Happy Little Scholar

"are you still there?"

In the backyard of Qunyu Courtyard, Lao Fang squatted on a stone under the outside wall. Hearing that there had been no sound coming from inside for a long time, he asked aloud.

After a while, he heard the sound of light footsteps again, and the girl said apologetically: "I don't know what happened today. There are many guests in the courtyard, and I am too busy. I can't talk to you here."

Lao Fang smiled and said, "It's okay. You go and do your work. I'm going back too."

"Then tomorrow... I will still be waiting for you here tomorrow." The girl said quickly, and the footsteps gradually became distant.

Lao Fang stood up, patted the dirt on his butt, and walked back to the street. When he walked past the butcher shop next to him, he thought that his mother-in-law liked to eat high-quality pork belly. He had been thinking about it for several days. When he walked to the front of the shop, he thought about it. The butcher asked, "Is this meat fresh?"

The butcher was also a man with a sinister face. Hearing this, he patted his chest and said, "Sir, don't worry. This meat was just killed this morning. It can't be fresher."

Lao Fang nodded, "Here are three pounds of pork belly."

"okay!"

The butcher responded, scratched the meat twice with a boning knife, wrapped the meat in lotus leaves, tied it with a rope, and said with a smile: "Three catties and six taels, sir, take it and wipe it with a small change. All you need is one penny.”

Lao Fang naturally has no shortage of money. In fact, although it is still difficult to buy a large house in Beijing, he has saved a lot of money during this period. The pillar can be used as a wife with ten rooms, and there is still a lot of balance. It can be considered a wealthy family. I just touched my waist and realized that I left in a hurry this morning and didn't even bring a penny with me.

Seeing this, the butcher guessed that he didn't bring any money, and said with a smile: "Did you forget to bring your money, sir? No problem, you can take the meat first, and you can pay for it next time."

Lao Fang smiled when he heard this and asked, "Aren't you afraid that I will default on my debt?"

The butcher chuckled and said, "That's not possible. I've been here every day. I think you're not that kind of person. Besides, I'm happy today. If you really want to default on your debt, I'll give you this meat!"

"As a meat seller, what can you be happy about? Your mother-in-law is here at home?" Lao Fang took the meat and asked casually without refusing.

"Alas, my mother-in-law hasn't got it yet..." The butcher sighed and thought of another thing. A smile suddenly appeared on his face and he said, "But this happy news is spreading all over the capital. , The guest officer doesn’t know that I need to give you a good explanation..."

"Let's say that the people of Qi are extremely arrogant and are looking for trouble everywhere in Kyoto. This time they even went to court directly..."

…

…

After a moment, Lao Fang had a look of shock on his face. Isn't this Mr. Li talking about his uncle?

I saw my uncle go to the palace in the morning. I didn’t expect that he would do such a big thing. Even the meat vendors on the street knew about my uncle’s deeds?

After taking the meat and leaving, Lao Fang didn't go home directly. There was a hook fence nearby. He planned to go in and find an acquaintance to borrow some money and pay back the money for the meat first.

"Master, please slow down..."

Outside a Goulan gate somewhere in Kyoto, a middle-aged man with a pale face and an extremely frail body was supported by a servant and walked into the Goulan.

"Master, let's go back, those people, those people..." The servant said with a look of embarrassment, but was interrupted by the middle-aged man waving his hand.

"It doesn't matter, I can bear this kind of curse." The middle-aged man's voice was a little hoarse, but his tone was extremely firm.

Behind the two of them, a man carrying meat walked into Goulan. He looked back and said, "My body is so weak. If I don't take good care of myself at home, why should I go to Goulan..."

The servant in green clothes was about to speak, but the man only said this and turned away.

The master and servant walked into Goulan and found a secluded place to sit down. As soon as they sat down, they heard several people talking around them.

"This Mr. Li County is really proud of our Jingguo."

"Yes, this time, see how arrogant the people of Qi are!"

"You said that if Ma Zhongcheng won yesterday, wouldn't there be no need to compete next time? It's all because of that guy named Ma. He's not good at chess and insists on trying to be a hero..."

…

Hearing everyone speaking like this, the servant in green looked unhappy, but the middle-aged man just looked a little gloomy and did not speak.

At this moment, there was a sudden commotion in the crowd. The master and the servant raised their heads and saw an old man sitting on the stage in front of them.

"Hey, Lao Zhengtou, don't talk about anything else today, tell us how that County Master Li defeated the people of Qi!"

"Yes, yes, just say this!"

The storytellers in Goulan not only tell stories, but also often discuss current affairs and government affairs. After all, whether they are people in the world or among the people, they are all the people of Jingguo. They should also care about the major events in the court, in addition to gossip and gossip. In addition, there are many things that are actually closely related to them.

The old man on the stage smiled, stretched out his hand and pressed down, and the noisy noise below immediately disappeared. Then he said: "I believe everyone is very interested in the matter of County Master Li's victory over the people of Qi State. I naturally want to That’s right, but before that, I want to talk about yesterday’s competition.”

The pale middle-aged man raised his head slightly. After a period of silence, it immediately became noisy.

"If you lose, you lose. What's there to say?"

"Just tell me, Mr. Li, what does that person named Ma do?"

"That's right, let's talk about the competition in the morning, we can't wait..."

…

The middle-aged man couldn't help clenching his fists, and his face became even paler.

The old man on the stage once again stretched out his hand to stop everyone, and said: "Of course I want to talk about County Master Li's matter, but there is another hidden story about what happened yesterday. Mr. Ma was unjustly wronged and was reviled by the people of Kyoto. I am not happy about it."

Hearing this, the servant in green was startled. The middle-aged man suddenly raised his head and looked at the old man on the stage.

"Hidden secret?"

When everyone heard this, there was a look of surprise on their faces, it was obviously the first time they heard it.

"What's the secret? Did the people of Qi actually cause trouble in yesterday's competition?"

"Say it quickly, say it quickly..."

Under the urging of everyone, the old man slowly said: "Everyone thought that Ma Zhongcheng lost to the unknown old man of Qi State, but they didn't know that the unknown old man, known as the "Soul of Chess", was the real chess master of Qi State. The first person, this time he went anonymous, just to demoralize our country, Jingguo. Even the chess master Bai Yu was defeated by him, who can win? "

"But since the people of Qi have already issued a declaration of war, if no one stands up, doesn't it mean that there is no one in our country? Ma Zhongcheng knows that he may be defeated, but he still wants to step forward at this time. Doesn't he know that if he What kind of infamy will you get if you lose?”

"But he still stood up, because if even he stayed behind, there would really be no hope of victory in this game. Losing is not terrible, we will always win back, but if not even one person in Kyoto accepts the challenge, How can the people of Qi laugh at us in Jing if there are no people?"

The old man was talking eloquently, and it was extremely quiet in the hook bar.

The servant in green looked happy, and the middle-aged man's face had an abnormal rosiness, and his hands were shaking slightly. Everyone's expressions ranged from confusion to surprise, to anger, and even a lot of people had deep shame on their faces. color.

"What, this happened?"

"That old guy is actually so powerful?"

"Bah, I thought he was just an ordinary old man!"

"Yeah, if no one really stands up, I'm afraid they will be laughed at even more..."

"We have wronged Ma Zhongcheng!"

"Damn, the people of Qi are so shameless. To say that, Ma Zhongcheng..., well, I shouldn't have scolded him!"

…

No one doubted the authenticity of the old man's words at all. After all, although this Goulan had just opened, not only did its stories and plays are wonderful, but it also never spoke out loud on some important matters. It was not like other Goulan that relied on speculation. Raising money by spreading false information can be regarded as a sign of conscience.

Afterwards, thinking of the fact that Ma Zhongcheng had been scolded so much in the past two days, everyone was naturally full of apologies to him.

It wasn't until the whole Kyoto began to spread the news, and everyone learned the authenticity of the incident from countless channels. People in Kyoto came to the gate of Ma's house in droves to apologize. The trend of the public changed suddenly, and Ma Zhongcheng was killed in one day. , turned from a national sinner to a national hero, and the legendary story of Ma Zhongcheng who was not afraid of power and refused to die for remonstrance began to spread everywhere. Countless young censors began to regard Ma Zhongcheng as their idol in life...

Of course, these are all things for later.

At this time, on a spacious street somewhere in Kyoto, a middle-aged man's face was flushed, with a hint of excitement. He refused the servant's help. He listened to the chatting of several people on the street, and the smile on his face became even brighter.

"Justice is in the heart of the people, what a justice is in the hearts of the people!" Thinking of what the old man in the hook just said, the middle-aged man stroked his chest and said with a laugh.

"Even low-status actors are worried about the country's sufferings. The imperial censors should often visit these places. Only in this way can they attract public opinion..."

While the imperial censor Zhongcheng was murmuring these things in a low voice, several storytellers were sitting on both sides of a long table in a column. At the top, Old Man Sun slowly spoke: "Storytelling is not just When telling stories, we must be worthy of our own conscience, and we must not follow the crowd or be swayed by rumors. At times like this, the more we must spread the truth, so as to gain the trust of guests..."

…

…

"Your Highness, for some reason, within half a day, the wind direction in the market suddenly reversed. Our plan may be shelved."

In a luxurious courtyard in Kyoto, a middle-aged man in blue robes said respectfully to a young man standing in a pavilion with his hands behind his back.

"It doesn't matter, that thing is just a free time move. I don't know when it will be used. If it fails, it will fail. It doesn't matter." The handsome young man turned his head, sighed and said, "However, it is I have to admit that they greatly exceeded my expectations. As expected of Jingguo, the people’s wisdom is far from that of other places.”

A trace of regret appeared on the middle-aged man's face. At this time, the young man spoke again: "How is the investigation going?"

The middle-aged man's face became solemn and he said: "Back to Your Highness, we have found out everything. Li Yi, the son of Chang'an County, is the person who created the punishment of heaven. He is also the gentleman mentioned by the young King of Jin in Jingguo. First of all, We were caught off guard that day and lost two cities in a row. General Fu Guo almost committed suicide in front of His Majesty. Today, he defeated Zhao Xiuwen, which put our plan on hold... This Li Yi is simply the nemesis of our Qi State. !”

It was undoubtedly difficult for the people of Qi to inquire about some information in Jingguo's Kyoto, but they saw that the third prince attached great importance to that person, and the middle-aged man even used a secret weapon that had not been used in Jingguo's Kyoto for many years. At this moment, he told all the news he had learned.

The young man nodded and said, "I thought he just created the Heavenly Punishment, but I didn't expect that this Li County Master actually had such talent. No wonder Emperor Jing valued him so much."

A cold light flashed across the middle-aged man's face, and he whispered, "Your Highness, this person is always a big threat to us. Do you want to..."

The third prince of Qi waved his hand and said, "Don't always think of solving things this way. Even Xiu Wen praised him highly. I have never seen him praise someone so much in poetry and prose. The Heavenly Punishment has caused us great trouble. Poetry, prose, medical skills, Heavenly Punishment... Why didn't such a natural talent live in my Qi country?"

"You just said that he had a grudge against the eldest grandson of Qin Xiang and the King of Shu?" The third prince of Qi looked at him and suddenly asked.

The middle-aged man nodded and said, "Yes, this Li County Master has a deep hatred for the eldest grandson of Qin Guogong and the King of Shu. Just a few days ago, he beat the King of Shu to a coma in front of the whole court in the palace. The strange thing is that Emperor Jing only confined him for half a month and did not punish him too much."

The third prince of Qi smiled and said, "If I were Emperor Jing, I would not punish him too much."

He walked out of the pavilion, pacing slowly in the courtyard, muttering, "Although the King of Shu has no talent, he is also the most likely one among the princes to inherit the throne. Such hatred is obviously impossible to let go easily. The Qin Xiang is powerful and wholeheartedly supports the King of Shu to take the throne. The Qin family will become the backbone of the new dynasty in the future. By then, the position of this Li County Master in the court will be a little delicate... This is also good news for us."

As soon as the young man finished speaking, his face suddenly changed slightly, his body shook, and he immediately moved sideways a few feet.

Swish! Swish! Swish!

Three feather arrows were deeply inserted into the soil where he had just stood.

The middle-aged man's face changed drastically, and he immediately stood in front of the young man, shouting: "Protect the third prince!"

Several figures suddenly appeared in the courtyard, surrounded the young man, and then sent several people to climb onto the roof with a few leaps, and disappeared in front of them in an instant.

Not long after, the few people who left came in from outside the courtyard wall, threw a corpse on the ground, and said: "Your Highness, when we rushed over, the other party had already committed suicide by taking poison."

The middle-aged man was furious and said: "Damn Jingguo, it actually did such a despicable thing, Your Highness, I will write a letter to His Majesty now..."

The young man waved his hand, squatted down, pulled off the black-clothed man's scarf, and after looking at it for a while, he pulled out a feather arrow from the quiver behind him. Seeing the blue light on the tip of the arrow, the middle-aged man's face changed drastically, and cold sweat instantly soaked his back.

The young man threw the arrow on the ground, clapped his hands, looked into the distance, his eyes slightly fixed, and murmured: "Royal brother, are you so afraid of me?"

[ps: Starting today, I will pay back the monthly ticket and update more. 】