The person who rings the bell is one of the bangers in Shangqiu City. His surname is Guo.
He is responsible for knocking twelve times every hour, and after each knock, he can take an hour's rest. It can be said that knocking on the beam is the most enviable job of all the bangers in the city.
Every year, every month, every hour, Bangfu Guo will hold the long rope under the big clock on time.
After doing this job for a long time, Bangfu Guo always retracted under the big clock after the sun rose and hid in the shadow. At the same time, he stuffed his ears with paper balls soaked in water. He controlled the rhythm in his heart and kept silent.
Chant it twelve times.
"Two more to go."
Bangfu Guo stood under the big beam, vigorously swung the long rope in his hand, and thought to himself.
...
Boom!!!
For the first time, the beam that had been hanging on the bell tower beam for nearly a thousand years made a sound other than "dang!".
Circles of dust and debris arose on the ground, and the gray bricks paved on the square shattered like spider webs onto the surrounding sidewalks. The big clock was about one foot high, and it took more than five or six people to surround it.
At this time, after it suddenly fell and hit the ground, the movement and damage caused were really terrible.
Even the ground seemed to shake.
...
"You win! You win!!!"
The masked man stood up suddenly, breathing heavily and shouted in a low voice, with uncontrollable happiness and a touch of relief in his tone.
The soldiers guarding the city were armed with armor and weapons, the sound of footsteps and the history of controlling public security in the city, the carriages ridden by thieves, governors and thieves passed by, and the roar of the driver after the whip was raised also became closer from far away.
.
Lao He stared at the dust flying in front of his eyes, his ears filled with yelling and yelling. It was clearly the dog days of summer, but he felt as if he had fallen into an ice cellar, and his whole body was extremely stiff.
Little by little, like rusted iron, Lao He turned his head to the masked man who stood up next to him.
With one hand on his waist, he glanced down at Lao He. The masked man held the silver ingot in one hand and turned it between his fingers, then casually threw it in front of Lao He.
"If God's way is good, the ashes of death will be resurrected. I, Ruan Hu,
Hehe! I don’t care about my reputation, so I’m going to do the opposite~” Humming a tune, the masked man ignored Lao He’s reaction, hunched his back slightly, and walked towards the crowd with his hands behind his back.
The way he left leisurely was in huge contrast to the people around him who were rushing towards the bell tower.
Slowly his figure disappeared from sight.
Lao He opened his mouth slightly, but he felt as if his throat was locked and he couldn't speak at all.
He said that this big beam fell because of a bet or a random word said by a madman?
No one would believe it. On the contrary, he appeared in this position with an extra twenty taels of silver beside him. This would definitely be suspected by the officials.
Lao He shuddered when he thought of this, bent down to pick up the silver ingot, and walked slowly towards the outside of the city.
...
"Let me touch it!"
"Hmm... be gentle."
The scholar excitedly said something to the autumnal equinox, and then tentatively stretched out his hand to touch the trembling clock body in front of him.
Pulling the hem of the scholar's robe behind him with one hand, Qiu Equinox whispered to the scholar.
boom!
The moment the scholar's fingertips were about to touch the big clock, the distance between the big clock and his fingers suddenly became farther. It quickly hit the clock, and the sound made both of them's ears buzz.
The flying dust also fascinated the eyes of the two of them. Under the huge movement, Qiu Equinox hurriedly supported the pillar beside him and tightened the hem of the scholar's robe.
By the time the smoke and dust dispersed a little, the sound of countless soldiers approaching was almost here.
"withdraw!"
The scholar glanced at the autumnal equinox, and the two people quickly tied the cloth they had brought with them to their faces, jumped out of the bell tower, and quickly stepped on the eaves and ran towards the distance.
...
"Someone!"
I don't know whether it was the soldiers or the civilians who were watching. Almost at the same time, everyone present: civilians, officials, soldiers, Mr. Wei and Wang Huochong all looked at the bell tower exposed after the smoke sank.
above.
A gray
, two large humanoid birds, one black, were quickly fleeing the scene.
"Seal all the city gates! The city guards and thieves' guards immediately enter every square and every street in the city! All people wearing black and gray robes are arrested! The remaining soldiers clear the streets, and as soon as the residents return to their homes,
Outsiders must carefully check the directions and be sent back to the inn. They are not allowed to go out, and the innkeeper must carefully check the information and enter it in the book for inspection."
Before the two figures in mid-air landed on the opposite eaves, the Dianshi of Shangqiu City immediately loudly issued orders to the soldiers and officials behind him, and he conveyed them to every corner in an orderly manner one by one.
"Now form a column of ten people, five columns, and go out! Lift the big bell immediately!"
Mr. Dianshi, who had dark skin and a plain appearance and looked like an old farmer in the fields, shook the whip in his hand, took the lead, and galloped quickly towards the place where the big beam fell.
...
We were originally planning to chat and kill time, but who would have thought that this new groom, the little old man, Wang Huochong, and Lao Wang, who had some unpleasant things with a few people in the small wine shop, made Mr. Wei look at them with admiration.
From all over the world, from history to humanities, from food to fine wines, he can talk about it briefly, and from his seemingly honest but actually bright smile, Mr. Wei felt that this man still had reservations.
Everyone has a secret. Mr. Wei didn't want to know more about it, so he just started chatting about it.
"This bell is a thousand years old!" Wang Huo Chong, who was smoking a pipe in his hand, was currently squatting on the carriage, squinting at the large beams that kept emitting the crisp ringing of the bell, and said with emotion.
Mr. Wei, who was leaning on the carriage and drinking water, listened to Wang Huo Chong's words and nodded in agreement, "Yes! The seasons change, the rivers change easily, the dynasties have changed twice, the clocks have changed, but the bells have not sounded.
Change."
After hearing these words, Wang Huo Chong said nothing and smiled, but the frequency of smoking suddenly decreased a lot.
The two of them chatted and chatted, each enjoying the rare comfort. No one noticed the inexplicable gambling game or the two people who disappeared.
boom!
After a loud noise, the two people who were holding the carriage steady turned around in confusion, glanced at the dusty place, and looked at each other.