First Minister of Ming Dynasty

First Minister Section 492

Hu Yan was a little older and had a high emotional intelligence. He smiled and said, "Uncle and nephew are naturally a family... In fact, Shu Ning said, you run a boat on the river to do business, right? You often deliver newspapers!"

Zhu Ying blinked her eyes, so in the eyes of her nephew, this is what she did?

Well, that's what you say it is.

He suddenly laughed, "I heard that you have built a bookstore, and I have been in business for a few years. I have some connections, do you need me to help you?"

A few children looked at Zhang Shuning subconsciously, and said to themselves that you are the master!

Zhang Shuning didn't know why Zhu Ying came, so he asked tentatively: "Second Uncle, you come, does my father know?"

Zhu Ying chuckled, good boy, quite cautious.

"Your father is so busy, how can he take care of me! Don't worry, kid, I'm here for business, and you want me to pay you money, that's impossible! Tell me, what are you going to do? I Listen to your plan."

Zhang Shuning blinked, and could only say: "We have acquired several small bookstores and merged them together. The new site is already being prepared. With the compulsory education order from the imperial court, we can cooperate with Xingzi County and Jilin County. The Minxuetang applied for a piece of land. Brother Hu is trying to figure out a way to do this, we think Mr. Lacy will come over, and it will be more convenient if he is around."

Zhu Yingdao: "This Mr. Qi is from your school?"

"Hmm! His name is Qi Tai. Not only is he a scholar, but he also served as a food chief. He escorted food to Beijing on time and was appreciated by His Majesty. He was originally called Qi De, and His Majesty gave him the name Qi Tai! It is very respected!" Hu Yan explained.

"The study of the Zhang family? What is the study of the Zhang family?"

Zhang Shuning hurriedly said: "It's the knowledge of Mr. Zhang, the right minister. Everyone in and out of the school admires Mr. Zhang!"

"Oh! So that's the case! What about you? You also admire Mr. Zhang?" Zhu Ying asked with a smile.

Zhang Shuning's face was slightly red, and he lowered his head and said: "Mr. Zhang is a man of immortals, versatile in both civil and military affairs, assisting the country and governing the people, and a virtuous minister in the world...I, I am fortunate enough to follow my father to take a look at Mr. Zhang from a distance, and I am already satisfied. , Sansheng is lucky."

Seeing Zhang Shuning's flushed smiling face, Zhu Ying was overjoyed.

I will tell my elder brother your evaluation later, and he promises to be very happy.

However, Zhu Ying rolled her eyes and said: "Mr. Qi, since you have been named by His Majesty, you must be proud and arrogant. It may not be your blessing to let him participate in business affairs. I propose to you, directly Go to the head of the mountain, and in your name, go talk to the academy...By the way, is there any adult among you who can handle it on your own?"

Several people looked at each other, Zhang Shuning was the first to say: "That is Xia Zhifeng's father, he is a veteran in the army, and now he is opening a tavern."

"That's all right!" Zhu Ying said with a smile: "Veterans have preferential treatment for doing business. It is also beneficial to run a bookstore and help educate people. If you invite him to talk with the school, you will definitely get a good result... Jimin The school is second to none in the south, and if the Jimin School is settled, things will be easier to handle later.”

Zhang Shuning nodded and agreed with Zhu Ying's opinion.

"Uncle... I still have some doubts now. We only have dozens of craftsmen. It may not be easy to win such a big business."

Zhu Yingdao: "Why, you want me to invest? Or lend you some money?"

Zhang Shuning quickly shook his head, "No, I will find a way to borrow money from the bank... I am thinking about how to recruit workers, and what about printing ink, paper, movable type, etc.? Where can I go? buy?"

After a pause, Zhang Shuning added: "It must be of good quality and low price, but the quality should not be too bad. Second Uncle can show me the way."

Zhu Ying secretly smiled, my nephew is quite strong, tell me, the second uncle has so many talents under his command, he has already done it for you, so do you need to worry about it?

But since the child said it, he must help find a way.

"Let's talk about recruiting first... In fact, this is the simplest. Think about it, studying is not cheap now! Especially Jimin School, from elementary school, to elementary school, to middle school, to university... the whole set , almost 20 years old, studying hard for ten years, ordinary people, it is really difficult. You just need to recruit the parents and relatives of the students, and give them more wages. For the children to study, they will definitely do their best. When you meet the holidays, you We can also recruit some students, the wages don’t need to be too high, just subsidize the living expenses.”

Zhang Shuning nodded slightly, and several other people had already shown expressions of surprise, this second uncle is very capable!

"Let's talk about the materials... I'll pack this paper!"

"You? Have you?" Zhang Shuning hesitated, he didn't know when Zhu Ying got this business.

"I just made it recently. It was an idea given to me by your father. He said that after the sugar cane is squeezed, the bagasse left over is too wasteful. It can actually be used to make paper. I'm going to set up a papermaking workshop... Don't worry." , I will give you a [-]% discount on the paper you need!"

Zhang Shuning paused, but did not agree immediately, but said: "If our business grows, we will need a lot of paper. If the second uncle's paper is really good, I can purchase it at the original price, but the supply must be guaranteed first. If the paper If it comes out, the quality is not up to standard, I, I'd better go to Xuancheng, and ask grandpa to contact me, he also knows some old friends."

Zhu Ying rolled her eyelids and said to herself, boy, even I am on guard!

"Okay! Whatever you say is what you say, what kind of movable type are you talking about?"

"It's wooden movable type!" Zhang Shuning said: "In Jiangxi, there is a senior named Wang Zhen who improved the movable type method. It just so happens that I have two seniors who understand this craft and can make movable type, but they lack good wood materials."

Zhu Ying nodded, "It's done. It's not difficult to get you some good wood when I come back from the next shipment. But you have to give me the market price, no discount!"

Zhang Shuning nodded, "Okay, I understand."

Zhu Ying said again: "The other thing is ink. You know Yingtian's newspaper printing workshop, right? They already have ink for special use. Do you think they bought it, or?"

"Get a share!" Zhang Shuning said: "I'll buy [-]% of the shares, not too much, just to ensure the quality and quantity of supply..."

Zhu Ying was startled, the little guy was quite polite, "Then do you need my help?"

Zhang Shuning shook his head, "I told Xia Zhifeng's father, let him work hard, and the printed books in the future will also be sent to Yingtian. There should be no harm in getting familiar with the business route."

Zhu Ying laughed loudly, and couldn't help touching his nephew's forehead.

You little guy, you still pay attention everywhere, and you don't leak any water!

"Okay, I'm so annoyed to talk to you about business as soon as I come here... Prepare some wine and food for my second uncle, I want to have a big meal."

Zhang Shuning agreed without hesitation, and went to the kitchen to make arrangements.

And the others are all friends, they all looked at it stupidly, even the oldest Hu Yan, who was running a business, didn't know much about it.

But even so, they could tell that this second uncle not only knew everything, but also had a deep relationship, almost omniscient and omnipotent!

Is this still an ordinary boat runner?

"Well, second uncle, is your business big?" Xu Guan asked tentatively.

Zhu Ying chuckled, "It's not big, I just earn some living expenses. There is no way, the family has a lot of money, and there are a bunch of bastards who always go to my house to steal things. Life is very difficult!"

"Steal? Why didn't you catch it? Sue?"

Zhu Ying was startled, he also wanted to sue, but the problem is that the government is run by others.

"That... I was just joking, you guys are serious, but they are all relatives and friends, there is no way!"

At this time, Xia Zhifeng suddenly said, "Then, how many people are in your family?"

Zhu Ying paused for a moment, then smiled and said: "There are indeed many. Zhang Wang, Li Zhao are everywhere, and the Zhang family is originally a rich family. There are people everywhere."

"Oh!"

Xia Zhifeng nodded subconsciously. In fact, what she wanted to ask was whether the Zhang family was very prominent?There are so many people, maybe it should be like this!

At this moment, there was a voice outside, and a man came in. He was Xia Zhifeng's father.Ordinary people can't come to Zhang's house, but Xia Zhifeng always runs this way, and Father Xia also knows Zhang Shuning, it's human nature to come here occasionally to ask his daughter to go back for dinner.

After he walked in, he saw a few children, and then saw Zhu Ying, and he was stunned...

Chapter 684 Your Father Is Coming

Xia Zhifeng returned to her home. Her room was next to the tavern. It was a section of the house. It was not big, but it was very cozy. More than [-]% of the handwritten books were obtained from Zhang Shuning.

The little girl has a thin and small body, leaning on the table, sometimes writing quickly, sometimes frowning and thinking, this is the daily behavior of this little girl.

And since she was five years old, Xia Zhifeng has learned to clean up the house by herself, tidy up, wash clothes and sheets, and do simple needlework... His father never stepped into his daughter's room easily.

Father Xia's feelings for this daughter are very conflicted.May I ask which father doesn't treat his daughter like a jewel in his palm?But the problem is that after giving birth to Xia Zhifeng, his wife died not long after.

But this daughter's eyebrows and eyes are very similar to her mother, so there is always a thorn in Xia's heart.

At the beginning, he was a little alienated from his daughter, and he was more willing to play with his tavern business, as if deliberately avoiding it, but when he realized that something was wrong, it was already a bit late.

This girl of mine has shown a unique ability. When she was three years old, she walked around the outside of Mengxue and could remember the content read aloud inside.

Mr. Mengxue took her in occasionally and asked her to sit in. Within a few days, Xia Zhifeng memorized a semester's lessons... She quickly learned to read and write. The husband was even more surprised and tried to teach her arithmetic. Her comprehension Extremely high, a child under five years old can beat Mr.

It made my husband have to go to find Father Xia.

Good news for you, there is a child prodigy in your family, the only problem is that this child prodigy is a girl!

Father Xia is not so repulsive, but he doesn't know how to cultivate a child prodigy... He can only try his best to help his daughter buy pens, ink, paper and inkstone, and take her to the bookstore occasionally, or to attend open classes in Jimin School.

As an ordinary father, there is really not much he can do.

In this way, Xia Zhifeng grew up to be seven years old, and Father Xia didn't know what this girl had learned.By that time, one thing was certain, she was far smarter than her peers.

This made Father Xia both happy and terrified.

Does Wenquxing still have a daughter?

Just when he was confused, Zhang Shuning appeared. This boy was slightly older than Xia Zhifeng, clean, tidy, and well-mannered... At first, Father Xia didn't think much of it. After all, because his daughter was too smart, he had almost no playmates of the same age.

After all, a smart one came, Father Xia was quite happy.

But gradually, he discovered something unusual.

This little guy named Zhang Shuning has a surprisingly many books at home!

This is not something that can be solved with money. Father Xia remembers that when he was in the army, every time he captured a city, he first seized the treasury and sealed up the books.

These things are more important than food and money. Those valuable books will be sent to Mr. Zhang.

Although Father Xia has never been there, he has heard of it.

So if you want to collect a lot of books, especially now, you need not only money, but also influence.

In addition, Zhang Shuning also went to Yingtian not long ago, which made people's imagination run wild.

After he came back, he bought a bookstore and printed cards. Obviously, these are not things that ordinary children can do.

All kinds of doubts accumulated until today, when Father Xia saw Zhu Ying with his own eyes.

In a daze, Dad Xia seemed to have seen it somewhere.Although he couldn't tell for sure, he was familiar with it.Moreover, Father Xia could clearly feel that the murderous aura on the other party still had a trace of nobility.

It gives people the feeling that he should be a general in the army, and he is of a high status...but he said that he is a merchant who sails a boat.

Father Xia didn't believe it.

After returning from Zhang's house, he thought for a long time before coming to his daughter's room.

"Feng girl, can you, can you less associate with that Zhang Shuning?"

Hearing these words, Xia Zhifeng's eyes widened instantly, and a burst of anger rushed straight to the top of his head, as if it was about to explode.She felt aggrieved. All along, she had no friends. She managed to meet a friend and met so many people. She could do what she liked and read so many books.

Then the old man suddenly told himself that it is too unreasonable to have less contact with the other party.

In the past, Xia Zhifeng might have cried a lot, arguing with her father while crying.

But after being in contact with Zhang Shuning for a long time, Xia Zhifeng still learned some skills from this little friend.Zhang Shuning's biggest feature is calmness and rationality.

He has a calmness that adults don't have.

In fact, it could be seen in the confrontation with his second uncle.The second uncle tried his best to give him benefits and wanted to help him solve his difficulties.But Zhang Shuning has been carefully screening, eating the sugar coating and throwing the shells back.

In fact, Zhu Yuanzhang helped Zhang Shuning develop this habit.

Who made this year after year to covet Zhang Shuning, wishing to turn the little guy into his son-in-law.

Not to mention that things backfired, but also made Zhang Shuning understand a simple truth, no one will treat you well for no reason.This is the same when it comes to close relatives.

This is not to say that relatives and elders have no good intentions, but at some key points, they will influence your choice.

For example, you accepted Lao Zhu's enthusiasm, and then His Majesty offered a marriage, can you refuse?

Not agreeing is ungrateful and heartless.

But then again, is being a son-in-law that good?

Throughout the ages, with so many foreign relatives, how many are satisfied?

If you can't easily accept His Majesty's kindness, you can't easily accept your uncle's kindness either!

Xia Zhifeng appreciated this unique calmness and rationality. She resisted the urge to get angry and asked, "Why? Can you give me a reason? If you don't give a reason and just use your father's status to suppress me, although I have nothing to do, But I won't be convinced either."

The daughter's words made Father Xia feel bad in advance, and he couldn't blame his daughter with a sullen face.

I can only sigh and say: "Nothing else, I just think their family is extraordinary, his uncle is very aggressive, not like an ordinary person. I am afraid that you will meet bad people, you are a little girl, you have to learn to protect yourself."

Xia Zhifeng was startled, and then asked, "That's all?"

Dad was taken aback, "That's all!"

"Then you don't have to worry!" Xia Zhifeng said with a smile: "I also know that Zhang Shuning is very unusual, but he is an honest and kind person, and he will not hurt me. As for his identity, I believe that one day, he will be with me. You said it. It’s not a good habit to pry into other people’s secrets. Moreover, the sage Kong said that no one is as good as himself in making friends. Zhang Shuning is so much better than me, and you can learn a lot from being friends with him.”

Father Xia was stunned, what should I say?

Zhang Shuning's child is indeed not a bad person. It seems that it's okay for his daughter to make friends with him... But why is my heart empty?

Father Xia was stunned for a long time, but finally he didn't say anything, but patted the girl on the shoulder, "Remember to take care of yourself, don't let father worry."

Xia Zhifeng looked carefully, and she suddenly found that her father's sideburns were somewhat gray, he was not yet 40 years old!

"Father, I won't let you down. I've heard that women can also be officials and do business. I will learn my skills well and take care of you. Don't worry!"

Father Xia looked at the serious girl, and suddenly couldn't help laughing.