During the Qianlong period of the Qing Dynasty, Huguang raised Pei Jun Jinbang High School and was appointed as the governor of Cang County in North Zhili. He went to the office in high spirits, ready to do something big across the sky and latitude. But when he arrived in Cang County and turned around for half a month, his heart was already cold and he was about to die, just like the cotton peach that was drenched in autumn rain, which collapsed in an instant, leaving only depression and sighs.

It turns out that Cang County is surprisingly poor, and the common people are running around for food and clothing. In dry years, they even flee famine to beg for food, and can't see cooking smoke for dozens of miles. If you want to make a career, it's really hard to reach the sky. Pei Jun only realized that he was sent to such a place where birds don't shit because he didn't pay bribes and gifts to the important officials of the DPRK.

Pei Jun could be said to have lost all hope. After that, he did not ask about political affairs, but only enjoyed the wind and the moon. Of the ten days, nine were drunk. Madam persuaded him, but he couldn't persuade him. He always glanced at Madam Bai and said nonchalantly: "The common people are so hungry that they don't even have the strength to fight, what's the use of me as a magistrate? Even without me, they would still be the same." Madam couldn't say anything about him, and only sighed.

One day, half a year later, just after the end of the New Year, the weather was cold and snowflakes fluttered. Pei Jun was drinking in the back office when a police officer suddenly ran over to report that the old man was here. Pei Jun couldn't believe his ears, opened his eyes wide and asked, "What did you say?" The police officer said, "Two people came outside, saying they were the parents of the eldest master."

Pei Jun said angrily, "Where did you come from? You are so brave, you dare to pretend to be my parents. Hurry up and take them down with me!" He threw down the wine jug and rushed outside the yamen in anger. He saw a donkey cart parked outside the door. There was an old man sitting on the cart, the coachman was stamping his feet with cold, and there was an old man standing by the door. When the old man saw him come out, he strode over and shouted in a trembling voice, "Son, we can see you!" Pei Jun held him up and asked in a daze, "Father, why are you here?"

His mother was also busy getting off the donkey cart. Her feet were small, and she walked unsteadily, and she walked in a hurry, and she was about to fall. Pei Jun hurried over to hold her. As soon as his mother saw him, she cried and said tremblingly, "Son, we have come to you." Pei Jun was busy taking the two old men into the back yamen and letting the servants unload their belongings.

When he arrived at the houya, Pei Jun was busy calling his wife and children to meet their parents, and then asked them why they had come to Cang County. His mother did not speak, but first she wiped away her tears, choked, speechless, only sad. His father sighed heavily and said, "Bad luck, bad luck."

Pei Jun's father's name was Pei Youliang, and he ran a brewery. In the twelfth month of the first year, he went to deliver wine to the Wangjianglou restaurant in the neighboring county, but he was robbed by bandits halfway. Not only did he lose more than ten carts of wine, the Wangjianglou restaurant also said that the wine was not delivered, which delayed their livelihood and asked Pei Youliang to pay money. Pei Youliang was already empty-handed, so how could there be any money to pay? In desperation, he had no choice but to sell the winery, and there was still a little money left for travel expenses, just in time to come to his son.

Pei Jun asked timidly, "What else do you want to do for a living?"

Pei Youliang sighed again, and then said with great frustration, "What else can you do to make a living?" Those who are down and out, just hope to have a meal to eat. Rent us a house and buy a few acres of thin land, and we will farm by ourselves.

Pei Jun had no choice but to nod.

Pei Jun's salary is very meager, and he can no longer support his family of three. Fortunately, his parents are not too old, so they can farm by themselves. He went to the countryside to inquire, and he really bought more than ten acres of land in Balizhuang, as well as three adobe houses. Pei Youliang went to see it, but he was very satisfied. He packed up neatly and moved in with his wife. Pei Jun took his father to the fields by the way to see.

Li Zheng heard that the governor of the county had come, so he hurried over to talk about the situation in the village, and then talk about the land. The land here is dry land, and there is no water source nearby, so it depends on God to eat, so it is impossible to grow crops with more water, but only grain, wheat and sorghum. How the harvest is depends on the grace of God. Pei Youliang looked around and said, "I see that there are many jujube trees in the village."

Li Zheng smiled wryly and said, "This jujube is also a poor jujube."

Pei Youliang became interested and asked with a smile, "Do jujube still have wealth and poverty?"

Li Zheng nodded and said, "Divide."

It all depends on the water. If the water is good, then the jujube will be big and sweet, if the water is not good, then the jujube will not only be small, but also a little bitter. But this place loves salinity, and the water below is bitter. The jujube that comes out is as bad as it is, and it cannot be sold at all. The villagers keep it to satisfy their hunger when there is no food. At least it can fill their stomachs, so they will not starve to death.

Pei Jun and Pei Youliang exchanged glances and could only smile bitterly.

After fifteen, the countryside began to be busy. Pei Youliang told Pei Jun not to come often, let alone help them with their work. Otherwise, if the common people see it, it will damage his official prestige. Pei Jun replied: "If you have anything, please send me a message." Then he returned to the city.

After more than two months, Pei Jun didn't hear a single word from his father and mother, and his heart was not at ease again. After all, he was a stranger from his hometown, so his father and mother wouldn't encounter anything, right? He put on a civilian uniform, rode a donkey, and headed straight for Balizhuang.

When he got home first, he saw that the door was locked, and he came to the field again, and saw that his father was busy by a ditch. He looked at it and found that many ditches had been dug out of the ten acres of land, and thin jujube saplings had grown in the ditches. The flat ground between the ditches was planted with millet. The seedlings were already inch high. He came to his father and asked confusedly, "Dad, what are you doing?"

Pei Youliang said excitedly, "I'm in Mianmiao!"

Pei Youliang smiled and said that he wanted to plant a jujube forest. There are jujube trees nearby, and the roots of the jujube trees extend in all directions. As long as a ditch is dug, small saplings will be born at the broken root. Now he has to pick the thick ones and keep them, and the thin ones must be shoveled off, and the seedlings must be spaced. Pei Jun is even more confused: "Father, other people grow jujube trees, and they are all ready to eat when there is no grain. Why do you plant so much? If there are too many jujube trees, this grain will not like to grow."

Pei Youliang smiled mysteriously and said, "Let's go, I'll show you!" He pulled Pei Jun away. Pei Jun asked him what to see, but he didn't say anything. When the two entered the village, Pei Jun was stunned by the scene in front of him.

Pei Jun smiled and said, "Father, did you move the winery here again?"

Pei Youliang said, "This wine is different." He took Pei Jun to the yard, scooped a ladle from the wine tank, and let Pei Jun taste it. Pei Jun tasted a mouthful, but felt mellow and slightly sweet, and it was very comfortable to drink it. Dad asked, "How do you feel?" Pei Jun was about to answer when he saw a young man running in in a hurry and shouted loudly, "Wei Gezhuang is not convinced, and pulled Li Zheng to the county yacht. Let's go to the strong momentum too!"

Pei Jun shouted, "Stop!Everyone turned to look at him. Pei Jun said, "The county yamen is a place to be reasonable. What are you going to do with so many people? Are you fighting?" His mother also said, "This work can't be delayed, what should be done."

Pei Jun softened his tone and said, "With this official here, I will definitely give everyone a fair trial. If my judgment is unfair, you can find me again!"

Everyone hesitated for a moment and went back to work.

Pei Jun called the young man and asked him to go back to the city with him. He got on the donkey, and the young man took a big step, but he could walk with him. He asked the young man what was going on, and the young man said it.

When Pei Youliang came to Balizhuang, he soon became familiar with the villagers. When nothing was wrong, he would visit each household. The villagers were very enthusiastic, and when they saw him coming, they would take out some snacks to entertain him. The so-called snacks were nothing more than dates, peanuts, and melon seeds. Pei Youliang saw that there were many dates in each household, and he had an idea of making date wine. He brewed a jar first, but when he tasted it, he felt a little bitter. He added some traditional Chinese medicine to make it bitter and sweet. He brewed another jar, which was delicious, and sent it to a restaurant in the city. They also liked it very much, so they booked it with him. He mobilized the villagers to raise money and opened a winery.

Two days ago, Li Zheng took him to deliver wine to the restaurant in the city, but they said that they had bought the wine and no longer wanted it. Li Zheng felt very surprised, and after secretly inquiring, he found out that Wei Gezhuang in the west of the city also brewed jujube wine, which was exactly the same as Balizhuang's. This morning, he took people to Wei Gezhuang to reason. Wei Gezhuang people did not recognize it, saying that Cang County produces jujube everywhere, and anyone can use it to make wine, and you can't control what traditional Chinese medicine is mixed with it. Li Zheng was very angry, so he quarreled with them. There was no result in the quarrel, so he went to the county office and asked the governor to comment.

Pei Jun pondered for a while, feeling that this matter was a little difficult. Because there is his father here. A little bit worse, people will think he is biased.

After entering the city, he did not rush back to the county yamen, but handed the donkey to the young man, who slowly came to the pharmacy. The young man asked, "What medicine do you take?" Pei Jun said lightly: "Let me take a look." He looked at the medicine cabinets and asked, "I often have nightmares, what medicine should I take?The young man said, "I can only take medicine, not see a doctor. Our shopkeeper understands. I called him. He shouted at the back: "Shopkeeper, someone asked for medicine!"

With a reply, a thin little old man ran over from behind and asked, "Who asked for medicine?" Pei Jun told him the symptoms of nightmares again. The shopkeeper told him a few medicines. Pei Jun asked, "From your accent, you are from the west of the city, right?The shopkeeper said, "Sir is right. I am from Wei Gezhuang in the west of the city."

Pei Jun said with awe, "Shopkeeper Wei, you leaked the recipe for preparing the medicinal wine, what's going on? The people of both villages are going to fight each other. If someone dies, it's all up to you!"

Shopkeeper Wei's legs went limp and he fell to the ground. The young man was busy helping him up. Shopkeeper Wei's face turned pale from fright, and he said with a trembling voice, "I only wanted to give the villagers a way to live, but I didn't expect what happened later."

Pei Jun asked, "How do you resolve it?"

Shopkeeper Wei was also a person who had seen the world. At this time, he guessed Pei Jun's identity and hurriedly said, "It's all up to the Lord's orders."

Pei Jun thought about it and said, you leaked the secret recipe, Wei Gezhuang made the exact same jujube wine, and sold it to the restaurant first, which affected Balizhuang's business. If you don't give him a 20% profit, you just buy the secret recipe. Shopkeeper Wei was busy answering.

Shopkeeper Wei rushed to the county yamen first, met the people of Wei Gezhuang, and told them his thoughts. The people of Wei Gezhuang knew that they were at a loss, and they got the secret recipe from Shopkeeper Wei, so they naturally felt grateful for his affection and were more willing to listen to him. Hearing him say this may not be a bad idea, so they immediately agreed. Pei Jun called Li Zheng to the back hall and told him his thoughts. Li Zheng shook his head and said, "No way. Cang County is only so big, and there is only so much wine they want. If they brew and sell it, our wine will not be sold."

Pei Jun smiled: "Cang County is so big, but Bei Zhili is big. How far are we from the capital? You brew good wine, so you can't sell it to the capital?"

Li Zheng's eyes lit up, and he clapped his hands and said, "My lord is very right! Our wine nourishes people. Don't the dignitaries in the capital think about maintenance the most? We should sell it to them!"

Wei Gezhuang used two cents to buy the secret recipe for jujube wine.

The people on both sides dispersed, but Pei Jun didn't find it secretly funny. He didn't expect his father to come to Cang County, but he started from scratch and started his old business again. But now there is still a problem in front of him: how can I help my father sell wine to the capital? It's easy to say, but it's hard to do. But it's not okay if you don't do it. If you can't sell it, Balizhuang and Wei Gezhuang have to fight to grab this small place in Cang County, which will be even more difficult for him.

Pei Jun was worried, and the official informed him that Zhang Qun was visiting, and Pei Jun was busy greeting him. Pei Jun and Zhang Qun participated in the palace examination together, and although they got along for a short time, they became close friends. Zhang Qun also won the jinshi, and was taken by the great scholar Ji Xiaolan and stayed by his side. At this time, Ji Xiaolan was ordered to compile the Siku Quanshu, and Zhang Qun served as his assistant. Ji Xiaolan rarely went to Jiangnan and didn't know much about the books in Jiangnan Academy, so he sent Zhang Qun to visit. On the way back to Beijing, Zhang Qun passed by Cang County and thought of Pei Jun's job here, so he stopped the boat and came over for a talk.

Pei Jun had an idea, and immediately ordered the soldiers to rush to Balizhuang and carry back a few jars of jujube wine. The dishes were ready. He opened a jar, poured a bowl, and said to Zhang Qun, "Come, taste our precious wine from Cang County."

Zhang Qun stared at it and saw that the wine was amber, poured into the bowl, and a sweet and mellow fragrance spread out. He picked up the wine bowl and tasted it, but felt that the mouth was full of fragrance, which was very pleasant. He unconsciously praised: "Good wine, good wine!"

Pei Jun said, "This wine is made from red dates. Not only is it delicious to drink, but it also has the effect of nourishing blood and calming the nerves. Brother Nian and Lord Ji have worked extremely hard, so drinking this wine is the most suitable."

Zhang Qun hurriedly said, "Thank you for this. I must bring it back to Lord Ji!"

Two months later, Zhang Qun brought people to buy red jujube wine, and they actually asked for a boat. He told Pei Jun that Lord Ji was exhausted and that many officials thought he was seriously ill. But after drinking this jujube wine, Lord Ji's body is getting better and his spirit is better, and his face is better. Even the emperor asked him how to maintain it. Lord Ji said that he drank the jujube wine. When the officials heard about it, they all clamored to buy it and drink it, and Lord Ji ordered him to do this. Zhang Qun smiled and said to Pei Jun, if the officials feel good after drinking it, maybe the emperor will drink it, and the reputation of the red jujube wine will be spread, I am afraid that the supply will be in short supply. Pei Jun nodded, his heart was filled with joy.

Jujube wine from Balizhuang and Wei Gezhuang Winery was shipped away, and there was no jujube wine to sell in Cangxian City for a while.

Businesspeople saw the opportunity and invested in wineries one after another. The recipe for jujube wine was only available in Balizhuang, so they rushed to buy it. There were cars in front and there were mistakes in the back, so Wei Gezhuang became a ready-made example, all of which were sold at a double profit. They also had to go to collect red dates. The red dates, which have always been called poor dates by the relatives, were also worth double at this time, and the villagers made a steady profit, and they all smiled. More villagers also saw the good future of red dates and dug ditches to get seedlings. Cang County will be a piece of jujube forest.

Pei Jun saw it in his eyes and was happy in his heart.

Unconsciously, it was winter again.

That morning, his father came unexpectedly. Pei Jun was busy calling his wife and son to see him.

Pei Youliang pulled his grandson into his arms and said with a smile, "Guess what good thing grandpa brought you?" The little grandson shook his head, but he couldn't guess. Pei Youliang took out an oil paper bag from behind, put it on the table, and slowly opened it, and there were bright red dates inside. The little grandson shouted happily, "Ah, red dates!" He grabbed one and ate it. Pei Youliang was busy saying to his son and daughter-in-law, "You can try it too!"

When the little grandson saw the red dates, his eyes lit up and he ate several of them. Pei Youliang kept telling him, "Eat slowly. Pay attention to the core. His daughter-in-law also tasted one and said in surprise, "It's delicious, but why does it smell like wine?"" Pei Youliang smiled without saying a word.

Pei Jun also took one and put it in his mouth. The aroma of wine was accompanied by the fragrance of crispy jujube, and the deliciousness was indescribable. He asked in surprise, "Father, where did you get it?"

Pei Youliang smiled slightly and then began to speak. On the fifteenth day of August, the jujube rose and fell to the ground. A few crispy dates jumped out of nowhere and fell into the wine jar. The wine could no longer be sold, so Pei Youliang kept it for himself to drink. More than ten days later, the wine jar bottomed out, and the few dates were also poured out. He saw that the color of the jujube was bright and very greedy, so he was reluctant to throw it away. He took it over and tasted it, but he felt that it was indescribable. He thought that if the jujube could be kept fresh in the wine, it would not be a delicious dish in winter. But after all, no one had tried it, and he didn't know if it would work, so he tried to make a jar. It just opened, and it felt good, so he specially gave it to them to taste.

The big red dates in Cang County were originally thick and thick, so they were not suitable for fresh eating. They could only be dried and stored in the sun, but when soaked in wine, they were crispy and delicious. Especially in winter, it was even more precious. Pei Jun smiled and said, "Dad, you came to Cang County, but you found a treasure! When you brew jujube wine, you first make a fortune for the villagers, and then make jujube, which can make them a lot of money and improve their lives."

Pei Youliang's face darkened as he pulled Pei Jun aside and whispered, "Son, let me tell you something. Your mother and I are going back to our hometown."

Pei Jun was startled: "Go home?" Pei Youliang nodded and said helplessly: "It's too cold in the north, your mother's legs can't stand it, and the pain is so painful that she can't sleep all night. I'd better take her home. Our winter is not so cold."

Pei Jun asked worriedly: "The winery has been given to others, how can you live? I'm such a sesame official, and I haven't saved a lot of money."

Pei Youliang smiled slyly and said, "Son, don't blame father, I lied to you. Our family is fine, and nothing bad happened. That winery, I entrusted my sworn brothers to take care of it."

Pei Jun was too shocked to speak.

Pei Youliang said, "Let me tell you a little story first."

Many years ago, Pei Youliang followed his master to the north to harvest sorghum. That year, it was also surprisingly cold. One morning, Pei Youliang saw two dead mice on the street, but there were still mice alive and kicking around. He asked his master what was going on. The master said that the mice that froze to death were road rats, and those that were alive were cave rats. The road rats had to go somewhere else, cross the street and cross the alley, and they died because they were cold and hungry. But the cave rats lived in the hole, which was warm and had food and drink, so they were not afraid of the cold. They are now active near their homes. Pei Youliang said that the road rats were really stupid. Master shook his head and said: People are the same. Otherwise, who would really care for their own home?

After the story was told, Pei Youliang looked at his son.

Pei Jun's heart trembled. He asked in a trembling voice, "You came to me, so you want me to make Cang County my home?"

Pei Youliang nodded and said slowly, "Like your own home, you really want to do something. In the past year, you can walk around and listen, the villagers are talking about your good son. Son, parents don't ask for anything else, they just ask that when the villagers mention you, they can give you a thumbs-up. You have the ability and you can do it."

Pei Jun nodded vigorously. He could no longer control himself, and tears broke out...