Chapter 23 Hi, classmate Hi, classmate
Wen Zhu glanced back, frowned, and asked, "Isn't that Sun Yaozu? What does he want from you?"
"He came to visit me and expressed his condolences." Su Fengzhang said with a smile.
"Comfort you? Him?" Wen Zhu knew Sun Yaozu. They were classmates and knew each other very well, but he looked down on that man.
Mr. Wen believed in teaching everyone, and did not exclude children born into merchant families. Influenced by him, Wen Zhu did not look down on those born into merchant families, but Sun Yaozu was an exception.
Logically speaking, he is better than those children from merchant families, but I don't know how he learned to be so petty and narrow-minded.
"If he dares to bully you, tell me and I will tell my dad." Wen Zhu said.
"How could he bully me?" Su Fengzhang said with a smile, "Don't worry about me."
Wenzhu agreed, thinking that Sun Yaozu was a timid guy with no real ability.
Lifting the box in his hand, Wen Zhu smiled and said, "Guess what this is?"
Su Fengzhang spotted the mark of Wenxian Tower at a glance and said with a helpless smile, "Did you go to buy this just now? You ran so fast that I couldn't stop you even if I called you."
"The pastries from Wenxianlou are freshly baked. Didn't you like them the most in the past? I bought some extra on purpose. Now that the weather has gotten cooler, they can be kept. You can take them home and enjoy them slowly." Wenzhu said with a smile.
Although he seems unreliable, Wenzhu has nothing to say about him.
Su Fengzhang thanked him solemnly, which made Wen Zhu uncomfortable: "You thanking me so seriously makes me feel uncomfortable."
"Okay, I won't be polite." Su Fengzhang also said with a smile, and joked, "Next time you come, I'll bring you some vegetables and fruits that I grew myself. I grew them myself."
"Then I must try it. The fruits grown by our Xiao Feng'er must be more delicious than ordinary ones." Wen Zhu laughed.
Wenzhu accompanied the person all the way to the city gate, and Su Fengzhang got on the ox cart. Only then did she leave reluctantly.
On the way home, Uncle Su saw that he was carrying so many things and said, "How come you have so many things after going to Mr. Wen's place?"
Su Fengzhang smiled and said, "The book was lent to me by Mr. Wen, and the snacks in the box were given by Wenzhu."
Uncle Su didn't care about the snacks. He looked at the books with some curiosity and said, "They look like good books. Mr. Wen must have taken a liking to you, so he specially lent them to you."
Su Fengzhang also felt so and was very happy in his heart. After all, it was great to have such an experienced teacher like Mr. Wen.
The ox cart moved slowly, and an ordinary horse carriage could easily overtake it with a few clatters. However, there was a horse carriage following them closely.
Uncle Su moved aside, and the carriage not only did not pass by, but also slowed down.
Su Fengzhang looked back curiously, and saw a man walking out of the carriage with the cool folding fan in his hand.
"Brother Su." The man shouted loudly.
Su Fengzhang raised his eyebrows slightly. The person who came was not Sun Yaozu, but a person who followed behind him at that time. He looked to be about twenty years old, with an ordinary appearance and a slightly fat body, but his smile was very friendly.
"Brother Gu?" Su Fengzhang looked at him with some confusion.
The majority of students in Mr. Wen's private school are between the ages of ten and twenty. Those over the age of twenty have either passed the imperial examinations and gone to study in better academies, or have given up on the imperial examinations. In short, they are unlikely to come to the private school again.
But there is one exception, and that is Gu Beichen.
This Gu Beichen is also a weirdo. He has been in Mr. Wen's private school for fifteen years. He is now twenty-two years old and has even married and had children, but he still stays in the private school all day and plays with a group of children younger than him.
If Wen Zhu and Su Fengzhang in the past did not like reading, then Gu Beichen was simply unable to read. He was not smart and could not even recite a book over and over again. After more than ten years, Mr. Wen gave up on this seemingly diligent student.
Gu Beichen was not discouraged. He studied when he should study, wrote when he should write, and spent the rest of his time building good relationships with his classmates. He was a good money-giving boy.
The previous Su Fengzhang was not familiar with such a person, and the current Su Fengzhang didn't know what he was going to do.
Gu Beichen took a step outside and shouted loudly: "Brother Su, what a coincidence, we meet again."
Su Fengzhang saw the carriage following closely behind him and asked, "You're heading this way too, or why don't you go first?"
"No, no, I'm not in a hurry." Gu Beichen said with a smile.
"Then I'll leave first?" Su Fengzhang looked at him with a smile and was about to turn away.
"Hey, don't." Gu Beichen said anxiously, "Actually, I have something to talk to you about."
"It's not a big deal for us to do this. Why don't you come over and talk?" Su Fengzhang said with a smile.
Unexpectedly, after he said this, Gu Beichen jumped out of his car and prepared to take the ox cart.
There is a huge difference between an ox cart and a horse cart. An ox cart has no shed, just a piece of board, and looks simple and shabby.
The Gu family’s carriage is different. It is spacious and elegant, and is made of the finest materials.
But Gu Beichen sat down next to Su Fengzhang without hesitation and said with a smile: "It's still bright and spacious here. It's so stuffy in the carriage that I can hardly breathe."
No one knows how Gu Beichen is doing in school, but his emotional intelligence is definitely not low, Su Fengzhang commented in his heart.
"Brother Gu, what do you want to see me about?" Su Fengzhang asked with a smile.
Gu Beichen chuckled and glanced at the books in the car: "When we were studying together before, I didn't get close to Brother Su, so I missed a lot of time. This time, we happened to meet, so I wanted to have a good chat with you."
Su Fengzhang felt even more puzzled and asked with amusement, "Aren't you Sun Yaozu's friend? He doesn't like me very much."
"Hey, he just has a childish temper, don't bother with him." Gu Beichen said indifferently.
"Brother Su, did you go to visit Mr. Wen today? How is his health? I stopped going to school at the beginning of the year, and I haven't seen Mr. Wen for half a year. I don't know how he is doing." Gu Beichen said rapidly.
Su Fengzhang didn't know what he meant, but he still smiled and said, "Mr. Wen is in good health, just like before."
Gu Beichen patted his thigh and said, "As long as Mr. Wen is in good health, I'm glad."
This man was talking nonsense and had nothing serious to say, but he talked all the way from the gate of the county town to the door of his home.
Su Fengzhang was also confused by him and asked, "Brother Gu, I'm almost home. Is your home also in this direction?"
"Yes, just go around the front and you'll get there." Gu Beichen said with a smile.
Su Fengzhang was not familiar with him and was skeptical about what he said.
Gu Beichen looked towards Yuexi Village and said, "Brother Su, we've had a great time chatting today. It's just that it's getting late and I should go back. Why don't I visit you another day and we can continue our conversation?"
Not knowing what he was up to, Su Fengzhang casually replied, "My family is still in mourning, so it's not convenient to entertain them."
Gu Beichen added: "Yes, yes, it was my negligence."
"Brother Su, goodbye."
As soon as he left, Su Fengzhang felt even more puzzled. Did he catch up with him just to say those nonsense?
After Gu Beichen left, Second Uncle Su asked, "Was that the grandson of Village Chief Gu?"
"Liangzhang Gu?" The village they belonged to included a large area outside Hushan County, and the village head was not from their village. Su Fengzhang had no memory of that village head at all.
Uncle Su explained, "Gu, the village head of Xinghua Village, has a third brother and a son. Back then, the second son went into business. I heard that because of this, they almost severed their relationship. It's unclear whether he eventually became a businessman."
"The young man just now looked like the eldest son of the second brother's family. I saw him once when I went to Xinghua Village to discuss something."
Su Fengzhang thought about it and felt that he should have been registered as a merchant. So no matter how good Gu Beichen was at studying, he would never be able to pass the imperial examination in his lifetime. He must have spent so many years in the private school not just for studying.
He blinked and suddenly thought of a possibility.
"I didn't expect that you have such a good relationship with him. The Gu family is quite influential in our area." Uncle Su said.
"Not very familiar with it." Su Fengzhang didn't say much.
When they arrived at the door of the house, Uncle Su helped to carry the things in, but he left quickly without even consuming a sip of water.
Su Zhao thought about it and asked Su Lanzhang to make another trip and send an extra box of mooncakes.
She has always preferred to be more polite than to owe favors to others, even to her second uncle Su's family.
Su Fengzhang originally thought that after Gu Beichen left, they would have less contact in the future. However, who knew that Gu Beichen would come to his house in person the next day, bringing a lot of local gifts.
He came directly to the door, and the gift he brought was not expensive, and it was a festival gift, so it was difficult to refuse.
Gu Beichen just smiled and said, "Actually, I'd like to stay a little longer and have a good chat with Brother Su, but it's not convenient after all. It won't be too late to wait three years. Brother Su, we can also exchange letters."
Since he sent something over, the Su family naturally had to return the favor. As a result, they became friends.
On the contrary, the reaction from the county government was slower. It took three days before someone came to return the gift, and this time it was not Butler Ding.
As a favorite of the county magistrate, Steward Ding couldn't come in person every time, but the things he prepared were very appropriate.
Just as Su Fengzhang thought, those who were still willing to interact with their family would naturally send people to return the gifts, while those who didn't want to interact would disappear without a trace, so he would know to avoid them next time.
All this was within Su Fengzhang's expectations, but the Gu family was a surprise.
Compared with the officials far away in the county, the reputation of Gu Lizhang is more famous in the village. Gu Beichen mobilized a large number of people to come here, and soon everyone in the village knew about it. From time to time, women came to the door and asked for news while talking.
Gu Beichen himself did not show up again, but after a while he sent a servant to deliver a letter.
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