The fierce peasant woman is busy farming

In the evening, Song Yuan came back with a bag of saltpeter.

Xuan Mo also came back and brought back a few books.

Zhou Yue felt that it was really worthwhile to know Master Cui.

The family only gave the teacher a small amount of tuition and some food.

But in addition to teaching Xuanmo to read and understand, the Master also often gave him gifts.

Writing brushes, ink, paper, and inkstones, classics, history books, and all kinds of rare copies of good books that are hard to find even at high prices, Master Cui gave away dazzling ink without blinking an eye.

Zhou Yue guessed that Master Cui came from a well-off family, as he himself didn't know the price of those books.

After Zhou Yue came back, he found time to talk to Mr. Ning and conveyed Master Cui's opinions.

Then, with his almost god-like worship of scholars, Mr. Ning readily agreed.

However, although he is old and experienced, he still has some worries in his heart.

He was afraid that Xuanmo would not be able to take the exam in the future because he had no experience of studying in the county school and no recommendation from the teacher.

He remembered that when his eldest son was studying in the county school, he had a lot of trouble taking the exam for the first time.

The family spent a lot of money on gifts before the teacher gave the recommendation.

There are only a limited number of recommended places in the county school every year, but students pop up in large numbers like leeks.

Therefore, deciding who to give the quota to and who not to give it to depends on personal connections.

Although the passing rate after recommendation affects the reputation of the teachers in the county school, the examination itself is full of metaphysical elements.

Some people are talented and have studied hard for many years, but they still cannot pass the exam.

Some people look mediocre and playful in normal times, but they pass the exam on the first try.

Therefore, there is no way to hold the person who recommended the candidate accountable.

Zhou Yue listened to Mr. Ning's concerns and agreed with them. She didn't quite understand the twists and turns in the imperial examination.

She promised Mr. Ning that she would find an opportunity to ask Master Cui about this.

After getting the accurate information, we can then decide what to do.

The saltpeter arrived, and Zhou Yue hurried to make ice. He wanted to finish it today so that Song Yuan could set off earlier.

Since we sell ginseng ourselves, we must always provide good after-sales service.

Zhou Yue dragged out a large wooden basin and asked Jun Mo to pressurize the water.

Ever since a well was dug and a water pump was installed at home, Jun Mo has taken on this job.

He really likes the feeling of pressing and releasing water.

The large wooden basin was soon filled with water, and Zhou Yue took out a small ceramic basin, which was half filled with clean water.

Then he took the saltpeter and added several kilograms of it into a large wooden basin.

I guess I didn't control the amount well and added a bit too much saltpeter.

As Zhou Yue shook and stirred, the water in the small ceramic basin soon froze into ice.

Everyone in the yard, including Old Man Ning who had poor legs and Chun Niang who was pregnant, came to watch the fun.

Everyone took turns touching the ice in the small clay pot and marveled at it.

Song Yuan was even happier because he could finally ensure that the ginseng was fresh and delivered to the palace.

This time he will definitely complain to the saint, show off his achievements, and extort more of his hard-earned money.

Qing Mo looked at the ice, feeling extremely curious, and his heart moved.

She decided to have a good chat with her mother in the evening.

After eating bread and cake for lunch, as well as the Ning family’s sumptuous meal, Song Yuan carried a large box full of ice on his back.

Afraid that Song Yuan would get frostbite, Qian found a quilt to wrap the big box.

This can prevent the ice from melting too quickly and also prevent freezing injuries to people or horses.

Song Yuan was grateful for the Ning family's kindness to him and decided to go home and talk to his mother about the marriage first.

Zhou Yue asked Qingmo to see Lord Song off, and Qingmo obediently agreed.

When they reached the gate, Song Yuan said, "Please stay, Qingmei."

I don’t know when it started, but Lord Song actually changed the way he addressed himself.

"Mr. Song...can I write to you, too?"

Silly girl, I said this just to communicate with you.

"Sure, can Qingmei write a letter?"

"Yes, Brother Xuan has taught me.

By the way, Mr. Song, your last name is Song, why did you say you were from the Marquis' Mansion that day?"

What a silly girl.

"Because my mother's surname is Hou." Song Yuan talked nonsense.

Xie Ping was not far away, and when he heard his master say this, he felt a chill.

The master has really come to his senses and can even coax a young lady.

"Ah, is this how it is discussed in the capital?" Qing Mo was stunned.

"Yes, the status of women in Beijing is very high. Are you willing to go to Beijing, sister Qing?"

"Haha, if it's true, I'm willing to do it.

By the way, Mr. Song, what do you think if I open a shop in Beijing?"

"Uh, Qingmei, do you like doing business so much? You can open a shop, what do you want to sell?"

“Well, I haven’t thought about it yet.

Maybe I can continue to sell fried fish and crispy fish, or I can sell these snacks that my mother has just made.

You can also make and sell ice.

But, can this ice only be sold in summer?"

"Well, that makes sense.

However, this matter of ice is not certain. There are many rich people in Beijing, so perhaps ice can be sold all year round.

But I don’t understand it either, and none of my family members are good at it.”

"Oh, I see. Merchants are the last of the three classes, scholars, farmers, merchants and artisans. You, the children of the aristocratic families, all look down on merchants, right?"

Qing Mo said disappointedly.

"No, no, I didn't, I'm not..." Song Yuan wanted to defend himself.

"I understand, Lord Song, have a safe trip."

Xie Ping was furious, and Xie An was furious, looking at the mouth of their master.

What kind of words are you talking about? Well, you must have offended the lady with just one sentence.

You deserve to be single.

Watching Qingmo run into the door and slam it shut.

The three of them walked away dejectedly, leading their horses.

The entire journey was speechless.

Because they were carrying a treasure and were a little anxious, they did not stay overnight on the road.

They only stopped a few times on the road. People needed to eat and drink water, and the horses also needed to eat grass, drink water and rest for a while.

Then they rushed all the way and arrived in the capital at noon the next day.

……Dividing line……

At the Ning family's side, after seeing Song Yuan off, the Ning family members started working together to build a firewall.

There is basically nothing to do in the fields now. They go out to dig some medicinal herbs at irregular intervals every day, and rarely go out for other purposes.

There is a lot of work to do at home.

Everyone is busy.

Even Jun Mo has practiced some martial arts moves with Song Yuan these days.

Then I kept practicing hard.

Zhou Yue knew that he liked to practice martial arts, but unfortunately there were no good masters to hire in the countryside.

After dinner, it was free time and everyone went about their own business.

Others lit lamps in the yard, some were chatting, some were doing work, and some were practicing calligraphy.

Qing Mo pulled Zhou Yue into the house because she had something to say to her mother.

In the yard, Xuan Mo was practicing calligraphy, muttering:

“Do not promote the virtuous… make the people… do not compete… do not value… do not value…”

Jun Mo looked at his brother again and again, then looked at the others, and finally couldn't help but continued:

"Don't value hard-to-get goods, so people won't steal. Don't show what's desirable, so people won't be confused..."

Zhou Yue and Qing Mo were about to get to the point when they heard a loud "wow" in the yard.

Then things started to get lively.