After waking up

There are still gas lights at the station in the Shire, but in the town, except for the gas lights hanging at the entrances of hotels and other places, there is no public lighting on the streets. Many people can only follow the people in front of them when they go to their destination in batches. The residents who came to receive people moved forward, and the lighting was a kerosene lamp in the hands of the residents.

The man leading the way for Mulan was a man with a slight injury to his left leg. He was walking sideways in front of him holding an oil lamp. He very considerately tried to shine the light at the feet of Mulan and Handel, and there were others beside him. A man carrying an oil lamp walked in front.

Although the man has leg problems, his walking speed is not slow, or faster than ordinary people. He, like the Shire resident in front, carries a shotgun on his back.

"Three gentlemen, please be careful where you step. The stone slabs are upturned in some places. You may trip if you are not careful. There may be shallow pits in some places, so be careful not to step in them."

"Thank you, we will pay attention. It seems that few outsiders come to Shire."

Mulan asked in passing, and the man answered with a smile.

"It is true that there are very few outsiders coming here, but even if the Shire is like this now, the Shire was very lively when I was a kid."

"Yes, I saw it in the book."

Mulan occasionally chatted with the man, mostly to learn about Charles' situation.

Handel followed silently, and there was another person walking silently beside Handel. It was the person who had come to contact Mulan in the car before.

In fact, the three of them were going to two houses. The reason why Mulan chose this man with leg problems was precisely because he saw him talking and laughing with another person. He must be a friend or something more. They were probably neighbors who lived relatively close to each other. The sallow-faced passenger chose one of the two, and Mulan chose the other.

The two Shire residents in front were always walking very fast, and they often urged the three people behind them to follow closely.

"I've been gone for so long, when will we arrive?"

The silent man with a sallow face suddenly asked, and the resident with leg problems quickly answered with a smile.

"It's fast, it's fast. The main reason is that we don't walk fast. We'll be there in ten minutes at most."

The Shire resident who walked ahead looked back and muttered something.

"These city people are really valuable."

Mullan and Handel just pretended not to hear the complaints in front of them, but their walking speed was really not slow for ordinary people. If other passengers were in the same situation, some of them would probably be out of breath.

Hearing the complaints from the front, the passenger's face became even more ugly. To be honest, even at night, when Mulan saw this face, he felt that someone must have owed him a lot of money but he didn't say anything more. .

The man leading the way walked in a hurry and would look up at the full moon in the sky from time to time. The man with weak legs who was responsible for lighting Mulan and the others would also look at the moon from time to time.

Both Mullan and Handel saw these actions, but did not immediately speak out.

The surrounding area seems to be becoming more and more remote, but the entire Shire Town is not much better. The outside is actually better, at least it has a local style.

After about ten minutes, the two waves of people were about to separate. The man in front led the passengers with sallow faces into the branch road, while the residents with leg problems continued to move forward with Mulan and Handel.

"Do they live far away?"

Handel asked Mullan's concerns directly. He knew that the professor was paying attention to the passenger.

"Not far away, there are neighbors. It only takes a minute or two to get to their house. Look, my house is just ahead."

There is a two-story building in front, with warm yellow light coming from the windows.

"Well, let me give you the room fee first."

Mulan took the initiative to talk about the cost issue very considerately, and handed the six small silver coins in his hand to the man. The latter took it happily, and his steps were more agile.

"Let's go, there's some soup at home to warm you up."

"Dong dong dong, open the door. I'm back with the guests. Is the soup ready?"

The man crossed the final road in a few steps and knocked on the door to ask the family inside to open it.

After the door opened, there was a middle-aged woman wearing an apron, a tall and thin young man with a slightly green face, and three children whose ages were obviously decreasing.

"This is my wife, these four are my children, and these two are distinguished guests from Digao. Is the soup ready?"

"Okay, okay, it's hot!"

The woman showed a slightly nervous smile, grabbed her apron and pulled the children out of the way, allowing her man and two guests to enter the house. The two couples wanted to help carry the luggage, but Mulan and Handel avoided it. .

In a country like this, it is normal for there to be no gas lamps. There were two candles lit in the kitchen. The man put the kerosene lamp on the table and blew out the candle next to it to replace the lighting, making the room much brighter.

Mullan and Handel sat down at the table. The four children stood by the wall curiously and nervously watching them, while the two parents were busy, carrying pots and washing dishes by the stove. Conversing quietly.

The woman asked the man in a low voice.

"How much did you give?"

"6 silver coins are the Queen's silver coins newly printed by the empire!"

"Hey Hey."

The couple looked very happy. In a country like Shire, although 6 Yindi was not a lot of money for an ordinary family like theirs, it was definitely quite a lot of money for extra money.

"Come on, come on, drink the soup. This soup tastes great, and there are some meaty bones in it!"

Two bowls of thick soup were served out. It was steaming, but it didn't look very hot. It was obviously the leftovers from dinner, and it was heated again in the evening. However, neither Mullan nor Handel disliked this kind of thrilling soup. On a cold night, a bowl of hot soup is always comforting.

"thanks, thanks!"

Mulan and Handel thanked him, took a sip with the spoon, raised his head and smiled.

“The soup is delicious.”

Then Mulan gave up the spoon, picked up the bowl and started drinking. Handel was holding the small wooden spoon very gentlemanly and drinking spoonful by spoonful. When he saw Mulan's action, he immediately gave up the spoon and started drinking from the bowl. stand up.

The actions of the two "city dwellers" made the family smile.

"By the way, gentlemen, what happened to your train? Why did it stop at the Shire in the middle of the night?"

Unlike the first group of residents who came to the station to help, this group of residents did not know anything about what was going on there. Mulan glanced at Handel and said casually.

"Something happened on the train, causing the train to be damaged and unfit to be started again. Moreover, everyone is very tired and wants to take a good rest."

"Oh, that's right. By the way, let me remind you two gentlemen that in the Shire, it's best not to go out at night. Of course, you two are just staying here, so you won't leave casually."

"Of course not! Except for the convenience of going out."

Mulan smiled and replied that in general, families like this would either use a bucket or go out at night.

"Uh-huh, it's best to use a wooden barrel. It's just around the corner on the other side of the corridor."

A few minutes later, the two men were taken to the end of the corridor upstairs by the male host. There was only one room, but there were two beds. It was obvious that Mulan and the others occupied the room of two boys.

After a few more instructions, the host left the room, leaving Mulan and Handel alone. Handel walked to the door and looked outside, then quietly closed the door.

"Handel, what do you think?"

"They are hiding something from us. Judging from the way they look at the moon, maybe the people in the Shire know something about werewolves."

Mulan sat on a bed and shook his head slightly.

"Maybe there are some bad experiences. Please be more vigilant when sleeping. But in Shire Town, it shouldn't be a big problem."

Handel sat on the other bed, took off his hat and loosened his collar.

"Professor, where is the werewolf hiding?"

Mulan looked out the window. On such a bright moonlit night, the outline of the mountains in the distance was clearly visible. Although their train drove for a while afterwards, it was basically going around the mountains, so judging from the distance alone, there might not be It was too far from the location of the attack, at least not as far as the passengers thought, and the average passenger didn't realize it.

"The mountains over there are full of maze-like mines. There is something wrong with this place in the Shire."