Reborn in the last years of Kangxi

Chapter 26
I don't know if Cao Yin trusted his son too much, or he went to the doctor in a hurry, but within three to five days, he managed to gather around one hundred thousand taels of banknotes and sent three groups of well-equipped family members to buy tea gardens in various places.However, the matter of pearls was beyond Cao Yong's surprise.

Cao Yong, who came to his father's study again, looked at the death deeds of the Zheng brothers and sisters placed on the table, speechless for a while.Thinking of Zheng Hai once said "I would rather die than be a slave", Cao Yong felt the same way, because of his status, he could not take off the title of royal slave.

"The Zheng family has been fishing for pearls for generations, and the Zheng brothers and sisters all have the ability to distinguish clams and pearls, but they don't know how to raise pearls as you say." Cao Yin said slowly: "You intend to teach others skills, But it doesn’t stick to their identities. Have you thought about their fate? Rather than being tricked by others in the future, it’s better to stay at Cao’s house with peace of mind.”

Seeing that Cao Yong didn't respond, Cao Yin waved his hands and said, "The brothers and sisters are going to Taihu Lake today. If you have anything to say, go to Mianhua Embankment!"

The brothers and sisters of the Zheng family have become slaves of the Cao family. If the Cao family refuses to let them go, let alone them, even their descendants will be slaves and maidservants in the Cao family for generations.Cao Yong left the gate of the mansion, looked up at the sky, and felt a little depressed.

Cao Yin didn't point it out directly, but the meaning was very clear. Since it was a major event related to the rise and fall of the Cao family, naturally only the members of the Cao family could participate.The people of the Cao family, in addition to masters like Cao Yong, also include those servants who are attached to the Cao family.There is no insurmountable gap between loyalty and betrayal, it just depends on whether the weight of betrayal is enough.In Cao Yin's eyes, only the slaves whose life and death are controlled by the Cao family can be trusted.

The bookboy Xiaoman who was on duty beside Cao Yong came here with two horses. Xiaoman is the eldest grandson of Cao Fu, the housekeeper of the Cao family, and the eldest son of Cao Fang, the shopkeeper of Linxiazhai. He just followed Cao Yong recently, and he is younger than Cao Yong. two years old.Cao Yong's original two bookboys, Ximo and Nongmo, were arranged by Cao Yin to follow the stewards to purchase tea gardens.

Cao Yong took the reins from Xiao Man, got on the horse, and said to Xiao Man, "Go pick a pony!"

After hearing this, Xiaoman puffed out his chest, pouted and said, "I underestimated the servant? The servant has learned to ride a horse since he was five years old, and he has been riding a horse for as long as Master!" As he spoke, he stroked the horse's back and landed on it very neatly. horse.

Cao Yong saw that Xiao Man didn't look like a novice, so he stopped worrying about him. He waved his horsewhip and headed towards Mianhua Didu.

When he saw the Mianhuadi ferry in the distance, Cao Yong reined in the horse and slowed down the horse.With Cao Yin's means, even if Zheng's brothers and sisters signed the death contract, they must be grateful, but Cao Yong couldn't help but feel guilty.The two brothers and sisters, who had nothing to do with the Cao family, were forced into this muddy pool.

"Young master, the young master is here, brother!" Seeing Cao Yong, Zheng Woxue pulled Zheng Hai's sleeve a little excitedly.

Zheng Hai took two quick strides, and with a "plop", he knelt down in front of Cao Yong's horse, and said with tears in his eyes, "My lord is very kind, Zheng Hai is willing to serve you with all his heart."

Although Cao Yong didn't know what Cao Yin said to Zheng's brothers and sisters, he couldn't laugh or cry when he saw Zheng Hai's grateful expression. He bought him for ten thousand taels of silver and promised to avenge him for ten years.

Cao Yong jumped off the horse with a little emotion, and helped Zheng Hai: "Don't say that, it can't be satisfactory, Cao Yong is already ashamed and restless."

"That bullshit general stood up for the old thief. My son would rather offend the powerful than protect us brothers and sisters. I will remember this kindness of rebirth!" Zheng Hai said with his fists clenched.

Cao Yong's heart moved, and he roughly knew that Cao Yin was pulling the banner of the General Military Mansion to frighten the two brothers and sisters.Now that the two have signed a death contract, their gratitude is even greater.

Cao Yong didn't say any more, and took the pearl cultivation manual written by himself from his arms, and handed it to Zheng Woxue: "This booklet should be destroyed after reading it. This is a secret related to the lifeline of the industry, and it must not be let Outsiders know. The ten-year agreement, Cao Yong has never forgotten, you brothers and sisters can rest assured!" Although the words are beautiful, Cao Yong does not know in his heart that if the brothers and sisters of the Zheng family rely on the pearl cultivation skills they learned from him to establish themselves or rely on others, he How will you respond.

The skill of cultivating pearls was written by Cao Yong based on what he knew in his previous life.Cao Yong's sister-in-law's family in her previous life was a big pearl-raising family in Suzhou. When Cao Yong was a child, he followed his brother and sister-in-law to the pearl factory to play.In fact, there is not much technological content in raising pearls.It is just to select suitable female oysters and artificially move foreign objects to promote the formation of pearls.However, the difference between ancient and modern times is that pearl cultivation has become industrialized hundreds of years later, and there are enterprises that specialize in cultivating pearl mussels.Right now, we have to start with the selection and breeding of female mussels, which will not yield results in the short term.

Zheng Woxue took the booklet with both hands, put it carefully in his arms, and looked at Cao Yong with a pair of shining eyes gratefully.

The boatman had already asked if they wanted to start the boat, and the steward sent by Cao's mansion to take the brothers and sisters of the Zheng family to Taihu Lake saw the young master of the mansion coming from the bow of the boat, and ran over to say hello.After another toss, Cao Yong watched the Zheng brothers and sisters leave by boat.

The layout that should be laid out has already been laid out. If there are no accidents, the Cao family's deficit problem should be resolved.As for winning the heir apparent, standing on the wrong team, the problem is not with Cao Yin and Cao Yong and his son, but with Cao Yin's stepson Cao Fu after he took office in Jiangning Weaving Mansion.If he didn't die, Cao's parents certainly didn't need an adoptive son to inherit the family business; if he really died, according to historical records, he died of illness within two years of inheriting the weaving mansion, so what would he do with the future rise and fall of the Cao family.

Cao Yong took the reins and turned back to the house, but saw a glass-topped carriage parked not far away, which looked familiar to him.The granddaughter of the hundred-year-old Bai family, the eldest lady of Bihelou?Cao Yong squinted his eyes, feeling a little unhappy in his heart, could it be that he was following him?It is not difficult to find the traces of the brothers and sisters of the Zheng family, and if the Yang family finds out that they are in the Cao family, it will not be too difficult.However, the Cao family is not afraid.Although Cao Yin used the general soldier to frighten the brothers and sisters of the Zheng family, he actually didn't take the second-rank general soldier seriously, let alone the so-called "Yang Wanwan".If you go to the south of the Yangtze River to be an official, if you don't first inquire about the relationship between the Cao family and the royal family, and don't take the Cao family seriously, you will be either a madman or a fool.If someone dared to attack the Cao family without long eyes, and the Cao family did not need to fight back, Emperor Kangxi would not tolerate him.

When Cao Yong rode past the carriage, he heard someone say softly: "Young Master Cao, please stay!"

Cao Yong reined in his horse and stood, and a purple-clothed girl slowly came down from the glazed carriage. Her eyebrows were like distant mountains, and her pupils were like black ink.

The girl in purple walked up to Cao Yong's horse, put her hands on her waist, and saluted: "Little girl Yang Ruixue has met Mr. Cao!"

Cao Yong nodded, as a gift in return, and did not intend to dismount to socialize.Although Yang Ruixue and Zheng Woxue are sisters, their destinies are very different.Whether it was complaining about Zheng Woxue's injustice, or thinking that he might be followed, he didn't have a good impression of the young lady in front of him.

Regarding Cao Yong's rudeness, Yang Ruixue didn't show the slightest bit of annoyance on her face.No matter how rich the Yang family is, they are just businessmen, and in the eyes of officials and officials, their status is not much higher than that of ordinary people.Cao Yong is the son of the weaving mansion, it would be abnormal if he treats too many people warmly.

Yang Ruixue turned around, took out a small package from the carriage, and handed it to Cao Yong with both hands: "I overheard that Ruixue's two close relatives were placed at the son's place. As children, we cannot discuss the right and wrong of elders. Here are Ruixue's kindness, please pass it on to Ruixue's two close relatives."

Cao Yong looked at the package and said, "If you have such a heart, why have you only heard about it in vain for four years?"

After hearing this, Yang Ruixue didn't try to defend herself. Tears welled up in her eyes, and she saluted Cao Yong again: "Please pass it on, my lord!"

Seeing the little girl's stubborn appearance, Cao Yong despised himself a bit in his heart, but it was absurd for him to vent his anger on her for a child of twelve or thirteen years old.It wasn't until today that he discovered that the tactics of the ancients should not be underestimated, and those who can thrive in the officialdom are all masters at figuring out people's hearts.He showed the brothers and sisters of the Zheng family to show kindness and righteousness, but they were no match for Cao Yin's small tricks, in which high and low were established.It seems that in addition to studying literature and martial arts, this kind of scheming is also indispensable, otherwise, maybe at some point, like Zheng Hai, he will be calculated by others, and he will be grateful to Dade.

Cao Yong dismounted and took the package, which was very important. It seemed that there were a lot of property in it. "I'll hand over the things, but it's not up to me to decide whether your relatives will accept them or not!"

When Yang Ruixue saw that Cao Yong had received the package, she breathed a sigh of relief, and asked with a little bit of hope and a little bit of exploration: "The two people who boarded the boat just now are Rui Xuena, those two close relatives? Where are they going?" ? Can you return to Jiangning in the near future?"

Although Yang Ruixue behaved kindly, Cao Yong still didn't want to reveal the whereabouts of Zheng's brothers and sisters, so he didn't answer her question, and responded: "There are still trivial matters at home, next time I will talk to Miss, please forgive me!" , Get on your horse and leave.

Hearing the sound of horseshoes gradually disappearing, Yang Ruixue shed a line of tears, bowed her head and returned to the car.There was a girl in red sitting in the car, and she handed over a handkerchief: "Silly girl, why are you crying! The tighter his mouth is, the safer your poor brothers and sisters will be. Although he didn't reply, he didn't deny what happened just now. The two are your brothers and sisters, and they seem to be inseparable! It’s good for them to leave Jiangning temporarily, lest your father get their ideas!”

After hearing this, Yang Ruixue stopped crying, took the handkerchief, and wiped away her tears: "Mr. Cao's face is cold, but he has a good heart!"

The girl in red looked at Yang Ruixue with a half-smile: "No one in the south of the Yangtze River knows that this Young Master of the Cao family is not very old, but he was praised by the Long Live Lord himself. He has both civil and military skills. .You little babe, could it be that you have moved your heart?"

Yang Ruixue blushed all over her face: "Sister Yongjia is really good at teasing Ruixue, and Ruixue doesn't listen to her." Chirping, the two little girls laughed and quarreled, and the clouds of sorrow dissipated.

After talking about Cao Yong's side, let's talk about the brothers and sisters of the Zheng family.After the boat left the ferry, the brothers and sisters of the Zheng family returned to the boathouse.Because Zheng Woxue changed back to women's clothes, she took up a room by herself, and Zheng Hai shared a room with Cao's steward.Zheng Woxue sat on the bed, took out the brochure Cao Yong gave and read it carefully.I saw her expression, first shocked, then excited, and finally terrified.

Zheng Woxue has a delicate mind, and she has broadened her horizons by following her elder brother to discuss life outside. After reading this brochure, she vaguely understands that someone from the Cao family arranged for them to sign the death contract. what is written in this booklet.She didn't read many books, but she still knew the allusion of "The Crime of Huai Bi".

Zheng Woxue suddenly had an urge to tell her brother the truth, and then the two brothers and sisters ran away, but the idea was put out in a blink of an eye. Running away from a slave is a death penalty.Cao Yong's immature and somewhat heroic face appeared in his mind, and Zheng Woxue's heart slowly calmed down.She sighed, reopened the booklet, and remembered the contents bit by bit.Three days later, when the boat arrived at Taihu Lake, Zheng Woxue had already memorized the contents of the book by heart.Before leaving the boat and landing, she tore the booklet into pieces, soaked it in a basin, and poured it into the river with the water, leaving no traces.

(End of this chapter)