Chapter 26: Best Friends Will Become Enemies
Zhao Xiangxiang, the top prostitute in Nuan Yu Pavilion, redeemed herself and followed Liu Yong out of Bian Jing City and headed towards Hangzhou City.
This incident caused some minor disturbances in the city of Bianjing.
After all, both Zhao Xiangxiang and Liu Yong are celebrities, and their departure together would naturally give people something to talk about.
Lu Sen didn't know about this, and even if he knew, he wouldn't be interested.
During this period, he stayed at home and did not go out.
Apart from jogging around the yard in the morning to exercise and practicing calligraphy, most of the time was spent studying the system formula.
There are more than 10,000 recipes, and he looks for those which he currently needs and has the conditions to make.
I have to admit that without a search function, it is quite difficult to find something practical that can be made at the moment among tens of thousands of recipe columns.
It took him five days to finally find something he could use.
A furnace only requires 8 units of stone to build.
Iron can be smelted...but Lu Sen doesn’t want to use more advanced resources like iron blocks for the time being.
There was no open-air iron mine near the city of Bianjing, and things like salt and iron were not something that anyone but the government could touch.
The furnace has another function, which is to make glass.
For this purpose, Lu Sen took Hei Zhu to the river outside the city, scooped up a lot of sand, and then threw it into the furnace along with wooden blocks of the same unit.
Wooden blocks are used as firewood.
After a while, ten pieces of crystal clear glass came out of the furnace, reflecting bright white light in the sun.
"My dear, it's colored glaze, colored glaze!" Hei Zhu rubbed his hands together, extremely excited: "Sand can be made into colored glaze, this is truly a miracle."
Jin Lingqin was watching from the side and blinking. She was not very well-informed, having always lived in a homeless street. She had no idea that glass was very valuable in that era.
Lu Sen used the synthesis function to turn ten pieces of glass into four bottles, eight teacups, and two teapots.
Of course...these glassware are all square in shape, without any carvings or patterns.
But even so, the pure glass shines brightly under the bright light, is of high quality, has no bubbles or wrinkles, and is a single piece. It is still beautiful just to look at.
Hei Zhu exclaimed: "This set of glassware can definitely be exchanged for a large courtyard in Tokyo City."
Lu Sen shook his head: "I guess it can't be changed."
The glass from the Northern Song Dynasty is indeed very expensive, but it is not to the level of a rare treasure.
Firstly, commercial transactions in the Northern Song Dynasty were very developed, and many foreigners came from thousands of miles away to Bianliang City to sell their goods, including many glass products.
Secondly, the Northern Song Dynasty also had its own official glass kiln, which was able to produce many high-quality glass products.
So for ordinary people, glass is a luxury, but for dignitaries, it is a necessity.
Anyone with a little status would have one or two beautiful glass objects at home.
Hei Zhu said seriously, "But this is the colored glass made by my husband. It is not ordinary colored glass. It is naturally invaluable. Those who know the value of it will know that it is more than enough to exchange for a large courtyard."
Lu Sen burst out laughing when he heard this. Hei Zhu is quite good at flattering people.
But Jin Lingqin was still responding, thinking that Heizhu was right, and nodded continuously.
Picking up a bottle, Lu Sen went to the east corner, opened the beehive, and filled a whole bottle with honey.
The transparent and shiny bottle and the golden and transparent honey look like high-end products no matter how you look at them.
After putting the bottle into the gift box, Lu Sen said, "Heizhu, you and I will go visit the Yang family, and Ringo will continue to guard the house."
Jin Lingqin nodded repeatedly, and then said timidly: "My dear, please come back soon."
"Okay." Lu Sen smiled and touched the little guy's head.
The two men went out into the yard and saw the Ding brothers kneeling again for today's feast.
At this time, the backs of the two men were already pricked by the brambles, with old gray-brown scars crisscrossing each other, and new blood-red scars appeared.
But their expressions remained resolute.
Lu Sen still didn't even look at them, but just walked past them.
Naturally, Heizhu would not have any sympathy for these two people.
After Lu Sen left the hill for a while, the sound of knocking was heard in the yard.
This is Jin Ringo practicing the bow again.
Now she could hit the stationary target with a high accuracy when standing fifty steps away.
Three out of every ten arrows will hit the center of the target, and the others will not miss the target.
Ding Zhaolan turned his head and watched Ringo practicing for a while, then suddenly called out, "The little girl in the yard."
Jin Lingqin stopped, turned around and looked at Ding Zhaolan with suspicion.
Ding Zhaolan smiled widely: "Yes, I'm calling you."
Jin Ringo walked over and looked at the two of them through the wooden fence.
She wouldn't just leave the yard now.
"What do you two uncles want me to do?"
Jin Ringo is kind after all. After all, he is a child with a soft heart.
I see the two uncles kneeling outside the door every day, rain or shine.
Like yesterday afternoon, it rained heavily. There was no water in the yard, but butterflies and bees were flying around in the grass and flowers. She could even watch the rain through the fence, but the two uncles outside the yard were soaked like drowned rats.
It looks pitiful.
But in fact, she didn't know that the heavy rain yesterday and the completely different scene inside and outside the courtyard really shocked the Ding brothers.
They became more determined to become apprentices and learn skills.
Looking at the little girl's face, which had become much healthier, Ding Zhaolan said, "My dear, your husband didn't teach you how to draw a bow and shoot an arrow, did he?"
Jin Ringo shook his head.
Of course, Lu Sen himself didn’t know the correct archery posture...he just had to shoot the arrow .
Anyway, there is a hit correction, so as long as the accuracy is not too off, the arrow will find the target by itself.
"That's right, your archery posture is wrong." Ding Zhaolan knelt on the ground, looked up and said: "When pulling the bow, you should use these two fingers to hold the arrow, and then your waist should be tilted like this, and your body and hips should be straight in a straight line..."
Although he was kneeling, Ding Zhaolan was still able to make poses with his lower body. After explaining the correct posture for drawing a bow, he said, "It is easier to exert force this way, which can save some energy and is also easier to aim."
Jin Lingqin was half-believing and half-doubting, so she learned the posture right there, shot an arrow, and it missed the target... The arrow was way off target.
But she did feel that it was much easier to draw the bow and it saved her some effort.
Then she returned to her original archery practice position, and after trying a few arrows, her hit rate increased significantly.
Five out of ten arrows hit the exact center of the target, and the other arrows were also very close to the center of the target .
Ding Zhaolan knelt down and saw this scene. She licked her dry lips and said, "She is really talented. If she can cultivate internal energy, she will be the best archer in the world."
His younger brother Ding Zhaohui said, "I guess he doesn't care about the fame and nicknames in the martial arts world anymore. Isn't it better to be a servant among the immortals on earth than to go out into the martial arts world and fight with others?"
Ding Zhaolan smiled bitterly and said, "That's true."
Back to Lu Sen, when he appeared at the gate of Tianbo Yang Mansion with Hei Zhu, it was still Uncle Qi who was guarding the gate.
This does not mean that the Yang family regards Uncle Qi as an dispensable servant, but rather it is a manifestation of trust.
As a big and wealthy family, the groups you come into contact with are very diverse, from the lower to the upper levels .
A qualified doorman must be able to identify the visitor's identity at the first possible moment and whether it is necessary to notify the host to greet the visitor in person.
Are they here to extort money or to cause trouble?
When encountering troublemakers, one must be able to deal with them flexibly, that is, to get rid of the trouble without damaging the reputation of the host family.
In short... being a doorman in a wealthy family requires sufficient experience and understanding of human nature.
The weather was still hot at this time. Uncle Qi was standing at the door, fanning himself to cool down. When he saw Lu Sen and Hei Zhu coming over, he was startled for a moment, then he immediately came up to them, clasped his hands together and said, "Lu Xiaolang, I haven't seen you for a while."
"Old Qi, I haven't seen you for a few days. You look good." Lu Sen clasped his fists and said with a smile, "Can you please let them know that I, Lu Sen, am here to visit you?"
"Please wait a moment! I will go and inform the old lady and Madam Mu right away."
Seeing Lu Sen’s formal visit, Uncle Qi stopped talking nonsense and immediately turned back to the yard.
At this time in the Northern Song Dynasty, servants referred to their mistresses as "Madam".
If there are several mistresses, they are distinguished by titles such as the First Madam and the Second Madam.
Lu Sen and Hei Zhu stood at the door and waited quietly, while looking at the yard of Yang's house.
My first reaction was that it was loud, and then it was very quiet, with almost no one to be seen.
In a normal wealthy family, one should see servants working in the yard in groups of three or four at this time.
Not long after, Uncle Qi walked out quickly and said, "Lu Xiaolang, please follow me. The old lady and Madam Mu are waiting for you in the inner hall."
Inner hall!
Lu Sen was stunned for a moment, then followed Uncle Qi into Yang's mansion.
Walking on the winding bluestone path, Lu Sen also looked at the internal layout of the Yang family.
This was the first time that Lu Sen actually walked into the garden of a wealthy family.
He had traveled to Hangzhou before and visited two or three ancient Hangzhou gardens.
There are four rivers running through the city of Bianjing, which is a water city like Hangzhou. Therefore, the architectural layout of the city of Bianjing is actually quite similar to that of Hangzhou.
They all focus on the integration of pools, rockery, bridges and garden plants.
Anyway... you look at the scenery in front of you, it's like a dream or a painting.
But you just can't see what's deeper into the yard.
This is a kind of quiet beauty of deep and winding paths, which is especially liked by people with calm minds.
Led by Uncle Qi, Lu Sen passed through four moon-shaped doors before reaching the inner hall.
An old woman with gray hair sat in the main seat. Her face looked sallow and she seemed very sick.
There was a beautiful woman in red sitting next to him, with a golden hairpin in her bun, and she looked Lu Sen up and down with her peach blossom eyes.
Lu Sen stepped forward, bowed his hands and clasped his fists towards the old woman and said, "My boy Lu Sen, I pay my respects to Old Lady She."
Lady She took the initiative to stand up, and gestured to Lu Sen to stand up, and said kindly: "Good boy, no need to bow, no need to be so polite."
Lu Sen then bowed to the beautiful woman and said, "Greetings to Marshal Mu."
Mu Guiying stood up, bowed to Lu Sen with a smile, and then sat down again.
In fact, Mu Guiying no longer holds an official position, but she once served as the Grand Marshal of the Army. Although it was a nominal position, there was no problem in calling her the Grand Marshal.
Lu Sen turned around, picked up the wooden box from Hei Zhu's hand, presented it with both hands, and said, "I came here today to thank the old master for the land, gold, and fruit he gave me. This is just a small gift, not a sign of respect."
Uncle Qi walked up, took the wooden box with both hands, and placed it on the table next to the old man.
"We are all neighbors, why should we be so polite?" Old Lady She looked at Lu Sen and smiled happily: "Sit down first, no need to be so polite."
After Lu Sen sat down, Uncle Qi served tea to the three of them.
"It's a pity that Jinhua is away from home with her sisters. Otherwise, she would be very happy to see you as a guest." Old Lady She looked at Lu Sen's appearance and temperament, and smiled with satisfaction: "By the way, Lu Xiaolang, I heard that you grew up practicing in the mountains. Can you tell me the name of your master?"
"My master's surname is Xi and his name is Tong." Lu Sen clasped his hands together and said seriously, "He calls himself Taoist Feng Ling."
"This surname is quite rare. I have never heard of a Taoist master with this surname." Old Lady She recalled for a while, shook her head and said, "There is a Taoist Feng Ling in Zhongnan Mountain, but his surname is Zhang, and his Taoism is mediocre. He is definitely not the same person as Master Lu Xiaolang."
Mu Guiying was also recalling whether she had heard of this person's deeds.
"By the way, has Lu Xiaolang ever been engaged?" Lady She asked with interest.
Taking this as a signal, Mu Guiying also started chatting with Lu Sen.
The three of them asked and answered questions, talked and laughed, and the atmosphere was extremely harmonious.
Moreover, both parties tacitly did not mention the matter of the golden apple healing, as if it had never happened.
About two incense sticks later, Lu Sen made an excuse and left.
After all, there is only a widow and a daughter in the Yang Mansion now. If Lu Sen stays here for too long, people might gossip about him.
Even if Bao Zheng, the Eight Wise Kings and others came to visit the Yang family, their stay would not last more than two incense sticks.
Mainly to avoid suspicion.
After Lu Sen left, Mu Guiying stood up and sat next to Old Lady She, and said with a smile: "Old Lady, what do you think of this Lu Xiaolang?"
"He's a handsome guy. Although he seems unfamiliar with etiquette, he's a boy who understands human nature."
When Lu Sen spoke just now, some of his wording was wrong. After all, the way he spoke was different from that of the ancients.
But this doesn’t affect anything. Others can understand the general meaning and won’t take it too seriously.
After all, the Northern Song Dynasty was not a time when feudal ethics could be cannibalistic.
Mu Guiying nodded and said, "He is indeed handsome, three times more handsome than Zongbao. No wonder Jinhua couldn't forget him after seeing him. He didn't think of himself as our Yang family's benefactor. He is a generous person."
"It's just that he doesn't seem to have any interest in Jinhua." Old Lady She laughed helplessly, "In two incense sticks of time, he didn't mention Jinhua once."
Mu Guiying rubbed her brows worriedly: "It seems that Jinhua will have a hard time finding a place to put her feelings in the future."
"Your descendants will have their own blessings. Don't worry too much." Old Lady She pointed to the wooden box next to her and said, "Open it and see what gift Lu Xiaolang sent."
Mu Guiying nodded, opened the wooden box and took out the honey inside.
In the clean and transparent glass bottle, the bright golden thick liquid seemed to be glowing.
Mu Guiying opened the glass lid again, and the fresh fragrance of honey gushed out.
The smell was so good that the two women were stunned for a moment. Finally, Old Lady She shook her head and smiled, "Honey in a fine glass bottle must be something extraordinary. It seems that our family owes him another favor. No matter how much we try to pay him with gold flowers, we can't pay it back."
At this time, Yang Jinhua was a guest at the Prince of Runan's mansion.
In the red pavilion beside the clear pool in the west wing, she sat on a stone bench, eating the best cakes, and said with a smile: "So you have been confined for a month. The Prince of Runan must be scared."
"My Lord, he wouldn't be scared. He didn't even say a word when something happened. Instead, he punished me to establish his authority and banned me from leaving the house for a month."
Zhao Bilian looked helpless.
"No, that's not the case ." Yang Jinhua said with a smile, "Your father ran to Kaifeng Prefecture and pointed at Bao Fuyin's nose and cursed him for nearly an hour. The news spread throughout the city."
"What does this have to do with Prefect Bao?" Zhao Bilian was a little puzzled.
"The Prince of Runan County called Bao Fuyin a waste and a sycophant. He has been the prefect of Kaifeng Prefecture for more than half a year, but he can't even get rid of the worry-free cave." Yang Jinhua laughed: "This is probably the worst time that Bao Fuyin has been scolded. And I heard that the emperor also knew about this. He was very happy in the palace and said that the Prince of Runan County helped him vent his anger."
Zhao Bilian also chuckled, feeling a little touched and a little funny.
Back then, Bao Zheng was in the court, pointing his finger at the emperor's face and scolding him for half an hour because of political affairs. The emperor didn't dare to refute him, so he had to swallow his anger and return to the harem to complain to the concubines, feeling very aggrieved.
But when Zhao Bilian thought of her biological mother's miserable death, she still felt a little resentful towards her father, and her smile quickly disappeared.
"By the way, how is the boy who saved you?" Yang Jinhua didn't want to make her best friend unhappy, so she immediately changed the subject and asked curiously.
"So handsome." Zhao Bilian's cheeks were slightly red, and Shanlian's eyes rose and fell with her breathing.
"Ah, look at you, you're so horny." Yang Jinhua said with a sigh, and was a little envious: "You've only met someone once, and you want to get married? If Pang Meier comes back from Hangzhou and sees your slutty behavior, she'll definitely laugh at you."
Zhao Bilian put her hands on her hips, snorted, and said indifferently: "Pang Mei'er is arrogant and doesn't know what love is. With her personality, she may end up living alone in the future, with a green lamp and an ancient Buddha."
"I really don't understand you two. You obviously don't like each other, but you love to hang out together." Yang Jinhua shook her head helplessly. She peeled a fruit for herself and asked while biting the flesh with her pearly teeth: "By the way, what is the name of the boy who saved you? I'll help you choose one when I have time."
"Okay, okay! I'm under house arrest, so I can't thank him even if I want to." Zhao Bilian nodded repeatedly, her face full of joy: "Sister Jinhua, please help me find him first and say thank you. By the way, he has short hair and his last name is Lu Mingsen."
Yang Jinhua was stunned, and the fruit in her hand fell to the ground: "Uh...his name is Lu Sen?"
