Chapter 3 of 10

Chapter 3

13 min read3,349 wordsMature

From Songjiang to Zhenjiang is not far; one can find a ferry and travel along the river all the way to Zhenjiang, reaching it directly.

On this journey, Hao Fenglou gradually became familiar with this world and began to feel a bit more confident about the era.

Zhenjiang, anciently known as Jingkou and Dantu, has a poem that says: "Where can one see the land of the gods? The view from the North Fort Tower is full of scenery." This North Fort Tower is one of the scenic spots in Zhenjiang. It is also a strategic point for controlling Nanjing. The name "Zhenjiang" comes from its significant military importance. It is said that when the northerners move south, they either advance to Xiangfan or directly take Zhenjiang. The capital of the current dynasty, Nanjing, is only a hundred miles away from Zhenjiang, making the importance of Zhenjiang self-evident.

Recently, it was heard that the rebel army from the north was advancing south, having already broken through Jinan and stationed north of the river, ready to cross the river soon. As a key town, Zhenjiang must be taken to cross the river, so the atmosphere in Zhenjiang is somewhat tense. Soldiers are posted every three steps and five paces on the streets, conducting thorough checks, creating a suffocating atmosphere like a dark cloud covering the sun.

Fortunately, Hao Fenglou had a pass, so he was not afraid of the checks. After bringing Xiao Xiangxiang into the city, they stayed at an inn near the naval command.

"Master, Master... Why don't we go directly to pay respects to Mr. and Mrs. Lu?"

Hao Fenglou, looking weary from the journey, relaxed after settling in and said, "You don't understand. We don't know how the Lu family feels about me. If we visit them rashly and get turned away, it would be embarrassing, but I can handle it. However, it would be much harder to get close to Miss Lu afterward. So we need to know our enemy and ourselves. We'll stay here for a few days, gather some information, and then make a decision."

Xiao Xiangxiang found this very reasonable and said with big, sparkling eyes, "Master is right, we need to know our enemy and ourselves."

Knowing our enemy and ourselves is not easy, especially at night when there is no entertainment in this era. The only entertainment is sleep.

However, sleeping posed a problem. The master and servant were very poor, and every penny had to be split in two. Reluctantly, they had to squeeze together.

"Master, Master, you can sleep in the bed, and I'll sleep on the floor." Xiao Xiangxiang was very considerate and diligently moved a layer of bedding to the floor.

Hao Fenglou's face turned slightly red. It was not right for a man to let a young girl sleep on the floor. He reluctantly said, "This... you sleep in the bed. I have a thick skin and am not afraid of the cold."

"But..." Xiao Xiangxiang said seriously, "But Mrs. said that I should take care of your daily life. Master, it's fine for you to sleep in the bed, and I'm not afraid of the cold either."

Hao Fenglou felt he had been polite enough and silently scolded himself for being selfish. He quickly slipped into the bed and covered himself with the blanket, "Very well, Xiao Xiangxiang is very considerate. Good night!"

There was no need to extinguish the lamp, as it was provided free by the inn. Hao Fenglou always felt he was being exploited by the innkeeper, so he decided to burn the candle until dawn.

Xiao Xiangxiang set up her bedding on the floor and went to sleep.

Hao Fenglou closed his eyes but couldn't fall asleep, his mind full of thoughts of Miss Lu and his adoptive parents in this world. He then thought of his master from his previous life, who had taught him so much, but...

After some time, he dispelled his杂念, glanced at the sleeping Xiao Xiangxiang on the floor, who was grinding her teeth and making a scary sound. Perhaps it was the cold of winter, making her body curl up, and her little face, exposed from the blanket, was blue from the cold.

Hao Fenglou decided to close his eyes and sleep.

But a sense of unease lingered in his heart. He consoled himself, "This is the old world where people eat people. You must be at ease. If you don't have a hard heart, how will you enjoy the good life in the future?"

These words made him feel better. He closed his eyes and continued to sleep.

Xiao Xiangxiang turned over on the floor, her teeth chattering from the cold.

Hao Fenglou was furious, sat up, and shouted, "What kind of world is this? Does it even let a young master sleep? Does it even let one do evil?"

Xiao Xiangxiang woke up, opened her eyes, and said, "Master, are you talking in your sleep?"

Hao Fenglou ordered her, "Get up, roll up your bedding, and get into bed!"

Xiao Xiangxiang hesitated, "Mrs. said..."

Hao Fenglou, angry, said, "Mrs. is Mrs., but here, you must listen to me."

He slipped out of bed, put the bedding on the bed, and found a pair of scissors in the room. He then let Xiao Xiangxiang get into bed and solemnly handed her the scissors, "Now we will sleep together. If Master does anything improper at night, use these scissors to stab Master's thigh, but..." Hao Fenglou took a deep breath, "but remember, don't stab the face. It's Master's bread and butter."

Xiao Xiangxiang, dazed, shook her head, "I don't want the scissors. I trust Master."

You actually trust me? But I don't even trust myself. Hao Fenglou felt very pitiful. As a young rascal, being so trusted by a young girl was undoubtedly a slap in the face.

Well, let's sleep.

Hao Fenglou got into bed, and the two squeezed together. Feeling the cold from Xiao Xiangxiang's body, Hao Fenglou actually didn't feel cold and even felt a bit at ease.

He fell into a daze and heard Xiao Xiangxiang's murmurs in her sleep.

"Master... don't kiss women of questionable character in the future... you should listen to Mrs... Mrs. is very worried about you..."

The next morning, Xiao Xiangxiang tidied up the room, and Hao Fenglou, fanning himself, went downstairs.

Hao Fenglou sat at a table downstairs and called out, "Waiter, bring a pot of tea and a dish of peanuts."

There were few guests early in the morning. The waiter, leaning on the counter, was drowsy. Hearing Hao Fenglou's voice, he immediately perked up, quickly brought a pot of tea, and a dish of peanuts, smiling, "Sir, the most famous dish in the inn is braised..."

Hao Fenglou waved his fan, impatiently, "Too greasy. Peanuts are Master's favorite."

The waiter didn't doubt that Hao Fenglou was short of money and smiled, "Sir, you have unique tastes..."

Hao Fenglou put away his fan, took a sip of tea, and said, "By the way, do you know the naval command in Zhenjiang?"

The naval command was not far from here. The waiter, who had seen many people come and go, knew a lot about the situation.

The waiter's eyes lit up, "So, Sir, are you also here to apply for a teaching position at the naval command?"

"Teaching position? What teaching position?" Hao Fenglou was confused.

The waiter explained, "Of course, it's for Miss Lu. For some reason, she wants to study. The Lu family is a prominent family, and Miss Lu is a precious daughter. If she wants to study, they naturally need to hire a teacher. Sir, you might not know, but many people like you have come here recently."

Hao Fenglou found this strange. A teaching position is being fought over? Could it be that scholars in this era have no integrity and are all like me, reduced to begging?

The waiter saw Hao Fenglou's confusion and laughed, "Sir, you might not know. The Lu family recently rejected a marriage proposal from the Hao family in Songjiang. Miss Lu is still unmarried. Teaching Miss Lu could win her favor, leading to a good match. The Lu family is powerful, and Miss Lu is said to be a beauty. Many young men in Zhenjiang are infatuated with her. Who wouldn't want to be the first to get close? Even the nephew of the Zhenjiang governor, Liu, was rejected. Sir, you should be careful."

Hao Fenglou's heart sank. These guys are here to snatch my woman. Thinking of this, he became furious and coldly said, "How can this be? How can this be? I come from Songjiang. I heard that the young master the Lu family was engaged to was a decent person. It's unreasonable for the Lu family to reject the marriage."

The waiter was surprised, "Sir, are you talking about the Hao family's young master? Tsk tsk..." The waiter sneered, "Who in Zhenjiang doesn't know that he started peeping at the maids when he was five, frequented brothels at nine, and lost thousands of silver in gambling at eleven. He's a notorious rascal. The Lu family only refused the marriage recently because they heard he had been whoring in Hangzhou for days and owed a lot of money. Refusing the marriage was a good thing. If Miss Lu married such a person, she would regret it for life. To be honest, the people of Zhenjiang would also be disappointed."

Is he that bad? Hao Fenglou felt the waiter was openly mocking him, which was infuriating.

But he didn't want to argue with the waiter. He had to focus on his main goal. He sipped his tea and ate peanuts, thinking, "Good news doesn't leave the house, but bad news travels a thousand miles. It seems I'm already famous in Zhenjiang. It's good I didn't visit them rashly. With my reputation, the Lu family's rejection of the marriage was a relief. My few words wouldn't have moved them. Not being kicked out would have been a sign of respect for our past friendship. It seems... I need to take a roundabout way. Recruiting a teacher... becoming Miss Lu's teacher..."

Images of many rascal teachers from the future flashed through Hao Fenglou's mind. His eyes lit up, and he said, "Good, I'll start as a teacher."

After making up his mind, he gave the waiter a few copper coins and asked him to register him. The waiter didn't ask more questions and quickly went to do it.

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