If a woman's beauty has an extreme, then the woman in front of him is the highest standard in Xia Shang's heart. Xia Shang boasts that he is well-versed in classics, but at this moment he can't find a poem that can describe the beauty of this woman. Although she doesn't wear makeup, her beauty is not diminished by half. Her eyebrows are as slender as the light smoke dancing in the wind when burning incense. The tears hidden in her bright eyes are comparable to the rippling and trembling spring water. Her beautiful nose is crystal clear and round like white jade dripping tears. Her red lips are thin and small, showing weakness everywhere. The slightly raised corners of her mouth make people think of the infinite charm when they share a pillow with her.
At this moment, Xia Shang seems to understand why he would exchange 100,000 gold for this woman to accompany him day and night, and he can also understand why he impulsively chose to divorce his wife.
In modern times, it is not surprising for men to spend all their wealth and sacrifice their lives for such a woman.
This is the first time in Xia Shang's life that he has touched a woman. His body trembles a little. He helps her up a little stiffly, looking at her face and thinking about it.
"A beauty like this is worth a fortune." Xia Shang was touched and couldn't help but say something in a literary way.
Li Zhong was furious: "Master! It's already this time, why are you still not awake? This is a witch! Don't let her stay!"
After that, Li Zhong raised his fist and pretended to hit her.
Xia Shang frowned: "Uncle Zhong, all these things happened because of me, what does she have to do with it?"
"Master! Look at the Xia family now! If you still insist on not changing your ways, how can you be worthy of the master and his wife?"
"Beat her to death and you will be worthy of them?"
Li Zhong was speechless and didn't know how to respond.
"All the past is my fault. God wants me to lose my memory because he wants me to forget everything that happened before. God has given me a chance to start a new life, and I will cherish it. I will get back what I missed, lost, and hurt in the past. Now that my family is in trouble and my parents are gone, I should focus on reviving the family tradition. Only by revitalizing the family business can I make the best atonement for my parents. It is definitely not what Zhong Bo said to beat this girl to death."
After saying this, Xia Shang slowly exhaled and looked up at the sky of Yangzhou City.
This is not only for Zhong Bo to hear, but also for Xia Shang himself.
Xia Shang once thought that he was an accomplished and meaningful person, but only after dying once would he realize how failed his previous life was. Looking back, he found that he had nothing but work. He did not accompany his family well, did not make friends sincerely, and missed and hurt many women who really liked him.
In this life, I must live up to myself and my family.
This is the goal Xia Shang gave himself after his rebirth.
Li Zhong was just a horseman, and he was no match for Xia Shang in terms of principles. He couldn't refute for a long time, and stamped his feet angrily: "I don't have much spare money, and I can't afford to support idle people."
Seeing this, Yazhi replied repeatedly: "My daughter...my daughter can work, making fire, cooking, washing clothes, embroidering."
Xia Shang nodded: "In this case, let's go together."
...
The Xia family's house has long been an empty shell, and no valuables are left. Even Yazhi's gold and silver jewelry were taken away by someone unknown. All that was left for Xia Shang was the carriage looked after by Zhong Bo and an old horse.
Li Zhong has been pulling a carriage for his whole life. Only when he sits on the cart and whips the horse can he forget all his troubles.
The old horse dragged the carriage slowly to the rhythm of the whip. In the carriage, Xia Shang stared at the street scene along the way, without looking at Yazhi sitting on the same side.
Everything in the new world is new.
The city of Yangzhou in the early morning is like a beauty bathing behind a screen, showing only a hint of charm in the dim light.
It is said that fireworks are in Yangzhou in March.
In March, Yangzhou is full of love for mountains and waters. New willows are sprouting by the West Lake, as slender as hair and as green as jade. They stretch for three miles along the lake. Looking at it, it is like the lifeline of the ancient city of Yangzhou, extending all the way outside the city, revealing the vitality. The young girls on the flower boats in the lake, wearing light gauze and holding small oil umbrellas, are laughing and playing with the company of three or two elegant scholars waving folding fans.
Poetry, love, painting, and meaning.
This is the main theme of Yangzhou, and also the main theme of the entire Jiangnan region. No matter what era it is, leisure and comfort are indispensable here.
However, Xia Shang had no time to appreciate the beauty of Yangzhou City, and he had to leave at this moment.
Along the way, Li Zhong stopped several times. Xia Shang watched Li Zhong go to several households, but he always came back in a dusty state.
They stopped and started like this until they arrived at the gate of Yangzhou City. Zhong Bo lifted the curtain and brought a few oranges.
"Where are they from?" Xia Shang asked.
"Young Master, just eat them."
"Whose families did you go to, Zhong Bo?"
"They are just some of the Xia family's side branches, who used to rely on you for their livelihood."
"Why did you go to them?"
"No matter what, you are a child of a rich family. I don't want you to live too poorly, so I thought of looking for someone to help you. Unexpectedly..."
"Unexpectedly, you were turned away everywhere?" Xia Shang smiled slightly.
Li Zhong was angry: "Thinking back then, all these people flattered the master and relied on the master's business. They made no less than a thousand taels of silver from the master, but now they don't even give him three or five taels of silver."
"When the wall falls, everyone pushes it. It's reasonable. Uncle Zhong, don't mind it. Why did this family send oranges?"
"Master, don't you even remember your sister? The lady of this family is your biological sister. But now it can't be said that she is a relative. Now that the master and the lady have both passed away, she actually There was no intention to come and visit. The old servant said that the young master was fine, and asked her to give him ten taels of silver to live on, but it was useless. She just asked where the young master was going and gave him a few oranges to send him away. "
Xia Shang smiled: "I have a sister? What's her name?"
"Xia Xinyi."
"Xia Xinyi?" Xia Shang exclaimed lightly, and then laughed, "Zhong Bo, don't worry, someone will send money tomorrow."
Li Zhong didn't take Xia Shang's words seriously, and turned around and drove the carriage away from Yangzhou City.
Yazhi was attracted by Xia Shang's confidence. While peeling the orange, she asked, "Sir, what you said just now is true?"
"Yes."
"How do you know someone will send money tomorrow?"
"It's shown by the hexagram."
"Hexagram? Sir, you know the art of fortune-telling?" Yazhi's bright eyes flashed, which was very beautiful. Then she shook her head, "Sir, please don't talk nonsense about God's will. This is very disrespectful."
It seems that Yazhi didn't believe it at all.
Xia Shang did not explain, but he was muttering in his heart: "I am the senior content director of the online bookstore. I have read at least 50,000 books. What kind of books have I not read? What is the difficulty of fortune-telling, which evolved from the Book of Changes? Not only character prediction, yin and yang house feng shui, face reading, Liu Yao, Qi Men Dun Jia, but also tomb robbing and dragon point finding. Even the more niche Tibetan books of life and death and strange and lewd bedroom techniques are also involved. Not to mention traditional fields such as finance, education, sales, literature, art, astronomy, and technology. I dare not say that I am proficient in all of these, but at least they are my personal opinions."
...
At noon, Xia Shang and the other two arrived in Yulin County. This place is not as desolate as imagined. After all, it is a county town, and it is close to Yangzhou City. It is well-developed. The development and construction of the county town is a well-off one. Except for the smaller area, other places are not much different from Yangzhou City. However, the courtyard that Zhong Bo rented was indeed a bit shabby. The courtyard was very large, but there were only two thatched houses and a firewood room, and it only cost thirty wen a month.
In the Hua Dynasty, one tael of silver was equal to a thousand wen, and one tael of gold was worth eighteen to twenty-four taels of silver.
A small courtyard that only cost thirty wen a month was quite cheap.
Xia Shang did not pay much attention to Yulin County. After adapting to the ancient environment, from noon to dusk, the beauty around him was always the center of Xia Shang's attention.
Yazhi was her stage name. Her original surname was Pan and her given name was Zhi. Later, she felt that the word "Zhi" was similar to the word "Ji" and was unlucky, so she changed it to "Zhizhi". However, things did not go as she wished. After changing her name, Pan Zhizhi was sold to a brothel by her parents at the age of thirteen. Because she had learned poetry and books in her early years and was very beautiful, she was carefully cultivated as a prostitute. Unexpectedly, this girl was gifted. After three years of learning, she was proficient in piano, chess, calligraphy, painting, poetry, and songs.
Half a year ago, Pan Zhizhi made her debut in Liuyue Tower on the bank of the Jinghang River under the name of Yazhi. The song "Wang Jiang Lai" written and sung by herself became popular in Yangzhou. Her voice was more elegant than countless famous Jiangnan dancers. The rhythm and antithesis between the words were closely linked and completed in one go. Many talented men in Yangzhou had to admit that she was ashamed. The sadness revealed in the artistic conception aroused the sadness of many women.
Yazhi became famous for her songs, but she was stunning with her appearance. She first appeared a month ago. Although it was just a glimpse outside the curtain, she was remembered by hundreds of young masters and celebrities in the building. Her beauty and talent spread like wildfire. Some people even called her "the most beautiful in the world, and her songs are unparalleled".
How many young talents were attracted by her at one time? There were also many celebrities who came here because of her reputation. Now, she is in a simple thatched house, unbuttoning her clothes, letting her hair fall, with only a close-fitting bellyband half-covering her delicate body like a work of art. She sits softly on the bed, casting an attentive look at Xia Shang under the dim oil lamp, as if she has made all preparations, just waiting for the moment when the light goes out.
It is late at night, and the spring night breeze is annoying.
The beauty is lying on the bed, looking at me, why do I need to ask for pleasure and words?
Xia Shang teased her chest, and felt itchy.
"What should I do next?"