93 The study is open and the corner is listened to
A month has passed in a flash, because the matter of drying books occupies almost all of Sang Twistyue's energy, and she has no time to pay attention to the rest of the things. Whether it was the old lady in the Wu'an Hou Mansion, or Shen Tingjun, or Zhou Baolu and Zhou Bingkun, no matter which one of them, she didn't care anymore, and only used all her energy to reopen Chongwen Zhai.
On the day of the opening of the study, the people around him were not alarmed, but the sisters and brothers pulled down the red cloth on the signboard, which was considered to be open.
But even quietly, the shop has attracted the attention of many people in the southern district.
Because as early as when the dumb uncle took people to decorate, he did moisture-proof, insect-proof and fireproof treatment, and created a full bookshelf. The people around here are not blind, they all look at it with wide eyes, and see that the shop is getting better day by day, and everyone also inquired that there was originally a study here.
How strange it is to open a study in the south of the city.
As we all know, the layout of the entire capital is that the east is rich in the west, and the south is poor and the north is cheap.
The people in Nancheng are poor, the poor jingle sound, and the mouth bag is cleaner than the face. Here are the poor lower class people, most of the men are coolies, and the women either walk the streets and alleys to wash people's clothes to earn two copper plates, or embroider handkerchiefs and sachets at home day and night.
But there are still a few people who can needle and thread like this. Most of the women in Nancheng are spicy and rude, they don't know a single word, and their hands are thick enough to grind the fabric into silk. What they have is an inexhaustible strength, and they wash this house every day, so as to increase the chewing and reduce the burden on men.
The living standards of the people in Nancheng are all in the lower classes, and the people can't even fill their stomachs, let alone study?
They want to read, and they know that reading can get ahead, but a book costs at least two taels of silver, which is enough for the family to chew for a year. In the case of food and clothing are not satisfied, who has that spare money?
The people are watching to see which one is not sober enough to open a study in such a place. As a result, they saw a young woman and child, a young man who had not dried up?
That's it?
This is the owner of the study?
Everyone was surprised at first, and then couldn't help but show a look of sudden realization.
They said, "If there were some old and sophisticated merchants, would they open their study here?" At first glance, if you have no business acumen and have never done business, you will choose your study here. Sure enough, the two owners who showed up confirmed their suspicions.
The people are talking a lot, and they are asking whose daughter is this, and whose young man is it, why is it so unreliable? This bookstore is a big deal, and every book in it costs a lot of money, so if you open a bookstore here, isn't it waiting to lose money?
Everyone was thinking like this in their hearts, so they heard the young man who had not dried up cough twice, took two steps forward and said something "new store open". Just when everyone was listening with one ear but not one ear, they suddenly heard the young owner say a shocking news.
"The books in the bookstore are allowed to be copied and circulated by the scholars, and the bookstore also accepts the transcripts, which are selected according to the merits, and the price is divided into three grades. There is a master in the backyard of the bookstore, who can teach literacy and practice words to children aged 6 to 15 for free, but the paper and pen used to practice calligraphy are prepared by the parents themselves. ”
Throwing away these two pieces of news that blew everyone's heads up, the sister and brother Shi Shi went into the study and went back to the backyard.
They were busy with many things for the opening, and now they are idle, but as everyone knows, the people on the street almost exploded.
"Can books be copied for free?"
"Collect the transcript and pay it back?"
"The old man enlightens the child, does not charge money, only needs us to buy pen, ink, paper and inkstone for the child ourselves?"
The parents all exploded, crowded up one by one, and almost pushed the dumb uncle and the two children around him against the wall.
But in the end, Uncle Dumb went through a big scene, he ran the main family's largest bookstore in Jinju City earlier. In the case of physical illness, he can still run the bookstore well, which is enough to show that he is unusual.
And the dumb uncle is really capable.
Xu is the return to the old business makes him excited, and Xu is the excitement of the people makes him think of himself who had nothing and was destitute at that time. The dumb uncle quickly entered the role, and he also had the momentum of pointing the country.
He quickly gestured, and the little guy next to him translated on his behalf, answering the people's questions one by one.
First, students are indeed allowed to copy the books for free, but pen, ink, paper, and inkstone are at their own expense.
Second, the bookstore does accept transcripts, but only in the hands of those who have no errors or omissions and are in good handwriting. Of course, the better the handwriting, the higher the price of the copied book, and there is no limit to the maximum price.
Third, there is indeed a gentleman in the backyard of the bookstore. This old man fell off the list in this year's Spring Festival. But because his home was too far away from the capital and his family was too poor, he was not ready to return to his hometown. I have to work in the capital to earn money to support myself, and prepare for the spring festival in three years.
Sang Xuanyue paid attention to looking for such a person who fell off the list, and was fortunate to find a few, but the rest of the people disliked her for being small here, and they preferred to go to the house of the powerful to be a guest, so they all refused the invitation of the dumb uncle.
Only this Ding Ju person looks thin and inconspicuous, and a forty-year-old person looks like he is fifty or sixty years old. The other person was very old and his appearance was not elegant, so he gave up the idea of entering the powerful family to work, and followed the dumb uncle to Chongwen Zhai to be a gentleman.
How good this job is, you don't have to worry about anything, and the owner is generous, and the money given is enough. The students who came to teach were all poor children, and there were no rigid requirements for the imperial examination, only to teach them to read and write, which did not delay him much time at all, and he didn't even need to prepare for classes, and the time saved could be used for his own study.
Thinking so, this Ding Juren moved into Chongwen Zhai the day before yesterday and became a gentleman here.
And Sang Xuanyue specially invited such a big Buddha to come, there are many reasons. First, in this era, the people in Nancheng are poor, and the children don't even have the opportunity to study, which is very simple for her. It only takes a few taels of silver to solve this matter, how easy.
She is actually doing things with the "people-oriented" thinking of the Sang family, and she doesn't think it's a big deal. After all, she had discussed this matter with her father long before he died, but before she could implement it, her parents passed away......
Second, only when there is demand can consumption be promoted. There are no scholars in Nancheng, and the four treasures of the study room cannot be sold here, but what if there are many readers? Even if they can't be called scholars, they can only be said to be students or students, but whether they want to learn to read and write, or want to write transcriptions to support their families, they need to buy the four treasures of the study from the study, which can make the pen, ink, paper and inkstone of the study sell better.
So in summary, it's actually a "win-win-win" deal. They earned silver taels and fame, and Chongwen Zhai was soon able to gain a foothold in the southern city; Mr. Zheng has a place to study with peace of mind, and he can also earn money to concentrate on preparing for the next exam; Children have a chance to climb up, and perhaps because of this small gesture, their lives will never be the same.
Qing'er counted the "three wins" in the backyard, and looked at her sister with admiration, "It's still my sister's brain, I didn't expect such a good idea." Originally, I was still worried, the people in Nancheng are poor, and there are no scholars, how can I run the study. But as soon as my sister operated like this, the situation was alive. And imparting knowledge is a lifelong good thing, and my sister has done a great good deed. ”
"Don't praise me." Sang Xuanyue chuckled and said, "Ask the master to teach the children for free, this is something we discussed when my father was still alive, and my father reminded me." Again, it was Ding Juren who taught and taught, and what he did was a great deed of immeasurable merit, and I just had a few coins and gave some of them out casually. And even these coins were left by their parents. So if this is really a feat, then she hopes that this feats can be exchanged for her father and mother to live a good life underground, or let them be reincarnated into a good family earlier, so that they can live freely in the next life, and it is best to live a long life.
As the sisters and brothers were talking, they suddenly saw Ding Juren sitting by the window in the next room, shaking his head and reciting the book. His voice was low, his posture silent and focused, and the roar of the crowd outside and the sound of the siblings talking did not alarm him in the slightest.
Sang Xuanyue pulled his brother's hand and said softly: "Let's go, let's not disturb Ding Juren's study." ”
Qing'er responded, "Okay." ”
The sister and brother first walked to the study, said hello to the dumb uncle, and then left the study to prepare to go back to the mulberry house.
The clinker is just a few dozen steps from the study to the carriage, and the sisters and brothers were almost buried by people's "hearts".
It turned out that those people heard that children could come to learn for free, even if they didn't buy the four treasures of the study, they could learn to write on the sand table. This favor was too great, and the people could not repay it, so they hurriedly ran to their homes in excitement, and brought the old hens, salted duck eggs, big carp, and hard nest heads like stones, vegetarian buns, and a jar of pickle gnocchi......
Before the siblings came to their senses, their hands were stuffed to the brim.
These women muttered before that Sang Twisting the Moon was "The eldest lady who was raised in the deep boudoir and didn't know the suffering of the world, and when she suffered a loss, she knew that the business was not easy to do" and so on. But at this moment, looking at Sang Xuanyue again, they felt that what kind of lady was this who didn't know the suffering of the world, this was obviously a living Bodhisattva who saved suffering.
The women knew that their things were not good, so they were naturally reluctant to shove them into the Bodhisattva's hands, for fear of making her pickled. It's Qing'er, boy, a child of such a big age in their family can be called by half an adult, so he naturally has to hold these things.
Qing'er's hands were stuffed full, and even her nose was almost gagged......
Sang Twist Yue saw that her brother was pitiful, so she quickly took some from him, so there were some big meat buns, handkerchiefs, and sachets, all of which were stuffed in front of her, and Sang Twist Yue wanted to jump up and run out, but considering that this was in front of people, so many people were watching, she had to blush and say, "Auntie, we can't ask for your things." "Auntie, don't stuff it, I can't even take it." "This aunt, you give this candy to the little grandchildren of the family, I'm so old, I don't eat candy anymore......"
But no matter what she said, the people still kept stuffing her hands with excitement.
In the end, if it weren't for the dumb uncle who came over in time, the Sang Xuanyue sisters and brothers would have been crushed by the enthusiasm of the people.
After sitting in their own carriage and waving goodbye to Uncle Dumb and a group of enthusiastic people, the sisters and brothers took a breath with palpitations, and then instructed Uncle Li, who was driving the car: "Go quickly, go quickly." ”
Uncle Li smiled and said, "Come on, let's go." ”
The horse walked around "boom", the car rolled over the bluestone slab, and the sister and brother watched Nancheng being left behind, and then put down their hearts.
Sang Xuanyue handed a cup of tea to his younger brother: "Take two sips and suppress the shock." ”
Qing'er said with a shocked face: "But I was scared to death, sister, if I knew that the people would be so enthusiastic, I wouldn't have come out of the study to kill me." ”
"It's just this day, just wait for the people to calm down."
"But I think even if they calm down, the next time they see our siblings, they will still be so enthusiastic."
Sang Xuanyue was choked by her brother's words, but she had to admit that her brother's words made a lot of sense.
When a person saves their children and gives them a chance to embark on a career in public service, who will be ungrateful to Dade as an adult?
Even she was grateful to Master Zheng for accepting Qing'er into a private school and concentrating on teaching Qing'er's knowledge.
She also gave Zheng Fuzi a bundle, and tea, wine, cakes, fruits, etc. were sent on festivals. She paid real money, and she was so grateful to Master Zheng, so these people in Nancheng didn't have to give Master any compensation, but they could let the children learn knowledge, how could they not be grateful to Dade?
Sang Xuanyue thought about this, but Qing'er suddenly asked: "Sister, is this the desire of the people?" ”
"What?" Sang Xuanyue didn't understand Qing'er's question.
Qing'er said solemnly: "It is recorded in the history books that when an official leaves office, the people burn incense and set up a case, and send each other off along the way. Isn't it similar to today's scene? ”
Sang Xuanyue: "...... did the people say goodbye to their sisters and brothers just now?" It seems that there is. If it weren't for the dumb uncle waiting to stop him all the time, I'm afraid they would have to catch up.
Under Qing'er's scorching gaze, Sang Xuanyue stubbornly said, "Of course." ”
Qing'er showed a look of longing, "If one day when I leave office, there are people who treat me so warmly and bid me farewell, even if my life comes to an abrupt end at that time, I feel that this life is worth it." ”
Sang Xuanyue slapped his younger brother: "What nonsense? Still waiting for others to keep you warmly and bid you farewell? You're thinking too much. If you want to leave office, you must at least take office first. But you haven't even taken the boy's test now, and you're still a white body. Now is not the past, in the past, you could rely on character and meritocracy, but now, you can only be a member of the imperial examination. Work hard, Qing'er, when you have passed the imperial examination and become an official, you will have the opportunity to tell your sister about your experience when you left office. ”
It was already noon when the siblings walked to the road, and their stomachs were grumbling with hunger. They simply didn't go home, and directly chose a restaurant on the street and walked in.
This time, the sister and brother didn't bring anyone with them, and they all stayed at home, including Zhuye Zhuqing.
The big project of drying books at home is still continuing, and there is a shortage of manpower, and Sang doesn't want to buy some maids in a short time, so he can only work hard to squeeze the subordinates in the family.
- Although only a small part of Jinju's books were shipped to the capital, at least tens of thousands of copies were delivered.
The mulberry house is just a three-entry courtyard, and the servants in the house are counted, and it is only about thirty. How much can you dry even if you dry books all day? What's more, if the weather is cloudy and sunny, there will be strong winds, and the sand and gravel will fly all over the sky. You can't dry books in this kind of weather, so although you have been busy for more than a month, there are only more than 1,000 books that have been posted now.
Send all these books to Chongwen Zhai, which is only a quarter filled, and a steady stream of books needs to be transported to satisfy the students' desire to learn.
Without the maid and the little maid to serve by his side, Sang Xuanyue took care of his younger brother personally. However, since moving out, Qing'er has become more and more like the "head of the family", and now she takes care of her sister, serving tea and pouring water, which seems quite easy.
Because there are only two sisters and brothers, I only ordered four dishes and one soup today.
Uncle Li abides by his duties and will not dine at the same table with them at all, just now their sister and brother entered the restaurant, Uncle Li drooled at the sauce beef opposite, and Sang Xuanyue let Uncle Li eat by himself.
Because it is the meal, the restaurant is now lively, and the meal is very slow. The siblings sat in a cubicle on the second floor, drinking tea unhurriedly and moistening their mouths, because the room was small, their voices were low, and they heard the voices next to them intermittently.
When Sang Zhuoyue suddenly heard the words "Hou Mansion", he had not yet connected with the Hou Mansion of Wu'an, but he listened to the maid again, "On the night of heavy snow in the capital last year, Hou Ye went to the Moon Pavilion to enjoy the snow, and brought with him a beautiful female dependent. You girls have lived in the Hou Mansion for five years, you must know something, you tell me carefully, as long as the things you say are useful, the silver ticket of 1,000 taels is yours. ”
Qing'er saw that her sister was frowning, as if she was thinking about something, he opened his mouth to shout "sister", but suddenly saw his sister put her finger to her lips and gently "shhhh
Sang Twisted Moon pointed to the next door, and Qing'er realized something. But he felt that he was a gentleman, and it was very indecent to do eavesdropping, but when the two were quiet, someone next door said "How is the Hou Mansion", Qing'er couldn't care about being reserved, and quickly pricked up his ears and listened to the movement over there.
I heard a slightly playful female voice say in a greedy tone, "Do you really give me all these silver tickets?" That's a thousand taels. ”
"It's all for you, as long as what you say is used again for our master, I will give you another gold bracelet."
"A gold bracelet?"
"Yes."
"Give it all to me?"
"Yes."
The female voice was very moved, but, "I have also heard the rumor you said, but although our girl has lived in the Hou Mansion for five years......"
As soon as these words came out, Qing'er glanced at her sister, no wonder her sister started listening to the corner for no reason, it turned out that this matter was probably related to someone they knew.
There are three key words: Hou Mansion, Five Years, and Girl, how do you feel that the person who speaks is like a maid next to Wang Xiuwen.
But whether it's or not, we have to hear again.
Qing'er pricked up her ears and continued to listen, so she listened to the maid continue, "But I dare to guarantee that the woman who followed the Hou Ye to enjoy the snow and dine in the Moon Pavilion that night was definitely not our girl." ”
Moon Pavilion, Hou Ye, enjoy the snow and eat, woman, this is connected, isn't it the woman who enjoyed the snow and ate with Hou Ye in the Moon Pavilion on the night of the snowfall, that woman is far away in front of her, isn't it her own sister?
It turns out that this is his sister's gossip?
Qing'er suddenly got up.
"There are some things that you outsiders may not know, but as long as you are a person from the Hou Mansion of Wu'an, you should understand that although my girl has been pestering Hou Ye for five years, Hou Ye has never looked at my girl more. If it weren't for the fact that Hou Ye was too ruthless and made our girl cold-hearted, where would our girl marry the fifth son of the Xun family? Besides, according to the date you said, our girl is embroidering a dowry and preparing to marry into the Minister's Mansion, where will she hook up with the Hou Ye? ”
Come on! The identity of this maid is also locked, as expected, it should be the personal maid next to Wang Xiuwen.
When the other maid heard this, she seemed to believe her words. After all, Wang Xiuwen was not on their suspicion list. If Wang Xiuwen really has the ability to let Wu Anhou accompany him romantically, I think that Wang Xiuwen will not marry into the Ministry of Servants at this time, but will become Shen Tingjun's continuation.
It's not Wang Xiuwen, but Wang Xiuwen is the woman closest to Shen Hou, if there is any movement around Shen Hou, Wang Xiuwen is definitely the first person to find out. This is also the reason why this maid found Wang Xiuwen's maid.
I heard her ask: "I also know that it is not your girl, but who is it, do you have any ideas in your heart?" During that time, Miss Xiuwen's maiden family also came to the capital, and I heard that there were two beautiful girls among them, and there were daughters in the Menke family who lived in the Hou Mansion...... During that time, who did Hou Ye get close to? ”
The maid pondered.
She wanted the thousand taels of silver very much, and she also wanted the golden hairpin very much. However, how does Hou Ye know how close he is to that lady?
Because the Wu'an Hou Mansion is the housekeeper of the two ladies and Mama Cui, the family is a little loose, but it is definitely not loose enough to allow the subordinates to peep at the master's whereabouts at will.
Again, Hou Ye is haunted and wants to know his specific itinerary, how difficult is this?
But since this maid suspects that the beautiful woman who enjoyed the snow with Hou Ye that night is from the Hou Mansion, then she just said one? After all, she was only asked to say what she suspected, and she was not told to confirm it. If she says it, she can earn money, as for whether it is true or not, that is the other party's business.
This maid immediately spit out a few names, which were all distant relatives who came to the Hou Mansion to defect, and they came out of the five suits. Although everyone's surname is Shen, it is too far apart, and it is not impossible to have anything; There are also some Qingke's sisters, daughters, and then the two sisters of their own girls - these two are sisters, since I saw the Hou Ye side in the old lady, people are like demons. All day long, I smiled silly, looking at my own girl.
The maid pushed these people out, and the other maid said, "Is that all?" If you think about it, are there any other suspicious candidates? ”
There was silence in the private room for a while, and after a long time, the maid spoke: "If my sister asks like this, I will think of someone again." ”
For some reason, when they heard this, Sang Xuanyue and Qing'er suddenly raised their hearts, and both sisters and brothers had a bad premonition.
Sure enough, as if to confirm the bad in the hearts of the sisters and brothers, the maid said: "If you want to say that there are many beautiful and lovely beauties in the Hou Mansion, but there is one person, I think only she can be called a stunning city." ”
"Oh? Who is it? The voice was playful and wary.
The maid said: "It is the cousin of the third lady in our house, but her identity is flawed, she is widowed and widowed, and she is tortured by her in-law's family and has no way to live, so she was taken to the house by the third lady." ”
The girl's tense nerves instantly relaxed: "A widow? ”
"Yes."
"Beautiful?"
"Very beautiful."
"That's not possible." The maid who spoke was Que Ping, and she was the big maid beside the lord of Evergreen County. Growing up with the Lord of Evergreen in the palace since childhood, Que Ping can sit firmly in the position of the big girl, and she has a lot of capital.
She has a beautiful appearance, a graceful figure, a well-behaved manner, and better rules than some noble ladies of the family. And she is sleek, playful and clever, and many guards like her.
But with such an outstanding talent as her, Hou Ye has never taken a second look. Even she can't look down on her, and even the Evergreen County Lord's sue for peace can be disdained, and Shen Hou's arrogance grows in his bones. With such a proud son, can she fall in love with a poor widow who comes to fight the autumn wind?
This is impossible.
Que Ping asked a few more words, Wang Xiuwen's maid really racked her brains to think, so she thought of Cheng Yi's sister again.
Cheng Yi's sister is a small jasper, and she can barely be called beautiful. If it is said that Cheng Yi's sister and Hou Ye walked together, it is not impossible.
Que Ping memorized all these names in his mind, focusing on the character of Cheng Yi's sister, and made an aggravated treatment. When all this was done, I asked several more questions, but I couldn't ask anything more.
Que Ping was satisfied, and the other maid stared at the silver ticket on the table as if she had been emptied, and said greedily: "Then this silver ticket, can I take it?" ”
"Look at your little interest, it's just a silver ticket, since it was promised to you earlier, you can take it."
"Alas, alas, thank you Lord of the County. The lord of Evergreen is really generous, and the slave maid took the reward of the lord of Evergreen, and will definitely recite scriptures to the lord of the county every day in the future, praying for the Buddha to bless the lord of the county with a long life. ”
Lord Evergreen?
Sang Xuanyue and Qing'er's hearts, which had just been slightly lowered, were suddenly lifted again.
It turned out that the county lord of Changrong specially sent a maid to find out the woman who had dinner with Shen Tingjun.
Sang Xuanyue lowered her eyes slightly, Qing'er thought that her sister was scared, and hurriedly grabbed her hand and held it in her palm.
When Sang Xuanyue came over, Qing'er smiled comfortingly, and said silently: "Sister, don't be afraid, as long as you don't say it, I won't say it, and Master Hou doesn't say it, even if the Lord of Evergreen is here, I don't know that it was us who ate with Lord Hou that day." ”
Sang Xuanyue nodded.
The sister and brother were warm and affectionate, and after Wang Xiuwen's maid took the silver ticket, she asked again: "Sister, didn't you say that as long as I answered well, you would give me a golden hairpin?" Sister, I've racked my brains to tell you everything I know, you can't talk and don't count. ”
"I mean, if you say it well, I'll give you the golden hairpin. But are you saying it well or badly, and I can't verify it? As long as I verify that one of the people you said to me is really looking for the county lord, then I will give you the hairpin. Otherwise, you made up a few people for me to fool me, cheated me of the silver ticket and then deceived me of the golden hairpin, what's the matter, do you think we are all stupid, just let you fool me? ”
The maid instantly became angry, "No, I don't." ”
"Alright, you don't have to say anything. Wait until I go back and tell the county lord about the matter, and find out who it is. If you really get it right, it will be indispensable for your benefits. If not, then you should take your 1,000 taels, but don't come out and wander around if you have nothing to do, otherwise you will lose your life that day, and you don't know how to die. ”
"This, this, how can this still talk about life and death? Sister spare my life, it's a big deal, I don't want this silver ticket, I can't honor my sister? ”
"Excuse me. Think everyone is as small as you? It's just a thousand taels of silver, and I'm scared to see you. Come on, turn around and keep your mouth shut, don't spread the word about this, otherwise you dare to leak out a word, beware of your little life. ”
"I know, I know my sister. I promise, I promise not to say a word. ”
There was a sound of the door opening and closing in the private room next door, and someone had walked out. Qing'er was about to speak, but Sang Xuanyue shook her head at him abruptly, and Qing'er woke up, by the way, there was another person next door.
Sure enough, I heard a voice from next door: "Phew! What the hell, hit a stick to give a sweet date, you are a dog when you are an old lady. Isn't she just a maid, just like a superior person? What can you do with a good master? The poor have a good background, and they have ruined their own future. Marry this and marry that, do you really think that the man in the world is the cabbage in the field, can you pick and choose? It's really whimsical for jackals looking for deer antler velvet on their heads. ”
The maid muttered something again, and finally kissed the silver ticket twice, and then giggled and carried the silver ticket in her arms.
When she went out, she happened to meet Xiao Er, who was serving food in the private room next door.
As usual, she glanced at the guests next door and wondered if they had heard them.
But she just did something unseemly and made ill-gotten gains, and now it's too late to run, where will she stay, and see which one may have listened to the corner of her house?
This girl ran too fast, so she didn't see it, and the moment Xiao Er opened the door, Qing'er suddenly turned to the side of Sang Xuanyue. After he made this action, he only showed the back of his head to the door, and at the same time blocked his sister's face, even if someone peeped, as long as they were not extremely familiar with the people, they would not recognize the sister and brother.
Waiting for the maid to rush over, Sang Xuanyue pushed her younger brother in Xiao Er's surprised sight, "You don't have anything in your hair, really, I lied to you just now." It's a shame that you're such an adult, and you're so undeceived, you believe everything I say. ”
Qing'er is also clever, and as soon as her eyes blinked, she immediately answered and said, "Sister, how can you be like this?" I really thought there was a bug on my head, and if someone hadn't come in, I would have jumped up. ”