"In order to save Li Lang from his homeland, who would have expected that he would be number one on the imperial list? He would be number one, wearing a red robe and wearing a hat with palace flowers. It was so fresh! I have also been to the Qionglin Banquet, and I have also beaten horses in front of the street.
Praise me for Pan An's appearance..." On the 23rd day of the twelfth lunar month in the West Garden, the female actor of the Ruan family opera troupe was wearing a bright red No. 1 scholar uniform, and was singing on the wooden stage in a stylish way. He was singing "Who is it" by the female consort?
A piece of "The No. 1 Scholar on the Emperor's Ranking".
More than two hundred Ding Yong and assistants from the Zhuang Troupe sat quietly in the audience. There were often plays in market towns in the Ming Dynasty, but they were all grass-stage troupes. It was the first time for them to see a troupe from a scholar-bureaucrat's house, whether it was singing or costumes.
, props, and music classes were all things they had never imagined, and many people were drooling without even realizing it.
When the song was finished, Pang Yu winked, and Pang Ding shouted "Hello" and took the lead in applauding. The strong men in the field joined in and applauded, and the atmosphere in the West Garden suddenly became lively.
Ruan Dacheng's face was radiant. Although he didn't know what Zhuang Ban's applause meant specifically, he knew it was definitely praise.
In the past, he had compiled many Nanqu dramas, but he always watched them with the scholar-bureaucrats, and he praised them. The scholar-bureaucrats always wanted to speak politely, and it was rare that he was so enthusiastic.
Pang Yu picked up the wine glass and said to Ruan Dacheng, "Zhuangban has been guarding Tongcheng for most of the Spring Festival this year. This "Female Consort" can help them have a good year. The next generation of Zhuangban officers will thank Mr. Ruan for his high righteousness."
Ruan Dacheng laughed twice and drank it all in one gulp.
Although this eunuch old man is somewhat utilitarian, he has provided the most support to Zhuang Ban and he is also quite generous. Pang Yu still thanks this man from the bottom of his heart.
The last time there were rumors of bandits, Ruan Dacheng abandoned Huangmei Opera and fled to Songyang.
The two rogue bandits this year are equivalent to two drills for the wealthy families in Tongcheng.
Basically, we choose the route to Songyang, because the road to Songyang is not a main road, and it is the road to the river, so there is no danger of encountering rogue bandits.
Many of the gentry in Tongcheng came from Songyang. They had other businesses in Songyang, or had relatives and friends who could receive them. The Tanghe River in Songyang crisscrossed the area. Except for official roads, other places were not suitable for horseback riding bandits.
There are abundant products around, including rice and a lot of fish and shrimp, so you don't have to worry about running out of food.
Even if the bandits are killed, they can take a boat from Songyang to the river, which is the most suitable place to escape chaos in troubled times.
The wealthier families were keenly aware of the approaching danger after the civil unrest and migrated to Nanjing early. The wealthy families had the ability to practice on their own, but ordinary people did not have this ability to migrate. Before they saw the rogue bandits coming,
That is to say, we are reminded to stay at home and wait and see.
"The Consort" premieres today. As a producer and director, Ruan Dacheng has put a lot of effort into it. Feeling the warm atmosphere at this time, he is naturally quite proud.
Pang Yu came over and said, "Mr. Ruan, do you think this is good? On the third day of the Lunar New Year, I invite the Ruan family theater troupe to perform "The Female Consort" at Baishun Hall, and during the Lantern Festival, I invite the theater troupe to perform "Spring Lantern Riddles" again.
It just so happens that Baishun Hall can also gather popularity."
Ruan Dacheng shook his head and said, "Those people on the street don't understand. Letting them listen to a play is like playing the piano to an ox. I'd better invite some familiar gentry."
"Mr. Ruan is right. Those people will definitely not understand the Spring Lantern Riddles.
But as for the Consort, because it is a new type of opera, if Mr. Ruan rashly invites the gentry to listen, if they think it is a market tune, Mr. Ruan's reputation may be ruined. We tried it in Zhuangban today, which was good, but Zhuangban
Most of them come from rural areas, so it would be better to try it out again at Baishun Hall to see how the city people react, and also make the troupe more rehearsed, wouldn't it be safer?"
Ruan Dacheng still shook his head and said, "It's better not to go to Baishun Hall. Little friend Pang, just imagine that Baishun Hall is full of laymen and it's so noisy on New Year's Day that you can't hear the lyrics at all, and you can't even hear the tunes of the band.
The most I can do is to show the Spring Lantern Riddles here to your strong class, and there is no need to say anything else."
These scholar-bureaucrats look down on the common people. Ruan Dacheng's theater troupe is not a commercial operation and does not aim to make money. If he is not willing, Pang Yu has nothing to do.
Ruan Dacheng actually looked down on the government officials. The troupes of scholar-bureaucrats generally did not perform for the common people. If word spread, they would be ridiculed by the scholars. Today, it was indeed to give face to Pang Yu, and the performance was performed inside Yezhai, so he was not too worried about being known by other gentry.
But he didn't expect that the Zhuang Troupe's theater atmosphere was so lively and orderly, which was different from the government officers and soldiers he had seen in the past, so he was willing to perform "Spring Lantern Riddles" for the Zhuang Troupe once.
Pang Yu was also happy that Ruan Dacheng agreed to perform for the strong class twice. Although the daily training of the strong class cannot be called harsh, it is still quite hard. Most of them cannot go home during the holidays. The strong men will have a lot of grievances. Today
After paying festival fees and bonuses, and watching operas, this kind of resentment can be greatly relieved.
"Pang Xiaoyou just said that Zhuangban won't go home during the holidays and will always guard Tongcheng?"
Pang Yu pointed at Wang Zenglu, who was sitting in the front row and was drooling, and said, "The third squadron led by Captain Wang won the first place in the competition. Only these thirty-five people can go home for the New Year. They have to leave after watching the drama today. The others
Everyone must be on duty to defend the city as usual."
Ruan Dacheng nodded and said, "Last time I came to visit, this Zhuang Ban looked quite good, and it was also difficult for Pang Ban.
Today I would like to express my thoughts for them. Although I will go to Nanjing, Tongcheng is my hometown after all. With such a strong team here, I feel more at ease."
"I wonder if Mr. Ruan can set a date for his departure. Please allow me to make a grand trip for Mr. Ruan then."
Ruan Dacheng sighed and said, "Speaking of which, I should have left for Nanjing a long time ago. My family has bought a courtyard in Kusifang, Nancheng, Nanjing, and is waiting for me to redecorate it. But I can't put in the new play.
At the beginning of the month, I have to go to Nanjing anyway."
Pang Yu was not familiar with Ruan Dacheng's family. Ruan Dacheng's family usually lived in Huaining. He only knew that he had a daughter. It seemed that he did not have a son. That's why some people spread the rumor that he wrote, "Without a child, he is light, but with an official, everything is sufficient."
The Ruan family has properties in Songyang, Tongcheng and Anqing. It is unclear how many Pang Yus own, but seeing that Ruan Dacheng can raise a theater troupe, we know that he can be classified as a rich man.
Ruan Dacheng has been away from politics for so long and still has a wide circle of friends among scholars. It is impossible to do this without a strong family background.
If he wants to make a comeback in politics, he must rely on economic strength as a backing.
"There are still a lot of things I don't understand. I will have to go to Nanjing to ask you for advice in person."
"What's the problem? Pang Xiaoyou wants to come to Nanjing. I will do my best to be a landlord. I used to live in Huaining. If you want to come to Tongcheng, you can come."
Ruan Dacheng's beard was straightened, and he said, "If that bandit dares to come to our Tongcheng city, I will return to Tongcheng at the same time, wear armor and hold a gun for the imperial court, and together with Pang Xiaoyou, destroy this imperial food!"
..."Ding" the three wine glasses clinked together, Pang Yu, Jiao Guozha, and He Xianya raised their heads and drank down the wine in one gulp.
There were bursts of firecrackers outside the hospital. Today is already the seventh day of the Lunar New Year. It was the time when everyone in the Ming Dynasty was most relaxed. The court and county government were not working, the people were not farming, and every family was getting together.
Jiao Guozha put down his wine glass and slapped the table, "I'm glad, now Tongcheng belongs to our three brothers. Let me tell you, it's time to call Zhou Yueru together today. Thanks to her stick, the second brother was able to open his orifice. The eldest brother
I have been playing gambling for many years, but I have never seen such a good gambling stall as Baishuntang. I don’t want to go out when I go in. I would rather live in it. Haha, we are all relying on the second brother today. Come, let us three brothers have another drink.
"
Pang Yu also picked up the cup and said, "To my eldest brother, I just happened to lend my eldest brother's wine to support my third brother. My third brother traveled to Suzhou to help me pay New Year's greetings. It's been a hard work for more than a thousand miles back and forth."
He Xianya quickly said a few words of humility, and Jiao Guozhao looked at He Xianya with some jealousy.
This third brother was entrusted by Pang Yu to go to Suzhou to pay New Year's greetings.
Pang Yu is naturally not qualified to wish Zhang Guowei and Li Youchen New Year greetings, he is just Mr. Ma.
This Mr. Ma is Zhang Guowei's secret friend, and Pang Yu doesn't know if he needs it, he just wants to maintain this relationship.
After several people put down their wine glasses, Jiao Guozhao coughed dryly and said, "Second brother, the eldest brother has thought about it too. Now the second brother is in charge of the strong class and the fast class, and there are gambling stalls and grain stores. The eldest brother still has to help.
With.
I thought that Jiang Fanguan's horse is faster, but I know better, my elder brother."
When He Xianya heard this, he buried his head and concentrated on dealing with a pig's trotter.
Pang Yu smiled and said, "Jiang Fan is indeed not as good as eldest brother, but he worked hard and replaced him rashly. Brother, I can't convince the public, but eldest brother still helps me manage the arrest team."
"Then the arresting team is not all in charge of you, my second brother. What do I have to do?"
Jiao Guozhao said with some displeasure, "I heard that the number of horses will increase to thirty after the new year. The salary for work and food a year will be more than 700 taels, not counting the bonus and horse feed. Why should such a good job be cheap?
For outsiders, it would be appropriate for us brothers to separate. Besides, Jiang Fan didn’t even see a person during the Chinese New Year, which means he doesn’t take his second brother seriously."
Pang Yu still smiled and said, "I arranged for Captain Jiang to lead Ma Kuai to inquire about the bandits. They went as far as Huangmei. They just returned yesterday and said that there was no warning about bandits there. With him running around, we can have a safe New Year."
.”
Jiao Guozhao was stunned for a moment and then glanced at He Xianya. He also heard that Pang Yu was defending Jiang Fan, and his face suddenly felt unhappy.
Then Jiao Guozhao put on a smile again and said, "It's not a big achievement. How could a bandit go out in the cold weather during the Chinese New Year?"
The bandits also want to celebrate the New Year, hahaha!"
...In Gushi County, the Chief Secretary of Henan Province, the city was filled with cries and shouts, and thick smoke billowed from burning houses into the sky.
On the west tower, a red flag was erected on the city wall, drooping because of the lack of wind. A majestic man was sawing the city wall, with several knife marks on his yellow face, especially the one across his forehead that was the most eye-catching.
"Father, after passing Gushi, we will reach the border of Southern Zhili. A few days ago, various teams have inquired and found out that there is abundant wealth in Jiangbei and thousands of handsome children. Most of them have no soldiers to guard them. The dog officials went out to pay New Year's greetings.
There is no one in charge of the city, so we in the western camp are like searching for things in a bag."
Another young man in red answered the question, "My adoptive father is unpredictable with his troops. He had already expected that those dog officers would go out during the Chinese New Year, so he specifically chose this New Year period to send troops to South Zhili. Naturally, he will be unfavorable."
The big man in yellow and blue turned his head to look at the burning Gushi County and said coldly, "That dog emperor wants my life, so I dug his ancestral grave first.
Have all the spies along the route been deployed?"
"A hundred miles away is Huo Qiu. The captain of the second team has sent people to sneak into the city to respond. There are three people in charge of the team, more than ten old brothers and seven boys. After Huo Qiu is Yingzhou, the commander is Peng Laodao.
Two members of the team, twenty old brothers, and ten members of the Boy's Army sneaked in and dug up the ancestral tomb of the Dog Emperor in Shouzhou and Fengyang.
Fengyang then marched to Anqing in the direction set by his adoptive father. He has sent two commanders to lead the team and sneak to Luzhou, Shucheng, Lujiang, Tongcheng..." The big yellow-faced man waved his hand to signal the man to stop, and looked at
In the vast land of the East, "Have all the people in charge of each house taken care of it?"
"It's all in order."
At this time, a gust of north wind blew up, and the drooping red flag unfolded, revealing the five gold-embroidered characters "Eight Kings of Xiying" on the flag.
Huang Lian yelled and coldly ordered, "We hope to lead the cavalry and march quickly, with one man and two horses at the front. We must control the official roads and guard against others and report the news first."
When attacking South Zhili, we must make a quick move, both false and true, so that those dog officers and soldiers will not even be able to catch up with me.
In the rich land of Nanzhili, women with wealth and silk are all asking for it. Send the order, and the brigade will go to Huoqiu County immediately! I want one to be easy to rob, one to be burned, and one to be killed!"
A few of his subordinates took the order and left. A moment later, thousands of cavalry in red uniforms turned up the official road and surged toward Nanzhili in the east.
(Note 1)...Note 1: In the records at that time, the descriptions of the bandits were often described as "thieves in red armor" and "wearing red robes". In some cases, the entire team was "mounted in red".