Chapter 2172, the son travels thousands of miles and the mother is worried
More than 100 taels of silver was a lot of money in the past, but in today's Ming Dynasty, it is nothing. Ordinary people here in the capital can earn 200 taels of silver after working for a year.
With the development of global trade, colonization, and industrialization, the world's wealth is concentrating on the Ming Empire, causing the prices, labor, etc. of the Ming Dynasty to rise rapidly.
A few decades ago, anyone who brought more than 100 taels of silver to Beijing to take the exam was considered a rich person, but now, he is really the poorest scholar.
But even these more than 100 taels of silver were all saved by his parents' hard work over several years, because it was very expensive for Hu Xiwen to study in the old school.
Shuquan was also getting higher and higher, becoming more and more expensive. It cost hundreds of taels of silver a year, and his parents were gritting their teeth.
Fortunately, Hu Xiwen worked hard and passed high school in the first provincial examination. This was already a national examination, and his identity and status were different. If he could still pass high school in this examination, it would really be like a carp leaping over the dragon's gate, for generations.
Farmer Xianyu turned over.
Arriving in the capital in advance, Hu Xiwen also found a remote place where the rent was relatively cheap, so he lived there directly and worked hard to prepare for the exam every day.
However, as time went by, he missed his parents more and more.
Gritting his teeth, Hu Xiwen also decided to make a phone call home. There was already a phone call in Chengdu when he left. The landlord where his parents rented a house in Chengdu had a phone installed, and he had already copied it when he came.
Number.
It was very expensive to call home. A casual call would cost you one or two cents. In the past, Hu Xiwen was reluctant to do so. Those who came with him to rush for the exam would not call home if they had nothing to do.
Almost all of them have telephones in their homes, and they don't need a little money or anything, but Hu Xiwen is different. He has limited money and must save some money, and this money is all the hard work of his parents.
Hu Xiwen was really reluctant to spend what he had saved.
Hu Xiwen found his friends from the same year, Sun Yun and Chen Maoyi, who also came to take the exam together.
"Brother Sun, Brother Chen, I wonder if you have time, can you teach me how to use the phone? I really miss my parents at home and want to call them."
"No problem, Brother Hu's matter is our matter, let's go."
When Sun Yun and Chen Maoyi heard this, they immediately agreed.
What matters to scholars is status. As for whether you are rich or poor, it is not very important. As long as you can go to high school, even a poor scholar like Hu Xiwen will not have to worry about money in the future. Some people will give you money.
Hu Xiwen is young. He is taking the examination at the age of 18, and his teachers and the Sichuan academic administration speak highly of him. This Hu Xiwen has a bright future.
They also paid special attention to Hu Xiwen and would often use their own money to take Hu Xiwen around, but Hu Xiwen would often refuse.
This kind of gatherings are all by invitation. If you don’t have enough money to have fun, you don’t go to join in the fun.
Sun Yun and Chen Maoyi took Hu Xiwen to a telephone booth. There were many people queuing up in the telephone booth, and many scholars could be seen.
These candidates from all over the Ming Dynasty are all candidates, and they are all people with status. They are all famous people in all parts of the Ming Dynasty. Naturally, they are the first to come into contact with such fashionable things as telephones.
"Hello!"
"Dad, I have no money. Hurry up to the bank and transfer tens of thousands of taels of silver to my account."
"If you want money, you only transferred 20,000 taels of silver last time and you spent it all?"
"There's nothing I can do about it. The consumption in this capital is very high. I spent a lot of money just to visit a few fellow villagers from the same dynasty. I also have to attend various parties and so on, which all cost money.
, I have already saved a lot of money."
"Okay, you don't just know how to eat, drink and have fun, you still have to prepare for the exam. This will only be useful in high school."
"I know, I know, I'm making plans for the future. If I don't pass the exam, I can still become an official if I have connections, and I'll also have the opportunity to be promoted."
"I'll transfer you tens of thousands more taels of silver."
"...."
"Madam, do you miss me?"
"Well, sir, everything is fine at home. Don't worry too much. Prepare well for the exam and strive to get into high school so that you can shine brightly."
"I know, I just missed you, madam, that's why I called you back."
"..."
"Qiuyun, I miss you so much."
"Li Lang, me too, you have to work hard and strive for high school. By then my parents will have nothing to say and will definitely agree to our marriage."
"I know, but I'm afraid it will be difficult this year. It is said that more than 50,000 people came to take the imperial examination this time, but there are only more than 700 places. The competition is too fierce."
"Li Lang, as long as you try your best, no matter what, I will never marry unless you are in this life."
"Well, I must go to high school, and then I can marry you in a glorious way."
Here at the phone booth, scholars from all over the Ming Dynasty are calling home.
After waiting for more than an hour, it was Hu Xiwen's turn.
With the help of Sun Yun and Chen Maoyi, Hu Xiwen dialed his landlord's phone number.
"is that one?"
The charter woman's slightly rough voice came from the phone.
"Aunt Wang, I am Hu Xiwen."
"It's Hu Xiwen, did you call here from the capital?"
"Yes, I'm calling from the capital. Could you please ask my parents to come over and answer the phone?"
"Okay, okay, you wait a minute, I'll let Juan'er chat with you first, and I'll call your parents."
Aunt Wang motioned to her daughter Li Juan to come over and answer the phone.
Aunt Wang has always wanted to match her daughter with Hu Xiwen and marry her daughter to Hu Xiwen, especially after Hu Xiwen passed the provincial high school entrance exam last year.
This scholar Hu Xi is young, only 18 years old, and quite good-looking. In addition, he is talented and famous. This is definitely a stock with great potential.
The key is that Hu Xiwen has never been married, and he is simply a diamond king.
But Hu Xiwen had no interest in her ugly and fat daughter. No matter how they tried to match her up, Hu Xiwen would never agree to it.
Soon, a gentle voice came from the phone: "Brother Xiwen~"
"Forehead....."
When Hu Xiwen heard this, his forehead suddenly became bigger. If there was no other way, he really didn't want to go to her house.
Hu Xiwen and Li Juan chatted wordlessly, looking at the time on the left and right for half an hour before Hu Xiwen's parents came to answer the phone.
"Xiwen."
"mother!"
"How are you doing here in the capital?"
"I heard people say that everything is very expensive here in the capital. Some people even bring thousands of taels of silver to go there and it's not enough. Are you out of money?"
Hu Xiwen's parents heard the voice on the phone and were very excited.
The mother, who had traveled thousands of miles here, was worried. Now she heard her son's voice, and she was naturally very happy. At the same time, she quickly guessed that the money might not be enough, so she called back and asked her family to send money.
"No, Mom, my expenses are enough. I just miss you and dad, so I called to say hello."
"Your father and I are both fine. Don't save your money. You still have to spend what you should. Now it's time to raise people and take the imperial examination. There are many places to spend money."
"I'll go find your uncle later. Your uncles will lend you some money, and they'll lend you a few hundred taels of silver."
"No need to borrow, no need to borrow. If you need money, our family can provide it."
When the charter woman next to her heard this, she immediately said loudly.
"No, no, I still have money to spend, it's really enough."
When Hu Xiwen heard this, he was frightened to death. He dared to use the tenant wife's money. If he was forced to marry her daughter, he might as well die.
"Xiwen, everything is fine at home, don't worry about it."
"We will raise some more money for you. You still have to use what you need. Don't skimp on it. Eat well, drink well, and live well. Only in this way can you do well in the exam."
"In this place in the capital, everything costs money and is expensive. I heard from people that some people who come to Beijing to take the exam carry thousands of taels of silver. Although our family is poor, if we borrow it from relatives and friends, we will
They are still willing to lend us money, and we can still borrow a few hundred taels of silver."
Hu Xiwen's father answered the phone and started talking to Hu Xiwen.
"Dad, it's really enough. I have enough money, but I still have a lot left."
When Hu Xiwen heard this, he immediately burst into tears. His parents had endured a lot of hardships since he was a child to study for himself. It was too expensive to study in the old school.
Moreover, relatives and friends often talk about this matter, saying that it is useless to study the old school, and it is better to study the new school to find a job. It was only after I won the election last year that everyone changed this view, and also started to think about their own family.
Much more polite.
"No matter if you have enough or not, I will ask someone to send you money later. You will still have to spend what you should spend."
"It's really not necessary, it's enough money."
Hu Xiwen chatted with his parents for another 20 minutes. After hearing that calling was expensive, he quickly hung up the phone.
A phone call slightly eased Hu Xiwen's homesickness, but at the same time it strengthened his determination to go to high school. It was really not easy for him to study at home.
My parents have eaten too much and suffered too much. If I don't win, if I come back in three years, my parents will have to save money and waste three years of time to save money.
Although it is now a juren, and people with status and status can be exempted from land tax, etc., the proportion of land tax payment is now very low, which is fundamentally different from before. Not many people will transfer their land to the juren name.
This has also led to the fact that many of the current candidates are relatively poor, but they still need to pass the Jinshi examination and become an official before they can truly become rich.