Thinking of this, my originally cold heart suddenly became hot. But soon Ma Shizhou calmed down again. After all, he was a person who had experienced storms. Although Zhu Shenzui's suggestion made his heart move, he also had self-awareness.
If he were ten years younger or had no disability, Ma Shizhou might give it a try, but now what can he do as an old man? Although the prospects were good, I was afraid that I would not have the ability. I thought for a long time and shook my head with a wry smile.
"Uncle Ma..." Zhu Shenzui wanted to persuade him again.
Ma Shizhou smiled bitterly and said: "I can't thank Master Liu enough for being able to value him so much. If Master Liu needs it, I can help him make a few more trips to the grassland. I'm afraid I can't do anything about Master Liu's trust." , once I offend Master Liu, I personally have nothing to do with it, I am just afraid of missing something important for Master Liu."
"Uncle Ma, why is this necessary? I don't care, so why do you think so?"
"Sixth Master, please consider this matter in the long run. It's getting late today, and it's still too late to leave the city, otherwise I'll have to stay here for one more day. So, I'll take my leave now, and I'll go there next time." The grassland needs my help, just send someone a message, my old horse will never give up!"
Seeing Ma Shizhou like this, Zhu Shenzui couldn't say anything more, but he took another high look at Ma Shizhou in his heart. If it were an ordinary person, if Zhu Shenzui extended an olive branch like this, the other party would be eager to take it immediately. But Ma Shizhou didn't do this. Instead, he politely declined Zhu Shenzui's invitation.
Seeing this, Zhu Shenzui no longer forced himself. Anyway, there was no room for this matter. Didn't Ma Shizhou also say that next time Zhu Shenzui went to the grassland again, he was willing to lead the way and follow him. In this case, it was not impossible for him to do so as mentioned before. There are ways to think of it.
What's more, his uncle Wang Rong is still Ma Shizhou's friend. Looking for a chance to let his uncle persuade him, maybe Ma Shizhou can change his mind?
Wang Hai never thought he would live such a life.
A house that can protect you from the wind and rain, a solid kang head, warm and sunny bedding, two meals a day that can satisfy you, clean clothes, and a master, mistress and mistress who treat you well.
These days, Wang Hai seemed to be in a dream. After following Zhu Shenzui back to the Ming Dynasty, he moved into Zhu Shenzui's home.
In order to repay Zhu Shenzui, Wang Hai worked hard and without complaint. Perhaps in his heart, only by doing more can he be worthy of his master's gift. It's a pity that there is nothing that can be done here. The current master is not like the previous master. There are not so many cattle, sheep and horses. Even if Wang Hai wants to herd Zhu Shenzui, he has no chance. In addition, he is still learning Chinese. He could only speak a few simple everyday words, and Zhu Shenzui wouldn't let him go out, so Wang Hai couldn't do anything he wanted to do.
There is no other way, Wang Hai can only get up early every day to help clean and do some housework. But how much work can be done in a small courtyard? In addition, Mrs. Zhang is a diligent person and her house is always kept clean. At best, Wang Hai can only help with some chores, but these chores were completed in a short time.
The remaining time was free, which Wang Hai was not used to. You must know that when he was on the grassland, as a slave, he never stopped for a moment. Once you rest and have nothing to do, it's not far from the time when your master whips you.
But here, most of the day is idle, and Wang Hai is not used to it. For this reason, Wang Hai specially found Zhu Shenzui and sincerely hoped to do more work for him in order to repay his master. Hearing this, Zhu Shenzui laughed loudly, touched his head and said that it would be enough to finish the work at home. There is no other work to do now. If he really wants to repay himself, then he should learn Chinese well first and wait until he can When he spoke Chinese fluently, he arranged for Wang Hai to do other things.
The master's explanation made Wang Hai want to learn Chinese well. Now Wang Hai is working hard to learn Chinese every day. Wang Hai is not stupid, but very smart. Moreover, he is young and has strong receptivity. With hard work, his Chinese has improved rapidly. In less than half a month, he is completely different from before.
Although I still have an awkward accent and don’t have much vocabulary, I’m completely different from when I first arrived.
In addition, when Zhu Shenzui got up early every day to practice martial arts, Wang Hai often studied beside him. In fact, Wang Hai deliberately avoided it at the beginning. In the grassland, practicing martial arts was the privilege of nobles. Slaves like him were not qualified to practice martial arts. When the master was practicing martial arts, if the slave hid and peeked, then The consequences were so serious that the master would even shoot him on the spot.
But here, Zhu Shenzui did not have this rule, especially when he saw Wang Hai deliberately avoiding it when he was practicing martial arts. He curiously asked Wang Hai why he did this. After Wang Hai answered, Zhu Shenzui told him that he would not have to do it in the future. In this way, if he wants to watch it, he can watch it, and if he is interested, he can also learn to practice in his own way.
Zhu Shenzui's kind attitude made Wang Hai even more grateful, so Wang Hai would learn martial arts with Zhu Shenzui every morning. Not to mention, Wang Hai has a good understanding, and he has become good after practicing for a few days. Although his body has not grown yet, Zhu Shenzui believes that with his perseverance and understanding, he can still achieve great results in the future. .
Wang Hai's household registration was settled not long after he returned to Pingyang. After Zhu Shenzui made arrangements for the city, he took Wang Hai to Wangjia Village and registered Wang Hai's household registration in Wangjia Village.
Externally, Wang Hai is a relative and descendant of Zhu Shenzui's natal family, which is why Zhu Shenzui gave him this name in the first place. Not long after staying in Wangjiacun, Zhu Shenzui made another trip to Yangtou Mountain to meet Li Hu and others.
Today's Sheephead Mountain is no longer what it was last year. Because of Zhu Shenzui's arrangements, most of the people in Sheephead Mountain survived the winter safely, except for two old and frail old people who did not make it through. .
After spring arrives, the preparations made before also come in handy. Some wasteland has been reclaimed and food has been planted in Sheephead Mountain. Everything is developing in a good direction. When the harvest comes in autumn, Sheephead Mountain will completely get rid of its previous predicament.
In addition to self-reliance, Yangtou Mountain has now become an important base for Zhu Shenzui's salt transportation. Large quantities of salt goods are successively stored and transferred in Yangtou Mountain, and then sold to other places through the previous salt road. Coupled with the existence of Yangtou Mountain, Zhu Shenzhen's salt sales range was wider than before, and he gradually extended his tentacles to areas that were previously unable to sell due to limitations.
There is also the control of the Yangtou Mountain main road, and the reputation of the "Three Yang Brothers" of Yangtou Mountain has gradually spread. They occupy the main road to do "small business", which can not only subsidize the demand on the mountain, but also use it to find out information. In addition, blocking Yangtou Mountain to prevent other private salt dealers from coming to "steal business" with Zhu Shenzui also made Zhu Shenzui's private salt profits and shipments much higher than before.
"Master Liu, I'll give you another toast!" The Laojun Temple in Yangtou Mountain is no longer the shabby appearance it once was. After renovation, the Laojun Temple has greatly changed its appearance. It looks no different from an ordinary farmhouse. , it also became the home of Li Hu and his two brothers.
Picking up the wine cup in front of him, Li Hu happily toasted to Zhu Shenzui. On the side, his two brothers Lu Yisheng and Hu Lin also picked up the wine cup and expressed their sincere gratitude to Zhu Shenzui.
"Come! Let's do it together!" Zhu Shenzui did not refuse, picked up the wine cup and touched it with the three of them, then tilted his neck and drank the wine in the bowl neatly.
"Master Liu is such a good drinker!" The three of them praised loudly, drank the wine at the same time, put down the wine cup, wiped their mouths, and laughed.
"I have long thought about inviting Mr. Liu for a drink, but there has never been a chance. This time, Mr. Liu, please think of it. We brothers will have to toast you a few more drinks. In the past six months, thanks to your help, Mr. Liu, I have to We don’t know where we are yet." Li Hu sighed in his heart. His expressions were filled with gratitude as he said these words. The same was true for Lu Yisheng and Hu Lin, who looked at Zhu Shenzui with incomparable gratitude and admiration in their eyes. .
"Sixth Master, I'm a rough guy. I haven't read a book, I can't read a few big characters, and I can't speak nice words. I don't have anything to say. The meaning is all in this wine. Sixth Master, let's toast you again!" "As he said this, Li Hu raised the wine cup again, as did the two brothers beside him. The three of them respected Zhu Shenzui with heartfelt feelings. Zhu Shenzui did not put on any airs, but smiled and touched them again. , drank this bowl of wine together.
"The future is bright, we are all brothers." After Zhu Shenzui finished drinking, he looked at the slightly blushing faces of Li Hu and the others and said this with a smile, advising them to drink slowly and eat more vegetables.
Li Hu and others nodded in agreement. The three of them drank and chatted over the food and wine. After talking about things on the mountain for a while, Hu Lin suddenly asked: "Master Liu, I heard that you went to the grassland some time ago?"
"What? You also know about this?" Zhu Shenzui asked with a smile. This matter is not a secret in Wangjiacun. Yangtou Mountain is now its own people. Wangjiacun and Yangtou Mountain are now in close contact. In addition, the former Li Hu had been asking Zhu Shenzui when he would come to Yangtou Mountain for a while. Wang Jinwu drank too much with them and mentioned Zhu Shenzui's trip to the grassland.
For ordinary people in the Ming Dynasty, the grassland is mysterious and curious. After all, the Ming Dynasty has been fighting with Mongolia for more than 200 years since the founding of the People's Republic of China. Moreover, Li Hu also fought with the Mongols. Hearing that Zhu Shenzui actually took people to the grassland, he couldn't help but feel guilty. Zhu Shenzui was worried.
Fortunately, Zhu Shenzui came back safely this time. Seeing that Zhu Shenzui came to Yangtou Mountain soon after returning, and remembering his visit to the grassland, I couldn't help but ask about the situation in the grassland.
Seeing their curiosity, Zhu Shenzui told them something about his trip to the grassland and picked out some things he could tell them.
Listening to Zhu Shenzui's description of the experience of the grassland, the scenery on the grassland, and the experience of dealing with the Mongolians, the three of them were fascinated and filled with emotion.
"I didn't expect the grassland to be like this. The Mongols are not all Tatars who kill without blinking an eye." Hu Lin couldn't help but say this.
"This is natural. Mongolians are humans too. As long as they are humans, we can deal with them." Lu Yisheng said matter-of-factly.
"Hahaha, that's true, but it's not absolutely true. I was lucky enough not to run into danger this time when I went to the grassland. It's not all like this on the grassland. I was worried about it in the past, but I finally came back safely this time. Yes, it seems God is taking care of it." Zhu Shenzui couldn't help but laugh.
Li Hu nodded and agreed: "I have dealt with Mongolians when I was at the border. Ordinary Mongolian herdsmen are actually no different from us people in the Ming Dynasty. Sometimes it snows on the grassland in winter, and the Mongolian herdsmen really can't make it to the Great Wall. It is common to beg for work on the edge. But then again, the Mongols and us Ming Dynasties have different personalities. Yesterday they may have called you brothers, but today they may draw their swords against you."
"I have never been to the grassland, but I have heard people talk about it a few times. Mr. Liu is indeed lucky this time, but he should be careful next time when he goes back. At least bring more people with you. It is always safer when there are more people. some."
"Tiger is right, I think so too." Zhu Shenzui nodded: "The first time we were just exploring the road, there were indeed fewer people. Next time there will be more people."
"Sixth Master, if you go to the grassland again, how about you take me with you next time? I will also follow you to the grassland to see more?" Hu Lin suddenly said this, with hope in his eyes.
"Hahaha! That's no problem. It's okay to come along. Walking more and seeing more can be considered as gaining more knowledge. By the way, Tiger and Brother Lu, if you want, you can also come along and have a look. I'm still worried. If we go to the grassland again, we won’t have enough manpower.”
