Royal Road

It is not easy to travel from Jizhou to Bingzhou. Chen Yue first boarded the ship in Dongpingshu and went upstream along the Zhangshui until Yecheng. Then disembark, go west through Fukouxing, and enter the territory of Bingzhou. It takes a few more days to get to Jinyang.

This road is a thousand miles away. It was a boat ride and a mountain ride. However, what surprised Chen Yue was that he never encountered banditry on the road!

He followed, but a caravan, and a caravan that carried a lot of food!

However, things are so surprising. In addition to the inspection and inspection of each pass, the journey went smoothly and smoothly, so I arrived at Jinyang. Standing outside the city wall that was tall and majestic, not inferior to Yedu, even him, a man who was old in business, was in a trance.

The checkpoints in Jincheng are a bit more stringent than elsewhere. After all, with the crowds entering the city, the pros who followed behind couldn’t help but look around and praised: “This Jinyang city is really extraordinary. There are so many people!”

I really don't blame him for making a fuss.

On the spacious streets, vehicles are crisscrossed and overcrowded, and occasionally there are situations where two vehicles run side by side and cannot avoid the road. Husbands with high noses and deep eyes led the camels, camel bells jingle, and walked unhurriedly. The vendors pushing the trolley looked for gaps to drill around, provoking curses from time to time. Some women wear long power fences to cover their faces, while others face the sky, carrying bamboo baskets and wooden boxes, and they don't know whether they are shopping or returning home. There are even more men with the appearance of scholars, in a hurry, looking like a long journey.

Such a scene, I am afraid that only Luoyang in the Taikang period will be able to see it, right?

Coming all the way by boat, Chen Yue disembarked several times along the way to observe what the market needs. The counties and counties in Jizhou are actually not prosperous. Not to mention the refugees everywhere, many places are still reclaiming wasteland and building fortifications, which are quite barren. But when you arrive in Sizhou, especially when you enter Yedu, it's quite different.

Thanks to its excellent geographical location, Yecheng’s bazaar has begun to take shape, and it is impossible to see the tragic situation of repeated looting in the previous two years. The silk brocade, paper, and porcelain produced in Bingzhou are all transported to Haixing Port through here. The grain and groceries brought by the sea-going ships will also be transported to Bingzhou and Luoyang through Fukouxing and Baigou.

How could Chen Yue let go of such a hub? Hastily started a business. The goods brought from Xingang were sold out all at once. With enough silk cloth, he rushed to Jinyang calmly. But now, truly stepping into the heart of the Northland, he immediately regretted that the goods were sold too early. Where can you find business opportunities in such a prosperous metropolis?

For that matter, Chen Yue did not show up, just coughed, pretending to be indifferent: "I'm afraid that the autumn test is just around the corner, and scholars from all states will flock to it."

"Is the system really so powerful?" The pro-successor was even more amazed, "Lord, if you also try to get off the court? Maybe you can still get a job in Bingzhou?"

"Absurd!" Chen Yue screamed, hiding her embarrassment. He has read a few books, how can he participate in this level of talent selection? What's more, he is here for business, what does it have to do with the manufacturing department? !

Regardless of the street spectacle anymore, a group of people turned their heads and headed for the West Market. When it comes to the real bazaar, it is a different look. It's a huge area, it's just a shop, it's dazzling! Not to mention the rare horses and furs in the south, as well as the porcelain, paper and paper produced in Bingzhou, and even the brocade spice products are very different.

Why is the color of this yarn so bright? How is the brocade pattern spun out? Is it really the essence of flowers in a glass bottle? What kind of crystal can be seen on the makeup box?

Walking all the way from east to west, both legs were about to break. After seeing how many rare things, Chen Yue just didn't decide what to buy. With this little money in his hand, how can he get a sufficient amount of good goods!

I thought that when I arrived at Haixing Port, I would make a fortune. Unexpectedly, the real treasure house is in the hinterland of Taihang, thousands of miles away! Upset and tired again, Chen Yue sighed, planning to find a place to rest, use a meal, and then ponder carefully.

The place to eat was decided long ago. At the beginning, he negotiated the business in the Denghai Building in Haixing City. There is a Dengyun Tower in Jinyang, which is said to be the same main house, and it is also a favorite place for banquets of Jinyang merchants. Since I'm still going to do business, I naturally have to go there to inquire about one or two.

Dengyun Tower is not far from the West Market, two streets away, you can see the tall flag flags and gate towers. This building is really not low, with three floors above and below, and the decoration is even more exquisite. It is said that the three-story top floor only entertains the wealthy of millions of people, and the dining and furnishings inside are not inferior to the mansions of aristocratic families.

But the bottom floor looks similar to Denghai Tower, spacious and bright, and full of voices. There are also many boys and girls who carry baskets and buy fruit refreshments outside the building. Doing my own small business here.

As a Haike, Chen Yue will not miss the money for meals. But the purpose of coming here is to inquire about the news. Therefore, he did not board the seat on the second floor, but found the position near the window on the first floor. The dining table in this restaurant is also a bit weird. However, Chen Yue saw that the number of diners sitting with legs hanging down was no longer in the minority. Obviously they are all merchants, not so particular.

After a day of walking, Chen Yue couldn't control that much anymore, and sat down at will, looking at the dish cards hanging on the wall. There are more than a dozen dishes in one row, and there are three rows. Some dishes look familiar, while others are puzzled. Fortunately, most of them have prices. Chen Yue looked around for a long time, summoned the servant who was waiting for the tea, and ordered three dishes and a pot of wine.

It's not that he is stingy, it's that the business hasn't been finished, and it's not time to enjoy the appetite. Moreover, he is from the south, and he may not be able to eat the meals of the north.

He didn't dislike the lack of what he ordered, and he didn't take much effort. Two dishes were served first. One innocent, but tofu mixed with chives, tender and lovely. Taste a product, and it can taste slightly sour, which is very good for him. The other is a soup made of chicken and sashimi, with a chicken nest, which is slightly salty and thick, which is also smooth. The wine is a newly brewed fruit wine, warm and dense, extremely relieved of fatigue.

After eating for a while, the last one finally came up, it was a bowl of steaming Shui Yinbing. This is a signature dish with red silk. Chen Rui didn't have a preference for pasta, only to see that many people were on the table, he wanted to move. From a closer look, the appearance of this Shui Yinbing is not bad, the noodles are cut into long strips, the soup is clear, with oily flowers, and two pieces of sauce-colored meat are placed, and the fragrance is tangy.

Picking up a piece of noodles with a wooden chopstick and eating it into his mouth, Chen Yue immediately felt the difference. This is not the usual soft, chewy noodles. On the contrary, the noodles are vigorous and springy, the wheat fragrant, and the taste is really good. The meat is fat and tender, it turned out to be lamb! But there is no mutton smell at all, and I don't know what spices are added in it.

Such a steaming bowl, when the autumn and winter come, really makes one's index finger move. Chen Yue also let go of his mind for the time being, and started eating wholeheartedly. However, after only a few bites, the sound of diners talking came to my ears.

"I heard that Jizhou is going to cultivate the official way again, this time the aristocratic family will also be involved..."

"Which family will consume manpower and material resources to repair the official road? Isn't that the business of the state county officials?"

"Who knows? It's just news from the Governor's Mansion. It seems profitable?"

"What's the advantage? Isn't it a mansion shop next to the post station?" The man smiled, "Jizhou is next to Youzhou and Yanzhou, and it might be a fight someday!"

There was joyful laughter, but Chen Yue's heart was ups and downs. Open a shop outside the station? These people have never been to Jizhou, but he has been! Just on the day from the port to the ferry, I don’t know how many pavements I have seen.

It's all a long journey, who doesn't need to eat, drink and chew? Without official status, you can't live in an inn, can you only live in a shop? This seems to be a big deal! What's more, he has seen Jizhou Xingang. As long as he brings enough food, he can obtain the purchase share of Bingzhou porcelain and salt. How about road building? Isn't it a good opportunity to join the game?

He is not financially rich, and it is definitely impossible to transport tens of thousands of stone grains in one go, but it seems that it is not impossible to support a section of the road...

The more he thought about it, the more he became restless, Chen Yue finished the bowl of food in two of three, and ordered his servant to take account of it. Then he hurriedly left Dengyun Tower.

Because there was something in his mind, he walked hurriedly, and when he went out, he almost ran into a bullock cart. Thanks to the unpleasant behavior of the other party, he avoided it. Chen Yue knew that he was wrong, and apologized again and again, but the man in the car was so temperamental that he did not hold him accountable and let him go.

Seeing the look of the team of merchants who were panicking, a middle-aged man in the car shook his head: "Jinyang people are messy, no better than they were back then..."

He had been in Luoyang when he was young, and he had also seen the appearance of the former majestic and majestic capital. Now Jinyang is big, but chaotic and disorderly, after all, it loses most of its style.

"What the sir said. These few days are being opened, and it is inevitable that there will be chaos. There is a shortage of people in the North, so this is the strategy." The young man serving on the side laughed.

"Is the department going to start?" The middle-aged man asked in a blank rhetoric.

Faculty is now the number one event in Jinyang. No one knows who came here. This sounded like a fact of life. The person who was asked didn't think it was strange: "Exactly."

This question and answer revealed some differences. The gentry of the world have always held two attitudes towards the opening of divisions. Some people feel that this is a humble move, which has broken the morals of the world. Others feel that this is also a chance to get ahead. It's just that between the two, there are no exceptions, and they agree with the former.

The two people in the car are really from high school. The elder Mingwei Association came from Hedong Weishi. The young name Xun Ming comes from the Yingchuan Xun family. Although neither of them is a serious sect, their surname is also the best in the world.

But the two of them did not have much hostility towards the department.

Hearing what his disciple said, Wei Xie twisted his beard: "No wonder it's so messy. Just leave the West Market and enter the mountains as soon as possible."

Xun Ting said: "Maybe those who burn incense and pay homage to the Buddha in the mountains will have to pay more."

Wen Yan, the head of the Health Association sighed: "Fine. At least after the exam, you can see Mr. Liang Jun. I don't know when the murals in the Huai'en Temple can start?"

For the National Health Association, it doesn't matter how the department is made, what matters is the work received on hand.

Now Hedong is occupied by the Xiongnu again, and Wei Wei and Wei Yan, brothers of Wei's sect, also went to Yangzhou. He arrived in Wudi when he was young, and studied painting with Cao Buxing, one of Wuzhong's "Eight Uniques". At this time, he has also become a master of art, and he has become famous as the San Wu, and he is known as the saint of painting. However, all the scholars traveled south, so he went north by boat. It was precisely because Huai'en Temple wanted to rebuild the main hall and paint the colorful wall of the Buddha, that he was invited to come all the way.

The Health Association does not value the rewards given by Huai'en Temple, but the Buddhist cave just opened in Xishan, Jinyang, has moved him even more. His teacher Cao Buxing was good at painting Buddha, and he was known as the "ancestor of Buddha painting". He also learned the same technique himself, and is very close to Buddhism. And now, Jinyang is a first-class Beidi Shizong, and even the eminent monks like Zhu Fahu have settled in Huai'en Temple.

This kind of Buddhist temple is valued, and it makes people's heart fascinating. Not to mention the continuous mountain ridges, which are purely stone-carved Buddhist caves. Artisans from Xiliang, Dunhuang, Dayue and other countries have worked hard to produce masterpieces, but just observing them will be of great benefit. How can you let go of such a painting idiot as the Health Association?

Hearing that the National Health Association was coming to Bingzhou, his disciple Xun Deng also followed and served on his side. Although he also loves painting, Xun Zhen is different from Wei Xie's obsession with only painting. Yuzhou is now full of chaos, and Yingchuan has suffered frequent military disasters. The Xun family is already preparing to move south and seek refuge in the new emperor. However, Yingchuan is very close to Sizhou, and the family will inevitably plan to make three caves. Now that Liang Zixi has occupied the territory of the three states, he has become a prince. It would be inappropriate not to bet on him.

Therefore, Xun Tang also means to inquire. However, Xun Ting was open-minded, and he did not feel bad about the various measures of Bingzhou. On the contrary, I feel that this place is full of life, far better than that of the South. Therefore, even New Deals such as Zhike are not repellent. Now I feel that Xun's family should leave a few sparse sects and seek refuge in Bingzhou.

But if you want to return, it will ultimately depend on the meaning of the elders in the family. Soon, Xun Zhen put these mundane affairs behind and talked to the teacher about the stone sculptures in the Buddhist caves.

The ox cart slowly, calmly, turned away from the crowd.

The author has something to say: ancient pasta is called biscuits. When you arrive in Shanxi, you will naturally have to eat noodles.