Chapter 1 Seongnam VIII Early the next morning, two teenagers with dreams in their arms came to the dock again to beg for a living.
The news that someone was rewarded by the Zhou family yesterday had already spread, and the eyes that looked at the two of them were full of envy and jealousy.
Fortunately, Cheng Xiaojiu had already established his authority yesterday, and the people knew that the young man who was less than half his age was a practitioner, and he couldn't be provoked.
So jealousy is jealousy, but they don't dare to take the initiative to find the bad luck of the two, but the words that come out of their mouths are weird, with the taste of rice bran.
Regardless of whether everyone's jokes were out of kindness or malice, Cheng Xiaojiu and Wang Ermao turned a deaf ear and buried themselves in their work.
After a busy journey from early morning to mid-afternoon, all the big ships were finally emptied.
When settling wages, the two followed closely behind Liu and Shi according to the established strategy, preparing to fish in troubled waters.
Unexpectedly, Cheng Bo, the housekeeper of the Zhou Mansion, suddenly changed his temper when he was drenched in the rain, not only did he not talk to the batons more, but took the initiative to convert yesterday's half-day's wages according to most of the day, and gave more than 20 unloading batons to each of them a really extra bucket of rice.
"You are really a good man", and the baton who got the benefit had no words to thank him.
"Don't thank me, it's our host's order," Cheng Bo stroked his beard and replied proudly.
"If you want to thank us, thank our host.
In the future, if the owner has something to ask you for, don't shirk it."
"How can it, look at what you said, you always say hello, we don't have anything else, we have the strength" In a series of voices beating their chests, everyone's assurances sounded extraordinarily sincere.
Cheng Bo smiled silently, turned around and supervised the family members to convert the bamboo chips in the hands of the food bearers.
It is still settled according to the agreed quantity yesterday, but the measuring instruments are replaced by special buckets when the government collects rent from the people.
It's a real bucket, and it's not a debt at all.
The overjoyed batons were grateful, and the family members around the Zhou Mansion cheered.
For a while, the entire wharf began to recite the good name of the Tao Zhou family, covering up the past many bad deeds such as swallowing people's fields, seeking people's houses, borrowing money from small buckets, collecting rents from big buckets, and so on, and no one remembered them.
Cheng Xiaojiu stood on the periphery of the crowd and watched the excitement for a while, and seeing that no one paid attention to him, he made an appointment with two cents, and walked to his house with his salary on his back.
He couldn't understand what the Zhou Mansion housekeeper deliberately showed favor to everyone for, but he felt a little disappointed in his heart.
According to his assumption, Cheng Bo should continue to play close to himself today.
Unexpectedly, people simply forgot about giving themselves five buckets of rice yesterday, and didn't say a word about wooing themselves to work for the Zhou family.
Since they can't take the road of Zhou's family, the plan of the two to "make a fortune and transfer" is imminent again.
After eating the only meal of the day, the two teenagers each wrapped a few hundred dollars in a blanket and went to the bazaar in high spirits to see what business could be done to get rich quickly.
While walking, the two teenagers cheered themselves up, thinking that with Cheng Xiaojiu's ability to write and calculate, Wang Ermao's shrewdness and cleverness, even if he couldn't make money every day, it should be a matter of being able to capture a place in the Pavilion Tao Market within a few months.
Who expected to enter the bazaar to understand that this trading house still has a doorway for buying and selling houses, and it is not something that can be done by casual people.
Local merchants, merchants, tooth traders, and patchwork have their own rules.
Rice shops, taverns, silk shops, iron halls, the threshold of a home.
Even if you set up a stall in the market, you must first pay enough money to the messengers in the city office, otherwise an iron chain will be put on your head, and you will be punished for the crime of disturbing the market, and you will want to walk out of the yamen without a ransom of five or ten times.
Notes 1, 2 and 3 From the most prosperous rice shops, noodle shops, and pawn shops, to the boot shops, pen shops, and juggling stalls that are full of people, the two teenagers are sweating profusely from the sun, but the feeling in their hearts is getting colder and colder like eating ice cubes.
What they saw was that even the most sluggish shops were renting more than 500 dollars a month.
Coupled with the taxes to the city office and the sprinkling of money to the errands.4 There is no money per month that cannot be sustained at all.
And the official license of the old man Cao to open a shop, the rules are two thousand dollars, which does not include the guarantee of the old man Lizheng, the pen fee of the master of the Qing book and the small book is carefully calculated, if you want to open a shop in the museum pottery market, you don't have to think about it at all "I was so happy yesterday that I barely slept all night," Wang Ermao drooped his head and murmured.
Half an hour ago, he thought that the four hanging money in his and Cheng Xiaojiu's hands was a big fortune.
Now I understand that the little capital in the hands of the two can only be dreamed in their arms. really took it out to do business, but it couldn't even cross the most basic threshold.
"Why don't we push the cart and go to the streets and alleys" Cheng Xiaojiu was still unwilling, patted his companion's shoulder, and asked tentatively.
To be a grocer who walks the streets, you don't need to rent a store, and you don't need to go to the city office to get an official license.
The only threshold is that the legs and feet should be neat, and when you see the errand officers, archers, helpers, and managers in the yamen, you can run with a white book and push the cart, as long as you are not caught red-handed, the goods on the car can be safe.
Note 5 Wang Ermao was so frightened that he shrank his neck, and refused repeatedly, "Come on, the little garlic next door will do this, and after a busy summer, there is not much left for me to carry a big bag."
Two days ago, Jia Zhutou and Guo Zhutou in the yamen joined forces to block the crotch alley, and a truckload of goods was confiscated, not counting the three hundred rings, so I was not caught standing in the flail at the entrance of the county yamen."
Thinking about the black bloodstains around the flail at the entrance of the yamen, Cheng Xiaojiu could only smile bitterly.
This thief really refused to leave a way out and turned half a street boringly, he smiled bitterly, turned back to Wang Ermao and said, "Then you go back first."
I went to the pharmacy and got my mother's medicine.
The prescription that Lang Zhong gave a month ago, it is estimated that it should still be able to be used now" "I'll help you carry the medicine," Wang Ermao volunteered.
Although the dream of doing business together is about to be shattered, he still cherishes Cheng Xiaojiu as a friend.
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Cheng Xiaojiu smiled and nodded, "It's okay, maybe I don't have enough money on me."
Lang Zhong said that this medicine is definitely spiritual, but it is very expensive."
"How expensive can it be" Wang Ermao instantly regained a little bit of confidence, slapping the blanket on his body and shouting.
The copper coin inside rang a few times very cooperatively, and it sounded indescribably pleasant.
The best pharmacy in Taoguan City is located in the deepest part of the market, and the shop is not large, but the business is very prosperous.
A bookkeeper sat behind the counter, crunching the chips.
A few well-dressed young men did not touch the ground, and wrapped the prepared medicinal dried lotus leaves, and placed them on the tall counter.
The bookkeeper called people to pay in the order of the customer, took the medicine, left in and right out, and the movements were crisp and neat, and they were not bad.
Cheng Xiaojiu looked around, and was at the end of the line in an orderly manner.
As soon as his legs were firmly established, he suddenly heard a rush of footsteps behind him.
Before he could turn around, a domineering aura had already rushed straight to him, rushing over his shoulders and "blowing" the people waiting for the medicine in the front row.
After the wind passed, a man with a short figure and a long brown beard patted the counter of the pharmacy vigorously, and shouted at the top of his voice, "Shopkeeper, quickly press this recipe with a picture of the yamen Master Jia is in a hurry to use it, and he can't delay for a moment."
"Alas, what kind of wind blew you Master Jiang here for this little thing, you can't send an apprentice to come on a hot day, hurry, come on, quickly pour herbal tea for Master Jiang" Mr.
Ledger, who had not looked up and was looking at people, jumped up suddenly, and greeted him with a smiling face.
A guy who was quick with his hands and feet had already moved a stool, asked the man surnamed Jiang to sit down at the counter, and then brought out the teapot, tea cup, pu fan, and pear paste like a meteor, and waited for the person to enjoy it slowly.
"Fix this, I'm so anxious that my heart is smoking.
Quick, Master Jia was injured, take good medicine" The old man surnamed Jiang pushed away the pu fan in the man's hand and shouted loudly.
"Hurry, hurry, it will be right away," the bookkeeper half-bowed and whispered.
"Grandma's, thief, it hurts Lao Tzu to not even sleep at noon" The surnamed Jiang scolded again, reached out and grabbed the teapot, and poured a pot of herbal tea into his stomach from mouth to mouth.
After drinking the tea, he grabbed another piece of pear paste, shook it cleanly into his mouth, and then asked vaguely while chewing: "Recently, if a suspicious person comes to buy medicine and does not treat a knife and gunshot wound, if there is, it will be sent to the yamen immediately, and it shall not be covered."
"How can it, how can it" The shopkeeper continued to smile, "Our old Zhou's pharmacy can also let thieves in, you can rest assured that if you find a stranger, you will be sent it immediately."
"Hmm" The surnamed Jiang raised his eyelids and looked at the plaque hanging directly above the counter of the pharmacy, and the king's anger eased slightly.
There is no need for Mr.
Accounts to remind him, he also knows that this is the transaction of the Zhou family of Guantao, and he will never touch it.
It's just that I'm used to being arrogant, and I forgot to restrain myself for a while.
After tasting two more pieces of pear paste, he slowly stood up from the stool, looked into the counter, and asked with a smile: "Is it all available for the dog's day, but the county lord has instructed me that this medicine must be dispensed at your house."
The medicinal materials in other people's pharmacies, the yamen don't believe it at all."
"It's good, it's good to take care of Xie Lin County" Mr.
Ledger walked into the pharmacy with a smile, took out two purses from the inside, and handed them to the surnamed Jiang with both hands.
"This package is an external application, and the other package is a tonic for Master Jia from the small shop, boiled and drunk while it is hot, how much blood can be replenished."
"Here" The man surnamed Jiang grinned, revealing a mouth full of yellow teeth, "Lord County didn't buy me money for tonics" "Where did this go, if it weren't for a few masters who maintained local order regardless of the wind and sun, how could the small shop do business with peace of mind.
Some ginseng and deer antler velvet are just worth a few dollars, so Master Jiang can use them.
If it's not enough, tell someone to come and give a few more masters in the shop."
"So, thank you for the shopkeeper's righteousness."
The man surnamed Jiang hugged his fists, and the wind went away.
The bookkeeper watched him walk away, put away his smile, and sat down behind the high counter again, without raising his head, and put the calculation chips on the spot, "Next, first come, first come, queue, queue up don't mess up the rules here" Cheng Xiaojiu has been moving to Guantao for a short time, and he has never seen a similar battle, so he secretly wonders.
Taking advantage of the fact that no one was paying attention to him, he lowered his voice and asked Wang Ermao beside him: "Who was that just now, why is it such a big score."
Even the pharmacy didn't dare to offend him."
"Master Jiang in the yamen, you don't even know him" Wang Ermao frowned, putting on a rare and strange appearance of smiling people.
"In terms of seniority, he is still my cousin.
Not a close relative of the five suits" "He is an errand officer in the county government" Cheng Xiaojiu didn't want to ask what kind of relationship Wang Ermao and the man surnamed Jiang were, so he asked himself.
"No, but it's pretty much the same.
He is a disciple of Guo Zhutou, the first archer of our pavilion Tao" Wang Ermao looked back at the back of the man surnamed Jiang in the distance, and said with envy on his face.
"Oh" Cheng Xiaojiu nodded and responded in a low voice.
He probably had a little impression of the affairs of the government, and knew that the lowest establishment in a county government was an errand officer.
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And the archers are only the helpers of the errand soldiers, and they have no salary at all, and they can only earn a living by scavenging among the people.
This kind of lowly and shameless person has always been despised by scholars, so no matter how arrogant he behaves, he can't arouse half of his envy.
Wang Ermao waited for a while, couldn't hear Cheng Xiaojiu's flattery, guessed that his good friend must have started pretending to be Sven again, leaned into the other party's ear, and whispered, "Don't look down on my cousin, according to my mother, since I spent money to go through the door and enter the yamen as a helper, my cousin's annual income is this amount."
He stretched out five fingers and shook them in front of Cheng Xiaojiu's eyes, and then lest the other party misunderstand, he swore and added, "Fifty hangings, it's still less."
Guo Zhutou and Jia Zhutou above him, although the annual salary is only 30 buckets of rice, the people at home wear gold and silver, and they can buy more than 30 live pigs every year."
"Hmm" Cheng Xiaojiu was stunned again when he heard this, and there seemed to be countless golden lights in front of him.
Thirty pigs, this is just the food and clothing of an errand servant who does not enter the stream.
If I can survive in the future, but when Grandpa was alive, the official work was much higher than that of the errand service, and I didn't see so much money moving to the family, could it be that there was a lot of money in the family at that time, and it was hidden in a place that my mother and myself didn't know Thinking groggily about the old things at home, groggy and moving forward in order.
It wasn't until he was tapped on the head with a finger that he woke up from his musings.
I looked up in amazement, and saw that the pharmacy bookkeeper, who had always been high, suddenly felt like a mood for some reason, and pointed to the prescription he handed over in a daze with his finger and asked, "Afterlife, are you sure you want to catch this medicine?"
"Ah, well, of course" Cheng Xiaojiu was stunned by the question, quickly glanced at the prescription, and then gave a positive answer.
"Then do you bring enough money" Mr.
Ledger looked at Cheng Xiaojiu several times from head to toe, slowly put down the prescription, and set up the calculation.
"Bring it, I must have brought enough" Cheng Xiaojiu straightened his chest and replied loudly.
He knew that this medicine was worth a lot, so when he went out, he brought three hundred dollars in his pocket.
Wang Ermao's blanket was also wrapped in more than 200 pieces of meat.
The two of them put together the meat on hand, and it was enough to pay for a soup and medicine.
The shopkeeper glanced at Cheng Xiaojiu and Wang Ermao again, and quoted slowly, "Three coins of ginseng, two coins of atractylodes, two coins of Poria cocos, one corice coin, three coins of angelica, three coins of Chuanxiong, rehmannia, two coins of white peony, three and a half coins of astragalus, one coin of cinnamon, two coins of deer antler, three dried dates, ginseng and deer antler blood soup, three hundred and fifty pieces of one piece, a total of three pieces, a total of one thousand and fifty pieces."
Pay first and then administer the medicine, no She does not owe" "How much" Cheng Xiaojiu dodged backwards and couldn't help but exclaim.
"One thousand and fifty neat, this little boy, don't believe it yourself" Mr.
Bookkeeper pushed the calculation chip in front of Cheng Xiaojiu's eyes, and responded in a long voice.
"But you old before, you old old said that ginseng and deer antler velvet are not worth a few dollars" Cheng Xiaojiu didn't have to look at the calculations, and he knew that he couldn't find fault with the accounts, so he had to smile and try to bargain with Mr.
Ledger.
"That is, for Master Jia in the yamen, this small amount is of course not a few dollars."
Mr.
Bookkeeper tilted his head to look at Cheng Xiaojiu and sneered slightly, "But what kind of wealth is that of the people, which one of them is not taken care of by his old man?"
Cheng Xiaojiu was so red from laughter that he was speechless.
After hesitating for a while, he discussed in a low voice, "Uncle, I didn't bring that much money today."
You see, I'll grab one piece of medicine first, and I'll take the other two another day, okay?"
"What's the use of a piece of medicine?"
and without waiting for the bookkeeper to answer, the other people waiting in line to get the medicine responded with a smile.
Just now I was suffocated by Master Jiang's domineering spirit, and everyone was extremely unhappy in their stomachs.
It's rare to meet an ignorant half-grown boy, so I'm scrambling to vent on him.
"Haven't you heard of the offspring, a piece of medicine is equal to drinking water.
What kind of ginseng and deer antler velvet to eat is as good as buying some meat to cook and eat seriously, cheap and palatable."
"Three pairs are three pairs, just like who can't afford it" Wang Ermao accompanied Cheng Xiaojiu to laugh loudly, ripped off the blanket on his shoulders, and threw it heavily on the counter.
"There are two hundred and fifty Wen foot meat here, and this, Xiao Jiu, you tell him how much" couldn't help but say, he ripped off Cheng Xiaojiu's purse and threw it on the counter.
"Let's see if it's enough, if it's not enough, I'll go home and get it for you, isn't it just one thousand and fifty Wen, don't look down on people."
"Ermao, Ermao" Cheng Xiaojiu hurriedly grabbed his companion and nodded around with a smiling face, "Don't mind, everyone, my brother is short-tempered."
Shopkeeper, I have a full 300 wen in my blanket, and my friend's blanket has 250 wen, see if you can give a discount, first grab two pairs of decoction and come out, we will eat these two pairs, and then grab the third pair."
"This boy will settle accounts," the bookkeeper replied without being yin or yang.
According to common sense, he can indeed give a discount on such an expensive medicine, but today he is not angry, and he wants to step on it a few more feet when he looks at the coward.
"We will give you a discount, who will give us a discount This ginseng, deer antler velvet and licorice are all from Liaodong, now the beacon is in flames, the trade route has long been cut off, ginseng and deer antler velvet are a price a day, I am already losing money to do your business today, and then discount, and then discount, the old and young masters in this pharmacy have to drink the northwest wind" "How can it, you are such a big pharmacy" Cheng Xiaojiu smiled all over his face, and blood gushed down his forehead to his chest.
He could feel the contempt in the eyes of the bookkeeper and the mockery in the eyes of the idlers around him, but he forcibly ordered himself to bear with it.
"Otherwise, I'll add another fifty wen, six hundred, six hundred wen, you sell me two pairs of medicine stores don't lack the fifty wen, I'll immediately ask my friend to go home and get it" "I've never seen you so able to bargain" Mr.
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Bookkeeper pushed the two blankets away, and responded with a sneer, "Childe, the little old man doesn't dare to take the medicinal materials of the proprietor's house as a favor, if you don't buy it, forget it, don't tease me."
After that, he threw Cheng Xiaojiu aside and shouted outside the counter, "Next, Fang Zi will bring it to me first, don't owe it, come back when you're ready for money."
"I've never seen you do this business" Wang Ermao couldn't bear it anymore, jumped forward, pointed at the bookkeeper's nose and scolded.
"The straight lady thief dog looks down on people, you remember, feng shui takes turns, in the future, you must not have the day to ask Lao Tzu's head" Cheng Xiaojiu pulled it but didn't hold it, so he simply stopped pulling it, grabbed the two blankets and carried them well, clenched his fists lightly, and waited to see how the other party reacted.
There is more than one pharmacy in the market, and if there is a fight here, the next pharmacy can continue to negotiate discounts with the other party.
If you don't say a word and leave without saying a word, you will definitely be bullied by the guys in various pharmacies in the future.
The guy in the pharmacy is not good at stubble, and when he saw Wang Ermao's furiousness, he immediately grabbed the medicine gas and the weighing stone, and rushed out.
Seeing that a vicious fight was inevitable, suddenly, a crisp voice came from the depths of the pharmacy, "Lao Liu, the eldest lady asked what you are doing, why is there a lot of noise in front of you This is the medicine hall, do you think it is a big restaurant at the entrance of the city?"
As soon as the words fell, the arrogance of the bookkeeper and the others immediately decreased. glared at Cheng and Wang stupidly, and responded loudly to the counter, "It's okay."
It was Master Jiang of the Yamen who was making a fuss just now.
Now there are two little brothers who want to take the medicine without enough cash, and we are kind enough to persuade him to go home first."
"You are talking nonsense" Wang Ermao deliberately made trouble for the other party, and retorted loudly, "It is clear that you are taking advantage of the fire to rob and indiscriminately open high prices."
We brought in nearly 600 dollars, but we couldn't even buy a pair of medicines.
Where is this pharmacy, smashing open flames is not as vicious as you" When Mr.
Bookkeeper and a few guys heard this, they remembered that green tendons jumped on their heads, but they didn't dare to come forward to stir up trouble.
Suppressing the evil fire in his heart, he retorted, "This little brother, you can't talk nonsense, ginseng and deer antler velvet are in short supply."
We're going to have to pay a premium to get in."
"Bring it, I'll show the prescription to the eldest lady" Although the female voice in the depths of the pharmacy was immature, it exuded a majesty that could not be refused.
When Mr.
Bookkeeper heard this, his face turned pale, and he picked up the prescription and explained in a low voice, "Miss Xiaochun, why bother the eldest lady to ask about this little matter herself.
I'll take care of it right away, and you won't have to run around and sweat."
As soon as these words were spoken, the other medicine grabbers in the shop immediately understood that Mr.
Bookkeeper must have made trouble with Cheng Xiaojiu's drug price.
Thinking of their own vital interests, everyone's position immediately took a big turn.
Approaching the counter, he shouted nonsense: "Miss Xiaochun, this piece of medicine is worth 1,000 and 50 pieces of meat."
Do you always understand?"
The gauze curtain on the inside of the pharmacy was gently lifted, and a little maid wearing a light green shoulder walked out quickly. first gave a salute to everyone, and then replied with a smile: "If there are ginseng and deer antler velvet in it, one thousand and fifty wen a piece, it is not expensive."
After all, Liaodong is at war, and the trade route has been cut off for a long time.
However, my young lady happens to be there, show her, and she may give a discount on the total price.
It's all from the villagers, and you can't let everyone even afford the medicine, don't you say?"
After saying a word, he took care of everything inside and out, so that people who were interested in watching the excitement could no longer find any fault.
Everyone laughed and dispersed, and continued to wait in line to catch the medicine.
The maid named Xiaochun nodded to Cheng Xiaojiu and Wang Ermao, and then walked back to the inner hall quickly.
After a while, there were a few rings from behind the door curtain, and the maid named Xiaochun walked out quickly, took the prescription, and instructed the bookkeeper, "Uncle Liu, the eldest lady said that this medicine is calculated at the price of half a year ago."
Don't be embarrassed for two customers."
"Alas" The bookkeeper who escaped agreed repeatedly, and the cold sweat on his forehead was dripping down.
He bullied Cheng Xiaojiu before with a fresh face, there was no trickster on the general ledger, but he played a lot of tricks on the price of single medicine.
This is the usual way for the guys in the medicine hall to make money, but I didn't expect to be caught by the eldest lady of the proprietor's house who came to inspect today.
And now what Koharu brought is that, based on the price four months ago, it is equivalent to saying that the eldest lady of the proprietor's family is not ready to expose her ghost tricks, and she let herself go in a daze.
If you don't know how to be interested, once you are taken on business by the proprietor's family, I am afraid that you will at least break your arms and legs, and a few of your men will have to cut off their fingers and beat them out of the door with a big stick.
Note 1: Dental dealers, middlemen.
Mainly engaged in business contact, human trafficking, introduction of domestic helpers, etc.
Note 2: Municipal Administration, an ancient business administration.
Similar to the current industrial and commercial bureau and local taxation bureau.
Note 3: Bazaar.
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In the cities of the Central Plains in the Sui and Tang dynasties, there was a special market area for painting.
The big city is divided into the east market and the west market according to the difference in the trading goods.
For details, please refer to the restoration map of ancient Chang'an.
Note 4: Sprinkle money, i.e. market management fees.
Note 5: Archer, ancient supernumerary assistant police.
Help, ancient city management.
Clerk, the personal assistant of the ancient tax collector.
White Sho, assistant to the tax collector's personal assistant.
Note 6: For the salaries of the helpers and other helpers in the yamen in this article, as well as their additional income, see Mr.
Wu Si's Historical Essays, The Hidden Order.
There is a special analysis inside, which is very incisive.
Drinker's note: Why don't you see the flowers, today it is a big chapter of 7,000 words: