The Marginal People of Jia's Family in the Red Chamber

Leng Ergou exchanged the banknotes, broken silver and copper plates, and left the town of Fulin County empty-handed. He didn't dare to buy things here, for fear that the people in Li's Ping'an Hall would see that he was alone. , The foundation is shallow.

When he arrived in Xinghe Town, he bought a mule, daily necessities such as oil, salt, sauce and vinegar, and specially bought a bolt of bright red muslin cloth, as well as a few farm tools. It belonged to the eldest brother and sister of the Yang family who stayed overnight.

Leng Ergou changed into a brown bunt, led his mule, arrived at Yangjia Village, and called at the door: "Sister Yang, Sister Yang, I am Wang Li!"

"Oh, here we come." Mrs. Yang agreed in the house, and Leng Ergou also familiarly led his mule into the yard and tied it under the tree.

"Hey, Brother Yang is at home too!" Leng Ergou greeted, "Brother Yang, come and help me move things."

Leng Ergou handed two hoes and a sickle to Brother Yang, and the batch of bright floral cloths to Mrs. Yang, and followed them into the house with an armful of sauced beef.

Entering the main room, putting down the things, Ergou Leng said: "Brother Yang, Sister-in-law Yang, I'm going back to the village now, and I want to stay at your house for one night."

"I live, I live, no problem, I still live in the original Westinghouse, and I have confiscated all the bedding." Aunt Yang said enthusiastically.

"Today, it's a blessing. There is an old cow in the county. After killing the cow, the sauce is ready. There are too many people who buy it. Thanks to my small size, I squeezed in front, so I bought such a small amount. Son. Ask sister-in-law to help clean it up."

"No problem." Mrs. Yang said jokingly, "I still have two taels of Hunjiu at home. It's just right for this. Brother Wang also needs to drink two more glasses."

"Hey! My sister-in-law knows how to embarrass me. I am not old enough to drink." Changing the subject: "Brother Yang, when I came back last night, I saw that I didn't have any tools at home, so I bought two hoes and a You see, the sickle, you have to use it or not." Leng Ergou pointed to the tool that the elder brother of the Yang family brought into the house.

"You are..."

"This is for my elder brother and sister-in-law, thank you for taking care of me."

"No, no, it's just a matter of a meal and a night's rest. You brought game, and I can't take your things. The hoe and sickle are not cheap, they cost hundreds of coppers. No way. No, no." The eldest brother of the Yang family repeatedly declined, a simple farmer would not take advantage of others.

Leng Ergou tried to persuade him again and again, but he still refused to accept it, so that Leng Ergou looked at him high.But Leng Ergou pretended to be angry and said: "Sister-in-law, no, I should call you elder sister. The reason for calling you sister-in-law is from him, but it is obvious that the eldest brother of the Yang family does not regard me as a brother!"

"Ah, ah, no..." The eldest brother of the Yang family said nah.

"Sister, look, this is the material I bought for you from the town, it's bright." Leng Ergou handed the red cloth to her.

"Bright, bright, that's the kind of material that the rich and noble people in the town wear." The sister-in-law of the Yang family gently stroked the fine cotton cloth with her right hand, worrying that her hands were too thick, so she hung the cloth on the end of a thread.

"Xianliang, you should make good clothes and wear them. At that time, I respected you younger brother." Seeing that she was refusing, Leng Ergou said with a dark face: "Elder sister, don't imitate those polite manners, if you don't accept it." , I don’t know what to call myself.”

"Succeed, then sister-in-law will have the cheek to take advantage of you." The sister-in-law of the Yang family came quickly.

"Did you hear that, my sister-in-law considers herself a sister-in-law, you, the eldest brother, still want to deny me." Leng Ergou looked at the eldest brother of the Yang family and said.

The eldest brother of the Yang family accepted it dumbfoundedly, he had never accepted a gift so unwillingly before.

"That's right!" Leng Ergou clapped his hands.

The three of them had dinner, Leng Ergou and the eldest brother of the Yang family said: "Brother, younger brother is also courteous and must ask for something."

"Little brother, tell me, I, Da Yang, have nothing to say!" The eldest brother of the Yang family patted his chest and said.Leng Ergou lamented, he is really an honest man, and he didn't listen to what I said first.

"That's right. There is also a Lengjiazhuang next to our Wangjiacun. The Lengjiazhuang is a real big family. They moved here from Shanxi. It is said that they are from the Xinglin family. Their ancestors have been Bodhisattvas who practice medicine and cure diseases for generations. Now his family just Here, if you are not familiar with the place, if you want to start a medicinal material business, you still need a local person to take the lead. I also helped their family find out the way. Coincidentally, I went to the county and negotiated a medicinal material business in Li's Ping'an Hall , After a month of agreement, send it to them."

"My brother Wang is capable. Such a small person has started to do business." This sentence was spoken by the elder brother of the Yang family, but it was a sincere compliment, and there was absolutely no meaning of ridicule.

"Brother Yang is making a joke. They are all just eating. Alas, the business has been negotiated, but everyone in our clan is too busy. Brother Yang also knows the situation in my family. I am the only seedling. There are a lot of good people in Liliang, but there are black-hearted people who don't have enough guarantees. Therefore, I dare not disclose such a large business. I have an idea here. Brother Yang, I will go to Li's Ping'an Hall to deliver the goods in one month. Would you please go with me?"

"I, I... I'm a farmer, and I don't have this ability. In our village, there are also peddlers who walk around the streets during the slack season, but those are only men who can speak well. I, I Can not be done!"

"Brother Yang, brother, what I admire is that you are an honest person! Don't worry, the only people who know about this matter now are me, Li's Ping'an Hall Master's family, and you. There will never be a fourth person who will know. As long as we keep our mouths shut, Outsiders will not get our ideas, and there will be no danger on the road. Besides, when we go to Ping An Tang to deliver goods, I will also come forward, and I just wronged you to pretend to be a guard, how do you think?"

The eldest brother of the Yang family still couldn't make up his mind.Leng Ergou didn't urge him, and said: "Don't worry, discuss it with my sister-in-law first. It's still a month away!"

After Leng Ergou explained the matter, he went to sleep.I checked it out again before going to bed, um, he changed his name a few times, and he didn't buy anything at the same time at the same place. After finishing this ticket, he stopped, changing places, absolutely no one can find him.The Yang family and his wife didn't know his details, but they just used his adult status as a cover. People in Li's Ping'an Hall would not be suspicious, um, there is no loophole.

Leng Ergou of the West House fell asleep peacefully, and the Yang family couple in the main house were still discussing in a low voice under the covers: "Do you think this matter is reliable? He is a child, and he can really negotiate such a big business. .”

"It's not a matter of age, I only know that the things he presented are not fake." Mrs. Yang said.

"Then you said that if you pretend to be his guard and accompany him to trade, is that okay?"

"Go ahead, what responsibility can you take on? If you are really worried, just follow the whole process. He is a child. If he really dares to play tricks, you are so tall and big, can't you stop him? You pay attention to him and Don't take any responsibility for the business of Li's Ping'an Hall, and be careful not to let him push any deposits, guarantors, etc. on you, or that's it." Mrs. Yang said thoughtfully.

"What you said makes sense."

"When did my words make no sense? This is also our chance. If I were as honest as you, I would have been bullied to death not long ago. Look at what good things your parents have done. You are still the eldest son, just like this You split it up, and the portion of the land you gave was still Susukida, and even a hoe was given by my natal brother. If we depended on your mother and father, we would have starved to death!" Mrs. Yang complained.

"Oh, I'm sorry for you. We are sons and daughters, so what should we do? Fortunately, we have separated, and I will work hard in the future, so that you will be like the rich and noble families in the town, and you don't have to do it every day. live, well-dressed, and there are still people serving!"

"Go, what are you dreaming of! I'm not turning over old scores, I believe you. What I mean is, our family is weak, and we should seize such a good opportunity. Think, if it weren't for Wang Lixiao There is only one brother, and not all members of the tribe are reliable, so what chance do you have? I think he is generous, but he only gave these good things after staying for two nights. If you help him make the business, he will not be serious Thank you!"

"Well, listen to you, I will call Brother Xiao Wang tomorrow morning, and I will follow him."

"That's it!" Sister Yang said, and the two husband and wife hugged each other and fell asleep.

The next morning, Leng Ergou bid farewell to the Yang family and his wife, took his own mule, and returned the same way.

The return journey was carried by mules, and it took only four days to arrive, one day less than the way to go.

After Leng Ergou came back, he rested his daily necessities, put the mule away, and started to work.He opened his mouth and said hundreds of things to Li's Ping'an Church. In fact, he has no more than five ginseng plants. It is enough to find a piece of Ganoderma lucidum that grows naturally. It's just that the velvet antler is not easy to deal with. He was able to kill one last time. It's already good luck, but now we need to prepare two or three pairs, this is really terrible!

These medicinal materials are not ready-picked, they have to be processed!

In the first half a month, Leng Ergou searched all over the mountains and plains for medicinal materials, and set up traps to catch stags. He gathered three pairs of antlers and didn't even think about selling the venison. They were all salted and made into air-dried meat. Save it for yourself.

The cave is also well-arranged. In order to save costs, Leng Ergou doesn't want to move to a place where people live.After working for more than half a month, I sent wild animals to Xinghe Town again. I established a good relationship with the wild animal business stores, found out their needs, and contracted all the wild animals needed by the largest restaurant in the town.For him, hunting is cheaper than ordinary people, and he is not afraid that the store will set the price lower than the market price.

When it was almost January, Leng Ergou changed into his equipment again, took the things needed by Li's Ping'an Hall, went to Yangjia Village to find Brother Yang, and went to Fulin Town together.

In this transaction, the medicinal materials were old and the processing technology was good. Dr. Li was not picky, so he inspected it directly and asked the accountant to pay the money.

Leng Ergou hurriedly said: "Please ask Dr. Li to exchange it for me, and I have to go back to my hometown in Shanxi. It is inconvenient and not safe to bring a large amount of silver."

Dr. Li quickly asked someone to exchange it for a bank note.Leng Ergou said: "There is another unfeeling request, I want Dr. Li to help."

"Brother, please tell me."

"It's not a big deal, it's just that my lord's family still has a lot of medicinal materials. I heard that you have business dealings with Baohetang in Anyang Mansion. I wonder if you can write a letter of introduction to introduce me. Don't say anything good about me, just let the owner of Baohetang know that I am not a charlatan or a charlatan. Think about it, the Baohetang family has a big career, and they don't necessarily care about a kid like me. Like you After all, there are not many people with discerning eyes!"

Doctor Li laughed out loud at Leng Ergou's words of flattery, pointed at him with a smile, and said, "You, you know how to feed the old man with magic soup. No problem!"

Dr. Li wrote an introduction envelope to him on the spot as soon as he picked up a pen.Leng Ergou also took it respectfully, thanked again and again, and then took the eldest brother of the Yang family to leave.

The eldest brother of the Yang family was taciturn from head to toe. When Leng Ergou introduced him as Yao Nongjia's guard, Dr. Li did not doubt it.

Leng Ergou came to Yangjia Village with a large sum of money in his arms, and gave five taels of silver to the Yang family. He was so happy that Mrs. Yang went to pray to Buddha. What a sum of money this is. Mrs. Yang couldn't help asking curiously: "This little brother of the Wang family In the end, as many as a business deal was negotiated, and it was such a big deal."

"I don't know." The eldest brother of the Yang family said dullly.

"Why don't you know, haven't you been following?" Mrs. Yang didn't believe it.

"I just looked at it with good eyesight, but they directly took out the deed, inspected the goods, and directly exchanged the deed for the silver. I was blind, how could I know how big a business they are. But I think since I can use silver bills, I think it is still a thick stack, so there should be one or two hundred taels.”

"One 200 taels! Oh my God, so much!" Aunt Yang exclaimed!

"Keep your voice down so that people can hear you!" Brother Yang also surprised his wife: "So a scholar is a noble person. You see, Brother Xiao Wang knows how to read. Even if he is young, he dares to take such a big business Leave it to him, he only made a lot of money from it! Sigh, if I can read and write, that would be great~"

"Okay, don't think about it, you and I have been like this for the rest of our lives, you work hard, and when your son grows up, send him to a private school."

"Son, you're pregnant!" The eldest brother of the Yang family was pleasantly surprised.

"Yeah, it's been two months. I'm just waiting to tell you about the happy couple! Since the last time I lost my baby, I've been recuperating for so long, and I finally have it again." Aunt Yang said with emotion.

"Good daughter-in-law, I will never allow anyone to bully you again. I will work hard and train my son to be like Little Brother Wang." The eldest brother of the Yang family lay on his wife's stomach and said emotionally.

Leng Ergou is now focused on collecting herbs and making medicines, and doesn't care about hunting anymore.A month later, he took the remaining four deer whips, one ganoderma lucidum, one ginseng, one sealwort, and one human-shaped Polygonum multiflorum to Baohetang in Anyang Prefecture.

Leng Ergou fell heavily because of the human-shaped Polygonum multiflorum, and a big bump fell on the back of his head. After half a month of recuperation in the cave, he drank a lot of decoction to reduce the swelling. Although collecting herbs in the mountains is very profitable, but the body is the most important, he can't stay here for a long time.

Bringing the letter of introduction from Dr. Li, Leng Ergou found Baohetang smoothly.The doctor in charge of Baohetang and Dr. Li are also old friends, and Dr. Li has already sent a letter to explain the situation.But when he really saw such a child pretending to be an adult with a straight face, he still couldn't help laughing.Seeing that he only brought a little of the same medicinal materials, and they were all precious medicinal materials, I also lamented his cautiousness in my heart, this is how everyone behaves!

Leng Ergou's asking price this time is the same as the market price, unlike giving him a pair of velvet antlers for nothing like he gave Li's Ping'an Hall. There are not so many concessions.

The doctors of Baohetang don't value small profits once in a while, and they want to cooperate with each other for a long time.Leng Ergou declined and said: "The amount you want is really too big, I don't dare to make a decision, I still have to report back to the owner." Leng Ergou directly declined.

After finishing the ticket, Leng Ergou bought all the equipment, and gave all the money, oil, salt, rabbit skin, worthless medicinal materials, tools, etc. that he had left in the mountains to the Yang family, and only asked the elder brother of the Yang family, one A month later, I went to Baohetang in Anyang Mansion and said that the Leng family had moved back to Shanxi, and the business could not be done.

Regarding my surname being Leng for a while, and Wang for a while, Ergou Leng explained to the eldest brother of the Yang family in this way: "I don't dare to directly report my surname as Wang. If I let other pharmacies know that I am in a second-hand business, they will have to lower the price a lot." Now, brother Yang, please forgive me for deceiving me."

"There are rules in every line of work, how can I blame you!"

"Brother Yang, sister-in-law Yang, there are a few households in our Wangjiacun who can't survive, and they want to go to Shanxi with the nobles of Lengjiazhuang to seek a living. I heard that the imperial court has sent people to rescue the disaster, and the people of Lengjiazhuang are going to return to their roots. .I want to go with me too. I'm afraid we won't have the chance to meet again. These things are my thoughts for my elder brother and sister-in-law. Don't forget me!"

"Don't forget, don't forget, little brother, sister-in-law regards you as her own brother, how can she forget you." Aunt Yang pulled him and cried.

"Sister-in-law, sister-in-law, you are pregnant, don't cry, don't cry. I can't see my little nephew is born. I have a set of bracelets, collars, and gold locks here. I gave them to my nephew in advance." Leng Er The dog took out an exquisite box from the bundle, and Mrs. Yang knew at a glance that it was a box from the silver building in the county. She had only seen such an exquisite box when she was buying dowry in her life.

"I can't ask you to be so precious..."

"It's for my nephew, not for you. You take it away for my nephew first. I only hope that he will be named on the gold list and paraded through the streets in the future! I will send you news when I settle down in Shanxi." Leng Ergou told him, as for him going, if the eldest brother of the Yang family really walked for more than ten days, go and see if there is Wangjia Village?Leng Ergou, for more than ten days, has been in Shanxi, where there is still a drought, he will not leave his wife and young son to take risks.Even if they didn't find it, it's easy to evade the matter in the disaster area.

In this way, relying on the unfounded Lengjiazhuang and Wangjiacun, and the flickering Leng Ergou with different names, he managed to get a large sum of money.

Now Leng Ergou is wrapping the bank notes in oiled paper, tying them to his body, and wearing coarse clothes, and riding his mule to the disaster area. Now his purpose of going to the disaster area is to solve the identity problem.

Only now is his chance to re-register his household registration, since he doesn't want to be a black household forever.Nowadays, the household registration of each family is generally kept in the hands of the patriarch. Only when someone wants to travel far will they take it out. They rarely keep it by themselves. , Most people are illiterate, and it is only safe to be placed in the family of the patriarch who is literate or has broad knowledge.

Leng Ergou rode the mule for a while, then sold the mule, dressed himself in disgrace, shouldered this big burden on his back, and left by himself.The long knife had been hidden in the cave long ago, and the things he now wears for self-defense are two daggers bought in Anqing Mansion back then, a small crossbow made by himself, and homemade poison and anesthetic. A child, carrying a not-so-small burden, still has many people's ideas on him.

However, during this journey, single children, women, and monks are the most difficult to mess with. If a person can survive alone, he will naturally have some skills, and if there are a few people who have run into trouble, it will be surprising for Leng Ergou to travel along the way no danger.

There have been two rains in Shanxi now, and the common people know that God’s anger has passed, and they want to go back to their hometowns. Now they are facing the problem of re-registering their household registration.

Leng Ergou has been inquiring carefully all the way, often listening to passers-by gossip about various places.In the end, he said that when Fengxiang Mansion registered household registration, he registered his name as Leng Bi. He inherited someone else's body and could not change his surname. My favorite color is green, so I named myself Leng Bi.

Leng Bi put her name under the name of a place where the whole town was extinct. She only said that her family was a squire, who learned calligraphy since childhood, and reported the names of her parents, brothers, and several famous village elders.

Those who registered are used to seeing the tragic situation of the whole family dying, but it is still rare for a town like this to die. Seeing a child staring at you eagerly, hoping to hear from you, someone's news At that time, I still couldn't help but feel a little sympathy for this child.

The little official in charge of the registration checked the names of the people he mentioned and circled them, and they were all definitely gone.Sighing: "Leng Bi, your family has gone, but you still have to keep your household registration here. Now that the imperial court has a policy, you can directly settle in Fengxiang Mansion. Look..."

"Gone? Gone..." Leng Bi's trembling lips were speechless, tears welled up in her eyes, her face was covered with dust, she was washed away by the tears, and she was really embarrassed.

Leng Bi said in a trembling voice: "Thank you for your kindness, my lord. It's just that my parents, brothers and sisters are gone. When we were dispersed, we agreed to meet under the old jujube tree in front of the house. If I stayed in Fengxiang Mansion, wouldn't I If they don’t let Zhongyuan go home, they won’t be able to find me. I have to go back and wait for them!”

"Well, it's up to you." The little official quickly wrote Leng Bi's household registration, and sent him a road guide, which was considered to be convenient for him to return to his hometown.

Leng Bi changed her appearance, stayed in Fengxiang Mansion for a while, bought an old butler, more than a dozen maids, rented a car, hired bodyguards, and returned to her "hometown" in a mighty way.