Chapter 3429: Extra Chapter 8
The shopkeeper laughed and said, "Isn't it grand? A few years ago, Liuzhou was still a poor and remote place with inaccessible roads. No matter how many good things there were, they couldn't get out. After Governor Lu arrived, he educated the people, built bridges and roads, and went to great lengths to promote the two medicinal material merchants. They used the reputation of our Liuzhou medicinal materials to enter the Imperial Medical Bureau, and that's how they attracted so many merchants."
"Now that you mention it, I remember," Zhou Man blinked, "At that time, the herbs were directly..." delivered to me, and the person who delivered the herbs...
Zhou Man looked at Bai Shan.
Bai Shan smiled and said, "The governor of Liuzhou is Lu Xiaofo."
Yin Huo raised an eyebrow, while Bai Erlang exclaimed, "Why is it him?"
The shopkeeper looked at them in surprise and doubt, and asked tentatively, "Do any of you know Governor Lu?"
"I know him," a faint voice sounded at the door. Everyone turned around and saw an elegant man standing at the door with his hands behind his back. "A friend has come from afar, but he passed by without entering. Was it because I, Lu, was impolite in the past?"
Bai Shan smiled broadly, "Guanyin, you know we don't want to trouble you. We'll come visit you once we're settled. Otherwise, when the soldiers in your governor's mansion return home, did I tell them not to reveal our whereabouts?"
Lu Xiaofo's courtesy name is Guanyin, which was given to him by his teacher at the Imperial College when he came of age. Because of this name, everyone was happy for a long time.
Lu Xiaofu finally smiled and stepped forward to salute Mingda, "Your humble servant greets the princess."
Mingda: "No need to be polite."
Lu Xiaofo looked at Bai Shan and Zhou Man, and was about to bow when Bai Shan held him back. "Alright, there's no need to be so polite between classmates. By the time we're done, it'll be dark."
Lu Xiaofu gave up and said to him with a smile: "How do you feel about the journey?"
"Not bad, the public security is very good, the people live and work in peace and contentment, and there are many merchants in the city. You have made great contributions."
Lu Xiaofo smiled and said, "Thank you very much. If you hadn't approved the money and grain for me to build roads and dredge rivers, I wouldn't have been able to achieve this."
Bai Shan said seriously: "You can definitely do it, it's just a matter of time."
He said, "The people under your rule want a better life, and you are wholeheartedly committed to them. If the officials and the people are united, what can't be achieved?"
Lu Xiaofu was deeply moved by his affirmation and looked at him with tears in his eyes.
Yin Huo was not in the imperial court and did not know the whereabouts of his classmates at the Imperial College, so he asked curiously, "Where is Peng Zhiru working now?"
Bai Shan said, "He is in Chuzhou, in the Huainan area. However, I heard that he will return to the capital this summer to report on his work. I wonder if he will go to Huainan Road or stay in the capital."
Lu Xiaofo was still in contact with the other party and said, "He stayed in Beijing. I heard he joined the Ministry of Personnel."
The shopkeeper came back to his senses at this moment. He had not expected that a princess would live in his shop. Moreover, from the sound of his voice, this fair-faced and elegant man seemed to be in a high position and could even help Governor Lu to obtain funding.
He secretly glanced at a few people and saw that they were chatting happily, so he trotted to the kitchen.
The classmates haven't seen each other for many years. Even though they didn't spend a long time together in the Imperial College, they kept in touch frequently during the few years they studied in the capital, so they have a good relationship.
Seeing the ugly oranges Zhou Man took out, he couldn't help but smile, "Now that you're in my place, you're asking me to eat the local specialties."
Bai Shan took the opportunity to smile and said, "I was just about to tell you, we want to go and take a look at the tangerines. If possible, we can dig up a couple and plant them ourselves."
"That's not difficult," Lu Xiaofo said, "but where are you going to grow it? It can't be grown in the capital, let alone outside of the capital. It's very difficult to grow even further north. Although it can survive and bear fruit, the taste will be completely different."
He had obviously tried it before. "Besides this area, the further north you go, the more sour and astringent the tangerines become. Many fruits and vegetables only taste good when grown in this area."
It is also because of this that after the road was opened, this place was able to attract so many merchants.
Bai Shan nodded, but still insisted, "Let's give it a try."
Lu Xiaofo said, "Okay, I'll arrange the things I have on hand and take you to see it in two days."
The mandarin oranges here are also grown by fruit farmers. Every year they purchase them from the farmers, sort them into grades, and then sell them as tribute, as gifts, or for sale.
The output is not very high.
Lu Xiaofo said, "There are still some fruits hanging on the trees. You can try the fresh taste."
"It was given to us two days ago..."
"It's been two days since it was delivered," Lu Xiaofo said. "It's different from when it was just picked from the tree."
After hearing this, not only Bai Shan and Zhou Man, but also Yin Huo and the other two were eager to try it.
Lu Xiaofo asked, "I'll host a banquet at my house tomorrow to welcome you all."
Bai Shan quickly refused, "It's enough to just go and see your sister-in-law and your children. There's no need to invite anyone else."
Lu Xiaofo felt a little regretful, but he had already expected this. After all, they didn't even look for him when they came to the city, let alone meet other unfamiliar people.
"Okay, you guys take a rest first." Lu Xiaofo knew they had just arrived and was about to get up to say goodbye when the shopkeeper came running over with an excited look on his face. He bowed and said, "Governor, distinguished guests, I've asked the kitchen to prepare our restaurant's best dish and also killed two chickens to stew. It's almost ready. Do you want to serve it now, or..."
Zhou Man blinked, "We haven't ordered yet."
The shopkeeper said generously, "This meal is for you, my dear guests. It is a blessing for our inn that the princess and the other gentlemen can stay here. This is worth my treating you to this meal."
When several people heard it, they accepted it happily.
The shopkeeper instructed the kitchen to prepare all the specialties of their restaurant, including Shandong cuisine, but more of them were local dishes.
For example, they eat chicken the way the locals do, stewing the whole thing first and then cutting it into pieces and eating it with dipping sauce. It is tender and smooth.
Lu Xiaofu simply stayed and had a simple meal with them. It was dark when he returned home.
Mrs. Lu had been waiting for him with the dishes warm. When she saw him come back alone, she hurried forward and asked, "What's wrong? Didn't you invite anyone?"
Lu Xiaofu smiled and said to her, "Don't worry. We'll host a welcome party for them at home tomorrow and invite the children along."
Mrs. Lu breathed a sigh of relief and smiled.
Lu Xiaofu comforted her, "Don't be nervous, they are all very kind people."
Mrs. Lu smiled.
Lu Xiaofo thought for a moment and said, "The princess is noble, of course, but that kid Bai Er, ahem, I mean, Prince Consort Bai is not a high-handed person. He hasn't changed over the years. Of the few of them, he and Lord Zhou are the ones who get along the best."
Madam Lu asked curiously, "What about Lord Bai and Master Yin?"
"Bai Shan appears kind to strangers, but his heart is cold. Yin Huo is the opposite, cold on the outside but kind on the inside. But they both appear polite," Lu Xiaofu said with a smile. "Besides, we're not strangers, so you don't have to worry."
Classmates and students all have connections in the court. Lu Xiaofo and Bai Shan were both admitted to the Imperial College in the same year. Not only were they classmates, but they also lost their fathers at a young age, so they had a good relationship when they were in the capital.
They kept in touch after he became an official in the court. When he was exiled to the remote place of Liuzhou, the first person he looked for was Bai Shan.
Later, with the help of Bai Shan and Zhou Man, they promoted the local medicine dealers and made several of their medicines famous, which boosted the trade in Liuzhou.
Mrs. Lu nodded to show that she understood.
See you tomorrow
(End of this chapter)
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