With a splash, Zhang Rongfang poured the bathwater from the bucket into the drain at the entrance of the courtyard.
Foamy water from the neighboring public bathhouse was slowly flowing down into the ditch.
He glanced to the side and saw the two children sitting in front of the bathhouse, scrubbing buckets.
"Selling glutinous rice balls~~ Meat filling with Scallion, sweet osmanthus filling with red bean paste, stir-fried shrimp and scallops~~~"
The old man carrying a load slowly turned the corner down the street.
The steam from the basket rose from the edge of the jar, and even though it was wrapped in thick cloth, you could still smell the faint aroma of glutinous rice flour.
"Two catties, sir," Zhang Rongfang, putting down the bucket, checking his pockets for money, and stepping forward to stop him.
"Master Zhang, why are you up so late today?"
Grandpa Tangyuan passes by this street every day and occasionally gets business from Zhang Rongfang. So he also has a good impression of this young man who speaks gently to everyone.
"I practiced a little late last night," Zhang Rongfang replied casually. "By the way, sir, where in this city can I buy old books and oddities? I mostly lead my team around this area, so I don't really know any other places."
"Old books? Strange things?" The old man thought for a moment, "Go to Smoke Willow Lane, you should be able to find them. That area is full of these kinds of things."
"Smoke Willow Lane? Okay, thank you." Zhang Rongfang paid, carried the glutinous rice balls back to the courtyard, and brought back the bath tub.
After tidying himself up a bit, he changed his clothes and headed straight out of the Smoke Willow Lane.
He had passed by that place before, but had never gone in.
After traversing about half the city, he finally found this somewhat hidden alleyway in another district.
Outside the alleyway stood a large watchtower.
The so-called "wangzi" is a long wooden stick with a piece of cloth hanging on top, on which various signs and advertisements are written.
The sign reads, "Major shipment of tobacco and alcohol, authentic and reliable, Tanyang time-honored brand, Liu's Shop."
These paragraphs are scattered, surrounding a round copper coin pattern.
Zhang Rongfang looked at it carefully several times. On this ground, he rarely saw advertisements that were so close to a modern style.
At this time, donkey carts carrying goods were constantly going in and out of the alley.
Two shirtless, dark-skinned men stood to one side, smoking Dry Tobacco and chatting.
Zhang Rongfang straightened his clothes and strode into the alley.
Just inside, to the left of the Daoist Sect, is a small shop.
The shop had no sign, no notice, and no plaque with the inscription "Hope for a Son".
There was only a pink silk scarf hanging on a bamboo pole at the entrance.
The shop door was half open, and inside, a woman in a high-slit pink dress was lazily leaning against the bed, looking out the door.
When Zhang Rongfang looked at her, the woman immediately gave him a charming smile and beckoned to him.
"Jade that is not carved cannot become a vessel. A person who does not learn will not know righteousness."
As a child, one should be close to teachers and friends, and learn etiquette.
A faint sound of a young child reciting poetry drifted from deeper into the alley.
Zhang Rongfang withdrew his gaze and followed the sound inside.
Unlicensed brothels are densely packed along both sides of the alley.
And amidst these brothels, one could occasionally hear the sounds of children learning in simple dwellings.
Before long, he finally found the shop the old man had mentioned.
A faded triangular piece of cloth hung outside the door on a bamboo pole. The cloth bore the inscription. "Path Through the Mountain of Books."
The shop entrance is only wide enough for one person to pass through, truly resembling a narrow path.
"Mother~~"
Suddenly, a little boy with pigtails ran out of the shop, holding a slightly tattered, pale yellow book with the Three Character Classic on the cover, and then rushed into the brothel next door.
"Mommy, can I buy another one?"
Inside the brothel, a Blue Dress Woman with an impatient expression hurried out and slammed the door shut.
"I told you not to come in when I'm doing business! Why don't you listen, you brat? Don't call me during the day, and don't let your classmates hear you."
The voice gradually faded.
"But you are my mother! I'll hit anyone who says anything bad about me!"
"Fight, fight, fight! Who the hell do you think you can beat? If you hurt someone, you'll have to apologize and pay up."
The mother and son's voices gradually faded.
Zhang Rongfang sighed inwardly and stepped into the bookstore, "Path Through the Mountain of Books."
The shop was dark; it was just a long, rectangular alleyway.
On both sides of the wall, there are rows of long grids, and books are placed in the grids.
These books look quite worn, and the titles on the covers are all bolded in neat ink.
The Three Character Classic, the Sound Rhyme Primer, the Classic of Classic of Filial Piety, and the Erya —one after another, Confucian classics are neatly arranged.
Looking at these familiar classics, Zhang Rongfang suddenly felt like he had returned to his previous life.
In many places, Great Ling is similar to the ancient world of his previous life. Sometimes he wonders if this world is another branch of history.
Passing through rows of books, at the very back, on a small wooden stool with a patina, sat an old man wearing one pair of glasses.
The old man was wearing a drab gray long gown, with a jade pendant made of rope hanging from his waist.
From a distance, it really does look a bit like jade.
"The old shopkeeper?" Zhang Rongfang asked softly.
The old man didn't say anything, but simply pointed to the bookshelf next to him, indicating that he would go and look at it himself.
Zhang Rongfang nodded, then turned around and began searching along the wall.
This time, he learned from his previous experience and opened the Attribute Panel in the blink of an eye.
The previous experience with the Moon Chasing Blade made him realize that the world was not as simple as he had thought.
The Attribute Panel isn't just for viewing yourself; it can also be used to observe external objects.
The books on the wall kept flashing by.
However, the situation that occurred with the Moon Chasing Blade last time has not happened again.
Zhang Rongfang quickly scanned all the books on both walls, but none of them could make the Attribute Panel react.
"Shopkeeper, do you have any other old items here?" Zhang Rongfang recalled that the thing inside the Moon Chasing Blade seemed to be a part.
The old man adjusted his glasses and sized up Zhang Rongfang.
"Walk a little further in, there are a few shops selling Western gadgets. But a lot of them are fake."
"Thank you." Zhang Rongfang nodded and cupped his hands in thanks.
He turned and walked outside, but stopped halfway there.
"Sir, may I ask you a question?"
"What did you say?" The old man looked up at him in confusion.
Zhang Rongfang fell silent for a moment.
Do you think everyone in the Great Ling is doing well?
In Great Ling, there is freedom of religion and freedom of speech. There are many people who discuss the current regime, and as long as they do not cause trouble or start an uprising, there are no restrictions in this regard.
Therefore, his question is not considered sensitive.
The old shop owner thought about it.
"Young people think it's tough for us to stay here, right?" He laughed.
"Isn't that right?" Zhang Rongfang retorted.
The old shop owner stood up and slowly shook his head.
"In fact, although the current Ling Emperor classifies us Confucian scholars as inferior, he does not make things difficult for us."
"Do you know why?" he asked Zhang Rongfang.
Why?
"Because we are Confucian scholars," the old man laughed, "And only Confucian scholars."
He took a book off the shelf and gently stroked the words on the cover. The book had three large characters written on it: Ling Yue History.
"To be honest, many people misunderstand us. They see many Confucian scholars dressed in poverty and think that the Ling Ting is persecuting us. But that's not the case."
He had a strong voice and seemed to be in a good mood.
"Aside from abolishing the Imperial Examinations, the Ling Ting did not actually restrict Confucian School. Many of us still owned land and property, and even with the heavy taxes and levies, many of us were still able to live comfortably."
"Aside from a small number of Confucian School who came from poor backgrounds and had no choice but to write Zaju and sell lyrics, many Confucian School scholars were actually disguised as Daoists or Buddhists, traveling around to enjoy themselves and singing songs."
Zhang Rongfang looked at him with slight surprise, unsure whether his words were sincere or feigned.
"Don't look at me like that. Do you know that even if we can't Imperial Examination, we Confucian School scholars are still learned men, the most popular teachers among all the great families in the world?" the old man said with a smile.
"So, apart from not being able to become an official, we lack nothing. We are very happy now."
He concluded.
"We need no pity; we are merely in a temporary slump."
Looking at Zhang Rongfang, who seemed somewhat taken aback, the old man continued.
"Actually, although military service is frequent in the world today, the lives of ordinary people are still relatively good. Take Tanyang City for example, have you heard of any people in the surrounding areas starving or freezing to death?"
Zhang Rongfang was taken aback for a moment, then shook his head slightly.
"No."
"This is it," the old man said with a smile. "Great Ling values craftsmanship and agriculture. It has revised agricultural books and improved planting methods several times, resulting in a significant increase in agricultural output. Textile production has also more than doubled in efficiency due to improved tools."
"With the opening of maritime trade, Blue and White Porcelain, glass murals, tea, wine and other products were exported, and a large amount of money and resources flowed in. Everyone's life became more and more comfortable."
Zhang Rongfang was speechless.
Thinking about it carefully, despite the large number of soldiers in the Ling Ting and the uprisings happening everywhere, they just couldn't gain any real power.
In the two years he has been here, he has rarely heard of any people starving or freezing to death.
If you think about it carefully, not many people actually die from military service, and quite a few families return home after completing their service.
It is said that when the Ling Ting went on campaign, it would usually forcibly conscript people from the conquered territories as vanguard cannon fodder.
The vanguard first forces these conquered peoples to besiege and exhaust them, and then, once the enemy is exhausted, they send their main force in.
In addition, the Ling Ting Army was extremely elite and had a full range of well-equipped war machines, so the casualties were really not many.
"Ordinary people, as long as they have food and clothing and are free from worries about food and clothing, will all be obedient," the old man sighed. "The current Imperial Court is the strongest in the world. Looking around, if any country dares to close its borders, its army will sweep everything away and forcibly open the country's doors."
Whether through trade or conquest, our peaceful and prosperous life was forged from the blood and flesh of countless races. Such a great undertaking, what a pity!
He didn't continue speaking, but his eyes showed some regret.
Zhang Rongfang didn't ask any more questions. He could tell that the old man wasn't lying, but rather expressing his true feelings.
He cupped his hands in a respectful gesture, then silently turned and left.
After leaving the Path Through the Mountain of Books shop, he followed the old man's directions and walked deeper into the alley.
Before long, the number of brothels on both sides also decreased.
A shop with a sign that read "Hall of Curiosities" appeared before him.
The shop doors were old and the main door was half open.
A blond, blue-eyed, curly-haired old man was bowing and smiling obsequiously at several Official Messenger who came in to inspect the place, whispering something ingratiatingly.
Before long, he handed over a roll of banknotes from his sleeve and pleaded with him in a gentle voice.
Unfortunately, the Official Messenger, with their wrinkled faces, still refused to leave. Their eyes darted around, seemingly hoping to squeeze some more money out of them.
Zhang Rongfang squinted and walked forward.
"What's going on?" he asked casually, his face stern.
When the Official Messenger saw him, one of them immediately recognized him.
"Hey, Team Zhang! I've seen you several times in the Ministry of Justice not long ago."
He quickly stepped forward and bowed.