Chapter 16 Dangerous Songjiang Town

After passing Huaitingkou and heading north for about twenty miles, you will reach Songjiang Town, which is under the jurisdiction of the Jingwei Mansion.

The exile team must arrive at Songjiang tonight before dusk.

Songjiang Town is neither big nor small, but it is a must-pass place where the north and the south meet. Therefore, the market trade is relatively prosperous. Geographically, it is not too far from the capital. Merchants who come and go to sell goods will most likely find a comfortable and clean inn in the town to stay if they are not in a hurry.

Firstly, to find out what is popular among the dignitaries in the capital recently; secondly, to exchange news from all over the country with merchants from all over the world in Songjiang Town, a thoroughfare.

Therefore, in Songjiang City, people from all walks of life have complicated identities, and many things are no longer surprising to everyone here. Many people with strange costumes or even mysterious looks occasionally pass through the city, but no one pays much attention to them.

We are all working hard to make a living, so who cares about those complicated etiquette?

After finishing their work during the day, many customers would rest in the open shops on the roadside as soon as it got dark, drink some tea and listen to books, just to comfort themselves from the day's fatigue.

The small teahouse is located on Laiyun Street, between the north and south city gates. Four bamboo poles hold up an oilcloth to cover the roof. There are five or six tables under the tent, and long wooden benches on both sides for customers to rest.

At the top was a long table, on which were placed the storyteller's teapot and wake-up stick.

The time for the next storytelling show has not yet arrived and the storyteller has not arrived yet.

People came into the shop in groups of three or four. Some sat down to rest for a while, drank a bowl of water and left, while others had some tea to fill their stomachs and asked the shop owner about the content of today's storytelling.

"Are you still talking about the old book today, sir?"

The shopkeeper smiled mysteriously and said, "Sir, you've come at the right time. The storyteller is telling us something very fresh and exciting today. It seems to be related to the strange things that happened in the capital a while ago. Our guests will be here soon. Could you all have something to eat first?"

After hearing this, the merchant became interested.

He invited his companions to sit down together and gave the shopkeeper a few coins. "Please, boss, please bring us some good tea and delicious food."

Soon, several tables around were filled with guests.

At the beginning of the You hour, the sky gradually darkens and lanterns are hung on the four corners of the teahouse.

A gray figure walked slowly out of the shop and stood in front of the storytelling desk.

Under the dim light, the storyteller's bearded and thin-cheeked face, which suddenly stopped talking, actually looked a bit legendary.

"Sir, what are you talking about today?" A guest in the hall shouted impatiently.

Upon hearing this, the storyteller smiled, raised his arms and clasped his fists, bowed to both sides, and said in a loud voice: "No need to worry about the book, let me first wish you all peace!"

The show starts with a one-stop service to warm up the place. The shopkeeper and his waiters go around making tea and adding water for everyone. When the old man lifts his robe and looks serious, everyone knows that a good show is about to begin!

The wake-up stick struck, and the storyteller opened his voice, recounting the sudden downpour that had fallen from the sky a few days before in the capital...

"The Xie family of Northwest China was defeated in the war, and their entire clan was doomed. However, on the day their property was raided, the Xie family ancestral hall unexpectedly caught fire. While the fire was raging, in broad daylight, a torrential downpour fell over the ancestral hall! The dark clouds were strange, falling squarely over the Xie family ancestral hall. The fire in the mansion was extinguished by the rain, and the ancestral hall remained intact. This, my readers, must be puzzling: how could the Xie family have such good fortune?"

"Sir, don't keep me in suspense. Tell me now!"

The old man stroked his beard and smiled, saying calmly, "Don't think I'm talking nonsense. It's not surprising that such a strange thing happened to the Xie family. Because in the Xie family ancestral hall, there is a tablet of the family god, which has been passed down from generation to generation for more than a hundred years."

"I know about the Xie family's god. The government office has posted a notice. Isn't the Xie family's god fake? It has never appeared!" someone laughed.

A guest nearby chimed in, "Who says there's no miracle? Didn't the master say the fire was put out by heavy rain on the day the house was raided?"

"Really? Or is it fake?"

"I just came out of the capital, and some people in the city said that they saw a strange sight in the mansion that day."

Everyone's curiosity was aroused and they all asked the gentleman to continue.

"To tell whether the deity the Xie family has worshipped for a hundred years is truly effective, we must begin with the extraordinary event that occurred when the Xie family ancestor, before his death, unexpectedly received the deity's mercy. After being resurrected, he traveled eight hundred miles to mobilize troops to rescue Taizu."

In the teahouse, the guests listened with great interest to the storyteller's recounting of the legendary stories of the Xie family. Occasionally, someone would interrupt and mention the Xie family's downfall, which aroused everyone's curiosity.

With the protection of the household gods, how could such a large mansion fall?

The storyteller smiled and said, "Heaven and earth have their own principles, and the human world has its own laws. Everything depends on chance. Immortals don't interfere in mortal affairs, and mortals shouldn't discuss immortals. Back then, the Xie family was protected by the gods, and Taizu was assisted by the men of the Xie family. The army marched west to east, conquering cities and strongholds, sweeping across the Central Plains and laying the foundation for Daliang. Since then, the Xie family gods have returned to the Heavenly Palace to cultivate, and have not appeared again for a hundred years."

"Some people may ask, why is it that the gods have appeared again now?"

"Yeah, why?"

"Because the Xie family's bloodline is at the brink of death! The gods couldn't bear to see the Xie family extinct, so they appeared again in the human world to save the Xie family's young and old from danger. The emperor was magnanimous and commuted the death penalty to exile. Calculating the date, the exile team is likely to pass through our Songjiang Town soon."

As soon as the old man finished speaking, everyone heard people outside the shop talking about the exiled prisoners who had just arrived from the south city gate.

Everyone had just heard the strange story of the Xie family, and now they all turned around and looked south. After waiting for a long time, they finally saw a group of soldiers with swords coming in from the opposite street corner, escorting prisoners to be exiled.

Since Xie Yuchuan met You Zhan at noon, he spent the whole afternoon recalling everything that happened when the war in the northwest was tense, especially Xie Yuheng's reaction. He thought about it over and over again, but did not find anything wrong with his third brother, nor did he find any women from the You family around him.

You Zhan's words were very certain and did not seem to be lying.

But the bodies of his father and brother had already been carried back to their hometown for burial, and no matter how much Xiahou Jie disliked the Xie family, he would not make a fuss about these affairs after their death.

He was seriously injured and unconscious and was escorted all the way back to Beijing. You Zhan was right about one thing, the only thing he did not see was his third brother's body with his own eyes.

Xie Yuchuan's thoughts were completely immersed in the news brought by You Zhan. Seeing that he was silent all the way as if he was thinking about something, the other family members did not dare to disturb him. Occasionally, when they took a short break on the way, they would give him some food and drink.

After rushing all the way, everyone was exhausted. When he realized it was getting dark, the exile team had already entered Songjiang City.

A large group of special forces passed through Songjiang Town. Xie Yuchuan glanced around and a dark light inadvertently appeared in his eyes.

He slowed down his pace and looked carefully at the floating shadows. There were many ambiguous gazes around him.

Xie Wuying has been practicing martial arts since he was a child, and he always has some inexplicable intuition about unusual things. As soon as he entered Songjiang Town, he always felt that something was not right. As he was walking, he bumped into Xie Yuchuan who was slowing down in front of him.

"Sixth brother, why do I feel like something is wrong? Maybe I'm overthinking it."

Xie Yuchuan said: "You don't think too much, let Huaizhang and the others cheer up."

Xie Wuying was instantly alert: "Okay!"

As the team walked, they passed by a small tea shop. Xie Yuchuan walked forward with the shackle on. When he looked up, he met a pair of familiar eyes.