Volume 5: Fellow Traveler Chapter 782: Lure with Profits
The Fourth Prince and Zhang Chen certainly understood that studying requires benefits. However, both of them were brought out by Zhang Shou suddenly. One of them didn't have time to bring money, and the other was penniless when he left the palace. Moreover, Zhang Chen's followers were all assigned by Zhang Shou, and the Fourth Prince brought Xiao Huasheng and Xiao Cheng, two stingy guys who would spend every penny carefully. How could they give benefits?
Even the candies that Yang Hao gave out to others to encourage them to study were bought with Yang Hao's own money... Just for this, Zhang Chen felt so embarrassed. This was the first time in his life that he felt that a hero could not be killed by a penny.
He had originally planned to use money to open the way, but Zhang Shou provoked him with a few words and he didn't react. He came out empty-handed and was then thrown into this poor and remote place by Zhang Shou...
What? This village is near Tongzhou. A lot of people here have never been to Tongzhou. The village chief has been there, but he told him very embarrassedly that the road was difficult to travel in this cold weather, and there were only a few livestock in the village, so he didn't dare to lend them to Tongzhou. Moreover, before Zhang Shou left, he had instructed that they should not let them run around, otherwise he would not be able to take the responsibility if something happened!
Thinking of the village chief's previous hint that Zhang Shou might have spies here, Zhang Chen couldn't help but complain when Zhang Shou said that they would not give any benefits: "Young Master, if you lend me two hundred strings of cash, I can certainly give you enough benefits, but I have no money now! Without money, I can't move an inch. You know these guys will not do anything without benefits, and they are making us waste our energy here!"
The Fourth Prince was used to playing the role of a good boy in front of Zhang Shou. He was not as direct as Zhang Chen. He stood up and walked around behind Zhang Shou to massage his shoulders. Then he whispered, "Teacher, I also want to give them some benefits, but after asking around, I found that the people here don't know how to spin or weave, nor do they know how to grow mulberry trees or raise silkworms. Moreover, their farming skills are just average."
"Although those overseas seeds are very productive, isn't it time for spring planting yet?" The fourth prince tried his best to show that he had also thought about it, and was not a rich man like Zhang Chen who only knew how to spend money. Seeing that Zhang Shou laughed and said nothing, he continued to speak eloquently, "Teacher, since you are here, why don't you give us some guidance?"
This time, he did not mention the word "bet" at all. You know, if this continues, the bet between him and Zhang Chen will become a joke - and if Luo Sanhe, who was unwilling to go with them and was taken to another village by Zhang Shou, wins, he will definitely want to hit his head against a wall and die!
Although Zhang Chen couldn't be as servile as the Fourth Prince, the Fourth Prince spoke first. He thought it was not a shame to ask Zhang Shou for advice, so he couldn't help but whispered, "I asked those guys before, don't you want to go into the city to have a look? There are big houses, silks and satins, fine wines and delicacies, and many beauties who are just like in paintings. But..."
He paused, his face darkened. "Those guys listened to the nonsense, but when they really talked about going to the city, they all shook their heads. Some said that staying in the city for one night would cost all the grain harvested in the family in a year, some said that one meal in the city is enough to feed the family for a month, and some said that the women in the city are deceitful and can cheat rich men into paupers. I don't know who said that!"
Zhang Shou heard Zhang Chen's words with gritted teeth. After a slight pause, he burst into laughter.
How is it that describing the city as a den of demons and monsters is so similar to adults scaring children by saying there is a big bad wolf on the back mountain? Seeing that the fourth prince was nodding his head desperately, he thought that he couldn't fool his friends, so he was very resentful. He smiled and asked, "Do you want to coax them to go to Tongzhou?"
Seeing that the two of them were silent, Xiao Cheng seemed to be hesitant to speak, so he continued with a half-smile: "I don't think Zhang Chen is going to Tongzhou City to ask for help from your Qin Guogong Mansion because he has no money and no help. So, this trip to the city is to let these country kids see how big the world is, so that they will want to go out and study hard?"
"It's a good idea. I've put some thought into it."
Zhang Chen was delighted that Zhang Shou would actually approve of his actions. But the next moment, Zhang Shou suddenly changed the subject and asked, "What about the expenses for going to the city? Have you told them that everything will be on your shoulders?"
"Of course Zhang Chen said so!"
This time, the Fourth Prince couldn't help but speak up for Zhang Chen. He didn't care that the two were rivals in the bet, and said hastily: "He told those guys at that time that they would go to Tongzhou with him to eat delicious food and drink spicy drinks, and pick out some new clothes. This promise was made clearly!"
"Very good... The question is, do people believe it?"
Zhang Shou asked again slowly, and then saw the two naughty kids look at each other and keep silent. He knew that these two poor guys who couldn't even afford to coax the kids had failed to gain people's trust. Of course, the village chief who was obviously too smart should also have been the one who instigated the incident.
"Look, you've been here for several days, but not only have you not made any progress, you may even be regarded as a playboy kicked out of your home. Isn't this very frustrating? If the King of Jiangdu and I hadn't come to visit you today, even if you continued to stay, what would the result be?"
"Instead of telling them to bring them to the city and let them enjoy the scenery of Tongzhou, it's better to tell them that as long as they study hard and do well, you can find them a job with an annual salary of 20 guan! You know, 20 guan is enough for a family like this to live on for a year. As for their elders, if they don't believe you..."
"Zhang Chen, can't you write a note and ask your elders to go to Tongzhou City to find the manager of your family's business, and then give that guy a short-term job for ten days or half a month, so that he can make a small fortune before the New Year? Zheng Yan, you can do the same thing, write a note and introduce someone to work in your sister Yingying's shop in Tongzhou City for a few days for a few days of work with little pay, isn't that enough?"
"I forbid you from directly looking for outside help to come to this village and disrupt your gambling, but I don't forbid you to give full play to your imagination. Remember, those who cheat are liars, and those who are good at deceiving people may very well be the prime minister or even the emperor himself. Everyone hates liars, but the latter deceive people, aren't there many willing people to take the bait?"
"Teacher, if the emperor hears you saying this, he will definitely scold you for talking nonsense!"
The fourth prince said this, but he was smiling happily. Zhang Shou came in person and explained the scale clearly, so it would be much easier for him to operate. Although he was not like Zhang Chen, who could freely deploy and squander the money and manpower of the Duke of Qin's mansion, Zhang Shou would not let this guy do whatever he wanted this time, and he would even out the situation by lending Zhu Ying's shop to him!
Zhang Shou just smiled at the Fourth Prince's words. Seeing Zhang Chen's eyes rolling around, he smiled and said, "But don't think of borrowing the property over there to send money and things to you. I have already informed Duke Qin, and the same goes for Yingying's property. By the way, I'll give you a hint. I used this trick when I was teaching in the village."
Seeing this, even the relatively honest Xiao Cheng blinked and looked at Zhang Shou, not to mention Zhang Chen and the Fourth Prince. However, the next moment, the three were stunned by the answer Zhang Shou gave.
"When reciting poems, those who can recite them will be given candy, but when reciting the Nine-Nine Song, it's up to whoever can recite it the fastest. When paying rent, we reduced the rent by half. I was afraid that some people wouldn't understand, so I specifically told them what it meant to reduce the rent by half."
"That means they can eat more white rice and white flour at home, that they won't have to eat coarse food just because there are so many people, and that they can make an extra piece of new clothing for the New Year..."
"Why did I pick out Xiao Qi and Deng Xiao Dai? Xiao Qi's father is at least a scholar, but Deng Xiao Dai's family has several children. Although his uncle is a minor official in Shuntian Prefecture, he can't take care of so many nephews. When Deng Xiao Dai first started learning, he didn't even know a few words, but because I said to pay half the rent, he took it to heart."
"He is indeed gifted. After I finished reading the Nine-Nine Song, he immediately jumped up and recited it word for word. He was even accused of cheating by other jealous children. However, he really couldn't read very well, and no one in the whole village could teach him except me, a lazy guy. Later, I kept my word and asked my mother to exempt them from half a year's rent."
At this point, Zhang Shou couldn't help but laugh. Back then, he really thought that the large piece of land nearby belonged to his family, and he was an invisible landlord. However, three years later, when he met Zhu Ying, he realized that Zhao Guogong Zhu Jing was just using the rent from the large piece of land to support him, the adopted son-in-law. Of course, the adopted son-in-law has now become a regular son-in-law, and Zhu Ying also brought the land as a dowry.
In the end, that piece of land really became his Zhang family's!
Zhang Chen and the Fourth Prince did not expect that Zhang Shou's thoughts had already gone wild. When they heard about Zhang Shou's extraordinary reward...or incentive, their minds suddenly opened up, and they thought about how they could start from Zhang Shou's approach and then carry forward this incentive method.
The two of them were no longer the children of the rich and powerful who did not know the world, so they certainly knew what half of the rent meant to ordinary people. But if this was their own farm, they could certainly do so. The problem was that Baijia Village was not their farm, so how could they fight for rent exemption?
Seeing Zhang Chen and the Fourth Prince flirting with each other, clearly racking their brains to come up with a solution, Zhang Shou smiled and gave another hint: "Miss Ye is not here just to make a judgment. She is a relative of the landlord of Baijia Village. If you want to waive the rent, you will have to pay for it in the future. So if you can persuade her, it will actually be very convenient for you to do things."
"In short, if you want to give benefits, you must remember that you can't just talk about it, you have to let people see the tangible benefits."
"Don't mention the saying that there is no profit but to get up early. The world is bustling with people, all for profit. The common people, livelihood is the most important. You can't pay a penny, and you are just empty talk, who will believe you!"
"Don't worry, young sir. I really understand this time!" Zhang Chen patted his chest, then glanced at the fourth prince whose eyes were rolling around, and suddenly said, "However, should the bet between me and Zheng Yan continue? I'm not saying that he is too young and it's not easy for him to gain trust. Why don't I bear the grievance and take him with me?"
"Who asked you to take them with me!" The fourth prince retorted instinctively. But after he said that, he saw Zhang Shou looking at him with a half-smile. He thought about how he and Xiao Huasheng and Xiao Cheng had visited the market to do research and make plans, so he was quite prepared. But he was suddenly thrown into this small village and was dumbfounded and unable to move. He finally whispered, "I still have Xiao Huasheng and Xiao Cheng!"
Xiao Cheng didn't think too much, and nodded directly, saying: "Mr. Zhang, this is a good suggestion. There are only five of us, and they don't trust us very much yet. If you still bet with Mr. Zhang, the power will be dispersed, and maybe there will be no results in a month... But, Brother Zhang, do you think this Baijia Village can really select talents?"
"Who knows?" Zhang Shou casually said something that made people feel confused, but when he saw Zhang Chen and the Fourth Prince staring at each other, although the eyes were like the collision of swords and guns, and produced extraordinary sparks, in the end, neither of them denied suspending the bet and working together for a win-win situation, he couldn't help but laugh.
Outside the door, the village chief wanted to approach Zhang Shou and curry his favor, but was deterred by the gaze of Zhang Shou's followers. He was really curious about what Zhang Shou was saying to them. He thought he could easily get the details of the two young masters in the past few days, but it turned out that one of the three followers was carefree but tight-lipped, and the other two were not easy to deal with, one was smart and the other was good at martial arts.
What made it hard for him to start with were the two young masters, one big and one small. They were actually determined to pick out some talented people from Baijia Village... Not to mention that he didn't quite believe that this was their real purpose. The farmers didn't believe it either. Plus, the Ye family was more famous in Tongzhou, so there were even more people who tried to send their children to work for the Ye family.
As for studying...it's so troublesome. Even if you finish your studies, can you still pass the imperial examination?
So, when Zhang Shou came out of the house, the village chief, who had been waiting in the cold wind, immediately ran over to greet him. But before he could say anything, Zhang Shou laughed and said, "It seems that the two people inside are keeping their mouths shut. You still don't know their origins, right?"
Seeing the village chief's embarrassed look, he said directly: "The one who is about my age is the eldest son of the Qin State."
Facing the answer to Zhang Shou's mystery, the village chief's expression of astonishment flashed for a moment, and then he smiled and said no wonder, but in his heart he was thinking, since the eldest child is the eldest son of Duke Qin, then the other child's surname is Zheng, could he be a royal relative? The place is remote, and the rumors he heard about Zhang Shou were already outrageous, so he didn't even think of the fourth prince.
Zhang Shou revealed Zhang Chen's identity, paused, and said to the village chief with a smile: "Next, if they have anything to do, you will do your best to help them. Not to mention that they are really doing it this time, even if they just come here to play, what they can find through their fingernails is enough to change the future of this village."
"Didn't you tell Mr. Yang that you envied my village? Now is a good opportunity. Don't be carried away by unnecessary speculation and suspicion."
