Chapter 277 The Hangcheng family welcomes its recovery
Early in the morning.
Xu Fanxue from the Xu family at East and West Henghe Bridge in Hangzhou took a shower and changed clothes energetically. He looked in the mirror at the cut braids on his head, couldn't help but frown, and secretly cursed a damn thief.
"Where's the braid, haven't you done it yet?"
Xu Fanxue couldn't help but urge, and the servant hurriedly came in to respond, "It's ready, sir."
"Then why don't you hurry up and pick me up."
Two clever maids quickly brought in a tray with several shiny black braids on it. When Bolo entered the city, he immediately shaved his hair and left braids, but when the Ming army came in, he was forced to cut off his braids.
Well, now that the Qing army has recaptured Hangzhou, the braids that were cut off cannot grow back immediately.
In a hurry, he had to connect the braids. He felt that the braids he had left before were not good enough, so he also had the shiny black hair of several maids at home cut off for his own use.
"Master, you choose one."
Xu Fanxue chose a shiny black one, and the maid began to put on the fake braid for him. In fact, many gentry in Hangzhou also had another way, which was to pin the braid that they had cut off and hide behind their hats. After putting on the hat, the back of their heads would naturally become
He already had a braid, but Xu Fanxue felt that it was not worthy of his status.
The Xu family of Hengheqiao is known as one of the four major families in Hangzhou and one of the eight major surnames that have been passed down for hundreds of years.
To be called one of the four major families, it is not just about having a large population, a lot of houses, a wide courtyard or a huge industry. These are just the basic conditions. The most important thing is to have a good reputation in society and have high appeal and power.
Influence is so important in the local area that it can shake a few times just by stamping one's feet.
Otherwise, not only will they become a famous family, they will not even be worthy of the title of aristocratic family.
The Xu family all met these conditions. The Xu family in Xihenghe was named after the Xihenghe Bridge where they lived in the east of the city. They came from Fuchun and were the first to make tea. By this time, the Xu family's mansion was more than sixty meters wide and deep.
About eighty meters long, there are hundreds of seven-story two-story houses, large and small patios of twelve squares, eight rooms, and more than a hundred clan members.
It is the most prosperous family in the east of Hangzhou city, and if the family members who hold official positions and do business in the two capitals and provinces are also included, the total family population exceeds 500.
Xu Fanxue was old and he was only a civil servant. However, he gave birth to seven sons, three of whom were Jinshi and four were civil servants. He was famous in Jiangnan.
In the son's generation, the family has a total of twenty-nine men, and has produced a total of 16 scholars, 11 candidates and five Jinshi, and all five Jinshi have entered the Imperial Academy.
Therefore, in Hangzhou, the Xu family has two archways, namely Seven Sons Dengke and Five Phoenixes Flying Together, standing on Fuqian Street.
In the Zhejiang examination hall, there is even a saying that there is no permission to open the examination results.
Xu Fanxue's grandfather also served as a governor and a provincial official, and his father also served as the chief envoy in Jiangxi.
The river outside Xujiamen is usually full of boats, and it is known as a hundred birds paying homage to the phoenix.
"Have you posted a note for your in-laws?"
Xu Fanxue's in-laws are Ding Guoen, the head of the Ding family in Fao Lane. Generally speaking, the Ding family is more famous and has a more prominent family background than the Xu family. The lineage originated from Jiyang, Shandong, then moved to Hebei, then to Shaoxing, Zhejiang, and then moved to Hangzhou.
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The Xu family's largest industry is tea, while the Ding family's largest industry is cloth.
The Ding family settled in Meidongli, Fafa Lane, north of Tianjiayuan. They engaged in the cloth business and other businesses. They were good at making money and became the richest man in Hangzhou. The family home gradually expanded, covering an area of 100 acres.
During the Northern Song Dynasty, the ancestor of the Ding family, Ding Yi, was said to be a good reader. He once collected eight thousand volumes of books. Ding Guoen admired his ancestors, so he spent a huge sum of money to build a library in Meidongli. He asked Qian Sanbin to inscribe a plaque on the eight thousand volumes building.
The actual collection of books exceeds 80,000 volumes.
There are a large number of precious first editions of Song and Yuan editions, as well as many authentic calligraphy and paintings by famous artists.
The Ding family was the largest silk and textile industry tycoon in Hangzhou before the war, and had been married to the Xu family for generations.
The housekeeper stood aside and reported, "The Gao family in Shuangchen Lane, the Zheng family in Zhuangyuan Lane, the Wu family in Yueguan Lane, the Ye family in Muchang Lane, the Wan family in Chaimu Lane, the Xu family in Jindongqiao, and the Zhong family in Dongshan Lane
, the Zhu family on Yuanbao Street, the Wang family on Luotuoqiao, the Yang family on Cuijia Lane, etc., the twelve most famous families in Hangzhou have all sent invitations and replied that they would come to visit."
Xu Fanxue looked at the shiny braid on the back of his head and felt a little unrealistic. The thick, black and shiny braid was very heavy and did not match his dry little head, especially his gray head.
The hair doesn't match.
But he shook it a few times, but didn't intend to change it. It was good to be conspicuous.
"The thieves are in panic, the officers and soldiers have entered the city, and Hangzhou is finally restoring peace. Everyone has suffered during this period. Our four major families and eight major surnames are famous in Hangzhou. Now of course we have to stand up to help supervise and stabilize the city and restore industry and commerce.
, we will do our part.”
The housekeeper also said, "Those hypocrites are really messing around. They pay the officials and the gentry all the same, and they still collect the arrears, shortfalls, and levy cents and commercial taxes. How can there be such a thing? Isn't this robbery? Fortunately, they are doing the opposite.
It cannot stand, and now it is running away in panic, so it is natural that it will be written to the governor, asking for the abolition of these chaotic things."
Xu Fanxue coughed twice, and a maid immediately understood what he meant.
"Master, do you want to eat dates? I will go to the Thirteenth Concubine to get them."
After a while, the maid brought a small cup with both hands.
Inside were two plump and round big red dates with sparkling water. Xu Fanxue brought them in front of him, lowered his head and took a deep sniff, feeling very intoxicated.
Then I ate one directly.
The waiter took the cup with one date left, added a spoonful of sweet distiller's grains, an egg, a handful of West Lake Longjing tea leaves, and brewed it with boiling water.
Xu Fanxue stirred it up and ate it.
This is his daily custom-made breakfast. Although West Lake Longjing is expensive, it is not the most rare item in this breakfast. The most troublesome thing is that the two dates must be soaked by his new concubine every night. In order to soak the dates, he
Every year, he takes in a room of twenty-eight beauties as concubines.
Eating this breakfast will make him radiant and energetic.
Soon after the meal, people from the other eleven major families came one after another.
"When the new governor takes office, we have to pay a visit. Each family will give three thousand taels of silver and collect a meeting gift. The governor is fifteen thousand taels, the governor is ten thousand taels, and the admiral is ten thousand taels. How about that?"
Xu Fanxue asked the guests to sit down and made a proposal.
His in-law Ding Guoen nodded, "This is what should be done, but the newly-appointed patrol commander, commander-in-chief, vassal, dynasty, and Taoist officials must not be left behind, and we cannot favor one over the other."
"Then each person will be given another two thousand taels of silver. Patrol officers, general soldiers, feudal lords, and governors will all be given five thousand taels each. Other Taoist officials and generals will be given another 1,800 taels. How about that?"
"Can."
Five thousand taels of silver, for ordinary people, is a huge sum of money that may not be saved in ten lifetimes, but for these twelve major families, it is just a drop in the bucket.
"Then it's settled, let the housekeeper go back to get the money, and I'll make an appointment for you here!"