I am an immortal in heaven and earth

Chapter 25 The landlord’s family doesn’t have any food left.
Xu Jia left here and entered Xu's father's study. Xu's father was reading an article inside. Seeing Xu Jia coming, he felt relieved.

"Don't be too tired. Rest when you need to."

In order to understand the world view, Xu Jia must read more books, otherwise it will be troublesome if some historical knowledge does not match up.

"It's okay. I just read a book and pass the time. It's impossible to lie down all day long."

After saying that, he picked up a copy of "Da Ning Ben Jing Tong Yi" and started reading.

The advantage of having a strong soul is that it has a photographic memory. The disadvantage is that it is prone to "high blood pressure". Once the brain is overused, the temples will bulge, jumps and jumps, and people are prone to dizziness.

Because of his photographic memory, Xu Jia flipped through the book very quickly, which attracted Xu's father's attention.

Seeing Xu Jia put the book back after flipping through it in less than half a quarter of an hour, and then took out another book, he muttered in his heart: Aren't you looking for this book? Why do you still turn every page? One glance and ten lines are not so fast.

Xu Jia's second book is "Anthology of Ancient and Modern Articles". The pre-Qin articles are no different. After the establishment of the Chu Dynasty, there were many articles whose authors were unknown and unknown. But it doesn't matter, just stuff them all into your brain. Let’s talk about it later.

After reading it as if it were a scanned file, Xu Jia put the second book back and picked up the third one.

Ordinary scholars have no history books at all. Xu Jia cannot accurately understand history from Xu's father's collection of books. After all, only extremely wealthy families can afford to read history.

If you must study history, you can only go to a home with a rich collection of books to borrow them, or visit a famous teacher to give a lecture on history.

Xu's father was obsessed with fame in his early years. Most of these are some fussy handouts, the so-called "counseling books", which are purely for "going ashore".

He didn't know much about the specific history, the concept was vague, and he hadn't read any articles by famous writers since the pre-Qin Dynasty.

Xu Jia had no choice, so he opened the third book "Selected Articles on the Imperial Examination of the Qing'an Mansion in the First Year of Ji Tai".

But I heard Xu's father say: "You are so lofty, what are you reading these articles on promoting people? How much can you read if you flip through the book so quickly?"

"Is it because I said something to you before that you made a show of it in front of me?"

Xu Jia didn't even raise his head, he just turned the pages of the book and said, "After reading it, I naturally took it in."

Father Xu suppressed his anger: What a loud tone!

Then he asked: "I want to ask you, self-denial and restoration of propriety are benevolence. How can I solve the problem?"

Xu Jia smiled slightly and started to search in his mind. There was no need to use it, he just copied it and said: "Restraining oneself and returning to etiquette means cultivating one's virtue internally and practicing one's etiquette externally. This is the ultimate benevolence. He who restrains oneself, It’s not just about abstaining from desires and emotions, it’s actually about suppressing selfish desires and showing justice..."

This question is quite satisfactory, but the topic is very big, and it directly asks about "benevolence".

But Xu Jia had read the books of his predecessor in his room before, and had just read two or three of Xu's father's guidance books. In addition, he had lived for more than a hundred years in his previous life, and he had also read some Confucian classics, and now they have been integrated into them. Used it.

All I can say is, it’s time to pretend.

Xu Jia knew that Xu's father had doubts about him, but if he could fulfill his long-cherished wish and get a good name, or hope that his father would succeed and help him get a good name, his doubts would be gone, because this is a real benefit. This fame is also an honor in his family tree.

Of course, Xu Jia could also abandon this family and wander around the world to practice alone.

But Xu Jia is not such a person, and if he feels guilty, there is another cause and effect.

When Xu Jia returned, Father Xu's tone softened: "Yes, although I have not made great progress, I have not forgotten what I have learned. If I am a scholar, I should be stable, but I must not be arrogant and show off my cleverness. Only by being more practical can you go further.”

"You have had a talent for reading since you were a child, but you have to give full play to this talent and work harder. Otherwise, your talent will be wasted and it will be difficult to achieve anything."

"There is also a box in my room, which contains Jinshi articles and policy essays copied from the capital. Although the topics were from the Enke period three years ago and are no longer fashionable, it is still good to read the articles without looking at the flesh, only the skeleton. It’s enough for you to ponder for a long time. If you like to see it, I’ll show it to you tomorrow.”

Xu Jia didn't like such nagging lessons. Maybe he saw himself as a teacher in his previous life?
But I didn't expect that a scholar's family would have a collection of Jinshi articles... This was an unexpected surprise. It seems that the "printing industry" in this world should be relatively developed... and it lacks a technology to make money.

Xu Jia himself was not obsessed with fame. He took the examination for the sake of "status", that is, "fame".

As a Juren, you can better assist yourself in practicing Taoism. Moreover, people generally cannot reach official positions unless they take the initiative to donate.

With this identity, there is no problem in walking around in the county town. As long as you don't forcefully confront the government, if you ask for some small or big wishes, someone will immediately fulfill them for you.

Juren can also build various industries, which is something that scholars cannot do.

As Xu Jia cultivates Taoism, it is expected that he will spend money like water. Whether he obtains the meritorious examination or helps Xu's father obtain the meritorious examination, it is enough to support the expenses in the early stage of his cultivation.

No matter how you say it, getting admitted to a prestigious university is an investment that will bring you a lot of profits.

Seeing Xu's father's teachings, Xu Jia seemed unable to stop, so after reading the book, he interrupted him and said, "Dad, besides collecting rent from a hundred acres of fertile land, does our family have any other income?"

"I also made some loans." Xu's father was interrupted and was a little stunned.

He also wanted to make a long argument, saying that being young may not necessarily be a good thing, to encourage Xu Jia to study better, and then hope that his son will become a dragon, and he will see Xu Jia pass the imperial examination and win the Jinshi.

Xu Jia frowned: "Is there anything else?"

"Why do you ask this?" Xu's father became wary.

"I never cared about it before. Now that I'm sick, I need to spend a lot of money to take care of myself. I definitely have to ask. If my family is going to be poor, I'll save more. If I'm still okay, I'll get better soon." "Xu Jia coaxed him.

Xu's father explained: "Your grandfather was quite rich at that time, but he suffered a big loss later, so he sold everything, not even leaving the merchant ship, so he exchanged it for this house and the The inheritance of a hundred acres of fertile land, when your mother comes to marry into our house, she will also bring a dowry of ten acres of mulberry fields."

"According to previous years' accounting, the annual rent collected from just one hundred acres of fertile land is about one hundred taels. It is more in good years and less in widowhood. After excluding taxes, there are only more than eighty taels left."

"But the wages given to the mothers-in-law, the filial piety paid to the county government during the holidays, food, drink, clothing, and favors only cost seven or eighty-eight dollars. If you save some things throughout the year, you can still have two or three dollars left. Ten taels of silver."

"That ten acres of mulberry field can raise ten mats of silkworms and collect cocoons twice a year. If nothing goes wrong, it can produce two to three hundred kilograms of raw silk."

"Your mother and the female workers will weave these raw silks into silk and satin together. There will be about fifty or sixty pieces, and you can earn about thirty or forty taels of silver."

When Xu Jia heard this, he had only one thought in his mind, and that was: The landlord's family doesn't have any food left! Xu Jia looked at how big his house was, covering an area of ​​two or three acres, and thought it was very beautiful.

When Xu's father heard that his son was concerned about these things, he didn't feel that he was not doing his job properly. After all, if you don't clean up one family, how can you sweep over the world? Managing a family is the same as governing a country.

"It sounds like you can save fifty taels of silver a year, which is already a lot. But if you calculate it carefully, there is actually not much surplus. You and I, father and son, can study, buy pens and ink, give your wife a set, or buy some new products. Even if you don’t buy the books and just hire someone to copy them, it’s still a huge expense, and it’s more expensive than food and clothing.”

Xu Jia became even more silent. After much calculation, he could only barely maintain his income and expenditure every year, and there was even a possibility of a fiscal deficit.

Damn Huang Zhenren, didn’t he say that he would join a middle-class wealthy family? Can I support my initial practice? Is it necessary to practice in a prodigal style of "selling one's land to one's son"?

Seeing Xu Jia's visible disappointment, Xu's father even felt disgusted. Some of his temples were beating, and somehow he opened his mouth and said, "Of course, your grandfather still has some savings from his business days."

Xu Jia's eyes glowed again and he immediately asked: "How many are there?"

Xu's father immediately regretted it. He had thought of not telling him, but he was not afraid of thieves stealing, he was just afraid that thieves would miss him...

Since my son asked, let’s take him with him to have a look.

After taking a deep breath, he stood up and said, "Follow me!"

But he led him to the back room. There was a side room in the back room, which was converted into a latrine. There was a toilet bucket. Xu's father moved the toilet bucket and the board. There was a cellar. Xu's father led Xu Jia down. , I touched two boxes in the dark, one big and one small.

Xu's father opened the box and lit the fire. The light suddenly illuminated. There was silver in the big box. There is gold in the small box.

At this time, everything reflects light and shines with precious light.

"This is what your grandfather left behind. There are two thousand taels of silver and one hundred taels of gold. The gold is five taels per rod, making a total of twenty. The silver is made into a collar with twenty taels, making a total of one hundred taels. Collar."

"In addition, our house deed, land deed, and land deed are all stored here."

"This can be considered as giving you the details." Xu's father said: "Your grandfather originally planned to use this money to arrange a small official with real power for me after I passed the exam, but he never used it."

"Now I say the same thing, you are admitted to the Juren Examination, and you can do whatever you want with the money. As for your health care, your mother and I still have two hundred taels of savings, which we have saved over the years. If we don't specifically need those Eat ginseng antler slices as food, no matter how carefully you raise them, one or two years will be enough for you."

Xu Jia secretly said: One or two years? I'll spend it all on you in a month or two! Adding in these financial resources, one or two years would be enough.

Xu Jia looked at the gold and silver, estimated how long it would last, and asked: "Dad, then you will just sit at home and rest on your laurels, and have no plans to open up the money?"

Xu's father said: "I have also thought that if it were replaced by land, money would definitely be able to make money, but the court has regulations, and land is already at the top level."

"As for doing business, I'm not that good at it. Don't lose everything instead."

"Now I'm just looking forward to fulfilling your grandfather's last wish, passing the imperial examination, becoming a civil servant, and having a good background."

"In total, it has been five years since your grandfather passed away, and it has been two years since your grandma passed away. The period of filial piety will be over next year, and we, father and son, can take the exam together."

Xu's father is actually only in his early forties and is considered a "prime man". Even if he takes the exam at the age of sixty, he can still take the exam four or five times.

When Xu Jia heard what he said, he knew that the money could not be spent for the time being, so he secretly said: "This house's feng shui, no matter how hard it is, it can't force a person to be promoted, and two people can go out of work to study.

If no one passes the exam, the family will be ruined sooner or later in a few years. How can I earn money to practice?

Are you going to touch the ancestral graves? To promote the Xu family's official and literary fortunes?

The art of Feng Shui is divided into Yang Zhai Feng Shui and Yin Zhai. Xu Jia is good at Yang Zhai Feng Shui, arranging the physical body dojo, and his research on Yin Zhai is very general, but this general is better than many ordinary Feng Shui masters.

In fact, it is also the thought of "immortality and precious life" that is at work. As long as you live comfortably while alive, who cares about the affairs of your descendants after death?
That means focusing on the present and despising the next life.

Moreover, the basic environment in the previous life prohibits tampering with ancestral graves. Digging out the ancestors' corpses and moving them elsewhere cannot be decided by just one person.

Since it is useless at home, there is no need to do any research.

On the contrary, those disciples in the previous life were very interested in this kind of thing. They often showed the yang houses and measured the yin houses of some powerful and extremely wealthy people. After making a lot of money, they bought various treasures for practice. Provide support to Xu Jia.

When Xu Jia built the Taoist temple in San Francisco, the United States, he used dismantled Ming Dynasty buildings, relocated and restored Ming Dynasty murals, various Taoist inscriptions and stone carvings, ancient classics, antique magical instruments, inheritance and layout from various generations. In formation...

After the dojo was built, Xu Jia could even leave his body and wander around the Dharma Realm during the day, but Blue Star's Dharma Realm was very chaotic.

There is red light on the Chinese side.

Here in the United States, demons are everywhere and evil spirits are blooming.

In order to open up this dojo, Xu Jia even followed the example of the ancestor Tianshi who subdued the ghosts of the Six Heavens, swayed the demons and eliminated evil, and maintained order in the area.

After the San Francisco Dojo was built in the United States, it lived up to Xu Jia's trust. Although it was not a natural cave and paradise, it was also a fairyland.

Xu Jia lived in it, and his vitality did not diminish with age, but his wisdom became more and more abundant. Only then when he was nearly a hundred years old, he succeeded in holding the elixir, and his state was no less than that of Zhang Sanfeng and others. It's just that Xu Jia has no one like Zhang Sanfeng who can beat him, and he hasn't passed the last magic test fantasy realm.

When Xu's father saw Xu Jia deep in thought, he asked, "What? Is there pressure in just the county exam?"

Xu Jia shook his head and left. If he wanted money, he had to rely on Niu Congcong.

Seeing his hopeless look, Xu's father was a little unconvinced: "What do you mean by shaking your head?" Does it mean that I can't pass the exam, or that you can't pass the exam, or that you think your family background is too thin?
The two left the cellar, Xu's father closed the bricks and put Gong Tong back to its place.

After learning about the specific family background, Xu Jia had an idea and planned to formulate a specific plan for cultivating immortality in the future.

I went back to the room and massaged my acupuncture points for a while, took a piece of ginseng in my mouth, and then I closed my eyes and rested my mind.

I say it's to rest my mind, but actually it's to digest the books I read. If you want to become an immortal, in addition to relying on others for support, you have to rely more on yourself.

(End of this chapter)