Chapter 326 Difficult to Solve
When the group returned to the guesthouse, Sui Yu hurriedly called Cui Sao to catch a chicken and slaughter it, and asked Sui Liang to go into the city again to buy meat, both pork and mutton.
"Stew mutton with red dates and astragalus for nourishing the body. You can eat less at one meal and stew a pot every two days. It won't cause you to get a sore throat," said Sui Yu.
Sui Liang took the money and led the horse away again. Zhao Dalang and the others went to help Cui Sao chase the chickens. Xiaozai and A Shui came out with a kettle and a basket of bowls respectively. Da Zhuang and Hua Niu followed behind and carried the tables and chairs. A Qiang brought bath beans from the guest house. A group of people arranged for the servants who had returned home to wash their hands and faces and sit down to drink water.
The warm attitude and earnest care brought comfort to the servants who had been away from home for nearly a year, and provided a place for their tired bodies and exhausted hearts to rest.
"After we followed Mr. Song out of the customs, we arrived in Loulan in mid-September. There were many Hu merchants entering Loulan with us, but we were guests and they were the hosts. After we settled down, we did not rush to do business. Instead, we took advantage of the time when the herdsmen were cutting grass and storing grass to lend our manpower and camel power to help the local herdsmen cut grass and transport grass, and used the money we earned to buy hay for the camels for the winter. Then winter came, and the caravans in Loulan did not stop trading after winter. We joined in to explore the situation, and spent a whole winter exchanging medicinal materials, high-quality blankets and furs from the Hu merchants." Zhang Shun said.
"Master, guess what great medicinal herb we got? Ginseng! It's the same one that Master Song gave to Old Dong Song before, the one that can save his life." Xiao Chunhong said excitedly, "A whole box! We bought a whole box of ginseng."
Sui Yu's eyes lit up, "Really?"
Qingshan drank all the water in the bowl, then he stood up and brought a small wooden box tied with a wool rope. He put the box on the table and opened it. A strong smell of ginseng came out, and anyone who smelled it was shocked.
"Good stuff!" Sui Yu clapped her hands, her eyes sparkling. She picked up a ginseng stick and sniffed it deeply, then asked, "Where did this caravan get so much ginseng?"
"In Dayuan and Kangju, the exact location is unclear. They have obtained a lot of good medicinal herbs, but they are only willing to sell this box to us. Mr. Song also only bought one box. This team of Hu merchants wants to transport the medicinal herbs to the interior and sell them at a high price." Qingshan continued.
Sui Yu pulled out a ginseng root and chewed it. She said to Xiao Chunhong and Xiao Xi, "Rest at home for two days, then go to the city to see a doctor. Bring two ginseng roots with you, and ask the doctor to prescribe some ginseng to nourish your body. I'll pay for this, and it won't be counted as part of your profit."
"Thank you, Master." Xiao Chunhong was overjoyed. "I can actually eat ginseng. If someone had told me this ten years ago, I would have laughed my head off."
Sui Yu thought that she had never dared to imagine that she could eat wild ginseng.
After closing the ginseng box, Zhang Shun continued his story. "After the spring, we took the remaining goods and headed for Yuli and Qiuci. In Yuli, we met a group of Parthian merchants. We didn't buy any tiger bone wine, but we did buy a string of glass bracelets and eight glass cups. We then shipped the remaining goods to Qiuci, where we exchanged them for a box of hu flutes, four horse-head fiddles, and eight jars of wine."
This is all I gained from this trip.
Xiao Chunhong carefully brought out the glass bracelet and glass cup. The beads on the glass bracelet were round, red and green. The sunlight reflected on them was very beautiful, and the clear sound was also very pleasant.
Sui Yu had to admit that the glass she had seen in her past life was commonplace, but seeing the glass beads in her hands, each one displaying the craftsmanship of the craftsmen, was still a breathtaking sight. The beads had obvious impurities and their shapes weren't perfectly round, but these imperfections made them perfect in this era.
The boy played with the glass cup. He poured some water into it and exclaimed, "Mom, this is transparent. You can see the water inside from the outside of the cup. This will definitely look good for holding mulberry wine."
"Leave two for you and your uncle to drink." Seeing that he liked it, Sui Yu left two for them first.
The little boy was overjoyed. He picked out two of the best glass cups as if they were treasures, and asked, "Mom, don't you want my dad?"
"Your father is a rough man, so clay bowls are enough for him. He is not used to this thing, and it will break if he drops it. I don't need it either. Tomorrow I will buy a set of porcelain bowls and cups from the official kiln in Chang'an." Sui Yu was not interested in the glass cups, and would rather exchange them for money.
After everything was counted one by one and the servants had a rest, they carried the goods into the warehouse.
Sui Yu opened the door of the warehouse in the main courtyard and asked them to move the cash box stored with her.
"Check everything. I won't be responsible if any money is missing after you leave this door." Sui Yu joked.
Xiao Chunhong tsk- ...
"Yes, we have heard outside the Great Wall that the cotton you grow is very popular, master." Zhang Shun continued.
"Yes, from now on, cotton cloth will come from Dunhuang. You can take our cotton cloth to Chang'an to exchange for silk. We don't have to beg others for help, and they will beg us instead." Sui Yu smiled, "No more words, you guys go wash up, and after you're done, eat the meat and drink the soup. Take a nap in the afternoon. If you don't want to eat dinner, just sleep until tomorrow morning."
Li Wudu walked out the door, then turned back and said, "Master, the Song family has captured the three thieves who betrayed their master. We were supposed to be back at the end of May, but when we reached Loulan, we got the news about Song Jiu. We followed the Song family back to Yuli and found Song Jiu and the other two, which delayed us for half a month."
"Where did you get the news?" Sui Yu asked, "Has the person been captured?"
"A knight caught up with us and reported the news, but he wasn't sure if it was him, so he asked Master Song to go and identify him. If he wasn't caught, he'd be slaughtered on the spot and his body dumped in the desert," Li Wu replied. "After he was killed, Master Song paid the reward on the spot and gave the knight a full-grown camel."
Sui Yu let out an "Oh!" and then was frightened by the word "slaughter" from Li Wu's mouth. Slaughtering chickens, killing ducks, killing people...
The next day, Song Congzu came to the city to listen to the old teacher's lecture. When he saw Zhang Shun, Xiao Chunhong and others, he realized that his mother had returned.
Sui Yu thought he would be in a hurry to go back, but after finishing his class and practicing a set of calligraphy, as usual, he left with his camel around noon.
"Brother." Lu Yaer called out when she saw someone. She saw the ink marks on his hands and asked with a smile, "Are you from the academy? I heard you were learning to read."
"Well, what are you doing?" Song Congzu asked the maid who was moving the clothes box.
Lu Yaer suppressed her smile, but then realized it wasn't a big deal. She smiled again and said, "Mom and Dad are going to live separately. Dad is moving."
"Have they not always lived in separate rooms?"
"It's a branch courtyard. Dad moved out of the main courtyard. He will live in the front courtyard from now on and will not come here again." Lu Yaer said in a low voice.
Song Congzu saw Huang Ancheng walking out of the main courtyard empty-handed. Just as he had expected, his father looked calm and walked leisurely in the garden, neither angry nor ashamed.
Lu Yaer turned around when she heard footsteps, and the three of them looked at each other in silence.
"What? Don't you recognize me?" Huang Ancheng asked.
"No, Dad, you..." Lu Yaer didn't know what to say.
"Well, you still know that I'm your father." Huang Ancheng glanced at Song Congzu and said, "Your mother and I have lived like this. If you want to listen to her, then listen to her. I won't ask any questions."
After saying that, the man left.
Green Bud was speechless.
Song Congzu had a blank expression on his face as he walked towards the main courtyard.
Song Xian stood outside the hall with a stern face. When she saw her two children walk in one after another, a smile appeared on her face.
"Grandfather, we bought a box of ginseng and a box of glass cups during this trip. You and Lu Yaer should each take two pairs of glass cups, and each of you should also take six or seven roots of ginseng."
Song Congzu sighed and said, "Give the glass cup to my sister. I don't like those delicate things."
"If you don't like it, leave it for your wife to use in the future," said Song Xian.
"I don't know how long I have to wait. Let's sell it first and talk about it later." Song Congzu walked to the corridor and reached out to wipe the dust off the carved window.
Song Xian noticed something was wrong. She turned around and asked, "I heard from the maid that you haven't come back to live since we left Dunhuang?"
"Yes, I live in the desert. I go to the city in the morning to attend classes and learn to read. I leave the city in the afternoon. If there's nothing to do in the desert, I leave in the evening. My life is quite busy and fulfilling." Having said this, Song Congzu turned sideways to look at his mother and said, "From now on, I plan to live in the city and the desert in turn. Mother, if you need to find me, please send a message to Aunt Sui's guesthouse. I will come back as soon as I get the message."
Song Xian frowned.
Lu Yaer looked around and calmed down.
"You...you really plan to eat and sleep with a camel?" Song Xian, intending to liven up the atmosphere, said with a smile, "You are the master, not the servant."
Song Congzu lowered his head and said, "Raising camels is no simple matter. I want to domesticate camels and see if I can make them as humane as dogs. Besides that, I'm also learning from a veterinarian to treat camels. I want to know a little bit about everything, rather than relying on slaves and being a person who only knows how to give orders. If something unexpected happens one day and I lose my servants, I can rely on myself to make a fortune again."
"Not buying an official position anymore?" Lu Yaer interrupted.
Song Congzu shook his head and said hesitantly, "I'm not that cut out for it."
Song Xian was silent. She understood her son's temper. Seeing this, she asked directly, "Are you angry? I understand you're angry with your father, but why are you angry with me?"
Song Congzu clenched his hands. After hesitating for a long time, he chose to speak directly: "I'm not angry, I'm disappointed. I was abused by my own father and abandoned by my own mother... Mother, I am an abandoned child. I know I am wrong, and I understand that you are disappointed in me. I am disappointed in myself, but I am also disappointed in you and him. I feel bad when I see you. Please give me some time. In two or three years, I will forget about this and come back."
Song Xian's heart choked and tears immediately came out. She instantly realized that she had hurt her child.
Song Congzu glanced at his sister and saw that she was standing there like a fool. He walked over and wiped her tears with his sleeves that smelled of animal fur.
"I understand you. Why are you crying? It's not like I won't come back. I will come back to live. I just want a place to breathe and rest." Song Congzu sighed, "I don't hate you, don't get the wrong idea. We'll just... how should I put it, we'll just take a break. You're tired too, so come back and worry less. If you can't stand my dad, just open another door and don't see each other, so as not to get angry. You like your sister, so you two can live together, talk about happy things, and be happy. I'll come back occasionally, have a meal and sleep, and be happy too."
Song Xian understood, so she didn't force him and said, "Okay."
"Well, don't worry about the camels in the desert. Nothing will go wrong with me here," said Song Congzu.
Song Xian said "hmm".
"Also, can you please not tell anyone about what happened before? Including my Aunt Sui." Song Congzu's teeth were stiff, and he could hardly open his mouth. Being abused and toyed with by his own father was more painful than being slapped in the face. He forced a smile and said, "Look, I'm twenty years old. I want to save face and don't want people to look at me with weird eyes..."
He also doesn't want to have a falling out with anyone one day, and have others point at his nose and scold him: You are such a coward, no wonder your father looks down on you and your mother looks down on you.
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