The master said not to judge people by their appearance

"Are you in the herbal medicine business?" The guards guarded the customs and looked at Xie Yunlan suspiciously. This person was dressed in simple clothes, not cheap but not expensive cotton robes. Most of the merchants who came and went out of the customs were dressed in In this way, his complexion is also a little dark, as if he is often on the go, but the other party's figure is straight, and there is an indescribable demeanor around him, he does not look like an ordinary person.

"Yes." Xie Yunlan smiled and cupped his hands at the soldiers, "I would like to ask the officer for your convenience."

The soldier glanced at him while searching the package and said, "If you have no problems, we will naturally not make things difficult for you."

The soldiers guarding the gate checked Xie Yunlan's accompanying package inside and out, and confirmed that there were only some money and clothes, dry food and water, and a purchase list of medicinal herbs inside. What's the one in the back doing?"

Xie Yunlan looked back at Shen Fan, and said: "It's my cousin, who is staying at home and insists on pestering me to come out, saying that he wants to see what it looks like outside the customs. I told him that the outside is hard and he still doesn't believe it. Only now does he start to regret it. ,late!"

Shen Fan was wearing a padded robe similar to Xie Yunlan's, but he didn't smear his skin as black as Xie Yunlan's. The ordinary clothes couldn't hide his outstanding appearance. He had a sleepy expression at the moment, and he put his head on Xie Yunlan's back, and his whole body was shaking. He looked a bit listless, and he was indeed like the kind of young man Xie Yunlan said he had to run out of without knowing the hard work outside, only to regret it after he came out.

The guard guards took a few glances and didn't notice anything unusual, so they waved their hands and let them go.

Xie Yunlan packed up the messed-up packages, and with a sound of "drive", he led the horse slowly out of the closed door. He stepped into an open world, with thousands of miles of grass and fields in his eyes, mountains towering in the distance, and eagles and birds sang in the sky .

This is a completely different scenery beyond the Great Xia, but Xie Yunlan had no time to appreciate it, he turned around and asked Shen Fan: "Are you still uncomfortable?"

Shen Fan shook his head, feeling a little uncomfortable, this time back to Kunlun Mountain, he would not be able to take a carriage, he could only sit on the back of Xie Yunlan's horse and drive, the journey would inevitably be bumpy.

But in the past half a year since he came out, Shen Fan has gotten used to horses, and he is not as uncomfortable as he was at the beginning. His current sleepy look is mainly due to the increasingly cold weather.

It was already deep winter, but they were still heading towards the colder northwest, the farther they went, the lower the temperature dropped, and Shen Fan became more lazy, he didn't want to move, he just wanted to find something to sleep on. Sleep.

Xie Yunlan also somewhat guessed that Shen Fan's behavior was probably because he was afraid of the cold. The evidence is that the colder the weather, the tighter Shen Fan hugged him, and his back was pressed tightly, which made him hotter and hotter. .

He didn't bring the silver-white fox fur that he specially bought for Shen Fan this time, because it was too conspicuous. Naturally, the warming effect of the cotton robe is not as good as that of the fox fur. Xie Yunlan had no other way to keep Shen Fan warm. After thinking for a while, he said: "If you're cold, put your hands in my clothes?"

He opened the hem of his outer robe, motioning for Shen Fan to stretch his hand in.

After Shen Fan put his hands into Xie Yunlan's outer robe, he really felt warmer. The inside of the outer robe was covered by Xie Yunlan's scorching body temperature. It was like a small stove in this icy and snowy place, so comfortable that he couldn't help stretching out his hand. A little more inside.

The stove was getting hotter and hotter, but after a while, the temperature dropped down again.

Shen Fan inadvertently noticed that Xie Yunlan was holding a touch of white in his hand, the white was melting, it was falling snow on the ground.

He looked at Xie Yunlan's serious side face, and tentatively stretched his hand inward, and the stove that had just cooled down really started to heat up again.

In the past, Shen Fan didn't understand why Xie Yunlan's body temperature changed like this, but after the New Year's Eve, he understood that when human beings are emotional, they seem to blush and heat up like this.

However, he understood it, he tilted his head and looked at Xie Yunlan for a while, his hand was still in Xie Yunlan's clothes, he didn't accept it, but he didn't let go.

The horse under Xie Yunlan's seat came from outside the customs. Now walking on the vast grassland, it seems to have returned to its hometown, and it runs happily.

Xie Yunlan rode his horse quickly, and after about two days' journey, he brought Shen Fan to the foot of Kunlun Mountain.

The Kunlun Mountains stretch for thousands of miles, and the so-called foot of the mountains is equally wide. It is an endless Gobi Plain. The melted snow on the Kunlun Snow Peak has washed out a river on the plain. The river flows eastward and flows into the Cangjiang River. The water system finally gallops into the sea together with Wanshui.

Xie Yunlan walked along the river, and he had already reached the territory of Yuanrong. From time to time, he could see Yuanrong herdsmen grazing on the river bank.

Life outside the customs is difficult. Yuanrong people do not do production, do not know how to farm, and only grazing except for looting, and the fertile grasslands are occupied by powerful tribes. Yuanrong people born in small tribes can only live in this way. life in the barren land.

Herdsmen have no way to save enough forage in autumn, so they have to go out to graze in the severe cold in winter, and let the cattle and sheep find some dry grass buried in the snow between the rock walls to eat, so as to survive this bitter winter.

It’s not just adults who have to work so hard, children also have to come out to work early. Not far in front of Xie Yunlan, there is a girl who is helping the family herd herds. She is about ten years old, her face is red from the cold, and she is looking at them curiously. .

Xie Yunlan beckoned to the girl, and after drawing the girl over, asked her for directions in Yuanrong dialect. At the same time, she took out a bag of snacks originally prepared for Shen Fan from the package and handed it to the girl. Really showed them the way.

Xie Yunlan looked at her, always thinking of Gesang, and wondered if Wei Chengzhi had found Gesang's hometown, he thought so, and gave her another pack of snacks, the girl smiled even more happily, she asked Xie Yunlan to be here Wait for her while she goes to milk him some goat.

Xie Yunlan waved her hand to reject her kindness. It was getting dark and he had to rush to the hotel. When he left, the girl waved her hand reluctantly behind.

Xie Yunlan also waved to her with a smile, and then continued to drive forward. On the way, he explained to Shen Fan what the girl said just now.

They talked in Yuanrong dialect the whole time. Xie Yunlan fought with the Yuanrong people for seven years. Not to mention how well he learned Yuanrong dialect, general communication is absolutely no problem, but Shen Fan can't speak Yuanrong dialect. The conversation he just had with the girl, in Shen Fan's ears were probably filled with a string of incomprehensible gibberish.

But Shen Fan said: "I can understand."

"You know Yuanrong dialect?" Xie Yunlan asked in surprise.

"No." Shen Fan explained, "Words themselves have power. Ordinary people can only communicate with the power of words, but those who practice can follow the words and use words to arouse spells, no matter how the type of language changes. , the essence of this power is unchanging, understanding this essence, you can understand the meaning of words.”

Xie Yunlan half-understood, he asked in Yuanrong dialect: "So you can understand anything?"

"En." Shen Fan nodded.

This is also the reason why the gods listen to the voices of mortals. Otherwise, the world is so vast, and the languages ​​used in all corners of the country are different. If they can't understand the power and essence of words, wouldn't the prayers that those people say when they sacrifice to the gods become blah? gibberish?

"Then can you speak Yuanrong dialect?" Xie Yunlan asked again.

"I can't." Shen Fan still spoke the Central Plains dialect.

The understanding of the power essence of words is one thing, but there is no way to change it into a different tone and say it. When gods communicate with mortals, they often speak directly with the essence of power, and the voice will echo in the minds of mortals, ignoring All language differences can be understood by anyone.

But speaking like this is too strange and will cause a lot of trouble, so after Shen Fan came to the mortal world, he slowly learned to speak the Central Plains dialect that is commonly used in Daxia.

It took him a long time to learn it, and it is naturally impossible to learn to speak Yuanrong dialect right now.

So you can hear but not speak.Xie Yunlan understood.

While talking, they also arrived at the hotel before night fell.

This hotel was built on the wasteland, but the business is very good. This is the only hotel in a hundred miles, and all travelers who come to the Kunlun Mountains for business and sightseeing have to settle here.

In order to keep a low profile and also for the sake of safety, Xie Yunlan only opened one room. When the assistant led them to open the room, Xie Yunlan took the opportunity to ask, "I heard that Kunlun Mountain is haunted recently?"

The man was from Xia, and while leading them the way, he replied: "Yes! It's been going on for a while! It is said that there is a group of dead cavalry haunting the mountains, and they will come out to kill every snowy night! Several households have already been killed. killed!"

What the man said was similar to what Xie Yunlan had heard from the herb vendor before, and he asked again: "Why is it the dead soul of the cavalry? Has anyone seen it?"

The guy said: "It seems that someone has seen it, but I don't know! Guest officer, I just heard it from someone. I have never been to Kunlun Mountain, but everyone said so!"

Xie Yunlan: "Where did it first spread?"

"This..." The guy looked embarrassed.

Xie Yunlan handed over a piece of broken silver, and the clerk immediately smiled and said, "I heard that a businessman from the Western Regions happened to see the ghosts of the cavalry when he was collecting medicine on the mountain!"

"Where is the merchant from the Western Regions?" Xie Yunlan asked immediately.

"It's just downstairs. I just saw him drinking in the hall downstairs!" The clerk described the appearance of the Western Region merchant to Xie Yunlan.

Xie Yunlan put his luggage away, and searched in the hall when he went downstairs. The hall was noisy. There were people from Yuanrong, Xia, and some people from small countries in the Western Regions. He found it at a table by the window. The Western Regions businessman the guy was talking about.

The businessman from the Western Regions was sitting alone at the table drinking, with a sad expression on his face, probably because the business was not doing well after the haunting, and he was using alcohol to drown his sorrows.

Xie Yunlan brought Shen Fan up to him, smiled and cupped his hands and said, "Is there anyone at this table, brother? Can you make a table?"

Businessmen from the Western Regions often come and go here, and they can speak some Central Plains dialect. Hearing this, he glanced at him and saw that there seemed to be no other empty tables in the hall, so he nodded.

Xie Yunlan took advantage of the situation and sat down. He ordered a pot of wine and poured two glasses, but it was not for Shen Fan. He handed one of the glasses to the businessman from the Western Regions, and said, "What kind of business does Xiongtai do? Why are you so unhappy during the Chinese New Year? "

The businessman from the Western Regions had just finished drinking, and when he took Xie Yunlan's drink, he started to complain immediately as if he had been opened up.

He can speak the Central Plains dialect, but he is not proficient. When he complained, he used half of the Central Plains dialect, and half of it was the Western Region dialect that Xie Yunlan could not understand.

Fortunately, Shen Fan could understand, he helped translate, and Xie Yunlan roughly understood what the merchants said in the Western Regions. They were all complaints, because the mountain was haunted, and he couldn't do the business he was going to do. There are still children to support, so how can I explain to my family when I go back empty-handed this time.

Xie Yunlan said a few words of reassurance, and when the time was almost right, he took the opportunity to ask: "I also heard about the ghosts on the mountain, but I only heard that someone was killed, but no one saw who did it, why did everyone say yes? Are the ghosts of a troop of cavalry at work?"

"I've seen them before," said the merchant from the Western Regions.

He happened to meet him when he was going up the mountain to collect medicine. At that time, there had been two murders on the mountain, and there were already rumors of ghosts haunting the mountain. In the process of hiding, he suddenly heard a strange noise in the wind and snow, like a human voice.

He looked out and saw that it was a group of passing cavalry!

Kunlun Mountain is a vague area where there are no cavalry stationed in the mountains. The Western Region businessman immediately felt strange. When he looked closely, the cavalry's blades were still dripping with blood!

Reminiscent of the two murders in the mountains, the Western Region businessman shrank his body in fright, and hid in the cave without daring to move. Fortunately, the cave was hidden and the cavalry did not find him. The Western Region businessman escaped by chance. When I ran down the mountain, I heard that another family died on the mountain last night. I thought it must be the work of the souls of the cavalry, so I didn't dare to go up the mountain again.

Xie Yunlan roughly understood Shen Fan's translation, and he asked, "What does that team of cavalry look like?"

A merchant from the Western Regions recalled: "They were wearing black iron armor, similar to those of the Yuanrong people."

Yuanrong people?Xie Yunlan asked again: "Then what makes them different from living people? How do you know that they are a group of dead souls, not a group of Yuan Rong cavalry who came here to rob?"

The difference from living people... The merchant from the Western Regions couldn't say it, and it was snowing at the time, and he was afraid, so he didn't dare to look carefully, but he waved his hands at Xie Yunlan's guess and said: "How could the Yuanrong cavalry only kill people and not take property? And every time someone dies on the mountain, there are no footprints on the scene, it must be the work of dead souls!"

The merchants from the Western Regions also made sense. Why didn't the Yuanrong people plunder their property when they killed people?But the footprints... Xie Yunlan thought about it, and asked another question: "When you saw them, were there any footprints behind them?"

The businessman from the Western Regions was stunned for a moment, as if he hadn't paid attention to this problem, he recalled it now, and said hesitantly: "It seems that there is...?"