Chapter 675: South of the City [Many thanks! Bow again! Debt 38k]

Bianjing City,

every Qingming Festival,

even if it isn't raining, the sky is gloomy, and this year was no exception.

In the morning,

outside the Nanxun Gate,

by the Dragon Protection River,

Xu Zaijing rode his little Li horse and stopped under a tree, looking at the city gate under the city wall in the distance.

In the city gate tunnel, pedestrians and commoners leaving the city were endless.

Qingming Festival was originally a day for ancestral worship and sweeping graves,

but for so many years, apart from families with new graves who would sweep them on this day, most other people in Bianjing would do it a few days in advance.

On the day of Qingming Festival, more people went out of the city to enjoy spring and relax, gathering for meals and drinks in the wild to feel the spring atmosphere.

Xu Zaijing looked at the sprouting branches of the trees by the river, breathed lightly, and felt the atmosphere of spring.

Today, the spring breeze was pleasant, the air was moist, and it was neither cold nor hot, making people feel very comfortable.

Outside Nanxun Gate,

Xu Zaijing had also been there several times,

a few years ago, he accompanied the sons of the Duke of England to accompany the Northern Liao envoys in archery, which was in the Yujin Garden not far from here.

At the end of previous years, the Great Nuo ritual teams coming out of the palace also left the city from Nanxun Gate.

At this moment,

a sound of horse hooves rang out,

Xu Zaijing turned his head to look, and it was Gu Tingye, Liang Han, and the others riding horses, followed by personal attendants and servants, rushing toward this side together.

"Whoa!"

After circling Xu Zaijing in a small circle, the horses stopped one after another, kicking up quite a bit of dust.

This forced Xu Zaijing to wave his hand to disperse the floating dust in front of him while riding his horse to the side.

"Hahaha"

Looking at Xu Zaijing's appearance, Gu Tingye started to laugh mischievously.

As a result, after laughing twice, the dust was blown over by the south wind.

"Pfft, pfft, pfft"

Gu Tingye, who also ate the dust, spat incessantly.

Liang Han glanced at Gu Tingye, who had made a fool of himself, and smiled, "Brother Jing, you came really early. Didn't you bring any maids?"

Xu Zaijing smiled, "I let them take the carriage and wait outside the Huang family garden first."

"Oh!" Gu Tingye nodded with a smile, turned his head, waved at the carriage behind him, and said, "You guys also go and wait outside the garden of the Earl of Shoushan."

"Yes, Young Master."

Liang Han to the side looked at the crowd on the road around them and sighed, "With such good weather today, it's a pity! There are too many people on the road, otherwise, we would have had to race."

On the other side, Gu Tingye, who had 'organized' himself, smiled, "Right, Fifth Brother, why didn't His Majesty confine you to Quyuan Street this year?"

Glancing at Gu Tingye unhappily, Xu Zaijing didn't speak.

Liang Han said, "Yuan Erlang, last year Brother Jing was confined at home, but you came out to play, didn't you think about finding trouble with that guy from the Zhang family?"

Gu Tingye stared, "It's not too late for me to find trouble with him today!"

Qiao Jiulang, who was talking to a friend while mounted, smiled, "Brother Gu Er, I heard that guy from the Zhang family left the city to worship before dawn and returned to the palace before the sun came out. If you want to find trouble with him, I'm afraid you have to enter the palace."

"Enter the palace? That won't do," Gu Tingye frowned and stood up on the stirrups.

After looking around, Gu Tingye said, "Why hasn't that brat come yet? Is he not capable?"

Liang Han turned his head too, "Yuan Erlang, Brother Huang entered the palace guard, and today he is leading the cavalry of the palace guard to patrol outside the city to boost the military prestige, I'm afraid he can't come so quickly."

"Patrol outside the city?" Gu Tingye's voice suddenly became louder, and he asked, "Which city gate is he going to?"

"Wansheng Gate in the west!" After Liang Han finished speaking, he looked at Gu Tingye's changing expression and asked in confusion, "Yuan Erlang, what's wrong with you?"

As he spoke, Liang Han also looked at Xu Zaijing.

Xu Zaijing continued to look at the scenery outside the city and said faintly, "Sixth Brother, isn't Gu's third younger sister going to your Wu Lou today?"

"Yes! Several noble young ladies in the capital are... cough." Liang Han, who understood, coughed lightly and didn't continue.

When Xu Zaijing and the others were talking,

outside the city to the west, on the Wu Lou,

Zhang family's fifth young lady stood in front of the third-floor window, pointed outside, and said, "Look, look, that cavalry troop has already returned."

The young ladies in the building stood at the window one after another, stretching their heads to look outside.

As palace guard cavalry, they naturally had tall mounts, bright armor, dazzling long spears, and distinct flags.

Such a neat cavalry troop had quite a momentum when looked down upon from above.

"Yo, yo, yo, the leader of the cavalry raised his flag again, what does that mean?" The Zhang family's fifth young lady at the window said, her tone full of teasing.

Feeling the gazes of everyone in the building looking at him, Gu Tingyi pretended not to see and continued to look downstairs.

"Mm?" The Zhang family's fifth young lady pretended to be confused and leaned over, pursing her lips as she looked at Gu Tingyi.

Watching Gu Tingyi, who was looking straight ahead, his cheeks gradually turning red, the fifth young lady laughed even more intensely.

Suddenly,

before the fifth young lady could react, she found that her wrist had been grabbed by Gu Tingyi with one hand, while Gu Tingyi's other hand reached toward the fifth young lady's waist.

The laughter and begging for mercy of the fifth young lady immediately rang out in the building.

"Brother Jing, since Brother Huang still has more than half an hour to come, why did we come here so early?" Liang Han asked again.

"The garden of the Earl of Shoushan, the Huang family, near Yujin Garden, is not far from the Elephant Raising Office."

"Before the Lantern Festival, I had nothing to do at home and read a few books, one of which mentioned elephants, so I thought I would take this opportunity to go and see."

After hearing Xu Zaijing finish speaking, everyone nodded one after another, and Qiao Jiulang smiled, "Brother Jing, why do we need to be so troublesome! As long as we give a few silver ingots, the Elephant Raising Office will naturally send the elephants to the residence."

Liang Han shook his head, "Jiulang, that's not right! There are no major ceremonies in the capital recently, and the elephants in the garden are not easy to borrow under the pretext of training."

"Ah? Is that so?" Qiao Jiulang smiled and scratched his head.

Xu Zaijing smiled, "Sixth Brother, do you know the way to the Elephant Raising Office?"

Liang Han nodded and shouted, "Diao Che, go and lead the way!"

"Yes, Young Master!"

Subsequently,

Xu Zaijing and the others turned their horses' heads and rode toward the south.

Along the way,

everyone was dressed in fine clothes and riding spirited horses, which could be called proud of the spring breeze.

Running happily, some people would occasionally shout a few times, attracting many commoners enjoying the spring on the side of the road to look over.

After riding for a while,

everyone gradually slowed down, and when they arrived at the gate of the Elephant Raising Office, their mounts were mostly panting heavily.

Looking at this group of young masters and playboys in fine clothes and riding spirited horses, among the soldiers at the gate of the Elephant Raising Office, someone hurriedly turned and went into the garden to report, while someone smiled and greeted them.

Diao Che, the attendant riding in front, smiled and cupped his hands, "This one, the little one is from the Marquis of Yongchang's residence, the sixth young master behind is my master, this one is..."

"Hiss!" After looking at the people behind Diao Che, the soldier cupped his hands repeatedly, "Please wait a moment, noble people, our manager will come out immediately."

After the soldier of the Elephant Raising Office finished speaking, a manager wearing official uniform ran out quickly.

The soldier left at the gate hurriedly explained a few words.

The manager smiled and cupped his hands, "I have met all the young masters! So it is the sixth young master in person, today the subordinate is truly lucky to see you in person."

"Mm, I and the brothers behind me want to go in and see, is there any problem?" Liang Han smiled.

The manager shook his head repeatedly, "Sixth young master, what are you saying! Naturally, there is no problem, no problem at all! But, the subordinate suggests that everyone's mounts should be left outside the garden to avoid startling the horses."

"Good!" Liang Han nodded.

Xu Zaijing and the others also dismounted one after another.

Leaving a few people to watch the mounts, everyone walked toward the inside of the Elephant Raising Office.

Gu Tingye, walking side by side with Liang Han, whispered to Liang Han, "Sixth Brother, looking at this manager, he knows your family?"

Liang Han nodded, "In this Elephant Raising Office, whatever things need to be sold, they mostly go through my family's path."

"Besides elephants, what else is in here?" Gu Tingye frowned.

"Ivory."

Watching Gu Tingye's stunned appearance, Liang Han smiled.

Walking in the courtyard of the Elephant Raising Office, one could hear the calls of elephants from time to time.

"Noble people, please go upstairs," the manager pointed to a wooden building and smiled.

Everyone went up to the wooden building,

and saw the elephants in the courtyard downstairs.

Gu Tingye pointed to a deep pit in the courtyard and asked in confusion, "Manager, what is that deep pit used for?"

"Replying to the young master, that is for training elephants, and sometimes it is also used to trim the elephants' toenails."

Gu Tingye nodded, "Oh!"

While talking to the side, Xu Zaijing, Qiao Jiulang, and the others nodded one after another.

Subsequently, everyone looked at an elephant surrounded by people in the courtyard.

At this time, the elephant was kneeling on both front knees following the trainer's command, making a kneeling gesture.

The manager looked at everyone's gaze and hurriedly smiled, "Noble people, that elephant is the smartest animal in our garden, and it even has a name, called Lingli."

Hearing this, Xu Zaijing and Gu Tingye turned their heads to look, their eyes full of surprise.

Qingyun and Zhique, who were following, looked at each other, their eyes full of unclear meaning.

Seeing the manager confused and his expression stiff on his face, Xu Zaijing smiled slightly and said, "I wonder why the manager says so?"

Seeing this, the manager continued to smile apologetically, "Young master, listening to the previous manager's account, the barbarians who paid tribute to the elephants claimed that the elephant's mother was the leader of the elephant herd."

"Because it was injured, it was captured by the barbarians, and because it was smart and easy to tame, it was tribute to our dynasty many years ago."

Xu Zaijing nodded, "Oh? I wonder where that elephant is?"

The manager's expression stiffened, he hurriedly lowered his head, and said with some regret, "A few years ago, that old elephant died of illness."

Everyone nodded one after another.

Liang Han asked in confusion to the side, "Right, two or three years ago, did you look for my family, wanting to sell a small elephant?"

"Ah?" The manager of the Elephant Raising Office raised his head, "Sixth young master, you still remember this?"

Liang Han's expression was unpleasant as he pursed his lips and said, "Naturally I remember, that year after I finished saying this, I was almost punched to death by a Jin barbarian, how could I not remember."

Looking at the speechless manager, Liang Han waved his hand and added, "Was it slaughtered by a few sons of dukes and marquises?"

"Ah? How did you know?" The manager's expression stiffened, he looked at Xu Zaijing and the others, and then said sheepishly, "Yes, sixth young master."

After glancing at Liang Han's indifferent expression, the manager smiled.

The wooden building was quiet for a while,

and the sounds of training elephants, elephants walking, and breathing in the courtyard downstairs were transmitted up.

Suddenly,

a cry of surprise came from Qiao Jiulang upstairs, "Whoa, what a big pile!"

The manager to the side smiled, "This young master, things like this happen seven or eight times a day for elephants."

"Truly can eat and can poop."

Hearing this, everyone upstairs nodded one after another.

Liang Han smiled, "Jiulang, look at your appearance of seeing something rare. I thought you were going to taste it just now!"

Qiao Jiulang had a disgusted expression on his face and scolded with a smile, "Go away."

Everyone burst into laughter.

After watching the lazy elephants in the courtyard for a while, everyone felt a bit bored, so they turned and left the wooden building, walking toward the gate of the garden.

The manager of the Elephant Raising Office followed behind everyone, his eyes turning non-stop, obviously having ideas in his heart.

Watching the distance to the gate getting closer and closer, the manager who had made up his mind walked a few steps quickly and came to Liang Han's side. Just as he was about to speak, Xu Zaijing turned his head to look over.

"You came just in time," Xu Zaijing said.

The manager was stunned, "Ah?"

Liang Han to the side frowned and said, "The manager has some friendship with my family, so I will say one more word."

"Sixth young master, please speak, the subordinate is listening attentively."

"This elephant is a rare thing, the manager should still put some heart into it. If you raise it well, it's fine; if you raise it badly, it won't be easy to say."

"The subordinate understands, the subordinate will definitely put heart into it and treat the animals... elephants inside as my own relatives to care for."

"Mm!"

After finishing,

Xu Zaijing and the others left the gate, mounted their horses, and rode away amidst the rumbling sound of hooves.

"Boss, is there a new business?" The soldier who had been standing at the gate asked flatteringly while watching everyone leave.

"New business?" The manager turned his head with an unpleasant expression.

"Yes!"

"Slap!" The manager slapped the soldier in the face and scolded angrily, "Business my ass!"

The soldier, who was a bit stunned by the slap, covered his face, looked blankly at the manager walking back, and muttered, "If there's no silver to earn, then there isn't, why slap me?"

Everyone rode away from the Elephant Raising Office,

and after running for a while, they arrived at the east wall of Yujin Garden.

After circling most of the perimeter wall of Yujin Garden and crossing the official road that leads out of Nanxun Gate to reach the northwest corner, there was a stretch of palace halls to the south; that was the Zhai Palace of Southern Qingcheng, which the imperial family used for offering sacrifices to Heaven.

After running straight west for a while, they arrived near a piece of continuous residences.

Xu Zaijing and the others rode to the front of a residence.

At this time, Huang Qingyue, who had changed his clothes, was walking back and forth at the gate of the residence.

After hearing the sound of horse hooves, he walked forward a few steps, and after seeing the appearance of the visitors, a smile appeared on Huang Qingyue's face.

"You guys finally came! You really made me wait!" Huang Qingyue cupped his hands with a smile.

Xu Zaijing and the others stopped their horses, cupped their hands to return the salute with a smile, and dismounted at the same time.

After everyone dismounted, Huang Qingyue said, "Brother Jing, Yuan Erlang, Sixth Brother, brothers, come, please inside."

Xu Zaijing passed by Huang Qingyue's side, patted his shoulder with a smile, and stood beside him.

After some pleasantries, everyone walked into the courtyard together.

Of course, Gu Tingye's expression had always been a bit unpleasant.

Entering the courtyard,

a smell of charcoal smoke rushed into Xu Zaijing's nose.

"Big Brother, where is the fire being used in the courtyard?" Xu Zaijing asked.

Huang Qingyue nodded with a smile, "Today we are eating roasted lamb, the maids from several brothers' families, as well as the chefs invited from Fan Tower, are all busy in the courtyard."

Gu Tingye couldn't help but swallow his saliva upon hearing this.

Liang Han smiled and touched his cheek, "Brother Yue, how did you know Gu..."

Looking at Gu Tingye's glaring eyes, Liang Han changed his words, "I love eating roasted lamb the most?"

Huang Qingyue smiled and said, "Aunt once told me once, and I remembered it."

"My mother?" Liang Han asked in confusion.

Xu Zaijing shook his head with a smile to the side, "Sixth Brother, Brother Yue is talking about the aunt of the Marquis of Ningyuan."

"Oh! So that's how it is!" Liang Han smiled.

The others who heard this also laughed one after another.

Only Gu Tingye's expression was quite helpless.

Entering the courtyard,

the smell of charcoal smoke and the fragrance of roasted lamb became more and more intense.

Xu Zaijing looked at his own maid standing in front of the grill, with gray and black marks on her face, and a smile appeared on his face.

Qingyun, who was behind him, hurriedly stepped forward and smiled, "Three sisters, you go and serve tea and wine, let me do this."

Xu Zaijing and the others entered the room and sat down, and cold dishes and hot dishes were served one after another.

During the banquet,

Huang Qingyue stood up, raised his wine bowl, and said with a sincere look, "Brothers, the day after tomorrow the Jinming Pool will be wide open, I leave the matter of that day to you!"

Xu Zaijing and the others had smiles on their faces.

After hesitating for a moment, Gu Tingye also pursed his lips and raised his wine bowl.

Liang Han patted his chest and said, "Brother Yue, rest assured, the ones we found are all experienced hands, we will definitely go all out when the time comes!"

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 676 =====