Northern Song Dynasty: It’s a showdown, who said I, Zhao Zhen, don’t have a son?

Chapter 82 The New Year Begins
After staying up all night last night, Zhao He didn't get up until noon the next day.

The charcoal fire made the stove glow red, and the whole room was warm.

Zhao He stared blankly at the beam above his head, not wanting to move.

Outside the house, someone seemed to be talking. From the sound, it seemed that Zhou Fei and others were chatting.

If you don’t want to move, just lie down...

In the middle of winter, a stove and a warm quilt are the best match. This seems to have some kind of temptation. Once you fall into it, you can't extricate yourself.

Nothing happened anyway...

As soon as he had this idea, he remembered that Qin Wan had asked him to visit him when he was in the first year of junior high school, saying that he still had lucky money.

Apart from this, Cao Lang definitely wanted to visit. After all, the other party took good care of him, so he should go because of both emotion and reason.

And Su Xun, if he has nothing to do, go there and show his face. This is a long-term goal. After he becomes a third-level scholar, he will be an old friend of the Su family.

Emotions are cultivated step by step.

When he lifted the quilt, a cold feeling hit his face. He quickly put on the warm clothes on the side and felt better.

When he opened the door, his originally groggy brain was suddenly awakened by the cool breeze, and he was greeted by a vast white scene.

It snowed very thickly last night, and there were already two huge snowdrifts in the yard.

Old man Guo Huaifan and Zhou Fei were chatting in the courtyard at this time, seemingly discussing their plans for this year.

Zhou Fei said that he lived quite comfortably here and planned to continue to follow Zhao Heqian, and the treatment was much better than that at Zuo Sili Prison.

Fan Zhongyan said with a smile that talented people will not be treated badly no matter where they go, but Zhou Fei's talent was not discovered before.

Guo Huai smiled playfully and looked at Fan Zhongyan without speaking. This look directly made Fan Zhongyan a little unhappy, and he immediately put on a look of contempt.

The two still couldn't get along as always.

When the door of the room was opened, the three of them saw Zhao He who had just woken up, and they all said hello.

"We've already eaten lunch. If you are hungry, young man, there is still something hot in the kitchen."

Zhao He shook his head: "I ate too much last night and haven't digested it yet. I don't think I'm hungry."

Fan Zhongyan chuckled and said, "It's rare for you to be at ease. You don't have to go to the morning market in the morning. The sun is shining on your butt when you wake up. Little do you know that students from all over the country are preparing for exams in preparation for spring."

Zhao He asked back: "I don't take the imperial examination, what does it have to do with me?"

Fan Zhongyan had nothing to say about this, so he immediately waved his hand and turned to leave.

"I'm going to take a rest."

Zhao He looked at Guo Huai and asked, "Has anyone visited me this morning?"

Guo Huai then said: "All the neighbors on Chonghe Street came to pay their respects for the New Year, but you were not awake at that time. I said I would let you know when I woke up, but no one else did."

Zhao He nodded: "Then let's go for a walk, as we come and go."

"As it should be."

Then the three of them went to visit from house to house. The custom in the north was to go in groups to pay New Year greetings in the early morning. Every time they saw a large group of people, it looked like a war.

On the streets, at this time, you can also see many people going from house to house to pay New Year greetings and seek good luck, which adds to the friendship between neighbors.

Similar to some large clans in Bianjing City, this kind of etiquette is even more essential. They will pay New Year greetings in order according to the seniority ranking in the clan. The larger the clan, the more complicated it is, and you can also see some interesting things. things.

For example, a group of low-ranking old men are required to call a young man who has not yet been crowned grandpa according to etiquette, and they have to kneel down and kowtow.Clan relations, etiquette, and laws are often difficult for Chinese people to break away from. It is precisely because of this system and concept from ancient times to the present that the ancient Chinese civilization has not had a cultural gap for 5000 years, and it has also created the China of later generations.

In about half an hour, everyone on Chonghe Street had already celebrated the New Year, so Zhao He took the two of them to Chunming Tower.

Chunming Building on the first day of the new year seemed a little deserted. After all, today is a special day. Yesterday's New Year's Eve banquet was extremely lively. After the fun was over, everyone went back to their homes.

There are only a few guests in the building, either coming with friends or looking melancholy and drinking to drown their sorrows. There are thousands of people with different faces, each with something to be happy or worried about. This is the most real appearance in the world.

Zhao He found a steward in the building and expressed his desire to meet Qin Wan. The steward in the building said that Qin Wan had rushed back to Qin Mansion after finishing his work in the morning.

No matter what you say, you have to pay a visit. It doesn't matter whether you go to Chunming Tower or Qin Mansion.

After asking about the location of the Qin Mansion, I found that it seemed a bit far away, so I changed my route and went to see Cao Lang first.

The street is a peaceful scene, but occasionally you can see a bulge buried in snow in the corner of the street. If you look carefully, you can see a blue hand exposed in the snowdrift, obviously I was frozen to death in the heavy snow last night.

Although the Song Dynasty was unprecedentedly prosperous in Chinese history, this situation was unavoidable. There were always some people who could not survive this winter. This was the case in a big city like Bianjing, not to mention other places.

Historical records show that in normal years, [-] to [-] people freeze to death every year. If there is a natural disaster, even more people will die.

In order to avoid some situations, Zhao He still informed the officers and soldiers on duty at the roadside. When they heard the news of the death, the officers and soldiers looked very calm.

"There is no way. There are always some people who have sold their houses and land. They have no food or clothing. They can't survive. It just snowed and it's the Chinese New Year. Let's leave it there first. It's too unlucky. Kaifeng Mansion tomorrow Someone will be sent to deal with it."

Zhao He didn't say anything, and there were no ups and downs in his heart.

People are dead, and sympathy is useless. If they are still alive, Zhao He will help as much as possible, but only within the scope of possibility.

You can feel pity for those who have suffered misfortune, but you can't be overly compassionate, especially in this era.

Cao Lang, as the director of the Zuosi Liyuan Prison in Kaifeng Prefecture, would go back for a New Year's Eve dinner on holiday, but he would still be on duty the next day.

As expected, Cao Lang was in Kaifeng Mansion and rushed out when he heard the news of Zhao He's visit.

"Haha, I thought you had forgotten me. I helped you so much and didn't even know I was here to say New Year. I couldn't have just woken up, right?"

Zhao He smiled awkwardly and said: "Brother Cao Mingjian, I went to bed too late last night. The first person who came to see me when I went out was Brother Cao."

Cao Lang chuckled, but didn't say anything else: "There are a lot of things going on in Kaifeng Mansion today, so I won't talk to you anymore. I'll see you when I have time."

Zhao He asked curiously: "Is it about the people who died in the city?"

Cao Lang raised his eyebrows, a little surprised: "Your guess is quite accurate. Did you see him on the way here?"

Zhao He nodded: "The weather is cold in winter, and the body will not decompose too quickly. It is okay to process it slower, but if there are many people, it will be easily eaten by wild dogs on the road. In case of some illness or something, it is not a problem." Very good."

"This is the case even in Bianjing City. I'm afraid the situation everywhere will not be too good. If we wait until the ice and snow melt in the beginning of spring, I'm afraid there will be a plague."

Cao Lang frowned tightly and muttered something to himself, similar to "Is there a plague?" "It would have happened in previous years" and "It would be fine if there was no trouble."

After a while, Cao Lang came back to his senses and said, "Bao Zheng is also having a headache with this matter recently. If you have any good opinions, please tell me. You should return my favor."

Zhao Hexiao asked, "You won't owe anything once you pay it off?"

Cao Lang laughed and scolded: "You owe me a lot of favors, and you won't be able to pay them back in a while."

Zhao He thought for a moment: "I do have some suggestions, but there are many, and I won't be able to explain them clearly for a while. I'll send someone to give you the coupons tomorrow."

Cao Lang nodded, and the two parties said goodbye.

(End of this chapter)