Chapter 7: You Must Turn White

  Wang Guanshi heard Zhang Thirteen's words and couldn't help but call out to him: "Thirteen, listen to what you're saying! How dare I? Tomorrow morning, go take a look at the foot of the mountain. The ones working here are all top-notch strong farmers."

  "Where did he get his hands from?"

  "To be honest, our village indeed has a limited population, but just recently the imperial court has relocated dozens of households from Huai West to settle here, so we have enough manpower."

  As soon as they heard that they were new immigrants, Xia Jun and Zhang Thirteen suddenly realized. From the founding of the Ming Dynasty to now, in nearly thirty years, the court has successively relocated immigrants from Shanxi, Hebei, Anhui, Jiangsu, Sichuan and other places to Shandong more than ten times. There was no way out, at the end of the Yuan Dynasty, disasters continued, Shandong was a disaster area, and when Zhu Yuanzhang drove out the Northern Yuan, Shandong was again the main battlefield, and the combination of natural and man-made disasters caused the local population to plummet, with large tracts of land left uncultivated.

  After Zhu Yuanzhang founded the country, he wanted to use migration policy to quickly change the sparse population situation in Shandong Province. However, Han people are most nostalgic for their hometown, and the old emphasize "falling leaves returning to their roots", while the young emphasize "parents not far away". It is difficult for them to migrate, they would rather beg for food in their hometown than leave their hometown behind. Emperor Zhu had no choice but to enforce migration, and somehow managed to carry out this migration policy.

  Qingzhou is not a key settlement area for immigrants, but there are also many outsiders. Now it's summer, and the immigrants who moved here have missed the best time to plant crops. Although they were allocated land, this year at least there is nothing good to plant. The quarry of Xia Chuan's family provides them with an opportunity to work and earn money to support their families, which indirectly helps the government a lot and is conducive to the stability of immigrants.

  Of course, when the spring begins tomorrow, there will still be many people who quit their jobs and go home to farm. No matter how much they earn from working, it's not as reassuring as having three acres of land at home. However, by that time, this quarry may not need so many workers either. After all, families like the Qi Wang Fu, which suddenly needs a large amount of stone materials, are not common.

  Xia Fu chatted with the workers for a while, then Zhang Thirteen gave him a signal and stood up: "Alright, young master is very tired from traveling, you all go back now. Young master will stay here for 10 to 15 days to rest and avoid the heat. You all work hard and do a good job, young master won't neglect your benefits."

  After they left, Xia Yu jumped up from his seat and exclaimed excitedly: "Thirteen Lang, I deceived them, but not a single one of them saw through my weakness!"

  Zhang Thirteen splashed a basin of cold water on his head: "Don't be too happy, these people have only seen Yang Xu once. If even they can see the flaws, what's your use? Rest early and get up at five tomorrow to start training."

  With a creak, the door opened and closed again. Zhang Shisan went out, and Xia Xun smiled slightly, like Mahayana picking flowers.

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  At the fifth watch of the night, when the sky was still dark, Zhang Shisan appeared at Xia Chong's bedside like a ghost.

  Then brush teeth wash face, comb hair and change clothes, then leave the quarry with Zhang Thirteen, against the morning glow to practice horse riding on the wild grassland below Ma Shi Mountain. At 8 o'clock, they returned, because Xia Liu, who was still learning horse riding and had not mastered the skills, was tired of waist pain, backache and sweating all over.

  In the courtyard, several managers who lived in the quarry had already sent their wives to make breakfast for the landlord. The aroma of food wafted through the air. Country women couldn't cook delicate dishes, but at least they made sure there was enough quantity: golden millet porridge, steaming hot white buns, and fragrant stir-fried eggs were all served in large basins... There were six big men living in the courtyard, each with an enormous appetite.

  Xia Liu didn't rush to have dinner, but instead went to the backyard to take a bath, feeling uncomfortable with sweat all over his body. The people in the yard knew the rules and wouldn't dare to enter without permission. In the backyard, there were two large water tanks under the corridor, which was common in almost every household at that time, not only for convenient water fetching but also for firefighting purposes.

  Xia Jiu stood by the water tank, wearing only a pair of shorts, holding a large wooden basin to pour water over himself. A basin of water poured down, and the water droplets splashed lively, his wheat-colored skin shining brightly in the sunlight. His physique was robust and beautiful, with a slender waist and broad back, smooth curves, tense arm muscles, solid chest muscles, and six-pack abs, all showcasing the masculine beauty of a man.

  Zhang Shisan stood under the eaves, his arms wrapped around him, his eyes scanning Xia Xun's body with a hint of appreciation in his usually critical gaze: "I wouldn't have guessed, your physique is quite sturdy. Hmm, not bad at all..."

  Xia Liu's body was not originally so strong, but after coming to this era, he knew that he had nothing to rely on and instead paid more attention to physical exercise. With modern fitness methods, combined with Hu Liujiu learning martial arts and practicing swimming, the amount of exercise was ten times stronger than when he was in police school. Although life in Xiaoye Village was very bitter, Xiaoye Village was located in Jiangnan, and he made a living by catching fish and frogs, so small fish and shrimp, as well as yellow frogs, were enough to eat, and nutrition kept up with it, now his figure is extremely good.

  Xia Liu proudly said: "The countryside is hard, I do all kinds of work, so my body is strong like a cow. It's not that I'm bragging to you, Thirteen Lang, when I go fishing, I wear little, and those big girls and young wives who pass by me can't help but take a peek, their eyes shining brightly."

  Zhang Thirteen scolded with a smile: "You're really panting when you say you're fat, hurry up and take a bath, then have dinner, after dinner I'll start telling you about Yang Wenxuan's affairs."

  "Alright, alright," Xia Yu also smiled, and another basin of water was poured over his head.

  In the morning, under the big tree with dense shade in the backyard, Zhang Thirteen was detailing everything about Yang Wenxuan to Xia Chuo. In the courtyard, there were low tables, tea on them, as well as paper, ink, pen and inkstone. From time to time, Zhang Thirteen would spread out a piece of paper, pick up his brush and paint a portrait, letting Xia Chuo carefully remember the appearance of the person depicted.

  All the natural portraits that can be painted are people who have a close relationship with Yang Wenyuan, including the close servants and subordinates in the Yang Mansion, friends who come and go, partners on the business scene, as well as important figures in the Qi Wang Mansion. After studying for a while, the two of them stood up, and under Zhang Shisan's guidance, they imitated Yang Wenyuan's speech, mannerisms, expressions, movements, and common phrases used to greet people and things.

  As an excellent Brocade Guard spy, Zhang Thirteen was a qualified teacher, and Xia Liu's ability to accept mimicry was also very strong. Whether the matter could be successful or not, it was related to Zhang Thirteen's life, and for Xia Liu, it had even greater significance. Therefore, both of them were very serious about teaching and learning, just to avoid arousing Zhang Thirteen's suspicion, Xia Liu did not show too high an understanding at first, until two days later, he gradually entered the role.

  "Something's happened! Something's happened! Someone has been injured by a rolling stone!"

  When a shout came from afar, Wang Guanshi rushed into the yard, shouting and yelling, saying to Xia Liu who had hurried out of the backyard upon hearing the news.

  "How many people were injured? How are their injuries?" Xia Liu and Zhang Thirteen followed Wang Guan Shi as they walked out, asking.

  The foreman walked and talked, originally the workers were quarrying on the hillside, a worker's large hammer in his hand did not hit the steel drill, but instead hit the hand of the worker holding the drill, those two people were one of the newly arrived immigrants, hadn't worked for a few days, also unskilled, so this disaster happened. The worker's palm was severely injured and couldn't work for the time being, had to give him some money to treat his injury, the foreman cursed all the way.

  When Xia Jiong arrived, the injured person's fellow villager had already helped the injured person named Ma Zhīyuǎn down the mountain slope and applied a simple bandage. Xia Jiong comforted him with kind words and ordered Wang to pay him an extra month's wages. He also instructed his fellow villager to take him home to rest and recover, while ordering the newly recruited workers who were not yet familiar with quarrying to start by transporting stones and doing later-stage processing. Seeing the master being so generous, the workers all felt extremely grateful and thanked him profusely before the worker who had injured his companion took Ma Zhīyuǎn's wages and accompanied another fellow villager back to their village.

  "Fourth Brother Ma, I'm really sorry, it was an accident..." the troublemaker said with a guilty conscience.

  "Hey, we're all brothers, what's the point of saying this, you didn't mean to." The injured man gritted his teeth and patted him on the shoulder, comforting him with a smile. He turned his head and asked another person: "Do you know where the palm teacher was transferred to?"

  Another Han shook his head and said, "Not yet. After we were relocated to Shandong, we were assigned to various prefectures and counties. For the time being, it's hard to find out where Tang Zhangjiao's family is."

  Ma Si Ge sighed and said, "If we can't find the leader, our brothers in this group will probably disperse. It's just as well, I'll take advantage of my injured hand to rest at home and go out to ask around about the leader's whereabouts. At home..."

  Those two men said in unison: "Fourth brother, rest assured, we will take care of things at home."

  Xia Liu and Zhang Thirteen did not know about the little story that happened in their own quarry, both of their minds were focused on how to quickly get into the role of Yang Xu.

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  In the afternoon of this day, a sudden heavy rain fell, and the sky was overcast.

  Standing in the hall and looking out, the rainwater under the eaves was as dense as a bead curtain, and even ten steps away from the hall couldn't be seen clearly. The workers all went to hide from the rain under the cliff cave, and Xia Chuo and Zhang Thirteen also moved into the main hall from the backyard, continuing to imitate Yang Xu.

  Xia Liu's attire, hairstyle and even his mannerisms and tone of voice were all identical to those of the real Yang Xu.

  Originally, accent and language are the hardest things to fake about a person besides appearance. Some awkward gestures can be easily covered up by saying you've been feeling unwell or unhappy lately... You can come up with a bunch of excuses for your unusual behavior, but if you're clearly a rough-voiced person, it's not like you can suddenly turn into a soft-spoken one just because you fell down. Or if you're clearly speaking in Hokkien dialect, and then after two days of laryngitis, you suddenly start speaking with a Shandong accent, who would believe that?

  Fortunately, Xia Liu not only looked like Yang Xu but also had a similar voice. Zhang Thirteen didn't understand ventriloquism and couldn't perfectly imitate Yang Xu's speech, but he could guide him. After many adjustments and imitations, his voice was already very similar to Yang Xu's. If you only listened to his voice, people who were particularly familiar with Yang Xu might still feel a bit strange. However, if they saw Xia Liu's face first, it would be difficult for them to notice any flaws due to the psychological effect of "first impressions".

  As for the language, fortunately, Yang Wenguang's speech is not Shandong dialect but the most popular Mandarin Chinese in the world today. Mandarin Chinese is the official standard language, ordinary people have an indifferent attitude towards it, their ancestors spoke whatever dialects they did, and their descendants still speak whatever dialects they do, they don't care whether outsiders can understand them or not, most of them will never leave their hometown within a radius of ten miles throughout their lives.

  But those who want to be officials must speak Mandarin, otherwise even if they pass the imperial examination and become jinshi, due to language barriers, there is absolutely no possibility of being appointed as an official outside the capital. They can only be a poor official in the capital, with very limited opportunities for future promotion. Therefore, young scholars and sons of wealthy families all have to learn Yangzhou Mandarin from a young age, which is what Yang Wenhuan spoke - standard Yangzhou Mandarin.

  Xia Jiang was originally from the Jianghuai region and had a foundation in Fengyang dialect. When he shouted on the street, "I'm coming, lanterns are lit, and eyes are shining! Hurry up and walk!" with perfect pronunciation and intonation, Fengyang people immediately came forward to recognize their fellow villager. Although the Fengyang dialect at that time was slightly different from what it would be hundreds of years later, he had already lived in Jiangnan for a year, where Fengyang Mandarin was most prevalent, so there was no problem.

  Zhang Shisan felt relieved, Xiaoxiao's accent was fine, language was fine, dressing was fine, and demeanor was also fine. As long as he could formally enter Yang Xiu's social circle later, and still be as calm and composed as he was now... then what else could be the problem?

  Zhang Thirteen's face slowly broke into a satisfied smile, but as soon as the smile spread across his face, he discovered an important issue that had been neglected by him all along, and his expression suddenly turned ugly.

  He had noticed this issue when he first met Xia Xun, and at that time, he almost thought Yang Wenxuan had really come back to life. It was because of this obvious difference that he began to notice more differences between the two. This obvious difference was Xia Xun's skin. Xia Xun often worked with his chest exposed in the sun, so his skin was much darker than that of Yang Da Shao Ye, who had always been pampered and lived a life of luxury. This issue was originally the most obvious one, but because it was too obvious and could be seen every day, it became something that he overlooked.

  Xia Fu suddenly realized that Zhang Thirteen's expression was different, and immediately stopped his actions, humbly asking: "Is there something wrong?"

  Zhang Thirteen frowned and said: "Skin, your skin tone is darker than Yang Xu's."

  Xia Liu thought for a moment and said: "If I say that I've been busy running around outside for over ten days, exposed to the scorching sun?"

  Zhang Shisan shook his head and said, "This is a reason, but just ten or so days of sun exposure, the skin can't be to this extent, it's too obvious. If your skin could be whiter and more delicate, this reason might be able to pass..."

  Xia Liu's face also looked unpleasant: "What can we do?"

  Zhang Thirteen pondered for a long time, suddenly slapped his forehead, rushed to the back of the table, spread out a white paper, picked up his pen and ink, and began writing hastily. Xia Jiu curiously walked over to take a look, but saw that Zhang Thirteen was not drawing a picture, but writing words. Xia Jiu was currently pretending to be an illiterate fool, although he really wanted to know what Zhang Thirteen was writing, he couldn't continue looking, so he could only walk to the side and wait.

  Zhang Shisan finished writing the letter and then went to the corridor, loudly calling out. In a short while, one of the gatekeepers who lived in the wing room hurried over along the corridor. Zhang Shisan handed him the letter and instructed: "This is a letter from Master to An Shi's silk store owner An Yuanwai. You must immediately rush back to Qingzhou, hand it over to An Yuanwai personally, and then bring back An Yuanwai's reply. Do not delay along the way."

  The guard looked at Xia Fu, Xia Fu nodded, and the guard immediately put the letter in his bosom and turned to leave. A moment later, he wore a raincoat, put on a bamboo hat, led the horse to prepare for riding, and hurriedly set off on the road in the heavy rain.