The moment Lord Li saw Qian Fu, he suddenly had the idea of silencing Liu Zhao.
It feels so good!
Although it is a bit outrageous.
After all, Liu Zhao is His Royal Highness the Crown Prince.
Lord Li asked Qian Fu angrily, "What are you doing here? I don't remember any connection with your Highness."
Qian Fu said expressionlessly, "My prince asked me to remind you, my Lord, not to forget what we promised you."
"He's already been given the position at the Dali Temple. What else does he want?"
"Have you forgotten, sir, that you promised my prince that you would find a way to transfer him to one of the three provinces after the New Year? If you don't remember, do you still remember the commission from the Chief Governor of the Jiangnan Governor's Office?"
Lord Li gasped, a chill running from his heels to his hair. Even in the most comfortable weather of March and April, he shuddered.
I really regret it!
Back then, he must have been blinded by greed, which is why he cooperated with Liu Zhao.
As a result, he was targeted by the wolf.
Lord Li gritted his teeth and said, "Go back and tell your Highness to wait for news. Sooner or later, I will transfer him out of the Ministry of War."
"Then wait for good news from the Lord. I hope the Lord won't keep His Highness waiting too long."
"snort!"
Lord Li left with a flick of his sleeves, very angry.
Even without Qian Fu's reminder, he would have hurriedly transferred Liu Zhao from the Ministry of War to get rid of this evil star as soon as possible.
Lord Li was worthy of being the Minister of the Central Secretariat, who was not the prime minister in name but the prime minister in reality. In just a few days, he transferred Liu Zhao from the Ministry of War to work in the Ministry of Shangshu.
When Liu Zhao learned of this result, he felt a little disgusted and a little regretful, and said, "For the time being, I will just go to the Shangshu Province to work."
…
Horses are expensive, but actually they are not expensive at all.
He was from a poor mountain village. Before he was twenty years old, the farthest place he had been to was a village on the other side of the mountain for a blind date.
In the end, the girl didn't like him because she thought his family was poor, he was incompetent, and his village was remote and poor.
The woman is not wrong either. Everyone wants to marry into a good family. Not only for her own sake, but also for the sake of the child, she should marry into a wealthy family. Otherwise, the child will suffer.
Just like Ma Gui, he lived in a poor mountain valley all his life. He had never left the mountains until he was in his twenties and couldn't even get married.
Until a road construction team came from outside the mountain, saying that they were building a cement road and were recruiting workers. They would provide two meals a day and wages.
When he heard the news, Ma Gui hadn't had a proper meal for a month.
As soon as he heard that he could have enough to eat, he followed the people from the neighboring village out of the mountain and went to the construction site.
Sure enough, I had two full meals a day, I could even see minced meat, and I got paid.
That period was the happiest time in Ma Gui’s short life.
Even though we had to get up before dawn to work, all of it was heavy physical labor, and we worked until dark, those were the happiest days because we could eat our fill, eat meat, and save money.
It’s a pity that such days are too short.
The cement road has been repaired and the road construction team is about to leave.
When they left, they took a group of smart, clever and capable locals with them.
Ma Gui was not selected.
He has nothing but strength.
What the road construction team lacks the least is people with great strength.
Ma Gui returned to his home in the poor mountain valley.
He used the money he saved from his wages to renovate his house.
After he got a new house, the matchmaker came to his house, but unfortunately he couldn't afford the betrothal gift, so the marriage was called off again.
He had used all his money to renovate his house, and he only had three copper coins left on him.
Even though we have a new house, life is still hard.
Until someone in the village took the lead and went out to find work. After half a year, when he returned home at the end of the year, he reportedly brought back two taels of silver.
The whole village was shocked.
"Is it so easy to make money out there?"
"As long as you're willing to put in the effort and work hard, whether you're heading north or south along the cement road, there are opportunities everywhere, and people are looking for workers everywhere. If you want to leave, go north, to the capital. There are more opportunities there, and the wages are higher."
"You haven't even been to the county town, how can you go to the capital? Won't you be arrested?"
"As long as you have a proper travel permit and don't commit any crimes, no one will arrest you. The government offices are too busy collecting taxes to bother with us common people."
"Over there in the capital, even the poorest person is richer than the richest person in the village."
"Really?"
"If you don't believe me, let's go out and take a look together when the New Year begins."
"Forget it, forget it. I can't afford the hassle."
"Who knows what it's like out there? It's better not to go out. What if you run into danger and die out there?"
The villagers envy those who make money, but they lack the courage to leave the mountains and venture out into the world.
The outside world is full of dangers for the villagers.
No matter how good the outside world is, it belongs to others, not to you. It is better to stay down-to-earth and be a decent person.
“I’ll go!”
Ma Gui wanted to marry a woman, but marrying a woman required money, so he mustered up the courage to make the boldest decision of his life.
After the New Year and the Lantern Festival, Ma Gui carried his bedding roll, two sets of clothes, and a pair of straw sandals and followed the villagers out of the mountains.
When they reached the cement road, they separated.
Some people went south, while he chose to go north.
Just as my fellow townsman said, there are really opportunities everywhere in Beijing.
In fact, before they even reached the capital, they had already received work, carrying things for people, for hundreds of miles, all the way to the capital.
In this way, he accidentally became a porter.
The prosperity of the capital city opened Ma Gui's eyes.
Behind the prosperity is a cruel living environment.
Portering is also a field full of fierce competition.
Because there were too few people in their village and they were weak, they could not compete with the porters from other places.
Other porters form a team of at least 20 to 30 people, and the larger ones may have over a hundred people.
Ma Gui's life as a porter in the capital lasted only three days before it came to an end.
After several twists and turns, Ma Gui and several fellow villagers went to the dock to carry heavy bags and do hard labor through an introduction.
This took several months.
Spring is about to pass and summer will soon be here.
There were only three fellow villagers left among the coolies working at the dock, including Ma Gui.
The other few people were smart and saved some money, then went to other places to find a job.
The most hardworking one has become a traveling merchant. I heard he can earn dozens of coins a day, making everyone envious.
"Ma Gui, how about we also become traveling merchants?"
"Can you make up your accounts?"
"I can't tell."
It's so frustrating.
Ma Gui is definitely not a smart man, he just has a lot of strength.
But in terms of strength, he is not the strongest one.
So miserable!
At daybreak, Ma Gui got up early and rushed to the dock, hoping to carry a few more big bags and earn more wages.
Yuhuaxiang Wharf is always bustling all year round.
Today, however, something is different.
There was a new table at the dock, and a group of coolies gathered around it.
"What's going on over there?"
"Help! Sanhe Express is hiring. Maybe you don't know about Sanhe Express, but it's a subsidiary of Sihai Trading Company, so it shouldn't be any different. Although I still don't understand what express delivery is."
Ma Gui's heart skipped a beat.
He still remembers a man from a neighboring village who was looking for work at a rest stop. When the news got out, the threshold was trampled down by matchmakers, attracting envy from all the surrounding villages.
He grabbed the person next to him and asked, "Is it true that Sihai Trading Company is recruiting?"
"Why would I lie to you? Did you see that old man in the brocade robe? The youngest one. Do you know who he is? He's Eunuch Bai, the chief steward of Sihai Trading Company."
"Father-in-law?"
"You're really stupid, aren't you? You've been working at the docks for so long, haven't you heard that Sihai's owner is from the royal family, and the managers are all eunuchs from the palace."
Ma Gui suddenly realized, "No wonder it's so powerful. I want to recruit workers too."
After saying that, Ma Gui rushed into the crowd and said, "I want to work, I want to work."
"Don't crowd. Line up and register one by one. Anyone who doesn't follow the rules will be kicked out."
When they heard they were going to be driven away, the coolies all lined up and waited to register.
When Ma Gui recalled what happened later many days later, he still felt confused and it seemed so unreal.
Sanhe Express registered his name and notified him the next day to pack his luggage and go to the school for training.
Only after passing the training can you officially become an employee of Sanhe Express.
He had to learn 500 Chinese characters within three months, not only knowing how to recognize them but also how to write them, and also master basic arithmetic. He also had to learn how to receive and deliver packages, and how to register them. He had to memorize the names of every state and county in the Great Zhou, and understand the basics of the world.
If he fails the exam, he will have to go back to the dock to carry heavy bags.
Ma Gui studied hard.
He used his not-so-bright brain to memorize things by rote every day.
While others studied for four hours, he studied for eight hours.
While others studied for eight hours, he studied for ten hours.
For him, this opportunity is the best opportunity he can get in his life.
Having missed this opportunity, he had a premonition that he would never have such a good opportunity again in his life.
He really put all his strength into studying.
I study harder than those veterans.
Three months later, he successfully passed the assessment and officially became a courier for Sanhe Express.
When the manager asked him where he wanted to work as a courier, he touched his head and asked cautiously, "Can I stay in the capital? Even near the capital is fine."
The steward asked him cheerfully, "Why do you want to stay in the capital?"
Ma Gui said embarrassedly: "I, I heard that there are a lot of goods in the capital and the income is high."
"Northwest Line, Northeast Line, although there is not much cargo, but the salary is high, it is definitely comparable to the income in the capital. Would you not consider it?"
Ma Gui shook his head repeatedly. "I've never been so far away. I'm afraid I'll never be able to return home. I haven't even married yet!"
"Hahaha……"
After hearing this, the manager burst into laughter. "You, hahahaha... Did you know that if you join Sihai Trading Company and work for five years, you can buy a house and settle down in the capital, directly in Xinmin County?"
Ma Gui was shocked. "Can I buy a house and get settled there?"
The manager smiled and said, "Yes! It's a pity that you didn't catch up with the good times. A few years ago, when the refugees were being settled, you could have bought a house in Xinmin County and registered as one. But it's a pity that it's not possible now!"
Officials from other prefectures and counties complained to the imperial court, claiming Xinmin County had robbed them of their population. The court had no choice but to change the system. Now, buying a house in Xinmin County doesn't guarantee a household registration.
Only employees of Sihai Trading Company who have worked there for five years are eligible to buy a house and settle down. Now that you are an employee of Sihai Trading Company, marrying a wife is not a simple matter. Just ask and matchmakers will come knocking on your door.
If you are willing to work hard for a few years and buy a house in the capital, you can marry even a young lady who was born and raised in the capital."
Ma Gui's face flushed red, he was so excited.
I didn't expect that Ma Gui, a man from a poor mountain village, could actually marry a young lady from the capital.
The young lady from the capital, how pretty she is, how juicy, how fair, how delicate...
Anyway, he had never seen a girl more beautiful than the young lady from the capital.
The most beautiful girl in their poor mountain village, compared with the young ladies in the capital, is really... It's embarrassing to say it.
The steward patted him on the shoulder and said, "Let me be frank with you. There are no vacancies within a 200-li radius around the capital. If you go elsewhere, your income will definitely not catch up with the capital. But if you are willing to go to the northwest and northeast lines, I guarantee that your income will catch up with the capital."
Ma Gui asked worriedly, "Then, then, can I still go home?"
"Don't worry, couriers get a month and a half of vacation every two years. The company will take care of sending you to your county town. By the way, I remember your hometown is next to Balipu, right? We'll send you directly to Balipu when the time comes, so you don't have to worry about anything. The company will cover all the food and drinks on the way."
Under the steward's persuasion, Ma Gui finally chose the northwest route. Two days later, he bid farewell to his fellow villagers and set off on the road to the northwest.
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