92. Breaking Willow Branches to Bid Farewell

"When I hear the willow trees breaking in this nocturne, who can't forget the love of my hometown?"

Break willows, break willows at Baqiao.

Throughout the ages, those who leave Guanzhong have used Baqiao Ferry as the main route between east and west, and there are many willow trees in Guanzhong area. The line in the Book of Songs, "In the past, I have gone, and the willows are still there." comes from Xiaoya, and Xiaoya is the king of the Western Zhou Dynasty. Ji's music, so over time, there is an allusion of breaking willows at Baqiao to see each other off.

Those who leave and those who send away are all separated here.

Willows are colored every year, and the mausoleum is different.

"Let's go!"

I don’t know who shouted these words. The people who were leaving on the Ba Bridge held the broken willow branches, said a few words to their relatives and friends, then turned around and left, either getting on a carriage or riding a horse.

Bai Gui also said goodbye to Bai Youde, Bai Wangshi, Liu Baoer, Zhou Yuan and others who came to see him off. He rode on his half-sized black horse, carrying a newly made Guanshan knife on his waist, and followed the caravan. Walk leisurely towards Tongguan.

It was quite peaceful along the way.

We encountered three or four groups of bandits, each numbering dozens of people. However, after seeing the huge caravan and some escorting soldiers, all with Hanyang uniforms, they hurriedly avoided it and did not dare to go forward. nuisance.

This was a group of thirty or forty soldiers specially mobilized by Governor Fang to escort the students studying in Japan.

When you arrive in Yu Province, there is a train going south to Shanghai.

Taking the train is undoubtedly much safer. The Wu family is so powerful that they have chartered five carriages. Three carriages are dedicated to storing commercial goods, and the other two carriages are for people to live in.

It's just that their status is different. More than a hundred people, including the caravan's stewards and clerks, are all crowded into the same carriage. In the other carriage, there were students studying in Japan. They were about twenty or so. They were all the children of officials in Qin Province and the officials responsible for sending students to study abroad.

Six days later, he arrived in Shanghai.

The housekeeper of the Wu Mansion was very skilled. He first found a rickshaw dealer. The person who was most familiar with Shanghai was not the current Shanghai Daotai, nor the celebrities and gentry, but the rickshaw driver.

The rickshaw is very fashionable. It was imported from Japan. But now it’s not called a rickshaw, it’s called a rickshaw. The origin of rickshaws in later generations is due to the fact that in the second year of the Republic of China, the Ministry of Industry and Commerce Bureau of the Public Concession issued an order. In order to distinguish between private Japanese rickshaws and Japanese rickshaws specially used to pull people, the Japanese rickshaws were all required to be yellow, so there were rickshaws. The origin of this name.

"Brother Meihe, I didn't expect that practicing martial arts would have such benefits as not getting carsick. I even regret not learning more skills from the nurse..."

Wu Huaixian got off the train, and his mental state was not very good along the way. The trains nowadays are actually steam trains, which are very bumpy, so he vomited and had diarrhea on the train. He felt much better when he stepped on the ground at the boundary of Shanghai.

"This is because you are slacking off in the equestrian class, not practicing martial arts."

Liu Mingda got on the rickshaw and said with a smile, his complexion was not very good at the moment, but it was better than Wu Huaixian.

The train rocked back and forth, somewhat like riding a horse.

"Okay, just go to your place and take a few naps. This is the last mint leaf. Chew it." Bai Gui threw a bag from his arms, which contained mint leaves. Mint leaves are a common traditional Chinese medicine. , which has the functions of dispelling wind and evil, dissipating wind and heat, and providing aromatic fragrance. It is also a common motion sickness equipment in this era.

Wu Huaixian and Liu Mingda originally had some, but they ran out.

He has strong energy and blood, and doesn't get motion sick much, so it's basically useless.

Jingle bell bell.

The rickshaw driver stood up and shook the wind chime tied to the shed. They stepped forward, pulling steadily and running smoothly. After a while, they passed through the dilapidated thatched shacks and arrived at the brightly lit Shili Foreign Market.

In the city and outside the city, there are two worlds.

Bai Gui thought of the first time he entered Xi'an Mansion. However, the more prosperous the place, the wider the gap between the rich and the poor, and the more shocking it became, so he simply closed his eyes.

Also sleepy.

Along the way, it’s hard not to feel sleepy despite the exhaustion of traveling and driving.

Soon after, Shanshan Guild Hall.

The real lifeline business of the Wu family in Qin Province was not the raw silk business, but the salt merchants, who also engaged in the cloth, tea, and fur goods industries. When people leave their hometowns, they often join forces with their fellow villagers. Therefore, Shaanxi merchants form business gangs and join forces with Shanxi merchants. There are Shanshan-Shaanxi guild halls everywhere, and Shanghai is no exception...

The interior of the clubhouse is luxuriously decorated and has many rooms.

It's free for them to stay.

Entered a room and settled on the bed to rest.

After a day or two of rest, Bai Gui regained his former energy and started practicing stone locks in the courtyard. Obviously you can't practice martial arts on the train. I haven't practiced for more than ten days and my body feels uncomfortable.

Huchi, wheeze.

Sweat dripped from his muscular bare arms, and he dropped the stone lock. A helper next to me immediately handed over hot water and towels to wipe my body.

"Ms. Bai, I have asked someone to find out. This is the address of Liu Xueyu, the director of Fudan Public School."

The housekeeper of the Wu Mansion strode over and said.

"Thank you, Mr. Wu."

Bai Gui thanked the housekeeper of the Wu Mansion. When he left, he also went to the New Army Training Office of Qin Province to meet with General Zhang. General Zhang asked him to send a letter to Liu Xueyu, the director of Aurora Public School, but when he arrived in Shanghai, he did not know where he was born. I was familiar with it, so I asked the housekeeper of the Wu Mansion to find out.

When I walked out of the hall, a rickshaw was parked outside the door.

After getting in the car, Bai Gui shouted: "French Concession, No. 34 Lujiawan."

Fudan Public School was formerly known as Aurora Public School. Aurora is Sanskrit and means China. Later, the French Catholic Jesuits tried to change Aurora Public School into a missionary school, so Ma Xiangbo left the school with a group of foreign teachers and founded Fudan Public School. study.

The word "Fudan" in Fudan Public School is taken from the "Book of Shang" "The sun and the moon shine, day after day, day after day." It not only means not forgetting Zhendan Public School, but also means reviving China.

And this name was given by Liu Xueyu.

Shanxi and Shaanxi Guild Hall is not in the concession, so there are not many foreigners. Once you enter the French Concession, you can see groups of foreigners coming and going everywhere.

Bai Gui paid the driver five copper coins and got off the car.

There was a knock on the door.

"Who are you?"

The old woman who opened the door looked at the young man questioningly.

"Please tell Mr. Liu that I am from Qin Province and graduated from Bailu Academy."

Bai Gui smiled and looked calm.

Liu Xueyu was the pseudonym of Yu Youren to avoid being hunted down by the Qing soldiers, and Yu Youren was also a remnant of Guanxue. There are two branches of Guanxue Daotong today, namely Liu Guyu's branch and He Ruilin's branch. Liu Xueyu is from Liu Guyu's lineage, while he is from He Ruilin's lineage, so they have a close relationship.

"So you are Mr.'s family."

The old woman looked at Bai Gui with some surprise. She knew that Mr. Liu was from Qin Province. Even after years, he could still hear a few words of Qin Province accent occasionally. Besides, he did not hide his ancestral home in the French Concession.

He was invited in and sat on the sofa in the living room waiting.

Not long after, Liu Xueyu, with a big bare head and a big beard, came down.

"You are Brother Meng Zhou's student. I didn't expect that after so many years, I can still see people from my hometown coming here..." Liu Xueyu was a little excited. He met many people from Qin Province in Shanghai, but he didn't see many of his own descendants.