Lie down and eat melon in the protagonist group

Chapter 10

Many refugees were smuggled into Shangfucheng in Yuzhou to seek refuge from disasters. The prices of medicine and food were soared. Street beggars were arrested and chased away by officers and soldiers. Wave after wave made the people in the city panic.

It was dawn, and there was a layer of frost on the roof tiles in the deep alley. A pair of lanterns were hung under the eaves of every house for lighting. After one night, the lights had already been turned off, and the porter's boy held up the pole to replace the lamp.

"The young monk wishes the donor a good morning."

The boy was startled by the sudden sound and raised the lamp to take a look.

What came into view was a young man in monk's clothes who was covered in patches. His hands were clasped together, his hair was tied up in a bun on top of his head. He was neatly tidied from head to toe. He had a handsome face and no one would think he was dirty, but there was a bitterness in his bones. It was so shabby, and there was a faint smell of swill.

"Where did this stinky beggar come from? He didn't go out begging for food on the street so early in the morning, but went to people's doorsteps to scare people. Are you asking for a beating?!" The boy raised the pole and pretended to beat him.

The young man in monk's robes raised his arms to protect his head and said hurriedly: "Donor, you misunderstood, I'm not here to transform into a vegetarian, I am"

The boy scolded him: "I don't care who you are, go away! Go away and don't stand in front of my house and get in the way. It's so unlucky to open the door early in the morning and bump into you, a stinky beggar, and you want to pretend to be a monk, you fool." , go to another house to beg for food!"

The boy in monk's uniform was stabbed several times by the boy and was driven down the steps. The boy even spat a mouthful of phlegm in his face.

There was a loud clang and the door was closed tightly.

The boy in monk's clothes slowly put down his hand and gently pulled at his sleeve. There was a mouthful of phlegm stuck to it. If you look closely, you can see that the color of his monk's robe is half dark and half light.

The dark side is the water that has been poured on it, and it is already half dry.

He put down his arms, still clasping his hands, with no trace of anger on his face. He turned around slowly, with clear eyes and a hint of expectation, he looked at the door in the alley again.

The porter of the Ling family took off the door latch, held a lantern in his hand, and opened the door left and right.

Outside the door stood a young man in monk's attire, clasping his hands in front of the open door and saluting. His voice sounded like a jade chime: "Young monk, please give me a good morning."

"Get out of the way, beggars, don't get in the way." The boy ran out of the door quickly, leaving him alone and moving aside.

A sedan was carried out from the door.

Seeing that this time he was not scolded or beaten, nor was he poured out of the chamber pot to pour water, the young man in monk's uniform happily explained: "This little monk is not here to transform the living room, but..."

The boy pushed him away impatiently: "Who has the time to care what you are? My eldest daughter goes out to open a business, so don't bring trouble. Go, go, go to another house."

Ling Qiong heard the movement outside, raised a corner of the curtain and asked, "What's wrong?"

The boy quickly raised his cheerful face and replied: "It's okay, it's okay. As soon as a beggar blocks the door, I'll chase him away immediately."

The young man in monk's robes stood beside the stone drum, looking towards her, his childlike eyes, the clear pupils shining with candlelight.

Ling Qiong looked at the person from head to toe, her eyes became interested, and she asked someone to stop the sedan.

She told the boy: "Let the kitchen pack a portion of the leftovers for him."

The young man in monk's uniform quickly said, "Wait a minute. Female donor, you have misunderstood. The young monk is here to ask for medicine."

"Ask for medicine?" Ling Qiong waved to him, "Come closer and talk. Did you just call yourself a monk? Are you a monk?"

The young man in monk's uniform came forward, stopped three steps away from the car window, nodded and said, "Yes. The young monk asks for a piece of black grass."

Ling Qiong looked at his black hair and said with a smile: "Oh, I understand, you have long hair and you are a lay monk. What is your name?"

"The young monk's name has passed away. He is a monk and has never returned to secular life."

"Where did it come from?"

"Wen Guan Temple." His eyes fell on his upright fingertips.

"Where is Wenguan Temple?" Ling Qiong suppressed a smile. This little monk doesn't know how to lie, and he always answers questions that are not specifically asked.

"With Yishan." He lowered his head a little.

"Where is Ping Yishan?"

"Outside Shangfu City."

"After such a long journey, you are a local, but your accent doesn't sound like it."

"Does the donor have any medicine?" He changed the topic awkwardly.

"Medicine? What medicine? I'm not sick. What medicine should I take? Are you sick?"

"Thank the donor for your concern. The young monk is not sick. The donor is compassionate, and it is the Buddha who will bless him with peace in his life. The young monk only asks for a piece of black grass for help. Is there a donor?"

"I'm not sick and you're not sick, so who is sick?"

"Abbott."

"What disease?"

"...The stubborn disease has recurred. Does the donor have any medicine?"

"Yes." You kept talking nonsense to me for a long time, and Ling Qiong finally gave him a clear answer.

"Donor, are you willing to give alms to the young monk? The young monk will tie a grass ring and repay the favor with his life." He was overjoyed, and his eyes were so bright, as if the night was full of stars hiding in his eyes.

Ling Qiong suppressed a smile, looked at him with cold eyes, and said in a calm tone: "How much is your life worth? Or to put it another way, a piece of medicine dregs is worth more than a human life nowadays. I am a businessman, not a good person who helps people in need. , I have always paid my dues and never made a loss. I can give you the medicine, but you have to think carefully about what you want to do with me."

"..." He opened his mouth but stopped, struggled for a long time, and said without sadness or anger, "Excuse me, please take my leave first."

"Stop." Ling Qiong stopped him.

He stopped and turned his face in confusion.

Ling Qiong ordered the servant: "Go find the third girl to get the medicine."

Ji already stared at her blankly.

Ling Qiong lowered the curtain, blocked his sight, and said: "I'm in a good mood today, so I'll sell you a favor. Remember, this is a transaction, not a free charity. When the time comes, I will ask you to collect the bill. I'll do it later." Someone will come and give you the medicine, I have something else to do, so I’ll take the first step.”

When we got up the sedan again, it was already bright. In the alley, people are carrying out sedans one after another. The undulating sedan body on the bluestone is a complicated and complicated wave of golden jade veins in the deep alley. No matter how the outside world changes, this wave remains unchanged.

The Mid-Autumn Festival is approaching, and invitations and gift boxes are being sent to Ling's house like water.

Ling Qiong went out to socialize every day, and when she came home smelling of alcohol, she went crazy. Ling Jing was busy taking care of the drunkard at night, and was busy preparing gifts in return and taking care of the housework during the day.

Ling Dang stared out the window in a daze during the day, and stared at the moon in a daze at night. It was obviously a rich day, but her body was getting thinner day by day.

Early this morning, she sat in the garden, staring at the sparrows nesting on the branches.

After a while, Xiao Qi walked around her unsteadily, and the little kid fed her a few snacks. He had no food in his hand, so he squatted on the ground and watched the ants crawling for a while. In the blink of an eye, he was touching her by himself again. Went to the kitchen.

The maids chattered and looked for someone for a while, then turned around and saw Ling Huai pulling Ling Dang towards the gate from a distance.

"Fifth young master! Wait! Where are you taking the fourth girl to go?" The maid hurriedly caught up and stopped them, "You must not do it. If the fourth girl has any good intentions, the third girl will definitely drive us away. Please forgive us." Let’s.”

"Get out of the way." Ling Huai said with a cold face.

"The third girl said it,"

"If she has anything to say, let her tell me face to face." Ling Huai scolded the maid, "Her words are golden rules. You should give me orders as an imperial edict. But don't forget, I am also the master in this family. How dare you disobey me? , there is no distinction between superiority and inferiority, I have the right to reprimand him on the spot. I said get out of the way, don’t you understand?" The maid broke into a cold sweat and did not dare to stop him again.

Ling Huai led Ling Dang out of the door smoothly.

During this period, Ling Dang turned around and saw the maid turning around hastily. Without thinking, she went to Ling Jing to report the news.

Ling Dang pulled Ling Huai, who was walking straight forward, to his feet and said with a smile, "Forget it, I don't want to go."

He held her hand tightly and said softly: "A Dang, I want to hear the truth from you. If you want to, feel free to follow me. If you really don't want to, we will turn around and go back immediately. I listen to you."

"Third Sister will be angry, and I don't want to cause any trouble to you. It's better to go back." Ling Dang couldn't move his hand.

He smiled and said, "Okay, I get it."

As soon as he finished speaking, he pulled her and ran forward.

"Huh?" Ling Dang didn't react and was forced to follow him outside. When he came to his senses, he shouted to him urgently, "Wrong, wrong! I told you to go back! You ran the wrong way!"

He turned his head and smiled at her: "That's right. You meant to go back, but I think you want to go out. Seeing is believing."

She couldn't laugh or cry: "How can you be so unreasonable!"

Seeing that she was finally willing to smile, he slowed down and said, "Then tell me, do you understand what I said?"

She pretended to be angry: "They say it's all nonsense, where does it come from? My eldest sister sent you to the academy to make you understand things, to understand things, to understand all kinds of things, and to test your merits, not to make you talk. You are like this His strong words made several gentlemen angry."

He said: "I don't know whether Mr. Dang is angry or not, but A Dang has something on his mind and is unhappy. I can see it every day."

Ling Dang suddenly felt embarrassed to have a child worry about her. Her eyes wandered away from him. She was soft-hearted but said harshly: "Nonsense. It's nothing. You must be overthinking."

He did not expose her, and was willing to follow her words: "Then just think of me as being sentimental, and I will make my own decision today and take you to have a good tour of Shangfu City."

In the years of famine and plague, Shangfu City remained as prosperous and lively as ever.

The shops and restaurants on both sides of the street opened their doors to welcome visitors. The street is crowded with hawker stalls, and pedestrians are passing each other. The sound of storytelling, singing and shouting can be heard.

As soon as Ling Dang came to Shangfucheng, he was locked up at home. Except for a quick glance on the day he first arrived, he never came out again, and he never even set foot in the deep alley in front of his house.

Nowadays, everything she looks at is pleasing to the eye, and everything she listens to feels relaxed and happy.

The negative emotions accumulated in my heart were swept away in an instant.

"I used to go to town alone in the countryside. The town is not as lively as here, and the things sold are not as diverse as in the city, but one thing is good. The same thing is more affordable than what is sold here. The same thing is, I have been poor for ten years and have no money to buy anything. If I had known I would go shopping today, I should have brought all my personal money with me. Hey, Ah Huai, do you have enough money with you?"

Ling Dang was mumbling with food in her mouth, and holding a lot of weird gadgets in her arms. Ling Huai, who was behind her, was not only responsible for being her purse, but also helping her pick up her bags. I bought big and small bags along the way.

Ling Huai was holding a donkey in one hand, and a greased paper bag in the other hand, which contained the grilled fish that she had taken a bite of.

He took out an engraved jade sign and said, "Sister gave me a jade sign from a trading company. You can withdraw it at will with the jade sign. You don't have to worry about money. You can buy the entire Fusong Restaurant."

"Fusong Restaurant?" Lingdang swallowed, stroking the jade plaque like a baby, "Is it that one, that large restaurant in Shangfu City known as the No. 1 gold-selling cave in the world?"

"Yes. The shopkeeper of the restaurant is now the second-in-command of the Lingyun Chamber of Commerce. The Lingyun Chamber of Commerce was founded and run by the eldest sister."

Ling Dang's jaw almost dropped in shock.

She knew Ling Qiong could make money, but she didn't expect her to be so good at making money. In just one year, she had already established a chamber of commerce and was preparing to travel to various parts of the country to make money.

The heroine's golden finger for making money in the story "Get Rich" is indeed well-deserved. She stayed at home, sat in a well and watched the sky. It was only now that she had a personal experience.

She was really curious, how did Ling Qiong acquire so much real money in such a short period of time?
"Do you know what kind of business eldest sister is doing?" She whispered into Ling Huai's ear.

Ling Huai's smile didn't reach his eyes, "I don't know."

Fields, real estate, grain, cloth, medicinal materials, water transportation, secret trade, especially the current war and plague... there are too many businesses involved overtly and covertly.

If Ling Qiong doesn't restrain herself or uses an excuse to make a fortune, sooner or later she will be targeted by the people above her.

Ling Jing stayed in the palace for a long time in her previous life and was used to being rich and wealthy. The checks and balances of the palace walls, the lineage of officials, and the red tape. She is clean, but she is involved in the division between the general trend of the world and the undercurrent of the imperial court. Because wealth is charming, she cannot see that far for a while, so she was caught in the previous life. The royal family took advantage of it thoroughly.

Ling Qiong, on the other hand, only knows how to make money. Although she is clear-minded and decisive, she does not understand the current situation in the court. If no one is around to guide her, she will definitely get nothing.

He is young and has a lot of troubles behind him, so he can't control that much.

There is a lack of people, a think tank who can understand the current situation and know the checks and balances.

Ling Huai looked at the back of Ling Dang's head as he looked around, thinking carefully and multitasking, thinking about who could dig it out and use it now, so he didn't need to be too wary of suspicion.

The two spent a day playing outside. During the day, they went shopping and enjoyed the mountains and rivers. At night, they climbed up to watch the night view and admire the lanterns.

If it weren't for the recent refugee smuggling and a curfew during the Mid-Autumn Festival, they would still be playing until the lights went out before returning home.

As soon as they entered the alley, they saw a row of people standing at the door of Ling's Mansion from a distance, all holding open fires.

"It's over, it's over..." Ling Dang bravely stepped towards the door of the house, holding Ling Huai's arms with both hands, and kept mumbling, "Look at that battle, aren't you going to do anything to the family? What should I do, what should I do? We both won’t be beaten to death, right?”

"No. Don't be afraid, I'm here."

Ling Dang was quite happy to hear his tone, not afraid at all.

Why didn't you realize he was so brave before?
After finally reaching the door, there was a row of maids and women standing in the foyer, holding lanterns in their hands.

"The fourth girl, the fifth young master, and the third girl are in the meeting hall. Please come over here."

"Yeah, I got it." Ling Huai was calm as usual, and Xianxin ordered the maid to send all the messy gadgets he brought back to her house.

On the way, Lingdang tugged on his sleeve and said in a low voice, "Are you going behind my back to take advantage of me?"

He has no fear at all and is as brave as heaven.

He said: "You want to eat? Let the kitchen cook it for you tomorrow."

She pushed him and said, "Who told you this? It's the third sister."

He comforted: "Don't worry, she can only quarrel with me a few times, but she can't bear to say anything wrong about you."

After dilly-dallying along the way, we finally entered the meeting hall.

Ling Jing slowly scraped the foam from her tea, glanced at them, and said angrily: "Hey, I'm back. It's not even midnight yet. Why are you so reluctant to come back? Where are you going to play tomorrow? It's early. Give me a message, so that you don’t have to drag a whole family to wait for you two to have dinner. You two have eaten and drank well outside, not to mention how comfortable you are. But it’s a good thing, at home, you are hungry and frightened, and you are so anxious that you have sores on the corners of your mouth. I You deserve to work hard and worry about your life, unable to sleep in the middle of the night, enduring the cold, and respectfully welcome the two living ancestors to return to peace."

Listen, listen, these words make people feel chills on their heels and on the back of their necks.

chilly.

Ling Dang quickly put on a flattering smile and called her: "Third Sister"

As soon as the words came out, Ling Jing directly ordered the maid beside her: "It's late at night, send the fourth girl back to the house."

"Yes. Fourth girl, please." The maids gathered around him, and Lingdang turned back three times with each step.

As soon as Ling Dang left, Ling Jing instantly lowered her face and said coldly: "Ah Huai stays, and everyone else leaves."

(End of this chapter)