When Master Xu Yu came to the capital, he went to visit Li Jing and did not go to work for others. The reason was too simple. Li Jing was the abbot of the country and the governor of the conquest. He was an old friend of Xu Shao, and Xu Yu's three brothers were all here a few years ago.
He served under Li Jing.
With these connections, it is natural to cling to them. Forget about others. Xu Shao has been dead for some years. Who knows if everyone still remembers Duke Qiao Zhong back then?
Unfortunately, Li Jing was away on an expedition, and the Chen family would not leave any strangers in the house, so they had a house vacated for the uncle and nephew to live in.
Therefore, the uncle and nephew have lived very comfortably in Chang'an for more than half a year. They don't have to worry about anything. Li's people have made arrangements for them, and they only need to concentrate on preparing for the exam.
Even the expenses for going to the literary conference were paid for by the Li family. How many of the scholars who came to Beijing can compare with the two of them?
Master Xu Yu returned home with his nephew, and the two of them said nothing more. They ate dinner and fell asleep. It was not until the next morning that they were woken up by a servant in a daze, washed up and had breakfast.
Both uncle and nephew were not in good spirits. After four days, their energy was extremely depleted, and they felt extremely exhausted mentally.
It is no different from the students who later took the college entrance examination. There is always a tension in the mind. After the exam is over, you have to wait for two days before you can be active, but you still have to worry about the exam results. You are tortured mentally and physically, and you feel like dying.
This kind of life-level examination actually originated from the imperial examination system, but its later manifestations were more advanced.
On this day, neither the uncle nor the nephew left the house. They were just resting in the house. Master Xu Yu led his nephew around the house to relax a little.
In the evening, the steward of the mansion ordered a sumptuous table of wine and food to celebrate the two husbands.
The last dish was brought to the table by the steward himself, a large soup basin, steaming hot.
"This is the Phoenix Diaozhi made by the Madam herself for the two gentlemen. The Madam said that the two gentlemen have worked hard in their studies. After the exam, they should have a good rest for two days. In the next two days, the Madam will host a banquet in the mansion to entertain the two of them.
Lang Jun.
He also said that no matter whether we can be on the list or not, we should feel at ease. The two gentlemen are both talented and learned people. It is naturally good to pass the Jinshi examination. Even if they fail, they will not have to worry about being useless in the future. "
What he said was very true, not superficial, and heart-warming. Mrs. Chen was indeed a kind-hearted elder.
Master Xu Yu and Hao Chujun stood up. Master Xu Yu said gratefully: "Thank you Madam for your concern. Please go back and report to Madam, Manager Liu. Our two juniors have Madam to take care of us. Now it is really inappropriate for Madam to worry so much."
In two days we will go to the house to meet Madam..."
The steward happily agreed. These two were young, but well-mannered and extraordinary. They were indeed junior figures who deserved to be treated well.
The only pity is that the two of them are not members of the Miyuan Li family. Compared with the younger generation of the Li family, they are far behind.
…………
The uncle and nephew sat down again. Hao Chujun looked at the soup basin and saw that his uncle carefully picked a piece of fungus to chew, so he unceremoniously took a piece of meat and tasted it.
Well, it’s undoubtedly chicken, with phoenix in its mouth and chicken stewed with mushrooms, which are Li’s specialty home-cooked dishes.
Ms. Chen seldom cooked. Most of the time, she would only cook once when the emperor's son-in-law came. It was a special dish. The two uncles and nephews did not know that they were enjoying the emperor's treatment. They were just grateful to their aunt for her kindness.
I picked up the soup basin and had to finish it no matter what, so as not to live up to my aunt's love.
In fact, for two southerners, the taste of the food is still a bit strong...
…………
"This is the best Jingbai now. You can't buy it anywhere else. Judging from the magnanimity of the two gentlemen, they must have entered the test room, right? To be honest, the one we are trying out in Beijing this time is our Jingbai.
It's just that most of them are ordinary things. The few pictures I give you are made of high-quality Jingbai. Take a closer look at the craftsmanship and the toughness. The words on them, whether it is rough grinding or fine ink, are fragrant.
Ink can moisten but not wet, penetrate but not scatter.
That is to say, the two gentlemen have extraordinary bearing and look like they are well-educated men. Otherwise, even the villain would not be able to show it to you.
We are the only one selling such high-quality Jingbai. If you go to the east and west markets and ask, you will know that no one can get this thing..."
Master Xu Yu couldn't put it down and looked at the roll of paper in his hand, nodding his head unconsciously. The shopkeeper who looked at him was also smiling and saying good things. When meeting such customers, the shopkeeper liked it the most.
This was the third day after the Beijing Examination. Xu Yushi and Hao Chujun's uncle and nephew finally calmed down and came out of the house to Lida, mainly to choose some gifts to send to Li's house.
The two of them were not close. They bought two horses and some other jewelry in the East Market, then went to the West Market to buy some silk and satin, visited several high-end pastry shops, bought a few boxes of snacks, and made two more
Jar aging wine.
Because of the trade with the Western Turks in the past two years, Hu merchants from the Western Regions have gradually appeared in the Western Market, and the things they buy and sell are very rare.
Hao Chujun gritted his teeth and bought a brightly colored glass vase from a Hu merchant for twenty silver treasures. Twenty silver treasures were enough to last an ordinary family of six in the Tang Dynasty for several years.
The uncle and nephew had spent more than half of the money they had brought to Chang'an in a short time. Even though the two young men came from a wealthy family, it was their first time to spend such a large amount of money, and they both felt pain in their hearts.
Originally Master Xu Yu was a little curious and wanted to chat with Hu Shang a little more and ask about the customs and customs of the Western Regions. However, when Hu Shang met the fat sheep, he continued to sell them some of the Western Regions he had brought with him in half-baked Chinese.
Dancer.
The uncle and nephew had no money left, so they didn't dare to stay any longer. After buying the bottle, they left the West Market in a hurry.
After buying all these miscellaneous things, the two of them were already running out of money. If they failed in the Beijing Examination, they would have to stay in Chang'an for another year, and they would have to ask for help from home.
This time they came to Beijing to stay in the Li Mansion's annex, and they didn't have to spend any money on food and clothing. Otherwise, how would they have the money to buy so many things?
From the third year of Yuanzhen, when the Tang Dynasty pacified the world, the court spent two years to stabilize prices in various places. By the sixth year of Yuanzhen, the prices of various basic living supplies finally became low.
But in crowded places like Chang'an, Jiangling, Jinyang, Chengdu, and Jiangdu, prices have gradually begun to rise again. However, it is different from the rise in prices caused by the war. At this time, it falls into the category of normal price fluctuations.
The supply of basic materials can be guaranteed, and the price is controlled by the court within a certain range to allow the people at the bottom of the city to survive. However, there is no ceiling on the price of luxury goods. These things are not available to the people anyway.
Two young people from Jiangnan aristocratic families picked out good things to buy, and then they felt what made Chang'an special.
After the trip, it was considered that a top-notch cultural gathering was held in Caiyufang. Not to mention them, even the natives of the capital had to consider their financial resources. After all, the noble families here were still in the recovery period, and most of them had financial resources.
limited.
Manager Liu, who was sent by the Li Mansion to accompany the two of them, accompanied them on their shopping spree. He knew that the two gentlemen were choosing gifts for their wives, but they also had toothaches. He didn't know how to persuade them not to spend such a huge amount of money. Li
This side of the mansion has always been simple...
So when he replied to his wife later, he had to explain it to her. If she thought he encouraged the two gentlemen to spend money lavishly, that would be very unpleasant.
After leaving the West Market, the two of them had to go to the paper shop again, but Manager Liu didn't think much about it.
Just seeing Master Xu Yu holding Jingbai without letting go, Manager Liu got a headache again. This thing is not cheap...
Hao Chujun also liked it very much. They were both scholars and had studied this. The official shops opened by the craftsmen and supervisors were, in the words of later generations, pilot shops.
The most important thing sold in the shop is bamboo paper named Jingbai. It is made by craftsmen under the supervision of craftsmen. It is comparable to rice paper from Jiangnan, but the price is half lower than rice paper.
It's just that it was an ordinary Jingbai. The top-quality Jingbai has now appeared on the list of tributes, and can also be called Jianbai. Now it is only made by craftsmen as supervisors.
You can still see it in shops now because it just appeared. In the next year or two, if the output is very low, it will no longer be sold to the private sector.
In addition, the Ministry of Household Affairs and the Ministry of Industry are now opening such shops, saying they want to promote these new gadgets to the people. In fact, many people are saying that the court wants to seize this period to make money.
Once the businessmen see the benefits and follow up, the court will probably not get involved. After all, no one wants to be known as competing with the people for profit.
In fact, anyone who is not stupid can understand the truth after thinking about it. Sooner or later, it will be left to the businessmen to do things, why is it so troublesome?
In fact, the treasury was empty and needed to be filled. The imperial court opened official shops everywhere, and the items sold were always mainly grain, cloth, etc., which often played a role in stabilizing prices.
Now that we are playing with high-end products, we naturally want to profit from them, and promoting the technology is something that will happen later.
…………
A roll of paper cost fifteen silver treasures. The uncle and nephew who came out of the shop had earth-colored faces. The paper shop also sold some books, which naturally used movable type printing improved from the block printing. The price is low, but you want
That kind of book made of Jingbai, Guaiguai, the price immediately doubled several times.
The store owner only said a few words, and the uncle and nephew ran away, not daring to buy any more. If they did, they would be in trouble in the future.
The two people got on the horse, and the people behind them had a lot of big and small bags, which matched the women's shopping. After the shopping, their wallets were empty, and they had the urge to shop when they got home.
Hao Chujun had a big heart, and he felt much better after walking for a while. He said to Master Xu Yu: "The prosperity of the capital is better than that of Jiangling..."