The beginning of winter has just passed, and Mang County is facing the first snowstorm.
The sky is slightly bright, the wind is blowing, the clouds are rolling, and the snowflakes are scattered.
Inside and outside the county, it is dark and dark, and when the wind and snow are strong, it is almost daylight.
There are often wild cats and dogs running around in the alleys in the east of the city. Under the blizzard, there are no pedestrians, and the cats and dogs are also missing.
In the snowy fog, there is a monotonous figure walking through the snow. He is wearing thin clothes and has a hunched body, leaving long traces in the snowy ground.
The small tea stall on the street has a blazing fire, and the hot water is steaming. Three or five tea drinkers gather together in the snow, talking about yesterday's county government affairs.
Several people gathered around, enclosing the warm world on the other side under the shed, which was in sharp contrast to the wind and snow one step away.
"Ahem... give me some saliva..."
A cold, shivering voice appeared outside the tea stall.
The tea patrons in the tea stall, wearing all kinds of bloated coats, gathered in front of the tea stove, huddled, rubbing their hands, and breathing in the heat.
Outside the tea stall, the visitor was wearing thin clothes and was covered with thick snow. He was swaying and trembling in the wind, and the turbid breath he exhaled turned into ice.
"Go! Go! Go……"
The tea stall owner drove him away in disgust, thinking he was a beggar who came from nowhere.
But a tea guest with sharp eyes felt that this person seemed familiar, so he lowered his head and looked at the person's face from another angle.
Seeing this, the tea guest was startled and took several steps back: "Niu... Niu Da..."
"Niu Da!"
Hearing these two words, the tea guests were astonished, as if they had seen a fierce god, and stayed away from each other.
"Ahem..." Niu Da arched his body and continued to cough, "I just want a sip of hot water."
"Boss, give him water quickly and tell him to leave!"
The tea stall owner snorted coldly: "If someone comes to ask for a bowl of water, I can give him a bowl of tea. Even Niu Da, don't even think about it!"
Niu Da has lived in the east of the city for a long time, and his reputation shocked the whole county. The people in the east of the city saw him as if they were a god of plague. Who dares to have anything to do with him?
No one in this generation has not been bullied by Niu Da. Everyone is afraid of him and everyone hates him.
The tea guest did not know the situation.
But the tea stall owner is here every day and is well aware of Niu Da's current situation.
This guy has definitely received his comeuppance!
I contracted a serious illness a few months ago and my health was getting worse day by day. I took various medicines but nothing improved.
Nowadays, all the money that was obtained through deceit and abduction has been ruined, and all that is left is hanging on. A group of brothers in the past have long since cut off contact with him.
He was just a human being, and a terminally ill one at that, posing no threat at all.
The tea stall owner is not afraid of him!
I just wish that this scourge in Mang County would die soon.
"Boss, don't provoke him. Are you still in business?"
"Hmph! This guy is no longer as majestic as before. He is terminally ill and will not live long. Who will be afraid of him!"
The tea stall owner smiled wantonly and spat at Niu Da.
In the past, wouldn't this bully have rushed out and beat the tea stall owner half to death?
Today, he didn't have any temper at all. Seeing this situation, he turned around silently and prepared to leave.
Several tea drinkers who didn't know what was going on became suspicious when they saw this: "Is this still a big cow?"
"Look at him, he is almost dying! Hahaha, what retribution!"
"In the past, we bullied our fellow villagers, but God finally opened his eyes."
"Niu Da, aren't you upright? Why are you so quiet today?"
The sound floated in the wind and snow and blew into Niu Da's ears.
At this moment, Niu Da no longer had the intention to be angry, and all the obsessions in his heart were holding him up.
He was unlucky. When he got the prescription and money last night, the drug store was closed.
I went out to buy medicine early this morning, but encountered a snowstorm.
I've been coughing non-stop today, and it's really uncomfortable. If I don't brave the wind and snow to get medicine, I'm afraid I won't be able to survive today.
Niu Da is a complete ruffian and villain.
Has countless shortcomings and bad habits.
But his ruffianism and cruelty also made him tenacious beyond ordinary people.
"You all hope that I will die...ahem...I will never die! When I get the medicine, you will all pay the price!"
Evil thoughts arose in Niu Da's heart. Since he fell ill, he has experienced all the hardships of the world.
Just waiting for the day when he recovers from his illness, he will let all those who have failed and despised him have a taste of revenge.
After walking a few steps slowly, Niu Da refused to look back and glared at the tea stall.
The tea stall owner didn't want to continue smiling scornfully, and suddenly shouted: "Want a bowl of water, right? I'll give you a basin!"
After saying that, the tea stall owner held up a basin of cold water with ice and poured it on Niu Dadang's head!
Wow!
Niu Da was directly knocked to the ground by the biting coldness. His already cold body was baptized by the ice water, his body temperature dropped sharply, and his mouth suddenly turned black.
Such a sick body, it's cold, it's snowy...
If it were an ordinary person, he would have been lying on the ground for the rest of his life and could not get up.
But Niu Da clenched his teeth, like a weakling who couldn't be beaten, limping and trying to get up.
"Hahaha, Niu Da, I didn't expect you to be here today! Die quickly, no one will sympathize with you!"
Niu Da was trembling all over, struggling to beat the ice on his body, no longer stopping, and moving forward with difficulty.
Fortunately, the medicine shop is not far away, just a few dozen steps in front of the tea stall.
On a snowy day, many shops were closed. Fortunately, the door of this pharmacy was still open.
"Catch, grab, grab... grab the medicine!"
The medicine shop owner was startled when he saw this embarrassed man. He wanted to ask him to come in and take shelter, but he stopped talking when he saw that it was Niu Da.
Niu Da first gave the money to the shopkeeper, and then took out a prescription.
"Follow...follow the medicine above!"
The shopkeeper nodded, personally took the medicine for Niu Da, carefully wrapped it and stuffed it into Niu Da's body.
Niu Da was about to turn around and leave when he couldn't help but cough again.
His body was dying, Niu Da knew it in his heart.
Doctor Xue said that he must go to two drug stores to get medicine separately, and he must not expose Doctor Xue's secret recipe.
But Niu Da really didn't have the energy to go to the second pharmacy, and he would probably die on the way.
After thinking about it, Niu Da gave the shopkeeper another silver and took out the second prescription.
The shopkeeper looked at it, didn't say much, and quickly grabbed the medicine, hoping to get rid of this plague god as soon as possible.
After a while, Niu Da held two pairs of medicines in his arms, treating them as treasures.
Before leaving, I did not forget to bow to the drugstore shopkeeper and say thank you.
Then he continued to curl up and staggered away.
This is a rare thing. Who would have thought that "the most ruthless person in Mang County" would bow to others? Say thank you?
The shopkeeper looked at Niu Da and gave a bitter smile, shook his head, and added after hesitation: "If two medicines conflict with each other, they should be placed separately and taken separately. Do you understand?"
Upon hearing this, Niu Da froze and turned back slowly: "What will happen if we take them together?"
"Take them together? That could kill you."
Niu Da was shocked: "Really?"
"Hey, I run a medicine shop, so naturally I won't let my customers get sick. I don't know where your medicine is used, but the two medicines cannot be taken at the same time. Didn't the doctor who prescribed it to you say that?"
Niu Da felt a chill in his heart and nodded to the drug store owner again, "Thank you, I understand."
After giving a signal, Niu Da stepped into the snow, suddenly threw the medicine he regarded as a treasure into the snow, and stepped on it hard. His hands were clenched into fists, his whole body was stiff, but he was trembling alone in the wind and snow, getting worse and worse.
I don't know if he was shivering because of the cold or because of anger.
Niu Da pinned all his hopes on Doctor Xue, not wanting him but wanting his life!
At this moment, hope was shattered, and there seemed to be no light in Niu Da's world.
In the deserted snow-covered long street, Niu Da knelt on the ground, looking at the flying snow in the sky and losing the strength to roar.
In despair, Niu Da suddenly thought of a person, the Taoist priest who cured the plague!
"Western Suburbs Musician!"
This was the last hope. Niu Daqiang stood up.
He didn't know if he would die on the way to the western suburbs, but he must not die in despair without hope.
…
This blizzard came suddenly.
No one in Mang County was prepared.
There seems to be no one in the county, but things are going on in every house.
The blizzard did not stop Niu Da's path to survival.
It did not stop the Lin family from purchasing.
There are still ten days until Xiao Sui Ping.
The Lin family was delayed in preparing for Miss Lin's illness.
Taking advantage of the last ten days, the Lin family arranged all the available belongings at home, and all the family affairs were based on the New Year's Eve.
The procurement has been going on quietly for several days.
The Lin family is not a special case. The entire Tang Dynasty and every family has experienced financial constraints, both large and small, in recent years.
In the past, the main source of income for aristocratic families was not various businesses.
Every family has its own pride.
Scholars, peasants, industrialists and merchants, all of whom were of lower rank, were not in the eyes of the gentry.
During the hundreds of years when the gentry controlled the world, the aristocratic family relied on letters of recommendation for the world's intellectuals, which was enough to keep the family running and live a prosperous life.
A hundred years ago, if a scholar wanted to get ahead, all he needed was a word from a prestigious family.
Countless scholars paid tens of thousands of dollars for evaluation, and it also depended on the mood of the aristocratic family.
Not to mention that just because you receive money, you will definitely give a good review.
Nowadays, the imperial examination has given children from poor families a new way to get ahead. There are fewer and fewer people who want to ask for comments from aristocratic families and become famous in the world.
The aristocratic family's comments are becoming less and less important in the hearts of literati all over the world.
Naturally, not many literati gave money to aristocratic families anymore.
The aristocratic family that relies on writing reviews for literati has lost its main source of income, and naturally its business is getting worse every year.
Lin Xuan of the Lin family is also a product of recent years. He is a last resort for the family's operation.
A year ago, the Lin brothers had a falling out.
Lin Tingzheng became the head of the family.
But the paper factory was given to his younger brother.
As a result, the head of the family has no source of income and has to rely on the wealth saved by generations and the meager teaching income. How can it be rich?
Lin Ting was beginning to worry about this matter.
Fortunately, there is a brother who is willing to help his brother through the difficulties.
In this way, Lin Tingzheng had the confidence to make bold purchases.
In just a few days of shopping, the Lin family spent 3,500 yuan.
All the major merchants in Youzhou had orders from the Lin family. All the remaining money from the family was spent, and they generously opened debts worth thousands of dollars.
It's snowing heavily today, and Lin Ting is asking Butler Liu to go to his brother's house in the east of the city to see when the money promised by his brother will arrive.
As Butler Liu walked to the east of the city, he passed by the cow running alone in the cold wind, and saw a sudden fire shooting into the sky outside the city in front of him.
In the quiet wind and snow, someone screamed: "Oh no! Lin Xuan's paper mill is burning down!"
