Chapter 4 0004

"I said, are you new to this road? I always feel a little unfamiliar." The noseless old man said, "Maybe it's my old eyesight." "Ah!" Guan Baye laughed: "Master No Nose, you don't recognize me? Do you still remember Guan Ba, the boy who pulled carts in the Liuhe Gang led by Boss Luo back then?" "Guan Ba?..." The old man thought to himself, and finally said with a wry smile: "Don't be surprised, I really can't remember, but I can't forget the boss Luo of your gang, that tragic incident After the incident, the coffins donated by Mr. Bao of Wanjialou, including a total of forty-two horsemen, were all buried on Mr. Bao's ground near the seven willow trees. Every ghost festival, my wife and I would rush to Burning paper!"

As soon as the noseless old man mentioned the past incident, the smile on Guan Baye's face froze, how many years passed like a blink of an eye, and the tragic scene of the dead bodies lying on the ground under the seven willow trees floated in his heart like yesterday.At the beginning, he vowed to find the culprit who tipped off the news, but until now, Boss Luo's vengeance with the group of tragic brothers has not been settled, and when he mentions it, he feels a dull pain in his heart.The living room in Xiaohuangpu is made of shaved branches, with long windows on all sides. Although there are three square tables in the room, it can't withstand a crowd of seventeen men, and the room is full.

"Hey, Mr. No Nose, if there is something to eat, bring it all for me," said Xiang Laosan, "At least eat something so we can go on the road." "I'd rather have some drink anyway," Big Bear said with his eyes rolling, "I said you have no nose, do you have any wine? If you have any, bring me all." "It's still a little hidden." The noseless man touched the top of the class: "You guys are fast-moving. If you wait for the hairy people under the four judges to come again, I'm afraid you'll even eat the wine jar!" "The four judges often come to patronize your liquor store?!"

Shorty Shi Er stretched his neck and said, "Then you can still do this business?!" "What can't be done?" The noseless old man asked back: "Anyone who drinks my wine or eats my game will have to pay... I don't have another nose for the bandits to cut off. Back then, when they carried the God of Wealth, it was wrong They carried me away, cut off my nose, and I didn't promise to give them half a penny. Instead, they ate their food for nothing. If the bandits met me, they would have nothing to do with me; Do you have to post the reed mat money too?" "Old man, don't be fooling around here." Men Lian'er lifted his hand, and a short, fat white hand came in from the outside, tugging at the noseless uncle's back collar, and dragged the old man out: "Hurry up." Come and help me hold the wine jar, so I can get wild game!"

"Master No Nose is not afraid of the sky and the earth," Shrinking his neck to the third child, "I'm afraid of this tigress in his family!" Everyone laughed loudly... Some rough and used to wild guys, as long as there is meat on the table and wine in the glass, they will use the unrestrained laughter to drive away the unpleasant things. The fallen salt truck outside and the long frost-ridden road were forgotten.The old wine in Xiaohuang's shop was mellow and smooth, the wild game was full of fragrance, and coupled with the interesting hospitality of the noseless husband and wife, it's no wonder that everyone was very happy.But among everyone, only Guan Baye had another embrace. He drank a few cups of mulled wine, twirling the empty cup in his hand, looking out from the shaking head, old trees are still old trees, reed flowers are still reed flowers, Everything in this small deserted shop has not changed at all, but the days have passed for more than ten years, and the brothers in front of me are no longer those brothers of the Liuhe Gang.That's right, Boss Shuangqiang Luo is a righteous and brave man, but because of his strong temper and courage, he repeatedly felled the people on the tax card, so he planted the disaster of killing himself. A group of brothers buried, what is it? !It’s nothing more than a few praises from the rivers and lakes. Some of those people’s homes are in the south and some are in the north. Their eyes are dark and their future is like a nail board. Can you bear that heavy burden? !So close eight!off eight.The ancients said it well: "Forbearance has a knife on its head, and the hero is the one who can bear it!"

I am wandering alone with eight people, without care, life is a cloud, and death is a fog, but these brothers in front of me, who are not dragging their families and dependents, do this business for survival, adventures every day, wind and frost every night, I can You must not drag them down by your own blood.The Liuhe gang went back to the back road, and the arrest of private companies would not provoke people, and they would never find them, not for three years, not for five years, the Beiyang army was exhausted, and the gang broke up, and each went to his old business. Who is still nostalgic for this unlucky rattling salt truck? !It wasn't until someone wrung hands to pour the wine that Guan Baye woke up from the momentary slump and let out a soft "heh".At noon in the sky, the clouds not only did not recede, but instead piled up thicker and lowered, the wind danced the reed flowers all over the sky, like a heavy snow, those white catkins danced into the window with the wind , stained on people's clothes and sleeves; the brothers happily opened their fists and gave orders. What about the situation where the catkins are floating in the sky?This scene was enlarged in the eyes of Guan Baye, and the bleak scene seemed to be turned into the smoke and dust that he had experienced behind him...

"Cheers, Eighth Master." "Come on, cheers, Baye." Xiang Laosan held out the wine cup and stretched it out, as if waiting to clink glasses: "My old brother who is not good enough is toasting you, look, you have a gloomy face, 悒What kind of energy?!" "I'll do it, Xiang Lao San," Guan Baye raised the wine, drank it in one gulp, put down the glass slowly, pinched a piece of reed flower that was flying in front of his eyes, and blew it away slowly from his mouth , which hides his unexplainable sigh.Then he turned to Lei Yipao and said, "Brother, those two on the hill, it's time to replace them and have a drink." Seeing Lei Yipao and another brother stepping out the door with a wine bottle, Xiang Lao San also seemed to be Infecting something from Guan Baye's voice, he lowered his head and played with the wine cup in deep thought, rolled up his tongue and said, "Of course, you are the leader, you have to think far away, It’s not like we dazed and dazzle the day, every day is a day. If my heart is cloudy, I will grab the wine and walk into the drunk, and I won’t frown like you.” Said to the third child, and then He reached out to touch the flagon to eat, but the other party reached out and gently pressed the back of his hand.

"Brother, wait until the salt is unloaded, and then we buddies will soak in the wine urn again!" Guan Baye said: "Drink again, let alone the fourth judge in front, it's just a peaceful journey, I'm afraid that your hand will drink it." The legs will also fall into the grass ditch!" The two of them were talking, and they were interrupted by a burst of laughter; it turned out that the big bear, who was half drunk from drinking, forced the noseless uncle and Shier dwarf two Pulled together to compare their heights, and it turned out that they were the same height, the big bear sucked his saliva and yelled, "Shi Er, this time you have found your father!"

"Pay the bill, Mr. No Nose." Guan Baye stood up, reached out his hand and took out the silver ocean and opened it to the table.No-nosed man rushed over and picked up a piece, put it on the nose hole and sniffed, "Hey, Guan Baye, if you are not used to using fake money, please put the rest back in your belly pocket, just this one is enough .Before you leave, I have to tell you something—it’s not empty words that the fourth judge wants to sweep away Wanjialou. There is collusion, there is someone undercover." Guan Baye pulled the noseless man out of the living room, and said in a low voice, "How do you know that someone picks up ashes and someone goes undercover?!"

"Hey, well, how could I not know." The old man's voice became even lower: "A while ago, the fourth judge brought a group of people here for a night drink, and one of the guys with the brim of his hat down was from Wanjialou , riding a black mule with white forks, their voices are low, but my ears are not yet deaf!" "Okay! You old bastard!" The tigress in the kitchen roared again: "I told you that you are not deaf?! Are you not deaf?! You keep talking nonsense, as long as there is one word missing Enter the ears and eyes of the fourth judge, you old man, just watch, next time they return, they will call you tongueless uncle!"

No-nose heard the roar inside, and hastily stuck out his tongue and said: "I'm really sorry, Baye, when I meet this kind of woman and hear her roar all day long, I'd rather be an earless uncle for a few years first." - Luo De Quiet and quiet." But Guan Baye didn't hear these witty words, he had already gone under the big elm tree to untie his animals.Suddenly remembered an incident that made Guan Baye feel that every sentence of the little old man was credible: more than ten years ago, on the day when the Liuhe gang was wiped out, a group of people were resting in the Xiaohuang shop. Didn't the uncle half-jokingly say that if Boss Luo were to be smarter, two days ago a private horse team came down and reined in their horses on the high hill behind the shop to look at the terrain? ! ——It's a pity that Boss Luo, who is full of courage, didn't put those words in his ears. Now that he thinks about it, he just adds more regrets!After the Xiaohuang pavement in Sanliwan, the deserted road has been stretching forward close to the wild reeds.The men pushed the carts with the strength of wine, and their legs were extremely strong. The sound of the axle singing under the carts and the sound of the wind and waves on the reeds were intertwined. The reeds in the north blocked the wind, making people feel the cold wind. The strong and strong ones even opened their coats and felt hats, and pushed the cart with their heads bare, despite the heat.There were more reed flowers floating along the road, covering all the cars and people with white.The sharp noise of the axles often startled the hares in the weeds, and shot straight into the reeds like a cloud of gray smoke, causing the goshawks under the gray clouds to spin low, bursting out a series of helpless and unwilling chirps.The big black water crow flies very low, flapping its heavy wings, often breaks the brittle reed tips, and bursts a cloud of white mist-like reed catkins. The narrow-necked fish jaws have wings and don’t like to fly. When the car passed by, he still stood still and stretched his neck, as if he wanted to count how many cars there were.Maybe this road is too desolate, the big bear has counted, and he has found forty-nine hares running along the way. "Damn it, it's very fat!" He swallowed and said, "If there's one that drinks, there's nothing else to say." "Ba Ye, he told you not to shoot guns. What's the use of your mouth?" Xiang Lao San said: "Don't think about those silly thoughts, the heart is really flustered, there are pancakes in the back plate, eat a piece It's good to chew." "Oh! Fuck it!" Shorty Shi Er made a fuss and yelled, which scared everyone.