When the first heavy snow fell on the ground, the surrounding scenery changed. Whether it was the bare tree branches or the still green pine and cypress trees, they all stood there with strips or patches of white.
The ducks and geese didn't go to the pond in the morning. It wasn't until noon that they ran to places with water. They left messy footprints on the snow. Xiao Hong followed behind them with a bamboo pole in her hand. The guys in front seemed to be her subordinates.
Cherries led a male servant on Zhuangzi to carry chicken feed and called out to the chickens hiding in the nest. In an instant, more than one thousand nine hundred hens and one hundred roosters flapped their wings and ran out one after another.
Erniu checked the brown sugar that was piled up like sand in the storeroom. He turned around and locked the door. Then, he helped Pomegranate take care of the earthworms. He lifted the things that were piled up messily on top of the earthworms to take a look. He didn't want these things to smoke. Then, he piled the surrounding snow together. Once he was done, he could go find the young master.
Pomegranate followed Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan to the back to see if any of the 'houses' had been knocked down. The cucumbers in the ground had already started to grow. She would be distressed if one of them died.
When they arrived at the place, what entered their eyes was a yellowish-brown color. There was no white snow at all. The villagers didn't need anyone to greet them. They took the initiative to help clean up the snow. The small houses were all standing there in good condition. The snow that fell from the curtains on the houses was also cleaned up.
When the villagers saw that the young master and Cuckoo had arrived, they all came over to greet them with sincere and respectful smiles on their faces. This had nothing to do with Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan's identity.
"Uncle Wang, is there snow leaking from your house? Is it still warm in the house? "Wang Juan asked softly when a person greeted her.
"To answer your question, it's warm. It's really too warm. The house doesn't leak snow either. It's very sturdy. It's all thanks to Zhuangzi who paid for the house and the kang. Otherwise, we'd be tired again this year. This old man has never seen such a good master."
When Uncle Wang talked about his family, his eyes narrowed so much that they almost couldn't be seen. As he spoke, he wanted to pull his son to kneel down and kowtow. Naturally, Pomegranate supported him.
"Hmm, that's good. The New Year is coming in less than a month. How's the preparation at home? This New Year, everyone in Zhuangzi will be given two catties of pork, one catty of vegetable oil, and six feet of cloth, so that the villagers can have a good New Year. "
Zhang Xiaobao liked the feeling of being a family and said with a smile.
"Young Master, we can't accept so many gifts. You …" Uncle Wang didn't know what to say.
"I'm buying people's hearts. In the future, there will be some things in Zhuangzi that outsiders can't know about. I'm buying people's hearts to help me keep it a secret." Zhang Xiaobao told the truth.
"Little Gongzi, not to mention the human heart, this old man's life is yours. Whatever Little Gongzi wants to do, this old man will guard it for you. If anyone wants to break it, this old man will fight with his life." Uncle Wang said excitedly, and the others around him also echoed.
Everyone knew that people's hearts were bought. If you were good to me, I'll be good to you. Except for Zhang Xiaobao and Wang's families in Zhuangzi, no other master could buy people's hearts like this. Not only did they build houses and kang beds, but they also gave people meat for every meal and warm wine to warm their bodies. Now that the New Year was coming, they gave people gifts again. People's hearts were made of meat.
Zhang Xiaobao glanced at Wang Juan. The two of them felt the warmth together. Wang Juan's lips moved on Weiwei. Zhang Xiaobao nodded. Wang Juan then said,
"Everyone, there are still some chickens left this year. Next year, Cherries will hatch more chicks. If you want to raise them, you can come and get them. When the eggs are laid, we'll take them from Zhuangzi. That way, you'll have more money to spend."
As soon as these words were spoken, all the villagers became happy. Some even cheered to express the joy in their hearts. The snow did not seem to be that cold anymore.
Only a few children who came from Ge Zhuang didn't feel happy at all. They weren't people from Zhang Xiaobao and Wang's families. They didn't know about other things, but they knew about the gifts given during the New Year. Each person was given two catties of meat. That meant that their family would get a lot of food. They wanted to make dumplings and pies.
There was also vegetable oil. They could fry a lot of food. There was enough cloth to make a new set of clothes. When comparing the two, the children were a little resentful of their parents. Why didn't they come to Zhuangzi and Wang's families?
When Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan saw that there were no problems, they were relieved. They said a few words of encouragement and left under the respectful gazes of the crowd.
"Why are you always telling the truth?" Wang Juan asked Zhang Xiaobao on the way back.
"I wanted to talk to them about theory. I also wanted to recite the Analects of Confucius or the Thousand-Character Classic. Would they understand? The villagers need very simple things. They need to eat well, wear warm clothes, and have a stable residence. They need to show off in front of other villagers. This is the greatest need of spiritual and material civilization. "
"That's right. They are all kind people. If you treat them well, they will remember it for the rest of their lives. I've decided. When it's a little warmer, I'll build a school so that both of us children in Zhuangzi can study." Wang Juan sighed with emotion.
"Not only us two Zhuangzi, but also the children of other Zhuangzi nearby. They just need to bring some staple food. I'll pay for everything else." Zhang Xiaobao thought even further.
"Are you sick?"
"Do you have medicine? I'm not going to joke with you. I'll let all the children in Zhuangzi come to study here. My reputation will spread. When there's a disaster next year, I'll send food over for free. Let's see who dares to take my family's land. I'll crush them with the hearts of the people. "
"Even now, I still don't understand what kind of person you are. You're doing so much to earn some money, but in the end, it's all for that piece of land and 100 families' food. Is it worth it?" Wang Juan had been trying to figure out Zhang Xiaobao. She wanted to know what was on his mind, but to no avail.
Zhang Xiaobao glanced at Wang Juan beside him and smiled. "Don't try to guess what men think. Similarly, I've never thought about what women think. Sometimes, we don't even understand ourselves, let alone understand others.
To be honest, I really didn't care. Losing and gaining were nothing in front of me. I was talking about money, but I cared a lot. I knew that my parents and grandparents wanted to support this family business. The only thing I could do was to help them.
Material gain is separate from spiritual gain. It's like giving money to a beggar on the street. Even if you don't admit it on the surface, you'll subconsciously think of yourself as a good person. The reason why those animals can't beat people is not only because people know how to use tools, but also because people will pity and sympathize with the weak at some point, and then unite with the weak. "
"Don't tell me this. I don't understand. I know that the world is a place where the strong preys on the weak. I'm learning so many things for my family. It's as simple as giving and receiving." Wang Juan felt that her thoughts were following Zhang Xiaobao, and she was very uncomfortable.
"Alright, let's not talk about it. Since your family is gone, let's start a new one here. We don't have a powerful ancestor, so let's become the next generation's powerful ancestor. It's snowing. If a cow freezes to death on Zhuangzi, we'll have cow bone marrow to eat."
Zhang Xiaobao really didn't want Wang Juan to obey him. Seeing that Wang Juan reacted quickly, he couldn't help but laugh.
"When did it freeze to death? Why haven't I heard about it? "Wang Juan licked her lips with her tongue. She was indeed greedy.
"There's a cow in Chen Hao's house in Zhuangzi. It's too old to work. When it snows, it freezes to death. I'm going to give him six strings of cash. He went to report it, and then he can eat the cow."
"That's not right. I remember that his cow is still alive. It passed by the front of the yard in the morning. Besides, it's not that cold today. When it snows, the temperature rises. "Wang Juan frowned and asked. She seemed to be thinking about what happened in the morning.
Zhang Xiaobao shook his head sadly, "Yeah, he was still fine in the morning. Who knew that he would freeze to death in such a short time. If he wasn't frozen to death, then he was scared to death. When the cow saw the heavy snow, she drank a mouthful of cold water and committed suicide."
"You're so greedy? Do you have to kill other people's cows to eat? " Wang Juan finally understood. Of course, she wouldn't ask why the cow could die from drinking water. She knew that Zhang Xiaobao would definitely ask her, "If people can die from drinking water, why can't the cow?" This matter couldn't be explained clearly.
"The six strings of cash is enough to buy a calf. I'll give you the money you want to buy a half-grown cow. It can be used during the spring plowing. When we go back, I'll make beef tendons for you. It's tender and chewy. It won't spoil your teeth." Zhang Xiaobao chose to bribe.
"I want to eat tendons with a little spicy taste."
*****
Where does the wind blow and snow fall? White clothes decorate the green hills.
The Chinese New Year was getting closer and closer. The price of brown sugar doubled. Erniu obeyed the Little Lord's order and immediately sold it. The 20 taels of silver became 60 taels of silver. Before the money was warmed up, he received the Little Lord's order to order a large number of flat bamboo baskets or small bamboo boxes. They had to be woven.
When the first batch of bamboo baskets was delivered, the cucumbers in the courtyard of the Zhang family's manor were already three inches long. It would be best to eat them in two or three days. After three or five days, they would be considered big.
"Pomegranate, here are three cucumbers. The three of us will take one each. Help us peel the cucumbers." Wang Juan picked three relatively large cucumbers and handed them to Pomegranate.
Pomegranate took them numbly and nodded, "Cucumbers. Cucumbers in winter. They smell good. How much does one cost? A few days ago, they were still seedlings. Now they are all grown up. "
"Don't worry about the price. Just eat. Hurry up. Xiao Bao and I are waiting." Wang Juan hadn't eaten vegetables for more than a month. Seeing Pomegranate was still in a daze, she had to urge her.
The pomegranate finally recovered and began to peel the skin. The three of them ate to their heart's content.
Five days later, Song Jinggong put the bamboo box with six cucumbers with thorns on it on the table in front of County Magistrate Cheng Lingxiang.
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