Gui Daren had been an official for fifteen years. He was half a wily old fox.
But people can make mistakes, horses can stumble. Last time, because he did not send a gift in time, he offended his superiors. He was demoted from the rich Jiangsu and Zhejiang region to Guangxi Guilin Yongfu County, a place where birds don't shit and chickens don't lay eggs.
Along the way, he did not even have time to bring his concubine.
He sat in the shabby county office and sighed. He stroked his long beard and round belly. The greasy fat on his face seemed to be soaked in sorrow.
An old housekeeper who had followed Gui Daren for a long time, seeing this, he understood Gui Daren's worry and hurriedly advised Gui Daren: "Daren, don't worry. In this world, there are only sesame seeds that can't be squeezed out of oil, there are no common people that can't be squeezed out of oil. "
Gui Daren's eyes were brimming with tears, he sighed deeply, stretched his fat neck and looked at the dilapidated street outside the county office, the thick dust on the ground, he felt even more despair for the painstaking effort he had to spend: "Ah, this thick yellow soil, how long will I have to dig, how high will the sky be?"
Fortunately, a local private advisor came to the door.
"Daren, my surname is Xu." The private advisor was born gentle, but too thin.
"Oh, younger brother Xu." Gui Daren stroked his beard, hurriedly stood up and greeted the local private advisor.
"Hearing that Daren has just come to this lowly place, Minister Xu and Minister Zhang have asked me to send their greetings, asking Daren to come to Xu Mansion and Zhang Mansion for a gathering. The two officials have already prepared a banquet, saying that they want to welcome Daren."
"This –" Gui Daren was embarrassed, he said: "This official has just come to this place, ah, younger brother, I'm not afraid to be laughed at, I'm covered in dust, a box of yellow soil, I'm afraid it's rude to visit. How can I trouble the local elders? "
As he said this, Gui Daren began to worry, which restaurant should he go to first to drink wine? Perhaps he would have to stand in the same place as him.
"It doesn't matter, it doesn't matter." It was obvious that Private Advisor Xu had already inquired about this Lord Gui. He hurriedly reminded him by his ear, "Lord Gui and I will be colleagues in the future. I'll say something that Lord Gui doesn't like to hear, but Squire Zhang and Squire Xu are both scholars. When scholars meet, it's fine as long as there's sincerity."
As he spoke, Lord Xu secretly made a "Zhang" gesture.
Gui Daren hurriedly held Private Advisor Xu's hand: "Younger brother is right, you are right!"
.....
On this day, a hunchbacked old fisherman was fishing by the river. Suddenly, a man carrying a saber appeared, followed by a yamen runner.
"Hey, old thing. You're fishing on the river. Have you paid the tax yet? Have you paid the net donation fee? "
The old fisherman took a look and saw that they were people from the Family Zhang and the yamen. The old fisherman quickly smiled apologetically and said, "Sir, this is a wild river that no one cares about. There aren't many fish here and we can't catch many. Old man, when I go to the city to sell fish, I've never heard of a net tax. "
The bailiff sneered, "There was no such thing in the past, that was the law of the past. Now that Gui Daren is here, there is. "
The Family Zhang's servant chimed in, "Under the heavens, all land belongs to the Emperor. All people on the shores of the land are the Emperor's subjects. Where did this wild river come from? Even if you're chopping firewood deep in the mountains, what you're chopping is the imperial court's firewood. You also have to pay the government's tax. "
The old fisherman had no choice but to take out a few copper coins from his shirt that had a big hole in it.
The Family Zhang's bodyguard weighed the coins in his hand and shouted, "Old thing, who are you trying to fool!" As he said that, he went to take the fish basket. There were a few fresh fish lying in it.
In the end, he even took the fish basket and the net with him.
While the old fisherman was sitting on the broken boat in despair, a mountain song came from afar. He heard someone singing, "Split open the barren mountains to make a tea forest, split open the wasteland to plant the five grains, I shed my blood and sweat for my meal –"
The sound of the mountain song was long and clear, drifting over the water from afar. The melody was so beautiful that even the birds circled when they heard it.
Mountain songs were a language unique to the people of the lower levels.
The old fisherman was in pain, but his eyes couldn't help but brighten. He sang with pain, "There are crows in the sky who want to return to their nests, there are turtles in the water who want to return to their caves, this old man fishes for my blood and sweat for my meal. My blood and sweat for the turtles. Why did the big turtles come to Yongfu? Why did the turtles grow gut grass on their backs? "
There was the sound of water splashing. Gradually, a small boat appeared in front of him. The girl at the bow of the boat was about seventeen or eighteen years old. She was still unmarried and wore patched farmer's clothes. Although she was as beautiful as a cuckoo, from afar, she had a kind of playful and unruly aura.
Behind her, at the stern of the boat, was a young girl. Although her clothes were just as simple, her face was dirty, making it difficult to see her appearance. However, she still looked like a strange flower in the fog, quite like an immortal.
When the old fisherman saw the two of them, his eyes brightened. The girl at the bow of the boat pushed the small boat and stopped in front of the old fishing boat. She asked, "Old man, I am a woodcutter from another place. I followed the Li River with my sister, cutting firewood and gathering herbs to make a living. When we reached Yongfu, I heard you singing something like 'Big Turtle' and 'Gut Grass'. I know this Gut Grass, it's scolding the vicious Family Zhang. Their power has already reached Yongfu County. That 'Big Turtle', who is it? "
The old man smiled bitterly, "Hey, little girl, it seems like you are not from this place. There is a new county magistrate in Yongfu County, his surname is Gui. Everyone calls him 'Lord Turtle'. Isn't that the big turtle? "
"What about the Gut Grass on the Turtle's Back?"
The old man sighed, "Little girl, you look smart. The Gut Grass on the Turtle's Back. Don't you understand? Since ancient times, the yamen has always been open to money. "
As he spoke, the old man told her about his experience.
Just now, they also saw that scene from afar.
The girl on the boat immediately understood. Perhaps ever since Lord Gui came to Yongfu County and hooked up with the Family Zhang, the influence of the Family Zhang's power had expanded to Yongfu County.
Seeing the old man sitting alone on the fishing boat and crying at the old boat, the younger girl on the boat also opened her mouth. Her voice was like an oriole from the valley. She advised, "Old man, don't be sad. We have a few freshly picked herbs here. You can sell them for some money. "
The old man refused, "I am already so old, and I have some ability to fish. In the future, making a fishing net will just take a lot more effort. But it is not easy for you two girls to pick herbs, how can I take this medicine? "
As he spoke, the old man looked at the two girls and patted his head. He suddenly became happy and said to the older girl, "Little girl, I have never heard such a bright and beautiful mountain song. When this old man was fishing, I heard people outside say that our Zhuang family's mountain singer has come to Yongfu! Looking at your age, it just matches. Don't tell me you … you are Liu Sanjie? "
The two girls looked at each other. The older girl laughed and said, "I am Liu Sanjie. To be honest, because I didn't pay the rent and sang a mountain song to mock a rich man, I was secretly harmed by a rich man and drifted down the river. That's why I came to Yongfu. "
The old man was very happy, "Stinky rich man harmed you, our Zhuang family's villagers all welcome you! Come, come, come to our village! It just so happens that my wife talks about 'Liu Sanjie' and 'passing on songs' every day. When she talks about immortals, immortals will come. Please invite Sanjie to our village to pass on songs! "
Liu Sanjie thought for a while and agreed.
Daiyu was already used to it and didn't stop her.
At first, Daiyu was also on tenterhooks and said to be careful of strangers. She was also afraid that people would say that they were two girls who were alone. However, after seeing the same thing many times, she finally got used to it. The customs of Guangxi were because various ethnic groups lived together and it was located in a remote area, so the atmosphere was "evil". It was different from Daiyu in the capital, Jiangnan, and outside.
Moreover, they were at the bottom of the Zhuang family in Guangxi. The Zhuang family was especially united. There weren't so many shameful things to pay attention to.
Along the way, she saw that most of the places where the poor Zhuang family lived, as long as they heard that Liu Sanjie, the famous Zhuang family's mountain song singer, had come, they were elated and wanted to invite her to pass on songs with good tea and food. No one pointed at the two of them and said that they were two girls who were alone.
There were even Han people from other clans and mixed with other clans who came to ask Third Sister to spread the songs.
Daiyu and Sanjie were forced to escape the rent.
Daiyu had been spoiled since she was young and thought that it was right and proper for her family to collect rent. She never thought that one day, she would actually have to escape the rent.
They planted tea trees and opened a tea forest in the barren mountains. When they finally harvested the tea, they went out to sell it for money. Family Zhang's people saw them and secretly followed them.
On the day Big Sister Huang left, Third Sister Liu went to look for her, but she went missing. It was because the Zhang family found out that someone had secretly opened up a tea garden in the barren mountains and even built a thatched cottage to live in. So he sent people to stop Sanjie and ask her to pay the rent.
Sanjie was clever. She had been in the mountains all year round, so she took advantage of the terrain to escape. She wanted to run back and ask Daiyu to escape too.
Unexpectedly, Family Zhang sent two groups of people.
One group went to catch Sanjie, and the other group went to catch Daiyu in the thatched cottage they built.
Fortunately, Sanjie came back in time on that stormy night. She took a big leaf and wrapped a beehive and threw it in the house. She also sprinkled some incense. The bees buzzed and the house was filled with smoke and fire. Sanjie pulled Daiyu and ran in the chaos.
Taking advantage of the terrain, the rain was dark, and it was night. They entered the forest and boarded a bamboo boat at the foot of the mountain to Li River. In the bitter wind and rain, they escaped the tiger's mouth.
Even though she was so quick-witted, Third Sister still got a cut on her back.
The fishing boat led the way in front and they rowed the boat behind. Daiyu asked, "Sanjie, does your back still hurt?"
Sanjie smiled and said, "It's okay. It's not too deep. Hey, how many times have you asked along the way? "
Daiyu looked down and sighed, "I really didn't expect …"
The knife light mixed with the blood. The wind and rain mixed with the sound of the forest. Lightning flashed across the water of Li River.
Daiyu's life was thrilling. Ever since they arrived in Guilin, they had only seen it twice.
Seeing that Daiyu was still unhappy, Sanjie raised her eyebrows and said, "Don't think about those unhappy things! Think about the interesting things! Look, 'Little girl, look at how pretty you are. Why do you have to chop firewood and plant tea trees so hard? Why not … Aiyo, where did this bastard come from? '"
Sanjie rowed while imitating the words of the leader of the Family Zhang who chased them down the river that day.
At that time, they were lustful and said that if they knew what was good for them, they would pay the rent. If they couldn't, the two sisters would go to the Family Zhang to be servant girls.
Sanjie picked up something on the boat and threw it at the henchman's face, "Tell your mother to be a servant girl!"
Unexpectedly, the one who threw it was a bastard who had secretly climbed onto the boat.
Daiyu forced a few laughs, but she was still unhappy, "I wonder how Big Sister Huang is doing."
At this point, Third Sister's expression stiffened, and her mood sank. "… Mm. I heard that she became the Family Zhang's nanny. I wonder how she is doing. When we reach Yongfu County, we'll ask around. "
Daiyu agreed. Sanjie added, "When the time comes, we'll ask about your uncle too." As she said that, she turned around and smiled, "Little sister, do you like Guilin?"
Daiyu thought for a while and smiled, "I like it."
Even though she was in Guangxi and had encountered many difficulties along the way in Guilin and was separated from her family, she still liked this place.
Traveling in Li River with mountains and rivers, making strange friends through trials and tribulations.
Even if there were many hardships, it was still fate.
Daiyu said, "Speaking of which, this is the first time I've been charged rent. In the past, I always felt that …"
Before she could finish, they had arrived at their destination. The old fisherman brought them off the boat. In front of them was a village.
They had just walked a few steps when they suddenly heard someone exclaim, "Sanjie!"
When Third Elder Sister heard this shout, she was also stunned. After a while, a young man ran over. His eyes were full of tears, his face was full of wrinkles, and his face was yellow. He looked much older than Sanjie, but he still called out, "Big sister!"
Sanjie's eyes flashed with tears, but she turned around and walked away, ignoring the young man.
The old fisherman was confused and asked the young man, "Sixth brother, what are you doing?"
The young man said, "This is my big sister! Liu Sanjie! "
At this moment, Sanjie suddenly stopped, turned around and shouted, "You're crazy! I don't have a brother like you! "
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