Chapter 3: Don't Give Up, Don't Abandon

  From Songjiang to Zhenjiang is not far, find a ferry terminal can be along the river all the way to Zhenjiang.

  On this road, Hao Feng Lou gradually became familiar with this world and gained a few points of confidence in this era.

  Zhenjiang was anciently known as Jingkou and Dantu. There is a poem that says: "Where to look for the divine state, with a full view of the North Solid Tower". This North Solid Tower is one of Zhenjiang's scenic spots. Here is also the key to controlling Nanjing, and the name Zhenjiang comes from its important military significance. It is said that when northerners marched south, they either went to Xiangfan or directly took Zhenjiang. Today, the capital city is Nanjing, which is only a hundred miles away from Zhenjiang, so the importance of Zhenjiang goes without saying.

  Recently, I heard that the rebel army in the north marched south and broke through Jinan, stationing troops on the north bank of the river. They will cross the river soon. As Zhenjiang is a strategic location, they must capture it before crossing the river. Therefore, the atmosphere within the city walls of Zhenjiang is tense, with soldiers stationed every three steps and sentries posted every five steps, inspecting everywhere, like dark clouds blocking out the sun, making people feel suffocated.

  Fortunately, Hao Fenglou had a token on him, so he wasn't afraid of being investigated. After bringing Xiaoxiang into the city, they stayed at an inn near the Water Troops Commander's residence.

  "Young master, young master... why don't we just go and pay our respects to Old Master Lu and Madame Lu directly?"

  Hao Feng Lou's face was dusty, with a hint of fatigue, but after settling in, his mood relaxed, and he said: "You don't know this, we're not clear about the Lu family's impression of Young Master Ben. If we rashly visit and get kicked out, it would be a great loss of face, but Young Master Ben can withstand that blow. However, if we want to get close to Miss Lu later, it will be extremely difficult. So we need to know ourselves and our opponents, let's stay here for a few days, gather some information, and then make a decision."

  Xiao Xiangxiang thought it made sense and said with sparkling eyes: "Young master is right, we should know each other."

  It's not easy to know oneself and others. Especially when night falls, there are no entertainment activities in this era, the only entertainment is probably sleep.

  They just slept but had a problem, the master and servant were very poor, one coin had to be divided into two halves to spend, so they could only squeeze together.

  "Young master, young master, you sleep on the bed, I'll just sleep on the floor." Little Xiangxiang was still very considerate and quickly went to move a layer of bedding downstairs.

  Hao Feng Lou's old face turned slightly red, but he couldn't bring himself to say it, so he forced a polite smile and said: "This... you sleep on the bed, I'm a thick-skinned young master, not afraid of the cold."

  "But... " Xiaoxiang bit her lip and said seriously: "But the madam said that I should take care of your daily life, young master. You sleep on the bed, I sleep on the floor, it's okay, I'm not afraid of the cold."

  Hao Feng Lou thought he had been polite enough, silently scolding himself for being too selfish. Finally, with a rustle, he slipped under the bed sheets and covered himself: "Very good, Little Xiangxiang is very understanding, okay, sleep!"

  The lamp doesn't need to be turned off, anyway it's free in the inn. Hao Feng Lou always felt that he was being exploited by the innkeeper, so he resolutely decided to keep the candle lit until dawn.

  Xiao Xiang opened the bedding and went to sleep.

  Hao Fenglou closed his eyes, but couldn't sleep. His mind was filled with thoughts of Miss Lu and his cheap parents in this world. Then he thought of his master from his previous life, who had taught him so many things...

  After a while, he threw away his distracting thoughts and took a glance at Xiaoxiang who was already fast asleep on the bed. Xiaoxiang was grinding her teeth in her sleep, making a slight cracking sound that was somewhat frightening. Perhaps it was because of the cold winter night, the ground was too chilly, causing her small body to curl up, and under the candlelight, her little face peeking out from under the quilt had turned pale blue.

  Hao Feng Lou decided to close his eyes and sleep.

  Eyes closed, yet in his heart there was always a sense of unease. He comforted himself, thinking that this was the old world where people prey on each other, and he needed to be at peace with it; otherwise, how could he enjoy life's pleasures?

  These words comforted him and he closed his eyes and continued sleeping.

  The little Xiangxiang on the ground flipped over, and her teeth chattered with a "ge ge" sound.

  Hao Fenglou was furious, and he sat up abruptly, cursing loudly: "What kind of world is this? Are we not allowed to be young masters of the land? Are we not allowed to commit evil deeds?"

  Xiao Xiang Xiang woke up, opened her eyes and said: "Young master, are you talking in your sleep?"

  Hao Feng Lou ordered her: "Get up, roll up your quilt and go to bed!"

  Xiao Xiang was stunned for a moment and said: "The lady said..."

  "Madam is madam, but once you're here, you have to listen to me, Young Master Hao."

  He slipped on his shoes and got out of bed, putting the quilt on the floor back onto the bed. After searching around the room, he surprisingly found a pair of scissors. He then asked Little Xiang to get into bed and solemnly handed her the scissors, saying: "Now we'll sleep together. If Young Master does anything improper to you while sleeping at night, use these scissors to poke Young Master's thigh. However..." Hao Feng Lou took a deep breath and said: "But remember, don't poke his face - that's where Young Master eats."

  Xiao Xiang shook her head dazedly: "Don't cut it off, I believe in Young Master."

  You actually believe me? But I don't even trust myself, Hao Feng Lou thinks he's very pathetic. As a villain, being affirmed by a little girl like this is undoubtedly a slap in the face.

  Okay, sleep.

  Hao Feng Lou also got on the bed, and the two squeezed together. He felt the chill all over Xiao Xiang's body, but Hao Feng Lou didn't feel cold at all; instead, he even felt a little comforted.

  He fell asleep in a daze and heard Xiaoxiang's murmurs again in his daze.

  "Master... from now on, don't kiss those women who are not quite right, okay? You should listen to your wife's words... Your wife is worried about you..."

  The next day, Xiao Xiang was tidying up the house in her room, and Hao Fenglou went downstairs with a fan.

  Hao Fenglou sat on a chair at the foot of the stairs and called out: "Waiter, bring a pot of tea and another plate of peanuts."

  Early in the morning, there were not many guests. The shopkeeper leaned on the counter, drowsy, and upon hearing Hao Feng Lou's voice, immediately perked up, hastily poured a pot of tea and brought over a plate of peanuts, smiling obsequiously: "Young master, our most famous dish is braised pork...".

  Hao Feng Lou fanned himself with a fan and said impatiently: "Too greasy, peanuts are this young master's favorite."

  Xiao Er didn't doubt that Hao Feng Lou was penniless, and chuckled: "Young Master indeed has a unique taste..."

  Hao Feng Lou put away his fan and took a sip of tea before saying: "You know the Zhenjiang Water Forces Commander's Mansion, don't you?"

  It's not far from the Water Troops Commander's Mansion here, and Xiao Er welcomes and sees off guests here, it would be strange if he didn't know a thing or two about what's going on inside.

  Xiao Er's eyes lit up and he said: "So Young Master is also here to apply for the position of instructor at the Water Troops Commander's Mansion?"

  "What teachings? What teachings?" Hao Fenglou was confused.

  Xiao Er said with a smile: "Of course, it's Miss Lu of the Lu family. Recently, for some reason, she wants to read books. The Lu family is a prominent family, and Miss Lu is a precious gem. If she wants to study, naturally, they will hire a tutor. Sir, you don't know that recently, many people like you have been rushing to respond."

  Hao Fenglou found it strange, a teacher was still being fought over? Wasn't there any dignity left in this generation of scholars, had they all become like Ben Shaoxia, to the point where they would stoop to begging?

  The young servant smiled and said, "Young master, you don't know this, but think about it. The Lu family just rejected the marriage proposal from the Hao family of Songjiang Prefecture, and now Miss Lu is still in her boudoir, not yet betrothed to anyone. If a tutor were to gain her favor by chance, wouldn't that be a good match? You should know that the Lu family is very influential, and Miss Lu is said to be a beauty, with many young masters from Town Prefecture infatuated with her. Who wouldn't want to get close to her? I think you're also quite talented, why not give it a try? However, the Lu family's rules for selecting tutors are extremely strict, and many people have returned without success. Even the nephew of the Town Prefecture magistrate, Liu Gongzi, was rejected. You should be careful."

  Hao Feng Lou's heart skipped a beat, and he suddenly realized that these people were here to rob the young master of his woman. Thinking of this, Hao Feng Lou was instantly furious, and coldly said: "How can this be? How can this be? I am from Songjiang Prefecture, and as far as I know, Miss Lu's former fiancé is a decent person. The Lu family's refusal to marry is simply unreasonable."

  "Is the young master you're referring to that Hao family's son? Tsk, tsk... As soon as he mentioned the Hao family's young master, the shopkeeper burst out laughing: "Who in Yangzhou doesn't know that this person started peeking at the maids bathing when he was five years old, went in and out of brothels at nine years old, and lost thousands of silver taels in gambling dens by eleven years old? This is a notorious good-for-nothing! The Lu family had been looking forward to the marriage due to their old friendship, hoping that this Hao family young master would become more sensible as he grew up. However, recently it's been said that he spent several days whoring around in Hangzhou and accumulated a lot of debts... Such a person, if the Lu family refused the marriage, it would be a good thing! If Miss Lu married such a scoundrel, not only would she regret it for her whole life, but also, to be honest, our Yangzhou prefecture would be ashamed of it."

  Is it so bad? Hao Feng Lou felt that this little servant was openly slapping him in the face, too hateful.

  He didn't want to bother with this little thing now, and he had more important things to attend to. As he ate peanuts and drank tea, he muttered to himself: "Good news doesn't spread far, but bad news travels a thousand miles. It seems that I've already made a name for myself in Zhenjiang. Fortunately, I didn't rashly visit their home, or with my reputation, the Lu family would have rejected this marriage proposal and it would have been a huge relief. My few words wouldn't have moved them, and not being kicked out would be the Lu family showing respect for our two families' good relationship. It seems...I can only take a detour, recruit a teacher...to be Miss Lu's instructor..."

  Many scenes of rogue teachers in later generations flashed through Hao Fenglou's mind, his eyes lit up and he couldn't help but say: "Good, let's start with the teacher."

  After making up his mind, he gave a few copper coins and asked the little servant to sign up for him. The little servant didn't ask much and quickly went away.