Chapter Forty-Six: The World's Heroes Are Born of My Generation

In the ninth year of Jiading in the Great Song Dynasty (1216 AD), the island was off the coast.

At first glance, the small sailboats that sail in the sea, sometimes like petrels skimming over the crest of the waves, sometimes like white clouds hanging on the surface of the sea, look like offshore fishing boats, but if you look closely, you will notice that the sails are different from those of the rest of the boats, they are actually moving and can be adjusted at will. That's why it's much more agile than the average sailboat, navigating the waves.

If you get closer, you can see that the sails of this boat are only four teenagers. They looked no more than fifteen or sixteen years old, and they were a little childish, but they were as tall and strong as adults. Because they were shirtless, their bronzed muscles glowed with metallic sheen in the sun, showing that they were different from the rest of their peers at this time, and that their nutrition and exercise were excellent.

"Hu You, it's too far away, right?" A teenager raised his face and shouted to his companions, "It's time to turn back!" ”

"Farther away, just farther and turn back!" Hu You climbed on the mast, he was the oldest of the four teenagers, and the one who was most familiar with the sea.

The two fishing boats were chased by them from behind, and the fishermen on the fishing boats stared at the sailboat in surprise, and when they saw it clearly, they smiled with relief: "The boat on the hanging island is the one called the Jiangnan Manufacturing Bureau!" ”

"This boat is excellent, if it is not too expensive, I also want to buy one, fishing and going to sea, it is much more convenient!"

"Phew, the Jiangnan Manufacturing Bureau is now only building ships for the officials and soldiers of the coastal system, and you want to buy them too!" Another fisherman spat out.

"Hanging Island, I want to be an apprentice there, too!" A teenager among the fishermen said.

"That's what you go, you have a big meal of meat every seven days, and there are few fish and shrimp on weekdays, that day...... Tsk, even our rich man can't get by! The fisherman who took a bite shook his head: "It's a pity that the Jiangnan Manufacturing Bureau doesn't want us, and only the coastal system allows the children to enter." ”

What they said was wrong, the teenagers in the Jiangnan Manufacturing Bureau, in addition to the children of the naval army under the jurisdiction of the coastal control envoy, most of them came from Yuzhang Villa in Shaoxing Prefecture. It's just that these teenagers from Yuzhang Villa, known as "Yixue Boys", without exception, have extremely tight mouths, keep silent about their origins, and their accents are extremely mixed, and they can't tell where they come from. Only some people are rumored that they are all from a wealthy family in Shaoxing Mansion, and they were originally servants among them. But no one believed these rumors, because they all could write and calculate, and they all held some positions, and every three months there was a month-long rotation, which made the children of the coastal system extremely envious. There are also people who intercede with the manager of the Jiangnan Manufacturing Bureau, but the shopkeeper Hu who is in charge of affairs said that it is not impossible to have a monthly rest like these teenagers from Yuzhang Villa, as long as they can write and calculate.

This made the children of the navy speechless, how can they know what words and count, and they can count a few copper coins, which is excellent. But the shopkeeper Hu has a way, he reported to the owner in Shaoxing Mansion, these days, the owner will make those teenagers who can write and count what is called "night school", every night someone comes to teach the children of the navy to read and count, seeing that people can write and calculate, they can get more money than their own, and there is no place to go at night on the island, all of them are enthusiastic to sign up.

Naturally, not everyone can learn, but in a few days, some people have withdrawn one after another, and these teenagers who are called "righteous boys" are not reluctant, but the people who quit have to go to Lin Xi to talk about it, and what awaits them is Lin Xi's spittle.

"Teach you to read and count, you are too lazy to learn, and you still have the face to intercede with me again? You are not ashamed, but I, Lin Xi, want to be face-bearing, if you think that the Jiangnan Manufacturing Bureau treats you badly, it is simple, you have also made a lot of money in the past few years, enough for your father and mother to marry you a daughter-in-law, you leave the island and go back to the barracks to sit and wait for death! ”

It is impossible to leave the island, and these soldiers are extremely grateful to the owner who never shows up, if it were not for him, where would they have food and clothing, so that they can leave the island and live that hungry and full life, which is more sad than asking for their lives.

When these "righteous boys" first came to Hanging Island, there were also naughty people who looked at them unpleasantly and wanted to beat them up. But soon they knew that they were powerful, these "righteous boys" were all strong and healthy, and they had always been in groups when they fought, that is, Long Twelve and Li Ye, who always didn't talk to each other when they met on weekdays, and when they saw each other being beaten, they would definitely scream and rush over to help. Although the children of the navy army also learned some fists and kicks, they could not take advantage of them, and they ended in a fiasco in three fights. Moreover, those who took the lead in causing trouble were fined one month's wages, the heavier ones were sent home to be disciplined for three months, and the two heaviest ones were driven out of the hanging island, no matter how their parents interceded with Lin Jiaotou, it was to no avail.

wanted to find the shopkeeper Hu to reason, and the shopkeeper Hu also said very simply: "It is normal for a sixteen or seventeen-year-old boy to fight, and it is just a matter of reprimand and punishment, but it is different when he moves the knife, that is, he killed people with weapons in broad daylight, and he should have been handed over to the government, but fortunately no one was killed, and the young man of Yixue interceded for him again, so it was just a matter of driving out the accident, which is already a great favor, but to quarrel, it is unreasonable." The Jiangnan Manufacturing Bureau recruited the children of the water army, originally for the favor of Lin Xilin's leader, if the water army is so ignorant of lifting, then at most it will be scattered in two shots, and the Jiangnan Manufacturing Bureau will hire another man, and the children of the water army will be sent back to the camp. ”

These words made those who had the intention to gather their colleagues to make trouble, and if they continued to make trouble, they would cut off the hopes of their colleagues in the chief, and they would not be blamed by them. After this lesson, the children of the navy army were warned by their families, and they all respected these "righteous boys" from the bottom of their hearts, and did not dare to provoke again.

Fortunately, these "righteous teenagers" are also very self-disciplined, even if a few people go out, they must stand in a straight line, and they will not hook their shoulders. In addition to helping in the workshop boat yard on weekdays, they are playing in the water on the boat, and they have all practiced good water skills, and they are not a problem to operate smaller boats.

Hu You is more familiar with them, he has been staying in Yuzhang Villa for a few years, and has formed a close friendship with Li Ye, Li Ye is a well-spoken person, and he is not very popular among the original children, but he has a better relationship with Li Yilao and Hu You. The three of them have all been in the market, and although they have changed their bad habits in Yuzhang Villa, they can always look at each other more pleasantly.

At this time, on this sailboat are Hu You, Li Ye, Li Yilao and another teenager, Meng Xisheng. Meng Xisheng is outstanding among the first batch of children in Yuzhang Villa, second only to Chen Ren and Chen Zicheng, Ou Bama, and Geng Wan, he has a general relationship with Li Ye, but he is quite close to Hu You and Li Yilao, and he likes to sail by boat, so he follows them out.

The four teenagers, even Hu You, are as strong as a calf. It was not Meng Xisheng, a good student, who persuaded Hu You to turn back, but Li Ye, after a lesson, Li Ye was extremely cautious, just afraid that he would accidentally relapse and cause trouble for Da Lang.

"Xisheng, do you hear what Da Lang said, this earth is actually round, and if you sail along the sea for a week, you can turn back to the hanging island!" Hu Youpan looked at the mast with his eyes: "Da Lang's words are true?" ”

"Da Lang's words are naturally true!" Meng Xisheng didn't speak, but Li Ye answered: "When did he say he missed!" ”

Compared with Li Ye, Li Yilao is much more cautious: "Although I believe Da Lang's words, I have a question. If the earth is round, will the sea water at the other end pour down, and why is the sea water on our side not decreasing? How does the person at the other end live with his head facing downwards? ”

"There are a lot of questions in Laos, and you have to fight with Euro Eight Horses!" Li Ye laughed: "Ou Bama saw the cocoon pig iron pot in the silk reeling workshop, and said that the heat can lift the iron lid, can you use this heat to drive the reeling car, so that the reeling car can run without the dam." He has been pondering for four years, and the more he ponders, the more questions he has, and every day he and Xiao Xuexue are bored in the laboratory, even if his father asks him to go back to the test for fame, he doesn't listen! ”

Everyone laughed, and Hu You shook his head: "It's also Da Lang's generosity that allows him to stay in the village, and he is not from the village......"

Hu You is a little at odds with Ou Bama, and he can't get used to the appearance of this old god, and he has a sad face all day long, as if others owe him hundreds of dollars and have not repaid it. Hearing him say this, the other three had different expressions, but they didn't speak.

Hu You also knew that he was speechless, strictly speaking, although he was a boatwright invited by Yuzhang Villa, he was not like these three people who belonged to the villa. He smiled and said, "I heard from Steward Fang, our Jiangnan Manufacturing Bureau is going to expand the land again, and Dalang is going to build a weaving workshop here." ”

"Steward Fang is a big mouth." Li Yilao pouted and said, Fang is a carpenter from Fang Youcai, because he has made a contribution to supervising the Jiangnan Manufacturing Bureau in recent years, and has been promoted to be in charge.

"If we build a weaving workshop, transport our family's raw silk here to weave silk, and then directly load it to the sea, and sell it to Goryeo and Wa Kingdom, it is a good business." Meng Xisheng pondered: "It's a pity that we don't have a big ship yet. ”

"Don't worry about sea ships, my grandfather said that our own sea ships can be built in a few days, what we lack is not boats, but reliable sailors." Hu You laughed: "I want to be a sailor, but grandpa won't let go!" ”

"I want to be a general." Li Ye patted the side of the boat, and suddenly smiled: "It's that Qiu Shuang, his ambition is to be a Langzhong, Da Lang learned about it and asked him to use a knife to kill those chickens and rabbits, when he went for the first time, he was so scared that he cried!" ”

Qiu Shuang is the second batch of children, after three years, their progress has caught up with the first batch of children, and some of them have also been sent to Hanging Island for internship with the first batch. This is to add practical experience to these teenagers, and the other is to reduce the population of Yuzhang Villa, so as not to arouse suspicion - in the past four years, every year Shima Guangyan will send dozens of children, although Zhao and Ju tried to tap the potential of Yuzhang Villa, but in the eighth year of Jiading, Yuzhang Villa was still overcrowded. In addition, raising one or two hundred servants is considered a luxury, and counting three or four hundred is an ulterior motive, so Zhao and Ju took turns to come to this hanging island in batches of children from the first, second and third phases, and their basic education was basically completed.

"What do you want to do in the future?" After everyone finished laughing, Hu You asked Li Yi again.

"Me? I said you weren't allowed to laugh at me. Li Yilao hesitated for a moment before speaking, and after getting everyone's nods and approval, he continued: "Before entering Zhuangzi, what I wanted was to open a big war shop and do some war by myself every day. ”

Before he could finish his sentence, his companions blushed, and he said with some annoyance, "You all said you wouldn't laugh. ”

"Don't laugh, don't laugh, you go on." Li Ye urged.

"Later, I entered our Zhuangzi, eating food that I hadn't eaten when my father and mother were alive, and learning to walk and talk with you, Mo Xiao, when I first saw you, you didn't know how envious I was in my heart, I just felt that everyone was more energetic than those rich and noble masters! Later, I learned arithmetic and literacy with Da Lang, and I felt that this is the life of a person, and I lived before, and the gangsters were not as good as pigs and dogs. Although my father and mother gave birth to me, they died early, and my second uncle didn't treat me as a human being except for beating and scolding all day long...... It was Da Lang who let me live a human life, and I sold myself to become a servant, so I will follow Da Lang in my life. Whatever Dalang wants me to do, I will concentrate on what I do, and I will repay my kindness, and I will not be in vain for a lifetime! ”

He said this very sincerely, and after he said it, his eyes were a little red, everyone was silent at first, and then Li Ye nodded and said: "Yes, I want to be bad, if it weren't for Da Lang, I would still be alive now, and I must be a scoundrel who kills people's backbones, how can I be so comfortable today...... Follow Da Lang, even if I take a marshal, I won't change it, let alone a general! ”

"What about you?" Hu You pursed his lips when he heard this, although he loved Zhao and Ju from the bottom of his heart, he had not yet reached the point of being like these two people, so he asked Meng Xisheng again.

"Me? Da Lang spends a lot of money to raise us, and in the past few years, I have seen clearly, where Da Lang is raising us as servants...... He is clearly a bodhisattva and pities us who are helpless...... Now the children in Zhuangzi are more than a year old, looking at Da Lang's thoughts, I am afraid that there will be less to take in, the Central Plains is now in turmoil, and some are children who have lost their parents and relatives like us, although Da Lang can make money, but his energy is always limited. Meng Xisheng circled for a while, and suddenly smiled shyly: "I just want to use what I have learned over the years, so that I can make some money for Zhuangzi and share my worries for Da Lang." ”

"No wonder you spend your days calculating to move rice from the east to the west and sell it, and then send firewood from the west to the east." Li Ye trembled in his heart when he heard this, and he felt a little self-reproachful, Li Yilao and Meng Xisheng thought of what they could do for Zhao Heju, they were also greatly favored, but the first thing they thought of was to be a general, which was too ungrateful, he sighed: "In the past, I always looked down on you, but you got into the eyes of money, but I didn't know if I wanted to share the worries for Da Lang, but I ......"

"Although I don't talk to you often, I know that you are worried about the kindness of Da Lang in your heart, if not, how can you have such self-discipline?" Meng Xisheng smiled: "You don't have to blame yourself, if you become a general, it will be better to repay Dalang's kindness!" ”

Hu You was a little irritable when he heard this, he could be regarded as having received the kindness of Zhao and Ju, but he was not like the general servant status of these three people, so the situation was a little embarrassing. He had the experience of going to school in Yuzhang Villa, and then talked about it with people outside of Yixue, he felt bored, and in his heart, he also wanted to be like Li Ye and them to completely integrate into the villa. He looked up, but saw several ships approaching them quickly, and when he saw it clearly, he cried out, "Pirates, turn around!" ”