It's November, the first snow has fallen, and the early wind is getting colder.
Shuntianfu, Daxing County, Huangcun.
A young man in thin clothes hurried back to the village holding a simple wooden harpoon in his right hand and a crucian carp in his left hand.
"Brother Hou, I went to Diantan to catch fish for your aunt again." Old carpenter Wang from the entrance of the village greeted him with a smile.
The young man known as Mr. Hou grinned and said, "Yes, Uncle Wang, the Chinese New Year is almost here, and you haven't finished your work yet."
"Hey, how can it be so fast? After the Jinghua Iron Works was established in the past few years, we people have been able to eat a few mouthfuls of Ansheng rice. There is endless work. If the batch of rakes that the old man received this year, if we put it in In previous years, we couldn’t sell them out within ten years.”
"Haha, that's right. Uncle Wang is very skilled in craftsmanship. The plow you made will last ten years." The young man praised happily.
Old carpenter Wang laughed, "Brother Hou is indeed a scholar, and he speaks nicely. But it's strange to say that Jinghua Iron Works makes so many plowshares a year, can they be sold out? Don't suddenly stop doing it in the future. My old man can't There’s no place to eat.”
Brother Hou shook his head and said, "Uncle Wang, Ren Jinghua has a strong background. Don't worry about it anymore."
"Really?" Old Carpenter Wang was a little confused. "What's your background?"
Brother Hou replied, "The boss of Jinghua is the companion of Emperor Wanli. You should also know that his uncle is the old man from the high cabinet a few years ago, Gao Wenzhenggong."
"Oh!" Old carpenter Wang quickly put down the plane in his hand, wiped his hands on his trouser legs, and cupped his hands toward the north, "Mr. Gao Ge is a good man. He is the upright official Hou, whom even Hai Qingtian has praised, aren't you? You know, our ancestors originally had seven or eight acres of land, but unfortunately it was taken away a long time ago. A few years ago, Gao Ge Lao sent people to clear the land. Was it called Qing Zhang or something like that?
Anyway, Leng found out that the land was lost to our Lao Wang’s grandfather, and was blackmailed. Then for some reason, the eldest man sent by Gao Ge called me over to make up for it. Give us the land deed, little brother Hou, you are a human being, tell me, why did such a good Mr. Qingtian leave so early?"
Brother Hou hesitated for a moment and said, "I heard from several young brothers in Wanping that Gao Ge was overworked and exhausted all his life."
"Ah," Old Carpenter Wang said with regret, "This God is so short-sighted."
Brother Hou just came back from catching fish. His trouser legs were still wet and he was a little cold now. He hurriedly said, "Uncle Wang, it's getting late. I'll go back and make fish soup for my aunt. Please be patient."
"Go ahead, go ahead." Old Carpenter Wang waved his hand with a smile. After the little brother left, he sighed and said to himself, "The little monkey also has a hard life. His parents left early without telling him. An uncle who raised him for several years also died. Now his aunt is also sick. If not I'm trying to live up to my own expectations and passed the Linshan exam, but how can I endure it?"
The door opened, and it was Old Carpenter Wang's wife who came out and said, "That's right. It's really pitiful to say that if it hadn't been for his aunt's illness this year, little brother Hou might have taken the provincial examination and won the exam. A Juren has returned. If he became a Juren master, how could he be as poor as he is now? I heard that his family still owes six or seventy taels of silver."
"Yeah, that's the money his uncle spent on medical treatment when he was here, and it was rolled in through other people's profits. If he passed the exam this year, this little money wouldn't be a big deal. But alas, one meal can last a month. No matter how much money you take, I’m afraid I won’t even be able to pay the interest.”
Carpenter Wang's wife said, "At any rate, he is young. He is not yet twenty years old. People don't dare to force such a young scholar. What if he wins the imperial examination in the future?"
"That's not possible." Old Carpenter Wang shook his head and said, "Their family borrowed money from the Duke's Palace. The Duke may not buy the reputation of a scholar, even if he is promoted, even if he wins, there will definitely be no shortage of money." This is a little money, but I’m afraid I still have to pay back the money that should be paid.”
While the old couple was talking, a strange and beautiful carriage arrived at the entrance of the village. Soon the carriage approached the outside of the yard in front of Carpenter Wang's house. The two elders were wondering which family this gentleman was traveling to Huangcun alone, when a half-year-old child jumped out of the car. He looked to be less than fifteen years old.
The child smiled and cupped his hands at Carpenter Wang, "Excuse me, father-in-law, this is Huangcun."
Carpenter Wang had a good eye, and he caught a glimpse of a familiar mark on the carriage. It was two crossed swords, half-encircled, guarding a scroll of bamboo slips in the middle. It was the so-called "trademark" launched by Jinghua last year. "People in Jinghua call this "Jian Dan Shu Xin", but outsiders generally call it "Sword and Book".
This is a person from the employer, so he cannot be ignored. Old carpenter Wang hurriedly stepped forward and bowed slightly and said, "I want to teach you, young master, that this is Huangcun."
The half-grown child smiled and waved his hands, "Old man, I'm not a young master. I'm just my boss's bookboy. My surname is Cao. You can always call me Brother Cao."
The book boy of the boss
The biggest official that Carpenter Wang has ever seen is just the imperial censor who was sent to clear his father-in-law's land last time. Jinghua's boss just heard from Brother Hou that he is the nephew of Mr. Gaoge. He must be a high official, and he is a book boy. How could he, a country old man, dare to be indifferent, let alone call someone "younger brother"? He quickly imitated the posture and bowed his hands in a salute, "Ah, it turns out it's the eldest gentleman sent by the boss. I'm so lazy. I don't know what the purpose of this gentleman is."
The half-grown child was naturally Cao Ke. When he saw Mr. Wang, the carpenter, calling Gao Pragmatic his boss, he didn't react for a moment and said in surprise, "Why did I call my eldest young master my boss?"
Carpenter Wang said hurriedly, "It turns out that I overstepped my bounds. I am a carpentry contractor under the name of Jinghua Iron Works. I work as a plower for Jinghua Iron Works, so I took the liberty to call him boss."
"Oh, so that's it." Cao Ke smiled, not caring about these trivial matters, and asked, "Since I am a local in Huangcun, do you know that there is a young master named Hou Gongchen in this village, who is the village's Lin Shansheng?"
"Mr. Cao is looking for little brother Hou." Carpenter Wang was startled for a moment and said quickly, "Yes, there are some. Little brother Hou just went to Diantan to catch fish for his aunt. He just passed by the old man. His family lives not far ahead. Next to a big locust tree, Mr. Cao walked forward for less than a mile. He followed the road and turned around.
Cao Ke smiled and said, "Thank you for your guidance, I won't delay you."
"Mr. Cao." Carpenter Wang said hurriedly, "You're not here to ask Brother Hou for debt, are you?"
"To ask for debt" Cao Ke was startled, "What debt to ask for?"
Old carpenter Wang quickly gave a brief account of little brother Hou's family situation, and then said, "Little brother Hou is very smart. Although he missed the opportunity to take the provincial examination this year, he will definitely win the next provincial examination. If he owes money, he will definitely win in the future." I can pay it back.”
Cao Ke's heart moved, but he smiled and said, "Old man, you misunderstood. Not only am I not here to collect the debt, but I am here to help Mr. Hou pay back the money. Don't worry."
Carpenter Wang was doubtful, but he could only "believe it" and nodded, "That's good, that's good."
However, Cao Ke said no more. He bowed his hands slightly to the old carpenter Wang in thanks, turned around and told the coachman, "Remember the road, let's go to Mr. Hou's house."
When he got on the carriage and the carriage gradually moved away, Old Carpenter Wang looked at the gradually disappearing ruts with some concern and murmured, "Come and help Mr. Hou pay back the debt to the old lady, do you believe it?"
"Why don't I believe it?" Old Carpenter Wang's wife said with a smile, "Perhaps your boss has a sharp eye and knows that Brother Hou is a good material, so I came here to make friends in advance."
"That would be great," Old Carpenter Wang sighed.
How did he know that Gao Pragmatic sent Cao Ke here not only to help little brother Hou pay back the money, but also to make friends and even give him a fortune?
