Although the water in Taize Lake does not freeze in winter, it is bitingly cold.
In ancient times, medical conditions were backward, and a cold could kill someone...
In winter, fishermen in Taize Lake often look for tidal flats and deserted islands, and connect their boats to form "boat islands" and "boat villages" where they join each other to keep warm, dry their fishing nets, etc...
However, the price of fish is also high during the Chinese New Year, so many fishermen still venture out to fish in the lake.
When the first light snow fell in winter, Aaron put the boat next to "Old Yutou" and "Old Chutou" and asked them to take care of it. He took most of the copper coins and headed for Taizefu City.
There were only some ordinary household items on the awning boat. He rewrapped the pages of the book that he had captured after killing "Yu Li Liu" and buried them in the reeds.
Therefore, there is no fear of anyone discovering any clues.
…
After walking along the official road for an hour, a blue-black city wall made of bricks and stones appeared in front of Aaron.
There was a long queue at the city gate, and most of them were honest farmers and small businessmen.
As for the martial arts masters and dignitaries wearing bright clothes and angry horses, armed with swords and knives, naturally there is no need to line up, and the city guards have to nod and bow to see them off.
Aaron got to the end of the line and waited patiently.
At the same time, he raised his head and saw the huge plaque on the city gate tower, with three large characters written on it.
"Well... this should be 'Taize Mansion'... I have learned something again..."
Aaron remembered secretly in his heart.
For a fisherman to read and learn, it is simply too eye-catching.
Moreover, it was still open to question whether those noble scribes would be willing to accept him as a 'cultivator'.
Aaron's plan in his mind was to rely on his daily accumulation and learn secretly.
Anyway, there are a lot of materials. For example, the big money in his hand was later called "Dingyuan Tongbao" at Yuyang Winery, and the reverse side was "One Qian"... This is another six words!
There are certain rules in pictographic characters. The more you learn, the faster you will be able to guess at a later time.
Aaron was not in a hurry anyway. His visit to the city was nominally to buy new year's goods, but in fact he was just looking around, getting a feel for the situation, and learning Chinese characters along the way.
There are so many plaques, shops... just ask, take a look... you can learn a lot.
It would be even better if you could find a copy of Meng Tong's Thousand-Character Essay.
'No, no... buying a book is too ostentatious, I won't take it...'
Aaron shook his head secretly and slowly followed the team forward. He saw a notice at the gate of the city, which seemed to be a document for sea fishing or something like that.
There was also a clerk who was reciting loudly nearby, obviously for illiterate people like them, and he immediately became interested.
"There is someone who committed a crime against Ma Qian, killed two people, and fled... He is seven feet tall and has three moles on his left side... If there is a winner, there will be a reward of five hundred!"
"The great thief White Jade Rat... He robbed dozens of families at night... He committed a heinous crime... If there are any clues... the government will reward you heavily, and there are also 13 families in the city who will be rewarded with a hundred taels of silver for raising funds..."
…
Aaron looked at the words on the list and tried to compare them one by one with what the clerk said.
After all, he is not a child, and he has strong learning ability and subjective initiative.
After firmly memorizing the glyphs and pronunciation, he glanced at the portrait curiously.
It turned out that Ma Qian's head portrait was quite clear and had the style of a sketch, which was completely different from the ancient random drawings that Aaron thought.
As for the ‘White Jade Rat’?
There is no portrait at all, and I don’t even know whether she is a man or a woman or her age.
Aaron didn't take it seriously and lined up at the city gate.
The soldiers guarding the city glanced at him, and when they smelled the fishy smell, their expressions turned ugly: "It costs a lot of money to enter the city!"
Although he complained in his heart that this was hindering commercial development, Aaron said nothing and obediently paid the money and entered Taizefu City.
There are bungalows of varying heights on both sides of the city, and the roads are not too wide.
Overall, Aaron was disappointed.
It wasn't until I walked to the East Market where the trading place was that I felt it was a little livelier.
Perhaps because of the collective gathering during the Chinese New Year, farmers from all over the country gathered here to sell some handicrafts they made.
Bamboo baskets, benches... and bamboo horses and grass dragonflies for children to play with...
The shops on both sides are busy with people coming and going, and there are signs hanging outside.
For example, the word "rice" is hung outside a rice shop.
The tea house has the word "tea" hanging on it.
There are also salt shops, pawn shops, cloth shops, gold and silver shops, restaurants, teahouses, rouge shops...
After seeing too many blond and blue-eyed Westerners, and seeing this kind of Oriental market, Aaron felt a sense of intimacy for some reason.
Aaron was like a countryman entering the city. He walked and stopped all the way, asking here and there, but he refused to buy, which made countless merchants slander the poor.
However, businessmen pay attention to welcoming guests from all over the world with a smile, and since it is the Chinese New Year, this politeness and atmosphere cannot be lost.
Aaron didn't go to those big business houses with rich slave thugs. He just had a thick skin and learned a lot.
After walking around for a long time, I learned a lot of commonly used words, and I just waited to go back and digest them in silence.
Moreover, I also shopped around and bought the cheapest half a pound of ‘Gao Mo’ and a strip of bacon as New Year’s goods.
"Gaomo" refers to broken tea leaves, and the stall owner is the coolie who carries the tea leaves in the tea house. These are finely broken tea leaves collected on daily basis.
There are various varieties of tea, mixed together, a little sour, but the taste is pretty good.
Bacon is wild boar hunted by hunters in the mountains. After being dried and salted, they are reluctant to eat it and also use it to exchange money.
The hunter looked tall and tall, but his smile was quite honest. He said that he wanted to save enough money to make new clothes for his wife and children.
Aaron looked at the torn linen shirt he was wearing and shrugged his shoulders.
Anyway, he has no money to buy new clothes for the New Year.
Just walking and watching, when passing by a high-rise compound, through the open door, you can see a huge square inside. Dozens of strong men are lifting stone locks and practicing martial arts, which makes Aaron stop.
pace.
"This is the Qingshan Martial Arts School, right? The owner of the gym, Xue Qingshan, was a famous boxer back then. Now he is getting stronger..."
"Only during the Chinese New Year, this martial arts gym opens its doors to attract people to come and learn martial arts. Normally, the doors are closed. If you dare to peek, you will be beaten up, and you will be accused of secretly learning martial arts..."
…
Pedestrians around were talking a lot. Aaron looked at the two martial arts masters guarding the front of the martial arts hall and felt that their muscles were quite developed, but he couldn't tell much more.
He slowly passed by the martial arts gym and saw the 'Rejuvenation Hall' opened next to the martial arts gym.
Since ancient times, medicine and martial arts have not been separated. There are often medical clinics, medicine halls and other buildings next to martial arts halls, and they are very experienced in treating bruises and injuries.
Aaron spent more time standing in front of the 'Huichun Hall' than the martial arts director.
After all, this body can also get sick, and it may even cause death.
If you want to live, you have to find a good doctor and take medicine!
'You have to pay attention to this in the future. Well, it's best to learn medical skills on your own...'
They also engaged in a storyteller for free in the city, and waited until dusk before Aaron left the city through the gate where he came from.
The soldier guarding the city deliberately tore open his package to check. When he saw the bacon and tea inside, he cursed and muttered "poor man" before waving his hand to drive him away.
After Aaron's back disappeared, the city guard came to rest under a nearby shed.
There was another man in the shed with a smile on his face. He immediately came over to pour him tea and asked with a smile: "Master Jun, how do you do?"
If Aaron were here, he would definitely recognize him. He is the follower who often follows 'Master Tiger'.
"A poor guy can't even afford a piece of cloth."
The soldier cursed and took a sip of hot tea.
"Thankfully, I thought he could get some good things out of going to the city alone."
The member of the 'Goldfish Gang' who poured the tea accompanied him with a smile: "Excuse me, 'Master Tiger' has given instructions. These fishermen are very skilled. Don't take advantage of the Chinese New Year to bypass the fish market and take the rare fish to the city."
When you come to sell, you have to be careful..."
After finishing speaking, he said with some pity: "In the past, Liu was the spy, and he could know in advance if there was any trouble, but I don't know where he died recently... Alas, it's a pity, his filial piety is still quite
Generous..."
"Oh, man, you're either dead in a casino or on a woman's belly... As for the eyeliner, it's not that simple? Just replace it if it's gone!" The soldier took another sip of hot tea: "With the power of your 'Goldfish Gang', just threaten those people a little bit.
How can any of you water-legged people not submit obediently?"