The two went back to the house and sat down on the kang.
In order to show that there is indeed a list to be made, Zhao'er specially brought a pen and ink, and she asked Xue Tingxiang to write it.
She reported the same, and Xue Tingxiang wrote the same on the paper.
Afraid of missing it, I went back and forth with him to make sure. In the end, the two of them spent so much effort, but they only wrote seven or eight things, six of which are the six rites for apprenticeship.
Zhao'er immediately felt a little embarrassed as he used pen and paper to memorize such things.
But she would never expose her shortcomings, so she naturally said confidently that Xue Tingxiang should think about it again, there must be something missing.
Xue Tingxiang was helpless, after a lot of thinking and thinking, and added two more things, Zhao'er finally nodded in satisfaction.
Mrs. Sun made dinner and asked everyone to eat.
Now the Xue family is still eating together, just like before. However, when cooking every day, the rations are paid by each house itself, and the food that is eaten at home is taken to the kitchen, and the food that is not eaten at home is not cooked. As for vegetables, they can be eaten casually in the vegetable garden and pickle jars, and they are not worth much anyway.
Now the atmosphere at the dinner table is much better than before. Most of them have no worries. It is also because Mr. Xue has been unhappy after the separation, and everyone is trying to please him. The other three-room people would always deliberately find something to say, but the people in the big room were a little bit weird, but everyone didn't pay attention to them.
After eating, Zhao'er helped wash the dishes, and then boiled water to take a bath.
It was Xue Tingxiang who washed it first, and Zhao'er helped him carry two buckets of water to the bathroom in the vegetable field at the back, and found his changed clothes, and then took his dirty clothes to the front yard to wash.
It was dusk, and the small farmyard was peaceful and peaceful.
Zhao'er threw the bucket into the well and drew water up.
The bucket protruded from the deep well, Zhao'er grabbed the handle and pulled it up, just about to pour it into the wooden basin next to it, when someone suddenly appeared behind him.
She turned her head and saw Xue Juncai standing behind her, looking a little strange.
"What are you doing standing here!"
Xue Juncai's eyes flashed: "I'll find some water to wash my hands."
Zhao'er glanced at him, then picked up the bucket and poured some water into a wooden basin in the corner.
It was for him to wash his hands, so Xue Juncai walked over.
Zhao'er didn't look at him again, and took the soap horns to wash the clothes.
She lowered her head, feeling that there was another figure in front of her, and raised her head angrily: "Why are you standing in front of me?"
Xue Juncai blushed a little: "Thank you."
Zhao'er let out a cry, then lowered his head and continued to struggle with the clothes in the basin.
Xue Juncai looked at her half-sagging face, and hesitated for a moment: "Zhao'er, I know you look down on me, but I will show you that I am a scholar."
"It doesn't matter to me whether you pass the exam or not, as long as you are worthy of grandpa and grandma!"
These words made Xue Juncai speechless, and he said after a long while: "Anyway, I will definitely pass the exam to show you a scholar, and I will let you know that Gouzi must not be as good as me!"
Show off again! What Zhao'er hates the most is Xue Juncai. Since he was a child, he likes to step on little men to show that he can do it!
She was about to say something, but Xue Juncai actually left.
Simply inexplicable!
Qinghe Academy and Qingyuan Academy opened on the same day, Xue Qingshan went out to borrow a mule cart as early as the first day, and planned to send Xue Juncai to the town early the next morning.
Although the family spent a lot of money and even sold the land to send Xue Juncai to the Qinghe Academy, but at this time, Mr. Xue was very happy. He even told Xue Tingxiang to let him go with Xue Juncai tomorrow morning, the bullock cart was too slow, and it would be too late when he got to town.
Although Yang Shi didn't speak at the side, but the nose is not the nose and the face is not the face. It's not that Zhao'er and Xue Tingxiang don't know how to read their faces, so they naturally refused.
Back in the house, Zhao'er said to Xue Tingxiang: "In the future, when we have money, let's quickly build a house and move away."
It turned out that it was for this reason that she wanted land but not a house before, but Xue Tingxiang was not surprised.
"You don't need to worry about this kind of thing, it will only make you angry."
Zhao'er looked him up and down, and Xue Tingxiang's heart was pounding, wondering if she saw something. Zhao'er withdrew his gaze: "It's not that I care about it, it's just a little annoying."
Afterwards, Xue Tingxiang took out the book he had brought back from Dongliju and copied it, but Zhao'er went out.
He didn't think much about it, he only thought that he had some work to do when he was recruited out, and he came back soon after he was recruited out.
At dinner time, the dishes on the table were very rich, Mr. Xue specially asked Mrs. Zhao to take the money to buy a piece of meat, served a pot of tofu, and killed a chicken. Mrs. Zhou and the three daughters-in-law joined hands to cook meal.
The whole family sat around two tables. Little ones like Maodan, Shuanzi, and Youcai are all ready to move, but the adults have to wait for Mr. Xue to speak.
Mr. Xue seems to have a lot to say, but he has no way to say it.
After a long time, he sighed and said: "I will ignore the past, from now on, I hope that the three of you brothers can live in harmony, work together to live your life well, and make Xue's family more and more prosperous. Even if I am dead, I can still close my eyes."
"Old man, what are you talking about, you can't die, don't let it die!"
"That's right, Dad, what are you talking about!"
"Father, don't worry. Although we are separated, we are still brothers and a family. What is a brother is a broken bone and a tendon. We will be fine in the future."
Mr. Xue nodded with some relief: "If you can have such thoughts, I will be satisfied." As for the other things, he has no choice but to do so.
"Tomorrow is the day when Juncai and Tingxiang go to school. Our Xue family has been living in the dirt all our lives. I hope you will be successful and earn a lot of face and glory for the Xue family!"
Although these words were addressed to two people, Mr. Xue was facing Xue Juncai's direction when he spoke, and it was obvious who he valued more.
Under the dizzy yellow light, Xue Juncai's face flushed with excitement, and he stood up: "Don't worry, Grandpa, my grandson will definitely not let you down!"
"Okay, okay!" Old Master Xue nodded again and again, picked up his chopsticks, "Eat them all, have a good meal, and use it as a cheer for the two little ones."
This meal was extremely harmonious, there was laughter on the table, and the unpleasant topics that everyone avoided, only picked up pleasant ones.
Mr. Xue drank too much again, and his face was flushed. But it can be seen that he is very happy. This is a joy full of hope and gratification, and no one can bear to break it.
After the meal, people left, all the people in each room dispersed, Mr. Xue was smiling, and chatted a few gossips with Mrs. Zhao. In this situation, Mrs. Zhao couldn't put on a bad face, so she patted him several times, saying that he didn't know what he was having fun with.
What are you happy about? In fact, he doesn't know either, it's just music anyway.
Early in the morning, the Xue family got up.
The third room and the fourth room didn't think of it so early, but the people who couldn't stand the big room were tossing. Before dawn, there was constant movement in the east chamber, with people coming in and out.
Yang's voice resounded throughout the yard, sometimes asking Xue Qingshan when the car would arrive, sometimes saying that he forgot to pack something and should hurry to pack it up.
So, they all got up.
Zhao'er and Xue Tingxiang also got up.
Unlike Yang's side, this side is quiet. Zhao'er packed everything up last night. It was a big bag, which contained bedding and matting, a few changes of clothes, and some trivial items that Xue Tingxiang used in daily life.
"Don't wash your clothes if they are dirty. I will go to the library to get them for you when I have time, and I will send them to you after you wash them. Anyway, I can come back in ten days, and the clothes I brought with me are enough for you to wear. Money Keep it close to your body. There are many people in the academy, so you should be more careful when you go out. Beware of gentlemen and villains. You have to do everything yourself first, so as not to cause trouble. Don't be harsh on yourself, buy what you need Just go buy it, tell me if you don't have enough money."
Zhao'er babbled like an old woman.
Xue Tingxiang stood beside her, watching her check the things she was going to take to the school, her nagging voice could be heard in her ears, and she felt a little melancholy.
As a matter of fact, he had considered for a long time in private whether to study overnight or to study outside, and finally decided to study overnight.
A dream is a dream after all, even if the dream is miraculous, it is not his experience after all, and he should put all his thoughts on his studies, so he can only temporarily separate from Zhao'er.
"Don't worry, I will take care of myself. And your business, you can do it if you can, and you can't do it. You still have this land at home, and the food deducted for the third and fourth uncles is enough for us to eat and drink Not enough, I copy more books on weekdays, and the money I earn is enough for both of us."
"Yeah, I'm listening to you."
As soon as Zhao'er said this, Xue Tingxiang knew that she didn't listen to her at all.
He had talked to her several times about this since the division of the family, and he didn't want her to work so hard to do business again. But Zhao'er always goes in one ear and out the other, and she doesn't take it seriously at first glance. She usually counts every sentence when she speaks and does things, but she has learned to be perfunctory in this matter.
Xue Tingxiang was very helpless about this.
But who is to blame? I can only blame him for being ignorant at the time, thinking that he recruited a woman to make money just to support himself. He was obviously a man, so he couldn't accept it in his heart, and had a few awkward fights with her.
Because of this, Zhao'er has always avoided discussing this issue with him, but her attitude is very clear, she will not listen to him when it comes to business.
Xue Tingxiang was still about to say something, when suddenly there was a burst of talking in the yard.
One of the voices belonged to Jiang Wu.
"Wu Zi, why are you here at this time?"
Jiang Wu was dressed in dark blue and short brown, with a tall and strong figure, very heroic. There was still mist on his hair and eyebrows, and it was still a bit cold in March in Yuqing Village, especially since the morning mist hadn't cleared yet.
"I'm here to send Tingxiang to the school in the town. Isn't this his first time going to school? Zhao'er went to the house yesterday and told me about it. My father asked me to come early so don't delay."
The person talking to Jiang Wu was Mrs. Zhou, and he understood what was going on as soon as he heard this.
I have to say that Zhao'er is really high-spirited. Yesterday, he was squeezed face to face by the big house, but today he got it back by himself. Li Zheng's and Jiang's families in Yuqing Village and He Village have mule carts, because they often run back and forth in the county and town. As for the Jiang family, they are really rich.
Still don't reveal the rich rich.
The Jiang family is low-key, and their two sons are well-known in the village. Among the younger generation in Yuqing Village, there are two young people who are the most popular. One is Xue Juncai, who is gentle and handsome and can read. The other is Jiang Wu.
Whether it is in terms of appearance or wealth, Jiang Wu is one of the best among the unmarried young people in the village. Moreover, he is also good at hunting, and there are not many girls in the village who want to marry him.
The Jiang family and the second room are old, Jiang Wu's father, Jiang Hai, and Xue Qingsong, the second son of the Xue family, have a deep friendship, but since Xue Qingsong died, after Jiang Hai and Xue Qingshan had a quarrel, the Jiang family seldom visited the Xue family. The door is closed, but everyone in the Xue family knows about this relationship.
So Mrs. Zhou didn't think too much after hearing this, and just pretended that Zhao'er asked Jiang Wu for help.
Zhao'er came out of the room: "Brother Jiang Wu, why are you here so early, have you had breakfast yet?"
"Not yet, I was afraid that I would be late, so I went out early."
"You are too, so stay home for dinner, and I will do it."
Zhao'er turned around and entered the room, Xue Tingxiang was still standing at the door, looking at Jiang Wu.
Jiang Wu came over with a smile on his face: "Ting Xiang, you won't let Brother Jiang Wu go in and sit?"
Xue Tingxiang could only step aside.
Zhao'er went back to the house to get flour and went to the kitchen.
When the family was separated, the second room also shared a bag of flour and fine grains. Zhao'er originally planned to make something suitable for Xue Tingshan, and Jiang Wu came just in time to eat together.
Zhao'er's work on the stove is good, but she seldom does it. It was not her turn to do it before. Later, all her thoughts were on where to find money, so naturally she didn't have time to do it.
After reconciling the noodles, Zhao'er went to the vegetable garden behind.
It was the time when all things were recovering. Because of the cold weather and the incomplete thawing of the ground in Yuqing Village, the plow could not be plowed, so the spring plowing came late. But the vegetables in the vegetable field have been planted a long time ago, and nothing else has grown much, but the green garlic sprouts are tender and attractive.
Zhao'er pulled it out and went to the well to wash it.
Mrs. Zhou was cooking at another stove, and she took a handful of dry firewood and lit it, turned on the stove, cleaned the cauldron and heated it up. Taking advantage of this spare time, she cracked a few eggs, which were also separated from the family back then. Mr. Xue did what he said. When the rations were divided, all the edible food in the family, including pickles, pickles, eggs and bacon, were all divided.
Beat the eggs until foamy, so that the scrambled eggs are fluffy and soft. Put oil in the oil pan, pour the frothed egg liquid into it, but in the blink of an eye, it bulges.
Zhao'er stir-fried a few times with a shovel, and pushed the eggs aside.
Because there was a lot of oil put in before, there was still some oil at the bottom of the pot, so she took out the tofu bought from a tofu maker in the village last night, cut it into small pieces and threw it into the pot.
The tofu was quickly fried to a slightly yellowish color. Zhao'er put some more oil in the pan, poured the chopped ginger and red pepper into it and fried it until fragrant. With a puff of white smoke rising up, and the tempting aroma rushing towards her face, she quickly fried the eggs and tofu a few times with her hands and feet, added seasonings, and put some water in it before covering the pot.
As the bones boiled in the pot, the aroma became more and more intense. Before it comes out of the pot, Zhao'er throws the chopped garlic sprouts in, and a big bowl of delicious and rich noodle toppings is ready.
Take it out, put water in the pot again, and take advantage of this opportunity to start rolling the noodles.
Her hands were very fast, Zhou saw her hands flying up and down, and after a while, rows of noodles cut to the same width appeared on the chopping board.
"You girl has really quick hands and feet. Compared with you, Third Aunt is old."
Zhao'er lifted the lid of the pot with a smile, and the rising smoke enveloped her face, but the voice was clear and pleasant.
"Third Aunt, please don't praise me. I can only talk about my quick hands. The craftsmanship is not as good as yours."
"You girl will be humble!"
At the same time, in the second room, Xue Tingxiang and Jiang Wu were sitting face to face.
Sitting on the kang was a boy and a man.
The boy was thin and fair-skinned, but the man was tall and straight, with a bronze complexion and heroic features.
The boy is Xue Tingxiang, and the man is Jiang Wu.
Jiang Wu is two years older than Zhao'er. He is eighteen this year, and he is about to get married, so he can be called a man.
"Tingxiang, go to the school and study hard, don't disappoint your sister's hard work for you. If someone bullies you, come back and tell Brother Jiang Wu, I will help you deal with him!"
Ever since he came in, Jiang Wu had been looking for something to talk to Xue Tingxiang all the time, he could tell that the boy didn't like him very much. But it doesn't matter whether he likes him or not, as long as the person he likes likes it is enough.
Zhao'er cared about the young man in front of him, and if he married Zhao'er in the future, the young man would become his younger brother, so Jiang Wu didn't mind putting his hot face on the other's cold ass.
Especially in his eyes, the dog of Xue's second room is still a child, and it is normal for children to have a temper.
Xue Tingxiang stared at Jiang Wu, Xiili suppressed the jealousy in his heart. He didn't want to make himself look childish in the eyes of the other party, and he didn't want to fall to the bottom, but he really couldn't help it.
"Do you like to recruit children?"
Jiang Wu was taken aback for a moment, but also nodded vaguely.
Xue Tingxiang's face became even uglier, "She is my child bride."
"She is not your child bride-in-law. You should know that Uncle Xue and Aunt Xue adopted her as their daughter back then. She is your sister. It was only because of an accident that they entrusted you to her."
Of course Xue Tingxiang knew, that's why Jiang Wu's appearance made him blow up.
"If you love your sister, you should find her a man who can love her. You know the situation in your family and how hard your sister has worked for you. But don't worry, if I marry your sister in the future, I will I will make offerings to you with her, and I will treat you as my own brother."
Jiang Wu understood the reasoning and was persuasive, but Xue Tingxiang's complexion became darker and darker.
"Don't think about it, I won't give her up to you."
Jiang Wu looked at him with a smile, with a look of indifference, which clearly didn't pay attention to what he said.
At this moment, Zhao'er came in carrying a wooden tray with three bowls on it. One is a large bowl, and the other two bowls are smaller.
"Come and eat noodles."
"Such a big bowl, Zhaoer, you are feeding me like a pig." Jiang Wu said with a smile.
Zhao'er said angrily, "Brother Jiang Wu, what are you talking about? I'm not afraid that you won't have enough to eat." As she spoke, she pushed the vinegared bowl in front of Xue Tingxiang: "Hurry up and eat, we'll eat it later." Let's go, there's still time."
Saying that, she also got on the kang, and sat on the edge of the kang, with Xue Tingxiang on the left and Jiang Wu on the right.
Jiang Wu was very face-saving, and started to eat with a sigh of relief, saying repeatedly that the noodles made by Zhao'er were delicious.
Does that mean it's the first time you've eaten it? Another time, or a few more times, when? Why doesn't he know?
Xue Tingxiang thought crazily in his heart, obviously the noodles are delicious and his favorite food, but he has no appetite at all.
It wasn't until Zhao'er asked him suspiciously that his face froze for a moment, and he said, "No vinegar."
"No vinegar?"
Zhao'er brought the bowl over and smelled it, she clearly remembered that vinegar was put in it before bringing it. But I'm not sure, because if you put only a little vinegar, you won't be able to smell it.
"Then I'll add some more for you." After speaking, she took the bowl and got off the kang and went out.
Xue Tingxiang stared at Jiang Wu viciously, eating so fast, he was not afraid of choking to death!
Jiang Wu felt him looking at him, raised his head and said, "Your sister's noodles are delicious, and they taste great without vinegar."
Xue Tingxiang ignored him, when Zhao'er came in and put the noodle bowl in front of him. He took a little bit of it with chopsticks and fed it into his mouth. It was still tasteless, but he didn't say anything, and started to eat silently.
"You need to eat more, so that you can grow as strong as your brother Jiang Wu in the future."
She thought he was not strong, and thought Jiang Wu was very good.
The meal was full of different thoughts, Jiang Wu and Zhao'er were chatting and laughing, but Xue Tingxiang was very silent.
After eating, Zhao'er went to wash the dishes, then packed up and planned to leave.
Jiang Wu carried the big bag that Zhao'er had prepared for Xue Tingxiang, and the three of them walked out together. As soon as he reached the gate of the courtyard, he was suddenly stopped by Mr. Xue.
"Jiang Wu, are you going to send the dog to town?"
Jiang Wu stopped and nodded.
"Can you drop Juncai along? Juncai is going to town too, but he's going to the Qinghe Academy. I heard from your Uncle Shanzi that he seems to be on the way."
"This—" Jiang Wu looked at Zhao'er.
Zhao'er went yesterday but told Dafang that she had borrowed a car, but she and Xue Tingxiang didn't want to hitch a ride. Jiang Wu knew Zhao'er's knot in his heart, so he agreed without asking much.
Xue Qingshan came out from the east chamber and said: "Father, why are you telling people about this, the car to pick us up will be here soon."
"Here you come? Let's see what time it is now? From the village to the town, even a mule cart takes two quarters of an hour. Juncai went to the school on the first day. If he was late, he would definitely be reprimanded." Old Master Xue said angrily. .
Don't look at what Xue Qingshan said, in fact, his heart is also on fire. Yesterday he purposely borrowed a car from a friend he made friends with in the neighboring village, but he had breakfast and everything was ready, and there was no one there.
He knew that the second room had also borrowed a car, and it was from the Jiang family. There are only two families in the village with mule carts, and the Lizheng family of these two families must not go there. The Jiang family has a rift with him. He has not forgotten how Jiang Hai scolded him when the second child died. He usually met the Jiang family. A nose is not a nose and a face is not a face.
So even though he knew that there was a car in the second room, the mother-in-law and son were in a hurry, and he couldn't bear to say it.
"Jiang Wu, just give them a ride."
With all the words said like this, Jiang Wu naturally couldn't refuse.
"Okay, Master Xue, this is nothing."
Seeing that Xue Qingshan hadn't moved yet, Old Master Xue turned around and scolded him: "Why are you dawdling! Mrs. Yang, quickly take out Juncai's things."
"Hey, here we come."
After a while of people turned their backs, the four got into the car.
Originally, Xue Qingshan planned to send his son off in person, but now there is no room for anyone in the car, so naturally he had no choice but to dismiss this idea.
Watching the mule cart go away, Xue Qingshan felt quite uncomfortable. Originally, he wanted to show himself, but he didn't show it now, and he was ashamed in front of Erfang and Jiang's family.
Because there was another Xue Juncai in the car, no one spoke on the road. The mule cart soon arrived at Huyang Town, heading east of the town all the way, and Jiang Wu stopped in front of the Qinghe Academy.
Jiang Wu never waited to see the eldest family member of the Xue family, so he didn't offer to help.
Mrs. Yang prepared a lot of things for Xue Juncai, two big bags, Xue Juncai went to pick up one, but it was already reluctant, but he couldn't take the second one.
He blushed and didn't ask for help.
Zhao'er couldn't stand it anymore, jumped out of the car, picked up two big bags in each hand, and went to the gate of the courtyard.
She put the two big bags in front of the door, and said to Xue Juncai who followed: "I won't send you in, you call the people inside to help. Ting'er is also waiting there, if you don't leave, it will be too late. "
Xue Juncai had mixed feelings in his heart, and looked at her: "Zhaoer, I will be admitted as a scholar."
"Yeah, work hard."
She quickly turned around and left, naturally missing Xue Juncai's eyes looking at her back.
The mule cart stopped in front of the Qingyuan Academy.
Unlike Xue Juncai, Jiang Wu carried a big bag, Zhao'er took a small bag, and sent Xue Tingxiang in.
All the way was led by Zhaifu to the house.
The decoration in the hall is extremely simple, it is just a Datong shop. It is divided into four positions, the table is placed along the Kang, and there are four simple wooden cabinets next to the wall, which can just sleep four people.
Because Xue Tingxiang was the first to come, Zhaifu said he could choose any local people and left. Before leaving, tell Zhao'er and Jiang Wu not to stay for long.
Zhao'er chose a position for Xue Tingxiang, which is the innermost position next to the wall, and there is a window next to it, which has good ventilation and light.
She opened the big bag and laid the kang for Xue Tingxiang.
Jiang Wu wanted to help, but Xue Tingxiang preempted him.
The two of them joined hands to make the shop ready, and it was obvious that this was not the first time for the two of them to do this, and they had a tacit understanding.
Jiang Wu looked at it with eager eyes.
Xue Tingxiang glanced at him, then went to help Zhao'er organize other things.
Zhao'er opened the wooden cabinet, reached out to touch it, and wiped the inside very clean. She put all the clothes and things in, and when she closed the cabinet door, she saw a lock on it, and said, "I'll go buy you a lock later, and lock the cabinet when I'm not around."
After everything is done, Zhao'er and Jiang Wu should also leave.
At the door, Xue Tingxiang pulled Zhao'er aside and said, "Don't forget that you are a man!"
"Why are you talking about this again?"
"Don't worry about it, you just remember anyway." Xue Tingxiang originally wanted to tell Zhao'er to stay away from Jiang Wu, but suddenly changed his mind. He could see that Zhao'er still didn't know Jiang Wu's feelings for her.
If you don't know, then don't know, it's better not to know all the time.
"Okay, okay, I see, you can study at ease."
Xue Tingxiang pursed his lips: "I will tell my husband to go back when I have time. You should watch the door at home and don't go out at night."
"With Heizi here, are you still afraid that someone will eat me?" Besides, she also knows a few kung fu skills, which Zhao'er learned from the Jiang family's father and son when she was a child, plus her strength is stronger than ordinary people, which is normal anyway. The one or two big guys in the house are really no match for her.
"Anyway, I said it, you just remember it."
"Okay, okay, I see."
Zhao'er left quickly, and Xue Tingxiang was the only one left in the dormitory.
He paced back and forth in the dormitory for a while, and when he calmed down, he went to the common bunk, took out half-copied books and rice paper from the cabinet, spread them out on the table at the top of the kang, and copied them.
After copying for a while, someone opened the door and walked in.
"Hey, there is someone who is earlier than me!"
The person who came was a little fat man, about sixteen or seventeen years old, with a bag fatter than himself on his back.
Even though the weather wasn't hot yet, this man was sweating profusely. Panting, he put the big bag on the bunk, and then slumped on the Kang.
"Hey new here, what's your name?"
Xue Gouzi pondered for a moment, "Call me Ting Xiang."
"Tingxiang? This is your own name? Gou'er, why did you give yourself such a name?" Soon she understood, remembering that the talented boy in Dafang always carried his own name because of his young age. People laugh at the same name as Gou'er and Heizi.
A look of distress flashed in her eyes, and she nodded repeatedly: "Gou'er, no, Ting'er is a different scholar, and the name is so nice. From now on, my sister won't call you Gou'er, and I won't let outsiders call you that. It's called Tingxiang." Anyway, in her heart, whatever the dog says is good,
Xue Gouzi, no, he should be called Xue Tingxiang now, and he feels a little depressed. He is only less than two years younger than Zhao'er, but he is a deep ravine that he will not be able to cross in his life. Having said that, he said again: "Also, can you stop calling yourself sister to me in the future?"
This time, Zhao'er was even more surprised, and even reached out to touch his forehead: "Ting'er, what's wrong with you? Did you have some evil? You didn't call me sister since you were a child."
Xue Tingxiang took a deep breath and smiled: "But you are not my sister, you will be my daughter-in-law in the future, no man calls his wife a sister."
He was originally pale, half leaning on the quilt at the top of the kang, and suddenly smiled, with clear eyes and brows, which made people dare not look directly at him.
Zhao'er's face turned red all of a sudden, and he couldn't make sense of what he said: "Dog, you, what are you talking about, I, I..."
"Don't you want to be my daughter-in-law and have a baby for me?" He moved closer.
She stood up abruptly, and reprimanded: "You little kid, why are you talking about this? Your hair hasn't grown fully yet!" She said a foul language that Xue Tingxiang didn't like to hear the most, and she didn't realize it: "You want to The thing to do is to take care of your body, as for these things, we will talk about them later!"
Her eyes were fierce, and her tone was also fierce. After she finished speaking, she lowered her head and scooped rice from the bowl to Xue Tingshan's mouth. He glanced at her, ate honestly, and suddenly became in a good mood.
Maybe the two of them can change the way they get along in the future, and change it if they don't like it, there is no need to wait for her to understand.
Zhao'er threw away the mess, turned around and went back to the house, leaving the whole family to finish their lunch in a depressing atmosphere.
During this period, Sun had nothing to say to her, but no one paid any attention to her.
Yang couldn't eat, if it wasn't for her parents-in-law, if she didn't want to embarrass herself in front of the two younger siblings, she would have thrown her chopsticks and left. But now he can only suppress the aggrieved stomach, and eat the food in front of him like chewing wax.
After dinner, Mrs. Sun took Mao Dan away, knowing that her son got into trouble today, and she was afraid that she would be angered later. Mrs. Zhou took Xue Taoer to clean up the table, and took the dishes and chopsticks to the kitchen to wash. Xue Qingbai helped her, Zhou could not carry such a pot of dishes by himself, usually when Xue Qingbai was not at home, she and her daughter could only carry them.
Only Dafang, mother and son were left in the room, along with Mr. Xue and Mrs. Zhao.
Yang stood up and wanted to go back to the East Chamber, but was stopped by Mr. Xue.
Mr. Xue took out his dry pipe, took out some shredded tobacco grown by himself from the dark blue tobacco pouch, rolled it into a ball, pressed it into the tobacco pot, and then lit it with a torch.
His movements are very slow, neither fast nor slow. Anyone who is familiar with Mr. Xue's character knows that he has something on his mind.
It's true that there is something wrong, and if it's not something, he won't call his daughter-in-law to stop.
"The handsome boy and the talented boy go back to the house first. Grandpa has something to say to your mother."
Xue Youcai glanced at his mother and wanted to say something, but was dragged away by his elder brother Xue Juncai.
"Father, just tell me if you have anything to say."
Mrs. Yang is thirty-four this year. In the countryside, a woman in her thirties is no longer considered young. Here, the wind blows and the sun shines and eats, so the women look old.
But Yang's maintenance is very good, her face is like a disc, her skin is fair, and there are a few fine lines at the corners of her eyes. She was wearing a worn-out stone blue satin gown with make-up, her shiny black hair was pulled into a bun behind her head, a gilt hairpin was inserted into it, and a pair of old silver earrings were on her ears. It can't be called onion tip, but it is also white and soft, wearing a gold ring.
It is not an exaggeration to say that she is the grandma of the landlord's family in this dress and bearing, even the Zhao family is not as good as her.
With his old eyes, Mr. Xue moved Yang back and forth a few times, making her stand uneasy.
Just as I was about to say something, my father-in-law said suddenly: "Boss daughter-in-law, how long have you been married to our family?"
Yang was startled, and replied: "Seventeen years, my daughter-in-law married into the Xue family in the seventeenth year."
"Then how will your mother and I treat you?"
Yang's heart skipped a beat: "Father and mother treat their daughter-in-law like their own daughters."
Mr. Xue nodded, took a puff of the dry cigarette, and the light blue smoke began to linger on his old face again, making it difficult to see the expression on his face clearly.
"You are the eldest daughter-in-law of our family, and your mother has always loved you. You and the boss have the same heart as your mother and I. I only wish that you can become a talent."
Yang's heart relaxed, and she couldn't help laughing: "Juncai is serious about his studies, even my father said that he is a rare and good seedling, and it is no problem to be a scholar."
Speaking of Xue Juncai who is the most proud, even Mr. Xue couldn't help showing a smile.
Seeing that the father-in-law's face softened, Yang took advantage of the situation and said: "It's just that you know, father, that when it's time to end, you don't have to just sit at home and study. Thinking back then, Juncai's father also listened to my father's words, I went to Qinghe Academy to study for two years, met some classmates, and registered in front of my husband. I took the opportunity to impress the county magistrate, and I passed the county exam. The ranking of the county exam As long as it is not bad, the government examination is not to say that it is sure, but it is half sure. It's just that you have to rely on luck when you get to the hospital examination, and Juncai's father is unlucky, so he will fail repeatedly."
This is the real reason why Yang Shi is valued by the old couple in the Xue family, not only because her father is a child, but also because her father was kind to Xue Qingshan in the past.
And Yang's statement seems absurd, but it is true. The two county examinations are not as strictly controlled as the hospital examination, especially the county examination, which is presided over by the magistrate of the county.
There are five county exams in total, and the results of the first exam are mainly to be judged. And this time, there are two stereotyped essays and one poem. As long as there are no typos and fluent essays, you can pass them all.
Compared with people he doesn't know well at all, the magistrate is still willing to pick people who are somewhat familiar.
And going to a good school to study is to provide an opportunity to stand out in front of the county magistrate. Dachang has always attached great importance to the selection of talents. How many scholars can be produced in this county, and even a son can be a Jinshi, which is considered a political achievement. No matter how fatuous and incompetent the county magistrate, this kind of cutscene must go.
And being able to enter a good school will not only increase your contacts, but also your vision.
For example, the county examinations are nothing more than the Four Books and Five Classics and the sacred edicts. How to write and what taboos should not be violated all need guidance. No matter how wonderful your article is, if you violate taboos such as temple taboos, royal names, and holy taboos, you will not take it.
And in places like the countryside, many private schools are opened by old children for the sake of making a living, and I still want to be a scholar to change my fortune, so how can I teach middle school children in every detail.
Xue Qingshan himself was like this, that's why he put all his energy into sending Xue Juncai to Qinghe Academy.
Yang thought that her father-in-law wanted to tell her about sending Xue Juncai to the school, so she said this. Little did they know that her words really touched Mr. Xue's mind, but Mr. Xue didn't intend to tell her these things.
Mr. Xue took a deep breath of dry cigarettes, and said: "The boss you said has been told to me, and we will talk about this matter later. You are Juncai's mother, and there is nothing wrong with planning for your son, but you have to know that our family It's not just Dafang's family."
The father-in-law's tone was a bit meaningful, Yang was startled for a moment, and forced a smile: "Father, of course my daughter-in-law knows that the Xue family is not just ours, but don't worry, if Juncai's father and Juncai are promising, they will never forget to be filial to you My mother." Seeing her father-in-law's complexion was gloomy, she hurriedly added: "There are other people in the family, Juncai always remembers that he can study, thanks to a few uncles and aunts."
Mr. Xue nodded: "If you understand, you should know that the other three families have been sacrificing for the eldest house. I won't mention the far ones, just talk about the third and fourth children. The land in the house refers to the third and fourth children Kindly, your father is getting old, and his hands and feet are not as sharp as before. The fourth child has to pick up goods and sell them when he is busy with the house. I don't know how many pairs of shoes he has to wear out in a year, but all the money he earns is handed over to the public. , I haven't paid a penny. What is everyone working so hard for? It's not for our family, but for Dafang."
Yang's complexion became forced: "Father, why is this all for our eldest family? Juncai's father is promising, isn't it because the Xue family has a good face? Because Juncai's father was born in Tongsheng, no one in the village would look at us highly, even that The Zheng family, don't you also give us three points of courtesy to the Xue family. This is for the overall situation, for the future generations of our Xue family..."
Old Master Xue sighed and interrupted: "Father understands what you said, and so does your mother. But as the saying goes, if the board is not on your body, of course you don't feel pain. You put yourself in the position of the third and fourth child , What do you think? I have done the most work, and I can't even put my good words into my mouth, and it's all in other people's mouths."
These words were in line with what Zhao'er said just now, Yang's face turned red immediately, her round face flushed red.
"Father, why did you call this into my mouth, I..."
Mr. Xue ignored her, and went to scold Mrs. Zhao again: "There is also you, who is biased in front of people. You just continue to do it, so that the third and fourth are chilled, and they make a fuss about separating from the family. You go there Planted for the boss and talented people to take the imperial examination!"
At the end, his tone was full of sighs of hatred for iron.
Mrs. Zhao didn't want to listen to this anymore, and muttered: "What do you mean I am biased? Why am I biased? Didn't I think that the boss and Juncai want to study, and studying is a waste of brain, so I should give them more supplements. Don't those who are good? It fell into my mouth."
The more she spoke, the angrier she became, and she couldn't help cursing: "Separate the family, don't they want to turn the world upside down, if the parents don't separate, even if I can spare them, the ancestors' family law can't forgive them."
Old Master Xue smiled wryly. If it wasn't for these two old things and the family law of the ancestors, the family would not be like this a long time ago.
He shifted his gaze to Mrs. Yang: "You also understand the situation at home. Can your mother and I manage it for a while, or for a lifetime? Since you want to send Juncai to study in the school in the town, you should win over the third and fourth bedroom. "
"Father, I..."
"In the past, your mother doted on you. I never said it. You can tell which is right and which is wrong. But from tomorrow onwards, you and the third and fourth families will share the work at home. "
After Mr. Xue finished speaking, he stopped talking and just smoked his own cigarette with a sullen head. Yang couldn't stand here either, and hurried out of the main room with her head down.
As soon as Mrs. Zhou cleaned up the kitchen and came out, she saw her sister-in-law returning to the east chamber with her head down, her expression was not very good.
Her eyes flickered, and she glanced towards the south end of the west wing, which was a four-bedroom house.
There was a faint person behind the window facing the courtyard in the fourth room, and Mrs. Zhou knew that Mrs. Sun had been watching the movement. She pretended not to notice, wiped her hands on the apron, and went back to the house.
When it was time to cook in the evening, Mrs. Yang was wearing coarse clothes, which was rare, and came to the kitchen to compete with Mrs. Zhou for work.
Mrs. Zhou couldn't even refuse, so Mrs. Yang smiled and said that Mrs. Zhou had worked hard, so she just let her rest.
Mrs. Zhou was pushed out of the kitchen by her, and she happened to meet Mrs. Sun who was standing at the door of the west chamber. There was also surprise in their eyes.
But what surprised them was yet to come, because from this day on, Mrs. Yang changed her previous attitude and started doing all kinds of work. Although it was many years of not touching her hands, she was clumsy in doing things now, but she did it.
Not only cooking, but also being very generous, often actively persuade Mrs. Zhao to take some money, or buy some meat or bring out some eggs, and cook dishes for the family to eat.
The sparks that had been stirred up by Zhao'er's words in the Xue family were suppressed just like that. During this period, Xue Tingxiang's body finally recovered, and he had the strength to walk around.
This day, after getting up early in the morning and having breakfast, Zhao'er planned to go to town.
The rags she brought back from the embroidery workshop have all been made into things like purses and embroidered shoes. After saving for many days, it should be sold in the embroidery workshop.
She put everything into the back basket, and before leaving, she told Xue Tingxiang that the weather was fine today and asked him to go out to bask in the sun more often.
Xue Tingxiang nodded and agreed honestly, and then she went out with peace of mind.
Not long after she left, Xue Tingxiang walked out of the house.
The yard is very quiet, the curtains of the doors of each room are all lowered, and it is hard to see if anyone is there.
Zhao'er was in a turbulent mood, and it took him a while to regain his composure.
After she calmed down, she asked Shen Ping: "Shopkeeper Shen, these clothes only cost two taels in total. Will the pawnshop lose money? Are you doing it just to take care of me..."
Zhao'er didn't finish the rest of the sentence, Shen Ping also understood.
He laughed a little, but he appreciated Zhao'er's frankness of not wanting to take advantage of others: "These were sold to a garment shop or an embroidery workshop, and the price was the same. Regardless of the quantity, there are not many good ones that can be sold at a reasonable price." The ones have already been picked away."
Zhao'er thinks about it too, the eyes of the county people are naturally different from those of the country people, let alone this kind of big pawn shop, what is bad in their eyes is actually good for the country people to see.
She breathed a sigh of relief, and said, "I want the bag of clothes from shopkeeper Shen, and I'll give you the money right now."
"Are you rich now?"
Of course she is rich, Zhao'er now has more than two taels of silver in total, and just now Su Lan gave her another five taels, which is naturally enough.
At the same time, Shen Ping laughed a bit, "Well, I forgot that you have visited her before, so I came here, and she won't take advantage of me." The voice was very small, almost like a murmur, Zhao'er only cares about it. I had to look at the clothes, but I didn't hear clearly.
"I'll find a guy to call a car for you, and you, a little girl, can't transport these things."
"Thank you, Shopkeeper Shen."
After seeing Zhao'er off, Shen Ping turned around and went into the pawn shop.
Although he is called the third shopkeeper, he is not the third shopkeeper of this store, but the third shopkeeper of the entire 'Herongsheng', and he will only stay in Xia County permanently under his deliberate request.
Shen Ping is the son of the Shen family, his father is the chief manager of the Shen residence, and he has been a servant with the third young master Shen Fu since he was a child. It was not until he became an adult that he was released to become a shopkeeper.
"If she comes again next time, just do as I told you before."
"Yes, shopkeeper."
Just after noon, the clerk Ah Cai came to deliver meals to Xue Tingxiang.
Boss Chen said it was simple food, but in fact the food was not bad, with one meat and one vegetable, and one soup. Xue Tingxiang knew very well that Boss Chen was taking care of him deliberately. How could anyone hire someone to copy books, take care of tea and food, and the wages they paid were not low.
It was because he knew it in his heart that he didn't say no. In this case, the refusal retained his character, but it seemed too petty and hypocritical.
It can only be repaid in the future, Xue Tingxiang thought lightly in his heart.
After eating, when the man came to clean up the dishes, he said that he could rest for an hour. There is a chaise longue available in this room, and of course you can go to the front to read a book to pass the time.
In fact, the latter sentence is the key point, Xue Tingxiang was not pretentious, after cleaning his hands, he went forward.
This store may not seem big, but it has a lot of books of all kinds, ranging from rural tales to books about the imperial examination, and there are many books about the imperial examination.
Since the former dynasty, the imperial examination has used eight-legged essays as the standard style, with strict regulations, and even restrictions on the length of sentences, the number of words, the level of rhymes, and even the scope of questions.
Stereotype essays take questions from the Four Books and Five Classics, and are composed of eight parts: breaking the title, inheriting the title, starting the lecture, starting, starting the essay, middle section, back section, and binding the section. It seems rigid and rigid, but in fact it is not easy to do a good stereotyped essay. If you really think that only reading the Four Books and Five Classics is enough, you are wrong. Not to mention astronomy and geography, at least you have to be involved in all aspects, so that you can write a good article full of flowers and content.
In that dream, Xue Tingxiang won the Jinshi with the 21st place in the second class, and was admitted to the Hanlin Academy after passing through the hall. He should have been on a steady rise since then, but because he offended someone, a majestic Hanlin was sent down. The kind of place where the birds don't shit is an official.
Xue Tingxiang pursed his lips slightly, feeling that he was thinking too much, after all, he is not even a child now, let's think about the present.
So, without thinking too much, he took out a book from the bookcase and read it quietly.
During this period, customers from the bookstore came to sell some pens, ink, paper and inkstones, or came to buy books, always interrupting Xue Tingxiang's reading.
Seeing this, Boss Chen said: "Brother Xue, you can take the book to the back and read."
Xue Tingxiang looked at him in surprise: "This..."
"It's okay, it's not bad for your book."
Xue Tingxiang was silent, bowed deeply in salute, and then went back.
When Xue Tingxiang woke up, he heard Boss Chen talking outside and Zhao'er's voice at the same time.
"Where did you get this big bag?" Boss Chen looked at Zhao'er in surprise, and asked for the bag at her feet that was much bigger than her.
Zhao'er was sweating profusely and said: "Uncle Chen, I got it from the county, and so did the man from the car dealership. They only helped me to the intersection and left me behind. I wanted to be dragged to the car dealership. But thinking that my brother is still here..."
Boss Chen laughed, and called his assistant: "Ah Cai, come and help little brother Zhao'er carry the things in." Then he said to Zhao'er: "Come in and have a drink and rest before leaving."
"Uncle Chen, what a shame."
"When you were bargaining with me, you were never polite, but now you are more polite." Boss Chen pretended to stare.
Generally speaking, Boss Chen is an elegant and humorous person.
Xue Tingxiang also came out to help, and asked, "What's in it? Why is it so heavy? Where did you get it?"
Not to mention it was really heavy, Ah Cai tried a few times but couldn't lift it, only three people could lift it.
"I got it from a pawn shop. If I can sell this package, my sister will have enough money to send you to the Qinghe Academy."
Zhao'er hadn't realized that he had slipped up, but Xue Tingxiang had. He glanced at Boss Chen, and Zhao'er understood what he said at this moment, and looked at Boss Chen with some guilt: "Uncle Chen, I will explain to you later."
She was a little anxious, and without asking the two of them to help, she lifted the big bag and carried it on her shoulders. The big bag pushed her to one side, but she still stopped, and she quickly carried the things inside.
Ah Cai praised: "It doesn't look like she is strong, she is so strong."
Here, Xue Tingxiang looked at the back and pursed the corners of his mouth, while Boss Chen's eyes darkened.
Xue Tingxiang looked up at Boss Chen, and walked towards him.
...
Zhao'er found a place to put down the big bag, then went to wash his hands and face to clean up his body, and then A Cai led him to see Boss Chen.
Seeing Boss Chen, Zhao'er felt a little guilty. But she didn't intend to continue to lie to Boss Chen, because Boss Chen is a good person. Not to mention the benefits he gave her before, just because he asked the little man to copy books for such a high price, let him read books here, and take care of the lunch at noon, Zhao'er can no longer continue to deceive.
In fact, Zhao'er is not a liar, it's just that she concealed her gender, and then the so-called workmanship is just collecting some vegetables and selling them to make some purses or something.
"Uncle Chen..."
Boss Chen sighed and waved his hands: "Okay, you don't need to say anymore, you are a girl, and you are really embarrassing."
Zhao'er looked surprised, her round eyes widened.
Boss Chen laughed a little and said, "Your little husband has already told me everything."
"He, what did he say..." Zhao'er stammered, still in disbelief. Because she knows that the little man always pays attention to face and has a lot of thoughts, and she doesn't like to mention her as his child bride-in-law in front of outsiders, and the Xue family's bad things.
"I've said everything that needs to be said." After a pause, Boss Chen asked, "Look at how surprised you are, isn't it still a secret?"
Zhao'er laughed awkwardly, and faltered: "That's not true, it's just that he's young, and people in our village hate him. People always think that I'm older than him, and my daughter-in-law teases men and laughs at him."
The same sentence sounds different to different people.
Boss Chen couldn't help but want to laugh, but Xue Tingxiang outside had mixed feelings in his heart.
That's why she always called herself sister, so in the dream he was old, but she didn't want to marry him. Or he ignored her wishes and insisted on marrying him with his parents' orders.
She actually understood her awkward state of mind. He told himself not to be surprised by what other people said, but he cared about it in his heart, so even if the two got married, they couldn't do it together.
She actually knew everything, yet she relied on him for everything! Follow him!
While the mood was churning, the topic was changed inside.
"I just heard from you that you plan to save money to send him to Qinghe Academy?"
Zhao'er nodded, seeing the strange expression on Boss Chen's face, she couldn't help but ask, "Is that school bad?"
"Take the road of opportunism, and it won't last long."
Zhao'er didn't quite understand what he heard, but he also knew that it was not a good word.
"If you want to help him find a good book academy, I have something to recommend. It's just..." Boss Chen sighed suddenly: "Well, let me tell you that you don't understand either. Let's talk about it later."
Zhao'er nodded in a daze.
It was not too early to meet later, and the two planned to return to Yuqing Village.
Because the big bag of clothes was too much, and it would be eye-catching to bring back, Boss Chen asked Zhao'er to put the things in his shop temporarily. Anyway, there are still a few vacant rooms behind the shop, so just find a place to put them.
The two went back to the village by car, because after time, only the ox cart could be used, so the two sat on the ox cart and walked back bumping back and forth.
Halfway along the road, a mule cart came head-on.
The driver was a man, dark and tall. When he got closer, he could see his appearance clearly. He had thick eyebrows and tiger eyes, a high nose bridge, and he was very heroic. His sleeves were half rolled up above his elbows, and his arms seemed to be full of muscles. He looked like a powerful man.
Xue Tingxiang saw the person coming at a glance, and his pupils shrank immediately.
He glanced at Zhao'er next to him, saw her with her head half down, and he was relieved.
But the visitor still saw them, his eyes lit up, and he raised his voice and shouted: "Zhaoer."
Zhao'er looked over and immediately smiled: "Brother Jiang Wu, where are you going?"
Jiang Wu tightened the reins and stopped the mule cart.
"I'm going to town, are you going back? Get out of the car, and I'll see you off."
Zhao'er hesitated and said, "Don't you still want to go to town? Anyway, we've already got in the car, so you should do your own work."
"I don't have anything to do. I just went to Lao Li's place to have a look. Originally, my father said that I would go tomorrow and buy some things on the way back. It doesn't matter whether I go or not. Come on, this car is slow and bumpy. My car is still faster." Jiang Wu said to Zhao'er with a smile, completely unaware that the face of the owner of the bullock cart turned black.
Seeing this, Zhao'er didn't let the owner of the ox cart stop, and jumped off from above. After taking two steps over there, I realized that I had forgotten the person.
While letting the owner of the bullock cart stop, she said to Xue Tingxiang: "Come on down, let's go back in Brother Jiang Wu's car." With her beaming face, she was in a good mood.
Bringing this up is old stuff.
At the beginning, 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 that he had a hard-working younger brother. 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 shape is easy to get, 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.
What is compared is knowledge, and what is compared is also future.
They were all from humble backgrounds, and of course they knew how difficult it was to study in a farming family, so before Xue Tingshan said that the Xue family never forgot to cultivate their children and grandchildren while they settled down, Qiao Xiucai praised them greatly.
Because he knew that this matter seemed insignificant, but it was actually too difficult for farmers. How many families had the idea of changing their own destiny by reading books.
It can be said that those who are born in a poor family in the countryside and can achieve great fame have all experienced great hardships. The starting point is much lower than others. It takes countless efforts to catch up with others, and at the same time they have to face all kinds of cruel competition.
This kind of competition is not only between classmates, but also between the same clan, and even one's own brothers.
If you succeed, the sea and the sky will be bright, and you will not be an ordinary person since then. If you fail, you will put down the book and pick up the hoe, and face the loess and the sky for the rest of your life.
It is because they understand this kind of cruelty that the two of them can't help but wonder whether this son deliberately said that his knowledge is weak, or he just wants to pull his brother to reduce the difficulty of the question. But this is a double-edged sword. After all, it is a disadvantage to oneself to lose one's studies to others.
These thoughts only happened in an instant, and because of the sudden attention of He Xiucai and Qiao Xiucai, Xue Qingshan's eyebrows jumped wildly, for fear that Xue Tingxiang would say something amazing again. At this moment, he couldn't care less about why Xue Tingxiang knew the explanation of the scriptures, and he completely forgot that his previous idea was that Xue Tingshan didn't understand the scriptures, and it would be easy for his son to beat him.
This is also true for Patriarch Xue. If something happens in the clan that cannot be seen by others, it is limited to the clan. If it happens in public, it will be a bit ugly.
The eyes of the two seemed to have needles, and they were anxiously focused on Xue Tingxiang's face. Unexpectedly, he smiled shyly and said: "The boy was weak and sick when he was young, so he inevitably fell behind."
Xue Qingshan hurriedly laughed and said: "That's exactly the case. Don't be afraid that the two seniors will laugh at me. My nephew is talented and intelligent, but his weak body hinders his studies."
Patriarch Xue also nodded in agreement.
Others didn't know what was going on, they just opened their eyes and watched. Only Zheng Lizheng seemed to realize that there was something wrong, but he couldn't tell the details, so he could only keep silent.
After He Xiucai and Qiao Xiucai gave in to each other again, He Xiucai was the main one in the end. Sitting at the top, he said to Xue Tingxiang: "Since you don't understand the scriptures, it's a bit unfair to go beyond the scope of what you have learned. You two are still young, and it's time to lay down the foundation, so I will test your two. Human base."
Hearing this, although Xue Juncai was a little disappointed that he was overqualified and missed his opportunity to perform, he also felt disdainful.
If you don't test the scriptures, then Xue Tingxiang is not his opponent!
He Xiucai squeezed his beard with his hands, and after pondering for a while, said: "Zhu Zi said: the size of learning is inherently different, but it is the way, it is only one. It is also suitable for young people. If you don't learn it in elementary school, you will have nothing to learn. Its heart, to cultivate its virtue, is the foundation of the university. The two of you will each silently write a "Disciple Regulations."