Xiaoyaoshanjun

Chapter 12 Sending Tofu

"The white cow looks at the moon!"

Tian Buli was practicing martial arts in the yard. He held the armrests of the table in the yard with both hands, pushed his waist down, raised his neck, and looked at the moon in the night sky.

The bean lady who was making tofu in the tofu room blushed when she saw this.

Lady Bean looked at it for a few more times before continuing to work on the tofu she was making.

"This martial art is still somewhat useful. If I had known this, I would have let him practice it earlier."

When Lady Bean saw that it was almost done, she said to Tiger and Leopard, "Go back to your room and sleep. I can do this."

"Mom, let's go back to the house." The two children were so sleepy that they went to bed quickly after hearing this.

Lady Bean sighed. Children from poor families have to grow up early, but the poorer they are, the more sensible they are.

"Luckily I brought Brother Tian back that day, otherwise how would I have gotten through the day..."

Dou Niangzi continued to be busy with her work, and Tian Buli continued to practice martial arts outside.

The old cow eats grass!

Tian Buli bent down and kept his lower body steadily balanced.

Lazy cow kicks its legs!

Tian Buli supported himself with one hand, leaned his body to the ground, and kicked forward.

Soon Tian Buli stood up and used the big move that defeated Bean Lady yesterday.

Bison on top!

He grabbed something with both hands, bent his feet firmly and stood firmly, and tensed his body like a bull climbing a wall!

Bullshit skills!
After just one night of practice, Tian Buli felt that he was getting better.

I looked at my attributes again and found that this was not an illusion.

External Qi 1.12, Internal Qi 0.55, Body Bone 0.9, Root Bone 1, Face Bone 1, Spiritual Root 10.001, Taoism 12 days, Fortune 1, Lifespan 18/42
"Practicing martial arts does have its benefits, but you also need to pay attention to combining work with rest."

Tian Buli quickly sat down to rest quietly, calming himself from the fatigue brought by practicing external skills.

I have no idea about the techniques of cultivating immortals, but I feel a gradual comfort when looking at the moon and the morning sun, so I just follow my feelings.

It has been a month and a half, but I have only been practicing for a dozen days.

It seems that one’s cultivation level is not measured by how long a person has lived, nor is it counted from the first day one starts practicing Taoism.

To be precise, it is the daily practice time, but this is not easy to remember.

So when we say that a person has practiced Taoism for hundreds of years, it is probably just the length of his life. This is too much exaggeration.

After breakfast, Tian Buli scooped the feces from the pit into a feces bucket before daybreak, and then carried it to the vegetable fields of nearby neighbors.

This neighbor owns a few acres of land. When the fertilizer is not enough at home, he will collect some. Usually he exchanges it for vegetables and beans.

After coming back, he washed his hands and made sure that there was no bad smell on his body before he went to sell tofu.

"It's time to let Tiger and Leopard do the work. Otherwise, if I keep doing this kind of thing, it will affect the business. It won't be good if others see me."

Tian Buli still decided to let Huer and Baoer do the work. They didn't need to carry much manure, as they could always lift half a bucket.

What's more, they will have to start their own families and careers in the future. This is the case for children from ordinary families. There is no other way out.

Because someone was killed in the street yesterday, business today is particularly bleak.

Fortunately, Tian Buli was prepared and made a lot less tofu today.

It wasn't just Tian Buli. Many stalls on this street reduced their preparations today, and some people simply didn't come.

Tian Buli waited until after eleven o'clock, and when he saw no one came, he went home.

Dou Niangzi opened the door, helped put down the carrying pole, closed the door, and carried the wooden barrel to the kitchen together.

"Business is not good today. It looks like not much has been sold. Do less tomorrow. Otherwise, take a day off tomorrow. Get up every night and have a good sleep."

Tian Buli said, "I'm going to go out for a while and report the situation to Mr. Liu San. I'll probably be back in the afternoon."

Dou Niangzi helped to pack the fermented bean curd and freshly made tofu, and saw Tian Buli out.

"Be careful on the road and come back soon."

"it is good!"

When Tian Buli went out to do some work, Dou Niangzi closed the door, went into the house, took out Tian Buli's dirty clothes and smelled them. Then she quickly smiled and gathered the clothes on the bed together, and hummed a little tune while washing clothes in the house.

Tian Buli carried his load and went to Liu's house in the north of the city.

The distance between the south and north of the city is quite far. It took me an hour and a half to walk to the north of the city.

Just as I put down my load and wanted to rest for a while, a few men on horseback came running over.

"Boy! What kind of food are you selling?"

The man in the lead was obviously a martial artist, with a fierce look on his face.

Seeing this, Tian Buli quickly shouted, "Second uncle! I was originally a handyman at Fuyuan Escort Agency, Tian Buli. I was kicked out of the hay barn two months ago because I defecated while sleeping. Now I make a living by selling tofu."

Xia Bashan was stunned. He thought it was just an ordinary vendor, but he didn't expect it was one of his own.

The two men next to him smiled, and the other man said impatiently: "Let him go, and eat somewhere else."

Xia Bashan didn't want to pay attention to this person anymore, but he said casually: "This is the Liu family's territory. Mr. Liu asked you to get out, so get out now!"

After hearing this, Tian Buli quickly shouted, "Second Uncle! Mr. Liu! I'm here to look for Young Master Liu San. Young Master Liu San bought two buckets of tofu from me a month and a half ago and asked me to show him whatever shape the tofu looks like, so I'm here now." Liu Tiezheng rode his horse closer and looked at Tian Buli.

"Come to think of it, my nephew said a while ago that he met a kid who sold tofu. After he came back, he knew to go to school, but he didn't last long and then he skipped school and got into trouble again. Are you the tofu seller?"

Tian Buli said hurriedly: "It's me! I'm Xiao Tian who sells tofu!"

Liu Tiezheng waved his hand and said, "Go ahead and give your tofu to you."

"Let's go!" Liu Tiezheng shouted, and left in a hurry with the other people.

After seeing those people leave, Tian Buli continued on his way with his load in silence.

You are a bunch of poor guys, don’t you know how to give me some reward to insult me?

Tian Buli quickly went to Liu's mansion. As soon as he approached there, a guard with a fierce look on his face came over to cause trouble.

"Mr. Liu, who just rode out, asked me to come here. I'm here to see Mr. Liu San. Mr. San ordered my tofu. Please let him know that the tofu is ready."

When the guard heard this, he knew that Tian Buli was talking about Mr. Liu Erye.

Since he is Liu Erye's man, it will be much easier to talk to him.

Soon someone went in to notify them, and half an hour later a manager came out.

Liu Shun looked at Tian Buli and saw that he didn't look like a bad guy, so he said, "The Third Young Master is not at home. Since the tofu was ordered by the Third Young Master, then just accept it. How much is it in total?"

Tian Buli said quickly: "The money was paid a month and a half ago. This bucket of my tofu is made from good tofu produced today, and the other bucket is made from old tofu produced a month and a half ago."

"The Third Young Master was curious about what the useless tofu was good for, so I spent a long time making it and brought it to him to see."

After hearing this, Liu Shun said directly: "You carry the tofu and come in with me. The Third Young Master should be back soon. You can talk to him clearly then."

"Okay..." Although Tian Buli didn't want to waste time, he had collected a lot of money last time, so he followed in with his load on his shoulder.

The two of them went in through the side door together, and when they reached the inner courtyard after ten minutes' walk, they saw a gracefully dressed woman and an elegant man approaching from a distance.

"Quickly open!"

"I understand!" Tian Buli, without saying anything, stood in the distance with his load on his shoulder, clearing the main road.

However, the two still noticed this place, and asked casually when they passed by with a few maids and housekeepers: "What do you do? Are you new here?"

Liu Shun explained, "It was the Third Young Master who ordered the tofu. He said it was new tofu and old tofu. I didn't quite understand this, so I asked him to come in and wait for the Third Young Master to come back and tell me himself."

"Oh?" Mrs. Liu became interested. "I heard Jing'er say a while ago that he met a tofu-selling boy who was younger than him and could speak better than him. Jing'er studied hard for a few days after he came back."

Liu Tiegu stood still and gave a direct order: "Open the barrel and see how your tofu is."

Tian Buli quickly put down the carrying pole and opened the two wooden covers one after another.

"Master! What I have here are the foods that ordinary people in South City eat. This is new tofu, which is good quality and cheap. It costs two cents a piece."

Mrs. Liu walked in and took a look, and found that the tofu in the wooden barrel was white, tender, and square.

"This tofu looks beautiful, why is it so cheap?"

Tian Buli said quickly: "Cheap ones sell fast, and this is the old tofu that the Third Young Master and I ordered before."

Tian Buli didn't mind talking nonsense and told him seriously about his last meeting with Liu Menjing and the issue of whether to sell the tofu even though it tasted bad.

Sure enough, after hearing the story, Liu Tiegu also became interested in tofu.

"I see." Madam Liu sighed, "No wonder you worked so hard a while ago."

"Hmph! You give up halfway after persisting for a few days. You're hopeless!" Liu Tiegu scolded angrily, but did not walk away.

Tian Buli explained: "This old tofu is also called moldy tofu. It is made by adding seasonings to moldy tofu, but it is not useful only when it is moldy."

"It's like making wine, which becomes more mellow as it becomes more fragrant. It's also like dyeing cloth, like the clothes you are wearing, which are better than the original."

Tian Buli did not praise Mrs. Liu's beauty or her clothes.

Madam Liu looked at the young man in surprise. Seeing that he kept his head down and didn't say anything, she said to the maid, "This boy is really good at talking. Give him some money."

"Yes, ma'am." The maid was a woman in her forties. She quickly took out her wallet from her sleeve, pinched out a coin and threw it to Tian Buli.

Tian Buli didn't dodge, and the silver hit his chest and fell down.

"Thank you, madam, for the reward! Thank you, master!" Tian Buli quickly stopped and picked up the money. This insult was not considered an insult.

Liu Tiegu looked at Tian Buli and said, "I didn't reward you, why are you thanking me?"

Tian Buli said quickly, "Husband and wife are of one mind. The master and his wife are both nobles in this mansion. The master is the face of the lady, and the lady is the heart of the master. I am receiving reward money in the Liu Mansion, so I have to thank everyone here, inside and outside."

Liu Tiegu looked at Liu Shun and said, "Give him some money as well. I should give him my share of the honor. Send these two buckets of tofu to the kitchen. If you send two buckets every day, I will double the money."

Tian Buli quickly said happily: "Thank you, Master! Thank you, Madam!"

Liu Tiegu quickly took it away and left.

Madam Liu followed him to the door, and after getting into the carriage, she asked, "I think that boy is smart and can talk, why don't you let him accompany Jing'er as a study partner?"

Liu Tiegu showed a mocking look, "What good can my son learn from this slick-tongued person who lets this kind of street thug hang out with me?"

Madam Liu nodded. "That's true. I didn't think enough."

*
"Cool!"

Tian Buli carried his empty load and walked briskly, happily leaving the wealthy Liu Mansion.

(End of this chapter)