Xiao Bei had no intention of returning the child to the woman at all.
Soon, a group of doctors and maids came over and carried the child over. They used a stethoscope to listen to the child's cries while taking his pulse. They were also in charge of changing the child's package.
Xiao Bei and Xiao Yuan were also surrounded by curtains and waited for the curtains to be removed. Other than the fact that their hair was still a little wet, the rest of their bodies had already become dry.
Xiao Bei glared at the woman who had stopped crying but was still sobbing and did not dare to resist. He turned his head and remembered the fisherman who had helped to save the child.
He looked very old and had always made a living in the river. The wind was strong and his skin was not good, so he looked older than he was.
Besides this person, there were four more people on the boat. To be precise, there were five people. There was a woman who also looked old, a young man, a young woman, and a little boy who looked similar to Xiao Bei. The young woman had a baby in her arms and was breastfeeding the child. She turned her body slightly and did not avoid others.
"I haven't thanked this old man for his help. Someone, give 100 strings of money to this old man." When Xiao Bei spoke, he tiptoed and wanted to see what the child looked like. However, he could not see because the child was breastfeeding.
The fisherman who saved the child was very nervous at first, but when he heard Xiao Bei's words, his expression suddenly changed and sank. He turned his face and spat out two words, "No."
The other three adults also looked unhappy. Even the boy who was about the same age as Xiao Bei snorted, indicating that he was angry.
"Don't. You saved my child, so I will help your child. The money is not much, so give the child some clothes to wear." Xiao Bei was very good at talking and pointed at the child who was being breastfed.
Immediately, a maid and a male servant from the inner courtyard went to do the public relations so that the fisherman could accept the money.
The woman who had put the child in the water could not accept it, "My child."
"Not now, it's mine. Your child has drowned. From now on, her surname is Zhang. She is my sister, Zhang Xiaobei. The Patrol Inspector of Tang Dynasty will become ten people and patrol the Tang Dynasty together."
Xiao Bei did not have a good attitude towards this woman and pointed at the child who was being saved.
"That's right. In the future, there will be ten people. Heaven's Destruction will shake the evil spirits, and they will have no ears to listen to all directions." Xiao Yuan also supported.
The fisherman who saved the child was in the middle of refusing to accept the money when he heard Xiaobei and Xiaoyuan's words. He grabbed the hundred strings of cash and was about to put it into his pocket when he thought about it, but he was still worried. He turned his head and handed it to the woman, whose face was also full of hardships, and said, "Keep it well. Don't lose it. Xiaobei gave it to you. Make it into a pouch and wear it close to the child.
The woman nodded repeatedly. She carefully took it and put it in her bosom. She covered it with her hands and stopped moving.
Xiao Bei was stunned. "The money is for buying clothes for the child."
"I have clothes at home." The fisherman did not change his mind.
Xiao Bei looked at Xiao Yuan helplessly. Xiao Yuan felt around his body. His clothes were changed, but he had no money. He tiptoed and reached for it. He took out a handful of coins from the manservant's pocket and handed them over.
"Here, put the coins in the pouch. The function of the coins I gave you is the same as Xiaobei's. Paper money can only be stored for a short time. It's a pity if it spoils. Spend it. Use the money Xiaobei gave you to buy things. It's comfortable to wear, healthy to eat, and convenient to use."
The fisherman did not stand on ceremony and really took the coins from Xiao Yuan's hand. It looked like he did not intend to return the hundred strings of cash.
The woman who put the child into the water also became obedient when she heard Xiaobei and Xiao Yuan's words. She stared blankly at her daughter, who was wrapped in a velvet cloth again. A smile suddenly appeared on her face.
Xiao Bei jumped in fright. "Are you crazy? Don't scare me. I won't take the blame even if you are crazy. You were the one who threw the child away first, and then I came. Sue, let me tell you, even if you take the case to Hanyuan Palace Hall, I'm not afraid of you. From the Supreme Court to the Censorate, no one, no one will speak up for you. "
Xiao Yuan nudged Xiaobei. "Why are you telling her this? Doctor, go take a look. Can it be treated? "
"I'm not crazy," the woman quickly said.
"I know. You're a normal person. Don't move. Doctor, go quickly," Xiao Yuan said.
"I'm really not crazy. I'm happy. I can live again. My child can live too. They said that I gave birth to an evil ghost reincarnated. They said that I couldn't pass the water tribulation. They said that I'm a witch. I originally thought that if my child couldn't pass the water tribulation, she would die. When I go back, I'll jump into the well and become a ghost.
I'll be haunted by them. "The woman seemed to be muttering to herself, but she also seemed to be explaining to Xiaobei and Xiao Yuan. With just a few words, everyone understood.
The woman laughed out loud again. "Haha, hahaha, but my child has passed this tribulation. Yes, she has passed this tribulation. In the future, she will be a Patrol Inspector of the Tang Empire. That's right. From the Supreme Court to the Censorate, no one will dare to touch her. Ha, they will come and go in groups.
Xiao Bei, I can work. I was originally a maidservant in their family. I can do any kind of work. Let me be your maidservant. I can sleep for four hours a day. I can eat all the leftovers. I can wear rough hemp clothes and sleep in the woodshed. I can do anything. "
As she spoke, the woman wanted to kneel down and kowtow. However, she was held back by someone and could not move.
Xiaobei and Xiao Yuan did not say anything. A servant girl was unwilling and said to the woman, "How can the master treat her like this? If you don't curse people, who knows if you're speaking the truth? "
Xiaobei nodded. He did not believe what the woman said. At the same time, he thought that this woman was stupid. If she slept for four hours, would she still have the energy to work when she was not sleeping?
"Hong 'er, my Hong' er, father is here." Just as the situation was in a deadlock, a man rushed over from outside the crowd. He shouted as he ran, hot tears streaming down his face.
Before he could get close, he was stopped by someone. "Stop, who are you?"
"Hong 'er, my Hong' er is inside. The one with no ears. I'm her father. My poor child, let me see if you're hurt." The man was still going to enter.
"She's not your child. She's the reincarnation of an evil spirit. Xiaobei, it's him. His family said that my daughter and I are inauspicious," the woman shouted at the man.
"I didn't say that. It's you, you crazy woman. I didn't keep an eye on you today. You actually wanted to drown my Hong 'er. You have such a vicious heart," the man retorted.
"You're the crazy one. As the registrar of the Xuzhou Provincial Government, you bought me as a servant girl. Then, you took my body. You didn't even give me a status. When the child was born, you wanted to kill her. You, you still dare to make up stories." The woman shouted at the top of her voice, causing the people around her to frown.
Xiaobei looked at this and then looked at that. He couldn't tell who was telling the truth and who was lying.
Seeing that the two of them were still arguing, he stopped them. "Stop. Xu. Zhou. Registrar? Sixth. Rank. Official? Official. What the official says should be true, right? Come, Registrar Official, come closer. Yes, come closer. Brother, you ask. "
Xiaobei was naturally calling his brother Xiaohai. Xiaohai and the other seven people didn't jump down. Instead, Li Jun and Pan 'er walked over.
Xiaohai appeared to be a steady person. Usually, when he had time, he would do calculations. However, among the nine children, his words would always be supported. Therefore, whenever he encountered trouble, Xiaobei would always think of his brother.
Xiaohai looked at the Registrar Official who was being stared at. He didn't say anything and just sized him up, from top to bottom, from bottom to top. Only when the Registrar Official's legs were trembling did he ask, "For your daughter, Hong 'er, you hurriedly came from your home, right?"
"Yes. When I returned home, I suddenly found that Hong 'er was gone. I heard from the servants that the crazy woman carried Hong' er to the river. I ran without a care for my life. Unfortunately, I still came too late. Thank you for your help. This official is very grateful. This official …"
"What time is it now?" Xiaohai didn't wait for the registrar official to continue and asked again.
"It's a quarter to nine. About time," the registrar official replied.
Xiaohai nodded and asked again, "Running all the way here must be very tiring, right?"
"Tiring? Ah, no. Actually, this official is only thinking about Hong 'er. I forgot whether I was tired or not. Why would I care about these things? Only now do I feel tired and weak." The registrar official panted.
"Do you know why we came here so coincidentally today?" Xiaohai asked again.
The registrar official shook his head and then nodded, "It must be because my Hong 'er is very lucky and has met a benefactor."
"Wrong. It's the nine of us. Last night, we suddenly had the same dream. Guess who we dreamed of? Yan Zheng. When Hong Nong was sick, he was caught and placed in the Vermillion Bird Street. Yan Zheng, the county magistrate who is still alive, dreamt of him lying. Aiya, why is it so familiar? Do you know? "
Xiaohai said to the registrar official, his tone was very calm.
"This official is not lying. Every word is true." The registrar official obviously couldn't stand it anymore.
"No one is saying that you are lying. There is something I don't understand. It's a quarter to nine. Why didn't you stay in the yamen? Why did you come home?" Xiaohai's voice was very soft at the beginning, but he suddenly raised his voice towards the end.
The registrar official was so scared that he fell to the ground and stammered, "I, I was in the yamen, dealing with the, the, the, the, the books, went back home, to get the materials, yes, the materials, at home."
"You put the materials from the yamen in your home? You went back to get them? Then you found out about it and came here? Is your home near the yamen? "Xiaohai continued to ask.
"Yes, yes, near, ran, ran, ran, ran, ran, ran." The registrar official replied.
Xiaohai no longer spoke to the registrar official. He turned around and said to his sister, "Xiao Bei, let's go back, this is too bloody. We can use torture."
"Why?" Xiao Bei looked at the registrar official whose face had suddenly turned pale.
"Because he lied. There is still a lot of vegetable juice on his boots. There is also a green mark on the corner of his mouth. What is the purpose of us stopping the ship this time?" Xiaohai pointed out the problem with the registrar and then asked.
"Purpose? Ah, the purpose is to take the Cherries Ointment distributed by the capital to Xuzhou to deal with it. Here in Xuzhou, we can replenish the vegetables, especially the cabbages stored in the winter, and make them into pickles. When we reach Hangzhou, we can sell them.
Mother wants to eat cucumbers. The cucumbers on the boat have been left out for a long time, so they are not fresh enough. Here, because the winter is not too cold, we can make a simple shed to produce cucumbers.
Also, let the kitchen cook the pork and chicken on the boat. Our family's craftsmanship is good, so we can sell them in Xuzhou and buy fresh ones to store on the boat. "
Xiao Bei counted with his fingers to calculate the purpose of stopping. After this trade, not only would he not lose money, but he would also make up for all the expenses on the way. At first, he had planned to do business along the way.
When the onlookers heard the conversation between Xiao Bei and the registrar official, many of them sighed. They were indeed Zhang Xiaobao's younger brother and sister. Even when they went out, they still had to make money along the way. Even if they left the family in the future, they would not have to worry about starving to death.
The registrar official was dumbfounded. He looked at his boots and wiped his mouth. His hands began to tremble.
Xiaohai took over the conversation and said, "Yes, so he, the registrar official, did not stay in the yamen at all. He ran to the dock and hid there. He did not forget to eat the cucumbers that were sent by the people.
Either he wanted to spy on us, or he was worried about our purpose. Or he wanted to find a chance to meet us. But no matter what, it proved that he was lying.
Also, when he was talking, he and the woman were not looking at the same place. He was looking at us, but the woman was looking at the child. Are we that attractive? That scary? If you don't do anything wrong, you won't be afraid of ghosts knocking on your door. Why is General Hu not afraid of us?
If something happens to us, when our father looks at us, uncle emperor stops him. How will our father react? "" He will be very anxious.
Even if he can't come over, he will keep looking around. If it were brother or sister, he would kill someone who dared to stop him. Ah, I know. There is going to be another person on the Vermilion Bird Street. Do it. Let's leave. "Xiaobei pointed at the registrar official and said angrily.
"I'm guilty. I'm guilty. I plead guilty. I just want to find a chance to get close to you and get some benefits. The child's matter is my family matter. You can't treat me like this."
The registrar official had completely given up on the idea of leaving things to chance. He did not expect that Xiaohai could be so powerful. He did not need to use any extra means. He just looked at the person and asked a few questions.
Xiaobei sneered and waved his hand. The people who were about to execute him stopped.
Xiaobei circled the registrar official twice and said, "I'm not interested in knowing your surname. I don't care whether it's your family matter or not. We are Inspectors of the Tang Empire. We patrol the place on behalf of His Majesty. You lied, which is the crime of deceiving His Majesty. If we catch you, your crime will be increased by five levels.
I don't care whether you live or die. I won't convict you here. You go back and let the officers of the state escort you to the capital. You can deal with the Ministry of Personnel, Supreme Court, and Censorate yourself. "
After saying this, Xiaobei turned and walked back to the boat. Xiaoyuan signaled the maid to take the woman and followed him back.
No one dared to touch the registrar official again. He was free for the time being. Xiaobei did not care whether he ran or not. What he meant was to let him go to the government office to accept his crime and then be escorted away. If he had the guts, he could run away. After that, he would be issued an arrest warrant.
After a moment of silence, there were continuous cheers. The people really felt the power of Xiaobei and the others. They also sighed that the girl who was born without ears had a good life.
"He's the head of the family. This money …?" The "old" woman on the fishing boat still had her hand on her chest. She held the 100 strings of coins and asked the "old" man.
The old man thought for a while and said, "Spend, we have to spend the money. We have to buy a big boat, make some clothes, and prepare the furniture. When the time comes, we have to give the money together. The 100 strings of coins can't be divided. If it is divided, the money we get back will not be from Xiaobei. It won't work. The coin will be passed down in the family."
His son and daughter-in-law who were nursing the child nodded at the same time.
*****
After returning to the boat, Xiaobei drank a bowl of ginger sugar water and ran to see the earless child.
The child was lying in his mother's arms and drinking milk. The woman's mood was much more stable and her eyes were bright. While feeding the child, she asked the maid to help her put a hot towel on her face. She also told the maid that she wanted to eat boiled eggs and pig's knuckle soup.
The maid agreed. The kitchen made four dishes and a soup. The soup was black chicken soup. The vegetables were grilled mutton, sweet and sour cabbage, cucumber golden mushroom, tomato scrambled eggs, and a plate of seasonal fruit. However, the amount was not much.
"I want to drink pig's knuckle soup without salt." The woman looked at the child in her arms and mustered up her courage. She stubbornly suggested what she wanted to eat.
"Drinking pig's knuckle soup is not popular now. What you are eating now is the same as what my mother and the little girl eat. They are pregnant now. When the news spread, my brother and sister specially asked the medical school to have a meeting with my family's chefs to discuss the food ration. Let me see my sister, okay?"
Xiaobei's voice appeared at the door. He also walked in, wanting to see the child who had been rescued.
When the woman heard that it was something specially made for first-rank noble madams, she was relieved. She turned sideways and said, "Let's see."
Xiaobei saw that the woman did not hold the child to show him, but he continued to feed her. He did not force her. The baby was eating.
"Later, I will ask my brother and sister if it will affect the baby without two ears. I will ask them to think of a way. You can live in my house. When the time comes, I will arrange things for you. We will take care of the baby.
You can find another person. Don't think about him. I have already shown mercy. He won't die. What crime of deceiving the emperor? Uncle Emperor doesn't care. But he can forget about continuing to be an official. An official who dislikes his own child, how can he be good to the people? "
Seeing that the child only had a hole in her ear, Xiaobei's heart ached.
Hearing Xiaobei's words, the woman could only nod. She stared at Xiaobei. After a while, she lowered her head to look at her daughter. She felt that the child was also cute. At this time, her daughter had already fallen asleep. She did not even burp.
When the maid took the child, the woman realized that she was hungry. She looked at Xiaobei and said, "I want to eat. I can't help you do things now."
"I didn't ask you to do things now. What you need to do now is to take care of yourself and feed my sister. Eat. There will be fish, beef bones, yak bones, and mine. Tomorrow, there will be venison. Anyway, we will eat for a month. Every day is different."
Xiaobei also sat at the table and asked someone to bring a cup of fruit juice. He sucked with a bamboo straw and watched the woman eat.
The woman knew that although her heartless husband was a registrar and had a good family life, he could not compare with Xiaobei and the others. She had never seen two kinds of dishes in front of her before.
After taking a bite of each dish, the woman asked Xiaobei, "What is this? And this?"
"This is a tomato. My brother likes to call it tomato, and my sister likes to call it tomato. The Agriculture Temple is making use of the time to cultivate seeds. In a few years, all the people in the Tang Empire will be able to plant them. They can be used to cook and eat as fruits.
That is a golden needle mushroom. The production is very small. Usually, only officials above the fifth rank in the capital can eat it. My brother and sister said that in terms of nutrition, it is similar to other mushrooms and can be replaced. But the taste is different. Mother must like to eat it first.
There is also chili. It is very spicy. My brother actually asked the people in the Agriculture Temple to mix chili and tomatoes together. He said that chili will grow. Don't you think it is fun? "
Xiaobei introduced the dishes as if he was familiar with them. He gestured the shape of a persimmon with his small hand.
The woman nodded. "It is fun and delicious, but many people can't eat it. Sigh, the rich have their rich lives, and the poor have their poor lives."
"That's not true. My brother said that if you feel that your life is not easy to change, then let's change the world. In the past, in the north, it was cold and we couldn't eat cucumbers. Now, we can eat cucumbers. Those who believe in fate are vermin. They enjoy the food made by those who don't believe in fate."
The education that Xiaobei received made it impossible for him to accept his fate. He said that he would fight against the heavens.
After hearing Xiaobei's words, the woman could not say anything else. She lowered her head and ate fiercely. Xiaobei held the cup and thought about something.
Perhaps the woman was really hungry, or perhaps she was afraid that her child would be hungry. Or perhaps the dishes were really delicious. She swept up all the dishes like a whirlwind. There were also two bowls of rice. When it was time to eat the fruits, Xiaobei's eyes widened in shock.
"You, you didn't make it? Eat some Yamcha pills and slowly walk around the deck. Then take a bath and rest. My sister has someone to take care of her. I suddenly thought of something very important. I will discuss it with them. "
Xiaobei looked at the woman worriedly, shook his head, got up, and left.
The woman watched Xiaobei leave and touched her stomach. "It's really delicious. The chef on the ship should be better than Between the Clouds and the Water and Blue Sea Silver Sand, right?"
*****
When Xiaobei came to another room, Xiaoyuan and the other ten children were all studying. To be precise, Xiaoyuan was revising. He was telling Li Jun and Pan Er a story.
"Let's stop for a moment. I want to discuss something with everyone. I was thinking, is it because there are many children in Tang who are born with poor health and are abandoned? There are also girls. We should stop this, right? Xiaoyuan. "
"Yes, stop. Where should we start? Tell the people that what they are doing is wrong? I'm afraid that they won't listen. Should we use our family's intelligence organization to investigate door to door? "
Xiaoyuan stopped talking first. He had no choice but to stop. When Li Jun and Pan Er saw Xiaobei, they left Xiaoyuan and ran to Xiaobei's side. They looked up and listened to Xiaobei.
The others also stopped what they were doing.
"Let's discuss it together. We will come up with a solution. I'll talk first. Let's make up ghost stories to scare them and say that we should abandon the children …" Xiaobei started the conversation and came up with a solution.
The others began to think of ideas. When it was time for dinner, the nine older children and two younger children finally came up with a plan and arranged for people to implement it.
*****
"It's another sunny day. The birds are chirping, the swallows are flying low, the water is flowing to the east … When will you return? Come, cheers! "
In the morning, Zhang Xiaobao stood outside the cabin and brushed his teeth. He spat out the water in his cup into the river. It mixed with the river water and flowed to the east.
Wang Juan had already packed up and looked around for Zhang Xiaobao to eat. When she turned to the left side of the deck, she saw him. She was listening to his poetic speech. She looked up at the sky. It was dark clouds. No wonder the swallows were flying low.
"Xiao Bao, hurry up. We are waiting for you to eat. Sunny day, is this the legendary infinite stretching of imagery? It has the effect of changing space. Which part of the sky did you change?
Don't dawdle. Look at the sky. It's probably going to rain heavily for a few days. Who knows if there will be a disaster somewhere. We will be busy. "
"It will come, it will come. It's normal for there to be a disaster. As long as the area is small, it will be fine. I will be surprised if there is a year when the weather is good everywhere in Great Tang."
Zhang Xiaobao spat out the last mouthful of water and followed Wang Juan into the cabin. The sails of the ship were lowered, ready to welcome the storm.
When they arrived at the dining hall, Li Longji and the others were also there. They had not touched their chopsticks. It seemed that they were waiting for Zhang Xiaobao.
"Good morning." Zhang Xiaobao greeted and sat down at his seat.
Li Longji picked up his chopsticks. "Xiao Bao, you made me wait for you to eat. Tell me, how should you thank me?"
"I'll wait for you during lunch. If worse comes to worst, I'll prepare the dishes." Zhang Xiaobao regretted composing a poem while brushing his teeth.
"There's no need for that. Help me think of a good idea. I'll be waiting for you tomorrow." Li Longji chatted as he ate.
Zhang Xiaobao took a bite of the fried egg and asked, "Which industry's idea is it?"
"Think about it yourself," Li Longji said.
"Alright, industry. How about it?" Zhang Xiaobao suggested.
Li Longji nodded his head as he ate.
"There are many technologies in the industry. Considering the confidentiality of the raw materials and technologies, there aren't many that can be used in the industry. How about this? I'll get them to design a few skinning machines that can be powered by human power, animal power, water, or wind.
The technical requirements are low. In terms of materials, we can use wood for the frames and steel for the crucial parts. At worst, we can just replace the parts and increase production efficiency. The time saved can be used to do other things, even learning how to read and write would be good. What do you think? "
Zhang Xiaobao put down his chopsticks and thought of an idea. While Li Longji was thinking, he quickly ate again. He didn't want to wait for others to finish eating while he was still hungry.
Li Longji thought about what Zhang Xiaobao said, but his mouth didn't stop eating. After a while, he nodded his head in agreement.
"If that's the case, it's settled." Zhang Xiaobao heaved a sigh of relief.
"Xiao Bao, don't eat too much. There's still something to eat later," Li Longji said to Zhang Xiaobao.
"Alright, I'll just drink a bowl of soy milk and eat two fried eggs." Zhang Xiaobao reluctantly agreed and finally finished his meal.
Just as he was about to drink some tea and take a break, the heavy rain outside fell and hit the deck loudly. Li Longji called Zhang Xiaobao out again.
A large umbrella was set up on the deck. Under the umbrella was a barbecue rack, and beside it was a water basin filled with prawns. There were also two bottles of wine.
When Zhang Xiaobao sat opposite him, Li Longji poured wine for Zhang Xiaobao and said with emotion, "The rain is misty, and the waves are surging. It's a good time to chat and drink. However, I have many worries in my heart. How many people are dripping water? Which bridge is difficult to cross? Xiao Bao, what do you think we should do? "
Zhang Xiaobao slapped his forehead in distress. If he knew this would happen, he would have let Li Longji go out to play by himself. The house leaks, the road is muddy, so he can just fix it. Does he have to take care of everything?
Just as he was thinking about how to answer, someone came from the inner courtyard and said to Zhang Xiaobao, "Little Gongzi, there's news from the Great Tang Bank. Xiaobei and the others used their precious candy house, their toy house, and other jewelry as collateral to get a loan from the Great Tang Bank. The Great Tang Bank returned the loan and said that they were too young to go through the formalities. What do you think …?"
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