Tang Xi washed his face with the stream at the bottom of the valley. He shook the water in his hands, raised his head, and looked around and said, "There are so beautiful persimmons in this mountain! They look red, and they think they should be sweet. Let's pick a few, eat them before setting off."

Sun Dongdao: "It's getting late, get on the road quickly! What kind of persimmons should be eaten? Be careful to hurt your stomach for a while!"

Tang Xi was not willing to listen. He stood up and saw that the persimmons on a tree on the roadside were growing attractively. He picked up a branch next to him and poked it to the tree. He poked a persimmon hard and fell down on the ground with a "splash", which was shattered to pieces.

Tang Xi jumped and said, "Oh, it broke! It's a pity to see this persimmon so fat!"

At this moment, five or six hunters came from the foot of the mountain. He held his hunting bow and stared at the two of them and said loudly: "Who are you? This place has been sealed for a long time, and there are no foreigners for several months! Seeing you, aren't you a detailed work from the north?"

Sun Dong was startled and hurriedly said, "Not accused! Brother, we are hunters in the nearby mountains. We were lost for a moment and then we got here!"

A man walked up and looked at the two of them carefully, saying, "There are not many hunters in this mountain, most of them I have seen. Seeing that you two are so handsome, how could they be people nearby? Needless to say, pick them up first and report them to the official position!"

Sun Dong shook his hand quickly: "Brother, our family is in the north. We have been walking in a mess for a while and can't recognize what this place is. If you report us to the official position, wouldn't it harm us? Please point out a way and we will go back!"

Several men laughed together after hearing this. The person standing in front said, "This is the border. You live in the north, aren't you the Khitans? I heard that this year the Khitans gathered their troops and horses and wanted to go south in large numbers, so you must have done it in detail!"

Sun Dongdao: "Brother, we people from the mountains do not know what the Khitan Song Dynasty is? We don't go out of the mountains in our daily lives, nor do we do anything for the government. Recently, there has been much less wild game, and we walked here without realizing it. Please give us a high hand and let us have a way out."

The man thought about it and stepped back to discuss with the few people. After a while, he said, "I think you are in the mountains and it is not easy to make a living. Let's let you go for the time being. However, the roads have been closed nearby recently. Come back along the mountain road quickly. Otherwise, if you are arrested, you will be shut down in the prison!"

Sun Dong said yes again and said, "We have been walking for a few days and have eaten all the dry food we brought. My brothers are kind and give us some dry food on the way. If we meet again if we are destined to do so, we will definitely thank you again!"

The man said, "It is natural that everything is difficult when you go out, so there is no need to say these words. It's not too early, so you come here and have a meal with us. It's really pitiful to see your brother pick persimmons there and eat it!"

Sun Dong hurriedly thanked, called Tang Xi over, saluted several people, and walked up.

Tang Xi was unwilling to accept it. Seeing that the persimmons on the tree were very big and red and cute, it was a pity to be delicious. But he didn't know that these persimmons were everywhere in the mountains and no one picked them. This fruit could not be used to satisfy hunger, and it was the most useless in the eyes of those hunters. When picking persimmons here, the hunters saw them and thought they were hungry.

I chose a flat ground, and a few people sat down and started a fire. These people brought dry food and fed some wild game. A rabbit was washed in the stream next to me, and then roasted it on the fire.

The man before looked at Sun Dong and Tang Xi, and always felt something was wrong. He said, "I am Qiu Pan, and here are all hunters nearby. Recently, the government announced that the Khitans would go south in autumn and not walk around. When we came out, we wanted to check whether there were suspicious people nearby. Once we found someone we didn't know, we should inform the nearby Li Zheng and take him to the government."

Sun Dong hurriedly bowed: "It turns out to be Brother Qiu. We brothers live in the north and have been in the mountains. We rarely go out and don't know these things. A few days ago, I chased a deer and somehow got lost. I walked here all the time. Brothers, don't blame me!"

Qiu Pan said, "Fortunately, you meet us. If you meet someone else, you will definitely be arrested to meet the officials! It is not easy for us hunters. I will give you some dry food later and hurry home. Even if the Khitan army invades south, they will not come into the mountains. After you go home, you just need to hide at home honestly and avoid this disaster. It's just a few months, the Khitans will definitely retreat in the spring of the next year."

Sun Dong said yes and casually praised Qiu Pan for a few words. He got along well and said, "Brother, why did the Khitans come? I heard from the old man at home that, the Khitans often went south a few decades ago. I had never seen them once."

Qiu Pan said: "The Khitans are barbarians and beastly temperaments. Who knows their thoughts? I heard that the court stopped monies and thought they had no money to use them, so I thought about robbing some. Now only we mountain people can walk around. The ground outside, the government has long been strengthening the walls and clearing the fields, so that the people can hide in the city. Once they left the mountain, there were no pedestrians on the road, and there were soldiers guarding the intersection. It was like the two of you who could not even walk a step! Knowing that they were Khitans, the government would inevitably put you in jail!"

Sun Dong said it was true, but he was very grateful. Recently, the Khitan sent several batches of detailed works to the Song Dynasty to investigate the news. Fortunately, he and Tang Xi came along the mountain road, and those who entered the plains must have been captured by the Song Dynasty. Listening to Qiu Pan's meaning, the Song Dynasty had known that the Khitans were going south and made complete preparations to strengthen the walls and clear the fields. Even pedestrians were not allowed to be found on the road. At this time, the news was not about sheep entering the tiger's mouth.

Hebei Road is a border, different from other places, and the people control the strictest. The roads here are different from Hedong Road. There are many foreign households on the border areas of the two roads, which are not under the jurisdiction of the court. Hebei Road is different, and both sides of the border are Han people, and the text is clear. The Song Dynasty prohibits two households from losing money, cut off border trade, and the people on both sides have no contact. Strong walls and clear fields, and the government can let all the people hide in the city, and there are no more pedestrians outside the city.

After talking for a while, Sun Dongdao said, "Brother, since he is a strong wall and clear field, why don't hunters in the mountains hide in the city?"

Qiu Pan said: "Our mountains are not like those who farm on a flat ground, and have food savings. If you don't hunt for a few days, what will your family eat? Besides, the Khitans come south and go to the flat ground and will not come to the mountains. We are all in charge of the internal area, and go out to hunt and help the government check the place. When we meet strangers, we have to report to the government. With us, the government saves a lot of soldiers."

"So that's it." Sun Dong nodded. "Brothers, thank you for your hard work. You have to patrol the place while hunting."

Qiu Pan said: "It's not hard. We inspected the local area, and the government exempted the officials from the service, killing two birds with one stone. This year, the government even exempted our taxes. I'll help check what else."

When Sun Dong heard this, he felt that the Song Dynasty was really rich and generous. He was exempted from taxes and service at any time. He didn't know where the money from their government came from. He didn't charge money everywhere, and some even paid money. No wonder the people worked hard.

After a while, the dustbins there were roasting. Qiu Pan took out the dry food and divided a few pieces of meat for Sun Dong and Tang Xi to feed them. The road in the mountains is not easy to walk, so it will take a long time to go back from here.

After using dry food, Qiu Pan pointed out the way to Sun Dong and said, "You should go on the road. We are also in charge of the official position. We have to watch you leave before we can get a job. If something goes wrong, I am afraid that the official will punish us."

Sun Dong thanked Tang Xi for a long time and pulled him along the way Qiu Pan pointed.

After walking more than a hundred steps, Tang Xi asked in a low voice: "Brother, we haven't found any news. Is it really going back like this?"
Chapter completed!