Go back to ancient times to engage in sideline business

On New Year's Eve, not long after the New Year's Eve dinner, there was a lot of noise on the village road behind Gu's house, which alarmed the dogs of several nearby households, barking wildly one after another.

Behind Aunt Gu's house, there is only the Tang family.

Guessing that the message was delivered, the Ge family had already rescued two bastards from the pit, and now they are mobilizing people to come to ask for an explanation.

Tang Zhong quietly opened the door, stretched his head out to listen to the movement.

Through the starlight, I saw Rhubarb dragging a long rope, standing on the edge of the yard, baring his teeth and growling outside.

"The person surnamed Tang lives here, that's right!"

"Then why is there no one there?"

"It's New Year's Eve, maybe, went to relatives?"

"Father, you can't just let it go!"

"It definitely doesn't count, I want them to look good!"

The voices of the Ge family brothers were also mixed in the noise.

Tang Zhong's heartstrings were tense, he quickly retreated into the room, and locked the door.

It seems that the decision to stay at Aunt Gu's house tonight is quite wise.

The man in Aunt Gu's family has not returned from his corvee service, and there are only three people in the family, a mother and a daughter.

Aunt Gu gave up the beds of Da Ya and Er Ya to the brothers of the Tang family.On the other hand, he led the four girls and spent the night on the big bed.

After about half an hour, the barking outside gradually subsided.

Tang Laosan was already sound asleep, but Tang Zhong was lying on the bed with his eyes open, not feeling sleepy at all.

Before that, he thought too simply, thinking that as long as his brothers and sisters had enough food and clothing, and Aunt Gu took care of them, he would be able to work as a gatekeeper in the county town with peace of mind.

But now it appears that is not the case.

Aunt Gu usually has to do farm work in the field, as well as housework inside and out. mountain run.

Seeing the wild girl-like appearance of his two younger sisters, he was really worried.

Besides, it is indeed time for Uncle Tang to enter school, so there should be no delay.

Right now, they have formed a relationship with the Ge family in the neighboring village, and they have to make plans early.

I originally thought that tomorrow, on the first day of the lunar new year, I would take my younger siblings, as well as the elders of the Gu family, and go to the city to spend some extravagance together.

But what happened today, he has a new decision.

On the first day of the new year, Aunt Gu made breakfast early in the morning.

White rice porridge, white noodle cake, pickled cured platter, fried wormwood, and a bowl of glutinous rice balls stuffed with sesame seeds for each person.The small table was filled with hot food, which was already much richer than usual.

Tang Meng rubbed his eyes, swayed his shoes into the main room, and when he saw the table full of food, he suddenly regained his energy.

"Wow! Another smoked duck!"

As he said that, he reached out to grab the duck legs on the table.

Snapped!

Just when Tang Zhong entered the door with a handful of chopsticks, he raised his hand and slapped loudly on the back of his sister's hand.

"They are all five-year-old children, don't steal your mouth, wait until everyone is seated before eating!"

"Hmph!" The little girl felt a little hurt from being beaten this time, she immediately pouted her lips high and turned her face away to ignore him.

During the breakfast, people at the table were chatting and laughing, but Tang Meng kept his head down while eating, ignoring everyone.

Tang Zhong was determined to let Tang Meng get rid of his bad habit of cheating, pretending to ignore her little emotions, and said to himself: "I have something to go to the city later, who of you wants to go with me?"

As soon as the words fell, Da Ya Er Ya responded positively immediately.

"I, I want to go!"

"Take me! I'm going to see the newly repaired square!"

"You are leaving, who will herd the cattle today?"

Aunt Gu left her two children at home to share the housework, and then patted Tang Meng, who kept his head buried, "Xiao Meng, go! Don't you like to watch the excitement?"

Tang Meng bit his chopsticks fiercely, but remained silent angrily.

"Second brother, I want to go and have a look." Tang Laosan expressed his opinion while feeding Tang Biao porridge.

"Okay, count you as one."

"Look!" Tang Biao imitated the ending of the third brother, shaking left and right on the bench happily.

"Okay, I count you as one, is there anyone else?"

Tang Zhong deliberately looked at Tang Meng, and the little girl became completely bored, turning her head to the other side angrily.

When Tang Zhong flicked his whip and drove the black mule cart to Qingjiang County, the sun was still hiding in the clouds.

However, at around [-] o'clock, many people had already gathered in the People's Square at the gate of the East City.

Children lined up in the children's area to play on the slide, while adults gathered in the fitness area to spin their legs on the walking machine or hang their arms on the parallel bars.

On the tea stand opposite the city gate, there are two rows of red lanterns hanging, creating a festive atmosphere.

With the completion of the square, the tea stalls have become a golden port, and the business is booming day by day.

The waiter at the tea stall naturally knew that he was riding the east wind of the east gate guards, and he was more polite to the gate guards.

Seeing Tang Zhong stop in front of the tea stand with the mule cart, Xiao Er hurriedly stopped to greet the guests, poured two bowls of tea, and handed them directly to Tang Zhong.

"Hey, the poor man is on vacation today. Are you taking your family out to play? Are you tired? Come, have a bowl of tea and rest."

Tang Zhong thanked him, and without being polite to him, he took a bowl and handed it to Tang Laosan, and fed another bowl of water to Tang Biao, and drank the rest in one gulp.

"By the way, little brother, do you know where there is a rented house near the East City Gate?"

Xiao Er pondered for a moment, then confirmed: "You mean, renting a house?"

After a night of repeated thinking, Tang Zhong had decided to bring his three younger siblings with him.

Free-range breeding is never a long-term solution. After thinking about it, since I already have a stable source of income, it should not be a problem if I want to rent a small courtyard and keep my younger siblings by my side.

The news from the streets and alleys is often gathered in the tea stalls. Xiao Er carefully recalled the new things in the recent period, as if there was such a thing.

"A few days ago, it seemed that there was a vacant yard in Osmanthus Alley next door and wanted to rent it out."

"Thank you!"

Tang Zhong cupped his fists, temporarily tied the black mule to the open space behind the tea stand, called Tang Laosan, hugged Tang Biao, and walked towards Osmanthus Lane on foot.

"Second brother, are we going to leave the village and move to the county town?"

Tang Laosan was a little surprised by Tang Zhong's sudden decision.

"Yes. I'm going to send you to the academy to study."

"real!"

Tang Laosan's first reaction was surprise, but the light in his eyes only flashed by.Immediately replaced by deep anxiety.

"Don't worry, the second brother will arrange it for you, and no one will dare to mess with you."

"really?"

"Of course, have you forgotten what happened to the Ge brothers?"

Tang Laosan scratched his head, remembering how they ran away in a hurry yesterday afternoon, he couldn't help laughing.When he looked at Tang Zhong again, there was more trust in his eyes.

Osmanthus Alley soon arrived, but after finding the house Xiaoer mentioned, Tang Zhong discovered that the speed and accuracy of information dissemination in this era are far from accurate.

"What? Rent a house? I've been selling this yard for almost a month! I heard that there is a vacant yard in Xixi Lane. Go there and ask."

Tang Zhong: Excuse me.

"You guys are late, my yard is no longer going to be rented, go to Shamao Lane to look for it, maybe there is still."

Tang Zhong: Thank you.

"No, no, I haven't heard that there is a vacant yard nearby for half a year. What, you ask where there is one? I don't know, you can go and find out by yourself!"

Tang Zhong: ...

After searching around in Dongcheng for more than an hour, I still found nothing.

In this era, there are no ready-made leasing platforms and information sharing platforms. If you want to keep abreast of social information, you can only ask around.

Near noon, the three brothers and sisters were tired and hungry, and they were going to Fuxing Restaurant to have some meals before continuing to look for a house in the afternoon.As soon as he turned to the main street, he was stopped by someone from the side not far away.

"Brother Tang, we meet again!"

The man driving the carriage in the middle of the road jumped out and waved to him warmly.

"Brother Gao? Long time no see!"

"Yeah, I disappeared some days. Are they... other siblings in your family?"

"Exactly, I just took them out for a walk today."

Hearing the words, Tang Laosan bowed politely to Gao Zhang, looking sensible and polite.

Looking at the piles of wood on the carriage, Tang Zhong was a little curious: "Why, are you still busy delivering goods without rest on the first day of the new year? How is the completion of the previous order?"

Gao Zhang chuckled, "To tell you the truth, some merchants came to order a batch of tables and chairs a few days ago. After all, waterways are more convenient than cars and horses. Qingjiang County is close to the pier. My father and I decided to move the business to the county seat." Come here.

We set up a yard in front, taking advantage of the fact that the merchants are not doing business during the Chinese New Year these days, we quickly transported the timber from Fengguan Town. "

"Okay, it's time for you to enter the city!"

Tang Zhong was quite excited, seeing the Gao family father and son getting better and better, he felt an inexplicable sense of accomplishment in his heart.

It was almost time for lunch, Gao Zhang invited Tang Zhong, his brother and sister, to sit down at home, and Tang Zhong readily accepted.

The houses in Dongcheng are much cheaper than in Xicheng, so the Gao family and his son naturally put their house in Dongcheng.

Turn from Baima East Street into Qingshi Lane, and within a hundred steps, you will see a courtyard with an open door.

The yard is twice as big as the one in Fengguan Town, but the house is still the layout of the main house plus east and west wing rooms.

The main room was tidied up, and the corridors under the eaves outside were filled with all kinds of folding and rotating tables and chairs.

At first glance, it looks like a factory warehouse.

The carpentry business of Gao's father and son has begun to take shape, and Tang Zhong's heart is also inspired.

"Old man Gao, ah no, I'm asking, where's Uncle Gao? How come you haven't seen anyone since you came in?"

"He's still tidying up the house in Fengguan Town, and he didn't come here in the afternoon. Are you hungry? If you don't mind, there are ready-made meals at home. I'll heat them up in the kitchen?"

Gao Zhang didn't care about unloading the wood from the carriage, so he came over to collect the meals for Tang Zhong's brothers and sisters first.

"How can you despise it!"

Tang Zhong put down Tang Biao in his arms, rolled up his sleeves and was about to help, his eyes passed through the low courtyard wall, and looked at a courtyard opposite the alley.

The appearance and layout of the courtyard are very similar to the small courtyard of the Tang family in Fengshan Village, especially in the middle of the courtyard, there is a sour jujube tree.

However, the fallen leaves are piled up, and the doors and windows are closed, so it doesn't look like there are people living there.

"Brother Gao, the opposite is..."

"Oh, that's the small yard of Cook Sun's house next door. I heard it's going to be rented out."

Tang Zhong!

It’s not a waste of time to break through the iron shoes.

Cook Sun lived next door, and Tang Zhong didn't care about eating, so he dragged Gao Zhang over to call the door with him.

After explaining the reason, Cook Sun heard that Tang Zhong was interested in his small courtyard, happily took the key, and immediately took someone over to see the house.

"I'm not bragging about you. This yard is not facing Baima Street. It's a clean place to live. There are three living rooms plus the main kitchen and firewood room. Each room is airy and bright."

"Are you from the village? Do you know People's Square? My place is just a few steps away from People's Square. It's very convenient to go there to exercise!"

"If you want it sincerely, for the sake of Gao Zhang's acquaintance, I will definitely not bargain with you, so you can rest assured."

Tang Zhong nodded in satisfaction, wishing he could immediately set up a document to rent it out, even his tone was particularly straightforward.

"I want it, how much is the monthly rent?"

"Rent, rent?" Cook Sun was stunned for a while, as if a basin of cold water had been poured over his head, he looked at Tang Zhong, and then turned to look at Gao Zhang who was walking with him.

"Is this house not for rent? I'm selling it!"