North and South groceries

Those merchants and wealthy households in Lishi County were not only competing with each other over the monument of meritorious deeds. In order to build the road before the snow fell, they also spent money to hire a lot of folks.

The section of road from Lishi County was the first to be completed. There are many villages nearby, and many villagers participated in paving the road.The section of road from Xipo Village was also paved relatively quickly, because those disciples of Luo Yong and many Dinghu people went to help.

In addition, although the road section pledged by the Mawang family is long, they also hired the most civilian workers. They are divided into several sections to work at the same time, and the speed of road construction is also not slow.

By the tenth day of October, most of the road sections were completed, and only a few places were still being finished.

In the past two days, Tian Cunzheng led some villagers from Xipo Village to run back and forth on this road, and when he saw something that was not finished, he stopped to help.They come and go by riding Yan'erfei, and the road near Xipo Village has been repaired. The car rides on it, which is fast and stable. The villagers say that this is the real Yan'erfei. , In the past, it was just a bird flying at most.

The villagers in other villages were very jealous when they saw them riding Yan'er Fei back and forth. Xipo Village has had a good life in the past two years. Every household has made money, and many people have bought Yan'er Fei in their homes. , Now that this road is repaired, it will be convenient to enter the city in the future.

So many people also want to buy Yan'erfei, but the price of Yan'erfei has not changed, it is [-] yuan, and now it is not as difficult to buy as before. If you can't afford it, you can use carnations to make some chains. In exchange, there are also people in their villages who make bamboo chains, but most of them were used to sell them for money.

It's a pity that the snow is about to fall. When it snows, Yan'erfei will not be able to fly. However, with this concrete road, whether it is driving a cart or pushing a wheelbarrow, it will be more reliable than before. It's still easy to walk, labor-saving and stable.

Everyone worked together and finally built the road before the snow fell.

It’s also God’s eye opener. This year’s first snow came late. The first snow didn’t fall until October [-]th. This is relatively late in recent years. Like last year, it started to fall in mid-to-late September. snowflake.

After this concrete road was built, the unmarried lords and ladies in their area became even more popular, especially the young lords, from far and wide, many families were willing to marry their daughters to their precious land.

With this gust of east wind, Lin Chunqiu's marriage was finally settled. It was about a young woman from a peasant family in the southwest of Lishi County. The other party was sixteen years old, two years younger than Lin Chunqiu, and the youngest in the family. , there are several brothers and sisters on it, all of whom are married.

Xipo Village is located in the northwest of Lishi County. There are mountains everywhere on this side, and there is no good land. For the girl, the land over there is flat, and generally speaking, it is relatively richer than Xipo Village.

The old couple of the Lin family are also very happy recently, they are very dedicated to the preparations for the marriage, and naturally they spend a lot of money.

Mrs. Luo and her husband worked in Xu's guest house all day long, and they didn't know much about the situation at home. The other two rooms inevitably made some murmurs.

The weather was good that day, neither windy nor snowy, and the sun was out. When the sun rose, some village women came to the entrance of the village with baskets to wash clothes.

One of the young women said to Mrs. Lin: "I heard that your old man bought a pair of geese in Xiaohe Village two days ago. They are very beautiful. They said that they are for the geese ceremony for the little man at home. .”

Sister-in-law Lin naturally knew about this, so she smiled and said, "Liu Lang's wedding is also approaching."

Because the young people on both sides are old enough, the marriage didn't last long. Lin's father and Lin's mother were anxious to arrange a marriage for Lin Chunqiu. They were satisfied with the situation of the Lin family, and they didn't want to miss out on this good marriage. , So I also agreed readily, I just waited to go through all the procedures that should be done, and I was going to get married a year ago.

The other party was also idle, seeing that my teasing failed to arouse Mrs. Lin's temperament, so she said again: "Your old lady is also willing to do so. I heard that the betrothal gift is so important this time. In our village, it is still a good deal." The first."

Since it is the first one, it is natural to go past Mrs. Lin, Mrs. Lin and the others. The old couple of the Lin family are indeed biased. Thinking back when Mrs. Luo came in, they were not as good as Mrs. Lin. How much money Lin Wulang and Mrs. Luo earned back, I don't feel panicked.

"I heard that this time the bride has several carts of dowry, which is different from when we were back then."

Mrs. Lin is not stupid after all. At this time, it is of no benefit to her to talk about her younger sister-in-law with outsiders. It is better to lift her up first, because she is also proud of herself. After all, she is also from the Lin family, isn't she? A daughter-in-law with such conditions and a dowry of this size is considered the first in their village.

"That's right, the people over there have always been rich." The man didn't find any breakthrough in Mrs. Lin, so he rested somewhat dispirited.

People living in a small place are looking at each other, and they are secretly competing with each other. This time, the daughter-in-law the Lin family said is really good, and there are people who are hot-eyed, so what does Lin Chunqiu have? Favored, isn't it just climbing up to the relatives of Luo's family.

There are also those people in the village who secretly resent the Lin family for being able to climb up to relatives of the Luo family, but they themselves did not. The old man was partial to Lin Liulang, and often went out to complain with others. After this, there were naturally more gossip about his family in the village.

Many of those words said that Lin Wulang and Aunt Luo suffered a disadvantage, and Lin's father and Lin's mother were eccentric.Although Luo used the previous rhetoric, Lin's father and Lin's mother didn't have much opinion of Mrs. Luo, but there would inevitably be some lumps in their hearts. Fortunately, their young couple is now outside all day, all day long. Yes, it is also rare to meet Lin's father and Lin's mother face to face.

On this side, although Mrs. Lin didn't show any dissatisfaction in front of others this time, when she got home, after a busy day, she complained to her man when she was resting this night:

"Yeniang is really willing to part with it this time. Our family doesn't have a mountain of gold and silver, and we still make tofu here. They have worked so hard to earn two dollars, but they don't feel bad about spending it."

"It's spent on Liu Lang, the two of them never feel bad." Lin Dalang didn't think it was a big deal, and fanned her.

In fact, he didn't feel dissatisfied in his heart, but his brother's marriage was approaching, and if there was a commotion in the family at this time, he didn't know how to be laughed at.

"You said, after this marriage is over, let's break up with them, and each earns his own money." Aunt Lin discussed with him.

"You're going to share it?" Lin Dalang sighed.He also thinks about splitting up, but can he settle it after he says it?Now, although they can also save some private houses by themselves, the big head of this family is still held by the old couple after all. This year, they can make a lot of money by making vinegar and selling vinegar, and these days they make tofu and sell tofu. He didn't even see a penny of the money he earned.

"Hey." Mrs. Lin pushed him and said in a low voice, "Why don't we talk to Wu Lang and his wife?"

"Hurry up and stop thinking about it, and be careful that Luo Sanlang will hold grudges against you again." Lin Dalang said hastily.

"San Lang doesn't look like that kind of person." Aunt Lin was still thinking about Lin Wulang and Aunt Luo.

"Hmph, you look at him soft-hearted?" Lin Dalang snorted, "Did you forget about Tian Sheng and his wife back then?"

"..." Mrs. Lin stopped talking. When the villagers together cleaned up Tian Sheng and his wife, although they didn't do much, the scene was not fun. At that time, the children in the village were not allowed to go. Among them, Luo Yong is the youngest.

Mrs. Lin recalled the look on Luo Yong's face at that time. It's been a long time, and she can't remember clearly, but she remembers one thing very clearly. Luo Sanlang didn't show any soft-heartedness or sympathy for the Tian Sheng couple. It can be said to be quite indifferent.

"At the beginning, he asked Wulang and his wife to work in Xu's guest house, and he was willing to pay so much money every month. Wasn't it just to get them out? To put it bluntly, this is spending money to buy quietness, and it can be regarded as saving face for our family. Damn, do you dare to drag them in to have a look at this time?" Lin Dalang was worried about his mother-in-law and aunt doing something stupid, so he spread the word to her.

"That's what I said." Mrs. Lin hummed.Aunt Luo used to be fine, but now that her brother is promising, she has to be afraid of everything, the two of them work outside all day, and they don't help at home, and she and Mrs. Lin are doing the spinning and weaving. .

Some time ago, people from the county came to collect taxes, but Luo Sanlang asked Lin Wulang to bring back half a bolt of linen, saying that the couple were working there, which delayed the family's weaving time.But Father Lin refused to accept it, and asked Lin Wulang to send it back to him, saying that they had already paid their wages, and if they took the cloth at this time, others would not know what to say about their Lin family.

"I don't know what the second room is thinking recently. Today I told her about the betrothal gift, but she didn't respond." Mrs. Lin thought for a while, and said another sentence.

"What else can I think about? She, Aye, is also working in a cement workshop now. At first, people thought he was too old and refused to accept him. Later, Luo Sanlang said something and asked him to help chop firewood and light the fire. See what it means, like She intends to let him learn to read fires, and the wages for watching fires are not low, and she can earn three renminbi a day and take care of food, she is very happy at the moment, and she doesn't want to cause side effects." Lin Dalang explained.

"I haven't heard of this." Mrs. Lin sighed again. The family lost Mrs. Luo, and the two sisters-in-law had to do more work than before, and they were busy all day long. This time the new daughter-in-law It's good to get in early, and I can help them share some of the burden.

"Go to sleep, I have to get up early to make tofu tomorrow." Lin Dalang yawned, turned over again, and then remained silent.

After the autumn harvest was over, the tofu business in Xipo Village became lively again. In the days before, they were building roads and making tofu. The Sixth Valley failed to make any waves here.

Although the road has been repaired now, the people in their area are not idle. Those who make tofu make tofu, those who make paper make paper, and those who go to work go to work.

After this year's taxes were paid, the work of officials in various states and counties came to an end. Hao Cishi was going to Chang'an City to appeal to the Holy Spirit. It had been three or five days since he set off. Luo Yong asked him to bring a pair of boots to the emperor, which is common nowadays. The style of riding boots, only the sole is made of Eucommia gum, and the upper is made of buckskin.

In addition, Luo Yong also gave a pair of soap boots to Hao Cishi, because he didn't need to ride a horse when he came to Beijing this time, so Luo Yong asked Feng Cobbler to make him a pair of soap boots. Black eucommia rubber soles, the upper is made of a piece of high-quality sheepskin, and a layer of cotton is wadding inside the shoes. It should not be too cold for him to take a carriage all the way to Chang'an.

Because the original color of the sheepskin is not good enough, Feng Cobbler took the dye from Luo Yong, and spent a lot of time dyeing the sheepskin into blue. She was wearing a big cloak, which was really good-looking, even if a turtleneck collar was exposed inside the cloak, it would not look very obtrusive.

The last time Luo Yong went to Chang'an, it was thanks to Hao Shishi's arrangement. This time, apart from the pair of boots, Luo Yong also asked the Ma's firm to transport the batch of peony cushions to Chang'an City. Hao Shishi will definitely help , can be presented to the palace.

Luo Yong is still very grateful to this Governor Hao. Although he did not show special care for Luo Yong in Lishi County on weekdays, Luo Yong really caused him a lot of trouble. Recently, many people in Chang'an City have shown hostility towards Luo Yong. I don't know if Hao Cishi will be embarrassed by some people when he enters Beijing this time.

·

A few days later, in the city of Chang'an.

Hao Cishi and his carriage were driving slowly on the street. The weather was cold, and snow particles were falling in the sky. He opened the window and looked outside. Those Changan people who came and went in a hurry outside had oil-paper umbrellas in their hands.

When he got to the place where he stayed, Hao Cishi asked people, "I heard that people in Chang'an don't like to use oil-paper umbrellas. Why does everyone seem to use them now?"

The other party didn't know that he was the governor of Shizhou, so he didn't think much about it, and said with a smile: "I originally said that I don't need it, but no, it's too cold when it rains in winter, and I can't bear it anymore. In two days, the oil-paper umbrellas are all over the streets."