Guide to Traveling through the Northern Song Dynasty.

Chapter 170 0165 [Thousand Years Ganoderma Lucidum Only Three Years Away]

The official ship docked outside Yangzhou City, and many officials, gentry, and common people watched from afar.

The news that Duke Yuanzhang had captured the emperor's messenger had been spread by subordinate officials.

While people were surprised, they also felt very relieved.When they heard that the ship was coming, they rushed to tell each other, and ran to the riverside to watch the excitement.

"Hey, Mr. Zhu got into big trouble this time!" Zheng Lan frowned.

Fatty Zheng said: "Weng Weng, although I am very stupid, Zhu Xianggong is a smart person. I know this is a disaster, how could Zhu Xianggong not know? He must have a way to solve the disaster."

Zheng Lan shook her head: "No matter what, let's look at it again, the young lady will not be sent to Tokyo for now, for fear of being implicated by his Zhu family and his son."

Zheng Hong disagreed, and said: "Who in Yangzhou doesn't know that my family is doing business with Daming Village? It is the method of frying tea, which Mr. Zhu taught my family. What a disaster, can my family escape? There must be those officials and merchants who took the opportunity to make false accusations, so as to seize my family's business. At this time, sending the younger sister to Tokyo to marry Dalang as a concubine will show my family's sincerity. If I wait until next year, I will go to climb there. Wealth, what does Zhu Dalang think?"

Zheng Lan hesitated, but insisted on her own opinion: "Don't take risks."

"Weng Weng!" Zheng Hong was a little anxious.

Zheng Lan said: "Don't say any more."

Zheng Hong really wanted to say "Zhuzi's inadequacy and strategy", but this Shuzi is his own grandfather, so it's really hard to swear.

Fatty Zheng searched his brains to sort out his words, and asked, "Weng Weng, how is Mr. Zhu?"

Zheng Lan said: "It's good."

Fatty Zheng exhausted all his life's knowledge and elaborated: "Zhu Xianggong recruits the poor, distributes the land, and lends seeds. This is benevolence. Sweet potatoes and corn are highly productive, but he is willing to promote the cultivation of prefectures and counties. This is also benevolence. Ah. The method of frying tea can produce ten thousand gold, but he kept his promise and passed it on to my family this year. There is also that Confucian, Mr. Chen, who admires Zhu Xianggong quite a lot. So many smart people admire him, how can Zhu Xianggong be smart? This is wisdom. Such a person, there is no way to detain a eunuch ?”

This discussion was not very exciting and rigorous, but it still made Zheng Lan a little moved.

However, Zheng Lan still didn't want to gamble: "Our family has learned how to stir-fry tea, so we will definitely become richer and richer in the future. It is said that the officials favor eunuchs, and Zhu Xianggong arrested the eunuchs, most likely to burn himself, and the Zheng family must not get involved go in."

Fatty Zheng was so depressed that he wanted to vomit blood, and asked again: "Weng Weng, how many years does Yangzhou have a Jinshi?"

Zheng Lan said: "Sometimes ten years, sometimes two to thirty years."

Fatty Zheng said: "This year, there were three Jinshi. If we wait for the next time, wouldn't we have to wait another 30 or [-] years? If the Zheng family wants to marry Jinshi officers in the future, they can only cling to those from other places. Those foreign Jinshi officers, How many people are willing to marry merchants? Let’s say that the son of Li Tongpan, the young lady married to be a continuation string, but everyone else flatly refused! If you want to marry, you can only marry our daughter as a concubine. Marry the young and unmarried Zhu Dalang Is being a concubine the same as marrying a foreign official as a concubine? Without the protection of an official, can our Zheng family's business go smoothly?"

Zheng Lan hesitated even more, unable to make up his mind for a while.

Of course he understood what his grandson said, but when people get older, they tend to be conservative, and if they think too much, they will be in a dilemma.

Zheng Lan thought over and over again, took her granddaughter's birthday horoscope, and ran to the sorceress in the city for divination.

Don't feel ridiculous, divination in the Northern Song Dynasty was too popular.

According to Wang Anshi's "Bian Shuo", there are more than [-] people living by divination inside and outside Tokyo alone.

What Zheng Lan was looking for was Zigu Goddess, a mainstream divination technique in the Song Dynasty.

Zigu was originally a concubine in the Southern and Northern Dynasties, but was jealous by her main wife, and died in the toilet on the fifteenth day of the first lunar month.God was merciful, and made Zigu the god of the toilet, also known as "the third girl in the pit".

During the Tang and Song dynasties, people would greet the toilet god on the Lantern Festival.

The day before the festival, prepare the dung basket, put a ring on the hairpin of the dung basket, and put it next to the toilet for worship.You also need to burn incense and candles, and if all the children come to worship, they will be blessed by Zigu, so that they will not fall into the cesspit and drown in the future.

Now Zigu has evolved and is not only the god of toilets, but also the god of divination, calligraphy, and pot throwing.

Zigu Divination has two business specializations:
One is that the woman asks about the news of her sweetheart; the other is that the scholar asks if he can pass the imperial examination.

It is quite like the god of women and the god of imperial examinations.

There were even scholars who asked Zigu which questions to take before the imperial examination...

But Zheng Lan led the servants and followed the sorceress to the toilet.

The sorceress was dressed in many plants and vines, and she looked a little like a druid in her attire.

She was holding a dustpan in her hand, which was Zigu's skirt.Then write the requested information on paper, and insert the paper and pen on the top of the dustpan.

The two boys stepped forward to hold the dustpan, and the sorceress began to ask Zi Gu to go up.

After a burst of trembling like an epileptic seizure, Zigu finally lifted her upper body, and said in a solemn tone, "Who is here?"

Zheng Lan quickly replied: "Miss Zi, I am Zheng Lan, a merchant from Yangzhou."

Zigu said, "I already know what you're asking for."

Zheng Lan asked, "Should I marry off my granddaughter?"

Zigu said: "This matter is extraordinary, the secret must not be revealed."

Zheng Lan asked the servant to take out a few strings of money and put them in front of the dustpan: "Madam Zi, please tell me a thing or two."

Zigu is also educated, and she actually started to recite poems: "Because of the infinite beauty of Yunping, Fengcheng is afraid of the spring night."

Zheng Lan didn't understand, so she hurriedly asked, "How do you explain these two sentences?"

The witch trembled all over, and Zi Gu had already left.

Zheng Lan asked the sorceress again: "Because of the infinite beauty of Yunping, Fengcheng... Fengcheng...how can this be explained?"

The sorceress added the last two sentences: "I married a wealthy son-in-law for no reason, and I failed to live up to the court. Congratulations to the old official Zheng, the young lady of the Zheng family has a fortune, and the husband-in-law is afraid that he will be able to go to the court to pay respects in the future."

"Really?" Zheng Lan was overjoyed.

He has believed three points, because he did not disclose more information, and he did not say who he would marry his granddaughter to.

The sentence of ascending to the pavilion to worship the prime minister is probably fulfilled by Tan Hualang of Jinke!

Zheng Lan offered some more money and bid farewell to the sorceress with a smile on her face.

Back home, Zheng Lan called her grandson: "Take your young lady, go to the boat outside the city immediately, and bring some gold collars as a dowry. Just go with Zhu Xianggong, don't say anything else, just take your young lady with you." Mother is going to Tokyo to visit relatives."

Zheng Yuanyi was reluctant to be pulled into the carriage, feeling rather reluctant, but also somewhat looking forward to it.

Her personal servant girl also followed.

There are also two rather strong young women, who are female sumo wrestlers of the Zheng family, and they are also going to Tokyo on this trip.

It can be seen that Zheng Lan really loves his granddaughter, and he also matched with two thugs to prevent being bullied by his wife in the future.

Another two strong men, also sumo wrestlers, served as Zheng Hong's bodyguards.Four more house slaves went to Tokyo together to obey Zheng Hong's orders at any time.

The official ship is purchasing items and will leave tomorrow morning.

Fatty Zheng took his younger sister and asked to board the ship in the evening.

"Where are you going?" Zhu Guoxiang asked.

Zheng Hong said: "Go to Tokyo to visit relatives."

Zhu Guoxiang frowned, and didn't think too much about it, just as if they were traveling together.

The next day, set off early in the morning.

When passing through Xingyuan Mansion, Zhu Guoxiang took the gold and silver and returned them to the transfer envoy and other officials.

Carrying the Ganoderma lucidum as a signboard, he took out the receipts of Yangzhou officials and asked the officials of Xingyuan Mansion to also sign the receipts.

Follow Baoshui all the way to a place where I can no longer sail.

Zhu Guoxiang brought all the tied up eunuchs and forbidden soldiers ashore, and ordered: "Except for that guy Fang Mao, let the rest be untied!"

They hadn't untied yet, just tore off the rags from their mouths, and those guys started yelling.

Zhu Guoxiang turned a deaf ear to it, so Deng Chun took out the Ganoderma lucidum and asked, "What is this?"

There was more than one eunuch, and a young eunuch said, "This is a thousand... thousand year Ganoderma lucidum?"

Zhu Guoxiang said: "It's not only a thousand years? In three years, it will be ten thousand years of Ganoderma lucidum. Ordinary people will be free from disease and disaster after eating it, and they will remain young forever! I planned to dedicate it to the government after three years. Alas... you forced Too hasty, ruining the ten thousand years of practice of Ganoderma lucidum, and the elixir of life is gone."

The young eunuchs were all dumbfounded, no matter whether this statement is true or not, if the officials know it, it must be true.

Fang Mao is doomed!
The eunuchs knelt down in unison: "It was Fang Mao who forced my husband to save my life, and it has nothing to do with us!"

The soldiers of the Imperial Army also knelt down and begged Zhu Guoxiang for help, they were afraid that the emperor would anger everyone.

Zhu Guoxiang was noncommittal, and asked someone to bring tea, and said: "I have developed a black tea, which is only a few hundred catties, and has never been sold in the market. Black tea and Ganoderma lucidum are dedicated to the government. There are not enough people. , you all have to help carry the tea, and each will send ten catties as a reward for carrying the tea."

Tea for the Emperor?

Ten catties per person?
The emotions of the eunuchs and the imperial guards went up and down like a roller coaster ride.

If Zhu Guoxiang is willing to give tea, he will definitely not embarrass them.

Once the emperor likes to drink this tea, the price will definitely skyrocket, and each of them can earn a fortune from the ten catties of black tea in their hands.

The imperial guards had no psychological burden, and hurriedly shouted: "We heard from Mr. Zhu that it was Fang Mao who was playing tricks!"

Zhu Guoxiang said: "This Fang Mao not only asked for bribes along the way, but also wanted to ask for gold and silver when he arrived at Daming Village. He heard that there are ten thousand-year-old Ganoderma lucidum, and he wanted to cut off a piece for himself. You can only tie him up first!"

"Yes, this Fang Mao is ambitious and wants to live forever." A eunuch immediately agreed.

Another eunuch said: "Zhu Xianggong said that the Ganoderma lucidum would take three years to become the elixir of immortality. But Fang Mao refused to wait, and didn't know to go back and report to the officials, so he forced Zhu Xianggong to pick the Ganoderma lucidum in advance!"

Another eunuch said: "Fang Mao is still disrespectful to the officials. Let's urge him to hurry and don't delay the official errands. But he said that the official errands are not urgent, and the right way is to get more gold and silver. He also said that he left Tokyo. , the officials are blind and deaf, no matter what we do, we are not afraid of the officials knowing."

A soldier of the imperial army said: "Fang Mao, when he was planning to return, he asked for Yangzhou specialties to take to Tokyo to sell. He didn't remember that the officials told him to go back quickly!"

Another eunuch said: "Fang Mao also told us that the officials were mistaken and said that Zhu Xianggong must be bluffing and deceiving. He didn't think about being ordered to conquer. He planned to tie Zhu Xianggong to Tokyo."

These guys, every word you say, is all accusing Fang Mao'an of crimes.

And the more he said it, the more outrageous it became. There was even a forbidden soldier who angrily scolded Fang Mao for bullying men and women, and forcing women from good families to be concubines.

If there is something, Fang Mao did say it.

Fang Mao has indeed done some things.

But most of them are made up, anyway, the worse the Fang Mao is, the better.

Fang Mao was lying on the ground with a rag stuffed in his mouth.He faltered in his mouth and wanted to refute, his body twisted and turned, but he couldn't struggle at all, and in the end he could only keep crying.

Zheng Hong witnessed the whole process, and he couldn't help but sigh in his heart: "Mr. Zhu is really extraordinary, and the method of turning black and white has been perfected!"

Rest for the night and go on foot.

The eunuchs and soldiers of the Forbidden Army all voluntarily worked as tea-carrying coolies, happily marching along the slope, and seemed to have become Zhu Guoxiang's subordinates.

(End of this chapter)