The Red Mansions

Chapter 4 Troubled Times?

Jia Heng was not annoyed, and smiled lightly, and said: "The glory of the ancestors is far away. Although I am not talented, I would like to follow in the footsteps of the ancestors. I heard that Brother Xie is quite unique in archery. If Brother Xie does not give up, You can give some pointers on the archery technique, and if there is any improvement, I will appreciate Brother Xie's teaching."

Xie Baihu thought for a while, then smiled and said: "Hold this knife, have you seen the wooden stake over there? If you can chop it, I will teach you all the skills of archery. If you can't, Don't say I'm old thank you for not showing affection."

Said, handed over the knife.

Cai Quan said in a low voice: "Brother Dong, it's not easy...how come you passed the exam."

Dong Qian frowned and said, "I don't know either, let's take a look first."

Jia Heng lightly held the Yanling Saber in his hand. This sword has been refined and weighed about ten catties (made in Chinese, 250g per catty). If it hadn't been for the strength of the predecessor, it would have been difficult to lift it.

He waved it around and drew a saber flower.

Just for a moment, Xie Baihu squinted his eyes, secretly marveling, this descendant of Duke Ning and Rong has long been useless, did not expect such a person to exist?
Jia Heng made two steps together, lifted the knife and jumped to chop, and saw the light of the knife was like a rainbow, and he chopped towards the wooden post.

"Crack!"

The thick and thin wooden stakes of the sea bowl were cut off from it, and the section was like a mirror, and the light could be used as a guide.

"What a good knife!"

Jia Heng blurted out his compliments, feeling his arms were sore, it was because he often used the sword, but rarely used the knife, and there were many differences in the ways of exerting force between the two.

Xie Baihu stood up and said with a smile: "Good job, my old Xie missed it."

Dong Qian said with a smile: "Brother Xie, don't underestimate my brother Jia. I just saw him practicing sword at home. The sword is like a rainbow, and the wind and rain are impenetrable."

Xie Baihu also had a bit of a smile on his face, and said: "This wooden stake is made of oak, it is more difficult to split than ordinary wooden stakes, Jia Xiong broke it with one blow, it is not easy, he has skill in his hands. "

Not only strength, but also skill, as soon as an expert makes a move, he will know whether he has it or not.

Cai Quan also smiled at the side to warm up the atmosphere, and said, "Come on, it's already noon, let's go eat first."

Jia Heng nodded and followed Xie Baihu into the house.

Xie Baihu lived in three tile-roofed houses, and there was a woman in a thorn hairpin sarong in the house. She was 30 years old, her skin was not very good, and she was tired from long-term work, and she was accompanied by several children.

A child with a thick head and a thick head was looking at the stranger, his eyes fell on the gift box in the hands of Cai Quan and Jia Heng, his eyes were shining, and there were two little girls with braids behind him, looking at him timidly stranger.

"Go and warm up the wine." As soon as Xie Baihu entered the wing room, he got on the kang first, and instructed the woman beside him.

The woman responded, Cai Quan, Jia Heng passed the wine and meat over here.

After a while, everyone was drinking and talking.

Xie Baihu sighed and said: "Why do the Jin people plunder every year in the north? It's just that riding and shooting are useless. Thinking back to the time of the Taizu, the Beijing camp could still chase death and chase the north. How many years have passed, and how many people in the army will Riding and archery?"

Because of Chen Han Chengming, he naturally faced the same problems as the previous Ming Dynasty. There were grassland border troubles outside, land annexation by the landlord class inside, and a huge civil official group with gentry as the spokesperson.

Jia Heng pondered: "What's the situation on Nine Sides now?"

"What else could be the situation? The eastern captives are in great difficulty, the general army of Jizhen can't retreat, the Beiping mansion has been looted all the year round, and the people on the frontier are miserable." Xie Baihu said angrily.

A hint of thought appeared on Jia Heng's face. After the world of Dream of Red Mansions came to the end, it would undoubtedly be a chaotic world where one party changed dynasties. As "Good Song" said, if you are well-trained, you may not be a strong beam in the future. It is about Liu Xianglian. The era will allow Liu Xianglian and others to be strong beams.

Except for the troubled times, don't think about it.

In the first chapter of "Dream of Red Mansions", Zhen Shiyin's house was burnt down, and he went to the farm to escape. The book said: "The odds are that this year's floods and droughts will not be harvested, thieves and thieves will be rampant, and officers and soldiers will arrest them..."

Chapter 53 is more recorded, Wu Jinxiao reported, "This year's harvest is really bad. It rained from March until August, and there was no sunny day for five consecutive days. In September, there was a bowl-sized hailstone..."

Thinking of this, Jia Heng couldn't help feeling a bit awe-inspiring.

Could it be the Little Ice Age in the late Ming Dynasty?
If this is the case, just being an official through the imperial examination is not enough to settle down in this world. You still need to have military power in your hands to live well in this world.

In this side, a few people were talking, and the hot food and drinks over there were put on the table. Everyone was talking and talking, and they mentioned the trivial matters in Beijing from what they saw and heard in the army.

A cocktail party, the guests and the host enjoyed themselves until the late afternoon.

Jia Heng and Xie Zaiyi made an appointment to learn riding and archery, and accompanied Dong and Cai, whose cheeks were flushed from drinking, they went home together.

When he came back, he was too small to be blamed by Mrs. Cai. Jia Heng went back to the back room to sleep until dusk.

Prepared some hot water, washed away the smell of alcohol, and changed into clean clothes.

Just as he was about to go to the study, he suddenly saw Mrs. Cai standing at the threshold, seemingly hesitating to speak.

Jia Heng smiled and said, "Aunt Cai has something to teach me?"

There are three members of Cai's family. Although his family is poor, there are actually [-] to [-] acres of land, which are cultivated by Cai's husband and brother Cai's family of three.

Cai said: "Auntie has a few words to entrust Brother Heng."

Said, walked into the house.

Jia Heng smiled, picked up the teapot at the side, poured a cup of tea for Mrs. Cai, turned around and said, "Aunt Cai, you drink tea."

Sitting on the table, Cai said with a smile, "Brother is becoming more and more like an adult."

Jia Heng smiled and said: "The children from poor families have long been in charge of the family, and Aunt Cai has watched me grow up."

Holding the tea, Mrs. Cai said with a smile, "If the girl is still here, I might feel more comforted."

Jia Heng sighed, and said: "Mother, she has worked hard all her life, and she never enjoyed a day of happiness with my father and son, hey..."

Mrs. Cai was silent, and after a while, she suddenly said: "Young lady hopes that my brother will study and study. Before leaving, in fact, she made an appointment for my brother."

Jia Heng asked in surprise, "Marriage?"

Cai said: "This is a marriage letter, which was originally decided."

As he spoke, he took a wooden box from the armhole. The pear wood box was exquisitely crafted, with phoenix patterns engraved on it.

Jia Heng paused, reached out to take it, opened it, and read it, his complexion involuntarily became serious.

"Qin Ye's daughter? Qin Keqing?" Jia Heng's expression was a bit strange.

Isn't Qin Keqing going to marry Jia Rong?
That's right, Jia Rong is just sixteen years old at the moment, so she should be unmarried.

"It's just that, given my current poverty-stricken status, Qin Ye can't say that he will resign. Do I still want the whole three-year contract?" Jia Heng looked at the marriage letter, momentarily lost in thought.

Of course, even if Qin Ye agrees, if he doesn't have some skills, he won't be able to keep a stunning beauty like Qin Keqing.

It's not a lie to say that a beauty is a disaster.

But let him ignore it, if Qin Keqing married Jia Rong as in the original book, and then was picked up by Jia Zhen's old ashes, it seems... very awkward.

"I asked your uncle to buy some gifts in the afternoon. Tomorrow, you go to the Qin family and the Qin family to discuss the wedding date." Cai said.

Jia Heng pondered for a while, and said: "Aunt Cai, our family knows about our own affairs, and the situation in my family, the Qin family will probably go back on their word. Isn't it boring for us to come here?"

Cai said with a smile: "I don't know something. This is what Qin Ye promised back then. How can I go back on my word? I just go tomorrow, and I will care about it at that time."

Jia Heng didn't know why Cai was so determined, but seeing his hopeful expression, he agreed for the time being.

(End of this chapter)