National color raw owl

() There was silence all around, Chu Huan finally sat down, smiled and said to He Xigu: "Old man, it looks like we won't be able to get out for a while."

He Xigu sighed: "We are the ones who have caused you trouble." There was worry in his expression.

Chu Huan observed his words, and asked, "The old man seems to have something on his mind."

He Xigu smiled wryly and said: "Dake, it's not a big deal for me to go to prison, but... It's just that Da Qimeng's clansmen are still waiting for us. If we don't return for a long time, I'm afraid something will happen."

Chu Huan said: "Old man, I see that you have been trying your best to tolerate it all the time. It seems that you are worried about offending the government. Could it be that you are very afraid of the government?"

He Xigu shook his head and said: "Dake, I'm already old, I don't care about life and death, and I don't fear any government. It's just that now we have something to ask from the government, so we have to compromise. I tried my best to avoid conflicts with the government before. I'm just worried that once a conflict arises, they will use it as an excuse to clean up our accounts, but the old man can't think of it, although I try my best to tolerate it, but they are unreasonable...!"

"The old man has accounts with the government?"

He Xigu nodded, "Dake is an outsider, so he doesn't know about it. For more than 100 years, we Guifang people have lived in the continuous Daqimeng. Although the Central Plains is vast and rich in resources, only Daqimeng is our shelter. Land. Although there are many mountains and forests in Daqimeng, there are many things that are lacking besides mountain products. After the ancestors lived in Daqimeng, they did not worry about food. There are many animals and fruits in the mountains. Men hunt and women gather Fruit, it’s all right.”

"Could things have changed now?"

"Yes." He Xigu nodded and sighed: "For more than 100 years, the people of Guifang have relied on Da Qimeng's products to survive. The wild animals on the mountain are now extremely rare, and they are not enough to support the people's food. And Daqimeng There are fewer and fewer fruit trees on the mountain, as early as a few decades ago, we Guifang people began to change the way of survival."

Chu Huan sat across from Hexi Valley and listened carefully.

"Dake may also know that a long time ago, we Guifang people and Central Plains people had conflicts, and the relationship between the two sides was not harmonious. The Great Qimeng Mountain was obtained by our ancestors exhausting all their wealth. Order, people from the Central Plains are not allowed to easily enter Daqimeng to affect our lives, and we also cannot make trouble in the territory of the Central Plains people."

Chu Huan nodded slightly, and said, "I've heard about it now."

"So after staying in Daqimeng, our ancestors did not go out of the mountains for many years and did not communicate with the people of the Central Plains." He Xigu said helplessly: "Besides, the people of the Central Plains have a deep prejudice against us ghost people. Once we go out of the mountains, we will be full Later, the food on the mountain could not meet our needs, and the food we needed could only be obtained from the people of the Central Plains. The government forbade us Guifang people from doing business, and did not allow us to open shops in the city. Naturally, we had no money to buy food , there is only one way in the end, and that is to barter."

"Exchange mountain products for food?"

"To be more precise, we use mountain silk and medicinal materials in exchange for food." He Xigu said, "Although we do not get along well with the people of the Central Plains, it is after all related to the livelihood of tens of thousands of people in the [-]th Cave of Daqimeng. The winter before last, there was a snowstorm in Daqimeng, and there was a shortage of food. Hundreds of people starved to death in the sixteen caves of Daqimeng. , contacting people from the Central Plains. At that time, the business of Anyi Road was controlled by the Huang clan in Anyi, and the head of the household department at that time was a member of the Huang clan, called Huang Zhigui!"

Chu Huan nodded. He understood this point. Since the Huang clan is so powerful in the court and they are the top snakes in Anyi Road, there will naturally be members of the Huang clan as officials in some important yamen of Anyi Road. Moment controls the household department, and almost all household officials from top to bottom are involved with An Guogong. As the old nest of the Huang clan, the Anyi household department is naturally controlled by the Huang clan.

"We found Huang Zhigui, gave him a generous gift, and discussed with him about exchanging mountain products for food." He Xigu said slowly: "At first Huang Zhigui didn't agree, but later we sent a batch of mountain silk, which is a big The special product of Qimeng Mountain, Daqimeng Mountain has Qimeng Mountain silkworms. Our ancestors learned the craft of silk making from the Central Plains people. After the discovery of mountain silkworms in Daqimeng Mountain, they began to breed silkworms and make mountain silk. ” Paused, pondered for a while, and finally said: “Not long after the mountain silk was delivered, Huang Zhigui gave us an answer, agreeing that we can use the mountain silk to exchange food, but the two parties agreed that all the mountain silk, It can only be handed over to the Department of Household Affairs, and after accounting, the Department of Household Affairs will provide us with food...!"

Chu Huan said: "Huang Zhigui can agree, naturally there is a huge interest in Shansi."

He Xigu said: "In fact, we later realized that the price of mountain silk is very expensive, and the benefits we get are only [-]% of it, but as long as we can exchange for food, we don't care about it. At first, we mainly used mountain silk The silk supplies food twice a year. After each supply to the mountain silk, they will give us the grain within a month. It is difficult to make, and the annual output is not much. Although we will not starve to death with this transaction, we will not be able to eat completely. Later, we have specially planted medicinal materials. In this way, sixteen holes The people of the tribe can eat their stomachs."

"It's respectable to rely on your own hard work to support yourself." Chu Huan nodded and said, "This time you came to Taiyuan Mansion just to ask for food?"

He Xigu nodded and said: "Exactly, every year in summer and winter, we will transport back grain. Three months ago, we delivered the mountain silk and medicinal materials for the second half of the year to the Department of Household Affairs, and Huang Zhigui has already accepted it. Less than two months ago, we sent people to prepare to transport back the grain they were supposed to deliver to us, but when the people we sent went back, they were empty-handed. We sent people to come a few times later, but Huang Zhigui always avoided But one day, we got the news that something big happened in Taiyuan Mansion, the Huang clan rebelled, and Huang Zhigui had already fled Taiyuan City, the old man knew that things were bad, but there was no food, how could the clan survive this winter?"

"Which newly appointed master doesn't deliver food?"

"Yes." He Xigu said with a wry smile: "We have been here for more than half a month, almost every day we go to the office of the Ministry of Households to look for the head teacher, but the reply we get is that we are always busy with business and don't see us. Looking at the day It's getting colder every day. If we don't transport the grain back in time, there will be a danger of food shortage in Shiliudong. You have seen the situation today, Dake. We have been waiting in front of the yamen of the Ministry of Finance since last night. When the teacher came out, but he...!" Sighed, "He said that those goods were inspected by Huang Zhigui, since Huang Zhigui rebelled, the Department of Housekeeping has nothing to do with him, we have to go to Huang Zhigui if we want food Ask for it." There was a hint of anger in his eyes, "Dake, back then we were not doing business with the Huang clan, but doing business privately was banned by the government, so we approached the Department of Household Affairs and hoped that they would be lenient. The subsequent contracts were also signed directly with the Ministry of Household Department, not with Huang Zhigui personally... You said that if we want food now, if we don’t go to the Department of Household Department, who can we turn to?”

Chu Huan knew that the Guifang people were facing a desperate situation now, but the government's control over the Guifang people was quite powerful, and the lifeblood of the Guifang people was actually controlled by the government.

As He Xigu said, the two seasons of trading each year are the basis for the survival of the ghost people. Once the transaction goes wrong, the survival problem of the ghost people will become serious.

It's no wonder that He Xigu has been begging for perfection. Behind him is the survival of the Guifang people. Once they turn against the government and cut off their food supply, the Guifang people will be in a desperate situation.

Chu Huan was quite disgusted with the evil deeds of Guifangren's ancestors, but after a hundred years, Guifangren now kept to himself and survived on his own, but it was also sympathetic when people sighed.

Chu Huan pondered for a moment, and finally asked: "Old man, I heard that your ancestors came from the Western Regions?"

He Xigu nodded and said: "Exactly. Our ancestors were a caravan from the Western Regions. At that time, the Western Regions traded with the Central Plains. Although our hometown is far away from the Central Plains, there are some warriors who brought merchants The team traveled thousands of miles to the Central Plains. It is said that when they came, there were only more than 300 people, but they brought a large number of goods, and it was those goods that allowed them to quickly establish a foundation in the Central Plains. I never went back to my hometown...!"

"Then can you send people back to your hometown now?" Chu Huan asked, "Do you still remember where your hometown is?"

He Xigu shook his head, "After living in the Central Plains, we have adapted to the living habits of the Central Plains people. Although we still retain some customs of our ancestors, there are not many left. As for our hometown, it is said that our ancestors have left It’s been a long time since we came to the Central Plains, and we don’t know where our hometown is anymore, maybe we’ll go west until we reach the end...!” He sighed, feeling a little melancholy.

Chu Huan hesitated for a moment, then suddenly asked: "Do you still remember the language of your ancestors? Since your ancestors came from the Western Regions, they should have their own language."

He Xigu nodded and said: "Of course there are. But after coming to the Central Plains, the ancestors gradually communicated in the Central Plains language... I also learned a little bit when I was young, but I don't remember much."

Chu Huan lowered his voice, spoke a very strange language softly, and then asked: "Old man, can you understand what I just said?"

There was a look of surprise in He Xigu's eyes, and he lost his voice: "Dake, you... how do you know... understand our language?"

Chu Huan's heart was shocked. When he heard that Gui Fangren came from the Western Regions, he had an idea in his mind. All along, Chu Huan kept in mind the [Mantra of Suppressing Demons] passed down from the mouth of Master Ghost, but the strange language, Chu Huan I have always been puzzled, thinking in my heart that since this ghost is from the Western Regions, he doesn't know if he understands the meaning of "Suppressing Demon Mantra".

Chu Huan also knows that the Western Regions are definitely not one or two countries. There are countless countries in the Western Regions, and their languages ​​are naturally diverse. Try, with the mentality of a blind cat hitting a dead mouse, who knew that He Xigu said this, and it seemed that he understood what he said just now, which made Chu Huan feel excited.