On the first day of the second year of the Divine Turtle (318), heavy snow fell in Henan and Hebei.
But bad weather cannot stop the annual morning celebration.
The greetings were very lengthy, and both the monarch and his ministers found it troublesome, but they all followed the established procedures.
After the congratulations, there was a banquet, dancing and music, and the whole process was not completed until dark.
Su Shuyan followed the crowd out of the Guanfeng Gate, but saw carriages and horses on the dirt outside, bustling like dragons.
Among the crowd, a military attache wearing a diao cicada crown and furs got on his horse and sped away, splashing a lot of mud and snow.
Several low-level civil servants in white robes saw him and cursed.
Someone came from another county and did not recognize the arrogant warrior just now, so he asked, "Who is this?"
"Right Army General Kim Jong."
"It turns out it's him."
"There is a vicious person, don't get along with him."
"Acting like this will lead to your own death."
Su Shuyan listened on the side and almost laughed out loud.
Some people whose eyes are too high need to be cured by people like Jin Zheng.
"Get out of the way! Get out of the way!" A loud shout came from the west. Su Shuyan turned around and looked, but it was the ox cart of Caiguan General Yu Liang.
Yu Liang should be in the car, and the entourage was shouting in front of him, and everyone was running away.
Two carriages drove out from the side and were about to leave on the road when they saw Yu Liang driving and stopped suddenly.
The horse neighed in pain, and its hooves fell heavily into the snow.
Liang Fen, the official secretary, opened the curtain and looked at each other with Cui Yu, the censor Zhongcheng next door, and both of them smiled bitterly.
Su Shuyan was too lazy to look any further, got on his horse and left.
The fighting outside Guanfengmen reflects the various states of officialdom.
The Minister of the Ministry of Personnel and the Censor Zhongcheng wanted to give courtesy to Yu Liang, but Jin Zheng just left without paying attention to anyone.
From this little thing, we can already glean a lot of things.
After slowly returning to Su's residence in Shangshanfang, Su Shuyan handed the horse to his entourage and entered the courtyard.
All the wives, concubines and children came to see him.
Su Shuyan took a look and sighed, his two adult sons were not there.
"It's time to eat." Su Shuyan waved his hand, and a follower came forward and lifted the two food boxes into the house.
As the Chief Protector of the Barbarians, Su Shuyan was qualified to dine in the main hall, and the dishes were relatively good. Those who couldn't finish the meal could be taken home for family members to taste.
Bianliang Caochuang, rich people like them eat just like that.
Not long ago, someone installed a water dam on a small river, but the censor found it and demolished it immediately. The hard-earned official position was also lost. The family didn't have a stone mill, so they couldn't eat noodles for a while.
Furthermore, the steamed cakes served during the Zhengdan banquet are really white.
Yu Liang, the general of the Caiguan family, once boasted that the flour his family ate was sifted once after grinding it. Before eating, it was sifted a second time with fine silk gauze, so the cake was very white and tasted good.
The same goes for the noodles given to them by the Liang Palace. When they heard that the not-so-white noodles were sifted out, they all went to feed Liang Gong's horse.
Damn it, animals eat better than people.
But it's not incomprehensible. After all, Liang Gong had to rely on these horses to escape on the battlefield. Su Shuyan secretly complained.
The wives, concubines, and children opened the food boxes and found steamed flower cakes, deer tails, Yellow River carps, and mutton, and they immediately beamed with joy.
It’s truly a state banquet!
"Grandpa, you are a good official." The younger son said with his mouth full of oil after eating, "Eating is much better than before."
The wife opened her small mouth and took bites of the flowered cross cakes. When she ate the dates inside, she smiled brightly: "I used to follow you and eat nothing but sand. If I hadn't come to the Central Plains, I wouldn't have known that noble people could live such a decent life."
The daughter also nodded and said: "On the Double Ninth Festival, I went to watch fish with Sister Cao. There were so many people and the clothes were so beautiful."
Su Shuyan was speechless and speechless.
Wealth can really corrode people's minds.
Reminiscent of a trip he made to Chenliu County a few years ago, where he visited several tribal marshals who went south with him.
After registering as households, these people learned to farm and raise livestock at the same time. They all said that the land in Chenliu was good and they didn't want to bother with it anymore.
He can probably understand the thoughts of his wives, concubines, and children.
****
On the second day of the first lunar month, the banquet was continued, this time it was changed to a special banquet for heroes.
At this time, it is customary not to kill chickens on the first day of the first lunar month and not to kill dogs on the second day of the first lunar month, so there will be no dog meat in today's banquet.
In the middle of the banquet, Liang Gong left the table to change his clothes.
Feng Bachi, the commander of the Longxiang Mansion in Pingqiu, drank a lot of wine and sat there enjoying himself.
The pro-army leader, the one-eyed dragon boy Qian Jin, stood up specially, walked over with a wine bottle, and said in a sour tone: "Ji County's first warrior, can you drink?"
"Drink!" Feng Bachi did not refuse anyone who came, picked up the wine bottle and drank it all in one gulp.
Tong Qianjin was stunned. This guy had drank a lot, but he could still drink!
He is indeed a strong man!
He stopped talking nonsense, drank the wine in the glass, and left.
I was a little jealous of Feng Bachi at first, but now I have no dissatisfaction, just one word: convinced.
After returning to his seat, he hurriedly took two bites of the food, suppressed his drunkenness, and then looked at the lively scene in the hall with one hazy eye.
This is decent!
When a warrior puts his head high and works hard to defeat the enemy, he should enjoy the wine, the beautiful woman, and the beautiful clothes.
What a pity, who the fool shot him with an arrow in the first place? If it hadn't been for the arrow, maybe he would have landed first.
However, you can't give up on yourself just yet.
After injuring one eye, he has been practicing archery hard recently. Don't tell me, it's pretty good, no delay at all.
Liang Gong encouraged him and joked that if he could shoot a wild goose flying in the sky one day, he would definitely give it to him. He would use the jade belt on his body in exchange for it.
Liu Quan, the governor of the Longxiang shogunate, was more reserved at first and only drank in silence.
He doesn't know the people here very well, and he has a bit of low self-esteem, so he can't let go.
Unexpectedly, after drinking for a few rounds, someone came over and it turned out to be Yang Qin, the military governor.
"Liu Duhu captured Liu Ya alive and won the three armies bravely. Why are you drinking alone?" Yang Qin squeezed to his side and asked with a smile.
Liu Quan was flattered and quickly replied: "I am a little unfamiliar with the brothers."
He captured the Xiongnu Anxi General Liu Ya alive on the battlefield. If credit was counted, no one present could compare with him, so he was given the post of governor of the shogunate. There were only three governors of the Longxiang shogunate, and he was one of them. In addition,
He is still a local snake and a hereditary general.
The governor does not command troops on weekdays, but he can serve as a general and command the army when going on an expedition. It is a relatively good position, and he leads the army.
"Get up." Yang Qin pulled him and said with a smile: "We are all warriors, and we are despised by others. If we still have trouble, it will be unreasonable. Come on, I will show you how to get to know each other."
Liu Quan thanked him repeatedly, followed Yang Qin, and toasted to the officers of the field army, world soldiers, government soldiers, and pro-army troops present.
Most of the people present were old and rough, and there were not so many twists and turns. When they heard that it was the "strong general" who captured Liu Ya alive, they were in awe and immediately stood up to retaliate.
After drinking a few glasses of wine, Liu Quan gradually relaxed.
It turned out that they didn't discriminate against his appearance, they only looked at whether you were tough or powerful, so they were in a cheerful mood and accepted everyone who came, and they became familiar with him in a short time.
One of the wealthy warriors joked about buying some orchids for a change.
Liu Quan patted his chest and agreed.
Others heard about it and asked about it one after another.
Yang Qin smiled and returned to the table quietly.
Being able to make friends with Liu Quan was not a bad thing. As a close military governor, he knew very well which lady Liang Gong liked to sleep with. Liu Ye was definitely very favored, and Liang Gong spent the night at her place very frequently.
Moreover, after long-term observation, he discovered one thing: Liang Gong liked to sleep with Mrs. Liu. For no other reason, Mrs. Liu was Shi Le's wife.
But he also had some doubts.
If Liang Gong likes to sleep with Liu Cong's woman, it makes sense. Shi Le is just a nobody. Is his wife that valuable?
I can't figure it out.
"Alas, there is wine and meat, but no beauty!" A shout came from the hall.
Everyone laughed.
Yang Qin retracted his thoughts and also laughed.
"In the campaign against the Xiongnu, Feng Bachi made the most money. After getting an official position, he also got a woman."
"The scholars look down on me as a soldier. One day I will tear open his tortoise shell, steal a few scholars and women, and go home to live comfortably."
"Haha! I want it too."
"You are too ugly, you have no chance."
"Prince Liang sleeps with the queen. Princess, I sleep with the county magistrate's daughter, right?"
"Shut up!" The sober person scolded him repeatedly.
Yang Qin also drank heavily from his wine bottle, looking unhappy.
The speaker was half sober, with his head lowered and his face flushed.
"Okay." Someone came out to smooth things over and said, "Just keep your mouth shut and drink."
"Drink." The atmosphere became lively again.
Yang Qin poured himself a cup and drank.
The martial arts group seems to be becoming more and more like this.
****
Pigs are not killed on the third day of the first lunar month, so there are no pig heads at the banquet today, only cow and sheep ears.
The woman couldn't eat much, so she ate and drank a little, then changed the venue and went to Lichuntai to walk in the snow to look for plum blossoms.
Yu Wenjun is surrounded by stars and the moon in the center, surrounded by the General's Mansion, Longxiang Mansion, and the wife of the general of the Liang Kingdom.
After finding a few plum blossoms, the girls were beaming with joy and kept talking.
A woman's ability to flatter someone is not that profound, but her skills are also very profound.
Yu Wenjun felt dizzy from being praised, and his face turned a little red.
She is really happy.
No matter which woman your husband favors, on today's occasion, only she can come forward to entertain the general and his family.
However, after entertaining her for a while, she felt a little bored again. She really wanted to throw herself into her husband's arms and listen to him say a few beautiful words of love.
As he glanced around, he saw a lonely woman behind, who seemed to be Han.
So he walked over, took her hand, and asked, "Have you taken care of yourself? Do you want to take a rest outside?"
When Mrs. Han saw Yu Wenjun asking questions, she was flattered.
She did feel a little uncomfortable, but she didn't dare to say it. She just said, "No need. I'm going to write a poem and answer it soon. I can't ruin Madam's elegance."
The Han family belongs to the Anping noble clan, neither big nor small, the sixth rank.
She was originally the second wife of Kong Dou. After being captured, she was rewarded to Sima Feng Bachi of the Longxiang Prefecture in Pingqiu.
Feng Bachi was a vulgar man who didn't know how to show mercy to women. After he got a beautiful woman, he almost didn't get out of bed for several days, which made Han even more self-pity and self-harm. He secretly cried countless times - he was actually more rude than Kong Dou!
After being tortured day and night, I am now pregnant and my heart is becoming increasingly miserable.
Moreover, she was keenly aware that many of the ladies attending today's meeting were alienated after learning that she was Feng Bachi's wife. Only a few people, including Kim Jong's wife, Li Shi, spoke to her from time to time.
This status made her feel even more sad.
But——unexpectedly, the aloof Mrs. Yu would notice her.
"My husband often says that a strong man should not be humiliated. Feng Sima is so brave that my husband always praises him and calls him Fan Kuai in this life. You are lucky to be Feng Sima's wife, and you will be rich in the future." Yu Wenjun said: "It's nothing to disappoint.
If you don't want to be disappointed, go ahead and I'll take you inside to rest."
After saying that, Yu Wenjun turned around, saluted, confessed his crime, and then took Han to the side hall of Lichuntai to rest.
The women were a little surprised and looked at each other.
Li Shi, the wife of Jin Zheng, and Liu Shi, the wife of Chang Can, the governor of the Longxiang shogunate, also complained and followed.
Mrs. Han was a little confused, and subconsciously followed Yu Wenjun forward. At the same time, there was a turmoil in her heart, and she felt that she might have gone astray. It turned out that Feng Husband was so famous that even Liang Gong praised him, and Mrs. Yu also valued him so much.
Mrs. Li and Mrs. Liu looked at each other and smiled in understanding.
The Li family came from a poor family in Xiangcheng, and the Liu family was the daughter of a merchant from Chang'an. Because of her status, she had suffered a lot of anger over the years. Now that Mrs. Yu stood up for the Han family, they also felt very relieved.
The group quickly returned to the side hall.
Compared with the outside, the room was as warm as spring. Yu Wenjun took Han to the couch to rest, and then ordered the palace servants to make some hot tea.
Mr. Han was a little frightened and hesitated to speak.
Yu Wenjun held her hand down and said: "A husband respects a warrior the most. Feng Sima fought for his husband, and he achieved the feat first. This is what he should do."
Han felt a little relieved and lowered his head silently, not knowing what he was thinking.
Mrs. Li and Mrs. Liu came over, took her hand and spoke in a low voice.
After a while, the palace attendant brought tea.
Han stretched out his hand to take it, and when he saw the face of the palace servant, he was startled. Isn't this Zhao Lu's wife Huyan? How did the proud daughter of the Xiongnu descendants who used to be so aloof become reduced to a palace servant doing menial work in the Liang Palace?
Hu Yanshi was a little shy. After offering the tea, she turned around and left, as if she didn't dare to stay.
Mr. Han slowly came back to his senses.
It seems - not so sad, not so aggrieved.
"Rest peacefully, I'll come see you later." Yu Wenjun said softly, then stood up and left.
Before leaving, I thought to myself: It’s so troublesome to do these things. I must hug my husband for a while and let him praise me.
After Yu Wenjun left, Mrs. Li and Mrs. Liu breathed a sigh of relief and started joking with Mr. Han.
Although Feng Bachi had a low official position, Mrs. Yu valued him so much, so naturally they couldn't be too self-respecting.
These are all in the same circle, and we may still have contact in the future.
Chapter completed!