Bursts of firecrackers roared, gongs and drums were noisy, and the sound of a gong shook the Beijing division, declaring the wealth and power of the master's family. Officers and soldiers with bright helmets and red tassels on their heads opened the way in front, their swords and guns were bright and majestic, and behind them were servants in new clothes and hats, carrying huge cages and swaggering past. Just look at the outfits of those porters, you can see that this is a dowry. A story made in heaven is about to be staged in the near future, and there is another piece of material to be performed in the folk record book of the future.

The ragged beggars, the yellow-skinned pauper, looked at the team with envy, valuing the dowry in their minds, and calculating how their lives could be improved by any one cage. There are also people who seriously analyze whether such people will give away steamed buns when they get married, and how much they can grab when they get married.

There are many officials in Beijing, and marriages are common, not to mention that the wedding of the Son of Heaven has just ended, and the local people's horizons are broader than those in other places, and the pomp and circumstance are much more decent, and the ordinary honor guard does not arouse interest at all. Nowadays, extravagance is flourishing in the city, and the government and the people are all fond of extravagance, which is even more obvious in the matter of getting married.

The dowry of the marriage money has become a scene in Beijing, and it is even more interesting than the wedding day. The common people looked at the procession, calculated the amount of the dowry, and evaluated the woman's family and how much she was valued. Envy the rich and despise the poor has become a major entertainment project for the people.

The number of dowries has risen from the first two to the current eight. Even families who are struggling to make ends meet must work hard to organize a sufficient number of dowries, otherwise they will be looked down upon. Even some officials who are really poor can only find similarly poor colleagues to change relatives in order to reduce their dowry.

The people who thought that they were well-informed and would not be surprised if they had even seen the emperor marry in this life, were still stunned by this dowry army. No matter how rich and noble a family is, sixty-four is already the limit. However, the dowry of this family is like a long dragon winding around, and they can't see the end of the team, I'm afraid that there are hundreds of them, and this extravagance is the first time that the old and young masters of the Beijing division have seen it.

Someone in the crowd whispered: "Long live Grandpa's wedding that day, I didn't see such a big pomp." What kind of mansion is this, and it has such a momentum? ”

"Brother's eyes are not bright, he doesn't even recognize the honor guard of the Prime Minister's Mansion? Most of them don't know how to read, right? The avoidance card that opened the road wrote Emperor Yuanfu, who was naturally a member of Zhang Taiyue's family. Behold, how strong are the officers and soldiers who opened the way and the men who carried the dowry? These are all the drills of the three major battalions, and Grandpa Banzai may not have come so complete when he watched the exercises, that is, the face of the Prime Minister can support these old soldiers. Look at the horse riding in front of you, isn't it the Xiangfu housekeeper You Qiye? Grandpa Qi, who killed the Japanese in the southeast and is now in Jimen to defend the north, is his old man's sworn brother. Let me tell you, except for Taiyue Xianggong today, no one has similar dignity. ”

"I see, Zhang Taiyue's marriage is more magnificent than the marriage of the Son of Heaven, which is unexpected. How much dowry is this? How much is it worth? People say that in three years, the Qing Governor's Mansion is 100,000 snowflakes of silver, and it seems that the words are good. It's better to study, and you can make a fortune without being exposed to the wind and sun. ”

"Needless to say? Haven't you heard of it, there is a couplet hanging in the Prime Minister's Mansion, which reads: Heavenly Immortal Mansion, the Prime Minister's House on Earth. If you want me to say, it's not as good as being a god to be a god, look at this pomp, how can you find a second person in Jingshi to compare? I'm afraid that this face is not done in the sky, I heard that in these dowries, there are not only the rewards of the grandfather of Long Live Grandpa, but also the rewards of the two queen mothers, I don't know how many royal things are in it, even those hereditary princes and daughters, there is no such glory. People live for a lifetime, and it is enough to get to this point. ”

Another said: "If you want me to say, that Aunt Fan is enough." I heard that the daughter of the Zhang family is as beautiful as a fairy, and it is a stunning beauty that is not in the world. Besides, she is a good woman who can't be found with a lantern. can marry such a wife and have such a piece of furniture, this Aunt Fan is simply one step to the sky. I heard that he was originally a poor scholar in Guangdong, and it was the Zhang family that he had today's future. ”

"Don't say that, this old man Fan still has some skills, that cowpox, or the coal stove chimney, I heard that they were all made by others, but they were just hung in the name of the Duke of Wei in Jiangning. I don't know how many lives have been saved, and the merit is immeasurable. He is a second-class heir, and his marriage to Miss Zhang is also a match made in heaven. ”

Someone in the crowd snorted, "If it weren't for Miss Zhang's liking with him, he might not be a second-class heir." You don't understand the rules, after the Jinshi and the first, the officials will give the marriage leave as usual, and after the official is awarded, you have to do things with peace of mind, and you can't think about the big wedding anymore. This time, a holy decree transferred him back to the capital from Jiangning, saying that it was Quanxu, but it was actually a marriage. After the marriage is completed, can he still go back to Jiangning? Magistrates in the world must sit for six years before they can be promoted, but he has only been in office for less than two years, and then he entered Beijing for another election, and the rules are bad for him alone, how much power is this? Without the Prime Minister as a backer, how can you be so bold? It is said that he is a Qing official, but I heard that he entered Beijing on the front foot, and there was a southern dart shop on the back foot that went ashore from Tongzhou, and the property he brought was loaded with several large boats, and the dart escort is said to be this Fan Qingtian's inner pet. ”

People are always more interested in gossip than in state affairs, and someone immediately asks: "Inner pet?" He married the eldest lady of the Zhang family, and he still dared to engage in women? Not afraid of being beaten to death by Zhang Xiangye? ”

"Yes, he is nominally marrying Miss Zhang, but isn't he actually a wealthy man? I heard that even the family moved from Guangdong to Beijing, so it was not Miss Zhang who married the Fan family, but Miss Zhang who married Xianggong. In such a situation, he also dares to ask for a small one? ”

"You don't dare? Some time ago, I was eating a flowing water banquet at the Huizhou Guild Hall, and I heard that Song Gongzi, who was a member of Saimeng, said that this surnamed Fan had done a lot of things to mess with flowers and grass, robbing men and women in Jiangning, and occupying women from good families to be his outer room. There are also many famous ladies whose innocence is bad in his hands, opening a women's school in Jiangning, and the women who go there to study, as long as they have a little bit of beauty, they can't escape his hands. It is said that he is the emperor in Jiangning, and whoever a woman falls in love can't run away. It is said that there was a leading Oiran who opened a restaurant, but he saw it, and guess what? Not only were people occupied by him, but even the restaurant became his industry, and he gained both people and money. ”

Hearing what this person said, some people thought: "Brother, I think of the newly opened Lianxiang Building." We won't talk about the wine and food there, let's just say that the boss lady, I have secretly seen it, her head is very positive, she is a rare beauty, I heard that she is the housekeeper of the Fan family, do you say that she is also a person in the room? As soon as Miss Zhang passed the door this time, she still had to send those women away? Will it be sold? ”

"Don't always think about the discord between other people's houses, if you want me to see that although Master Fan is rich, he may not be controlled by Miss Zhang. You see, the dowry has finally seen its tail. This dowry giver occupies a street, so many dowries, does it look like treating a son-in-law? If you want me to say, most of the time Miss Zhang was pinched by him, and she would rather take out the furniture as a dowry than ensure that the marriage can be completed. Tell me, if you marry like this, you still want to control your father-in-law? Maybe I will bring some young and beautiful maids to marry me, tie my husband's heart, and beg my husband to take the house. ”

People are talking and speculating, and their brains are making up countless scenes that make people feel bloody, envious, jealous and hateful. Due to the large number of people in this procession, the traffic has been paralyzed, and whether it is lively or not, they are forced to stop and watch. When the long dragon finally finished crawling, a dozen well-dressed scholars across the street were revealed.

In the middle of the crowd, a dignified scholar in his thirties, his face was already gloomy like an iron block, and he clenched the folding fan in his hand, beating it back and forth on his hand. The friends around him saw that his face was uncertain and hurriedly asked, "Brother Qiyuan, Fang is fine, why do you look like this at this time?" ”

"Why aren't you angry? Examples cannot be opened, and rites cannot be abolished. Zhang Jiangling, as a Zaifu, is already unfilial if his father dies, and now he has broken the court system for his own selfishness, which is even more disloyal. Disloyal and unfilial people steal from high positions, how can Gu turn a blind eye? ”

"Qi Yuan said cautiously......" The scholar who had just asked looked around, and said in a low voice: "The Jingshi is not as good as other places, and there are many ears and eyes on the horses, if these words leak out, I am afraid that a big disaster will come." ”

"What about leaks? Spring is coming, is it possible that he still dares to arrest the lifter? Besides, once my generation was named on the gold list, he had to contribute to the country, and he didn't even dare to say a few words, how could he ask for justice for the people in the future, and could it be that he would be like those lucky villains, and be a power traitor? Our generation should follow the example of the sages, care about the government and love the people, otherwise what is the use of reading or not reading the books of the sages? ”

Although he said this more and more wildly, but the official dialect with a southern accent and the iconic scribe dress on his body made the street patrol in charge of public security and even the brocade clothes who inquired about the news subconsciously avoided it, and no one dared to approach. This scholar is right, now that it is the world of scholars, Jinyiwei has no choice but to scare the civilians, but he does not dare to do anything to rush for the exam. What's more, a scholar who speaks southern dialect, I don't know which bigwig's protégé of the township party in the DPRK and China, offended the people behind him, as long as he threw a clip casually, he could break his bones, and who would dare to send him to death.

These scholars are all from Nanzhili, and the middle person is Gu Xiancheng, a southeast genius who is one of the four sons of Yingtian, Xie Yuan, Wang Shiqi and others are called one of the four sons of Yingtian. Originally, he and Fan Jin should have ended up in the same department, but Jiang Ning's smallpox took the lives of several people in his family, and he was infected with wind and cold, so he missed the exam because he was recuperating at home. So much so that there is always a saying in the southeast literary circle that if Gu Xiancheng had not been sick last time, the champion of Wanli for five years would not have been surnamed Shen.

In addition to his own knowledge, Gu Xiancheng is also famous in the southeast, that is, he likes to participate in business. Although he has no official status, after all, he has a meritorious reputation, and the soap in the yamen still has to give him some face. Whether it is the collection of Qian Gu or the apportionment of servitude, you have to be careful, for fear of angering Master Gu to give a gift to the yamen, and you will suffer. The magistrate is also quite jealous of him, after all, if such a famous man is angry, the magistrate's gauze hat is not stable.

Nowadays, it is the time when Yangming Mind is popular, and people talk about learning, mainly mind. However, Gu Xiancheng is a supporter of science, openly criticizing the hollowness of psychology, corrupting the people's customs, advocating the original source, respecting science as the right trace, and Zhang Juzheng's teacher Xu Jie's faction, which is regarded as a rival who has never met. And his resentment with Zhang Juzheng himself is deeper than this.

If you want to be a celebrity, you have to try to improve your popularity, and a few literary meetings are of little significance to a scribe like Gu Xiancheng. Originally, he relied on lecturing to gain a lot of prestige in the local area, but under Zhang Juzheng's order, several of his private lectures were taken care of by the yamen and all of them were closed. Since then, Gu Xiancheng has become a standard Zhang Hei, and it is not a secret to his friends that he will talk the opposite between the banquets. It's just that in a place like Jiangnan, if you don't drink and don't black, the court will be embarrassed to talk to people, and it doesn't matter if you scold a few words. But when I arrived in Beijing, I didn't know how to converge, which made my companions a little big.

The Gu family has run dyeing workshops, taverns and other businesses, but they have always been tepid, and they have plummeted recently, and their family has been a little difficult. But Gu Xiancheng will not use his reputation to seek wealth for himself, his character is blameless, he speaks from the height of asking for the people's life, and it makes no sense for his companions to stop him, so he had to pull him and said: "Say a few words, it's useless for us to say as much as we say here, and after the title of the gold list, it's not too late to impeach." Brother Yuan Ding set up a banquet in Lianxiang Building to wait for us, everyone should hurry over, so as not to make Brother Yuan Ding wait for a long time. ”

"When I first came to Beijing, I only thought that Lianxianglou was an ordinary restaurant, and I didn't want it to be an industry under the name of the slave maid of the Fan family. Let's go there and cheer him on, do we want to be decent? Go and drink this wine, and I will not need it. ”

"Brother Gu...... Even if you don't rejoice, you have to give Brother Yuan Ding a face. Besides, Fan Huisi has made a lot of achievements in Shangyuan, especially the reduction of Southeast Weaving, which has lost the face of Zhongguan, and is also a model for my generation of well-dressed people. Brother Qiyuan can't listen to a few gossips, so he can't get along with him. ”

"I am a friend of Yuan Dingjun and I know each other, and he will not think that I don't give him face for this little thing. As for Fan Jin...... He was indeed a capable officer, but he was not a good officer. Everyone's eyes can't just look at the vermilion of the Manchu Dynasty, and they can't see the vast number of sentient beings. Look around, how many people are hungry, these people don't even have to eat, Fan Jin marries a wife and suddenly becomes rich, do you think this is fair? How good can such a person be? Officials set an example for the people, the people are poor, but the officials are proud of their wealth, what is the word shame? I won't go to such a restaurant. ”

As he spoke, Gu Xiancheng had already turned his head and walked out, and several companions hurriedly grabbed him and said, "Brother Gu, where are you going?" ”

"Go back to the inn and write a few couplets. There have been people at the Huizhou Hall asking me for words, and I didn't plan to give them them. But seeing that the weather is getting colder and colder, these people have no food and clothing, and they don't know how many people are starving to death. I wrote a few words in exchange for some silver to buy them some rice and clothes, which is a little thin, so many people have no food to eat, how can we eat chicken, duck and fish? ”

Wen You's hand unconsciously let go, looking at Gu Xiancheng's distant figure, several people fell into confusion. Whether to chase Gu Xiancheng or go to a banquet to eat and drink, this is really a troublesome matter.