Di Ming

Chapter 41 Borrowing Money
Ning Qingchen's neck was indeed bitten by a mosquito.

Fortunately, mosquitoes in ancient times were not so poisonous.

Infants are emotionally sensitive.

Feeling rejected, Ning Qingchen's resentment was so intense it was almost turning into poison.

Nobody wants me.

Unable to control her tears, she completely disregarded Ning Qingchen's efforts to maintain an adult mindset and lost control once again.

"Oh dear," Ning Caiwei muttered, then had no choice but to pick up the weeping Ning Qingchen.

"Listen." Ning Caiwei raised her swan-like neck and pointed with her chin towards the outside of the living room. "Doesn't your crying sound like a cicada in a tree? Doesn't it? Cluck cluck!"

Qingchen: "..."

She said I was as noisy as a cicada.

She was still smiling.

Ning Qingchen was heartbroken and cried uncontrollably.

Ning Caiwei immediately gave a wry smile. She felt both heartache and a headache.

“You’ve provoked her again.” Zhu Yin shook his head. “Although she has retained her adult memories, her body is only seven months old and she can’t handle the emotional intelligence of an adult.”

"But she can understand what we're saying, so she's more sensitive than other babies."

Ning Caiwei sighed, "Then why don't you hold her and comfort her?"

Zhu Yin touched his forehead. "Without air conditioning, this sweltering summer is truly unbearable."

Seeing that he didn't respond at all, Ning Caiwei could only smile and grit her teeth inwardly.

All three of them were covered in sweat.

Zhu Yin suddenly said, "I have become Qi Shaobao's godfather. He not only accepted me but also gave me a courtesy name, Zhihu, as a gift."

Ning Caiwei was not surprised at all. She lowered her head, wiped the sweat from her younger sister's forehead on the swaddling clothes, and smiled brightly:

"I knew you'd do this; you said a lot of nice things, didn't you?"

"You not only admire him, but you also envy his talent as a general, his martial skills, and his former subordinates."

"He took you as his godson, you really hit the jackpot. Mr. Zhihu, congratulations."

"Congratulations to you too." Zhu Yin also laughed. "My godfather is not only a great military strategist, but also a martial arts master who is on par with Yu Dayou. He is a towering figure in the history of Chinese martial arts."

"Moreover, he is a representative figure who opposes routines and emphasizes practical combat."

"I want him to teach me martial arts, as well as military strategy, tactics, troop training, and battlefield tactics..."

“I want to learn all of them: The New Book of Military Efficiency, The True Record of Military Training, The Boxing Classic, The Xinyou Sword Technique, and The Qi Family Spear.”

Zhu Yin became more and more excited as he spoke, as if he had found a treasure.

“At our age, it’s the perfect time to lay a solid foundation. My godfather personally guided me, and it won’t be difficult for me to become a famous general or a master.”

"First, it's about strengthening your body; second, it's about improving your martial arts skills. To become a true strongman, passing the imperial examinations alone isn't enough; your personal martial arts skills must also be strong enough."

"Especially ancient military science, which is a profound and extensive field of knowledge, cannot be completely replaced by the self-righteous theories of time travelers."

Zhu Yin had also read online novels. The male protagonist in one of them went back to ancient times to train soldiers, and he did things like drill training and brainwashing, adding the Soviet Union's methods, thinking that he could produce a strong army.

joke.

They really think the ancients were fools.

It's as if ancient generals didn't know how to train their troops. How can they deploy or change formations without any troop training?
Such a low-tech training method, how could the ancients have failed to summarize it over thousands of years?
As for brainwashing, that overestimates the ideological awareness of ancient soldiers.

Soldiers get paid, so personal interests come first.

As for the Soviet system... it has always had military supervisors and military civil officials, so it's not exactly a revolutionary invention.

Later military sciences certainly have great reference value for ancient warfare. However, they can only be used as a reference, not as a substitute for ancient military sciences.

At least during the Ming Dynasty, ancient military science was still the primary focus.

Unless they can build a modern army equipped entirely with firearms, and whose firearms technology reaches the third stage of the history of firearm revolution in Europe.

According to Western military theory, the third revolution in firearms, which occurred from the late 18th century to the early 19th century, was the only time that the form of warfare would change and completely end the form of warfare using cold weapons.

The third revolution in firearms broke away from the guidance of ancient military science, abandoned its operational practices, and established a modern military science that was adapted to it.

The most important founder was Napoleon Bonaparte.

The landmark was Clausewitz's "The Science of War," published in 1832.

If Zhu Yin wanted to completely copy the military science of later generations, he would have to be able to advance the technology of firearms manufacturing by two hundred years on his own.

Let's not even talk about whether he can do it. Even if he could, it would be a long process.

Therefore, the value of ancient military strategists like Qi Jiguang is immense.

Zhu Yin must become his disciple, inherit his mantle, and carry it forward.

This is truly a filial son born of an adopted child.

Zhu Yin thought this way and subconsciously overlooked Qi Jiguang's son.

It's like Qi Jiguang's son wasn't capable of inheriting the family tradition, so he needed this newly adopted son to carry it on.

Seeing that Zhu Yin was a little smug, Ning Caiwei couldn't help but remind him:

"Qi Jiguang had a son, but you are not his biological son, so he might not be willing to teach you everything he knew."

"However, if we cure his illness and extend his lifespan, he might give us his all."

Zhu Yin shook his head: "You are ultimately a businessman, and you don't understand Qi Shaobao's heroic spirit and selflessness."

"If he sees me as a promising talent, he will impart all his knowledge to me. Not only will he not hold anything back, but he will also be delighted to have found a worthy successor."

"His sons and nephews are also considered to be sons of a military family, but their talents are not outstanding enough to carry on the family's legacy."

Ning Caiwei pondered for a moment and said, "Qi Shaobao is not a venture capital investment, but an extremely rare and precious resource, a unique strategic project." "We must be willing to invest in him. His food, clothing, housing, transportation, material needs, spiritual needs, and physical health must all be guaranteed."

"Although our original capital is precious, spending money on it is an investment with immeasurable returns."

"Take these fifty taels and spend them. Even if this is Series A funding, there will be multiple rounds of funding later."

"Don't worry, I don't have a businessman's mindset, I have a patriotic entrepreneur's mindset. I value commercial interests, but I'm not stingy with money."

Money serves a goal; it is not the goal itself.

She was somewhat dissatisfied with Zhu Yin's assessment of his "businessman's mindset".

This is a denigration of Ning Caiwei's character.

Zhu Yin wiped his sweat with his sleeve. "Don't worry, I know you're generous. Hmm, President Ning has a patriotic entrepreneur mindset, I'm the most qualified to comment on that."

Ning Caiwei couldn't help but roll her eyes.

Seeing Ning Caiwei about to hand over her warm and cozy younger sister, Zhu Yin quickly jumped up and said:

"Summer is sweltering. These days are unbearable and urgently need improvement."

"I'll send the money to Qi Baoguo first and tell him to go out and buy things as soon as possible. He can't go hungry at night, and he can't stay out in the dark."

After saying that, he picked up the silver ingots on the table and hurriedly ran out.

"Hey..." Just as Ning Caiwei was about to shove the baby over, the little tiger ran away.

Fifty taels of silver weighed several kilograms, yet he ran incredibly fast with the silver in his hand.

Ning Caiwei stomped her foot and could only helplessly carry her younger sister as they chased after them.

"Mosquito net! Don't forget the mosquito net!"

"I understand!" Zhu Yinqing's childish voice came back.

"Woof!" The little black dog let out a soft, childlike cry and rolled over like a black fur ball on its four short legs toward the little man's back.

Ouch! A mosquito bit my foot!

Ning Caiwei was holding her younger sister, and since she couldn't bend down to scratch the itch, she could only hiss as if she had a toothache.

But they saw Lancha and other Jurchen men, shirtless, drawing water from a well with a pulley and splashing it on themselves.

"It's so hot." Galo was a woman, so she couldn't water herself. She could only pick a banana leaf to fan Ning Caiwei.

Right now is the hottest time of the year.

Although there wasn't the same heat in ancient times as in later generations, Ning Caiwei felt that it was still over 30 degrees Celsius today.

This would have been very difficult to endure even in ancient times without air conditioning or fans.

A high-ranking official's family like the Qi family would certainly have an ice cellar. But now the family is impoverished, struggling even for food and clothing, so where would they find summer ice?

Even bronze artifacts like the ice chest have long been sold.

Ning Caiwei looked at Galo, who was covered in sweat, and said with a wry smile in Jurchen:
"Summers in the old forests outside the Great Wall are still the best."

Upon hearing this, several Jurchen people couldn't help but look northwards, their eyes filled with longing.

……

Zhu Yin left Biyun Courtyard and went straight to Qi Baoguo, stuffing five silver ingots into his hand.

"Fourth Brother, fifty taels of pure silver, all by himself, without spending a single penny."

"This isn't rent; it's money to support our father. Isn't that perfectly reasonable?"

Qi Baoguo accepted the five silver ingots in astonishment, his expression revealing his delight.

"So many? Zhihu, your filial piety is quite something."

"Isn't this too extravagant?"

Although the boy said it was too much trouble, his hands were clenched tightly.

Zhu Yin glanced at the silver one last time, then smiled casually:
"Money is worthless, you can earn it back after you spend it. It's just fifty taels of silver, what's it worth? It's just a little filial piety."

"It's getting dark, so before the shops close, I'd like to ask Fourth Brother to go and buy some things."

"How could I not be willing to serve my country?" he said happily.
"Child Tiger, tell me, what items do you want to buy?"

Zhu Yin counted on his little fingers, "First of all, our father needs food and wine. We also need to have dinner; we'll just have the restaurant deliver it."

"There are also lamp oil, candles, mugwort incense, mosquito nets, paper coverings... a whole bunch of things, all commonly used in daily life."

Qi Baoguo nodded: "Okay, I'll go to the general store and have the hangers pack everything up and send it over."

After the two finished speaking, Qi Baoguo took a silver ingot, along with scissors and a steelyard, and went out.

He didn't trust the shop's clippers and steelyard.

Zhu Yin then returned to Biyun Courtyard.

The black tiger followed the cub like a shadow.

Just as Zhu Yin reached the fence of Biyun Courtyard, he heard Xu Xiaobai say:

"I can't stay here even for another day!"

"Qi Shaobao's home is really in a terrible state! I truly admire him, but I can't stand it."

“Miss Caiwei, lend me a hundred taels of silver. I will write an IOU and stay at the inn. As long as you pay more, I don’t need a travel permit.”

Ning Caiwei said, "Young Master Xu, it's not that we can't talk about borrowing money, but my husband's consent is required."

"Isn't it inappropriate for you to ask to borrow it while he's not around?"

P.S.: Whether I can succeed in the three-wheeled, four-wheeled, and three-river races depends on everyone reading the latest chapters every day!

(End of this chapter)