Sheng Hong lifted the curtain and came out of Wei Ruixuan, breathing a long sigh of relief. He had just spent a lot of effort to convince his wife to agree to leave the engagement ship.
Sheng Hong waved his hand and summoned Dongrong, his bodyguard: "Go to the dock and tell Brother Bai that the Yuan family can give up the betrothal gift."
"Yes."
Dongrong took the order and left, but after a while he ran back in a panic: "Master, the Yuan family's eldest son and the second young master are almost outside the gate!"
"What?"
Sheng Hong was surprised at first, but in an instant he understood that this must be his son Changbai making a decision on the spot in order to protect the dignity of the two families.
"Bai'er has really grown up and can take charge of her own business!" Sheng Hong was sincerely pleased and quickly went into the house to urge Wang Ruofu to dress up quickly so that he could go out with him to welcome guests.
On the street, a team of subordinates came to play and beat, and stopped in front of the Sheng family gate.
Yuan Wenchun was in front, with a matchmaker standing next to him. On his left and right were four well-off people (women with children, husbands, parents and parents-in-law), and behind him was a long team of porters.
Although the betrothal gift is not as grand as the wedding day, it is the engagement of the eldest daughter of Yangzhou Tongjian, and the excitement is overwhelming.
The children looked at the loads of gifts and drooled, and the parents around them would take the opportunity to teach them that only by studying hard can they eat good food and marry a good wife.
Under the spotlight of everyone, the matchmaker dressed in a flashy dress walked up to the closed door of Sheng's house and opened the door with great energy.
"The Yuan family of Earl Zhongqin's Mansion in Tokyo are here to offer an appointment. They will be the host of a pair of wild geese and live birds outside the Great Wall. There are countless other gifts to offer to the Sheng Mansion's Jiao Jin for their second son Yuan Wenshao. I respectfully ask for your permission!"
Sheng Hong and his wife, who had tidied up and were sitting in the hall, looked at each other and said in unison: "Yes!"
Yuan Wenchun dismounted, and Mrs. Yuan got off the sedan, facing the middle door and saluting: "Yuan Wenchun and his wife, on behalf of the elders of the Yuan family, respectfully thank you for your permission!"
"Okay!"
The people watching the excitement cheered and congratulated the Sheng and Yuan families.
After the ceremony is completed, it’s time for the big banquet.
The person who cooks the dishes is a master chef invited from the provincial capital, and all the people who cut the vegetables are veterans.
Now that the chef is in place, the venue also has to be taken care of.
On the happy day for the Tongpan family in Yangzhou, the crowds of people were packed shoulder to shoulder, making it as lively as a temple fair.
The three generations of Sheng Hong, Wang Ruofu and his wife, including their relatives, those who were famous in the genealogy, those who had contacts in the officialdom, and the neighbors for several miles around all came to watch the ceremony. No matter how big the Sheng Mansion was, it could not accommodate so many guests. p>
So I had to set up running banquets on the street to entertain neighbors, and set up banquets at home to entertain high-ranking officials such as the prefect.
Sheng Hong and Yuan Wenchun entertained male guests in the front hall, while Wang Ruofu and Mrs. Yuan entertained female guests in the backyard. There were also many entertainment activities such as pot throwing, singing, and games.
Wei Chen is considered a celebrity in Yangzhou, so it is natural that he cannot miss socializing and singing at the wine table. Wei Chen felt upset, so he found a way to get out and went to the front hall where the pot was thrown.
Hut throwing, born out of the archery ritual, is a common game played during banquets in the upper class and is deeply loved by literati.
At this time, many guests who were keen on this practice were throwing pots for fun, and the young man Wei Chen noticed earlier was also among them.
Wei Chen walked up to the young man and bowed his hands in greeting: "I, Wei Chen, whose cursive character is Xingyun, may I ask my brother's surname?"
The young man returned the greeting: "I'm Bai Ye, I've met Brother Wei."
Bai Ye?
Wei Chen was startled for a moment, then suddenly realized, isn't this Gu Tingye's pseudonym?
Wei Chen's expression suddenly turned strange when he looked at Gu Tingye's hand holding Wu Dao Mu Chu. The game that was supposed to happen, like throwing pots and betting on wild geese, was flapping by his own little butterfly's wings, and I'm afraid it has been blown away. The Yuan family had broken their promise first, but Sheng Changbai immediately unloaded the betrothal ship, leaving the Yuan family with dignity. Yuan Wenchun had no reason to cause trouble to the Sheng family, and naturally he would not instigate Gu Tingye to gamble with Sheng Changfeng.
"Brother Wei, are you coming to throw pot too?"
Wei Chen was thinking about something when he suddenly heard a familiar voice coming from behind him.
When I turned around, it turned out to be that little brat who deserved a beating, Sheng Changfeng.
Wei Chen looked at Gu Tingye, who looked curious, and then at Sheng Changfeng, who was inexplicably excited, and couldn't help but be speechless.
Is this life?
However, Wei Chen just sighed and quickly realized that these two people are people who love pot throwing. Regardless of whether there is gambling or fighting, they will come to this pot throwing field to try their skills.
In other words, it is completely reasonable that they would appear here.
At this time, Sheng Changfeng glanced sideways at Gu Tingye in front of Wei Chen. Suddenly his eyes lit up. He cleared his throat and pretended to say: "Ahem, who is that? I just saw that you seemed to be doing well in throwing pots. Do you dare to compete with me?"
For a moment?"
Gu Tingye looked at Sheng Changfeng and said with a smile: "It's OK to throw the pot, but it's not possible if there is no lottery."
"Okay, then I'll use..."
In the middle of Sheng Changfeng's words, Wei Chen slapped him on the forehead with one finger and shouted: "You are so young and you are not good at learning. What do you want to bet on?"
Wei Chen's force was so strong that a small patch of red appeared on Sheng Changfeng's forehead.
Sheng Changfeng wanted to cry but didn't dare. He could only purse his lips and look at Wei Chen aggrievedly. After a while, he took out a small notebook from his pocket.
"Well, that's it."
Wei Chen took it and saw that it was the dictation homework he had assigned to this naughty kid yesterday, and he immediately couldn't laugh or cry.
When Gu Tingye saw what Sheng Changfeng took out, he couldn't help but roll his eyes, his face as dark as the bottom of a pot.
This kid is so evil-minded that he bets his homework against me. If I beat him, will I still have to do his homework for him?
Wei Chen caught a glimpse of Gu Tingye's face, laughed dryly, and pulled Sheng Changfeng to Gu Tingye: "Uh... ah no, Brother Bai, Chang Feng is young and has a naughty temper, please don't mind."
"It's okay, it's a small matter."
Gu Tingye said politely to Wei Chen, but he felt quite strange in his heart. It seemed that Wei Chen was not much older than Sheng Changfeng, and when he preached, he seemed to be an elder.
However, to Gu Tingye's surprise, Sheng Changfeng actually listened to Wei Chen's words. As soon as Wei Chen waved, he obediently apologized to Gu Tingye.
Gu Tingye was surprised.
If he remembered correctly, this child named Chang Feng seemed to be the son of Tong Fan just like Sheng Changbai who went to receive the bride price earlier.
And judging from his performance just now, this guy is clearly a dandy, so why would he be so submissive to Wei Chen, a peer of his age?
Thinking of this, Gu Tingye couldn't help but look at Wei Chen with interest, who was educating the naughty child earnestly, with a bit more amusement in his eyes.