The southeast is the most beautiful city, the three Wu cities, and Qiantang has been prosperous since ancient times.
Smoked willows paint bridges, wind curtains and green curtains, and there are hundreds of thousands of homes.
Clouds and trees wrap around the dike and sand, raging waves roll up frost and snow, and the sky is boundless.
The city is lined with pearls, and the houses are filled with luxury goods.
The stacked lakes are clear and beautiful, with three autumn osmanthus seeds and ten miles of lotus flowers.
The Qiang pipes cleared the sky, the watermelons sang throughout the night, and the old lotus babies played and fished.
Thousands of horsemen with high teeth, riding drunk, listening to the chanting of flutes and drums and admiring the haze.
There will be good scenery in the future, I will go back to Fengchi to praise it.
When the flat boat left the Qiantang River and entered the canal, it turned out to be a vast scene of surging river water. Chen Mengsheng looked out the boat window and couldn't help but feel excited. This was Chen Mengsheng's first time out of Lin'an, and he couldn't help feeling a little nervous, looking at the thousand-mile canal.
Only then did he feel how insignificant he was. Among the people on the boat, only Xiao Zhuzhu kept glancing at the bulging luggage Chen Mengsheng was carrying. Chen Mengsheng just pretended not to notice.
The cabin was suddenly opened at this time, and a thick-set man with bare upper body and only a pair of knee-length linen shorts and bare feet walked in. As soon as the man entered the cabin, he bowed to everyone and spoke loudly.
Like Hong Zhong.
"Dear young and old men, I rely on my parents at home and my friends when I go out. I am the boss of this ship, and my surname is Jiang. I am here to deliver goods to my master, Mr. Pang of Yangzhou, and I am bringing you with me.
Go to Yangzhou to earn some money for tea and wine for the twenty or so brothers on my boat."
Chen Mengsheng understood that the boss of the ship was talking so much just to get money for the ship. He reached into his pocket, took out his wallet, took out three taels of silver, and put it in Jiang Meng's hand. The same was true for everyone else in the ship. Only that
Xiao Zhuzhu kept shrinking back, holding the ship window with both hands.
After everyone had paid the money, Jiang Meng yelled at Xiao Zhuzhu in a loud voice: "I said this young man is very tight. He also wants to go to Yangzhou Mansion? Bring me five taels of silver, and Jiang will take care of you on the way.
Eat.”
"This...this..., I...I..." Xiao Zhuzi came out of Lin'an to escape gambling debts. He didn't care where he went, he just wanted to leave Lin'an quickly. He didn't have a penny on him, and he had been hiding in the cabin.
Unexpectedly, he was caught by the boat boss just after leaving the Qiantang River.
Jiang Meng has been the boss of the ship for some years. He has been in the wind and rain. His skin has been tanned to a bronze color. He has never seen anyone on the ship. Only this money-laden man and woman are the most disgusting to get on the ship.
of.
"Brother, there are rules for those who come out to beg for food. You are breaking the rules by doing this. Should you jump off the boat and go into the water yourself? Or should I ask the brothers to throw you into the water?"
There was a burst of laughter in the cabin, but Xiao Zhuzhu's face turned pale and he said: "Uncle, just make it easier for me. If I go back to Lin'an, I will definitely die. Those people will definitely not let me go..." After saying that, he walked towards
Jiang Meng knelt down.
Jiang Meng said angrily: "I have been sailing for thirty years, and I have seen a lot of scoundrels like you. The brothers on the boat soak in the river every day, exchanging their lives for money." After saying this, he opened his big hands like an elephant.
He lifted up Xiao Zhuzhu like a chicken, and when he got out of the cabin, he threw Xiao Zhuzhu into the river...
"Wait a minute." Chen Mengsheng recalled that they had had a drink with Xiao Zhuzhu's father at the Fulai Restaurant that day, and that the two elders in the Yinlu Department were willing to take the blame for this unscrupulous son. Thinking of the two elders' painstaking efforts, Chen Mengsheng decided to help this half-year-old
boy.
"Captain Jiang, let me give him his money." He poured the scattered silver taels in his purse into his hand. There were seven or eight taels of silver left in total. These were what Chen Mengsheng had left when he sold fish before. Now,
They were all here, and they counted out five taels of silver and gave them to Jiang Meng.
Jiang Meng was stunned for a moment and asked, "Do you know this man?" Chen Mengsheng shook his head.
Xiao Zhuzhu shouted: "The kindness is great. When Xiao Zhuzhu becomes prosperous in the future, he will definitely repay it ten times."
Jiang Meng put down Xiao Zhuzhu with one hand and wanted to salute Chen Mengsheng and bowed: "A strong man has great righteousness, I can't accept this money. Jiang Meng has valued righteousness his whole life. May I ask this brother Gao's name?"
"Captain Jiang is serious, my younger brother Chen Mengsheng is lucky enough to know me."
"Hahaha, everyone on the ship calls me Boss Jiang. If Brother Meng Sheng doesn't mind, feel free to call me Boss Jiang. Come on, come on, Brother Meng Sheng, Big Brother will take you to get to know my brothers.
"Without any explanation, Jiang Meng pulled Chen Mengsheng onto the deck.
On the deck, the river breeze swept away the sweltering heat in the cabin. A three-foot-long green flame flag on the main mast was embroidered with the Chinese character "Pang" in Chinese characters. There were twenty-four wooden windows in the front cabin.
A oar and oar were stretched out from the window, paddling the surging river water and moving the flat boat forward quickly.
"Boss Jiang, how long does it take to get to Yangzhou?"
"Now is the season of high water, and traveling against the current to Yangzhou will take ten days without any business trips. I wonder if Brother Mengsheng went to Yangzhou to do business or visit friends?"
"Haha, I am not going to Yangzhou this time to send a friend's ashes back to his roots."
"Brother, you are a righteous man, and Jiang Meng admires you. As long as brothers use my place, Jiang Meng, feel free to speak."
"Boss Jiang, what does the Yangzhou Pang family do?"
"Come on, brother, be careful where you step. Let's go into the cabin and talk." Jiang Meng stepped forward and opened the front cabin door. He saw more than a dozen men sitting on the ground inside, all with hunky backs and hunched backs, each holding a left and right oar in each hand and rowing. It was also with Jiang Meng.
He was wearing a pair of knee-length linen trousers all over his body in a fierce attire. The tendon meat was tumbling with the stroke of the wooden paddle, and the beads of sweat formed lines and flowed down from his bronze skin.
"Brothers, stop me and let me introduce you to a righteous man. This is Brother Chen Mengsheng. He generously donates money to strangers and sends his friends back to their hometowns thousands of miles away. When you see this brother Chen in the future, please be polite to me."
"Yes, boss." All the sailors replied in unison.
Jiang Meng turned back to Chen Mengsheng and said, "Brother Mengsheng, come with me." There is a string ladder passing through the front cabin. Climbing up the ladder is the wheelhouse, with two helmsmen holding the helm. Stepping out of the wheelhouse is a row of
In the cabin, Boss Jiang opened a cabin and took Chen Mengsheng in.
"Brothers, sit down, these are my rooms. Brother Chen, drink tea, this is the Longjing I bought in Lin'an." Jiang Meng poured two cups of Longjing, and the guests of honor took their seats.
"The Pang family in Yangzhou that brother Cai mentioned just now is a famous nobleman in Yangzhou. His family has thousands of acres of fertile land, and half of the business on the ten-mile Qinhuai River belongs to him. A ship like mine can transport rough goods like timber to the Pang family. Mr. Pang
There are dozens of larger ships carrying cargo."
Chen Mengsheng smiled and said: "Master Pang is really a wealthy man."
"Isn't it true? A few years ago, Mr. Pang's only daughter's recruitment of a son-in-law caused a sensation in the entire Yangzhou Prefecture. On the three-foot high platform, Miss Pang Pang, with her face covered in cotton gauze, chose a scholar from out of town who was rushing to take the exam after three consecutive days of selection.
Husband. It really puts the men in Yangzhou to shame. Brothers drink tea, drink tea..."
Before Jiang Meng finished speaking, he felt the hull of the ship shake. The two cups of tea on the table were also spilled. There was another loud "boom" and the ship was shaken from side to side. There was a rush of footsteps outside the cabin, and a
The helmsman ran in in a panic...
"Boss, boss. It's not good, there are goblins in the river."
Jiang Meng jumped out of the cabin after hearing the words. He held the string of the boat and looked at the white waves all over the river. There was nothing strange about it. Chen Mengsheng and the man who came to report followed Jiang Meng and came outside the cabin. The three of them stared at
I was speechless by the river for a long time.
Jiang Meng murmured to himself: "Could it be that we encountered a fish that swallowed the boat while sailing today? Mistress, what exactly happened just now? You and I will talk about it carefully."
"Boss, not long after you and this brother left, Ma Pi and I were at the helm. Unexpectedly, there was a monster in the water, and a dark thing in the water hit the flat boat."
Chen Mengsheng also wondered: "Why is Boss Jiang the fish that swallows the boat?"
Jiang Meng let out a long sigh and said: "Jiang has been sailing for more than thirty years. When Jiang was eight or nine years old, he once went to Penglai with his father and uncles to fish and collect pearls. I didn't expect to see a tower of more than ten meters protruding from the water on the sea.
Half a day later, the floating island spewed water jets into the sky. The elders on the boat knelt down and burned incense and offered wine, and then the floating island slowly sank into the water. Only then did the elders on the boat tell me that it was Tunzhou.
The fish can open its mouth and swallow a big boat. But I have never seen it in this canal waterway, today." Before Jiang Meng finished speaking, the flat boat was hit hard again. This time the side of the boat was
All the people on board saw a large turtle, more than ten feet tall, hitting the bottom of the flat boat with its back.
Chen Mengsheng understood that this was the big turtle that came to trouble him. He had broken his soul-capturing mirror that day, and now the big turtle was here to take revenge. Chen Mengsheng smiled bitterly, shook his head and thought: It's a blessing.
It's not a disaster, it's a disaster that cannot be avoided. Anyone who doesn't submit to this evil obstacle and the whole ship today will not be able to escape the bad luck.
He held the Demon-Conquering Ruler tightly in his hands and stared at the ups and downs of the big turtle. As soon as the big turtle raised its head, Chen Mengsheng yelled "Fuck." A red light shot directly at the big turtle's neck. The big turtle looked heavy but was actually
Extremely dexterous. He turned around and turned around. Chen Mengsheng's Yin Thunder Fire hit the shell of the big turtle, sparking a cloud of sparks. The turtle shell was hit by the Yin Thunder Fire, and the shell cracked into cracks. The red turtle could be seen from inside.
Meat, the river water was dyed crimson by the blood flowing from the giant turtle, and it roared and sank to the bottom of the canal...
Jiang Meng looked at Chen Mengsheng in surprise and said, "Brother, what a great trick. That goblin actually escaped after being hit by brother. Is brother an Onmyoji?"
Chen Mengsheng said: "Boss Jiang praises me too much. I have only learned some superficial knowledge of Taoism. The goblin in the river is a big turtle, and its name is Changsheng."
The middle and rear cabins of the ship were also buzzing with people at this time, and many people had already ran to the deck to ask the crew what happened.
Jiang Meng shouted sternly from the side of the second-story ship: "Why are you making so much noise? It's normal to encounter a wave on the river, so go back to the cabin and stay there."
Everyone was drunk by Jiang Meng, and they all returned to the cabin. After having lunch on the boat, they all took a nap in the cabin. Chen Mengsheng was left by Jiang Meng in the cabin upstairs, which was comparable to the back cabin.
It is much more comfortable. It is also a refreshing pleasure to watch the clear water and green willows on both sides of the river when you have nothing to do. The Jiangnan water town is really beautiful...
At the time of the new year, the flat boat dropped anchor and stopped sailing. Jiang Meng came and invited Chen Mengsheng to have a drink on the top of the boat and admire the moon.
When Chen Mengsheng came to the top of the boat, he saw only a bright moon hanging high in the night sky. This boat was the only one in the river tossing with the waves. "Brother Jiang, where are we? Why can't we see the people on both sides of the river?"
"Brother Meng Sheng, sit here. This is Taihu Lake. The water area is eight hundred miles in radius. Not long ahead is Huzhou Prefecture. It's a pity that we are in a hurry and can't stop. Otherwise, I will take you to see this land of fish and rice and the land of silk."
Huzhou Prefecture. Come and have a drink, have a drink." On the table there is a jar of Shaoxing Prefecture's red wine and fish, shrimp, fruits and vegetables.
Chen Mengsheng asked: "Why don't you see the brothers on Brother Jiang's boat coming to drink?"
"They are eating freely in the cabin downstairs. You cannot drink this wine. The changes in the river are too big. If the wind blows and the sails turn, they may be busy. Let's drink and don't worry about those things." Chen Mengsheng
He could only smile and drink with Jiang Meng.
When it was time to drink until the second watch, Jiang Meng was telling Chen Mengsheng about the strange things he had encountered. Chen Mengsheng knew that some of them were caused by water ghosts, but he couldn't say it clearly, so he could only laugh it off...
After a loud "bang", the entire flat boat was shaken by the force of the impact. If the flat boat hadn't been big enough, it would have been knocked over. At this moment, a shrill scream came from the front cabin.