The fat man is a little embarrassed. Who are the people in this black party?
Murderers, robbers, bandits, thieves, and anyone with unknown origins can enter. If Brother Sheng accidentally conflicts with someone and gets hurt somewhere, it will be an injustice.
"It's just that I'd better keep a low profile, right?" Lu Sheng smiled, knowing the other person's concerns.
He not only represents himself, but also represents the Lu family in Jiulian City. Once any harm is caused, the Lu family will definitely settle accounts with him, Zheng Xiangui.
"It's good that you know. Brother Sheng, your identity is different. If it were someone else, I wouldn't be so worried..." Zheng Xiangui sighed.
"I know, please arrange it for me. I must get this thing." Lu Sheng couldn't help but say.
"Alas..." Zheng Xiangui had no choice but to agree.
Lu Sheng and him carefully determined the time for the black meeting to begin, and then waited for Zheng Xiangui to have someone send him an invitation to the distinguished guest.
He took the invitation and left the restaurant.
"This is excellent rouge and gouache. Girls, come and take a look."
"The best first-class product, only imported from Zhongyuan from Zihua City!"
“The hydrangea-scented blush is unique from other stores!”
On the street outside the restaurant, vendors pushed wooden carts selling gouache and moved slowly along the street.
Lu Sheng glanced at it and saw that this street was dedicated to selling rouge and gouache.
Many women and their families like to visit here.
The sun was setting in the west, and it had just drizzled on the street. The ground was wet and reflective, and it was reflected in a light red.
Lu Sheng took a breath, and as soon as the breath came out, it turned white and slowly dispersed.
He looked back at the restaurant. The huge shadow of Goldfish Restaurant was cast by the sunlight.
This is the largest restaurant in Jiulian City. It is a busy time at this time, and there is an endless stream of customers coming and going to eat. The sound is extremely noisy.
Lu Sheng stood in the shadow of the restaurant and looked to both sides.
Except for the entrance of the restaurant, the rest of the place is a bit deserted.
Vendors pushed their gouache carts slowly, constantly moving in the shadows.
Lu Sheng looked at it and wanted to buy some small gifts for Er Niang and Yiyi. These gouache are not expensive and can occasionally be found in good condition, so they are good small gifts.
He walked a few steps along the street to see which vendor was better.
In the afternoon, the streets became increasingly deserted, and many shops were closed.
There are not many passers-by on both sides of the street, and you can only see a few occasionally.
What is strange is that these vendors buying gouache obviously saw that there was no one around, but they still smiled hard and shouted.
Shouts came and went, echoing in the empty streets.
Lu Sheng squinted his eyes and didn't think it was weird. He thought it might be a unique phenomenon in this world.
He sifted around and found a vendor whose cart was painted light red. There was a step flag stuck on the cart of this vendor, and it read: Zhongyuan Book of Rites Gouache.
The vendor was pushing the cart slowly, with a smile on his face. He was wearing a gray cloth coat and a gray-white melon cap.
"I remember Liji Gouache is an old and formal company in Central Plains."
Lu Sheng recalled it from his memory, and then slowly walked towards the vendor's cart. He planned to choose some good gouache for Er Niang and Yiyi.
The vendor was walking forward slowly, and there were a few children playing around him, chasing each other and playing games.
The stroller slowly passed the child and then turned towards an alley in the shadows of the street.
Lu Sheng estimated that he was about to close the car, so he was ready to speed up and catch up.
"Hey! Brother Sheng!"
Suddenly a voice called him from behind.
The voice sounded familiar, as if it was someone I knew.
Lu Sheng turned around and saw a dark-skinned, muscular scholar walking over quickly.
"Lu Sheng?"
He hesitated for a moment and recognized the other person's identity.
Lu Sheng, Lu Junyi, and Lu Sheng are also the standard wealthy young men in Jiulian City, but he is different from the others. This guy has a reputation. He was admitted as a scholar not long ago, and it is said that his literary talent is not bad.
Lu Junyi actually had a normal relationship with him, but because his name was the same as that of a Liangshan hero, Lu Sheng remembered his name after hearing it once.
"Brother Sheng, Jianghu, please help, Jianghu, please help!" Lu Junyi blushed and took two steps towards him.
Lu Sheng immediately understood what this guy was looking for. Although he was from a wealthy family, he loved gambling very much. He was often short of money and borrowed money from everywhere.
Now I guess my gambling funds are gone again.
He smiled and took out ten taels of silver from his waist bag and handed it over.
"How are you feeling today?"
"It's okay, it's okay, hahaha, Brother Sheng is still loyal enough."
Lu Junyi took the silver and left in a hurry.
Lu Sheng shook his head. Money is a trivial matter. Anyway, the Lu family has a great business, so someone will send money later.
He turned around and looked for the gouache vendor again.
The vendor's cart has already entered the alley, and a small part of it is still outside.
He took three steps at a time and walked over quickly.
Follow and turn into the alley.
"Eh??"
Lu Sheng's steps suddenly stopped.
This alley is actually a dead end!
It was empty inside. There was no cart or even a human figure.
His eyes narrowed and his body became slightly alert.
He checked the dead end carefully from beginning to end, from left to right.
This alley, which is only about ten meters long, is surrounded by gray and black walls of houses on both sides. The end is blocked by an old-looking black wall with several seals affixed to it.
The seal with red letters on the white paper looked a little dark under the sunset, and the corners were turned up, as if it had lost its stickiness.
"There is no secret door in the wall, so where did the cart go...?"
Lu Sheng recalled it repeatedly and clearly remembered that the cart entered this alley.
He exited and saw several children still chasing and playing around on the roadside.
These children are all dressed simply, and they look like children from ordinary families.
Lu Sheng put on a smiling face, took out a few coins from his pocket, and grabbed a chasing little girl.
"Little girl, can I ask you something?"
"Brother, tell me what you want to ask."
The little girl was wearing two braids. She was ninety years old and had a rosy face. She probably often played on the street and was not afraid of strangers, so she replied generously.
"Brother wants to ask, did you see the cart of Li Ji gouache passing here just now? Did you enter this small alley?"
Lu Sheng stuffed two copper coins into the little girl's palm.
The little guy suddenly beamed with joy.
"Didn't you see the gouache cart? We play here every day. The gouache cart usually only comes to sell it in the morning, and we go to the antique street in the afternoon."
"Didn't you see it?"
Lu Sheng was stunned, thinking that the child was lying deliberately.
Seeing his expression, the little girl opened her eyes wide and replied seriously.
"What I said is true. There are no cars on the street today. If you don't believe me, ask other people. The streets are empty and there is nothing."
At this time, several other children also ran over to echo.
"Yes, yes, my mother was planning to come over to buy something, but none of those carts are missing. It's really strange."
"This brother said he just saw a Liji gouache store." The little girl pointed at Lu Sheng.
"Where is it? Where is it?"
"I didn't see it. This street is only so big."
"Brother, you saw it in your dream, right? Hehehe..."
A group of little guys talked and started laughing again.
The smile on Lu Sheng's face gradually disappeared.
He turned his head and looked at the Goldfish Restaurant.
The restaurant under the shadows is full of people coming and going, and business is booming.
There was a lot of excitement there, which was in sharp contrast to the deserted streets here.
"Then have you seen..."
Lu Sheng turned around and his voice suddenly stopped.
The few children around him all disappeared without knowing when.
At first glance, the surrounding streets were deserted, empty, and devoid of anything.
Not even pedestrians.
The children's noises disappeared in an instant. Logically speaking, children of this age could not have such a tacit understanding that they would all disappear in one fell swoop.
Lu Sheng was confident that he was also a person who had practiced the Black Tiger Sword after all. Even the wild wolves could detect the position of Feng Bian, but he did not notice the sound of several children leaving.
Looking at the deserted and silent streets, he suddenly shuddered and walked quickly towards the Goldfish Restaurant.
Bang bang bang bang....
The footsteps were very clear. The closer he got to the restaurant, the more warmth he felt all over his body.
Wow!!
Suddenly, as if the surface of the water broke open from under the water, Lu Sheng suddenly felt that everything around him became alive and full of life.
Guests with body temperature passed by him one after another. Someone accidentally bumped into him and quickly said sorry to him.
Another female family member got off the carriage, walked slowly into the restaurant with a smile, and was welcomed in by the waiter.
Standing in front of the restaurant, Lu Sheng looked at the street selling gouache, but he didn't know when there were more passers-by on it.
It's completely different from the previous deserted situation.
Lu Sheng took a breath and quickly stopped a carriage.
"Go to Lufu."
"Okay, sit down!"
The coachman whipped his horse whip, and the thin old horse began to move slowly.
Sitting in the car, Lu Sheng kept thinking about the things he had encountered before.
That vendor and those kids were all abnormal.
He recalled now that the smile on the vendor's face seemed to be motionless, giving people an extremely false feeling.
Thinking of the Xu family tragedy, he suddenly felt like a storm was coming.
"This city is really getting more and more dangerous..." He murmured.
The carriage quickly arrived at the gate of Lu Mansion.
The concierge saw Lu Sheng sitting in the car and hurriedly came up to meet him.
"My lord, are you back?"
The concierge's surname is Wang. He is the eighth in the family. Everyone usually calls him Xiaoba. He is a very smart young man. He is only seventeen this year. He inherited his father's job and also came to Lu's house to work as a concierge.
Xiaoba and Lu Sheng were also very familiar with each other, and they would often tell Lu Sheng some interesting stories and rumors circulating in and outside the city.
This is what Lu Sheng likes to hear.
"Is the master here?"
Lu Sheng got out of the car and paid, and asked casually.
"The master went to the Yamen again. The magistrate summoned him, as if he was looking for something."
Xiaoba smiled.
"What are you looking for?"
Lu Sheng has been busy with his own affairs these days, but he didn't pay attention to the house.