A play is sung.

The guests cheered loudly, and those who had no money threw two copper coins, and those who had money were rewarded with a silver bean.

Wang Qingshan put down his tea cup, ordered the man who was waiting on him to give a silver ingot to the oiran singer on the stage, and said to Li Ping'an with a smile.

"Brother Ping'an, how is the business at the mortuary?"

"Enough to eat and drink."

Li Ping'an could probably guess the reason. There was a hint of coldness in his voice. He sipped his tea and continued to listen to the show.

The leader took the actors to express their thanks, especially to Wang Qingshan and other distinguished guests, and then announced the next opera.

"Please enjoy, Mr. Ma's new opera, in which the number one scholar smashes a vat to save his friends..."

puff!

Li Ping'an couldn't hold it back for a moment and spit out the tea. He named Su Mingyuan in all his jokes. He really did everything possible to gain popularity.

Wang Qingshan suddenly asked: "Do you think that in a few hundred years, will there really be records in the history books of smashing vats to save friends?"

"Probably."

Li Ping'an nodded and said: "Some celebrities' affairs in current history books were indeed forged by later generations."

There are many such rituals, such as cutting down cherry trees, smashing apples on the head, painting eggs, etc. They are all made-up stories.

Since it is widely circulated and is an inspirational piece of chicken soup, it doesn’t matter whether it is true or false.

"Yes, hundreds of years from now there will still be people who will remember the Number One Scholar, at least the county annals and the general history of the country will make a note of it."

Wang Qingshan said quietly: "But as for you and me, in a hundred years only our relatives will remember us, and in another hundred years we will not even be separated, and not even a single word will be left."

Li Ping'an raised his eyebrows and looked at Wang Qingshan in surprise. Does the Golden Sword Martial Arts School still teach this?

"Brother Qingshan is studying?"

"Yes, since I started a business, I feel that studying is more and more important."

Wang Qingshan nodded and said: "In the past two years, I have invited several gentlemen to teach me how to read when I have time. I have dabbled in Confucianism, Mohism, Taoism and Law."

"admire."

Li Ping'an sincerely admired that if he had been born in a peaceful era, Wang Qingshan might have achieved great achievements. Unfortunately, this is a big job, and fists are the fundamental principle.

When Wang Qingshan saw that he had finished talking, he invited: "Now the company is short of manpower for expansion. Can Brother Ping An help me?"

"We can't bear to part with this iron rice bowl passed down from our ancestors."

Li Ping'an always used his ancestors as an excuse. In fact, the mortuary was safe and there was no need to worry about it. Once there was danger, it didn't matter what his ancestor's name was.

“If you don’t strive for progress, you will just sit there and wait for death.”

Wang Qingshan advised: "We ordinary people have to fight, fight hard, and keep climbing up, so that we can live a better life, and maybe leave a few lines in the book."

"I just want to live in peace."

Li Pingan is short of money, but he will not fight for it. Even if he does not get Jianmu Zhi, the world should allow people to choose to be ordinary.

The voice changed and he asked: "Why did you invite me suddenly?"

Wang Qingshan did not hide anything: "Selling grain in the capital inevitably involves dealing with the Army and Horses Division. I was drinking with some friends a few days ago and mentioned that you killed two martial arts masters."

"I see."

Li Ping'an didn't find out who it was. When he turned around and asked Li San, he found out that he was probably not a big talker. No one would be stupid enough to talk about his taking credit for receiving the reward.

Doesn't that mean helping the Zhenfu Division complete its business performance?

"The business of the company is very stable. It is not the upstarts like these in the capital that we cooperate with, but the wealthy families in the south who have been here for thousands of years. There is no need to worry about risks."

Wang Qingshan continued to persuade: "Ping An only needs to be on the boat to hold the place, leisurely and relaxed, less than five or six hundred taels a year. And with a backer in the south, in the future the household registration can be changed to a good citizen, and the children and grandchildren can take the scientific examination."

The temptation is not great, not to mention how much money they make, as long as it can benefit their children and grandchildren, countless people will work hard.

Li Ping'an still shook his head: "The ancestral heritage cannot be lost."

You can't even do town work. It's common to encounter water bandits while running a boat. When the time comes, you have to fight and get through it safely once or twice. How can you not get your shoes wet after a long time.

Not to mention a few hundred taels of silver, even if he is sitting on a dragon's throne and is richest in the world, if there is danger, Li Ping'an will escape overnight.

Compared with longevity, wealth and honor are like floating clouds to me!

Wang Qingshan's eyes flashed with displeasure. He originally thought that Corporal Li Xian would take the initiative to invite Li Ping'an to join him with tears of gratitude, but he never expected to suffer setbacks one after another.

The man waiting next to him said: "Master Shan, there is no conflict between these two things. Master An can definitely do it on one shoulder. When he is busy, he runs the boat and when he is free, he works in the morgue."

"Well said."

Wang Qingshan suppressed the shame and anger in his heart and asked: "What do you think of Ping An?"

Li Ping'an put down the tea cup and touched the two detonators on his cuffs, feeling confident.

"Thank you for your love, Brother Qingshan, but that's not our ambition. Besides, the court prohibits subordinates from doing business. If found, they will be exiled."

If a subordinate official holds real power, if he or she participates in business, gangs, etc., he or she will easily become a weakling.

For example, funeral officials such as Li Ping'an relied on their power to collect corpses to open funeral shops. With their power, they could easily monopolize funeral and burial services.

Whoever dares to go to another house to buy coffin paper money will have his relatives missing arms, legs, heart and lungs, and the body will not be intact.

With such power and money, even government officials are held hostage.

Therefore, the imperial court imposed many restrictions on subordinate officials, such as not being allowed to do business, not joining gangs, not being allowed to take scientific examinations, etc., in order to prevent subordinate officials from becoming big and committing crimes and corrupting the administration.

Wang Qingshan's face brightened slightly when he heard the word imperial court.

The subordinate official was considered a half-official, and was protected by the court, so his voice became gentle again.

"Brother Li is sitting in the morgue, wasting all his talents, let's think about it again."

"Brother Qingshan, don't try to persuade me again."

Li Ping'an always remembers that whether he practices martial arts, makes firearms or tibia treasures, they are only used to save his life and must not be aggressive.

Wang Qingshan has a gloomy expression. Since he became prosperous in business, he has become a well-known figure in Yongxingfang. He is respected and sought after by his neighbors. Today, he was rejected by others one after another, and he felt a little embarrassed.

"Forget it then."

After saying that, he stood up and left. Several men nearby who were listening to the opera followed him to guard him.

After leaving the theater, the waiting man whispered: "Master Shan, do you want someone to take action and break this guy's leg?"

Wang Qingshan waved his hand. After all, he had a close friendship with Fa Xiao. Even if he didn't know how to praise him, he couldn't teach him harshly. If word spread, his reputation would be ruined.

"It's a pity. I was planning to give him a hand. UU Reading www.uukaｎshu.net I never thought of being so unmotivated!"

In the theater at this time.

Li Ping'an was still sitting at the table, listening to the newly composed play, which reached the climax of smashing the water tank.

The young man who performed the title role was standing on the edge of a water tank that was as tall as one person, swaying anxiously in circles. It looked like he was about to fall into the water tank, but in fact he was walking steadily.

"This acrobatics is worth the price of admission!"

Li Ping'an took out a few pennies from his sleeve and flicked them onto the stage.

A pot of tea was refilled five or six times until it was tasteless, and then I strolled back to the mortuary.

Since then.

In addition to studying, practicing martial arts, and listening to music, Li Pingan has a new hobby. From time to time, he goes to the Fuchun Troupe to listen to operas.

Listening to the opera, drinking a bowl of tea, there is only a bird cage separated from the retired veteran cadre.

This day is very leisurely and pleasant!

…

Forty years of Jianwu passed in the blink of an eye.

The world has not changed much. Those who should be promoted are still promoted, those who should be rich are still getting rich, and those who should suffer are still suffering.

Years ago, Li Ping'an went to Cui's Bookstore to buy books and found that the plaque on the door had been changed.

Zhuangyuan Building.

With the help of Zhuang Yuan Lang and Dong Gong Shi Du, shopkeeper Cui's business prospered tenfold and a hundred times. He merged with several nearby shops and became a large bookstore of high scale.

If ordinary people do this, they will not be scolded for taking advantage of others' power.

Shopkeeper Cui converted half of the newly acquired bookstore into a reading building, where tables, chairs and benches are placed, allowing people to come in to read for free, and tea is also provided.

He gave pens, ink, paper and inkstones to poor scholars on credit and made money by copying books.

Such kind deeds have made Zhuangyuan Tower increasingly famous!

The owners of the occupied shops, especially the original Zhuangyuanlou, did not dare to stand up and complain, otherwise they would be ignorant of the general situation and disregarding the overall situation...