The afternoon is the busiest time in the shop, so everyone didn't dare to drink, so they ate delicious and delicious dishes, ate to their heart's content, and took a cup of tea to take a break to talk.

Tielin's family background is not good, his parents are not in good health, and he has many younger brothers and sisters, and he does the most work on weekdays and eats the worst, so his body is very thin. But when I entered the shop, I ate a full esophagus every day, and it was mostly meat, and I got fat when I saw it, he was also a very sweet mouth, and he often praised the delicious food when he spoke, Cui Niang and Sister-in-law Wang said with a smile, the craftsmanship of the proprietress in the family is the best, Tie Lin originally thought it was a compliment, but when he really ate it in his mouth today, he knew that there was such a delicious thing in the world.

The braised pork is fat but not greasy, the tofu box is golden and fragrant, and the fish head soup is milky and fragrant, it is really delicious, and he has a stomachache when he holds it up, but looking at the slight leftovers that have been removed, it is still a pity to swallow saliva.

Cui Niang looked funny, so she called him to him, packed the leftovers with a few steamed buns, handed them to him and said, "The weather is too hot, these leftovers will be sour in the afternoon, and there will be some time before the guests, so you can go home first and go back early." ”

Tie Lin scratched his head gratefully, looked back at the little shopkeeper, and saw him nodding, so he thanked him, picked up the food box, and trotted away with a cigarette.

Rui Xue saw this in her eyes and smiled, "Tie Lin is a good one. ”

Wang's sister-in-law said, "The poor child is in charge of the house early, and he has three younger siblings under him, so he is naturally more sensible." ”

After sitting for a while, Rui Xue became sleepy, so she went to the back room to take a nap, and everyone got up one after another, Zhao Fengnian waited for Rui Xue to sleep, and then he picked up an eight-compartment box, took it and took the car to visit Wei Xiucai.

Wei Xiucai's family lives in Wuliu Lane in the west of Lingfeng City, a small courtyard with a large half an acre or so, bluestone courtyard walls, red brick houses, and intricate patterns carved on the small gatehouse, which looks very elegant, even people who don't recognize the owner's family, can guess just by looking at this façade that this must be a home of poetry and books.

Zhao Fengnian got down from the carriage, admired the gatehouse and the flower wall, and loved it very much, thinking in his heart that he would have to change his courtyard wall if he was free in the future.

Yun Xiaoliu carried the box and said with a smile, "Shopkeeper, do you want to report?" ”

Zhao Fengnian put away his thoughts and nodded, Yun Xiaoliu stepped forward to pat the copper ring on the courtyard door, but unfortunately, the master and servant waited for a long time and no one answered.

The noon sun was very blazing, and the sun made people's scalps numb, just for a moment, Zhao Fengnian felt as if his back was about to be soaked with sweat, so he frowned and said, "Knock again!" ”

This time, Yun Xiaoliu's subordinates also used their strength, almost slamming the door, and soon, there was the sound of kicking and tapping, coming from the courtyard all the way, and an old man's voice was complaining in a low voice, "It's noon, it's hard to watch a good show for a while, and it doesn't stop people..."

"Squeak", the two doors finally opened, revealing an old face inside, with a slightly dark face, gray hair, and dissatisfaction at the corners of the eyes and eyebrows.

Xu saw that Zhao Feng was very good-looking, and his clothes and accessories were luxurious, the old man's face softened slightly, and he asked, "This son, but is there something?" ”

Zhao Fengnian raised his eyebrows and asked, "Is this Wei Zhuo Wei Xiucai's mansion?" In Xia Zhao Runzhi, he took the liberty to come to visit, and he also hoped to pass one or two. ”

When the old man heard that he was looking for his master, his face improved three points, and he bowed down and smiled, "It's unfortunate that Mr. Zhao came, our master went out to visit friends an hour ago." ”

"Did he say when he would be back?" Zhao Fengnian didn't expect to pounce, thinking that it would take three more days to enter the city, so he asked casually.

The old man thought about it, and was just about to speak, when he heard a woman's terrible cry in the courtyard, like a rooster choked by someone's neck, "Help! Killed! ”

Zhao Fengnian and Yun Xiaoliu were shocked when they heard this, and before they could ask questions, another woman's curse came, "Okay, you little slut, you finally showed your fox tail, don't you pretend to be pitiful, don't you pretend to be virtuous, now that you know that the master is not at home, you start to show your true colors, you shout to me, shout..."

This curse was fast and urgent, three points more violent than the summer rain, and then the cry for help came, just like the plantain under the rain was destroyed and dilapidated, and soon, there was only a muffled "bang" sound, although it was much smaller, but it made people feel cold from the bottom of their hearts, and they couldn't help but guess what kind of object was the sound of hitting the body...

The old man Xu looked at the existence of the master and servant of the Zhao family, pulled his neck and turned his head to look back, his face was full of excitement, and he muttered, "The eldest lady is finally annoyed, this Aunt Liu has occupied the master for half a month, this old vinegar is powerful, today is enough for her..."

Zhao Fengnian's brows were furrowed, there was no need to guess, this Wei Xiucai was not at home, where was he going out to visit friends, I was afraid that he was hiding from this wife and concubine, and those who couldn't take care of their family affairs well, where could they teach any good students?

He didn't want to say hello anymore, so he turned around and got into the carriage, Yun Xiaoliu listened to it interestingly, but when he saw that his shopkeeper had a bad face, he immediately drove away from the door.

Zhao Fengnian lifted the curtains, looked at the carved bluestone brick wall getting farther and farther away, and suddenly felt that he had made a mistake just now, his own brick wall was strong and heavy, and it had a simple meaning, which was much better than this flashy flower wall...

Yun Xiaoliu drove out of Wuliu Lane and asked in a low voice, "Shopkeeper, shall we go back to the shop?" ”

Zhao Fengnian thought for a while and said, "No, go to Tianfu." ”

Yun Xiaoliu responded, he had been to Tianfu a few times, but he was familiar with the way, and soon arrived in front of Tianfu.

Master Tian was in the study, appreciating a book sticker sent by a friend, on a whim, he copied a few articles, sighed that there was no bosom friend to talk to, and suddenly heard the scholar report that Zhao Fengnian came to visit, and he was overjoyed.

After all, last time, although Mrs. Tian was in a hurry to remedy it, there was still some estrangement, and he sighed in private, thinking that Xu Shi would break off this year-end friendship in the future, but he didn't expect that after half a month, Zhao Fengnian actually came to the door again, how could this not make him happy.

Therefore, Zhao Fengnian followed the little maid into the study, and what he saw was the old man Tian who even had his beard up, the two saluted each other, sat down and drank tea to moisten his throat, and the old man Tian couldn't help but ask, "How can Mr. Zhao be free today, the old man still thinks that Mr. has a lot of things at home, and I am afraid that I will not be able to see Mr. in a short period of time." ”

Zhao Fengnian still respects this old man who likes poetry and doesn't have much skill, and refills the tea for him with his own hands, so he smiled and said, "The old man is joking, the family is busy, and there is always time to have a cup of tea with the old man." ”

When Old Man Tian heard this, his heart was relieved and he laughed.

Zhao Fengnian took a sip of tea, chatted with the old man about the recent situation, and said, "I don't know if the old man can know someone who is proficient in calligraphy and painting?" ”

Old Man Tian put down the teacup and asked, "What, Mr. came in and was interested in calligraphy and painting?" ”

Zhao Fengnian shook his head, "I'm busy with business, and now I'm full of copper smell, where is this Yaxing?" It's my family who sees someone painting in the shop today, and I think about the children in the private school at home, who study all day long, and inevitably have some narrow horizons. I remembered that the old man had a wide range of contacts and a great vision, and there must be a good candidate, so I came to ask for advice. ”

When Mr. Tian heard that he wanted to teach the children to paint, he suddenly became interested and praised, "Your lady is an insightful person, calligraphy and painting are elegant things to cultivate temperament, and if the children can learn a thing or two, it will be beneficial." Tell me what kind of gentleman you are looking for, and the old man will look for you. ”

Zhao Fengnian immediately said all the requirements raised by Rui Xue, and finally remembered the excitement of the Wei family just now, and said, "If there is a virtuous gentleman, it doesn't matter if his skills are poor." ”

Master Tian stroked his beard and thought about it, and really reminded him of a person, and said with a smile, "I have an old friend, I brought his students to visit a month ago, it is said that the student's calligraphy and painting skills are good, and when the family is in a good situation that day, he also went out to study for two years. Now that I think about it, it is very much in line with what Mr. wants. ”

Zhao Fengnian didn't expect that there was really someone who agreed with Ruixue's conditions, so he naturally nodded and responded, and Old Man Tian immediately ordered someone to invite that Xiucai.

It's a coincidence, this Xiucai is also surnamed Wei, and his appearance is very white, although he is dressed a little shabby, his back is extremely straight, he acts and speaks, and he advances and retreats in a certain way, Zhao Fengnian is very satisfied when he sees it.

When the old man Tian asked someone to put pen and ink, although Wei Xiucai didn't know what the two meant, but thinking of the friendship between his teacher and the old man Tian, he also obeyed the order to paint, and there was a bamboo and stone picture in his hand, which made Zhao Fengnian even sigh secretly that he had picked up Bao'er.

The two sides sat down to drink tea, and Zhao Fengnian was not verbose, so he said, "Our private school lacks a calligraphy and painting gentleman, every five days apart, there is a carriage to pick up and drop-off, there is a meal at noon, and the bundle is five taels a month, I wonder if Mr. Wei can intentionally take it?" ”

Wei Xiucai was stunned for a long time and didn't speak, Zhao Fengnian thought that he was disgusted with the bundle, and frowned slightly, thinking that this price was not low, if he wasn't optimistic about his skills, he would have planned to give three taels.

How did he know that Wei Xiucai was stupid by the pie that suddenly fell from the sky, you know, since his family was in ruins, he and his mother only relied on his mother's embroidery work to earn a few hundred dollars a month, although he went out to write letters on behalf of the stall, he couldn't make much money back, if it wasn't for the help of his teacher from time to time, I am afraid that he would have to run out of food.

Today he just took a job, before the pen was called, really a little annoyed, I didn't expect, there is such a good errand waiting for him, if there are five taels of bunches a month, the old lady does not have to sit under the lamp every night to be busy, he can also buy a knife and paper, buy a new set of pens...

Thinking like this, his fingers trembled with excitement. Old Man Tian saw that the two had misunderstood, so he smiled and said, "What's the matter, Wei Xiucai is unwilling to take this gentleman's job?" ”

"Yes, yes!" Wei Xiucai shouted out one after another, his face flushed with excitement, and he bowed down to thank Old Man Tian and Zhao Fengnian, and promised again and again that he would teach the students well.

Zhao Fengnian knew that he had misunderstood him before, and after a few polite sentences, he took the box packed in the shop, and said with a smile that this was a thank you gift to Mr. Tian, and then he was going to say goodbye and go back.