Do you know the long song of laughter?

Chapter 130 Cao Gang and Salt Gang

After the Sheng family arrived, they exchanged a few words and then began to board the ship.

Together, Sheng Hong and Sheng Changbai sent Mrs. Sheng to the cabin on the second floor to settle down. They told Minglan to take good care of Mrs. Sheng before coming down from the second floor.

"Zi Qian, I have to ask you to take care of me along the way." Sheng Changbai cupped his hands.

When a junior gets married, Sheng Hong will naturally not take leave to go there in person.

Originally, Mrs. Wang, the matron of the house, or him, the eldest son of the second wife, should go, but Mrs. Sheng knew that Mrs. Wang always looked down on the eldest house, so asking her to go would only cause trouble for the eldest house.

And he couldn't leave because he had to take the county examination.

The old lady Sheng and the old lady from the Sheng family's main house hadn't seen each other for many years. I heard that the eldest lady was in poor health and wanted to go back for a visit.

"Haha, don't worry. But you have to work hard. At the feet of the Emperor Bianjing, there are many scholars and a prosperous literary style, which is not comparable to Yangzhou. Don't expect me to pass the county examination and you not to pass." Li An said with a smile.

Sheng Changbai smiled confidently and said, "How about we agree that if anyone fails the county examination, Fan Lou will treat him to a drink?"

"One drink is not enough, I think a month's stay is enough." Li An said with a smile.

"Okay." Sheng Chang nodded and agreed.

"Haha, I think Zhong Huai should be counted as one. If he misses the mark this time, when he returns to Bianjing, he will treat him every day." Li An said with a smile.

A few days ago, Gu Tingye wrote a letter saying that he would take the county examination this year, and he was full of confidence between the lines.

"Haha, I'm afraid this plan of yours will come to nothing. Since Zhong Huai is participating, he must be certain." Sheng Changbai said with a smile.

"Bai'er, it's getting late, let's go down."

Sheng Hong came out of the cabin and said to Sheng Changbai who was talking to Li An.

"Yes." Sheng Changbai responded.

"Zi Qian, you need to have a guarantee to participate in the county examination. Now the general judge of Yangzhou is Zhou Lushi back then. You have met him too. Remember to ask him for help when you go back."

Sheng Hong looked at Li An, a hint of complexity flashed in his eyes.

On weekdays, he also communicated with Zhuang Xuexue about the studies of several people.

Zhuang Xuexue's evaluation of Li An is not much worse than Changbai's.

He has also read Li An's articles. He has made great progress in recent years and has a good chance of passing the Jinshi exam in the future.

If he had known that Li An had achieved what he has achieved now, he would definitely have accepted Li An as his student.

"Thank you, Mr. Shanda, for reminding me." Li An bowed.

In ancient imperial examinations, there was a mutual guarantee system. "History of the Song Dynasty: Election Records" records that the rulers of the late Song Dynasty stipulated that when recommending scholars in tribute, "their editions and records must be checked first, and their behavior must be inspected... Every ten people must be guaranteed. If there is a lack of movement within, you will not be able to even sit and lift.”

This means that when selecting talents for tribute, localities must first carefully examine their household registration, behavioral qualities, etc. to ensure that the persons they choose are consistent with their names.

In order to prevent impostors, substitute exams, and imperial examination fraud, ten people will be set as one guarantee. If a tribute scholar is found to be of bad character or disrespectful in the examination room, in addition to being severely punished himself, the nine fellow security guards will never be allowed to take the examination.

Because the co-insurers are jointly and severally liable, they are generally not acquaintances, and no one would be willing to co-insure with someone they don’t know well.

Without continuous guarantee, you would not be able to take part in the imperial examination.

Although Li An had studied in Yangzhou Academy for a year before, he had been away for many years. It was not easy to find someone to sponsor him when he returned this time.

Sheng Hong meant to ask Li An to find Zhou Lushi back then. If there were officials as guarantees, there would be no need for additional guarantees.

After Sheng Hong and his family got off the boat, the boat set sail soon.

When Bianjing Pier was out of sight, Li An took Shi Zhu and Desheng into the cabin.

Li An, the three of them and several servants accompanying the Sheng family lived in the cabin on the first floor.

Mrs. Sheng, Minglan and the maid are all on the second floor. Although we set off early, the sun had already risen when we set sail.

Li An returned to the room and sat by the window and read a book.

"Sir, drink some water."

Desheng packed up the gifts and poured a bowl of herbal tea for Li An.

Li An put down the book and saw that Desheng's face looked a little strange, so he asked: "You don't get seasick, do you?"

"Back to the young master, I haven't left Bianjing since I was a child. This is my first time taking a boat. I'm really a little dizzy." Desheng said.

"Okay, you can go down and rest. It will only take two days to get used to it. Before you get used to it, I don't need you to serve me here." Li An waved his hand.

He was really afraid that Desheng would vomit in his room later.

"Thank you, sir." Desheng said gratefully.

After Desheng left, Li An drank some water, looked at the stone pillars again, and returned to the room to continue reading.

There are also advantages to following the Sheng family's boat. There are many servants accompanying them, and meals and snacks are prepared.

In the evening, the weather cooled down, and Li An walked out of the cabin to get some air after having been in the house all day.

At this time, the sun was setting in the west, and the surface of the canal was coated with a layer of golden clouds, which was very gorgeous.

Li An stood on the bow of the boat and couldn't help but sigh: "The sunset is infinitely beautiful, but it's almost dusk."

The sailors who were really busy on the bow plywood didn't feel anything at all when they heard Li An's words, and continued busy with their own affairs.

For those of them who have been running back and forth on the canal for a long time to make a living, they have long been numb to such scenery.

After Li An sighed, he admired the beautiful scenery for a while, turned around and said to a sailor not far away: "Brother, it's almost dark today, and the ship is still moving. Do you want to sail at night?"

"Go back to this young master, it's summer now, it gets dark very late, it's still about an hour before it gets dark, and we'll arrive at a pier in another half an hour, and we'll dock by then. It's too dangerous to sail at night, Don't dare," said the sailor.

Even if the moon is good at night, they generally do not sail at night. After all, if the clouds close the moon, it will be troublesome.

Li An nodded and asked: "I heard that there are often water bandits on the canal. I don't know if it is true or not?"

"There are indeed water bandits on the canal, but you don't have to worry, sir. Those bandits are mostly found in those barren stretches of the river. It's very safe to go from Bianjing to Jiangnan. But it's best for you, sir, to stay in the cabin at night and not come out." The sailor said later. , the voice was much lowered.

Li An was startled and asked in confusion: "Why is this?"

The sailor looked around and whispered: "The most terrifying thing on this canal is not the water bandits, but the Cao Gang and the Salt Gang."

"Caogang and Yangang?"

Li An was a little surprised when he heard this. Cao Gang and Yan Gang had appeared in some novels, so he still knew about it.

However, the Cao Gang is not as mysterious as written in some novels. It is just an organization formed by the union of ship bosses engaged in water transportation.

It is relatively loose, just organized to help each other.

In the original work, Gu Tingye's brother and sister-in-law who followed Shi Shi were from the Cao Gang.

If it was really that mysterious, Shitou wouldn't be Gu Tingye's follower.

"The people in the Cao Gang are okay. As long as you don't mess with them, they won't cause trouble. The most terrifying thing is the Yan Gang. In fact, there used to be some night boats on the river at night. But in recent decades, they have disappeared because of the The river surface belongs to the Salt Gang." The sailor said in a low voice.

Li An was thoughtful after hearing this, took out a silver coin from his pocket and handed it to the sailor.

"Thank you, Young Master." The sailor took the silver with a happy face.

"Can you tell me about the Salt Gang?" Li An said.

(End of this chapter)