The Su River is like a mirror, reflecting the green mountains and beautiful waters on both sides. The blue waves are rippling, rippling with yellow reeds.

A small cold raft followed the river toward Gusu County. On the way, I occasionally saw a quiet rural village. In the cold winter, the fields thousands of miles were cold and bleak.

Su Chen felt hungry, so he ate the remaining half of the coarse grain steamed buns and barely put them on his stomach. When he was thirsty, he used his little hands to scoop two handfuls of biting cold water in the river, warmed it up in his mouth, and then swallowed it into his abdomen to quench his thirst.

It doesn’t matter if you are tired of rowing the bamboo pole. Take a break and continue on the road. Just don’t let the raft float ashore or hit another boat. Su Chen used to walk on this waterway and was very familiar with it.

After several hours, the road gradually became prosperous. At about noon, Su Chen took a small bamboo raft to the Ximen Wharf in Gusu County.

At noon, cargo ships and fishing boats can be seen moored everywhere at Ximen Wharf, which is extremely prosperous and lively.

Su Chen didn't know much about Gusu County. He just listened to the fishermen and adults chatting after fishing and having dinner. He knew that Gusu County was the largest among the thirteen counties in Wujun, with a vast area of ​​thousands of miles of land. There were 100,000 families living in the city. It was the most prosperous and prosperous in Wujun.

Because the waterway canal is extremely developed, Gusu County is the center of the river transport of the thirteen counties in Wujun. Many fishing boats from neighboring counties and small towns, even the merchant ships from the north and from the southern counties to the north are often parked at the wharf outside the Gusu County to ship cargo.

Even in the cold winter and the cold weather, Gusu County is still very busy. Many people from this county and outside the county arrive at the Xichengmen Wharf by merchant ships.

There are traveling merchants with hurried looks, heroic heroes in the world with sharp blades and powerful figures, and various opera juggling craftsmen.

The other fishermen selling fish, farmers selling fruits and vegetables, woodcutters selling firewood, hunters selling mountain delicacies and game, and peddlers carrying goods to the streets and alleys, were constantly in exchange for each other.

There is a stone-slab Maple Bridge outside the Xicheng Gate, and there are many vendors at the pier beside the Maple Bridge, forming a market outside the Xicheng Gate.

From the pier beside the stone bridge, you can see a thousand-year-old ancient temple, a famous Hanshan Taoist temple in Gusu County.

Many coolie porters holding shoulder poles guarded the entrance of the stone bridge before dawn, bent down, waiting for the cargo ship to dock and unload the cargo, so there is a heavy work to do.

The sedan chairmen and porters not far away were staring at the passenger ships, waiting for the wealthy families to come and take the sedan chair.

Su Chen had been paddling the small bamboo raft for half a day, and his hands and feet were already weak. When he saw the stone maple bridge in front of him, he couldn't help but be happy. He quickly stopped at the pier and jumped ashore.

"Scented buns, hot steamed buns~! Every penny is a cage, so you can fill it!"

"Come and try it, the best fresh fruits and melons, just picked from the field!"

"The best dry firewood costs five cents per tumble!"

At Ximen Market, there were breakfast stalls selling steamed buns, hot soy milk, osmanthus pastries, fishermen selling fish, farmers carrying vegetables, fruits and melons, and woodcutters selling firewood, all shouting loudly here and hawking.

Su Chen walked at the pier, looking around, his childish face full of confusion.

He finally made up his mind to run away from home and planned to find a living in the county town to support himself. However, when he arrived outside the bustling West Gate, he was panicked and didn't know where to find a living.

He had no relatives to join him in Gusu County, so he only recognized A Chou, a good brother from Tianying Inn. But A Chou was also a miscellaneous guy in the inn. Life was also very difficult, and it was not much better than him.

He didn't want to implicate Ah Chou, he just thought about finding a job in the county town and supporting himself with his own strength.

Su Chen walked for a while and passed a vendor at the dock. He saw a steaming basket of steaming coarse grain steaming buns on the steamer. He couldn't help but "guru" and swallowed his saliva a few times.

He licked his lips and touched his hungry belly, wanting to buy a few big white steamed buns that were steaming hot.

Coarse grain steamed buns cost one penny and a basket of copper coins, which is not particularly expensive.

But when I touched my waist, I remembered that my small bag was left on the old fishing boat, and I didn’t have a penny of copper coins on my body and couldn’t afford it.

The half cold and hard steamed bun I brought from home had already finished eating halfway.

Su Chen touched his cramped belly and was a little worried.

I grew up in the lakes and rivers of Zhouzhuang Water Town, and only knows how to fish and shrimps in the river. After leaving the water, I came to this prosperous Gusu County, and I don’t know what I could make money to fill my stomach.

"You have to find miscellaneous work here as soon as possible and earn money to settle down in the county."

Su Chen thought anxiously, and walked around the Ximen Market, and ran to the wine shops, butcher pork shops, tea shops and other vendors looking for work everywhere, but there was no place to ask him for it.

The vendors either think he is too young or think he is weak and difficult to use.

Su Chen was disheartened and looked depressed.

Unexpectedly, it was so difficult to find a job to do jobs in this lively Ximen Market. He hadn't eaten for most of the day and was hungry and weak. If this continued, he would starve to death on the streets in less than two or three days.

"A big ship is here~I'm alive!"

The porters on the shore of Ximen Wharf suddenly became lively.

Su Chen was walking everywhere with worries. Hearing the lively sound, he looked up in shock.

At this time, a large rice ship was slowly docking and parked at the entrance of a pier near the Shiban Bridge.

Su Chen was very surprised.

Such a large rice boat must have a lot of rice to be transported and requires a lot of manpower!

He saw a black-faced porter leader waiting for the large cargo ship to dock with many porters at the dock.

"I! Porter brother, I can move goods, I'm the only one!"

Su Chen hurriedly ran over and asked the black-faced porter for a job. If you want to work at the dock, you must follow the foreman to have a bowl of rice.

On the dock, the porters burst into laughter, "Didn't you see so many mouths? Are you all waiting!"

"Go, where are the little kids coming to make trouble!"

The black-faced porter saw Su Chen, who was thin and weak, desperately penetrated into the crowd. The top leader lifted him out of the crowd, waved his hand in disgust and asked Su Chen to walk away quickly.

Any porter under his command can carry at least one or two hundred kilograms of burden. This kid can't bear dozens of loads with thin arms and legs.

Besides, there are many refugees in the cold winter now, and Ximen Wharf is not short of manpower.

Any move can attract dozens of men who are hungry and eager to do work. There are family members behind them to support them, so how could they recruit children to do such heavy work?

Su Chen couldn't help but sweated heavily. If he couldn't make money and could not buy steamed buns, he might starve to death in the county town.

At this time, a middle-aged and rich businessman in a fur coat walked out of the cabin of the large cargo ship, followed by a rather noble woman, holding a pretty lady in her hand, and got off the boat from the wooden pedal.

The three of them dressed in luxury and luxurious clothes, which was naturally completely different from the many civilian pawns at the pier, and were full of richness and exquisiteness everywhere.

Following the middle-aged wealthy businessman, there are more than a dozen servants, servants, and several old mothers with luggage.

This is obviously a wealthy family in the county town, with many servants and servants.

The rich lady was about eleven or twelve years old, but she was already a little beauty, wrapped in a thick and gorgeous sable fur coat, with red lips and white teeth, and her pretty face blew in the cold wind, making her red and pity-provoking.

Su Chen was shocked and hurriedly retreated aside, not daring to block the rich businessman, his wife and his servants.

The petite lady of the rich family got off the boat and happened to see Su Chen's head full of sweat jumping up and down, and she panicked like a little monkey. She couldn't help but smile "puke" and she smiled like a flower.

But soon, she realized the disparity in identity, snorted coldly, and showed disdainful contempt for Su Chen on her little face.

Su Chen was despised by the lady's eyes and felt a little ashamed. He stepped back a little, his head lowered as if on fire, and he didn't dare to look at it any more.

The black-faced porter who was waiting on the shore of the wharf recognized at first sight the rich merchant of Li, who had several rice shops in Gusu County. He should have returned from the townships in the county.

"Oh, Mr. Li, your old rice vendor is back, your business is booming, everything goes well on the way?"

The black-faced porter quickly stepped forward and bowed to the rich businessman in the rice shop, hoping to get a job to move rice.

"Oh, the world is difficult these days, and there are bandits who have become bandits everywhere outside the county town. I went to the town to transport a boat of rice and brought more than a dozen servants from the mansion to protect the boat. I was worried about walking along the way!"

The rich businessman from Li shook his head and walked off the boat, and was quite familiar with this black-faced porter.

"It's good that Mr. Li will come back safely, and he will be safe when he arrives at the county town. With officials guarding him, the bandits and bandits dare not approach the county town. After the cold winter, the thieves starve to death, they will probably calm down."

"Official officer? Alas! It's better not to meet them. Forget it, don't talk anymore. Old Hei Tou, take some people to transport all the rice to the Li family rice warehouse in the city. I also have to go to Hanshan Taoist Temple to do some things!"

The rich businessman from Li's family carried his hands on his back and gave a few instructions, asking the black-faced porter to take someone to move a boat of rice back to the warehouse in the city.

"Okay, thank you Mr. Li!"

The black-faced porter was overjoyed, nodded and bowed, and quickly turned around and shouted at the porters who worked, "Brothers, Mr. Li is a great meal, everyone is more quick to work."

The porters immediately rushed forward with joy, picking up rice, and moving goods. This trip can earn several days of meal money.

...

Although the wealthy Li family escorted a ship of rice and returned to Gusu County safely, his expression was still worried.

He goes out to buy rice all year round and walks around the world, so he naturally knows that it is becoming increasingly uneasy outside Gusu County.

In the past twenty years, Wu County has suffered many disasters. There have been more refugees and bandits who have fallen into the world, forming gangs and robbing families.

Only the five major gangs in Wujun, who have strong force, dare to ignore these refugees.

The powerful gentry in the thirteen counties of Wu County depended on the five major gangs in order to protect themselves. The power of these gangs became increasingly powerful, with thousands of disciples in the gangs rampant in various counties and villages.

So much so that the prefect of Wu County and the magistrates of various counties often rely on these gangs to come forward to solve many difficult things in the counties.

However, these are not things that the rich businessmen of Li need to worry about.

The rich businessman in Li's heart had another sorrow.

Over the years, he has worked hard to run several large rice shops in the county. Taking advantage of the disasters and famines in various counties in Wu County, he has accumulated food, bought low and sold grain, and has earned a lot of money and accumulated a rich family business.

However, after more than ten years of marriage, he has never had any children, and has never been married to several concubines in succession.

Finally, the third concubine gave birth to a baby daughter like Li Jiao for him. But his daughter was spoiled, weak in physique, often infected with cold and cold, and she never recovered from taking medicine, which made him anxious.

He wondered if he would send her to the Jianghu Gang to learn skills and practice. Practicing martial arts can strengthen his body and eliminate the root cause of the disease.

Moreover, in recent years, gangs in the martial arts world have become increasingly popular and are more promising than their own rice shops.

Although his Li family has several rice shops in Gusu County, and has accumulated a wealth of wealth over decades of business, and has raised more than a dozen servants, servants and old mothers at home, but they are better than ordinary people and have a low status in Gusu County.

Any number of yamen runners can act as a mighty man in front of him.
To be continued...