Guide to traveling through the Northern Song Dynasty

There are many disputes at the widow's door, and this has been the case since ancient times.

The next day, when the nearby villagers went out to work, they all walked around in this direction intentionally or unintentionally.

Although no one said anything rude again, strange smiles appeared on their faces when they saw Ju Ming and Zhu Guoxiang.

Even if the Zhu family and his son were hiding in the house, the villagers could still see the skinny horse in the yard, and then glanced into the house unconsciously.

During dinner in the middle of the morning, the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law looked sad.

In the end, Shen Yourong comforted her mother-in-law: "Auntie, don't worry, behave upright, sit upright, and don't be afraid of others talking nonsense."

"Oh, we two are not afraid," Grandma Yan looked at her grandson, "If this matter spreads to all over the country, I'm afraid that Brother Qi will be stabbed in the back, saying that his mother was not a woman... "

Shen Yourong was silent for a moment. She could hold on, but what about the child?

Zhu Guoxiang saw that the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law were in trouble. He stood up and clasped his fists and bowed: "It's because we didn't think well and brought trouble to you two. How about this? Please borrow some corn and salt. Our father and son will move to the mountains and wait for the second day of April." Come down the mountain again for the birthday banquet.”

Before the two women could speak, Ju Ming said: "There is no point in moving out. Rumors have already spread in the village. Don't say we leave the village, even if we leave Xixiang County, the rumors will continue to spread, and The more it gets spread, the dirtier it gets, and the more it gets spread, the more outrageous it becomes.”

As soon as this statement came out, everyone fell silent.

Ju Ming asked his father: "Do you know how to 'refute rumors' about celebrities who have fallen out of favor?"

"Issuing an announcement?" Zhu Guoxiang asked.

“You old comrades in the system don’t know how to do propaganda, let alone crisis public relations, so it’s no wonder so many embarrassing things happen,” Zhu Ming corrected angrily, “It’s to divert the public’s attention! Rumors are talking points, and spreading rumors is a social way to express yourself. As long as you give them enough talking points and divert their attention, no one will care about the original rumors anymore."

"It makes sense. What can you do?" Zhu Guoxiang agreed with this.

Ju Ming looked confident: "You, the old lady, and Mrs. Shen will take Brother Qi to the mountains to hide for a while. We can also go to the forest to chop some firewood. When you come back in the afternoon, this matter will probably be settled."

"Are you sure?" Zhu Guoxiang expressed doubts.

Ju Ming smiled and said: "Not to mention 100% sure, but 70% to 80% certain. There are just a few foolish men and women in the village. How difficult is it to fool them?"

Although the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law don't understand what kind of system, what kind of celebrities, what kind of overturn, what kind of crisis public relations, they know that the old man of the Zhu family has a way.

When Grandma Yan went to wash the dishes, Shen Yourong wiped the mulberry leaves clean and said to Ju Ming: "Dalang, I swept up the silkworm droppings and wiped the mulberry leaves clean. At noon, please help feed the silkworms. A total of There are six dustpans of silkworms, so I divide the mulberry leaves into six piles and feed one pile to each dustpan."

"Don't worry, I know how to feed silkworms." Zhu Ming said confidently.

Of course Ju Ming didn't know how to feed silkworms, but he knew how to use free labor.

Seeing Ju Ming patting his chest and confirming his decision, Shen Yourong said no more. Anyway, feeding silkworms four times a day, and missing one meal occasionally would not have much impact.

When everything was ready, Zhu Guoxiang followed his mother-in-law and daughter-in-law and took their children out to the mountains.

When passing by a wheat field, there happened to be villagers working.

The man glanced at Zhu Guoxiang for a few times, then took the initiative to say hello: "Grandma Yan, are you going to chop wood?"

"Chopping firewood, we don't have enough firewood at home." Grandma Yan said.

"Then be careful, the broken road is very steep, don't fall down when going down the mountain." The villager seemed to be very kind, but his smile was weird, and he had already decided to go home and gossip.

Grandma Yan thanked her and moved forward faster. She always felt like she was being stared at and felt uncomfortable all over.

Halfway up the mountain, there is a large tea farm, and there are not many people here.

Shen Yourong was still worried and asked, "Ms. Zhu, does Dalang really have a way?"

Zhu Guoxiang assured: "Don't worry, you two. Although Quanzi doesn't do serious business, he is very clever at playing tricks. A few villagers should not be able to trouble him."

The mother-in-law and daughter-in-law didn't ask any more questions and could only choose to believe that Ju Ming could make peace with things.

…

Only Ju Ming and a skinny horse were left at home.

This guy's hands and feet were not very clean, so he ran to grab a handful of beans, spread his hands and said to the horse: "Come and eat, it's stolen, it's delicious."

The horse was so happy that he opened his mouth and chewed.

About half an hour later, on the path outside the courtyard, a farmer passed by carrying a hoe. He suddenly stopped and peeked at Ju Ming feeding his horse.

Ju Ming did not hide away, and even took the initiative to say hello: "Stop work and go home?"

The farmer came to see a joke, but now he couldn't stand it anymore. He laughed awkwardly and said, "Ah... that's right, let's call it a day and go home."

Ju Ming introduced himself: "My name is Ju Ming, from the south."

"The south is good, the south is warm." The farmer could only chat awkwardly, not knowing how to deal with it.

Ju Ming added: "The rape harvest is about to be harvested. Does this big brother want to help?"

The farmer shook his head quickly: "No need to help, my family has labor."

Ju Ming smiled and said, "Just call if you need help. I don't have a living, I just want to earn a few meals."

"Okay, I'll keep an eye out for you. If any house needs help, just call you. I... I have something to do at home, so I'll leave first." The farmer ended the exchange in a hurry.

Ju Ming waved goodbye and said to Zilaishu: "Brother, I'm easy to go. Come and play often when you have time."

After a while, another middle-aged woman came.

"Hello, auntie, my name is Ju Ming. I'm from the south." Ju Ming said openly, and he even learned the local accent and called himself "I".

This middle-aged woman was also an acquaintance. When she saw Ju Ming taking the initiative to talk to her, she immediately became obsessed with gossip: "Where in the south are you from?"

Zhu Ming made a random joke, walked away and said, "My family lives on Guangnan Road."

The middle-aged woman asked: "Where is Guangnan Road? I only know Zizhou Road, Kuizhou Road, and Jingxi Road. I have never heard of Guangnan Road."

Ju Ming said: "It's far away, further south on Jinghu Road."

"Where is Jinghu Road?" the middle-aged woman became more and more curious.

Ju Ming waved and said, "Auntie, please come in and tell me, I will draw a map for you."

"That's great." The middle-aged woman stood outside the door, smiling and waiting for Ju Ming to open the door.

Ju Ming invited the woman in and drew a simple map on the ground with a stick. It couldn't be simpler, and he painted the territory of the Song Dynasty into a piece of pie: "This is our Song Dynasty, and the official imperial city of Kaifeng is here. This is Lizhou Road, and below it is Zizhou Road and Kuizhou as my aunt said. Road. This side is Jinghu Road, and further south is Guangnan Road."

It was probably the first time she saw a map. The middle-aged woman stopped asking for gossip and stared at the map for a long time: "Where is Hangzhou? My boss came to the city last time and I heard that the new county magistrate is from Hangzhou."

Ju Ming drew a circle casually: "Hangzhou is over here."

The middle-aged woman said in surprise: "That's very far away. How long does it take for an official to come to our county?"

Zhu Ming started to talk nonsense. He was afraid that he would speak too much and not be understood. He deliberately learned the local accent and slowed down his speech: "I have been to Hangzhou. There is heaven above and Suzhou and Hangzhou below. Just the people in Hangzhou city. There are more people than in the entire Xixiang County. It’s hard to walk on the streets. There are people all around, including mules and donkeys pulling goods. There are shops on both sides of the street, and you can buy anything you want. Hangzhou people like to eat shark fins , do you know what shark fin is? It is a shark in the sea. Rich people do not eat shark meat, but only eat shark fins..."

The middle-aged woman was stunned for a moment after hearing this, her mind filled with imagination of the unknown world.

Ju Ming continued to make up random things, chatting all over the world, and even told stories about overseas cannibals.

As we were talking, another villager "passed by" outside the courtyard.

In line with the principle that a sheep is herded and a group of sheep is herded, the villagers were also invited in by Ju Ming to listen to the story.

Unconsciously, the audience gradually increased to five people.

Two boys, two girls, and a child.

When he reached the key point, Ju Ming suddenly shut up, turned around and walked towards the silkworm room.

A village woman shouted: "Little scholar, what are you doing? Finish telling the story of the Savage Country!"

Scholarship was not a title in the Song Dynasty, it was just an honorific title for scholars. .

Ju Ming grinned, showing his white teeth, and said with a smile: "I haven't fed the silkworms yet. I'll wait until I finish feeding the silkworms."

"I'll help you, feed and talk at the same time." The woman quickly chased after him.

Including the child, all five people followed into the room and quickly picked up the mulberry leaves without the need for Ju Ming to do it himself.

Those who work hard govern others, and those who work hard govern others.

Isn’t this done?

After feeding the silkworm babies, everyone returned to the courtyard.

"Snapped!"

Ju Ming struck the ground with a stick to serve as a wake-up call: "But it is said that in the extreme south, in the thousands of miles of ocean, there is an alien island. My father once went to sea with a ship, encountered strong winds and waves, and drifted on the sea for two months. I almost died of thirst!”

An old woman asked: "The little scholar just said that the sea is full of water, why did he die of thirst in the sea?"

"It's true that the sea is full of water, but seawater is very salty. The more you drink, the thirstier you become. Drinking too much can kill you," Zhu Ming explained.

An old man said in surprise: "There is salt in the sea water, so people who live by the sea don't have to spend money to buy salt?"

Ju Ming said: "Seawater can be used to boil salt. The Song Dynasty government set up many salt fields on the seaside. Pour seawater into a pot, boil it and boil it dry. What is left is salt. However, seawater is still poisonous, so drinking it directly is not acceptable. If you drink too much, you will be poisoned to death.”

"Don't talk nonsense, listen to the little scholar's story," another woman urged, "I have been floating in the sea for two months, where did I go?"

"Ahem!"

Zhu Ming coughed twice and took on the posture of making a video bragging: "This aunt is not in a hurry, but she said that my father lost his position on the boat and was floating in the sea for thousands of miles. He is thirsty and has to wait for the rain to drink water. . You have to get the food yourself. The spoiled food on the ship is thrown on the deck as bait. People hide next to it, and when the seabirds come down to eat, the people rush out and catch the seabirds..."

"There are whales in the sea, and my dad saw one. The whale was all blue and had no gills. After swimming in the water for a few hours, it had to float to the surface to breathe. Have you seen the mountain opposite? Good guy, whale When it floated, it was as big as that mountain. When it turned over, it almost capsized the boat..."

"Let's talk about that big island. There is a very weird beast. It has a head like a mouse, but it can stand on two legs, with a long tail trailing behind it. There is a pocket on the mother's belly, and the babies are put in the pocket to raise..."

"That night, my father and the crew arrived in the village. The villagers did not wear clothes, and wore animal skins around their waists to cover their shame. They were also very hospitable and invited my father to eat. My father was originally happy, but when it was almost time to eat, he was frightened and jaundiced. Spit out all the water.

As time goes by, more and more people go home for dinner in the afternoon.

When they passed by this area, they heard that the yard was very lively. They couldn't help but come over to watch out of curiosity, and then they were attracted by various bizarre stories.

The audience gathered around Ju Ming, sometimes paying full attention, sometimes being startled. When it came to the bloody and terrifying parts, the timid ones trembled with fear.

Many of these villagers who live in the inland mountains don't even know what the sea is. Even the smallest things are considered sensational news. How had they ever heard of such fresh news?

Gradually it was time for dinner, and some villagers came over and called their families to go back for dinner.

Not only did he not call his family back, he couldn't help but stay, for fear of missing even a word.

Some people were so hungry that they ran home quickly, picked up their rice bowls, and left. The family members hurriedly asked why and replied that they wanted to hear the story, so the whole family came over with their rice bowls.

Grandma Yan was afraid that Ju Ming would not be able to solve the problem due to the short time, so she expected to go down the mountain soon after dark.

It was already dusk when the three of them came back with their children.

I saw dozens of people sitting or standing around him in his yard, with Ju Ming as the center of the circle.

"But he said that the Monkey King learned the magic from the Patriarch Bodhi. After thanking the Patriarch, he twisted the magic formula with his hands, raised a somersault cloud, and flew thousands of miles away!" When Zhu Ming saw his father coming back, he violently used his stick to The ground knocked on the ground, "Bah! It's getting late, we'll talk about it tomorrow. If you want to know what happens next, listen to the next chapter!"

Those villagers who had not eaten hurriedly ran home hungry.

There were even more people, holding empty bowls in their hands and refusing to leave.

"Little scholar, let's talk again, it's not dark yet!"

"That's right, that's right, I haven't heard enough yet."

"Little scholar, you eat first and then talk after you finish. We are waiting for you."

"Let's talk while we eat, so we won't delay things."

"..."

Shen Yourong was stunned. The scene was so lively that it was unimaginable.

And the attitude of the villagers towards Ju Ming is no longer to ridicule him for hooking up with the widow, but to warmly welcome him from the bottom of his heart.

There are often scandals about widows, but overseas stories are never heard.

Which one is rarer, the villagers will naturally know.

Diverting attention is only the first step in "refuting rumors"!