The Ming Dynasty: A bookstore sells the history of the Ming Dynasty, leaving Emperor Chongzhen bewil

Because it was the off-season and the weather was freezing cold, Zhu Ziming's bookstore opened quite late.

It wasn't until after 10 a.m. that Zhu Ziming opened the bookstore door.

During this period, the bookstore's business can only be described as extremely poor. If it weren't for his own store, Zhu Ziming would probably have lost everything.

If you hire someone online to conduct a business diagnostic for your bookstore, they will most likely advise you to close the store immediately.

There's nothing we can do; that's just the situation with bookstores right now.

Since the advent of smartphones, people's lives have changed dramatically, especially in terms of entertainment. People are more inclined to obtain information from their mobile phones, which in turn prefer more intuitive video content.

Therefore, fewer people are reading books, and even fewer are reading physical books.

During this period, the bookstore sold a set of "History of Ming", a copy of "Dream of the Red Chamber", and two maps, all to the same person.

Moreover, the person didn't buy it with money, but exchanged it for something: a jade pendant and a painting.

Zhu Ziming didn't know whether he had made a profit or a loss.

The jade pendant's authenticity was unclear, but Zhu Ziming felt that the painting was most likely a fake. Why did he say that? Because it was an ancient painting and calligraphy work. If it were real, how much would it be worth? He could buy an entire bookstore, let alone a few books.

To be honest, Zhu Ziming felt somewhat cheated, but he didn't care anymore. Stealing books couldn't be considered stealing, and could the actions of a scholar be considered stealing? Therefore, a scholar deceiving others to steal books certainly couldn't be considered cheating either.

Moreover, Zhu Ziming really enjoyed chatting with him.

Because the other person is someone with a strong sense of immersion, able to become so engrossed in reading the History of Ming that it's as if he were a character in it, every time Zhu Ziming spoke eloquently and expressed his views, he received a strong enough response from the other person. This sense of identification made Zhu Ziming feel satisfied; in modern terms, he gained a lot of emotional value.

However, that person hasn't come for a while.

Zhu Ziming lay lazily on the sofa scrolling through his phone. He didn't watch videos; in his opinion, watching videos was not only mindless but also made him lose his ability to think. He just read news and discovered that there was a cold wave these past few days, with temperatures plummeting in many places. Many departments and regions reminded people to take precautions against the cold.

"No wonder it's so cold."

Fortunately, there was heating, so the bookstore was still warm and cozy.

Zhu Ziming couldn't help but sigh, "It's really good to live in China, to live in this society. Although there are all sorts of different opinions, like the pressure is too great, and there's a lot of competition, at least we have enough to eat and wear."

Having enough to eat and wear seems commonplace today, but it's not an easy thing. You have to understand that in the thousands of years of human history, having enough to eat and wear is only a recent phenomenon, and even now, many places in the world still can't achieve it.

Just then, the bookstore door creaked open, interrupting Zhu Ziming's thoughts.

Welcome!

Zhu Ziming got up from the sofa and almost instinctively welcomed the other person. He felt it was time for him to install a sensor at the door that would automatically announce "Welcome" when a guest arrived.

When Zhu Ziming saw the guests entering, he was somewhat surprised, yet not entirely unexpected.

The customer who came in was the only one who had come to the store to exchange books during this period, but hadn't come for a while, a young man named Zhu Zhen.

"It's you."

Zhu Ziming greeted him with a smile, "So early?"

"yes."

Chongzhen nodded. In fact, he had arrived at the imperial palace on Tianshou Mountain the night before, but the bookstore was already closed by then.

Left with no other choice, Chongzhen had to stay overnight at the temporary palace. Because he had something on his mind, he couldn't sleep well at all. He came over early the next day, but the bookstore was still not open. Chongzhen had no choice but to wait patiently.

In the freezing cold, he couldn't wait at the door forever, so he would come over to check from time to time. But the bookstore was still closed, which made Chongzhen anxious again.

Is it that we can't get into the bookstore? Or is the bookstore owner just too lazy?

It wasn't until the bookstore opened that Chongzhen's anxious heart calmed down, and he immediately pushed open the door and went inside.

The bookstore was warm, just like his heated chamber, which made Chongzhen feel comfortable immediately.

but……

The bookstore owner seemed to be looking at him with a strange gaze.

Emperor Chongzhen felt a little uneasy under his gaze and asked, "What's wrong?"

Zhu Ziming asked curiously, "Why... do you wear a theatrical costume all the time? And a wig too, don't you feel uncomfortable?"

After several previous encounters, Zhu Ziming and Zhu Zhen had become quite familiar with each other, so they were no longer as reserved as before and began to look each other over openly.

He discovered that the other person really did look like an ancient person.

Each time she comes, she wears a different ancient costume, and they are all very exquisite. Especially today's set of dark blue satin winter robe, the color of which is dark blue, almost black, but heavier than black. The satin looks very thick, and the inner lining is lined with silk floss, so it doesn't look bulky at all.

"Costume? Wig? Uncomfortable?"

Emperor Chongzhen was taken aback. It turned out that the other party mistook him for an actor, which displeased him, because he didn't think of actors as a compliment.

Emperor Chongzhen was eighteen or nineteen years old. Although he was mature beyond his years, he was not without temper; in fact, he had a very bad temper. He turned around and looked Zhu Ziming up and down: "Sir, to be honest, don't you think it's very vulgar of you to dress like this and have such short hair?"

"..."

Zhu Ziming was completely speechless.

He was dressed normally, and his hair was neatly cut, so how was that vulgar?

No, who exactly is this person?

Did you come from the mountains?

However, since she was the one who commented on other people's outfits first, she deserved to be criticized.

Emperor Chongzhen did not want to get too entangled with Zhu Ziming on this issue, because he had come with questions.

Chongzhen didn't beat around the bush and went straight to the point: "Sir, I've come to see you today because I have a question I'd like to ask you."

Zhu Ziming was not surprised by this.

After all, the other party said the same thing last time. This time, he probably encountered some problem while reading. If they start talking, it will take another morning, and he won't be able to update his novel. Then readers will say that his novel is short and weak.

Thinking of this, Zhu Ziming said, "Why don't you go over there and read for a while? I'll come find you after I've finished my work."

This time, Chongzhen did not do as Zhu Ziming said before. Instead, he looked at Zhu Ziming and said firmly, "No, sir, I am in a hurry."

"But……"

Zhu Ziming disliked being coerced, so he looked troubled.

Emperor Chongzhen replied directly, "Rest assured, if you can help me, I will repay you handsomely!"

"..."

These words left Zhu Ziming speechless.

He really didn't mean to ask for more money. Besides, what kind of generous thanks are you talking about? It would be good enough if he just settled the money for the previous books. You know, a set of "History of Ming" costs almost a thousand yuan, and "Dream of the Red Chamber" costs almost a hundred yuan.

Zhu Ziming inwardly scoffed, while Chongzhen pleaded earnestly, "Please, sir, you must help me!"