Chastity Layman

  Chapter 52 Ma Zhou's Suggestion

  In the dead of night, everyone sleeps peacefully.

  The majestic Chang'an is like a sleeping monster, Qin's House in Yong'an Square in the south of the city.

  June midsummer night, the moon is dark and the stars are sparse.

  There is a bamboo couch under the verandah, which is covered with a layer of mosquito-proof gauze. Qin Lang and Yuxiao are sitting on the couch, enjoying the tranquility and coolness of the night.

   "Why don't you marry the princess?" Yu Xiao gently pressed Qin Lang's shoulders with moderate strength, which made Qin Lang enjoy it very much.

"Princess is not called marrying, but Shang. Do you understand what Shang is? It means coming to the door. Shangying the princess is actually equivalent to being the son-in-law of the royal family. You also know that among the people, there is no one who is not a last resort for the people. Those who are willing to be the son-in-law of this door-to-door are called the son-in-law, and in the Qin and Han Dynasties, the son-in-law had no status like a businessman."

  Qin Lang shook his head.

  It’s better now, wearing a cold silk shirt, sitting here and having a massage from a beautiful and gentle concubine, how comfortable it is.

   "But Your Highness is really angry that he demoted Saburo to the third rank in one day." Yu Xiao worried.

"Don't worry, although our Highness is a little bit tempered now, he is not the kind of monarch who hides his bow and kills heroes. He still has a lot of courage. It's just that he was a little unhappy for a while and wanted to scare me, but I, Qin San, am not either. Don't pay attention to that kind of frightened child, wait for him to punch into the air and get no response, and finally lose interest in making trouble." Qin Lang dared to be willful, in fact, he knew that Li Shimin would eventually He is a wise and benevolent monarch of a generation, and he will not really do anything to him because of this matter. If the other party was an emperor like Yang Guangwu, Zetian and Zhu Yuanzhang, he would have obediently complied.

  Yu Xiao chuckled lightly, "Look at what you said, but your Highness the Crown Prince who is famous for fighting in the world is like a child."

"I think you're more like a child. If you're too stubborn, even if you don't want to be the princess, why don't you ask His Highness the Crown Prince for a sin and admit your mistake? It's not good to be so stiff now, especially if Alang is caught in the middle. "

  Qin Lang stretched out his hand and pinched her face, "You are quite filial, and you actually know how to be filial to Aye. Someday, if you have time, you can pack up and dress up, and I will take you back to Qinrenfang to formally meet your uncle."

  Yu Xiao was overjoyed when she heard this, and if she could meet her in-laws, it would be considered as officially entering the Qin family.

   "Will Ah Lang and Mrs. Cui dislike me?" She was worried about gain and loss again.

   "Why do you dislike you? You are a well-known female school teacher in Chang'an."

  Girls' school book used to be a good reputation in Pingkangfang, but now that she is married into the Qin family, Yuxiao hates it in the past.

   "Now Yu Xiao just wants to wash away all the lead, and make soup for Saburo with bare hands. I don't want to bring up the past."

"Fool, everyone has a past, whether it is good or bad, it is a part of life. It can be said that it is the you in the past that created the you in the present. No one can get rid of the past, as long as you face it. Besides, I really like you in the past, you don't know how many Chang'an literati think you are the goddess."

   "Saburo, don't make fun of me anymore. I can't choose my past, but now I just want to forget and bury that experience, and I just want to cherish the present and the people in front of me."

  For a woman from the Tang Dynasty, it is a shameful experience to show her face and live in the house of a prostitute in Lefang.

   "By the way, is that Ma Zhou here? He is a guest I invited, and he is a talented person. You must treat him well, and don't treat him like a hired accountant."

  Qin Lang remembered this.

"That Mr. Ma came here a long time ago, and brought a wine gourd with him. My concubine has asked Xiao Yi to arrange him to live in the south room of the front yard. What is the background of this Mr. Ma, so much valued by Saburo?" Yu Xiao was surprised .

   "A great talent, he was a teaching assistant in a state before, and now he is studying in Chang'an, and he is temporarily stuck. I invite him to stay here temporarily."

   "I can't tell if I'm a great talent or not, but it's true that Mr. Ma is good at wine. As soon as I settled down, I started drinking. Today I drank at home all day."

   "He is really good wine, you can prepare some good wine for him in the future, let him drink."

  The next morning, when the sun was shining on the bed, Qin Lang opened his eyes and woke up.

   This sleep was unprecedentedly smooth.

  In the first few days when I came here, my mind was full of the change of Xuanwu Gate three days later, and I couldn't sleep after running around all day. In the past three days after the palace transformation was successful, I was so busy with several jobs that I couldn't even keep my feet on the ground.

   It has been seven days since I came to Datang, and I finally got a peaceful sleep.

  It’s great to sleep until dawn without all kinds of worries, and without having to remember to get up early for errands.

  Yu Xiao had already woken up, leaving her fragrance all over the bed.

  Take a deep breath.

   "Good morning, Datang!"

  The door curtain rang, and Yuxiao's personal maid, Lu Zhu, came in.

   "Sanlang, you are awake, I will bring you bird's nest soup."

  Qin Lang leaned on the bed, looking at this little girl, about fourteen or fifteen years old, very slender, and a beauty.

   "Just give me a locust leaf cold pottery."

   "Sanlang, our girl got up early in the morning to make this bird's nest soup for you. It took more than three hours to pick out the burr yesterday, and another two hours to stew this morning. It's all love."

   "Hahaha, that's really thoughtful, well, let's drink bird's nest soup."

  Change into a simple gown, tie a belt, put on boots, put on a pair of wooden clogs, and wrap a turban on his head. Over there, Green Pearl has prepared face water and a toothbrush for him.

  The fresh water from the well is clear, cool and sweet. Compared with many ordinary people in Chang'an City who get water from the canals in the city, Qin Lang's family has its own well, so it is obviously much more convenient to use water.

   Picking up the toothbrush, he was still a little unaccustomed to it. It was made of pig bristles, known as brush teeth, and it was a bit rough. There was no special toothpaste, but there was tooth powder, or you could use good blue salt to brush your teeth. These are high-end personal care products that can only be enjoyed by wealthy families. Ordinary people usually just break a wicker stick and chew it loose, then brush their teeth with some salt, or simply poke it with their fingers a few times.

   After washing up, Yu Xiao has arrived with bird's nest soup.

   "Yu Xiao, you have a heart. In fact, a simple bowl of cold pottery or millet porridge in the morning is fine, so there is no need to bother."

   "It won't be troublesome to make soup for Saburo." Yu Xiao smiled, seeing Qin Lang drinking the soup she made, his face was filled with happiness.

   "Have Mr. Ma eaten?" Qin Lang asked.

  Lu Zhu quickly said, "I don't know about the affairs of the outer court, I have to ask the people in the outer court."

  The big family has many rules and etiquette, and the inner and outer courtyards are clearly distinguished. There are only servants and maids in the inner courtyard, and men such as servants and stewards in the outer courtyard are not allowed to enter.

   "Call Ah Huang."

   Ah Huang's surname is Huang, and now he has become the housekeeper of this mansion, so he will come over soon.

   "Ah Huang, have you had breakfast yet?"

   "Thank you Sanlang for your concern, my old Huang has already eaten."

   "Has Mr. Ma eaten?"

"He hasn't gotten up yet. He was so drunk last night that he probably won't be able to get up for a while." In his words, Ah Huang was very dissatisfied with the new accountant, although Qin Lang said that Ma Zhou He was invited to be a guest, but Ah Huang directly treated him as a cashier. Although the Qin family is not small, they can't support idlers.

   "Send a bowl of bird's nest soup to Mr. Ma."

   "Sanlang, this is too unruly." Ah Huang was dissatisfied.

   "Go."

When Qin Lang finished eating, it was already mid-noon, but Ma Zhou woke up sleepily. The bird's nest soup was already cold. After Ma Zhou asked whether it was from Qin Lang, he was stunned, and finished drinking it in two or three gulps. , without washing up, came to the front hall to meet Qin Lang.

   "Mr. Ma is still used to staying still?"

   "Very good." Ma Zhou sat down and looked at Qin Lang, "I heard that the plaque on our mansion has been made three times?"

Qin Lang smiled, "To tell you the truth, it is true. I offended His Highness the Crown Prince, and His Highness demoted me to three ranks of title within one day. I am no longer the Duke of Yi, but the founder of Licheng County. Done, if Mr. Ma is afraid of getting involved, he can choose another job, and I am willing to offer you money."

  Ma Zhou waved his hands indifferently, "This place is very good, especially you, Sanlang, are quite to my liking, I feel comfortable here."

  Yesterday he got drunk on purpose after he came here, and this morning he deliberately slept until the sun was up. As a result, this young man Qin Lang not only didn't mean to blame him, but was also so polite to him.

   "Don't Sanlang regret it?" Ma Zhou asked.

   "Regret what?"

   "You refused the prince to marry the princess, and as a result, your title was downgraded by three ranks, and you were dismissed from several positions."

   "There is nothing to regret, I am a person with a good stomach, so I don't need soft rice."

"Hahaha." Ma Zhou couldn't help laughing, "Sanlang is really a man of temperament." After laughing, he said, "Yesterday, Steward Huang handed over the housekeeper to me, and Sanlang just bought this house. Mrs. Ru also just came in, but while I was drinking, I looked at the family's expense account, and it was a bit confusing."

  Qin Lang also smiled, "I also just came out to set up a family. I have only bought this house for a few days. Many people in the family are also new buyers. There must be some confusion. I will trouble you, Mr. Ma, in the future."

Ma Zhou was also not polite, and directly put forward several useful suggestions. One is that money and accounts should be separated. Account separation is neither messy nor worrying about someone's tampering.

Another one, he told Qin Lang that now the mansion can only go out but not in, he reminded Qin Lang to pay attention to this aspect, he can't just sit and eat, if he has money, he should buy some farm shops and the like, this is the long-term solution count.

   "Mr. Ma is very reasonable, but I don't have a penny in my hand now."

   Ma Zhou was very surprised.

Qin Lang left the house cleanly before, and he bought this house with Li Shimin's activity funds. Li Shimin gave him 800 taels of gold one after another, but the money was used to attract people, and he used it as an excuse during and after the incident. All the reward money was distributed, but he didn't keep it himself. He even put in the extra money he made when he wiped out the Green Snake Hall in Pingkangfang last time.

   "Then our family's expenses, can we ask Mrs. Ru to withdraw?" Ma Zhou asked.

   "That's her own money, how can my elders use her money to support their family." Qin Lang waved his hand.

   "But Saburo, you have no official position, no salary, and no income."

   "Don't I still have titles and honors?"

"No one has any salary, only Yongye Field. A real title has food, but yours is a false one. As for Yongye Field, I heard yesterday that only 1,500 acres have been raised. It is in Shuofang and Longyou, and it is said that the place is still occupied by Turkic people and Tuyuhun people, so it is impossible to collect the rent." Ma Zhou reminded.

   "So, I have no source of income now, and I don't have any money left?"

   "Exactly."

  Qin Lang couldn't help sighing, "It seems that I'm still a little too optimistic."

  He now regrets that he shouldn't have acted so aggressively in Qinrenfang yesterday, but he refused so righteously yesterday, and today he is too embarrassed to ask for it back, that would be too embarrassing.

   Let’s find a way to make money by ourselves.

  (end of this chapter)