The Little First Grand Secretary in My House

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The books in the bookcase are new and old, some are hardcovered, which are valuable at first glance, and some are bound with thread, which looks a bit shabby. What's more, there are all kinds of copied copies. Generally, they are not sure that the book will be easy to sell. Bookstore owners always ask people to copy them, because if they are printed, thousands of copies will be printed.

Zhao'er was familiar with the boss and greeted her with a smile when she entered the door. The strange thing was that the boss actually recognized her. When he saw her, he smiled and asked her if she was here to buy paper for her brother.

When it comes to this, it's old news.

At first, Zhao'er felt sorry for Xue Tingyan, so she saved some money to buy him calligraphy paper. Who would have thought that this paper was much more expensive than she imagined. Even the poorest quality yellow bamboo paper cost forty cents per knife, and Zhao'er collected all the money he had that day, but only thirty cents.

In order to get the boss to sell the paper to her cheaper, Zhao'er struggled with the boss for a long time. She even made up the pretense that she had a diligent and studious younger brother, but unfortunately both parents died and the family was poor, before the boss agreed to sell it to her cheaply. Later, she came to buy several times, always at the same price as before, but she became familiar with Boss Chen.

Boss Chen praised her for her noble character. She earned all her hard-earned money, but she still supported her brother's education. Usually when she comes to buy paper, she almost always buys half and half for free.

Normally, Zhao'er would have tolerated such words shamelessly, but with Xue Tingyan here today, she was inevitably a little embarrassed, fearing that Boss Chen would let the matter slip and the young man would look down on her for lying.

Zhao'er has suffered, so she knows how to survive, but the little man doesn't, especially the scholar who has a particularly pedantic air, so every time she encounters a situation where the two people's ideas are in conflict, she will always subconsciously Avoid these.

Within one day, two people in a row said that they were his younger brothers, which made Xue Tingyan very unhappy. Naturally, he did not notice Zhao'er's hidden thoughts. By the time he came to his senses, Zhao'er had already talked with his boss, and even showed him the book Hundred Family Surnames that he copied overnight.

Is this your brother? He is handsome, but a little thin. Boss Chen is an elegant middle-aged man over forty years old, with a goatee. Wearing a scholar's shirt, he looks more like a scholar than a business boss.

He was ill for a while and got better recently.

No wonder I haven't seen you here for a long time. As Boss Chen spoke, he took the handwritten manuscript from Zhao'er, which was very poor in terms of binding and paper quality.

He knew in his heart that a boy like this from a farm family would not be able to write very well. However, he admired this young man named Zhaoer, so he decided not to criticize him too much, but just to reject him with some polite words. .

If his skills are not bad and his words can still be read, it is not a bad idea to give him some odd jobs to do, just as a helper.

But when Boss Chen saw the words on the yellow bamboo paper, he was really surprised.

Did he write this? Boss Chen looked at Xue Tingyan in surprise, then turned over the manuscript in his hand.

His expression was so weird that Zhao'er had a bad feeling in his heart. She couldn't help but wonder if the little man's handwriting was not good. After all, no one had ever praised the little man's handwriting. Even Xue Qingshan said that his handwriting was like a spring earthworm or an autumn snake.

Although Zhao'er didn't understand what Spring Earthworms and Autumn Snakes meant, she understood the little man's sad expression, and she knew that it meant that the writing was not good.

But she doesn't think it's the little man's fault. He even has to pick out the paper that can be used to practice calligraphy. Can he write well? It was that time that she got angry, collected vegetables and sold them in the town, and saved a sum of money to buy Xue Tingyan the first piece of paper in her life.

A whole knife, not a few pretense handouts from Xue Qingshan or Xue Juncai.

Zhao'er's head felt cold, and he couldn't help but wonder if he was usually too blind to the little man, or if he flattered him too much. She was not afraid of anything else. She was afraid that if Boss Chen said something unpleasant later, the little man would not be able to bear the blow.

With this in mind, she hurriedly made a gesture to Boss Chen behind her back, led him aside, and then whispered to him: Uncle Chen, if my brother's handwriting is really bad, can you...

Can it be anything? Immediately, Boss Chen understood and said with a smile: It's the same for you kid. Even if you have a protective heart, you shouldn't deceive him. Instead, you should point out his shortcomings so that he can do it in the future. Only then can we make progress.”

His voice was a bit loud, and Xue Tingyan over there must have heard it. Zhao'er blushed, but she didn't know what to say.

Boss Chen added: But your brother is really good at writing, he must be a famous teacher.

He walked up to Xue Tingyan in a few steps, clasped his fists and saluted: I wonder who my little friend is studying under? After saying this, there was also a trace of hesitation in his eyes, because the poor young man in front of him, dressed in coarse short brown clothes, really didn't seem to be able to study under anyone. A person who is a famous teacher.

Just his words...

Since Boss Chen runs a bookstore, he either loves it or it is his ancestral business. In fact, Boss Chen has both, which can be regarded as his family background. When he was young, he took the exam several times, but he stopped being a scholar. However, he was not interested in being an official, so he turned around and took care of his ancestral business. He usually met a few literary friends, played chess, drank tea, and tasted calligraphy and painting together, which was also a beautiful thing in life.

From his perspective, although this boy's handwriting is immature, he already has character.

We must know that the form is easy to obtain, but the spirit is difficult to find. Yan Jia and Liu Jia have always been collectively called Yan Jin and Liu Gu, which is enough to show the characteristics of Yan's body. And Xue Tingyan's calligraphy already has its foundation. As long as it doesn't go askew, in time, he will definitely become a great calligrapher of the generation.

Little did he know that Xue Tingyan deliberately hid his writing skills in order to hide himself. It took him most of the night to finish the book that could have been copied in half an hour at most. Otherwise, when the calligraphy was taken out, Boss Chen would think it was someone's calligraphy work.

Just when Boss Chen's mind was wandering, Xue Tingyan had already answered: The boy has no teacher.

Just copying?

I once visited the Yan Qin Li Monument.

Xue Tingyan did not lie. He indeed only copied Yan Qin Li Stele. This set of copybooks was Xue Qingshan's treasure and was never touched by others. And the reason why he was lucky enough to see and touch her once was because Xue Jun, who was still young at that time, showed off to him.

Because of this incident, he was deeply impressed by the Yan Qin Li Monument and even became an obsession. Later, when his family had some money, Zhao'er bought a set of fonts for him. The first font he learned was Yan Ti.

Just visited the Yan Qin Ceremony Monument?

Xue Tingyan nodded.

The light in Boss Chen's eyes grew brighter, and he sighed after a long time: Perhaps you have a talent in this field that is difficult for others to catch up with. I hope you practice more and don't slack off. Well, let's get down to business. Your handwriting is very good. In my opinion, It’s passed here.”

He walked to the counter, took a book and handed it to Xue Tingyan.

I have a copy of University Chapters here. You can take it back and try it. The writing and ink will be produced by me. After copying it, if the finished product is not inferior to the standard of this book, I will pay you one or two taels of silver.

One tael of silver? Uncle Chen, isn't that a bit too much? Zhao'er asked in surprise.

Uncle Chen laughed: Do you know how many words there are in this book? And do you know how much money I would get if I resold this book?

After finishing speaking, he continued to say to Xue Tingyan: Originally, it is supposed to be copied in my bookstore. If you take the book back and copy it, you need to pay some money or things as a pledge. I know your brother well, so forget it. Come on, how long will it take to finish copying?”

Xue Tingyan hesitated for a moment and said: Since Boss Chen has rules here, how about I just copy them here? I just hope Boss Chen can be accommodating. Can I let the kid read one or two of the books here in his spare time?

Boss Chen was stunned for a moment, then understood. He took a deep look at this thin but neither humble nor arrogant young man.

Can!

Then thank you in advance, Boss Chen. Don't worry, I won't damage the books here.

Zhao'er kept silent until the conversation was over, then pulled Xue Tingyan aside to talk.

Do you really want to copy books here? It would be great to take it home. If you are afraid that Boss Chen will not allow it, I still have some money here that can be used as pledge.

You don't think this is a good place.

Xue Tingyan looked back at the room full of books. The books he had read were limited, and in 'Xue Tingyan's' memory, many of his memories in this regard were blurred.

But life is his, and he has to move forward step by step. It does not mean that he has a dream, and he will definitely be the first assistant in the future, and he will definitely pass the Jinshi examination. After all, even Xue Tingyan in the dream had to make a lot of efforts and go through many detours to reach the first rank of official residence step by step.

Of course Zhao'er understood what he meant, but she was very worried when she suddenly left the little man alone outside. She was just thinking about finding an excuse to stay with him here when Boss Chen said from the side: Okay, you don't have to worry about your brother. Can you still leave him here? You don't have to sell vegetables or work today? Go quickly.

In the eyes of Boss Chen, Zhao'er is a hard-working brother who supports his younger brother by selling vegetables and working in the town.

Uncle Chen, I'm leaving now.

She hurriedly took out a dozen coins from her arms and handed them to Xue Tingyan: I should come to have lunch with you at noon. If not, you can buy it yourself, just...

Copy books here, and we can have a light meal at noon. Boss Chen interjected again.

Zhao'er was still nagging: You still have the money and you can buy whatever you want. I'll pick you up in the afternoon.

You'd better pick up your work and finish it first. Don't worry, your brother won't lose it.

This Uncle Chen!

Zhao'er couldn't talk any more and ran out of the bookstore almost in despair.

After they left, Boss Chen smiled and teased: Your brother is very good to you.

Xue Ting sighed, it was quite good, like a little hen worried about her chicks. For some reason, he actually thought of this sentence.

Afterwards, he was led by the store clerk to a room behind the store.

The furnishings of this room are simple, but elegant, and it can be seen that Boss Chen is an elegant person. The best thing about this house is that it has a large window facing the yard outside, and a set of tables and chairs, which is completely different from Xue Tingyan's imagination of hiding in a dark room without light.

The waiter even brought a basin of water for him to clean his hands. He also prepared pens, inks, paper, inkstones and other supplies. He said he could call him if he had anything to do, and then went down.

Xue Tingyan came to the basin, dipped her hands in the water, rubbed them gently a few times, wiped them dry with a cloth beside her, then went to write and sit down.

He first polished the ink. Grinding ink can very well adjust people's emotions and achieve a 'quiet' state.

After the ink was polished, his heart felt empty. He rolled up his sleeves and started writing. When his hand was empty, he realized that he was wearing a short brown suit. There were no sleeves, so naturally he was not afraid of staining the sleeves.

All this happened just for a moment, he didn't pay attention and wrote quietly.

But Boss Chen, who was standing outside the door, was a little suspicious. He couldn't help but wonder in his heart that this son was the queen of a famous family, but it was a pity that the family was in decline, rather than a poor child. His every word, every action, and even his demeanor don't look like someone from a humble family.

After thinking for a while, he couldn't figure out why. Boss Chen shook his head and went back to the front.

The mule named Daqing shook his head and snorted, which seemed to mean that if he dared to deduct my rations, I would be passive and slow down and let him carry it himself.

Zhao'er burst out laughing, pointed at Daqing and said, Look, even Daqing protested.

Jiang Wu looked sideways at the girl who was smiling wantonly, with a strange light shining in her eyes. Fortunately, Daqing knew the road and was docile, otherwise he would have led a car of three people into a ditch beside the road.

Xue Tingyan, who was behind, saw this scene and his face was as dark as the bottom of a pot.

He was so upset and angry that he actually forgot about Jiang Wu.

In that dream, Jiang Wu had been coveting Zhao'er.

Jiang Wu was two years older than Zhao'er, but he never married. If Zhao'er hadn't been his child bride, the Jiang family would have come to propose marriage.

Even so, Jiang Wu never gave up. Once, he even came to him and told him that he wanted to marry Zhao'er, asking him not to be so selfish and letting Zhao'er free. He also said that he and Zhao'er would support him in his studies and treat him as his own brother. Only then did he find out about this.

He was shocked and angry. At the same time, he also remembered that Zhao'er had always been unwilling to marry him. He mistakenly thought that Zhao'er had an affair with Jiang Wu, so he took advantage of his parents' orders to marry her by force. Later, by chance, he married her. Then I realized that he had wrongly blamed her.

This incident has always been a scar between the two of them. Even though they never mentioned it again, there was still a gap. After that, he was busy with his career, while Zhao'er was busy with business. The two didn't see each other for a long time, and even if they did, they rarely talked until he went to Beijing to take the exam after winning the imperial examination.

The man in the dream once thought after Zhao'er died, if he had not been so despicable and forced it on his parents' orders, Zhao'er would not have died.

But this kind of thought was like a dragonfly on water, just passing by in a flash. Thinking about it at this time, he was probably despicable in his heart. Even if he was not the Xue Tingyan in the dream, he never thought of letting Zhaoer go.

She was supposed to be his, but when he still seemed to understand, someone would always point at her and say, this is his future wife, right?

Brother Jiang Wu, you'd better watch the road. This road is uneven. Don't lead us all into the ditch.

Xue Tingyan's voice successfully interrupted the chatter and laughter between Jiang Wu and Zhao'er, as if a very ignorant person suddenly appeared, causing the originally warm atmosphere to suddenly cool down.

Zhao'er laughed dryly: Look at me, I was only talking to you about the business, and I forgot that you were still driving. Fortunately, Daqing was smart, otherwise he would have fallen.

Daqing shouted, looking very proud.

Jiang Wu subconsciously glanced back and met the young man's dark eyes. These eyes made him feel guilty for no reason, but he soon felt confident again.

He knew that the Xue family's son-in-law didn't like having children, and he also knew that the second wife of the Xue family originally took the son-in-law as a daughter-in-law, not a child bride. The idea of ​​a child bride was just passed around from person to person in the village, and the second wife of the Xue family entrusted her with it before they died.

Not only that, he also knew that Zhao'er only regarded the other party as his younger brother and had no intention of getting married to the other party.

The young man was undoubtedly thin. Although he was handsome, his face still looked a bit childish. Such a young man made the strong and powerful Jiang Wu feel inexplicably condescending. He smiled heartily and said nonchalantly: Don't be afraid, dog. You, Brother Jiang Wu, drive every day and can walk back with your eyes closed.

Xue Tingyan said nothing, pursed her lips and lowered her head.

When Zhao'er saw this, he immediately understood whether the name Gouzi made the little man feel uncomfortable again. But facing Jiang Wu, she couldn't put on a cold face. She could only smile and say: Brother Jiang Wu, I told you that the dog has a name. It's called Tingyan, Xue Tingyan.

The name is quite elegant.

Yeah, so don't call me a bitch anymore, because it doesn't sound good.

While talking, the car had already arrived at Yuqing Village.

Jiang Wu inertly walked around to the end of the village before stopping. Zhao'er and Xue Tingyan got out of the car.

When will the deal be done? Just tell me a time and I will pick you up then.

Aren't you going to be busy in town tomorrow, and you have to pack up those clothes. When I'm ready, I'll go to your house and give you a letter.

Zhao'er also thought that in two days there would be a competition between Xue Tingyan and Xue Juncai. She would have to wait until this matter was over before she could think about doing business.

OK.

*

Now that the matter was settled, they said goodbye to each other.

Jiang Wu drove home, while Zhao'er and Xue Tingyan walked home together.

Xue Tingyan didn't say anything along the way, just walked silently.

Zhao'er glanced at him: What's wrong? He seemed a little unhappy. Was Brother Jiang Wu angry when he called you a dog just now? He didn't know you were famous either. I told him that he would never do it again in the future. That’s what it’s called.”

He suppressed the jealousy in his heart and said in a low voice: Why are you so familiar with him?

You said Brother Jiang Wu, we haven't known each other since we were children. You forgot that Heizi was brought back by his dog after giving birth. Brother Jiang Wu is a very nice person and helped me a lot.

Xue Tingyan said nothing and stopped.

Zhao'er walked forward for a while, only to realize that he had not followed.

She came back after a few steps and asked in confusion: What's wrong with you? Why are you acting weird?

He held his breath: Don't forget, you have a man.

Zhao'er was stunned for a moment, then looked at him and laughed. But he just smiled and said nothing, which made Xue Tingyan angry and annoyed.

Don't think about it, she must have nothing good in mind.

Seeing that his fair face was red with anger, Zhao'er said hurriedly: Okay, don't be angry, I know I have a man.

There was a teasing tone in her voice, and even though he knew she was trying to coax him, his heart still jumped several times.

With the experience in the dream, Xue Tingyan knew that this was not the time for quarrels. Besides, there was Jiang Wu next to him who was eyeing him. He didn't want to repeat the experiences in the dream again.

He couldn't help but reiterate: It's also for your own good, so as not to be seen by the villagers and make irresponsible remarks. He didn't dare to look at her, but stared at the ground aside, feeling confident and confident. Distracted.

Seeing him talking about himself like an adult, with a fair face and a slightly childish face, I didn't know why but I wanted to rub his head.

She did the same and said at the same time: Okay, okay, you are right, I will listen to you.

He suddenly became even more angry, and felt a sense of powerlessness and discouragement.

Why does she always treat herself like a child!

*

Early the next morning, Zhao'er and Xue Tingyan went out.

When we arrived, Dongli House had just opened its doors. Xue Tingyan went to the clean room yesterday to continue copying books, while Zhao'er went to the yard behind the shop.

She discussed with Boss Chen and used this place to pack her clothes. Zhao'er had seen those clothes before, and they were all second-hand clothes. Since she wanted to make money, it was not good for the things to sell well, so she came here mainly to do this work today.

She borrowed the bamboo mat used to dry books in the shop, poured out the large package of clothes, sorted them first by men's and women's styles, and then divided them into several piles by texture and thickness, and then began to check the clothes one by one for tatters. The place.

If there was a hole somewhere, she would sew it up with the needle and thread she brought. Zhao'er's needlework is pretty good, but he's not good at embroidery or anything like that, but he can sew and make some clothes or something.

After finally clearing up the pile, she looked at the sunny weather outside and went to fetch water from the well in the courtyard. There was a windlass on the well, which was very convenient for fetching water. Zhao'er fetched a basin of water, soaked the clothes in the large wooden basin, and rubbed soapy water on them to wash them.

After washing and rinsing, the rice soup in the kitchen is also ready.

Although Boss Chen and the others didn't cook in the shop, they still needed a place to boil water and make tea, so the fire was also turned on in the shop, and Zhao'er borrowed the stove to cook a large pot of rice soup.

She took out the cooked rice soup, poured it into a wooden basin, and added some water to it. It was best if it was slightly hot to the touch. Fang poured all the washed clothes into it and stirred it with a stick.

Stir it evenly, let it sit for half a cup of tea, pick up the clothes from the tub, and rinse them with water again.

This is what is called starched clothes. Starched clothes are straight and look like new ones as long as they don't fade. Some discerning people would even iron it, but since they didn't have the conditions, Zhao'er didn't plan to do that.

During this period, Boss Chen came in. Seeing that Zhao'er was very busy, he pointed at the clothes of various colors hanging in the yard and said with a smile: That's good of you. You treat my place as your own place. It was originally a place of elegance, but now it's You make it look like a laundry room.