Strengthening starts from the county magistrate

Chapter 462 Bureau?[-]-character merged chapter
"Several, I wonder if I can make it easier for you?"

The person who spoke was a white-haired sixty-year-old man, wearing a loose coat, who looked like a housekeeper of a wealthy family.

Hearing the sound, the three of Shen Mu raised their heads and met the old man's scrutinizing gaze.

"What's the matter, old man?" Zhao Taiji put down the jug and said.

The old man cracked his slightly deep face, showing a smile, and hid his scrutiny well: "Oh, I don't know where the three are going?"

Shen Mu said with an extremely ordinary face: "Oh, it's going to Yuncang Port."

"Yuncang Port?" The old man heard the words, and there was a look in the corner of his eyes that he had already guessed: "Oh, looking at the three ox cart bags, they should probably go to Yuncang Port to ask for a living, right?"

Generally, there are only three kinds of people who go to Yuncang Port.

One is the local people living in Yuncang Port, and the other is the dignitaries who are purely capable of taking a cross-continental ferry, or the monks of the sect.

And the last one is the coolie who goes to the port of the transcontinental ferry to make a living.

A port for transcontinental ferries, in fact, there are still quite a lot of trade.

Whether it's transporting supplies, or unloading and loading a ship, in short, anyone who can eat hard will have a good meal when they come to this kind of place.

Therefore, many strong and strong men will choose to go to the port of the transcontinental ferry to seek life. The bigger the port, the more people it needs, and they don't have to worry about finding jobs.

But at this moment, Shen Mu, Li Tieniu and Zhao Taiji are very much like coolies who go to this kind of place to make a living.

Judging from the old man's expression, he naturally guessed the reason in advance, so he came to chat with the three of them.

But Shen Mu still doesn't know what the old man in front of him means.

But since the other party gave a reason, it is natural to go down the donkey, and there is nothing wrong with it: "Well, what the master said is right, we are going to Yuncang Port to find work. Fengjiang is now fighting, so we can only go to Yuncang Take a chance in Hong Kong."

Hearing the words, the old man was deeply impressed, his expression restrained a little, and he finally expressed his intention of coming: "Since we are going to Yuncang Port to ask for a living, and we happened to be on the same road with us, you see our carriage is broken, and there are too many things, we are also going to Yuncang Port Those who take the cross-continental ferry in Canggang, I wonder if you can use your ox cart to help us bring some things, don’t worry, we will pay the reward, what do you think of the three brothers?”

After the old man finished speaking, he moved half of his body away, and there were several carriages parked beside the big tree not far behind him.

The horse leg of one of the carriages was injured, and the wheels of the carriage were completely damaged and he couldn't walk. There were a lot of things on the carriage, and the large and small boxes were piled up into a hill. Without the carriage, it would be very troublesome. .

On the side of the carriage, there were several coachmen and two young men and women standing.

The young woman was well-proportioned and good-looking, while the man beside her was a little younger, as if he had just passed the age of adulthood.

Shen Mu and Zhao Taiji looked at each other, originally they disliked the trouble and didn't want to take over, the majestic Lord of Fengjiang City, to be a coachman for someone?This is of course impossible.

But Li Tieniu on the side had bright eyes.

He may not be interested in anything else, but when it comes to making money, this silly guy will call.

He promised Li Erniang that after this trip, he would bring her good things back, but in Li Tieniu's mind, nothing is more useful than bringing money back.

"Hmm... my lord, this one..." Li Tieniu hesitated.

Shen Mu's eyelids twitched.

Some couldn't stand Li Tieniu's begging eyes, it was disgusting to see.

But looking back, after all, this bullock cart is also someone else's, so it's nothing to pick up some jobs along the way.

Shen Mu looked behind, and then said: "Okay, we will help transport that car, but only to Yuncang Port, you can tell him the price."

After Shen Mu finished speaking, he pointed to Li Tieniu.

The old man smiled when he heard the words: "It's so good, the price is easy to negotiate, big brother comes with me."

With money to make, Li Tieniu will not be bored.

He got up and led the ox cart, and followed the old man.

Naturally, there is no need for Shen Mu to do this kind of thing. Men are usually very stupid, but they are very shrewd and active when talking about money.

Repaired overnight,
In the early morning of the second day, everyone was ready to leave.

At this time, many things have been piled up on the ox cart, and many boxes are full of jewels, which look very precious.

Shen Mu's sleeping place was occupied, so he could only sit in front, while Li Tieniu and Zhao Taiji went on foot.

The convoy along the way was not moving fast, it seemed to be intentionally accommodating the speed of the ox cart, and the three of Shen Mu followed at the end without any pressure.

noon.

Everyone stopped to rest at a simple inn.

Instead of eating with those unsmiling coachmen, the three of Shen Mu ate the beef and roast chicken they had packed before.

The old man in the distance brought the young woman and the boy together, but the food was obviously bland, and the boy kept looking at the roast chicken in Zhao Taiji's hand.

This scene was seen by the coachmen.

One person understood, got up and came in front of the three of them, he looked at Zhao Taiji who was drinking and eating meat: "Hey, you three, give me a piece of roast chicken."

The tone was very cold, but it revealed an order tone.

Zhao Taiji didn't seem to hear it, and was still drinking on his own.

Instead, Li Tieniu was the first to respond: "We don't have many, only one left."

"Then why don't you bring it? I'll send it to the young master for you. Maybe when we arrive at Yuncang Port, I can give you some more rewards."

Li Tieniu shook his head: "I only took the money to help you deliver the goods, and I didn't say to provide you with food."

The coachman frowned slightly, not very satisfied with Li Tieniu's response.

In his opinion, the three people in front of him should be more aware of current affairs.

"Give you a chance to make money, isn't it worth a roast chicken? Besides, if the young master wants to eat it, if you are happy to reward you, it will be much higher than the money for the roast chicken. I don't understand why? "

Li Tieniu said in a muffled voice: "Then just buy it from me with money. If you don't give a reward, wouldn't you lose your protection?"

"You..." The coachman seemed a little annoyed.

This is the first time I have seen Li Tieniu who is so stubborn.

With such a large fleet, are they still afraid that they won't be able to pay the reward?

Besides, this delivery job was given by them. If it's normal, shouldn't they be currying?

After that, I will have to walk for many days. If I don't give face like this, how can I pass it?

"Brother, when people are outside, it's best not to be ignorant of compliments. It's just a piece of roast chicken. It's not good to narrow the road. The road ahead is still long."

Li Tieniu looked puzzled: "Well... is it very long? We will go to Yuncang Port, which is actually not too far away. After passing two counties and Xiaosong Mountain, we will arrive there, and we can take the Dali official road in the back, which is not too far away. Wide, not difficult to walk, not narrow."

Driver: "..."

The man was speechless. I really don't know whether this man can't understand or is really stupid.

"Give them money."

at this time.

A young woman's voice came.

"Miss." The coachman turned his head when he heard the sound.

He saw the old man standing behind him with the young woman and the boy.

The old man took out an ingot of gold and smiled slightly: "Give it to them, it's really necessary to have some oil and water for the journey."

Seeing this, the coachman hurried over respectfully, took the ingot of gold from the old man's hand, and then turned around and threw it over: "Hmph, take it, it's enough to buy your roast chicken."

Li Tieniu reached out to catch it, and then handed over the last piece of roast chicken.

The young woman in the distance glanced at him, full of disgust and disdain, she turned around and took the boy back.

The coachman took the roast chicken and showed his hospitality.

From the beginning to the end, the old man was very polite, as if these things were just an episode and didn't matter.

After eating, the convoy moved on.

But obviously the speed is much faster than before.

Another county town was bypassed, and after getting off the Dali official road, the road began to become desolate, with mountains and forests in the distance, the more eerie it was at night.

The speed of the carriage gradually decreased.

The coachmen chatted among themselves.

"I said, there won't be any mountain spirits around here, right?"

"Hmph, it's okay to be haunted, it's better than meeting bandits."

"Yeah, I've heard that this road is not peaceful. I don't know if it's the gathering of evil cultivators or some kind of ghost. Anyway, many caravans have accidents here."

"Well, this is true. Several surrounding counties jointly spent a lot of money to invite the disciples of the sect on the mountain to come and check, but they failed to catch this group of people. It is said that they are quite powerful."

"Damn, stop talking, it's weird."

"Second brother, you said we wouldn't be so unlucky, so we met tonight?"

"Get out! Can you say something good? The crow's mouth thing."

"hungry……"

The topic seems to get more frightening as we talk about it.

Shen Mu sat on the ox cart, glanced at the dark mountains and forests around him, and asked, "Li Tieniu, have you been here before? What kind of methods do those bandits they talk about?"

Li Tieniu scratched his head, organized his words, and said in a muffled voice, "I've been here, but I don't know about the bandits, I haven't met them before."

On the side, Zhao Taiji held a knife in his hand and said with a slight smile: "My lord, this is a walk in the rivers and lakes. In fact, bandits are very common in the mountains, and most of them are scattered monks who walk in evil ways."

Shen Mu nodded his head when he heard the words, in the age of monks everywhere, if he came out to rob houses without any strength, then there must be something wrong with his brain.

Therefore, anyone who can make a name for himself in a region and last for a long time must have some meritorious deeds.

"During your previous travels, did you meet them?"

Zhao Taiji took a sip of his wine and said happily, "Of course, I didn't want to brag to you. I met an extraordinary mountain, a bandit leader, known as the Red Devil! What he cultivated is a secret technique, which charms the men passing by and attracts the essence and blood." Practice."

"Good guy, female bandit?"

"Haha, that's right!" Zhao Taiji looked excited: "Master, you don't know, the female bandit is good, that's right!"

"..."

"..."

Zhao Taiji: "Ahem, of course, after being seen by me, I naturally wanted to eliminate harm for the people, so I went up the mountain alone, fought with that female bandit for [-] rounds, and was finally surrendered by me.

In fact, most of these people are like this. It is often difficult for monks in the mountains to stand on their own, so they have no choice but to form cliques and build a mountain or something. Cooperate with big demons and ghosts to form groups.

So I guess, most of the bandits in these populations are also like this, even the realm should not be too low, otherwise it is impossible to stay here for so long without being wiped out by the big sect. "

Listen to Zhao Taiji's explanation.

Shen Mu was a little curious.

He also wanted to know what kind of monks these casual monks were like.

Indeed, the world is so big that it is impossible for all of them to be disciples of sect monks.

"not good!"

"There is movement!"

"Run!"

While Shen Mu and the others were chatting, the driver of the carriage in front suddenly exclaimed a few times.

Then the horse was disturbed and almost out of control.

Whoa!
In the surrounding dark woods, there were small voices, as if there were many people surrounded here, and it seemed that the wind was blowing, and the distance could not be seen clearly.

"Jie Jie... Unexpectedly, there are still people who dare to walk here at night. Since they are here, let's stay..."

A cold voice came.

The hoarse feeling makes people shudder.

Many coachmen already looked ugly and were at a loss.

But only the old man who got on and off the carriage in front didn't panic at all. He tied the rein on Mabo with one hand, and suddenly said: "Keep your belongings!"

Finished speaking.

The old man's carriage did not stop, but rushed forward even faster!

At the same time, the drivers of the carriage team behind were also in a panic.

Seeing the direction the old car was going, he followed with all his strength.

Not long after, the carriage convoy pulled away from Shenmu's ox cart, until finally it seemed that it was about to disappear into the night.

"Jiejie~, it seems that today's harvest is good, a car full of jewels, a bit interesting..."

The voice in the darkness came again.

However, it was obvious that the target of these words was to abandon the horse-drawn carriage running wildly in front, and turn to the heavy ox cart behind.

At this time, on the oxcart, there were piles of items that were piled up in the moonlight, and they turned fluorescent under the moonlight, as if there were many treasures in these exquisite boxes.

No wonder the strange sound said it was jeweled.

"Just leave it to me...huh!?"

...

...

The carriage whirled up the dust.

It wasn't until the sky became dark that the horse, which was almost exhausted, stopped galloping.

The sky in the distance is faintly pale.

Butler Sun tightened his reins, his expression gradually returned to calm, as if the sense of urgency he had just escaped just now did not exist at all.

He turned around and glanced at the convoy that was following him. He still didn't see the ox cart until the end. Then he sighed, turned around and opened the curtain and said, "It's all right now."

inside the car.

The young woman and the boy got out of the carriage.

The woman had a proud face, and she said proudly: "It really is an exhaustive strategy, this method is much better than fighting and killing."

The young man beside him seemed a little worried: "Grandpa, do you think they will know?"

The old man chuckled, and he patted the young man's head: "It doesn't matter whether you know or not, once a person dies, there is nothing else to worry about, the three of them can only say that they are unlucky. "

"But..." The boy wanted to say something else.

But the young woman pinched him and interrupted: "We didn't force them, they were willing to accept it themselves, so what are you worrying about..."

The boy was listening to the woman's speech.

It just stopped suddenly for some reason.

He raised his head and looked at the woman. At this time, her eyes were wide open, and she was looking forward in disbelief!

The young man and the old man felt strange and looked in the direction the woman was looking at.

Then it froze completely.

On the official road not far ahead, the familiar old ox cart was quietly parked under the tree roots to graze.

On the truck body, the boxes and items piled up have not moved at all, almost all of them are there.

And those three unremarkable men were sitting beside the ox cart, eating packed roast chicken and beef, looking at them with smiles on their faces.

"what!!!"

"This……"

"This is impossible!"

The old man seemed to have seen a ghost, his hair stood on end, and he was covered in cold sweat.

When they ran too fast, the scalper cart was clearly behind them, and the old scalper couldn't run at all!
But now, why did these three people come in front of them?
There is only this road, if the ox cart overtakes them when they come, it is impossible to miss them!

But why?

Everyone just felt their scalps go numb, like falling into an ice cave.

On the ox cart,

Shen Mu threw away the chicken bone, wiped his hands, then smiled and waved to the old man in front, but in his eyes, he hid the murderous look.

Zhao Taiji spat out his wine and cursed: "Hmph, what an old man who is more vicious than a bandit, that little lady is not a good thing either."

"Didn't you know it a long time ago, why get angry." Shen Mu patted him on the shoulder, signaling him to stay calm.

In fact, I asked the three of them to help transport things from the beginning.

Shen Mu saw something was wrong.

The injury to the horse's leg and the damage to the wheel hub of the carriage were all man-made, and the purpose was to make them think it was a coincidence.

It is also unreasonable to put valuables on the oxcart which is exposed.

So there is only one conclusion.

The old man deliberately used the three of them as bait to replace the dead ghost.

If they really met bandits, they would naturally target their ox carts and give up chasing ahead.

That's what happened last night.

But it's a pity to meet Shen Mu.

But if they were the other three ordinary people, they would surely die.

There is nothing wrong with what Zhao Taiji said, such a method is indeed a bit vicious.

If there is a grievance, it is still okay.

But setting up a situation like this just to teach a lesson to the younger generation is really unreasonable.

The old man stepped forward with an ugly expression, and said slowly, "You...how did you escape?"

(End of this chapter)