Urban Sims

Excluding the time spent on the road, the stay in several major cities in Jeju, such as Ji'an, Linzi, Taizhou and other cities, did not exceed twenty days.

The reason why the stay was so short was that Zhou Ming discovered that he didn't seem to be very popular.

For example, classmate Tang Junming held a "book signing meeting" between readers and the author in a newly opened Zihua Bookstore in Yangseong, Jeju City. During the promotion and warm-up period of the event, there were five or six people Hundreds of readers wrote letters, saying that they would definitely come to this "meet-and-greet" to meet "Mr. Zihua" whom they had admired for a long time, and to buy several sets of "Collected Works of Zihua" signed by Mr. Zihua, etc. ...As a result, on the day of the book signing, less than two hundred people arrived at the scene, and more than half of the people who strongly expressed their intention to come did not come.

For example, classmate Lu Wencai rented out the entire Zuixian Tower in the prosperous city of Linzi. He sent out invitations widely and invited a group of local celebrities and local prostitutes to prepare for a show in Zuixian Tower. A large-scale "poetry meeting", together with the boss "Haiping Wenxian", they tasted poems and discussed poems, drank with flying flowers, threw pots and composed poems, and listened to courtesans playing the piano. It was so elegant... As a result, the Zuixianlou Poetry Party was invited. The seats are less than half full.

In fact, this poetry meeting was only halfway through. Tian Zihua, the "Haiping Literary Immortal", had just composed two poems that made everyone excited and applauded. When the atmosphere had just become intense, a group of people suddenly came to the poetry meeting. Uninvited guests, this group of uninvited guests were mostly middle-aged men, and there were also a few solemn-faced old men, all wearing Confucian uniforms, with stern faces and unkind expressions.

As soon as they entered the venue, these people pointed at Zhou Ming and cursed, saying that his Zihua Bookstore's "Story Club" "corrupted the morals" and "reversed the holy way", and his "Zihua Collected Works" had "frivolous rhetoric" and "unworthy "One click", and as for "Manga", it was the focus of their abuse, saying that it "led people to evil" and "misleading people", and asked him to "stop as soon as possible" to avoid "causing trouble to the world" and "harming himself" in the future. body".

All kinds of harsh accusations made Zhou Ming feel like he was being criticized by thousands of people.

The first batch of "trolls" in this era made Zhou Ming, who was originally in a good mood, turn his face into water, and his mood suddenly became extremely bad.

But after thinking about it carefully, Zhou Ming immediately figured out the reason.

In the final analysis, it was the Zihua Bookstore he founded that offended the interests of these "famous scholars in Qi and Lu".

What does Zihua Bookstore represent?

It advocates freedom, is proactive, is open and innovative, and is unrestrained.

What do these famous Qilu scholars represent?

It is following the old tradition, it is stubborn conservatism, it is rigid and rigid, and it cannot be changed.

The two things are incompatible with each other, and there will naturally be violent conflicts in thinking.

One octogenarian in particular pointed at his nose and some of the articles and poems he had written, and sternly accused him of being "evil-minded" and violating the saint's "little words and righteousness". Such behavior will definitely lead to extinction in the world... Zhou Ming was immediately furious, and he was speechless with just one sentence, his face was red, his ears were red, and he almost vomited blood and fainted:

"How come you, a great man, are worthy of talking about the saint's small words and righteousness? I only want to say one thing. Since this is the land of saints, why do the rich have so many fields and the poor have no place to stand? Since you are disciples of the saint, why don't you see the benevolence, righteousness and morality? , but see those bandits everywhere? I would like to send you a message: Since you have become a bitch, don’t erect the saint’s memorial arch. I, junior, am ashamed to speak to hypocrites like you!" After saying that, he threw up his sleeves and left.

After completely offending these "famous scholars in Qi and Lu", Zhou Ming and others had no choice but to leave in despair.

However, there are still some harvests in Jeju. For example, when climbing Mount Tai, Xiaolu Mountain and other famous mountains, Zhou Ming wrote an "Ode to Climbing Mount Tai" and several excellent poems. Soon after, through Zihua Bookstore, These works were widely circulated all over the world. After reading these articles and poems, many local literati in Jilu beat their chests and sighed, heartbroken and upset: "Why didn't Mr. Zihua stay in Jeju for a while? Oh! I wish I could be with Zihua." Sir, I traveled with him to Mount Tai and saw his celestial spirit in chanting poems and writing poems...how extremely annoying he was!"

At this time, Mr. Zihua had already disappeared without a trace and could not be traced.

…

In May, on a broad official road.

A group of people on horseback came, covered in dust.

Near evening, under the afterglow of the setting sun, a majestic city fifteen miles long and surrounded by a moat appeared in front of us, emitting golden light, like a golden city. The hurried cavalry team slowed down and strolled along the bank of willow trees.

Riding on horses, everyone looked at the spring water in the moat. Catkins were flying in the breeze. Even the tall horses on the white stone road raised their hooves lightly, as if they didn't want to make too much noise.

The warm breeze is intoxicating, and the surrounding scenery is like a paradise.

"With a hundred thousand gold in his pocket, he rode a crane down to Yangzhou! This Yangzhou is indeed the most prosperous place in the world!"

After paying the entry fee and entering this huge city of perhaps 300,000 people, the streets were filled with people, warehouses, and carts, and men, women, and children wearing different colors of clothing were rubbing shoulders. When passing by... Zhou Ming, who was leading a horse, shouted loudly to Zhang Yuan beside him amid the hustle and bustle of vendors on both sides.

"Yes, Brother Zihua, when we passed by Suzhou and Hangzhou, which are known as the 'Paradise on Earth', we thought they were already the largest cities in the world. Unexpectedly, Yangzhou Prefecture was even more prosperous than Hangzhou and Suzhou. Several times!"

Classmate Zhang Yuan lamented that compared with Yangzhou, the development level of his hometown Qingzhou is indeed far behind.

"Yangzhou is a land of plenty and a land of wealth. The Yangzhou salt industry has brought endless wealth to this place. Hundreds of years of wealth accumulation have created a large number of very wealthy salt merchants. Therefore, this place is most famous for two things. One is Yangzhou cuisine. For example, there is a famous dish called 'Thousands of Silk Tongue'. To make a plate of this dish, it takes the tongues of a thousand tender chickens to cook..."

"The second is Yangzhou thin horses. It is said that these thin horses are Yagong Yama. After buying the thin girl, they carefully trained her, taught her music, chess, calligraphy and painting, taught her all kinds of promiscuous skills, and made her half hungry and half full. , to develop exquisite figures, among which the 'Three-inch Golden Lotus' is the most exquisite. After these skinny horses are bought by wealthy businessmen, they play with them in every way to satisfy their perverted habits. Every year, there are many skinny horses, which are unbearable. To die from being beaten is really pitiful..."

My classmate Cui Shi'an felt deeply saddened by some of the abnormally prosperous things in Yangzhou's bustling city.

Hearing this, Li Dazui on the side opened his eyes like bells and said, "This is the first time I heard that rich people can still play like this? But..." He clenched his fists again, with a look of evil on his face. He said authentically: "If someone dares to treat my sister like a skinny horse, my fist will definitely smash that person's head into pulp."

Li Dazui has two younger brothers and three younger sisters at home. Because he eats the most, his younger brothers and sisters are all very thin, especially the three younger sisters. If you think about it carefully, they are really like the "skinny horses" described by Chui Shi'an. However, Now that he can make money, he has sent hundreds of coins to his family. The conditions in his hometown have improved a lot. His three sisters should not be so thin anymore...

Zhou Ming didn't say anything. When some people get rich, their moral quality will not improve, but will decline rapidly, and they will do all kinds of ridiculous and despicable things... But in this era, people have long been accustomed to it, and there are even more ridiculous, scholar-bureaucrats. , nobles and royal families are not much better. Absolute rights, absolute desires, without certain constraints, most people will get lost in these desires and will be destroyed in them...

Zhou Ming, who has experienced everything, of course still has such things as desires, but he has become the master of these desires instead of being enslaved by them.

After walking through several streets and asking locals for directions, Zhou Ming and others finally found a four-story restaurant called "Deyun House" - this was a Tian family enterprise founded by Zhou Ming. There is one in every state capital of the ten states. Naturally, Deyun Tower is also the predecessor of "Deyun Society".

Of course, Deyun Tower is still mainly for food and accommodation, but there are also some storytellers, singers and dancers who tell stories, sing and perform in the building every day. With some special dishes, Deyun Tower has quickly become a One of the most famous restaurants in Yangzhou city.

Just entered the restaurant.

After learning the news, Lu Wencai and Tang Junming quickly walked downstairs.

"Boss, I've been waiting for you for eight or nine days, why are you here now?"

"Boss, if you don't come again, Brother Wencai and I will be drowned in invitations from those who want to see you. Good guy, we have received at most 200 invitations and more than 800 letters in one day... Boss, You still don’t know how popular you are in Yangzhou City now, right?”

Lu Wencai pulled Zhou Ming's sleeve and said: "Boss, your plan of half-hiding your face with a pipa is absolutely incredible! In Yangzhou City, your reputation as Mr. Zihua is already great. Zihua was already famous a few months ago. After the bookstore opened, your fame became even greater. After Brother Junming and I released the news that you might be passing through Yangzhou, what do you think? Your fans are going crazy... Come on, boss, I will take you Go to a room and look at the pile of greeting cards and letters, I guarantee you will be shocked!"

Unlike Jeju, which has a conservative atmosphere, Mr. Zihua has always been very popular in Yangzhou. He sent people to Qingzhou to buy a large number of Mr. Zihua's works. After returning, he was the most bookseller in Yangzhou who piracy. In a prosperous state with a strong commercial and entertainment atmosphere, Mr. Zihua's reputation is not much lower than that of Qingzhou.

This point can be seen from the crowds of people and the flood of invitations caused by Zhou Ming and others during their short stay in Suzhou and Hangzhou. It can be seen that in this era, the combination of handsome guys + talented people + celebrities is still very popular among all walks of life. Popular.

Hearing Lu Wencai's words, Zhou Ming smiled slightly, waved his sleeves and said, "It's not urgent. I've been on the road for many days. Let me burn incense and bathe for five days. I can wash away the dust on my body first..."

After saying that, under the guidance of the store manager, he walked straight to the second floor.

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