Chapter 018 Chapter 18
Seeing that he didn't say anything, Li Jing didn't get angry either, and continued to talk to himself: "It takes more than an hour to deliver food from the dock to the warehouse at the bridgehead, but I can only get ten coins. The cheapest yellow paper can't even buy a penny."
He said bitterly: "I dare not tell my father about this. If he knew that I followed his old path, he would definitely feel very guilty."
Li Jing said a lot in the cool breeze carrying moisture on the river. Yuan Ming didn't say much, just listened silently, because he felt that Li Jing didn't want to tell him, but needed someone to confide in.
Coincidentally, he became this person to confide in.
A loud whistle sounded, and the big ship docked. A large number of coolies dressed in the same clothes as Li Jing came from all directions, making the small dock crowded, but Li Jing did not go forward.
"It's getting late. If I don't go back, my family will get suspicious." Li Jing wiped his face and smiled at Yuan Ming: "I'm lucky today. I earned twenty coins. I believe I can save enough for the tuition soon."
The tuition for Fangyuan School is five taels of silver per year, plus the daily expenses for buying books and paper, it will cost at least more than ten taels. Even if he earned twenty taels every day, he couldn't afford it.
Under the hazy setting sun, Yuan Ming looked at the other's unclear face, and suddenly a huge sadness surged in his heart.
He suddenly remembered how Li Jing died in his previous life.
"Brother Yuan, I'm sorry to have taken up too much of your time today. Please go back soon. It's getting late." Li Jing bowed to him.
Yuan Ming called him, "Brother Li, why don't you consider copying books in a bookstore? Although it pays less, you can review books at the same time and you don't have to work too hard. If you are lucky and your calligraphy is favored by a noble, you won't have to worry about tuition fees anymore."
"Where have I not thought about it?" Li Jing smiled bitterly and said, "Shifang Town is so small. Qingshan Bookstore has its own copyists and doesn't need anyone else. I went to ask the day before yesterday, but they didn't even look at my calligraphy."
Yuan Ming frowned, "I have copied books in a bookstore before, but I have to prepare for the exam this year, so I don't have time to go again. Come with me to the bookstore tomorrow, and I will ask the shopkeeper if he can let you take my place."
Li Jing was overjoyed and thanked him repeatedly.
Since the test results came out, Liu Shaoxuan and Zhao Yucheng have repeatedly expressed their willingness to help him, lending money or providing jobs to family members, but Li Jing refused.
They are friends. If he really accepts these benefits, how can he get along with them on an equal footing?
Yuan Ming smiled and said you're welcome, and asked him to go back and practice calligraphy well, and the two parted ways.
I got home more than half an hour later than usual today. Yuan Ming first looked at Ji Qingyue's workroom and didn't see any light. Then he heard the movement coming from the kitchen, and he was immediately terrified.
During this time, Ji Qingyue was very obsessed with cooking for him, but his cooking skills were really poor, and he almost burned down the kitchen several times. It was Yuan Ming who came back in time to prevent the tragedy from happening, but today he came back too late!
Not daring to delay any longer, Yuan Ming quickly walked to the kitchen.
At this time, a cute cat's cry sounded, and Yuan Ming felt that his ankle was entangled by something soft and fluffy. He lowered his head and saw Rongrong, whom he hadn't seen for a long time.
"Meow~" Rongrong still remembered him, and rubbed his calf affectionately with her head.
Yuan Ming never liked this kind of soft and fluffy little animal, but he was always a little more patient with Rongrong, probably because Ji Qingyue really loved it, so he loved Rongrong as well.
"Ah Ming is back." Cao came out of the kitchen carrying the basket.
Yuan Ming called Ah Niang and said that the teacher had something to do today and came home a little late.
When he saw Rongrong, Yuan Ming guessed that it was Cao who came. The kitten was very naughty and liked to run around. Sometimes it didn't come back all night. It was really inconvenient to keep it in the town, so Ji Qingyue had to reluctantly let Rongrong stay in the village.
Fortunately, there were many cats in Yang Tao's family. Rongrong often played with a group of cats, so there was no need to worry too much about eating. Otherwise, Cao would probably not agree.
Ji Qingyue poked her head out of the kitchen and said with a smile: "Mother came to the town to sell embroidery today. She was worried that I missed Rongrong too much, so she brought him with her." "Thank you for
your hard work, mother. Qingqing has missed the kitten these days and has been calling for Rongrong in her dreams." Yuan Ming said.
Cao sighed: "You are busy at school all day, and Yue'er is alone at home. I am afraid he is bored. It's a pity that we can't keep cats in the town."
The husband and wife hadn't eaten the food cooked by Cao for a long time. With the roast chicken brought back by Yuan Ming, the table was full and the three of them ate very happily.
Cao was going to stay tonight, so Yuan Ming built a simple little bed in the study, put on the quilt, and said guiltily: "My son is unfilial. I should have let my mother rest in the bedroom."
"How can you and Yue Ge'er sleep here?" Cao didn't care about this little thing. She patted the soft mattress under her body and said: "I think it's nice here."
Seeing that she was really not forcing herself, Yuan Ming didn't say anything more. He told Cao to cover herself with the quilt and close the door before going to the next room.
There was no nest for Rongrong here, and if she put it in the yard, she was afraid that it would run away, so Ji Qingyue carried it into the room.
It was impossible to get on the bed, so Ji Qingyue turned the stool over and put it on the ground, which just formed a small space. She put a thick piece of clothes on it and it became Rongrong's bed.
Under Ji Qingyue's gentle caress, the kitten quickly closed its eyes and snored continuously.
Yuan Ming was lying on the bed, watching with some amusement: "Qingqing, is she planning to sleep with Rongrong tonight?"
After a while, Ji Qingyue got on the bed quietly, pouting: "I haven't seen Rongrong for a long time, I miss her so much."
Yuan Ming was a little upset, but he also felt that being jealous of a kitten was too outrageous. So he swallowed a breath that was stuck in his chest, and coughed several times in a row.
Ji Qingyue patted his back gently to help him calm down: "Husband, do you think Brother Jin will write a new storybook?"
Yuan Ming was stunned when he heard this. Jinzi was the author of the "Peach Blossom Wine", and he mentioned it casually. Ji Qingyue mentioned it abruptly, and he almost didn't react.
"Didn't you say that Brother Jin is Mu Yunge? If the storybook is really his autobiography, he will definitely not write it again." Yuan Ming replied calmly.
Ji Qingyue sighed: "Now that you said that, I suddenly don't want Mu Yunge to be Brother Jin anymore."
Yuan Ming smiled: "Do you like him so much?"
"The words written by Brother Jin are full of power, making people feel that there are hands supporting them from behind. If he is really just a writer of storybooks and can keep creating, there must be many people like me who can draw strength from it."
Yuan Ming lowered his eyes and murmured uncertainly: "Is it really like this?"