He was a little surprised: "Why do you plant so many sweet potatoes?"
According to the map, this is Tongli County, which is affiliated with the capital. We don’t make vermicelli here, so why grow so many sweet potatoes?
Li Qiao was shaking the cattail leaf fan with one hand and holding a bamboo cup with the other hand, which contained ice-cold sour plum soup.
This sour plum soup was made by Tao Zhu during the lunch break. Since there was no inn on the roadside, the group of them cooked their own meals at noon. Tao Zhu cooked two large pots of sour plum soup, and everyone had a portion.
As for the bamboo cup, I bought it when I was in Fucheng. It is long and has a lid. It can be buried in an ice basin. It is very convenient for freezing soup and water.
"Hmm... The prefect is probably going to make a big move. Tongli County is next to Yongxing County, and the sweet potatoes from Tongli County can be sold to Yongxing County."
Li Qiao guessed the reason.
Under normal circumstances, farmers would not grow so many sweet potatoes. Now that farmers in Tongli County have grown so many sweet potatoes, there is only one explanation:
This is to make vermicelli.
"Ah??? But the vermicelli made in Yongxing County last year was a mess." Tao Zhu's eyes widened.
"Now the magistrate has been changed. The new magistrate should be very capable."
Otherwise, farmers in Tongli County would not dare to grow so many sweet potatoes.
"I hope so!"
Tao Zhu looked at the sweet potatoes on both sides of the road and couldn't help but clasping his hands in prayer.
It is hoped that the new magistrate of Yongxing County will have the same ability to coordinate the overall situation as the magistrate of Jiang, so that not only will the farmers benefit, but he and Li Qiao will also be able to earn more money.
The prices in Beijing are scary just thinking about it.
Moreover, in addition to the capital, Li Qiao also wants to buy another 500 acres of land in Pingcheng, so that he can make up 1,000 acres and become a real big landowner.
It costs money everywhere!
Soon, the carriage passed through the county seat of Tongli County. After passing the county seat, there were many fewer sweet potatoes in the farmland on both sides.
Now even Tao Zhu was sure that there must be some agreement reached between the magistrate of Tongli County and the new magistrate of Yongxing County.
There are many sweet potatoes grown in the part of Tongli County adjacent to Yongxing County. When the sweet potatoes mature, they can be transported to Yongxing County——
It is impossible to teach the farmers in Tongli County how to make starch.
At present, whether it is starch or vermicelli, the method only belongs to Hexi Prefecture.
Farmers in Tongli County want to make money from sweet potatoes, so they can only transport sweet potatoes to Yongxing County.
After passing Tongli County and walking for another day, the convoy finally arrived at the capital.
Li Qiao looked at the tall city gate of the capital city and couldn't help but jump off the bullock cart to stretch his muscles. He turned over and over all the way. It felt really uncomfortable.
However, this is still a good thing for him, as some poor scholars have to walk to the capital.
He just glanced at the city gate and saw two scholars carrying book boxes with dusty faces waiting to enter the city.
Compared to these two, he is actually very happy to be able to ride in an ox cart.
It was really not easy for scholars in ancient times!
The capital of Yuanhe Province is obviously much more prosperous than the capital of Hexi Province. Not only is the city gate high, but there are also many pedestrians coming in and out. Li Qiao and his party were delayed for two quarters of an hour at the city gate before entering the city.
The Xu family has a house in the capital, so the group went to the Xu family to rest.
Just like in Fucheng, the Xu family found a house for Li Qiao and Zhuang Wen early. On the second day, under the leadership of the Xu family officials, Li Qiao, Taozhu and Zhuang Wen inspected the house on the spot.
There were several houses, and finally Li Qiao and Zhuang Wen chose two opposite courtyards and rented them.
Prices in the capital are a little higher than those in Fucheng, but not much different. Li Qiao rents a courtyard with two entrances, and the two-month rent with deposit is 25 taels.
The yard rented in Fucheng is smaller, and the two-month rent with deposit is 20 taels.
But Tao Zhu was speechless.
This means that every time you go to a bigger and more lively place, the price becomes more expensive.
Prices in Beijing are absolutely amazing!
In addition to Zhuang Wen, the banker was also accompanied by Zhuang Quan, Zhou Yun and his wife, and the manor. They were small and rented a courtyard with two entrances.
Zhuang Wen simply wanted to live closer to Li Qiao, so even though he had a small family, he rented a courtyard with two square feet.
I paid the rent, signed the deposit, and then moved my luggage in.
The next day, the Xu family officials came again. They first took Li Qiao, Tao Zhuzhuang Wen and others to familiarize themselves with the surrounding environment, and then took them around the capital to give them a general understanding of the capital.
While wandering around, Tao Zhu and Zhou Yun bought all the items they needed for daily use.
When passing by the bookstore, Li Qiao and Zhuang Wen went in and wandered around for a while, wanting to see if there were any books they hadn't seen in Hexi Mansion.
Li Qiao has secretly passed on the tricks that Xing Xuezheng told him to Meng Yue, Xu Ying, and Zhuang Wen. Therefore, the three of them are now reading as many books as possible to expand their knowledge.
On the third day, Xu Ying and Meng Yue came. They came to find Li Qiao and Zhuang Wen to register at the government office.
At this time, there were only ten days left before the provincial examination. There were many scholars who came to register. Li Qiao and others waited in line for a while before it was their turn.
The official in charge of registration took the official certificate handed over by Li Qiao and saw the word Li Qiao written on it. He couldn't help but look at it carefully.
Hexi Prefecture, Pingcheng, Sanli Town, Sanliu Village.
It is indeed the Li Qiao who received the royal pen plaque and short composition from the Holy Emperor!
Celebrities.
The official had a calm expression on his face, but his eyes were glued to Li Qiao.
Since the founding of Dasheng, no one has had such an honor.
Li Qiao was the first.
But Li Qiao is obviously not a fool. The three articles he wrote during the Tongsheng Examination have long been circulated to the capital.
He has also read these three articles. Considering Li Qiao's identity as a farmer, the three articles are indeed good.
Especially the articles about the college examination made his eyes light up.
I don’t know what kind of surprise Li Qiao will give to the world and the Holy One this time.
With this in mind, the official stamped the official seal on the official residence and asked Li Qiao to leave.
After coming out of the government office, Zhuang Wen couldn't help but said to Li Qiao: "Xiao Qiao, you see, you are also a celebrity in the capital. The gentleman just now obviously spent more time checking your official documents."
Xu Ying couldn't help but nod: "No, Brother Li, how do you feel now?"
"It must be a lot of pressure." Meng Yue clicked her tongue. Fortunately, Li Qiao had a stable mentality. Otherwise, he really wouldn't be able to withstand this kind of attention.
Hearing this, Tao Zhu looked at Li Qiao with worry in his eyes.
Li Qiao smiled bitterly: "How else can I feel? Naturally, I should go back and study hard."
"Walk around, read more, think more, you can do a lot in ten days."
Meng Yue heard this and wanted to return to Xu Mansion quickly.
At this moment, several candidates waiting in line to register beside them started chatting.
"I don't know if Li Qiao is here at this time. I really want to see him!"
Li Qiao: "..."
He took Tao Zhu and left.
But the chatter behind them continued.
"I also want to meet him. Although he can be recommended to the imperial examination, his writing is really good. I want to ask him for advice."
"Even if he comes to the capital now, he is studying hard behind closed doors. I heard from the students in Hexi Prefecture that he never entertains guests before the exam."
"That's really a pity. I am really convinced by his essays in the college examination. If I had his guidance, I would be a little more confident in this provincial examination."
Li Qiao: "?"
Thank you. I really think highly of him.
But if it weren't for the blessing of the Holy Emperor, he wouldn't dare to say that he would be 100% safe.
Who knows which level of hell this question will lead to? He is under great pressure!
Being highly anticipated, under such circumstances, Li Qiao could only work harder.
After returning to the rented yard, he never went out again. Even if he went out, he would go to the opposite door to find Zhuang Wen.
Without Huang Youming as his personal trainer this time, he could only consult Zhuang Wen.
His study time is still too short. Compared with Zhuang Wen, who has studied for thirty years, he still has a lot of room for improvement.
During this period, except for shopping for groceries, Tao Zhu did not go out the rest of the time.
The courtyard they rented was close to Gongyuan, and there were many candidates rushing for exams living nearby. Therefore, vendors came to sell fresh vegetables and meat every day, so he didn't have to go far even to buy vegetables.
Zhou Yun would come over every day to exchange cooking experiences with him.
The manor is lively and active, and he comes to visit every day.
In fact, he wanted to wander around the manor, but Zhuang Quan and Zhou Yun restrained him and didn't let him run around. The capital was so big and prosperous, and they were little bumpkins from the countryside who were unfamiliar with the place. What should I do if I lose it or cause trouble?
The banker is a small landowner that everyone envies in Sanliu Village, but in a prosperous big city like the capital, the banker's little wealth is nothing.
Zhuang Quan and Zhou Yun have been staying in the countryside. When they first arrived in such a far away and prosperous place, they were always timid. Not only did they not dare to go out alone, they also refused to let them run around the manor.
The manor was helpless and could only run back and forth between the yard rented by his family and the yard on Li Qiao's side.
Zhou Yun was a little troubled by this, and couldn't help but sigh when she and Tao Zhu were choosing vegetables: "He is already nineteen, but he still has the character of a child, and the marriage has not been decided yet. It's really sad."
"There's no rush. No one in our village is in a hurry to get married."
The main reason is that there are too many matchmakers, and the boys and girls in Sanliu Village are all spoiled for choice and find it difficult to make a decision.
Just like Tao Tao, who is nineteen this year and has only recently decided to get married.
Tao Tao didn't want to marry outside, but wanted to find a son-in-law. After much selection, he finally chose a good-looking young man who was good-looking but not from a good family background.
Tao Tao wanted to recruit a son-in-law before Li Qiao took the imperial examination and received no reward from the emperor. However, Li Qiao's future was unclear at that time, so the quality of the young man willing to marry was not high.
But with the reward from the Holy Spirit and the bright future of Li Qiao, the number of young men willing to marry into Sanliu Village suddenly increased sharply, and their quality also improved a lot.
However, the family that allowed Tao Tao to change his destiny and become a young master through marriage would definitely not be willing to let his children marry into Sanliu Village.
