At the moment when he received the holy decree from Wang Chengen, Li Xiao immediately understood Chongzhen's true intentions. Pen × fun × Pavilion www. ｂｉｑｕｇｅ。 ｉｎｆｏ

In such a situation where the domestic situation is collapsing, Chongzhen can only win over and use himself to curb the momentum of the rogue that has been flooding the world. Therefore, in order to wash away the previous suspicion and donate the festival, in order to get his own loyalty and service from now on, Chongzhen spared no expense, and married the underage princess Kunxing to himself in a hurry, and at the same time, he gave the land of Shandong Province to himself to manage, which is also well-intentioned.

In fact, now that Li Xiao already owns the Nanyang provinces, and overseas territories such as Ezo and Sakhalin, and now he has another Shandong province with the right to govern, it is not particularly exciting for Li Xiao.

What really made him sigh was that Chongzhen was now anxious and angry, and he forcibly married Zhu Yujiao, the underage princess of Kunxing, to himself, which greatly surprised Li Xiao's expectations.

To be honest, after listening to this paragraph, Li Xiao instinctively wanted to refuse.

He already has a group of wives and concubines, and if he wants to possess this poor girl who is not yet an adult, Li Xiao can't bear it.

It's just not, Emperor Chrysostom said that even if Li Xiao was dissatisfied, how could he oppose it?

It's really a mess......

After Li Xiao received the holy decree, Wang Chengen smiled and whispered: "Master Li, the old slave is happy. The emperor chose you as an attached horse this time, and handed over the whole of Shandong to you to govern, this rare grace reward, and I hope that Lord Li will be able to understand the deep meaning of the saint. ”

Li Xiao smiled lightly: "What the prince said is very true, and my father knows." The father-in-law came from afar to announce the decree, and the road was hard, and the father-in-law had another Cheng Yi gift, a little expression, and hoped that the father-in-law would not want to resign. ”

The smile on Wang Chengen's face suddenly became brighter: "Tang Guogong has a heart, if our family doesn't accept it, it will be disrespectful." ”

Li Xiao laughed, and then ordered someone to send 500 taels of snowflake pattern silver for Wang Chengen to accept.

After Wang Chengen happily accepted it, Li Xiao also rewarded his entourage according to their ranks, so everyone was happy.

Subsequently, Li Xiao arranged a feast to entertain Wang Chengen and his party.

During the banquet, Li Xiao and Wang Chengen talked and laughed Yan Yan, and their words were deed, but the relationship between the two became closer and closer.

When the wine was deep, Wang Chengen's face was red, but he lowered his voice and said: "Lord Li, the emperor will marry Princess Kunxing straight to Shandong, and there is no need for Lord Li to go to the capital to marry. ”

Li Xiao's eyes were red from drinking, he sighed, and said with a light smile: "The emperor's thoughts, my father's heart is also like a mirror, and I also ask my father-in-law to go back, so that he can return to the emperor and say that Li Xiao will thank God and marry the princess in a beautiful manner." ”

Wang Chengen nodded again and again, and the smile on his face became brighter: "Tang Guogong is really a person with deep affection and righteousness, and after our family returns to the capital, we will definitely report Lord Li's thoughts to the emperor truthfully." ”

After Wang Chengen and the others went back, Li Xiao began to solemnly start the process of marrying Princess Kunxing just like marrying the county lord Zhu Yujiao that day.

"Five Rites General Examination" said that since the Later Qi Dynasty, regardless of the Son of Heaven and the common people, the wedding "one is called Nacai, the second is called Xiangming, the third is Naji, the fourth is Nazheng, the fifth is the invitation period, and the sixth is called personal welcome." ”

And the process of Li Xiao marrying the emperor's daughter, Princess Zhu Yujiao of Daming Kunxing, is naturally more complicated and more elaborate than the marriage process of ordinary people in the Ming Dynasty.

The first step is Nacai, which is the first stage of marriage, Li Xiao thought about it and decided to send someone to ask the first assistant Zhou Yanru to be a matchmaker, and solemnly proposed to Emperor Chongzhen.

Zhou Yanru, the first assistant who received Li Xiao's 1,000 taels of silver, was very happy, and promised to serve as a matchmaker.

Then, as the representative of Li Xiao's courtship, he proposed to Emperor Chongzhen, and sent a letter of appointment written by Li Xiao himself, Emperor Chongzhen solemnly agreed to Zhou Yanru's request in the Zhongji Hall and in front of a group of courtiers.

After the emperor agreed to propose, the matchmaker Zhou Yanru then sent someone to inform Li Xiao that the emperor approved the proposal, and Li Xiao sent his most trusted staff Chen Zilong to the north to the capital, bringing many unique gifts to propose to the royal family.

These many unique gifts are also very exquisite.

The first gift was a pair of geese, and the geese were all to live. Why use geese? In the "Five Rites General Examination", it is said that the goose is a migratory bird, which symbolizes the meaning of yin and yang, and if the wild goose loses its mate, it will no longer be a pair for life, and its loyalty will be taken. The following gifts are as follows, and each has its own meaning.

Sake, which means blessing; Japonica rice, which means health; millet rice, which means prosperous; Pu Wei, which means flexible; Jiahe, which means Shanglu; Silk sewing clothes, which means longevity, and five-color silk, which means infinite use; Hehuan bell, which means harmony; Jiuzi ink, which means the prosperity of the descendants, and the newly minted copper coin, which means bright wealth.

Chongzhen accepted these courtesy gifts from Li Xiao, and officially sent a ceremonial inspector to check whether the birthdays of Li Xiao and Princess Kunxing were in harmony or in harmony.

This is the second step of the wedding process, also known as Xiang Ming, that is, a special inspector will check the matching degree of the two people's eight characters, zodiac signs, and surnames to determine whether the two have a conflict with each other, and finally decide whether the two can get married smoothly. This is a very important link in the folk, and many couples are unable to hold hands in the end because of the eight characters that clash with each other.

It's just that since this is the wedding ceremony of Emperor Chongzhen, the inspector naturally tried his best to say it in a good place, and finally said that Li Xiao and Princess Kunxing were matched to the extent that they were the only ones in the world, and there was no one underground.

The third step is Najib, the celebrant Xiang Minghou, who informed Emperor Chongzhen of the good news that Li Xiao and Princess Kunxing are completely compatible and can get married smoothly. This step is also called "making an alliance". This is the main etiquette at the stage of engagement.

The gifts given in this step, in addition to using a pair of geese as a token of the marriage, as usual, also gave other valuable gifts to Chongzhen.

Because at this point, the relationship between the two parties has been clearly determined, so the gift that Li Xiao wants to give is different from the symbolic gift he gave when he was picking, and what he wants to give now is a practical and even valuable gift.

In the late Ming Dynasty, in addition to sending a pair of wild geese, other gifts are generally: rings, jewelry, colored silk, gift cakes, incense candles, and even sheep and pigs, etc., so it is also called sending or hiring, indicating that the two parties have officially determined their marriage.

Considering the noble status of Princess Kunxing, after careful consideration, Li Xiao decided to give her a fixed appointment gift, which was richer and more noble than when she married Zhu Yumei, the county lord of Lu Wangfu.

Li Xiao was a proud person, and finally sent the fixed gifts to the capital were: a pure gold foot red inlaid emerald jade ring, a pair of pure gold carved silk bracelets, a set of pure gold carved phoenix point diamond neck ornaments, a full set of gold Dongzhu jewelry, 500 fine silk, 1,000 sheep and pigs.

Li Xiao's shot was so generous, so that Emperor Chongzhen and Empress Zhou both had a light on their faces, and their original worries were diluted a lot by this rich gift.

And Princess Zhu Yujiao of Kunxing, when she learned that Li Xiao, the prince of Tang Kingdom, had given herself such an extravagant and expensive gift, she had mixed feelings in her heart.

After this third step is completed, the fourth step is to recruit the levy.

The so-called Nazheng, that is, after Najib engaged, the man's family sent the dowry to the woman's family, which is a ritual at the stage of marriage. This wedding is also commonly known as a complete or big engagement, a big gift, etc. In the popular sense of modern society, it is equivalent to a bride price given by a man after engagement.

In order to show respect for Princess Kunxing and respect for the royal family, Li Xiao, as the richest man in the world, made a very generous move, he asked his cronie Chen Zilong to go north to the capital, and gave Chongzhen 5,000 taels of gold, 200,000 taels of silver, 5,000 horses of silk, 10,000 sheep and pigs, all kinds of food gift boxes and other things, a total of more than 1,000 boxes.

In addition, there are some symbolic gifts that are the same as those of the first step, as follows.

A load of cake means fulfillment.

Eight types of seafood, including hair cabbage, abalone, oysters, scallops, mushrooms, dried shrimp, squid, sea cucumber, two pieces of each, meaning hearty.

Three animals are complete, two male and female robust live chickens, two pork to five catties, a total of two, five catties of dace a pair, which means to open up a wide range of financial resources.

A pair of coconuts means that there is a coconut (master) and a son, symbolizing the health of the family.

Four bottles of good rice wine indicate that the husband and wife have mellow feelings.

Sijing fruit, that is, a pile of dried longan, dried lychee, dried walnut, and shelled peanuts, indicates that the descendants are prosperous and endless.

Four-color sugar, that is, a pile of rock sugar, orange cake, winter melon candy, and golden qi, symbolizes the love of husband and wife to old age.

A pile of tea leaves and sesame seeds, also known as the oil hemp tea ceremony, symbolizes that women will swear loyalty from the beginning to the end in the future.

Twelve catties of glutinous rice, three catties and two taels of sugar, which are used for women to make glutinous rice balls, symbolizing happiness.

These expensive dowries sent by Li Xiao fully demonstrate a courtier's respect for the royal family and the importance he attaches to the princess. After these gifts were sent to the imperial court, Chongzhen was very satisfied in his heart, Li Xiao's rich dowry made him feel more face-saving, and the ministers saw the emperor's joy, and they also looked at the face and looked at the face, and congratulated one after another.

Subsequently, according to the etiquette that the woman must return the gift after accepting the bride price, the emperor, who was in a good mood, returned more than 300 boxes of food gifts in the dowry gift, and at the same time, gave Li Xiao some clothes, hats, shoes and socks made of lake silk as a return gift. All return gifts are even numbers, which means that good things come in pairs.

After this step is completed, there is the fifth step, called the date of the marriage, which is the date of the final marriage for both the man and the woman.

In the end, according to the opinion of the inspector, Emperor Chongzhen determined the wedding date of Li Xiao and Zhu Yujiao, which was April 26 in the 14th year of Chongzhen.

After Li Xiao got the news, according to etiquette, he sent someone to send a pair of geese and some snacks to express his recognition and determination of the wedding date.

In addition, Li Yu quietly sent 3,000 taels of gold, 100,000 taels of silver, and 800 horses of silk to Chongzhen, and at the same time, he wrote a letter to Chongzhen, vaguely telling him that because of the exhaustion of the Ming Dynasty's financial resources, these belongings will be used as the royal dowry to Princess Kunxing, which can be regarded as Li Xiao's son-in-law, and a face for the royal family.

And seeing that Li Xiao considered the problem so carefully and made such a generous move, Chongzhen and Queen Zhou were both happy, and sighed in their hearts.

Three days later, the emperor, who had carefully calculated the time to arrive, dressed up Princess Kunxing and prepared to let her leave Beijing on the road to Shandong.

After the dress is completed, wearing a crown of nine and four phoenixes, covered with a red silk handkerchief with crystal beads, wearing a wide-sleeved Xia curtain made of embroidered long-tailed pheasant and bright red Hangzhou silk, wearing it from head to toe, Li Xiao gave all kinds of extravagant gold ornaments and jade, accompanied by four personal maids, Zhu Huijiao, who came to the Dongnuan Pavilion that had been decorated with a festive new decoration, and personally kowtowed to Emperor Chongzhen and Queen Zhou, who were sitting on the high chair.

Chongzhen smiled, but Queen Zhou was in tears.

"Father, mother, and the child went to Shandong before, no longer chattering with the knee, and hoped that the father and the queen mother would protect the body of the dragon and phoenix, and cherish it a lot."

Zhu Yujiao, who was dressed in gorgeous clothes, slowly raised her head, she tried to squeeze out a smile, but tears fell quietly.

"Don't be sad, kid. It's a good thing to get married, but don't cry with this makeup......"

Queen Zhou had tears in her eyes, a smile appeared on her face, she took out the silk towel in her sleeve and gently wiped away the tears on Zhu Yujiao's face.

Chongzhen walked over, gently helped her up, and said softly: "Jiao'er, don't worry, I have summoned Li Xiao again, let him treat you well, and I will never let you suffer the slightest grievance." Li Xiao is a dragon and phoenix among people, a hero and hero, my son will marry him, and he will never be wronged. ”

Zhu Yujiao nodded slightly and smiled slightly, but there were tears in her eyes.

Subsequently, after Chongzhen and Queen Zhou took turns to advise her, Princess Kunxing finally boarded the sedan chair and set off.

This is a luxury sedan chair with a double top of 12 people, engraved with phoenix pattern butterflies, and the brilliance is extraordinary. The princess who walked slowly to the sedan chair, turned her head three times in one step, and looked behind her, the Forbidden City, which was very familiar with Jingshi from childhood to adulthood, her eyes were full of attachment and reluctance.

Soon, her eyes turned to the front again, concentrating on her brother Zhu Cihong, who was riding a tall horse, wearing a crown of red silk and pure gold hair, and wearing a bright red wedding dress.

Seeing this prince brother who grew up with him since he was a child, and now because he is far away from Beijing to marry, and came to see him off, Zhu Yujiao's eyes were suddenly full of tears, and in her eyes, grievances and tenderness were intertwined, and it was difficult to describe them all.

And surrounded by a group of drummers, the crown prince Zhu Cihong, who rode a horse to open the way and walked proudly at the front of the team, when he looked back and saw that his sister Zhu Yujiao, who had lived with him since he was a child, was looking at himself from a distance with such an inseparable gaze, the young man who was only one year older than Zhu Yujiao, his eyes immediately moistened.

Zhu Cihong squeezed out a smile with great effort on his face, and nodded slightly at Zhu Yujiao, but those two lines of tears could no longer help but burst out of his eyes.

At this moment, it seems that time has disappeared, only the family affection and hope between brothers and sisters are so reluctant and long.

Finally, in the noisy sound of gongs, drums and firecrackers, Princess Kunxing, who was dressed in a wedding dress and covered with a red scarf, finally opened the red umbrella by the bridesmaids with the help of a group of relatives and relatives, and a group of women who sent relatives accompanied the bride to the sedan chair, while constantly throwing rice grains to the sky, the top of the umbrella, and the top of the sedan chair. (This means feeding the golden rooster, which means that if you marry a woman in the future, you will not be bullied in your husband's house.) ）

In the end, after the four relatives accompanied the maid to send Zhu Yujiao to sit in the special luxury sedan chair carried by twelve people, the head of the sedan chair gave a long drink, and then got up and left.

This family send-off team, under the watchful eyes of countless people in the capital, blew and played all the way, and walked out of the capital with full pomp and circumstance, all the way south.

Outside the Yongding Gate in the south of Jingshi, the crown prince Zhu Cihong stared at it until the luxurious sedan chair disappeared far away from his field of vision, and he could no longer control the excitement in his heart, covered his face, and cried loudly.

"Sister! ……”

Zhu Cihong, who was crying endlessly, raised his head and shouted, but the howling wild wind outside the city quickly tore his terrible shout to pieces, and it was no longer audible.

Ten days later, this mighty team of relatives came to the outside of Dengzhou, Shandong Province on the happy day of April 26, the 14th year of Chongzhen.