Chapter 873 A Dream of Youth 405
"Thank you, sir."
"Um?"
“My mother and younger brother arrived in the capital a few days ago, bringing some local specialties with them. Yes, they were prepared by my mother and the villagers. I hope you won’t find them offensive.”
Chu Xu hesitated for several days, afraid that Xie Ning wouldn't like it, but it was something her mother and the villagers in the town had prepared for a long time, and they wanted to give it to Xie Ning.
It was because of Xie Ning's half-string of cash that Mother was able to afford medicine.
It was because Xie Ning reorganized the town's military affairs and persuaded the wealthy households that most of the town's people did not starve to death, and the barbarians were unable to enter the town to burn, kill, and plunder, allowing them to survive.
Perhaps Xie Ning himself doesn't remember, but they will always remember.
"Special products from Hedong?"
"Um."
"Then let's go take a look."
Chu Xu quickly waved his hand, "No, no, no, how could I trouble you, sir? I'll go and bring it to you."
"No need." Xie Ning took the lead and walked into the courtyard where Chu Xu and the others lived.
In Chu Xu's courtyard, not only did the female soldiers live there, but also Xie Ning's retainer, a woman, whom Xie Ning had invited to teach Chu Xu and the others.
She only teaches for an hour in the evening; during the day, she has to handle other matters for Xie Ning.
The courtyard wasn't large, and it was already late autumn with a cool breeze. A woman was collecting laundry, while a little boy, barely reaching her waist, was squatting in a basin washing vegetables, his face tense and very focused.
Upon seeing Xie Ning enter, the woman was initially taken aback, but then quickly knelt down.
In fact, the Great Zhou Dynasty did not have that many kneeling and bowing rituals, so Xie Ning had no choice but to tell her to get up first, saying, "There is no need to perform such a formal ceremony."
The woman did not get up. "We all know what Lord Xie did for us back then. I am here to thank Lord Xie on behalf of all the villagers of Xiji Town for saving our lives."
After saying this, she began to kowtow repeatedly, and the little boy who came forward and stood next to her did the same.
Xie Ning quickly stepped forward and helped the person up.
In fact, when Lady Wen first arrived in the capital, she wanted to kowtow to Xie Ning, but Xie Ning had been so busy these past few days that he hadn't been home until last night.
"What I did was only one percent. The remaining ninety-nine steps were all your own to take. So, you should be the ones most grateful to yourselves." This applies not only to the Wen family, but also to any civilian who survived the looting by the Northern Jin army. It was because they did not give up on themselves.
The gifts from Madam Wen and the others were mostly simple and practical items, as well as local delicacies. Xie Ning smelled the jar of aged vinegar and smiled, "My mother has been wanting to make fish soup these past few days, but she's been lacking good vinegar. The vinegar that Madam Wen sent is excellent."
Seeing that Xie Ning liked it, Wen Shi couldn't help but smile.
Xie Ning bent down and rubbed the child's head, then took out a jade cicada from his sleeve and handed it over, "Since it's our first meeting, I didn't bring any good gifts, so I'll give you this jade cicada."
It is as if the drooping branches drink in the clear dew, and the flowing sound comes from the sparse paulownia trees. The sound travels far from its high perch, not because it borrows the autumn wind.
I hope you will grow up to be a person of high moral character.
She actually picked out the jade cicada from Chen Yunsheng. Chen Yunsheng brought back a lot of things when he came back from his business trip, especially a lot of trinkets, all for the children, including Xie Ning.
Originally intending to refuse, Madam Wen glanced at Chu Xu, then led the boy to thank Xie Ning.
The child gripped the jade cicada tightly in his hand, his gaze following Xie Ning.
After receiving the local specialties, Xie Ning did not immediately return to his own courtyard. Instead, he talked with Yuan Lian, a retainer in the courtyard, about the matter.
Yuanlian was referring to the coal mines in Hedong, which is in Shanxi.
In the Great Zhou Dynasty, mines are mostly privately owned, and the government only collects taxes. Even though Xie Ning is wealthy, she cannot just sit around and do nothing. Therefore, she needs to develop her own businesses so that she can have more money to do other things.
She had previously fought in Hedong and was quite familiar with the terrain there. After comparing it with the maps she had drawn before, she discovered that many mines had not yet been discovered.
She then sent people to investigate. Although they only found two coal mines, it was already quite good. After buying the mountain land and having people start mining, she had another large income.
Xie Ning frowned slightly as she looked at the letter brought to her by her subordinates. "Bring me paper and pen."
Yuanlian didn't know why Xie Ning was unhappy, but she still asked the maid to fetch paper and pen. Turning back, she asked, "My lord, is there a problem?"
Yuanlian took the letter and read it, but didn't think there was anything wrong with it.
Xie Ning glanced at the paper and pen the maid had brought, then stood up. "Alright, come with me to the study."
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