De'an Lane is not spacious and there are people everywhere.
The whole alley was decorated and looked particularly festive.
Cheng Jia and Cheng Ding were responsible for leading the way at the entrance of the alley. Mrs. Qi and Mrs. Yang stood at the door of Cheng's house to welcome the guests and read out the gift list.
Most of the guests in the Cheng Mansion were scholars Cheng Zhao knew in the capital, as well as neighbors that Mrs. Cheng had known in the past few days.
The congratulatory gifts given by scholars are nothing more than the four treasures of the study, paper fans, etc. Neighbors in the suburbs of Beijing naturally do not give eggs and cloth heads like in the village, but directly give gifts of money. Some may be as little as fifty cents, and some as much as two or three hundred. Wenqian, the money can be registered directly in the book, no need to sing or read it.
In the midst of this bustle, Cheng Wanwan's carriage stopped at the door of Cheng's mansion.
She walked in with a red lacquered sandalwood box in her hand and handed it to Mrs. Qi.
Although Mrs. Qi was by her side every day, she didn't know what wedding gift she had prepared, so she opened the box out of curiosity.
A huge luminous pearl suddenly lit up her eyes, and there was a line of words written on a red sheet in the box.
Mrs. Yang quickly read out these words: "The bridegroom's second aunt presents a congratulatory gift, a bright pearl from the East China Sea!"
Upon hearing this, the guests in the hall immediately stretched their necks and looked out. These people also have young men with good backgrounds, so they naturally know the goods.
"This night pearl is so big. It is fluorescing during the day, and it will be even brighter at night."
"Do you still remember that two East China Sea luminous pearls appeared in the capital the year before last? They were auctioned by the shopkeeper of Zhenbao Pavilion, and in the end they were bought by someone for a high price of ten thousand taels of silver."
"Hiss, ten thousand taels of silver, Master Cheng, this second aunt is really rich."
"I said you are really ignorant. Who is Mr. Cheng's second aunt? Do you really not know?"
"Yes...he is from Sui'an who has been promoted to three levels in a row, right or wrong?"
"That's right, this person from Sui'an has become the sixth-ranked wife of the imperial court in her own right. Her business is huge and she is already a famous wealthy businessman in Huzhou."
"Who said Brother Ziyu didn't have a family background before? There is such a powerful aunt, who is much better than us, the poor people."
"I also want a second aunt like this..."
Some people are envious, and of course there are also people who say mean things, such as he is just a sixth-grade Anren and cannot make any waves.
Old Mrs. Cheng and Yourongyan were sitting in the yard. These two girls were good and knew how to give Zhaoer valuable gifts to make her look good.
A luminous pearl costing ten thousand taels... Just thinking about her old man makes her tooth ache. What could she do with so much money? Why not buy a luminous pearl that can only provide lighting? It would be great if she could just give the money as a gift...
Fortunately, this gift went into the Cheng family's treasury. Once Ye Mingzhu entered the Cheng family, it was up to her to handle it. Then she could sell it, and the money from the sale would be given to Zhao'er to invest in the business. Zhao'er is a grown man. , I am twenty years old this year, I should have some money on my hands. Firstly, I can’t be looked down upon by the Situ family. Secondly, I also need money for officialdom.
When Cheng Wanwan walked in, she saw Mrs. Cheng's eyes rolling around, and she knew what the old lady was planning.
If the Cheng family took out the night pearl and sold it, she really had no objection at all. It only cost a few dozen taels of silver to buy one in the mall. If you flip it, you can get thousands of taels in your account. Such a cost-effective deal would be in vain.
Just as she was about to sit down, Mrs. Qi at the door raised her voice: "Mrs. Lin is here."
The Lin family is considered a matchmaker, so they naturally come to have a wedding drink on the day of the wedding. However, Mrs. Lin's status is too high to come in person, so she sent her daughter-in-law. Mrs. Lin is in her forties and looks very gentle. As soon as he came in, he was led by Mrs. Cheng to sit at the main seat.
"Our Zhao'er is able to marry the third young lady of the Situ family because she is blessed by the Lin family." Mrs. Cheng said with a smile, "Mrs. Lin must drink a few more glasses of wine today and ask Zhao'er's second aunt to accompany her. .”
Mrs. Lin looked at Cheng Wanwan with admiration in her eyes: "How long has Sui'an been in the capital this time?"
"I'll leave in three to five days after the wedding." Cheng Wanwan said with a smile, "It's been two months since I came back, and there are a lot of things at home waiting for me to go back and deal with."
"What a pity..." Mrs. Lin sighed, "My daughter is getting married at the end of May, and I want to invite people from Sui'an to have a wedding drink."
Although the people of Sui'an are not of high rank, they have long become a legend in their circle of ladies. How can anyone not admire a woman who has become the royal wife of the imperial court by virtue of her own abilities?
In the past, when many people in the capital mentioned the Sui'an people, there were always some discordant voices saying that the Sui'an people were peasant women, overtly or covertly they ridiculed the Sui'an people for being ugly and old. She had also thought that they were people who worked with farmland every day. Women, even if they are young, still look old and rustic...
In the minds of many people in the capital, admiring the people of Sui'an is one thing, and looking down on them is the same thing. There is no conflict at all between these two completely opposite views of a person.
But when she saw him today, she realized that she was being narrow-minded.
Sui'an was wearing a brocade woven coat common in the capital. The collar and cuffs were made of low-key, dull silver threads. Moon-white camellias were embroidered on the fabric. Her hair was neatly combed with a green hairpin inserted into it. At first glance, it looks ordinary, but upon closer inspection, you can see that it is in good condition and worth a lot of money.
She has green round earrings on her ears and green bracelets on her wrists. This looks like a complete set of jewelry, which makes Sui'an's skin even whiter.
If the noble ladies in the capital saw this, they would definitely put away their narrow views.
Cheng Wanwan and Mrs. Lin were sitting together, chatting happily.
While they were chatting, Mrs. Qi's voice came again: "Master Zhang is here."
Mrs. Lin looked over in shock: "Mr. Zhang has always stayed in the study. Except for banquets for foreign envoys, he never attended any private banquets. How could he come to Cheng's house for a wedding banquet? It seems that he admires his nephew who is from Sui'an."
Cheng Wanwan also looked over.
Before she came to the capital, she had learned about some court affairs in the capital, and had also heard about Mr. Zhang.
Mr. Zhang is over sixty this year. He has served as the minister of Honglu Temple in the Dayu Dynasty since the last dynasty. The Dayu Dynasty was prosperous and powerful, and countless small countries around it surrendered and paid tribute. There were also many larger countries that were slightly farther away that had economic exchanges with the Dayu Dynasty. In this era, transportation was inconvenient and communication was not developed. Although there were foreign affairs, they were not busy. Therefore, Mr. Zhang either read at home or borrowed the imperial study room to read. Naturally, the books he read were all in foreign languages. He also asked his subordinates to read. People compiled many books on foreign geography and introduced them to the public.
The foreign characters she embroidered on the emperor's birthday ceremony were inspired by Master Zhang's books.
Her birthday gift was quilt clothes, which seemed too ordinary. She was afraid that they would be ignored, so she embroidered them with foreign characters to attract attention.
As soon as Mr. Zhang came in, the scholars sitting in the front courtyard stood up and saluted: "I have met Mr. Zhang!"
"This is outside the capital. Don't worry about these false courtesy." Mr. Zhang smiled and looked at Old Man Cheng, "The old man is so energetic. No wonder he raised such an outstanding child as Cheng Ziyu. He is really envious of others."
Old man Cheng is considered the head of the Cheng family. At this moment, Cheng Zhao went to Situ's house to pick up his bride. He had to come to greet the guests. It was his first time to deal with an official. His legs were shaking and he held on for a while. He said in a tone: "Master Zhang, this way, please take a seat..."
This table was occupied by Cheng Zhao's colleagues, the second-ranked scholar in the imperial examination, and some Jinshi who had already sought official positions. They were all sitting here chatting. Mr. Zhang sat down directly.
He raised his eyes and looked to the other side.
The men's and women's seats are separated, separated by a virtual screen. You can see the women's seats, hear the people talking on the women's seats, and even see people from Sui'an.
Mr. Zhang's heart was like a cat's paw, thinking of some excuse to go over and talk to the Sui'an people...
