Dao Fruit

"Among the group of people, there are failed scholars, frustrated scholars, and warriors who are stuck in building foundations. I'm afraid it will be difficult for them to achieve anything. But now that they have listened to the master's lectures, there may be some changes in the future." As Dai Guo shook his head, the three of them slowly walked and disappeared into the distance.

The road ahead leads directly to Xingjing.

………………

The next day.

Xingjing City, the political center of Da Rui, is changing because of the upcoming imperial examination.

It is not accurate to say that it is because of the imperial examination. It is mainly because of the candidates who gathered from all over the country, as well as their subordinates and families, that Xingjing has opened up the hidden dangers.

The most obvious manifestation is the soaring prices. The rice that used to cost 40 or 50 wen per dou has now risen to nearly 100 wen!

It has doubled directly!

This means that with the same money to buy rice, you will only get half of the original amount.

The huge contrast will affect even the rich and powerful. After all, they have to maintain a large family, which costs a lot every day. In addition, they have to deal with interpersonal relationships and make arrangements. This money is never too much.

As for ordinary families, let alone, they already live a tight life. Once the price rises, the family's wealth will shrink rapidly, which has a far-reaching impact.

In ancient society, people depend on food for their daily needs, which does not only refer to eating. Once the price of grain rises, other prices will also rise, causing the cost of living to double and life to be tight.

Living in the capital of the country, although every inch of land is worth a lot of money, the house they live in is difficult to cash in, and they are restricted by the household registration system. Residents cannot move to places with low living costs, so the people here do not live well.

However, since ancient times, no matter who you are, when you encounter troubles, you will always find a target of hatred, not to mention that the price is not something that ordinary people can control. It is difficult for others to understand the mystery, and the people in the capital naturally have to find a specific target to transfer their hatred to.

This is not a bad nature. When faced with a difficult situation, people will always resist it. It is impossible to accept it willingly. However, this will make others suffer.

The target of hatred of the people of Xingjing now is the candidates who came from afar.

The most direct manifestation is that every candidate who enters the city will enjoy the "salute" along the way.

"Brother Luo, why are the people of Xingjing so strange? They look at us with malice? They want to eat us?"

At the south gate of Xingjing City, two candidates who passed the inspection were walking slowly. The two could see an obvious age difference. The younger one felt the eyes of the people along the way while walking, and couldn't help but say something.

"To be honest, I feel the same way." The older scholar looked around and showed an unnatural look on his face. "Maybe this is how the people in Xingjing are. We are the juren masters in Jiannan Road. We are respected, but in this capital, there are high officials and rich people everywhere. The people here are well-informed, how can they take a small juren to heart? Let's not talk about this, let's find an inn to stay."

"That's right." The young scholar nodded.

The two of them were dressed simply, without any servants or servants following them. They just carried a bookcase each, and walked along the street under unfriendly gazes. After asking several times, they finally came to the door of an inn.

"This inn looks a bit shabby, it should have some ideas." The young scholar muttered, and entered with another person, but was immediately shocked after asking the price.

"Why is it so expensive? The price for one night can be used to stay for ten days or half a month in other places."

"How can this be the same as other places?" The shopkeeper behind the counter didn't take it seriously and didn't coax people. It was obvious that he had seen a lot. He looked at the two scholars in front of him with a look of contempt, "This is the capital! Our price is already low. If you two walk a few steps further into the city, the price will be higher than this!"

The older scholar couldn't help but say, "I asked the price in the villages and towns outside the city, and it was only one or two times more expensive than other places. How can you directly increase the price by ten times like you did? times?"

"Can it be the same outside the city and inside the city?" The shopkeeper looked at the two with contempt, raised his hand and pointed to the lobby, "We have many candidates who are taking the exam. You can communicate with them and understand the situation if you live here. If you live outside the city, you won't have this convenience. Moreover, it is not far from the inner city, and you are well-informed. You can get any news at the first time."

Just as the three were talking, another Confucian scholar came in from outside the door. He was not tall, had an eagle nose, and had a gloomy face. He came to the counter, took out a few Jiaozi from his arms, and slapped them on the table.

"Shopkeeper, open a room! Quick!"

"Oh, the young master is back? How about it, the old man didn't lie to you, the inn inside can only be more expensive. Look, there are only three rooms left. If you come a little later, there will be no more." While speaking, the shopkeeper deliberately glanced at the two scholars next to him.

When the hook-nosed scholar followed the waiter upstairs, the two scholars who had come with him discussed for a while, came over, and said they wanted a room.

"You two, just one room?" The shopkeeper looked at them with contempt, which made the two blush, but he didn't say much. He took a pen and wrote a few words on the book, then asked, "Tell me your name."

"You need to tell me your name?" The two scholars were stunned.

"It's natural. You are here to take the examination, right? If you pass the Jinshi exam and get on the big list, someone will come to tell you the good news. I don't know the name, how can I tell you the good news?" the shopkeeper said to himself. He said, "Not only your names, but also your identity documents must be handed over to me so that I can identify them and report them to the relevant department."

"Do you also need an identity document?" The two scholars hesitated. This document was their identity document. Ordinary people traveling around the world and entering cities and crossing customs had to show the way. Often, when they arrived at a place, they had to re-issue the document, which was very troublesome.

As for scholars with a good reputation, as long as they have identity documents, they can travel freely and study at will. This is a very important thing and cannot be left easily.

"What? Are you afraid that the old man will lie to you? What should I do with your documents? I can't use them myself?" The shopkeeper said and stopped writing, "If you don't believe it, you can leave and go to other inns to ask. But when the time comes, Our place is full, you will regret it.”

"This..." The two scholars looked at each other for a moment and finally gave in. "I believe it." Then they reported their names.

"Luo Jiayun, Zhou Guan... Oh? From Jiannan Road? Coincidentally, the cook of our inn is also from Shuzhong. He is good at cooking, but he worships a strange god."

The elder scholar Luo Jiayun said: "It should be worshiping the Zao Gong. Almost every inn and teahouse in Jiannan Road worships the Zao Gong. Even ordinary people, more and more people worship the Zao Gong. It can ensure the safety of the family." ”

"Zao Gong?" The shopkeeper frowned and didn't answer. Then he asked for documents from the two of them and urged them to go up and view the house.

After the two of them left, the hook-nosed scholar walked out calmly, looked at the shopkeeper, showed a tacit smile, and left the inn.

"I've deceived two more. Just by looking at their energy, I can tell that these two scholars have pure minds and are rare seeds for reading." The shopkeeper looked at the documents in his hand, lowered his head and sniffed hard, showing a look of intoxication, " Even if Xingjing has many restrictions such as dragon spirit and official spirit, you can still smell the longing and thoughts that have been placed in Han Chuang for ten years, which is really delicious. "

After thinking about it, he called a boy, handed over the documents, and said, "Go back quickly," and then sent the boy away.

A quarter of an hour later, Luo Jiayun and Zhou Guan came down from upstairs and returned to the lobby. They found a table and sat down. They did not order food, but just sat there, listening to the conversations in the lobby, trying to understand what was going on. Beijing situation.

However, from what I heard, there were not many things related to the imperial examination. Most of the people around me talked about topics such as "reform", "grain prices", and "Northern captives".

"How is the war going in the north..."

"It is said that the Market Change Law will be promulgated soon..."

"The Market Change Law was intended to revolutionize the lives of merchants in Xingjing. It led them to make all-out efforts to raise food prices in an attempt to help each other. This led to the current situation, but we and others who were rushing to take the exam took the blame."

…

"I heard that this time the imperial examination was conducted by Wang Xianggong himself. I wonder what will be tested? Will it be the same as before, focusing on classics and classics, or will it involve the new learning advocated by Xianggong? I am not familiar with that new learning."

After listening for a long time, Luo Jiayun and Zhou Guan finally came across something related to the imperial examination, and their ears immediately pricked up.

Not only them, but the people at several other tables also stopped talking and looked over.

The man's companion lived up to expectations and replied: "It's hard to say. The new learning has been advocated for several years. Even if my husband is impatient, he probably won't directly replace the classics with the new learning. But looking at the current situation, the new law is in power. The strategy of this meeting is The question may be related to the situation between the country and the DPRK.”

"The situation between the country and the dynasty? Could it be that the price of food has suddenly risen? Let me tell you, rising food prices are not a bad thing. The low price of grain hurts farmers, and it is also good to be more expensive..."

"**, your family is in business and resells grain, of course you say so."

"Actually, this is quite reasonable..."

…

Everyone started talking again.

"What's the price of grain?"

Luo Jiayun chewed on these words, and glanced at one person inadvertently, and found that the person showed disdain on his face, as if he looked down on the candidates in the room.

Next to him, Zhou Guanze said: "The black-faced gentleman personally intervenes and tries? Then we need to think about it carefully. The new method has also been implemented in Jiannan Road. We also have personal experience, so we might as well study it."

"That's right." Luo Jiayun nodded, withdrew his gaze, and his mind fell back on the imperial examination, but suddenly he added, "I wonder if Shenzhi has also arrived in Xingjing, and I still need to inquire."

………………

at the same time.

In the inner city of Xingjing, in the imperial city, in the political hall, an old man was banging the table and roaring.

"I think Wang Heimian is crazy! Selection of scholars through the imperial examination is a major matter for the country. How can it be changed overnight!" (To be continued, please search Piaotian Literature for better and faster novels!

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