He turned and gave Zhao Saozi a few instructions, took off his gloves, and walked up to Master Xu and Zheng Hao. Looking at Master Xu, he said, “Master Xu.”
Master Xu nodded, then said to Gu Lin, “I have some matters regarding your son that I need to discuss with you.”
Gu Lin glanced at Zheng Hao beside Master Xu and saw the boy give him a slight nod. His half-suspended heart settled down slightly as he said, “Please wait a moment, Master Xu. I will go have a few words with my sister-in-law and will be right back.”
“Mn,” Master Xu nodded and said.
Gu Lin walked back quickly to the cold dish stall and said to Zhao Saozi, “Saozi, I am going out for a little while. Later, once the braised food is sold out, you can just pack up the stall and head back.”
“Alright, go ahead and take care of your business,” Zhao Saozi said. By now, business was nearing its end, and there weren’t many customers left in front of the stall; Zhao Saozi could easily handle it alone.
After arranging everything, Gu Lin returned to Zheng Hao and Master Xu and said, “Master Xu, it is almost time for the midday meal. Let us go to an eatery first and talk while we eat. Would that be alright?”
Hearing Gu Lin’s words, Master Xu, whose face had been rigid, paused in surprise. He had come out to find Gu Lin today specifically for matters concerning Zheng Hao, and he hadn’t expected to eat outside.
Moreover, he understood the situation of the Zheng family father and son; the Zheng family relied entirely on the income of the morning cold dish stall to make a living. It was so hard-earned, so how could he possibly let the other party go to such an expense?
Seeing Master Xu remain silent, Gu Lin turned his head slightly to look at Zheng Hao.
Master Xu’s lips parted slightly, about to open them and refuse, when Zheng Hao spoke up from the side, “Master, the scholar class will be having its afternoon lesson soon.”
Hearing Zheng Hao’s reminder, Master Xu frowned slightly. The free time at noon was indeed far too short; even going out to handle a single task felt rushed.
Gu Lin said, “There are eateries nearby, and they are very close to Wuliu Academy. Once we go over and finish eating, it won’t delay you from returning for class.”
Master Xu pondered slightly and said, “Then I will accept your hospitality without declining.”
On the way to the eatery, because Master Xu was by their side, Zheng Hao walked behind him the entire time. Gu Lin didn’t find an opportunity to speak with him, so he still remained unaware of the reason Master Xu had sought them out.
However, thinking of how calmly and steadily Zheng Hao had always behaved, Gu Lin felt that it probably wasn’t anything major.
Therefore, he set his mind at ease and pondered which eatery they should go to for dinner.
There were several eateries in the county town, but he had never been to any of them. After thinking it over, Gu Lin was still afraid of accidentally stepping into a bad place, so he ultimately led Master Xu to Full Fortune Tower.
At this time, the main hall of Full Fortune Tower was packed with diners.
Manager Chen behind the counter had sharp eyes and spotted the three of them as soon as they walked in.
The two had just met that morning, but Manager Chen’s enthusiasm and smiles were not diminished in the slightest. He strode out from behind the counter in a few steps, walked up to Gu Lin, and said, “Boss Gu, welcome! What kind of strong wind blew you here?”
Gu Lin smiled, cupped his hands in a greeting, and then introduced Master Xu to Manager Chen: “This is Master Xu from Wuliu Academy, my foster son’s tutor. Manager Chen, do you still have any vacant tables in the house?”
Manager Chen had long since heard that Gu Lin had sent his son to study at the academy, and to Wuliu Academy, the most famous one in the county at that. Manager Chen had previously wanted to send his own son there as well, but had been turned away by Master Xu.
He pointed toward the second floor and said, “There is still a private room upstairs. Does Boss Gu think that will do?”
Before Gu Lin could reply, Master Xu behind him frowned slightly upon hearing Manager Chen’s words.
Having been in this world for over a month, Gu Lin was also familiar with certain social rules. Even though he was an elder brother accompanied by a child to see a tutor, in the eyes of outsiders, he and Master Xu would be alone together in a private room.
He shook his head slightly and said to Manager Chen, “There is no need to go to that much trouble. Just find us a table in the main hall.”
Manager Chen said, “Very well. There is a quiet table right by the window. I’ll have a waiter lead you over.”
“Then many thanks, Manager Chen,” Gu Lin said.
A waiter who was wiping tables in the distance was called over by Manager Chen and then led the three of them to the empty table by the window.
The three of them sat down in turn. The waiter bowed slightly and asked, “Patrons, what would you like to order?”
Gu Lin looked at Master Xu and asked, “What would Master Xu like to eat?”
Whether out of hospitality or because the other party was Zheng Hao’s tutor, Gu Lin had to ask for Master Xu’s opinion first.
Master Xu pondered for a moment and said, “Something light will do.”
Gu Lin nodded in agreement, then turned to look at Zheng Hao and asked, “And Xiao Hao?”
Zheng Hao replied as usual, “Uncle Gu can choose. Anything is fine with me.”
Therefore, based on Master Xu’s requirement for light dishes and his own understanding of Zheng Hao’s tastes, Gu Lin ordered steamed fish, stir-fried seasonal vegetables, deep-fried river shrimp, Dongpo pork elbow, crispy roasted duck, and mushroom-stewed chicken soup.
After the waiter left, Zheng Hao stood up, picked up the teapot on the table, poured a cup of tea for both Master Xu and Gu Lin, and then sat back down in his original seat.
Unlike when he was doing business where he had to endure and keep his opponents from seeing his true thoughts, Gu Lin didn’t need to hold back quite as much facing Master Xu. He asked him rather straightforwardly, “Master Xu, may I ask why you brought my son along today?”
Hearing the simple, straightforward words of the ge-er before him who didn’t understand how to be circumspect at all, Master Xu secretly shook his head. Fortunately, he had discovered the raw jade that was Zheng Hao early on, or else the boy would have been delayed.
However, thinking of how Gu Lin had relied on his own strength to send Zheng Hao to the academy for his studies, Master Xu felt that one who knows nothing is not at fault, and thought that perhaps Gu Fulang did not know how his son performed in the academy.
Gu Lin was far too familiar with this type of question. Even though he knew Zheng Hao wouldn’t cause trouble at the academy, his heart still skipped a beat.
He weighed his words and said, “Although I do not know Xiao Hao’s specific performance at the academy, he has always been sensible and reasonable, and he studies diligently at home without the slightest laziness.”
Gu Lin didn’t excessively boast about Zheng Hao, choosing instead to selectively mention things that were grounded in reason and fact.
Master Xu turned his head sideways to look at the young boy beside him, and thinking of the boy’s performance in the academy over the past month or so, a look of satisfaction surfaced in his eyes. He remarked that an idler youth makes a bitter old man, and added that it was wonderful Zheng Hao had such a diligent and studious heart.
With that, he turned his gaze back to Gu Lin, his expression turning serious: “Gu Fulang, your son’s academic progress in the academy has advanced by leaps and bounds. In merely a month, he has finished learning all the introductory texts. The introductory class is no longer suitable for him.”
Gu Lin had inquired about how many introductory books there were from the bookstorekeeper. On the day Zheng Hao successfully entered Wuliu Academy, Gu Lin had followed the list of book titles provided by the academy and taken Zheng Hao to buy more than ten introductory books. Even for an ordinary person, no matter how fast they were, it would take several years of effort to finish reading all those books, yet Zheng Hao had finished learning every single one of them in just a single short month.
An expression of utter disbelief surfaced on Gu Lin’s face. He turned to Zheng Hao and asked, “Xiao Hao, did you really finish learning all of them?”
When Gu Lin was studying back in school, he had also been a little genius. For the same piece of text, while others needed half an hour to memorize it, he could memorize it in three or four minutes. However, that was only the ability to memorize; as for understanding the text, the time he spent was about the same as his classmates.
But he wouldn’t compare Zheng Hao to himself. Judging by the fact that Master Xu had personally sought them out, it was clear that the other party valued Zheng Hao immensely. Why would a scholar suddenly place such high importance on a student who had just entered school not long ago? Unless the boy’s extraordinary talent had attracted him, and this so-called extraordinary talent wasn’t just memorizing all the books in a month, but also comprehending the meaning of the texts he memorized.
Viewed in this light, Zheng Hao must be the latter.
Zheng Hao said, “Uncle Gu, it is indeed as the Master says.”
Looking at Zheng Hao’s youthful yet distinct facial features at such a young age, and remembering the boy’s innate supernatural strength, Gu Lin felt he had once again committed an error of common sense.
He quickly accepted the extraordinary qualities Zheng Hao displayed, looked into the boy’s eyes, and asked, “Xiao Hao, do you want to advance your studies?”
Upon hearing Gu Lin’s question, this time Master Xu didn’t just frown; his entire face was suffused with displeasure, wondering what Gu Fulang meant by that and if he would simply agree just because Zheng Hao might say he was unwilling.
Master Xu thought it preposterous, but before he could speak, Zheng Hao looked earnestly at Gu Lin and said, “Uncle Gu, I want to advance.”
Actually, Zheng Hao wanted to say that not only did he want to advance his studies, but he also wanted to take the imperial examinations. Ever since Gu Lin’s adoptive parents attempted to bind and carry Gu Lin away using filial piety and ethics last time, Zheng Hao had felt a deep sense of insecurity.
He thought that whether it was the people in the town or the people in the village, everyone was terrified of yamen runners, and the yamen runners were terrified of the county magistrate. If he entered the officialdom through the imperial examinations in the future and became an official, would no one ever dare to snatch Uncle Gu away from his side again?
“Alright!”
Gu Lin had no idea what was going on in Zheng Hao’s mind. He felt that if a child loved to read and wanted to study, as a parent, he should give his full support.
Looking at the steady and disciplined child before him, Gu Lin couldn’t help recalling when he had asked the boy a month ago if he wanted to study, and the boy had refused on the grounds of wanting to become a bodyguard.
Now, merely a month later, the boy had changed. The hostility between Zheng Hao’s brows and in his eyes had slowly worn away, and his expression was gradually growing resolute, just like a drifting duckweed that had finally found its destination.
Watching the Zheng family father and son make a swift decision so contrary to conventional norms right in front of him, Master Xu withdrew the long-winded speech he had already prepared.
So be it. As long as the Zheng family father and son could make the correct decision, it didn’t matter if the process seemed a bit unfathomable.
It had to be said that Full Fortune Tower seemed quite adept at reading people’s expressions. As soon as the three of them finished discussing the matter, the dishes were immediately served onto the table.
Gu Lin knew that scholars in ancient times had many rules and etiquette, emphasizing that one should not speak while eating or sleep while resting, and that these rules must be strictly observed. Therefore, apart from warmly greeting Master Xu when the dishes first arrived, the three of them ate in silence, each eating their own food.
After finishing the meal, since the matter of Zheng Hao advancing his studies had been settled, the three of them did not linger. Gu Lin stood up and went to the counter to settle the bill.
Master Xu’s hand also moved toward the edge of his purse, but he wasn’t as fast as Gu Lin.
Ever since the other party brought him to Full Fortune Tower, Master Xu had prepared himself to pay the bill. Full Fortune Tower was the premier restaurant in the county town, and its consumption was high enough to terrify ordinary people. Even though the manager of Full Fortune Tower seemed friendly toward Gu Lin, Master Xu had been standing a few paces away at the time and hadn’t clearly heard the conversation between Gu Lin and Manager Chen.
Therefore, he assumed the manager of Full Fortune Tower was merely putting on a friendly front for external business. If Gu Lin tried to run a tab, it was highly likely the manager’s face would turn sour, so Master Xu had prepared to make up the shortfall in silver.
Unexpectedly, upon seeing Gu Lin and his party approach and seeing the young ge-er in front of him pull out silver to settle the bill, Manager Chen pushed his hand away and declined, explaining that the young master gave instructions long ago that when they came to the restaurant to eat, they did not need to spend money, and that the last time he found out money was taken, he was scolded directly.
Manager Chen was an old hand at Full Fortune Tower. The last time he negotiated the cold dish recipe business with Fang Jiyue, Gu Lin could see how much the manager valued Manager Chen. How could he let someone ruin an old employee’s feelings just because of an outsider?
Gu Lin didn’t like owing favors to others and said to Manager Chen, “Business is business. If you don’t take the money, I won’t dare to come here again.”
The smile on Manager Chen’s face, which had been like a Maitreya Buddha, instantly wrinkled together as he urged Boss Gu not to make things difficult for him.
Seeing that the young ge-er in front of him still refused to accept it, Manager Chen had no choice but to propose that since their young master arrived in the county town yesterday and happened to have free time that afternoon, the two of them could discuss it themselves.
Gu Lin raised an eyebrow. The other party had still been saying that Fang Jiyue was in the prefecture city that morning, so how had he arrived in the county town in the blink of an eye?
Manager Chen explained helplessly that he had only just found out the young master came over himself.
Gu Lin was noncommittal, but seeing that the other party was genuinely troubled and not putting on an act, he conceded that it would have to do.
Watching the three of them turn and leave Full Fortune Tower, Manager Chen couldn’t help shaking his head, thinking that this ge-er really was a stubborn bone and deciding to let the young master solve it himself.
Walking out of Full Fortune Tower, Wuliu Academy was nearby. Master Xu and Zheng Hao headed straight back to the academy, while Gu Lin parted ways with them and returned to the cold dish stall.
The cold dish stall had just been cleaned up. Gu Lin took the food he had packed from Full Fortune Tower and gave it to Zhao Saozi, telling her that since Xiao Hao still had classes in the afternoon, he had to wait for him in the county town, and she should go back first.
“Alright,” Zhao Saozi said.
Now Zhao Dagen’s injuries had not yet fully healed, and Zhao Saozi wasn’t at ease leaving home for long periods. Therefore, Gu Lin first helped Zhao Saozi carry the bamboo baskets out of the county town, then loaded all the bamboo baskets onto Uncle Zhang’s ox cart, and handed two copper coins to Uncle Zhang, instructing him that after getting back to Lower River Village, he should please drive the ox cart right up to Zhao Saozi’s front door.
After pocketing the copper coins, Uncle Zhang agreed readily.
After sending Zhao Saozi off, Gu Lin returned to the county town.
Normally, after he finished selling his cold dishes and braised food, Zheng Hao would just be finishing school, and they could return to Lower River Village together. But now that Zheng Hao had classes in the afternoon as well, Gu Lin couldn’t leave.
Instead of resting at a teahouse or an inn, he turned and walked toward the agency to look at houses.
As early as before, Gu Lin had already entertained the idea of moving out of Lower River Village and living in the county town.
Every day before dawn, he had to board an ox cart from Lower River Village to the county town to sell cold dishes, which was extremely arduous and exhausting. Making quick money for a short period was fine, but if this went on long term, his body definitely wouldn’t hold up. If he had a storefront in the county town, the situation would be entirely different. Coupled with the fact that Zheng Hao now had to spend the entire day studying at the academy, Gu Lin felt that moving to live in the county town was already an urgent matter.
Moreover, he had earned quite a bit of silver recently. Although he still couldn’t afford to buy a house in the county, he could rent one!
Gu Lin walked into the agency, and a man with a black mole by the corner of his lips stepped forward to introduce himself, stating that his surname was Ye and asking to be called Ye San, while inquiring how this Fulang should be addressed and what needs he had.
Gu Lin said, “My surname is Gu. I want to rent a house with a storefront in the county town.”
Ye San’s eyes rolled around as he smiled, addressing him as Gu Fulang and mentioning that he had several houses with storefronts available, while asking what specific requirements Gu Fulang had regarding the size of the house and the preferred street for the storefront.
Hearing the other party’s questions, Gu Lin pondered for a moment and said, “The house doesn’t need to be too big, and the storefront can be modest too. It’s best if it’s located in a place with heavy foot traffic.”
Thinking that although this Fulang wasn’t here to buy a house, renting out a good property would still be a solid deal for him since very few people could afford to purchase property in the county town, Ye San smiled and said he had three properties fitting that description that were not far from the agency, and offered to take him to look at them.
“Alright.”
Gu Lin followed behind Ye San as they stepped out of the agency.