Linxia

Chapter 65, Banquet

In the next few days, Cheng Shiliang seemed to want to regain all the face he had lost. He went out for several nights in a row. Once, he borrowed money from Fang Lin, Huang Di, and Chai Yiwei, borrowing two or three cents from each of them. He went back home the next day and paid them back as soon as he came back.

Fang Lin thought that this state would not last for a few days, after all, no one's kidneys are made of iron. But he did not expect that Cheng Shiliang would do this for nearly ten days. He would leave Xuan Mo Zhai after dinner every night, sometimes coming back late at night, sometimes coming back early in the morning. On two occasions, Huang Di asked them to go to Qiu Niangzi's house to eat meat, but Cheng Shiliang refused, saying it was boring.

——Here we must mention the curfew. The curfew was extremely strictly enforced in the early years of the founding of Daxia, but it has gradually been relaxed now, especially in areas outside the capital, such as Huai'an Prefecture City, an economically developed place on the coast of Jiangnan. The city gates are still symbolically closed at night, and the curfew in the city is almost in name only.

It's strange to say, that day Cheng Shiliang was still complaining about the expensive prescription, but recently he has gradually become extravagant. He once brought back some snacks from Ruyifang. He didn't tell anyone when asked, and was very secretive. On the contrary, he didn't pay much attention to the work at Xuan Mo Zhai, and made frequent mistakes. Even the good-tempered Manager Liu couldn't help but scold him twice.

During this ten days, Fang Lin did not fall behind in learning Chinese characters and he made almost no mistakes in pronouncing commonly used characters. His progress was so fast that even Manager Liu was amazed.

Every morning and evening, he would take a stroll along the route to the school and the teahouse, gradually forming a habit. Even before any opportunity came, he knew he would not be so lucky and was mentally prepared.

Fang Lin felt pretty good during these days. He knew his family was safe and he had his own things to do. He lived a fulfilling life every day but was not overwhelmed by the hardships of life. He also had a few friends he could talk to.

Such time has a clear touch and will not let you feel that a day has been wasted. It is like ink drops spreading in the water of a pond, allowing you to see every fiber it extends; it is also like a growing bamboo, where you can clearly see the growing bamboo nodes, forming the annual rings of time.

This afternoon, tomorrow is Fang Lin's next day off, and Shopkeeper Liu mentioned something: "I heard that Yang Juren's son, Xiao Yang Jinshi Hou, got an official position and will be appointed as a county magistrate in another province. He will host a banquet tomorrow and there will be a buffet outside the mansion. If you are interested, Fang Lin, you can go and take a look."

"Manager Liu, is this Mr. Yang the one who collided with the woodcutter?" Fang Lin asked curiously after hearing this.

"That's right, Fang Linni has also heard of this?"

"At the beginning, we came to the provincial capital, and a minor official named Xiao took us around the provincial capital..." Fang Lin told the story of what happened at that time, and did not even hide the fact that the other party took kickbacks from both sides.

Shopkeeper Liu sighed, "This guy is really evil. Not to mention the jobs in the street shops, the docks outside the city, the various workshops and factories in the city are all vying to hire people. They just go there and want them. Why do we need him to introduce us?"

"Yes!" Fang Lin responded.

The behavior of the petty official surnamed Xiao was fundamentally different from that of the intermediary - in all dynasties, the people were bound to the land, and it was only when Daxia issued a decree similar to the Single Whip Law that the people were released from the land, but they were still unwilling to leave the land. It was precisely because of this serious shortage of people that wealthy merchants set up a scheme to drive the fleeing people to the provincial capital.

In other words, the work at the docks and workshops in Huai'an City is simply a buyer's market where there are few people but a lot of work to do. People there are not in business for a one-time deal and rarely deduct or exploit workers.

The petty official named Xiao could not provide any security. Just based on a lack of information, he reaped the benefits of the dock while eating the flesh and blood of the workers. He is really black-hearted.

……

Come back home.

Today, the sky is full of rosy clouds again, and the evening breeze is blowing gently. Fang's father is sitting on the doorstep to rest, and Fang's mother is picking vegetables not far away. In the kitchen, the sound of Tian Xuan clanging pots and pans can be heard, and smoke is coming out of the chimney, rising slowly.

Time seemed to have stopped at the evening of the previous decade.

Fang Lin did not enter the house either. He just sat by the doorstep to help Fang's mother pick vegetables and listened to her chattering: "Old man Qiu and old lady Qiu next door are really good at living. They don't throw away the bad and rotten vegetables left over from selling them. They eat them all themselves. Grandma Man is a dog that can't change its eating habits. She was lazy again a few days ago and ordered Chuntao around, and was scolded by Master Ou. Old man Xin wanted to find a marriage for his son, but he couldn't find one, and he was worried to death..."

It wasn't a big deal, just some trivial daily stuff among neighbors.

"Dad, Mom, let's go to the theater tomorrow morning and have a buffet at Mr. Yang's house at noon," Fang Lin suggested.

When Mr. Yang hosted a banquet, there must be many distinguished guests, so perhaps he could meet an opportunity. Moreover, he also wanted to see the buffets of that era and broaden his horizons.

"You're talking about the banquet held when Mr. Yang became an official, right? The Qiu family next door is said to be some distant relative of Mr. Yang. They're also going to be there tomorrow. They're not having a buffet outside, but going inside the courtyard! But I don't like too many people. My son, you go!"

Fang's mother said, "I have also agreed with Xiaoqing and Guihua to come and make clothes together tomorrow."

She didn't go, Tian Xuan didn't go, and Fang's father didn't go either.

……

The next day, Fang Lin had to go alone. When he arrived at Yang's house, he saw two huge gold-plated characters "Yang's House" on the large round door inlaid with copper nails in vermilion.

At the door, there was a doorman receiving gifts, and Mr. Yang was also there to greet guests personally.

Fang Lin looked over and saw that this young scholar Yang was wearing a bright red robe with a round collar, a square scarf on his head, and cloud-shaped shoes on his feet. He looked very handsome.

Outside the door, there were eighteen tables in a row, with all kinds of dishes on them, including meat dishes such as lamb, duck, and fish, all steaming hot.

This is a buffet. As long as you are dressed cleanly and don't have any bad smell, you can sit down and eat as long as you say a few nice words.

However, compared with the mouth-watering aroma that occasionally wafts from the Yang Mansion, the chickens, ducks, fish and meat outside are far inferior.

"I heard that Mr. Yang invited Sun Erniang today. No wonder the smell coming from the courtyard is so fragrant!"

"What, who is Sun Erniang? Sun Erniang, the governor of Yingtian wanted to invite her to be the chef, but failed. Sun Erniang did not reject the face of such a high-ranking official, but said that she was used to being free and easy, and she would feel uncomfortable in the mansion. The governor of Yingtian gave up, but considering her cooking skills, he would send someone to invite her every month."

"Yes, I heard that Sun Erniang quoted a price of five hundred taels for a top-class meal, three hundred taels for a mid-range meal, and one hundred taels for a low-class meal. One banquet can eat up half the life savings of an average family." As the man spoke, he stretched his head and looked towards the courtyard with an extremely greedy look, as if only such a meal would make his life worthwhile.

……

Fang Lin listened to these voices and secretly sighed. With the emergence of capitalism, many people who were the first to become rich along the coast of Jiangnan were truly extravagant.

……

The time was slightly advanced. Just half a cup of tea before Fang Lin arrived, an acquaintance of his, Dong Zugao, a scholar who had helped him take a bath in Wengtang before, came.

Dong Zugao and Young Scholar Yang Shirong were former classmates and received an invitation to a farewell banquet. The invitation was not a simple piece of paper. It was folded in three parts, one and a half inches wide and five inches long, with a gold-plated cover. It was called a folded invitation at the time and was the highest-grade invitation at the time.

Dong Zugao came today with the invitation in hand, but he began to feel nervous when he arrived at the door - it turned out that all the guests coming today were dressed lavishly, all wearing the finest silk and satin fabrics, embroidered with gold thread, while he was only wearing a clean blue shirt, how could he not feel nervous?
But now that I’m here, I can’t turn back, right?

"They have invited me so kindly, why should I belittle myself?" Dong Zugao thought, gritted his teeth, and walked up with courage.

The one who greeted him was none other than his classmate Yang Shirong. When he first saw Dong Zugao, he was subconsciously stunned for a moment. After looking him up and down, he seemed to recognize him and said with a smile, "It turns out to be Brother Dong Zugao. Please come in!"

Dong Zugao caught the other party's surprised expression and immediately understood. He thought that they just sent a routine invitation and didn't expect him to come. He handed the gift over awkwardly and said with a slightly red face: "It's just a small gift, not a token of respect, but I hope you will accept it."

After all, they were classmates, so Yang Shirong accepted the gift and would not treat him badly, so he invited him to take a seat.

Inside the courtyard of the mansion, many tables were already full of people. Dong Zugao was arranged by the servant to sit at an empty seat at a table. As soon as he sat down, a young man at the same table glanced at him with a look of dissatisfaction in his eyes. Suddenly, he smiled and asked, "Do you know who are sitting at this table?"

Dong Zugao didn't understand what he meant for a moment: "I don't know, please enlighten me!"

The young man pointed at the two people next to him and said, "This is Manager Shi from Juxianzhai, and this is Mr. Gu from Rongxin Commercial Bank..."

Following this man's introduction, Shopkeeper Shi and Mr. Gu leaned back slightly, straightened their collars, and took a sip of tea.

Dong Zugao was a scholar after all, with a delicate mind. He listened to the man's playful words, looked at his luxurious clothes, and thought about his status. He suddenly felt cold physically and mentally. He stood up awkwardly and bowed to the person sitting at the same table, saying, "I'm sorry for being so rude."

Then he fled out like a fugitive. Yang Shirong saw him at the door and asked what happened. Dong Zugao lied, "I suddenly remembered that there were some things at home and I had to go back. Please forgive me for my impoliteness!"

……

Dong Zugao said to Yang Shirong and came out. Suddenly, he heard a shout from the side. He looked in the direction of the sound and was immediately surprised: "Brother Fang!"

……

(End of this chapter)