In the workshop of Strange Interest Pavilion.
"Master Liu, where is the scholar now? Take me to see him! "
Li Zexuan was suddenly very interested in this down-and-out scholar. How miserable was this person? He actually came to work in the workshop.
Li Tai curled his lips and secretly thought that Li Zexuan was really inexperienced. Li Tai had seen this kind of thing many times. Thinking about it, Li Tai could not help but feel a sense of superiority in his heart.
"Cough, cough. Young Master, this person is probably reading in the back hall. He is a scholar after all. How can I let him mingle with us bumpkins? Thus, I arranged a separate place for him to work."
Liu Yidao wiped the sweat on his forehead and said with a little guilty conscience. After all, he had made a decision on this matter. If Li Zexuan blamed him, he had nothing to say.
Li Zexuan smiled and said, "Master Liu, take me to see him!"
Li Zexuan did not blame Liu Yidao for making a decision on his own. In fact, if this person was really capable, it was okay to give him some preferential treatment. After all, if there was no scholar in the printing department, it was obviously impossible. But if this person was just a good-for-nothing who used the name of a scholar to cheat for food and drink, Li Zexuan would let him go back to where he came from.
.....
"Young master, here it is!"
Following Liu Yidao to the back hall in the southernmost part of the workshop, Li Zexuan looked around. The environment was quiet, birds were singing, and flowers were fragrant. It was really a good place to read.
"Okay."
Li Zexuan nodded. Liu Yidao quickly stepped forward and led Li Zexuan and Li Tai into the door.
"Oh, steward Liu, you are here!"
In the room, a middle-aged man with unkempt hair and a dirty face greeted Liu Yidao enthusiastically after seeing him come in.
Li Zexuan frowned. No matter how he looked at this person, he looked like a beggar. He didn't look like a scholar at all! Could it be that he really came to the workshop to cheat food and drinks?
"Mr. Ma, this is our boss."
Liu Yidao hurriedly stepped aside and told the middle-aged man who was the master.
The sloppy middle-aged scholar was obviously stunned. After a moment, he cupped his hands and said to Li Zexuan in a serious manner, "I am Ma Zhou from Feiping County in Bozhou. Nice to meet you, Mr. Li!"
Li Zexuan, who had originally wanted to test this person's talent, suddenly widened his eyes in shock when he heard the person's self-introduction. In his heart, he roared three times, "F * ck!"
This person was actually the future Prime Minister of the Great Tang, and this formidable individual was actually working for him? Li Zexuan felt a little dizzy. The world was changing too fast!
"A man from Li County? A man from Li County? "
Ma Zhou saw that Li Zexuan was standing there in shock and didn't speak for a long time. He was a little worried and called him twice.
He was worried in his heart. Could it be that the fact that he was a teaching assistant in Bozhou, drank all day and was scolded by the provincial governor for not doing any work had already reached the ears of this man from Li County?
Ma Zhou lost his parents when he was young and had no one to rely on. Fortunately, he was diligent and didn't give up on himself. However, the years of poverty made him somewhat "angry". His behavior was undisciplined and he drank wantonly. He was often drunk.
During the reign of Wude, the provincial governor of Bozhou, Da Xishu, heard that Ma Zhou was proficient in classics and history. He was knowledgeable and talented, so he hired him to be a teaching assistant in Bozhou. However, this fellow's work ethic was obviously problematic. He "drank all day and didn't take teaching as his job". He was paid but didn't do any work. He only knew how to drink and looked drunk all day.
Da Xishu reprimanded him a few times, but Ma Zhou didn't change. He still did things his own way. Finally, one day, Ma Zhou drank and messed things up again. Da Xishu couldn't take it anymore and heavily reprimanded him.
This time, the reprimand was very heavy. Ma Zhou lost face on the spot. Thus, in a fit of anger, he took off his official robe and handed it to his student. He asked him to return the provincial governor's robe. Then, he laughed to the sky and left Bozhou.
When this fellow left Bozhou, he was very confident. However, when he left Bozhou, he was dumbfounded. He didn't have any money for travel. Fortunately, he met a few important people on the way. After a few turns, he arrived at the capital, Chang 'an. However, his money for travel had already been used up.
However, he had to find a job. After finding a few jobs at the academy, he had nothing to do. The money they gave him was too little. It wasn't even enough for him to drink. Thus, this fellow quit his job and continued to look for jobs. As a matter of fact, he happened to come across the workshop of Strange Taste Pavilion. The pay was very generous. Thus, he didn't care about being reserved as a scholar and eagerly ran over.
"Oh, oh, Mr. Ma, right? How did Mr. Ma recognize me? "
Li Zexuan reacted and casually asked.
Ma Zhou smiled and said, "The scooters of Strange Taste Pavilion are not only popular in Chang 'an. They are also gradually becoming popular in other provinces and counties. The Divine Plough of Curved Yuan also originated from Strange Taste Pavilion. It was greatly promoted by the current Emperor. Countless people in the world have benefited from it. Nowadays, who doesn't know the name of Strange Taste Pavilion? Who doesn't know the owner of Strange Taste Pavilion? Just now, when Steward Liu called you 'Owner', I guessed that you were the man from Lantian County! "
Li Zexuan had only asked casually. He didn't expect Ma Zhou to beat around the bush with so many twists and turns. He thought to himself that when this person was smart, he really wasn't vague at all.
"Mr. Ma is smart! I wonder if Mr. Ma is satisfied with this job? "
"Satisfied, satisfied!"
Ma Zhou nodded repeatedly. However, he heard Li Zexuan's tone. It seemed that he had the intention of raising his pay. Then, he rolled his eyes and added, "It's just that there's no wine to drink in this workshop. It's really a fly in the ointment!"
Li Zexuan rolled his eyes. In his previous life, he had heard that Ma Zhou was addicted to alcohol. Now, it seemed that it was true.
"As long as Mr. Ma has real talent and can help me with something, I'm willing to give you some good wine!"
Li Zexuan purposely kept him in suspense.
Ma Zhou's eyes lit up. He thought to himself that there was hope. He quickly asked, "Is Owner's words true?"
Li Zexuan smiled and said, "Of course it's true. I wonder if Mr. Ma has heard of Drunken Immortal? If Mr. Ma is willing to do his best to help me, I'll give you an extra pot of Drunken Immortal every month in addition to your salary. How about it? "
A pot of Drunken Immortal? Ma Zhou couldn't help but swallow a few mouthfuls of saliva. Not only had he heard of Drunken Immortal, he had also … smelled it. Of course, he couldn't afford to drink it. When he first came to Chang 'an, the first thing he did was to find out where the best restaurant in Chang' an was.
In the end, when he arrived at Drunken Immortal, he was dumbfounded when he saw the price of the wine and dishes. With the few hundred copper coins in his wallet, he couldn't even afford a plate of chicken, let alone a liter of Drunken Immortal.
Therefore, he could only pretend as if nothing had happened and tell the waiter that he had gone to the wrong place. Then, he silently left. When he walked to the door, he suddenly smelled the strong fragrance of wine on the tables of other diners. As a result, this guy couldn't take another step. He stood at the door of Drunken Immortal for the whole day, smelling the Drunken Immortal.
At this time, he heard Li Zexuan say that he could provide him with an extra pot of Drunken Immortal every month. His heart trembled a few times. This was worth 50 strings of coins, which was dozens of times more than his basic salary. However, he had never met Li Zexuan before. Why would he give him such a generous offer?
After being excited for a while, Ma Zhou immediately calmed down and became vigilant against Li Zexuan.
"What does Owner want me to do? I'll make it clear in advance. Although I'm poor, I will never commit crimes, break the law, or go against reason. No matter how much money you give me, I will never do it. "
Sweat, the offer was too generous. The other party thought that he had bad intentions!
Li Zexuan was sweating in his heart. It was hard to be a good person these days!
"Haha, Mr. Ma, don't worry. What I want you to do is definitely not against the law or against reason. It's just that … it's just that …"
.....
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