Bianshanhan [farming]

On the second day after they returned home, Li Maoxian set up a table in the east room, and Li Qingwen and the others sat beside them and began to read and write.

Li Qingzhuo and Li Qingrui went to the county together.

Spring was about to start, and there were more people on the streets of the county town. Some people who had been to Huichun Hall recognized Li Qingzhuo and said hello, and Li Qingzhuo also wished them a new year.

Li Qingzhuo came early, before the pharmacy opened, so he walked around to the back door.

Entered through the back door, just arrived in the small courtyard, saw Zhao Yang and two other juniors washing their faces.

Just as Li Qingzhuo was about to say hello, Zhao Yang picked up the basin and threw it at him, yelling, "Who are you, you dare to break into other people's yard, believe it or not, I will report to the police to arrest you!"

Although he hid quickly, Li Qingzhuo's trouser legs were still splashed wet. The two junior brothers beside him watched Li Qingzhuo call senior brother, but because of Zhao Yang's lustful power, they didn't dare to come forward, they only held Zhao Yang's arm to persuade him do not do that.

Zhao Yang glanced at the two of them, "What's wrong, you two don't want to do it here anymore?"

As soon as he said this, the two of them didn't dare to speak anymore, looked at Li Qingzhuo and whispered, "Senior brother."

"Who are you calling?" Zhao Yang stared and said, "We Huichun Hall accepted a poor boy as an apprentice. Not only was he not grateful, but he also ran away halfway. After walking for half a year, he came and left whenever he wanted. Is it an inn?"

Li Qingzhuo ignored his finding fault, and only said: "I just want to find Master..."

"It's useless to find anyone!" Zhao Yang opened his voice and shouted: "My uncle has already said that there is no room for a person like you who doesn't know what is good or bad, so get out!"

Doctor Lu doesn't live here, Li Qingzhuo originally wanted to say goodbye to his juniors, but he didn't expect Zhao Yang to be so arrogant and unreasonable.

Since he had already decided to leave, arguing with him here would only cause trouble for the master, so Li Qingzhuo turned around and left.

Zhao Yang shouted from behind: "It's no use begging on your knees this time!"

Li Qingzhuo turned to the front of the pharmacy and waited at the door. The neighbors who came to pick up the medicine in the morning greeted him one after another, asking where he had been a while ago and why he hadn't seen him.

Li Qingzhuo politely said that he had traveled far away, and asked these people how their patients were doing.

Those people whispered: "Little master, you are back. The other young disciples in the shop were too careless, and they couldn't pack the medicine well. Once when they walked halfway, they almost scattered, and they made a mess..."

Li Qingzhuo only nodded and said that he would talk to his master and let them take care of him.

After a while, Dr. Lu came, seeing his beloved disciple suddenly, he was overjoyed at first, then frowned, but he was still happy after all, "Just come back safely!"

Li Qingzhuo's eyes turned hot, "This apprentice has made Master worry!"

Knowing that the apprentice was waiting here because some domineering people had gossiped about it, Dr. Lu patted him on the shoulder, "It's okay, you go in with the master, and grab the medicine for the neighbors first."

Dr. Lu entered the shop, Li Qingzhuo followed behind, Zhao Yang saw it, raised his eyebrows and raised his eyes.

Dr. Lu carefully questioned the patient and asked people to grab the medicine. Zhao Yang was worried that his master would back him up. Li Qingzhuo would come back this time as if nothing happened, so he secretly went behind to talk small things to Zhao Dahao.

After sending all the guests away, Dr. Lu went to the inner room, drew down the curtain, sat down and said, "Qing Zhuo, it's all right, the master explained everything about your departure to the shopkeeper. You are kind and righteous. There is nothing wrong with what you do, and he will not make things difficult for you."

Li Qingzhuo knelt on the ground and kowtowed three times, "The apprentice is not filial, not only can't share the worries of the master, but also cause trouble for you old man."

"Oh, ouch, what are you doing, get up!" Dr. Lu hurriedly helped him up, "Don't worry, it's nothing serious, you are the most diligent and serious worker in our shop, even if the master doesn't say anything, the shopkeeper's heart should be There are many..."

Before he finished speaking, a cough suddenly sounded outside, Dr. Lu lowered his eyelids, "When did the shopkeeper come, please come in!"

Zhao Dahao, who was called by his nephew, opened the curtain and came in, looked at Li Qingzhuo, and said calmly, "You're back?"

"Go back to the shopkeeper, I came back yesterday." Li Qingzhuo said.

Zhao Dahao took two steps, frowned, and looked very embarrassed, "Your master told me everything, although it is understandable, but after all, it is your personal affairs that have affected our shop, if I just nodded and let When you come back, if other people follow suit in the future, going to send off the benefactor today and doing that tomorrow, we will be in chaos from now on..."

Dr. Lu frowned. This Zhao Dahao, who clearly promised well at the beginning, now says this, is he trying to go back on his word? !

Seeing that Li Qingzhuo didn't speak, Zhao Dahao said: "You can come back and continue to work if you want, first sign a 30-year contract, and then honestly work in the shop..."

"Shopkeeper!" Doctor Lu's lips trembled angrily, he stood up and said, "Qing Zhuo is just an apprentice, not a prostitute!"

Li Qingzhuo held his master's arm, looked up at Zhao Dahao, and said, "Shopkeeper, I'm afraid this matter won't work. To be honest, I'm here to say goodbye today, thank you master and shopkeeper for your cultivation in the past, and let you down I'm really uneasy about your kindness."

Zhao Dahao knew that among the young people, Li Qingzhuo was the most outstanding. Dr. Lu had already told him to let Li Qingzhuo try the consultation, and he would watch from the side. .

When Li Qingzhuo left this time, he felt that he had seized the opportunity and wanted to use the contract to tie Li Qingzhuo to the pharmacy, but he didn't expect that after years of hard work, Li Qingzhuo just opened his mouth and said he would quit.

Afraid that the cooked duck would fly away like this, Zhao Dahao hurriedly said: "I originally planned to do so, but your master has been begging for mercy. Seeing that you have been doing your duty in the past, forget it this time. Since you are back, Just do things quickly."

Dr. Lu wanted to get angry at first, but after hearing what Zhao Dahao said, he was out of breath and didn't lose his temper.

Li Qingzhuo said: "Thank you shopkeeper, but I'm afraid I will disappoint you..."

As he said that, he looked at Dr. Lu, "Master, I got a letter of recommendation from the Capital Academy. You know I've always wanted to study, and I don't want to miss this opportunity..."

As he said that, he knelt down again, "I'm really guilty of wasting years of hard work on my master's teaching!"

Dr. Lu was taken aback for a moment, and then he was overjoyed, "Good thing, good apprentice, this is a great thing!"

"Being able to study is a blessing in the past life!" Doctor Lu couldn't help but pull Li Qingzhuo up from the ground, and said with pride: "You have this opportunity, master is happy for you, it's as far away as the capital , I'm afraid it will be difficult for us master and apprentice to meet again in the future."

Li Qingzhuo's eyes were red, "Master..."

"You just patted your ass and left?" Zhao Dahao, who had reacted, blushed angrily, pointed at Li Qingzhuo's nose, and said, "You ungrateful bastard, back then you couldn't even wear poor pants, so your master taught me , the shop will give you food and shelter, and let you learn things here, and when you learn something, turn around and leave, you white-eyed wolf!"

What Zhao Dahao said was a little unreasonable. Li Qingzhuo really benefited from the shop, but he has been working in the shop these few years except when he goes home, and he doesn't get a penny for wages.He only feels guilty towards his mentor, Dr. Lu, because the master not only devoted himself to him, but also had expectations.

Guessing that the shopkeeper would do something like this, Li Qingzhuo took out a box from his bag and said, "Qingzhuo knows that he has done something wrong, and he can't repay it. This time, he went to the border town and picked some ganoderma..."

In fact, once Li Qingzhuo left, Zhao Dahao had nothing to do, but he was fine if he left, and the master who stayed in the shop would definitely be blamed by Zhao Dahao, so Li Qingzhuo could not speak ill of Zhao Dahao for the sake of his master.

Zhao Dahao knew that Li Qingzhuo's family was jingling, so he snatched the box angrily, and the ganoderma lucidum inside fell out because of his too much movement.

Dr. Lu's beard almost pouted in anger, he bent down to pick up the ganoderma lucidum, glanced at it, and said: "This product looks good, and you handled it cleanly."

Zhao Dahao didn't know much about medicinal materials, so he snorted and went out with the box, probably looking for someone to look at it.

After he left, Li Qingzhuo took out a smaller box from the bag and gave it to the master, and whispered: "Master, let's see how well this medicinal material is prepared."

Dr. Lu took it and opened it, and saw pieces of deer antler inside, looked at it carefully for a moment, and said "OK".

Zhao Dahao asked other people in the shop to look at it, and he probably knew that the things in the box were worth some money. Although he was still angry, at least it was not a waste of money.

He saw Dr. Lu and Li Qingzhuo coming out of the room, and said with a cold face: "You brothers can go to the border town for the sake of your benefactor, and you will be successful in your studies in the future. You also have to remember that our shop and your master are good, and you can't be ungrateful."

Li Qingzhuo saluted him, said a few polite words, walked outside the shop, and waved goodbye to the master.

Li Qingrui had been waiting outside for a long time, and he didn't stand up until he saw the people from the pharmacy returning.

Li Qingzhuo's eyes and nose were red, and he called out big brother, Li Qingrui patted him on the shoulder, "Don't feel bad, come back to see Dr. Lu more often, it's not like we won't see each other anymore."

That is to say, but the capital is not close to Bingzhou, and I don't know how long it will take to go home. It is difficult to get along with the master day and night like before...

When the two brothers walked back, Li Qingwen was weakly reading a book.

They were reading "Thousand Characters", and they have been reading it at the top of their voices since morning. The louder it is, the happier his father is.

That's how Li Maoxian started learning calligraphy. He used the same method as before, asking Li Qingwen and the others to read it hundreds of times, and then learn to write after they are familiar with it.

Li Qingwen had a habit of flashing these words and sentences in his mind when he was reciting, most of them were in traditional Chinese, so he was very slow to react, and then he was mercilessly laughed at by his little brother.

Of course, after teasing Li Qingfeng, he was also hit by his mother several times.

Because pens and paper were not cheap, and in order to save money, they could not learn by heart, and several of them shared the same book, which was extremely inconvenient. Li Qingwen once again felt the urgency of earning money.

Li Qingwen's family has a habit of preparing everything in advance.

This time too, even though there was a lot of reluctance, after Li Qingzhuo resigned from Huichuntang, Chen Shi and Li Maoxian began to prepare for him to go to the capital.

Chen felt that his son had to be decent when he went to study, and wanted to make a new set of quilts, but Li Qingzhuo persuaded him to let it go, he was going to study, as long as the quilt was usable.

Li Maoxian also thinks it is unnecessary. It is so far away from home, it is true to bring more money. When you go out, you can't do without this.

They took out all the money in the family, a total of more than 40 taels, almost all of which were the money they got from selling things in Fanyang City.

This money is really a lot, but Li Maoxian still feels unsure. He has been out many times and knows that there will always be various accidents on the road. It may not be generous to buy books and pens and inks.

He was thinking about where to borrow it, Li Qingwen said: "Sell the mule and make it together?"

The horse was given by Jiang Cong, and he was really reluctant to part with it, and if he went to the border town, he would not be able to do without it to pull the cart.

"No need!" Li Qingzhuo took out a few more silver coins, "This is what the master gave me, and said to go to the capital to pay for it."

Li Qingzhuo sent the velvet antler to his master, he just wanted to thank the master for cultivating it for many years. Dr. Lu knew that the Li family was not rich, and worried that his apprentice would go to the capital to make trouble, so he insisted on giving money, but Li Qingzhuo couldn't resist, so he had to accept it.

A total of about 58 taels, if it was in the past, I am afraid that the money would make the family laugh, but when Li Qingzhuo went to the capital alone, he always felt that it was not enough.

"That's enough, there's no need to piece things together, there are not many rich families in the village." Li Qingzhuo said: "If I'm short of hands, I'll just write home."

Li Qingwen nodded, and said: "Second brother, don't worry, after we go to the border town, as long as we have a chance to get money, we will definitely send it to you in the capital."

The money matter was sorted out, Chen and Jiang started to tidy up, and Li Qingzhuo took advantage of this time to copy a few copies of the books they bought. Now, Li Qingwen and the others finally didn't have to grab another book.

Li Qingzhuo learned calligraphy from Li Maoxian, and later he became an apprentice. Dr. Lu encouraged him to practice calligraphy, read books, and bought him paper and ink, so Li Qingzhuo's calligraphy was the best in the family.

Paper is not cheap, and the peasants can't afford to practice handwriting frequently. In addition, they use less paper. Li Qingrui and Li Qinghong can read more, but they can't write very well.

The matter of studying should be sooner rather than later, so after packing up, Li Qingzhuo was ready to go.

Li Benshan learned about this from Li Maoqun, so he scraped together three hundred dollars and several baskets of eggs.

In the farm family, reading and literacy is a major issue, and the clan will help if they can.

Li Qingzhuo was going to Fanyang City to find a caravan. On the day he left, Li Benshan brought the elders of the clan to the entrance of the village.

"Son, stay well outside." Li Benshan's cloudy eyes were full of expectation, "Your father taught it, second grandfather needless to say, take care of yourself!"

Li Qingzhuo thanked the elders, knelt down and kowtowed a few times at the entrance of the village, said goodbye to everyone, and jumped into the car.

Chen Shi and Jiang Shi stood together, tears falling down uncontrollably.

With a shout, the carriage started to move, and Li Qingzhuo stared back at the village that was getting further and further away, feeling sour in his heart.

The place he was going to was too far away, but he couldn't study in the village, no matter how reluctant he was, he still had to travel far.

From Yangshu Village to Fanyang City, the Li family will send them off.

In addition to Li Qingzhuo's luggage, there were two pieces of wood that Li Qingwen brought back from the border town on purpose.

When they were in Yuanbei City, they left the sledge and replaced it with a cart. These two pieces of wood were taken from the sledge. Li Qingwen never forgot that he wanted to make bows and arrows for Jiang Cong.

This time Li Qingfeng followed as he wished, he was the most excited here, he walked faster than the car.

Yes, there was no room in the car, Li Maoxian was driving, Li Qingzhuo was sitting, and Li Qingrui and his brothers were walking beside them.

In the past, Li Qingwen would have grinned when he heard that he would have to travel two or three hundred miles. Since he went to the border town and went back and forth for thousands of miles, he no longer cared about the journey to Fanyang City.

Li Maoxian also noticed that his brothers walked dozens of miles, talking and laughing non-stop, and they didn't look exhausted. He thought to himself that they had gained a lot after training.

This trip to the border town has changed a lot for their family, maybe now is just the beginning, Li Maoxian had such a premonition in his heart.

At first Li Qingfeng disliked the space occupied by these two logs, but when he heard Li Qingwen tell the legendary story of Chu Shi and Shi Ni, his eyes lit up immediately, and he said bluntly: "Boy, I want this too, I will learn archery in the future, don't you?" It will be worse than Big Brother Jiang!"

Although Li Qingwen didn't care much about the level of archery, but when the fourth brother said so, he nodded, "Okay."

On the contrary, Li Qingrui said: "Fourth, you have never seen Jiang Cong shoot an arrow. I have been with them for several months, and I have never seen him miss. If you want to be as good as him, you will have to practice hard in the future!"

"Okay!" Li Qingfeng responded happily, and then ran to the front and said to Li Maoxian: "Father, I want to learn martial arts, but I don't want to study."

Li Maoxian pulled the reins and looked at him, "You are really capable. Others can't learn it even if they want to, and you are unwilling to learn it. If you want to learn martial arts, you need a master, so you can do it by yourself? If you don't have a master, you should teach me how to read well first! "

Li Qingfeng didn't achieve his goal, so he ran to ask Li Qingrui, "Brother, how are Brother Jiang and his skills?"

"I haven't seen them use it." Li Qingrui said: "It should be okay, after all, they are soldiers, and some of them have been on the battlefield."

"That's great, I can worship them as teachers when I go there." Li Qingfeng said: "But I have to fight against them first, I don't want to kowtow to those who can't beat me."

Li Qingwen smiled, he had always admired his fourth brother's self-confidence!

When they arrived in Fanyang City this time, it was obviously warmer than before, and the trees on the side of the road were all turning green.

Spring and Autumn is the best way to rush.

After entering Fanyang City, the masters went directly to the caravan headed to the capital.

The business between Fanyang City and the capital is frequent, and there are many caravans. Several teams come and go back and forth in a month, and it happens that they will go to the capital tomorrow.

My father and I went to see the leader of the caravan and asked about it. Seeing that the leader was a straightforward person, he decided to entrust Li Qingzhuo to take him to the capital.

Seeing that they don't look like rich people, the leader was surprised when they heard that Li Qingzhuo was going to study in the capital, but he still patted his chest and accepted the matter.

Li Qingzhuo will leave tomorrow, and the masters will live in Fanyang City today.

After eating something to fill their stomachs, a few people took the wood to find a bow and arrow shop.

Fan Yangcheng is very big, it can be said that 360 lines are complete, and there are several bow and arrow shops, but they all shook their heads when they heard what Li Qingwen said, saying that they had never heard of it.

Li Qingfeng didn't give up, and asked them if they really didn't have arrows that could break rocks. Those people were all happy. If there were no bows and arrows, maybe a hammer could do it.

Seeing the birch they pulled, those people said that the wood was good and asked him if he could sell it.

South Arrow and North Arrow, the craftsmen in Fan Yangcheng mostly use wood to make arrows. They know more wood than ordinary people. After seeing it, several people were not sure. They asked Li Qingwen what kind of wood it was and where it was obtained.

Li Qingwen said it was birch, which was transported back from the border town.

Those craftsmen didn't know where the border town was, they only knew that it was far to the north, they looked at each other and said with a smile, "It's amazing, at such a young age, you don't even blink an eye when you tell a lie, why did you run so far and pull two logs back?"

Li Qingrui said: "You guys are merciful, we brothers went together, my brother is not lying, if you are not sure, then we will take it away."

"Wait." An old man in the shop said: "You wait for me here for a while."

With that said, he turned around and went to the back.

The old man was the most experienced master in the shop. When he spoke suddenly, the other carpenters were puzzled and said a few words of apology, and then asked if they could saw a piece. Li Qingwen was a little disappointed, but agreed to them.

Several craftsmen sawed a piece as wide as a finger in the front, and then huddled together to look at it.

After a while, the old man came out with a half-cut wooden arrow and showed it to Li Qingwen, "I heard that this is an arrow made of birch. My great-grandfather once went to fight in the north, and this arrow stuck in his calf. When it was taken out, the arrow was considered to have saved his life, so it was kept and passed down."

"They were all shot, why did they say they were rescued?" Li Qingfeng asked in confusion.

"The body of this arrow is smooth. When it was taken out, the wound did not leave a single thorn. After the medicine was applied, it healed quickly." The old man said: "My great-grandfather was able to return from the battlefield after being injured, and the leg was not left behind. It’s a little wrong, isn’t this a life saved?”

Li Qingfeng clicked his tongue, "If you say that, this wood is not suitable for making arrows either."

Li Qingwen took it over and took a look. The blood stains on it were already black, and nothing could be seen for a while.

Li Maoxian cupped his fists and asked the old man for advice.

The old man said: "This wood seems to be only available in the north. We don't see it here. It's nothing special. It can indeed be used for bows and arrows, but it's definitely not as magical as the child said, but..."

The old man changed his voice, "I don't know if you have heard of the Wusong tribe, it was a giant in the north. When my great-grandfather was in the army, he heard a legend that the most powerful general in the Wusong tribe had a magic bow in his hand. , I heard that the arrows he shoots can go through iron city gates..."

Li Qingwen opened his eyes wide in surprise, "That, that magic bow..."

"No one has ever seen it, just heard about it." The old man shook his head and said, "My ancestors made arrows, and I have heard a lot of legends about magic arrows everywhere, but they are all bragging. Stones should also be stronger, and arrows made of wood are harder."

Li Qingwen didn't want to give up, and said: "Even so, I want to try, please master make these two pieces of wood into arrow bodies for me."

The old man nodded, guessed for a while, and said: "It should be possible to break thirty arrows. You can pay half of it for a tael of silver."

Li Qingwen was stunned, he forgot to make arrows for wages...

Li Qingzhuo wanted to pay, Li Qingwen hurriedly stopped him, and said to the old man with a bitter face: "Master, can you use wood to pay for the wages, make one piece of wood, and get the other!"

"What kind of wood is worth so much money?" the carpenter next to him muttered.

But the old man nodded and agreed, "Okay, you can come and pick it up in three days!"

The Li family went out, but Li Qingfeng stood still, pointing to the bows hanging on the wall and asking: "Does this cost money?"

The craftsman looked at him like he was looking at a fool, "Of course!"

Li Qingfeng gritted his teeth, "We have no money, why don't I stay and work with you, I want a bow."

Li Qingfeng liked to dance with spears and sticks since he was a child, and he even made up a set of stick techniques in a serious manner, which was ridiculed by the children in the village, and he beat them all up one by one.Listening to Uncle Qin and Uncle Cheng tell those heroic stories, he always looks like holding a sword and majestic in his dreams.

In the past, he could only bear with it. This time when his brothers went to the border town, he couldn't suppress the desire in his heart after hearing what they said about the road and the border town. He couldn't wait to learn horseback riding, archery, sword and so on.

After hearing his words, those craftsmen were dumbfounded. This is the first time that the shop has been open for so long, and it is the first time that someone has no money and insists on buying bows and arrows, and then wants to stay and work to pay for it...

"I'm very strong." Li Qingfeng said: "If I work for you, you will definitely not suffer."

The craftsmen were about to drive them away, but the old man said, "Okay, you can stay, but if you don't work well, I will drive you out."

Li Qingwen and the others all went out, and found that there was one person missing, and then turned around, Li Qingfeng shouted from inside the shop: "Father, you go back, I want to stay and work."

I don't know how many people there are, so I went back and asked to find out what was going on. Li Maoxian didn't stop him, but told Li Qingfeng to stay and work hard.

Li Qingwen felt that he could do it too, before he opened his mouth, the old man glanced at him and said, "You have small arms and legs, you don't have much strength at first glance."

Li Qingwen: "..."

In this way, Li Qingfeng stayed as he wished, and the rest of the Li family went to buy paper umbrellas and tarpaulins for the journey.

This evening, Li Qingrui and Li Maoxian couldn't help but have a meal.

Early the next morning, the father and son sent Li Qingzhuo to the convoy, and the convoy set off. The Li family parted with tears.

After the arrow is made, there are still two days left to walk around Fanyang City, but there is no money, Li Qingwen and the others just watch.

Since Li Qingwen changed his name, Li Maoxian hadn't traveled much, and in the past few days in Fanyang City, he said that this place is really lively.

Three days later, they went to the bow and arrow shop and made fifteen arrows with wooden body and iron head, which looked no different from the others in the shop.

Li Qingwen exchanged ten of them for a bow, and he couldn't use it without a bow.

Li Qingfeng had injuries all over his hands, but he didn't care at all, and got what he wanted as he wished.

Before leaving, the old man told them that if one day they could find wood that could make magical arrows, they must come to him, and he would not charge a penny for broken arrows.

Li Qingwen agreed, he hasn't given up on Chu Shi and Shi Ni, and he may not know how many times he will go here in the future.

After the Li family left, those craftsmen gathered around and said, "Master, you are too easy to talk to."

The old man ignored them, how many people knew it was impossible but still gave up.

After leaving the shop, Li Qingfeng couldn't wait to say: "Zai'er, I tried that arrow, it's not that powerful, if you don't hold back your strength, it will break easily."

Li Qingwen nodded, he also understood at this time, if Chuyashi Shini was really as powerful as in the legend, it shouldn't be made of ordinary birch, he thought things too simply.

Li Qingfeng was very excited when he got the bow and arrow, and kept saying that he would show them how accurate he was when he got back.

On the street with people coming and going, he couldn't use it, but he was suffocated.