In winter, the eastern Hebei region looked even more desolate and dilapidated because all the trees and grass had been dug up due to the previous influx of refugees.

But at least the previous panic is gone, and the streets are bustling, noisy and lively.

In a small town not far from Daming Prefecture, a temple fair was taking place and people from near and far came to buy and sell firewood, rice, oil, salt and various mountain products for the winter.

“This business is not easy to do.”

“Life is not easy these days.”

"Yes, there was a war."

Several woodcutters squatting at the city gate were chatting with each other while waiting for business with their hands in their pockets.

Among them, a man in his thirties was very silent.

"This old man has a lot of firewood." Someone took the initiative to talk to him.

The man hummed, looking shy.

"I've never seen this before," another woodcutter asked curiously.

This town is always full of firewood collectors and sellers, and the same group of people are always coming and going. They all look more or less familiar.

"Oh, this is my first time here." said the unfamiliar man.

People on both sides laughed, as they all spoke the same accent and were very familiar with each other.

"Where is Weidian?" asked the person who had just arrived.

The unfamiliar man hummed and nodded.

"You have too much firewood." The person next to him said enthusiastically, "You shouldn't use so much firewood. It will be worthless if it gets damp."

"But maybe. I heard someone was collecting a lot of firewood recently." Someone else said, "Deshengchang in Damingfu."

They were a wealthy family, and everyone became curious.

"What would a family like Deshengchang need so much firewood for?"

"Except for cooking, they don't burn wood, they use charcoal."

For these working people who live from hunger to hunger, the life of the rich is unimaginable.

"It's quite funny to talk about it." The man said, motioning for everyone to gather together.

The man from Weidian also squeezed over with some curiosity.

"Has everyone heard about Deshengchang's branch family?"

Some people have heard of it and some don’t. After all, for them, they will never have the chance to deal with money in their lifetime.

The man briefly described the matter.

"So now the two young ladies' people are dividing the bank of Daming Prefecture with the young master's people. They are all experienced and shrewd people. In order to get them out of here quickly, Young Master Fang deliberately bought firewood to burn for warmth. The whole house was filled with smoke and people kept coughing inside. It was simply hilarious."

This is really funny.

"It's so embarrassing."

"What do you know? Brothers should make clear their accounts. These rich people know the difference the best."

Everyone laughed and talked until the sound of horse hooves stopped beside them.

"Hey, how much firewood do you have? I want all of it." A arrogant male voice asked at the same time.

No way, is it really...

The woodcutters looked on in disbelief.

"But we have to deliver the firewood farther away, to Deshengchang in Damingfu," the man said. "Of course, I'll charge you separately for the firewood."

It was indeed De Sheng Chang, a man of great fortune. The woodcutters were immediately excited and hurriedly responded while hurriedly packing their firewood.

The security in Daming Prefecture was much stricter than before. Even the manager of Deshengchang, who used to be able to drive straight into Daming Prefecture, had to be checked. These woodcutters were no exception. Their firewood was stabbed all over with spears.

"Isn't there going to be no war? Why is it so serious?" The woodcutter couldn't help but ask in a low voice.

"You don't know yet." The people who were being checked nearby whispered, "Duke Chengguo is on the run for fear of being convicted of a rebellion, and now they are trying to catch him and his family."

Everyone knew the name of Duke Cheng, and the woodcutters' eyes widened immediately.

"How could Duke Cheng commit treason?" they couldn't help but shout.

The people around were frightened and waved their hands at them.

"Die! Do you want to be arrested as accomplices?" they shouted in a low voice.

The woodcutters kept silent and dared not speak loudly, looking terrified.

"But why would Duke Cheng commit treason?" someone couldn't help but whisper.

This is not a question, this is a denial.

This statement made everyone silent for a moment. To the people in the north, Duke Cheng was like a god.

"How do we know what's going on above?" someone sighed in a low voice.

"Okay, stop talking and go into the city," the person behind urged, "Mind your own business."

These common people can barely survive, so how can they care about these big things?

The gloom at the city gate soon dissipated when the three words "De Sheng Chang" were seen.

"I'm telling you, you're from Weidian, you're really going to get rich and lucky this time." Someone said, looking at the man with the highest and most pile of firewood among the group.

The man smiled shyly, and although he didn't say anything, his eyes were shining.

"Where are you from?" The manager of Deshengchang asked casually while watching Yu Guan carrying firewood in.

The woodcutters answered one by one. When it was the man's turn, he looked at the manager of Deshengchang for a second longer.

"From Weidian," he said, pausing for a moment, "My wife's family is from Runan."

Country people will keep silent when they are nervous, but there are also some who talk a lot when they are nervous. The person in charge was not surprised at all when the man told everyone about his wife's whereabouts, and just said "oh".

The man lowered his head and was about to go in with the firewood on his back, but the manager raised his head again and sighed.

"You have a lot of firewood." He looked at it, "You are quite strong."

The man was embarrassed.

The manager pointed inside.

"That's right. There's a lot of firewood inside. Go and help carry it into the house." He said, "I'll pay you extra."

What a good job! The other woodcutters looked at the man with envy. The man thanked them, carried the firewood on his back and followed a fellow into the inner courtyard.

The yard was indeed filled with smoke and fire. The backyard was a little better. An old man in a brocade robe was sitting on the porch drinking tea.

"It's still quiet here. I'm almost suffocated, but these guys can still carry it." He complained to the servant standing in front of him, "Go buy more firewood, burn it, burn it hard."

The boy smiled and answered yes. The old man took a sip of tea and saw the man coming in.

"Master Zhou asked him to come in to carry firewood," the waiter introduced.

The old man looked at the man.

The man lowered his head, looking a little nervous.

"Old man, do you like playing chess?" he said suddenly, gritting his teeth.

Is this just making small talk? The guys were a little amused.

The old man also laughed.

"You country bumpkin know how to play chess?" he asked. He paused for a moment. "Have you ever heard of pig chess?"

What kind of chess piece is Pig Chess?

The employees laughed again. There was no such thing as pig chess in the world. The old shopkeeper was just teasing the country folk.

"I've heard of it." The man raised his head and said seriously, "My wife's family is from Runan, and she knows how to do it."

Is it true?

The employees were a little surprised, and the old shopkeeper laughed.

"Not bad, not bad, that's really the way they play there." He said, waving his hands, "Go, go, get to work."

The man did as he was told and walked away.

"Work hard, and this money is a reward for you to buy some wine." The old shopkeeper called him again, took off the purse from his waist and threw it away.

The purse fell at the man's feet. He was obviously frightened and didn't dare to take it. It was one of his employees who picked it up and stuffed it into his hand.

"This is a gift from our boss, so please accept it." He said nonchalantly.

For a woodcutter, a bag of small change might be a lot, but for the old shopkeeper of Deshengchang, it was just like fine sand.

The man thanked repeatedly and took it, unable to hide the smile on his honest face, which lasted until he left Deshengchang.

The woodcutters who were traveling with him envied the heavy bag of money hanging around his waist.

He made the most money this time, but he couldn't sell his labor.

The inspection at the city gate was still very strict, and no one was let off when leaving the city. They were checked carefully one by one. These people did not bring anything out except money. There was nothing wrong with the money, after all, it was earned from selling firewood.

The guards quickly waved them off.

The man didn't walk far with the woodcutters. He said he was going to visit a relative and left. It was just a chance encounter, so everyone didn't take it seriously and went their separate ways.

The man walked along the road with his head down until dusk, when he entered a village and went straight into a yard.

The lights were on in the house, and the sound of a woman weaving cloth could be heard. It was as quiet and peaceful as all the households in the village.

The man pushed the door open and entered the house. There were about a dozen people sitting in the small room, and the door was closed.

"Brother, I got it." The man said excitedly to one of the bearded men who lowered his head, and raised his purse.

The bearded man raised his head. His face looked a little old, but his eyes were young and bright.

"Is it true?" he asked.

"Yes, Deshengchang is announcing that they want firewood. It's because they are waiting for you, big brother." The man said excitedly, "Everything you asked me to say is right, just like we agreed."

That's right, the saying "we are in perfect harmony with each other" is not just a random statement.

A smile broke out on the bearded man's face. He reached out to remove his beard, revealing Zhu Zan's face, brilliant and bright.

"Was it her plan?" he asked.

The man shook his head.

"No one was mentioned, and I don't know if this was arranged by Miss Jun." He said in a low voice.

The smile on Zhu Zan's face faded, but he nodded immediately.

"That kid is very clever." He said to himself, "But she is still amazing. If it weren't for her, that kid would have definitely caught me and exchanged me for money."

Yes, that little bastard named Fang would definitely do this. He is a ruthless person.

He was silent for a moment. No news was good news. He cheered himself up and stretched out his hand.

The silver in the money bag was poured onto the table. Several men pinched the broken silver coins with their hands. After a while, many of the broken silver coins broke open and turned out to be hollow. However, no one was angry about being cheated. Instead, they looked surprised and pulled out small pieces of paper from them.

With the help of the light, you can see that the names and directions of the places are written on it.

The notes were placed on the table one by one, densely packed together, there were more than a dozen of them.

Zhu Zan stood in front of the table, stroked the notes one by one with his fingers, and then raised his hand.

"Let's go get the money," he said, picked up a bill and walked straight out.

The remaining men, like him, each picked up a fish stick, left the house and disappeared into the night.

At daybreak, several carriages and horses drove in front of the four city gates of Daming Prefecture.

Seeing the Deshengchang logo on the car, the guards opened the city gate without any questions and with a hint of joking.

"Finally couldn't stand the smoke and was smoked away?" an officer guarding the city laughed.

The managers headed by Deshengchang laughed and shook their heads.

"I can't bear it any more," he said. "That's about it."

The city guard shook his head.

"The richer people are, the more they haggle," he said.

The steward came forward and handed him a heavy bag of silver, and the city guard took it without hesitation.

"However, we still have to investigate," he said solemnly.

The steward smiled and stepped aside.

"Of course, sir, you have checked and found that we are innocent, so it is convenient for us to travel and do things." he said.

The general waved his hand, and the waiting soldiers stepped forward with their swords and guns raised. Several carts were opened, revealing the white silver bricks placed inside. Everyone was dizzy at the sight, but they endured the dazzle and poked the swords and guns into the silver bricks.

The box was so full that there was not enough space for even flies, let alone Tibetans. The general waved his hand impatiently and the soldiers put away their weapons and retreated.

"Let's go." said the general.

The steward smiled, bowed, thanked him, and jumped into the carriage.

"Let's go and deliver the money." He said loudly.

The general shook his head and sneered as he watched the heavy carriage drive out of the city gate.

"You are so happy to receive money." He said, and ignored her. Su Mu looked around the city gates again, "Watch out, if you find the family of Duke Cheng, kill them all."