On the day he returned to Yuqian, Li Dan first visited the Yuqian Chamber of Commerce and gave a general report on the gains captured in the Battle of Fuzhou. He then told the Chamber of Commerce about the capital's urgent need for fuel and his plan to establish a coal company.
Then he went to the county government office without stopping to pay a visit to Fan Jinhu, who was about to leave office, and congratulated him on his promotion to the prefecture (in the end, Fan County Zun got the position of the prefecture of Huaiqing Prefecture, Henan).
When Fan Xianzun learned that his godson-in-law was about to go to Shangjing to open a new business, he did not hesitate to take out one thousand taels and expressed his willingness to invest. This was probably the largest investment he had ever made in his life, but He firmly believed it was worth it!
Li Dan's wedding was held grandly. The bride was anxiously waiting at home, but the groom was blocked at the door and refused to come in. Xu Hu (son of Xu Tong) was in his father's arms, begging for poetry like a little adult.
"I'll come!" Zhao Jingzi moved forward smartly. He was acting as the best man today, and the other best man was Li Qin, the fourth man of the Li family. Zhao Jingzi shook his head and said loudly:
The noble families are opened one after another, and the official hair is like a cut. There is no new make-up, but there are people with eyebrows and painted faces.
Xu Tong looked at his son: "Huzi, what do you think?"
"I don't understand!" The little guy blinked and replied in a sweet voice, making everyone burst into laughter.
"Other people's things don't count, let the groom do it himself!" Alian's voice said loudly from behind the door.
"Okay, if you make it yourself, you can make it yourself. I'll come in after you finish it!" Li Dan said with a smile:
The gold medal Ten Dao Lord Mochi,
"Who urged you?"
Xiaozhuang's temples are wet with sweat.
"The bride is anxious, but I am not!"
No new people were seen after hearing the sound.
"Um……?"
My younger sister still urges me to come in and write poems.
"Haha, brother-in-law is talking about sister!" Huzi clapped his hands and laughed.
"Oh, what are you talking about?" A-Lian's figure flashed behind the door. It turned out that Xu Hu was yelling "brother-in-law" and "sister" so loudly that she turned around and ran away. Seeing that the guard had no fighting spirit, everyone rushed in.
Xu Tong stepped aside with a smile and hurriedly asked the butler to serve a glass of daughter's wine to everyone who came to welcome the bride. Even the musicians and bearers had to drink a bowl before they were allowed to leave!
After a while, "Farewell the Bride" was played in the house. Li Dan held a red gauze in his hand and led the bride downstairs. At the top of the stairs, the bride said goodbye to her aunt, then walked along the red carpet to the door, and then said goodbye. Farewell father.
Xu Bu's eyes were red, and he couldn't tell whether he was crying or laughing. He watched his daughter enter the car painted with red paint and gold. Here, Mao Zaidi, who was draped in red, brought Zao Liu, and the groom got on the horse with his toes in the hands of Lu Jiu, who was grinning like a gourd.
Lu Jiu shouted: "Get up the sedan!"
Before he finished speaking, the sound of rapid horse hooves came from far and near. Zhao Jingzi made a gesture to ask the musicians to stop, and saw a black flag messenger reining in the horse in front of the team, turned over and ran to the crowd.
Lu Jiu went up to meet him, quickly came back with a letter, walked up to Li Dan, and whispered: "Urgent report from Yingtan."
Li Dan nodded towards Zhao Jingzi, who took it and opened it, reading it at a glance, then walked to Li Dan and told him in a low voice:
"Military Intelligence Branch reported urgently that Lou Shiming successfully crossed the Xinjiang River the day before yesterday and defeated the Ehu defenders. The remnants of Yintuo at the mouth of the river are retreating towards Geyang. In addition, Xing'an has been occupied by Lou Shifan, and this guy is taking our route!"
"You learn very quickly!" Li Dan sneered. "But it's all what we expected, but today is still tomorrow." He sighed softly: "It seems that we won't be able to enjoy the wedding wine after all. You should take a step first after leaving the city."
"You'll have to make up for it later, remember, it'll be with interest!" Zhao Jingzi said jokingly.
"Okay, go ahead. Contact the Duan brothers immediately to see how they are doing." After Duan Yan returned, he discussed with his brother, and finally the two brothers agreed to stay in Geyang.
Li Dan estimated that there would be a fierce battle in Geyang. If they didn't evacuate in time, they might be pinned down by the two Lou brothers and unable to get out of Geyang City.
"Based on the news three days ago, I'm afraid that the Lou family's team has already gathered at Geyang City!" He said to himself.
Seeing that the team stopped moving, the Xu family and the bride were a little uneasy. Xu Tong came forward and asked
What's going on? Yutong (A Ying's dowry girl) also came over and was ordered to ask.
"It's okay. It's just a slight delay after receiving an urgent military situation. It's okay. Let's continue on our way!" Li Dan comforted him. Soon, the procession of sending off the bride started playing again. They passed through the city, causing a sensation in most of Yugan.
Then go out of the south gate and change into a four-wheeled carriage, and cross south from Mianshan Port to Baima Port. After waiting here and reorganizing the team, they head towards Phoenix Mountain.
At this time, Zhao Jingzi was already riding with the guards, and he was about to pass the yellow walls and green tiles of the White Horse Temple.
Phoenix Mountain is equally lively because Wu Ning'er is getting married today. Su Siniang got up early to help the little sisters.
The two of them now live in the small courtyard assigned to Han An and his wife, and after her sister gets married, Huer (Abin) will also stay in the Han family. She has become a teacher of the couple, learning painting from Han An, and following the four sisters. Niang learns account management.
Gu Da sent someone to deliver a pair of twin sisters, the Dongxiang sisters who almost fell into the clutches of Fu Fifteen. Su Siniang asked her elder sister Ayi to follow Ning'er, and her younger sister Ali to stay with Huner, so that both pairs of sisters had a destination.
Ayi had never experienced such a scene before and was a little busy. Thanks to Siniang's appointment, he was always in good order.
Li Dan first saw Xu Ying home, then turned over and went to pick up Ning'er's sedan chair. He was so busy that his back was sweating in the winter. Logically speaking, there is no need for him to pick up the concubine when she comes in, nor should he enter the house at the same time as the lady.
However, firstly, Ning'er's identity was the adopted daughter of the county king, and secondly, Xu Ying also insisted that she should not feel neglected as soon as she entered the house, so she had to help Li Dan rush back and forth. But after a bit of hard work, I feel happy in my heart.
When they arrived at the worship hall, the three of them bowed to each other. Wu Ning'er stood half a step behind Xu Ying and looked at the beautifully embroidered shoes from under the hijab. She envied the handiwork and wondered what she was like.
Xu Ying caught a glimpse of the hem of her skirt behind her and was thinking about it secretly. Unexpectedly, the words "Send her to the bridal chamber" made her panic, but she didn't know which way to go. At this moment, a hand from behind gently held her forearm, He said in a low voice:
"Sister, don't panic, wait and see where your husband goes, we will follow."
"Yeah." Xu Ying responded inaudibly, watching Li Dan's Jifu walking in front of him, the silk yarn on his hand moved, he felt relieved and took a step forward, and immediately developed a good impression of the girl behind him. .
After the bride enters the bridal chamber, the groom also has to be busy taking care of the guests at the wedding banquet, which is a lot of trouble.
Although there is no program like later generations to make trouble in the wedding (making trouble in the wedding in this era is regarded as rude and offensive behavior), and you don't have to worry about being drunk (offensive and disrespectful to the groom's family), there are still some programs such as poetry, confrontation, and lyrics. , is still indispensable in scribes’ families.
The people who came ranged from the parents of both parties and the county magistrate, to the officers and guards stationed in charge around Baima. The abbot of White Horse Temple also arrived, accompanied by two scribes and a book boy.
The most special thing is that King Fu actually sent a guest named Lu to send a congratulatory gift, saying that it was a gift from Chitose to thank him for saving the people of Fuzhou and to congratulate him on his wedding. Li Dan invited him to the table and stayed at the Phoenix Ridge Inn of Renli Inn (Su Si Mother's property) stay for one night.
The main hall was full of female relatives, and Song Jiuyi came up with the idea to set up a huge tent with six large military tents on the ground that had been leveled next to it.
Four iron stoves were placed inside to boil water, everyone drank rice wine, and blankets were spread on the floor, so it felt warm instead of cold.
The person hosting the banquet today is the chef from Sihaiju. He has learned no less than forty dishes from Li Dan in the past few months. He had discussed today's menu with Li Dan before. There are sixteen dishes in total, which is enough to dazzle the guests.
The wine used at the banquet was Jia Mingjiu's special "Yu Liu Chun". This one is slightly lighter than "Yu Qingliu" and is suitable for both warm and cold tastes.
The wine was light green in color, crystal clear, with the aroma of grains and the elegance of green bamboo. When it was poured from the bamboo tube sealed with engraved mud, it aroused everyone's amazement.
Today, from the four-wheel soft sedan carriage used to pick up the bride, to coal stoves, wine and food, tableware, glass fruit plates, etc., they are all products that the business group is selling. It can be regarded as a very special display and product experience.
We will see guests off in the evening, and arrangements will be made for guests who are too late to return to Yugan.
We stayed at the Renli Inn and were sent off by Mao Zaidi and Xiao Wan'er.
A Bing was busy directing four or five family members to clean up the table. He stayed at Li Dan's house and now has almost the status of half a housekeeper. Seeing Lu Jiu looking around, Ah Bing asked, "Brother Jiu, are you looking for the groom?"
"Yes, maybe he is in a hurry and has already gone in to find the bride?" Lu Jiu asked.
"It depends on what you said," Ah Bing laughed and pointed: "Your Excellency sends the three masters of the Xu family out, should they talk outside the door, right?"
Lu Jiu quickly ran outside the house to take a look, but it was not the case. It turned out that Li Dan told them on the way out that he and Zhao Chongbi reiterated their intention to resign after the Guangxin Mansion was pacified and come back to prepare for the exam, and the three brothers unanimously agreed.
"Brother Dan, you can be a man only if you can take it up and put it down! Just go ahead and do it, don't worry, the three of us will support you!" Xu Tong said.
"You have to talk to Ying'er, but I think she will understand." Xu Bu was very confident in his daughter's judgment.
"Having said that, after all, it is not a good thing for someone to come out to impeach." Third Master Xu Xian was careful, stroking the beard on his cheeks and frowning:
"You are a sixth-grade official, and you were promoted by His Majesty himself. How come someone comes to pull the dragon scales? This matter is a bit strange. I think you should be more careful.
We can comfort ourselves by taking a step back. But this thing itself is so weird that it is really hard to understand! "
Li Dan didn't feel comfortable saying to them, "Someone is challenging the emperor's prestige." He answered with clasped fists, "Yes, my son-in-law must be careful not to let the gossip succeed."
After seeing off the three brothers, he turned back and waved Lu Jiu over and asked, "Is there anything else?"
Lu Jiu pursed his lips and smiled and said, "My lord, it would be best if nothing happens. It's just that the monk didn't know what was going on, so he attracted two donors at this time, saying that he wanted to introduce him to you."
"Oh?" Li Dan wondered: "Can't we do this tomorrow? Why do we have to choose tonight?" He glanced at Lu Jiu.
Lu Jiu immediately understood: "How many brothers should I arrange to come to the hall?"
"Let Ah Bing take the people at the door, and you can quietly come in from behind with two or three people to prepare."
"As you command!"
Abbot Yishan of White Horse Temple took the two scribes and bookboys to the front yard and living room. Ah Bing, who was already waiting here, smiled and greeted him: "The great monk is here, please come in! Your Excellency is inside. Please keep the story short. After all, Today is an auspicious day."
"I understand, please excuse me." The monk chanted the Buddha's name and nodded to the back. The scholar was waiting at the foot of the stairs, and he ushered the two Confucian scholars in. Seeing Li Dan stand up and greet him with a smile, he quickly clasped his hands and said, "It is a sin for a poor monk to disturb the Lord's good time!"
"Abbott, you don't have to be like this. You and I are destined. If you hadn't sold the land, how could I have thought of moving to Fenghuang Ridge? Please sit down!" As he spoke, he looked at the two people behind him: "Who are these two?"
"Oh, these two donors are friends of Lao Monk. The younger one is Gu Lian, named Nancheng, from Tongcheng. He likes miscellaneous books and is good at making waterwheel equipment.
This steady young master was named Wei Shaolong, whose surname was Mucheng, and whose surname was Lujiang. He was a disciple of Mr. Wan Lao, a famous doctor in Nanchang.
The two of them are collectively known as the Huainan Twin Cities. They are famous but do not like to be officials. They prefer to travel and help others. The old man saw that the master needs talents to help him in his work, so he recommended him to make acquaintance with the master. "
Li Dan was overjoyed when he heard this and talked with the two of them. He felt that the most valuable thing in elegance was practical learning, so he deliberately accepted it and immediately asked: "Where are you two gentlemen living now?"
"Just stay in our temple." The monk replied.
"Who's out there?"
After hearing Li Dan's question, Mao Zaidi walked in and said, "Is there something wrong, sir?"
"Are you back? Quickly send a carriage to the temple to pick up the luggage of the two gentlemen and send them to Renli Inn for placement." Li Dan ordered, and then said to them: "Two gentlemen, please rest for now. I will pay you a visit tomorrow."
"I don't dare to work, sir. It's just..."
"how?"
"We are not two people, we have a companion."
"What about the book boy? It doesn't matter, let's settle it together!"
"Sir," Gu Nancheng took a step forward and crossed his hands:
"There are some inconveniences involved, so it's better for us to stay in the temple temporarily."
"Um?"
The abbot recited the Buddha's name and said, "Sir, please let the book boy come in and you will know after a quick look."
Li Dan nodded, and Mao Zaidi called the bookboy into the room and quietly gave A Bing a wink behind his back.
The boy came in silently, bowed his head, and took off his bamboo hat at the signal of Wei and Gu. Li Dan was stunned when he saw it. Half of his face was as sharp as a rock, while the other half was covered in black and red scars, giving him a yin-yang face.
The good side belonged to a handsome young man, but the terrible side belonged to an injured person who had suffered a lot.
"He is Yang Xing, the person you are looking for." Gu Nancheng said softly.
His voice was not loud, but he heard a clanking sound from behind, and five or six fully armed guards rushed out from the back hall amid the sound of nails. When Ah Bing and Mao Zaidi outside heard the big commotion inside, they also led the people outside the door and swarmed in with weapons in hand!
The atmosphere in the room suddenly became extremely tense. "Don't move!" Lu Jiu roared, causing the room to buzz.
"Ajiu, there's no need for this, you all just go down." After a while, Li Dan said. He kept making eye contact with Yang Xing.
What he first saw in Yang Xing's eyes was unyielding and perseverance. Later, the flame slowly dimmed, turning into indifference and loss. Li Dan waved his hand for everyone to exit. Only Lu Jiu was still standing behind the chair.
"You are so courageous that you dare to bring him to my house. Master should also know about it, right?" Li Dan looked at Yishan with a smile and asked, "Why did you agree to bring them here?"
"I am neither speculating nor taking risks. I just think that if a person can turn around and be safe, then how courageous it must be. Shouldn't we support and encourage him?" Yi Shan replied.
"That's good, but how did the great monk tell the difference?" Li Dan sat back in his chair after speaking: "Everyone, please stop standing and sit down to chat. Brother Yang, sit down too!" Looking at everyone sitting down, He said:
"There are people in my team who have surrendered and turned their backs. But Brother Yang, you are different from them. Do you understand what I mean? Then, let me first tell you why you wanted to turn back and what made you suddenly change your mind. ?」
Yang Xing lowered his head and said nothing. Wei Mucheng cupped his hands and said, "Sir, Brother Yang has rarely spoken since he recovered from his injury. He talked a lot to me during the time I was treating him. Why don't I first tell you how we met him?" How did the two of us get here?"
"Okay, Brother Wei, please speak!"
So Wei Mucheng told the story of how Yang Xing was chased, escaped, injured, and his beloved general was martyred. Finally, he and Gu Nancheng protected him. With the help of Zhu Qizhen, he came to Baima and hid in the temple to recuperate.
"I've been bothering the host for many days, but now that I'm running out of money, Nancheng goes out to sell some calligraphy and paintings, trying to save some money before we decide what to do.
Later, he heard on the street that you were planning to get married. Nancheng admired you, so he wanted to host the introduction, but he was afraid that Brother Yang would be implicated, so he hesitated for many days. "
"Later, the host said that you should not kill Brother Yang. He personally talked with Brother Yang at night. Seeing that he was sincerely repentant, he advised us to simply bring him to surrender and let you hear what you have to say."
After Gu Nancheng finished speaking, he looked at Yang Xing: "Sir, Brother Yang is truly repentant. He even asked the abbot to be tonsured, but the abbot said that he was not done with this world. Do you think you can talk to Shangguan? If we can save him from death, I will The two of you would rather stay under the tent and listen to me!"
"How can we do a deal with something like this?" Li Dan waved his hand. He already roughly knew the mentality of these three people.
But the emperor had just suppressed the impeachment matter. If he took in such a "giant bandit", it would not be a joke. Even Zhao Chongbi would not be able to cover it up.
"I dare to ask Brother Yang, your father is currently leading the remnant soldiers to wander in the mountains, and the winter is unbearable. Do you really not want to save him, or do you not want to fulfill your filial duty?" He asked deliberately.
"I'm Yang Wu. Yang Xing is dead. I hope you don't remember it wrong." Yang Xing replied in a hoarse voice:
"The so-called loyalty and filial piety, only those who are virtuous deserve the loyalty and filial piety of others. People without virtue are not even human beings. How can they deserve the blood and sweat of these people?
I am encouraging people like this to be loyal and filial.
What, what do you agree with? How can I myself associate with beasts? " His voice gradually became louder, but the abbot immediately chanted the Buddha's name to calm him down again.
After listening to his words, Li Dan gradually had an idea in his mind. "You came at the wrong time," he said softly:
"Now I can't take him in, let him go out to do things, or even do anything for him." He looked at everyone's disappointed looks. Yang Xing himself was still calm, with nothing strange on his face.
"I think it's better to leave it as it is now." Li Dan said, "Brother Yang can live in the temple first, or he can be a Buddhist monk who practices on his behalf.
When I slowly find a chance to speak for him, it would be best if I can get pardon from the court. I add 20% of the grain, rice, melons and fruits I deliver to the temple every month, and Brother Yang will take care of the vegetable garden behind the temple. How about that? "
"Yang Wu respectfully follows your instructions."
"Amitabha, how wonderful!" Yi Shan's big face finally showed a smile again. He sighed secretly, and then when he heard Li Dan's next words, he chanted "Buddha" again.
"Build him a house next to the vegetable garden. Ah Jiu, please bring a few brothers to help with this. By the way, bring the six gold ingots that Prince Fu gave me to Master. The Buddha statues in the temple should also be Put it back on, consider it the first good deed I did after getting married!"
