The setting sun casts thousands of rays of light on the horizon. In the twilight, pedestrians were coming and going on the street, and the voices of hawkers could be heard one after another, creating a lively scene. There are children carrying mugwort on their backs and shouting among the crowd.
After dismounting at the entrance of the alley, Wang Xiaolie returned to his home in Xiangyang with his entourage.
Under normal circumstances, Wang Xiaolie's family should live in Zhenfu Shisi Yamen. After Wang Qingxiu arrived in Xiangyang, he found another place to live for convenience. In this alley, a house of more than an acre is Xiangyang's new home.
There are five households in this alley. The first family is Xing Yuan's family who makes lacquerware, the second family is Wang Qingxiu's family, the third family is Li Yuan's family who owns a herbal medicine shop, the fourth family is Meng Yuan's family who runs a restaurant, and the fifth family is Tian Yuan's family who runs a boat business. It can be said that either you are rich or you are noble.
Wang Xiaolie originally wanted to build a community like in his previous life, but it was not convenient for large-scale demolition and construction. The ordinary private houses in Xiangyang have not been modified, but some newly built government offices and dormitories in Changpu have been built to look like later generations of residential communities.
Neighbors in the Song Dynasty were different from later generations in that many things truly influenced each other. For example, when selling a house, if a neighbor wants to buy it, he has priority. The buyer must obtain the consent of his neighbors, and he cannot sell to just whoever he wants. For many things, neighbors need to guarantee each other. If someone in the family commits a crime, the neighbors will be implicated. Therefore, neighbors rarely interact with each other like they did in later generations.
The two guards at the door were sent by Wang Xiaolie. Strictly speaking, Wang Xiaolie took two people from his entourage and sent them here. At this time, Wang Xiaolie's men established the Guard Department under Chen Qiudao. All the previous officials were abolished, and all personnel were sent by the Guard Department. The official positions of officials are different, and the number of guards is different.
Wang Xiaolie was the envoy of the Propaganda Commission, and according to the old rules of the imperial court, fifty people accompanied him in the Yuan Dynasty. The guards and entourage under the name are still the same, but they have been changed to be sent by the Guard Department and led by Cui Qing. It is common practice for everyone to send two people to the house. Many officials sent more people.
After receiving the news, Wang Qingxiu hurriedly came out to welcome him. He said to Wang Xiaolie: "I haven't been home in the past two months. I thought you wouldn't come back during the Dragon Boat Festival. I didn't want to come back so early today. Is everything okay in the Yamen?"
Wang Xiaolie said: "How can it be okay? It's just that things are not done all at once, so why should you care."
The two of them entered the house while talking. The weather was nice today, so I sat under two pomegranate trees in the yard. The two apricot trees next to it were full of green apricots, giving off a fresh smell.
After tea was served, Wang Xiaoxian said: "Today's Dragon Boat Festival, I brought back some food for my sister to try. This salted duck egg is produced in Luoshan County, Xinyang Army, and it cannot be compared with other places. Mung bean cake is made by the gentle breeze. Refined, it has a unique flavor. I also brought a necked bream, which is most delicious when steamed. By the way, we let the private sector slaughter cattle a few days ago, so I brought back two kilograms of soy sauce beef for my sister to have a taste."
As he spoke, he asked his entourage to hand it over to Mrs. Ning, who was cooking at home, and asked her to clean it up.
More than a year ago, Wang Xiaolie abolished the slave system. Many people's maids and the like were all re-contracted. Later, all walks of life were allowed to set up guilds, supervised by the government, to handle disputes between these people and their employers. Sister-in-law Ning was hired by the family to cook, and she also had a labor union, which was different from the previous slaves.
If there is no such organization as a trade union, employed people will be bullied by their employers. If it is too strong, it will not obey the government's control. It must be maintained at an appropriate level without making government management more difficult.
Under Wang Xiaolie's rule, most of these non-governmental organizations were supervised by the government. The formal name is government-supervised and private-run. Being run by the private sector rather than by the government reduces government spending. It is supervised by the government to prevent it from becoming a vassal of certain forces.
While others were busy, Wang Xiaolie and his sister sat in the yard, chatting about home affairs.
After chatting for a while, Wang Qingxiu said: "The elder is already twenty-two years old. For a normal family, it's time to marry a wife and have children. In the past two years, I had a lot of filial piety, so it's not easy to rush you. Now, in addition to filial piety, you should Considered."
Wang Xiaolie smiled and said, "You are my sister. How can I get a wife if I don't get married first?"
Wang Qingxiu said: "Except for empress Xiao, I have wasted some time traveling from Ruzhou to Xiangyang in the past two years. It's not that I don't want to, but that I have no choice. You said that you want me to find someone I like and love each other for the rest of my life. No matter what kind of person I find, you will not interfere, everything is up to me. This year, I should find the person I love and marry him as a wife. After I get married, the elder man will also get married. "
Wang Xiaolie thought for a while. Said: "Isn't this kind of thing something that should be left to chance?"
Wang Qingxiu laughed after hearing this: "Follow fate? Why? If fate never comes, will you never marry a wife for the rest of your life? Da Lang, you are also a son of man and cannot be willful. When you are old, you should talk about marriage. To be honest. Tell me, do you have someone you like?"
Wang Xiaolie said nothing. Think about it, I have seen many beautiful women in my two lifetimes. Some of them are so beautiful that once you see them, you will never forget them. But when it comes to marrying a wife and having children, these people are not the women they imagined.
Suddenly my heart moved. In two lifetimes, there are still two women who are different.
One is a little girl from the same village as him in his previous life. One of their homes is in the east of the village, the other is in the west of the village, and they rarely see each other. One time, for some unknown reason, the two of them played together. The sun was shining that afternoon, the sky was blue, and there was a gentle breeze. Two people are at the end of the village. On this side of the road are several pairs of big mulberry trees, on the other side of the road is a row of shrubs and weeds, and on the side is a cluster of wild jujubes.
Wang Xiaolie climbed up the tree and picked mulberries for the little girl to eat. I was in a tree, and the little girl clapped her hands and smiled under the tree. Later, I went to the other side of the road and picked jujubes for the little girl to eat. The little girl followed and picked wild dates by herself, and shed tears when she was pricked by thorns.
Wang Xiaolie couldn't remember what happened that afternoon. I just remember that I was in a tree and the little girl was laughing under the tree. He got into the grass by himself. The little girl stood by the grass and shed tears.
After that day, the two rarely saw each other and never said a word. But the world is so strange. Wang Xiaolie always felt that if there was destiny, that little girl would be his destined lover.
There is another one, which is the blue skirt that I occasionally see in Lumen Temple. The man only glanced at him, and Wang Xiaolie didn't see clearly what he looked like. But there is a feeling that this woman is destined to be with him.
If he saw the little girl from his childhood again, Wang Xiaolie might be disappointed and find that she was not what he imagined. If you really see the Tsing Yi woman in Lumen Temple, you will hardly fall in love at first sight. Maybe there is a shadow in my soul. These two people just showed the appearance of that shadow at the right time and the right place.
Or maybe, nothing. It's just that human feelings are very strange, and I can't explain it clearly.
