Chapter 366

Life experience and profound knowledge were two different things. That was why a foolish and unscrupulous village woman could deceive Xue Shuiwu, a pure and intelligent girl who had read a lot of books and was well-versed in poetry.

However, the acquisition of life experience did not necessarily require the person to personally experience blood, tears, and suffering. Sometimes, the experience and lessons imparted by the seniors might be a little rough at first, but you would soon be able to turn it into your own and use it with ease.

Ye Xiaotian, on the other hand, had the experience imparted to him by countless "wise seniors". Therefore, he was the one who arranged the journey of the trio to the west. Compared to Shui Wu's bumpy journey, it was much easier. Of course, in this kind of place where the people were fierce and the public security was poor, it was much more convenient for a man to handle things than a woman.

Every time Ye Xiaotian went to a place, he would first settle down Shuiwu and Yaoyao. Then, he would look for merchants in the town who were heading west. He never looked for an independent team with a large number of people. Instead, he specifically looked for a few teams of small caravans. This way, the teams could restrict each other.

Ye Xiaotian was very clear about how despicable some people could be in a place where there were no laws or moral constraints. Only by mixing a few teams of different subordinates could they maintain the moral and legal constraints in an uninhabited area to the greatest extent.

At the same time, Ye Xiaotian also made full use of the convenient conditions of their journey to the west. With the principle that a chaste woman was afraid of a pestering man, he began his plan of being in a favorable position.

Ye Xiaotian thought very far ahead. Xue Shuiwu was not only very beautiful, so beautiful that it made his heart palpitate. She had been with the daughters of officials since she was a child and was well-read. Ye Xiaotian did not want his descendants to continue to struggle at the bottom of society like him and be ordinary people who had to work hard for three meals a day.

However, to change this situation, the only way was to study. He could not afford to hire a teacher, but Shuiwu, the daughter of the Minister of Rites, was his playmate and study partner since childhood. She could obviously be a very good teacher.

As long as he caught up with her, he would have a beloved wife, a child's mother, and the most responsible teacher. How could Ye Xiaotian not go all out?

The further southwest they went, the more difficult the road became. There were fewer cities and towns along the way, and the number of merchants on the same road also decreased. Who would go to a place where birds did not lay eggs for the sake of profit? Although Qiandi was not a desolate and poor place, this road was not a shortcut to Qiandi.

Due to that, Ye Xiaotian's group of three fell into a difficult situation. Ye Xiaotian did not agree to the three of them taking the risk. There were very few towns ahead and the villages were all hidden within the mountains. Additionally, most of the villages did not come into contact with outsiders, so they could not take the risk.

Finally, they stopped at Deer Horn Town. There were two roads to Qiandi. One was further and needed to go around the mountains, but the road was smooth and relatively safe. The other road needed to go through the mountains. Although it was two-thirds of the way, the road was very desolate and difficult to travel.

Ye Xiaotian stayed in the town for three days, but he still did not see a caravan going to Qiandi. At noon, Ye Xiaotian went out to make some inquiries. He was walking back in disappointment when he suddenly saw a group of people enter the town. The town guard, Chao Huan, was eagerly welcoming them home.

There were more than twenty people in this group, and all of them were riding tall and strong horses. They were accompanied by two light carriages. The one in front was open, and a man in a blue robe was sitting in it. The one behind was carrying their luggage, and there were no women.

Ye Xiaotian's heart skipped a beat. He hurriedly went forward and asked a knight who had just gotten off his horse, "Big brother, where are you going?"

The knight immediately revealed a vigilant expression. He coldly glanced at him and asked, "What are you doing?"

At this time, Chao Baozheng had just invited the nobleman down from the carriage. Hearing the voice, he turned his head and recognized it was Ye Xiaotian, who had been asking around the town for the past few days about caravans going to Qiandi. He loudly said, "Go, go, go. If you want a companion, go to Hulu County and find a caravan. This is an official's caravan. It is not something you can disturb. Go away!"

The blue-robed man who came down from the carriage glanced at Ye Xiaotian indifferently and asked, "You, are going to Hulu County?"

Ye Xiaotian saw that the blue-robed man was not much older than him, but his demeanor was that of a middle-aged man in his thirties or forties. His melancholy brows were gently knitted when he was not speaking. It was as if the rise and fall of the Yan and Huang descendants for the past five thousand years, and even the future of China, were all on his shoulders. He had the air of an old man.

Ye Xiaotian hurried forward and reported, "Yes! Young Master, I wish to bring my two sisters to Hulu County, but the road is dangerous and difficult. I have been in town for three days and have not found a caravan. Young Master, are you... going to Hulu County? "

Ye Xiaotian actually wanted to pretend to be husband and wife with Shuiwu, but Shuiwu refused to budge on this point. With no other choice, the three of them had always referred to each other as brother and sister.

The melancholy man habitually frowned and faintly nodded. He said, "This official is indeed going to Hulu County. I will leave early tomorrow morning. You can wait here early."

As soon as Ye Xiaotian heard him call himself an official, he knew that this was an official going to Hulu County. It would be very safe to travel with him. Overjoyed, he hurriedly said, "Thank you, Your Excellency. Your Excellency is kind and benevolent. Your future is boundless …"

The melancholy man lightly waved his hand and walked up the stairs. Chao Baozheng glanced at Ye Xiaotian and quickly chased after the melancholy man. When he was about to catch up with the melancholy man, Chao Baozheng casually made a gesture. A villager standing on the street nodded lightly and turned around to leave.

…

The next morning, Ye Xiaotian brought Xue Shuiwu and Yang Le Yao to Chao Baozheng's house. After waiting for about half an hour, the door of Chao Mansion opened. The young official who was going to Hulu County walked out with Chao Baozheng following closely behind the melancholy man.

Seeing Ye Xiaotian, the melancholy man did not say anything. But when he saw Xue Shuiwu, his eyes slightly lit up. It was rare to see such a beautiful woman. In this remote and desolate place, she was the only one. Naturally, people would be stunned by her beauty.

Chao Baozheng respectfully sent the melancholy man to the village entrance. Looking at the gradually disappearing group, he saw Ye Xiaotian's family of three sitting in the cart. He could not help but shake his head and chuckle. "You are courting death. Even the heavens can't save you …"

Probably because he saw that Xue Shuiwu was a weak woman and Le Yao was a child, the melancholy man suddenly felt kind and asked the three of them to sit in the cart.

Yaoyao was lying in the middle of two piles of junk. She was sleeping soundly. She woke up too early in the morning, so she was still sleepy. Ye Xiaotian and Xue Shuiwu sat cross-legged in the forced space. Shuiwu's delicate and soft hand was tightly held by Ye Xiaotian. She could not pull it back even if she wanted to.

Ye Xiaotian carefully looked at Shuiwu's palm. With a sage-like appearance, he said, "Miss, Little Tian, I have calculated with my fingers. You lack me in your life."

Shuiwu immediately blushed. She hurriedly withdrew her hand and said bashfully, "I knew you were going to talk nonsense again."

Ye Xiaotian said, "Hey! How can you say that I am talking nonsense? I am old friends with Yang Lin. I have really learned a lot of skills. Why don't you tell me your date of birth and I will calculate it for you? "

Shuiwu lightly spat and said, "It would be strange if I believed you. You only know how to talk nonsense."

Ye Xiaotian said, "Forget it. You don't believe my words. You should at least listen to the words of the saints."

Shuiwu was surprised and asked, "What did the saints say?"

Ye Xiaotian said with a cheeky smile, "Confucius said, 'When three men walk together, one of them will be my wife. Choose the beautiful one and marry her. 'You see, what the saints said makes so much sense. "

Shuiwu was angry and amused at the same time. She glared at him and turned her head to look at the mountain scenery without saying anything. This was not the first time she heard Ye Xiaotian talking nonsense. After a long time, she naturally became immune to it. At the beginning, she was not used to his nonsense.

In fact, Xue Shuiwu knew in her heart that although Little Tian had a glib tongue, he had never really forced her to do anything. They had only met by chance, but he was able to send her to Guizhou so righteously. Xue Shuiwu was grateful to him, so she naturally could not be angry at his crazy words.

Ye Xiaotian said with a smile, "Are the words of the saints useless? Then I can only ask the gods to say it. Why don't you raise your head and let me read your face? "

Just as Ye Xiaotian said this, a horse in front of him suddenly turned around and said to him, "Little brother, our master wants to see you. He wants to talk to you."

Ye Xiaotian had a favor to ask so he immediately jumped off the ox cart and rushed to the cart in front.

Along the way, he had found out that the depressed man was called Ai Feng and he was going to Hulu County to be the Warden. Speaking of the Warden, it was actually a small official (below the ninth rank). However, the Warden was in charge of arresting and inspecting prisoners and had a lot of real power.

Because of the Ming Dynasty's official system, when there was a vacancy in the position of County Magistrate or Registrar, the Warden would take over the position. County Magistrate and Registrar were both officials with different ranks. Therefore, although the Warden was not a big official, he was still chosen by the Ministry of History and appointed by the Emperor.

Of course, although this was the case, the Warden was still a small official. Therefore, the control of the Warden was not that strict. Generally speaking, if a local official reported a candidate, the Imperial Court would rarely reject it.

This Ai Dian Shi was originally a County Magistrate in the Central Plains. According to the current Grand Secretary Zhang Juzheng, he was demoted because he did not collect 90% of the taxes during the examination. Therefore, he was demoted to Hulu County to be the Warden.

Hulu County was originally a County Magistrate. Not only was it a small third-rank county, but it was also surrounded by Chieftain officials. It was not easy to be an official here. No wonder Ai Dian Shi always looked depressed.

Because this place was remote and the place was not peaceful, Ai Dian Shi did not bring any women with him. He only brought a few family members. The men accompanying him were all strong and strong men from the village. They were there to protect him on the road.

Ai Dian Shi did not have the patience to take a detour. Therefore, he chose this remote mountain road. He was an official, and the men accompanying him were all strong and strong men. He expected that no one would bite a hard bone like him.

Nothing happened along the way. Ai Dian Shi was lonely and bored. Suddenly, he thought of Ye Xiaotian's group of three. Ye Xiaotian's sister was beautiful and attractive. Unconsciously, he had a strange thought. Therefore, he asked Ye Xiaotian to come to his carriage to talk.

He wanted to recruit Ye Xiaotian. His ultimate goal was to recruit Ye Xiaotian's beautiful and lively "little sister". He was an official, so of course he wouldn't do something like forcibly abducting a civilian girl. However, Little Tian and his sister were in such dire straits. As long as his words were leaked, they would rush to claim him as their relative. What danger could there be?