There is no fixed age for Mengxue, some of whom began to memorize the Analects at the age of four or five, and some of whom began to study in their twenties, but in general, most of them were concentrated around the age of ten.

After Chen Xiaozhong and Yang gave birth to a son, Chen Yuanliang, there was no addition to the family. Chen Xiaozhong fell into the merchant, Chen Yuanliang has not yet married a wife, let alone separated his family, so he is naturally counted in Chen Xiaozhong's household registration.

During the time of the emperor, there was a rule that craftsmen and merchants were not allowed to hold official positions. Chen Yuanliang studied in the county school for two years, but he didn't think about taking the official road, but he just learned to read some words, and now he is helping under his grandfather, who is Cao Caozuo. rubbing the side with the law is not a violation, after all, helping idleness is not even a member of the stream.

Compared with the two sons and one daughter in the second brother Chen Xiaoyi's family, Chen Xiaozhong's mouth is thinner. It's not that I haven't worked hard all these years, but Yang's stomach has not moved.

Looking at Chen Ping and Chen An who ran over with a crisp cake, Chen Xiaozhong really felt happy. Many sons and many blessings, usually when the son goes out, there are only two adults left in the family, one servant and one helper, and he is not angry at all.

If it weren't for the worry that the Yang family would be sad, Chen Xiaozhong would probably also take a concubine.

"I was going to let him go to school, but I don't know where he heard the news that the school hall was closed. How do I know if it's true or not, I don't want to inquire, Yuan Liang is on duty in the county, he should know, right? Chen Xiaoyi asked.

Although Chen Yuanliang is just a helper, the power of this non-staff errand is not small, after all, the upper is the grandfather of Cao Cao Zuo, who is in charge of household registration, servitude, soil, etc., and is related to the lives of the people.

"Well, he should know. In a few moments he should be back, and he can ask. It is certainly good to be able to go to school, and it is better to study than to work in the field to tend to the crops. Chen Xiaozhong didn't know the specific situation, so he just waited for his son to come back and ask.

The two brothers said something more, Chen Ping and Chen An were listening on the side, but in fact, Chen Ping was listening alone, and Chen An was busy dealing with the plate of pastries.

As he was talking, a young man with a white face and a blue robe entered the inner courtyard and saw Chen Ping's father and son in the hall at a glance.

"I said why is it so fragrant, it turns out that the second uncle brought delicious food. Chen Ping, Chen An, you two are also here, just right, I have nothing to do in the afternoon, take you two to the city for a walk. The person who came in was Chen Yuanliang, Chen Ping's grandfather had not yet died, and Chen Yuanliang had also stayed in Baitu Village for several years, and he was not alienated from Chen Ping's family.

Chen Yuanliang followed his father, white and tall, and shouted in the direction of the kitchen for Chen's mother to serve the food, and in the past few years in the county, he also has a sense of confidence.

Collect tea, set the table, set the stool, and the dishes are also served, without exception, the same is boiled, unlike Chen Ping's family, the uncle's dish is quite sufficient, and there are several plates of steamed vegetables and a plate of barbecue, although the taste is not as good as stir-frying, but it is okay, especially the small plate of roast mutton, Chen Ping tasted the taste of pepper.

"Get rich." Chen Ping's thirst for money at this time was much stronger.

The relationship between brothers and uncles and nephews, there is no need to be so particular about eating, and there is no such thing as eating without words, except for the old mother and the old servants who take care of the business outside, all of them are on the table.

Chen Xiaozhong felt that his nephew Chen Ping had become different after recovering from his illness this time, but he couldn't say anything specifically, so he was also concerned about his study, so he asked Chen Yuanliang after eating a few bites.

"If you want to talk about it, there really is." Chen Yuanliang stopped his chopsticks, because he had studied in the county school for two years, he was very clear about this matter, "It was in June of the first year of Renshou that the emperor issued an edict to abolish the state and county township schools. ”

Hearing this, Chen Xiaoyi, who had originally had expectations, immediately dispelled his thoughts.

"What? Is Chen Ping going to school? Chen Yuanliang asked and gave a suggestion, "Actually, don't worry, although the emperor canceled the state and county schools, there are still township schools, and it is not difficult to find a master." ”

Chen Yuanliang usually walks around the townships and villages under the county to learn about the situation of the household registration and fields. I understand this very well, and the state school and county school will be canceled if it is canceled, after all, it is a government-run school. But the emperor couldn't send someone to arrest the master who taught in the township school, right?

Yang Jianli Buddha is tired of learning, but he also loves the people, he will definitely not be able to do such a thing, and the state and county officials have turned a blind eye to this matter, who doesn't want the people under their rule to know etiquette and filial piety?

Besides, those teaching masters, it is not that they can be handled, many of them are quite famous in Confucianism, if you really get rid of his students, it is equivalent to smashing his job, and you may have to take care of the saint one day, face the saint and go to the saint, no one wants to do this.

Father Chen's disappointed face immediately became clear again, it was a great event that there was a scholar in the family. Moreover, if there is a half-official position in this era, it will bring benefits, which is a good thing for the individual and the family.

"However, Chen Ping, if you want to think about it well, just reading and literacy, it is indeed not difficult. If you want to go to the next level, it's not as simple as finding a master. Father Chen was not happy for a long time, and Chen Yuanliang's words made him feel worried, "The cost of a famous master's bundle is not low, at least ten horses of silk, and some money has to be added." ”

Chen's father was taken aback, ten silks, this is not low, there is still room for one silk to make a robe, and he is still wearing a single coat in such a weather at home, and he is reluctant to buy silk to make a jacket. Ten horses, that's too much.

Not to mention ten pieces of silk, even if it is ten pieces of cloth, Father Chen can't afford it. You have to fill in the paperwork money, which is certainly not a small amount.

Reading is really expensive.

"Of course, not all masters will accept such a high bondage, and there are even those who do not." Chen Yuanliang opened the crab shell, dipped it in some vinegar, and praised it, he actually didn't approve of his cousin's study, the county middle school classmates, who entered the official by their own learning, none of them, but they knew the difficulty of this journey, "However, under such a master's door, there is generally not much fame, and the understanding of scriptures will not be deeper, so naturally it is not an official." ”

Help out in the county government and let Chen Yuanliang know some inside information. Some people have read books for half their lives, but in the end they are just small officials who are not in the stream, but some people become the head of a county in the year of the weak crown, is it really poor in knowledge?

Perhaps, but it will never be the main reason, in the end, the shade of the door is the main reason.

These are all empirical talks, some of which Chen Yuanliang himself observed, and more of them were told by his grandfather, who had served as a junior official in the county for nearly 20 years and was not allowed to be promoted.

Chen Pingzi also understood that he had no intention of going to school from the beginning, and if he wanted to be literate, he could barely read the regular script of this era, which was enough. Chen's father wanted Chen Ping to go to school, because he thought that he could be an official, if there was no hope, it was better to help with the fields at home.

"How can you persuade people to be unmotivated like this?" Yang saw that his second uncle's face darkened, and reproached Chen Yuanliang and said, "You think that everyone is like you, and you don't know how to make progress." ”

"What my mother said is that this depends on what Chen Ping means." Chen Yuanliang nodded that he knew his mother's temper.

"Look at him? Taba had to go to school. Chen Xiaoyi took out what Chen Ping said at home and said it again.

"Oh? My cousin actually knows so much about the official edict? This makes Chen Yuanliang a little strange, Baitu Village is not remote, but you must know that the edict issued by the imperial court is not so easy, and his cousin is only eleven.

Chen Ping smiled silently, he told his father that it was useless, and he didn't think about the effort of this meal, but it made Grandpa dispel his thoughts.

It's just wonderful.

Thanks to this cousin, Chen Ping was in a good mood, and he happened to sandwich a piece of roast mutton, which was sent to Chen Yuanliang's bowl very smoothly: "Come, Brother Yuanliang, you work hard in the county government, eat more meat to make up for it, don't be polite." ”

Chen Yuanliang was speechless, this is in his own home, right?

A meal, some unpleasant emotions, quickly dissipated with this episode, and in general, the meal was quite satisfying.

After the meal, Chen Yuanliang took the Chen Ping brothers to the county and city to visit, and the brothers Chen Xiaozhong and Chen Xiaoyi continued to sit in the hall, occasionally sighing in a low voice, and they didn't know what they were talking about.

Yang instructed Chen's mother to clean out a side room, prepare toiletries, and go back to the east room by herself.

At this time, it was only noon, the sky was a little cloudy, the autumn wind was blowing slowly, and the three Chen Ping cousins were strolling along the street song.

"Brother Yuanliang, this city should not collect taxes, right?" The business is thriving, and Chen Ping thinks it is very good to open a shop here, even if it is a restaurant, as long as he shows his skills in stir-frying, he can make some money.

However, this shop will not be cheap, but if you rent it, it is not insured. In this era, there is no intellectual property rights or anything, and the skill of stir-frying will not be protected.

"Well, the first emperor was sympathetic to the people and exempted the industrial and commercial tax." Chen Yuanliang replied, this cousin is really not ordinary, Chen An is concerned about food, but Chen Ping is concerned about these things, "** County is not as good as Nawang County and Shang County, but there is no shortage of all walks of life in the city, and it is very convenient to buy some utensils." ”

"It's a pity that such a prosperous business, if it is taxed, how much revenue can it bring to the country." Chen Ping sighed.

An extra cent of taxes levied from industry and commerce can be taken from the peasants, and as long as they are not excessively forced, they can bring a large amount of tax revenue to the state, and then use these taxes to hire laborers, which is really taken from the people for the people, and can be regarded as borrowing the rich from the poor, which is much better than mere free forced labor.

Yang Jian's policy brought him reputation, made a real attack on the country's development and stability, and appeased the powerful and noble. But all this will soon be used by Yang Guang as capital, and then corrupted.

Getting rich without a foundation is also a dangerous business, Chen Ping's expression when he looked at this cousin became even more eager, which made Chen Yuanliang think of someone in a certain bed in a certain square song, and goosebumps suddenly shook to the ground.

After walking around the county and city for about an hour, Chen Ping and the three of them came back, Chen An's hands were full of food, but Chen Ping's hands were more wheat seeds.

When I entered the courtyard, I found that Chen's father and uncle were not there, and after asking the old servant, I found out that the two went to Dr. Hu's medical center.

"What's in that bag you're carrying, such a treasure?" Chen Ping carried a bag all the way, but when he arrived at the house, he didn't put it down, Chen Yuanliang felt strange.

Chen Ping took off the burlap bag, took out the fire sickle and toothbrush from it, and handed them to Chen Yuanliang.

"It's a fire sickle." Chen Yuanliang is no stranger to the fire sickle, "But it's a little different, this place is made chic, is it easy to hold?" ”

"Yes." If conditions permit, in fact, it can be made more refined, Chen Ping said, "Brother Yuanliang, do you know that this thing is used a lot in the county?" ”

"I have it in my grocery store, and it's easy to use, but your fire sickle is even more chic." Chen Yuanliang took a fire sickle from the shelf of his grocery store and handed it to Chen Ping.

"I wonder how much this fire sickle costs?" Chen Ping asked directly, it is also expected that there will be a fire sickle in the county, but the value of the same thing, after processing and a little adaptation, will also rise.

That's the beauty of finishing and packaging.

"Ten cents." Although the price is not indicated, Chen Yuanliang has long been familiar with the price of utensils in the grocery store.