Long live Emperor Wu!

Pei Xingjian already knew where to find delicious food and fun places in Chang'an City.

The two of them had not seen each other for three or four years. After the imperial examination, he stayed in Chang'an and became a Cangcao to join the army, guarding the warehouse in Zuotunwei.

Wei Siqian went to Ying County to serve as county magistrate.The two of them are completely different from each other and have completely different experiences. When they talk, they are both curious and can never finish talking.

So the two of them walked on the streets of Chang'an City while talking. They walked a long way without knowing it, and finally found a noodle restaurant in a remote alley.

The noodle shop was quite big, with two floors. It specialized in only one bowl of glutinous rice noodles, but there were many guests. Although it was already past dinner time, there were still many diners bustling at the door.

There were even many Hu merchants leading camels in and out.

The boy greeting guests at the door had just taken the camel from the guest and went to the side yard to tie it up. When he turned his face, he saw Pei Xingjian and the others.

He immediately laughed and shouted very happily:

"Master Pei, you are here! The seat upstairs happens to be vacant."

As he spoke, he turned his head and shouted to the people inside the building:
"Master Pei is here, at the same place on the second floor."

Pei Xingjian reached out and patted the child on the shoulder, and said with a smile:

"You're busy."

After saying that, he turned around and made an invitation gesture to Wei Siqian who was traveling with him. The two of them walked up and introduced:

"This Noodle Shop is quite famous, but the price is reasonable and not expensive. When I was working as a soldier in the army, I would come here two or three times a month.

Even though it is a large and down-to-earth place, no ordinary dignitaries or high-ranking officials come here. No one will know that we have dinner together, don't worry. "

These words were somewhat teasing to him.

Wei Siqian never looked like he was smiling and said with some displeasure:
"I'm not afraid of eating with you, so what's the problem if someone sees me? I just don't want to eat too expensively."

Pei Xingjian said helplessly:
"I'm kidding you, I'm so serious."

The two people went up to the second floor and sat down directly by the window.

The tables on the second floor are made of better materials and are farther apart, but there are still no partitions. They are not much different from those downstairs, but because the unit price is a few cents more expensive than downstairs, they are cleaner.

Pei Xingjian poured him water from the teapot on the table and said:
"I heard that originally the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Public Affairs gave recommendation lists, and they were all meritorious deeds with no official experience. His Majesty wanted to re-appoint the people who took the imperial examination, but he didn't know who to use, so he asked me a few questions. .

Your Majesty's question reminded me that the current imperial examination system lacks standards and regulations for promoting and selecting officials. In the end, it has to be reduced to a recommendation system, which is unfair to those who participate in the imperial examination and become officials.

So I have been studying a fair measurement standard recently, and when I think about it, I will submit it to His Majesty. "

Wei Siqian was a little envious of his enthusiasm. He kept listening silently, looked at him, and said after a while:

"You are always like this. No matter how bad the world is, you can always see the good. I have never seen you depressed and frustrated. Unlike me who is always a disappointment and doesn't have many friends, you can still care about me."

"Hey, you can't say that. You have your own merits. There must be a few serious people like you in the world, so that the world can become clearer, right?"

After Pei Xingjian poured the water, he began to peel the garlic. After peeling it, he put it on a small plate. While peeling, he looked up at Wei Siqian who was sitting upright and said:
"What's wrong? Things didn't go well after becoming the supervisory censor?"

Wei Siqian sighed and said:

"Sailing against the current never goes smoothly. When I was the county magistrate, my superiors despised me for having too many things to do, and now everyone down there despises me for having too many things to do. No matter what, I will do whatever I have to do. As long as His Majesty doesn't remove me from my post. , no one can control me."

When Pei Xingjian heard this, he laughed out loud and said:

"Don't worry. Although our Majesty is young, he is determined. He needs someone like you. It's hard to find the second one."

The two of them talked for a few more words and became serious.

The glutinous rice noodles were very delicious. Pei Xingjian had been working hard and Wei Siqian had been waiting for him until now. Neither of them had eaten, so they ate the noodles without thinking about talking.

At this time, two more people came up from the first floor and sat on a table behind them while talking.

There were few people on the second floor, and the voices came through clearly:
"Are you really not mean enough? Before selling the land, you said you would treat me to a good meal as a farewell gift. This is sold out. The best thing is a bowl of glutinous rice noodles?"

"Hey... don't mention it. I originally thought that after selling the land in Chang'an, I could buy a house and dozens of acres of fertile land back home. Now it's better. It's almost the same as my hometown. Nothing is enough. You just make do with it. Bar."

The two men sat down, and the people listening asked curiously:

"why?"

Another person said:
"That day I went to the translation office to apply for resignation. When my old boss in the office heard that I was selling land, he pulled me over and said, someone just happened to want to buy it, and the money will not go to other people's land. I will introduce you to a buyer.

When I heard about it, I thought it was all selling, not selling to anyone, just selling it as a favor to an old customer. What's wrong with that? But when I saw it, who do you think wanted to buy my land? "

The people who heard this were a little anxious and a little angry, saying:
"Who is it? Could it be the Holy One?! The land in Chang'an City is so expensive! It's the same price as your hometown, Tongxiang!"

The land seller quickly hissed and suppressed his voice, his tone was bitter, and he whispered:

"It's not much different from your Majesty, Lord Shangshu Sheng Youpushe, Chu Suiliang and Lord Chu."

Wei Siqian was originally focused on eating noodles. After hearing this, he raised his head curiously and looked behind Pei Xingjian.

The ones who spoke were two gray-haired old men, wearing satin round-neck robes. Their temperament was somewhere between the philistines of businessmen and the noblesse of officials, which was consistent with the status of the translation agency they said.

Pei Xingjian also heard the conversation and turned his head to take a look.

The old man who sold the land was so focused on pouring out his own bitterness with his companions that he didn't pay attention to them and continued:

"Originally, when my old boss introduced me, I was happy. I thought that when I went home to retire, I could still see the big man in purple, and I would be so lucky that my ancestral graves would be filled with smoke.

As a result, when he asked, he wanted to buy my land at the official price! "

The companion who was listening said excitedly:
"You're not going to say you won't sell it! Are you stupid? The official price is the lowest price. It's more than [-]% different from the market price! That's your life savings. You can't agree even with a knife on your neck. !”

The old man who sold the land heard this and said:

"You speak lightly! Do you dare to say no when I'm here? I didn't say no to selling at that time. I just said that I planned to go home to retire and exchange some properties. The official price was not enough.

The old boss said next to me that I was only profit-seeking and short-sighted. Maybe I would need Mr. Chu’s help if something happened in the future. I would not accept such a good opportunity to build friendship.

He also said that the official price is fair, just because it doesn’t make you a big profit, and it doesn’t make you lose money. If you go back and buy a smaller house, buying two acres less is not enough. You are too greedy and unlucky. "(End of chapter)