"All things have their own Tao, the universe is unified in Qi, Tao is the one who gives birth to me, God is the one who lives me, and Qi is the one who uses me!"
As the morning sun rose, Jiang Li was thinking about the principles contained in the "Lingbao Tianzun Xiantian Yiqi Guidance Technique" while stretching his body in the small courtyard and simulating the most common boxing technique practiced by the captain during his martial arts warm-up - Taizu Changquan.
Eighty years ago, Taizu Taizu of the Great Zhou Dynasty rose from humble beginnings and encountered many adventures. Finally, with the power of the peak of the Martial Saint, he swept across the nine states, overwhelming the heroes, and ending the chaotic world of separatism that lasted for hundreds of years.
After the establishment of the Zhou Dynasty, Zhou Taizu simplified the 108-style Dayan Divine Fist that contained the spirit of his own boxing spirit, and spread it to the Zhou army, and all soldiers in the world learned it.
The simplified Taizu Changquan has only thirty-two styles, but the power of the boxing is large and open. The punches hit the front line, unrestrained and bold, with the surging momentum of rivers and lakes. Extremely strong.
Although Jiang Li was prohibited from practicing martial arts, when he was walking around the mansion when he was young, he could often see the captains and servants practicing in the mansion, so he remembered the general moves.
He practiced according to the memory in his mind. Although the posture was not standard, the Qi moved freely and circulated throughout the body. He punched and hammered, which gave him a powerful force.
"The book says that martial arts temper the body, and Taoism condenses soul power. They are two completely different extremes.
"As for Qi refining, the true Qi flows along the meridians throughout the body, which can also play a role in tempering the physical body, making the bones and muscles continuously strong. The physical strength is weaker than that of warriors of the same level, but it is stronger than Dao meridians and Confucianism."
Jiang Li punched the Taizu Long Fist three times. He was a little out of breath and had a thin layer of sweat on his back. He could only stop and quickly walked back to the hut to light a fire to keep warm.
The cotton-padded clothes on his body were too thin and could not withstand the harsh winter cold. In addition, he had not eaten enough all year round and his health was very poor. If the cold air invaded his body, he would inevitably become seriously ill.
The house has two rooms, inside and outside. The space is small and very simple. There is a stove in the outer room for cooking and boiling water.
There is only a wooden bed, a desk and two squeaky wooden chairs in the inner room.
The basin used to light the fire for heating was the most ordinary black iron basin, unlike the exquisitely crafted three-legged copper basins in the large houses of Jiang Shirong's other descendants.
Charcoal is also the cheapest crude charcoal in Shengjing City, and there is a lot of carbon residue. When it is burned, heavy smoke is produced, which rises in the hut, choking Jiang Li and making him unable to open his eyes.
He could only open the doors and windows for ventilation, and a lot of the heat that had just accumulated was lost.
"The eldest lady has kept my monthly salary very low, but even the servants in the house use fine charcoal for heating. The fine charcoal given to me has been replaced by Tieba and Tiejiu, who are responsible for guarding! "
Jiang Li's eyes flashed as he looked toward the courtyard door. In his previous life, he had a timid personality and had always been submissive. He dared not express his anger at the slaves' deprivation.
After Jiang Li was reborn, he was still in a state of confusion for the first two months. He had been digesting the complex memories of his predecessor and had no time to care about anything else.
After accepting the reality of time travel and rebirth, Jiang Li also asked Tieba and Tiejiu to replace Huotan.
But what was delivered a few days ago was still the cheapest coarse charcoal residue!
"Miss Chuchu is back!"
"Miss Chuchu, we are all slaves in the Marquis Mansion, but we can live a different life with whatever master we follow. During the day, you serve Jiang Li, an unfavored young master, and at night you have to work in the garment factory in exchange for firewood and rice. , being a slave to this extent really makes us two brothers feel distressed!"
Outside the courtyard gate, the voices of Tie Ba and Tie Jiu suddenly sounded, their joking tones mixed with a bit of malicious smirk.
"Miss Chuchu, you also know what the Ninth Young Master is thinking. As long as you are willing, I will immediately inform you and ask the Ninth Young Master to go to the eldest lady to plead for mercy and ask you to come to his room."
"That's right, you can become the girl in charge immediately after you go to the Ninth Young Master's room. If the Ninth Young Master who is serving you is happy, it is very possible to be promoted to a concubine in the future. It is better to fly into the sky at that time than to follow Jiang Li, a short-lived ghost! "
Outside the door, Tieba and Tiejiuqi were persuading each other.
Jiang Li also heard about the fact that Jiang Xuanyao coveted Chuchu.
It is said that my ninth brother met Chuchuhou by chance in the back garden, and he has never forgotten her, thinking about her day and night.
It's just that due to the strict rules of the Hou Mansion, I didn't dare to rob it without authorization.
Now he actually bribed two slaves who were monitoring him and came to poach people right under his nose!
"Shut up, everyone. If I hear these dirty words from you again and it upsets the young master, don't blame me for being rude to you!"
Before Tieba and Tiejiu could finish speaking, a girl's voice, as crisp as an oriole's, sounded out with a hint of chill and rudeness, directly interrupting their words.
The door of the courtyard was pushed open with a creak, and a girl in green clothes with a bun in a bun walked in with a cold face and a wind-snowy look.
The girl is fifteen or sixteen years old, with a petite figure and a pretty face. Her eyes are as bright as stars on her fair face, shining with a lively luster.
She walked into the small courtyard, pushed the door hard, and shut the door behind Tieba and Tiejiu, who were looking forward to it with two flattering faces.
"Sir, you are back!"
The girl turned around and saw Jiang Li standing under the eaves. A sweet smile appeared on her face and eyes, and she ran towards Jiang Li happily.
"Sir, Aunt Su from the garment shop gave me two pastries from Guixiangfang. I'm reluctant to eat them. Please try them."
The girl took out two pieces of pastry wrapped in paper from her arms, carefully peeled off one piece, and brought it to Jiang Li's mouth like a treasure, and fed him to eat.
The sweet-scented osmanthus cake with the body temperature of a girl is fragrant, soft, glutinous and fluffy, and melts in your mouth.
I don't know whether it's the scent of osmanthus or the body fragrance of a girl, but the refreshing fragrance flows between the mouth and nose.
Jiang Li felt the slight coolness on his lips and held the girl's small hands. They were as soft as boneless, fragrant and tender, but as cold as jade, which made people feel distressed.
"Why are you disobedient? It's freezing late at night, and the garment factory is far away. What should I do if my body is frozen?"
Jiang Li blamed her, and gently rubbed her hands with his big hands. He didn't let go until the girl's hands were slightly warm.
"The young master went to the Marquis to plead for mercy. I stayed alone in the small courtyard, always restless and thinking wildly, so I went to the garment workshop to talk to the mothers!"
Chuchu's cheeks turned red and she asked with concern: "Sir, has the Marquis allowed you to leave the house? Didn't the eldest lady find anything?"
"Don't worry, everything is fine, and we won't have to ask for help anymore!"
Jiang Li looked at the worried look on the little girl's face and didn't want her to worry, so he just smiled lightly.
"That's good. My young master doesn't have to ask anyone. He has been smart since he was a child. He has never been to the Marquis School for a day. He can pass the exam as a scholar by studying alone. As long as the young master can enter the Confucian Temple to pay homage to the statues of the sages, he will gain literary talent. After filling the body, you can take the examination in the future!"
Full of joy in the beginning.
"Master, are you hungry? I'll feed you some!"
The little girl jumped up and down, took some charcoal fire from the hut, and started cooking with hot water by the stove in the outer room, but she kept talking excitedly to herself.
"Our young master is the most knowledgeable. In the future, he will be able to move out of the Marquis' Mansion if he succeeds in the examination and becomes a high official. Then there will definitely be young ladies from famous families who fall in love with him!"
"From now on, this slave must serve the young master and the madam well. Hehe, there is also the young master. The young master is handsome, and the young master must be very cute. Chuchu must take care of him like the young master. I don't know if the madam will like Chuchu." .
"I heard from the nuns in the mansion that when young ladies from prominent families marry, they will bring their maids with them, and they can also sleep with the young master. Then Chuchu will not be able to warm the young master's bed or sleep with the young master..."
The stove was very high and the pot was also very big. Chuchu stood on tiptoe and was able to crack an egg and carefully put it into the pot.
Jiang Li didn't say anything, moved a chair and sat aside, watching Chu Chu busy up and down.
In the indifferent courtyard of the Hou Mansion, Chuchu was the only warmth he could feel.
When she was just bought into the mansion at the beginning of the year, she was almost beaten to death by the eldest lady's steward because she made a mistake. It was her mother who saw how pitiful she was and saved her.
After their mother passed away, the two lived together in this dilapidated courtyard for more than ten years, just as master and servant.
Jiang Li never treated Chuchu as a slave.
"Master, the noodles are ready!"
After a while, Chuchu walked into the room carrying two steaming porcelain bowls and placed them on the desk.
The soup noodles are steaming hot. The salty clear soup has red and green colors. The red ones are chili peppers, and the green ones are shredded green onions and green vegetables. A plump poached egg is spread on the light yellow noodles, which is attractive in color.
Two bowls of noodles and one egg.
Chuchu picked up the eggless noodle bowl, poured a large spoonful of spicy oil into it, stirred evenly, put his little mouth to the edge of the bowl, and took a sip of the spicy noodle soup. His eyes immediately turned into crescents, and he praised vigorously: “Chu Chu’s craftsmanship is great!”
"I don't like eggs, I'll give you half of them!"
Jiang Li looked at the boastful little girl angrily, split the egg in the bowl into two with chopsticks, and put it into Chu Chu's bowl: "You are still growing, eat more, otherwise you will really become a poached egg! "
"Young Master is making fun of me again. Since you recovered from your illness, you have become more and more gibberish. You don't look like a scholar at all. I will ignore you!"
Chuchu's little face flushed red to the roots of her ears. She lowered her head and buried her face in the bowl. After a while, she said to herself in a voice as loud as a mosquito's fly: "Actually, she's not young. Young Master even touched her two days ago. Pass!"
"puff"
Jiang Li choked on a big mouthful of noodles and quickly proved his innocence: "You obviously accidentally fell off the stool when you were drying the peppers!"
"But you just touched it!"
Chuchu raised his head and responded confidently.
"Ahem, eat noodles, eat noodles!"
Jiang Li knew he was in the wrong, so he waved his hand and buried his face in the bowl. The large bowl of noodle soup quickly reached the bottom.
"Chuchu, no matter what happens for a while, you stay in the room and don't come out!"
Jiang Li put the bowl on the desk, wiped his mouth, and stood up. He dragged his chair outside the house. When he passed the stove, he took the kitchen knife Chuchu used to cook in his hand.
"Tieba, Tiejiu, get in here!"
A wooden chair was placed in the middle of the small courtyard. Jiang Li sat down and drank coldly.
