Chapter 163 Guests

Er Gouzi suddenly got the title of Nongdu Lieutenant, and the news quickly spread throughout the officialdom of Sanyang County.

Over in the county town, Magistrate Ding and officials from the yamen came to visit in person to congratulate him.

"Congratulations!"

"It turns out that Ding Qingtian is here. Come and sit inside."

When Er Gouzi saw Magistrate Ding, he was followed by a group of people. There were hundreds of them, and everyone from the county government came.

Moreover, everyone was carrying heavy gifts in their hands, and behind them were a group of porters carrying many baskets and boxes.

Fortunately, he has built a large house under Shekou Mountain in the past few years.

Otherwise, he would not have room to entertain so many people and bring so many gifts at once.

Magistrate Ding bowed his hand to Ergouzi, and then presented him with a gift list.

"I will lead the Anchang County government to prepare a small gift, and I hope Captain Zhang will accept it."

"Ding Qingtian can come as soon as he comes, and why don't you bring any gifts!"

Ergouzi said polite words, but he quickly took the gift list into his hand. In a hurry, he didn't forget to glance at it with his spiritual consciousness.

"Five spiritual stones, three Peiyuan Pills, two century-old ginseng, one Julingcao, two Dou Peiyuan Guben Pills, ten fat pigs, 100 chickens, 100 ducks..."

This gift list is already a heavy burden for an upright official like Magistrate Xie Ding.

Er Gouzi felt full of sincerity from it.

He quickly welcomed Magistrate Ding into the house and served him good tea, cakes, dried fruits and candied fruits.

As for other people and gifts from the county government, Qiuyue and Sun Wangcai were naturally responsible for receiving them.

Er Gouzi and Magistrate Ding were sitting in the hall and chatting happily, and their words were very congenial.

"The way of farming is to have a large land and a large number of people, so that you can get a good harvest..."

Magistrate Ding has been a county magistrate for many years, but he still never forgets about farming and is always worried about whether the harvest in the fields is good.

His philosophy is that the wider the cultivated land, the better, and the more people, the better. Even if the harvest is a little thin, the total amount will add up to a lot.

But Ergouzi has a different view.

"I think the land is not enough and the population is not large. We can only stimulate potential and try to make each crop stronger, and we can also use more cattle and horses..."

Both of them have a similar peasant temperament, they are both simple-dressed and honest-looking people.

Those who didn't know it saw the two sitting together and chatting about farming, thought they were two farmers chatting about home affairs.

The two of them were having a lively chat when another guest arrived.

Ergouzi was a little unfinished, so he had no choice but to pick up the guests first.

I don’t know what auspicious day today is, but the guests at the foot of Shekou Mountain are coming one after another.

First the magistrate of Ding County, then the magistrates of several surrounding counties, and county government officials came, and they all brought rich gifts.

Then, there are people from various yamen in Sanyang County.

Even the governor of Sanyang County sent someone to give him a few spiritual stones as a congratulatory gift.

Qiuyue and Sun Wangcai's hands were numb after receiving the gifts.

At first, a house was vacated specifically to hold gifts, but it was quickly filled. Later, two large houses were vacated, but they soon became full again.

Suddenly, people gathered at the foot of Shekou Mountain, and those who came were all well-known local figures.

Some people knew each other, and some did not know each other. They gathered together, introduced each other, and made friends.

Without Ergouzi's guidance, these guests were consciously divided into several groups, with distinct distinctions.

There are a bunch of officials with real power above the level of martial arts examiner, there are a bunch of people with foundation-building pills registered, there are a bunch of people who are martial arts candidates without real power, there are a bunch of martial arts scholars...

"Xia Qingshan, the Xia family of Qingzhou Prefecture, congratulates Captain Zhang!"

At this moment, a loud voice sounded outside the door, and everyone in the hall went to the door to greet him.

Ergouzi wanted to pick up the guests at the door, but he refused to push through.

These people are also too active and a bit overshadowed.

Just because the visitor's status was too high and he was one of the representatives of the Xia family, everyone had to be more active and enthusiastic.

Xia Qingshan is a middle-aged man who looks very elegant, with a golden elixir level cultivation. Faced with everyone's flattery, he looks calm and only nods slightly.

"Which one is Captain Zhang?"

At this time, everyone realized that they had forgotten their master, and quickly moved to the sides, only to reveal Ergouzi, who was looking a little embarrassed behind the crowd.

"That's right!"

"Congratulations to Lieutenant Zhang. I happened to be passing by this time. I didn't bring any gifts with me, only three Xuanyuan Pills."

Xia Qingshan said, took out a jade bottle and gave it to Er Gouzi.

As soon as he took out three Xuanyuan Pills, everyone in the hall cast envious looks.

Among all the gifts received today, Xia Qingshan's was the most valuable.

"Thank you, senior!"

Er Gouzi took the elixir, but he actually didn't expect that the Xia family would ask such an important person to give him a gift.

"Senior, have you eaten yet? Pigs are being slaughtered in the kitchen. Do you want to have a meal before leaving?"

"No, I have something else to do and I have to leave now."

Xia Qingshan sent a heavy gift, only took a sip of tea, and left in a hurry.

For this kind of guest who only gave gifts but did not eat, Ergouzi sent them away with great respect in his heart.

The house was full of guests today, and everyone gave him heavy gifts. As the master, Ergouzi couldn't be too rude.

Let Sun Wangcai kill 10 pigs and 20 sheep, and Qiuyue kill 100 chickens and ducks.

It just so happened that I stole a lot of wine from Master Dianshi's house and kept it in the gourd without drinking it. Now I have some spiritual energy.

Ergouzi took out several jars to entertain the guests.

On this day, the guests and hosts had a great time, the cups and plates were in a mess, and everyone dispersed. After the guests had eaten and drank enough, they left one after another, and peace returned to the foot of Shekou Mountain...

…………

On a small road not far from Er Gouzi's home, Huang Laocai held an old hen in each hand.

Behind him, Wu Xiucai Huang Mancang followed.

The father and son walked along the path towards Er Gouzi's house.

"Dad, Mr. Zhang is such a big official, what's the use of giving him two chickens?"

"I heard that people from several surrounding counties came here, and they sold more than a dozen pigs, as well as valuables such as pills."

Huang Mancang followed his father, talking about it all the way. He felt that it was shameful to come to the door with two chickens in his arms.

Compared with those high-ranking officials, they feel a little inferior now that they have entered Ergouzi's family.

"Of course I know that when you ask for help, you need to give pigs, cattle, sheep, and pills."

"The question is, do you have it?"

"Our pig is still a little piglet, and you guys have eaten the elixirs. Where can I find them?"

"If it weren't for your brother working for Mr. Zhang, earning a good income, and often helping him, you kid wouldn't even be able to taste the taste of the elixir."

After years of hard work, Huang Laocai's family now has more than 100 acres of land, and they still have to pay taxes.

I have exhausted all my efforts to provide a child with martial arts training, and there is no money left.

When Huang Laocai walked to the door of Er Gouzi's house with two chickens in his arms, he was a little hesitant and did not dare to go in.

I rubbed the mud off my shoes at the door, straightened my clothes, and then walked in with my head lowered and a bright smile on my face.

Ergouzi had just seen off the guests and happened to be still in the house down the mountain. He saw Huang Laocai holding two chickens from a distance.

"Huang Laocai!"

"Master Zhang!"

Huang Laocai was slightly bent over, with a bright smile on his face.

This kind of smile is a bit familiar to Ergouzi.

That year Huang Fugui was taken away by the county government and imprisoned in prison.

Huang Laocai just bent down like this, put on a bright smile, and handed out bags of silver.

Later, Ergouzi encountered difficulties in registering for the martial arts examination.

Huang Laocai also had the same smile. Carrying a bunch of pork in his hand, he led Er Gouzi to the town to ask for his hometown and was opening a household registration list.

"Huang Laocai, you're here when you come, why do you want to give me a gift?"

"Please take a seat!"

Ergouzi repeated this sentence countless times today. Only this time, he was not in a hurry to accept the gift from the other party.

Ergouzi asked Qiuyue to make tea and asked the two men to sit down.

Then she asked Qiuyue to prepare some dishes, served them, and invited the two men to have a meal together.

The dish is fried fat pork with dried radish, which looks oily and delicious. There are also several side dishes.

Huang Laocai put down the two chickens and sat on the chair with only half his buttocks, leaning sideways and not daring to move his chopsticks.

"Huang Laocai, you are here as a guest, so you can eat with confidence and eat with an open belly."

Huang Laocai finished his meal uneasily, drank several sips of tea, hesitated for a long time, and finally spoke after being mentally prepared.

"Mr. Zhang, I want to ask you for something today."

"What's up?"

When Er Gouzi saw Huang Laocai's appearance, he already knew that he must be asking for something.

"I want Mancang to take the martial arts exam. Do you think it's feasible?"

Huang Laocai hesitated and finally stated his purpose.

Er Gouzi glanced at Huang Mancang who was behind Huang Laocai. He had actually reached the fourth level of Qi training and was indeed qualified to take the martial arts examination.

Ergouzi once gave Wang Fugui a lot of elixirs. No wonder his cultivation has been growing slowly. It turns out that he gave them all to his younger brother.

Otherwise, with Huang Laocai's little financial resources, it would be considered good if Huang Mancang could now practice Qi sensing.

However, with Huang Mancang's current level of cultivation at the fourth level of Qi Refining, it was still a bit reluctant to take the martial arts examination.

Moreover, Ergouzi knew the inside story, and the top-ranked martial arts candidates were all decided in advance.

Only two or three places will be left open for these Wu Xiucai with no background to compete for, leaving a glimmer of hope.

Huang Laocai probably got the news from somewhere and wanted to ask Er Gouzi for a place as a martial arts examiner.

Ergouzi thought for a while, and with his current status, it shouldn't be difficult to get a place at the bottom of the rankings.