Chengping five years, the last day of December.

This night is called Chinese New Year's Eve, also known as "Chinese New Year's Eve", and it is a day of family reunion. Relatives in other places have traveled thousands of miles to return home to reunite with relatives and friends. At night, every household is brightly lit, and some are still lighting fires in yards, fields and graves, setting off firecrackers, and never sleeping, which is called keeping the New Year.

The main activity of the New Year's Eve is to make dumplings.

The whole family sits together. Rolling dough of dough, stuffing of stuffing, laughter, jubilant. The newly married new daughter-in-law and son-in-law return to the door, visit their parents with generous gifts, and return on the same day, not staying at their parents' house, and there is a custom of "no empty room in the first month".

At this time, Fengjing was also very lively, except for a very small number of officials who needed to be on duty, most of the officials had already returned home from vacation, and the Dajin Emperor Zhao Zhi also followed the old rules and issued an edict to postpone the curfew from the Chinese New Year's Eve to the tenth day of the first month of the first month of the next year.

Fengjing, as the foundation of the Great Jin Dynasty, as early as half a month ago, already had a very strong New Year's atmosphere, many people jointly organized, beating gongs and drums, dragon and lion dances, acting and singing, extremely lively.

When the child was approaching, the gate of the imperial city opened slightly, Li Xun and Li Mancang, father and son, walked out, Da Hei took a cloak and stepped forward to put on Li Mancang, it was Jiang Daxiong who drove the car, and he waited outside for several hours, and he didn't eat dinner, and he was hungry for a long time.

"Boss, you've finally come out, starving me."

Li Xun rolled his eyes: "When you came, you said that you would have to wait for a long time, and you wouldn't bring some food with you?" ”

Jiang Daxiong touched his head and said embarrassedly, "I forgot." ”

Today is the thirtieth day of the Chinese New Year's Eve, Li Yi recruited Li Xun and Li Mancang into the palace to eat Chinese New Year's Eve dinner together, every year, to be honest, Li Xun actually does not want to come, but it is not possible not to come, the emperor's family can be a lot, although Zhao Zhi is diligent in political affairs, far more than women, but there are also dozens of concubines, more than twenty children, such a large family to eat together, on the surface the atmosphere is indeed very lively, but in fact, the whole banquet is full of secret fighting, between words and conversations, all of them are deceitful, looking at the hypocritical faces of those people, Li Xun, who has always had a good appetite, suddenly lost his appetite, and in the evening, he toasted Zhao Zhi and his aunt Li Yi a few glasses of wine, and then accompanied Zhao Xun to chat there.

Back at home, there are lanterns hanging everywhere in the house, like a daytime, Li Xun's family has twenty-eight people, and before entering the palace with his father Li Mancang, four tables of rich wine and food were placed at home, so that they could celebrate the New Year by themselves.

"The young master and the old master are back."

When the housekeeper Lao Sheng saw Li Xun and the others returning, he rushed in and shouted loudly, and the people in the family rushed over, bowed to Li Xun's father, shouted in unison, and said New Year's greetings.

Li Mancang was not as taciturn as in the palace, with a smile on his face, he waved his hand again and again, and said happily: "Everyone is the same good, the same good." ”

After that, he touched his body, but he didn't prepare a red envelope, and said apologetically: "I just went to the imperial city, and I was in a hurry, but I didn't prepare the happy money for you." ”

"We don't want that."

The housekeeper Lao Sheng said emotionally: "The lord is very kind to us, without the lord, how can we live until now, the villain has no other ability, but to be a cow and a horse, in order to repay the lord's great kindness." ”

"I am willing to be a cow and a horse to repay the great kindness of the master."

Everyone knelt down and kowtowed repeatedly, Li Mancang was moved in his heart, and said loudly: "Everyone please hurry up, it's all a family, don't be so polite." ”

The housekeeper Lao Sheng and others do feel very happy, Li Mancang and his son are kind and approachable, and they do not treat them as subordinates, Li Xun, who is the master, has never called them back and forth on weekdays, beating and scolding and punishing, but Uncle Sheng, Uncle Qin, and Aunt Wang are called non-stop by the elders, which makes the people in the house extremely moved, and they really regard this place as their home.

Li Mancang whispered to the housekeeper Lao Sheng, and each person will be given two taels of silver tomorrow, and then looked at everyone and said strangely: "It's so late, why haven't you slept?" ”

The housekeeper Lao Sheng said with a smile: "The master is not at home, how can we celebrate the New Year, so everyone decided, no matter how late, we must wait for the master to come back and have a Chinese New Year's Eve dinner together." ”

Li Mancang smiled and nodded in agreement.

The housekeeper Lao Sheng hurriedly shouted to everyone: "Everyone go and prepare, it's about to be a moment, but you can't pass the hour." ”

Li Xun was also in a better mood at this time, and said with a smile: "Aunt Wang, I'll go to the kitchen to help you." ”

A woman in her forties stretched out her hand and nodded at Li Xun: "If you come to the kitchen, don't expect to eat tonight." ”

When Li Xun heard this, he raised his head and laughed.

The people chuckled and scattered, each busy with their own business.

Li Xun was about to go back to the room to change his clothes, but Zhu Zhengguo led Xiaolian back.

Xiaolian's uncle's family was arranged by Li Xun to work in the manor, and they no longer have to live that kind of upside-down life, although they are not rich, they can also eat and dress warmly, and they are not trapped by eating and drinking.

Today is the thirtieth year of the Chinese New Year's Eve, Xiaolian went to the manor, and spent the New Year with her uncle's family, originally planning not to come back tonight.

And Zhu Zhengguo has no parents above, only his wife and children, and has no relatives, so every year during the Chinese New Year, Zhu Zhengguo and Yan Yi have taken turns in the homes of Li Xun and Yu Guang.

"Xiaolian, aren't you not coming back tonight?"

Xiaolian shook her head and said, "I've never been out at night without returning, and I'm really not used to it, so I asked Brother Zhu to send me back." ”

"You came back just in time, let's all have Chinese New Year's Eve dinner together."

"Didn't you eat at the palace?"

Li Xun smiled and said the reason, Xiaolian nodded and left.

"How's the training of recruits going?"

Half a month has passed since the recruitment of soldiers, both are recruits, of course they need training, Li Xun asked Zhu Zhengguo to help, the latter has nothing to say, leading a hundred soldiers, strictly training the recruited recruits, and at the same time monitoring, after all, everyone has given once the food, what if they run away with the food?

Zhu Zhengguo nodded: "Since you issued the reward system, their enthusiasm for training is extremely high, and even many of my soldiers are excited and want to participate in it." ”

Li Xun divided the 500 acres of land on his estate equally among 1,000 soldiers, 50 mu per person per household, but there were also conditions to serve in the military for ten years or die in the line of duty.

Of course, the land contract is still in Li Xun's hands, and if they regret the contract, they have no choice, but those displaced people are still extremely moved, no matter what Li Xun said is true or not, at least, it gives them a head start, or a hope.