After eating the wine and meat, it was late, and the Xiang brothers, who had long been accustomed to wandering around, simply lived in Xiang Kang's room, and the next morning, Xiang Kang was first woken up by the wife of the third uncle and mother Xiang Bo who came to deliver the meal, and then suddenly knew the origin of the wine and meat provided by the Xiang brothers yesterday - it turned out that the Xiang brothers heard that there was dead beef for sale in the neighboring Cao Ting, and they stole the pearl and jade left by their ancestors from the third uncle's house to exchange money, buy cattle and wine to treat themselves, and by the way, Xiang Kang was also dragged into the theft gang......

The third uncle and aunt are not the kind of particularly difficult square dance aunts, they didn't yell and scold the Xiang brothers with pots and buckets, they just knelt by the hearth and kept crying, sobbing to clean up the mess left by the Xiang brothers, and never said a word to blame the Xiang brothers. However, the more this is the case, the more the Xiang brothers, who know the situation at home, hang their heads and dare not speak, they don't know how to talk to their uncle, how to comfort their uncle who fled for his life after her husband killed someone, and left a large family to take care of her.

Xiang Kang stood up without hesitation, saluted the third uncle and said: "Uncle, it's all the fault of the little nephew, the little nephew was weak and slanderous after falling into the water and was injured, and he wanted to eat something good, and my brother was sympathetic to me, so he did this." Although the little nephew really didn't know that they bought the wine and meat in this way beforehand, after all, the matter started by the little nephew, and the little nephew was willing to accept the guilt and ask the uncle to punish him. ”

Hearing Xiang Kang's words, the third uncle's face, who was once heartbroken, looked obviously better, wiped her tears and said, "I don't blame you, your body is just right, you want to make up for it, let's have breakfast." In the evening, my aunt will make you a millet mat. ”

After that, the third uncle and aunt left with the empty wine urn and dirty dishes and chopsticks, and the Xiang brothers were all relieved, and they also gave Xiang Kang a thumbs up, praising Xiang Kang for speaking with righteousness. At the same time, unconsciously, the Xiang brothers also gradually changed their impression of Xiang Kang - they can speak, speak and talk about righteousness, and they have a very unique vision for seeing things.

In the evening, the third uncle and mother really brought Xiang Kang a large bowl of millet and fatty meat boiled to replenish Xiang Kang's body. However, after eating this dinner, Xiang Kang was never able to eat such a good meal, the reason is that the family's economic situation does not allow it, and secondly, seeing that Xiang Kang has been able to move freely, the Xiang brothers began to take Xiang Kang around every day, wandering around, and eating what they eat when they return home.

After moving east from their original fiefdom of Xiang County, Chen County, to Xiaxiang, the Xiang family has always lived in the Shiling Pavilion in the northeast of Xiaxiang County, which is quite far from the county seat, and it is not so easy to enter the city, but this distance is not a problem at all for the children of the Xiang family who are bored every day, Xiang Kang followed his brothers to fool around for four or five days and entered the city three times, but unfortunately the county seat of this era is not attractive to Xiang Kang, who is used to seeing the prosperous scene of later generations, that is, to take a casual look. Every time I went into the city, I was not very interested.

Although it was late autumn, the weather was getting colder, and Xiang Kang, who had two sets of linen clothes in the room, needed to buy some winter clothes, and there were green and natural dog meat and mutton for sale in the restaurants and bazaars in the county, but he couldn't take out half of the copper plate on his body, so Xiang Kang could only look at it from a distance, quietly swallowed the saliva in his mouth, rubbed his rumbling belly and continued to go shopping with his brothers.

The brothers of the Xiang family were also quite annoying at times, they were obviously so poor that they had to wear swords at any time to pose the scores of the nobles of the Chu State, spitting and laughing at the peasants who were harvesting in the fields, despising the merchants who belonged to the untouchable class in their eyes, and like a group of down-and-out Han Xin who was ready to beg for food at any time - of course, just like Han Xin who could crawl under the crotch of others at any time to pass over that time period.

No, when he went home from wandering around the city for the third time with Xiang Kang, he was already so hungry that he only drank a bowl of millet porridge in the morning, and Xiang Bo's eldest son Xiang Ju was still pointing to a few ox carts on the road and laughing, and said: "Look, the car of the Yu family, the head of the Qianshou is the head of the Qian, and if you make a fortune, you are still the same common people, and you are only willing to use cattle to pull the cart, and you are not even willing to use the horse." ”

Xiang Kang looked silently, and with the memory left by Xiang Kang in the previous one, he found that the ox carts full of goods were indeed owned by the famous wealthy Yu Gong in Yan Jiting. Yan Han next to him said impatiently: "The Yu family has several carriages, but they are all carriages for people to sit in, and ox carts are used to pull goods. Let's go, I'm hungry. ”

"There's nothing to eat when I go back, I heard the second mother say in the morning, tonight is to eat bean soup." Xiang It said lazily, and said: "But today in the market, I saw the mother-in-law of the pavilion chief of our Shiling Pavilion buying meat, and her family is not going to eat meat tonight, or we will go to her house for a meal?" ”

"Feng Zhong didn't invite us again? What are you going to do? Xiang Zhuang said angrily: "Do you want us to be like those Qianshou people, in order to have a meal, whisper to a small pavilion chief, nod and bow?" ”

Xiang He closed his mouth, and Xiang You on the other side looked enviously at the wine jar full of wine on a Yu family's ox cart, and said: "It would be good if the Yu family had any friendship with our Xiang family, and if you go to visit his house, you will definitely be full of wine and meat." ”

"When our Xiang family first arrived at the next minister, the head of the Yu family, Lao Yu, wanted to have a friendship with our family." Xiang Zhuang said casually: "However, the Yu family is from a commoner, and the old Yu family is a little stingy, and he is not happy to do things at all, and the two uncles don't look down on their Yu family, and they don't want to deal with the Yu family at all, so our Xiang family has no contact with their Yu family." ”

"It's a pity that my father and second uncle should deign to make friends with the Yu family." Xiang Bo's second son, Xiang You, said with great regret: "I heard that this Yu Gong now not only has a daughter and family assets, is generous, but also has two ....... ”

"Uncle Ji, the second eldest father doesn't look down on the Yu family and doesn't want to make friends with the Yu family, but those of us who are juniors don't care." Xiang You interrupted Xiang You and said a little whimsically: "Can you go and make friends with the Yu family?" Get us a rich house to walk around? When we are hungry and can't stand it, there is also a place to eat and drink. ”

"Xiang It, don't say such humiliating words." Xiang Zhuang reprimanded: "Eating and drinking as a diner? I'm not afraid to lose the face of our Xiang family when I say it! ”

"I mean to be a guest, to go to Yu's house as a guest." Xiang Qi argued: "We make friends with the Yu family and go to his house as guests, can the other family entertain us with good food and drink?" ”

"Easy to say." Xiang Sheng, who was tall and tall, was a little self-aware, and said, "Why did the Yu family treat us as guests? Let's not mention that my uncle and they have treated Lao Yu Gong slowly, in our current situation, why should the Yu family still treat us as guests. ”

"We are the queen of the famous family of the Chu State!" Xiang He continued to raise the bar and said, "Based on this, the Yu family should respect our Xiang family's children as guests!" ”

"Then you go and tell the Yu family that we are willing to make friends with them and let the family respect us as guests." Xiang Sheng said impatiently.

"I'm a junior, you are an elder, you should come forward for this kind of thing."

The youngest Xiang It was cunning and pushed, in exchange for the boos of the Xiang family's children, only Xiang Kang did not boo Xiang It, and after thinking about it seriously for a while, Xiang Kang also said: "Brothers, in fact, I think Xiang It's idea is good. We are a little down-and-out now, but after all, our Xiang family is famous, and the Yu family is only from a civilian background, so we went to make friends with his family to give them the Yu family's face, and it is a question of whether we are willing or not, not whether their Yu family is willing or not. ”

Xiang Kang dared to say this, of course, because Xiang Kang remembered some history and knew that the old Xiang family still had a lot of prestige among the Chu people - even when Chen Sheng and Wu Guang, the two fierce people, rebelled, they shamelessly borrowed the signboard of the Xiang family and played the banner of Xiang Yan's subordinates. It's a pity that the children of the Xiang family are Huaibao and don't know it, after listening to Xiang Kang's words, except for Xiang It nodded, none of the other children of the Xiang family didn't sneer, and said: "Then you go and make friends with the Yu family, as long as his family agrees, we are willing to be friends with the Yu family." ”

Contrary to the expectations of the children of the Xiang family, combined with the Xiang family's fame in history and the current social atmosphere, and carefully calculated a little time, Xiang Kang, who was actually a little competitive, made up his mind and said: "Okay, I'll give it a try and see if it can be done." ”

"Uncle Ji, are you really going?" Including the item that first brought up the topic, it was surprised.

"Xiang Kang, don't embarrass our Xiang family's face." Xiang Zhuang frowned and said, "I'd rather starve to death than beg for someone in a low voice." ”

"It's not to beg him, it's to make friends with the Yu family on an equal footing." Xiang Kang replied: "I will find a way to make the Yu family treat us as VIPs, not as beggars who ask for food." ”

"Xiang Kang, then what do you think of?" Xiang Sheng asked curiously.

"I haven't figured this out yet, so you'll have to do me a favor." Xiang Kang replied thoughtfully.

"How can I help you?" Xiang Sheng asked, and said: "But I have a word first, if you want me to ask the Yu family in a low voice, don't even think about it." ”

"Of course, you don't have to ask for someone in a low voice." Xiang Kang smiled and said, "I don't know much about the Yu family, I just need you to tell me as much as you know about the situation of the Yu family, let me come up with ideas first, and then see if I want you to help." ”

Seeing that Xiang Kang said confidently, although he felt that this matter was too suspenseful, the children of the Xiang family still talked about the situation of the Yu family that they knew, and Xiang Kang remembered it with his heart. Xiang You, who was the first to provoke this topic with Xiang Ju before, also wanted to get up and tell Xiang Kang about the situation of the Yu family that he knew, but after the words came to his lips, Xiang You dispelled this idea again, and said secretly: "Forget it, don't talk about it, a man's husband, always mentioning such things will only make the brothers look down on him." ”