The master said not to judge people by their appearance

Cangzhou City is close to the Cangjiang River. Apart from the wide and vast main stream of the Cangjiang River outside the city, there are countless small tributaries of the Cangjiang River, which are as luxuriant as the branches and leaves growing on the trunk of a big tree.And a considerable part of these tiny branches and leaves flowed through Cangzhou City. If you overlook Cangzhou City from a high place, you will find that more than half of the city's criss-crossing roads are waterways.

The Cangjiang River passes through the city, and one of the largest tributaries is called the Yanshui River. There is a lot of drizzle in the south of the Yangtze River, and the drizzle falls on the clear water, like mist, like a fairyland.

This is the famous grand scene of Cangzhou City. The two sides of the Yanshui River are also the most prosperous. The towers and pavilions stretch for dozens of miles, and Linjiang Tower is among them.Even though it is night now, the banks of the Yanshui River are full of feasting and lively lights, and there are even flower boats with colorful lights moored in the river. Sitting on the Linjiang Building, you can faintly hear the laughter of the women in the flower boats.

"Master Xie, how is the view of the Yanshui River?" Xu Xin smiled.

"That's right." Xie Yunlan said sincerely, although this Jiangnan is not as vast and vast as beyond the Great Wall, nor as prosperous and magnificent as the capital city, but it is also a graceful and beautiful scene.

"Just leave the affairs of Hekou Village to the subordinates. Since Mr. Xie came to Cangzhou, let's have a good time and enjoy the ten-mile towers on the banks of the Yanshui River." Xu Xin smiled and toasted.

"It's my first time in Cangzhou, and I'm not familiar with the customs of this place, so I asked Mr. Xu to entertain you a lot." Xie Yunlan also smiled, and he raised his head and drank the wine in his glass.

"It's easy to talk, easy to talk!" Xu Xin followed suit and drank the wine.

The rest of the people also came to pay their respects, Xie Yunlan never refused to come, regardless of the rank of the officials toasting, he always had a kind smile and seemed to be easy to get along with.

Everyone felt relieved when they saw this. The sudden visit of the special envoy of the emperor made many people feel drummed and suspicious of the purpose of the other party's visit. Seeing that Xie Yunlan's attitude is easy-going, and he is not the kind of straightforward and unreasonable person, everyone also agreed. Be more casual.

The atmosphere at the banquet was harmonious, and after paying respects to Xie Yunlan, Xu Xin turned to toast to Shen Fan again: "Master Shen Fanfan, I have heard the name of the envoy of the Dragon God for a long time, I would like to offer a toast to Master!"

Shen Fan didn't know the etiquette on the wine table, and he didn't know how to respond to a toast, but he picked up the wine glass and felt that the smell was very similar to fermented rice, probably also sweet, so he wanted to imitate others and drink it up in one gulp.

However, before the wine reached his mouth, Xie Yunlan snatched it halfway.

"He doesn't know how to drink." Xie Yunlan confiscated Shen Fan's wine glass while pushing the freshly served squirrel mandarin fish to Shen Fan.

Shen Fan was attracted by the smell of squirrel mandarin fish, immediately forgot the snatched wine glass, picked up chopsticks and started to eat fish.

Seeing this, Xu Xin's small eyes hidden in his flesh rolled around. He has been able to hang around until today, and his ability to read words and expressions is superb. He will not be that annoying person who forcibly persuades him to drink. Said: "This green snail shrimp is also one of the famous dishes in Cangzhou, master must try it."

Shen Fan didn't pay attention when he listened to Xie Yunlan's instructions, but he immediately raised his head when he heard the food, he picked up a piece of shrimp to taste, the fresh and tender shrimp mixed with the fragrance of tea, light and refreshing.

All the way to the south, Shen Fan has not eaten such delicate and delicious dishes for a long time, and the dishes in the south of the Yangtze River are sweeter, which suits Shen Fan's taste better than the dishes in the capital. He likes both squirrel mandarin fish and green snail shrimp. .

Thinking of Xu Xin just saying that this is just one of the famous dishes in Cangzhou, he asked, "What other famous dishes?"

Xu Xin laughed loudly: "That's too much, since master wants to eat, let them all eat it once!"

He clapped his fat palms and called Xiaoer to come up and order.

There were footsteps on the stairs, and there was another person who came up besides the guy from Linjiang Building, a man dressed in luxurious clothes and wearing gold and jade.

The man waved his folding fan, leaning on the fence of the stairs in a leisurely manner, and said, "I said, why is Linjiang Tower so lively tonight? It turns out that the adults are drinking here, why didn't you invite me?"

Everyone at the banquet, including the prefect Xu Xin, stood up to greet him when they saw him: "Young Master Luo!"

Master Luo?Xie Yunlan's thoughts changed. This person was obviously not a member of the officialdom, but a commoner could make Xu Xin value him so much. Combined with Luo's surname, Xie Yunlan thought of something.

The second prince's biological mother, Mrs. Luo, was from Cangzhou. The Luo family was originally one of the four great families in the south of the Yangtze River. After Mrs. Luo became favored, her status rose even higher. More than half of the salt transportation business in the south of the Yangtze River was taken care of by the Luo family.The current head of the Luo family is Mrs. Luo's younger brother, Luo Zhantu. Judging from this man's age, he should be Luo Zhantu's nephew.

"Young Master Luo doesn't know something. Today is Lord Xie's sudden visit, so I will hold a banquet here." Xu Xin smiled and introduced to both parties. As Xie Yunlan expected, this person is the eldest son of the Luo family, Luo Hongyuan.

"So it's Mr. Xie, I'm sorry, I'm sorry!" Luo Hongyuan bowed his hands, he said disrespect, but his actions were frivolous and casual, and he looked like a dandy.

The dandy Xie Yunlan had seen a lot, so he was not angry about it, he smiled at Luo Hongyuan, which was regarded as a greeting.

"Since Mr. Luo is here, why don't we have a drink together? Mr. Xie just wants to have some fun in Cangzhou. Mr. Luo is very clear about the delicious and interesting things in Cangzhou City. Please, Mr. Luo, tell us a little bit about it!" Xu Xin beckoned the buddy to add an extra seat.

"Master Xu has found the right person. The most interesting thing in Cangzhou City is..." Luo Hongyuan said as he sat down, his eyes glanced towards Xie Yunlan inadvertently, and his voice stopped abruptly.

When Luo Hongyuan went upstairs, everyone's attention was attracted, only Shen Fan was eating seriously, and after taking a look, he didn't raise his head again, until now, he finished eating the shrimps in the bowl, and was about to grab goodbye His face was completely exposed to Luo Hongyuan's sight.

Luo Hongyuan closed the folding fan in his hand, leaned forward, and looked straight at Shen Fan: "This is?"

"This is Master Shen Fanfan, the famous envoy of the Dragon God in the capital." Xu Xin introduced with a smile.

"Shen Fanfan? Messenger of the Dragon God?" Luo Hongyuan's face showed a look of surprise, one was because of the other party's strange name, and the other was because such a beauty turned out to be an alchemist with such a great background.

But he was used to domineering in Cangzhou, this status was not enough to dissuade him, his eyes never moved away from Shen Fan's face.

Xie Yunlan squinted his eyes, and he picked up the wine and took a sip to cover up his inadvertent anger.

Being both men, what Luo Hongyuan's undisguised, blatant gaze signified couldn't be more obvious.Shen Fan was probably the only one present who didn't understand what Luo Hongyuan wanted to do. Seeing Luo Hongyuan staring at him, he even winked at him.

Luo Hongyuan's breath was stagnant, he was not taboo about meat and vegetables, as long as it was beautiful, it didn't matter if it was a man or a woman, but the sum of all the men and women he had played with over the years was not enough for Shen Fan's case, just such a blink of an eye His movements made him hot all over.

He unfolded the folding fan and shook it lightly: "Since the master is the envoy of the dragon god, he must know a lot of spells. I have been very curious about these spells of calling wind and rain and turning beans into soldiers since I was a child. Could you tell me something about it, master?"

"No." Xie Yunlan replied before Shen Fan could speak, with a smile on his face, "He doesn't know magic spells, and he doesn't know how to call the wind and rain, and turn beans into soldiers."

"But I heard that the monstrous flood dragon in Beijing was able to be subdued. The master put in a lot of effort. How can the master not know spells?" Luo Hongyuan didn't give up.

"I really won't." This time Shen Fan answered by himself.

"Then what will the master do?" Luo Hongyuan wondered.

The rest of the people also found it strange that an alchemist couldn't spell magic?Seeing that Shen Fan didn't seem to be modest, someone said: "The master must be proficient in divination and divination, this is really not magic."

Everyone nodded in agreement.

Xu Xin jokingly asked, "Then, can Master calculate the marriage for me?"

Shen Fan didn't speak, he didn't even eat the food, his face was expressionless.

Looked like he was angry.

Everyone didn't know why, so they provoked each other somehow.

Xie Yunlan did know, he slightly raised his lips, leaned into Shen Fan's ear, and whispered something.

Shen Fan glanced at him, weighed for a moment between continuing to be angry and Lotus Flower Crisp, and then chose the latter without hesitation.

"I don't know how to count marriage." He finally spoke, answering this question three times more than the number of times.

So what will he do?Everyone was very curious, but it was inevitable that they would inadvertently provoke each other again. Xu Xin brought up the subject and said, "Come, come, I'll toast Mr. Luo!"

Luo Hongyuan returned the salute with a glass of wine, although he looked at Xu Xin, the corner of his eyes still fell on Shen Fan, and Xie Yunlan who sat next to Shen Fan intentionally or unintentionally.

Just now Xie Yunlan spoke closely to Shen Fan's ear, so close that from Luo Hongyuan's perspective, it looked like a lover's ear to ear.

Everyone sat so far away at the banquet, even if they were whispering, they didn't need to be so close. Men know men best. This action only revealed a message. This Marquis of Xuanwu probably had the same thoughts as himself.

Luo Hongyuan tapped his palm with a folding fan, and hummed disdainfully in his heart. Xu Xin and the others were in awe of Xie Yunlan, but he was not afraid. His aunt was the beloved Mrs. Luo, and his cousin Yuan Yi was likely to replace the crown prince and ascend to the top. He is a rich man, and his family is wealthy. In the past 20 years, he has not failed to get the person he likes.

But Shen Fan's status is special, so he can't force it, he has to think of some means.

Luo Hongyuan thought about it a few times, without showing anything on his face, and followed Xu Xin and the others to drink cup after cup.

Although there were some small episodes tonight, the overall atmosphere of the banquet was quite harmonious. After three rounds of drinking, everyone was drunk, and some of them had a small amount of alcohol and fell asleep on the table.

The banquet was about to end, and the drunken people were taken home by their servants. Xu Xin was also drowsy, his bloated body had to be supported by two servants to sit up, and he barely passed out before completely drunk. I still remember one thing: "Master Xie and Master have no place to live yet, I have prepared a room in the prefect's mansion..."

"Why bother Mr. Xu with such trivial matters." Luo Hongyuan interrupted with a smile. He drank a lot, but not only did he not get drunk, but he became more and more energetic, and his eyes on Shen Fan became more explicit.

He walked up to Shen Fan and invited: "The best place to go at night in Cangzhou City is Caiyunfang. Master, why don't you come and play with me?"

After he finished speaking to Shen Fan, he turned his head and said to Xie Yunlan: "Thank you, Sir, for joining us?"

"No, we're a little tired." Xie Yunlan smiled and refused on behalf of Shen Fan, and at the same time took a step forward imperceptibly, blocking Luo Hongyuan's sight.

"Is the master tired too?" Luo Hongyuan didn't give up.

Shen Fan was not very tired, after all, he was either sitting on horseback or in a sedan chair this day, and he didn't walk a few steps in total.And today is the second time he heard the name "Caiyunfang", he asked curiously: "Where is Caiyunfang?"

Luo Hongyuan laughed: "This is the happiest place for men!"

"Then I'll go..." Shen Fan seemed about to agree.

"He won't go!" Xie Yunlan interrupted in a cold voice, the smile on his face was completely gone, Luo Hongyuan stepped back two steps in the sudden burst of momentum, and when he recovered, he saw that Xie Yunlan was already holding Shen Fan's hand, angrily He rushed away.

Xie Yunlan was about to be pissed off by Shen Fan. He had just been kidnapped once during the day, and he had said so much, but Shen Fan didn't listen at all. Luo Hongyuan said something casually, and wanted to run away with him again.

As far as Shen Fan's drinking capacity is concerned, Luo Hongyuan doesn't even need to take medicine, just two glasses of wine can make Shen Fan unconscious and let him do whatever he wants.

He was already so annoyed, yet Shen Fan added fuel to the fire by asking: "Why don't you go?"

"Then you go!" Xie Yunlan shook off Shen Fan's hand, and he said angrily, "Wherever you want to go! I don't care about you!"

Shen Fan looked at him inexplicably, and didn't understand why Xie Yunlan was so angry. He thought for a moment whether to leave obediently or stay disobediently, and finally chose the correct answer.

"I'm not going." Shen Fan said.

Xie Yunlan's face was sullen and he didn't speak.

Shen Fan thought for a while, and grabbed Xie Yunlan's hand again to show his determination not to go.

Xie Yunlan looked at the hand that gently held him, like a kitten that made a mistake and stretched out its paws to please people.When Shen Fan was angry, he was really angry, until he became irrational, but when he was obedient, he appeared to be very obedient, making people soft-hearted unconsciously.

The two stood in the night wind for a while, but Xie Yunlan finally softened his attitude.

"Don't run around with others in the future," he emphasized, "especially Luo Hongyuan, don't be alone with him!"

In fact, Shen Fan didn't even remember Luo Hongyuan's name, so he didn't know who Xie Yunlan was talking about, but he still nodded obediently.

Xie Yunlan finally lost his anger, he turned his head and looked around, just now he was angry and dragged Shen Fan away from Linjiang Tower, he didn't know where he went, let alone where the eunuch's mansion was.

However, it is not necessary to live in the prefect's mansion. Xie Yunlan found an inn on the street, knocked on the door, added a little more money, and asked the clerk to open a room for them.

Only one room was opened. Xie Yunlan didn't seem to be drunk, but in fact he drank a lot. Although he was still generally sober, when dealing with some problems, he was not the same as usual.

For example about Luo Hongyuan, Luo Hongyuan didn't catch up, and Shen Fan couldn't say anything, but there was always a worry in his consciousness that Shen Fan would be abducted if he didn't pay attention, so he simply put him beside him to watch.

The two slept on the same bed, Xie Yunlan was really tired, he ran back and forth all day, and his iron body couldn't bear it, so he slept on the pillow, and didn't think of finding a pillow for Shen Fan to hug.

Shen Fan didn't bother him, restrained his instincts, and tried to fall asleep without hugging anything.

Of course it failed.

So the next morning, when Xie Yunlan woke up, she found herself hugging Shen Fan with disheveled clothes.

Xie Yunlan didn't dare to move.

He quickly recalled last night, and confirmed that he did nothing out of the ordinary after drinking, and it was easy to understand why Shen Fan was in his arms, it was nothing more than treating him as a pillow again.

The only thing he couldn't understand was why he also hugged Shen Fan. He seemed to wake up in a daze once in the middle of the night, and when he saw Shen Fan hugging him, he naturally hugged him back.

It was so natural that it made him feel weird after waking up. People's actions in half-dream and half-awake are often the most real, and his most real action was not to evade Shen Fan as usual, but to hug him back.

I don't know if it was because of the hangover or because of this difficult problem, Xie Yunlan felt a little headache, but before he figured out the reason, the top priority is not to let Shen Fan find out.

He retracted his hands cautiously like a thief. He had just retracted one hand and was about to collect the other one that was pressed down by Shen Fan when he suddenly heard someone knock on the door. Shouting: "Is Mr. Xie there?"

Shen Fan was awakened by such a big movement, he was in a daze, before he opened his eyes, he felt as if something was pulled away from under his body quickly.

"I'll go and open the door." Xie Yunlan rolled over and sat up on the bed, guilty of not daring to look at Shen Fan.

In fact, he didn't have to be like this at all, Shen Fan didn't pay attention to what it was at all, when he heard that Xie Yunlan was about to open the door, he turned over and wanted to continue sleeping.

Xie Yunlan put on a piece of clothes casually, his expression was not good, he knocked something early in the morning, he opened the door, and saw an officer from the prefect's mansion, who was about to reprimand him, when the officer said urgently: "Master Xie, it's not good It's dead!"

Xie Yunlan frowned, and motioned for the officer to clarify: "Who died?"

"It's the prisoner you caught yesterday, that man named He Zhu!" said the guard.

He Zhu?Could it be that I acted too hard yesterday?Xie Yunlan felt something was wrong, he acted with discretion, He Zhu seemed to have been beaten badly, but it shouldn't be life-threatening.

"I see. I'll go to the prison later." Xie Yunlan was going to send the guard away first, and he wanted to wash up.

But the guard said: "I didn't die in prison, but in the water of the Cangjiang River at the wharf next to the Temple of the River!"