Food bloggers made fortunes in ancient times

At the banquet, the villagers of Zhangjia Village sat together and their eyes widened when they saw the gentry and wealthy people coming with expensive gifts.

Some sent silks and satins, some sent gold, silver and jade, and some sent land deeds.

There were even some smart ones who, after finding out that Song Zhengdu was still unmarried, brought their own daughters to the Song family and asked them to serve as maids.

Of course, all of these were rejected by Shu's father with a smile: "The Song family appreciates your kindness, but my nephew is still young and has not yet achieved fame. For now, it is more important for him to concentrate on his studies."

This statement is flawless and does not offend anyone, while making the attitude clear.

The old village chief sat at the head, watching these scenes, feeling mixed emotions.

His family member Ji Qing also took part in the provincial examination this year, but unfortunately he failed.

Now looking at the prosperity of the Song family, I feel both envious and sad.

"Wow, how much are these things worth!"

Seeing that Shu's father politely declined the gift from the wealthy gentry, the villagers of Zhangjia Village were even more shocked.

"Why are you pushing away something so good that's been delivered to your door? If it were us, we would never see such a good thing in our lifetime!"

Shitou was just feeling happy for the Song family. Hearing this, he immediately glared at the man and said, "Ergou, what do you know? Erlin is a scholar now, how can he just accept things from others? This is called 'noble and elegant'!"

Ergou shrank his neck and said with a wry smile: "I haven't seen the world..."

Aunt Wang at the side suddenly smacked her lips and sighed, "It was Dashan's mother who had foresight. When Xiao Song's mother just passed away, she insisted on adopting Erlin.

"Luckily Xiao Song was strong enough to prevent her from succeeding, otherwise her family would be the one enjoying the glory right now!"

As soon as these words were spoken, there was a moment of silence at the table.

The women exchanged glances with each other, and no one dared to respond to the conversation.

This Dashanniang has been dead for several years. As the saying goes, "Death is the greatest thing." It's meaningless to bring up these old things now.

Seeing this, Aunt Niu quickly changed the subject: "If you ask me, it's the Song family's ancestors who have accumulated virtues."

"Look, Old Song is now a high-ranking official in Nanyang Prefecture, Little Song has made a fortune in business, and Erlin has passed the imperial examination. Isn't this smoke rising from our ancestors' graves?"

"Yeah!"

"That's right. Xiao Song is very capable and he also helps our village to get rich. Now Erlin is so hardworking and has passed the imperial examination. He may even be able to become an official in the capital in the future!" An elder of the clan sighed, stroking his beard.

"Hey, what do you think, if Erlin really becomes a high-ranking official, will he bring all the members of the Song family to live in the capital?" Ergou asked curiously.

"That's hard to say, but if that's the case, then it's what he deserves."

Several villagers were talking to each other, their tone full of envy, but they did not dare to have any jealousy in their hearts.

After all, the Song family was already out of their reach, and even jealousy seemed ridiculous.

Quan Zi couldn't help but say, "If my two little brats could be half as successful as Er Lin, I would wake up laughing in my dreams."

His two sons are also studying in school now, but unfortunately they are not very smart and can only recite the "Three Character Classic" and do arithmetic.

It seems that he can no longer count on his sons to study and bring honor to the family.

"It's because our foundation is too poor." Zhang Rui couldn't help but sigh, "How can we compare to those from scholarly families? It's good enough if we can recognize a few words."

These words touched everyone's heart.

How could it be so easy to study and pass the imperial examination?

Not to mention how much money it costs to support a scholar, the hardship of studying for ten years alone is not something that most people can endure.

In addition to his own talent and hard work, Erlin’s success in the imperial examination was also inseparable from the full support of the Song family.

Thinking of this, everyone's admiration for Song Yan increased a little more.

If Song Yan had not insisted on sending Erlin to study and invited famous teachers to teach him, how could he have the success he has today?

"Don't be too discouraged. Now that we have built a school in our village, with more than ten years of accumulation, perhaps our village will produce many promising children. By then, our Zhangjia Village can also become a 'scholar village'!" Aunt Niu encouraged everyone with a smile.

These words made everyone feel warm.

Yes, now that there is a school in the village, the children can read and write. With the accumulation of knowledge from generation to generation, it is possible that there will be a few scholars and juren.

At this moment, everyone realized how wise it was for Song Yan to build a school in the village.

He not only provided the children in the village with the opportunity to study, but also planted the seeds of hope for the future of Zhangjia Village.

Thinking of this, everyone felt even more grateful and respectful towards Song Yan.

Song Yan had no idea what the villagers were thinking, as he was busy dealing with the guests who came to congratulate him.

Seeing the Thanos gang coming in a mighty force, Song Yan quickly went to meet them and greeted them with a smile, "Brother Zhong!"

"Good Xiao Song, I can finally enjoy your buffet." Zhong Hui had a genuine smile on his face, and the Thanos brothers who followed him all had happy expressions.

"Congratulations to brother Erlin for getting into high school!" Shouhou and the others shouted congratulations one after another like firecrackers.

"We know you don't like those empty gifts, so we brothers brought some Liaodong local specialties for fun!"

As Zhong Hui spoke, he waved his hand, and several brothers behind him brought up several large baskets of mountain products - pine nuts, hazel mushrooms, hericium erinaceus, and several large pieces of high-quality fur.

Song Yan's eyes lit up, these are all good things!

Especially those pieces of mink fur, which were shiny and smooth, and obviously top-quality goods.

"Brother Zhong, you are so polite!" Song Yan quickly asked someone to accept the wine. "Hurry up and take your seat. We won't leave until we are drunk tonight!"

The skinny monkey winked and said, "Brother Song, we heard that Brother Erlin passed the imperial examination. We are so happy! We rushed to congratulate Brother Erlin and almost got into a fight."

I remember when Erlin's younger brother was taking the exam for the scholar, he lived in their gang for quite a while, and the brothers in the gang took great care of him.

Especially Aunt Pang and Aunt Hua, who would find different ways to prepare delicious food and nourishing soup for him every day, fearing that he would suffer from poor health due to his hard work in studying.

Now that they heard that Erlin was the top scorer in high school, the entire Thanos Gang was proud of it.

They all wish they could come and congratulate in person.

Song Yan didn't know whether to laugh or cry. This King Thanos was still as lively as ever.

After exchanging greetings, everyone took their seats.

Until the sun set and other guests left one after another, the brothers of Thanos Gang were still in high spirits and pulled Song Zhengdu to drink and play finger-guessing games.

Song Zhengdu drank a few cups with them, and soon his face turned red and his eyes became blurry.

It was a rare occasion that everyone was happy, so Song Yan didn't stop them.

At this time, Zhong Hui came over and patted him on the shoulder, looking like he had something to say.

Song Yan understood and led Zhong Hui to the flower hall.

After closing the door, Song Yanfang asked, "Brother Zhong, what's the matter?"

Zhong Hui took out a letter from his bosom and handed it to Song Yan: "Brother Ying asked me to bring it to you."

Song Yan opened it and took a look, her brows gradually furrowed.

The letter said that Liaodong was hit by a rare cold wave this year, resulting in a serious reduction in grain production, and Brother Ying wanted to purchase a batch of grain from Song Yan for emergency use.

"How much do you want?" Song Yan asked directly.

Zhong Hui pointed out a number: "One hundred thousand shi."

Song Yan was surprised: "You need so many?"

Zhong Hui sighed, "I heard from Brother Ying that the imperial court has been in arrears with Liaodong's military pay for three years, and the army is full of complaints."

"We are experiencing another cold wave this year, and people are having a hard time making a living. If there is no more food aid, I'm afraid there will be a big mess."

One hundred thousand shi of grain is not a small amount. Fortunately, the autumn harvest has just passed and the granaries are full. Last year's old grain has not been sold in time, so it can be allocated just in time.

Song Yan readily agreed: "Okay, I'll arrange it right away. But it's inconvenient to transport 100,000 dan of grain, so it has to be delivered in batches."

Zhong Hui smiled with his eyes narrowed slightly: "Xiao Song, Brother Ying will remember this kindness."

Song Yan waved her hand: "We are all family, so let's not talk about this. But..."

He hesitated for a moment, but still asked, "Is the situation in Liaodong really so difficult? The imperial court even withheld military rations?"

Zhong Hui smiled bitterly: "It's more than just embezzlement. The war in Hanzhou is tense, and the court has transferred all the food and grass that can be transferred there. Liaodong is far away, who cares about the lives of the soldiers?"

Song Yan let out a breath slowly.

It seems that the situation is more serious than he thought.

After seeing Zhong Hui off, Song Yan immediately called Wei Taoer and asked him to prepare 100,000 shi of grain and ship it to Liaodong in batches by sea.

Wei Taoer didn't ask any more questions and quickly allocated grain from various granaries according to Song Yan's instructions.

After the buffet, the Song family finally calmed down.

After Song Zhengdu passed the imperial examination, according to custom, he had to go to the county school to pay a visit to the instructor, attend the Luming Banquet, and accept invitations from all parties.

For several days, Song Zhengdu was busy as a whirlwind.