Chapter 486: August [Thanks! Thanks again! 38k owed]

The first quarter of the Si hour (after 9:00 AM).

Sheng Family School,

'Recess' time.

Gu Tingye sat in the middle and couldn't help but yawn.

He had woken up much earlier than usual today and had been reading for several hours straight, so he was already a bit sleepy.

He wiped away the tears that had leaked from the corners of his eyes due to the yawn,

and Gu Tingye looked suspiciously at Changbai, who was sitting to his front-left.

Changbai sat with his posture upright and his expression focused.

He then turned his head to look at Xu Zaijing, who was sitting behind him.

Seeing the bright look in Xu Zaijing's eyes as he looked at him, it was clear at a glance that he was full of energy and didn't have the slightest hint of sleepiness.

Gu Tingye pursed his lips in frustration, rubbed his face vigorously, and continued reading.

At the very front of the school,

Scholar Zhuang sat on a Luo Han chair in front of a screen, gently waving a folding fan.

There were fewer than ten students in the school,

and this Luo Han chair was about the same height as the desks of Xu Zaijing and the others.

Scholar Zhuang sat on the Luo Han chair, looking down from a high position,

and he could see quite a lot of the situation in the school from the corners of his eyes.

Especially the students' movements; when the old man looked directly, everything was in full view, and he could see everything clearly.

Having learned from Changbai that Gu Tingye had arrived at school early this morning,

therefore,

a faint, appreciative smile appeared on the corners of Scholar Zhuang's mouth.

"I wonder how long you can keep this up!"

Scholar Zhuang said softly while waving his fan.

At this moment,

within Scholar Zhuang's field of vision was Qi Heng, who had just turned his head to look at a book.

Although Qi Heng was pretending to talk to Changfeng about their studies,

Scholar Zhuang saw it clearly:

when this young duke Qi Heng turned his head, his gaze clearly paused for a moment in the direction of the Sheng family's Sixth Da Niangzi.

"Brother Qi Heng, I read a new poem yesterday..."

Seeing Mo Lan said softly after Qi Heng turned his head.

"Fourth Sister, tell me about it; I wonder if I've heard it before."

Qi Heng looked at Seeing Mo Lan candidly and said with a smile on his lips.

As the two were talking,

Seeing Mo Lan nodded from time to time, and finally said, "I really hadn't thought of the angle from which Brother Qi Heng evaluated this poem."

Qi Heng smiled and nodded.

Rulan lay on her desk, rolled her eyes at Seeing Mo Lan in disgust, and silently mouthed the words "fox spirit."

And Minglan, who had a chubby face, sat at the very back, still focused on her writing.

Seeing this scene,

Scholar Zhuang shook his head helplessly.

In the afternoon,

after Scholar Zhuang announced the end of class, he walked out leisurely, waving his folding fan.

While walking on the small path back to his own courtyard,

"Scholar."

Scholar Zhuang turned his head, looked at the little maid carrying a book box, and smiled: "Is Fifth Young Master not going to continue working hard today?"

Xu Zaijing nodded embarrassedly: "Scholar, in a few days it will be the Ghost Festival. On that day, the student and my elder brother need to ask for a day's leave to go to the Daoist temple."

Scholar Zhuang closed his folding fan, put away his smile, nodded, and said in a deep voice: "This is a major national event. Go."

"Yes, Scholar! This student takes his leave."

After Xu Zaijing finished speaking,

the little maid following behind him also bowed to Scholar Zhuang.

Scholar Zhuang nodded again,

and as he watched Xu Zaijing turn and leave, his eyes were full of appreciation and expectation.

A few days later,

Ghost Festival,

Ancestral Hall of the Marquis Yongyi's Mansion,

because his father Xu Minghua was in Bianjing this year,

Xu Zaijing, along with Zaizhang, brought their eldest nephew Dai Ge'er and followed behind Xu Hou into the Xu family ancestral hall.

After burning incense for the sacrifice and offering vegetarian food,

Xu Xingdai was left at the Marquis's mansion,

and Xu Minghua led the group out of the main gate, rushing toward the Daoist temple together with the Marquis's personal guards and old acquaintances who had prepared the carriages.

On the road,

Xu Zaijing rode his little chestnut horse in the middle of the procession,

and Qingyun followed behind him to the side, saying: "Young Master, I noticed that Chu Zhan kid seems to have something bottled up in his stomach."

Hearing this, Xu Zaijing looked back and happened to see Chu Zhan riding a horse that wasn't very old, frowning as he walked side-by-side with Alan, looking at him from time to time.

At this time, the Marquis's knights and carriages were on the road, so it wasn't good to disrupt the formation.

After Xu Zaijing nodded, he said: "Let's talk when we get to the Daoist temple."

Qingyun: "Hmm, I guess it's probably about the polo match."

Looking at Xu Zaijing's puzzled expression, Qingyun said: "Young Master, you've been busy with your studies lately so you don't know, but the polo experts among the Northern Liao delegation that entered the capital have already defeated several polo teams in the capital in a row!"

"They won them all?"

Xu Zaijing asked.

"Not exactly; there have been wins and losses, but in the last two days, they've won more than they've lost."

Qingyun replied.

Xu Zaijing nodded: "Then isn't the business at the polo field extremely booming?"

Qingyun said with a smile: "Young Master is right. According to that Chu Zhan kid, just from the two trees he's watching, they can take in three or four strings of silver a day!"

"Oh? That's really quite a lot."

Listening to Xu Zaijing's words, Qingyun continued: "I heard that prominent figures from several counties around Bianjing are also bringing polo teams to join in the fun!"

Xu Zaijing looked at the lively street scene and said: "Then, it's better to let these people compete first and select some strong ones. Otherwise, who knows how badly they'll lose."

Qingyun nodded repeatedly: "That's how it's being done now! Speaking of which, Madam Wu is really good at organizing polo matches; two days before each match, she spreads the word about where the polo teams are from."

"Whether it's high-ranking households inside or outside Bianjing, or commoners, many fellow townsmen will go to cheer them on. It's very lively!"

"Impressive!" Xu Zaijing exclaimed.

The two were talking in the procession,

and halfway there, they merged with the teams from the Sun and Zhu families.

As they gradually approached the Daoist temple,

Xu Zaijing stopped talking,

and while the flow of people on the road gradually became denser, the atmosphere also became solemn.

The teams of military merit families like the Xu family also became more numerous.

From time to time, masters of households dressed as military officers would walk over and cup their hands in greeting after seeing the Xu family's group.

Upon entering the Daoist temple,

the crowd dispersed and began to busy themselves with moving the sacrificial offerings.

In the great battle against Bai Gao,

the various armies under the command of Marquis Yongyi Xu Minghua, after the surprise attack on the various cities, the pursuit of victory to attack Dengkou, the westward expedition to pacify the remnants of Bai Gao, the great battle outside Keyi Gate, and many other battles,

even though it was a great victory, there were still many young men who died on the battlefield.

Especially the elite cavalry and infantry under the command of people like Zhu Qinghu and Di Jing.

Therefore, the Xu family had to move much more to the area around the "Qian Shan" of sacrificial offerings this year than last year.

Like the Xu family,

there were also many military officers and nobles in the capital, such as the Cao family, the Zhang family, the Zhe family, and others.

After a period of busyness,

when the Ministry of Rites and the people from the Daoist temple began to preside over the memorial service,

a group of people approached the Xu family.

After exchanging greetings with Xu Minghua,

a young boy walked to Xu Zaijing's side, grabbed his clothes, and whispered: "Adoptive brother!"

Xu Zaijing looked at Lu Zezong beside him and stroked his hair.

After the people from the Ministry of Rites and the Daoist temple were busy for a while,

someone from the Daoist temple entered the huge Qian Shan amidst the sound of drums to inspect it once more.

After signaling that everything was in order with the Qian Shan and that there were no children left inside like before,

the Qian Shan began to be ignited from the windward side.

Watching the fireworks ignite,

the faint weeping of the families and comrades-in-arms of the fallen soldiers began to sound around the Daoist temple.

As the fire of the Qian Shan grew stronger,

the raging flames burned,

and even standing a little close made one's face feel painful and uncomfortably roasted.

Feeling the heat of the flames in the distance,

Xu Zaijing pulled Lu Zezong, who looked a bit nervous in his eyes, behind him, and looked with a heavy heart at the blue smoke rising from the Qian Shan and the ashes of the paper sacrificial offerings.

Listening to the weeping and watching the smoke and dust,

for some reason, Xu Zaijing thought of the morning in Xingqing Prefecture of Bai Gao after the earthquake that day; it seemed to be the same scene.

The memorial service ended.

The people in the Daoist temple began to prepare to leave.

Among the Xu family's group,

Zhu Qinghu, Di Jing, and many of the Marquis's personal guards and newly promoted captains all had red eyes.

Chu Zhan was familiar with the personal guards, and influenced by the environment, he cried very hard this time.

As they were about to leave the Daoist temple,

Xu Zaijing saw several generals from the Cao family of Marquis Tuoxi.

The Cao family members were talking to Marquis Ningyuan Gu Yankai,

and Gu Tingye was also following beside them.

Not far behind Gu Tingye was Xu Yizhou, a brave vanguard soldier who had met Xu Zaijing twice before.

Marquis Tuoxi had been attacking cities and strongholds in the east, fighting hard battles,

and more soldiers and generals had died in battle than those under Xu Minghua in the north.

Many of the Cao family's personal guards had died in Bai Gao because of Xu Hou's son-in-law and Hou Gu's eldest son, Gu Tingyu.

Gu Yankai was talking to the Cao family members, also asking about the situation of the families of those Cao family personal guards who had died in battle.

Seeing Gu Yankai nodding continuously, it seemed that there were no problems.

Xu Minghua led Xu Zaijing and the others over.

After everyone exchanged words again, they walked out together.

On the return journey after the memorial service,

the solemn and mournful atmosphere seemed to dissipate all at once.

Xu Minghua and Gu Yankai were riding horses in front, talking about some military matters, occasionally commenting on a captain who had been transferred to serve under Xu Minghua.

Xu Zaijing and Gu Tingye walked at the very back,

and between their tall mounts was Chu Zhan, who was riding a horse.

"Young Master, Second Young Master Gu, you two are so good at polo, you must go to the polo field and teach those sons of b*tches a lesson!"

Xu Zaijing patted Chu Zhan's head in annoyance: "Watch your language!"

"Oh!"

Chu Zhan rubbed his head and responded, saying: "Teach those Northern Liao people a lesson."

Listening to Chu Zhan's words,

Gu Tingye looked at Xu Zaijing with great interest: "Jing-ge'er, shall we?"

Xu Zaijing shook his head and said: "The provincial examination is in a month, right? You want to play polo? Aren't you afraid Hou Gu will use you as a ball?"

Gu Tingye was sheepish for a moment.

At this time,

Zhu Qinghu and Di Jing rode their horses over.

Gu Tingye, Chu Zhan, Qingyun, and the others tactfully reined in their horses and retreated, giving up the position beside Xu Zaijing.

Xu Zaijing turned his head to look at the two: "Cousin, how is the music practice going?"

Zhu Qinghu's voice was a bit hoarse: "What do you think?"

Xu Zaijing nodded: "It seems you've practiced very hard!"

Di Jing's voice was also a bit strange on the side, saying: "Compared to practicing that music, I'd rather go and cut down a few enemy scouts."

Xu Zaijing raised an eyebrow: "If you go and cut down a few scouts, you won't be able to see His Majesty in front of the throne!"

Di Jing sighed helplessly. Suddenly, Di Jing looked at Zhu Qinghu and whispered: "I say, Fifth Young Master, I heard that you and Second Young Master Gu met the head performer Wei before?"

Xu Zaijing looked at Di Jing suspiciously and nodded: "Yes, I met her a few times before the head performer Wei became famous. I say, is it appropriate for you to ask this at this time?"

As he spoke, Xu Zaijing looked back at the Daoist temple behind him.

Di Jing shook his head: "Fifth Young Master, what's inappropriate about this? If I die in battle, knowing that my comrades-in-arms want to marry a wife and have children, I'd let the ashes of the paper money burned for me drift even higher!"

Zhu Qinghu smiled and shook his head on the side, but he agreed with Di Jing's meaning.

Xu Zaijing thought for a while and didn't speak.

Di Jing continued: "Then is she pretty? This head performer wears a veil all day long, which really makes people unable to see through her."

Xu Zaijing recalled it and shook his head: "I've met her a few times, but I haven't seen her full appearance; she was wearing a veil when we met too."

Gu Tingye, who heard the conversation from behind, squeezed over on his horse and asked: "I say, Commander Di, are you asking this because you want to...?"

Di Jing looked at Zhu Qinghu with some embarrassment on his face. Zhu Qinghu glared and said: "Why are you looking at me? I have a family!"

"I'm asking this on behalf of the brothers in the camp! We've met a few times, and everyone is curious about the appearance of the head performer Wei. I'm just afraid that she looks good with a veil, but turns into an ugly monster after taking it off..."

"But looking at that figure, it doesn't look like she would become ugly..."

Gu Tingye listened to Di Jing's words and shook his head helplessly: "Commander Di, there are quite a few wealthy households in the capital who want to see the appearance of that head performer Wei, but nowadays, perhaps only Brother Chai Jin has seen her!"

Di Jing glanced at the group: "The Chai family?"

Gu Tingye: "Yes! I heard from Sixth Young Master, who often goes to listen to music, that the head performer Wei is still a pure performer! I say, Commander Di, how much silver do you have that you want to marry the head performer Wei into your home?"

Di Jing puffed out his chest and whispered a few words into Gu Tingye's ear.

Gu Tingye's eyes widened in surprise: "You're offering that much!?"

Di Jing nodded triumphantly.

Gu Tingye thought for a while and shook his head: "Commander Di, that's a lot of money, but if you want to marry someone like the head performer Wei, you might need to double it."

Di Jing was surprised: "She's just a head performer who plays the pipa; does it cost that much?"

Xu Zaijing turned his head: "Haven't you entered the city much since returning to the capital?"

"Where would I find the time to enter the city! At first, I was busy with military drills, and later I was busy practicing that good poem you wrote, Fifth Young Master." Di Jing looked at Xu Zaijing with some resentment.

After Di Jing finished speaking,

Gu Tingye interjected: "Commander Di, take my advice; this kind of head performer is not a candidate for managing a household. To marry a wife, you still need someone..."

"I just want to take a concubine..." Di Jing said.

Gu Tingye: "..."

Xu Zaijing let go of the reins, patted Di Jing on the shoulder, and said: "What Second Young Master said just now isn't entirely correct. If you're really not afraid of others laughing at you, if you want to marry her as your main wife, you might not even need to spend money; you might even make money."

Gu Tingye was stunned for a moment, then patted his own forehead and said: "Right, right! Jing-ge'er is right! To be the main wife of someone as promising as Commander Di, people would even pay to do it."

Di Jing was coy: "I, I, I really just want to take a concubine."

Gu Tingye shook his head and replied: "That's not enough!"

In the several carriages following Xu Zaijing and his group,

there were the families of the several comrades-in-arms who had died in battle, like Zhu Qinghu, who had come along,

there were Xu Zaijing's aunt, Madam Zhu Xu, and Ni Qiqiu,

and there was the couple Ni Tengyue and Xiaodie.

For the first memorial service for his brother-in-law who died in battle after his marriage, Ni Tengyue accompanied his wife.

Early August,

the students like Xu Zaijing who were facing the provincial examination,

Busy and overwhelmed.

At the same time,

because Northern Liao knights were participating,

the polo matches in Bianjing became increasingly popular.

The branches of the trees beside the polo field outside Jinming Pool,

already had wooden boards nailed to them and cotton pads tied on, becoming "luxury" seats that were not cheap.

At the exit of the polo field,

from time to time, there were Bianjing commoners cheering for their fellow townsmen, and also people shouting "xxx! xx!" at some polo team because the polo was played too poorly or there was a problem with the betting.

It was also at this time,

that the delegation from the Jin Kingdom, which had crossed the sea, also entered Bianjing from the New Song Gate under the escort of elite Jin knights.

After the delegation was settled,

the accompanying Jin noble knights were summoned to the quarters.

The station envoy who had stayed in Bianjing for a long time took out a golden invitation and said: "Gentlemen, the Ministry of Rites of the Great Zhou has invited us to participate in the Bianjing polo match, and the opponents include a polo team from Northern Liao."

Although the Jin cavalry didn't play much polo, upon hearing this, the Jin knights looked at each other, and the expressions in their eyes made it unclear whether they wanted to play polo or fight people.

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 487 =====