Chapter 21: Entering Vanity Fair for the first time
Chapter 21: First time entering Vanity Fair
After hearing what Li You said, Mr. Huang smiled and said: "Are you a fool to be the county magistrate? No one can see that the county magistrate deliberately exaggerates and takes the opportunity to punish you. First he has bad intentions, and then he speaks
Got something else.”
"That's right, that's right. I made a mistake, and it's the eldest master and master who teach me a lesson. It's no other's turn to gossip!" Li You said very firmly, feeling sick and vomiting for eighteen times. Helpless, he has the position and attitude he has today.
Be sure to keep your posture straight and hold your thighs tightly.
Li You spent a lot of effort to resolve the accident. Not long ago, the county magistrate issued another notice and appointed him as the deputy envoy of the river engineering office. He felt very happy and began to figure out what he would do with the money. In addition, in Chenzhi County,
Under the care, Li You's great-nephew Li Zheng passed the county examination and went home happily to prepare for the government examination in the second half of the year.
After that, a little poem was circulated in the county government office of Xujiang County: "If you talk nonsense, I will listen to it, and your mouth will be as fine as silk. The Duke of Zhou is tired of using official language and loves to imitate my aunt in making trouble."
Everyone with a discerning eye knew who made this up, and the nickname of Aunt Zhou spread. The Prime Minister of Zhou County was so embarrassed that he did not leave his official residence for several days to see anyone. He got angry and ordered his subordinates to investigate the matter. In the end, no one was willing to work hard.
If you think about it, you know that Zhou Xian Cheng left after a few years, but Li You has been in the government for several generations, so why bother to offend him. Besides, Li You is valued by the elders, and Zhou Xian Cheng can't do anything to him in comparison.
Zhouxian Cheng couldn't help but scolded the subordinates for being treacherous and scoundrel, so he went to Nanjing on the pretext of official business.
Time flew by to mid-June, and the weather was hot. However, Li You had to leave the city ten miles early in the morning and stand in a daze.
Because the second-rank senior official of the current dynasty, Mr. Lu, the Minister of the Ministry of War, returned to his hometown of Xujiang County to get married. Speaking of which, this Lu Shangshu is the highest-ranking official that has been produced in this county in recent years, although he is not a high-ranking official.
, but it was also the pinnacle of the civil service class. His hometown in the north of the county was known as Shangshu Township.
At the ferry shore ten miles away from the east gate of the county seat, all high-ranking officials from the county came to greet them. In addition, there were also miscellaneous officials such as classics historians, county school instructors, as well as representatives of scholars and elders. There were almost thirty people. Including three Li
You had never met the ninth-rank inspector since becoming a Dianshi. The inspector was a military attache. Now that the Minister of War, who was in charge of the inspection department, came back, of course he had to come out to greet him.
It was reported that the old man had a banquet in Suzhou Mansion the day before yesterday, stayed at Lanzhou Shuiyi yesterday, and is expected to arrive in Xujiang County this morning.
Everyone was chatting and waiting, when suddenly a strong man with good eyesight shouted: "Here we come!"
We all raised our heads and looked far away, and saw two large boats looming in the distance on the river. When we got closer, we clearly saw the name of Shangshu on the boat in front. Sure enough, this was it.
The official ship stopped at the shore, and everyone on the shore bowed their heads.
Lu Shangshu, with snow-white beard and hair, came out of the cabin. He stood very eye-catching on the deck in a bright red robe. He supported me from a distance and said: "I went back to my hometown to visit my relatives. I was so shocked that my parents were restless. You don't need to be polite."
Chen Zhixian replied: "The officials and people of this county are eagerly looking forward to your return home. I dare to invite you to the mansion to rest, and prepare a little wine to relieve the pain of travel."
The answer was completed in just a few moments, Mr. Lu returned to the cabin, and the official ship continued to sail towards the county town. It was expected to disembark at Beiguan Pier and take a sedan chair.
A group of people on the shore returned the same way, and no one dared to complain. Li You sighed, at this time, even the always reserved Magistrate Chen is acting like a dog, and it is a pity that a man should act like this...
Returning to the county government office, Li You drank a pot of tea to quench his thirst. But a doorman came in, handed Li You a post, and said enviously: "Mr. Li is in for a treat tonight, the lord ordered it specially."
You are called by your name, and everyone in the office is envious of you. They all say that the old man’s kindness to Mr. Li cannot be greater.”
It turns out that this is a post for tonight's cleansing party for Mr. Lu. Only with this post can you enter the county mansion. Li You, the magistrate of Chen County, understood the purpose of the roll call. He had to quickly prepare a few poems for the occasion in advance. Most of the banquet will be held
With all these entertainments, this was the first time he attended an official banquet. The one Zhu Shilang had two months ago could not be counted, but he was just a part of it.
There is a Harmony Garden in the Xujiang County Mansion, which is a famous garden in Suzhou Prefecture. The garden is diverted into a lake, and the construction is extremely fine. Lu Shangshu stayed in the Harmony Garden. There are pavilions in the garden, built beside the lake.
On the water, named Liuhua Pavilion, it is very spacious, and tonight's banquet will be held here.
Li You entered the Harmony Garden at dusk, just like Grandma Liu entered the Grand View Garden. When he was led into the waterside pavilion, he shuddered violently and felt a chill, as if he were in late autumn.
Taking a closer look, there are more than a dozen large shallow ice basins with built-in ice cubes placed on the four sides. If it melts, servants will remove them and replace them with new ones. Not only that, but behind the ice basins, there are several racks of items in the shape of a round wheel with a height of one person.
There are several fan blades in each center, and there is a handle at the back. Each round wheel rotates under the control of two people, blowing the cool air from the ice cubes to the banquet in the middle. In addition, I also saw twenty or thirty women under the steps.
The musicians, each holding a pipa, harp, flute, flute, flute and other musical instruments, lined up to wait.
This was just a scene before sitting down. Li You was dumbfounded. There is actually artificial air conditioning these days? It must be expensive. I really don’t know where the ice comes from in this summer. There are dozens of people.
The band was supporting the entertainment, and it was obvious what luxury was. These days, I had been thinking about how to spend it if I could earn a few hundred taels of silver, but compared to this kind of scene, it was just like rubbish.
The guests gradually arrived, most of whom were local officials, gentry and celebrities. Li You didn't recognize most of them. He only chatted with Mr. Huang and Princess Bo. The prostitutes who had invited him to accompany him also arrived, and they gathered around the leading figure Yao Xing'er to have a chat.
There were many gossips, and from time to time a few would pick on Li You and Li Dianshi, who were famous in brothels.
While they were talking, someone took the initiative to get acquainted with Li You and the others and said, "Mr. Huang and Mr. Li are the ones in person?" Poor Wang Zhubo was automatically ignored.
He is a middle-aged man with a gentle, clear and friendly appearance.
Master Huang wanted to show off, so Li You replied on his behalf: "It's me and I. I wonder who you are?"
The man cupped his hands and said: "Xue Yuanqing, I have been wandering in a foreign country for the past six months and have not been lucky enough to get to know these two gentlemen. I will be a good host someday and please appreciate your honor."
Master Huang from outside may not know this name, but Li You knows it. Xue Yuanqing also passed the Juren exam back then, but failed twice in the examination, so he gave up his studies and went into business. His business was very good and he earned tens of thousands.
Jiasi is a famous Confucian businessman in Xujiang County.
"It's my great wish to get to know Mr. Xue." Li You returned the courtesy and promised.
Taking the time to introduce the origin of Xue Yuanqing to Mr. Huang, Mr. Huang nodded and said: "It is no coincidence that such a big merchant is only looking for you and me. He must have smelled it."
After Xue Yuanqing, two or three more people came to get acquainted with each other, and Li You entertained them one by one. Some even said blatantly: "I heard that Mr. Li is elegant and passionate, and I have a number of prostitutes in my family. I would like to ask Mr. Li to appreciate and comment on them."
Li You cursed in his heart that this man couldn't speak and spoke so nakedly. Master, do I have such a reputation as a pervert?
Royal Lord Bo teased: "Is Li Dianshi's lustful behavior a result of a gentleman's lustful behavior? Or is it a villain's lustful behavior that goes beyond propriety?"
