Although it is the beginning of autumn, speaking of it, it is still in the dog days of summer. As the saying goes, the hot weather after autumn is deadly. The summer heat has not faded away, but it is the time when the heat wave is rising. A layer of water vapor seems to be evaporating above the West Lake.
But fortunately, the water is not as good as the land. When the wind blows into the boat, it is still relatively cool. A boat opens the window, rolls up the gauze, and slowly wanders on the lake.
Those who can receive invitations to the party today are basically people with family backgrounds. Even if there are relatively poor people, they are usually literati with a wide network of friends. When we were on the shore, we saw people greeting each other, and it was still early.
The weather was also hot in the afternoon, and not many people came at this time. However, after a while, one after another boats came onto the lake one after another, and we could see the scale of the gathering. Each boat was marked with various colors.
There are signs on each household, such as the Cao family, the largest rice merchant in Jiangning, the Long family, a cloth merchant, the Chen family Huāfang, which runs a brothel, there are also official ships with sails, etc.
Although it is not a midsummer afternoon that is not suitable for lake tours, it is enough to see the prosperity of Hangzhou as a water town in the south of the Yangtze River. Occasionally, two ships can be seen approaching each other, and the people on the ship are greeting each other on the side. They are all the same.
People in a circle know a lot of each other.
The weather is a bit hot, and it is not yet time to dock and disembark, so those who have arrived early would rather float on the lake for a while. Occasionally, when they see someone they know, the small boat will approach the big ship, because many people come in groups.
, although the big gathering has not yet started, small gatherings have already been held on the boats, some of which are rich people, or scholars of three or five years, chatting and laughing, and giving advice. There are also ships belonging to the Wude army stationed in Suzhou and Hangzhou.
Some soldiers were sent up early to clear and garrison Xiaoyingzhou, waiting for the arrival of the Hangzhou magistrate and others.
Since some businessmen and poets brought their families, the women in the brothels could not be invited blatantly. However, except for the Chen family, which was originally engaged in this kind of business, there were two huā chiefs accompanying the huāfang, and the rest wanted to go to the island to participate.
, there are ways to make it safe. Some talented scholars did not come with them. If they had good personal connections, they also invited their confidante from the brothel to accompany them in a private capacity. However, these people have to make their own arrangements.
In this social circle, it is quite difficult to mix with those who have families.
The female relatives in these families may also like to listen to stories about talented men and beautiful women on weekdays, but once they see it with their own eyes, they will naturally feel unhappy and spontaneously resist ridicule. The clear distinction between the two parties is one of the interesting things in this kind of situation.
It is always difficult to blend romance, romance and warm family affairs.
When the Lou family's big boat came over, the weather had cooled down a little. The people on the boat at this time were mainly Lou Jinlin, Lou Shuwan, and Lou Shuheng. His eldest son Lou Shuwang was not in Hangzhou at this time. Originally, Lou Shuwang was not in Hangzhou at this time.
Lou Shuwan's husband Song Zhiqian also followed him all the way. Just after a few friends greeted him, Lou Jinlin expressed his position: "Shu Wan and Zhiqian should go over and get together with their friends." It seemed that Lou Jinlin was talking at home.
It's quite gentle. When mentioning the two of them, Lou Shuwan's name is always mentioned first and Song Zhiqian's name is last. No one finds it strange that the son-in-law's status is low.
Song Zhiqian was originally a little afraid of his father-in-law. After hearing these words, he felt like he was being pardoned. However, Lou Shuwan rubbed her forehead: "It's too hot at noon. I'm a little sleepy. My husband, please come over." Song Zhiqian hesitated for a while, but was finally persuaded.
So I changed my boat and went with some friends.
In addition to the three most important people of the Lou family, there are also several affiliated members of the Lou family who are following them at this time. The main reason is that Lou Jinlin has always cultivated people to be the right-hand men of his children, and this time he also brought them out to meet people and see the world.
Just now on the shore, Lou Jinlin said hello to a local wealthy businessman. At this time, the boat left the shore, and soon someone shouted loudly to come over to the boat. The Lou family's hands and eyes are very good in Hangzhou, although they are not as good as the Qian family's.
Generally speaking, a first-class noble family, but after several generations of accumulation, it is only a hair's breadth, and should not be underestimated.
He was surprised, so many people came to visit him, and some scholars came to say hello to Lou Shuheng.
Among the several children of the Lou family, although Lou Shuheng seems to be a huāhuā son with a lazy temperament, he is also very good in poetry and literature. He was also called a child prodigy in Hangzhou when he was a child. His talent was originally good, but he later failed.
He worked hard but also achieved some results. He was also the youngest son of the Lou family. He was deeply loved by his father. He had an occasional arrogance in his character, which others took for granted.
As an adult, he was more interested in women than poetry. With his family's money and power, even if he didn't talk about poetry or blatantly bully others, it was easy to pick up girls. Later, his father had an opinion, so he occasionally managed the business. Smart people do things.
, and with the help of capable people in the family, it was smooth sailing. From then on, in the eyes of everyone, he became a celebrity with an indifferent temperament. He did not write much poetry and lyrics, but he was also considered to be a great talent. He was also good at business, so he was naturally capable.
A symbol of omnipotence.
This kind of reputation accumulation is relatively orthodox. Compared with Ning Yi's reputation in Jiangning, he is also capable of writing poems and calculating people, but he is relatively low-key. Combined with his status as a son-in-law, it makes people subconsciously feel a bit bitter. If we say
Lou Shuheng can be regarded as the growth history of the proud son of heaven, while Ning Yi's reputation is a bit like the history of the struggle of the dark grassroots.
There were some people sitting on the boat, eating ice-cold drinks. Soon, some people started talking about the Su family, mainly because they heard that the Su family had some relationship with the Lou family.
"I just saw over there what seemed to be the small boat of the Su family passing by the lake. I took a look and saw that there weren't many people moving on it. Over there by the window, the people on the boat seemed to have fallen asleep on their stomachs, haha,...
..." "In such weather, the lake is indeed a good place to take a nap. Those Su family members really know how to enjoy it."
"The two young masters of the Su family have seen it...,... Speaking of which, these two are also talented people.
I just don’t know why the Su family actually let a woman take power. Does Brother Lou know?” The person who spoke was also a cloth merchant named Luo from Hangzhou. He asked curiously, but Lou Jinlin smiled:
"The daughter of an old friend came to visit me once. I just want to say that she is familiar with her, but it is my younger daughter Shu Wan who has more contact with her. If you are curious, Lao Luo, you might as well ask Shu Wan. I am not very clear." She said sleepily before.
Lou Shuwan, who was originally standing behind her father as a vase, smiled slightly when someone mentioned it. She went over and poured a cup of tea for the middle-aged man named Luo: "The Su family was originally in Jiangning. What happened there?"
, I didn’t inquire too clearly, but my sister, Tan’er, is a really capable person, and my sister can’t compare to her... Well, does Uncle Luo Shi know Luo Tian?” The man nodded.
: "Of course I know that his cotton material is of the highest quality in Suzhou and Hangzhou. Why does my niece ask about this?"
"There is already a business deal between Luotian and Tan'er. Uncle Luo Shi must have heard about it, right?" The businessman surnamed Luo thought for a moment: "In the past two days, I did hear that there was a business deal.
It's a small business, but there isn't much business.
To be honest, Na Luotian is famous for his stubbornness. Although it was only a small transaction, but now that I think about it, I don’t know how Miss Na Su persuaded the other party. Could it be that my niece knew about it?" Lou Shuwan smiled.
The Su family did not cause much discussion in Hangzhou. When everyone talked about it at this time, it was just as a conversation piece after dinner. However, Lou Shuwan had a beautiful figure and a sweet smile. At this time, everyone was aroused by her curiosity.
They couldn't help but wait for her next words. Lou Shuwan turned around beautifully while holding the teapot: "I do know the inside story. Na Luotian is stubborn in business, but he has an extremely doting wife beside him. He is so
His wife was originally the daughter of an official family. Later, she got in touch with Luo Tian and fell in love with her. Luo Tian wanted to marry her, but it took a lot of effort. However, in the past few years, his wife's temperament has become increasingly melancholy.
She was sick and sometimes couldn't eat. She had a heart problem, but she couldn't be cured even after many doctors were invited. It was through her that my sister Tan'er got in touch with Luo Tian."
"Oh?" The businessman surnamed Luo frowned. Another person among the people sitting here said in surprise: "I also agree with what Miss Lou said about Luo Tian's wife. To be honest, many people want to marry the Luo family.
After building some connections, we all thought of this and asked doctors to give us prescriptions a lot, but they never worked. So what kind of method did Miss Su use? Could it be that Mrs. Luo was cured?"
"My sister Tan'er gave me something." Lou Shuwan turned around and smiled, holding out a finger. "I'm not very familiar with this thing, but Uncle Luo Shi must be very familiar with it. Uncle Luo Shi, you
Want to take a guess?"
The businessman thought for a long time and said with a smile: "My niece, don't be too pretentious. I couldn't have guessed this." Lou Shuwan lowered her eyes, with a flash of memory and contemplation in her eyes: "She gave it away, a box of silkworms...
Well, that's it." The woman nodded and walked towards her father. Everyone was stunned for a moment. They didn't quite understand what they were talking about. Silkworms? Gold silkworms or silver silkworms? After a while, they started talking. The building was approaching.
At this time, he was also frowning and wanted to speak. Over there, Lou Shuheng thought for a while, but he spoke first: "1, little sister, don't worry about it. What's going on with this box of silkworms?" Lou Shuheng said
Wan raised her eyebrows at this time, looked at her brother, and her voice became clearer: "I'm also surprised. I heard that the Luo family and Tan'er had some business discussions in the past two days. After asking carefully, sister Tan'er sent
In the past, there was just a box of silkworms, with just a few silkworms packed in a wooden box and covered with gauze. The box could only be seen, but the silkworms inside were very cute. Mrs. Luo was originally a wealthy lady and had never been exposed to these things.
, watching the silkworm gnawing the mulberry leaves, she felt affection for her. Later, sister Tan'er told her that there was a mulberry tree across the street from Luo's house, and Mrs. Luo now went out every day to pick mulberry leaves and feed them to those silkworms.
The silkworms were happy after eating and were willing to go out of the yard. Luo Tian originally wanted to transplant a mulberry tree to his wife's yard, but Sister Tan'er stopped her, so she decided to do business. That's it." She said this time
Lou Shuheng and others were all stunned for a long time after hearing it. Lou Jinlin was also stunned for a while, and then whispered: "If this is really the case, you girl Tan'er is really not simple.
"Where?" Lou Shuwan nodded. In fact, what she said just now was suspenseful. At this time, she simply said it, as if she was somewhat proud of it. However, the thoughts in her heart at this time were not above this, but kept in her heart.
In some of the things that came down.
She remembered that not long after Su Tan'er and his wife came to Hangzhou, they settled on a courtyard and started to visit from family to family. Luo Tian collected some information and asked her about the other party's information. Lou Shuwan said casually at that time
We talked about Mrs. Luo. Luo Tian has a relatively eccentric temperament, and it is difficult to establish a relationship with him. Therefore, there are not many competitors. This is the reason why Su Tan'er is interested in this, but Lou Shuwan also understands that Mrs. Luo's
Bian is basically unexplainable. She doesn't know much about Luo Tian, so she just mentions it casually.
I remember that at that time, it was Su Tan'er's eccentric husband Ning Yi who was passing by the living room. He stayed with her for a while, drank a few sips of tea, listened to what she said, and asked: "The daughter of an official family?"
She said casually: "Then give me a box of silkworms... At that time, she and Su Tan'er both looked confused and thought they had heard wrongly.
She still remembered the understatement with which the man said those words. At that time, Ning Liheng really didn't look like he was powerful. He even liked martial arts. He didn't know what he had done at that time. He came here after drinking tea and talking.
. From the beginning to the end, she didn't take this matter to heart. It wasn't until two days ago that she suddenly heard that Su Tan'er and Luo Tian had made a business deal. She inquired about it for a while, and until today, she is still thinking about that sentence.
.
The man waved his hand: "Then give me a box of silkworms..." "Let me give you a box of silkworms..."
Oh my god, they really sent a box of silkworms...
During the discussion, someone spoke to someone on the side of the boat. Qian Xiwen and the Qian family's boat were approaching this way...