao, the Nascent Soul Realm Sword Immortal from Fenglei Garden, the direct disciple of Liu Laocheng, the Immortal from Zhenjing Sect, and a young deputy mountain chief who is now Guanhu Academy...

This is not unattainable.

The most incredible thing is that this person can actually command many ancient gods!

She was worried that if she was lucky enough to see the other person one day, and if she didn't agree with her, she might say something wrong, and the other person might snap his fingers and her golden body would be shattered on the spot.

Sensing the woman's slight strangeness, Ma Yanshan sat up again and finally took out a bottle of wine from under her skirt. The woman giggled. He raised his head and took a big sip of Xianjia wine, stretched out his thumb and wiped it. He said, "I've heard that my eldest brother has a bad temper. It's a fact known to the whole country. I heard that when he was practicing in the ancestral palace of the military family, he didn't let anyone go, and he destroyed several people. This so-called monastic genius is just a troublemaker with a great reputation."

The Mountain Goddess, who was pretending to be a wine seller, laughed softly and said: "Having such a big brother is a blessing earned through several lifetimes. Yanshan, listen to my advice. If you really want to meet him, don't be angry with him." ah."

Ma Yanshan turned a deaf ear and looked worried for some reason.

The woman asked in confusion: "What's wrong?"

Ma Yanshan shook the wine bottle and looked up into the night, "Can you tell me it will rain later?"

The woman covered her mouth and smiled: "Definitely not."

Ma Yanshan murmured: "But one day, there will definitely be thunder and rain, right?"

If it weren't for ordinary drinkers saying silly things like this, the Mountain Goddess would have just pretended not to hear it, but she knew very well that Ma Yanshan, who seemed to be beautiful on the outside but was corrupted on the inside, was not simple.

Let's just say that the mountain god of the Xiyue Chujun Mountain, Mrs. Song's immediate boss, valued Ma Yanshan very much and often entertained this person in private.

She thought for a while and said: "It will definitely rain sooner or later, but as long as you have such a big umbrella to hold it, let alone raindrops the size of soybeans, you won't be afraid of knives from the sky."

Ma Yanshan's expression was still full of gloom, he tightened his fox fur collar and cursed in a low voice: "It's so cold in spring."

Although Ma Yanshan is notorious for wandering around flowers all day long, he is more intuitive than his seemingly smart sister when it comes to human relations and sophistication.

To be honest, Ma Yanshan treats his sister Ma Yuemei as a fool, but after all, she is his sister, and her temper is bad. Ma Yanshan never cares about anything with her.

Ma Yanshan remembered that when he was a child, he once took a walk late at night. He followed the light and passed by his father's study. He found that his parents seemed to be talking about something inside. For some reason, his father became furious and cursed him repeatedly. He was a bastard who should have died early and been born early. What kind of shit did he step on to be able to cling to a tiger... The more he talked about it, the angrier he got, and he even broke an expensive official kiln pen holder. My mother complained loudly, "It's only three hundred taels of silver." If you fall like this, it is more important to waste money than to make money.

Then my mother began to make up the story that the man named Wei was not a good person. According to the news, he seemed to have a humble background as a landowner in Qidun Mountain near Hongzhu Town...

A child was squatting silently at the corner of the wall, his ears pricked up.

Maybe when I moved, I was hiding from something?

Especially in the past few years, the anxiety of parents has become even more obvious. Because of the Xianjia Inn and the ferry, there are people who are responsible for collecting information about the old Longzhou of Dali. News about Piyun Mountain and Niujiaodu, no matter how big or small, will be secretly recorded.

Logically speaking, this is unreasonable. Ma Yanshan knows the heritage of the Ma family best. His father is extremely good at business and is a natural businessman. His mother is also very visionary and courageous. In many cases, she is even more assertive than her father. In Ma Yanshan's words, It's just a special "coming". There are only a few high-ranking ladies in the capital, less than one hand, and they are not ordinary rich and powerful. But now they all vaguely "follow the horse's lead", hey, the horse's lead follows the lead, this Well said, wonderful.

If it weren't for the fact that he was such an unfilial son who liked to cause trouble and couldn't help him, it is estimated that the Ma family, with its intertwined forces, would have moved from behind the scenes of Yuxuan Kingdom to the front stage.

Of course, the forest is big and there are all kinds of birds. The few children from the side branches of the family outside the clan seem to be inferior to him. They are proficient in eating, drinking, whoring and gambling, and even caused a lot of lives. Over the years, he has not Don't help wipe your butt. There were also some shady things that he just pretended not to know about, such as a private prison set up in an imperial manor in Gyeonggi Province specifically for killing people for fun. A group of wealthy children from the capital of Yuxuan Kingdom would often hold so-called "Autumn Hunts". They would go to several small countries in the south in groups. Under the leadership of local powerful children, they would ride on horseback and carry bows to specifically select those rural areas. In the wild villages, some raised their swords, or drew their bows and shot arrows... Afterwards, the local government closed the case in the name of horse bandits, and even defrauded the court of a sum of military pay for "troop training." Among this group of powerful people, there were Two descendants of the branch named Ma.

Ma Yanshan once saw with his own eyes a cowardly young man with a good background. He could have been regarded as a scholar similar to his own Ma Che. Ever since he participated in an autumn hunting trip on the Xianjia ferry, the young man had never met anyone again. When he looked at her, his eyes became extremely sharp.

My younger sister, Ma Yuemei, was still surprised by this. Ma Yanshan only joked that he would become enlightened when he was a teenager. What's so strange about it? Don't you believe it? Do you think he only looks at women now because of their looks? They all look at her boobs and long legs.

The Ma family is not conspicuous in the capital. The streets where the carefully selected houses are located are actually shabby houses where the ancestors were rich. Even many neighbors who have been here for 20 years just mistake the Ma family for a small and well-off family. The nouveau riche might not look down on the Ma family, who only have a few filthy rich people, when they get along with each other.

But the painted door gods posted on the door of the Ma family, the monks worshiped by the family, and the number of boxing masters who are either in the seventh or sixth realm...

Ma Yanshan roughly estimated that the Ma family's background, both overt and covert, was enough to defeat a third-rate immortal mansion on the Aquarius Island mountain, not to mention a business rival or enemy of Yuxuan Kingdom.

Ma Yanshan put away his distracting thoughts, reached out and patted the beautiful woman's cheek, "I will definitely help with the change of the mountain's name."

The Mountain Goddess always felt that Zhe'er Mountain was unpleasant and wanted to change its name to "Zhe Yao".

The woman was not angry but smiled, gave him a blessing, and thanked Ma Yanshan.

Ma Yanshan walked out of the wine shop, put his thumb against his index finger, whistled, and soon a maroon horse without a rein came running.

The drunken noble master mounted his horse skillfully, slammed the golden whip in his hand, and galloped wildly on the official road.

On a mountain ridge near Zhe'er Mountain Temple, there was a young man sitting on the branch of an ancient pine tree, looking at the wine shop at the foot of the mountain in the distance. The cavalry team came and went, and finally the young man in fox fur rode his horse and whipped his whip.

He stood up and had a wide view. Zhe'er Mountain has always been famous for its towering mountains, and the surrounding mountains could be seen at a glance. The mountains in the distance stretch like a temple and a court official holding a jade scepter, and the mountains nearby are as beautiful as a lady with her hair tied in a bun.

This body is like being in a huge sea, with green waves raising its head and lowering its head again.

This young man, who had set foot on the mountains and rivers of Yuxuan Kingdom for the first time, was alone, holding the back of his head with his hands, looking at the prosperous capital city with lights like daylight.

He twitched the corners of his lips and muttered to himself: "Immortality is the prison of immortality, and immortality is the price of eternal life."

The figure disappeared in a flash.

Over at the wine shop at the foot of the mountain, the beautiful woman was closing the door. She turned to look at the young man walking slowly, and said with a charming smile: "Sir, I'm sorry, the wine shop is closing."

The young man smiled and said: "Since we are open for business, it won't take long."

The woman frowned. If she couldn't see the depth of the other party's moral character, she wouldn't care about the wine money. She forced a smile on her face and said, "Sir, the wine shop is small, but the drinks are expensive."

The young man nodded and said, "No matter how expensive the price is, I won't be afraid. Mrs. Song will keep it in Ma Yanshan's account."

The woman's heart tightened, and an embroidered shoe gently ground the soil with her toes unnoticed, pulling each other with the golden body enshrined in the Zhe'er Mountain Temple.

The young man walked slowly towards the wine shop, but when his first step touched the ground, the Mountain Goddess was horrified to find that she had lost contact with the temple.

Just as the young man and the stiff mountain goddess were about to pass each other, he suddenly stretched out his hand, put his arm around her neck, and dragged her back. After walking a few steps, he probably disliked the other person's burden and lightly With a slight push, the beautiful woman fell into the shop. The young man walked into the shop, sat down on the ground, put one hand on his knees, and waved, "Hurry, make two pots of the shop's most expensive wine. The older the better."

The woman stood up swaying, trembling with fear, and said in a trembling voice: "The little god Zhe'ershan Song is plump, I dare to ask the immortal master's name."

"I'm lucky, I got a good baby with the same surname as Ma Yanshan."

The young man grinned and said, "Since you have such a good relationship with me, my precious brother, just call me by my name, Ma Kuxuan."

Song Fu's face turned pale.

Ma Kuxuan asked: "Why, you want me to cook wine for you personally?"

While Zhe'er Mountain God was busy making wine, Ma Kuxuan was facing the door of the shop, holding his chin in one hand, staring at the dense clumps of weeds growing by the roadside.

If he doesn't come to the capital of Yuxuan Kingdom, he will probably have no choice but to collect the body.

It’s interesting to say that he in Xinghua Lane and the mud-legged guy named Chen in Mud Ping Lane, a fool in the eyes of his peers, a broom star who was afraid of being avoided, and later the hometown he left around the same time, it seems that he likes to do everything in his life. After traveling far away, they did not spend many years in their hometown.

New grudges turn into old grudges, grudges are like spring grass, and wanderers travel further and come back alive.

It is also like a jar of old wine that has been stored in a cellar for more than forty years. It is placed on a table by someone. Both parties who drink it have to drink it whether they want to or not. The drunk will die and the sober will live.