Liao Zhai alchemist

Chapter 325 The Jiang Family
Today, the people of Tianmen County are very happy.After the establishment of the new temple, ordinary people offering incense can invite a statue of Zhang Wei to worship in the temple.

It should be said that there is also a temple in Tianmen County, the Jinhua Niangniang Temple, isn't it also a temple.

But Empress Jinhua is the god of the demon clan, so she is inherently at odds with humans.

In the past, there was no choice, but now people in Tianmen County don't want anything, just a statue of Zhang Wei.

This majestic statue is placed in the temple for worship, and after a period of time, it can be invited home to worship.This kind of statue is made of materials such as gold, stone, wood and clay, and it is carved lifelike.After the common people come to offer incense, they can invite one home for free to worship day and night.

Especially those in Tianmen County who live far away need such a statue very much.

Formally asking God to return home does not require money.Because these statues were donated by believers to the temple.Strictly speaking, it is paid and posted.

Rich believers will donate incense money, and the incense money will be made into statues in the temple, and then the made statues will be placed in the temple for a period of time, which is equivalent to consecration.

After the consecration, the statue has the aura of reverence for the gods, so you can invite it home to worship without fear of other wild gods occupying it.

Tianmen County covers an extremely large area, and its people are scattered widely.If there is a statue of Zhang Wei, it is not used to enshrine in the temple, but can be enshrined at home.

In the north of Tianmen County, Lao Jiang's family of seven worshiped in the temple, and after adding a few taels of incense money, they invited a jade statue back home.

This white jade statue made Zhang Wei look white and beardless, chic and suave.The statue was wrapped in red silk and hugged by Lao Jiangtou's youngest daughter, Huahua. Then the family rode on their horses and began to drive home.

It took nearly ten days to travel from Lao Jiangtou's house to Tianmen County, and everyone didn't come to the county often. This time, Zhang Wei's temple was built, and this family came to the city to pay homage.

Now that the worship is over, everyone has made a lot of purchases and returned with a full load.

Lao Jiang's family has three hectares of cotton fields. There are seven people in his family, plus several slaves, and they have just come here to cultivate them.This is because there are a lot of cattle and horses to cultivate land, otherwise they would really be too busy.

The three hectares of cotton fields bring Lao Jiang's family an income of more than 3000 taels a year, which is three hundred times his family's previous income... Lao Jiangtou has been sincerely farming for most of his life, and after a hard life for most of his life, he is now working in cotton With the help of his father, he made a fortune in one day.

So their family is grateful to Zhang Wei.Without Zhang Wei, they are still worried about the annual plunder of Guifang people.With the cotton seeds given to them by Zhang Wei, they can greatly increase their income.

Zhang Wei guaranteed their safety and allowed them to live a good life. This kind of kindness cannot be forgotten by Lao Jiang's family.So as soon as they knew that Zhang Wei had built a temple, they rushed from home, and the whole family came together!

They have nothing to repay, they can only enshrine Zhang Wei, and burn incense every morning and evening, praying for Zhang Wei's longevity.

The biggest hope of Lao Jiangtou now is to have more labor force to grow cotton.The youngest daughter, Huahua, is not young anymore, it's time to recruit a son-in-law!

Speaking of this, Lao Jiangtou was full of melancholy.Now every household in Tianmen County is short of people, and every household has money. It is really too difficult to recruit a hardworking son-in-law.

You want to recruit a son-in-law, but others are still unwilling to come.Which man is willing to come to the door.It's not that there is no money!

After having money, marriage is not so simple.Men are better off, they can still marry ghost women as concubines, and they can also give birth to children.

But women cannot marry ghost men.On the one hand, I look down on it, and on the other hand, I am talking about it and losing my share!It's not that there is no money, what is it to find a ghostly man!
After doing a lot of shopping at the market, Lao Jiangtou suddenly found a different "dentist shop" beside the market, which didn't exist when he came here last year.

Say yes because it's a 'dating agency'!It's the official matchmaker.

In ancient times, there were official matchmakers. This kind of matchmaker holds a certificate and works specifically to solve the problem of marriage between men and women. Generally, women who are older and have a better reputation in the local area are in charge.The social circle of the ancients was small. If there were no suitable men and women of the right age around, it was inevitable to find this kind of official matchmaker to introduce a suitable spouse.

No way, in some dynasties, if you don't get married after a certain age, you have to pay an extra "tax" every year. The older you are, the more you pay. If your family has money, you are not afraid to pay it.Then the official will even pull a man to match, and directly designate an unmarried older man and woman for you.

It's not a joke that men should be married when they are colleges and girls should be married when they are colleges.

And Tianmen County's "dentist" is a professional matchmaking agency.But instead of introducing local men and women of the right age, it specifically introduces men and women from other places.

As long as you leave a portrait here, and then register information, what kind of other half do you want to find, this 'tooth shop' will help you find suitable men and women from surrounding places.

You can't find it outside, this place is too introverted.There are a lot of men and women in the Yinshan Mansion outside who want to marry to Tianmen County, but they need an official matchmaker, so this tooth shop came into being.

Old Jiangtou inquired outside, and he was a little moved.He looked at his little daughter, and then dragged her into the dental office.

Entering the dental shop, he saw an old friend helping his son choose a wife!

When the two met, they were stunned for a moment, and then they greeted unnaturally: "Old Jiang, you are here too."

"Well, come and invite the statue of the old man back, and buy some things by the way, Lao Cai, why are you here?"

This guy named Lao Cai lives not far from his house, and he is considered a villager.There is also a son in the family who is getting married.It stands to reason that the two of them can become in-laws.

If it was in the past, the marriage would probably be settled, because the two families also had this intention in the past.But not anymore.

Lao Jiang's family wanted a son-in-law who came to help their family, and who wanted to support Lao Jiang's family.

It is impossible for Lao Cai's family to send their son to the door. His family also has several hectares of cotton fields and needs labor.This hard-earned son cannot be given away to others!

Because the two parties couldn't agree on this, they naturally couldn't become in-laws.

When the two met here, they were both a little embarrassed, but they were people who had been here. After a moment of embarrassment, they began to say: "It is said that this place is very good, and Lao Wang found a wife for his son by relying on it. Yinshan Mansion , the body is strong, the body is strong and fertile."

The two old peasants have just become rich. In terms of marrying a daughter-in-law, they still adhere to the idea of ​​having a good buttocks to give birth, being strong enough to work, and being virtuous and able to manage the family.

As for whether it is beautiful or not, these old farmers don't think about it.It's not like marrying a fairy, why do you want to be so beautiful?Blow out the oil lamps, all the same!

Hearing what he said, Old Jiangtou stretched out his head to glance at the portrait he had chosen. The women in this painting are all good, and there is also a family introduction.

The two chatted for a while, which delayed things a bit.The matchmaker yelled, "Oh, are you going to pick it or not? If you don't pick it, I'll show it to others! These girls are very sought-after."

After finishing speaking, the matchmaker was about to snatch the portrait from Old Cai's hand.The old Cai made a quick flash, and then said with a smile, "I choose, I choose!" As he spoke, he stuffed dozens of pennies into the hands of the matchmaker with the cunning of a peasant.

His good behavior made the matchmaker give him a blank look, and then pushed the money over, saying: "Don't come here, my wife will make a deal, and the matchmaker's fee is more than these!"

Lao Cai's head blushed, because he disliked the lack of money.In fact, since the opening of this dental shop, the resources here have been in short supply. How many people are anxious to find a partner for their sons and daughters!
If you want to choose more, if you don't get one tael of this money, these matchmakers are not rare to look at.The dozens of texts given by Lao Caitou are not just sending beggars away!
There was no way, Lao Cai stuffed another tael of silver in the past, and the matchmaker accepted the money, and then went to greet others.

It took a long time for Lao Cai to finalize a girl, and then went to pay for the formalities, and the deal was not over until the matchmaker showed her to them.Of course, this is not forced buying and selling. Both parties have the right to choose. If something goes wrong, this is a government-run place, and there will be boards.

The vast majority of women are willing to marry to Tianmen County, there is no way, there are too many people here!
After looking at it for a while, Lao Jiangtou also asked the artist to draw a portrait of his daughter, and then paid the money, stating that he wanted to find a son-in-law.

Finding a door-to-door son-in-law is also a major business here.The matchmakers recorded the situation of Lao Jiangtou's family, and asked Lao Jiangtou to go back and wait for the news. When there was news, their dental guild would send someone to notify.

Old Jiangtou was still a little worried and said: "How long will this take? The girl is not too young."

The matchmaker smiled and said: "Don't worry, girls in our Tianmen County are still very popular. Even if you want to be a door-to-door son-in-law, there are still a lot of men who want to come, and your family's conditions are also good. I will definitely recruit you a strong man." The strong uncle is here!"

This sounds a bit like buying livestock, but without feelings, everyone can only quantify the conditions, and only find the ones that meet their own conditions. As for the others, we will talk about them later.

Jiang Huahua was a little upset when her father made fun of her like this.But she can't say anything, the daughter's marriage is still up to the father.

Besides, she was recruited, and she would not have been made things difficult by her husband's family. Considering it, she didn't say anything.

Ordinary people's marriages don't have so many romances, only cares about life.The marriages of high-level people also don't have so many romances, and some are just strong alliances.

On the contrary, those middle-level people may still have some opportunities to choose their favorite objects.

After Lao Jiangtou's family finished these, they started to set off for home.

After traveling for almost ten days, they returned to their village.Lao Jiangtou put Zhang Wei's statue into the shrine, and then began to worship every day.

The cotton in the cotton field is about to be harvested. Lao Jiangtou has to inspect it several times a day to grasp the development of the cotton bolls. The better the cotton bolls grow, the more cotton there will be, and the higher the price!

Old Jiangtou was busy, and his son and daughter-in-law were not idle either. They had to do all kinds of work every day. There were more than a dozen cows and horses in the family, which needed to be fed, and they also had to direct slaves to work.

Jiang Huahua had nothing to do when she was free, either doing some work with her mother and sister-in-law, or playing in the small hill by the village.She still remembers that in the past few years, she still needed to herd sheep for the family.

She was not in grade at that time, but she had to drive more than a dozen sheep to graze on the nearby grass every day. At this time of autumn, she would go with her father, brother and sister-in-law to cut the grass and store it for the cattle and sheep for the winter.

At that time, life was very hard. My father and brother worked day and night, and since she was young, the easiest work was given to her.At that time, she liked to sit on the small hill, watching the lambs grazing, and stayed carefree all day.

Later, people from the county came to promote cotton, not only to provide seeds, but also to provide technology, and to teach cotton growers. They all lived in the village for a year!In the first year, the family planted more than ten acres of cotton dubiously, and this was only planted for the sake of Mr. Zhang Wei.

The old man drove away the ghosts and gave them a stable environment, this is what he wanted to do.

Back then, the dozen or so acres of cotton had a good harvest, and the county sent people to collect them all.Lao Jiang's family earned 130 taels of silver.Jiang Huahua still remembers that her father and elder brother laughed and cried when they saw the more than 100 taels of silver.

In the winter of that year, the family slaughtered her two favorite sheep for the New Year.She was very sad and cried a lot.But the mutton is really delicious!

In the second year, the family didn't want her to herd sheep anymore, my father said.The sheep are kept for a whole year, and the exhausting work of mowing the grass is not as good as planting a few acres of cotton.

Several sheep were killed for meat, and the family began to reclaim wasteland and grow cotton.Throughout the year, except for their family, other families in the village did the same, working desperately to cultivate wasteland and grow cotton.

After a year of hard work, their family has reclaimed a hundred acres of land and planted a hundred acres of cotton. They are almost exhausted.

But that year, their family harvested a full 1000 taels of silver.When winter came, the family used the money to renovate the house, rebuilt the big kang, bought wheat, ground white flour, and ate white flour steamed buns for a whole year!

After the beginning of spring, Lao Jiangtou bought slaves at a high price and continued to open up wasteland and farm.All the livestock in the house, except the cattle and horses, were eaten.Also bought a lot of cattle and horses.

With more cattle and horses, more land can be opened up and more cotton can be grown.

Jiang Huahua doesn't have to herd the sheep anymore, and her family's conditions have improved, so she still likes to sit on the hill.It's just that she is not carefree now. She has grown up and has her own troubles.

Dad is going to find a husband for her. Brother Cai was good before, but there is no later incident.The old man began to recruit her a young man who came to her door.

She was very disturbed, not knowing what her future husband would be like, whether he was tall or short, whether he had a good temper or a bad temper, and whether he was good or bad for herself.Can we live together well.

This is what worries her.

These things could only be stuffed in my heart before.But now, she has someone to tell.

That is the old master Zhang Wei at home!

Every day, Lao Jiang left home after burning a stick of incense on his head.Jiang Huahua knelt in front of the statue and began to tell her sorrows.Every time she finished speaking, she would feel much better, as if Master Zhang would make the decision for her.

On this day, Jiang Huahua was still talking in front of Zhang Wei's statue as usual: "I don't ask for anything, I just hope that my husband-in-law in the future will treat me well, and just don't look too ugly."

A few days ago, she also said that she hoped that her future husband would be taller than herself, but today, this requirement is gone.People can't be too greedy, no, if you ask too much, the master will get angry.

Jiang Huahua clasped her hands together and bowed again.At this time, she suddenly heard a voice saying, "Is that all you ask for?"

The voice was so abrupt that Jiang Huahua was startled. This room is dedicated to enshrine Master Zhang Wei, and no one else owns it!She looked around and said boldly, "Who is it? Who's talking?"

"Who is in front of you? Who do you think is speaking!" The voice said with some dissatisfaction.

Jiang Huahua's eyes widened. She looked at the statue in front of her and said, "Is that you? Grand Master?"

"Hmm..." The voice answered vaguely, but did not answer directly.Then he continued: "If that's the case, I can give you a husband!"

"Really?" Jiang Huahua was overjoyed.

"Of course! When did I tell a lie, how about it, you go to the hill outside the village, and you will meet that person!" said the voice.

"The daughter of the people knows!" Jiang Huahua responded immediately!
Hearing Jiang Huahua come down, outside the wall, a figure immediately jumped up and ran out quickly.

The figure changed while running, and soon turned into a tall and thin young man. Then he ran to the edge of the hill where Jiang Huahua often visited, and began to wait.

After waiting for a while, he saw Jiang Huahua walking out of the village.He got confused all at once.

"This is the first sentence of the meeting, what should I say?"

"say hello?"

"Still, how are you, girl?"

"Will it be too abrupt, what should I do if I scare her?"

Just as he was struggling, Jiang Huahua got closer and closer.Seeing that he was about to come over, the man gritted his teeth, closed his eyes, and lay down!
Lie on the ground and play dead!This need not say the first sentence!This person thinks so now.

Sure enough, when Jiang Huahua came here, she saw a strange man lying on the ground.Her complexion suddenly became extremely exciting.

"This...is this the wishful gentleman bestowed upon me by the Elder Master?"

"He was afraid that I wouldn't get it, so he knocked him out, so pick it up for me?" Jiang Huahua thought out of nowhere.

The man on the top is tall and thin, but he is not ugly.Jiang Huahua's complexion improved a bit, then she squatted down, shook the man gently, and said, "Wake up, wake up!"

Pushed by her like this, the man became more nervous, and he didn't want to wake up even more.Wake up, what do you want to say?

You can never wake up a person who is pretending to be asleep. Similarly, you can't wake up a person who is pretending to be dizzy.

Jiang Huahua yelled for a while, but the person still didn't respond.At this moment, Jiang Huahua said, "Do you want me to drag him back?"

So she thought for a while, then lifted the man's upper body and began to drag him up.

Even though Jiang Huahua is not in the same grade, she does work a lot after all, so she still has a lot of strength.

She dragged the man up, and when the man heard her breath ringing in his ears, his whole body went numb.

"You are so heavy! I can't tell!" Jiang Huahua felt a little tired after dragging on for a while, so she said this involuntarily.

Hearing this, the man hurriedly used his mana to prop up his body a bit.

At this moment, Jiang Huahua suddenly felt that the man in her arms became lighter.She blinked and continued to drag him back without thinking too much.

At the door of the house, the sister-in-law who was embroidering at the door saw it, and quickly shouted: "Huahua, what are you doing? Who is this?"

Jiang Huahua said: "Sister-in-law, this is the man I picked up! Come and help me!"

The sister-in-law was a little dizzy when she heard this. What is a picked-up man?
But she still called two slaves and carried the man inside.

Then the sister-in-law said, "Huahua, what's going on? How do you pick someone up at home? What if he is a bad person?"

Jiang Huahua immediately said: "He fell on the side of the road. If he is not rescued, he will freeze to death at night!" It was a cold day, and it was still very cold at night.

After hearing this, the sister-in-law moved her mouth, but in the end she didn't say anything.

Hearing a noise, the family's second sister-in-law also rushed over.Then the three women discussed it for a while, and then went to talk to Jiang Huahua's mother about it.

Mother Jiang came over to take a look, and said, "Don't worry, just let the servants keep an eye on it. When the head of the family comes back later, he will take care of it."

When the women heard this, they all agreed.

At this time, the man who pretended to be dizzy finally 'woke up' slowly.

He touched his head and moaned, "Where is this? What's wrong with me?"

As soon as Mother Jiang heard that someone woke up, she said to Jiang Huahua: "Huahua, go get a cup of tea." Then she said to the young man: "This is my home. You fainted on the side of the road and were rescued by my daughter." ,What's wrong with you?"

This person 'suddenly realized' and said: "So that's the case, thank you for saving my life, Miss!"

Then he continued: "I'm from the Yinshan Mansion in the east. After traveling here, I probably fainted from hunger."

"Oh, you are from Yinshan Mansion. How could you faint from hunger?" Mother Jiang asked strangely.

The man showed a look of embarrassment on his face, and then said: "Xiaosheng's family is poor, his parents died early, and Xiaosheng studied at night on his birthday, and he has no time to farm. The dry food that came here has been eaten up. I wanted to come here to beg for a bite of food. Unexpectedly, I couldn't support it." ..."

"Oh!" The three women were stunned.

At this time, Jiang Huahua also came over with a cup of tea. When the man saw her, his face flushed slightly, and he quickly took the tea and drank it.

At this time, the sister-in-law suddenly said: "You said that you study day and night and come here alone, do you still have fame?"

If you don't have a reputation, you will be sent back to eat a board if you run around.

Then, the man showed a reserved smile, and said: "I am not talented, but I am a scholar from Yinshan Mansion." After speaking, he took out a token from his bosom, which was his scholar token!
"Wow! You are really a scholar!" The three women were shocked again!

(End of this chapter)