"Since she is my own family, I won't hide it from you!" Cui Bian sighed: "There are many people who come to propose marriage to my little daughter, and your lord is just one of them!"
"My fair lady, a gentleman likes to be brave. When I grow up, the daughter of the Cui family of Qinghe, I have many requests for help. This is common sense!" Cui Hongdu laughed: "But Wang Changshi has come to be a hero in the world, how can he be like other mediocre people? Comparable? Uncle must not miss it, or he will regret it in the future!"
"It is true that Wang Changshi is a hero in the world, but after all, our Cui family chooses a husband, not a general!" Cui Bian said with a smile: "These are two different things. Besides, most of the people who come to ask for marriage are heroes in the world. Given time, it may not be possible. You can't honor my Cui family, Twelve Lang, don't you think so?"
"Yes, yes!" Cui Hongdu could only say yes when he heard this. The reason why the Cui family of Qinghe has remained prosperous for nearly a thousand years from the Wei and Jin Dynasties to the Tang Dynasty and ranked among the top noble families in the world is that in addition to their strong men and numerous talents, Another important reason is that the daughters of the Cui family are also famous for being good matches, and the husbands they get from marriages are better than the previous generations. For example, the famous "father-in-law of three dynasties" Dugu Xin's first wife is from the Cui family of Qinghe. In theory, It is said that Emperor Li Tang also has the blood of the Cui family flowing in his body (Li Yuan's mother is Dugu Xin's daughter). To put it bluntly, it depends on God what kind of son you will give birth to, but you can choose your son-in-law. It is only a dream to produce talented children and grandchildren from generation to generation, but it is possible to choose talented sons-in-law from generation to generation.
"Let's do this! Twelve Prince, you go down and rest for half a day. I will also discuss the marriage proposal with my family, and then I will give you a reply. How about that?"
"Yes!" Cui Hongdu stood up. He hesitated for a moment and said: "Uncle, I am not boasting about my Shangguan. When Wang Changshi was just established, he was already in the fourth rank. He was titled as the founding county magistrate and had a salary of 700 yuan. He has a broad mind, can bend himself to serve as a corporal, and there are countless people who are willing to serve for him. Given time, he will be able to become a general. Although I, the Cui family of Qinghe, bear the sage, the imperial court likes to use people from Guanxi, and my descendants of the Cui family are the same. It is rare to be the governor of Shangzhou. How can we keep our family prosperous in the long run? I think the only people who come to ask for my uncle's hand in marriage are Lu, Wang, Zhao, and Xiao. These children may be talented, but they will never be able to bring glory to my family, the Cui family. Man! Please uncle, please think twice!" After saying this, he bowed to Cui Bian as a gift and then withdrew.
After hearing Cui Hongdu's words, Cui Bian fell into deep thought. As Cui Hongdu said, although the Cui family had twelve prime ministers in the Tang Dynasty and had a very large influence in society, it was relatively weak compared to its heyday in the Northern Dynasties. The reason is that both the Sui and Tang dynasties originated from Guanxi, and their ruling groups were naturally based in the Guanlong area. Although some branches of the Cui family in Qinghe followed Emperor Xiaowu of Wei and moved west to Chang'an, and became prominent, the Cui family in Qinghe After all, the main branch of the clan still remains in the Kanto region, and naturally they are still regarded as Kanto people.
More importantly, after the unification of the Sui and Tang dynasties, the political ecology at the state and county levels underwent tremendous changes. Since the Han Dynasty, chief executives at the state and county levels have had great power. They can tax, administer, enforce the law, recommend talents, command state and county armies, and even recruit subordinate officials on their own. They only need to report to the central government Just one click. In this case, the governors of prefectures and counties usually recruited powerful local noble families to serve as their subordinate officials. Over time, the noble families of each party took control of the actual power of the prefectures and counties. After the governors of various places took office, they had to recruit members of powerful local families to serve as their subordinates. Only when you have subordinate officials such as Biejia and Engagement can you perform normal administration and become the governor and governor of the prefectures and counties.
For a noble family like the Cui family of Qinghe, even if they are not appointed by the court or join the central government, they can still ensure various economic and political privileges in the state and county where their clan is located, and ensure that their family does not fall. Appointment as an official is not a necessity for the Cui family. On the contrary, the court needs to select the Cui family's children to enter the center, and even marry them to ensure the support of these aristocratic families. However, after the Sui Dynasty unified the world based on the Guanzhong area, the power to appoint state and county officials was taken back to the hands of the central government. In this way, if the children of the gentry could not monopolize the economic and political privileges of their states and counties as in the past, if they could not maintain their official positions , they will be gradually marginalized and their families will decline.
"Master, what are you thinking about?"
A voice pulled Cui Bian out of his thoughts. He raised his head, but it was his wife Lu who hurriedly smiled and said: "Nothing, do you remember Cui Twelve from Wushui Fang? He just came to visit!"
"Is that the one who is in the military mansion?" Mr. Lu is already over forty years old, but he takes good care of himself. Except for some wrinkles at the corners of his eyes and forehead, he doesn't look too old:
"Yes, that's him!" Cui Bian sighed: "He is here to propose marriage to my seventh sister on behalf of his boss."
"Proposing for marriage for his boss?" Ms. Lu frowned immediately: "Then Cui Twelve is so ignorant. I remember he is only seven or eight years older than you, right? His boss is probably over fifty. , My seventh sister is only seventeen this year, she’s too far apart in age, right? She’s still a continuation, luckily he can say it out loud!”
"That's not the case!" Cui Bian hurriedly explained: "His boss is not bad, he is a few years younger than him, and he is only thirty this year!"
"Just thirty?" Mrs. Lu laughed: "Seriously? I remember that Cui Twelve is already fifth grade now. Even if he is still a fifth grade, a fifth grade who is just thirty is a young man! Could it be that he is from Chang'an? Your Majesty?"
"That's not true. I heard that the surname Wang is a branch of the Langya Wang family!"
"A side branch of the Langya Wang family, the fifth rank of thirty, sounds really good!" Mrs. Lu laughed: "Although the family status is a bit worse than that of Lu, Zhao, and Li, the official position is much higher. , by the way, I almost forgot the most important thing! How much is the betrothal gift? "
"Betrothal gift?" Cui Bian was stunned, then smiled and said: "I haven't had time to ask, but it doesn't matter, Cui Twelve just left a document, it should be in it! Yes, right here!" Cui Bian looked at a few people from the side. Picking up a document from the case and handing it over, Mrs. Lu took it and looked at it, exclaiming: "Fifty thousand guan, so much?"
"What?"
"It says here that Wang Wenzuo is willing to pay a betrothal gift of 50,000 yuan!" Lu's right hand trembled slightly: "Master, do you think this is a lie?"
Cui Bian took the document back and read it carefully. Sure enough, it clearly said, "I would like to pay 50,000 yuan to marry a good daughter of the Cui family. I think Qin and Jin are good!" He couldn't help but be shocked. Five Wan Guan is five million yuan. This betrothal gift standard has almost caught up with the dowry of a princess married in the early Tang Dynasty. It has completely broken the psychological expectations of the two people.
"There shouldn't be any lies!" Cui Bian's tone was still not so sure: "The money was paid before getting married. If Wang Wenzuo lied about this kind of thing, wouldn't he become the laughing stock of the world?"
"Yes, but the Langya Wang family has been in decline for a long time, and there should be no shadow left by his ancestors. Even if he was young and good at business, he wouldn't be able to come up with so much money at once, right?" asked Mrs. Lu.
Cui Bian nodded. Unlike the Cui family and other northern gentry who were based in Hebei, the southern gentry had experienced several catastrophes such as Sun En's Rebellion, Hou Jing's Rebellion and the Jiangling Prisoners. It would be good to be able to save the family, and the industrial department was basically Everything is gone, this move is really scary.
"Let's do it this way. Let's have a family dinner tomorrow night, and we'll give Cui Twelve a chance to cleanse himself of the troubles. It will be easier to talk over the wine table! How about that?" Cui Bian asked.
"This is a good idea!" Ms. Lu said with a smile, "I'll prepare right away. If this is really the case, Cui Twelve, the boss, is really a good match for Seventh Sister!"
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The Cui House Flower Hall is steaming with steam, filled with the aroma of various dishes and fine wines. The four walls are covered with calligraphy treasures of various colors. Judging from the color of the paper and ink marks, many of them are old. Behind the screen in the flower hall, there was a musician playing the harp and singing, with a light and gentle tone. However, to the people at the table who were clinking dishes and talking drunkenly, what the musician played and sang was completely inaudible.
The banquet held for Cui Hongdu has been going on for more than an hour. In addition to Cui Bian and his wife, there were six or seven people at the table, either juniors of the Cui family or close friends. They listened with relish to Cui Hongdu talking about his wars, hunting, stealing sunshine and other anecdotes in Baekje, Japan, and Goguryeo. Cui Bian, who was always serious on weekdays, became relaxed and no longer kept a straight face.
"So, Twelve Master, when you were in trouble with the Japanese country, you had sex with the queen of the Japanese country?" Mr. Lu said with a smile.
"I can't be sure about this!" Cui Hongdu said with a smile: "It is true that two women secretly came to my room that night. One of them claimed to be Princess Saitama, but as to whether it is true or not, I am not sure."
"I think it's probably fake!" A person next to him said with a smile: "How could such a noble king's daughter act like this? It's probably you, Twelve Lang, who has been deceived!"
"You may not be able to take care of me!" Someone else retorted: "It sounds like she is a king's daughter, but in fact she is just a barbarian! Seeing the grace of Brother Twelve, I can't control myself!"
Cui Hongdu heard what others said getting more and more outrageous, and he knew something was wrong, so he hurriedly smiled and said: "It's actually nothing. I have seen even more extraordinary things in Japan at that time. Do you know? Going northeast of Japan, some rivers are rich in gold sand in the lower reaches. , a woman can pan out half a tael of sand gold by spending a few days by the river!"
"Really? Doesn't the Japanese country have a lot of gold?"
"Then I guess Twelve Lang is also Duo Jinlang now?"
Hearing the people at the table mention gold, Cui Bian exchanged glances with Mr. Lu, who smiled and said: "Twelve Master, if it is as you said, then isn't the Japanese country very rich? Why did they send troops to Baekje?"
"Madam, you don't know! Although the Japanese country is rich in gold, silver and animal skins, it is very short of other things, and everything is scarce. Although gold and silver are good, they can't be eaten or drunk. Even the royal family can't enjoy it as well as our country. It is not surprising that Idoda Weng wants to take advantage of the chaos in Baekje to use troops!"
"Then, Twelve Lang, you must have gained a lot in Japan, right?"
"Haha!" Cui Hongdu was already half drunk, and when Mr. Lu scratched his itch, he couldn't help but laugh: "I don't dare to say too much, but my children and grandchildren in their 20s and 30s will have enough to eat!"
"Twenty and thirty generations can't eat enough?" When Lu heard this, she was even more secretly happy, and boldly asked: "Twelve Master, you have so much, doesn't your boss get even more? "
"He? Are you asking Wang Wenzuo?" Cui Hongdu said with a smile: "He is the one who is said to be rich enough to rival the country! Shi Chong and Tao Zhu can't boast of being rich in front of him!"
After getting the answer she wanted, Ms. Lu was even more happy. She exchanged glances with her husband and carefully asked: "If Wang Langjun is so rich, why is he already over thirty years old and not married yet? He is now with me Can I have a woman by my side and have children?"
"He has been fighting in Baekje before, and his life and death are uncertain. How can he get married?" Cui Hongdu said with a smile: "As for whether he has a female companion by his side, what does it matter? He asked me to come here to ask for his wife. If you two agree, Qimei Once you get married, you will be the main wife. Even if there is a woman by his side, you must respect the seventh sister as the master. As for the heir, there is indeed one, but his mother has passed away. The child has his own mother's family property, madam, there is no need to worry!"
After hearing Cui Hongdu's answer, Mrs. Lu was a little disappointed, but she thought that since he was young and early, and had such a rich net worth, how could he not have a woman by his side? If you don't have children yet, you have to worry about hidden health problems that will be detrimental to the heirs. Although it is possible to pick up a child from an uncle's family and inherit the family business, it is still not as considerate as having one's own daughter. Thinking of this, Mrs. Lu secretly rejoiced and said with a smile: "The child is a piece of flesh left by us women. How can we not find out everything in advance before we can safely marry the child? How can your men understand such concerns!"
Cui Hongdu was overjoyed when he heard this: "So, Madam, you agreed?"
"What did Twelve Master say?" Mrs. Lu said with a smile: "A humble man is the head of the family. How can a woman say such things?"
"If madam agrees, uncle must also agree!" Cui Hongdu said with a smile.
"Let's do this!" Cui Bian said with a smile: "Twelve Lang, go back and ask Wang Changshi. If he has nothing to do recently, can he come to Qingzhou and meet with me!"
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Yingzhou.
"Sanlang is so courageous!" Gao Kan looked at the drawings on several cases and said with a smile: "You actually want to complete such a big thing within ten years. It is really something that an old man like me wouldn't dare to think!"
"The Protector is so humble!" Wang Wenzuo said with a smile: "The Goguryeo people can build the Great Wall of more than 2,000 miles while fighting with us. Why can't we build dams and ponds? At least the dams and ponds are beneficial to the local people. The Great Wall is not only a waste of people's energy." There is no benefit at all!"
"Yes, the Goguryeo people, if nothing else, their civil engineering achievements are really extraordinary!" Gao Kan sighed: "With such a small household registration, and the two sides are at war, they can also build the Great Wall and mountain cities. It took us two or three generations to do it. Man, this kind of energy is really extraordinary, no wonder the imperial court wants to move all their household registrations to Jianghuai and Southwest! I won’t be worried if they change!"
