Wuzhai at the foot of the mountain has no wind at night, and it is hot and sultry.

The inn in the north of the village is the most lively place here, nearly 100 rooms are full of guests, and the noise makes people uneasy, especially irritating in this kind of weather. In the depths of the backyard of the inn are several separate courtyards, unless they are status guests, ordinary people can't live in it no matter how rich they are. There is no way, this inn also belongs to the name of the Yongzhou Minister's Library, an official-run inn, not only to collect money, but also to watch people put dishes.

In the deepest courtyard, a large banyan tree covers half of the courtyard, there is a stone table under the tree, and there are five or six stone benches around it, Xu Ping and Shi Quanbin sit opposite each other.

After letting the tea, Xu Ping said to Shi Quanbin: "The cabinet chief is wronged, this village was originally specially for pedestrians to rest, there is no decent place, so it will be overnight." ”

Shi Quanbin wiped his sweat and said: "Yunxing doesn't need to be polite to me, and I'm not a pampered person, where can this bit of suffering be counted?" But let's be honest, it's really hot in this place. ”

"At the foot of the mountain, there is no river nearby, but it's so hot that you don't have a head or a face. There is no way, here to the north into the mountain, ten miles away there is a mountain col, is Ruhe to Yongzhou must pass through, the terrain is dangerous. Here I ask the merchants to come and go as much as possible, and only pass during the day, and as soon as it gets dark, everyone will rest here, and this village will become bigger and bigger. When there are too many people, it looks messy and noisy. ”

Turning over the mountain is Yongzhou City, although the mountain road is dangerous, but there are no thieves, Wu Zhai is not a patrol village, only a senior with one or twenty archers to guard here, to maintain local law and order.

After complaining about the ghost weather, Xu Ping asked Shi Quanbin: "It's getting late, what does the pavilion chief want to eat?" ”

"The guest is as he pleases, and the cloud line is the master."

"In the countryside, there is nothing to entertain, so just eat some local specialties here. There is no winter in the Lingnan region all year round, and the products are abundant, so you can't miss the pavilion chief. ”

After Xu Ping finished speaking, he summoned Tan Hu, reported a few dish names to him, and asked him to prepare to go.

After a while, the store will bring up the dishes, and the local specialty Shanrui oil fish is naturally indispensable, as well as the stir-fried field chicken, and the boiled local prawns, which are fresh.

Finally, a pot of boiled meat slices came up, Xu Ping held his chopsticks and said to Shi Quanbin: "The pavilion chief must try this dish, although it is mediocre, but it uses good tender beef, and it is not easy to eat in the capital." ”

In this era, beef is a wonderful food, most of the local government in the country forbade the killing of cattle, and the sale of beef must be officially approved, and the price is set to death, such as the capital is less than half of the price of pork. On the other hand, it is difficult to stop stealing, and the price of privately sold beef is higher than that of mutton. Where can the people who buy meat tell whether it is a private slaughter? You have to know the details to buy it. As for the small village shops on the side of the road, no one believes that they say that they are the best snowflake beef, and most of them sell dead beef, and the price is the cheapest. Su Shi ridiculed the madmen of the "Dongzhou Yi Party" for being in a wild temple in the countryside, drinking muddy wine and eating miasma old beef, chatting about the world and pointing out the country, but they were just crazy people in the countryside, and they didn't have the demeanor of real madmen, which is the truth. The real madman family has a fan, how can he eat such an unstylish thing, how can he have to worry about food and clothing to be qualified. The heroes and heroes in the Water Margin cut two catties of cooked beef as soon as they entered the store, Xu Ping felt so bold in his previous life, but now he thinks about it is the same as he used to take migrant workers to eat, as soon as he enters the store and sits down, the largest bowl of noodles is a bowl per person, and the cheapest pig's head meat is cut into three or five catties.

Yongzhou is different here, the cattle are free-range in the mountain meadows, and they will be driven out of the mountains when they are used, so they don't have to worry about labor, and the price of cattle is naturally not high. Thousands and hundreds of lands are sold to Qiongya in nearby states every year, and cattle farming has not yet become popular, so it is completely unnecessary to ban the killing of cattle. Moreover, the barbarians have the custom of killing cattle and sacrificing ghosts, and they can't ban it, so they simply sell beef openly, but there are a lot of beef flavor dishes.

The boiled meat slices were launched by Xu Ping according to the memories of his previous life, and after the improvement of the nearby chefs, the taste is acceptable, the key is how to look at the big pot of beef and how to show pride.

Shi Quanbin has been in the palace for many years, and he pays attention to not getting tired of eating and being fine, and he is also full of interest when he faces this rough style from the bottom people for the first time.

The corn wine came up, and with two glasses of wine from big fish and meat, Shi Quanbin's face also turned red.

With a big tongue, Shi Quanbin said to Xu Ping: "Yunxing, we have known each other for more than one day, but I really didn't expect that you became an official of the imperial court and held the wealth of a state, but you are still the same as before." Which of those scholars who ascended to the top did not work hard as soon as they arrived in office, and which one worked as hard as you? Don't you find it boring? ”

Xu Ping sighed: "How can you not think?" But I'm a hard worker, and when I'm free, I feel even more bored, so I might as well do something. ”

"You're saying that, but I understand. Like I have been around the official family for many years, sometimes I feel that life is boring, but I really want to be idle for a day and can't see the face of the official, but I am very panicked, as if it is boring to live for a while, and I think you are the same. You are so attentive to your appointment, it won't be many years before you can sit in the position of the ruler in the capital, and then you know that you are worth it now. ”

"Pull it down," Xu Ping was also dizzy from drinking, and his speech was out of proportion. "I'm now a general judge in the local government, and I can't be idle all year round. Who doesn't know that the officials in the capital are busier than the localities, and people have a lifetime for decades, so what's the point of living like that? It's serious to rest early! ”

"And you're still busy here? I saw that most of the other general judgments were very idle. ”

"There's no way, when I sit on this person, I want to do something, and I want to do it well. But you know, people have just one head and one hand, where can there be a good day? As soon as I started, I was busy all day long, and I couldn't stop anymore. When I have an errand, that day will be free. ”

Shi Quanbin squinted his eyes, as if he had met Xu Ping on the first day. Seeing that he has been busy for the past two days, I thought he was obsessed with his career, but this is not the case in his obedience.

Some people like the wind and snow, some people like to lean on the red and green, but Xu Ping's favorite life is to stretch a fishing rod in the river on a sunny day and leisurely look at the mountains in the distance. Some people are born to distinguish between work and life, without delay, but Xu Ping doesn't have that ability, he just wants to finish things diligently and quickly, and be completely idle to enjoy his life.

It's a pity that no matter which world it is, it's an illusion to be busy with work, as long as you want to do it, there are always countless things waiting for you, and you can't steal idle in your busyness. Only when you put your mood down, the leisurely time will follow, the heart will be tense, and you will still be busy after being busy.

The life that has crossed over is always not like a real life, in this world Xu Ping is a little drifting, and the habits of his previous life make him not depressed, busy like a headless fly, but he just wants to cover up the emptiness in his heart. After all, everything in this world can't replace the memories of his previous life, it can't completely occupy his life, everything is like a phantom, and this feeling lingers in his heart. He always fantasized about the day when he could do nothing, lie on the ground and look at the end of the sky, fantasizing about what the world at the end of the world would be, and what he would become of that world.

This feeling is indescribable, Xu Ping himself can't explain it, how can Shi Quanbin understand? Fortunately, he drank a little too much, and he didn't delve into it, just because Xu Ping didn't want to say what was in his heart.

When he got up the next day, Xu Ping still felt a little dizzy, the entrance of corn liquor was very smooth, but the stamina was very great. After all, the liquor made from glutinous rice is unsatisfactory, and there are still many improvements in the process, but Xu Ping is not in the mood to study it deeply, and his descendants will improve it. Since corn has been brought, some of it has been planted in the fields, mainly for winemaking, although it does not have the flavor of sorghum and wheat, and the meaning is enough.

Seeing Shi Quanbin, Xu Ping vaguely remembered that he seemed to have said a little too much to him last night, but he didn't take it to heart. In the final analysis, he is just an attendant by the emperor's side, and he can talk about two of them, but he can't decide any major matters, and he doesn't have the idea of trying to climb up the emperor's mind.

The two washed up and rode back from Wuzhai.

Today I walked on the road to the bottom of the valley, except for some small slopes planted with sugar cane, and there were paddy fields all the way.

Shi Quanbin was a little disappointed, such a good opportunity last night did not take the relationship with Xu Ping further. The two seem to be intimate, but in fact they are very far apart. Xu Ping gave Shi Quanbin the impression that he was the kind of person who was easy to talk to anyone, but kept his distance from anyone. This kind of person Shi Quanbin is no stranger, which of those high-ranking court officials is not like this? You feel that you can put your heart in your heart, and you are not polite to start when it is critical. Ding Wei was Kou Zhun picked him up with one hand, and finally sent him to Leizhou, and he already felt extremely kind that he didn't let him cross the sea in old age.

As for the difference between Xu Ping and those people, where can Shi Quanbin understand.

Not far away, a few rows of corn on the ridge of the field attracted Shi Quanbin's attention, and asked Xu Ping: "The wine we drank last night was made from this grain?" Why don't you grow it elsewhere? ”

Xu Ping shook his head: "The yield of this thing is not as good as that of rice and wheat, so I plant one in the field." Planting it in Lingnan doesn't know if it's a good thing or a bad thing. ”

"How?"

"This thing does not choose the terrain, and some barbarians got the seed and went to the mountains to plant it. Before planting, the mountains were set on fire, and the grass and trees were gone, and when the flash flood came, we suffered here. Although the imperial court has the prohibition of mountains and rivers, how can it be controlled by the barbarians in the mountains? I'm afraid that it will be a disaster in the future. ”

Soil erosion is one aspect of growing corn in the mountains, and what is even worse is that it will cause people in the mountains to live scattered, and they will be scattered everywhere in the mountains, which will be more difficult to manage.

These things, Shi Quanbin and Xu Ping are not on the same channel at all, the left ear is in and the right ear is out, and he can't figure out what is going on at all. Of course, he was not interested, he came to find Xu Ping's political achievements.

After walking for a few miles, there are endless rice fields. When it was almost time to plant the seedlings, there was no one in the field, only sparkling waves, as if entering a huge lake.

Shi Quanbin was taken aback: "Yunxing, here, how many paddy fields have been opened here?" ”

"There is not enough manpower, but only a hundred thousand acres, and it cannot be planted together, so it has to be planted in turn according to the season. Two acres of paddy fields can provide food for two people, and all the fields here have been planted to supply tens of thousands of people. But how can there be so many people in Ruhe County now? Although it is opened, many of them are still idle on the ground. ”

Although Xu Ping mainly grows sugarcane here, rice can still be transported, and in two years, the warehouses built have been full, and the number of foreign shipments is limited, so it can only be considered that some land will be idle for rotation.

Xu Ping had his own troubles, but Shi Quanbin was really shocked. Reclaiming wasteland, soliciting household registration, and increasing income and grain, if according to the examination of the magistrate, Xu Ping has exploded in every item here, that is, according to the rules, one liter a year is wronged. I also want to say a few good words for him in front of the officials, where do you need good words, to be honest, I am afraid that the officials will not believe it, it is really too scary. Fortunately, although Xu Ping has also tried a few cases, he has no particularly outstanding political achievements, otherwise the Inquisitor Court probably wouldn't know how to deal with such a monster.

At this time, the power to adjudicate major cases of human life is at the state level, but there must be a general judgment in a neighboring state or a review by a shogunate, so Xu Ping was arrested several times, went to Qinzhou twice and Hengzhou once, but did not overturn the case. Redressing wrongs is a very dazzling political achievement, which often alarms the ruling king and makes a name for himself. Especially if you fight back and forth with the former chief judge for a few rounds, and finally win a big victory, you can be famous all over the world.

During the examination, the lives of the people who were rehabilitated were recorded, and the lives of the five people who lived were promoted to the next rank. Officials who are born in Jinshi are often not familiar with specific government affairs, so they are particularly attentive to this convenience, and those who have this ability rely on the step of advancement. Xu Ping, a first-class jinshi, is an exception, and this aspect is lackluster.

As a member of the supervision system, the general judgment also has the power to play alone, and the governor, subordinate officials, neighboring state officials, and past officials can all hear about it, especially for military ministers and governors. It's a pity that Xu Ping is still blank, and almost all of his political achievements are in money, food, and taxes, and the rest is unknown.

This situation also caused Xu Ping to be the most pleasing to the eye in the imperial court, and several other systems were not very interested in him, especially the Privy Council, which annoyed him so much.

Empress Dowager Liu mostly followed the old rules of Zhenzong, and did not pay much attention to money and food, and paid more attention to officials with clear hopes and good reputations.

Before he came, Shi Quanbin was affected by this impression and felt that he could pull Xu Ping, and only after walking down this way did he understand where Xu Ping needed him to pull.

All the way forward, and then saw the neat rice fields and the ditches built with cement in all directions, Shi Quanbin didn't know what to say. There are many, many of them, for other officials, each of them is a political achievement that can be named for a while, but here in Xu Ping, they are all piled together, but I don't know what to say.