Linxia

Chapter 164, Gods and Demons

After entering the city, Ji Guangxiang bought the carriage at the market price. Compared with the original purchase price, he not only did not lose money, but also made a little profit, not to mention that he had wasted so much time. Then, he sent Fang Lin and his party to Xixiang Hutong.

When the neighbors in the alley saw Fang Lin and his group, they came forward to greet them enthusiastically. They didn't even ask the caravan members to help with moving things. With so many people, they took all the things in no time.

"Fang family elder sister, Xiaoxuan, when you were not here, we felt like something was missing when we gathered at Xiaowu Mountain. Now it's great that you are finally back."

"I think Linzi has gained a lot of weight since he returned to his hometown for the New Year."

"Xiaoxuan is becoming more and more beautiful."

……

The Qiu family, the Man family, the Xin family, the Lu family... people from each family helped to bring things over, and so many people filled the house.

Fang Lin and Tian Xuan shared some local specialties they brought, such as persimmon cakes, and everyone thanked them.

The neighbors are not like the villagers who have not seen the world, but they are not well-off either. The specialties brought from Xiaohe Village are considered good things for them. Many of them are reluctant to eat them and plan to take them back to leave for their children and grandchildren.

They also understood the situation and did not sit for long. They asked Fang Lin to pack up and go back to the open space of "Xiaowu Mountain". They also invited Fang's mother and Tian Xuan to pack up and go back.

Sister Guihua and Su Xiaoqing were called by Fang's mother to stay. Fang's mother gave them some of the things they brought back and gave Su Xiaoqing the letter from the Geng family.

On this side, Sister Guihua took the things, thanked them, thought for a moment and asked, "Linzi, did you see anyone from Old Chen's family in the next village when you went back?"

This is out of caution, fearing that the other party has not given up.

"I heard that Chen Guiyun and Chen Feng divorced after they returned that time. I met Widow Chen and chatted with her for a while, but she never mentioned you from beginning to end." Fang Lin knew what Sister Guihua wanted to ask, so he answered.

"I see. I guess they don't want to see me anymore."

Sister Guihua was holding her daughter Chen Ye's hand. She nodded slightly when she heard the words and tucked her hair behind her ears. She looked weak and fragile, and it was hard to tell that she was the culprit who had scared Widow Chen and the other two so much that they fled back in embarrassment.

"I'm going to Mr. Ou's house to see Guaiguai and Huahua and bring them back." Fang Lin said as he took some local specialties to the Ou family.

He just walked off with his front foot.

"Ugh!" Tian Xuan covered her chest and heaved subconsciously.

"Xiaoxuan, did you have a stomachache? No, we ate the same thing on the road. Could it be..." Fang's mother reacted.

Sister Guihua and Su Xiaoqing reacted faster. They looked at each other and laughed, "I'm afraid she's pregnant? Let's ask someone to come over and take her pulse."

……

At the Ou family, Mr. Ou was not at home. He had gone to see a doctor and get some medicine. Only Mrs. Ou was left at home.

"Mrs. Ou, why have you become so thin?" Fang Lin came over and was shocked when he saw Mrs. Ou.

Mrs. Ou was even thinner than I had remembered. Her round face, which everyone said was blessed and wealthy, had almost lost its shape. She looked like a bag of bones and looked like she would be blown down by a gust of wind.

She had a large piece of cloth wrapped around her left chest, which had obviously rotted away due to illness. She stood up to greet him, and her whole body leaned to the right like a tumbler that had lost its balance.

"It's still the same disease... As people get older, they realize that there is no way to fight the disease. It's useless no matter what they do. I know that the days to come may not be too long. One day less means one day less. Every day now is not easy." Mrs. Ou seemed to be in good spirits.

Fang Lin put his things down and walked closer, smelling a stench that could not be covered up by even the slightest scent of dew. One could imagine how serious the disease on Mrs. Ou's body was and how much pain she must be in.

"I'm afraid that for Mrs. Ou, every day now is not just a life, but a torment." He thought, feeling a little sad.

Mrs. Ou insisted on pouring water for Fang Lin. She endured the pain in her body without saying a word. Her face was calm, maintaining a strange dignity.

Fang Lin took the water and sat down. He looked at Guaiguai and Huahua, who were dressed neatly just like Madam Ou, and said to Madam Ou, "They have been bothering you and the Master for the past few days."

"No, no, they keep me company. My husband teaches me to read when she's at home, so life isn't that hard..."

As Mrs. Ou spoke, she happily took out her own handwriting and showed it to Fang Lin, such as "sweet, sour, bitter and spicy" and "accumulating virtue and doing good deeds", every stroke of which was neat and straight.

"I've said before that my disease has no cure, but every time I hear of a doctor who is effective, I'll go and see him no matter how far away he is... He's out, and I don't want to go out, so these two little ones are the only ones to keep me company..."

Fang Lin sat for a while and talked to Mrs. Ou. In the end, he did not take Guaiguai and Huahua back with him, but left them behind first.

……

When he came back, Fang Lin saw Fang's father and mother seeing off Aunt Mo at the entrance of the alley. They had stuffed a lot of things into her and their faces were filled with joy that could not be concealed.

Before he could ask, Fang He said, "Brother Linzi, Aunt Mo checked Sister Xiaoxuan's pulse and said that she is pregnant."

"I'm going to be a father." Fang Lin was stunned for a moment when he heard the sudden news, and then he reacted. Looking at Tian Xuan who was looking at him with shame on her face, he went over to take the things in her hand and asked her to sit down and rest.

"Brother Lin, how could I be so delicate? Besides, it's still very early!" Tian Xuan blushed and shook her head.

Fang Lin, however, acted as if he didn't hear anything. His heart was simply filled with great joy, and he felt a little dazed.

Outside the window, a chilly spring breeze blew past the osmanthus tree in front of Mr. Ou's house and the orange tree in front of the Fang family. Some dead branches fell and tiny new buds grew. The alternation of new and old seemed to herald death and rebirth, decay and vitality.

……

In the afternoon, Fang Lin was still too happy to calm down. He cleaned up the house without letting Tian Xuan help, and Fang's mother agreed.

Tian Xuan knew that Fang Lin must have something to do when he came back, so after packing up his things, she told Fang Lin not to worry and said that she and Fang's mother were going to Xiaowu Mountain and asked him to go out and get busy.

Fang Lin thought about it and realized that it was true. He prepared to go check out the store and send Fang Chuanhui and Fang He to the branch, as well as visit Prefect Pu, Dong Zugao and others one by one.

Xuan Mo Zhai, Fang Lin came over, it's been a long time since we last met, Geng Shi, Liu Hongwen, Huang Di, Chai Yiwei were all very welcoming, and Manager Liu was unexpectedly here too.

Huang Di joked, "Linzi, ask Manager Liu to help look after the store. Manager Liu has been coming here every day these days, so you have to pay him wages."

Without waiting for Fang Lin to speak, Manager Liu waved his hand and said, "I just came here to sit down and I didn't do anything. Just don't charge me for the tea."

"Manager Liu, if you sit here, you will be like a pillar of stability. Don't even mention tea money or anything else. You should be paid for your work. I will definitely welcome you. It will also be convenient for you to take a walk in the morning and evening."

Fang Lin said, "Has Hong Ru's sister-in-law given birth yet?"

"It's a big fat boy, and my husband is taking care of him... I'm not used to being with them, so I come here and sit to get some peace and quiet." Shopkeeper Liu shook his head.

Fang Lin thought of the family affairs that Manager Liu had mentioned and sighed softly. However, it was not easy for him to interfere in such family affairs, so he could only say, "You are welcome to come over at any time."

Afterwards, he looked at the store's accounts for those days. Business was good and there were no problems, so he took Fang Chuanhui and Fang He to the two branches.

……

Liu Hongru is the manager of this branch on Guangfu Street.

Fang Lin sent Fang Chuanhui over, looked at the account book, and talked with Liu Hongru for a while. It was rare that Liu Hongru did not ask about the second part of "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" as soon as they met this time, but brought up another topic: "Brother Fang, the development of case-solving novels is just as you expected. Although there are some excellent works, such as "Song Tixing Juguan Gong'an Chuan", "Xinmin Gong'an", and "Xiangxing Gong'an", recently, with the rampant plagiarism and the lack of originality, the trend has passed and it has become a mess."

"This is true of most things in the world, and it's true of popular novels as well."

Fang Lin shook his head: "People flock to whatever makes money and is easy to write, and write about this genre badly... However, as long as the social atmosphere remains open and free, even if the crime-solving genre declines, other genres will emerge. With a hundred flowers blooming and a hundred schools of thought contending, there will be no shortage of quality works."

"Brother Fang, what you said makes sense. As you said, openness and freedom are the key. Even if there is mud and sand, there are still pearls mixed in. For example, I recently found a good book called "The Complete History of the Han Dynasty", which is a best-seller."

Liu Hongru said, and sighed deeply again: "From my perspective, judging by the Complete History of Han, it is similar to The Popular Romance of the Restoration of the Song Dynasty. The quality of the two is similar, but The Complete History of Han is a success, while The Popular Romance of the Restoration of the Song Dynasty failed. Why? It is nothing more than the wrong time, place and people, and it ran into Brother Fang's The Romance of the Three Kingdoms Part 1."

"Heroes are made by the times. Zhong Zongdian's "Popular Romance of the Restoration of the Song Dynasty" was unlucky. If it were written in a different time, it would not be like this." Fang Lin can be humble himself, but he cannot be humble on behalf of "Romance of the Three Kingdoms".

The quality of Romance of the Three Kingdoms is at the top among all popular novels. If it were not for the other three of the Four Great Classics, which were ordinary masterpieces, it would have been doomed to failure.

"It's not just the Complete History of the Han Dynasty. Brother Fang, I've discovered that a new genre of popular novels has emerged in the north recently, such as The Origin of the Northern Zhenwu Patriarch Xuantian God, The Story of the Five Manifestations of the Great Emperor Huaguang Tianwang, The Origin of the Eight Immortals' Journey to the East, The Complete History of Han Xiangzi... They are all based on folk myths and stories, and are used to tell popular stories..."

Liu Hongru obviously likes this kind of subject matter very much and talks about it endlessly.

"Isn't this a fantasy novel?"

Fang Lin thought: "If we talk about the representative of novels about gods and demons, it is of course "Journey to the West" among the four great classics. However, the line "The Jade Emperor takes turns to sit, next year it will be my turn" is really a bit taboo. In comparison, "Investiture of the Gods" is more suitable."

"Brother Fang, why are you so absent-minded? What are you thinking about?"

"I'm thinking about writing a novel about gods and demons like this someday."

"Mythical novel? That's a great term. Brother Fang's classification is just right. I'm looking forward to Brother Fang's novel." Liu Hongru said, but a hint of resentment appeared on his face: "However, Brother Fang's second part of Romance of the Three Kingdoms hasn't been released yet, so don't keep people on suspense and dig new holes, okay?"

"I was just about to say this. The second part of Romance of the Three Kingdoms has been completed and will be printed and sold soon." Fang Lin's days back home were not spent in vain.

"Hahaha, okay!"

Liu Hongru clapped his hands happily and said with a smile: "After this news spread, I'm afraid that the popular novelists in the city will not dare to publish books. The Popular Romance of the Restoration of the Song Dynasty is a lesson for us. It could have been a big seller, but it failed because it collided with the first part of The Romance of the Three Kingdoms. What an injustice!"

"That's a bit exaggerated, but not too much." Fang Lin smiled, with a look of confidence that no one else could do it better than him: "The second part of Romance of the Three Kingdoms is even more exciting than the first part."

He was right. Of the four planned parts of Romance of the Three Kingdoms, the second part is the peak, and the parts from the 31st to the 60th chapter are the real climax.

From the Battle of Guandu, when Cao Cao defeated Yuan Shao, to Xu Shu recommending Zhuge Liang, and Liu Bei visiting him three times at his cottage, it can be said that Zhuge Liang's appearance marked the climax of the entire Romance of the Three Kingdoms, not to mention the subsequent scenes of Zhuge Liang burning Xinye, Zhao Zilong riding alone to rescue the lord... the debate with scholars, borrowing arrows from a straw boat, cleverly taking advantage of the east wind, angering Zhou Yu three times, losing both the wife and the soldiers, cutting off the beard and abandoning the robe, and so on!

Not to mention, with the foreshadowing of the first part, once the second part of "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" is released, it will surely have an unparalleled momentum, recreating or even surpassing the previous Three Kingdoms craze.

……

After leaving this branch, he went to the branch on Yandaixie Street where Dai Zongqi was the shopkeeper and sent Fang He there, needless to say, to check the account books.

……

Prefect Pu.

Fang Lin came over, brought some local specialties, and told the story of County Magistrate Hou.

"As for Hou Rubai, let's wait and see during this inspection!"

Prefect Pu asked Fang Lin about his experience of returning home, and after a brief chat, he mentioned one thing: "That Censor Han is indeed amazing. He investigated openly and secretly, seized evidence, and struck with lightning speed to clean up the strange fields in Huai'an City. This time, the Fan family in the city were all devastated..."

Fang Lin listened and felt it was a pity. The Fan family had only suffered a thin loss of skin, but was not killed with one blow, not to mention the main branch of the Fan family's Shanxi merchants.

Afterwards, Prefect Pu was busy and declined the invitation to stay for dinner.

……

Dong family.

"Brother Fang, you're back. I couldn't find anyone to drink with lately." Dong Zugao saw Fang Lin and gave him a warm hug.

Go into the house, sit down and pour some tea.

"Brother Dong has been taking care of the bookstore these days." Fang Lin had asked and knew that Dong Zugao had often visited Xuan Mo Zhai and its two branches.

It can be said that during the time he was away, the bookstore business was in perfect order and there were no problems. Dong Zugao played an important role in this.

"Brother Fang, we are brothers, why should we be so polite? Not to mention, I already have a share in the bookstore business."

Dong Zugao shook his head: "I am going to meet Brother Fang now, and then I will go to Beijing to take the exam."

"Then I wish Brother Dong success in the imperial examination and win the first place in the Golden Palace."

"I'm borrowing your good words, brother Fang. Haha, to be honest with you, brother Fang, I have some confidence in this spring's imperial examination. As the saying goes, if you work hard, your momentum will be as strong as a rainbow. Who knows, I might really succeed and become a Jinshi."

Dong Zugao said, and then sighed again: "It's just a pity that I can't be the first to see Brother Fang's "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" Part II."

Fang Lin listened, smiled, and suddenly asked: "When will Brother Dong leave? I will see you off?"

"Tomorrow, I have already prepared it. I just want to wait for Brother Fang to come back and see him again. I know Brother Fang has just come back and is very busy. This dinner tonight is a farewell dinner. There will be many people tomorrow. Those classmates, family relations, etc. are just polite. Why should we brothers go through that kind of formality?"

This is true. The two are sworn brothers. Dong Zugao is a scholar, and Fang Lin has gained great fame because of "Romance of the Three Kingdoms". It can be said that they are completely bound together. This is a friendship of offering a son and a daughter.

……

The next day.

Dong Zugao's classmates and people with various connections in his family came to see him off, making it quite complicated. Fang Lin did not come, but he asked someone to deliver a package.

I got on the boat, entered the cabin, opened it, and found a book inside.

"The second part of Romance of the Three Kingdoms? Brother Fang!" Dong Zugao exclaimed, feeling moved.

Such a manuscript, which had not yet been released, was sent to him just because of his casual sigh. What kind of trust was this?
Opening the cover, the first sentence is: "The second part of "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" was written around the spring of the fourteenth year of Hongtai. I wish my brother Dong Huizugao to win the first place in the Golden Palace, and I wish all the candidates in the world to be on the gold list!"

This is not only a message to Dong Zugao, it will also be published when it is printed. What kind of earth-shaking impact it will bring later is a story for later.

At this moment, Dong Zugao in the cabin was moved and flipped through the books, sinking into the magnificent world of the book.

Outside the window, the river flows slowly, the grass is lush and the birds are flying on both sides. In the far distance of the blue sky, eagles fly in the sky. All things between heaven and earth flourish and are on an upward trend. It is a new beginning.

……

(End of this chapter)