Chapter 87 Even if we meet, we should not recognize each other
In the main hall of Taiping Medical Clinic, Old Man Yao slowly wrote the prescription and then handed it to Chen Ji to get the medicine.

Chen Ji weighed the medicine slowly and quietly, his eyes fixed on the scale until they were almost cross-eyed, and he never glanced anywhere else, fearing that Prince Jing's anger would affect him.

Bai Li stood beside the prince with his head down, and kept secretly kicking him with his toes, asking him to admit his mistake quickly.

However, Prince Jing no longer looked at the Crown Prince, but only at Chen Ji: "Don't weigh the medicine yet. It's rare to meet a chess talent like you. Come over and play a few more games."

"Oh..." Chen Ji walked to the counter with his head lowered and picked up the chess pieces one by one into the chess basket.

Prince Jing smiled and said, "I won't let you win two pieces this time. I can't win by letting you win two pieces."

Bai Li's eyes widened. His father took the initiative to say no handicap when playing chess with the younger generation? This was a rare thing.

She moved forward step by step to peek at the two people playing chess, but after just taking two steps, Prince Jing glanced at her sideways, so she retreated obediently and could only tiptoe to peek over.

Chen Ji's chess skills were far inferior to those of Prince Jing, but relying on the fact that Prince Jing had never seen such a paranoid method of dealing with isolated enemies, he launched desperate counterattacks time and time again.

Prince Jing exclaimed: "He is obviously a very smart person, why doesn't he follow the right path of chess, but only likes this kind of unconventional chess method? Isn't this limiting his own chess skills?"

Chen Ji calmly placed a move: "Greed will not lead to victory."

Prince Jing was stunned for a moment. The so-called greed for victory is also one of the key points of chess.

What Chen Ji meant was that this was his personality and he was only good at dealing with the solitary dragon. If he insisted on learning from others to control the overall situation and advance step by step, he would not be able to win.

Prince Jing picked up the chess piece and sighed: "You can't be a chess player with your personality. If you can only be a chess piece, are you willing?"

Chen Ji was puzzled. Was this what a prince was asking an apprentice in a clinic? Apprentices in a clinic were just ordinary people, living like weeds, unable to touch the sky.

How can we be chess players and chess pieces with such identities?

He thought for a moment and asked doubtfully, "Do I have to live on this chessboard?"

Prince Jing smiled cheerfully: "You can also live outside the chessboard, which is another way of living."

The prince who was kneeling on the ground quietly raised his head and exchanged a glance with Bai Li. They both found that their father's mood had gradually improved after playing chess with Chen Ji...

The prince gave Bai Li a wink, and Bai Li understood what he meant. He hurriedly took away Prince Jing's empty teacup and refilled it with another cup of tea.

At this time, Prince Jing was playing chess with Chen Ji while chatting with Old Man Yao: "Doctor Yao, have Bai Li and Zhu Yunxi gotten into trouble recently?"

The prince and Bai Li's hearts suddenly rose to their throats and they looked at old man Yao eagerly.

Old man Yao stood in front of the medicine cabinet, his back to the mahogany counter, picking up medicine while saying indifferently, "I haven't gotten into any big trouble, but I have to go out to play almost every night. I go out at midnight every day, and I don't know where else I can play in Los Angeles at this late hour."

Prince Jing said calmly, "Of course we'll go to White Clothes Lane and Red Clothes Lane."

The prince and Bai Li's hanging hearts finally died.

Prince Jing said slowly, "Zhu Yunxi's monthly salary has been reduced before, and he has no money to go to these places. I think Baili paid for it. From this month on, Baili's monthly salary will also be reduced."

The prince was suddenly panicked, it’s over!

Bai Li whispered, "Father, I won't give my brother money anymore. Can you please not reduce my monthly salary?"

Prince Jing did not answer, but picked up the chess piece and wanted to play another game with Chen Ji.

He looked up at Chen Ji and said, "Yunxi and Baili are going to Baiyi Lane and Hongyi Lane. Are you one of them?"

Chen Ji said seriously: "Your Majesty, I am working hard to study medicine and study, so I don't have time to go to such a place."

Prince: Ah?

Baili: Huh?

Prince Jing glanced at the Crown Prince and Bai Li and said, "You two should learn more from Chen Ji."

The prince suddenly said, "This kid is going with us!"

Chen Ji: "..."

No one should live!

Prince Jing looked at Chen Ji happily and asked, "You went there too?"

Chen Ji: "..."

Prince Jing put the chess pieces into the chess basket and asked with a smile, "So, 'If life could always be like the first encounter, why would the autumn wind make the painted fan sad' and 'Withered vines, old trees, crows, small bridges, flowing water, and people' were written by you? I know very well what Yunxi is capable of. He can't write those things."

Chen Ji was surprised. It turned out that Prince Jing knew everything. Not only did he know that the Crown Prince and others had been to Baiyi Lane and Hongyi Lane, he also knew every poem that the Crown Prince had used in the Embroidery Tower.

Yes, how could a powerful vassal king know nothing about Luocheng?

The prince was even more surprised. Why did he have to kneel here when he went to Baiyi Lane, but Chen Ji was treated kindly when he went to Baiyi Lane? !
It’s unfair!
The game continues.

Prince Jing lost three games in a row to Chen Ji's tricky tactics of dealing with the lone enemy, but there was no trace of reluctance or anger on his face. Instead, there was a bit more exploration and interest in his eyes.

Chen Ji played chess game after game, and it became more and more difficult, until Prince Jing blocked all his unconventional ways and made it impossible for him to defeat Gu Tunlong anymore.

Lost.

Chen Ji was only a second-place winner in the Go world of Luo City. Looking at the entire Go world, he was nothing special. Losing was a matter of time, but he didn't expect that he would lose so quickly.

Prince Jing smiled and looked at Chen Ji and asked, "Young man, how is my chess skill?"

Chen Ji took a deep breath: "Amazing."

"How about if you use one word to describe it?"

Chen Ji thought for a moment and said, "Patience."

Prince Jing is really patient. The opponent is cautious in every step and can plan dozens of steps for the overall situation. When making the layout, it seems that the desire to win is unnecessary and a distraction. But when you look closely, you will find that everything the opponent does is to win. At this time, Prince Jing looked at old man Yao: "Doctor Yao, you saved the mother of Jianzhou Censor Ma Yiming. If you hadn't diagnosed her nine years ago, I'm afraid his mother would have passed away. Now there is still some glutinous rice in Jianzhou's granary. Can you write him a letter? I want to use his glutinous rice to solve the urgent problem. The civil officials of my Ning Dynasty attach great importance to filial piety. Your letter will definitely help."

Old Man Yao nodded and said, "Okay, I'll write it tonight, and the prince can send someone to pick it up tomorrow."

"Write it later. There is no time to waste," Prince Jing's expression eased a little, but he was not completely relieved. "The Jianzhou censor has been unwilling to hand over this batch of glutinous rice for the sake of the livelihood of the state. Now that I have transferred this batch of glutinous rice, I have to find a way to fill the granary with other crops to prevent the people from going hungry."

Chen Ji suddenly fell into deep thought. In his world, glutinous rice mortar was used until the end of the 18th century. It was not until foreign cement technology entered China that it was gradually replaced.

At that time, cement was called "yanghui" by the people.

Is glutinous rice mortar easy to use? Yes. The Great Wall of China was built with glutinous rice mortar as a bonding agent, and it has stood for thousands of years. To some extent, it is stronger and more durable than ordinary cement.

But the key point is that sticky rice mortar appeared in an era when productivity was not high, which itself caused a conflict with people's livelihood. Moreover, it takes three years for sticky rice mortar to reach the standard strength after calcification, while cement only takes 20 days to reach the standard strength, and the cost is extremely low.

Once cement appears, it will completely subvert the entire construction industry.

Chen Ji recalled, how is cement made?

While he was thinking about it, the outside of Taiping Medical Clinic became bustling again.

When everyone looked over, they saw sedan bearers carrying official sedans toward Prince Jing's mansion. It was roughly estimated that there were thirty or forty officials visiting Prince Jing together.

Chen Ji looked up, but saw that Prince Jing seemed not to notice these people. He just calmly made his move and reminded Chen Ji: "It's your turn. Yunxi, stop kneeling there and embarrass yourself. Get up."

"Oh." The prince stood up happily, bent down and rubbed his sore knees.

After a while, those officials who went to Prince Jing's Mansion returned empty-handed. It seemed that they had received the news that Prince Jing was not in the mansion, so they had to go back home.

When they passed by Taiping Clinic, they saw an official in a sedan chair accidentally lift the curtain and caught a glimpse of a familiar figure beside the counter of the clinic.

"Stop, stop, stop," the official shouted to the sedan bearer. He looked carefully to make sure he was not mistaken.

It’s not that he is very familiar with Prince Jing, but Prince Jing has been wearing this set of clothes for many years and it has long been engraved in the officials’ memory.

After getting off the sedan chair, a group of officials were seen wearing green and blue official robes with patches of white pheasants, golden pheasants and mandarin ducks on their chests, leather belts around their waists and black boots on their feet.

They gathered in front of the Taiping Medical Clinic, hesitating for a moment as to whether or not they should go in, and whispered to each other.

The next moment, everyone looked at the two leading officials. One of them had a long beard and a ruddy complexion. He thought for a moment and said, "We will go in after the prince wins this game of chess."

Everyone fell silent, stamping their feet and rubbing their hands in the cold weather, their noses red from the cold.

After a moment, the leading official exclaimed, "Your Highness is an excellent chess player, how can you have the leisure to play chess with an apprentice boy today? What fun is there in this... Hey? Chen Liqin, that boy looks familiar to me, have you seen him somewhere before?"

Upon hearing this, Chen Liqin, the co-magistrate of Luocheng, looked up and gazed, only to suddenly discover that the young man playing chess with Prince Jing was actually his youngest son whom he had not seen for more than half a year!
Only then did he remember that he had sent Chen Ji to Taiping Medical Clinic as an apprentice!

Zhang Zhuo turned to look at Chen Liqin: "I remember now, I saw him at your house. I remember going to your house for a drink during the Lantern Festival two years ago, and he was sitting at the last seat on the lower right..."

Zhang Zhuo passed the imperial examination at the age of twelve and was named outside the Donghua Gate at the age of fifteen, becoming the youngest top scholar in the Ning Dynasty. He had beautiful handwriting and a photographic memory.

This man's wife died when he was 19, and he married the niece of Xu Gong, the imperial tutor, at the age of 22. From then on, he rose rapidly to prominence, completing a career that others would not be able to complete in a lifetime in just 15 years. If he waited a little longer, it would only be a matter of time before he entered the cabinet.

However, Zhang Zhuo did not have the steadiness and restraint of a prefect. He poked Chen Liqin with his elbow in a frivolous manner: "Why is your boy playing chess with Prince Jing? Chen Liqin, you secretly went to the prince's mansion without telling me. No wonder you sent your son to be an apprentice."

Chen Liqin frowned and didn't answer, not because he didn't want to answer, but because he didn't know how to answer.

Zhang Zhuo’s question was also his question: Why could Chen Ji play chess with Prince Jing?
Moreover, at this time, Prince Jing's hearty laughter could be heard from time to time in the Taiping Clinic. It seemed that the boy at home was having a good chat with Prince Jing...

There was a loud rustling sound, and Chen Ji in the clinic picked up the black chess piece and threw it into the chess basket, and the game was over.

Zhang Zhuo pulled Chen Liqin's sleeve and said, "Hurry up and follow me."

The two men crossed the threshold and came behind Prince Jing. Chen Liqin just bowed, but Zhang Zhuo smiled flatteringly and bowed to the ground: "Greetings, Your Highness Prince Jing, you have worked hard to raise military supplies this time in the south."

Prince Jing turned around slowly and said, "You two have worked hard. I heard that you went to the river bank to comfort the river workers when it snowed. This is an act of sympathy for the people, and you deserve to be the parents of this city."

Zhang Zhuo smiled and said, "No, no, it's all part of my job. It's just that the flood in southern Henan a few months ago submerged many fields. Now there are a large number of refugees who are homeless and have no land to farm. They are now fleeing to Luocheng. We have to find a way to build houses for them as soon as possible."

"You care about the people of this state," Prince Jing said slowly, "Tell me, what's the difficulty?"

"It may be too late to build a house now..."

While Zhang Zhuo was talking to Prince Jing, Chen Liqin kept glancing at Chen Ji. But strangely, his youngest son was concentrating on cleaning up the chessboard and didn't even look at him.

When his youngest son finished packing up the chessboard and looked up again, the two men looked at each other and the other just smiled and greeted him politely, as if he was looking at a stranger.

Chen Liqin's brows gradually furrowed. He had sent Chen Ji to Taiping Medical Clinic as an apprentice because Chen Ji was addicted to gambling.

He thought that he had not treated Chen Ji unfairly. Being an apprentice at Taiping Medical Clinic was a good opportunity, and he also asked his housekeeper to send him tuition money every month.

But now he was staying in the clinic and didn't even go home. He was like a stranger to his father. Was he breaking off all ties with the Chen family out of spite? He was so ignorant.

Not to mention the doubts in Chen Liqin's heart, Chen Ji also felt a little uncomfortable.

With so many officials present, he stood beside the chessboard, not knowing whether to move or not. There was also an official who kept looking at him, and he didn't know what he was looking at.

Chen Ji looked down at his clothes, and there were no holes in them.

Old Man Yao noticed his discomfort and said lightly, "Chen Ji, go and pour a cup of tea for the two adults to warm their hands."

"Okay, okay," Chen Ji returned to the backyard and brought out a tray, and politely placed it in front of Chen Liqin: "Sir, please have some tea."

Chen Liqin's square face was almost twisted with eyebrows: "You call me Sir?"

Chen Ji was stunned for a moment. If I don’t call you sir, what should I call you?
Before he could react, Zhang Zhuo held up the warm ceramic cup, warmed his hands and said with a smile: "Your Highness, this year's Yuzhou Autumn Examination has attracted much attention. When Chen Wenzong, the son of Master Chen, was in Donglin Academy, he was praised by the teachers and was said to be the top scholar. Many Jiangnan scholars were not convinced and threatened to compete with him in the palace examination next year."

Prince Jing glanced at Chen Ji, and smiled and praised Chen Liqin, "Master Chen is a good parent. Not only did he teach his eldest son well, but he also taught his youngest son Chen Ji well. He won quite a few games against me in the game just now."

Chen Ji was shocked!
(End of this chapter)