"Why didn't you fall to your death at the bottom of the mountain? If you died, I wouldn't have to worry about you. Other children all know that you can't go there. Only you have the ability to ride a cow there. You broke your arm, right? You deserve it. Why didn't you break your neck too? That way, your mother and I won't have to worry about you in the future."
The adults scolded the child who was raising his arm to let the doctor from the main house treat him. The child seemed to be frightened and didn't move at all. He opened his eyes wide and didn't cry like other children. When the doctor set his bones, he only frowned and there were scars on his face.
"Zhang Qing, what are you doing? Your child fell and you don't hurry up and fix it. Why are you scolding him? "
Father Zhang couldn't stand it anymore and scolded him with a sullen face.
Father Zhang usually didn't care about these things. Today, he was still so strict, scaring the surrounding people. Zhang Qing was so scared that he trembled. Why did the master of the main house come today?
"Master, I'm not scolding him. It's all because he doesn't have the guts. Other children would go to other places when they're herding cows, but this prodigal child just had to go to that place that was washed away by the water. It's more than two zhang high, and the cow would fall to its death. He's lucky and only broke an arm.
If I don't scold him properly, he won't dare to go to that place in the future. Master, don't worry, the child is my own, and I will definitely take good care of him. Just now, when the people from the main house came, I asked my daughter-in-law to cook the bone soup. According to the main house's recipe, it's … it's to cook the bones. "
Zhang Qing was afraid of the master of the house, so he started to explain. As he spoke, he noticed that there were two people he didn't know standing beside the master, so he immediately changed his words. As for the remaining two ingredients, the fish liver and kelp, he didn't want to tell anyone.
The surrounding people didn't correct him. Everyone was thinking the same thing. Why should the master let outsiders know what he told them?
Father Zhang saw Zhou Xihu and his nephew's questioning expression and said, "Actually, by directly cooking the bones, the human body doesn't use much of it. If you add some other things, it will use more of it. The farmers are all petty and don't want to tell others. It's fine, just add some fish liver and kelp. That way, not only can it use more of the things in the bones, it can also prevent the Big Neck Disease."
"Oh? Is there such a thing? " Zhou Qiong did not expect that drinking bone soup would be so particular. The people on Zhangjia Zhuangzi were too hateful. They had such a good recipe, but they did not say it out loud.
"Of course, I added these things into the fried noodles for Little Tiger. It's more delicious and fragrant, and it's also good for the body," Mr. Zhang continued.
"So that's how it is. No wonder Big Brother and Sister-in-law are so much better than before. Yongcheng, you really keep a tight lid on Zhuangzi's secret. Hmm, that's good too. I'm envious of you." Zhou Qiong understood immediately. Even though it was just two more things, they were very useful.
"The cow is dead?" Mr. Zhang gave Zhou Qiong a 'you know what's going on' expression, then asked Zhang Qing.
"Yes, he fell to his death." Zhang Qing nodded and replied.
"If he's dead, bring him back to the main family. Where's the housekeeper?" Mr. Zhang glanced at the surrounding crowd.
"Master, I'm here. I'll send someone to report to the government later. According to the new rules of the main family, Zhang Qing's child is not yet 15 years old, so he's considered underage. This time, his arm was broken. The main family will take out 20 jin of bones and other things to help the child recover. All the medical fees will be paid by the main family."
Steward Zhang also came. He stood out from the crowd and said to Mr. Zhang.
Mr. Zhang nodded and looked at the child again. "Hmm, send 1 jin of fried noodles here. Let the child eat it and get better soon."
"Yes, Master." The housekeeper answered, indicating that he had remembered it.
"Brother Yongcheng, are you going to bear all the losses by yourself?" Zhou Qiong was puzzled. Why did the main family take care of the cow that fell to its death? He also took care of the medical fees, plus the bones and other things. How could it be reasonable for the farmer to fall to his death?
Now that everything was settled and the child was fine, Father Zhang was relieved. He smiled at Zhou Qiong and said, "He's such a young child, yet he doesn't know much. How old is he? It must be because other people don't herd cows there and the grass there is better. That's why he's herding the cows there.
If he wanted to complain, he could only blame the master's family for not flattening that area earlier. He could have knocked down the area that was damaged by the water and made a gentle slope. Then, how could the child have broken his arm? Normally, you don't even dare to kill a cow. Now, you have beef to eat. Brother Miaoran, you may not know, but Xiao Bao and Cuckoo love to eat beef the most.
Especially the tendons, I used a special method to make them. When I bite it, I don't feel it's hard at all. It's soft and fragrant. I'll peel off the cowhide and use it to make small jackets for them in winter. Let's go back.
Zhou Qiong was deeply moved by Father Zhang's nonchalant attitude when he said yes. He could not blame the other party for setting up the Seedling Protection Team. When they first met him, the master was in charge of everything. The only thing the farmer needed to do was to listen to the master's arrangements. He did not expect that the farm would have such a rule.
It was very difficult to deal with the main family in this place. It was no different from a dream to bribe a farmer. From the time of the incident to the treatment, it was so far away. The main family took all the responsibility and even gave the bones to the child. It was easy to cross the river, but difficult to deal with Zhangjia Zhuangzi.
After the matter was resolved, the surrounding farmers began to disperse. Some people even came over to comfort Zhang Qing. Zhang Qing didn't say any words of gratitude. When everyone left, he hugged his son and said with heartache,
"Don't wander around in the future. I heard that there will be a school this year. I'll send you there and learn well. When you grow up, you have to help the main family. Don't do anything that will let the main family down. Otherwise, if I find out, I'll strangle you to death and pretend that I don't have a son like you."
"Dad, I know. It's a pity that the cow is gone. Dad, when the bones are sent here, let Mom eat them. Mom may give me a younger brother or sister again. Let them grow strong."
The child touched the part of his arm that was already in a plaster cast and said to his father. It was the first time he used this thing. He said that it was made by the main family. It was better to break a part than to just stick it out.
Zhang Qing held his son in his arms and said, "It doesn't matter if it's a younger brother or sister. When you're born, the main family will give you things and take care of you. When you go to school, don't come home if you can't learn."
"Dad, I got it. I'll definitely study hard and help Master do big things. It'll be even better when I become an official. At that time, I'll see who dares to find fault with Master." The child said with a serious face.
*****
Father Zhang brought Zhou Qiong over to take a look and returned to the courtyard. It seemed that he was preparing to send Zhou Qiong and the others away. Zhou Qiong was anxious. He still wanted to ask for some advice. If he left like this, it would be difficult to find another opportunity.
Therefore, he said to Father Zhang, "Brother Yongcheng, when it's time for the imperial examination, don't worry. I'll definitely find a good person for you. Who does Brother Yongcheng think is suitable?"
"This … I don't know. I hope Brother Miao Ran can give me a few pointers." Father Zhang wanted to take the imperial examination so that he could bring glory to his family. He didn't know much about this kind of thing, so he could only ask others.
"Brother Yongcheng is joking. How can I not know? If Brother Yongcheng really doesn't know, you can ask others. When the time comes, they can help me ask who the current wind and cloud belongs to. "
Zhou Qiong naturally didn't believe Father Zhang's words. He thought to himself, 'You have two experts in your family. How can I not tell you such a small thing?'
Father Zhang looked at Zhou Qiong in a daze for a few breaths of time before saying, "Since Brother Miao Ran asked, let me think of a way."
In truth, he didn't know what to do. Madam didn't tell him this kind of thing, so his face revealed an anxious expression. At this time, Erniu, who shouldn't be here, suddenly entered the hall.
"Master, this little one has an important matter." Erniu looked at the three people in the hall and said to the master.
No matter how stupid Father Zhang was, he knew that Erniu's words couldn't be said to others. He put down the teacup and looked at Erniu.
At this time, Erniu was clever. He walked to the master's side and whispered a few words. Then, he smiled at Zhou Qiong and Zhou Xihu and turned to leave.
After Erniu left for a while, Father Zhang was still in a daze. It wasn't until a servant came to pour tea that he picked up the cup and took a sip. He said to Zhou Qiong, "Brother Miao Ran, you must remember the matters of the previous dynasty. You must not associate with women. It's better to stay away from anything related to women. Not only the princess, but also the other ministers. Otherwise, it won't be a good sign."
"Brother Yongcheng, are you talking about being under one person …?" Zhou Qiong wasn't stupid. When he heard this, he connected the dots and understood what it meant. He quickly asked.
"I don't know what Brother Miao Ran is talking about. Anyway, it's just a sentence. Whether we listen or not is not up to us."
Father Zhang's words didn't mean to admit anything. This was also part of what Erniu said when he came over.
It felt a little unfathomable. In fact, even he didn't know what it was. He just said it according to what he said.
When Zhou Qiong heard these words, he thought a lot. He summed up what Father Zhang said and found that he couldn't rely on the people he wanted to rely on now. All of this was because of a servant's whisper.
Others might think that the servant came over to say something, but Zhou Qiong thought that the two masters didn't want to see him in a difficult position, so they helped him. The more he thought about it, the more scared he felt.
What a powerful person. He just asked, and the other side knew what he was asking and sent someone to inform him in advance. No wonder County Magistrate Cheng always wanted to be the disciple of this person. With such a person behind the scenes, it really saved a lot of trouble. However, just this sentence only told him to stay away from the person, but not to get close to the person.
This won't do. If he didn't ask clearly, wouldn't he waste his efforts if he didn't do well in the future?
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