Chapter 225 Han Xing and Twelve Niang’s Wedding
Jin Sui is about to get mad! If he doesn’t set off now, the heavy snow will block the road, and he will have to wait until next year to come to the border town!
What is Gu Changxiao doing in Chang'an?
What I worry about is what comes true. I didn't expect the first snow of this year to be so heavy and last so long. Three days of light snow, followed by three days of heavy snow.
Soon Cheng Yu received a notice that many mountain roads in Yan were blocked by snow and were impassable.
Yan Shiyi came running and said that there was news from the post station in the northern border that some caravans were stranded on the road and needed people to pick them up.
What was even more worrying was that the news from Chang'an had been cut off. The mountains were blocked by heavy snow and the news could not be delivered.
The only people who were happy about the heavy snow were the officials in charge of the wheat experimental fields, because auspicious snow meant a good harvest, and heavy snow meant a high wheat yield next year.
But they didn't dare show it in front of others, especially in front of Miss Ling. All the officials who went to the palace to report came back saying that Miss Ling looked very unhappy.
The officials from Chang'an were completely tamed. Miss Ling used to be quite gentle, and she used all kinds of tricks on them. Miss Ling now is like a barrel of gunpowder, which will explode if a spark falls. Who dares to offend her? Li Heng didn't need to teach ideological and political classes, they were all very active, and more than a dozen officials submitted policy papers on the issue of snow prevention and disaster relief.
After the snow stopped, there was no snowstorm in the border town, but there was in other cities in Yan. Houses collapsed and people were displaced.
The officials reported it, and Jinsui sent people to rescue the disaster. Because the roads were blocked, they were afraid of triggering an avalanche by using gunpowder, so they could only reluctantly shout. The local nobles cooperated with the government to rescue the disaster, and the court would reward them afterwards, but if they refused to rescue the disaster, they would be severely punished!
Jin'an and Grandpa Ling still lived in the Taoist temple, but Jinsui built a kang for them so they wouldn't feel cold at night. The same was true at the college. After the construction site stopped working, the female students did some light work on the kang.
The caravans stranded on the road did not need our help, but Jinsui wrote a letter to the northern border and they sent people to pick them up. Fortunately, we have built many post stations that can accommodate these caravans.
In short, other problems were not serious, but the fact that he had lost contact with Chang'an made Jinsui very uneasy.
She was afraid that some nobles would take advantage of the heavy snow to block the road and plot a rebellion! She didn't know how much fish oil and gunpowder Gu Changxiao had left? Until the middle of the winter month, when the second snow was about to fall, the blocked mountain road had not been dug up, and there was still no news from Chang'an.
Jin Sui felt that he couldn't just wait like this. What if something happened to Gu Changxiao? Don't let the snow melt and we face an army that will besiege the border town.
She recruited soldiers from the hot air balloon flying camp. Yes, although hot air balloons have not yet become very useful, we have to train the "pilots" first.
She did not exaggerate, and said in a deep voice: "This mission is extremely dangerous, and you may not be able to fly out of Yandi at all. So I will not force you. Those who are willing to participate can step forward. I will never blame you if you are not willing."
The result was not surprising. All the soldiers took a step forward. Jin Sui smiled and said, "You are worthy of being our Black Feather Camp's brothers! Then I will issue a mission. Use the hot air balloon and sled to fly out of Yandi and go to Chang'an to meet His Majesty."
"Boss Ling, what should we bring to His Majesty?"
Jin Sui nodded and said, "It's not safe to carry weapons. You just need to deliver the letter and open a road from Chang'an to the border town. Once the road is open, weapons and food can be transported out immediately."
If you carry gunpowder in a hot air balloon, it is easy for the balloon to explode and people to die.
On this day, people throughout the Yan area witnessed a miracle: sixteen colorful hot air balloons flew into the sky at the same time, passing over mountains, state cities, and wilderness. After they fell, thirty-two soldiers slid out of the snowy mountains on sleds.
They would go to the post station for supplies and take off again when the wind was right. When the first hot air balloon flew out of the Sixteen Prefectures of Yan, countless people looked up at the sky.
It was simply the only color in winter. Although many people had seen hot air balloons flying, in the battle against Prince Yu, hot air balloons released leaflets from the sky, shaking the morale of the army and the people, and played a very important strategic role.
But no matter how many times people see it, they will always be amazed, and children will look up and exclaim: "I want to fly once too!"
The old man sighed: "Border Town is really where the gods live! There are even flying things like this."
The young and strong were thinking, after the spring ploughing, should they go to the border town to work as a temporary worker for a few months? It was said that there was a great shortage of people there, and anyone who went there would be able to find a job.
The border town will soon become the imperial city. Alas, when those refugees passed by, we laughed at them for going to the border to make a living.
I didn't expect that they have become citizens of the imperial city...
Due to wind problems, one of the hot air balloons failed to descend in time and actually flew into Los Angeles.
The people of Los Angeles are more devout to hot air balloons than the people of other states. Even though they know that the people on board are soldiers from the Black Feather Camp in the border town, they still worship them as gods.
Because of the plague in Luocheng, the medicine that saved them was given by Border Town. Later, Border Town also sent a lot of medicine and food.
The people cheered and took to the streets and fields, running wildly following the trail of the hot air balloon.
As a result, the soldiers above were afraid to land in crowded places, so they had to land hastily in the deserted wilderness, collect the equipment, and quickly go to the post station to get replenishment.
As it turned out, the post station in Luocheng didn't have any hot air balloon supplies. Maybe no matter how smart Miss Ling was, she couldn't have predicted that they would end up here?
Fortunately, the snow in the Luocheng area was not heavy, so the horses were still able to ride. They borrowed horses from the post station and galloped towards Chang'an.
Everyone knew the shock that hot air balloons brought to the people, so when they were almost reaching Chang'an, they raised the hot air balloons again.
The people of Chang'an were as happy as if it were New Year's Day, because for several days in a row, giant colorful balls flew through the sky every day.
There was also heavy snow in Chang'an. Although the roads were not closed, many rural residents were affected. The appearance of hot air balloons could not change the disaster, but it could inspire people.
Let them believe that the court's rescue will definitely come! Gu Changxiao met with the Black Feather Camp's flying soldiers. Hearing that Boss Ling was very worried about Chang'an's situation, Gu Changxiao smiled.
This was the first time he smiled sincerely since he ascended the throne in Chang'an. The words were short but the feelings were deep. No matter how much was written in the letters, the words were reserved.
Especially with Jin Sui's personality, it was very difficult to hear her say sweet words. Now, hearing her worries and anxieties from the soldiers of the Black Feather Camp, Gu Changxiao felt sweet in his heart.
He hurriedly said, "I was inconsiderate. I didn't expect that Yandi would be closed due to heavy snow. Can you go back?"
The soldiers hurriedly said, "We can go back! As long as there is wind, we can fly over the snow-covered mountain roads."
"Boss Ling asked to ask His Majesty what he needs. She dug a passage over there and had it delivered immediately."
Gu Changxiao laughed. Sui Sui must still think that he was killing people in the border town and that someone might rebel at any time!
However, they didn't know that anyone who had that ability had already been stripped of their power by him.
Originally, due to some government affairs, he planned to stay in Chang'an for the New Year. After the grand sacrifice, he would take the remaining officials and dignitaries and officially move the capital on February 2 next year.
But seeing that Jinsui was so worried about him, Gu Changxiao decided not to wait any longer.
It was announced during the morning court that Han Xing would stay in Chang'an with 50,000 soldiers and horses, not only to suppress the powerful and noble families in Chang'an, but also to provide assistance in the war on the northwest border.
He immediately moved the capital to a border town with a group of important officials, while the less important officials took the supplies and waited until the spring to leave.
I've never seen the emperor move the capital first! The officials naturally objected, but Gu Changxiao was determined and his objection was ineffective.
Of course, their opposition was not sincere, because the longer Gu Changxiao stayed in Chang'an, the more worried everyone would be.
Although General Han has the power to execute first and report later, he is certainly not as murderous as Your Majesty. Everyone can finally spend the New Year in peace.
They had previously received letters from officials who had already arrived in the border town, and they knew that the officials there were subject to extremely strict control and had heavy workloads, which was completely different from the officialdom in Chang'an.
They all started to worry again. They would have a hard time after arriving at the border town! What was even more hateful was that His Majesty could kill people, but he did not allow officials to resign. If they dared to resign, they would be transferred to the border. They did not dare to deliberately make mistakes and be dismissed, because that would easily lead to the loss of their heads.
The officials in Chang'an were panicking! Our Majesty is different from the emperors of previous dynasties. I wonder what the officialdom of the future will be like?
Han Xing and Shi Er Niang's wedding was hastily held, but because it was a marriage granted by the emperor and Gu Changxiao attended the wedding in person, all the high-ranking officials, dignitaries, nobles, and wealthy businessmen in Chang'an came to give gifts and attend the wedding banquet.
Han Xing has learned a lot from Jinsui about accepting gifts, so there is no such thing as bribery. Other generals would be afraid that if the gifts they receive are too expensive, the emperor would be wary of them or suspect them of forming a clique for personal gain.
But Hanxing didn't have this problem. Gu Changxiao even took the initiative to give a lot of rewards, reminding the guests in disguise that the gifts should be important! Didn't you see that the gifts I gave were all very heavy! Gu Changxiao thought of when Biancheng was still poor, Jinsui always thought of ways to hold banquets and let the Yandi nobles give gifts, and then auctioned or resold the gifts, and the gold and silver obtained were used for military supplies...
I miss Sui Sui even more! Speaking of the wedding of Twelve Lady and Han Xing, everything else was normal, because Yan Jiu was there, and the Yan family also had a separate courtyard in Chang'an. Han Xing went to the Yan family to pick up the bride, and Yan Jiuli married his sister with a red dowry.
The emperor gave rewards on two fronts. The one given to the Yan family was Twelve Niang’s dowry, and the one given to the Han family was a gift for Han Xing.
This wedding also made the nobles feel more at ease. It turned out that His Majesty did not intend to suppress all the nobles. Look at the Yan family, the number one noble family in Yan. Don’t they have His Majesty’s trust?
After further inquiry, it turns out that Yan Jiu was very helpful to Your Majesty when Your Majesty was exiled to Yandi. He was also the first nobleman to respond to the land reform. When the nobles in Yandi rebelled, he stood by Your Majesty and helped to quell the rebellion...
Everyone was confused again. It would be difficult to achieve the same achievement as Yan Jiu. If you miss the chance to follow the dragon, you miss it.
What they can do in the future is to actively respond to the new policies of the court. They no longer have the ability to support troops, and the emergence of high-yield grain in the border towns also means that the court will not be short of food in the future.
If the imperial court is not short of food, it would not make much sense for the nobles to hoard food. Alas, Your Majesty did not use iron-blooded means to deal with the nobles.
But this indirectly restricted the development of the aristocratic families. In a dozen years at most, they would go from being able to stand shoulder to shoulder with the royal family to being second-rate local tyrants, right?
In particular, Your Majesty attaches great importance to the poor and opens up many special examinations, and the monopoly of the education industry by the aristocratic families will also come to an end.
In short, this wedding made the people of Chang'an think a lot. If Jinsui knew about it, he would definitely tell them about what a man named Huang Chao did.
Your Majesty was very gracious and gentle in not using the household registration system to kill the noble families, but using the land reform system to limit your growth! You are still ungrateful and even call Your Majesty a tyrant in private!
If it was not Your Majesty who ascended the throne but Prince Yu, in a few decades at most, instead of Huang Chao, there would be Li Chao and Liu Chao, who would completely wipe out the aristocratic families that had been arrogant for a thousand years.
If there is one fun thing about this wedding, it is the young couple’s wedding night.
The dowry prepared by the two brothers was very complete, but no matter how complete it was, there was one thing missing, which was the mother or nanny who would teach the bride the art of sex the night before the wedding.
There weren't even two fire avoidance maps.
Shi Er Niang had lost her mother a long time ago, and her foster nannies were all in the border town. The young nanny sent by Yan Shiyi to deliver her dowry was embarrassed to mention it, thinking that someone had already taught Shi Er Niang.
Even Yan Jiu, who is always very meticulous in his plans, forgot to take this into account!
This resulted in Twelve Niang's wedding night, where she lifted her veil, drank the wedding wine, took off her wedding dress and removed her makeup, and then the couple covered themselves with the quilt... and just chatted.
At first, Han Xing patiently chatted with her, thinking that she was shy. Anyway, they were talking about things in the border town, and he was interested.
But when they were talking at 9:00 p.m., Twelve Niang said she was sleepy. She had gotten up before dawn to dress and go to bed.
Han Xing belatedly asked, "Twelve Lady, do you know what to do in the bridal chamber?"
Twelve Lady blushed and said shyly, "Of course I know. Then, I'll close my eyes and you kiss me faster."
Han Xing: "...Just a kiss?"
Twelve Lady opened her eyes wide and looked at him curiously: "What else is there to do?"
Suddenly she thought of something and became shy again. She shrank her feet and said, "If you want to touch my feet, I'll spray some perfume first."
"Why should I touch your feet?"
"Isn't it said that only the husband can touch a woman's feet? Then isn't it the husband who looks at his wife's feet on the wedding night?"
Han Xing looked at Twelve Niang tenderly, thinking of the night in the northern border when he applied medicine to her wounds and her jade-like skin.
His face turned red, and his eyes flashed with the light of a hunter looking at his prey. He slowly approached, put his arm around Twelve Niang's shoulders, and let her lean on him.
Han Xing turned over, looked down at her, looked into her eyes and said, "Then let me teach you, how about the bridal chamber..."
Kissing those rose-like lips, Han Xing's movements were equally clumsy, because he had also seen it from the fire avoidance map, but had never put it into practice.
The red candles are flickering, the incense is cold, there is cold wind and snow outside, and there is spring light inside the house.
In the palace, Gu Changxiao invited Yan Jiu into the palace very rarely, and the two of them had a drink in the middle of the night.
Don’t think that their relationship has improved, but Gu Changxiao told Yan Jiu that he had to go with him and ride back to the border town as fast as possible.
Yan Jiu was helpless. He didn't want to ride a horse, especially in the cold winter, and following Gu Changxiao would definitely mean a forced march.
He wanted to sit in a big carriage, warm himself by a charcoal fire, covered himself with a thick blanket, drink tea and read a book, and slowly make his way to the border town.
But Gu Changxiao disagreed. Everyone else could walk slowly, but Yan Jiu was the only one who had to walk with him.
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