Chapter 1683

"You and the Prince have no marriage contract, but you have two children, and both are boys. The eldest son will inherit the Luyang Prince's Mansion in the future, and he needs a father with status."

Chen Guanfu had considered every aspect and could be said to have put in a lot of effort.

Chen Guanlou was a little dissatisfied, "Two little brats, I didn't want to have them in the first place. What status I have is none of their business. You are just worrying blindly."

"Although you didn't want to have them, you ended up having them, and you had two. The children are growing up day by day, and you can't stuff them back into the womb. You don't need to do anything extra; you just have an additional Company Commander status, and you get a salary every month."

Chen Guanfu knew that the other party found it troublesome, so he tried hard to convince him that being a Company Commander was not troublesome at all, just an official status. He didn't need to report to the yamen, and there was an extra salary.

Only a fool would refuse money.

Even the smallest mosquito meat is still meat.

Besides, it was the court's money, so why refuse it.

It was this line of thinking that convinced Chen Guanlou.

"I don't have to take responsibility, I don't have to go on missions, I don't have to do anything, are you sure?"

"Sure!" Chen Guanfu said decisively, "I will hang your Company Commander status in the three major battalions to collect empty salaries. The three major battalions have tens of thousands of people collecting empty salaries; one more for you is not too many, and one less is not too few. Other nobles and families are all collecting empty salaries; wouldn't you be at a disadvantage if you didn't?"

Hearing this, Chen Guanlou immediately laughed.

"Fine! Since there is money to be made, I will reluctantly be a Company Commander. From now on, everyone call me Company Commander Chen."

"That's great!"

Chen Guanfu smiled with satisfaction.

It took two days to get his identity certificate, and he had a proper official status.

When Chen Xiaolan learned the news, she couldn't close her mouth from joy, saying she wanted to hold a banquet to celebrate, invite the people in the clan, invite all relatives and friends, and have a feast.

Chen Guanlou clicked his tongue in wonder, feeling very disgusted, "When I was promoted to Jiang Jiang Yucheng, why didn't I see you so happy? You are treating me differently."

"That's different. Jiang Jiang Yucheng doesn't count as an official!"

"Jiang Jiang Yucheng is the gatekeeper in the official order, how can it not count as an official. Truly discrimination!"

Chen Xiaolan continued to find reasons, saying confidently: "Jiang Jiang Yucheng doesn't sound good, nor is it decent. Company Commander is much better, and decent. Besides, once you hear Company Commander, it sounds powerful. On the street, Company Commander is much more useful than Jiang Jiang Yucheng."

Chen Guanlou rolled his eyes silently, his expression disdainful.

He was quite satisfied with his Jiang Jiang Yucheng status. Although he couldn't get recognition from others.

Chen Xiaolan demanded a grand celebration; this was a matter of bringing honor to the ancestors.

Chen Guanlou couldn't stop her, so he gave her 3,000 taels of banquet funds and let her toss about.

"3,000 taels is too much, it's not like we are eating dragon meat. 300 taels is enough."

"I am, after all, a Jiang Jiang Yucheng and a Company Commander. A banquet of a mere 300 taels doesn't match my status. People will only scold me for being stingy. Just 3,000 taels; if it's not enough, I'll make it up to you. Sister, you can't be stingy, don't just think about saving money for me. I don't lack this bit of money. Any prisoner in the prison is worth more than 3,000 taels."

Chen Xiaolan:...

It was her first time holding such a lavish banquet, so she was a little nervous.

"How many people are you inviting? I'll count them first. Then I'll find a venue."

"Borrow the clan's place for the venue. The courtyard by the clan ancestral hall is so big, it can hold a hundred tables. But it's hot right now, so spend some money to have people build a few more sheds. Provide enough cooling soup. In short, don't be stingy with money. I only have less than ten tables of people."

Chen Guanlou estimated that ten tables would be a hundred people, which was enough.

"Also, set up a table for female guests. Think about whose courtyard to borrow, give some money, don't just rely on face. If money can solve it, don't use favors."

Chen Guanlou's principle was to try not to owe favors.

Favor debts are the hardest to repay.

Every meal is a favor debt, which cannot be quantified and is sometimes hard to repay.

Chen Xiaolan picked up a pen and recorded it item by item, frowning, "If we do it your way, 3,000 taels is really not much."

Chen Guanlou made a prompt decision, opened the drawer, and took out another 1,000 taels of silver notes, "Spend it all. Don't come to see me if you don't spend it all."

Chen Xiaolan's mouth twitched.

Her younger brother's nouveau riche appearance was truly asking for a beating!

Her brother had grown up and was already a father, so she couldn't hit him anymore.

"Bring Erbao and Sanbao, and if Rongrong is free, bring her too. Such a large-scale banquet is a very good training opportunity. Let them take this opportunity to practice. In the future, they won't have to beg others when they hold banquets themselves."

"This idea is good!" Chen Xiaolan felt it made sense; children from small families lacked opportunities the most, all kinds of training opportunities.

Big families hold banquets during festivals, and children have opportunities to practice at any time, learning how to prepare, how to manage...

Over time, the gap between the two children would emerge.

"Will the Hou Fu hold a banquet?" Chen Xiaolan asked again.

"They won't. A tall tree catches the wind! The Hou Fu is mainly keeping a low profile now. Besides, for three hereditary Thousand-Household Commanders, there is no need for the Hou Fu to hold a banquet to attract attention. In this day and age, there are too many jealous people, and the court is in an uproar."

Chen Xiaolan sighed, "I don't understand court affairs, but I always feel that the Hou Fu is not as comfortable as before. In the first few years after I married, just looking at it, I felt that the people in the Hou Fu lived very comfortably. Whether they were men or girls, they lived very comfortably. Over the years, it has become more and more restrained, more and more particular. This is not appropriate, that is not appropriate... You say, what is the Marquis tossing about for so many years?"

"Of course, it's to be the master of the house, not to be a beast of burden and be slaughtered." Chen Guanlou chuckled, "Sister, don't think too much. The Hou Fu has so many guests and strategists, they have their own ideas, so it's not our turn to worry."

"You're right, I'm just worrying blindly."

Chen Xiaolan took on the heavy responsibility of holding the banquet and started to get busy.

With money in hand, even the most difficult things had people to help share the worries.

She invited prestigious people in the clan to help write invitations, choose dates, and set the menu. The portions had to be sufficient, and the dishes had to be complete. Mainly meat dishes, with two or three vegetable dishes to relieve the greasiness.

In this day and age, the more meat dishes at a banquet, the more decent it is.

In the Chen clan, not every family is wealthy. Many families only eat meat once every half month, so they are very greedy.

She also arranged to invite cooks, build stoves, and borrow pots and pans.

They needed a complete set of tableware for plating to look decent. The clan didn't have that many sets, but the Hou Fu did. However, the Hou Fu's tableware was too precious, so Chen Xiaolan didn't dare to ask for it, fearing that if she broke it, she couldn't afford to pay for it. She could only find a restaurant, spend money to rent it. By the way, she rented more than a dozen waiters from the restaurant to help.

With money spent and spent in the right place, the banquet preparation work went extremely smoothly.

On Chen Guanlou's side, he personally delivered the invitations.

The first one he sent was to Sun Daoning. It didn't matter if the other party came or not, the key was that he must deliver the invitation to the other party's hands.

Sun Daoning took the invitation and laughed, "After so many years, it's rare to see you hold a banquet to treat guests. Fine, I will definitely be there to congratulate you on the day."

Chen Guanlou:...

Such a high-ranking official attending a banquet was inappropriate, making others nervous. At the banquet, everyone else was a minion, and he was the only Second-Rank official, which easily ruined the banquet atmosphere!

So, he couldn't spit out ivory from a dog's mouth and said, "Actually, you don't have to come, just send the gift, I don't mind, I really don't mind!"