Do you know: I, a commoner prime minister

Chapter 9 The Shi Brothers

"Stone?"

Zhou An was taken aback upon hearing this. He looked him over carefully for a while. He had an honest face and a strong, muscular build.

Judging from his appearance alone, he looks very much like Gu Tingye's attendant.

But how did the stone end up here?

After thinking about it carefully, Zhou An realized that it might actually be possible.

The Gu family is a marquis's mansion, and for a legitimate son like Gu Tingye, his attendants must have been trained as servants from a young age.

After all, with attendants by your side, it's easy for them to learn some secrets; they have the responsibility of both being attendants and protectors.

In critical moments, one must be willing to risk one's life for one's master.

But Shi Tou was clearly not born into a family; his elder brother and sister-in-law were boatmen, which matches the current Shi Qiang.

With such a background, it would normally be impossible for him to become a servant of the eldest son of a marquis's family, and the two sides would not have any interaction.

Secondly, given Madam Qin's scheming, it's certain that she arranged for Gu Tingye to have his personal attendants.

Zhou An remembered that Gu Tingye had been assassinated in Yangzhou, but he jumped overboard and escaped.

If his original entourage had died in the assassination attempt and had been saved by Stone's brother and sister-in-law, then everything would make perfect sense.

However, this is just his guess, and he needs to confirm it.

If it really is that stone, Zhou An would like to take it.

Firstly, Stone is extremely loyal, and secondly, his martial arts skills are quite good.

If I pass the provincial examination, I will have to go to Bianjing (Kaifeng) to take the metropolitan examination.

The journey is long and arduous, and who knows what dangers we might encounter? Having a skilled martial arts follower ensures our safety.

However, Zhou An was not in a hurry, but instead tried to get information out of Shi Tou.

Stone is honest and simple-minded, and he answers whatever you ask.

Zhou An soon learned that Shi Tou's older brother was named Shi Keng, and that their parents had died early, so Shi Tou was raised by his older brother and sister-in-law.

As for what Shi Tou's sister-in-law's name was, Zhou An didn't want to ask too much.

Because there are all sorts of people at the docks, conflicts often arise over jobs, and fights are commonplace.

Stone had learned some martial arts since he was a child. In addition, he was naturally strong and very talented. Usually, a dozen people could not defeat him.

At this point, Zhou An was almost certain that the stone was the one next to Gu Tingye.

But how to get him to follow me is something I need to think about carefully.

Even after dinner, Shi Tou's sister-in-law hadn't returned. Zhou An asked Jiang Fan to help Shi Tou tidy up, then took Jiang Fan back to their room.

That evening, Zhou An pondered for a long time but couldn't come up with a good solution.

The reason why Shi Tou's brother and sister-in-law were able to get Shi Tou to follow Gu Tingye was probably because they learned about Gu Tingye's identity after saving him, and that's when they took the initiative to bring it up.

Don't be fooled by the idea that being treated as a servant is inferior; in the Great Zhou Dynasty, selling oneself into slavery was not an unacceptable thing.

Of course, this refers to optional indentured servitude, excluding those who sell themselves to human traffickers and are sold off like commodities.

They don't know who they'll sell to or where they'll end up.

As the legitimate son of a marquis, Gu Tingye's character was recognized by his brother and sister-in-law, so it was perfectly normal for Shi Tou to stay by Gu Tingye's side.

Not only is sailing hard work, but the social status is also very low, even lower than that of ordinary people.

If Zhou An were to suggest buying the stone as a follower, his brother and sister-in-law would surely turn against him.

But his status is not like Gu Tingye's. Even if he reveals his identity, the other party will not take the initiative to ask Shi Tou to follow him.

In the end, Zhou An could only think of a solution that was hardly a solution at all.

The next morning, Zhou An had just finished washing up when Shi Tou came to invite him to breakfast.

Only Stone accompanied their master and servants to eat; no one else was seen.

After finishing breakfast, Zhou An didn't rush to leave but chatted with Shi Tou.

"Stone, you said yesterday that you usually operate your boats between Tongzhou and Jinling?"

"That's right, my boat is a bit small, so we can't take jobs that go too far," Stone said, scratching his head.

"I am from Tongzhou. I recently passed the imperial examination and became a Xiucai. I am going to study at Jinling Academy. I will return to Tongzhou before the new year to participate in the provincial examination next year."

Zhou An said, "This is my first time going to Jinling, and I'm a bit unsure of myself since I don't know anyone there. Yesterday you told me you're quite skilled in martial arts, and I'd like to hire you to protect me for a while, until I return to Tongzhou. What do you think?"

His solution was to first offer a commission, and then offer a higher price.

If Brother Shi and Sister-in-law Shi agree, after this experience, it shouldn't be difficult to ask Shi to follow them in the future.

If he disagrees, it only means that the stone and he are not meant to be, so he should just let it go.

"This…"

Stone was somewhat tempted by the offer, not because he was swayed by the money, but because he simply didn't like sailing.

Although he was honest and kind, he was still young, and spending most of the year on the ship was really tough on him.

But he was raised by his elder brother and sister-in-law, and he was not very willing to leave them, so he was very conflicted.

Most importantly, he can't make decisions on his own.

"You can ask your brother and sister-in-law; they'll be happy with the hiring fees," Zhou An said with a smile.

"Young Master Zhou, please wait a moment while I go ask," Stone said.

"Okay, I'll go outside and enjoy the scenery."

Zhou An got up and walked out with Jiang Fan.

Shi Tou had no time to tidy up. After Zhou An left, he ran to his brother and sister-in-law and told them what Zhou An had said.

"No way!"

Shi Keng refused without hesitation, frowning as he said, "Who knows if he's a fraud? Besides, it's not like I can't support you!"

Shi Tou opened his mouth, though he was reluctant to leave his brother and sister-in-law, he was actually inclined to agree.

"Stone, take the bowls and chopsticks back first," Che San Niang said.

"oh."

Shi Tou responded and cleared away the bowls and chopsticks.

"Brother, I think this is something we can consider," Che San Niang said to her husband.

"What did you say?"

Shi Keng retorted angrily, "We don't even know if that person's identity is real or not! Shi Tou is my brother!"

"What are you yelling about? I'm just discussing this with you," Che San Niang said irritably.

Seeing that Che San Niang was angry, Shi Keng immediately deflated like a punctured balloon and became obedient.

His father died before Shitou was born, and when Che San Niang entered the family, his mother was already bedridden.

Che San Niang served him for two or three years until his mother passed away, without uttering a single complaint.

He treated Shi Tou like a son, and he had the utmost respect for his wife.

"You know Shi Tou doesn't like sailing, and we're much older than him, so we can't take care of him forever. The Shi family will need Shi Tou to thrive in the future, so he needs to be able to support himself."

Che San Niang said, "You've met Young Master Zhou yourself. He's just a scholar. What would he gain from swindling the stone? Could he possibly sell it?"

Although the Great Zhou Dynasty did not prohibit parents from selling their children, it was not a matter of simply grabbing anyone to sell them.

Even the lowest social class is still a social class. Parents who sell their children must register at the county government office and be registered as lowest social classes before they can sell them.

Stone is a grown man with decent martial arts skills, and he's not a girl.

That's why Che San Niang isn't worried.

She wasn't after how much money she could make; she just wanted Shitou to broaden his horizons and think about what he could do in the future.

"But I'm still worried," Shi Keng said sullenly.

"I wasn't comfortable with it either, so I didn't just agree right away."

Che San Niang said, "Isn't he going to study in Jinling? We can't leave Jinling today, so let's go into the city together. If he really can go to Jinling Academy, let Shitou go with him for the time being."