Red Mansion Huacai

Chapter 136
Seeing that Fu Shi was about to approach, Wu Haiping hurriedly stopped him: "Master Fu, please respect yourself and don't offend the officials."

Over there, two officials stood up from the shade of the tree, drew their iron rulers and walked quickly.

Fu Shi struggled forward, raised his feet and shouted: "Master Li, Master Li, save me!"

Fu Qiufang also caught up behind him, pulling Fu Shi and pleading: "Brother, please stop making trouble!"

At this moment, Li Weijian leaned out of the carriage, smiled at Fu Shi, and then ordered: "Haiping, go invite the two officials to tea, and I will have a chat with Brother Fu."

Wu Haiping agreed, turned around and stopped the two officials, whispered a few words, and then the two men slowly retreated.

Li Weijian jumped out of the car, and without waiting for Fu Shi to speak, he said: "Now that I have adopted your sister, Brother Fu and I are our relatives. We must take care of the affairs of our relatives. But I also know that , this case is the result of a sage’s imperial pen and ink, and cannot be changed easily.

I had planned it long ago. I would wait for two or three years, and when the saint is in a good mood, I would pass on the message to the higher-ups.The saint also knows in his heart that I have been wronged. When the time comes, pardon is the right thing to do, and there is no chance that he will be reinstated. "

"This...sister-in-law, brother, I can totally rely on you!" Fu Shi was so excited that his whole body was trembling, and he pulled Li Weijian and wouldn't let go.

Li Weijian smiled and led him back to the pavilion. He talked a lot and coaxed Fu Shi to drink half a bottle of wine. When the time came, the two official servants urged him to set off. Fu Shi got Li Weijian's promise and suddenly felt something in his heart. Emboldened.He curled his lips and said: "Why urge me? Master, I have only been wandering around for three or two years. Sooner or later I have to return to the capital."

Li Weijian hurriedly said: "Brother, be careful. You must know that the King of Hell is easy to deal with, but the devil is difficult to deal with."

Fu Shi hummed twice, Shi Shiran stood up, glanced at Fu Qiufang, and then looked at Li Weijian and said: "I won't say much else. If I come to Japan and resume my post, I will be my sister-in-law's assistant."

"Good talk, good talk."

Because of Li Weijian's coaxing, Fu Shi suddenly became more energetic and no longer as dull as before.Under the urging of the official, he put on the yoke again and walked slowly along the official road, turning back three times.

Although she had just been hurt by her brother again, Fu Qiufang still couldn't help but have red circles in her eyes as she watched him go away.Now he lifted up the veil, sobbing and wiping his tears.

Li Weijian leaned over with his sleeves, quietly took Fu Qiufang's hand, and whispered: "Please be more open, everyone has already gone away."

"Ah."

Fu Qiufang responded, maybe he was in a bad mood, and immediately said angrily: "My master said so well earlier in the morning, but he got off the carriage just now. My brother wants to be promoted, and the master has promised him now. If he doesn't do it by then, If you cash in, I'm afraid my brother will still make trouble."

Li Weijian smiled and said: "He is far away in Qiongya, and he can't come to me. Besides, I just saw that your brother seems to have drained his energy. If I don't persuade him, I'm afraid he may not be able to do it." Let’s go to Qiongya.”

Fu Qiufang was shocked. Looking back, it seemed that it was indeed the case!Fu Shi is a fan of government officials. When this case was discovered, not only his official status but also his family background were taken away. There was no hope of recovery... For Fu Shi, this was like killing him!
Li Weijian deceived him and gave him false hope. Even this little bit of hope could allow Fu Shi to live a few more years.There was no way he could just waste away a few more years, so Fu Shi gave up and accepted his fate. From then on he settled in Qiongya, where he might start a family and start a business.

The two returned to the carriage, and Wu Haiping drove the carriage back.

Fu Qiufang came back to her senses, glanced at Li Weijian, lowered her head and said, "That's it, I just wrongly blamed the master."

"It's good to know it's wrong."

Fu Qiufang murmured for a while, and then said: "I...just dispersed most of the 1000 taels of silver given by the master."

Li Weijian said nonchalantly: "That money is for you to use for yourself. You don't have to tell me how you want to spend it. That's right, you don't have enough money on hand to spend it, right?"

Fu Qiufang shook his head and said: "There are still 200 taels left, which will be enough for a while."

Li Weijian smiled and said, "What can 200 taels be used for?" As he spoke, he took out a stack of banknotes from his sleeve and stuffed it into Fu Qiufang's hand: "Here, here are 2000 taels, half of which can be used for daily expenses, and the other half can be kept." I’ll be your bodyguard.”

"master--"

"Take it, for me, any problem that can be solved with money is not a problem."

Fu Qiufang pinched the stack of banknotes and felt moved.Perhaps she was particularly vulnerable at this time, because the carriage bumped slightly, and she fell onto Li Weijian's shoulder.

The young man's shoulders were not generous, but Fu Qiufang felt extremely solid.Li Weijian took advantage of the situation and held him in his arms. For a moment, the car was rattling and swaying left and right. Fu Qiufang no longer heard any other sounds, except for the sound of Li Weijian's powerful heartbeat.

After a long while, she suddenly whispered: "Master, please accept me as your guest in a few days."

"Yeah." Li Weijian heard the soft whisper in his ears, and his heart suddenly swayed.Lowering his head to observe, the woman in his arms was close to him, quiet and elegant.He then lowered his head and rubbed Fu Qiufang's bun with his chin.

"I'll choose an auspicious day later and invite my eldest sister here. Although my title is just a concubine, I still want to be in a good position. I can't wrong you."

Fu Qiufang whispered: "There's no need to go to such trouble, just hire a small sedan and carry it around the house."

At this time, according to the etiquette system, taking a concubine had to report to the government and sign the purchase and sale documents.The man must pay a sum of money to buy a concubine, and the woman rarely has a dowry.

When passing through the door, a small sedan chair is carried in from the side door, and several bolts of red silk are hung in the inner courtyard. A banquet is served to relatives and friends to complete the ceremony.

Li Weijian would not be able to carry Fu Qiufang in on a large sedan chair, but he had to give him enough face.He thought to himself that in matters related to etiquette, Jia Lian was the most knowledgeable person. It would be better to ask Jia Lian for help later, as he would have to be more dignified.

After sending Fu Qiufang back to his mansion and accompanying him for a while, Li Weijian returned to Rongguo Mansion.On the way, Li Weijian said to Wu Haiping: "Let's go back and find a gentleman to check on the future."

Wu Haiping turned around and said with a smile: "Since the young master wants to see the future, then the younger one can take advantage."

"Uh-huh?"

Li Weijian stared at Wu Haiping playfully until Wu Haiping's face turned red.

"Sir, what do you think I'm doing?"

"Done?"

"Hey, Qian'er was drunk and acted on a whim... I thought to myself, I might as well do it as soon as possible to avoid Qian Xue complaining all the time."

Li Weijian said happily: "As a master, I have never taken a concubine, but you want to marry a wife first. Are you planning to make a big deal? Master Yinqian, I'm out, but your family is far away in Jinling, I'm afraid you won't be able to make it in time, right?" Wu Hai Ping said: "Common people don't pay much attention to it. They just have a good time by playing music and carrying it in a sedan chair."

Li Weijian thought for a moment and said, "That's fine. When we get married, let Qianxue come to my house to take care of me."

Wu Haiping was immediately overjoyed: "Hey, thank you so much for taking care of me, sir. When the day comes, we, the couple, will definitely serve you tea."

It was a life-long matter, and Wu Haiping was extremely attentive.I found three gentlemen in one day, approved the horoscopes, and chose two days for myself and three days for Li Weijian.

He turned around and asked Li Weijian for instructions, and Li Weijian chose May 28th and 28th.Wu Haiping got married on the [-]th and had a seven-day holiday, just in time for Li Weijian to take a concubine on the [-]th.

Li Weijian was afraid that Wu Haiping would be too busy by himself, so he sent Jia Yun to help.After five or six days of this, it was the wedding day.

On this day, Wu Haiping borrowed the tall horse, dressed in a bright red wedding dress, and rode through the streets.After blowing and beating, they paid sixteen betrothal gifts in vain, and made a lively half-circle around the inner city before arriving at the small courtyard in the back street of Ningrong.After picking up Qian Xue, who was also wearing the same wedding dress and covering her head, she walked around half a circle, and then she was done.

Later, because Gao Tang was not there, he invited Li Weijian to take the seat.The couple made three bows before serving tea to Li Weijian.

At the banquet were either the maids around Li Weijian, the maids and maids whom Qian Xue knew, or the servants Wu Haiping had befriended. Because Li Weijian had a glass of wine, he got up and left the banquet.

Later, I heard Xiu Ying come back and said that several servants of the Rongguo Mansion got into a fight after drinking too much. They were thrown out by the Ding brothers one by one, and then they calmed down.

When Qingwen, Xiuying and other maids came back, Li Weijian saw Xiuying pursed her lips and felt very depressed.Qingwen was also kind-hearted. Knowing that Xiuying was in a bad mood today, she exchanged money with Xiuying for a day.

At night, except for not going into the alley, Li Weijian resorted to all kinds of tricks until Xiu Ying was lost three times before he gave up.

When the wind subsided and the rain subsided, Xiu Ying nestled in Li Weijian's arms and took a long time to catch her breath.He reached out his fleshy little hand and lightly punched Li Weijian's chest, and said angrily: "Young master is a bad person!"

"So that you don't have to worry about anything in your mind. Haiping just got a wife, and he didn't disown you. Who can he show his slumped face to?"

Xiu Ying said in a muffled voice: "I know...but I just feel unhappy. I always feel that my brother now only has eyes for my sister-in-law and not me."

Li Weijian hugged Xiu Ying tightly and said, "I will love you in the future. Believe it or not, if I bully you later, Haiping will definitely come looking for me, right?"

Xiu Ying thought for a moment, laughed, then leaned towards Li Weijian and whispered, "Young master will not bully me."

Li Weijian said happily: "Who said that? Didn't you bully me three times just now?"

Xiu Ying suddenly became dissatisfied.For a wild girl from the countryside, how can this thing about having sex be considered bullying?It felt like her soothing soul had flown away, but it was because she couldn't hold on for a while now, and she wished she could come back twice more.

Suddenly, Xiu Ying started to smile foolishly.

Li Weijian didn't ask, but she said, "Master, there's only half a month left."

Li Weijian was immediately intrigued and couldn't help but feel a little hopeful.

Suddenly, Li Weijian rushed to Li Wan early in the morning and told Li Wan the set date.The eldest sister gave me some warnings, so I didn’t mention it.

Later Li Weijian went to find Jia Lian again.Hearing that Li Weijian wanted to take a concubine, Jia Lian was puzzled and asked some questions, but he never asked whose family the girl was from.When he heard that Li Weijian asked him to host it, Jia Lian immediately agreed without any hesitation.

Who in the capital today doesn’t know Li Caishen?Now that we have made friends, with a little help in the future, I may be able to make a fortune.

After bidding farewell to Jia Lian, Li Weijian led four maids to his mansion, in the name of helping, but actually to recognize Fu Qiufang.

Among the four maids, Hongyu is the smart one. Although she is not very thoughtful, she also knows that this is inevitable, because she still smiles on her face;

Xiangling and Xiuying are both dumb and naive. Xiangling's drifting temperament is like a lotus in a pond. Only the occasional sunlight shines on her, and she blooms contentedly there. Xiuying is more like a wild flower on the roadside, with her temperament. It was already tough, but it was moved into the greenhouse.Her heart was full of Li Weijian and she didn't care about Li Weijian taking concubines;
Qingwen felt a little uncomfortable, but she just knew that Li Weijian had her in his heart, and that was enough.He also thought that if Fu Qiufang was not easy to interact with, he would just have less interaction in the future, just say hello when he saw her, and just look good.

She thought this way, and when she met Fu Qiufang, she saw that he was quiet and elegant, and he had a lot of poems and books. No matter how he spoke or behaved, she felt close to him.

Qingwen still wanted to take a deeper look.The four maids pooled their money and gave Fu Qiufang a phoenix hairpin.Fu Qiufang smiled and took it away, then turned around and chose four more items from the list and distributed them to the four maids.

Qingwen got a pair of gold and crystal spider hairpins, and she suddenly felt secretly happy. She turned around so that Fu Qiufang could get together.

Li Weijian watched from a distance and saw Fu Qiufang smiling and responding appropriately; talking to Hongyu about housekeeping, Qingwen about dressing up, Xiuying about wild fun, and Xiangling about poetry.She is well-rounded and not philistine. She has such a natural temperament that many girls from wealthy families cannot teach her even if they want to.

Unexpectedly, it fell into his hands!Thinking of this section, Li Weijian couldn't help but feel proud.

For several days, Fu Qiufang showed favors and had a pleasant conversation with several maids through his words and deeds.Qingwen, who was a little reserved earlier, actually likes to be around Fu Qiufang the most.

Li Weijian felt relieved, thinking that he didn't have to worry about the fire in the backyard for the time being.

In the blink of an eye, the 28th day came, and Li Weijian's house was decorated in red and colorful decorations. The main room had been renovated, and bright red "happy" characters were plastered on the windows.

Fu Qiufang couldn't resist Li Weijian, so she wore a wedding dress and covered her head. At dusk, she took a four-person soft sedan for a circuit and entered the mansion through the side door.

Afterwards, Li Weijian lifted his hijab, and Fu Qiufang came out to serve tea to Li Wan.Li Wan kept his promise and picked up some decent heads and gave Fu Qiufang a set of silver silk-embedded pearl heads as a gift.

The maids and the servants each gathered at a table. At the main table, there were only four people, Li Weijian, Yan Fengzhen, Jia Lian and Jia Yun. Li Wan took another seat across the screen.After eating for half an hour, Li Wan stood up to leave for fear that Li Weijian had drunk too much.Yan Fengzhen made a few jokes and then left with Jia Lian and Jia Yun.

After Li Weijian had seen off a few people, he didn't care about the noisy hall. With Wu Haiping and Qian Xue watching over them, nothing could happen.Wearing a red robe, he headed straight for the side room.

There were two maids guarding the door. When they saw Li Weijian coming, Bao Xia smiled and said, "Auntie, the master is here."

Li Weijian raised his feet and walked in, and saw Fu Qiufang coming over to greet him. When he saw Li Weijian, Fu Qiufang lowered his head and bowed deeply, saying with a deep salute: "Master."

(End of this chapter)