Zhang Jun secretly praised Chen Qing for his knowledge of current affairs. In fact, this was what the officials meant. Together with this merit, he would be given the title of Duke, and his military position would remain unchanged for the time being, or he could be promoted to a higher rank in the civil service.
But the officials hoped that Chen Qing could propose it himself, so that the court would look better.
Zhang Jun nodded, "The fact that you think like this shows that you are not arrogant about taking credit. Don't worry, the reward that the court should give you will not be less than a penny."
"I have no objection to the court's arrangements. I may not even want to be given an official title or reward, but I hope to transfer my credit to my generals!"
"Then what?"
"Then I will give double pensions to my fallen soldiers!"
Zhang Jun thought for a while and said: "Your request is not too much. I can temporarily agree to it for the officials. However, if the officials do not agree, there is nothing I can do!"
"Everything is too much for Mr. Zhang!"
Zhang Jun smiled again and said: "I know why you came here today, let's talk about business!"
He took out a contract and said with a smile: "I have successfully proposed for you, and the two parties exchanged the marriage contract. This is Miss Lu's marriage contract, I will give it to you."
Chen Qing took over the marriage contract document, which was a marriage certificate for every woman. In fact, Lu Xiu's marriage certificate had been handed over to the Zhang family when she was very young. However, Lu Yihao regretted the marriage and made a new marriage certificate for his granddaughter.
The exchange of marriage letters between the two parties means that the matchmaker's preliminary proposal has been successful. Of course, the marriage contract has not yet been fully finalized, and there are still several steps.
The first is Najib, which is to check whether the horoscopes of both parties match and see if they have the same surname. For example, Lu Yihao may have an ancestor whose surname was Chen and later changed his surname to Lu. Of course, this is just a joke, but it won't work if this is the case.
Generally speaking, since the matchmaker's proposal is successful, these worries will not be a problem. If they have the same surname, the matchmaker's proposal will be rejected.
Then both parties had to arrange for the man and woman to meet, that is, a blind date. This step was also very important. The Song Dynasty generally respected the wishes of both men and women. If the blind date failed, the marriage would not take place.
Therefore, many folk stories, such as a lame man riding a horse on a blind date, a girl with a flat nose sniffing flowers and looking at men, etc., all occur in this link.
If the man and woman have already met, this step can be omitted.
The next step is the key step, accepting the betrothal gift, which is the betrothal gift.
Zhang Jun asked with a smile: "Don't you have any elders in your family? Even if you are a distant relative, the elders must do the betrothal gift. I am a matchmaker and cannot do it for you. It will break the rules."
Doesn't Chen Qing have any elders? Doesn't this make things difficult for him?
He shook his head, "My distant relatives may be in the Kingdom of Jin. I haven't contacted them for many years and can't be found."
Zhang Jun was a little embarrassed. He thought for a while and then said: "Then do you have any sworn brothers? Your parents who are sworn brothers can also be considered your elders."
Chen Qing suddenly thought of Zheng Ping, so Zheng Ping's father would do it.
"Zheng Ping and I share the same love as brothers through life and death. Can his father, Zheng Tongquan, do it?"
"Of course Uncle Zheng can do it. He is very suitable. Then you can discuss it with him and send the betrothal gift to the Lu family as soon as possible. The Lu family will accept the betrothal gift and the wedding date can be discussed."
"I wonder how much the betrothal gift is? Is 20,000 bolts of silk enough?"
Twenty thousand bolts of silk were a reward from Chen Qing and Yang Yao, and there were also five thousand taels of silver, which he had not yet had time to withdraw from the inner treasury.
Zhang Jun laughed and said, "Brother, you are really interesting. Even a three-year-old child knows something, why don't you know it?"
Chen Qing blushed and didn't know how to answer. There were many things he didn't know about the Song Dynasty!
Fortunately, Zhang Jun did not pursue his ignorance and explained to him: "You have confused the betrothal gift with the financial gift. The betrothal gift is mainly wild geese, then a jar of sake, a load of rice, and a mouthful of pigs and sheep. That's about it. Wait.
If the other party accepts it and returns your shoes, socks, clothing, etc., the marriage will be settled, and then both parties will sit down and discuss it."
"What to discuss?"
"When discussing the wedding date and the dowry, your 20,000 pieces of silk may not be given away, because the Lu family may not be able to provide a dowry worth 20,000 pieces of silk. The wealth and dowry are equal, so the two families need to sit down and discuss
, why should we match each other? This is the reason.
Of course, if you become a Jinshi, you won’t have to pay a penny as a gift, and the woman will also have a generous dowry, so being a Jinshi is the best financial gift."
"I understand, but are there any rules about the wedding date? For example, how long does it have to take?"
"There are no rules for this. As long as it is a good and auspicious day, and you have to avoid some special circumstances, such as death anniversaries, mourning periods, etc., I guess you should be able to get married and leave in time."
"Can I bring my newlywed wife to take office?" Chen Qing asked the most critical question.
Zhang Jun glanced at him and said: "You have no problem now, but if you are promoted to Jiedushi, you will face a choice, either you leave your family in Lin'an, or the imperial court sends a supervisory army."
Chen Qing nodded silently, and the two said a few more words. Chen Qing thanked Zhang Jun again and again for being the matchmaker, and stood up to leave.
Zhang Jun sent him to the door and said with a slight smile: "I am not a matchmaker for nothing. According to the custom in my hometown, you have to give me eighteen hooves as a token of gratitude!"
"Why should we give away hooves?" Chen Qing asked in confusion.
"I'll run errands for you!"
Chen Qing laughed loudly, "Okay! It will definitely be delivered!"
Chen Qing got on the carriage and left, and Zhang Jun watched him go away.
At this time, the eldest son Zhang Shi appeared next to his father and asked curiously: "This man is the notorious demon Chen Qing? My child thinks he is very gentle and elegant!"
Zhang Jun sighed slightly, "The only way to show the bodhisattva's heart is to use thunderous means. He kills the enemy to bring peace to the people. Do you understand?"
"My child understands. The other sword belongs to Emperor Shenzong. Isn't it wrong for my child to keep it with me?"
Zhang Jun glanced at his son lovingly and said with a smile: "That is not the sword of Emperor Shenzong, it is just one of the swords in his collection. It belongs to the category of palace treasures. There are many of these among the people. Don't care so much. Just keep it if you like it."
Come on!"
"Thank you, daddy. My child really likes it!"
Of course Zhang Jun knew that this was Chen Qing's disguised way of thanking him. That sword ranked fifth among the swords collected by Emperor Shenzong. It was made by Zhang Yajiu, a famous swordsmith of the Tang Dynasty. It became Wan Yanchang's portable sword, and it was considered a treasure.
It is the most precious treasure in the world.
"Keep it for yourself and don't give it away easily. Even if you put a huge price tag on it, there will still be people willing to pay for it."
Zhang Shi was startled, "I remember it, kid!"
.........
It was still early, so Chen Qing went directly to Zheng Ping's house. The Zheng family was happy to have their third grandson. There were lights and colorful decorations inside and outside the house. You could feel the joy in the house when you walked to the door.
A large group of children stood at the door, and from time to time a housekeeper would come out to scatter money and distribute candies. The children swarmed up and ran away with smiles on their faces.
"Butler Zhang!"
Chen Qing stopped the butler. The butler recognized Chen Qing and immediately came forward with a smile on his face. "It turns out to be General Chen. Long time no see."
"It's been a long time indeed. Please let the housekeeper inform me."
"General Chen, there is no need to report, please come in!"
When Zheng Ping heard that Chen Qing was coming, he quickly ran out with his infant son in his arms.
He was extremely excited and said: "Old Chen, come and see my son, he looks exactly like me!"
"Let me see!"
Chen Qing stepped forward and took a closer look. He couldn't help but laugh. His small eyes, big fat face, and face full of joy, weren't they just a miniature version of Zheng Ping?
"It's true. If others want to recognize you, they won't recognize you. What's the name of the little guy?"
"We are still arguing! My father named him Zheng Ning, my eldest brother named him Zheng Jing, and my second brother named him Zheng Jing. To be honest, I don't like him either. Please help me think of one."
"Zheng Ning and Zheng Jing are like little lady names. They are not grand enough. Zheng Jing will make people think that they are not serious and not good. You have to be sincere, so why not call them Zheng Cheng!"
"good!"
Zheng Ping's eyes lit up, he gave a thumbs up and praised: "Zheng Cheng is a great name. Even if I, as a father, name my son, I must use this name."
Chen Qing smiled and said, "I have something to do with your father!"
"I'll take you there. Is there no food left?"
"I ate on the way."
Zheng Ping said angrily: "You are really polite. You ate it on the way. Are you afraid that my family will be poor? Hey! I am too lazy to talk to you. Come with me!"
He handed the child to the wet nurse and walked towards the backyard with Chen Qing...
Everyone sat down in the back hall. Zheng Tongquan asked the maid to serve tea and said with a smile: "Is it possible that General Chen doesn't even have an elder?"
"I have a few distant relatives in the Kingdom of Jin! I haven't contacted them for more than ten years. It's better not to look for them."
Zheng Tongquan nodded, "Since you regard me as your elder, it's my honor. No problem. I'll give you a betrothal gift. You don't need to prepare a betrothal gift. I have it ready-made in my house. When will it be appropriate for my nephew?"
Chen Qing specifically asked Huang Li on the way, whether the day after tomorrow or the day after tomorrow were good. He thought for a while and said: "Then the day after tomorrow will be good!"