Chapter 46: Mengzhou Road, Big Tree Cross Slope

"County Master, please stay, please stay!"

In the backyard of Yuncheng County Government Office, Cao Jie presented a large gift, established connections, and then got up to say goodbye and leave.

Even though Shi Wenbin was considered a clean figure in the corrupt officialdom of the Song Dynasty, he accepted the gift without any hesitation.

It has always been like this in official circles; it’s just a convention!
"You, little Mengde, have made a fortune by going to Cangzhou. I will take care of Wu Song's affairs. Whether he is a deputy general or the leader of a military camp, he can choose."

Shi Wenbin, who was full, was almost patting his chest to make a promise.

Firstly, he was truly moved by the bribe offered by Cao Jie; secondly, he really admired Wu Song and was willing to lend him a helping hand.

As the saying goes: Those who are righteous have many supporters, while those who are unrighteous have few supporters.

This "Tao" is linked to money.

"If Wu Erlang takes this step and gets an official position, he will have to thank the county magistrate for his promotion in the future!" Cao Jie bowed with a humble attitude.

Shi Wenbin was also very friendly and knew how to use people well: "Okay, okay!"

What is money? Money is shit. Things that can be solved with money are never called problems.

On this day, the gold, silver and jewelry obtained from Cao Jie passed through Shi Wenbin's hands and were then escorted to Tokyo by Wu Song.

After arriving in Tokyo, the gold and silver will pass through the hands of certain people again, and one day it may become a birthday gift and fall into Cao Jie's hands again.

The world is bustling with people, all for the sake of profit. The world is bustling with people, all for the sake of profit.

Wu Song and five soldiers drove three carts westward.

In front of Cao's house, Xiao Jinlian and Yan Poxi, who were exhausted after a night of tossing and turning, said goodbye to Cao Jie reluctantly:

"Sir, come back soon!"

Cao Jie was full of vigor and vitality, and he said: "You will be able to come back by the end of the year. Stay at home and practice your instrument or cultivate. If you have nothing to do, go to the flavor tavern in Wuda to kill time."

Xiao Jinlian bit her cherry lips with her pearly teeth: "My lord, you are gifted. If you feel lonely during the journey..."

"Hey! The land of gentleness is the grave of heroes. A real man should have ambitions and not be sentimental. I'm leaving! If there is anything at home, just let Wu Da know."

All the brothers gathered at Wu Da's Flavor Tavern and ate a bowl of dumplings. Cao Jie told Wu Da: "Da Lang, don't panic when things happen. I have already taken care of everything officially. But the county magistrate is a man with many things to do. If you need help, just go find the two captains, Lei and Zhu."

"Don't worry, brother. I do business in an honest way and don't like to cause trouble. But you have to be extremely careful when you go out. I have told you not to let your life go unnoticed."

"Don't worry, Dalang, we have our brothers here. It's getting late, let's get going!"

When he came back this time, Cao Jie not only used the relationship of Shi County Magistrate, but also sent a gift to Song Jiang, Lei Heng and Zhu Tong.

As the saying goes, "The more courtesy you give, the less blame you will get." As long as you use the hoe well, you can dig down the corner of the wall.

Although Song Jiang didn't mention it, Lei Heng and Zhu Tong were very considerate of him.

On the official road, yellow leaves rustled, wheels rumbled, heading west towards Tokyo.

Traveling is always boring and uninteresting. Ruan Xiaoqi drove the cart and sang his almost rebellious lyrics in a country tune all the way, which really made people sweat.

Cao Jie had no choice but to rack his brains to recall the singing style and lyrics from his previous life and teach him to sing.

Not to mention, Xiaoqi was born with a good voice and a good singing voice.

"Yan Zhang rode his horse to the north slope, where new graves were piled up alongside old ones."

The high-pitched and tragic Qinqiang voice, as loud as iron, emanated from Ruan Xiaoqi's dantian, and echoed in the bright universe as he exhaled and sang.

Cao Jie and his companions had just returned from the north, and the days of war and battle vaguely emerged before their eyes, with countless people stepping to the fierce drum beats, holding their swords, and ready to die.

As for Yanzhang in the lyrics, his full name is Wang Yanzhang, nicknamed "Wang Tieqiang" in the army. He was from Shouzhang, Yuncheng, and was a general of the Later Liang Dynasty during the Five Dynasties period.

This is almost the old man from the next village.

He is an extremely loyal and brave man with superhuman arm strength. When facing the enemy in battle, he often charges forward without regard for his own safety and leads the charge.

After singing a line, Ruan Xiaoqi felt unsatisfied, so he took out his wine gourd, took a sip of the old wine, and his eyes became bright as if they were burning.

The strong wind ripped the yellow leaves in the forest, like the whistling west wind rolling up the flags, the green mountains were like the sea, and the setting sun was like blood...

Ruan Xiaoqi sang to accompany his wine, his voice was like the sound of war and iron horses, even though it was hoarse, it made everyone feel that their internal organs were trembling slightly with his voice, as if they were pulled into the chaos of war.

"…The new tomb buried Emperor Guangwu of Han, and the old tomb buried Xiao He of Han. Han Xin was buried on the back of the Azure Dragon, and Zhuge was buried in front of Wuzhangyuan."

Ruan Xiaoqi jumped off his horse and strode forward with a stern and majestic look, like a general who had fought in hundreds of battles and a hero from an unknown place. Even if he stepped off a cliff, he still had blood and soul that seemed to be burning.

A hoarse and heroic voice, as if stained with blood, echoed: "Don't waste your life. Even if you die, what's there to be afraid of?!"

"it is good!"

Wu Erlang cheered loudly, and everyone said good things in unison.

"Seventh Brother, one more."

"another one."

"Then let's sing another hero song..." The boring time on the road becomes extra exciting because of the brothers.

That day, everyone left Shandong and arrived at Mengzhou Road.

From a distance, there was a big tree standing on the slope.

Judging from the visual, it was about 70 to 80 feet high, and four or five people could not hug it together. The trunk was covered with dead vines as thick as arms, like a python.

The surrounding forest blocks out the sun.

It's obvious that it's a dangerous place.

"Brother, there is a tavern in front."

Shi Qian had sharp eyes and vaguely saw a wine flag through the dense forest.

"We have finished our wine, so it's a good time to play Sanhulu."

While singing and drinking, Ruan Xiaoqi shook the gourd at his waist and licked his lips.

Cao Jie knew exactly where this place was, but he didn't say much.

On Mengzhou Road, at the big tree and the cross slope, Sun Erniang was making human meat buns.

This Sun Erniang is nicknamed Mother Yasha.

Yaksha, Yaksha and Yakkisha are synonymous and all come from Sanskrit, which means "eating ghost" or "swift ghost", implying "brave" or "violent and ugly".

Buddhism says it is a man-eating evil ghost.

This pair of demons lurked on the Cross Hill. The husband Zhang Qing only carried human meat buns to sell outside, while the bloody work of stabbing and slaughtering passers-by to make human meat food was done by Sun Erniang at home.

Moreover, Sun Erniang did it with great skill, which shows how vicious she is.

As the saying goes, every failure makes you wiser, and human growth is inseparable from various encounters.

Several cars arrived in front of the Cross Hill, and Cao Jie saw a woman with a plump buttocks sitting by the window sill in front of the tavern.

In mid-autumn, it is not too cold, but it is not hot either.

But she showed her green gauze shirt, with a yellow hairpin and some wild flowers in her hair... She wore a bright red silk skirt underneath, had rouge and lead powder on her face, and opened her chest, revealing a peach-red gauze waist with gold buttons on it.

Looking more closely, one could vaguely see murderous intent on her brows and a fierce look in her eyes.

But that plump white foot was particularly captivating. The clogs hooked between the bright red toes were swaying back and forth, as if they were going to swing into people's hearts.

Seeing the guests coming, the woman glanced at everyone and came forward and said with a smile: "Oh, you guys have come from afar, please come in and rest! I have good wine, good meat, and big white steamed buns!"

"Bring me a few gourds of good wine, some good meat, and some big steamed buns." Ruan Xiaoqi threw three gourds on the table, and started yelling, ignoring the woman selling horse fork worms.

This is even more true for Wu Song. He only has brothers in his eyes, not women.

However, Cao Zheng, the son-in-law, looked at the woman a few more times and couldn't help feeling moved.

It seems that people with the surname Cao all like this.

Cao Jie looked carefully and found that it was indeed a big, white and delicious steamed bun.

Several people sat at two tables, and soon the wine and meat were served. The steamed buns were indeed big and white, which made people very hungry.

Ruan Xiaoqi didn't suspect anything. He was hungry, so he picked up a steamed bun and was about to eat it.

Cao Jie reached out and held Ruan Xiaoqi's arm, shaking his head at him.

Wu Song and Shi Qian also said at the same time: "Seventh brother, wait a minute!"

They both cried out at the same time and looked at each other.

Shi Qian smiled and said nothing more.

Wu Song said solemnly: "It turns out that my brother has also seen the clues. This store is not a legitimate store."

"Dark shop?" Ruan Xiaoqi frowned, revealing a murderous look.

Cao Jie picked up a large white steamed bun, tore it open, looked at it carefully, and looked at the woman with a smile: "Then boss, let me ask you a question, is this bun made of human flesh, dog meat or pork?"

The plump white woman's face froze, then she ran over with a smile, grabbed Cao Jie's arm and pushed him into her arms: "Sir, look at what you are saying! In this peaceful world, where is there any place for steamed buns made of human flesh or dog meat? The big steamed buns in my house are made of beef."

Wu Song said coldly, "You are a woman who tells lies all the time. I, Wu Song, found out everything before I left. There is a saying: 'Who dares to cross the big tree cross slope? The fat ones make steamed buns, and the thin ones fill the river.' Are you thinking that I have no knowledge?"

Ruan Xiaoqi was stunned for a moment: I seem to have heard this sentence somewhere? Yes, it was Erlang who said it in Caozheng Hotel.

"Brother, look at the hair in this steamed bun..." Shi Qian broke open several steamed buns in a row and picked out a long curly hair from them.

"boom!"

Ruan Xiaoqi slammed the table in anger, stood up and said murderously: "You actually used human flesh to wrap buns and gave them to grandpa to eat. I think you are tired of living..."

As soon as the words came out, a hand as strong as a diamond grabbed the woman.

(End of this chapter)