A hundred miles north of Yi Town, the endless mountains stand between the sky and the earth. The towering mountain tops are secretly intimidating to people, and they seem to be so high that they can touch the clouds with their hands.
The legendary sacred mountain, the fairy mountain, human beings are so insignificant in front of it.
Fengshuang Mountain, as the highest mountain in this mountain range, is named because it looks like a phoenix standing with its head held high. It is synonymous with the sacred mountain among the local people.
At this time, the sun is like a big fireball, hanging high in the sky, burning the land tirelessly. The sand on the ground has been burnt by the flames, just like the perfectly fried egg fried rice, which makes people feel excited.
You can tell by looking at it that the temperature is very high.
Everywhere you look, you can see a yellow-orange scenery, with cracked earth and rocks, somewhat like the Flame Mountain in mythical novels.
At this time, a donkey cart carrying melons and fruits was driving slowly in this vast desert.
The person driving the donkey cart was an old man with a face full of grooves, but he saw a strange felt hat on his head, and the clothes on his body were also very strange, giving people a sense of weight. At this time, he was holding a riding whip and waving it gently, as if
Urging the lazy donkey to drive faster.
"Lao Xia, how long until we arrive?"
Just as the old man finished urging the lazy donkey, another lazy voice came from behind the carriage. Hearing this, the old man wiped the sweat on his forehead and said without looking back: "Come on, you see that guy in front of you?"
There are no mountains here, and Huatai Village is at the bottom."
The old man in strange clothes spoke fluent Central Plains Mandarin, but his accent was a bit strange.
"I've been lying down all day and I'm so thirsty to eat your melon."
However, in addition to some melons and fruits placed on the frame, there was also a young man in black lying on the frame. At this time, he was lifting his upper body off the comfortable straw mat and stretching himself comfortably. First, he turned his head.
He glanced at the mountains the old man mentioned, then withdrew his gaze, picked an unusually plump-looking watermelon at his feet and broke it into eight petals with one hand.
Taking a firm bite of the red melon meat, the young man exhaled comfortably: "Tsk, it's so sweet."
This fruit is exactly watermelon. Watermelon. Watermelon, as the name suggests, is a melon from the Western Regions. Before the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms, it was introduced to the southeastern coastal areas of my country. However, it is not called watermelon. Instead, it is called cold because of its cold nature and antipyretic properties. melon.
But the name is different in each place, and it just varies from person to person.
"Come on, come on, have a piece too, I'll treat you."
The young man gnawed on a piece of watermelon with one hand and picked up the largest piece of watermelon with the other hand and handed it to the old man who was driving in front of him.
"Hey hey hey, okay!"
Old Xia's ancestors were from the Central Plains, but he came to settle in the Western Regions very early. His business gradually changed from inter-regional transportation at the beginning to only doing local business. The reason is that wars are now frequent, and a trip to the Central Plains is very expensive.
too high.
So it’s not surprising that he can speak Chinese Mandarin. These fruits are all grown by his family and are now being transported to surrounding towns and villages for sale. The business is much worse than the business of his ancestors who often left the country. Now it can only be regarded as
A little fight.
"Puch", he chewed off half of the watermelon in one bite, and Lao Xia's wrinkled face bloomed like a chrysanthemum, smiling cheerfully: "My melon is good, right?"
“Yes, it’s sweet, delicious, and juicy, very good.”
"Hehehe, I love what you say. I won't charge you for this."
Lao Xia obviously admired the young man behind him, and he must have made the right decision. In addition, he spoke honestly and honestly, and he was in a good mood. He rarely waved his hand to indicate that he was inviting the melon.
"Don't! Let's talk about our own affairs. Brothers are still settling accounts. Besides, I'm not short of money."
The young man who was munching melon didn't even raise his head, but his tone was very firm. It was not easy. Looking at Lao Xia's sweating profusely, you knew there was no need to take advantage of this.
Furthermore, although the last sentence was said in a joking way, the purpose was to let Lao Xia not pay attention, but in fact the young man did not lie.
After chewing the watermelon in his hands in two or three mouths, the young man threw away the rind casually, then turned his eyes to look at the approaching mountains, and lazily leaned against the carriage, saying: "Lao Xia, it's just up from Huatai Village. Feng Shuangshan?”
"Well, I haven't asked yet, why are you going to that place? The folk customs there are very fierce. I have been there several times, and the villagers there will not reason with you at all, relying on the protection of the Vajra Gate. , but he is very overbearing." Perhaps because he was old, or perhaps something was not going well for him, Lao Xia kept talking about his experiences, regardless of whether the young man behind him understood it or not, and he always talked about everything. It was very Talkative.
"So scary?"
After listening to Lao Xia's statement, the young man asked in surprise. Although his tone was suspicious, the corners of his mouth slightly raised, showing that this man was not at all concerned.
"Well! Don't tell anyone. I have been transporting goods for most of the year. Naturally, I heard some rumors that the Vajra Sect has surrendered to Mengting and is not so friendly to many small countries around it."
Lao Xia said mysteriously, then glanced at the young man leaning lazily next to the carriage, and said: "Besides, you are from the Central Plains. This time the Mongols and the Song people are in a stalemate, and you are alone again. Just be careful."
Although the two had known each other for a short time, Lao Xia saw that the young man was free and uninhibited, so he still gave him a kind reminder.
"Okay, I've written it down, don't worry."
Closing the hood on his head, the young man stared at the endless mountains in the distance with bright eyes, and said softly: "I just went to visit my relatives."
"That's good."
Soon, Lao Xia drove his donkey cart to the entrance of the village at the foot of the mountain. At this time, many villagers had gathered under an old tree at the head of the village. When they saw Lao Xia's cart, they crowded around and wanted to come. I also knew that he would be here today and had been waiting for a long time.
As soon as he got out of the car, Lao Xia felt something suddenly appeared in his hand. He looked down subconsciously and found that it was something wrapped in a piece of cloth. Just as he was about to remove the piece of cloth, a voice came from in front of him: "First of all, Don’t rush to see it.”
Looking up, he saw that the young man behind Fancai had already walked ahead at some point, and was walking past many villagers towards the mountain as if there was no one around.
"This is?"
Ignoring the villagers who were asking about the price of goods, Lao Xia raised his head and asked.
"The road money and your watermelon are very sweet. Goodbye, Lao Xia."
The young man waved his hand with his back to Lao Xia, and then his figure quickly disappeared at the entrance of the village.
Lao Xia was slightly startled when he heard the words. He lowered his head and opened the cloth slightly. When he found a strand of gold that emerged, he quickly wrapped it up. His breathing became rapid. He looked around vigilantly and found that the villagers were picking fruits.
Then I breathed a sigh of relief.
Then he looked at the disappeared figure in front of him and murmured: "Who are you?"