Lin'an Never Night

Chapter 16: Chopping Wood, Salted Eggs, and Bagua Mirror

The next morning, it was impossible to sleep in.

Yang Che had to go to work at the Imperial City Office, so he got up very early.

He also had to use the morning and evening time to teach Yang Yuan martial arts, so Yang Yuan would be dragged out of his sweet sleep by Yang Che every day to do morning exercises.

Yang Che's training made Yang Yuan exhausted. He then quickly washed up and changed into his work uniform.

He had some breakfast at Song's snack bar and then hurried off to work.

The two brothers not only rented the Song family's house, but also paid for their meals.

After Yang Che left, Yang Yuan was still responsible for chopping firewood for the store.

He placed a round piece of wood upright on a wooden block. Instead of using an axe, he used a straight knife with a ring handle. He focused his energy and spirit on one line and chopped it down hard. The wood broke into two pieces immediately.

Yang Yuan was not only chopping wood, but with each chop, he would carefully experience the angle, speed, strength and accuracy of the knife. He also carefully felt the impact of the different textures and hardness of each piece of wood on the chopping, and tried to figure out how to use the force most economically and sharply.

Yang Che was also confused about these tricks when he was learning sword skills.

It was only after chopping wood for five or six years that he gradually figured out the trick.

But Yang Yuan understood as soon as he heard what Yang Che said. He had only been chopping wood for half a year, but the knife skills he had learned were equivalent to Yang Che's five years of hard work.

Indeed, much of the knowledge that the modern education system gives a person will be of no use in future work and life.

But the process of learning it is not useless.

The understanding, logical and analytical abilities developed in this process will allow you to develop a kind of insight similar to "wisdom" when doing many other things.

Old Man Song dragged over with his lame leg, a bundle of onions tucked under his ribs. For the first time ever, he stopped to watch Yang Yuan chopping wood.

After Yang Yuan chopped the last piece of firewood this morning, he grinned at Old Man Song and said, "Old Man, how do you think I chopped this firewood?"

Old Man Song snorted coldly with a straight face, saying disdainfully: "If you have never killed anyone, no matter how much you practice, it will all be just show!"

After saying this, he dragged his lame leg and ran to the kitchen carrying the bundle of onions.

"Tsk, you're the only one who's killed someone! No wonder, this old man is usually annoyed by me, so why is he in the mood to watch me practice with the sword today?"

Yang Yuan scratched his head, grabbed the clothes on the bench, turned around and went back to the house.

Little did he know that when Yang Che was having breakfast, he had already told Old Man Song that Yang Yuan was going to be an apprentice at the "Moshanghua" embroidery workshop.

That mentality of showing off, as if his own son had achieved great success.

As a result, Old Man Song began to like Yang Yuan more.

Yang Yuan first took a shower, changed his clothes, and then went to the front hall to eat.

When passing by the kitchen, Yang Yuan saw Old Man Song and Lu Xi busy at work. He greeted Lu Xi and then gave her a wink while Old Man Song was not paying attention.

As soon as Yang Yuan sat down in the corner of the front hall, Lu Xi brought him food: a bowl of sweet soy milk, a plate of Sanzi, and a dish of Jianjiaozi.

Lu Xi looked back and saw that his father was not there, so he rolled out a salt duck egg from his sleeve and whispered to Yang Yuan, "Eat it quickly, don't let my father see it."

"Well, my Luxi is still the best to me."

The two of them exchanged glances, and Luxi walked away feeling guilty.

Yang Yuan broke open the Sanzi and soaked it in soy milk. He finished eating a plate of fried dough sticks before peeling the salted duck eggs.

At this time, the Sanzi has absorbed enough soy milk and has a strong bean aroma. When you take a bite, your lips and teeth are filled with a crispy and sweet taste.

Yang Yuan had a strong taste for food, and Lu Xi knew his taste, so he often stole a salted egg for him.

Yang Yuan took a bite of the Sanzi, ate a mouthful of the greasy salted egg, and drank a sip of soy milk, feeling very happy.

Yang Yuan's appetite was whetted at the thought of meeting the Jin noblewoman Wugu Lun Yingge today and making a fortune from her.

After Yang Yuan had eaten and drunk his fill, he rinsed his mouth with strong tea, said hello to Old Man Song and his daughter, and left the Song family snack shop.

Old Man Song ignored Yang Yuan, but after Yang Yuan left, he dragged his lame leg out of the kitchen.

Father Song followed him to the store entrance, looked at his daughter who was looking out the door eagerly, and said, "Erlang has become an embroidery apprentice. Now he has something to do."

Lu Xi felt uneasy and agreed vaguely.

Old Man Song was silent for a moment, then reminded him: "From now on, you should keep an eye on him every day, and don't be late for work, otherwise the boss will be unhappy."

"Oh! Got it, Dad."

Luxi, who had just stolen the salted eggs, didn't dare to look at his father. He agreed and walked towards the kitchen.

From behind, Father Song's voice came: "When you give him salted eggs in the future, give them generously. Don't be like a thief. Your father can afford a salted egg."

Luxi was shocked. Dad had found out?
She agreed guiltily, and when her father didn't say anything else, she quickened her pace and went into the kitchen.

After returning to the kitchen, Luxi stuck out his tongue in relief. He was not scolded this time. It seemed that his father was not so displeased with his second brother anymore.

In the lobby, Old Man Song's knife-like wrinkles showed a slight smile.

Yang's second son is idle all day long, but he is liked by his daughter. Old man Song sees it and is worried.

How can such an unreliable young man become a lifelong support for my daughter?
Now that Erlang has a legitimate business, he no longer has to worry so much.

……

When Yang Yuan went out, many shops had not yet opened, but Ji's braised food shop was already open.

Uncle Ji’s braised food shop usually opens at noon.

Yang Yuan was a little curious, so he took a special look when he walked over.

Fatty Ji was standing on a bench, sticking his fat butt out, nailing something on the door lintel with a hammer. "Good morning, Uncle Ji."

Yang Yuan greeted him, then looked up and saw that what Fatty Ji was about to nail on the door lintel was actually a palm-sized Bagua bronze mirror.

Yang Yuan asked curiously, "Uncle Ji, what are you doing?"

Uncle Ji straightened the bronze mirror and said, "Bring good luck and drive away evil spirits! I want to use this Bagua mirror to kill that bastard Gou."

After hearing this, Yang Yuan shook his head repeatedly. He had no idea what the grudge between Uncle Ji and Uncle Gou was. How could Uncle Gou not see it if you nailed the Bagua mirror on it?

Don’t let the two families compete with each other to install mirrors, and then the Ji family’s smoked chicken and the Gou family’s old wine will be converted into mirror shops.

Yang Yuan shook his head disapprovingly and took advantage of the fact that Mr. Ji was concentrating on adjusting his Bagua mirror and slid over like a yellow croaker.

After exiting Houshi Street, turn left and walk a short distance along the long street, you will reach the west gate of Zhongwazi.

Yang Yuan turned in leisurely. Yingge was going to come from Banjing Pavilion outside the city and would not arrive so soon, so he was not in a hurry.

The area of ​​Zhongwazi is a golden zone in Lin'an City where every inch of land is worth a lot of money.

It intersects with the Imperial Street and is the most bustling and prosperous, so the rent of shops along the street is ridiculously high.

If you open a store here and don't do the hottest and most profitable business, you won't even be able to pay the rent.

Most of the shops on both sides of Zhongwazi sell gold jewelry, high-rise restaurants and catering, or high-end tiles, which are quick money-making businesses.

There are also teahouses and restaurants, but they are also of very high quality.

"Mama Wang Teahouse" is a high-rise teahouse located in Zhongwazi.

There are three types of teahouses in Lin'an, one of which is the "flower teahouse".

In this kind of place, even the people welcoming guests at the door are beautiful ladies with beautiful makeup, and the first thing guests do when they enter is to order flower tea.

When you leave after having fun, you have to pay for the "dry tea".

From this fancy name, you should be able to guess what kind of business this tea shop owner is doing.

The second type of teahouse is called a "human relations teahouse", where "industry veterans" from all walks of life gather to exchange information and solicit business.

Therefore, tea is not important. What is important is the location of the teahouse and the place in the teahouse that is suitable for many people to gather and chat.

The highest level are the “big teahouses” like “Wang Mama Teahouse”.

This kind of place is decorated extremely elegantly, and the tea sets are all of good quality. Most of the people who come here are children of wealthy families, officials from various departments, and literati.

Even if you sit on the first floor of a large teahouse, there are dedicated staff to serve you.

With Yang Yuan's savings, he shouldn't have come to this kind of "big teahouse".

But considering Wugu Lun Yingge's status and the fact that she is a woman, where else could he go if not this noble and quiet place?
He was once a rookie and an ignorant boy.

I remember the first time he took an order independently, he excitedly led the client into the "Night Elf" where the boss of Youqiu Company had opened an account. There were bright lights and restaurants, and beautiful women surrounding him. He thought it was quite classy.

The problem is that his client is a sister who is "as beautiful as a flower in full bloom and as charming as ever."

Yang Yuan's actions stunned her sister, and then she became furious, thinking that this young man was too disrespectful to her.

In order to save his first business, the careless Yang Yuan could only impress her with his sincerity.

Although after some in-depth communication and exchanges, the understanding older sister finally forgave his recklessness and carelessness.

And they still agreed to let him take over the business. But who can understand the hardship of "the father tills the fields on the plains, and the son digs the wasteland under the mountains"?

Today, Yang Yuan is no longer a mediocre person, so he will naturally not make such a childish mistake again.

Not only did he change into clean and decent clothes today, he also brought all his savings with him.

A suitable environment and appropriate clothes are very necessary for the first formal meeting with such an important client.

However, even so, Yang Yuan could not afford to go to the private room on the second floor.

He chose a quiet seat on the first floor.

The scattered seats here are cleverly separated by bamboo curtains, flowers, screens and other objects, so the privacy is quite good.

Seeing that it was still early, Yang Yuan ordered a pot of tea and two plates of snacks, then sat down.

A newspaper boy passed by on the road, hawking his wares. Yang Yuan asked someone to call him in and bought him another "tabloid".

Today is not the time to be frugal, and this is not the place to be frugal.

This tabloid of the Song State was actually published by the "Jinzouyuan" of the Song Dynasty.

The "Jinzouyuan" of the Song Dynasty court was located on the north side of Chaotianmen, very close to here.

It was an important government office that was in charge of the imperial edicts and reports between the imperial court and various local government offices. It had the most sensitive ears and eyes, and was also responsible for conveying instructions to the world.

Therefore, the Jinzouyuan had to collect, edit, review and distribute the "Chaobao" every day.

However, a group of "editors" in the Jinzouyuan had flexible economic minds. While editing and publishing the "Morning News", they would also copy down some personnel appointments and dismissals, local anecdotes and other events, and secretly pass them on to their collaborators outside as "gossip", compile them into "tabloids", and sell them to ordinary citizens for profit.

This tabloid by Yang Yuan was written and printed by people who specialized in collecting and transmitting "rumors" that were leaked from the Jinzouyuan in a timely manner.

Since the transmission of information was limited by the communication conditions of that era, much of the news in the tabloids was more than a month old.

Yang Yuan wanted to browse through the entire tabloid's headlines first and pick out the ones that interested him.

But Yang Yuan had just opened the tabloid when an "old news" on the front page caught his attention...

(End of this chapter)