The literary giants of the late Ming Dynasty began by copying books

Chapter 76 Hotel Merchant
Hearing Huang Daozhou's praise for himself, Wang Wenlong knew himself. He did not continue to bring up the topic here, but instead asked Huang Daozhou: "Where will Huang Xian's brother go to Quzhou?"

"Last year, Baoshan Yu Xiting came to Guangdong. We had a very pleasant conversation and invited me to study in the academy."

Wang Wenlong cupped his hands and said with a smile: "My little friend must have learned a lot to be appreciated by Mr. Xiting."

Yu Xiting's birth name was Yu Jianlong. He was a son of a wealthy family in Quzhou and was proficient in Yi studies. Wang Wenlong knew him because he was a famous upright official in the late Ming Dynasty. However, Yu Xiting had never been admitted to the Juren Examination in his life, and his official position depended on tribute.

Wang Wenlong could also take this path if he wanted to become an official, but he would have to spend a lot of money to buy one, and in the end he would probably only be able to reach the level of county magistrate.

For example, Yu Xiting was later known as a clean and honest man because he served as a county magistrate in various poor places. He did not take any money from the local area. He was very considerate of the people and everything he encountered, and he was widely known among the people.

In fact, this is also a helpless choice because he really wants to work for the country but has not been admitted to the imperial examination. However, no matter how good his reputation as an official is, without a Jinshi title, he will only be able to become a county magistrate when he is old.

Ye Chengxue and Wang Wenlong had a good impression of Huang Daozhou, so the three of them went together.

It was not until evening that a few people arrived at Xianxia Pass.

Seeing that it was about to get dark, Ye Chengxue's steward reported back: "Young master and gentlemen, we can't get to Xianxia Pass today. It's hard to drive at night. It's better to rest in a roadside hotel first."

Wang Wenlong and Huang Daozhou both nodded, so Ye Chengxue ordered: "Go and pick up a clean one."

Several people walked into a village. Because it was very close to Xianxia Pass, there were quite a few hotels in the village.But these hotels are all engaged in caravan business, so it’s hard to say how clean they are.

The last few people chose a hotel with a relatively large reputation, but it was renovated by a temple. The door was repainted, the original name of the temple on the plaque was obliterated, and the name of the hotel was rewritten.

The area is quite vast. There are horse stables and guard rooms on the left and right after entering the door. After passing through a hall, behind the screen wall is the guest room.

It was just after the New Year, and many businessmen were rushing to go to Quzhou. It was already late when Wang Wenlong and others arrived, and the hotel was almost full.

Fortunately, Ye Cheng's academic wealth was so great that he directly spent money to buy three single rooms. As for the entourage he brought with him, he could only arrange to live in Datongpu.

Everyone bought a room, but it was a bit dirty. Ye Chengxue's servant quickly went to clean it up, and the three of them went out to the patio to rest.

The moonlight was just right that night, and the environment inside Datong Shop was even more uncomfortable, so many people running business were sitting and chatting in the patio, not wanting to go back to their rooms until it was time to rest in the evening.

At this time, several businessmen were talking around a middle-aged man. The middle-aged man was wearing a large headscarf and looked like he was a scholar. He was probably an accountant in the caravan.

A fat businessman smiled and said: "Mr. Zhang, if you read the book "History of Portugal" again, we can also listen to it to relieve our boredom."

Mr. Zhang's boss opened the room and came out. He said to the fat businessman: "Old Chen, you don't know what's going on. My Mr. Zhang has read to you all the way. Why don't you let him rest at night? He is the helper I hired." Yes, I’m not here to comment on you guys.”

There were more than a dozen of Boss Chen's clerks, and it was a very large caravan. They all smiled and said, "Let him read it again. The stories in "History of Portugal" are really better than what the comments say."

Even Mr. Zhang's clerks had many expectant looks on their faces. There were other caravans resting in the courtyard, and they all came over when they heard the name "History of Portugal".

"Dare you mean Wang Jianyang's "History of Portugal"?" The old Chen who was the first to make a fuss said with a smile: "Wu Laocai, do you think so many people want to listen to the story of "History of Portugal"? If not, just "History of Portugal" Lend it to me and I'll let the gentlemen in my team read it. If you want to listen, just sit down and listen."

Wu Laocai shook his head after hearing this.

Lao Chen said unhappily: "Your business is not small, why are you so stingy?"

Wu Laocai said: "Who is stingy? I bought this book myself. When I was buying the book in Jianyang, I asked you whether to buy it and you didn't say anything. Now who are you blaming?"

Old Chen laughed and said: "The bookseller who broke into the inn said that the books were engraved by Santai Museum, but do you think the quality of the books is from Santai Museum? At first glance, they are reproductions from small workshops, and they sold me two taels of silver for a set. , I thought it was too expensive and was reluctant to buy it."

"I didn't want to do it at that time, so now you come to read my book for free?"

The people nearby hurriedly came up to break up the fight. The two caravan bosses were still cursing and quarreling for a while, but other people in the inn were already talking:
"This "History of Portugal" writes the story of Portugal as if it comes alive. Do you think how talented the author Wang Jianyang must be to write such a story?"

"Wang Jianyang is the real scholar. He talks about principles that fall to the ground, unlike other literati who just drop their books in high places."

"I went back to my hometown at the end of the year to have a drink with the scholars from the county school, and they even took the initiative to talk about "History of Portugal". Fortunately, I had read this story and could talk to those scholars for the first time."

It's not the first lunar month, and most of the people staying in the hotel at this time are businessmen who are on their way to Zhejiang, and the trade volume they handle is not small. Many of them have read the "History of Portugal" which writes the history of commercial development.I was very impressed by the mercantilist thinking revealed in the book.

"Hey, when did those scholars ever see us as traders? It was only after the publication of "History of Portugal" that they knew how good we were as traders."

"It will be great if we can do something like the Portuguese businessmen in "The History of Portugal"."

"Haha, in Portugal, their big businessmen can open offices and build mansions, and the country will naturally be strong. In our Ming Dynasty, we can never even think about that in our lifetime!"

There were also scholars in the conversation.

Mr. Zhang was flipping through the "History of Portugal". Hearing this, he raised his head and said dissatisfiedly: "How can little Portugal be compared with our Ming Dynasty? They can't control it with that kind of means. We, the people of Ming Dynasty, will know after reading "History of Portugal" These principles will definitely help them surpass those barbarians in the future. Since Portugal can make a fortune through commerce, how can we, the Ming Dynasty, not do the same? If we can really make a fortune through commerce, the status of the merchants in our Ming Dynasty can also be improved in the future."

Even Ming businessmen who were discriminated against when doing business still believed that they were citizens of the Celestial Kingdom. They were a little unhappy that some people thought that Ming Dynasty was not even comparable to Portugal. After listening to Mr. Zhang’s words, everyone agreed: "This gentleman is right, that's exactly what it is!"

A group of people chatted happily, and other guests gradually joined in the discussion.

Ye Chengxue listened to everyone's discussion and said to Wang Wenlong with envy: "Jianyang, you are now famous all over the world."

Wang Wenlong was also a little surprised, but he knew his own weight and did not dare to be too proud. He just smiled.

　The first of six updates is here

　　
　
(End of this chapter)