The Imperial Age with the Resurgence of Han Style

Chapter 81 The Marketplace (Part [-])

"So, as your son, it means that I am related to the royal family, and have some relationship with it?" Li Yanliang's eyes widened and he looked at his mother who looked calm.

"Well, that's right." Song Yuru thought for a while and said with a smile: "In terms of blood relationship, His Majesty is your cousin. ... In this way, you are also a member of the royal family."

"Why didn't you tell me earlier?" Li Yanliang sighed.

By the way, in the teahouse this afternoon, I just despised a child who seemed to be a high-ranking aristocrat.But in the blink of an eye, he has become a member of the royal family. Although the relationship is a bit distant, he still has some royal blood, right?
"More than 20 years ago, in order to marry your father, my mother severed her relationship with the family. Since then, she has been just the wife of an ordinary military officer and no longer expects to have any relationship with the royal family."

"If grandma hadn't been seriously ill and dying, my mother would have kept her identity a secret forever, right?"

"Whether it's a member of the royal family or the eldest daughter of the Song family, my mother just wants to live a peaceful life with you, watch you marry and have children, and propagate the blood of your Li family. When my mother gets older, she can take care of her at home. My grandson, enjoy your old age in peace."

"Mom, you are only about forty this year, and you still have endless good days waiting for you!" Li Yanliang said with relief: "When the time comes, my son will give you more than a dozen children at one go, and then let them surround you every day begging for candies. !”

"Ha..." Song Yuru smiled, stretched out her hand and patted her son's cheek gently, "You are not ashamed to say this! You are almost 23 years old in the blink of an eye, and you haven't even got a wife for your mother. , how can you have more than a dozen children?”

"When a real man lives in the world, he should work hard to build a career, and he should be the first to use the whip. If you don't take it now, others will take it, and it will be too late to regret it." Li Yanliang said with a smile what Zhang Song said in "Three Kingdoms", "When your son becomes successful, he will be famous." At this time, why worry about not having a wife?"

Song Yuru was stunned when she heard this.

Back then, the young man who had just graduated from the military academy, taught the country and scolded Fang Qiu, had said the same thing to her.Then, he resolutely bid farewell to his newly married wife and went overseas to pursue his so-called career.But what she waited for in the end was a jar of withered bones.

"Ugh……"

"Why is mother sighing?"

"You men can make great achievements, and your mother can't stop you. But you must first leave a bloodline for your Li family to comfort your ancestors." Song Yuru said softly: "When you return to your homeland, your mother will arrange a marriage for you. How are you?"

"what?"

"Why are you surprised?" Song Yuru glared at her son, "Go and take a look at the neighbors. Among men of your age, any man of your age is not surrounded by children, and they all live a life of having fun around their knees?"

"No! As far as I know, there don't seem to be many men of my age in the surrounding neighborhoods who are married and have children."

"Even if we don't have one here, there are a lot of men in the countryside who give birth to three or four children under the age of 20!"

"...Okay, okay. We can talk about this after I come back from Chang'an Army Headquarters to report on my duties, okay?"

"You kid..., don't you think that the marriageable men in the neighborhood don't want to get married and have children earlier? The betrothal gift, the house at home, the birth of the expectant mother, the raising of the baby... none of which should cost a lot of money. ? So, when those marriageable men are unable to raise these expenses, they can only work hard to save money first. ... However, my son, don’t worry, even if you don’t rely on the support of your grandpa’s family, my mother will save it for you. With enough betrothal gifts, I can marry the daughter of any family for you."

"Really?" Li Yanliang couldn't help shaking his head and smiling bitterly.

"That's natural! Even if you fall in love with a girl from a wealthy family, I can beg for you as a mother." Song Yuru paused and said proudly: "With my son's character and family background, he can't be a Losing to any nobles in the country. Even the proud daughter of the royal family and the princess of a foreign country, my son can match her!"

When talking about this topic, Li Yanliang immediately thought of the beautiful Persian princess Nasheed.

It's been two years, and I don't know how she is doing now?

In fact, in recent years, with the continuous advancement of industrialization and urbanization in Qi, the age at which men and women get married in cities has also been pushed back.Preliminary statistics show that among the urban population in Qi, the proportion of people aged 18-24 in the married population has dropped sharply, while the proportion of people aged 25-29 has been rising, and has become the main force in the married population for more than ten consecutive years. military.Even the group of unmarried men over 30 years old (limited by traditional concepts, the age of women getting married is over 30 years old, the number of this group is very small), there is also a large number of them.

Moreover, the turbulent urbanization process has also caused another extremely serious hidden worry for the entire society of the country, that is, the number of births in cities has begun to decrease.You know, more than 30 years ago, the average couple would have more than 5.5 children.Census data from four years ago showed that the average number of children per couple has dropped to 4.1 and continues to decline.

If the rural population were excluded from this data, the urban fertility rate would probably be even lower.

However, for an empire that is constantly expanding its territory, nothing is more important than having a larger population.
-
"It's so late, but the courtyard is still so busy!"

Nitzan Albermann looked at the riverside neighborhood from a distance. Many oil lamps were lit in several courtyards, illuminating the area brightly.Neighbors all around set up seven or eight tables of flowing mats, large bowls of meat, large plates of vegetables, fragrant braised food, plates of peanuts and edamame, and more than a dozen bottles of wine.

The men shouted loudly and punched, the women whispered lowly, and the children ran happily between the tables.The aroma of meat, vegetables, and wine floats in this lively neighborhood with the night breeze.

"Yes, I have to say that in Qi, even ordinary people are so wealthy and can hold such a big banquet!" Omar Barlev had an envious look on his face, "It's not like in the Arab region, except for those Tribal leaders, local governors and officials, and almost all civilians are living a precarious life. Even Baghdad, the Pearl of the Two Rivers, which is famous for its prosperity and wealth, pales in comparison to a city like Daxing."

"Yes, this country is not only rich, but also powerful. Mr. Sassoon has decided to make Qi our final destination. I believe that in this country, we Jews will definitely achieve more brilliant achievements than in Baghdad. Here , we will not be discriminated against by religion or race, and our persons and property will be protected by law. This country is simply the chosen place for us Jews."

"Then, next, we should consider how to buy this entire block as our future Jewish community." When Omar Barlev talked about this issue, he couldn't help but shook his head and said with a wry smile: "But , the residents here ask for too high a price, far exceeding the predetermined price given by Mr. Sassoon. I don’t know if Mr. Sassoon will be furious after going back.” “Yes, the residents here are not so much greedy. It's a kind of blackmail. Their asking price, if it were placed in Baghdad, would be enough to buy land five or six times the size of that block. Perhaps, we should suggest that Mr. Sassoon find another place."

"Nizam, I don't think your suggestion is a good idea." Omar Barlev said: "With Mr. Sassoon's persistent character, once he sets his sights on something, he will definitely try his best to get it. Even for the sake of it. This will come at a higher cost.”

"In this case, we can only use other methods."

"Other means? For example..."

"In this huge city with a population of 10, there should be many fires every year, or even every month." Nitzan Alberman once again looked at the block facing the river and said softly: "These fires, Some are caused by children unconsciously playing with fire, some are caused by housewives making fires for cooking and accidentally igniting drapes and tablecloths, and some are caused by poor management of lighting and candles at night, causing house fires."

"So, there will be a fire in this neighborhood?" Omar Barlev's face showed a trace of solemnity. "If there are too many casualties, it will definitely attract the attention of the local police and spies, and maybe they will investigate the matter thoroughly. The whole story. Just in case..."

"So, we have to control the development of the entire situation and prevent this accident from falling into a major disaster." Nitzan Alberman smiled, with a hint of cunning in his eyes, "If this neighborhood just burned down some poor people's homes, houses, and if there are no casualties, the local government will only deal with the aftermath without delving into the cause. Do you think the government of any country will go to war just to harm the interests of some poor people? By then, Saudi Arabia will If Mr. Johnson expresses his care and condolences at the right time and donates a sum of money to the victims, he can still gain enough reputation for us Jews."
-
"Uncles, aunts, brothers and sisters-in-law." Li Yanliang stood in the courtyard holding a bowl of honey wine and nodded to the neighbors present. "Yanliang would like to thank you again. During my overseas service, , you have taken great care of my mother, so that she can be well-served, hungry and cold, and sick. Only when she is overseas can she focus on fighting on the battlefield and serve the country. Tonight, I would like to ask you to lay down the running water mat to celebrate Yanliang. Return safely. This deed and this friendship made Yanliang burst into tears of gratitude. Here, Yanliang expresses his gratitude with a bowl of wine!"

After speaking, Li Yanliang took the bowl and drank it all in one gulp.

"Okay!" The men present shouted loudly, then they also picked up their wine bowls and stood up, drinking down the drinks in one gulp.

"Yanliang, what you said is a little out of touch." Neighbor Chen Chunquan put down his wine bowl and said with a smile: "Everyone in our neighborhood bows his head to see each other. We have been friends for more than ten or twenty years. How could this happen? When you are serving overseas, you still have to worry about trivial matters at home? Besides, on weekdays, we neighbors are also blessed by your mother. Tell me, which family's children did not receive the guidance of your mother when they were in school? During the holidays, your mother would also give us the rice, flour, grains, oils, and seafood and fruits distributed by the school from time to time. That’s a big thank you to your mother!”

"Uh... It's just that, Yanliang, you don't treat us as human beings when you talk like this!" Neighbor Kang Zhongxiang burped and said with a big tongue: "Did you know that every year during the school holidays, in this courtyard? If your mother hadn't helped take care of our children, how could we, the parents who work in the factory, have such peace of mind! I, Lao Kang, am truly grateful to your mother from the bottom of my heart. Sometimes, you still provide a meal to these little bastards. I know that your mother doesn't care what we can do in return, but we all remember it in our hearts. In the eyes of the boys in our family, you have long been regarded as My mother is my dearest person. ...You think, can we let you worry about your family affairs while you are serving overseas?"

"Yanliang, don't worry, no matter how long you stay overseas, your family's affairs, that is, the affairs of all our neighbors, will definitely not cause your mother to be wronged."

"Old Xu, what you said seems to mean that Yanliang will always serve overseas! Yanliang has been promoted to an official in the army for a few years. This time when he returns to Hanzhou, he may have to serve again. Got promoted and stayed in the country. In the future, Yanliang will also be a general. We don’t know, we will all follow Yanliang to gain glory in the future!"

"Haha..., in the future, if Yanliang becomes a general, then our courtyard will become the general's courtyard!"

"Come on, let's all pay homage to the future general!"

"Haha... come and give the general a bowl!"

"Uncles and brothers, Yanliang is so ashamed!" Li Yanliang quickly filled the bowl with wine, then raised it up and drank with everyone.

"Since our courtyard will become the General's Courtyard in the future, we can't sell our houses to those foreign barbarians. Look, our neighborhood, backed by the Daxing River and facing the lively Mingli Street, is absolutely It’s a treasure land of Feng Shui, so we can’t take advantage of those barbarians in vain!”

"Hey, by the way, if those barbarians agree to the high price we offer, will we still refuse to sell this house to them?"

"Well, it's not that I can't consider it. If I get a lot of money, I can buy a bigger house in another neighborhood, which I think would be good."

"Uncle Chen, where are the Yi people coming from to buy our house?" Li Yanliang asked curiously.

"It seems that they are the Xiyi people who immigrated to our country from some country last year. I heard that they are very rich, so they first bought a piece of land in the nearby Zijingang neighborhood. However, recently, they have taken a fancy to our lane. I want to buy this place together, connect it with the community over at Zijin Gang, and build a large-scale temple."

"They are Jews who immigrated from Arabia." Chen Genmin was holding a stick bone and chewing hard. After hearing their conversation, he hurriedly interjected.

"Jew?"

"It doesn't matter who the Jews are, they are all barbarians anyway. They all look the same, with big noses and green eyes."

Qi is a country of immigrants. In addition to a large number of Eastern immigrants, there are also some immigrants from India, Persia, Arabia, and Europe.

For immigrants from the East, Qi State generally makes detailed classifications, such as Qin people, Koreans, Japanese, Annamites, Siamese..., etc.But for those immigrants from the West, they were too lazy to make a distinction and were collectively called Westerners.If we are a little more detailed, we can at most divide them into Indians, Persians and Europeans. As for which country or ethnic group they are, uh, sorry, they all look similar. You are all Westerners.

In addition, in Qi State, Chinese is the only official language and the first language for people-to-people exchanges. Except for foreign language translation majors in universities, schools at all levels do not teach other foreign languages.Therefore, immigrants from non-Qin countries must master basic Chinese writing and communication skills in a language training school in the shortest possible time, otherwise they will not be granted formal national status.

Although Qi State promotes the equality of all people at the official level, in social reality, there are various forms of discrimination and inequality.As the dominant ethnic group, the Han people have undoubtedly become the mainstream of the entire society. No matter whether they are high-ranking cabinet ministers, high-ranking military generals, or even grassroots officials in local prefectures and counties, there are very few ethnic minorities represented.

And even if those ethnic minorities join the officialdom and the military, there will be an invisible ceiling that tightly locks their promotion ceiling.

Compared with the tolerant and open atmosphere towards foreigners during the founding of the People's Republic of China, Qi has undoubtedly become more conservative after more than 80 years of development.Of course, this kind of conservatism is more of a kind of arrogance revealed in the bones.They believe that in this world, no country or nation can be better than the people of Qi.

(End of this chapter)