The Daily Life of a Down-on-Hard-Life Medicine Girl Supporting Her Family

Chapter 254

"Charitable merchants"

The first time Zhao Minglang had ever knelt down to receive an imperial decree was because of the glory brought by his most unreliable third son.

I don't know what he did?
They actually received a plaque bestowed by the Emperor that read "Righteous Merchant," so they must hang it up.

"Young Master, you are truly amazing!"

Celebrating my birthday was such a proud moment!
My master is truly capable, young and promising, to have received such great honor.

"To celebrate his birthday, we'll buy some firecrackers, some candy, and exchange them for two baskets of copper coins. When we hang up the plaque later, we'll let all the neighbors and passersby share in the joy."

"Yes, young master!"

He quickly got to work to celebrate his birthday.

"Third brother, is it really okay for you to be so high-profile?"

Zhao Minglang felt that this was, after all, right under the emperor's nose; wouldn't being too high-profile attract jealousy?

"The signboard was personally bestowed by the Emperor. With this hanging on the door, why can't we be high-profile?"

Zhao Minghua looked proud. He had put in a lot of effort for this plaque, spending almost a year on it.

This is what he deserves.

If it weren't for this brand, his wealth could have multiplied several times over.

"Third brother, what exactly did you do to earn the Emperor's personal bestowal of a plaque?"

"Well, I didn't do anything special. Last year, on our way to the northern desert with Nuannuan, we passed through Hanzhou and discovered that they produced grain there, and the grain prices were cheap, so we stocked up on a batch of grain..."

Zhao Minglang's eyes widened: Could his unreliable third brother have done something like this?
"All of this was your idea?"

Why don't you really believe it?
There's nothing I can do; we're born of the same mother, and I know his personality perfectly well.

If he were that smart, his grandfather and father wouldn't have to worry about him every day.

Who would have thought that the most unreliable third brother would actually do something so important, bringing glory to the family!

"No, it was Nuannuan who suggested hoarding grain, and it was also Nuannuan who suggested selling grain to General Xia at a fair price. I was just following her plan."

"You've really married a good wife."

Zhao Minglang was a little jealous.

The third brother has always seemed to have some good luck.

The emperor loves his eldest son, and the people love their youngest son.

The third son was the youngest in the Zhao family and had been spoiled rotten since he was a child.

You can have whatever you want, and you don't have to do anything you don't want to do.

Unlike my older brother, who had to learn the herbal formulas and recognize Chinese medicinal herbs at the age of three and was taken by his grandfather to take pulses and prescribe medicines at the age of five; unlike myself, who started learning at the age of three and has been studying ever since.

The third child seems to have been born just to eat, drink, and have fun.

Such a man actually married a smart and capable wife who could not only be a good wife and mother but also offer advice and strategies.

How much good fortune did the Zhao family ancestors have to burn to give their third son such good luck?

“Yes, marrying a virtuous wife brings prosperity to three generations.” Zhao Minghua didn’t hide anything: “Look, the prosperity extends to more than three generations.”

They earned the reputation of being righteous merchants bestowed by the emperor himself, and their family genealogy could even have its own page!
In the future, the Zhao family genealogy will record that Zhao Minghua made a great achievement in Changzhou in XX year XX month, and the emperor personally bestowed upon him a plaque for righteous merchants. His wife, Xiao Chunnuan, made an indispensable contribution... Hmm, I must make my grandfather write it like that later.

"Second brother, you should also marry a good wife."

Suddenly, it dawned on him: "Second brother, whose daughter is the girl you have your eye on?"

"No."

This time, Zhao Minglang denied it: "I asked the headmaster for leave, and my time is up. I should go back to the academy." Zhao Minghua... Fine, fine, go back to your studies.

Judging from your appearance, the only way to win a girl's favor is to study more and achieve academic success.

That idiot, wish him good luck!
"Young master, the firecrackers have been bought, and the copper coins have been exchanged. Young master, what do you think..."

"There's no time like the present, let's hang the plaque on the door today."

Zhao Minghua said, "Let's go hang up the plaque."

Firecrackers were set off and plaques were hung up, attracting neighbors to come out and watch the spectacle.

All I knew was that this haunted courtyard had been bought, but I had no idea it had such a prestigious background.

It was actually a title bestowed by the Emperor himself: "righteous merchant".

"No wonder people aren't afraid of haunted courtyards. They must have done a lot of good deeds and accumulated a lot of merit. If you're upright, you have nothing to fear. When a person is righteous, ghosts and monsters will stay far away."

"That makes sense. If you have nothing to hide, you have nothing to fear."

"The Zhao family? I've never heard of such a person."

"You probably don't know how those righteous merchants got their status?"

"As if you know anything about it?"

"That's right. This time, when General Xia led his troops to quell the rebellion, the rebels in Changzhou held the city to the death and even used civilians as shields. General Xia encountered an unprecedented predicament."

"The people in the city and the soldiers outside the city had no food to eat. Later, this young master Zhao volunteered to sell the grain he had purchased to the general at a fair price. The general then used the fair price to lure the people in the city to open the gates and save their lives. The people opened the city gates, and General Xia won without a fight. Therefore, this young master Zhao made a great contribution."

"So this is ah"

"He didn't contribute anything; he sold it to General Xia at a fair price, not as a donation."

“You’re really talking without thinking. It’s dozens of tons of grain.” Someone spoke up in defense of him: “He’s just a small merchant. Those dozens of tons of grain might be all he has. If he doesn’t sell it to the general at a fair price, even if he sells it at two or three times the price, the people will flock to it. It’s no exaggeration to say that he will become one of the wealthiest families in Changzhou.”

"But he didn't. He sold it to General Xia at a fair price, which was tantamount to him handing over the opportunity to become a wealthy family in Changzhou. Isn't such a magnanimous act commendable?"

"Yes, Young Master Zhao is a man of great righteousness; he is a true merchant of integrity."

"Yes, if it were me, I wouldn't be able to do what he did. He doesn't even try to make money. That's a kind of magnanimity that not everyone has."

"Therefore, he deserves the title of 'righteous merchant'."

The onlookers were abuzz with discussion, and the last few words they spoke touched Zhao Minghua deeply.

That's what it means to have vision! That's what it means to be smart!
Those who have no skills and yet dare to criticize him for what he should do are either stupid or malicious.

"Congratulations, Young Master Zhao."

"Congratulations! Come on, have some candy and share in the joy!" Zhao Minghua enjoyed interacting with clever people, personally handing out candy while calling out for birthday celebrations and money to be scattered.

A large crowd gathered in circles outside the residence of Zhao Gongzi, a righteous merchant.

"They're throwing out lucky money! Quick, they're throwing out lucky money at the Zhao residence's gate!"

The news spread like wildfire, from one person to ten, from ten to a hundred, from a hundred to thousands, until the gates of the Zhao residence were packed with people.

To celebrate his birthday, he grabbed some copper coins and scattered them around.

People rushed to buy it.

"Young Master Zhao, I wish you great wealth."

"My God, I've snatched so many copper coins! It would be an injustice if such a generous young master didn't get rich."

"Young Master Zhao, I wish your sons will excel in both the civil service examinations and military service, becoming top scholars and generals."

Having received a benefit, one should naturally say some auspicious words.

"Thank you very much, and I wish you prosperity and good health."