Jincheng in early spring is suddenly warm and then cold.
In addition, it has rained in the past two days, which makes people feel a little damp and cold.
Guan Xing is reading a book at his desk in his room.
A stove was installed in the house, and the long chimney extended outside, so there was no smoke in the house.
The fire in the stove was burning brightly, driving away the moisture and coldness in the room.
At this time, I saw a person walking in from outside the house and said, "Anguo, are you reading again?"
When Guan Xing heard this, he looked up and said, "It's Xingwu."
He pointed to the table in front of him and said, "Sit wherever you like."
Zhang Bao went in and out of Guan Mansion as if he were at home, and did not need to be reported by his servants. After he found a place to sit down by himself, he asked, "What book is An Guo reading again?"
Guan Xing raised the book in his hand. It looked very brand-new. He shook it and said, "The book Sanniang brought back is called "Daily Drills in the Army". It is said to be the latest one printed by Hanzhong."
"This name sounds like it has something to do with the military?"
Zhang Bao asked curiously.
"It is indeed relevant." Guan Xing put down the book, pondered for a moment, and then asked, "Has Xingwu ever remembered the movements led by Zhao Yiwen and Wang Zishi during the Southern Expedition last year?"
"Of course I remember."
At that time, the troops led by Zhao Guang and Wang Xun had only a hundred people, but they were the most unique.
Not only was the response the fastest every time when gathering, the ranks were extremely orderly, hundreds of people obeyed orders and acted as if they were one person, and there were rules for marching and setting up camps.
If it weren't for the fact that they lacked a bloody murderous aura, Zhang Bao would have thought they were rare elite soldiers.
After finally asking, I found out that except for those who were following Zhao Guang, who were the personal guards of the Zhao family, the rest were all brought from Nanxiang.
"I heard that those tribes first used Nanxiang's military training methods to train soldiers who could understand military orders, and then they began to teach them military formations and fighting skills. Their military training methods are somewhat different from other places."
"I've heard about this too." Zhang Bao nodded, looking at the book in Guan Xing's hand, his eyes lit up, "Could this book be Nanxiang's military training method?"
Guan Xing nodded, "I heard from Sanniang that those songs during the Southern Expedition were just Feng..."
When the word "Feng" is mentioned, Guan Xing feels like something is stuck in his throat and he always has to pause.
"Feng Mingwen? Is it really him?"
Zhang Bao asked straightforwardly.
"Yes, it was indeed him. Those parts during the Southern Expedition were just his attempts, and they seemed to work well at the time. So he improved them based on the problems that arose during the Southern Expedition and re-edited this canon."
Guan Xingyang raised the book in his hand and said, "Sanniang gave me a copy."
"Is there such a good thing?"
Zhang Bao was overjoyed, "An Guo, your brother-in-law..."
As soon as Guan Xing heard the word "brother-in-law" and thought about all the things he had done in Nanzhong, his expression suddenly changed.
Zhang Bao naturally knew that Guan Xing had always disliked Feng Yong, but it was not him who wanted to marry a girl, so he could not speak objectively.
"Anguo, I'm not saying that. Sanniang's vision is indeed quite good. Although this Feng Mingwen behaves a little eccentrically, he is a talented person, especially when it comes to caring for the people and running the country, which is beyond the comparison of you and me.
We have to recognize it."
"Look at how long it has only been for him to be granted the title of Marquis of Guannei. In a few more years, it won't be difficult to grant the title of Marquis of Lieutenant Commandery."
"Also, you see, he has a long-term love for Sanniang, and his Feng Ping... uh, Feng Ping is pretty good, right?"
Having said this, Zhang Bao took a nap, secretly glanced at Guan Xing, and saw that his face was dull, and then he continued speaking.
"Although there are various rumors, I haven't heard that he has ever been with a female concubine..."
At this point, Zhang Bao felt that he couldn't go on, so he had to mention another sentence.
"Sanniang is also interested in him. The husband is affectionate, the concubine is interested, the husband is talented, and the concubine is beautiful. Now in Jincheng, I don't know how many women are envious of this good marriage!"
"Also, when we were in Nanzhong, he somehow saved your life..."
It's okay that Zhang Bao didn't mention this. When he mentioned this, Guan Xing remembered Feng Yong's face when he rescued him in Nanzhong, and his heart felt even more blocked.
"Look now, he can even give you this kind of military training method that is hard to find in the world..."
The more Guan Xing listened to Zhang Bao's words, the more awkward he felt. He immediately interrupted Zhang Bao's words and said quietly, "Xingwu, this is not like you."
Zhang Bao's expression froze and he laughed dryly, "But what I said is all the truth."
"It's the truth," Guan Xing nodded and glanced at Zhang Bao, "but it's not like what you usually say."
As he spoke, he let out a long sigh, "You and I are like brothers, so how can you hide your thoughts from me? Tell me, why did you say such good things to Feng Mingwen this time?"
Zhang Bao saw that he could no longer hide it, so he lowered his face and admitted, "Then Feng Mingwen, haven't you asked someone to come to your house to propose marriage?"
"How can it be so fast? He has just been released from prison. He must be prepared, right?"
"Are An Guo ready to agree?"
"I didn't want to agree, but can I not agree?"
Guan Xing glanced at Zhang Bao and said, "Even you came here for this matter."
Zhang Bao sighed and said, "I can't help it. The uncles who are now related to you have suddenly come to your door recently. What Mingli said was that he hadn't moved around for too long, but the other side of his words was nothing more than asking around.
Do you have any intention of getting married recently..."
As he spoke, he pointed at Guan Xing, dumbfounded, and then at himself, "Tell me, this is obviously Sanniang's wedding, why are they worried about Siniang?"
"Yes, it's like this in your house, let alone in my house?"
Guan Xing's face was full of helplessness, "Everyone who comes to the house is just like you, saying good things about Feng Mingwen, saying that he and Sanniang are a match made by heaven, a rare good marriage."
"Then what do An Guo think?"
Zhang Bao asked with concern on his face.
"What else can I do? Sanniang is now at the Prime Minister's wife's place. I haven't been able to see her for several days. It seems that she is determined to marry into the Feng family. As an elder brother, I naturally just want to marry her.
I can agree."
Guan Xing said helplessly.
In the past few years, the Guan family was hated by people and ghosts, but it was true that they were not liked by others.
Fortunately, he had a poor reputation and was favored by the Prime Minister, so he managed to keep the Guan family from falling.
But it must be true that life is hard.
The renewed improvement only happened two years ago. To be precise, it was after Sanniang followed Feng Mingwen to Hanzhong.
Sanniang held the share of the ranch and workshop in her hands, and began to ask people to come to her again.
It would be a lie to say that Guan Xing does not want to see the Guan family revitalized.
But when he thought that Sanniang had exchanged himself for Feng Mingwen, he felt unhappy.
I always feel that I owe Sanniang.
I always feel like that kid is taking advantage of others.
Now, because of Sanniang's marriage to that boy, there are more and more visitors to the Guan Mansion.
Guan Xing felt more and more pressure: this marriage seemed to be gradually out of his control, and it felt like it was no longer up to him to have the final say.
It was related to the interests of many powerful people in the Han Dynasty, as well as the court's desire to win over the people of Shu, and the rebellion in Yuejun County, so even the two people in the palace had to give in.
Nowadays, the two most suitable women to marry Feng Yong are Guan Sanniang and Zhang Siniang.
If he really dares not to agree to this marriage, and later allows Siniang to take the opportunity to marry Feng Yong, then the Guan family will offend many colleagues and dignitaries, and then they will really become hated by everyone.
"If Anguo can think this way, it is naturally a good thing."
Zhang Bao breathed a sigh of relief.
Zhang Bao also understood the queen's intention to let Si Niang marry Feng Yong.
This is naturally good for the royal family, but whether it will be more beneficial or harmful to the Zhang family is hard to say at the moment.
In addition, the Guan family was involved, so Zhang Bao really didn't want his sister to go through this muddy water again.
Looking at Guan Xing with some pity in his eyes, Zhang Bao thought to himself that it is not easy to be such a brother-in-law in An Guo Tan and such an independent sister!
But when Guan Xing saw Zhang Bao's look, a ball of evil fire rose up in his heart, and he blurted out, "Where's Si Niang?"
Zhang Bao was startled, "What?"
"Sister Four is fourteen this year, right? In two years, she will be sixteen. I wonder what kind of family Xingwu plans to find for her then?"
Because of the statistical results of Nanxiang County in the second half of last year, the more well-informed Jincheng dignitaries knew in their hearts that marrying off their daughters too early would harm them.
It would be good for my daughter to stay at home for two more years.
Although this kind of thing is not said publicly, at least there is such an awareness among the wealthy people in the Han Dynasty.
Zhang Bao's face froze when he heard this.
Then he glanced at Guan Xing resentfully and said, "An Guo, we are talking about Sanniang's marriage. Why are we talking about Siniang? It is not a bad thing that Siniang will be raised at home for two more years."
"It's okay. Let's talk about getting married first and settle it first. There's no harm in waiting two years for getting married."
Guan Xing said happily.
Then someone must dare to take over for that bastard boy in this limelight, right?
Zhang Bao thought like this in his heart, and the veins on his forehead bulged faintly.
Zhang Xiaoniang, who has beautiful face and moonlight, became famous all over the world in one song.
It was such an article praising the beauty of the little sister that made her famous, but it also became an obstacle to her marriage.
A few days ago, my little sister suddenly proposed that she want to get married to her.
The Mi family is one of the families with the best relationship with the Zhang family, and it is also the family with the most opposition. They actually refused directly.
With the Mi family setting an example, those who were originally interested were pretending to be stupid. They only said that Mrs. Zhang was a bit young and would wait two years before talking.
Zhang Bao knew that it wasn't that they were unwilling or they didn't dare, but that they felt it wasn't worth it and wanted to get through the limelight.
Of course there are people who are not afraid of offending others, but they all want to be beaten to death and take advantage of the opportunity to gain both life and wealth.
After all, the money and property in the hands of the younger sister account for more than half of the family's income.
Or those who are not in the right class and have a clinging mentality,
They are all people whose character makes others look down upon.
Alas, it seems that my younger sister’s marriage really has to be postponed.
Zhang Bao felt heartbroken when he remembered that Siniang had become taciturn after hearing that Feng Yong had decided to marry Sanniang, and that she no longer had her former cheerful temper.
Although she looks like the lady her mother wanted now, Zhang Bao feels that if she really has to break her heart to become a lady, it would be better to let her remain innocent and innocent!
Thinking of this, Zhang Bao and Guan Xing looked at each other, and both of them had an idea in their minds at the same time: maybe strangling someone to death is the best way to resolve their hatred!
They both knew that each other had this idea, but they couldn't say it out loud. For a moment, both of them felt a little uninterested.
"What were we talking about in the first place?"
Guan Xing looked at the book in his hand and asked quietly.
"It seems to be talking about the military code of conduct?"
"Then let's talk about ethics, shall we? I don't want to bring up that troublesome matter."
Guan Xing sighed helplessly, becoming more and more heartbroken.
I thought that if Sanniang had not passed by Fengzhuang that year, the boy would not have known Sanniang.
If that boy doesn't know Sanniang, then Sanniang won't marry him.
If Sanniang didn't marry him, she wouldn't have so many worries...
"That's fine. Is there anything wonderful about this exercise code?"
"There are no wonderful things, but there are some strange things."
"What's weird?"
"I heard that this code of conduct must be based on literacy. The more literate people in the army, the more useful it will be."
"Wouldn't that be useless to us?"
Zhang Baodun felt disappointed. When he first learned to read, he was often lazy. When he heard that the soldiers were required to be literate, he really thought it was meaningless: Who would become a soldier if he could read and read?
"There's always some truth to it."
Guan Xing opened the book again, "Thinking about the soldiers in Nanxiang, except for the orders and prohibitions, they always feel that they are special than other places, but I can't put it in words. So take a look and find out the truth, that would be the best.
"
At this moment, I could only hear a servant coming to report: "Mr. Lang, there is someone outside the house who wants to see you."
"who?"
When Guan Xing heard this, he secretly breathed a sigh of relief, thinking that no matter who it was, he came at the right time and there was no need to be so embarrassed.
"The person who came here claims to be a soldier from the Prime Minister's Office. His surname is Jiang. This is a famous post."
The servant handed over a name card.
There was only one person with the surname Jiang in the Prime Minister's Palace who joined the army, and that was Jiang Wan.
"Jiang Gongyan?"
Guan Xing opened it and saw that it was indeed him, "Why is he here? So fast?"
"What is Jiang Gongyan doing?"
Zhang Bao asked curiously.
A look of embarrassment appeared on Guan Xing's face again, he coughed and whispered, "Nacai."
Zhang Bao suddenly understood and coughed, "Then Anguo should quickly change his clothes and go to greet him."
Acceptance is only the first step in proposing marriage.
At this step, whether the woman's family is willing or not, they have to let the matchmaker come into the house.
"Okay, Xingwu, please help yourself. I'll go say hello first."
You can't let people wait outside the door for a long time, otherwise it will be a loss of etiquette. Guan Xing hurriedly got up and went to change into his beautiful clothes.
Jiang Wan, who was outside the gate of Guan Mansion, was wearing a Xuanduan dress and a long crown, with a solemn expression. He looked like a handsome middle-aged man with a graceful manner.
I saw that he was still holding a cage covered with black cloth in his hand, and he was patiently waiting for the owner to come out.
After a while, the steward of the Guan Mansion opened the door and came forward to bow and salute: "May I ask why the guest is here?"
"I heard that there is a beautiful girl in the Guan Mansion. I was entrusted by Lord Feng and came here to adopt her."
Jiang Wan said loudly.
The butler saluted again: "Guest, please wait a moment while I allow you to report back to the master."
After speaking, go inside and inform Guan Xing.
Guan Xing, dressed in rich clothes, walked out and bowed to Jiang Wan.
Jiang Wan accepted this gift and refused to bow.
After Guan Xing bowed, he bowed again and said, "Please let the envoy come in and speak."
After leading Jiang Wan to the ancestral hall door of Guan Mansion, Guan Xing bowed again and said, "Invite the envoy to enter the ancestral hall."
Jiang Wan returned the courtesy, "I dare not enter the holy place of my family temple first."
After three bows and three concessions, Jiang Wan took the wild goose out of the cage and entered through the west steps.
For Guanxing, enter from the steps on the east side.
After paying homage to the ancestors of the Guan family in the ancestral hall, Jiang Wan began to say, "The Feng family has a good son. I have heard for a long time that the third wife of your family is a beautiful daughter. I specially asked someone to come and adopt him as a gift from my ancestors."
Guan Xing said to him: "Sanniang is dull and incapable of teaching. It is an honor to be favored by Feng Liangzi..."
Having said this, Guan Xing really gritted his teeth.
This is really against my will...
"No, I dare to resign!"
Guan Xing said word by word.
"Dare you accept it?"
Jiang Wan asked.
Goodbye Guan Xing.
So Jiang Wan faced south and taught Guan Xing the geese.
Guan Xing also went south to receive the geese.
After accepting the request, the two of them left the ancestral hall.
Guan Xing handed the goose to the steward, while Jiang Wan stood at the door of the ancestral hall and waited.