Traveling through ancient times: daily life on the run

In the end, Qin Bingrui gave all the boxes of cakes he bought in Tianbao County to the boys from the Zeng family, because Xia Liang no longer likes sweets and only likes to eat meat.

When they were on the road, Luo Yu remembered the man in blue he had met in the morning, so he asked Qin Bingrui if he had noticed this person.

Qin Bingrui never paid attention to other men. He was about to say that he didn't see any bad men, but then he thought something was wrong. How could there be a man next to Sister Luo Yu that he didn't notice? Damn it.

"Sister, I noticed that he was a very tall man, dressed very elegantly."

Because Bai Lingyi is not tall himself, he pays special attention to other people's height.

Luo Yu thought, he seems to know me? He even wants to ask me for something on my body. What is it? He can't possibly know that she is Concubine Ying, right?

Be sure to ask clearly next time you see him.

Bai Lingyi had already mastered the art of driving a carriage, and with Xia Liang and his lackeys around, the horses wouldn't dare to act rashly. Luo Yu confidently handed the carriage over to him, then climbed into Qin Bingrui's carriage to stay with Fang.

After a while, she collapsed into a puddle of mud. Fang shook her head and put a soft pillow under her head.

In order to make those plows, she and Qin Bingrui studied for an entire night. Bai Lingyi was originally accompanying them, but in the end he couldn't hold it any longer and fell asleep.

Fang knew about it, and Luo Yu didn't go to bed until Yinshi (four o'clock in the morning).

When they arrived in Yunpan County, it was still early, so Qin Bingrui found the largest Huilai Inn. After all, it was really inconvenient to accommodate two large carriages.

When the lackey came out of the carriage, the people staying in the hotel were all surprised. They really couldn't understand the behavior of the rich. A luxurious carriage just to carry a dog?

Yunpan County is located in the most central area of Muzhou and Liangzhou. Because there is a waterway that leads directly to Liangzhou, it is the richest county in this area.

Luo Yu entered the city and found that the pavilions and towers were more magnificent than those in Tianbao County, the streets were much wider, and there were obviously fewer people wearing patched clothes.

There should be a good county magistrate here?

Entering the inn, Qin Bingrui, who was wealthy, asked for four superior guest rooms.

Fortunately, the lackey only needs to guard the carriage.

Fang looked at Luo Yu and smiled gently, "I can share a room with Chu Er."

Luo Yu smiled innocently: "Mom, you don't have to worry about money. Bingrui doesn't need it."

For the first time, Bai Lingyi had a concept of money. He raised his head and said to Qin Bingrui seriously, "Brother, we can stay in the room. It's 50 cents cheaper."

"You can save 200 coins if you and Gou Zi sleep in the carriage." Qin Bingrui slapped a tael of silver on the shopkeeper's table. If you didn't know, you would think he paid several hundred taels.

Luo Yu couldn't help but frown. Although Yunpan County was rich, the prices were much higher than Tianbao County. It cost 200 wen to stay in a room in the upper room for one night.

Although she doesn't care about how much money she has, prices are closely related to people's lives.

How could prices vary so much in every city? Or was it because this inn was a five-star hotel?

Bai Lingyi noticed Luo Yu's expression and asked softly, "Sister, what are you thinking about?"

"Yier, let's go back to the room and clean up first, and then you and I can go out for a walk."

Then he said to Fang, "Mother, you should have a good rest. I will call a doctor to check your wound later."

Fang nodded. Although she had lost her biological daughter, she had gained a caring adopted daughter. She no longer dared to complain about the unfairness of fate.

"Sister, where are we going? If you like something, I'll make money and buy it for you later."

Bai Lingyi felt rather embarrassed for having been using Sister Luo's and her friends' money these days. If he had known this would happen, he should have kept a few banknotes with him. However, he, his mother, and his sister had little life experience and no concept of money, which was why they were in such a predicament.

"Xiao Yi, don't worry about making money. Brother Bingrui has enough money to last us for several years."

"But if you don't make money and just spend it, one day you'll run out of money!"

As expected of a businessman's son, he finally came to his senses after suffering for a few days.

Luo Yu smiled, walked to the door of a bookstore, and said to Xiao Yi: "Go pick out what you want to buy. Although you can't go to the college now, you still need to read this book. You should also buy pens, ink, paper, and inkstone."

"Sister, these things are not cheap. I'm afraid it will cost a lot of money."

"Brother Bingrui has stockpiled a box of rice paper. You can buy the rest as you wish. Don't worry about the money. We'll find a way to make money later."

Speaking of making money, Bai Lingyi's eyes suddenly lit up.

The Bai family is the richest family in Muzhou, so naturally their business extends to various prefectures and cities.

Fortunately, the Bai family’s assets are not easily seen in these small towns. Otherwise, if the eldest grandson of the Bai family had fallen into such a state, no one would believe that he was a member of the Bai family.

"You can't do business, study hard and take the imperial examination." Luo Yu knew what he was thinking and had to stop him as soon as possible.

"Sister, why can't you do business? Isn't it better to have money?"

"Well, money alone is not enough. You will know when the time comes."

"Well, sister, I will study hard."

There is no rule in the Rong Dynasty that prohibits the sons of merchants from taking the imperial examinations. This is a good thing. Everyone can wait for the day to succeed by passing the exam. Although it is difficult for a son from a poor family to become a noble, it is better than having no chance at all.

After buying pens, ink, paper, and inkstone, including a few basic books, I spent a total of twenty taels. It seems that it is really difficult for poor people to study.

Luo Yu took a few books and took a look at them: the Four Books of Confucianism: "The Analects of Confucius", "Mencius", "The Great Learning" and "The Doctrine of the Mean", plus "Records of the Grand Historian". They were very good, but she had never read any of them.

"Apart from these, are there no other subjects like law and arithmetic?"

Luo Yu felt that even if they continued to study like this for a few hundred years, they would still be stuck in the feudal dynasty. How could they make progress?

Forget about physics, chemistry and astronomy, at least you should learn arithmetic.

"Yes, there is a subject that Ming Suan Academy teaches, but the imperial examination has been cancelled. I'm not the best at this subject, but Daddy is the best."

"It's okay, I'll teach you this subject."

Luo Yu thought about it and went into the bookstore again to see if there were any similar books on mathematics. He found a copy of "Nine Chapters on the Mathematical Art" and immediately paid for it and took it away.

Bai Lingyi remembered that Sister Luo Yu was able to estimate the people's annual income just by mental calculation yesterday, and thought that she must be a genius in this area.

So he was happy to learn arithmetic from Sister Luo Qie, as it would be useful when he became a businessman in the future.

After buying the books, Luo Yu went to the grain store to inquire about the price. It was indeed 20% more expensive than in Tianbao County. Even so, why was Uncle Zeng's family still so poor?

Luo Yu asked Bai Lingyi, and Xiao Yi shook his head. He never knew the importance of prices. If he hadn't heard Luo Yu's sister calculate the annual harvest of an ordinary farmer this time, he would probably have been kept in the dark forever.

Luo Yu was also quite shocked. In the era when technology was not well developed, it was actually extremely difficult for the kids from wealthy families to realize the hardships of people's lives and how difficult it was to survive.

We can't have a rural movement for all of them, right?

"Xiao Yi, what do you think is the biggest difficulty in people's lives?"

"No money?"

“How do you make money then?”

“Only by studying and understanding the principles can one understand the way to do business.”

"Yes, you are right. But among ordinary people, there are only a few who can actually read, let alone read."

After hearing this, Bai Lingyi suddenly looked up and said, "Sister, you look like a teacher I know. He once said the same thing."

"Yeah! It's always a good thing to have people like this around."

"Sister, the Master was once an official. He was concerned about the country and the people and was a good official. But you are just a commoner, why do you worry so much?"

"It is precisely because I am a commoner that I understand the difficulties faced by ordinary people. I only hope that one day everyone can learn to read, study, understand reason, and live a good life!"

"Shouldn't this be something His Majesty the Emperor should be worried about?"

Before Bai Lingyi could finish his words, Luo Yu covered his mouth with his hand. This kid is smart, but he is just stupid.

Who knows if the person who is tracking her is from the Queen's side? This casual remark could cost you your head. It hurts so much. I dare not even think about it.

The two of them strolled around and bought two roast chickens for Baihu to take back.

"Sister, are we able to bring Baihu into the city because Brother Qin Bingrui knows some high-ranking official?"

"Not really. It's mainly because I'm lucky and no one checked." Prince Ning's affairs cannot be exposed for the time being. It's better to have less trouble than more.

After returning to the inn, Qin Bingrui whispered to Luo Yu, "A county magistrate has sent someone to personally invite us to dine at the Fuyun Restaurant. Do you want to go?"

"Aren't we just going to look for this county magistrate? How come you are so capable?"

Luo Yu patted Bingrui on the shoulder and gave him a thumbs up.

"Hey, I just took out King Ning's token and told the gatekeeper when I passed through the city gate that we would stay in the largest and best inn."

The two of them discussed secretly for a while and decided to bring Fang and Bai Lingyi to attend the dinner party hosted by the county magistrate.

Although the eldest branch of the Bai family suffered a tragic fate, a lean camel is still bigger than a horse, so they have to hold on as long as possible.

Fuyun Restaurant is quite luxurious and high-end. It is three stories high, with carved beams and painted buildings. The roof is decorated with glazed tiles and carved ridge beasts. Its sophistication is comparable to that of the big inns in the provincial capital.

As soon as they entered the restaurant, the knowledgeable waiter greeted them warmly and led them to the private room on the third floor.

Fang and Bai Lingyi had seen big scenes before, so they didn't find it strange.

Luo Yu and Qin Bingrui had never seen such servility and fake smiles, and their faces were serious and unsmiling.