Thinking of the county school, he suddenly felt a little hope in his heart. His nephew is also studying in the county school, and he is no worse than the five children in terms of reputation and talent. Since the Zhang family Xiaowu can rush home from the county school today, his nephew Li Xu may also come back. If you can meet him, you may be able to settle the difficulties you are facing.

With the idea of giving it a try, Zhang Baosheng did not close the door with a full sense of loss as before. Instead, he beat his sore back and continued to look up the official road. As expected, after about a cup of tea, a blue and white mule ran on the official road, and on the back of the mule, a burly young man with slender arms saluted him from afar.

"Uncle, are you busy today, do you want me to help you wash the dishes!" The young man had already arrived at the door of the inn as he spoke, pressed his hand, raised his leg, and jumped cleanly off the mule's back. Tie the reins to the stake and open your legs and walk in.

"I can't help it, I can't help it, Xu Guan, you are a scholar, you can't make a living like this!" Zhang Baosheng saw that the young man was serious, and hurriedly stretched out his arms to stop him. The oil-stained twisted arm did not dare to touch the green shirt on the young man's body, and was squeezed back again and again.

"What's the matter, after reading the book, you won't be my uncle. When my mother heard this, she must have come to you to theorize! The young man gently opened Zhang Baosheng's arm with his hand and squeezed into the inn nimbly.

The first floor, which can only hold a dozen tables, actually has nothing to tidy up, and because business is so deserted, many places where people don't often sit are dusty. Li Xu didn't want his uncle to think that he would only sell his mouth, so he took off his robe, grabbed a rag and wiped all the tables and chairs, took a ladder, climbed the door beam, and cleaned up the smoky inn signboard to its original appearance, and then took off the old "fence" on the wall, found a half-new one from the kitchen and replaced it, and then returned the objects to a distance and went to the wooden basin to fetch water and wash his face.

Zhang Baosheng watched from the side, and his heart was as warm as drinking half a catty of his daughter's red. He has no children under his knees, and his two daughters rarely come home after leaving the cabinet. After his wife's death, he didn't continue the incense for him, so he kept looking at Li Xu as half a son. Seeing that his nephew was about to say goodbye, he suddenly remembered that he hadn't seen his child for more than two months. The big hand touched his waist a few times, but he didn't find a suitable meeting gift, slapped his forehead fiercely, and said: "Look at my memory, don't rush home first, I have brewed a few jars of old wine for your father, and I have collected water according to the recipe passed by the Hu people, and hung it on the back of the mule to bring it back, so that your father can keep out the cold in winter!" ”

"That's not good, how much effort do you have to burn this jar of wine, it's only serious to keep it and sell it. Besides, my dad went to Saiwai to do goods, and it will take a few days to come back! The young man threw his robe over his body and said his words in a loud voice.

Yan Zhao has a strong temperament, and even likes to drink strong. In order to improve the taste of rice wine, the brewer needs to use secret processing many times to remove most of the water in the wine, so that the wine can be so thick that it can make people vomit three bowls. Therefore, the cost of a jar of old wine is often five times that of ordinary turbid wine. Such a valuable gift, even in a good year, the young man can't bear to loot it from his uncle's house, not to mention that it is now when Zhang Baosheng's inn is on the verge of closure.

"Take it, Xu Guan, otherwise you won't give your uncle face!" Zhang Baosheng patted his nephew's face lovingly with his oily hands and ordered in a low voice. This child was born during the Kaihuang period, and he was well raised in the womb, and obviously had a blessed face. I want to tie my hair after the New Year (Note 4), but I can't even afford to give my uncle a decent gift for my hair. Thinking of this, he felt a little desolate in his heart, sighed to himself, lowered his head, and slowly walked towards the wine cellar in the backyard.

Li Xu sighed when he saw his uncle, knowing that his actions had made the old man sad again, so he had to stay in the inn silently and wait. After a while, Zhang Baosheng turned back, but what he was holding was not only a large jar of wine, but also two dried muntjac hanging on the willow basket where the wine jar was placed, as well as half a pocket of dried shepherd's cabbage, shredded radish, etc.

"How can this be done, I will search you like this, and my mother must go back to the family law!" Li Xu frustrated his hands, his face full of embarrassment.

"Wine and snacks, my uncle will not give them in vain. When your father comes back from outside, ask your uncle to ask who has the skins of raw cows or the skins of large animals such as donkeys and horses. The yamen was in a hurry, and the uncle was willing to pay a suitable price to buy it. Zhang Baosheng smiled innocently, happy that he had finally found a suitable excuse to give gifts. The young man couldn't help but excuse himself and hung the wicker basket on the back of the mule, and when it was over, he untied a leather bag from the back waist like a hundred plays and stuffed it into Li Xu's hand.

"This is the eighteenth year of the emperor's reign, and several military masters who went to Liaodong to seek merit got drunk and fell into my inn. It's been more than ten years, and no one has come back to look for it, I'm afraid no one wants it. Uncle is looking for a good bow, so he takes good care of it every year. You take it to play, you will be fifteen next year, your Li family pays attention to finding wealth immediately, and there is a good bow in hand! ”

The young man knew that this was his uncle's gift to him, so he didn't dare to refuse, so he took it with both hands. There was a melting warmth at the moment of entry, and I don't know if it was my uncle's body temperature, or the temperature of the black and inconspicuous bow sac itself. When I untied the leather rope from the bow sac, I saw a two-and-a-half-foot-long horned bow lying among the thin hairs, and the color was as warm as ink jade (Note 5).

Shanggu County is close to the border and was once the place where the flying general Li Guang was stationed. Therefore, as long as the people are not particularly poor, they usually let their children worship a wild master to learn some swords, bows and horses, fists and feet to defend themselves. So Li Xu swept it with his eyes, and knew that his uncle gave him a high-quality bow, and if it was on the market, it was estimated that he would not be able to get it back at all if he didn't have three or five pieces of meat. At this time, he couldn't be polite, so he could only give a salute again and thank his uncle for his kindness.

Seeing that the gift could be liked by his nephew, Zhang Baosheng was more proud than earning dozens of hangs. While closing the doors and windows and preparing to close the stall, he admonished, "This bow has not been used for a long time, and it is very hard." You play leisurely and don't hurt yourself. After all, this thing is just a plaything, you are excellent in character and learning, and in the future, you will be pushed to show talent, take the Jinshi examination, release the county lady, the county guard, and the glorious lintel, and no one will dare to underestimate me as an uncle......"

Until the door of his house, the family affection between his uncle and nephew still warmed Li Xu. My uncle's family is similar to his family, and they all belong to the last branch of their own family. The land in their own name was very small, and the rent they collected from the tenants each year was barely enough for the family to chew. As for other expenses to deal with the government and daily transportation in the clan, they have to rely on some side livelihoods. The Li and Zhang families are both big families that have gone through a hundred years and are known as etiquette heirlooms, so business is the most despised and lowly industry in the clan, although many of the elders in the clan take filial piety from the hands of business children every year.

Compared with the past of his uncle's family, the Li family's family is slightly better. This is due to the fact that Li Xu's father, Li Mao, has a strong body and can speak a few Turkic words, and can follow the caravan to and from one or two times a year. Cattle and sheep are cheap over there, and tea and linen are scarce, and you can earn a lot of copper money at a time. It's just that in recent years, the trade routes to Saishang have become more and more unsmooth, and the bad news of the loss of people and money has spread every month. Fortunately, Li Mao has been running on the trade route for some years, and he is all with big caravans. He is also a straight man, and he can also have some friendship with the Hu tribes along the way, so the business can still be maintained, and he can take out some surplus money for his son to go to the official school.

"Second young master, are you back, how many times has the master come to the door to ask?" From afar, the housekeeper Li Zhong greeted him. While helping Li Xu pull the mount, he complained quietly. He has been following behind Li Mao since he was a child, and now he has all the positions of housekeeper, nurse, chief follower and account office, so he is not too polite to speak to the little master.

"My dad is back? When did it arrive? I just came back from my uncle's house today with some wine and food, so I asked Uncle Zhong to take it to the kitchen, let Aunt Zhong warm it up, and count it as the dust washing banquet I held for my father! Li Xu patted the back of the mule and ordered with a smile. Aunt Zhong is the wife of the old housekeeper, and like the housekeeper Uncle Zhong, she also has the duties of the cook on the "Li Mansion", the personal maid of the lady, and the nanny of Li Xu. Ordinary Li Mao is ethereal, there are only two Li Xuniang and the housekeeper couple in the whole family, and there is more family affection between the master and servant in addition to etiquette.

"Are you going to loot your uncle again? was known by Mrs., and had to nag again! Alas! I told you young master a long time ago, your mother's uncle is not easy, this world is not as good as day by day, people's stomachs are not full, where do you get the spare money to go to him to drink wine and eat meat......"