Ruan Chengxin no longer lives idle, and has found a few jobs copying books, although the income is not much, but he can always subsidize some families. Lin is usually at home, so he took a copy of "Thousand Character Text", starting from "Heaven and Earth Xuanhuang", and taught Ruan Yuan to read little by little.

Although Ruan Yuan is still ignorant, he reads his parents' poems and books on weekdays, and his father talks about the world, so he is naturally no stranger to books, and he has a good impression. is also gifted and enlightened, every time Lin teaches the meaning of words, he reads it several times and knows it. The literacy speed is much faster than Lin expected.

However, the "Thousand Character Text" is not a simple literacy textbook, and there are many historical allusions, customs and ethics during it. Lin's father, Lin Tinghe, was a person in the examination and a county magistrate, so Lin has known books since childhood. But when it comes to complex allusions, it is not easy to explain them in words that Ruan Yuan can understand.

On this day, Lin Shi talked about "Thousand Character Text", to "push the position to let the country, there is Yu Tao Tang." Hanging the people and sin for crimes, Zhou Fa Yin Tang", Ruan Yuan could still understand the first half of the sentence, but the second half of the sentence was puzzled: "Mother said that the king before Yin Tang always did bad things, so Yin Tang knocked him down and became the king himself." So why do people still come to make Yin soup? ”

"After Yin Tang became king, he died soon after. The Zhou Fa written in this book is a matter of the next 600 years. ”

"Six hundred years?! How many years has it been since that week? ”

This time, Lin was a little difficult to answer, the ancients did not have a digital chronology, and sometimes they could only add some abbreviated numbers together: "Eight hundred in Zhou, four hundred in Han, and three hundred years in Tang Dynasty...... It's probably been more than 2,500 years. ”

Ruan Yuan's mouth opened wide, completely incredulous. Since he was born, it has only been five years, two thousand five hundred, and I don't know how many five years, in short, Yin Zhou's world is very, very far away from him.

"That'...... Didn't Yin Tang knock down the bad king? Why did Zhou Fa later defeat Yin Guo? ”

"Because the Yin Kingdom also had a bad king later." Lin felt that Ruan Yuan was too young after all, and he would definitely not understand if he said more, so he simply said: "Because the later king of Yin is too bad, the people are unwilling to let him be the king anymore." At this time, there was a man named Ji Fa, who was Zhou Fa written in the book, who stood up against the king. Afterward...... Later, they fought, and it was said that the battlefield was quite terrible. As for stories such as King Wen of Zhou and Jiang Ziya, Lin felt that Ruan Yuan should not understand, so he didn't mention it.

As soon as Ruan Chengxin came back that night, Ruan Yuan stepped forward and begged Ruan Chengxin to tell him the story of Zhou Fa and the bad king of Yin State. Ruan Chengxin was also taken aback, asked about the Lin family, knew the reason, looked at Ruan Yuan's big eyes full of doubts, Ruan Chengxin was not easy to refuse, so he told the story of the battle of Muye.

“…… On that day, King Wu of Zhou personally led 4,000 chariots and 300,000 soldiers to march towards Chaoge City, and saw that in front of him was the army of King Yin Shang. At this time, the Malay newspaper said that the army of the king of Su was full of 700,000 people...... "Ruan Chengxin's figures are not groundless, half of them are the original text of the "Historical Records", and the other half is based on his own calculations based on the number of chariots. Although since ancient times, there have been doubts about the ancient numbers in the "Historical Records", but this is for the sake of telling a story, Ruan Chengxin preferred to believe it and copied the numbers in the book. Ruan Yuan usually knows the grand occasion, only the temple fair, but there are hundreds of people, how have you seen hundreds of thousands of people? For a while, my mouth grew up, and I listened to it with taste.

At this time, the soldiers of the Zhou army couldn't help but feel worried, the enemy was twice as many as themselves, but how to do it? But King Wu of Zhou still did not change his face, and said loudly to the soldiers in front of him: "Today's battle is to have a way to fight for no way. Although our army is small, but the way of heaven is in our army, go with the sky, our army will win, move against the sky, the enemy will be defeated! Punish the faint king, punish the heavens! Encouraged by it, all the soldiers shouted in unison, 'Punish the king, punish the heavens!' At that time, the earth of the pasture field could not stop shaking, and even the birds in the woods on the side were so frightened that they flew up and down in the sky, and did not dare to fall to the ground! ”

"That King Yin Shang is not a mediocre talent, and immediately decided that the 300,000 army will attack head-on, with 200,000 on the left wing attacking the right wing of King Wu, and 200,000 on the right wing attacking King Wu's left flank. Thinking about attacking from three sides, King Wu couldn't take care of the front and back. But the Zhou army is even more experienced in battle, and listened to King Wu's words just now, at this time it is also like a rainbow, King Wu's two younger brothers, Zhou Gongdan guards the left wing, Zhao Gongzao guards the right wing, Jiang Shang's father leads the front army, and the iron shield rejects the horses and puts them away. The two armies fought for three hours, and the blood shed on the Makino Plains that day was so much that the shields floated......"

"But my mother said that the war was over all at once?" Ruan Yuan asked puzzled.

"To be able to end the war in one day, of course, soon. The merchant army saw that it could not take a step forward for three hours, and many people had begun to show their timidity, and it was at this time that suddenly a shout came out from the merchant army, 'The merchant army has been defeated!' This sound was terrible, and the entire Yin Shang army, with a bang, threw down their weapons together and ran in all directions. ”

King Wu of Zhou also knew that most of these people were ordinary people who were dragged onto the battlefield, and if they could reduce casualties, they would not hurt the innocent anymore. So he gave the order, let go of the deserters, and march directly to Chaoge! The 300,000-strong army was once slaughtered and could no longer be stopped. Seeing that the general trend was gone, King Yin fled into Chaoge City, burned down the imperial palace and sent his own life inside......"

In order to attract his son, Ruan Chengxin also integrated the art of war he had learned, and added the saying "bleeding and drifting" in the "Book of Shang" into this story. Tell an originally very brief story vividly. Ruan Yuan listened attentively, and it took a long time to react.

"Daddy, what did King Yin do to make so many people oppose him? 700,000 people fighting 300,000 people, they won't lose at all? "Ruan Yuan has always been very incomprehensible about this issue.

"Just because he's a first-class genius." Ruan Chengxin's answer surprised Ruan Yuan.

"If you think the king is incompetent, you are completely wrong. On the contrary, the king is a great warrior and can fight wild beasts. He is also very smart, and he has never fallen behind in debates with ministers. With such wisdom and bravery, how many people in the world are there and him? ”

But it was precisely this wisdom and courage that made him gradually think that he was the number one in the world, that he was right in everything he did, and that he had different opinions from himself, so the other party must be wrong. So, he overhauled the palace, worked the people and lost money, only for his own pleasure, in the palace, drinking and eating meat every day, endlessly, so how can the people endure it? "Actually, the king still has something to do with women, but Ruan Chengxin felt that his son was only five years old, so he probably couldn't understand it, so he omitted it.

"At that time, there were also people who gave him advice, but the king said, 'Since you dare to admonish, you must be a smart person, I have heard that a wise man has seven tricks, why don't you dig out your heart and show me?' Can this man live without a heart? Soon the minister died. The king felt that another minister wanted to rebel, so he cut him into meat sauce, but in this case, what would the minister think? is loyal to the king, and it is inevitable that he will die, so it is natural to set up another door. ”

Ruan Yuan had never seen such a murderous scene, and he couldn't help but break out in a cold sweat for a while. Seeing that Ruan Yuan was a little scared, Lin gently stroked Ruan Yuan's forehead while giving Ruan Chengxin a look and telling him that the child was still young, so don't scare him for the time being.

Ruan Chengxin immediately understood, and said: "This is the case with Zhou Xing. Yuan'er should remember that wisdom and wisdom are not necessarily the more the better, the so-called wise man has a thousand thoughts, there must be a mistake, listen to people's words, there is no loss. Even if you feel that others are wrong, you should be more tolerant of others. But if you are blindly self-righteous, and even think that no one in the world can match you, so you indulge in extreme desires and do everything, then the fate of the king is not far from you. ”

Ruan Yuan nodded, and asked again: "Does Daddy know what kind of person he is today?" Is it like King Yin or like King Wu of Zhou? ”

This time, Ruan Chengxin was speechless. That unforgettable afternoon in the sixteenth year of Qianlong once again appeared in his mind......

At this time, the reigning Qianlong Emperor, Ruan Chengxin had really seen it.

But perhaps it is precisely because he has seen it that Ruan Chengxin is not easy to answer.

After thinking for a while, Ruan Chengxin said: "Today, Zi is a saint, but ...... It's good for Yuan'er to remember that he is a saint, and for the rest, you are too young to understand. ”

Ruan Yuan felt that his father might have some secrets, but looking at his father's expression, he seemed reluctant to say more, and he was a little disappointed. But at this time, it was nearly the second watch, and I was sleepy, so I went to the side to sleep.

Ruan Chengxin looked at Ruan Yuan, who was gradually falling asleep, and couldn't help but smile and said to Lin: "Seeing that he listens to stories so seriously, perhaps, he will really be a reading material in the future." ”

"As soon as you talk about reading, I think of it, his Uncle Jia recently opened a private school in Chenji, and no one is going. Why don't you turn the New Year and let him go to Chenji to live for a while? Ruan Chengxin's brother-in-law Jia Tianning is also a student who reads poetry and books, lives near the old house of Chen Ji in Ruan's hometown, and teaches for a living on weekdays.

"Hmm. Tianning I can trust, Yuan'er learns from him, I can rest assured. Besides, when I told him about "Zizhi Tongjian", it was always a little early, so let his uncle talk about the four books first, so that he could read more. The rice in Yangzhou is getting more and more expensive. Ruan Chengxin also agreed with his wife's thoughts, especially the last sentence, which was particularly urgent.

The following year, the Ruan family was temporarily separated, Ruan Chengxin continued to stay in the city to earn a meager income, and Lin and Ruan Yuan went to Chenji. Chen Ji is quite close to Yizheng County, where the ancestral property of the Ruan family is located, and the Ruan family has an old house in Chen Ji, and it is the place where the Lin family lives.

Ruan Yuan studied at his uncle's house, and while continuing to read and write, Jia Tianning also told him some easy-to-understand passages in the four books. Ruan Yuan's memory is not bad, and he has no distracting thoughts on weekdays, and soon he learned a lot of chapters and sentences of "Analects" and "Mencius". The Lin family was also quite relieved to see that Ruan Yuan was entering the country very quickly.

But on this day, the Lin family unexpectedly found that when Ruan Yuan came back from his uncle's house, he had been sullen all the time, and he didn't even want to say hello, so he sat aside and lowered his head. After a while, the Lin family heard several crying voices, but it was expected that Ruan Yuan had encountered something unpleasant, and he couldn't bear to let his mother hear it, so he couldn't bear to cry, but he couldn't hide it after all.

Lin hurriedly went over and asked Ruan Yuan what happened, but Ruan Yuan replied, "Mother...... I...... I don't want to study anymore, there are a few sentences in the book, and I can't read them all the time......"

Lin couldn't help but be surprised, Ruan Yuan had been reading and writing quite smoothly in the past few months, although it was only a few months, it was about two years worth ordinary people. I thought that if Ruan Yuan continued like this, he would inherit his father's business in the future, but he didn't expect Ruan Yuan to have such a depressed idea this day.

But Lin also knows that Ruan Yuan is just six years old, and it is normal for him to be confused or unable to understand something in his reading, and if he gives up halfway like this, he may regret it for the rest of his life. So, as always, he looked at Ruan Yuan softly and asked: "Yuan'er is still young after all, some words are used less, and it is common for them to not be able to understand and remember. ”

"Yes...... But those words are not difficult to ......," Ruan Yuan cried.

"Can you read it to my mother first? Yuan'er rest assured, whatever it looks like, my mother won't blame you, but if you don't read it, my mother really can't help it. Lin is still encouraging Nguyen Yuan.

Meng ...... Monsjcherz ...... It is better to guard the qi than ...... It's not as good as Zeng Zi......" Ruan Yuan said as he couldn't help but cry again. Lin also understood that this sentence was originally "Mencius. "Meng's charity's shouqi is not as good as Zengzi's keep." Probably because in this sentence, there are four warped tongue words in succession, Ruan Yuan is still young, and he doesn't speak much on weekdays, so he was powerless for a while, and read the two warped tongue words as flat tongue characters.

Before this sentence, there was "The courage of the two sons, I don't know who is virtuous." And "Meng's almsgiving is also brave." This kind of sentence requires a continuous flat tongue conversion, or several consecutive tongue sounds. If you have enough adult breath, you may be able to read it all in one sitting. However, Ruan Yuan's original qi was weak, and he may have no breath to continue after reading the previous words, so the last two sentences are not only confused, but also vague. In this way, it is no wonder that Ruan Yuan feels that he is useless.

Lin probably thought about the cause and effect, and felt that Ruan Yuan should not be blamed. Then he said softly: "Yuan'er read these sentences today, which were originally more difficult to read in Mencius. If everyone can read it in one go, then won't everyone go to the top in the future? ”

"But, but I can't read my uncle's house......," Ruan Yuan said this, crying even more sadly.

Lin thought about it for a while, knowing that reading luck was not Ruan Yuan's strength. But it's not something you can't do without talent. If you can study and practice diligently, you can always reach a basic level of clarity in pronunciation. But if Ruan Yuan is impatient, or gives up on himself, he will not be able to change it for the rest of his life. Then he said: "Mother has a way to solve your problem, but it will take some time, is Yuan'er willing to try?" ”

Ruan Yuan's face was full of doubts, and it seemed that he did not believe that he could overcome the difficulties in front of him.

Lin took a low table and put the "Mencius" at home, Ruan Chengxin loved to collect books, and collected more commentaries on "Mencius" than ordinary books, which was convenient for interpretation. Seeing that he was ready, he said: "My mother knows, but if you find it difficult to read, there are only three problems, one is the lack of breath, the second is the wrong mouth shape, and the third is the lack of training." Mother will teach you the mouth shape today, you just look at your mother, how I move, you can move, is it okay? ”

Ruan Yuan looked at his mother, although he didn't believe that he could correct the problem, but it didn't seem difficult to learn lip shapes, so he stopped making a noise and just watched carefully.

"Or the last sentence, let's start, Meng ...... Give...... House...... It...... Guard...... Gas, in this way, do you see clearly? ”

"See it clearly, Meng ...... Give...... House...... ......"

"Again, again."

Meng ...... Give...... House...... It...... Guard...... Gas. ”

"Okay, let's connect the places that need to be read continuously, 'Meng Shishe' is a personal name, which needs to be read continuously, and the 'zhi' can be lightly pronounced at the back, and 'Shouqi' is an action. Now, if you feel that it is difficult to read six words together, how about reading the first three words first, then changing your breath, reading the word 'zhi' lightly, and then reading the last two words in the next breath? ”

"Meng Shisang...... It...... Shouqi. Ruan Yuan did the same, it seemed to be better than before, but Ruan Yuan was a little anxious, and the last word "qi" still didn't use his strength.

"Yuan'er, don't worry, reading this kind of thing, not reading fast, it must be better than others, sometimes, read a little slower, repeat it a few times, but remember more deeply, understand it more clearly." Lin knew that Ruan Yuan might have been unable to get over it when he saw that everyone else was not reading badly, so he comforted him, but this was also true.

"Well, Meng Shishe...... It...... Shouqi. "This time Ruan Yuan thought better.

"Look, isn't this time better, try it from scratch this time."

"Meng Shisang...... Like...... Zengzi ......"

Lin looked at Ruan Yuan's appearance, which was indeed better than at the beginning, but if he could really read a complex article smoothly, it would obviously take time. I also thought of a way.

"There is no shortcut to pronunciation and ventilation, you can only study and practice hard, but what do you use to practice?" Thinking about it, Lin suddenly remembered that ancient poems have the most important rhyme changes, and if Ruan Yuan picks out more standardized ancient poems when he is reading, maybe there will be unexpected effects.

"When my father was alive, he often compiled some Tang poetry collections, if there is one that is still there, you might as well show it to him." Thinking of this, Lin gradually had a way. Even if reading poetry doesn't work as well as expected, it's not a bad thing.

When Nguyen Ngoc Tang was alive, he compiled a number of poetry collections, although some were damaged by heavy rain, many of them still exist. Lin found a volume of "Selected Poems of Wang Menggaocen" and a letter of "Selected Poems of Lotte", both of which were neat and elegant works selected by Ruan Yutang. Based on this, he taught Ruan Yuan to learn poetry.

"The August Lake is level, and the connotation is too clear. The steaming cloud Mengze shook Yueyang City. If you want to help without a boat, you will be ashamed and sage. Sitting and watching the anglers, there is nothing to envy the fish. ”

"The ancient Shu relied on heavy dangers, and the high-rise buildings were cool. The mountain root pan post road, the river flooded the city wall. Nest parrots in garden trees, hidden musk in garden flowers. Suddenly, like a river, remembered as a fisherman. ”

"There are two swallows on the beam, male and female. Between the two rafters of the mud, one nest gives birth to four children. The four children are long day and night, and the sound of food is diligent. Green worms are not easy to catch, and there is no saturation period for yellow mouths. Although the claws are desperate, they are tireless. It takes a lot of time to come and go, and I am afraid of hunger in the nest. After 30 days of hard work, the mother and thin chicks gradually gained weight. Muttered words, brushed sweaters one by one. ……”

……

Reading and learning poetry is not a day's work, Ruan Yuan listened to his mother's teachings, and he was not in a hurry, he just read more and read more day after day, and after a few months, his words became more and more fluent. And Ruan Yuan also unexpectedly found that his memory of the article was more profound and unforgettable than before.

Time flies, and in the blink of an eye, it is the winter of Qianlong's 35th year, and Ruan Chengxin's original employer who copied books has left Yangzhou. Ruan Chengxin had nothing to do, so he took Ruan Yuan and went to the Yizheng River to see the Yangtze River for the New Year.

Yizheng is the origin of the Ruan family, Ruan Chengxin's grandfather Ruan Shiheng was originally a native of Yangzhou Jiangdu and lived in the old city for a long time, but at that time Yangzhou had a large population and limited number of official schools. The population of Yizheng is not as good as Yangzhou, but there are many places in the official school, and it is easier to enter the official school to study in Yizheng for the imperial examination, laying the foundation for the future. So the Ruan family bought a field property in Yizheng, set up a tomb, and changed their nationality to Yizheng. Ruan Chengxin's father, Ruan Yutang, was in Yizheng to apply for martial arts until Wu Jinshi. Ruan Chengxin was worried that Ruan Yuan had grown up in Yangzhou since he was a child and didn't know where he was from, so he took him to see more.

At this time, it was the end of the Qing-Burma War and the end of the year, and in order to celebrate the peace of the world, the Yizheng officials authorized the people to put lanterns. Ruan Yuan and his son went to the area of the river, only to see the lights were bright, the colorful lanterns were strange, and the boats on the river were like clouds and ants, which was indeed a prosperous scenery.

Most of the paintings on the lamp are folk tales such as the West Chamber and the Red Whisk, which have not yet been covered in the books that Ruan Yuan read when he was young, so he can't help but ask about his father. Ruan Chengxin is not afraid to tell stories, and knows a lot about these folk things, so he answers them one by one. The father and son were having fun playing with each other, when suddenly a voice sounded loudly in the distance: "The salt boat is on fire!" ”

When Ruan Chengxin heard this, he was taken aback, and looked at the place where the voice came from, and sure enough, there was a faint red light coming out. Seeing that many people were rushing to the riverside, they also hugged Ruan Yuan and went to the riverside to see what was going on. The fire on the river grew bigger, and by the time Ruan Chengxin's father and son arrived closer, it was already a sea of fire.

Salt boats only sail on the river on weekdays, and most of them are not of high quality, and there are not many fireproof equipment. The Yizheng River is the place where Nanjing and Yangzhou are related, and a large number of salt ships gather here for a while. After this fire, the salt boats on the river were defenseless and immediately caught fire. In less than half an hour, the Yangtze River has become a sea of fire.

There are more and more people along the river, but no one wants to put out the fire.

Ruan Chengxin found a passer-by and asked, "Brother, this fire is so big, it's ...... Didn't anyone save them? ”

"Big brother is a foreigner, right, and he doesn't understand the rules here?" Passers-by looked at the fire and did not seem to be surprised.

"I live in a foreign country all the year round, and I haven't been back to Yizheng for many years." Ruan Chengxin is from Yizheng, but he doesn't want to say that he is a foreigner.

"This fire was originally the responsibility of the guards patrolling the river." Passers-by seem to know these things very well, and they are like a few treasures: "But there is no disaster on weekdays, everyone is used to living a peaceful life, and those guards usually only watch them eat, drink and have fun, fire prevention and disaster relief, so they are not so sad." Anyway, after the fact, it was reported that a fire was too large and could not be extinguished, so it was just that. If they are dismissed from their posts and have to find someone else, it is also generally lazy, and it is better to use the old one. ”

"Then, there is nothing that people can do on weekdays?" Nguyen Thanh Xin still had a hard time believing it.

"The guards won't let you, if we usually go to save it ourselves, wouldn't it rob other people's business? If they were really brave enough to put out the fire, it would not be long before the guards would pestered them in a different way until they didn't dare anymore, or simply moved out. As the days go by, we don't dare to move. ”

After hearing this, Ruan Chengxin couldn't help but sigh again and again, the fire is so big that the situation is so big, even if the guards are coming, I am afraid it will be difficult to save it. I had to see the salt ships burst and capsize in the fire, and bags of refined salt sank into the river, merging with the Yangtze River. After another half an hour, the guards finally arrived, and after saving a burst of fire, they saw that it was irretrievable, and they left one after another.

Although Ruan Chengxin is not in business, he can see that the Yangtze River has become a sea of fire, and he can't help but feel sad for the salt merchants. At this moment, a voice was heard chanting loudly:

"Flee from the scorching mustache, and you will also die. Accumulating grievances on the spiritual platform, taking advantage of the spirit and coolness. Out of the cold current to the Chen, eyes and eyes...... The remnants of the civet head, who gathers and who is in the same hole, collects the ashes, and identifies the remaining white bones. Alack. Alack! ”

Listening to the words, it turned out to be a pun that had not been written for many years. The text is known for its rhyme, and at this extremely tragic scene, it is even more tragic and tearful.

Then he heard the voice and continued: "And the multiplication of all living beings is the norm. The wife and children are ringed, and the bed is exhausted. Defend with death, use Dengmingtang...... Wheat rice pot pulp, Linjiang whimpered. The sun is falling, and the ghosts are sad. …… Strong drinking and strong food, Feng Qiqi. The joy of group travel, and nothing is enchanting! People are also fierce? How cool is it from the sky? What is the husband, and this is the extreme! ”

When Ruan Chengxin looked at it, he saw that it was a young man, holding a wine bottle, as if he was drunk. Presumably he is also a person who reads, and he can't bear this human tragedy to be forgotten by the world, so he wrote like this to pay tribute to this fire.

Ruan Chengxin didn't want Ruan Yuan to watch such a tragedy again, so he hurriedly covered Ruan Yuan's eyes and took him away.

Perhaps no one thought at this time that this fire unexpectedly became a watershed in the Qianlong Dynasty, and since then, the Qianlong era has gradually gone downhill.

This winter, Ruan's family temporarily moved back to Yangzhou. On this day, Ruan Chengxin settled his wife and children, and went out to see the belongings at home that Chen Ji moved back. Finally, the family affairs were arranged, but it rained again, and Ruan Chengxin could not return home, so he had to find a small stall and hide from the rain under the shed.

The guy in the store hurriedly came over and asked, "The guest officer wants to eat noodles?" Ruan Chengxin nodded.

"So, is it 'Dalian', 'Zhongwan' or 'Chonger'?" Yangzhou noodles are abundant, according to the size of the noodles, there are three equal divisions, the largest amount is "Dalian", Ruan Chengxin is thrifty on weekdays, but a "heavy two", but this day went a day, quite tired, then unusual, ordered "Dalian".

"Do you want a 'mackerel'? The grouper which arrives new in the morning is fresh. The man asked. "Mackerel" refers to a piece of fish and meat in the noodles, and Ruan Chengxin thought that "Dalian" had been ordered, and it would not hurt to order some more, so he responded.

"Guest officer, six pieces of silver." This scared Ruan Chengxin a lot, and he hurriedly asked: "You have a bowl of noodles, although the amount is a little large, it is not worth six dollars of silver, right?" ”

"I hear that your accent is also a local, and the guest officer doesn't use 'Dalian' on weekdays, but I don't know that this 'Dalian' with fresh grouper fish will be the cheapest noodle restaurant in Yangzhou, and it won't be less than five yuan?" Ruan Chengxin saw that his store was quite large, and the shed outside was only a part, and the rain was getting heavier, so it was common for the store to charge a little more. I felt that the man's tone seemed to be sarcastic. He is also quite self-conscious as a scholar, and he doesn't want to show his embarrassment, so he simply gritted his teeth and ordered this "joint mackerel".

"In fact, in the early ten years, the guest officer was able to spend less money." The guy went to the back and ordered to cook, while chatting with Ruan Chengxin. "Three generations of my family have been making noodles in this restaurant, not to mention anything else in Yangzhou City, no one knows more about eating than me. When I was young, no matter how expensive this 'mackerel' was, it was only two or three dollars, and then it couldn't be sold so low, and the neighbors saw that you were selling so cheaply, and they all treated you as an enemy, how could you live? ”

"And in your opinion, why is that?" Ruan Chengxin was not pretentious, and took the initiative to chat with his buddy.

"It's not because of the rich people." The guy saw that the noodles were cooked, so he sent them over, and continued to chat with Ruan Chengxin: "The salt merchants in this city are the richest, and several big salt merchants are even more competitive. First, there must be fish in the noodles, then some people only want groupfish, and then later, some people don't eat anything except the grouper fish in the sea that day, saying that it is a bowl of noodles. The East China Sea is not close to Yangzhou, and most of the fishers go out to sea overnight, just to catch a net of fresh fish. In the long run, the price of fish will be higher, and the price of noodles will naturally be higher. The guy also sighed, after all, the cost of buying fish and the price of noodles are converted, and the income of the noodle restaurant may not be as good as before.

But having said that, Ruan Chengxin looked at the bowl of "Dalian" in front of him, the fish soup was quite clear, and after tasting it, it was indeed much more delicious than what he had tasted in the past. This noodle shop is also worthy of being a decades-old shop, and the noodle soup is rich in aroma and has its own flavor. If it's just for a feast, it's worth spending six pieces of silver.

While eating noodles, he suddenly saw a lot of baggage on the side, Ruan Chengxin saw that there was no one around, so he asked the guy: "Is there anyone else here?" ”

"Don't talk about others, if it weren't for the guest officer, we would have left early." The guy saw that Ruan Chengxin was quite honest, and he couldn't help but joke. But seeing that the rain has been pouring all the time, the people in the store are really ready to close.

After Ruan Chengxin finished eating the noodles, he couldn't help but touch the burden, only to feel the heaviness of his hands, and when he looked closely, there seemed to be a bright light shining inside, and then he touched it carefully, only to feel that the things inside were quite similar to ingots, if the whole bag was cash, it was estimated that it would be enough for ordinary people for a year.

The guy was not so sharp-eyed, and while packing up the things in the shop, he said to Ruan Chengxin: "It's not easy for you to hide from the rain, we won't remove the shed, and the guest officer can sit if he wants." After that, several guys left one after another, leaving only Ruan Chengxin alone.

If Ruan Chengxin took the burden away by himself at this time, no one would be able to see it.

But he chose to stay anyway.

The rain fell for more than half an hour, and finally stopped, and Ruan Chengxin also thought of taking the sheep by hand and taking the bag of silver directly. But after thinking about it, I don't know what kind of person the owner is, if it is a wealthy family, if it is the same as himself, or even inferior to his own family, if he loses so much silver, I am afraid that he will not be able to live the year. Although he is becoming more and more embarrassed, after all, he is still a scholar with land, which is more advantageous than the small people in the market. pushed himself and others, but he couldn't bear it, so he stayed.

It wasn't until an hour later that a carriage slowly passed by and stopped, and a middle-aged man in his forties and fifties walked away. Seeing Ruan Chengxin, he couldn't help but be quite surprised, and asked, "Dare to ask this gentleman, how long have you been here?" ”

Ruan Chengxin saw that this carriage was quite exquisite, and the person who came was dressed in a silk robe, during which a few auspicious clouds were embroidered with dark lines. So he answered truthfully. The man was also a little surprised, and said with a smile: "Sir doesn't seem to be rich, why don't you take this bag of silver and have a good year?" My family's expenses are reasonable, and they are not bad for these money. ”

Ruan Chengxin said with a smile: "I'm usually timid, it's not my own thing, I really don't dare to ask for it, I take it, I'm ashamed, it's better to be happy than to take your silver." The man also smiled, and was about to take over the burden, when suddenly his eyes changed, as if he had met an acquaintance, and asked: "Sir, do you recognize a guerrilla surnamed Ruan, whose name is Shangyu and Xiatang?" ”

Ruan Chengxin couldn't help but be shocked in his heart, and said, "It's my father." The man asked again, "Is that Lingtang's surname Jiang?" Ruan Chengxin hurriedly said: "It is indeed a family kindness, and he has been dead for many years." ”

The man was surprised and delighted, and hurriedly said, "When you open the baggage, you will know who I am." Ruan Chengxin opened his burden in response, and couldn't help but be surprised, among them, there were six or seven large ingots of silver. In addition, there is also a document with two familiar italic characters "Jiang Fang" written in the signature of the document.

"Sir...... Mr. is Uncle Jiang? Ruan Chengxin couldn't believe it, and couldn't say anything else.

Ruan Yutang is the father of Ruan Chengxin, and he married in his early years, but his first wife was weak and passed away before he could stand. Later, Ruan Yutang was admitted to the Wujin Shi, and the Jiang family, a big salt merchant in Yangzhou, saw that the young man had a bright future, so he chose a woman in the clan to marry Ruan Yutang. Ruan Chengxin is the biological son of Mrs. Jiang.

The Jiang family has many relatives, and this Mrs. Jiang has two cousins of the same clan, one is named Jiang Chun, and the other is Jiang Fang in front of him, Ruan Chengxin should call him uncle. Ruan Yutang was prosperous at that time, and he became a general of the Jiuxi Battalion all the way. The Jiang Chun and Jiang Fang brothers attacked the family business at that time, and contributed to the imperial court, escorting grain and grass to Ruan Yutang's army. Therefore, he and Ruan Yutang are not only in-laws, but also close friends who have been on the battlefield. But Ruan Yutang has always been honest, so although the Jiang family's career is thriving, he is reluctant to have more contact with the Jiang family.

Later, Ruan Yutang lost his official position for some reason, and although he was once reinstated as a guerrilla in Qinzhou, he no longer had the prosperity of the year. Since the death of Ruan Yutang, the Ruan family has also been declining day by day. But in the past few decades, Jiang Chun has relied on his position as the general merchant of the two Huai to continuously consolidate the salt transportation and sales channels, and by the middle of Qianlong, he has become the largest businessman in the two Huai.

Jiang Chun and Jiang Fang's brothers did not forget the Ruan family, and when Ruan Yutang died, they also raised money for a time to prepare to help Ruan Chengxin. But at that time, Ruan Chengxin's family business was quite solid, thinking that even if he was poor, he should not be fed, let alone himself, so he politely rejected the Jiang family. And Mrs. Jiang also passed away fourteen years ago, although the Ruan Jiang family is in-laws, but because they don't move all year round, they have long been estranged. Ruan Chengxin said that he was poor and happy, he had gradually forgotten the Jiang family, but who knew that this day he was not ignorant of the gold, and he actually met Jiang Fang again. He saw Jiang Fang when he was young, but he didn't care about it, because he had forgotten it at this time, and he didn't want Jiang Fang to remember his appearance.

Jiang Fang looked at his nephew dressed plainly, with a lot of dust on his face, obviously because of his family's declining family in recent years, thinking of the friendship of his in-laws, he couldn't help but feel a little distressed, and hurriedly shook Ruan Chengxin's hand and said: "Seeing you like this, you don't come to talk to me, why bother if you have to live outside." ”

Ruan Chengxin naturally has his own ideas, but obviously he is not doing well, and it doesn't make much sense to be a hero. He only bowed his head and did not answer. Jiang Fang asked his grandson how old he was. Knowing that Ruan Yuan was seven years old, he said: "Chengxin, you are happy to be poor, but it's okay." Yuan'er is the grandson of my in-laws, what good will it do him if you let him live a hard life with you? All people of the same clan and surname in my Jiang family school can be enrolled, how about you let him go to school in our house? ”

Ruan Chengxin still wanted to refuse politely, Jiang Fang had already understood, and said: "Listen to my uncle's words, you are a scholar, you are still cold, heavy-minded, and don't bend your waist for five buckets of rice, this is your business." Yuan'er, a child who has just started school, has the conditions to come to the Jiang family to study, why do you want to help him refuse? The rest is up to you, the child's business, his uncle said, it has to be counted. In the end, his face was solemn, and Ruan Chengxin could not refuse.

Ruan Chengxin thought about it carefully, and the truth was indeed the case, and he thought: "Tianning teaches in the countryside, after all, his talent is limited, and he can't let Yuan'er study in the countryside for the rest of his life." The Jiang family has always had a close relationship with Huaiyang celebrities, and perhaps there are a few talented gentlemen in the family school, which is also the blessing of Yuan'er. Therefore, he no longer refused. Jiang Fang gave him a sign of the Jiang family and asked him to take the child to the Jiang Mansion one day.

Ruan Chengxin went home that day and told the Lin family about Ruan Yuan's trip to Jiang's house. Lin felt that what Ruan Chengxin thought was indeed reasonable, and Ruan Yuan had improved a lot after two years of teaching. If you are willing to be poor all your life, you are afraid of a child with great potential, and you will be in Yangzhou City.

In the spring of the following year, Ruan Yuan returned to Yangzhou and came to Kangshanjiang Mansion to study. The Jiang family is luxurious and magnificent, Ruan Yuan is not used to it, but fortunately, the Jiang Mansion has another side door leading to the family school, so he only takes the side door and does not have other interactions with the children of the Jiang family.

But as soon as Ruan Yuan walked to the door of the home school that day, he met a child of his own age. Looking closely, it was quite familiar, and when the child saw Ruan Yuan, he was also overjoyed, and immediately stepped forward and asked, "Are you the eldest man of the Ruan family?" ”

Ruan Yuan vaguely remembers that during the Chinese New Year last year, his parents took him to his uncle's house in Beihu, Yangzhou to play. At that time, in my uncle's house, there was a child who was slightly older than himself, very smart, although he was only seven or eight years old, but he could say a lot of rare words, according to himself, he had already recognized one or two thousand words.

Ruan Chengxin was a little unconvinced, so he pointed to a poster on the wall that said "Feng Yi" and asked the child: "Then what do you say about this first word?" ”

"Nianping." The child smiled: "Uncle must have thought that I was so young that I only recognized the pronunciation of this character, but not the pronunciation of flat characters." But last year, I had already finished reading the Analects. After speaking, he looked at Ruan Chengxin, looking like he had won the first battle.

Ruan Yuan was quite envious for a while, but he forgot to ask his name, only remembering that the child was from a family surnamed Jiao. In retrospect, that child looked exactly like the child who appeared in the Jiang family in front of him. Ruan Yuan couldn't help but be overjoyed and asked, "But the Jiao family brother who read the Feng of 'Feng Yi' correctly?" ”

The boy also rejoiced, "You still know me." My name is Jiao Xun, and when I see you, you are a noble person who forgets things, I only remember what my surname is, but I forget my name, hum. ”

Ruan Yuan was busy compensating, and he was also quite puzzled, and asked: "Brother Jiao, I entered Jiangfu to study because my grandmother came from Jiangfu. Why did you come to this Jiang Mansion too? ”

"Speaking of which, I'm still thankful for you." Jiao Xun replied: "At the beginning of this year, my family just got married to your family in Beihu, and when I grow up, I will marry your cousin." In the future, you can't call Jiao family brother anymore, you have to call your cousin-in-law! Thinking of this, he felt that "cousin-in-law" had too many words, and said: "My cousin-in-law is too long-winded, so call me brother-in-law in the future." ”

Only then did Ruan Yuan understand that Jiao Xun was engaged to his own family, and he was half of the Ruan family, and the Ruan family was the Jiang family's in-laws, so it was logical for Jiao Xun to come here to study. Jiang Fang is a person and a lot of talents, seeing that Jiao Xun can already read a lot at a young age, he is naturally willing to let him enter the Jiang family. Looking at Jiao Xun again, although he is not very old, he is half a head taller than himself after all, and it is not a loss to call his brother-in-law. He also smiled and said, "Brother-in-law! ”

Jiao Xun actually didn't hear anyone call him like this, he was happy when he heard it, and said: "If there is anything in the future, just look for your brother-in-law, and your brother-in-law will help you." As soon as the words fell, I heard the children in the backyard of the Jiang family shouting: "Mr. is here!" ”

When Ruan Yuan and Jiao Xun looked back, they saw Jiang Fang accompanied a gentleman and slowly walked to the main hall of the family school. The gentleman was tall and fat, with a smile on his face, but he was very amiable, and his long beard hung straight down to his abdomen, and he added some bearing. At this time, I only heard Jiang Fang say:

"This is Mr. Xicen Hu, his name is unknown, he is the upper court and the lower forest, and everyone will call him Mr. Hu in the future. Mr. Hu is a Confucian in my Jiangdu, who is familiar with the scriptures and the law. Just the year before last, Lord Fan Sisa also invited Mr. to enter the curtain as a guest...... "The children of the Jiang family are still unknown, and Ruan Yuan has already applauded in his heart. Sa Daren was the political envoy of Jiangsu at that time, and he was also a local dignitary with practical skills in the middle and late Qianlong period. Hu Tingsen turned out to be his staff, his talent can be imagined, seeing that he can be taught by such a great Confucian, it is worth it to come to the Jiang family no matter how he looks at it.

That Hu Tingsen hurriedly smiled and said: "How can the old man have any talent, but how old are you, just read more books, and in the future, it depends on the young people!" In fact, the official system of the Qing Dynasty was very different from that of the Tang and Song dynasties, but the literati of the Qing Dynasty were so good at imitating the ancients that they equated the governor with the envoys of the previous dynasty. However, no matter what the generals, the real power is no longer as good as that of the previous generation. Jiang Fang taught the children a few more words and left.