Axia was eating in the kitchen when she heard people banging the table and yelling loudly in the bedroom where the dining table was set. She thought something had happened, so she hurried over.
When she arrived in the room, Axia discovered that although the atmosphere here was indeed different from usual, it didn't look like a fight.
When Shang Jingzhong saw Axia coming, he quickly walked to the bedside, lifted up the quilt, and then took out a cloth bag from under the pillow.
Shang Jingzhong handed the cloth bag to Axia and said firmly: "Lao He is braised meat. I bought ten kilograms of freshly braised cooked meat."
Axia was shocked. She had been frugally saving for a long time, and she had only saved this little money. Today she was suddenly going to lose her fortune.
Seeing that Axia was still in a daze, Shang Jingzhong said with a bit of proud impatience: "Go if I tell you to."
Although Axia didn't know what was going on, she quickly took the bag and went to the braised meat shop to buy meat while there was still some light outside.
…
Why did Shang Jingzhong agree so readily when Huang Xiaoshi invited him? The answer is simple, because he had had enough.
Yes, Shang Jingzhong is indeed a person who has no desires and desires, but this lack of desires and desires does not mean that he likes to do hard work.
Many people pursue a life like idle clouds and wild cranes, but there is a very important prerequisite here, that is, they do not have to feed themselves to feed the family.
There are so many people living in the mountains, and no one has the leisure to enjoy the beautiful rivers and mountains.
Shang Jingzhong's ability is indeed very high, and his martial arts are excellent, but in most cases, he is worthless.
The first thing you need to understand is what a warrior is.
It will be easier to understand if the word "人" is replaced by "qi".
What are weapons.
In the most primitive times, weapons were mainly used in battles between humans and animals. When large animals were almost extinct by humans, weapons were mainly used in battles between humans.
In other words, the weapon is very powerful, but its role is limited to the struggle between people. Without this special situation, it is useless.
Take cutting grass as an example, a knife is not as good as a sickle, and taking plowing land as an example, a sword is not as good as a plowshare.
Many people say that using a knife to cut grass and a sword to plow the ground is overkill in itself.
However, in real life, it depends on whether you are a big material or a small material, a talent or a chopper. The key is that the user has the final say.
The value and use value of anything are themselves two different things.
In order to practice martial arts, in addition to talent and qualifications, martial artists also need a lot of time. From a young age to a young man, they basically practice martial arts full time until they are successful in their studies.
This also results in the cost of raising a warrior being very high, much higher than raising an idle person.
Ordinary people simply cannot afford such high expenses, but people have practical needs, so the Jianghu sect was born.
Jianghu sects are groups that specialize in providing force protection. They are divided into two major categories based on their own Jianghu status and strength.
The first type is similar to a mercenary organization. They are paid to do things, whether it is looking after homes and homes, participating in armed fights, including doing underworld work and acting as escorts, they are all at this level.
The second category is the top level of martial arts, the existence of the six major sects.
Due to their extremely huge combat power, the existence of the six major factions has filled the gap in the court's power to a certain extent, and their deterrence can even play a role in maintaining social security and stability in a region.
To put it simply, wherever the six major sects take root, no matter what year they are born, the security is better than in other areas. This has also led to many people being willing to buy properties in the areas controlled by the six major sects.
As the population increases, the value of industries will naturally increase.
This is also one of the most important financial resources of the six major sects, besides the Beggar Clan.
In addition, the six major sects also have other financial resources.
Not to mention religious sects such as Shaolin and Wudang, incense fees are a large amount of income.
The biggest income of the Tianshan Sect is from selling flags in the Western Region where war is in chaos and bandits are like locusts.
As long as you place the snow-capped mountain flag of the Tianshan Sect, no one will dare to touch you, no matter whether it is a shop or a caravan, at least within a few hundred miles around the foot of the Tianshan Mountains.
If someone pulls the flag, or makes trouble for you, someone will take care of him.
Although the Tianshan Sect is at the bottom of the six major sects, it is still one of the six major sects. Before the Tianlong Sect entered the Western Regions, its military force was enough to intimidate the whole party.
The Tianshan Sect has two to three hundred disciples, most of whom are at level 2, a few have entered level 3, and He Weifeng is also at level 3.
You know, in the eyes of ordinary people, level 2 warriors are great people, and level 3 warriors are already so powerful that they are invulnerable.
Facing ordinary people, level 3 warriors can really use Wushuang to mow the grass directly.
In the Western Region, because competition is relatively less fierce, the martial arts ecology of a hundred years ago is still maintained.
Of course, if you want to fly the white flag of Tianshan Sect, you must pay money. Different stores have different payment levels, and this money is called protection fee.
Therefore, the purpose of protection fees is really to protect you, not to cause trouble for you.
Later, any gangster with brains would know to rob the shops and caravans without flags, and any gangsters with brains would know to buy a white flag and put it on them.
(In the middle and late period of the Republic of China, the Pao Ge organization in Sichuan also became like this. Without joining the Pao Ge organization and paying protection fees, ordinary people would live uneasily.)
The small white flags of the Tianshan sect are widely sold, so to speak, even the caravans of Shennong Baicaomen bought white flags and put them on them.
This is why the Tianshan sect is so rich despite not doing anything.
However, all this changed after the Tianlong Sect broke through the Tianshan Gate.
If a group that provides security protection for others is wiped out by another group of more ruthless people, then who will believe in your deterrent power?
This is one of the reasons why He Weifeng feels that there is no need for the Tianshan Sect to continue to exist.
Once the signboard that took a hundred years to be erected was smashed, either He Weifeng would lead someone to get the place back, and then go back and destroy Tianlong.
Or, if you smash it, just smash it.
He Weifeng thought about it carefully and chose the latter.
The Tianshan Sect announced its dissolution, and most of the dozen or so disciples around He Weifeng chose to join the Wudang Sect. This was also the safest approach.
However, Shang Jingzhong declined the invitations of He Weifeng and Fang Yunhua one after another.
On the one hand, although the Wudang Sect is also a major sect, its cost of food and clothing is actually lower than that of the Tianshan Sect.
On the other hand, Shang Jingzhong considered the marriage issue.
This is the second biggest problem faced by most sect disciples.
Disciples of each sect, when they reach a certain age, have to face "discipleship", which is called "graduation" in fashionable terms.
On the one hand, it is very troublesome for sect disciples to get married. Unless the leader agrees, general sect disciples are not allowed to bring their family members to live in the sect.
On the other hand, life is long, and after you reach your prime of life, if you cannot climb up to the management level, the master will force you to become a teacher by saying, "You have already accomplished your studies and have nothing to teach you as a teacher."
The sect needs new blood, fresh-blooded young men who dare to charge, fight, and kill, instead of a bunch of old fritters, old gangsters, and old men.
At this time, the advantages of Wudang and Shaolin come out. After all, Wudang is a Taoist priest and Shaolin is a monk. This is a lifelong profession in itself.
However, it is impossible to say how rich the Wu-Tang Clan is.
Because, unlike the Tianshan Sect, which does not support idlers, the Wudang Sect has many old Taoist priests, who need to be raised for a lifetime.
Therefore, if a disciple of a sect wants to consider long-term development, then becoming a disciple is almost an inevitable outcome.
Now, taking advantage of the fact that He Weifeng has just sold off the Tianshan Sect's ancestral property and has a lot of money left in his hand, he can still get a few hundred taels of silver as severance pay.
After working as a poor Taoist priest in the Wudang sect for several years, if I want to leave Wudang, I am afraid I will only be able to get a few taels of silver for my settlement.
Therefore, Shang Jingzhong and Axia made a calculation and felt that it was most cost-effective for them to take the money and leave at this time, and Axia, who was very calculating, also arranged their money clearly.
In this way, the retired life of the young couple can be considered a very secure one.
However, the contrast from the majestic Tianshan sect disciples to self-reliant working people is so great that ordinary people cannot bear it.
In other words, it is not easy to survive in this world.
Among all living beings, whoever is not suffering can live a relaxed and comfortable life.
…
Not long after, Axia bought back the freshly braised meat, and the three of them sat around the table and ate it.
Although Axia didn't know what happened, there must be something good in this cheerful atmosphere.
After the three of them had a hearty meal, Huang Xiaoshi burped and said goodbye to the two of them. The tea shop owner ran the inn, and Huang Xiaoshi went back there to sleep.
After Huang Xiaoshi left, Shang Jingzhong pulled Axia and sat on the bed. They closed the door and Shang Jingzhong told Axia exactly what happened with Huang Xiaoshi.
Upon hearing such good news, Axia hugged Shang Jingzhong happily.
"A-Zhong, you are a man who has experienced the world and should not be buried in the loess like this.
You have suffered these days."
His wife's words turned the frustration in Shang Jingzhong's heart into endless comfort.
After all, who likes to promote soy milk and sell tofu?
If it had been Shennong Baicaomen who recruited Shang Jingzhong at that time, Shang Jingzhong would have nodded and left.
Unlike other sects, Shennong Baicao Sect has great protection for its members.
…
Huang Xiaoshi only offered Shang Jingzhong 10 taels of silver a month, which was a bit small to be honest.
After all, a tenant farmer with food and shelter could earn a full two taels of silver even if he worked from dawn to dusk and made cattle and horses for a whole year.
Shang Jingzhong, as a man with the strongest financial strength in the world, his annual income is only one hundred and twenty taels of silver.
However, Huang Xiaoshi also said that he would be given ten shares a month.
This is awesome.
After living in this small town for a while, Shang Jingzhong heard a lot of various news. Among them, the Wang family held a banquet to celebrate that their son had entered the Shennong Baicao Sect and became an official member.
At first, Shang Jingzhong, who went to the banquet, didn't understand that a mere disciple of Shennong Baicao Sect was worthy of hosting a banquet.
But after hearing Lao Wang's fierce blow, Shang Jingzhong realized that this was really something serious.
You get one share for one year.
Shennong Baicaomen needs a large number of experienced seniors whether it is planting or making pharmaceuticals, so there is no such thing as "graduation". You can work until you die.
Forty years equals forty shares.
This share is not only left for you when you grow old, but also for your children and grandchildren.
In contrast, the reason why Shang Jingzhong looks down on Wudang is because the Taoist priests in Wudang live too poor. In addition to having enough food and only the clothes they wear all year round, they also have nothing to offer.
Anyway, Shang Jingzhong also has a lot of strength, and he can't do heavy work. However, being trapped in this kind of firewood, rice, oil and salt all day long, Shang Jingzhong feels like he is stuck in a quagmire.
Mr. Zhou once said, if you don’t break out in silence, you will perish in silence.
Today, Shang Jingzhong finally broke out.
…
"If I do this for a year, I will have a full 120 taels of silver and 120 shares." Axia said happily to Shang Jingzhong.
After Shang Jingzhong helped his wife lie down on her side, he also turned on the lamp and fell asleep. Axia kept chattering in his ear, and finally she fell asleep.
Shang Jingzhong's heart was far from calm at this time.
First, Shang Jingzhong is now full of excitement after getting rid of the distractions of life.
Secondly, since Huang Xiaoshi paid him a lot of money, he would not just let himself go to Shennong Baicaomen to bask in the sun and drink tea.
Shang Jingzhong also heard about the growth history of Shennong Baicaomen, and naturally he also heard about Huang Xiaoshi's style of doing things.
It stands to reason that the former Shang Jingzhong would have hated people like Huang Xiaoshi. He felt that they were too fond of specialization, were ruthless in doing things, and did not know how to treat others in trouble.
Only when he reached the bottom of society did Shang Jingzhong realize that the world was not as pure and kind as he thought before. For half a piece of tofu, an old woman would stand in front of his door and scold him for a long time.
It was at this time that Shang Jingzhong understood what it means to be a tiger falling on a flat sun and a dragon trapped in shallow water.
With just a little effort, you can kill that old woman who scolded you for selling broken tofu with one palm?
Tofu, tofu.
Shang Jingzhong never wanted to see such a white and tender little thing again in his life.
Following Huang Xiaoshi, no matter how hard he is with swords and shadows, or whether he is a mountain of corpses and a sea of blood, it is much easier to endure than just tofu.
After lying down for a while, Shang Jingzhong couldn't sleep. After he turned over and sat up, he meditated on the bed and began to exercise his internal energy seriously.
It is said that if you don't practice hand skills for three days, you will be good. In the past few months, you have not had time to use your internal skills. You have to practice well.
…
Early the next morning, people who came to buy soy milk and bean dregs cakes found that Shang Kee Tofu Shop was not open.
Huang Xiaoshi said to Shang Jingzhong: "You guys pack up first, I'll go to Wudang."
Huang Xiaoshi went to Wudang to talk to He Weifeng about recruiting Shang Jingzhong.
Although Huang Xiaoshi had already told He Weifeng about this matter at Gu Yuexuan's wedding banquet that day, he still had to tell He Weifeng again in person today.
This is etiquette, after all, He Weifeng is still Shang Jingzhong’s master.
He Weifeng lived on Wudang Mountain. He moved out of the Wudang Clan but bought a large house nearby to live in.
Living in the mountains, although food and clothing are more expensive, He Weifeng doesn't care.
No matter how expensive it is, is it more expensive than in Tianshan?
The reason why He Weifeng insisted on staying on Wudang Mountain was because he considered the safety of himself and his family.
Being close to Wudang Mountain and protected by my son-in-law, at least I don't have to worry about another Tianlong Sect suddenly coming and killing my whole family.
The older you are in the world, the less courage you have.
He Weifeng has not yet gotten over the psychological shadow of the Tianshan sect being exterminated.
After all, He Weifeng is also an N-generation leader. He no longer has the pioneering ambitions of the first generation leader. It is the most important thing for him to survive peacefully with his family, wife, children, and children.
