Dong Xiu De immediately felt a little regretful when he saw Fu Xiaoguan's answer so straightforwardly.
This small landlord from Linjiang is really rich! I should have extorted more from him earlier.
Poor Second Young Master of the Shangshu Mansion, he wasn't studying, but rather idle, spending his days either walking his bird or drinking. The Shangshu Mansion's finances were not abundant. As Su Mo and Fu Xiaoguan had said, the Dong family had only a shallow foundation in Shangjing. Even Shangshu Dong was still the first generation, which was completely incomparable to many of Shangjing's aristocratic families. But this Second Young Master Dong had developed a habit: he wouldn't drink unless he had Tianxiang, wouldn't go to a brothel unless it was Hongxiu's invitation, and wouldn't eat unless it was Sifanglou...
In short, this guy has a disease of affluence, but he is not destined to be rich!
Mrs. Dong was the head of the household and managed the family finances very strictly. She only gave him thirty taels of silver every month - which was already quite high, but the second young master Dong would spend it all in a few days.
Without money in his pocket, the man could not be strong, so he spent the rest of his days staying at home playing with birds. If a friend invited him out, he would use the excuse that the autumn examination was approaching and he had to study hard.
He knew that his sister was actually the richest person in the family, but his sister was also very stingy. If he begged for a long time, she would only give him one or two taels of silver, which he could use to treat three or five friends to a meal at Sifanglou.
Tomorrow is the first day of the Autumn Examination, but this guy doesn't take it seriously at all. In the morning, he heard Shulan say that he had an errand, so he went to Shulan's courtyard. Shulan gave him a portrait and said that you can take him to visit. There are many famous places in Shangjing, and he doesn't know where they are since he just arrived in Shangjing.
When Mr. Dong Er heard this, he turned around and left, saying, "How could I have the time to prepare for the Autumn Examination?"
But after Dong Shulan said something, he came here happily. The Autumn Examination was nothing!
Dong Shulan said that if you just tell him to give you ten taels of silver every day, he will definitely give it to you.
Ten taels of silver, that's enough for a night at Hongxiu Zhaolang!
Dong Xiu De had heard of the name Fu Xiaoguan. After all, the book A Dream of Red Mansions written by him was sold at a high price in Beijing, not to mention that this person also had his name left on thousands of stone tablets.
As for the things between Fu Xiaoguan and his sister… he thought it was great. Yan Xiwen always scolded him whenever they met, saying that he was not doing his job properly, not reading the classics, and that it was meaningless to associate with a bunch of bad friends, blah blah blah, just like his father!
Do you think this is annoying?
Look at Fu Xiaoguan, he is generous, well-educated and polite. The key is that Fu Xiaoguan doesn’t talk a lot of nonsense. Instead, he feels that the two of them have similar interests in some areas.
for example……
"Is there anything delicious in Shangjing?"
"You've asked the right person. There's a restaurant called Sifang right by Weiyang Lake. Let me tell you, the chefs there are no ordinary people. Three of them were once imperial chefs—you know, imperial chefs. They have eight famous dishes, all of which are world-renowned delicacies...Are you hungry?"
Fu Xiaoguan was stunned. It was only the beginning of the night and he had just had breakfast. How could he be hungry?
"Second brother, should we go to the Sifang Building later, or should we go to the Lanting Pavilion first? Can you tell me about the Lanting Pavilion?"
Dong Xiu De was not actually hungry, but he hadn't been to the Sifang Tower for a long time and was really missing it. Now that he had let Fu Xiaoguan come to the rescue, he decided not to talk about the Sifang Tower anymore.
"This Lanting Pavilion is located in Lanting Collection, which is located in the middle of Weiyang Lake. This place has a long history. If we trace it back... it's probably eight hundred years old. Lanting Collection is a gathering place for scholars, and poetry competitions are often held there. If a brilliant poem is produced, it can be engraved on one of the thousand stone tablets, just like your "Shui Tiao Ge Tou", which means to leave a good reputation for eternity."
Fu Xiaoguan thought this was a stupid thing to do. He felt that carving his name and poems on the monument would give him a sense of immortality.
The group of four sat in a carriage. Fu Xiaoguan and Dong Xiude chatted all the way and before they knew it, they arrived at the shore of Weiyang Lake.
Standing on the shore and looking up, you can see the vast and misty Weiyang Lake, and a building complex can be vaguely seen in the center of the lake, like a mirage, which is spectacular.
"The Sifang Building is over there." Dong Xiude pointed to the south and said, "Bring me ten taels of silver."
"What?"
"Oh, you don't know the rules of Sifanglou. You have to make a reservation for that table. Now is the perfect time to make a reservation. If you're any later, I'm afraid there won't be a seat."
Makes sense!
Fu Xiaoguan asked Chunxiu to take out a fifty-liang silver note and handed it to Dong Xiude, saying, "This is a big trouble for you, second brother. We need a private room. As for what to eat, you have more experience than me."
Look, isn’t this Fu Xiaoguan a hundred times stronger than Yan Xiwen!
Young, rich, and worldly-wise, where in the world can one find such a good young man? Where in the world can one find such a good brother-in-law!
"Brother-in-law, I, as your elder brother, will go to Sifanglou first, and you can take the black-sailed boat over there to Lantingji. I will come over after I have booked the table."
When Fu Xiaoguan called him brother-in-law, he wanted to give him another thousand taels of silver. It was worth so much. If Mrs. Dong was willing to call him son-in-law, Fu Xiaoguan would definitely give him ten thousand taels of silver immediately. Nothing is a problem if it can be solved with money, right?
Fu Xiaoguan casually took out a silver note from his sleeve and handed it to Dong Xiude without even looking at it: "Thank you, second uncle. I didn't bring any gifts for you, so take this and have some tea."
Dong Xiu De's straight eyebrows curved in laughter, "We're all family, don't be so formal!"
As he spoke, he took the banknote and put it into his sleeve pocket without even looking at it.
"Then we'll go over there first and wait for you at Lantingji."
"Okay!"
Fu Xiaoguan and the other two boarded a black-sailed boat. The boatman rowed the boat towards Lantingji in the lake.
Dong Xiu De then took out the banknote and looked at it. Oh my dear...brother-in-law! A full five hundred taels!
The tea money was generous, and this brother-in-law was convinced that it seemed that mother did not approve of their relationship, and father did not seem to express his opinion. This is a bit troublesome, and we have to think of a way to help them. But we must not let Yan Xiwen intercept it, otherwise there will be no tea money in the future!
…
Only when Fu Xiaoguan and the other two set foot on Lantingji did they truly feel the grandeur of this place.
There are winding corridors, pavilions and terraces, rockery and lotus ponds, and clusters of exotic flowers and plants.
Walking among the corridors and lotus ponds, you feel like you are in a paradise.
When you walk out of the corridor, you will see a three-story building standing in the center of a huge square. It is simple and elegant. Although it is not majestic, it has a strong charm, which is the sedimentation of history.
The plaque with three large characters written in a flamboyant style stands on the third floor of Lanting Pavilion, gazing at the tourists coming and going here, and it has been there for eight hundred years!
Fu Xiaoguan looked at the Lanting Pavilion for a long time, thinking about what Shulan said about the good disaster relief plan being posted on the wall of the Lanting Pavilion, so he walked forward.
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