Do you know: I, a commoner prime minister

Chapter 10 Hai Si Mian

Upon hearing this, Shi Keng's eyes lit up, and he said, "That's true. If he can go to Jinling Academy, we're not afraid he'll run away!"

"I'll go back and test the waters first!" said Che San Niang.

The couple discussed it and decided not to dwell on it anymore.

But Zhou Anke was at a loss, receiving no response for a long time, and he didn't dare to ask.

Otherwise, appearing too eager might arouse suspicion.

However, Zhou An quickly felt relieved. He wouldn't encounter any danger in Jinling. His future father-in-law had given him a generous dowry, and he could hire some servants when he went on long trips in the future.

I met Che San Niang during lunch.

"Young Master Zhou, you've been on the boat for a whole day and night, are you tired of it?" Che San Niang asked with a smile.

"It's alright, the scenery along the way is quite nice, so it's nothing serious," Zhou An replied.

"The scenery is nice, but we make a living on the water, and we've gotten used to it over time."

Che Sanniang smiled and said, "We've already arrived in Yangzhou. We should reach Jinling Wharf before midnight tonight. Young Master Zhou will need to stay overnight near the wharf."

"Have we arrived in Yangzhou?"

When I went to the Sheng family to propose marriage that day, Sheng Wei and the others chatted during lunch and mentioned Sheng Hong.

Zhou An learned that Sheng Hong had been transferred to Yangzhou last year to serve as a sub-prefect.

Although it was a lateral transfer, Yangzhou was one of the major cities in Jiangnan, and the power involved was completely different; strictly speaking, it could be considered a promotion.

"Could it be that Young Master Zhou has been to Yangzhou?"

Seeing Zhou An's unusual expression, Che San Niang asked him calmly.

"This is my first time traveling so far, and I didn't know that I would have to pass through Yangzhou on my way to Jinling. My fiancée's uncle is a prefectural judge in Yangzhou. If I had known I would be passing through Yangzhou, I should have paid him a visit," Zhou An said, feigning annoyance.

He said that because he didn't really want to visit.

If you are passing through Yangzhou by land, you should definitely visit, but if you are passing through by water, there is naturally no need.

When he left, Sheng Wei had Sheng Changsong give him some money.

If a visit was truly necessary, Shengwei would inevitably remind him.

The reason for saying this is to elevate one's own status.

"Oh?"

Che San Niang exclaimed in surprise, "I didn't expect Young Master Zhou to be from an official family. I've really been disrespectful."

"I'm not from an official family at all; I just got lucky and passed the imperial examination," Zhou An said, shaking his head.

Upon hearing this, Che San Niang did not ask any further questions, but instead told Zhou An about the local customs and culture of Jinling.

After finishing their meal, Che Sanniang said, "I heard from Shitou that Young Master Zhou wants to hire him as a bodyguard for a while?"

"That's right. It's not very safe to go out with only one attendant. I heard from Shi Tou that he's quite skilled in martial arts, so I had this idea," Zhou An said.

"It is an honor for Young Master Zhou to think highly of Shi Tou. However, my father-in-law passed away early, and Shi Tou was raised by me and his brother."

We've never been apart since we were little, so it's really hard to part with him. We'll be resting in Jinling for a while, so if Shitou can adapt, we'll agree to Young Master Zhou's request.

"Forget about money and such, just let Stone see the world and provide him with a meal," said Che San Niang.

"That won't do. Even the servants in the household need to be paid a monthly allowance."

Zhou An shook his head and said, "I can give him three taels of silver a month; you must accept this money!"

He finally understood; Che San Niang was worried that he was a fraud.

The so-called adaptation of stones is nothing but a pretext.

To put it bluntly, they needed to confirm his identity before they could feel comfortable letting Shi Tou follow him.

However, he wasn't worried. He was going to visit Hai Xuezheng's family when he arrived in Jinling, and Che Sanniang and the others would be relieved when they saw him.

"Then I thank Young Master Zhou on behalf of Stone." Seeing that Zhou An insisted, Che San Niang did not refuse.

……

It was past midnight when the ship finally arrived at Jinling Wharf.

Although it was already past midnight, the dock was still brightly lit.

The laborers were shouting slogans as they unloaded the goods.

The Jinling Wharf was not far from the city, and a market town had formed around the wharf.

There are teahouses and restaurants of all kinds, and even quite a few brothels.

Because Shi Keng and his team needed to liaise with the cargo owner and arrange unloading, they couldn't leave.

They recommended an inn to Zhou An, saying they would bring Shi Tou to find him the next morning and they would go into the city together.

After Zhou An made the arrangements with them, he took Jiang Fan to the inn.

We booked a superior room, asked the waiter to prepare hot water, and ordered some wine and dishes. After eating, we went back to our room to take a bath.

The main house has two rooms, an outer room and an inner room. Jiang Fan lives in the outer room, and Zhou An lives in the inner room.

After such a long boat ride, Zhou An was exhausted and fell asleep soon after lying down.

When I woke up the next day, after washing up, I saw that Shi Tou and his brother and sister-in-law were already having dinner in the main hall.

Zhou An stepped forward, greeted them, and sat down.

"Brother Shi, did you get any rest last night?"

Zhou An ordered some food and said, "Why don't we rest for today?"

"After unloading the cargo, we slept on the boat for a while. We're used to it, and we wouldn't dare delay Young Master Zhou's business," Shi Keng said.

Zhou An didn't say anything upon hearing this. After finishing breakfast, he asked Jiang Fan to hire an oxcart to take them into the city.

The Great Zhou Dynasty was short of horses; without a certain status, even a small horse for pulling a carriage could not be obtained.

On the contrary, oxcarts were very common. I heard that there were many oxcarts in Bianjing, with designated routes and times, which was very convenient.

Jinling was extremely prosperous, ranking among the top five in the entire Great Zhou Dynasty. The city was bustling with traffic and crowds of people.

This was Zhou An's first time traveling far from home. He hadn't paid much attention to Tongzhou when he passed through it, but now that he had arrived in Jinling, he finally had the time to look around.

In comparison, Tongzhou is far inferior to Jinling.

The driver was very familiar with the city, and after navigating the winding oxcart, he finally stopped in front of a very grand mansion.

"Sir, this is the Hai Xue Zhengfu."

Zhou An looked around and saw that the plaque hanging above the door read "Hai Zhai" (Sea Residence).

The characters are very elegant and flowing; they are clearly written by a master.

Zhou An asked Jiang Fan to pay and got off the oxcart.

The gatekeeper of the Hai family saw the group alight from their car at the entrance, bowed respectfully, and inquired, "May I ask what brings this young master here?"

Zhou An inwardly praised them, thinking that this was indeed a distinguished family, and that servants were the best indicator of a family's character.

Their clothes were not fancy, and Shi Tou and his brother and sister-in-law were dressed in coarse linen.

Seeing such a group, even the servants of officials should be driven away immediately.

Zhou An returned the greeting, took out Lu Wang's name card from his robes, and said, "I am Zhou An from Qinghe County, appointed as the Instructor of Qinghe County. I have come to pay my respects to Instructor Hai. Please excuse me!"

"Please rest a moment, young master!"

The gatekeeper accepted the visiting card, bowed again, and went inside to announce the arrival of the guest.

"Jiang Fan, bring me the wooden box that holds my ambitions," Zhou An instructed.

"yes!"

Jiang Fan responded and quickly opened the bundle.

"Brother Shi, I'm afraid I'll need some time here. I'll have to trouble you to wait," Zhou An said apologetically.

"Young Master Zhou, you're too kind. We have nothing to do, so there's no need for you to worry about us," Shi Keng quickly replied.

Now he admired Che San Niang's judgment more and more. No matter what, Zhou An's connection with the head of the Jiangning Prefectural School was something they could hardly hope to reach.

After waiting outside for a while, the previous doorman and a boy of sixteen or seventeen years old came out.

"I am Hai Simian. My grandfather ordered me to invite Brother Zhou into the mansion!" Hai Simian bowed respectfully.

"Thank you for your trouble!"

Zhou An returned the greeting.

"Brother Zhou, please."

Hai Simian invited Zhou An into the house. After entering, he instructed the servants to take Shi Tou and the others to be well received. Then he led Zhou An to the main hall.