"In the midst of firecrackers, the old year departs,
Spring breezes bring warmth to Tu Su wine.
A thousand gates and ten thousand homes, bathed in radiant sun,
All replace the old peachwood charms with new."
"Heh..."
Listening to the crackling of bamboo tubes bursting in the charcoal brazier, Han Mo smiled wryly and tightened the ill-fitting, slightly moth-eaten fox fur coat on his body.
"Second brother, your illness hasn't fully recovered. The firecrackers are done, I think we should go back inside! If master finds out I let you come outside, I'll be in trouble again!"
The little maid, Chun Tao, pleaded with a look of desperation.
"Achoo!"
"It's nothing. He's far away in Mengzhou, how would he know what's happening here?"
It was a January evening, and the weather in Bianliang city was exceptionally cold. This made Han Mo, who had just recovered from a serious illness, sneeze again.
"Second brother, if Steward Xu hears you say that, he might punish you again!"
Chun Tao glanced around secretly and whispered to Han Mo.
"You worry too much. I wonder which lucky young man will end up with you in the future!"
Han Mo smiled and squeezed Chun Tao's slightly red, frozen face.
"Second brother, are you abandoning me?"
What was meant as a joke, unexpectedly caused Chun Tao's tears to stream down.
"How could I abandon you? It's the New Year, don't cry!"
Han Mo quickly stepped forward to comfort the little maid.
"Then why did you say 'which lucky young man'?"
The little girl spoke, her eyes already welling up with tears.
"Aren't you going to get married eventually?"
Han Mo let out a wry smile.
"I don't want to get married!"
As the little girl spoke, she was already crying rivers of tears.
"Alright, alright, you're not allowed to get married from now on, just stay by my side!"
Han Mo felt a headache coming on. Women's thoughts were truly troublesome.
Three months ago, he was a well-known archery coach in the industry. But due to a plane crash, he had vaguely found himself here.
In three months, he had read extensively and cross-referenced various sources. He finally realized that he had indeed transmigrated.
Moreover, he had arrived in the ultimate destination for all transmigrators.
The Great Song Dynasty!
He didn't know if his transmigration was done incorrectly or if his character was somewhat flawed.
It was now Xuán Hè, year two...
It was less than five years until the Jingkang Incident.
A cataclysm, an unprecedented humiliation!
Even more absurd was that he was now at the starting point of all this humiliating history, in Kaifeng, Bianliang city.
His father, Han Rui, was merely a distant relative of the Han family, relying on his background from the Xiangzhou Han family to obtain the position of Judicial Assistant in Mengzhou.
He had two sons and three daughters. However, Han Mo's mother was a concubine. After giving birth to Han Yan, she died from excessive bleeding. Thus, the siblings naturally became thorns in the side of the legal wife.
Seeing the pitiable state of the two children, Han Rui could only send them to be raised by their paternal uncle, Fuma Duwei Han Jiayan, at his mansion.
Initially, the intention was for him to study at the Imperial Academy, and if he could secure an official position in the future, it would be a worthy endeavor for a descendant of the Han clan.
However, how could life as a dependent be easy?
Furthermore, Han Mo's predecessor was naturally gifted with immense strength and a penchant for fighting. As a member of the Han family, he disliked studying.
Because of this, he felt out of place with his peers.
To make life easier for him and Han Yan, Han Jiayan had no choice but to have the siblings move to a manor outside the city, and he also found a tutor to teach him martial arts.
In the beginning, he would occasionally visit them. But as they grew older and his health declined, Han Mo's good days came to an end.
As Han Jiayan rarely visited, the servants in the mansion naturally paid him even less attention.
Resorting to self-abandonment, he gradually began to fall into decadence, spending his days mingling with the hooligans of Bianliang city.
As a result, three months ago, after drinking himself into a stupor somewhere, he caught a cold upon returning. After that, Han Mo arrived here.
"Chun Tao, why is there only one charcoal brazier left in our room? In this cold weather, can't you light a few more?"
Upon entering the inner room, Han Mo frowned again. The room felt colder than outside.
"While you were sick these days, the silver-thread charcoal provided by the mansion ran out. The ordinary broken charcoal produces too much smoke. Steward Zhang said that if we want more, we have to pay an additional three strings of cash as a difference. Please bear with it. I'll go to the market tomorrow. Three strings of cash can buy a cartload!"
"I say, are we that poor now? We have to endure the cold for three strings of cash?"
Han Mo frowned and pulled his fox fur coat tighter.
"Steward Xu said that except for the first time when Old Master Zhang came, all subsequent expenses will be deducted from your monthly allowance. This medicinal herb is not cheap; each dose costs five guan. Because of this, we'll probably have to be careful with our spending this year."
Chun Tao was a little maid bought by Han Mo's mother years ago for him. She was only two years younger than him, and unlike others, her deed of indenture was in Han Mo's hands. To say the least, Han Mo was her only master.
Of course, because of this, she had no other duties in the mansion and naturally received no additional monthly allowance.
Han Mo's mother had passed away, so she could only depend on Han Mo and his sister.
Besides being their personal maid, she also served as Han Mo's personal cook, steward, accountant, and so on.
Han Mo let out a wry smile. The New Year had barely passed for an hour, and he was already facing austerity.
The original owner of this body was really too pathetic!
For the past three months, Han Mo's health had been fluctuating. He had also been constantly thinking about finding a way back, neglecting matters around him.
But now, it seemed that whether he went back or not was not urgent. If he didn't think of a solution soon, he might be starving and freezing.
As a grown man, letting a teenage girl worry about making money for him truly made him restless.
"How much money do we have on hand?"
Coming to the side of the charcoal brazier, facing the flickering charcoal fire, Han Mo asked thoughtfully.
"Second brother, why are you asking? The money left by Madam was for you to marry Miss Zhe..."
The little girl looked at Han Mo nervously. Han Mo was stunned. What was this girl's expression?
However, immediately, fragments of the previous Han Mo trying to steal and swindle money, and the little girl working late into the night to sell embroidery, flashed through his mind.
Han Mo couldn't help but chuckle. His predecessor really didn't die unjustly!
Even in this state, he still didn't strive for progress, frequenting places of ill repute. It was no wonder he got drunk and collapsed in a field in the middle of the night.
Perhaps, this was fate's arrangement.
Since he had arrived, it was time to let this little maid, who had taken care of his body for seven or eight years, enjoy a good life.
"Of course, it's to do business and make money. Otherwise, relying on the meager monthly allowance from this mansion, can we even eat meat three times a month?"
Han Mo stretched lazily. He hadn't experienced such hardship for a long time.
"Then what business do you want to do?"
The little girl pondered for a long time, then looked at Han Mo cautiously.
"I haven't decided yet. I'll go out and look around tomorrow."
Han Mo hesitated for a moment, then said seriously.
"Then why did you ask about money..."
Chun Tao grumbled softly.
"But I need to know how much capital we have, so I can decide what business to do based on that capital, right?"
Hearing the little girl's mumbling, Han Mo almost burst out laughing.
"Mmm..."
The little girl hummed softly, then directly held out three fingers. After thinking for a moment, she put one finger back down.
Looking at Han Mo's bright, expressive peach-blossom eyes, after a moment, she reluctantly brought the retracted finger back up.
"Thirty guan?"
Han Mo repeated softly, his gaze returning to the charcoal fire in the brazier.
The master and servant lost the inclination to speak. They sat on the edge of the brazier, each lost in thought, while the other silently embroidered with the bamboo frame in hand.
"Second brother, are you asleep? I brought you two big chicken legs, they're delicious!"
Just then, a clear girl's voice sounded from outside again.
Han Mo was startled, and then a smile bloomed on his face again.
In his previous life, he was alone and helpless. Now that he suddenly had two little sisters to protect, it seemed that staying here was also a good choice.
Beside the flickering charcoal fire, smelling the familiar aroma of chicken legs, Han Mo silently swore:
"My dear leeks of the Great Song Dynasty, here I come. Wash your money bags clean and wait for me to harvest!"
ps: In the Song Dynasty, "ge'er" and "lang" were used to address young men. Later, "ge'er" became a common appellation and no longer specifically referred to gender. This can be seen in "Dream of the Red Chamber," where Wang Xifeng was even called Feng Ge'er.