Sword from Hengshan

Chapter 3: Yancheng
The white waves roll gently and bend, and the wooden boat is parked on the middle beach this night. The bell of Qiuji Temple in Hengyang is far away, the moon is bright and the fishing fire is dim at the ferry crossing. The beauty of green is high, and the female resentment of Hunan is high. The green color reflects the coldness of waterfowl.

At Xu time, the fishing boats were anchored at Luosu Wharf on the west side of Tanshui as usual.

It has entered autumn, and the cool breeze brought by the lake breeze is far cooler than the forest on land. Banditry has been rampant recently. The workers commanded by the water transport clerk at the dock are more enthusiastic than anyone else when collecting the money for berthing the boat. As for the duty of guarding the dock , then just turn a blind eye.

Grandpa Zhao was worried that the fishing boat was moored here unattended, but Zhao Rong thought that he was worried today, so he called the people from Zhaojiawu to take his grandfather and some fish to the nearest west of the city.

The west side is mostly where civilians live in the city. There are also many gangsters, beggars, and people from all walks of life. It is a little chaotic, but it is far safer than outside the city.

Grandpa was considerate of his injury, but Zhao Rong just said it was okay.

He didn't force himself to hold on. The high hall leader of the Haisha Gang should not be as good as the gangster he met that night. He just used his palm force and felt the blood surge all over his body. But for a moment, the boat arrived at the dock without even a stick of incense. My body is already feeling refreshed.

Zhao Rong sat cross-legged on the bow of the boat and made a posture to withdraw his power.

In the night, he stood on the deck and stared at the scattered fishing fires around him.

There are not many ships moored at Luosu Pier. In addition to local fishing boats, there are also merchants going to Changsha Prefecture, Linjiang Prefecture, and Jiuzhou Prefecture. He used to earn money as a senior helper at the dock with his strength and martial arts, so he is relatively learn.

"According to the background of this era, the evening drum was usually sounded at 3 o'clock in the morning and travel was prohibited. The morning bell was rung at 3 o'clock in the fifth watch before the ban on travel was opened."

Zhao Rong recalled his past life memories and then shook his head secretly.

Looking only from Hengyang City, it cannot overlap with the historical background in memory.

"Did dong,did dong~~~!"

There was a sound of horse hooves coming from far away, followed by the roar of horses. The torch could be seen shining higher, indicating that the rider coming over tightened the reins and pressed the horse's hooves high.

Listening to the movement over there, he could see figures swaying with the torches, and the shouts coming from the moving and shipping room could clearly be heard in Zhao Rong's ears.

It was the escorts in the city who were driving the goods.

If you can travel unimpeded at night, there will be no night restrictions in the city.

"Brother Rong," Zhao Musheng, who was traveling with him on the boat, leaned over and whispered, "He looks like someone from the Changrui Escort Agency."

"Yes."

"Recently, they were robbed of escorts, which caused quite a stir." He waved his hand, unable to stop the gossip due to the pain of the tiger's mouth, "I heard that it involved Mr. Liu Sanye of the Hengshan Sect."

"Master Liu San is a great master of the Hengshan Sect, with friends all over the world. Tsk tsk, these robbers are so bold that they will probably not have a good ending."

Being a famous master in the martial arts world is extremely far away for ordinary people like Zhao Musheng. It is quite interesting to talk about it after dinner. It is even more honorable to listen to more news and talk about it.

A few days ago, the tea doctor in the shop described this incident vividly. He even mentioned the moves used by the escort master and the escort robber, attracting many people to come and drink tea.

Zhao Rong had heard about it a long time ago, and even sighed that there were many strange things in this ancient scene.

"If we really offend Master Liu San, the escort robbers will probably be hard to deal with." Zhao Rong pointed towards the shore, "On weekdays, except for the helpers, there is no need for so many escorts to escort the goods. ”

"Not long after this ship docked, the people from the Changrui Escort Bureau came in a hurry and transported the goods overnight. If the escort items are not valuable, they are worried that the thieves will come back."

"what?"

Zhao Musheng yelled, wanting to argue, "This is outside Hengyang City", but then he remembered that the Haisha Gang who committed crimes on Tanshui Lake was not far from here. Even Liu Sanye dared to provoke the escort thieves, even if they went to Hengyang City to cause trouble. Impossible.

Looking at the torches on the shore, Zhao Rong was disturbed by the shouts.

He caught the thieves in the city and the boat bandits outside the city. The Changrui Escort Bureau was quite famous in the Hengzhou Prefecture, and it was rarely robbed in the past.

It's been really rough lately.

Those who look for others will not come, and those who rely on others will not come soon. Improving one's own strength is the right way. Zhao Rong thought about ways to study systematically and understand the concept of internal and external strength first. It was too slow to cross the river by feeling for stones.

It was a calm night, and Zhao Rong stayed peacefully on the boat.

At nightfall, his mind was tense. He was not sleeping soundly like Zhao Musheng. In addition, he was slightly injured. Morning mist appeared on the water at dawn. Zhao Rong actually slept soundly. Zhao Musheng called him to wake up.

After Pingdan, dawn appears and the rooster crows.

Luoli Wharf becomes increasingly lively, with footsteps, voices, gongs, drums, and horse hooves all ringing in line with the popularity.

Grandpa Zhao Fu and the people from Zhaojiawu came to the boat and took the live fish raised in the water to the market to sell. The old man sat down with a basket of breakfast food.

Zhao Rong opened the yellowed bamboo cover, revealing a large bowl of steaming buns.

The method of making 馎饦 is to tear the dough into thumb-sized pieces, boil it in water and add seasoning. It was a common staple food for the Tang people in the past. With a little salted fish, Zhao Rong ate it with relish and chatted with his grandfather. Yuzhong went to Xishi.

As soon as Zhao Rong came to the fish stall, a young man squeezed over to say hello with a smile.

This man's surname is Gao, and his name is Gao Mo. He was also a poor man. After his parents passed away, he made a living by selling fish to support his younger brothers and sisters. He was bullied by street gangsters called "Dragon and Tiger Brothers" in the market. When Zhao Ronglu saw injustice, he beat them away.

"Brother Rong, send the fish to the owner of the martial arts studio this morning. He asked me to let you know that he has time to go to the martial arts gym early today."

"Okay, please tell me, Brother Gao."

"Hey, it doesn't matter." The young man waved his hands repeatedly and said something about inviting Zhao Rong to dinner.

Gao Mo was sincere, and so were many of the fish sellers around him. When Zhao Rong passed by, they would greet Zhao Rong with a smile and be extremely polite.

This fish stall in the West Market was exploited by a fish tyrant, and everyone was afraid of it. However, Zhao Rong was brave and took the lead to deal with the fish tyrant.

Because of his age as a spoon dancer and his martial arts training in the boxing gym, polite people would respectfully call him "Young Hero".

"Grandpa, I'll go to the restaurant owner first."

"Go."

Zhao Fu nodded, patted his shoulder and said, "I don't understand martial arts, but the principle is the same. Ants build the Great Wall with earth. You have to take your time. There is no need to rush."

"Don't be too greedy for success and hurt your body."

"understood."

Zhao Rong responded and prepared to leave. Zhao Fu took his arm again and lowered his voice:

"Grandpa still has some silver under the bed board. If you want to use it, take it all."

"In this world, we have to be polite and know the ways of the world. Master Bao has taught you a lot of skills and has done you a favor. There is no reason for him to help you for nothing."

Zhao Rong looked at the old man with white hair and beard in front of him and said "hmm" in a deep voice.

Grandpa naturally knew some of Zhao Rong's thoughts. The silver under the bed was the coffin book. He knew the old man's temperament, so he only followed his words and did not disobey his good intentions.

In fact, that little money is a drop in the bucket.

The owner of the restaurant has always been just a cover-up for Zhao Rong's martial arts, and this guy is far from as majestic and upright as Zhao Fu thought.

……

Hengyang locks the land of Jingchu in the north and engulfs Lingnan in the south. Whether traveling from Guangdong and Guangxi to the Central Plains or from the Central Plains to the south, they all have to pass through here, which is a contested territory in the art of war.

Zhao Rong walked in this ancient city and found points that overlapped with his memory.

In ancient times, this was the land of Sanmiao, located south of Hengshan Mountain in Nanyue, and was called Hengzhou in ancient times.

An ancient saying goes: Wild geese flying from the north to the south rest their wings and come back. Wild geese spend the winter and come to Hengyang to rest at Yanfeng Peak, so Hengyang is known as "Yancheng".

Wang Changling, a poet of the Tang Dynasty, once said in a poem: Once he was sent to Xiaoxiang with grace and condemnation, he would be thousands of miles long from the north to the south of the Yangtze River. There are few letters from Jimen, and Yan Fei still has Hengyang.

The Iron Fist Martial Arts School is in the southeast of the city. Zhao Rong passed through the 11th Lane of Third Street along the way and encountered many merchants from the south and the north.

I saw peddlers setting up stalls along the street, street performers wielding spears and axes, soldiers shouting and clearing the way in front of horses, hooligans wandering around, porters carrying two loads of tofu, and the lewd music of girls coming from the brothels.
Looking across the beggars who were begging for food, Zhao Rong always inadvertently looked at the cloth belts on their bodies, wondering if they were some "elder of several bags" of the beggar sect.

Walking to Qingyan Lane, the "Iron Fist Martial Arts Gym" was in front of him. Zhao Rong looked to the northeast. If he walked two more streets, he would reach the headquarters of the Hengshan Sect, one of the Five Sacred Mountains.

That was the place he yearned for most in the entire Hengyang City.

The ten acres of desolate ponds are filled with green duckweeds, but the south wind does not see the growth of wildflowers. There are banana leaves leaning against the window, not missing the sound of rain in Xiaoxiang night.

Have you ever heard of the song "Xiaoxiang Night Rain" played by Mr. Mo Da?

Zhao Rong was fascinated.

Before he entered the Iron Fist Gym, a burly man with a full beard came up to him with a smile as if he saw the God of Wealth.

……

(End of this chapter)