Xu Zizhen obviously didn't know what Xiuwen Hall was, but from the literal meaning, it must be a place for studying. He didn't care what the expressions on other people's faces were and refused immediately: "I understand Mr. Gu's kindness, but I have no ambition."
Not here."
Just kidding, it was just one or two years after the Jin Kingdom destroyed the Northern Song Dynasty, and I still rushed to the capital. Isn’t that looking for death? Is it better to hide in Suzhou, find an opportunity to pick up pears, and then have a couple of biological children?
baby……
Gu Yi was greatly disappointed, but he didn't say anything. He just told him that if he figured it out, he could go find him, and then walked away shakily on crutches, while Hu Chang showed an attitude of being willing to admit defeat.
, took Zhang Ling's trio and escaped first.
The trouble was solved, and Qian Tongzhi also said goodbye. He was not good at writing, but he was still very discerning. Although he wanted to make friends with Xu Zizhen, he still left room for him to flirt with Mo Lier. Xu Zizhen sighed greatly at this, and people
They are so different from human beings, why are the Duan brothers so confused?
Duan Chen was very curious about him. He originally thought that Xu Zizhen was just a commoner who wanted to fight against injustice, but he didn't expect that he was so talented. He would drag him to a place to have a good chat no matter what. Duan Yan even had big eyes.
Gu Liu Liu looked at Xu Zizhen from time to time, with curiosity beyond words.
"I'm sorry, Brother Duan, Li'er invited me to dinner today. I'm afraid we have to talk another day." Xu Zizhen had no choice but to lie casually.
Duan Chen slapped his forehead and said with a smile: "It seems that I was too abrupt. I forgot that Brother Xu has a beautiful woman by his side. In this case, I will leave first." After saying this, he bowed his head.
Xu Zizhen quickly returned the courtesy: "Well done, well gone."
Duan Yan suddenly jumped up to him, smiled and said: "Brother Xu, my brother and I live in Yongfu Inn in the south of the city. If you have time, don't forget to come and play with us." After saying this, he pulled Duan Chen to jump.
Jumped away.
Xu Zizhen scratched his head: "This kid is about sixteen or seventeen years old, right? Why is he still walking like a rabbit?"
Everyone who should leave left, and Xu Zizhen quickly took Mo Li'er and fled from here, because his performance just now was so amazing, and even now many people are still looking at him with admiration.
The two of them had just left Qianrenshi when Mo Lier burst into laughter. Xu Zizhen was confused: "Li'er, what are you laughing at?"
"Brother Xu, how did you know that I wanted to invite you to dinner? Could it be that you knew how to do it?"
"Ah? Do you really want to treat me to dinner?" Xu Zizhen also wanted to laugh a little, "But I have a problem. I am not used to having big girls treat me, especially a beauty like you. Why don't you choose a place and I will treat you.
"
When Mo Lier heard that he was praising her good looks again, her face suddenly turned red and she said: "It was my mother who invited Brother Xu to thank Brother Xu for saving her yesterday. But it was not at any restaurant, but at my home.
, I hope Brother Xu won’t dislike it.”
Xu Zizhen slapped his thigh: "I don't mind you. The home-cooked food is good. Come on, I'm hungry."
Mo Lier: "..."
Originally, he thought that Mo Li'er's family was either a farmer or a fisherman, but when he first arrived at Mo's house, Xu Zizhen discovered that he had guessed wrong. Mo Li'er's family actually opened a large rouge powder shop in Suzhou Prefecture.
In the most prosperous area, Changmen, the name also has a Jiangnan charm, called Xie Fuchun.
"Li'er, this...is this opened by your family?" Xu Zizhen was a little surprised, not only because of the size of the store, but also because of Mo Li'er's dress. She was just wearing ordinary cotton clothes, and she didn't look a bit wealthy at all.
Looks like the second generation.
Mo Lier smiled sweetly: "This store has been passed down to my mother for the seventh generation."
Xu Zizhen was a little surprised. Seventh Generation, it was a century-old store. Xu Zizhen was very interested in the cosmetics of this era, so he followed Mo Lier and walked in.
The shop is very bright, with a central hall hanging on the wall facing the door. There are long counters on the left and right sides. On one side are various rouges and blushes, and on the other side are fragrance powder, shaved oil and the like.
There is a middle-aged woman sitting at each counter with a friendly smile.
Xu Zizhen was a little unsure who was Mo Li'er's mother and didn't know how to say hello. At this awkward moment, he saw a middle-aged woman coming out of the back room.
Mo Lier rushed over, hugged the woman's arm and said with a smile: "Mom, I invited Brother Xu here."
The woman tapped her forehead lightly with her finger and said with a smile: "Girl, why didn't you come back until now?" After speaking, she looked at Xu Zizhen with a smile.
Wow, the future mother-in-law is so young! This is Xu Zizhen’s first impression. This half-old lady is extremely well-maintained. Time seems to have left no obvious traces on her body. Her hair is covered with black and shiny black hair coiled behind her head, and a pair of
Her eyes flickered slightly, making her look like a mature woman in her thirties.
Xu Zizhen was surprised and said smoothly: "Oh, aunt, you are so young."
Flattering women based on their age was effective in any dynasty, but this way of greeting still seemed abrupt in the Northern Song Dynasty. Mo Lier's mother was slightly startled, then pursed her lips and smiled, her charm suddenly revealed: "
Mr. Xu is so complimentary." After saying this, he suddenly folded his hands and said, "Mo Xie, I would like to thank Mr. Xu for saving Li'er's life."
Xu Zizhen immediately panicked: "No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no thanks, auntie, please don't be polite. This younger generation can't bear it, so we can't thank you, no thanks!"
Mo Lier looked on amused. This was the first time she saw Xu Zizhen in such a panic. She quickly smoothed things over and said, "Mom, I'm hungry."
Xu Zizhen had already digested all the food he had eaten at the temple fair, and now his stomach was growling again. He somehow managed to blurt out: "Yes, mother, I'm hungry too."
As soon as these words came out, Mo Li'er's little face suddenly burned like a red cloud, reaching deep into her neck. She screamed and stomped her feet and hid behind Mo Xie, not daring to raise her head again. Mo Xie was stunned for a moment.
Xia glanced at Xu Zizhen with a half-smile, then turned around and said to the two middle-aged women standing behind the counter: "Sister Wu and Sun, please close early today."
The two women responded and worked together to clean up the door panels on the counter. From time to time they chuckled and glanced at Xu Zizhen, making him feel a little scared. Mo Xie quickly recovered and raised his hand with a smile: "Xu Zizhen
Sir, please."
"Uh, please..."
Xu Zizhen felt that his face was a little feverish, and he did not dare to say anything at this time, so he had to follow the mother and daughter into the inner hall. In the Song Dynasty, etiquette was very strict, so Mo Xie asked Sun Sister Wu to
The two ladies, my sister, also went into the inner hall to keep me company, to prevent the neighbors from talking to you.
There is a cave inside the store. After bypassing the central hall, there is a spacious patio with a clump of bamboo planted there. The second time you enter the middle is the Mo family’s living room. The furniture and furnishings in the room are spotless, but it can be seen that they have been there for some time.
The window lattice and door lintels are all carved by skillful hands. It is obvious that the Mo family is quite wealthy.
But what Xu Zizhen didn't expect was that Mo Lier's family had such a big foundation, but there wasn't even a maid in the huge living room. All the dishes on the table were cooked by Mo Xie alone, and at most they were just pear dishes.
Get started.
"Auntie, forgive me for talking too much, you have such a big business, why don't you find some maids and aunts?" Xu Zizhen finally couldn't restrain his doubts and asked.
Mrs. Mo Xie smiled slightly, but there was a hint of bitterness in the smile, and said slowly: "My husband passed away early, and Li'er and I were left to depend on each other. Although my family's inheritance is not small, I am a woman and a real family."
We are unable to expand, and now our business is getting worse. I am afraid that even if we want to defend it in the future, we will not be able to maintain it."
Xu Zizhen was silent. He knew very well how hard it was for a woman to support a family by herself. After his parents passed away, he was exhausted from living with his younger brother.
"Auntie, let me toast you for your hard work!" Xu Zizhen picked up the wine glass and said seriously, then raised the glass and drank it in one gulp.
Mrs. Mo Xie also picked up the cup and took a sip. Seeing that the topic seemed a bit heavy, she calmed down and suddenly asked: "I heard from Li'er that you met Mr. Gu Yi in Huqiu today?"
Xu Zizhen nodded: "Yes, that old man is quite interesting. The first time he met me, he wanted to recommend me to some hall in the capital."
Mo Xie was a little surprised: "Oh? Xiuwentang is the first literary society in the Song Dynasty, with countless famous teachers and scholars. Anyone who can study in Xiuwentang will have a greatly improved hope of passing the imperial examination in the future. I heard Li'er say that the young master is extremely talented in literature.
Well, why are you not interested in this?"
Xu Zizhen laughed: "I'm not a scholar. That kind of place doesn't appeal to me. Besides, I just returned to my hometown. The most important thing now is to make money. Otherwise, I won't have enough to eat. How can I have free time to study?"
He couldn't tell Mr. Mo Xie that he was really good at telling the truth. Every word of the poem in the Ju Zhan was copied, especially the acrostic poem, which shamelessly changed Tang Bohu's chrysanthemum poem.
Thinking of this, he was secretly glad. Back then, he had often pursued those artistic young women from art schools. In order to show off for himself, he had to memorize those poems and songs. Unexpectedly, he didn't pick up a few girls in the end, so he memorized them.
The poems came in handy at this time.
Mo Xie smiled and said, "Young master doesn't want to become an official, so is he planning to go into business?"
Xu Zizhen had just picked up a piece of sweet and sour pork ribs and wanted to put it in his mouth. Hearing these words, he couldn't help but feel a little dazed. He didn't plan to go to the capital to study, but he was still blank about his future plans. Do you want to do business? Are you the material?
Suddenly a flash of light flashed in his mind, and he suddenly had concerns in his heart, but his face remained calm, and he changed the subject with a smile: "Let's talk about the future, one step at a time... Auntie, I don't like Rouge.
I don’t quite understand, can you tell me about the varieties sold in the store?”
Mo Xie didn't know how a big man like him became interested in rouge, but since he asked, he gave him a brief introduction, such as rouge, hair wax, lipstick, and the nail polish, etc.
I briefly talked about the classification, grade and color. Xu Zizhen listened to it and remembered it in his heart, and gradually became happy.