Plan to cut off the nine states

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The officers and soldiers knocked on the door only once and bang bang three times. If the door was not opened, they forced their way in.

The room was too dark. The first officer who broke in couldn't adapt for a moment. He cursed and was about to draw his sword. Ma Wei stepped forward, took his arm, stuffed a bag of things into his hands, and said with a smile: " Hard."

The officers and soldiers reacted quickly. As soon as their palms touched something, they immediately grabbed it firmly without holding the knife. They pinched and weighed it, made a rough estimate, and changed their attitude, "Ah, it's okay. Is this place so big? How many people live there?" ? Where are you going?

"Two people came from Luoyang to visit relatives in Bingzhou. Unexpectedly, my brother got sick and was trapped here."

"You didn't call Lou Chu, did you?"

"Brothers, both have the surname Ma."

The officers and soldiers took one look at the man lying on the kang, turned around and left the house, calling his companions to go to the next house. Everyone knew that he had benefited, and after only a few steps, they entangled him to share the spoils.

In the room, Lu Chu sat up straight and asked in surprise: "Is it so simple?"

"It's that simple."

"You can get five thousand yuan for arresting me, and you can get a few hundred yuan for letting me go."

"I don't know how many people will be sharing the five thousand dollars from you from top to bottom. Five or six of them will share the hundreds of dollars equally, but it's more."

Lou Chu was speechless. Although he had traveled before and suffered a little, this was the first time he felt the importance of money. "Then it's not advisable to stay here for a long time. Let's go find a boat elsewhere. We have to cross the river tonight no matter what."

"Looking for a boat? Do you want to be cheated again?"

"We have learned a lesson from the pain. Let's hold the money tightly and take it out after we cross the river."

"Okay, let's hit the road after eating."

The two of them ate half of the food and wine and left the other half, and packed their bags. Ma Wei went to the street to check on the situation, while Lou Ji went to fetch the horse. Ma Wei originally owned a horse but sold it a few days ago.

The officers and soldiers had just left the market, and the two led their horses away. They didn't go far when they bumped into the landlord. Ma Wei paid the bill without saying a word. The landlord's face immediately changed from gloomy to dark, and he nodded and bowed to see the two young masters off. He looked at They walked away, thought for a long time, and then ran to the front street to see the notice they had just put up.

Ma Wei had been fooled once before, so he knew the path and took the building foundation upstream along the river. "There is a small village five miles away. There may be a boat there."

The village is really small, with more than ten households, and most of the men are not at home. Women and children run away when they see outsiders. In the end, only an old man came out to meet others.

The appearance of Lou Chu and Ma Wei was too obvious. At first glance, they were the sons of the noble family. The old man was very polite, but his ears were a bit deaf. He had to repeat a few words before he could hear one or two words clearly, "Food? We don't have it here. Go to the market in front to find it." Look for it. Oh, it’s a boat. There were one or two of them that were requisitioned by the government. Let’s go and ask somewhere else.”

Ma Wei took out a few copper coins and shouted: "Let's hire a boat, one hundred coins!"

The old man still shook his head.

The two had no choice but to leave the village and continue upstream. Ma Wei no longer knew the way, so the two could only walk along the path, hoping to find another village.

After walking for three or four miles, the front became increasingly deserted and the sun was setting in the west. The two of them were somewhat nervous. Suddenly they heard loud singing from the river and saw a man punting a boat to the shore. It seemed that he was a fisherman who had just returned from fishing.

Lou Chu excitedly shouted "Boatman", and Ma Wei reminded him: "Be careful, he is coming from the direction of the downstream village. He may be here specifically to deceive us."

"He is alone, and we are alone."

"On the water, even ten people won't help."

The foundation of the building was also a little hesitant. The boatman heard the sound and looked this way and said loudly: "You two gentlemen, are you calling me? What are your orders?"

Ma Wei looked back at the direction of the checkpoint and said to the boatman: "Wait a moment." Then he whispered to the floor: "I have a dagger. Let's subdue him when we get on the boat and force him to punt across the river. When he reaches the other side, give him more His copper coin is."

Lou Chu thought about it, nodded and said: "This is the only way, give him more money."

The two met the boatman, and Ma Wei cupped his hands and said, "Boatman, are you taking people across the river?"

The boatman was a lean young man. He smiled and said: "The river bridge is not far from here. Why do you two take my boat? It's not safe on the river because of the strong wind and waves."

Ma Wei said: "We have something urgent to cross the river, and we have official documents from Luoyang Yin. Who knew that the rules here have changed, and documents other than those from the Ministry of War will not be recognized. It will take another two days to go back and forth to Luoyang, so we are looking for a boat to cross the river. I won't use your money in vain. When the boat reaches the other side, I offer you a hundred coins to thank you."

The boatman scratched his head and said, "That's right, but my boat is small and can only carry people, not horses."

The boat was indeed pitifully small. There was no room for people to stand even when the horses were on board.

Ma Wei said: "How about this, how about we tie the horse here and give it to you for a hundred cents?"

"It's useless for me to need horses. I can't afford the daily fodder alone."

"If you take it to the market, you can sell it for a good price, much more than a hundred coins."

The boatman looked at the horse and said, "Well, seeing how pitiful you are, it's okay to give it a ride. Tie the horse up and I'll come back to pick it up later."

The building owner tied the horse to a small tree and let it chew the grass on the ground. He untied the baggage and walked down the river bank to the boat with Ma Wei.

The boatman stretched out his hand to help, and when he reached the foundation of the building, he smiled and said, "Young Master has brought a lot of things."

"They are all books." Lou Chu replied. He glanced at Ma Wei and felt that there was indeed something wrong with this boatman.

The boatman Changhao pushed the boat away from the shore.

Mavi pulled the dagger from his boot and held it in his hand.

The boatman was startled, "What are you going to do, sir? Rob a boat or a person?"

"You don't need a boat or a person. Just hold on to the other side and the horse will be yours. You won't be spared even a hundred cents. Don't play any tricks."

The boatman laughed and said, "How can I, a poor person who is illiterate, come up with tricks? These two young men look like they are well-educated gentlemen. Their families are rich and powerful. If you lend me ten courages, you won't dare to do anything evil."

Ma Wei let out a hey, still holding the dagger and refusing to put it away.

The building owner also stared at the boatman, feeling that this man was very courageous and showed no fear at all.

The boatman was indeed not afraid. He rowed the boat one by one, almost to the middle of the stream, and started singing again, so high that it reached the clouds. Lou Chu and Ma Wei could only understand a few words. They probably sang about the hard and happy life of fishermen.

A gust of wind blew and the boat swayed. The boatman reminded: "You two gentlemen, be careful. The wind is strong. Don't fall into the water."

Neither of them knew how to swim, so they reached out to grab the boat's rail, and Ma Wei had to put away the dagger.

However, the rocking of the boat became more and more obvious, and the roof shouted: "Boatman, you are rocking the boat!"

Ma Wei also noticed something was wrong and pulled out the dagger again.

The boatman laughed loudly, threw down the wormwood, and jumped into the river. He was out of water. Soon, the boat was shaking and almost capsized. First, the building foundation, and then Ma Wei, fell into the water.

The boatman got on the boat dripping wet and muttered to himself: "Two idiots." He first reached out and touched the baggage left on the boat, and frowned, "What a book, this business is not worth it." He touched it again, and his face showed Smile, "I know scholars love to lie."

After waiting for a while, the boatman punted the boat and pulled up the two people who were floating in the water one by one. He found a string and tied it up, and threw it at the stern of the boat. He continued singing and ignored the two people who were caught.

At dusk, the boat reached the other side, and the boatman shouted into the trees: "Brother, come and see, I'm lucky today, I caught two big fish!"

Four people emerged from the bushes, wearing civilian clothes and straw sandals, but carrying knives on their waists. One of the men in the lead looked into the boat and said, "You want to keep money but not people. Why did you bring them here?"

"Brother, I don't know. I saw a notice at the market, saying that the assassin's accomplices were to be caught, and a reward of five thousand was given. I thought these two people looked a bit alike. They didn't dare to take the main road, and they hired my boat specifically. I guess there must be some Weird."

The man got on the boat, threw the two of them to the shore one after another, picked up the baggage, and said, "There is something in stock."

"Some are books. Brother keeps them. There is also a horse on the other side. Should I bring it over or sell it directly?"

"Sell it and exchange it for some good wine and meat." The man was very happy, jumped ashore, and went into the bushes with three others carrying people and baggage.

The boatman crossed the river again. He was very familiar with this place and dared to punt even after dark.

Lou Chu and Ma Wei were not fainted, but were tied by ropes and could not move. They looked at each other and secretly complained in their hearts. The two noble gentlemen knew nothing about people and things in the world, so they thought that having a dagger could scare the boatman. , and in the end, he didn’t even have the strength to fight back.

There was an open space among the trees, and an iron pot was standing in the middle. It was steaming, and I didn't know what was being cooked.

The fourth robber threw the prisoner on the ground, one of them looked into the pot and cursed, "Finally, I don't have to eat this pig food anymore. When the fourth robber comes back, let's have a good drink!"

The boss checked the baggage, threw the book aside, found the coins and jewelry, cheered, and cheered again when he saw the winter coat. He stood up and put it on his body, and said to his companions: "Do you think I look like a gentleman?"

The three brothers all said it was similar. One of them saw the gourds and meat in the bag and rushed to grab them and put them in his mouth.

The four thieves scolded and robbed. The boss regretted his slowness and threw away his robe. He took the meat in one hand and the gourd in the other, bit open the mouth of the gourd, took a big gulp, and laughed, as if officials were promoted, merchants sold at high prices, and farmers dug out treasures.

In a short time, all the wine and meat were eaten. The four thieves were not full, but were even hungrier. After searching here and there, no other food was found. The first thieves stared at the captives and licked their lips, "These two chicks are full of meat. It will definitely taste good if cooked. ”

Ma Wei couldn't help but say, "Thieves also have their ways. Since you have already obtained wealth and things, why waste your lives?"

"What's the saying, 'There is a way in the way'? This is not nonsense. How can we call it... a way without a way?" This robber was really hungry, so he drew his sword and stepped forward.

The boss stopped him and said, "Don't move. These two people may be able to get five thousand dollars in exchange."

"I don't want to kill anyone, just chop a piece of meat from my thigh."

"Bah, look at how they look. It would hurt to death even if you cut off your fingers. Don't worry, there will be something to eat when the fourth child comes back."

"Why hasn't Fourth come back?" The robber walked out of the bushes and looked into the distance.

The boatman had to fetch horses, sell them, buy wine and meat, and would not be able to return for a while. The four thieves carried away the iron pot, added firewood to keep warm, and sat in a circle to chat.

"What did the fourth child just say? Is there someone who is an accomplice of the assassin?"

"That's what he said."

"Haha, what a joke, look at these two people, who can wield a knife or a gun? They must have made a mistake."

"There is no need for the comrades to take action."

Ma Wei couldn't help but speak again, "You are also heroes in the world, don't you have any sympathy for the assassin?"

The four thieves laughed and said, "We are not heroes, we are just boatmen on the river. Someone has rebelled. We cannot go home and are living here. I will hand you over to the government tomorrow and we can go home in exchange for money."

Lou Chu said: "Where are your hometowns?"

"Stop talking nonsense." A thief got up and walked over, kicked the foundation of the building, turned around and said with a smile: "I have wanted to kick these pretty boys for a long time. Every time I see these people drinking and chanting poems on the river, they are always surrounded by people. There are so many women, and I hate them so much.”

"Haha, just give me a few more kicks, just don't kill me."

The robber kicked them hard, and Lou Chu and Ma Wei were lying on the ground. They had nowhere to hide and could only endure the pain. They just couldn't bear the humiliation and were in a state of embarrassment.

The robber was tired and murmured: "It's been dark for so long, why hasn't the Fourth Brother come back?"

"Brother!" A voice came from the river.

"Here we are." The four bandits came out of the bushes, not only to greet their accomplices, but also to welcome the long-awaited meal of wine and meat.

Lou Chu and Ma Wei looked at each other and struggled to get up. After a few moves, they saw a few more pairs of official boots in front of them, obviously not the bandits just now.

The two looked up and saw several strong men standing in front of them, holding swords and guns, with incomplete armor on their bodies, and they didn't look like soldiers at all.