Chapter 263: Calm? The clouds are treacherous! (Part 2)
Chapter 263: Calm and calm? The clouds and waves are treacherous! (Part 2)
Chapter 263: Calm and calm? The clouds and waves are treacherous! (Part 2)
As a business road, there is no shortage of excitement. In addition, with the recent boom in sailing, there is an endless stream of caravans, workers, farmers, vendors and other people traveling to and from the seaside and Yangzhou City. Therefore, the twenty-mile official road is always bustling with people and brightly lit no matter day or night.
The daily flow of people is probably no less than hundreds of thousands. It is precisely because of this trade route that leads directly to the sea that Yangzhou City can collect millions of taels of tax revenue from it every year, so it is also called the "Golden Trade Route".
The official road was still so lively that day. Pedestrians walking on the road were neatly dressed and brightly dressed. Both sides of the road were filled with vendors setting up stalls and businessmen bargaining and hawking. There were also groups of soldiers patrolling the roadside from time to time.
Looking around with vigilant eyes, their duty is to catch thieves and gangsters, arrest wanted criminals, and maintain order on the "Golden Trade Road."
Since it is autumn now and people are seizing the time to make money before the cold winter arrives, the flow of people on the official road is even denser.
There is a rather special group of people among the crowd heading towards Yangzhou City. They are a group of caravans who dress with accents and have slightly weird looks and behaviors. Their clothes are similar to those from China but also have an exotic style. In front of them are two
The guard center was a white sedan carried by four bearers, with four guards walking on both sides. Behind it was a horse-drawn carriage. The horse-drawn carriage was covered with a layer of red cloth, and inside there were stacks of things that seemed to be some kind of cargo.
If you look at it from the surface, this is a small group of overseas caravans. As the maritime trade of the Song Dynasty gradually developed, more and more merchants from overseas came to the Song Dynasty to do business, especially in coastal places like Yangzhou, so the local
People didn't have much curiosity about them. At most, they just took a look and secretly guessed what kind of goods they were transporting.
The two leading men in this group were wearing samurai uniforms, their hair was combed, and they were wearing wooden clogs. They had two samurai swords, one long and one short, stuck at their waists. The two men were short and strong, and their eyes shone with cold light. They looked around carefully and said something.
The passers-by who were about to touch them because they were too close spoke harshly and looked serious; their hands were placed around the samurai swords intentionally or unintentionally. It can be imagined that if an emergency occurred, they would definitely be able to draw the weapons as quickly as possible to fight the enemy.
The four guards around the sedan were thin and pale, as if they had rarely seen the light of day and had lost too much blood; they were dressed in white hunting clothes with obvious Haizhou style, wearing tall special black paper hats, holding long
A folding fan was hidden deep in the wide sleeves. No shape of hands could be seen, and no one knew what they were holding. As they walked, their faces were calm, and their mouths were slightly muttering prayers that no one else could hear. Only a pair of black eyes reflected the surrounding scene as if
Everything is in sight, but occasionally a fanatical light flashes through his pupils.
If these guards were normal, the remaining four bearers and the horse-drawn carriage seemed strange.
The four bearers were simply dressed and had bronzed skin. They were strong, but their faces were dull and their eyes were dull. They never looked forward. They just buried their heads in carrying the sedan and walked steadily. The distance between each step was exactly the same as if measured with a ruler. This kind of skill can be regarded as
It is puzzling that they were third-rate masters in the martial arts world of the Central Plains, but now they are reduced to carrying sedans for others. If they could not still hear their weak breathing, they would be no different from puppets. And the sedan they are carrying
Zhong Geng didn't make a sound and didn't know if anyone was there.
As for the carriage, it is even more strange. There is no driver to drive the horse, but it can still pull the carriage obediently and follow the people in front. The horse is thin but has very smart eyes and has a look down on it, which is almost different from a human being.
Not many times, he snorted and looked around, which was quite majestic.
This horse has a layer of green-blue fur all over its body. The dense hair is naturally close to each other and adheres to the thick skin, forming layers of scale-like armor that spreads all over the body, including the head; a pair of small, round ears are erect.
Under each ear on both sides of the head, there are two narrow gaps that shrink and shrink as if breathing; the four hooves are wider and twice as wide as those of ordinary horses, and there is a ring of wavy cuticle around them for unknown purposes.
It is obvious that this horse is a rare and exotic beast.
Although this small caravan does not have many people, except for the four coachmen, everyone's momentum is beyond ordinary people. At first glance, it is not an ordinary caravan. Therefore, except for the caravan with the same wealthy family, most people are walking around.
They left. And this overseas business pair was not absolutely arrogant and domineering. They would also give in politely when they encountered a team that was also not an ordinary family.
"It's just a bunch of profit-seeking businessmen, and they are overseas barbarians. What's so cool about that!" A scholar who was pushed by a samurai because he got too close and almost fell back a few steps said angrily as he looked at the caravan going away.
.
"Brother Hannian, what you said is wrong. As early as twenty years ago, today's emperor promulgated the "Order on the Simultaneous Promotion of Scholars, Farmers, Industry and Merchants", which stipulated that scholars, farmers, hired workers, and merchants all enjoyed the same status. This greatly increased the prosperity of commerce.
Therefore, although businessmen pursue profits, they also contribute to the country and should not be underestimated. Especially those rich maritime merchants who are powerful and powerful often hire strange people to deal with maritime risks. They are not alone like you and me.
You can offend a poor student." Another relatively steady young scholar who was holding him up to prevent him from falling said to him while letting go of his hand.
"Brother Kande, I also know this truth, but I'm just not convinced. A group of small overseas businessmen are still so arrogant in my middle. Do they regard the great power of the Song Dynasty as nothing?" The scholar named Han tidied up his somewhat scattered clothes.
complained.
"Brother Han Nian organized the compilation fifteen years ago of the World Map and published it ten years ago. You must have never read it carefully. No wonder you can't recognize the origins of those people." The scholar named Kant complained helplessly.
The voice of the book said.
"Hehe, how did you see this, brother Kande? I usually only love poems and songs and am not interested in those strange stories." Scholar Hannian said awkwardly and then said with interest, "What is the origin of that group of people? Why did brother Kande come to me?"