Spring comes to the desperate place

Chapter 239 Sheng Ji

The people in the box upstairs watched the two people enjoying the food, but on the surface they didn't notice anything strange, so they lowered the curtain, thinking that this was just a chance encounter.

"Really? Don't tell me it's a trick. We just met in the morning and at noon..."

One of them interrupted his suspicious thoughts and said, "Even if we meet again, they came here before us. Look, they are eating now, but our food is not here yet."

The leader also thought that the man was making a fuss. In their eyes, a teenager with a half-grown child did not look like a master. And how could they know in advance which restaurant he would choose to eat? Maybe it was just a coincidence.

Song Chunlin rolled his eyes after hearing this. It was just a coincidence. Who knew these people would ignore the many restaurants in Pingzhou Prefecture and choose to eat at the place where they were. Not only would they eat, but they were also so suspicious. Tsk, they really are spies. They act like there is something fishy in everyone they see.

The two of them only ordered three dishes, but the portions were quite large, and they had to force themselves to finish the meal.

After the meal, Song Chunlin felt so full that he sat on a chair, spread his hands, and kept crying out "ouch, ouch".

Gu Fengyue was not much better. He sat up straight and rubbed his abdomen slowly with his hands. Seeing Song Chunlin looking uncomfortable, he also reached out to rub his stomach.

After rubbing for a while, Song Chunlin felt recovered. He pretended to take something out of his clothes, but he was actually looking for stomach-strengthening and digestion-promoting tablets in the space. He also remembered to give one to Gu Fengyue.

As soon as the two finished taking their medicine, the waiter came out and brought them a pot of hot tea and cleaned up the table.

Gu Fengyue looked at the tea and frowned slightly: "We didn't order tea."

The waiter laughed and replied, "This is a gift from our shop. This tea is made of hawthorn leaves from our boss' hometown. Drinking it in water can help digestion. Our shop serves a lot of food, and many people will get too full. Tea is a must. Enjoy, both of you."

After listening to this, Song Chunlin immediately poured out two cups, one for each of him and Gu Fengyue. He didn't know if it was a psychological effect, but after drinking the hot tea, he felt that the bloating in his abdomen was relieved a little.

The two of them sat for a while, and when they felt their stomachs were not so bloated anymore, they paid the bill and left.

As soon as they left the house, the people in the upstairs box finally let down their guard. The leader looked at the two men's receding backs and thought, what a coincidence! Looking at the way these two men were eating so much, they didn't look like people sent by the capital.

Song Chunlin had no idea that he had been labeled as a glutton in those people's minds. If he had known, he would have definitely given these people a good scolding for telling the truth.

In the Pingzhou Prefecture government office, the prefect looked a little surprised when he heard from his subordinates that Gu Fengyue had left, but the other party had only come to interrogate him, so it was nothing if he left after the interrogation.

"What did they find out?"

The bailiff replied, "I don't know, but judging from their appearance, they must have gotten something out of him. However, after the interrogation, the prisoner seemed a little crazy..."

"Crazy?" The prefect pondered over the two words, and immediately ordered all the yamen runners on duty to guard the residential area.

"Annan's spies are not stupid. It won't take long for them to find us. There's no need to be too strict on defense. Let's catch them in a jar."

The interrogations were over, and they were not needed to transport grain seeds, so they had nothing to do. After lunch, they strolled out of the city gate and walked slowly on the official road.

There are not many people walking outside in the middle of winter, but there are still some people loading and unloading goods on the dock, probably New Year's goods.

The two men stood on the side of the road and watched for a while, then left. When they reached a deserted place, Song Chunlin confirmed that there was no one on the road ahead, so he took out his mountain bike.

Mountain motorcycles run on gasoline. The gasoline Song Chunlin collected in his previous life was enough to drive them for a long time. When he came here, the oil doubled. Now the capacity is sufficient for him to drive the motorcycle around the entire scenic spot three or four times.

Gu Fengyue had developed a strong interest in this motorcycle yesterday. It was too late when he was in a hurry before. When he looked at it again during the day, he felt that the motorcycle was even more domineering and majestic. Gu Fengyue got on the motorcycle eager to try it out. Song Chunlin sat behind him and explained to him how to start the engine, how to accelerate, how to brake and so on. Gu Fengyue tried to drive for a short distance and soon mastered the essentials.

"This motorcycle is so amazing!" Gu Fengyue was just like those modern boys. Once he got hold of a motorcycle, he couldn't let it go. He drove Song Chunlin on the official road for a long distance, even turning the accelerator to the maximum at one point. They sped through a large area of mountains and forests until a ridge appeared in the distance, and then they got off the bike.

Gu Fengyue was still very excited while walking on the road. It was the first time that Song Chunlin saw him like this. Usually, the young general always had a serious expression, probably to control his soldiers. But now he looked so energetic, which was not bad. He didn't look like a general, but more like a young boy who had just got his beloved thing.

No, he was just a teenager.

Song Chunlin shook his head, almost leading himself into a trap. Gu Fengyue was only eighteen years old this year, which would be a senior high school student in modern times. If he worked hard, he might just be a freshman in college. When he was a freshman in college, he was not as mature and steady as Gu Fengyue.

Gu Fengyue was still enthusiastically discussing with Song Chunlin the idea of building a motorcycle by himself.

"Is that wheel rubber? Do we have any here?"

"Yes, but it's quite far away. There should be rubber trees in the south. I don't know the specific production process. I'll go back and find some books."

Speaking of books, Gu Fengyue remembered the paper mill that had been agreed upon.

"My brother said that he has found a suitable place according to what we wrote, and he can start construction at the beginning of the new year. He has also found the wood for the waterwheel you mentioned."

Song Chunlin's eyes lit up: "Really? Where are the materials? Have you found them?"

Seeing him happy, Gu Fengyue was also happy: "Yes, I have already discussed it with them. Once the workshop is built, the materials there will be directly brought over."

Now it was Song Chunlin's turn to rub his hands in excitement: "Then the people in other paper mills don't know, right? Hehe, if we succeed, the next step will be printing. I don't know how to use machines, but don't I know how to use movable type?"

"Movable type...printing?" Gu Fengyue didn't know the difference between the two, so Song Chunlin talked endlessly about the difference between movable type printing and woodblock printing.

The printing technology used nowadays is woodblock printing. Movable type printing only appeared in the Song Dynasty. If we follow the historical process of this era, it would take at least several hundred years for it to appear.

Gu Fengyue heard that each character could be carved out separately and then arranged and combined. This method is not only flexible, but the character blocks can also be reused, which is equivalent to saving time in carving the plates in disguise. It can be said to kill two birds with one stone.

Gu Fengyue not only admired the inventor of movable type printing, but also said, "He is truly a rare talent. For so many years, most of the books that scholars in Dajing read, except for those that were printed, were handwritten. Handwriting is time-consuming and laborious, and paper is expensive, which is why only aristocratic families can read. If a family does not have a clan school, it is even more difficult to read."

As they were talking, they had already walked through the farmland and arrived at the town where they had rested yesterday. They had no intention of entering the city, but simply found a small stall outside the city, had a casual dinner at the stall, and then continued to drive their motorcycles on the official road under the cover of night.

On the way back, Gu Fengyue was driving. He had finally got his hands on a new toy and couldn't let it go. If it weren't for the bad road conditions and the fact that it was dark and difficult to see clearly, Gu Fengyue would probably have ridden even faster.

The two returned to the capital at noon the next day. They did not enter the city immediately, but went to the Song family instead. It was only three or four days, and they were exhausted when they came back, which made Song A'mo and Song Qinshi feel very distressed. They had to cook and boil water, and they were really exhausted. They fell asleep as soon as they ate.

They slept until the afternoon and did not even have time to eat. They hurriedly rode back to Beijing to report.

The lights in the marquis' mansion were on at night. After listening to Song Chunlin's narration, Gu Fengyun had almost no expression on his face. He just indicated lightly that he understood.

"General Qi has been asked to transport the grain back. As for that spy, let him go crazy."

A few days later, news came from Pingzhou Prefecture that Annan's spies used a feint to the east to attack in the west in order to save people. It was said that the yamen runners there suffered heavy casualties, but the other side was not much better off either. Only one person escaped, who should be the leader of these people. As for the madman, he suddenly went crazy and ran away when everyone was fighting fiercely. Now it is unknown whether he is alive or dead, but because he was a madman, the prefect did not chase him specifically.

When he learned about this, Song Chunlin was barbecuing with Gu Fengyue in the yard because he said it was too stuffy to grill over charcoal fire in the house.

"Where's the man behind this? Aren't they going to catch him?"

"Catch them, but now is not the right time. However, the Li family must be caught. I just don't know what role the head of the Li family plays in this."

Song Chunlin sighed: "The Li family is the largest grain merchant in Beijing. Why is he doing something that harms others and does not benefit himself?"

Gu Fengyue did not find it strange: "Everyone in the world is after profit. After all, he is just a businessman. He may not even be sure that the things he sells are real grains. Besides, the lives of the people are nothing to him. Moreover, these noble families have always been resentful of the court's obstruction of their purchase of potatoes and sweet potatoes. Now that your potatoes and sweet potatoes are blooming everywhere in Dajing, they have not tasted the sweetness, so naturally they hate the court and you even more. It's you who are hurting others, so what does it have to do with him?"

Song Chunlin thought about it and realized that it was true. He was immediately furious: "Bah! They are still a noble family. What a shitty noble family. They are just selfish villains."

Gu Fengyue quickly said, "Alright, don't be angry. Although we have evidence now, the family is very powerful and has deep roots. He can treat the words of a mere spy as a false accusation. But it's good to deal him a heavy blow. My brother has already brought people to interrogate the head of the Li family, and he has announced it to the world. Even if he can't be convicted, his reputation has been ruined. A person who can hand over the lifeline of the country to foreign enemies, whether it is true or not, in the hearts of the people, he is already a traitor."

Song Chunlin snorted coldly: "He is the best."

Gu Fengyun has not been back recently, so the Marquis' Mansion is their world. After the two of them had eaten and drunk their fill, they did not forget to pack a portion for Gu Fengyun, and came over under the pretext of delivering lunch to see how things were going.

Gu Fengyun mobilized a large army and took a large group of people to capture the head of the Li family. In addition to the head of the family, some of the Li family's collateral descendants were also arrested. These people were all small fry who relied on the Li family's family background to bully men and women. Gu Fengyun took this as an excuse to severely punish them, and the people applauded.

Song Chunlin and Gu Fengyue originally thought that Gu Fengyun would be so busy that he had no food to eat, but it turned out that he really had no food to eat. However, he had delicious cakes and pastries, jam cakes made from Song family jam, and Gu Fengyun had a whole food box. Song Chunlin looked at the owner of Shengji Pastry Shop who came to deliver cakes in surprise. He was also Brother Su who had gone to school in place of his brother.

Before Song Chunlin could speak, the other party had already recognized him and shouted in surprise: "You are the young man from the Song family, right? We met during the Chinese New Year last year. To be honest, I still owe your family an apology for what happened with your brother and sister-in-law."

Song Chunlin waved his hands hurriedly: "No, no, you had no choice at the beginning. Now the situation has changed. Those people have been punished. My brother and sister-in-law are living a happy life. Don't mention the past anymore. People should always look forward, right?"

Su Ge'er's eyes were slightly red, but he quickly adjusted himself and said with a hearty smile: "Little Brother Song is right. Since the past cannot be retrieved, let's look forward. I didn't know you would come today, otherwise I would prepare more cakes and pastries. I remember that your little sister also likes cakes and pastries."

"No need. She's already gained a lot of weight. My mother said that girls shouldn't eat too much to gain weight, otherwise they won't look good. I appreciate your kindness on behalf of my family. I wonder why Brother Su came here this time..."

Only then did Brother Su remember that there were two brothers from the Gu family who were left out behind him, and he immediately felt a little embarrassed.

"Ahem, I am grateful for Master Gu's help yesterday, so I prepared some cakes to express my gratitude. However, I am afraid Master Gu will not look down on these mere snacks."

Seeing this, Gu Fengyun finally interrupted. He coughed and said, "I was just performing my duty yesterday. I didn't save you on purpose. You don't have to come here to thank me. But the cakes are delicious. Boss Su's cooking skills are great."

Young Master Su: "Thank you for not disliking it, my Lord. This is the only skill I can show to others. As long as you like it, that's good. If you want to eat more, just send someone to Shengji to get it and put it on my account."