The county seat of Ba County is also the capital of Chongqing. The entire city is built along the mountains or along the river. It is high up and deep, isolated in the river, and is naturally dangerous. It is known as "Born Chongqing".

Among them, Chaotianmen, Dongshuimen, Taipingmen, Chuqimen, Jinzimen and Nanjimen are located along the Chuanjiang River. Qiansimen and Linjiangmen are located along the Jialing River. Only one far gate is connected to the mainland. The reason why we say seven gates at night is,

That's just a customary name. The reason may be that the dock outside Qimen is very prosperous and there are many porters making a living on the dock.

The whole city is divided into an upper half and a lower half based on the ridge line. The upper half is to the north of the ridge. The upper half is flatter and wider. The terrain gradually increases from east to west. Except for the Qiansimen area in the northeast corner, which is close to the end of the island, the terrain is low.

, which is not much different in height from the lower half of the city and is close to the river. The rest of the city is far away from the river and has difficulty in using water. Therefore, there are far fewer people living in the upper half of the city than in the lower half.

The lower half of the city is lively and bustling, with restaurants, teahouses, inns, guild halls and various shops standing next to each other. The Sichuan East Road Yamen, Chongqing Fu Yamen, Baxian County Yamen and Chongqing Town Office are also located from northeast to southwest.

It's inside Taipingmen and not far away.

Han Xiufeng took Pan Er, who wanted to watch the excitement, through Duck Shi Street and arrived in front of the county government office, which was leaning on the mountain and facing the river. He saw an old man on crutches hiding in the south corner of the fish market entrance facing the county government office.

Looking inside the door.

Seventy years is rare in life, and the old man in front of me is really a seventy-year-old birthday boy!

Han Xiufeng had never seen anyone who lived longer or was older than him, so he always respected him. He hurriedly went up to him and asked, "Master Eight, have you been waiting here to listen to me and not slept all night?"

"It turns out to be the fourth child. Who am I talking about? I was shocked!" The old man turned around and glanced at Pan Er behind Han Xiufeng. He immediately pulled Han Xiufeng to the corner and said eagerly: "That baby with the big head is making trouble."

A life has been lost, and I have been locked in. I am about to face a lawsuit, and maybe I will have to pay for it with my life. You think I can sleep, but who will be watching over me if I am not here?"

Datou's parents died young, and he grew up eating the food of Sichuan porters at Chaotianmen Pier.

The seventy-year-old man in front of me used to be a porter working for a living at Chaotianmen Pier. Later, he became too old to carry cargo. When he was young, he was upright and straightforward in his words and deeds. It is said that he also worked as a husband for several years.

The porters from the Sichuan Gang who worked for a living respected him very much. They all pooled their money to support him in his old age, and they would also support him until his death in the future.

He grew up watching Datou, and when he was young he was too poor to marry his mother-in-law, and when he got old he had no children, so he has always regarded Datou as his grandson these years. Now that Datou is locked up and taken to the Yamen, what can he do?

Not in a hurry?

Han Xiufeng could understand his feelings, so he supported him and said, "Eighth master, don't worry, your big head will be fine. At most, he will suffer some physical pain."

"Sir, don't kid me. I am old but not an old fool. I understand the principle of killing someone to pay for his life. Even if God can save his life, he will still have to shed his skin even if he does not die." Ba Ye's old tears

They all became anxious, and as they spoke, they couldn't help but look into the Yimen.

"Master Ba, I'm here right now, don't be impatient, let's get down to business first."

"Oh, look, I'm so worried," Master Ba calmed down and quickly turned around, holding Han Xiufeng's arm and saying, "Xiao Liu and the others followed your idea and called everyone they could at night. The Eight Provinces Guild Hall

I also asked someone to tell me."

"Who did you trust?"

"It's not like you don't know. How many dignitaries can we recognize? Even if we do, which dignitary can we talk to? As before, it's Mr. Gu from Tuochaijiaxiang. He said that this time it's a big deal and he wants to kill him.

We had fifty taels, and Xiaoliu and the others gathered them just before dawn."

"Eighth Master, has Mr. Gu gone to the Huguang Guild Hall?" Han Xiufeng asked, but in his heart he was thinking that this was a life-and-death lawsuit. He asked Mr. Jinshi, who had served as a supervisory censor in Jiangxi Province, to come forward and make peace. He spent fifty taels.

It's really not much. The year before last, there was a man who returned to his hometown, Ding Wanyou, and wanted to go to the capital to fill a vacancy. It cost several hundred taels to ask someone to edit a letter for him in the same year in the capital. The reason why he only asked for fifty taels from the Sichuan Gang was really because of the friendship between the people.

For the sake of it, you may also know that a group of porters working hard do not have much money.

"I've gone. Not only have I gone, I've also come to the Yamen." The eighth master didn't dare to delay the business and said quickly: "I came with the guest manager of the Huguang Guild Hall. Not long after I entered, he even greeted me when he arrived.

"

"Just come here. In this way, you can keep an eye on me for a while while I go to the Yamen to find out the news."

"etc."

"Master Ba, what else do you want to do?"

"Datou didn't have a midnight snack last night, so he must be hungry now. I'll go ahead and buy some pot helmets. You can help me get in."

The emotion of licking the calf was beyond words. Han Xiufeng was moved for a moment and said without hesitation: "Master Ba, your legs and feet are inconvenient, so just stay here and watch. I'll buy the pot helmet."

"I'm giving you money, I can't let you help me in vain and still have to pay for it."

"How many coppers can you get for a few pot helmets? Besides, the boss is my brother!"

Han Xiufeng patted the old man's hand and was about to turn around when he saw Pan Er running towards Ya Shi Street. After a while, he ran back panting with several pot helmets wrapped in oil paper.

"Brother Pan, thank you. I'll calculate the money for you later."

"It's just a few pot helmets, it's nothing." Pan Er hurriedly went to the Yamen to broaden his horizons, grinned, and looked very generous.

The two of them said goodbye to Ba Ye, and walked slowly around Yimen to the gate of the county government office. They were the family members of the newly appointed county magistrate. They had not been in Ba County for a long time, and Han Xiufeng had been giving food to Ba County in his hometown before.

My uncle was having a funeral, so they were not familiar with each other.

Just as the disciple was about to step forward to ask Han Xiufeng the reason for his visit, the Zaoban yamen officer who was also guarding the yamen gate smiled and asked, "Sir, aren't you going to the capital to fill a vacancy as an official? Why haven't you left yet?"

Han Xiufeng nodded to his disciple and replied: "We are traveling thousands of miles to the capital. How can we set off if we are not well prepared? Besides, there are still some official documents that have not been transcribed. Things must have a beginning and an end."

"You're here to see Wang Jingcheng?"

"If I don't look for him, who else can I look for? Is he in the household?"

"Yes, I came early in the morning." The yamen officer suddenly remembered something and reminded him kindly: "Si Wazi, I heard that the court will open Enke next year, and all the people in Ba County and Chongqing Prefecture who want to make progress will also be together in the next few months.

When you go to the capital, you can go with them, and as fellow villagers, you can still have someone to look after you along the way."

Emperor Daoguang passed away and Emperor Xianfeng ascended the throne. This is the first year of Xianfeng. Of course, the new emperor had to recruit scholars through Enke when he ascended the throne.

Han Xiufeng knew about it earlier than he did, but he had never thought of going to Beijing with the candidates. He smiled awkwardly and said: "Third uncle, the candidates are on the right path, how can they look down on me, a donating supervisor.

Even if I'm not afraid of being laughed at and shamelessly tag along, people may not be willing to take me with them."

"It's true that in the eyes of the masters, you are no different from me. If you go with them, they might treat you like a beast."

As soon as the officer finished speaking, the disciple subconsciously asked: "Huang San, do you recognize him?"

"Si Wazi has been working as a helper in the household for six or seven years. He used to come around every day. It's hard to recognize him even if you don't recognize him." The Yamen winked and signaled Han Xiufeng and the others to come in, and then he sighed: "You don't know, we are watching

Among the children who grew up, the fourth child was the most promising. He was literate, able to write and do calculations. Although he failed to obtain any honors, he quietly donated his family background and donated a ninth grade inspection.
Chapter completed!