Jiaohua

There is no curfew in Hejing, and the more you go to Duguangfang, the busier it will be along the road.

Half of the floor tiles on the street were replaced with new ones, and crowds gathered on the one that hadn't been replaced.

The tea houses on the street have the best business, and the snack stalls are also booming. The taverns and inns are a bit cold at this point, and many shopkeepers and guys are sitting at the door, shaking cattail fans to watch the excitement.

When the carriage passed several notice boards, Xia Zhaoyi paid special attention to the notices pasted on them.

At the beginning, several officials of the Ministry of Officials suggested that at the beginning of the new dynasty, if the policy orders were too frequent, people's livelihood would be anxious and panic, and they would not be able to turn around. It is best to have an order every seven days and a new policy every half a month.

But in the end, a lot of waste is waiting to be done. In addition to the new system and new laws that are still being finalized by the Zhengshitang, the daily fortification notices, the public security announcements from the Jingzhao Mansion, and the abolition of customs from the Ministry of Rites, etc., are still densely packed with small notice boards. plastered all over.

In it, there is Wen Chao, who she chatted with Shen Lie before she left Beijing.

Yang Guanxian gave this piece to Zhuge Qian, the eldest son of Zhugeshan, and Danqing, the third son-in-law of Wei Yaojun.

The carriage slowly stopped near the Old Yellow Tavern. The business was very good, but not many people came to buy wine, they all came to buy water.

When Xia Zhaoyi got off the carriage, he took a look from afar, turned his eyes away and said to Zhuang Qi, "You have worked so hard to park the carriage to a remote place, there are many people here."

"Hmm! I'm going to the alley on the left."

"Okay, I'll find you later."

Xia Zhaoyi stepped into the back alley of the tavern, and at a glance, he saw the pot of lucky bamboo that was originally placed at the door, and there was only one pot left.

There is still residual soil in the pot, and the bamboo has been dug away by the roots.

The gate of the courtyard was ajar but not closed.

At this time, a slightly older woman walked quickly carrying a bamboo basket full of tools. When she looked up and saw her, the woman paused slightly and continued walking.

When passing behind Xia Zhaoyi, the woman couldn't help but stop again and said, "Are you looking for Mr. Yu?"

Xia Zhaoyi looked at her and nodded.

"Are you his relative?"

Xia Zhaoyi said: "No, my brother goes to school with him, my brother just came to Hejing, let me take a look."

"Hey, he committed a crime a long time ago," the woman said, "I heard that the matter is not small, and it involves the lives of many people in the palace! It is said to be a matter of the previous dynasty, but he is still locked up by the Ministry of Criminal Justice!"

Xia Zhaoyi said: "Then this pot of lucky bamboo..."

"I've been thieves!" the woman sighed, and looked up at the house, "Now the river is full of people who are too busy, even beggars have work to do, and someone can sneak over to steal things, tsk tsk! I won't give it to you." Having said that, you'd better go quickly, so as not to be involved! I'll go."

The woman walked away quickly.

Xia Zhaoyi turned his head to look back at the yard, and stretched out his hand to open the door.

The yard was in a mess, and the soil on the ground had been dug several holes, more than three feet deep, and some holes were probably half a foot deep.

The tables and chairs in the room fell down, Xia Zhaoyi lit the small oil ball lamp, and took pictures one by one, and there were traces of looking for things everywhere.

She turned around and went to the study room. Just as she was about to raise her right foot and step in, she paused and looked down at the silk threads illuminated by the small oil ball lamp.

The black shadow of the silk thread fell on the ground, very thin and stretched straight, entangled the left and right door frames.

Xia Zhaoyi lowered her eyebrows, took six or seven steps back, stepped on the ground with her right foot, and a palm-sized sawdust from a table leg flew up and landed firmly in her hands.

With a sound of "whoosh", she raised her hand and shot the sawdust away.

Several silk threads snapped instantly, not involving any deadly mechanism, but the bell.

A string of bells on the house there clattered and fell to the ground, making a clear and loud noise, which was particularly loud in the night.

Neighbors responded quickly, especially their dogs and cats.

Amidst the barking of dogs, many voices came from outside.

After confirming which household the sound came from, the human voice gradually became smaller.

The crowd was discussing whether to go in and have a look. While wanting to go in and catch thieves, they did not dare to contaminate this household.

Finally, an old man lowered his voice and said: "It's gone, it's gone! Everything that can be stolen has been stolen. What else is there to steal in this empty house? If there is one, maybe it's that kind of... ..."

He raised his hand and made a knife on the front of his neck: "It's related to beheading!"

People around gasped.

One person said: "Then, should we report to the officials?"

Someone bumped on his shoulder: "You are stupid! Why are you causing trouble for yourself?"

"Yeah, I'm so tired now, it's finally my turn to sleep, so I have to go to the government?"

"You won't be tired if you earn less, and you are fighting for work every day, and no one is forcing you!"

"that is!"

……

The crowd broke up in a low voice, Xia Zhaoyi silently stopped in the corner behind them, and looked at them coldly with a pair of clear eyes.

Not long after, these people left one by two, and eventually all of them left.

Xia Zhaoyi's gaze rested on the three backs, dressed in the same simple way as the surrounding neighbors, their faces were tanned yellow and black, and there were many calluses on their hands from hard work.

But some habits left by practicing foreign kung fu will not change, such as steady and firm footwork.

Also, they were silent just now, as if they had nothing to do with themselves, but their eyes frequently turned to the house and its surroundings.

The barking continued.

The crowd scattered and went back to their homes, and the three of them also pushed away from their own yard.

Two candle lamps were lit in the back hall of the main house. Under several hanging calligraphy and paintings, an old man was sitting upright, and a young man was standing behind him, massaging his shoulders and back.

The evening wind was blowing outside the window, and the old man's hanging sleeves were slowly fluttering, and under the light and shadow of the candle lamp, it was empty.

After the three of them entered the room, they accidentally saw the candlestick behind them.

The leading man came in and said respectfully: "Master, you are up."

The old man looked at them and said, "Did you find anything?"

The three shook their heads: "No, the room is dark, and the neighbors are afraid of causing trouble, so they don't want to go in."

The old man said: "Very well, that's it, you have brought her here."

The three were surprised: "What?"

"Who did we attract?!"

The old man said slowly: "We put the bell there for the purpose of listening to that unintentional sound, but just now, it was a series of rings."

The old man turned his head to look at the open window sash: "What does a series of noises mean?"

One person said: "This person discovered the rope of the bell first?"

"Is that you?" The old man suddenly raised his voice, "The daughter of Liling."

The three felt their scalps go numb and looked around.

Outside the backyard door, Xia Zhaoyi folded her hands on her chest, leaning her thin back against the stone wall behind her. She wanted to eavesdrop, but unexpectedly she was caught. She smiled and said crisply, "Is that you? Feng Wensheng."

Everyone looked at the wooden door immediately, and the three people in the room immediately guarded the old man.

The young boy who was beating his back behind the old man was also on guard.

Feng Wensheng sneered: "It seems that my Zhuzhou accent is really easy to recognize."

A girl's voice came: "Then, how did you guess that it was me?"