Chapter 14: Not One of You Is Allowed to Leave

  Ding Hao and Xue Liang, Feng Da took turns fanning in a room. At night, they asked for hot water to soak their feet before going to bed on the kang. Today, the entire inn was fully booked, so the fire in the kang was burning fiercely. As soon as Ding Hao lay down, the scorching heat penetrated into his bones, which was very relieving for his tired body. However, just as he was about to fall asleep, Ding Hao felt like crying.

  Originally, Feng Dapeng's snoring was really too loud. In fact, Zhu Pigu also snores, but compared to Feng Dapeng, it's truly a small trick versus a big one. Not only did Feng Dapeng's snores shake the heavens and move the gods, but his snoring sounds were like singing, with each snore not in the same key, sometimes high, sometimes low, sometimes coarse, sometimes fine. This made Ding Hao's plan to wait for the snoring to get tired before falling asleep also disappear.

  Tomorrow, they still have to rush on the road. It's not a good idea to stay up all night like this. Ding Hao sat up anxiously. As soon as he moved, Ah Zhuangzi beside him whispered, "What's wrong, can't you sleep either?"

  Ding Hao was startled: "You're still awake?"

  The two of them were quiet for a moment, both stifling a laugh. After a while, Zhu Pigu said in a low voice, "Why don't I wake up Old Man Feng? Let him change positions, maybe it'll be quieter."

  "Never mind, Old Man Feng is quite busy too, don't call him." Ding Hao said, as he started putting on his clothes with a rustling sound. The little piglet asked in a low voice: "Where are you going?"

  Ding Hao said: "With such a big commotion, I really can't sleep. I'll go out and take a walk to see if I can find a place to sleep."

  Ding Hao carried the quilt out of the house, and the kang was still warm, but as soon as he went out, the cold air hit him in the middle of the night. Where could he sleep? Ding Hao carried the quilt around the small courtyard for a while, saw the passageway from the front restaurant to the back guest room, and there were many stools on the side. Ding Hao thought: "Why don't I put the stools together and spend the night here? No way, if someone comes out at night and sees someone lying straight here, won't they be scared? Besides, it's too cold here, and you'll get frostbite after one night."

  Helpless, Ding Hao carried the bedding and walked back, and when he reached the corridor, a figure emerged from the ground, and the two of them bumped into each other, both startled. Under the red lantern in the corridor, they took a closer look, and it was the young man with peach blossom eyes that they had seen during dinner.

  "That guy said: 'Hey, what are you doing at this late hour, you scared me half to death.'"

  Ding Hao dryly laughed and said: "The roommate's snoring is too loud, I couldn't sleep, what about you?"

  That man chuckled and said, "You're quite particular, aren't you? Just tear off a corner of the quilt, stuff some cotton in your ears, and it's done. When you're out, just make do with one night. I'm afraid that the smell of the toilet is too much to bear inside the house, so I ran outside to relieve myself. It's freezing cold here, my butt is almost frozen off, I'd better hurry back inside to warm up, see you tomorrow."

  "See you tomorrow." After they said their goodbyes, the man left in a hurry. Ding Hao returned to his room and quietly tore open the corner of his quilt, pulled out two small tufts of cotton and stuffed them into his ears. The snoring sound was indeed much softer, at least it was no longer unbearable. He quickly told Zhu Pigu about this method, and the two of them barely managed to get through the night in a daze.

  As soon as the sky brightened, Feng Dapeng got up spiritedly and called out to Ding Hao and Xue Liang, asking with concern: "Did you sleep well last night?"

  The two of them yawned and got up, looking at each other with wry smiles. "It's okay," they said. "The kang was warm and cozy, but sleeping outdoors isn't very reassuring."

  "Hehe, get used to it. The owner of this store is a kind person, otherwise I wouldn't have chosen his place to stay. As long as the accommodation is comfortable, let's hurry up and eat quickly, we still have a long way to go."

  In ancient times, washing up was more troublesome than it is today. Men also had to comb their hair and tie it up. Soap already existed in this era, made from goat oil and plant ash, with a good cleaning effect but too rough on the skin, no fragrance, so ordinary families only used it to wash their faces, while poorer families simply used rice water.

  Wealthier families used soap made from Gleditsia, Elaeagnus or Sapindus mukorossi. The latter is also a plant seed, even more fatty than the former two, so it was called "fat soap" after being made into a paste. Higher-end soap was made by mixing broad beans and fragrant herbs together, which were cleaning products for aristocratic families.

  Toothbrushes also exist, and are said to have been introduced from the northern nomads, but once they reached the Central Plains, the craftsmanship was even more exquisite than that of the nomads. The style of toothbrush is very similar to modern toothbrushes, except that the bristles are not nylon, but pig hair. There are now dozens of kinds of tooth powder available, all made from various Chinese herbal medicines, each with different effects such as cleaning teeth, freshening breath and strengthening teeth. However, Feng Dapeng and Ding Hao were unable to use them, they used toothbrushes dipped in willow ash to brush their teeth.

  Ding Hao was bent over in the courtyard brushing his teeth, when Ding Xiaojie walked in neatly dressed, carrying a whip and still wearing men's clothing. As soon as she saw Ding Hao, she revealed a faint smile and said: "Ah-Dai, has Feng Da started wielding the whip?"

  Ding Hao hastily rinsed his mouth and stood up, saying: "Let's go, we were just about to eat something before going to look for Little Miss."

  Ding Yuluo said: "I used to go out, I didn't bring so many people and horses. Liu Zhi and others didn't have much experience either. Fortunately, Feng Da controlled the whip. Last night, I had too many things to take care of, and I neglected Old Man Feng. Now I come to see him early in the morning. On the way here, I also need Master to give me more guidance."

  Two men were talking, when a house door creaked open and a young man rushed out from inside, with five bright red finger marks on the left side of his face. He shouted loudly: "Shopkeeper, shopkeeper, come out quickly, my master's things have been stolen."

  Many people in the courtyard were washing and rinsing, and upon hearing the sound, they all looked at him in astonishment. This person was wearing a small garment and had not yet dressed properly, with a look of shock on his face. Then another person walked out of the house, this person had a large face and ears, eyebrows like heavy ink, it was the middle-aged man who had dinner at the restaurant last night. His clothes were also not properly dressed, he was holding his chest, with a face full of dark clouds, as if even strong winds could not disperse them.

  The shopkeeper rushed over and asked hastily: "Sir, what did you lose?"

  He hadn't finished speaking, when the young man had already grabbed his collar and shouted in a state of panic: "Look at this shop, it's still clean, how could there be such scoundrels? My family's important things have gone missing, you as the owner can't shirk responsibility."

  The shop owner, surnamed Qiu, was called Old Honest Qiu, and indeed he was a kind-hearted and honest man. As soon as he heard this, he became flustered and quickly clarified: "Oh dear young master, you can't speak nonsense! My small shop is just a small business, only providing a place for travelers to eat and sleep. You have to take care of your own belongings yourself. You've only been here for one night and you're saying something's gone missing? What exactly did you have that went missing? I don't know anything about it as the shop owner, nor can I be held responsible..."

  "Hey, you've lost it all, no chance of getting it back, you old thing will have to go to prison!"

  Just then, Feng Da Zhang Bian walked out of the house with a whip in hand. Ding Yu Luo casually swept a glance at the two masters and servants who were arguing with the shopkeeper, and greeted Feng Da Zhang Bian with a fist: "Feng Lao Ye Zi, you've had a hard time these days. After eating breakfast, we'll have to trouble you again to help us get ready, the sooner we set off the better."

  "Hehe, Old Feng's job is just this easy, can't be considered hard work. The master has given orders, and someone will come to inform you, how dare I trouble Your Excellency, I'll go and arrange it in a moment."

  "Halt!" The middle-aged man suddenly spoke in a sinister tone, his eyes gleaming with a hint of redness: "No one is allowed to leave until I find my things! Everyone in this store, stay right where you are!"

  Liu Zhi heard the words and sneered coldly: "You lost something, what does it have to do with us? You say you can't leave, so you can't leave? How ridiculous, such a big tone, delaying our family's important matter. Even if we chop you up and sell your meat, it won't make up for the loss."

  That middle-aged man was furious, and before he had even spoken, the little servant who was attending him stepped forward, pointing at Liu Eleven and shouting: "How dare you! You have a big dog's gall! My master is the county magistrate of Linqing, on his way to take office, and yet in this thieving store, someone has stolen his official seal. What a huge matter is this? Can your affairs be more important than my master's? Before the official seal is recovered, everyone will be suspected of being involved. You all stay there quietly, whoever dares to move is guilty."

  Ding Yuluo was so frightened that he almost broke out in a cold sweat. The county magistrate was the second most powerful official in the county, responsible for justice, public security, and litigation. If his official seal were lost, what would happen? Although the Ding family had great influence and local officials gave them face, this did not mean they could override local officials. Since the other party was the magistrate of Linqing County, it was unlikely that they could forcibly leave. If the official seal couldn't be found for the time being, wouldn't the Ding family's grain team be stuck in Qingshui Town?

  The county lieutenant was also anxious, originally losing the official seal was a big deal and not a good thing to spread around, he also hoped to quietly resolve the matter. Unexpectedly, that little fellow didn't know what was good for him and actually started spreading it around. This made it impossible to cover up, and before even taking office, he had already lost face, which was certain. However, as this concerned his own future prospects, he couldn't worry about so much at the moment. He steeled himself and ordered: "Liu Xiao, take my token and summon the local village elders, have them bring some militiamen to maintain order here. Then quickly rush to Linqing County, report the situation to the county magistrate, and ask him to dispatch a captain with a group of constables to come and investigate the case."

  The little servant beside the county lieutenant responded with a sound, and ran out like flying. In no time, the local neighborhood head, household head, and rural scribe, among other minor officials, heard that the county lieutenant had lost his official seal here, and they rushed to this place like their buttocks were on fire, leading a group of hastily summoned militiamen, surrounding the Longfeng Tavern so tightly that water couldn't leak out.