When Jin Fengniang heard Zhou Jun's words, she was stunned for a while, then she covered her face and said with a smile: "Don't be joking, Erlang. How can someone like Mr. Pang be interested in a servant like Po Ping?"
Zhou Jun asked again: "What if Pang Gong is willing?"
Jinfeng Niang thought about it for a long time and said to Zhou Jun: "Feng Niang should have listened to what Erlang said. But Ping Po has been with me for many years, and her daily expenses, although not considered rich, are just food.
Don’t worry about wearing it.”
"Pang Gong used to be an errand in the palace, and he had a very high vision. I'm worried that he has harsh requirements for his servants, and I can't bear to see Ping Po go away and suffer in vain."
Zhou Jun said: "There are very few slaves in Pang Gong's house, and most of them are old slaves. There are many words to protect the master in their words."
"Although Mr. Pang is stern in his daily life, I think he is a nostalgic person and treats others well."
Jin Fengniang added: "Even so, if Ping Po doesn't want to, I can't force others to do anything."
Zhou Jun thought for a while and said, "How about this? I will take you and Po Ping to visit Mr. Pang tomorrow."
"Your master and servant, you can meet with Mr. Pang first before making a decision."
Golden Phoenix thought about it for a while and finally agreed.
After coming out of Feng Niang's place, Zhou Jun rode his horse back home. He first told his parents what he had seen and heard in Pang Mansion today, and then returned to his private room.
As soon as Zhou Jun opened the door of the wing, he saw Hua Yue running to the small room next to the front hall like a frightened rabbit and closing the door tightly.
Zhou Jun looked at the door of the small room and scratched his head helplessly.
After thinking about it for a while, Zhou Jun walked to the door and said: "What happened this morning, although Zhou did it unintentionally, it was indeed Meng Lang. I am here to apologize to Hua Yue. I hope you will ignore the past grudges.
Magnanimous.”
After saying that, there was still no response from the other side of the door.
No?
How can I make Huayue calm down?
Maybe diverting attention can be a solution.
Zhou Jun thought of this, took out the charcoal pen, found another piece of paper, and wrote the Arabic numerals from 0 to 9 on it.
Then, he stuffed the piece of paper under the door and asked: "In the hometown of Hua Yue, does anyone use this kind of numbers to count?"
After the paper was pulled in, after a while, Huayue gently replied with two words: "Not yet."
Zhou Jun was overjoyed. It seemed that he did the right thing by talking to Hua Yue.
Zhou Jun found another piece of paper and wrote on it the calculation methods commonly used in the Tang Dynasty. He also stuffed it under the door and said, "This is our commonly used calculation method. Compare the two and see.
What’s the difference?”
Huayue pulled the second piece of paper in, and after a while, replied: "The number you gave me the first time, the strokes are simpler, and the number corresponding to the calculation is one circle (0) correct."
Zhou Jun corrected her: "That's not called a circle, it's called zero."
Huayue: "Zero? What is zero?"
Zhou Jun: "Zero means nothing, also known as the empty set."
Hua Yue: "Oh, I understand. In the eclipse counting method, we draw 0 as a point, but in the Tang Dynasty arithmetic, 0 is an empty space."
Zhou Jun thought to himself, it seems that Dashi has not yet introduced Arabic numerals from Tianzhu, and still uses the old counting method.
Zhou Jun took out a third piece of paper, wrote 10, 20, 30, 100, 1000, 10000 and other numbers on the paper, and stuffed it into the crack of the door.
After looking at Hua Yue, Zhou Jun added: "Whether it's the calculation of the Tang Dynasty or the numbers of the Great Eclipse, once the number reaches 10, counting will be very inconvenient."
"The first type of numbers I just wrote is much easier to read and calculate."
Hua Yue was on the other side of the door, carefully looking at the numbers on several pieces of paper, and said slowly: "It is indeed much more convenient."
Zhou Jun added: "At Sha Shiqing's place, I once recited a kind of oral arithmetic formula. Do you want to know what it is?"
Huayue was silent for a while, then softly said one word: "Yes."
Zhou Jun sat on the stool and said towards the door: "If you want to know, come out and talk. Don't you think it's strange to talk like this through the door?"
There was no sound from the other side of the door for a long time. Just when Zhou Jun was disappointed and about to give up, the door of the small room opened a gap.
Huayue carefully poked half of her head out and said to Zhou Jun: "Don't come over here. Light the candle a little. I can see what you wrote."
Zhou Jun took the charcoal pen and first wrote two symbols on the paper: x, ÷.
Then, he pointed at the paper and said: "This is called the multiplication sign, and this is called the division sign."
"Suppose the number in front of the multiplication sign is A and the number behind it is B. Then the multiplication sign means the multiplication of two numbers A and B. A further explanation is that there are A and B added together..."
It took Zhou Jun two hours to explain the multiplication table.
From the meaning of the multiplication sign and the division sign, to the calculation of substitution, and then to the symmetry of the digits.
At the end of the story, Zhou Jun, who was gradually losing his patience after being asked this and that by Hua Yue, simply told Hua Yue directly like a primary school teacher in his previous life, just memorize it by rote and don't worry about the principles behind it.
After finally finishing speaking, Zhou Jun was already too sleepy to open his eyes, so he went back to his room to rest.
The next morning, he got up from the bed and walked to the front hall, only to find Hua Yue still lying on the ground writing and drawing, with drafts full of calculations spread all over the floor.
Zhou Jun asked in surprise: "Is it possible that you didn't sleep all night?"
Huayue raised her head, her eye circles were slightly darkened, but the expression on her face was extremely excited: "I used the Greek multiplication table to conduct deductions and proved that this nine-nine multiplication table is correct."
Zhou Jun thought to himself, of course it is correct.
Huayue added: "I also used the carry method of the multiplication table to solve the Babylonian's "Six-ring Large Number Problem" and the Egyptian's "Huragu Number Order". These two mathematical problems are even
The mathematicians in my father's palace were once at a loss."
Zhou Jun, who had no idea what Hua Yue was talking about, could only nod and smile politely.
Leaving Hua Yue who was still struggling with numbers, Zhou Jun arrived in front of the hall, mounted his horse and came to the door of Jin Feng Niang's mansion.
Ping Po was waiting at the gate early. When she saw Zhou Jun coming, she bowed.
Jin Fengniang must have told Pang Gong about buying a maid, but Zhou Jun couldn't see any expressions of sadness or joy on Po Ping's face.
After hearing the servant's announcement, Goldfeng Niang, who was dressed in fine clothes, hurriedly walked out. She was dressed in gold and silver, and she was carefully dressed up.
When she walked in front of Zhou Jun, Jin Fengniang deliberately turned around in a circle and asked with a smile: "How?"
Zhou Jun nodded and praised.
Seeing Jin Feng Niang enter the carriage first, Zhou Jun suddenly stopped Ping Po who was about to get on the carriage and said: "It seems like there is something missing... By the way, take that pipa with you too."
Hearing this, Ping Po stood there blankly, with a slight fluctuation in her expression.
Golden Phoenix poked her head out of the car and said, "Take it with you. The last time I heard Po Ping play the pipa was during the Lantern Festival."
Ping Po bowed slightly to Jin Feng Niang, went back to the small room, and fetched the pipa.
Seeing Po Ping getting into the carriage with her pipa in her arms, Zhou Jun got on the horse and said, "Let's go."