The capital city in the twelfth lunar month was already extremely cold.
After the sunshine at noon yesterday, part of the snow had turned into water and flowed all over the ground.
At first glance, the streets this morning were basically full of ice skaters.
Groups of children, wearing thick cotton-padded jackets, holding each other's hands together, walked carefully on the smooth ground.
From time to time, someone would accidentally slip and fall. Because they were holding hands, a team fell down one after another, like dumplings, all falling to the ground in an orderly manner one after another.
With a burst of laughter, the children climbed up again, held hands together again, and enjoyed the free entertainment facilities endlessly.
San'er got up early, sat obediently in front of the table, and started studying.
After laying out the paper, I started to try to write crookedly on it with a brush.
I don't know when, a drop of ink was smeared on my face, like a little actress in an opera deliberately pretending to be ugly, it was really cute.
Looking at San'er who looked serious, Xiao Chen nodded happily.
After changing into casual clothes and placing his standard knife on the knife holder, Xiao Chen turned around and took out a strange short knife with a black scabbard and a silver handle from the cabinet.
Although it is said to be a short sword, it is actually not short at all, it is just a few inches shorter than his standard sword.
This knife was accidentally obtained by Xiao Chen when he was handling a case involving the Mongolian envoys when he was still in Jinyiwei.
The reason why I like this knife is that it matches my personality so well.
The black and low-key scabbard is just like Xiao Chen's often expressionless face, and the extremely sharp blade hidden inside is in line with his determination to kill with one strike.
The most important thing is that there are two words engraved on the silver-white handle of this knife, which is also the name of this knife: Libian.
Before this, Xiao Chen didn't know what the true meaning of the name of the knife was. However, after getting it in his hands, the meaning of Libian should be: the blade is unsheathed and the body and head are separated!
After packing up everything, Xiao Chen gently closed the door and walked out.
Apart from children playing, there are almost no adults walking on the slippery streets.
But for Xiao Chen, if he uses a little internal force, no matter how slippery the road is, it will be smooth.
He raised his collar, slightly covering his ears, and headed towards the town where the accident happened like a gust of wind.
Since Zhang Shanren's potential opponent is the Wang family, let's start with the Wang family to see if we can get anything useful.
It was more than an hour after we arrived in the small town. The sun rose more than ten feet high, spreading its warmth to the earth without hesitation.
Although it was still biting in the cold wind, the streets beneath my feet had a somewhat melting atmosphere.
When your feet step on the ground, it is no longer slippery and ordinary people can walk.
Residents in the north are in a state of laziness throughout the winter.
If you put a hoe on a frozen field, it will only leave a white mark, making it impossible to work on it.
However, as farmers, their hard-working nature makes them not in the habit of sleeping in.
Therefore, unlike the capital city, when the sun has just risen, there are already pedestrians in twos and threes on the street, squatting in sunny areas, enjoying the free warmth of the winter sun, and discussing the harvest of the next year's crops.
"Old man, please tell me how to get to the Wang family in our town?" Xiao Chen asked politely to a group of old people gathering under the tall wheat straw stacks to bask in the sun.
"Wang family? There are many people named Wang in our Qinghe store. Which Wang family are you asking about?" Everyone raised their heads and looked at this young man who looked very energetic.
It turns out that the name of this town is Qinghedian.
However, I didn't ask San'er last night. How should I continue to ask about the name of the Wang family?
Zhang Shanren's family died on Huangquan Road once by alerting the enemy. Now, he still hopes to get some useful clues from the Wang family, so that the Wang family will not be put into crisis.
"It's the Wang family who always distributes steamed buns." Xiao Chen had an idea and said.
"Oh, keep walking along this road and turn right at the end." An old man covered his eyes with his hands and looked at Xiao Chen.
"Thank you, old man." Xiao Chen responded and continued to walk forward.
"Looking at this person's clothes, he doesn't look like he can't afford to eat, and he also wants to line up to get steamed buns."
"Didn't you see that young man had a knife in his hand? He must be a gangster. These days, it's normal for a gangster to have no good backer and not have enough to eat."
"It's not that the new year is approaching. That person might want to join the Wang family in order to find a solid job."
"It's possible. Last night, Zhang Shanren's family was killed. The Wang family may also want to find more people in the world to build relationships and protect their family."
"Hey, this kind man usually doesn't have any enemies, so how come his whole family was killed overnight?"
"Who knows, the government has sealed Zhang Shan's family. It's true that these people are celebrating the New Year soon. They have been doing good deeds all their lives and will not let it go this year..."
Watching Xiao Chen leave, the crowd started talking.
When he reached the end of the road, Xiao Chen turned right and saw a courtyard that was much larger than the surrounding houses.
The stone lions on both sides of the door, which were as tall as each person, stared at Xiao Chen with eyes as big as fists.
There is no plaque hanging on the 1.5-foot-high gatehouse, just two candles in red lanterns, which are still flickering in broad daylight, unintentionally showing the wealth of the owner.
Two men in servant attire stood at the door, each holding a wooden stick as thick as an arm.
Maybe they had been standing for a long time, so the two of them kept stamping their feet on the steps to create a little warmth.
Xiao Chen walked up and stood in front of the two of them: "Is this the Wang family that distributes steamed buns every month?"
Seeing someone walking in, the two servants stopped stamping their feet, looked at Xiao Chen warily, and secretly exerted force with their hands holding the wooden stick.
"Let's go, let's go. We won't serve these steamed buns anymore, and we won't serve them again." A servant waved his hand and said.
"Why didn't you post it?" Xiao Chen was stunned.
Is it possible that the murder of Zhang Shanren's family has made the Wang family afraid to follow suit?
If this is the case, wouldn’t the monthly expectations of the poor people in the town be in vain?
"If you don't send it, you won't send it. Why do you have so many problems? Doesn't the master need your consent before he decides on the affairs of the Wang family?" The servant said disdainfully.
A poor man who ran around in the world actually went to the door of the almsgiver's house and asked questions.
"Please let me know, I want to see your master." Xiao Chen said calmly with a cold look on his face.
"Who do you think you are? You want to see our master. Go back where you came from. If you don't leave, don't blame me for being ruthless with the stick in my hand." As he said that, the servant stomped the wooden stick in his hand on the ground.
A few times.
"No rudeness." With a voice, the door creaked open from the inside.
A middle-aged man in a gray shirt walked out of the door.
