Xue Qingshan's face was a little ugly, and at the same time he was a little surprised.
His nephew has always been reticent, and he can't make a fart with three sticks. He only acted out this way because he counted on Erfang's two petty tempers.
But after all, he lived older than Xue Tingxiang, so naturally he would not forget to do superficial work.
He sighed: "The boy was spoiled by his mother, and it's also my uncle who can't discipline well. Uncle is here to accompany you."
Xue Tingxiang hurriedly backed away and said: "Uncle, don't say that, Ting'er is a junior, he can't bear it."
"Ting'er? I didn't expect you to give yourself a name." Xue Qingshan laughed, and also wanted to point out that Xue Tingxiang's name was not correct, and he was not as sensible and polite as he appeared on the surface.
Usually names are bestowed by the elders, not just chosen by the younger generation. It's okay for ordinary villagers, but Xue Tingxiang is a scholar, and a scholar should know how to be polite. Read.
Xue Tingxiang was very clear in his heart, and understood what uncle meant. He smiled and said: "When my father was still alive, I asked my grandfather and uncle to help me choose one. Uncle refused because of his humble name. Now the court My son is also fourteen, so I can't keep using her baby name, so I randomly picked one."
As soon as this remark came out, Xue Qingshan's face turned ugly again. Xue Tingxiang was obviously saying that he, as an uncle, did not want to name him, and deliberately belittled him. After all, since I have been educated, I should definitely not have a name,
He forced a smile, and explained: "It's not that Uncle sees that you are not in good health, and wants to name you after you are an adult. You can't understand this painstaking effort, if Uncle doesn't choose one for you now?"
As he said that, without waiting for Xue Tingxiang to agree, he sighed and made a melancholy look, and said: "You have been weak since you were born, and your father wished you a long life when he was alive, so my uncle named you Fushou, what do you think? ?"
This name is really random, and I am not at all sorry for the name of Xue Qingshan, the only child born in Yuqing Village.
Xue Tingxiang hesitated for a moment before refusing: "It's still not uncle, Ting'er's name has been decided, and I went to the grave to inform my parents before, there is absolutely no chance to change it."
These words also made it clear why he went to the cemetery every year. Since Xue Tingxiang saw that Xue Qingshan had invited so many people and made such a fuss, he knew that the other party must have plans.
Regardless of what he plans, he just blocks the way that the other party may use to make a fuss, and the rest is to wait and see what happens.
Sure enough, Patriarch Xue's face softened a little.
Before that, he always thought that this matter was done on purpose by Erfang, just to compete with Juncai for the opportunity to study in Qinghe Academy. This time I came to see this young man is gentle and polite, neither humble nor overbearing, patriarch Xue has no fame, but he can know a few words, and he has been the patriarch for many years, so he has a good eye for people.
He was very surprised, because he had seen Gouzi before, but he didn't have a deep impression of him. The only impression he had was that he was an inconspicuous boy. Looking at it now, this son has grown up somewhat unexpectedly.
But no matter how unexpected he was, patriarch Xue did not forget what he was doing here.
Just a good impression on one side is not enough to make him shake the decision he has made. He had asked someone to test Juncai's child, and he was much more knowledgeable than his two grandchildren. If it was said who the next child in Yuqing Village would be, Patriarch Xue felt that Xue Juncai was the most likely.
Maybe not just a child, but a scholar.
With two future talent seedlings and a young man who doesn't know his depth, Patriarch Xue naturally knows how to do this multiple-choice question.
However, the idea of helping Xue Qingshan before was dispelled. If Xue Qingshan couldn't even handle a child, he didn't deserve his attention.
How could Xue Qingshan fail to see Patriarch Xue's thoughts. In his eyes, this old man is a master who does not see rabbits and does not scatter eagles. He accepts the benefits he brings to the clan, but never knows how to give him something.
If any clan has ethnology, the clan will not subsidize one or two. On the contrary, he worked for nothing all day long, and every time a certain family in the clan brought some random food, the patriarch called him over and asked him to accept it.
To be generous with the generosity of others, to spend other people's wealth, is merciless to others, and it is meaningless to oneself!
Xue Qingshan sneered in his heart, but pretended to be a respectful petition, and invited Xue patriarch Zheng Lizheng and others into the house.
Patriarch Xue and Zheng Li were sitting cross-legged on the kang, one on the left and one on the right, while the others were sitting on the stools below. Mrs. Yang and Mrs. Zhou were busy pouring tea, and even Xue Tao'er was sent to ask Mr. Xue to come home quickly.
Patriarch Xue and Zheng Lizheng both had the habit of smoking dry pipes, and they took out the pipes as soon as they sat down.
Xue Qingshan hurriedly took a bag of tobacco leaves from his mother Zhao, and while serving them, he said: "This is grown by my father himself. It is usually a treasure. Uncle and Uncle Li should try it."
"Your father's shredded tobacco is good, but it's too little." After lighting it, Zheng Lizheng took a deep breath and said with a smile.
Xue Qingshan replied: "If Uncle Lizheng likes it, I'll pretend to be with you when I leave later, so don't dislike it."
These are all polite words, everyone knows each other well, Zheng Lizheng nodded with a smile, and went straight to the point: "What is Shan Zi planning to invite some of us old guys over here this time?"
Looking at Zheng Lizheng's smiling face, Xue Qingshan scolded the old fox in his heart.
Things would turn out like this, and he absolutely wouldn't believe that this guy surnamed Zheng didn't do anything inside. But that's exactly how he invited Zheng Lizheng here today. After all, he is the Lizheng of Yuqing Village and his surname is Zheng, so he won't be said to be covering up.
Including the few villagers present today, Xue Qingshan was thinking about inviting them. There was one with the surname Zheng, one with the surname Xue, and two families with mixed surnames in the village, but they were all well-known in the village.
"Is there a matter that requires a few elders to decide, or wait for my father, he is in the field and will be back soon."
Just as he was talking about Mr. Xue, he came back. After coming in, he exchanged greetings for a while before sitting down and getting to the point.
"It's ashamed to say this. Some things in my family have made everyone laugh."
Hearing this was the beginning of the words, except for Patriarch Xue and Zheng Lizheng, everyone present felt a little embarrassed. After all, this is someone else's family matter. It's two different things.
"Actually, to put it bluntly, it's all caused by poverty. In the previous situation of our family, it wouldn't be like this. One baby was given away, but the other was not."
One was also surnamed Xue, and was of the same generation as Mr. Xue. An old man named Xue Lianhe sighed: "Lian Xing, don't say that, your family is also in trouble."
Old Master Xue sighed with a wry smile: "It's difficult, it's not difficult for anyone, this light is all on the surface. But no matter how difficult it is, if you want your baby to have a future, you have to pay for it. If you don't give it to someone, you will be successful." There's a problem."
With trembling hands, he took out the dry pipe from his waist, lit it and took a puff, before he said, "The palms and backs of the hands are full of meat, and it hurts me to give up any one. In fact, this matter was discussed last year, and I have been procrastinating on it." I did it because I was afraid that the baby would feel uncomfortable. It is not easy for a peasant family like us to provide for a scholar. The family finally gave up Shanzi. Although he failed to pass the exam several times, he still did it for the village and for us. Guys did something.
"For so many years, our family has been doing things in the village. Everyone has seen it. If it is far away, it will not be mentioned. Let's talk about the private school in Shanzi. As long as you are from the village and your family is not rich, Shu Xiu will be later or even less. , our family never mentioned it. Why? It's because it's not easy for us country people to make a living, with our faces turned to the loess and our backs turned to the sky. If God doesn't show mercy, the whole family suffers from famine.
"Actually, I'm not afraid of the laughter of my brothers and sisters. Back then, I worked hard to support Shanzi's education, just thinking that if I really passed the exam, I would give my family some tax exemption."
These words were to the point, and it seemed that they were just a few words lightly, but they didn't go deeper, but they said that everyone had mixed feelings in their hearts.
What Mr. Xue said is the truth, or the truth that is in line with people's reality, that's what makes it so complicated.
Finally someone stood up and spoke out for the previous incident, "Brother Lianxing, stop talking about it, we can't trust you? When people spread rumors in the village, we told the children at home, Brother Lianxing Not that kind of person. There are those who are grandpas, and those who don't love their grandchildren."
"Yes, yes, everyone can understand, who is not difficult."
Seeing that everyone was echoing Mr. Xue's words, only the one surnamed Zheng remained silent. Zheng Lizheng's eyes flashed, and he said with a smile: "Everyone in the village has watched Shanzi's contribution to our village. Everyone knows that Shanzi is benevolent and righteous. This is for everyone's sake. There is just one sentence, I don't know if I, an elder, should say it."
"Uncle Lizheng, you are the Lizheng of our village, there is nothing inappropriate to say."
Zheng Lizheng nodded: "It stands to reason that this is your family's business, and I, an outsider, shouldn't interfere. But Lian Xing said it before, the palms and backs of his hands are all flesh." He suddenly sighed, and said earnestly: " Shanzi, don't forget why your second child didn't exist, everyone here can understand, because we have lived for decades, and we have never seen anything in our lives, so we are afraid that outsiders will not understand."
These words made Xue Qingshan's complexion look ugly on the spot, but since he can arrange this scene, it's not that he has no countermeasures.
He immediately said: "Uncle Lizheng is right, so I discussed it with my father and planned to give the two children a chance. Let the two have a competition, the winner will enter the school, and the one who fails will learn two lessons at home." Years, let's talk about it later when we have a chance."
Upon hearing this, the people present looked at each other without much opinion. Especially with the previous foreshadowing, Xue Qingshan's words seem to be reasonable, which makes people have nothing to choose.
After all, no family is rich, and money does not come from the river.
Everyone went to see Zheng Lizheng, Zheng Lizheng looked at everyone with a smile, and said: "Why are you all looking at me? Since Lian Xingjia has an idea, let's look at his family. But how does this compare? We old guys don't Literacy, let Shanzi be the judge?"
After a pause, he shook his head: "No, no, Shanzi is Juncai's father, so he should avoid suspicion, or choose someone else to convince everyone."
He looked up at Xue Qingshan and smiled: "Shanzi, you won't blame me, Uncle Li Zheng, for being too talkative, right? In fact, I'm doing it for your own good. We should be upright in our conduct and conduct."
Xue Qingshan can't wait to throw out this person who always ruins his good things, how can he not complain, but on the surface he can't say that, he can only seem to ponder for a while, and said: "What Uncle Li Zheng said is that although I'm an uncle, so I still have to avoid suspicion. If not, let me invite one, and Uncle Lizheng invite one, and the two of them will come up with the questions on the spot, and the two younger ones will be tested."
Zheng Lizheng looked at Xue Qingshan with squinted eyes, seeing his confident appearance, he had some bad premonitions in his heart. But he has intervened too much, and it would be too obvious to be picky, so he could only nod and smile in agreement, and praised Xue Qingshan that he is indeed a scholar, but his mind is different.
The matter has been settled, and what follows is gossip.
Since people were invited to the door, it would be unreasonable not to ignore the meal at noon, so Mr. Xue ordered a few daughters-in-law to go down to pack the lunch.
Just now when the elders were talking inside, Xue Tingxiang and Xue Juncai were standing outside, so they naturally knew what happened.
Zhao'er's face was a bit ugly, but Xue Jun gave Xue Tingxiang a proud look, and then went in to talk with his father beside several elders, and naturally won another round of praise without mentioning it.
Zhao'er couldn't help pulling Xue Tingxiang back into the house, and said anxiously: "What should I do? If I had known this earlier, I would have refrained from beating you. Gou'er, it's all my sister's fault. My sister caused trouble for you. "
She was anxious, and brought up the words of Sister Gou'er again.
"Don't be afraid, it's okay."
"Is it really okay?" Zhao'er turned back and forth on the spot and said, "But, what if we lose?"
Xue Tingxiang squinted his eyes: "Don't you believe me? Think I'm not as good as him?"
Zhao'er immediately said: "How is it possible! My dog is the smartest, and I will be a scholar in the future to become a high official, and my sister is still waiting to enjoy the blessing of the dog!"
Zhao'er and Xue Tingxiang have said this sentence countless times.
When he was a child, she would encourage him every time he showed signs of discouragement. She even thought so in her heart, so when everyone looked down on him and everyone thought he was not good enough, only she was the only one who kept talking to him like this, and even kept doing it with actions.
It's a pity that she didn't enjoy his blessing, not even a single day.
Obviously, all that was not what he experienced, it was just a dream of his, but every time Xue Tingxiang thought about it, he felt a great sense of sadness.
He closed his eyes for a moment, and a smile appeared on the corner of his mouth: "Since you have said so, are you still afraid that I will lose?"
That's right, it's a big deal and she loses. She just needs to find money for him to study. Wasn't that the plan? !
Thinking of this, Zhao'er suddenly thought about it, and said: "Then prepare well, win if you can, don't be afraid if you can't win, at worst, sister will find money for you to study."
Zhao'er has never been a person who likes to ask for troubles. She turned her head and saw that the cow dung in the house hadn't been cleaned up, so she went to find a brush to clean the kang, and then went out to get a broom and a dustpan to sweep the floor.
Chickens clucked and clucked outside, but it was Mrs. Sun who slaughtered the chicken and made it run away.
Xue Tingxiang looked out the window, and saw that the chicken's neck was still bleeding, but it was flying around the yard, and Mrs. Sun followed behind chasing after him in a panic.
Seeing that she was really in a bad shape, Mrs. Zhao came out of the room and said a few words. Mrs. Sun was even more anxious, and knew that she was really ashamed in front of the patriarch, but the chicken had wings, but she didn't. It was only when the chicken lost its strength that Mrs. Sun grabbed it and cursed, "Run, run, it's destined to be a dish in the pot. Where are you going?"
Xue Tingxiang didn't look any further, and looked back.
He knew why his uncle was so generous, and proposed to let him compete with Xue Juncai, because if there were no accidents, Xue Juncai would definitely win this match.
In that dream, he had suffered such a loss, but it was not compared with Xue Juncai, but Zhao'er worked so hard to get money and sent him to Qinghe Academy. At that time, he was so stupid that he always blamed his own failure on the harshness of fate, thinking that it was not that he could not do it, but that everyone did not give him a chance.
When he first entered the Qinghe Academy, he was full of ambition. He thought that he would definitely surpass Xue Juncai and prove that he was the most outstanding person in the Xue family, but the reality slapped him hard in the face. It was also at that time that he, who had never seen the world, understood the sinister intentions of his uncle. He did teach him to read, and he did 'read' a lot of books, but he just read and didn't understand the meaning of the scriptures.
It was later learned that after schoolchildren learn to read, they use reading scriptures as the basis.
First learn "Three Character Classic", "Hundred Surnames", "Thousand Characters", and then "Thousand Family Poems", "Children's Learning Qionglin", "Longwenbianying", etc. After reading these, you can enter university and start Study and read the Four Books and Five Classics, etc.
But at this stage, the teacher does not explain the meaning of the scriptures, that is to say, he just memorizes them by rote, clarifying the meaning of the words but not the meaning of the scriptures. Because people nowadays are used to thinking that children are just learning, it doesn't matter whether they understand it or not, as long as they remember it, and when they read a lot or for a long time, they will understand what it means.
This is the so-called reading a thousand times, and its meaning is self-evident.
When you can recite all these books fluently, and when you can learn to interpret the scriptures, you will get twice the result with half the effort.
This time-saving, labor-saving and effective teaching mode is popular throughout Daxi, ranging from famous families to low-level sociology and village studies, and many of them are like this. This is especially popular in rural private schools, because there is only one teacher in the school, but it is not realistic to teach several or even dozens of people to explain the scriptures.
But in fact, aristocratic families with some background would never teach their children this way. Because this teaching mode blindly emphasizes rote memorization, but ignores the truth that the classics are natural and logical.
This is the pros and cons that 'he' analyzed from the perspective of the overall situation after standing in the position of chief assistant.
But at that time, he had just entered the library, because his uncle delayed explaining the meaning of the scriptures for him, and he didn't understand that there was still a theory of explaining the scriptures. So when he first entered school, the teacher asked him if he had read it, and he replied that he had read it, but he couldn't understand the scriptures.
But now, it seems that the uncle is also aware of his own shortcomings, so he deliberately proposes this match, but in fact, he has already planned it, and he is destined to lose.
Unfortunately, there was an accident.
Because there were guests at home, except for Mr. Xue and Xue Qingshan and his son, everyone was busy.
After eating in the main room, the kitchen will start cooking other people's lunch.
During the period, Xue Taoer was also ordered to drink. There was wine and meat at the banquet in the main room, and the men exchanged glasses, and there was no way to see that there was any cleverness in the usual times. Especially Patriarch Xue and Zheng Lizheng, the two drank very affectionately, and in the end they both got a little drunk.
"Okay, don't send it off, you'll be there soon." Patriarch Xue waved his hand.
After sending everyone out of the courtyard, this side started to clear the table and prepare meals. Mrs. Zhao originally wanted to take away the leftover meat and vegetables, but was stopped by Mr. Xue, saying that he was adding vegetables to everyone. People in the country are not rich, and it is commonplace for distinguished guests to leave and eat leftovers.
The adults are all fine, Shuanzi and Maodan are eating deliciously.
Zhao'er wanted to take the meal back to the house to eat, but was stopped by Xue Tingxiang, the two just kept their heads down and ate as before, without saying anything.
Xue Juncai gave Xue Tingxiang a disdainful look.
He had just accompanied Xue Qingshan to the table, and naturally he ate a lot of good food on the table, seeing that Xue Tingxiang could only eat leftovers, he was naturally full of sarcasm.
He remembered what his father said to him before, Xue Gouzi would never win him.
Thinking in his heart, he looked away, and said to Mr. Xue who was on the kang, "Grandpa, I'm going back to the house to read."
Mr. Xue nodded. He also drank a little too much before, and now he is leaning on the kang smoking a cigarette to hangover.
"Dog, eat more, brother is still waiting for you to beat me in five days." Xue Juncai suddenly said this when passing by Xue Tingxiang.
Zhao'er immediately stood up and stared at him: "Can you talk? You've read the dog's stomach after so many years of reading."
Xue Juncai didn't expect Zhao'er to show him such shame, his gentle face flushed red, but for some reason, he glanced at Zhao'er and held back.
Mr. Xue shouted: "Juncai go back to the house!"
Mrs. Zhou also hurriedly stood up to persuade Zhao'er, that's all.
After dinner, the two went back to the second room, and Zhao'er was still angry: "Don't be angry, dog. When sister earns money, I will take you to the house and won't be with them anymore."
Xue Tingxiang was a little moved, but at the same time a little helpless: "You called me a dog again."
Zhao'er groaned, then smiled and said: "I forgot, it won't be like this in the future."
Naturally, he couldn't be angry with her, and then Zhao'er took the two clothes she changed yesterday and went out to wash, while Xue Tingxiang turned over the "Children's Learning Qionglin" again.
Looking at the book in his hand, which was transcribed on the worst bamboo paper and the footers were worn away, Xue Tingxiang felt a little worried. He actually didn't want to read books, but Zhao'er couldn't help but think that he should read more books now, and only by reading more books can he win against Xue Juncai more confidently.
Little did he know that this book was different from the book, and it was useless to just read this book, but he would not tell her about it.
He dug out the bamboo paper that Zhao'er bought for him from the kang cabinet. The cheapest bamboo paper cost 40 cents a knife. Such 'expensive' paper was barely enough for practicing calligraphy. Even so, he is very precious at ordinary times, and he is reluctant to use it at all. If he can write on the sand, he will write on the sand, and if he can't use the sand, he will write on the desk with water.
Xue Tingxiang touched the stack of yellowed bamboo paper and sighed in his heart.
'Xue Tingxiang' usually uses the highest quality Chengxin paper, so at this time he feels a little disgusted with the things that are usually precious.
He spread out the papers on the kang table, stacked several sheets, and then cut them into the size of a book with a bamboo knife. In order to make room for the edge seam, he left some leeway and cut a thick stack before he found the inkstone with a corner missing and the ink ingot that had been used up and only a small piece remained.
These are treasures that he is reluctant to use at ordinary times, but Xue Tingxiang doesn't feel this way at all today. He added water to the inkstone, and then took the ink ingot to grind the ink, while grinding, he was thinking about something.
After grinding the ink, he put the bald hair brush in the water bowl and wet it to clean it. After dipping in enough ink, he picked up the pen and wrote something on the paper.
After writing a few words, he suddenly put down the pen, lifted the paper to look at it, and suddenly crumpled it.
Mingming's handwriting is fairly neat. Although he usually saves paper and ink, but because of years of hard work, his handwriting is not bad, but for some reason he just doesn't like it.
He closed his eyes slowly, calmed down for a while, and opened them again after a while. At this time, there was no one in the room, and anyone who was there could see a gleam of light flashing in Xue Tingxiang's eyes. At the same time, his movement of grasping the pen was fast and steady, and with the help of a god, he wrote a series of small characters on the paper in a short time.
These small characters suddenly became Yan style, then turned into pavilion style, and then turned into thin gold style again. At first, they were both tangible and boneless, but as they were written, their taste changed.
The face and body are square and dense, the brushwork is thick, straight, open and full of vigor. That pavilion is physically strong and graceful, as if it was carved out of a block. And the thin gold body, the gold hook and iron painting, is full of arrogance, and the strokes are as sharp as cutting gold and jade.
These three characters represent the whole life of 'Xue Tingxiang', from the Yan style learned at the beginning of school, to the Guange style studied painstakingly for the imperial examination, to the thin gold style of the official residence.
And so he wrote, oblivious to himself. Zhao'er came in during the period, but he didn't dare to disturb him, so he quietly sat down on the edge of the kang.
After writing for an unknown amount of time, he suddenly let out a long breath and put down his pen.
He wrote two full sheets of paper.
At this time, Xue Tingxiang had to admit that the magic of heaven was just a dream, and he actually possessed some of the things that he had in the dream.
From the moment this dream appeared, Xue Tingxiang had been thinking about why he had such a dream. Now he understands, maybe he just wants him to make up for all the unsatisfactory dreams.
And possessing everything of the "him" in the dream, he suddenly had great ambitions, and a surge of arrogance lingered in his heart.
"I'm tired of writing, drink some water."
Zhao'er brought water, Xue Tingxiang took it, and drank it in one gulp, it was very sweet.
Only then did he lower his head to look at what he had written, and he actually spent two sheets of bamboo paper. Probably because Zhao'er was by his side, he suddenly remembered that she used to save money to buy paper for him, and felt a little distressed and guilty. He glanced at her and said in a low voice, "I actually wrote so much."
How could Zhao'er not understand what he was thinking, so he chuckled and said, "Not much, not much, only two sheets. Paper is for use. I told you not to save paper a long time ago. It is used up. Let's just buy it again."
"I want to transcribe this book, so I try to write first, so as not to waste paper."
"What book do you want to copy? Can you copy books too? Don't you buy them?" Zhao'er was puzzled.
Xue Tingxiang sighed in his heart. He really felt that he was really stupid before. He would rather borrow books from his uncle every time, or memorize them by rote, and never thought of copying books.
Nowadays, the books sold in bookstores are rarely printed and expensive, so an industry of copying books has emerged. In this way, not only some poor scholars can get some money in exchange, but also those who want to buy books but suffer from poor pockets can get cheap.
Of course, this copying is not something that can be done casually, it needs to be written very well.
Xue Tingxiang boasted that his handwriting was not bad. Back then, many people begged for his calligraphy. Now that he needs a book, why can't he copy it himself.
the most important is--
He glanced at Zhao'er.
Since Xue Tingxiang made up his mind to copy the books, Zhao'er had no reason to object.
However, she even made a big wish that she would earn a lot of money in the future and not let him worry about a book, not to mention here.
After Zhao'er helped him lay out the paper, he went to find a suitable needle and thread, planning to bind it for him after he finished writing.
Xue Tingxiang laughed a little, but didn't say anything, and started to write seriously on the paper.
He planned to copy all the books he had memorized, because he found a problem. Since he had that dream, 'Xue Tingxiang' had more and more influence on him, including the impact on his own memory.
Especially all the books he has learned since he was a child. He had flipped through the memory of that dream before, and he had memories of some bibliographies in elementary school and even college, but his memory was extremely vague, and many of the more detailed things had been forgotten.
He thought about the reason, and felt that "he" seemed to be very disgusted with the memory of studying hard in the cold window, so he always adopted an evasive attitude. In addition, the Xue Tingxiang in the dream has lived for more than seventy years. Since he passed the Jinshi examination, he has been obsessed with officialdom battles, but he doesn't care about his own knowledge.
After so many years, his memory is more about the ups and downs of the officialdom, the various forces in the party struggle, and the speculation of the people, rather than the original essence of a scholar.
Seriously speaking, 'Xue Tingxiang' is not a real scholar, he is just a politician.
But obviously he doesn't need these things now, as if a young child has a sword, he knows the significance of these things to his future. But today a young child needs nothing more than a piece of clothing, or just food and clothing.
But these memories have already begun to affect his own memory. He doesn't want to forget what he has learned. What he needs to do now is to consolidate his memory and combine with 'Xue Tingxiang''s advanced understanding of many things. This is the right way.
And the best way to master it is nothing more than copying books.
Obviously this yellow bamboo paper is of very low quality, the brush strokes should not be light or heavy, the ink will be uneven if it is light, and it will smudge if it is heavy, but Xue Tingxiang writes on it like flowing clouds and flowing water as if there is nothing. The handwriting on it is full and round, and it is extraordinarily majestic.
Zhao'er held his breath and didn't even dare to make a sound. His eyes fell on Xue Tingxiang, who was writing vigorously. Suddenly, he had the illusion that a little man had grown up.
Xue Tingxiang quickly wrote a sheet, and he was about to take it away to dry, Zhao'er quickly took it, and spread it carefully on the kang. Her eyes were attracted by those words. She couldn't tell how beautiful they were, but felt like a painting.
And during this period, Xue Tingxiang wrote another one.
In this way, Xue Tingxiang wrote and asked children to dry it. After a while, the kang was covered with paper.
A book of the Three Character Classic does not contain more than a thousand characters, and Xue Tingxiang finished it very quickly.
He put down the pen, took a deep breath, and moved his wrist a few times. He hadn't written at such a high density for a long time, and it was a challenge to his wrist strength.
"Actually, I can copy books to subsidize my family." He said suddenly.
He had been thinking about this for a long time. In his dream, he only read books blindly. He really managed to "keep his ears off the outside world and read only the books of sages and sages".
The former "he" was helpless and emotional about this situation, but he had more than enough energy, and Zhao'er was really capable, and he had a talent that no one else had in business, and he answered everything in every detail, and never let him go. He worries about money, so he doesn't think about it anymore.
Looking back, he realized that 'he' cared more about this matter than he imagined. Now that he can earn one or two silver coins to support his family, why not give it a try.
How can a man be raised by a woman, he should be the one who shelters her from the wind and rain. He didn't understand at this time in the dream, but fortunately he understands now.
"Copy books to make money?" Zhao'er shook her head again and again: "How can I do that? It's hard work and hurts my eyes."
"How can you say so exaggeratedly? Look, I just copied a book in a short while." He organized all the pages of the book into a pile, and gave it to Zhao'er for her to bind.
"Copying books can not only earn money, but also read books. Why not do it. I remember that there are bookstores in the town that will find some poor scholars to help copy books and sell them. You go to the town tomorrow and bring this book to the bookstore. Look at the shop owner, if it's feasible, you can help me pick up a book and try it when you come back."
Having said that, he paused for a moment: "Well, I'll go with you, and we'll go to town together tomorrow."
"Is this really possible?" Zhao'er always hesitates when it comes to matters involving little men.
"There's nothing wrong with it."
Now that the matter was settled, the two of them woke up early the next day and went out without even having breakfast at home.
Yuqing Village is a small village located under Huyang Town. In fact, Huyang Town is also Huyang Township, just named after the town. There are dozens of villages like this in Huyang Township, and Yuqing Village is one of the larger villages.
From Yuqing Village to the town, if walking, it takes nearly an hour. If you take an ox cart or a mule cart, it will be faster, and there are carts from the village below to the town every day. Bullock carts are slow and cheap, and you can take one ride for two pennies. Mule carts are expensive, and one person gets four renminbi, but the speed is not comparable to that of ox carts.
Going out of Yuqing Village, walked to a fork in the road, and walked west for a while, Zhao'er and Xue Tingxiang stopped and stood under the big tree by the roadside to wait for the bus.
Although their clothes were simple, they were both neat and tidy, especially Zhao'er, who was wearing a man's clothes.
"It turns out that every time you go out, you have to walk through the vegetable field behind, just to change into this clothes?"
Zhao'er nodded, feeling a little guilty. But now that she has made a decision, she has prepared for the worst. Fortunately, Xue Tingxiang only showed a trace of surprise when he saw it, but he didn't show much disgust.
"It's more convenient to go out in this way. You can't recognize me as a girl."
Xue Tingxiang pursed his lips and glanced at her.
The young man in front of him looks handsome. From a man's point of view, he looks a little thinner, but there is really no sign of a daughter's family. He observed carefully, only to find that Zhao'er had thickened his eyebrows, and he did not know how to do it on his chest, but it became flat.
She also seemed to find that the little man's eyes stayed on her chest for too long, Zhao'er explained: "This is too inconvenient, so I wrapped it with a cloth."
She spoke very disapprovingly, as if she was talking about what we have for lunch, but Xue Tingxiang felt like he was reckless.
He recalled the dream in which Zhao'er's breasts were very plump, and he suddenly felt afraid that she would be crushed, so he couldn't help but ask, "Won't she be crushed?"
Zhao'er was a little surprised when she heard that, but she didn't think too much about it, so she said, "It's useless anyway."
Just as she was talking, she saw a mule cart approaching not far away, so she waved there. Naturally, she didn't notice that Xue Tingxiang's expression was very strange.
Seeing that he was riding in a mule cart instead of an ox cart, Xue Tingxiang couldn't help being a little surprised. He only knew that the mule cart was much more valuable than the ox cart. Zhao'er gave the money for the car, and pulled him into the car: "This car is faster, and it will be here in a while." In fact, Zhao'er was afraid that he would not be able to stand the bumps of the bullock cart after recovering from a serious illness, so he took the mule cart if he had one.
The middle-aged man driving the car smiled and said, "My little brother is insightful. This car is not only fast, but also stable. It is not comparable to a bullock cart. By the way, this is your brother?"
Xue Tingxiang, who was called his younger brother, turned dark.
It's not surprising that people say that he is Zhao'er's younger brother, and he is also dressed as a man. He is obviously thinner than Zhao'er, and he is half a head shorter.
Zhao'er was stunned for a moment, then nodded with a smile: "Yes, it's my younger brother."
While speaking, the middle-aged man had already driven the mule cart forward.
This car is indeed much faster than the bullock cart, and it runs without bumps. The car will stop at intervals to pick up one or two people. This special extended car can seat twelve people. The roof of the car is specially customized, and some not-too-heavy things can be placed on it.
By the way, the biggest advantage of taking this mule cart is that there is a carriage to keep out the dust, so you don't have to find a place to pack yourself when you arrive in the town.
"When I have money in the future, I will also buy this car." Zhao'er couldn't help but said to Xue Tingxiang, finally showing a little childishness.
"Will you rush?"
She froze for a moment, then said: "I can't rush, I can learn."
The problem is that you have done everything, even drive the car by yourself, so why do you need a man? Xue Tingxiang thought silently in his heart, and then realized that in his dream, it seemed that he was really useless as a man.
It seems that he will learn to drive in the future. Xue Tingxiang made a secret decision.
After the mule cart was full of people, it finally stopped halfway to pick up people.
After about a quarter of an hour, the city wall of Huyang Town could be seen in the distance.
The mule cart stopped not far from the city gate, and everyone in the cart got off, Zhao'er took Xue Tingxiang to the town.
This Huyang Town is neither big nor small. Zhao'er used to go to Dongshi mostly, and Dongshi sells the most groceries, but this time he mainly went to the bookstore, so he was going to Nanshi.
The previous dynasty emphasized civility over military affairs. This kind of folk custom did not die out after the wars at the end of the previous dynasty. On the contrary, it was because the first emperor of Daxi came to power at the beginning because he was a supporter of the civil servants in the previous dynasty. It is popular.
Even illiterate ordinary people can say that everything is inferior, only reading is high, which is evident.
Even in a small place like Huyang Town, any family with some spare money would send their children to a private school for two years. It is best to be able to test for fame and fame. If you can't test for merit and fame, you can get a few words, and the workmanship is cheaper.
This kind of folk custom has led to quite a few bookstores and book shops in the town. For example, there is a street in Nanshi that sells pens, ink, paper and inkstones, as well as other supporting facilities, all of which are business for scholars.
Although Zhao'er is not a scholar, she has bought bamboo paper for Xue Tingxiang a few times, so she is familiar with the place. However, she did not lead Xue Tingxiang to go immediately, but went around to a place with a lot of food stalls, found a noodle stall, and planned to go there after breakfast.
"The meal in the morning is the most important. We missed breakfast because we were in a hurry. Sharpening knives is not a mistake for woodcutters. Let's go when we are full."
The owner of the Zhaoerguan noodle stall ordered two bowls of sliced noodles.
This noodle is a unique food in Pingyang Prefecture. It is made of buckwheat noodles and sorghum noodles. It is black and red in color.
"The sliced slices here are very delicious, try it."
Xue Tingxiang tasted it, and it was really delicious.
Not to mention the craftsmanship, at least the portion is large, and the ingredients are sufficient, unlike Xue's food, which is reluctant to put oil and salt, and tastes bland.
But the price is also expensive, Xue Tingxiang finished a large bowl of jerky slices, and gave eight Wen when he asked his son to settle the bill, which means that this bowl of jerky slices is almost enough to buy half a catty of meat. .
"Is it delicious?" Zhao'er was still asking him when he was walking towards Nanshi.
"It's just a bit expensive."
It is indeed a little expensive for Xue Tingxiang. He has no pocket money since he was a child, and the only chance to have some money in his hands is the few pennies given by Mr. Xue every year.
In his dream, these few pennies were really nothing, but it was these two weird thoughts mixed together that made Xue Tingxiang feel weird.
"Why is it expensive? It's not expensive. You don't come to the town often, but you come here once after all. Naturally, I will take you to have a good meal."
It's really a good meal, don't look at Zhao'er's face without changing her face, but in fact, when she came to the town alone before, she would buy a steamed bun at most when she was hungry.
She has never been reluctant to bear with herself, and always wants to save more, but she is very willing to bear with Xue Tingxiang, and she is at her wit's end. So every time Xue Tingxiang thought of everything in his dream, he couldn't believe that he would be a wife-killer and son-killer.
"When I earn money by copying books, I will bring you to eat every day." He couldn't help but said.
The sun had already come out, and the pale golden sunlight shone on the boy's still immature face. His fair face was like the finest white jade, with fine fluff on it. The slightly pale lips were pursed lightly at this moment, and it could be seen that the young man was a little uncomfortable. He didn't dare to look directly at her, but looked aside.
Zhao'er's smile got bigger and bigger, and he couldn't help stretching out his hand to rub his head: "Silly dog, you can only make a few money by copying books, how can you come to eat that every day." There was a pampering expression in his expression.
But the voice was silenced in his dark pupils, and Zhao'er finally realized what he said and did.
She was a little guilty, and it was strange, she had never been afraid of a little man before, but since he recovered from his illness this time, she has become a little afraid of him occasionally.
It must be her illusion!
She withdrew her hand, looked left and right, suddenly her eyes lit up, and said: "Look, we're here." As she spoke, she walked into the bookstore first.
This bookstore called "Dongliju" is not big, it only has two fronts, one is used to sell the four treasures of the study, and the other is full of bookcases next to the wall.
The books in the bookcase are new and old, some are hardcover, which are worth a lot of money at first glance, and some are thread bound, which look a little rough. Most of them are transcripts of various kinds. Generally, it is not sure that the book will be a good seller. The boss of the bookstore always asks someone to copy it, because if it is opened, thousands of copies will be printed.
Zhao'er was familiar with the boss, and greeted her with a smile as soon as she entered the door. The strange thing was that the boss recognized her, and when he saw her, he smiled and asked her if she came to buy paper for her brother.
Bringing this up is a bit old.
Back then, Zhao'er felt sorry for Xue Tingxiang, so she saved some money to buy paper for him to practice calligraphy. Who would have thought that this paper was much more expensive than she imagined. Even the worst yellow bamboo paper costs 40 Wen a knife, but that day Zhaoer collected all the money on his body, but only 30 Wen.
In order to get the boss to sell the paper to her at a lower price, Zhao'er worked with the boss for a long time. He even made up the pretense of having a hard-working younger brother, but unfortunately both parents died and his family was poor, so the boss agreed to sell it to her cheaply. Later, she came to buy it several times, all at the previous price, but she became acquainted with Boss Chen.
Boss Chen praised her for her noble character, earning hard money, but still supporting her younger brother's education. Usually, when she comes to buy paper, she almost always buys half and gives half away.
Normally, Zhao'er would accept this kind of talk with a cheeky face, but today with Xue Tingxiang around, she was inevitably a little embarrassed, for fear that Boss Chen would slip up and make the little man look down on her for lying.
Zhao'er has suffered, so she knows the skills of survival, but the little man doesn't, especially the scholar is very pedantic, so every time she encounters such a situation where the two people's ideas conflict, she will always subconsciously go away. Avoid these.
Within a day, two people said that they were his younger brothers, which made Xue Tingxiang very unhappy. Naturally, he didn't notice Zhao'er's hidden thoughts. When he came back to his senses, Zhao'er had already talked with the boss, and even showed him the copy of "Hundred Surnames" that he had copied overnight.
"This is your brother? He looks handsome, but a little thinner." Boss Chen is a middle-aged man in his forties, with a goatee and elegant body. Wearing a scholar's shirt, he doesn't look like a business boss, but a scholar.
"He was sick for a while a while ago, and he got better recently."
"No wonder I haven't seen you here for a long time." While talking, Boss Chen took the manuscript that Zhao'er handed over, whether it was bound or paper quality, it was very poor.
He knew in his heart that this kind of peasant boy could not write very good characters, but he admired this young man named Zhao'er, so he planned not to criticize too much even if he really did not do well, just say some mild words and refuse it. up.
If the level is not bad and the words can still be read, it is not impossible to give him some casual work, just as a help.
But when Boss Chen saw the writing on the yellow bamboo paper, he was still taken aback.
"He wrote this word?" Boss Chen looked at Xue Tingxiang in surprise, and went to flip through the manuscript in his hand.
His expression was so weird that Zhao'er had a bad feeling in his heart. She couldn't help wondering if the little man's handwriting was not good, after all, no one had ever praised the little man's handwriting, even Xue Qingshan said that his handwriting was like a spring worm and autumn snake.
Although Zhao'er doesn't know what spring worms and autumn snakes are, she understands the sad look on the little man's face, and she knows it means poor writing.
But she didn't think it was the little man's fault. He even had to pick and use the paper that could practice calligraphy. Can he write well? It was that time that she lost her temper, collected vegetables and sold them in the town, and saved a sum of money to buy Xue Tingxiang's first piece of paper in her life.
It was a whole knife, not a few pieces given as a charity from Xue Qingshan or Xue Juncai.
Zhao'er's head felt cold for a while, and she couldn't help wondering if she was too blind to the little man at ordinary times, or if she flattered her too much. She was not afraid of anything else, but she was afraid that if Boss Chen said something unpleasant later, the little man would not be able to stand the blow.
Thinking of this, she hurriedly turned her back and made a gesture to Boss Chen, leading him aside, then said to him in a low voice: "Uncle Chen, if my younger brother's handwriting is really bad, can you..."
"Can you do something?" Immediately, Boss Chen understood and said with a smile: "You kid too, even if you have a heart of love and affection, you should not deceive him, but point out his shortcomings, so that he will to make progress."
His voice was a bit loud, Xue Tingxiang over there must have heard it, Zhao'er blushed, but Na Na didn't know what to say.
Boss Chen said again: "But your brother's handwriting is really good, he must be a famous teacher."
He walked up to Xue Tingxiang in a few steps, and saluted with cupped fists: "I don't know who my little friend is your teacher?" He said hesitantly in his eyes, because the poor boy in front of him, who was dressed in coarse cloth and short brown, really didn't seem to be able to learn from anyone. Famous teachers.
Just his words...
Since Boss Chen runs a book shop, he is either a hobby or a ancestral business. In fact, Boss Chen has both, which can be regarded as the origin of family education. He also passed the exam several times when he was young, but he stopped at being a scholar. However, he was not interested in being an official, so he turned around and took care of his ancestral business. It is also a great thing in life to meet a few literary friends, play chess, drink tea, taste calligraphy and painting together.
From his point of view, although this son's handwriting is immature, he already has a strong character.
We must know that the form is easy to obtain, but the spirit is hard to find. Master Yan and Master Liu have always been collectively called "Yan Jin Liu Gu", which is enough to show the characteristics of Yan body. However, Xue Tingxiang's calligraphy has already possessed its fundamentals. As long as it does not go astray, in time, he will definitely be a great calligrapher of a generation.
How did he know that Xue Tingxiang deliberately hid the edge of his pen in order to hide himself, and it took most of the night to finish copying the book that could have been copied in half an hour at most. Otherwise, if the word is taken out, Boss Chen will definitely think it is someone's calligraphy.
Just when Boss Chen was thinking about it, Xue Tingxiang had already answered: "I don't have a teacher."
"Just copying?"
"I've been to "Yan Qinli Monument" before."
Xue Tingxiang didn't lie, he did only copy "Yan Qinli Monument", this set of copybooks is Xue Qingshan's favorite treasure, and he never let people touch it. And the reason why he was lucky enough to see and touch it once was that Xue Jun, who was still young at that time, was shown off in front of him.
Because of this incident, he was extremely impressed with "Yan Qinli Monument", and even became obsessed with it. Later, after some money at home, Zhao'er bought a set with him, and the first font he learned was Yanti.
"Just came across "Yan Qin Li Monument"?"
Xue Tingxiang nodded.
Boss Chen's eyes became brighter, and he sighed after a long time: "Perhaps you have a talent in this field that is difficult for others to surpass. I hope you practice hard and don't slack off. That's all, let's talk about business. Your handwriting is very good. In my opinion It's passed here."
He walked inside the counter, took a book and handed it to Xue Tingxiang.
"I have a copy of "University Chapters and Sentences" here. You can take it back and try it out. I will provide the pen and ink. After copying, if the finished product is not inferior to the standard of this book, I will pay you a tael of silver."
"One tael of silver? Uncle Chen, isn't that too much?" Zhao'er asked in surprise.
Uncle Chen laughed: "Do you know how many characters are in this book? And do you know how much money I will resell this book for?"
After finishing speaking, he continued to say to Xue Tingxiang: "It is reasonable to say that it is to be copied in my book shop. If you take the book back and copy it, you need to pay some pledged money or things. I know your brother well, so forget it." Well, how long do you think it will take to finish copying?"
Xue Tingxiang hesitated for a moment, and said: "Since Boss Chen has rules here, how about the boy copying here? I just hope that Boss Chen will be more flexible. Can you let the boy read a few books here in his spare time?"
Boss Chen was taken aback for a moment, and then he understood. He took a deep look at this thin but neither humble nor overbearing boy.
"Can!"
"Then thank you Boss Chen first, don't worry, the boy will definitely not damage the books here."
Zhao'er kept silent until the end of the conversation, and then pulled Xue Tingxiang aside to speak.
"Do you really want to copy books here? It would be nice to take it home. If you are afraid that Boss Chen won't allow it, I still have some money to pledge."
"You don't think this is a good place."
Xue Tingxiang looked back at the room full of books, he himself had only read a limited number of books, and in the memory of 'Xue Tingxiang', many memories about this aspect were blurred.
But life is his, and he wants to move forward step by step. It doesn't mean that he has a dream, and he will definitely be the chief assistant in the future, and he will definitely be able to pass the Jinshi examination. After all, even Xue Tingxiang in the dream had to put in a lot of hard work and go through many detours before he could reach the first rank of official residence step by step.
Of course Zhao'er understood what he meant, but she was very worried about suddenly leaving the little man outside alone. She was thinking about finding an excuse to stay here with him, but Boss Chen said from the side: "Okay, you don't have to worry about your brother, can you lose it with me? You don't have to sell vegetables to work today? Hurry up. "
In the eyes of Boss Chen, Zhao'er is a hard-working brother who supports his younger brother by selling vegetables in the town.
"Uncle Chen, I'm leaving now."
She hurriedly took out a dozen or so copper coins from her pocket and handed them to Xue Tingxiang: "I should come to find you for lunch at noon, if not, you can buy it yourself, right here..."
"Copy books here, and you can have a light meal at noon." Boss Chen interrupted again.
Zhao'er was still rambling: "You still have the money, you can buy whatever you want, and I will pick you up in the afternoon."
"You'd better pick up your work and finish it first, don't worry your brother won't lose it."
This Uncle Chen!
Zhao'er couldn't go on talking anymore, and ran out of the bookstore almost in despair.
After the person had left, Boss Chen teased with a smile: "Your brother treats you very well."
Xue Tingxiang smirked, "It's pretty good, like a little hen who doesn't care about her chicks. For some reason, he actually thought of this sentence.
After that, under the guidance of the shop assistant, he went to a room behind the shop.
The layout of this room is simple, but it is elegant. It can be seen that Boss Chen is an elegant person. The best thing about this house is that there is a large window facing the outside yard, and there is a set of tables and chairs, which is completely different from Xue Tingxiang's imagination of being hidden in a dark room without light.
The clerk even brought a basin of water for him to wash his hands, prepared pens, ink, paper and inkstone, etc., and said he could call him if he had anything to do, so he went down.
Xue Tingxiang came to the water basin, dipped his hands in the water, rubbed them gently a few times, and wiped them dry with a cloth towel beside him, before going to the desk and sitting down.
He grinds the ink first. Grinding ink can well adjust people's emotions and achieve a 'quiet' state.
After the ink was polished, his mind was empty at this moment. He rolled up his sleeves to write, and his hands were empty, only to realize that he was wearing a short brown at this time, where there were no sleeves, so naturally he was not afraid of staining the sleeves.
All this was just for a moment, he didn't care about it, and wrote quietly.
But Boss Chen, who was standing outside the door, was a little skeptical, and couldn't help but wonder if this son was from a famous family, but it's a pity that his family has fallen, rather than a poor kid. His words and deeds, and even his demeanor, don't look like those from a poor family at all.
After thinking for a while, but unable to figure out why, Boss Chen shook his head and went back to the front.
Zhao'er left the street where the book shop was located, only to realize that she had nowhere to go.
She was accompanying the little man to the book shop today, and the work in the embroidery workshop was already too much, and she hadn't picked up the vegetables for many days, so it would be too much trouble to go back to the village and wait for the afternoon.
She calculated in her mind what day it was today, and decided to visit her second sister.
Zhao'er's second sister, Wang Zhaodi, is not in Huyang Town, but works as a girl in Shen's Mansion in Xia County. From Huyang Town to Xia County, it only took half an hour to take a mule cart, but it was a little expensive, 15 cents.
By the time Zhao'er arrived at the county seat, it was three o'clock. It was just right to meet someone at this time, her second sister might not have time to see her if it was too early or too late, and she would have to wait for a long time.
Zhao'er came all the way to the south of the city, before entering the archway where Shen's house was located, he saw the two large flags more than five feet high erected in front of Shen's residence.
This is the Jinshi Jidi Banner, which can be set up only if someone in the family has won the Jinshi.
This fame flagpole is divided into two structures, the flagpole sandwich stone and the flagpole.
The flag buckets on the flagpoles are also exquisite. If you come from a serious imperial examination, you can stand up two flagpoles if you have passed the Jinshi in the palace examination. If it is the number one scholar, it will be the flagpole of three fights, and if there are members of the third rank or above in the clan, four fights can be set up.
There are two large flags in front of the Shen family's gate, one is three buckets and the other is four buckets. In other words, the Shen family once had a number one scholar, and had an important minister in the court.
Zhao'er, a country girl, knows this because her second sister told her when she came to visit her.
The main entrance, side entrance, and even the corner entrance were not accessible to Zhao'er with her status. She made a long detour before arriving at the back entrance of Shen's residence.
The back door was ajar, and Zhao'er didn't dare to rush in, so he knocked on the door respectfully.
The door opened with a creak, and a round woman came out from inside, and asked her, "Who are you looking for?"
This old lady is just a doorkeeper, but she is also wearing satin gowns and jewelry on her ears and hands, which is enough to show the wealth of the Shen family.
The Shen family is indeed rich, and in this Xia County, it can be said that they are stomping their feet, and the county is about to tremble three times. The Shen Mansion here is the ancestral home of the Shen family, except for the Shen family's uncle and second master who are officials outside, the rest of the Shen family live here.
"Mother-in-law, I'm looking for Sulan. I'm her younger brother. I'm here to see her."
This woman's attitude is not warm, but she is not as inferior as a dog's eye. At least from this trick, it can be seen that the rules of the Shen family must be very strict. She asked Zhao'er to wait, then closed the door and went inside.
Zhao'er waited for a long time before the back door opened again, and a very beautiful woman came out from inside. I saw her radiant skin, phoenix eyes and vermilion lips, wearing a water-red jacket and a moon-white pleated skirt. A head of black and thick long hair was simply tied up in a bun, with a golden hairpin inserted into it.
Obviously the clothes are ordinary, and the hair accessories are also ordinary, but wearing all these on her body gives her a sense of beauty that no one else has. Her chest is bulging, but her waist is very thin, she has a good figure.
This person is Zhao'er's second sister Wang Zhaodi, but she changed her name to Su Lan in Shen's residence.
Zhao'er couldn't help frowning, since the last time she saw her second sister, her second sister has changed a lot. Not only the material of the clothes, but also the jewelry on his body, his complexion and even his figure have changed a lot.
She was a little panicked, grabbed Su Lan, and went to the corner where there was no one nearby.
"Sister, did you really do it?"
Seeing her younger sister frivolously wrinkling her sleeves, Su Lan asked impatiently, "What can I do or not?"
"It's that, that..." Zhao'er hesitated for a while, and then said with a blushing face: "You can't really be the housekeeper for the sixth young master, right?"
The corners of Su Lan's eyes twitched, and the corners of her mouth twitched: "Why do you care about these things?"
"Sister!" Zhao'er couldn't help stamping her feet.
Su Lan looked at her younger sister, and remembered that she was sold by her family back then. Only the third younger sister, Zhao'er, found out her whereabouts from the matchmaker, and walked all day and night to see her by herself. At that time, she was full of panic, Zhao'er's appearance made her know that she was not alone, and that no one would know that she would not die in this mansion, and she immediately softened her heart.
She sighed lightly: "Didn't I tell you before, I won't go out of the house to go through that kind of hard life. Although I am a housekeeper now, but the sixth young master promised me that when grandma came in, I would give it to me." An aunt will do it."
Zhao'er was so surprised that she couldn't believe it. She knew it already, but she was still shocked when she learned from the second sister that she really did such a thing.
For the first time in her life, she didn't know what to say, so she hesitated for a while and said, "That's it? If you treat someone like a child, you will be bullied by the big wife."
Zhao'er's only cognition told her that when she was young, she had few days to live comfortably.
What the younger sister said made Su Lan feel extremely uncomfortable, and she waved her hand nonchalantly. On the snow-white and slender jade fingers, there is a golden opal ring on it, which exudes a faint light and is dazzling in the sun.
"You don't understand, and you don't have to be afraid of me being bullied. As long as the sixth young master is on my side, even if the sixth grandma comes in later, she won't dare to bully me."
"Can……"
"Okay, don't talk about me, your little husband is healed? I'm not talking about you. It's better for you to come into the mansion to be a girl to be my company than to stay in that house and work hard." .Which woman is looking for a man who is not looking for someone who can protect herself. You are fine, but you are working outside to earn money to support your family."
"Isn't he still young? Besides, sister, it's not like you don't know. If it weren't for my mother and father, I'm afraid I would have been sold to nowhere. You were lucky enough to be sold into Shen's residence. But there are also those who are unlucky and sold into that dirty place."
Su Lan pressed her bright red lips tightly and did not speak.
She was sold into Shen's residence back then, it was not explained by good luck.
In the sparkling eyes of the phoenix, all kinds of light returned to silence. She let out a breath and scolded: "That's why I don't want to see you the most. Every time you come, you make me angry and make me troubled."
Zhao'er kicked the pebbles under his feet: "I just thought I haven't seen you for a long time, so I came here to have a look at you."
"How are you doing? The Xue family didn't make things difficult for you, right? Just wait, when my sister becomes the sixth young master's aunt, whoever bullies you in the future, I will help you deal with him."
Zhao'er heard it warmly in her heart, and couldn't help leaning over, hugging Su Lan's slender waist coquettishly: "Sister, don't worry, I'm so aggressive, who dares to bully me. You don't know that the Xue family is such a moth." too much……"
She recounted what happened to Xue's family recently.
The corners of Su Lan's mouth curled up when she heard this, and she said sarcastically: "So this is the human heart. Don't try to test the human heart, it will usually disappoint you. Don't rely on others, what you hold in your hands is the truth."
Su Lan is a bit extreme, but Zhao'er knows why the second sister is like this. In fact, occasionally she will be extreme, but she rarely speaks out.
"Then what do you do now? If your little man really loses, then he won't be able to go to school? Have you ever thought about this matter, if you win, if you lose, it will be hard for the two of you The Xue family has a foothold."
Of course Zhao'er understood this truth. She stood up straight and smiled: "Sister, I know. Don't worry, I plan to find another way to do business. At worst, the two of us will be alone. Dog likes to learn, so let him learn." , until I can't afford it anymore."
Su Lan poked her forehead with her jade finger, hating iron and steel: "You still can't confess, how old are you? After a day of good life, I think I can't confess. Come on, don't tell me The second sister doesn't feel sorry for you, I have someone I know who is the third shopkeeper in 'He Rongsheng', if you go to him, he can at least find a way for you to make some money."
'Herongsheng' is the name of the pawn shop, there are many branches in Binh Duong Province, and there is one in Huyang Township. Zhao'er usually comes and goes in the town, so he has naturally heard of this name.
"This is the Shen family's business with Rongsheng? Sister, how do you know the three shopkeepers?"
Su Lan's eyes flashed a hint of complexity, and she said impatiently: "Don't worry about it, you can go directly to a man named Shen Ping. Well, I won't tell you anymore, the sixth young master will have lunch later Now, I have to go and wait, lest those little hoofs rush to the front to show courteousness again."
After a pause, she took out something from her sleeve and stuffed it into Zhao'er's hand: "Take it, it doesn't matter if you really lose, let's do it by ourselves first. The Shen family's genealogy is famous in the whole Pingyang Mansion. Sister will become an aunt in the future, and see if I can ask the Sixth Young Master to let your little man come in as a companion or something. I really owe you in my previous life, and I have to worry about everything."
Su Lan's figure quickly disappeared through the door.
Zhao'er stood where he was, looking down at the silver ingot in his hand. After a long time, Fang grabbed it tightly and left.
Zhao'er didn't know where He Rongsheng in the county was, she had inquired along the way.
When we got there, it was a coincidence that the third shopkeeper named Shen Ping was there.
Shen Ping is a very young boy with a good appearance, very mature and stable. He was wearing a dark blue straight gown, and looked about twenty years old, but he did not expect to be the shopkeeper of a pawnshop.
When he heard about Zhao'er's purpose, his eyes flashed: "You are Zhao'er, I heard your sister said about you."
Zhao'er didn't expect that the second sister would tell Shen Ping her name, and she smelled something unusual. While speaking, Shen Ping had already led her in.
"When your sister told me about you before, I was thinking about what kind of business would allow you to do it for a long time. After thinking about it, I think selling old clothes is quite suitable for a girl like you."
The second sister even told her gender to the other party's surprise, it didn't last long, Zhao'er's attention was attracted by Shen Ping's words.
"What is selling used clothes?"
"You should know what a pawnshop is for. This pawnshop accepts everything, and you can pawn anything. The current period is divided into dead pawns and live pawns. If it is a live pawn, it means that the other party will come to redeem it. If it is a dead pawn, it means that the things are not needed. Of course, there are also those who do not redeem their living debts within the time limit, and naturally they become death debts.
"These things are accepted by the pawn shop and exchanged for money to the owner. Naturally, they will be resold. For example, some old clothes that come from pawns are directly sold to embroidery workshops or clothing shops. If you are willing to do this business, you can buy them from Take some old clothes here and sell them back."
Following Shen Ping's narration, Zhao'er's eyes flickered again and again, and he asked, "Then I don't know what the price is? Is it calculated on a piece-by-piece basis, or what? Since it's an old clothes, surely it won't be as expensive as a new one, right?"
Shen Ping glanced at her: "You are very smart." He turned around and went to the layman: "Come with me, I will take you to have a look."
Zhao'er followed him all the way back, the yard behind the pawn shop was huge, it looked like it was a warehouse.
On the way, he met a lot of people in pawnshops, and they were all respectful when they saw Shen Ping. Zhao'er followed him to a warehouse, but neither of them went in. A man who looked like a buddy dragged a large bag of things out, and opened the door in front of it.
This big bag is full of clothes, some are worn out, some are 80% or 90% new, and some are even brand new. It seems that they have not been worn twice. The texture of the clothes is also various, some are made of cotton, some are made of silk, some are made of silk, but they are all of good quality, anyway, they are better than the coarse cloth clothes Zhao'er is wearing.
"These are usually mixed together, because they are collected at a low price, so the asking price is not high. If you give me two taels of such a bag of clothes, it will be yours."
Zhao'er couldn't see through her eyes. In order to make sure that the business could be done, she went up to check it out.
Such a package of clothes, at least a hundred pieces.
Even if a piece of clothing sells for 20 Wen, it is enough for her to pay back. And some clothes are sold for more than twenty yuan just based on her visual inspection. What can be done with twenty renminbi, at least six or seven feet of cloth is needed to make a suit of clothes, and the worst cotton cloth is seven or eight renminbi.
Not to mention that there are some good fabrics in it, and even some cotton clothes, even if you don't sell them, you won't lose money if you wear them yourself.