Do you know that it starts with Meng Tong?

Several soft sedans were parked beside the road, and a large number of government officials were waiting around the soft sedans, including more than a dozen officials.

The leading middle-aged official was talking to the old patriarch, with a warm smile on his face.

Wei Chen took a closer look and discovered that this person was Xiang Shiyuan, who had just been promoted from Jiangning Tongzhi to prefect.

During the Hajj banquet at the end of last year, Wei Chen met Xiang Zhifu once in Jianji Hall, so he naturally knew him.

Wei Chen couldn't help but feel helpless when he saw this. He was returning to his hometown to handle private matters. He didn't even display his title tag along the way, just because he didn't want to make a big fuss and disturb the place.

After getting off the ship at Jiangning Pier, Wei Chen did not enter Jiangning City, which was nearby Chichi, but went straight to Xiyin Village.

Unexpectedly, when they arrived at Xiyin Village, there would still be such a big fight, even Xiang Shiyuan, the prefect of Jiangning, was alarmed.

When the magistrate of Jiangning went on a tour to Youyang, the magistrate of Youyang naturally had to accompany him. The two prefectures and counties traveled together, shouting in front of and behind each other, and the gongs and drums were so loud that it probably caused a sensation in all the villages ten miles away.

Fortunately, Wei Chen glanced around and could not find Liu Xun, the governor of Jiangnan. He must not be here, otherwise Wei Chen would really not know how to deal with himself.

"Congratulations to welcome Bachelor Wei to his hometown!"

Seeing the carriages and horses of Wei Chen and his entourage approaching from a distance, people at the entrance of the village were already bowing down. For a while, gongs, drums and firecrackers were blasting, making it very lively.

"Please get up quickly, please get up quickly!"

Many of the people who bowed down were elders of the Wei Chen clan. How could Wei Chen dare to entrust him? He immediately got off his horse and quickly stepped forward to help the elders up one by one.

After not seeing Wei Chen for many years, everyone could not help but feel a little timid and uneasy.

I had the intention to call Wei Chen "Brother Chen", but I felt Wei Chen's unruffled official aura, so I didn't dare to speak, and I didn't even know where to put my hands.

Wei Chen smiled nonchalantly, looking at these familiar yet unfamiliar faces, and immediately called his third uncle and fifth aunt over one by one.

Everyone's restraint was now a little less restrained.

At this time, Wei Chen saw Xiang Shiyuan, the prefect of Jiangning, walking towards him. He couldn't help but shook his head and smiled bitterly: "Brother Xiang, Wei is just returning to his hometown to visit relatives. Why should he be so extravagant and bother Brother Xiang to come? It's really frustrating." Kill me too!"

Xiang Shiyuan laughed and said: "It is true that the number one scholar returns to the province and welcomes you thousands of miles away. Brother Wei has achieved the rank of six yuan, which is unprecedented in all ages. He is better than the number one scholar. No matter how extravagant it is, it is not an exaggeration!"

Although Wei Chen came here in a low-key manner, he was not sneaking in disguise after all, and naturally he could not hide it from those who wanted to.

Xiang Shiyuan is such a thoughtful person.

In Jianji Hall, he saw with his own eyes how solemn Zhao Zhen was about Wei Chen's holy scroll, and he had long made up his mind to be on good terms with Wei Chen.

[In view of the general environment, it is now time for Wei Chen to return to his hometown to visit relatives, Xiang Shiyuan will naturally not let this opportunity pass by.

In fact, when Wei Chen set out from Bianjing, someone from the Jiangning Prefecture stationed in Beijing came back with a message.

After entering Jiangnan Province, Xiang Shiyuan was notified of Wei Chen's whereabouts at one stop along the way.

That's why Xiang Shiyuan was able to find the right time and lead officials from the two prefectures and counties to greet Wei Chen at the entrance of Xiyin Village.

ride a piggy

Chapter 266 Clan, Countryside

After all, Xiang Shiyuan was the magistrate of Jiangning and a fourth-rank official of the Mu Shou Fang. Although he wanted to curry favor with Wei Chen, he was still quite reserved.

The officials below did not have so many scruples. After seeing Wei Chen and Xiang Shiyuan finish speaking, they all rushed forward and rushed to greet Wei Chen.

Among these people, there are both magistrates from hundreds of miles like the magistrate of Youyang County, and left-hand government officials like Tongzhi of Jiangning. Needless to say, they have great power in the local area.

Although Wei Chen was already a respected lecturer, he could not neglect them, so he exchanged friendly greetings with them.

Zhang Ming and Zhang Xu followed Wei Chen and were introduced by Wei Chen. They became familiar with the officials from Jiangning Mansion and Youyang County.

There are certain things that these shrewd and ghost-like officials naturally know well without Wei Chen having to say much.

Therefore, the officials treated Zhang Ming and his son with great respect, and did not show any slightness at all because of their status as merchants.

The father and son were so excited that their faces turned red. These were valuable contacts that would be of great benefit to them in running local businesses in the future.

After such a set of procedures passed, it was already late, so Wei Chen proposed to go to the mountain to pay tribute.

People at that time paid great attention to the importance of life and death. Whether they were powerful officials or wandering wanderers, the first thing they did when they returned home was to pay homage to their ancestors' tombs.

Wei Chen came back to his hometown this time to worship his ancestors. Now that he has asked to go to the mountain to worship his ancestors, Xiang Shiyuan and others naturally have no reason to refuse.

Xiang Shiyuan and other officials went to the Wei Ancestral Hall for a break, while Wei Chen changed into light clothes and, accompanied by the old clan leader and clan elders, went up the mountain to visit the graves of his father Wei Zhaoming and his mother Song Ying.

The mountain paths in Wei Chen's memory had been widened more than twice and were all paved with stone slabs. Therefore, even though it rained lightly last night, the mountain paths did not appear muddy.

On the way up the mountain, the old patriarch and his neighbors were beside Wei Chen and talked a lot about Wei Chen's parents back then, and they were very emotional.

Listening to everyone's words, Wei Chen had a deeper impression of his parents, whom he had never met before.

The hill behind Xiyin Village was no more than a hundred meters high, and the group quickly reached their destination.

The tombs of Wei Mingzhao and Song Ying have been repaired a long time ago and are surrounded by green pines and cypresses. After Zhang Ming became successful, he specially arranged for people to go to the mountain to pay homage to them from time to time.

After burning yellow to offer sacrifices, Wei Chen sent everyone away and stood alone in silence in front of his parents' tomb for a long time. He went down the mountain just before noon and went with everyone to Wei's ancestral hall.

Not long after coming down the mountain, before arriving at the ancestral hall, I saw a stone archway with four pillars and eight feet from a distance.

Seeing this archway, the old patriarch and several elders of the Wei clan were full of pride.

Zhang Ming smiled and said to Wei Chen: "Brother Chen, the imperial court established this for you. Go and take a look."

Wei Chen nodded when he heard this, stepped a little faster, and walked to the archway.

But I saw a stone tablet erected under the archway, which read: "Civil officials dismounted here, and military officers dismounted here."

After seeing this domineering stone tablet, Wei Chen raised his head and looked down, but saw that the top of the plaque in the middle was the four big characters "Liu Yuan Ji Di", and two lines of small characters were written vertically below: "God bless you for six years." , "Youyang Weichen".

There are six plaques under it, which read in order: "The number one scholar and the first rank", "The first scholar in the Huiyuan Ranking", "The first rank in the imperial examination", "The first rank in the imperial examination" and "The first rank in the imperial examination".

"The first of the county examination" and "the first of the county examination".

This tall and magnificent archway is the highest honor in a scholar's life.

Six plaques stand side by side. There are only two such memorial archways in the world.

One is right in front of you, and the other is in Liuyuanfang in Youyang City.

That was Wei Chen's former residence in Youyang City. The former Jieyuandi was officially upgraded to Liuyuanjidifang, or Liuyuanfang for short, three years ago.

After Wei Chen won six yuan in a row, this Liuyuanfang became the place where the legendary Emperor Wenchang visited, with excellent Feng Shui.

Officials and celebrities from Youyang and even Jiangning rushed to buy properties in Liuyuanfang. Now, Liuyuanfang has gradually become a gathering place for celebrities, and real estate prices have soared to several times what they were before.

After passing the archway, there is the Wei Ancestral Hall.

When Wei Chen returned to his hometown, he wanted to have a feast in the village and give back to his clan, so he held a banquet in the ancestral hall for the people of the whole village.

Under Wei Ruyi's management, the temple was bustling inside and outside.The restaurant chefs invited from Jiangning and the village women who came to help were arranged in an orderly manner and were busy in full swing.

Next to the steamer stacked taller than a person, the chef flipped the pot and spoon, and flames rose from the top of the stove. After the squeaky boiling oil was put into the pot, there was a burst of human fireworks.

After Wei Chen settled Xiang Shiyuan and other officials, he sat in the ancestral hall and chatted with the elders of the clan about family affairs, field harvests, etc., but he didn't feel bored at all.

The old patriarch took the two young men to greet Wei Chen, and then introduced them: "These are the children of our Xiyin Wei family. They all passed the government examination last year. This time, Brother Chen, you are back, and I will call them to see you." See the world.”

When they met, the two of them were only thirteen or fourteen years old, and they were already children. Wei Chen couldn't help but admire them greatly. He immediately nodded and praised them, and then taught them some of his own methods of studying and seeking career.

Outside the ancestral hall, a dozen children wearing crotchless pants did not dare to enter the door. They just lay quietly by the window and listened, listening with great interest.

When the old clan leader saw this scene, he couldn't help but look at each other with the clan elders around him, his eyes filled with relief.

At noon, Wei Ruyi gave an order, and the deft village women rolled up their sleeves and started serving food.

Home-raised local chickens and ducks, fresh river aquatic products fished from Jingxi River, and steaming hot dishes were put on the table one after another.

As for the wine, it’s amber tribute wine, of course.

The somewhat faded red lacquered wooden table in the ancestral hall was filled with dishes. People from the Wei clan, young and old, were all serving the dishes. For a while, the ancestral hall was full of people and extremely lively.

After three rounds of drinking, Wei Chen toasted table after table. Everyone smiled and praised, Brother Chen has become such a big official, but he is not arrogant at all, and he still takes us fellow villagers in his heart.

When the banquet was almost finished, the folks were busy packing up the remaining food and wine on the table and taking them home.

The villagers are frugal, and the food and wine at the banquet are taken home, stewed, and eaten hot. Sometimes the family can eat for several days.

While the villagers were busy, Wei Chen and Xiang Shiyuan, the prefect of Jiangning, went to the house to drink tea and play chess.

The two talked for half an hour. What exactly they said was unknown to outsiders. They just saw the two of them coming out of the house together, chatting happily.

Then Xiang Shiyuan said goodbye to Wei Chen. Xu Ning, the magistrate of Youyang County, stayed for a while, but seeing that it was getting dark, he had to say goodbye and leave.

At night, Wei Chen slept in his ancestral house. He slept soundly until he woke up naturally.

Early the next morning, Wei Chen returned to Sheng's Free School to visit two teachers, Shi Kai and Lin Yan.

These two people, one is Wei Chen's disciple, and the other is Wei Chen's Confucian teacher. They are very kind to Wei Chen. Wei Chen bows to them one by one with the disciple's etiquette.

】

By the way, Shi Kai is now a student member, and was hired by Sheng Wei as a private tutor, specializing in teaching Mongolian children under the age of ten. He is a well-known Mongolian teacher in Jiangning Prefecture.

There was even a prince's family in Jiangning City who sent his children to free schools and asked Shi Kai to enlighten them by name.

After revisiting his old place, visiting his teachers, meeting his classmates and old friends, and socializing in the officialdom, after staying in Youyang for five days, Wei Chen finally took the ancestral tablet from the Wei ancestral hall and set off back to Bianjing.

It is now mid-March.

The wedding day is approaching.

Chapter 267 The auspicious time has arrived

The ninth year of the Great Zhou Dynasty.

Sixth of April.

It was early in the morning, it was still dark, but Wei Zhai located in Laoya Lane was already brightly lit and bustling with people.

Wei Chen was wearing Xuan Xun's official uniform, a black dark coat, a red-yellow lower skirt, a three-beam Jinxian crown on his head, soap-colored thick-soled official boots, and a rhinoceros belt tied around his waist.

There are pearls and jade hanging down from the ears on both sides of the Jinxian crown, also known as "ear ears". At this moment, it is swaying gently as Wei Chen moves forward.

This outfit is the attire worn by scholar-bureaucrats with official status in the Zhou Dynasty when they got married.

At dawn, Wei Chen dressed neatly under the service of the maids and envoys, then left his yard and went to the newly built Wei family ancestral hall on the east side of the front hall.

Wei Chen stood still down the hall and respectfully saluted Wei Xicun in the hall.

Wei Xicun is the third younger brother of Wei Chen's grandfather. He is the elder in Xiyin Village who has the closest bloodline to Wei Chen. He recently returned to Bianjing from Youyang with Wei Chen.