For three days in a row, Xue Chen, accompanied by Zhao Tiekai, went to the vegetable greenhouse every day. The vegetables in the greenhouse also showed changes that surprised Zhao Tiekai and his experienced vegetable farmer uncle.
.
The patch of vegetables that originally existed grew more vigorously, and the quality of various vegetables also underwent earth-shaking changes. Then the seeds that were planted broke out of the ground at an incredible speed and began to grow wildly.
The uncle pinched off a cucumber and took a big bite. While chewing, he stared at his eyes in disbelief. He breathed in and said, "It's so crispy and sweet. It tastes better than melon seeds." He raised his eyebrows at Xue Chen in admiration.
Thumbs up.
Three consecutive days of irrigation with the breath of rejuvenation have established the extraordinary quality of this batch of vegetables. After doing all this, after dinner at Sihai Hotel in the evening, Xue Chen also proposed the return trip. In all, he has already
It has been ten days since I left Haicheng.
"Xue Chen, why don't you stay for three more days? The semi-finals will be held in three days." Zhao Tiekai looked over and asked.
"I believe in Uncle Wuhu's level. Winning the first place will definitely be like searching for something. There is no suspense."
In terms of cooking skills, it is indeed not difficult to get first place.
Zhao Sihai and Zhao Wuhu also left a few words of condolence.
"Uncle Zhao, Uncle Wuhu, maybe I will come back after a while, and I hope you won't bother me all the time to disturb you." Xue Chen said with a smile.
Zhao Wuhu said cheerfully: "You will live here for the rest of your life, and we will welcome you."
"You still have your own work and affairs in Haicheng, so we won't keep you here. Xue Chen, just treat this place as your second home, and the door will be open for you at any time." Zhao Sihai said with a sincere expression.
said.
Xue Chen stood up and poured wine for Zhao Sihai, Zhao Wuhu and Zhao Tiekai, and then poured juice for the female relatives present, quietly feeling some rejuvenation.
Everyone had a drink together.
There was no direct flight from Bao City to Haicheng City, so Xue Chen needed to go to Hohhot to catch a flight. Zhao Tiekai insisted on driving him there himself, so he did not refuse.
Before getting on the bus, Zhao Sihai handed over a large leather envelope: "Xue Chen, this is a small gift from your Uncle Wuhu and I."
Xue Chen took it in surprise, opened the seal and took a look. He saw that it was an old book with average appearance and yellowing paper. He briefly looked at the material of the paper. It seemed to be from the late Qing Dynasty and the early Republic of China. It was different from
The only copies and things left behind by everyone are probably not very precious items. They are estimated to cost only ten or twenty thousand yuan at most.
"When I got home yesterday, I thought about you leaving, so I thought about giving you some gifts, but I didn't have anything good to offer. I remembered that you are in the antique business, and after thinking about it, I recalled this book.
There must be twenty years' worth of books at the bottom of the box. They are not worth much, so it is just a wish of our Zhao family." Zhao Wuhu took over the conversation and said.
"Huh? Dad, where did this old book come from? Why haven't I seen it before?" Zhao Tiekai scratched his head and said in surprise.
"It's a long story. When I got this book, you were still at the table. That was twenty years ago, and our small restaurant had just opened for half a month..."
Zhao Sihai said that this old book was obtained by paying off the debt. Not many days after the small restaurant opened, an old man in his sixties came to the restaurant to eat braised noodles with his silly son who had some brain problems but was big and round.
The two of them ate eight large bowls, the old man ate two bowls, and the tall, stupid son ate six bowls alone. Six bowls, three kilograms of noodles were all eaten.
There was a problem when checking out. The old man only had enough money for three bowls of noodles, and the two of them had to take a long-distance bus back to their hometown. After deducting the fare, there was not much left, which was not enough for one bowl of noodles.
Although brothers Zhao Sihai and Zhao Wuhu were quite depressed, they did not embarrass the old man and silly son. They waved their hands and said forget it, no more face money, just treat it as good deeds and good fortune.
The old man felt guilty and grateful and then told his story. He was an ordinary farmer more than 300 miles away from Bao City. The family raised more than a dozen sheep. They suffered from disease and all died. They wanted to buy a few more lambs.
I have a son to support, but I have no capital.
At that time, when antiques were just starting to become popular, the old man took a tattered book left by his family's ancestors and went to the Bao market to sell it. He was looking for some money to buy lambs. He stayed there for three days and walked around for several days.
This place was not sold, but all the money I had with me was spent.
Before leaving, the old man and his silly son thanked him profusely and took out the old book from the cloth bag he was carrying and gave it to Zhao Sihai in exchange for some noodles.
"Later, I also asked several people to identify it, and they said it was from the late Qing Dynasty and the early Republic of China. However, because it was not well preserved and the quality was average, it could not be sold at a high price, so I kept it in the cabinet."
After hearing about the origin of this old book, Xue Chen said goodbye to the Zhao family and got in the car. After nearly two hours of driving, he arrived at the airport in Hohhot.
"Brother, I must come again when you have time." Zhao Tiekai moved his lips a few times, sighed, and said in a reluctant tone.
"Okay." Xue Chen nodded heavily, passed the security check, and boarded the first-class cabin of the plane back to Haicheng City.
There is no such thing as a banquet that lasts forever, and farewell is always a little sad.
"Sir, the flight is about to take off. Please fasten your seat belt."
After boarding the plane, as soon as Xue Chen sat down, he heard a woman's sweet voice coming to his ears, with a familiar flavor. He turned around and saw that he was really an 'acquaintance', the one he had met when he came here.
A very beautiful and pure stewardess, where did her name come from? Xue Chen has a very good memory and remembered it in an instant, Li Jiayi.
"Oh, thank you." Xue Chen nodded and fastened his seat belt obediently.
Li Jiayi also recognized Xue Chen. The accident on the plane more than ten days ago left a deep impression on her, especially the scene where Xue Chen suddenly took action to save a pregnant woman and the fetus in her belly at a critical moment.
was lingering in her mind.
At that time, everyone was panicked and helpless. They could only watch the pregnant woman moaning and begging in pain and the pregnant woman's husband crying anxiously beside her. Only Xue Chen was so calm, confident and calm, and solved the big problem with one move.
Question, how could she forget in such a short period of time?
She also secretly guessed Xue Chen's identity, what would he do, a gynecological expert? But it didn't look like him, and he was too young.
Li Jiayi remembered Xue Chen, and naturally also remembered Qi Hu, that rude man who smelled like copper. She felt disgusted just by thinking of him, and couldn't help but secretly wonder, how could the man in front of her become friends with such a man?
Xue Chen glanced at the flight attendant Li Jiayi and then looked away, fastened his seat belt, and took the old book from the late Qing Dynasty and the early Republic of China that Zhao Sihai gave to him in his hand.
Opening the kraft paper envelope, an old book with about 180 pages fell into my hands. Looking at the torn and missing cover, as well as the yellowed and stained pages, I laughed out loud and seemed to say
A value of 10,000 to 20,000 yuan may be overestimating it.
Since it is an old book, it is naturally written in traditional Chinese characters. Of course, Xue Chen also knows them all. What comforts him a little is that the person who copied this book has beautiful handwriting in small regular characters, with the charm of Zhong Shaojing of the Tang Dynasty.
Inside, the rules are strict, the stipples are thoughtful, the body is ironed, and the brush is carefully polished.
Seeing that the calligraphy is so beautiful, it is obvious that the person who wrote this book was not an unknown person at that time. He was at least well-known in the local area, and he must be worthy of the title of calligrapher.
"Well, it doesn't look as bad as I thought."
With nothing to do, Xue Chen raised the corner of his mouth and started reading carefully from the first page.
"In the third year of Zhenghe, Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty Liu Che..."
Xue Chen read two pages with interest and then understood the nature of this old book. It was a miscellany that was not classified as official history. The first story told about the historical allusion of Liu Che, Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, who issued the edict of sin against oneself. The words were easy to read and easy to understand.
Got it, it was very interesting to read.
Just when Xue Chen turned to the fifth page, the plane's engine roared, the scenery outside the window quickly retreated, and the plane took off.
It takes nearly three hours to reach Haicheng City. This old book has become a good thing to pass the time. Two or three pages are short stories about various dynasties. These stories are based on some very famous historical events and are all about these events.
Some details also have a touch of mythology, making it difficult to tell the truth from the false.
Xue Chen didn't ask for a detailed explanation, just reading it as a collection of stories to pass the time. When the plane was halfway through, he had already read most of the book.
"At the end of the Yuan Dynasty and the beginning of the Ming Dynasty, there was the Shen family, a wealthy businessman. Shen was rich, with assets worth tens of millions. His land was spread all over the world, and he was as rich as anyone in the country. When Taizu of the Ming Dynasty heard about his name, he was jealous of his assets..."
Shen Fu? Shen Wansan...
Xue Chen's mind jumped out to this name that has left a mark in history.
Most people don't know the names Shen Fu or Shen Sanxiu, but when it comes to Shen Wansan, nine out of ten people know or have heard of it. He is a famous rich man in history, with wealth that rivals the country.
of strong characters.
He continued to read, and it was mentioned in the old book that Zhu Yuanzhang, the founder of the Ming Dynasty, was jealous of Shen Wansan's wealth, so he half forced and half asked Shen Wansan to donate money to build the city. I heard that one-third of the city walls in the ancient capital of the Six Dynasties were built with money donated by Shen Wansan.
There are different opinions as to whether it is true or false.
"So, where did Shen Fu's countless money come from? It is said that he has a cornucopia..."
Cornucopia? Xue Chen has naturally heard of this legend. He never believed it before, but since he obtained the ancient jade, he has a slightly different view on these seemingly feudal superstitions.
Keep reading.
It is said among the people that Shen Wansan had a cornucopia that could generate wealth, but no one has ever seen it. It is unknown whether it is true or not. However, Shen Rong, the third son of Shen Fu, once said frankly after being drunk that his father did have a cornucopia! (To be continued)