Chapter Forty-Eight: My Father's Past
Fang Jing didn't know who this county lieutenant was, didn't know if he was fair and strict or deliberately helped him, and he didn't know why he wanted to mention the war, although he didn't know very well what the position of county lieutenant was mainly for, but according to today's situation, he also made an estimate in his heart.
It is recorded in the Tang Six Classics that the Tang Dynasty set up a county order, a county officer, a county lieutenant, the county is divided into upper, middle and lower grades, the lower county has a county lieutenant, the middle county has one to two, and the upper county has a maximum of six people, and the county order is called the Ming Mansion, the county lieutenant is called the Shaofu, and the county lieutenant is in charge of justice, administration, and taxation.
Looking at the four baskets of copper coins in front of him, Fang Jing was also speechless, can't he develop some banknotes? You can use a ticket without banknotes, really, it's troublesome.
Fang Jing thought that he didn't want to go back today, or he would stay in this county for one night and go back tomorrow, but he was a little worried about his home, but now he went back, and he also felt that the return time was too fast, which made people suspicious, it was better to do it tomorrow, but what to do with these four baskets of copper coins, it was really a troublesome matter.
Fang Jing wanted to have a bank, how good it would be to deposit it and take it out when it was needed, but it was impossible at the moment, Qian Zhuang? Fang Jing had asked Xiao Shi last time, but he didn't know what it was, let alone looking for it, forget it, he would find an oxcart to pull it later.
Fang Jing was waiting not far from the county office, and when he saw a little baby passing by, he stopped and asked him to do a favor to go to the car shop in the main street, and asked Lao Li Tou to drive an ox cart, but the price of calling people was five copper coins, which made Fang Jing angry, and he had to guard the copper coins and shout at people, wouldn't this become a rich man, and people would not want much.
Two quarters of an hour later, the old Li Tou of the car dealer came with an ox cart, and saw Fang Jing standing on the edge of the four baskets of copper coins waiting, thinking that this little brother Fang would really make money, last time it was more than two hundred, how can there be fifty or sixty yuan today, how happy it is if it is his own.
Although there are a lot of copper coins, but there is really not much money, don't look at the four baskets are full, but it is only sixty yuan, after Fang Jing and Lao Li Tou said hello, they gave the shouting baby five cents to the end of the transaction, and he carried the copper coins on the ox cart, and by the way, he asked where to live in the county, saying that he was not going to leave today, and he would go home tomorrow morning.
Lao Li Tou drove the car in front of him, and went to a guest house, and the car dealer came to a two-story house, Lao Li Tou shouted inside, and a woman in her thirties came out, coarse gray clothes, coiled hairpins, medium to thin body, and an average face, Fang Jing looked at it should be the proprietress of this inn.
"Old Li Tou, did you bring me a guest? That's a good dare, thank you. The proprietress said words of thanks to Lao Litou.
"That's right, this little brother Fang was my former main employee, and today he gave me a job, so I introduced little brother Fang to you, and I don't introduce anyone else." Lao Li Tou was talking to the proprietress, Fang Jing listened, and it was estimated that the two had known each other before, and they should be very familiar.
"Meihua, I have to drive the car in and open the courtyard door quickly." Lao Li Tou shouted anxiously at the proprietress of the inn.
"Come, come, here, this little brother, you go into the house first, and drink a bowl of water first." The proprietress hurriedly opened the courtyard door, and after the ox cart entered, she led Fang Jing and Lao Li Tou to the hall and poured a bowl of water for each of them.
"Shopkeeper, how much copper money is for a night?" Fang Jing didn't drink water, he first asked about the market, so as not to be slaughtered, Fang Jing had met it in his previous life, if he didn't ask the price first, if the negotiation was good, then wait for the next morning, and directly charge you several times the price.
"This little brother, one night in the upper room is twenty wen, one night in the lower room is ten wen, one night in the whole room is three wen, wine and food are counted separately, what kind of little brother wants?" The proprietress said the price and asked Fang Jing.
"Two rooms, it's next to the courtyard, it's convenient for me to move things, Lao Li Tou is also with me tonight, and I'm going to be early tomorrow." Fang Jing pointed in the direction of the side yard.
"Okay, little brother, come, please come here, if you need food and drink, you can tell me, I can prepare it for you." The hostess opened two rooms.
"Thank you, shopkeeper, Lao Litou, you live in this house, I'll move Luo Basket in first." Fang Jing pointed to a room and said to Lao Li Tou, turned around to move the basket, and Lao Li Tou also went to help.
"Old Li Tou, you still have to rest, you can't move, I'll come." Fang Jing watched Lao Li Tou move the basket vigorously, as if he had enough strength to move it down from the ox cart.
Fang Jing carried the basket and put it into the open space of the room, and looked at the room at random, an ordinary bed was by the wall, there was a long low table, and a low four-legged stool, there was nothing else, this was much better than his own, and his own was just a small wooden bed.
I walked out and closed the door, returned to the hall, sat back on the stool, and thought about what to eat at night, but I thought it would be better to go to the hostess's kitchen to see what was eaten, but I thought that the kitchen was not something to enter casually, so I didn't want to see it anymore.
"Old Li Tou, what do you want to eat at night?" Fang Jing looked at Lao Li Tou, who was sitting opposite, and asked.
"Little Brother Fang, just serve the cake with a bowl of soup." Lao Li Tou responded to Fang Jing, feeling that Fang Jing was a good person, and it was not difficult for them to be lenient for these coachmen.
"You are familiar with this inn, what does she have to eat here?" Fang Jing still asked.
"Little Brother Fang, I am very familiar with this guest house, the shopkeeper is my neighborhood, they have known each other for several years, I treat her as if she is my niece, the food in the guest house is also the usual food, the best food is mutton, if there is wine, it is a kind of enjoyment." Lao Li Tou is just a coachman, his family is poor, and if he can eat some meat, it is a good life, and he often eats a hu cake and brings his own water.
"Shopkeeper, come with a plate of mutton and two bowls of soup cakes, and a pot of wine." Fang Jing shouted at the proprietress in the middle of the counter.
"Okay, little brother, please wait a moment." The proprietress responded.
But in half an hour, a large plate of mutton, a pot of wine was served, two pottery bowls of soup cakes and two pairs of chopsticks, and two small pottery bowls, which were probably used for drinking.
Fang Jing doesn't like to drink, and she doesn't want to drink, so this pot of wine is called for Lao Li Tou, which can be regarded as a dream of Lao Li Tou.
"This, little brother Fang, this is reluctant, this food is precious, only big families or rich people can afford to eat it, how dare we eat it if we are poor." Fang Jing poured a bowl of wine for Lao Li Tou and told Lao Li Tou to drink and eat, but Lao Li Tou was frightened.
"What's the matter, just have a meal, a pot of wine, a bowl of noodles and a plate of mutton, just a meal, eat, the car price will not be less than yours, relax." Fang Jing ate the mutton by herself, and comforted Lao Li Tou to eat with peace of mind, don't say more, Lao Li Tou was grateful, and after thanking Fang Jing, he began to eat.
After eating, it was still early, there were not many people in the guest house, and less than half of the people lived, and most of them lived in the general house, so there were few people who came to the hall, only a middle-aged man sitting at another table was eating soup cakes, it was estimated that it was a merchant or something.
"Lao Litou, ask something, let's talk, like you usually have to catch a car, where have you been to?" Fang Jing was very curious about Datang, although from Fangjia Village to Xiaohe Town, and then to Pingli County, there were basically few villages, either mountains and forests, or thorns and weeds.
"Little Brother Fang, after we are usually hired to drive, we are all nearby, it's too far to do, and the cattle can't stand it, at most it's to Jinzhou, no matter how far it is, Jinzhou is much bigger than Pingli County, and there are more people." Lao Li Tou can only describe Jinzhou, and he doesn't go to other places, and Lao Li Tou goes to Jinzhou to deliver goods to make money, for work, not tourism, Fang Jing wants Lao Li Tou to say something, but he can't say anything.
"However, Meihua knows more than me, she has been to Chang'an." Lao Li Tou hurriedly called the shopkeeper to come over and sit down and talk.
"Little Brother Fang, although I have been to Chang'an, it was also when my family Langjun was there before, and since my family Langjun died in Luoyang, let alone Chang'an, I haven't been to Jinzhou." The proprietress said these words, remembering something.
Fang Jing heard the proprietress mention Luoyang, and remembered that she heard Uncle Fang Dayong say that her father died in Luoyang, and then said that the boss lady's husband also died in Luoyang?
"Shopkeeper, just now you mentioned that your deceased husband died in Luoyang, can you tell me which general was on an errand? I'm sorry, but my father also died in Luoyang, so I'll ask. Fang Jing was very sorry to ask about these things, and the proprietress looked pained.
"My husband was originally a pro-military captain under the right army account of General Qin Qiong and Qin in the Qin Palace, called Wang Jiezhi, and died in early September of the third year of Wude." The proprietress was talking and crying, this may be a woman's sorrow, but also a family's sorrow, Fang Jing heard her just say that there is a four-year-old toddler, thinking about raising an adult, continuing the incense of the Wang family.
Fang Jing listened to the boss lady's story, and felt very weird, why did she listen to Fang Dayong as if it was the same general.
"Shopkeeper, I heard you say that your deceased husband was an errand boy under General Qin's account in the Qin Wangfu, and my father was also on an errand in the Qin Wangfu before his death, and most of the men who went out on the expedition in our Fangjia Village were on errand under the account of General Qin, and I heard the elders who came back from our Fangjia Village talk about this." Although Fang Jing knows Li Shimin, the king of Qin, and also knows Qin Qiong and Qin Shubao, for Fang Jing, it is just a historical figure, even if it is the current Tang Dynasty, it has nothing to do with him, but if he wants to have a chance in the future, he can also go to Chang'an to have a look, even if he takes a look from a distance, he must try to make these very good characters recorded in the history books.
"My father was originally a guard under General Qin Qiong's account under the Qin Palace, and half of the men in my village were once General Qin's guards, and my father also died in Luoyang in early September of the third year of Wude, named Fang De." Fang Jing also described what she had heard from Fang Dayong.
"What, your father is Brother Fang Defang?" The boss jumped in surprise and said in surprise.
"Shopkeeper, what's wrong with you? My father is Fangde of Fangjia Village, what's wrong? Fang Jing was also curious about why the proprietress was so upset when she heard her father's name.
"It turns out that your father is Brother Fang Defang, God has eyes, finally let me see Brother Fang's family, God bless." The proprietress hurriedly got up and knelt down towards the door, talking all the time, and did not forget to kowtow a few times.
"Plum blossom, what are you doing? Don't cry, don't cry. Lao Li got up and walked over, helped the proprietress up, and comforted.
"You are the son of Brother Fang Defang, then you should call me aunt, your name is Fang Jing, right, it's all because the aunt didn't ask for her name." The proprietress was busy explaining, Fang Jing was a little stupid, how could the proprietress know that her name was Fang Jing, and she was waiting for the proprietress to give an answer.