Reborn in the last years of Kangxi

Chapter 71
West of the city, Cao Mansion, outside the gate.

Far away, at the corner of the alley, stood a middle-aged man in his 30s, leaning against the wall, as if basking in the sun.If you look carefully, you will find that his eyes are always in the direction of the entrance of Cao Mansion.

"The state of the world is different, and the beauty is old in the dust for half a lifetime; it's not early to brush the clothes, and the puppets are making trouble. Weeping and laughing at the end of the road, and laughing. They are all rested, Yuhu Qiongdao, and there are few people in the eternal sorrow." Following the babbling Ah humming in a low voice, an old man in his fifties came riding leisurely on a green mule, in front of him was a boy of thirteen or fourteen holding the reins.

When the middle-aged man passed by, the old man glanced over there seemingly unintentionally, then squinted his eyes and continued to hum: "Look at him, he is half-breasted, and he doesn't want to lose his smile. Thanks to my peach blossom fan." Break it into pieces, and no idiots will be allowed to spit out soft silk to bind them all."

After a while, I saw a young man with a weak crown walking out of the gate of Cao's house, his face was a little pale.After coming out, he turned his head, looked at the gate of Cao Mansion, stomped his feet vigorously, and left in a distracted manner, just in the direction that the old man came, and almost bumped into the mule boy.

The young man saw that someone was so reckless and wanted to refuse, but he was a discerning person. Seeing that the other party was wearing Qingsu brocade and came out from the front mansion, it could be seen that he had status, so he just held the rein and wanted to avoid.

When he heard the mule's nasal sound, the young man came to his senses, stepped back sideways, with a little more apology on his face, and hurriedly cupped his hands and said, "I'm really sorry!"

The old man glanced at the corner with the corner of his eye first, then nodded and said: "It's okay, it's okay, you are welcome!"

*
Cao Mansion, front hall.

Cao Yong took a sip of warm tea, but he was still an older child, so it was really heavy to bear these burdens.

Gu Na didn't come here to ask for peace. After all, in the eyes of outsiders, he "betrayed" the Cao family. It would be really strange if they still walked around with each other.That time in March, because he hadn't seen Cao Yong for a few years, he came to the door under the banner of "wooing" Cao's family for Brother Nine.Now this time, it is to give money.He is frugal by nature, and his only hobbies are reading and writing. Over the years, whether it was given by Cao Yong or Brother Jiu, he has saved some money.

In the past two years, there has been a lot of noise about the Ministry of Accounting's pursuit of the shortfall, and Gu Na naturally knows all about it under Brother Nine.Today, the Cao family is one of the largest debtors. It is not a secret that the Cao family's son sells land and sends slaves in the capital.

Gu Na has already decided to let him go to another post, either to Shandong or Anhui, and he will be able to come down with official documents in a few days.He knew that although his little cousin was not a luxurious person, he had never suffered since he was a child, and he didn't want him to live a wronged life in Beijing, so he exchanged his savings for the past few years for bank notes send over.

Although Cao Yong's money is a little tight now, he still hasn't accepted these banknotes.Since Brother Nine is willing to let Gu Na go out to be an official, his purpose is nothing more than two, to make money or to develop local influence.Gu Na has been upright since he was a child, lacking in flexibility, fearing that he is not suitable for such an errand.At that time, it would be bad if it caused dissatisfaction from the higher-ups. At that time, some money can be used to pay tribute, and you can also spend money to buy comfort.

Although Gu Na is apparently a few years older, how can he compare with Cao Yong when he is reasonable?In the end, I had no choice but to put it away reluctantly, and left feeling disappointed.

*
Although Xiaoman was arranged to rest, he was not willing to calm down. After changing into clean clothes, he told a few young men in the mansion about the grassland about his experience.

Seeing someone coming in through the door, Xiaoman looked over curiously, and someone beside him said in a low voice: "Mr. Zhuang went to drink tea and listen to an opera again, and he has never seen such a leisurely teacher in our house!"

Xiao Man has been loyal to Cao Yong on a daily basis, and he has already slandered Mr. Zhuang in his heart, but he still whispered on his face: "Speak up, Mr. was specially invited by the master for the uncle. How can he arrange it at will? Although the uncle is lenient to the servants, he is tolerant Don't do this!" After finishing speaking, he got up to greet him, and said a thousand: "Xiao Man greets sir, I haven't seen you in a few months, and seeing that his complexion is better than before, it's not in vain for our uncle to worry about it!"

Zhuang Xi nodded: "You are also good. You are taller and more polite than before. It seems that this place outside the Great Wall is a good place to train people!"

Hearing the praise, Xiaoman puffed out his chest, and said with a little pride: "You are right, although Xiaoman's status is humble, but you can't lose the face of the Cao family when you go out, right. The people who come and go with the uncle are not the prince and elder brother. , it belongs to the county king Baylor, Xiaoman has indeed gained a lot of knowledge!"

Zhuang Xi smiled, and ordered the servant behind him: "Send the food you just bought outside Zhengyang Gate to the kitchen, and I ordered it carefully, cut it into thin slices, keep the rest well, don't waste it!"

Seeing that Zhuang Xi spoke solemnly, Xiao Man looked like a paper bag in the boy's hand: "Sir, what is this?"

Zhuang Xi said: "Last month, a new Fushun Zhai was opened outside Zhengyangmen. This is his signature sauced beef!"

Xiao Man heard that it was beef, so he lost interest. In the past few months outside the Great Wall, he felt sick to his stomach from eating beef and mutton, and wished he could eat porridge and side dishes.

*
Cao Yong was in the front hall. He had already got Mr. Zhuang's letter to return home, so he stood up to greet him.

Faced with Cao Yong's greetings, Zhuang Xi's face was still indifferent. After entering the room and taking a seat, he simply asked a few words outside the Great Wall, and he was particularly concerned about the matter of raising the flag of Cao's family.

"An old man in a family is like a treasure." Cao Yong never dared to underestimate the wisdom of the elders. Seeing that Zhuang Xi frowned and pondered, he asked: "Master feels something is wrong about raising the flag!"

Zhuang Xi nodded, looked at the door, but said nothing.

Seeing that Zhuang Xi was worried, Cao Yong sent the little maid who served tea in the hall to go out to guard, and no one was allowed to come in.Afterwards, the two went to the small study in the front hall to talk.

*
"Mr. is worried, is he afraid that the Cao family will lose their status as a coater and lose the protection from above?" Cao Yong asked after the two sat down.

Zhuang Xi shook his head: "Today, you are very kind to the Cao family, as we all know, I will not belittle you for the sake of fame!"

"What are you worried about, sir?" Cao Yong was a little puzzled.

Zhuang Xi looked a little solemn: "I have lived for most of my life, and I have been somewhat transparent about the world, but I really can't fathom that person's mind!" Then he pointed to it with his finger, and continued: " This kind of flag raising also happened in this dynasty. Most of them had military merits or women were nobles, and the whole family or the whole clan raised the flag. Like the Cao family, it was the first time to raise the flag because of the children's birthdays, but they didn't know What the hell is that guy thinking!"

Cao Yong thought of his sister: "It is said that it is because my sister became the county king Fujin, and it was only because my father declined a few years ago that this matter was delayed!"

Zhuang Xi tapped the table with his fingers: "It's just words, don't believe it! Since I received your letter from your family in mid-July and knew about the raising of the flag, I have inquired about Fujin's background in the capital's palaces in private. It is not uncommon for people who enter the clan to raise the flag, but there are very few natal families who accept grace with them. Most of them are like King Ping Fujin, who raised the flag after marriage and raised their status to prepare for marriage."

Cao Yong knew this for the first time, paused for a while, and said: "If it wasn't for my sister's honor, then it should be regarded as the compensation for the Cao family! Now, there is another big hole!"

"If you want to come and go, this is the only reason left! Although he did not enter the court as an official, I heard that the one who values ​​friendship the most. The Cao family is counted as the uncle, but three generations of grandparents and grandchildren have served in this court!" Zhuang Xi After finishing speaking, the seriousness on his face remained unchanged: "Even so, the Cao family is still not out of danger!"

Cao Yong's heart sank, he spent so much time arranging, and nearly half of the shortfall has been repaid. If things go on like this, the accounts should be cleared after three to five years. Why is it still not stopping?
"Yong'er, do you know that at present, eight out of ten teahouses in the capital use Cao's tea; in all major tea houses, Cao's tea is almost monopolized for mid-to-high-end tea. The tea is lucrative and eye-catching. If it wasn't for Sheng Jia not being in the capital, someone might not be able to resist. Now that Sheng Jia is back, it won't take long for someone to try him out!" Zhuang Xi said seriously.

It turned out that this was the matter, and Cao Yong felt relieved: "If you don't want to be strong, gold and silver are just numbers after you have enough food and clothing. The Cao family developed these tea gardens for the purpose of repaying the debts. When the accounts are cleared, they will be turned over to the Ministry of Internal Affairs!"

Hearing Cao Yong's free and easy words, Zhuang Xi couldn't help clapping his hands and applauded: "What a man who can be strong without desire! It's really a blessing for the family to have a son like this!"

It turned out that Cao Yin had this worry in his heart since his tea profits became more abundant in the past two years. He was afraid that the Cao family would cause other disasters when they repaid the debts, so he had the idea of ​​handing over the tea estate.However, after all, it was Cao Yong's idea to develop these tea gardens, and he didn't make up his mind until he knew what his son was thinking.

Mr. Zhuang Chang was afraid that father and son would be separated because of the tea house, so he mentioned it in a letter to his cousin.

Hearing Zhuang Xi's praise, Cao Yong wanted to share the reason, secretly amused, what is there to covet about such floating wealth on the table, you must know that besides the tea garden and pearls, there is also Wei Xin's side.Wei Xin went to Guangzhou for more than three years, and studied business at the Thirteenth Bank, and now he occasionally makes small fortunes to make money, and he has started to make money.

After Mr. Zhuang let go of his worries, he thought about the sneaky person he saw when he just came back: "Yong'er, if you want the Cao family to be safe for a while, you can just have that person to take care of you. Just an idea!"

(End of this chapter)