Chapter 258 258. Emperor, Don’t Gossip Too Much
Aren’t parties all about eating, drinking, and having fun? Why should we care about what others wear or what accessories they wear?!
Zhou Yi was still trying to recognize the person, and the old housekeeper next to him lowered his voice and chattered.
They said that the jade pendant was awarded by the emperor a few years ago, and why it was awarded, and that the purpose of wearing the jade pendant was to show something to him. They also said that this official had just been promoted, so his clothes were not as expensive and decent as those of the old aristocratic families.
Zhou Yi felt overwhelmed after hearing this, but finally decided not to embarrass himself. He exchanged a glance with Lei Li, and the couple ran away together in perfect tacit understanding.
The back door of the Marquis' Mansion was for female family members and servants to enter and exit, and it was located in a secluded alley.
Beijing has strict rules.
The separation between men and women here is quite strict. The women in the mansion do not go out easily, especially young women and unmarried girls and boys. If they go out often, they will seem not dignified and steady enough, and some people may even think they are frivolous and impetuous, which will affect their reputation and make them look bad for their husbands.
But the women in the family couldn't stay in the mansion all the time, so when they wanted to go out, they would not go out through the main gate, but would go out through the back gate and take a carriage to go out for a walk.
The servants also need a car to deliver their shopping.
Therefore, the alley is very spacious and leads to the downtown area. Compared to Daqianmen where every move is watched, it is more suitable for running away... or going out for fun.
The back doors of the mansions and official residences on this street all opened onto this alley. Many servants and maids were walking back and forth. Zhou Yi and Lei Li, dressed simply, easily blended in among them, staying away from the marquis's mansion with its red gates and high walls.
It is not yet the hour of Xu, and there are still more than two hours before the curfew at the hour of Hai. Lei Li and Zhou Yi can have a good time to explore Beijing and fill their stomachs.
Beijing is prosperous.
Compared with the economic center, Nakagawa Prefecture, Beijing, as the dual center of economy and politics, is more solemn and orderly.
The shops on the street are neatly arranged and not prominent. Even the signs look similar, as if they came off the same assembly line. The small vendors also have their own positions.
Everyone was shouting hard to attract customers, using all kinds of tricks. There were children who wanted to have candied haws, but their parents forcibly took them away and said they would not buy them. There were also customers and stall owners who were almost fighting over the price. It was a very lively atmosphere.
What stood out particularly among the crowd were the detectives from the yamen.
The constables in other places are mostly lax, even a bit arrogant and domineering, and accept protection fees or bribes as openly as thugs.
But the detectives in Beijing were serious and stern, like specially trained soldiers in the army, and each of them had an imposing aura.
Often when they passed by, people would automatically make way for them even when they were still several meters away. Even vendors who were arguing with customers would suddenly fall silent and become much gentler and polite.
——Of course, after the detectives leave, the quarrel will continue as usual.
Zhou Yi saw it all and said in a low voice, "Beijing is governed quite well by the one above. No other local government has the courage and momentum of this place."
"It's natural."
Lei Li also spoke to him in a low voice, smiling, "I heard from Senior Brother Pei that the boss loves to conduct surprise inspections. He goes on secret inspections several times a month. Whoever he catches in trouble will be killed."
Of course not really dead.
They just couldn't escape the label of "lax supervision" and "ineffective work". They were either demoted and transferred, or criticized. Every official in Beijing was trembling with fear, fearing that the emperor would suddenly catch them.
"Isn't the emperor busy with all sorts of affairs?"
Zhou Yi was a little amused and a little puzzled. "How come he has so much free time? He goes on incognito visits every month? He also personally cracks down on corruption... but he has indeed dealt with a lot of unhealthy practices."
"Other emperors have their own palaces full of jealousies, and they often ask the emperor to judge cases, and they also have to work hard to expand the royal family, so naturally they don't have time to wander around the palace."
Lei Li smiled playfully, "We don't have any, we only have the Empress, so we don't have to worry about having more children, so naturally we have some free time."
"And he said he was going on an incognito trip... Last time he brought the general with him. I think this incognito trip is actually just skipping work to go on a date, like we are doing now."
"That makes sense."
Zhou Yi nodded in agreement.
He suddenly realized that this was Beijing. Although he and Lei Li were on the street surrounded by people and noise, there might be spies of the emperor in the crowd who would hear their chirping and report them to the emperor.
Isn’t that how it’s portrayed in novels and on TV?
The emperor has a group of secret guards who are proficient in various skills, such as light-weight martial arts and internal strength, as well as extraordinary hearing. They can hear people whispering in the house from the trees in the yard, and then report them to the emperor word for word.
To put it nicely, this is called monitoring all officials, but to put it bluntly, it is spying on everyone.
Zhou Yi and Lei Li exchanged a glance, and Lei Li, understanding the situation, naturally changed the subject.
"Let's go eat something. I was just talking to those people at the banquet and didn't eat anything."
"good."
Zhou Yi and Lei Li chose a restaurant with a large flow of customers, went up to the second floor and sat at a table by the window. After ordering the dishes, the enthusiastic waiter had just left when a figure rushed past the window and threw something in.
Lei Li: “??!”
Zhou Yi: “???!”
The couple looked at each other and then at the thing on the table, which was a ball of paper.
Lei Li took it and opened it:
Look back.
Lei Li felt a chill on his back and turned to look behind him, only to see the gentle and refined Wanqi Xia smiling, and beside him was General Xiang Chong, who looked like an anti-counterfeit label.
It turns out that you shouldn’t speak ill of others behind their backs.
This time he was caught.
Lei Lixin replied, and upon seeing Wan Qixia and the others, she put on her signature smile, stood up politely, and said, "What a coincidence, Master Wan and Master Xiang are also dining here..."
"unfortunately."
Wanqi Xia smiled gently and said, "I came here with Master Lei and Madam Lei. I see there are still two seats here for Master Lei. Do you mind if the two of us sit together?"
"Of course I don't mind..."
Lei Li waved his hands repeatedly, and before he finished speaking, Wanqi Xia had already sat down.
Xiang Chong naturally sat next to him, his posture straight and upright, his face solemn, and Zhou Yi opposite him also sat straight, as if they were not here to eat, but to discuss some military and national affairs.
Lei Li glanced at the two of them out of the corner of his eye and thought to himself, my husband is still the better looking. He looks cold but actually has a very down-to-earth demeanor and knows many different positions...
Thinking of this, his thoughts flew away.
He suddenly wondered who was on top and who was at the bottom between General Xiang and the little emperor.
General Xiang was quite sturdy. Even through his clothes one could see his muscular body. His arms were full of explosive power, and it felt like he could kill the little emperor with one punch.
However, the little emperor is half a head taller than General Xiang. He is the king and the general is the minister. General Xiang looks very old-fashioned and loyal. He certainly wouldn't dare to be above the little emperor, and the little emperor doesn't seem like someone who would let anyone suppress him.
That should be the little emperor on top.
It was most likely that the young emperor was the first to break the window paper and capture the general.
Lei Li's mind was in a state of confusion, but he was still talking to Wanqi Xia calmly, without a single flaw visible. However, as he was talking, he subconsciously turned the silver ring on his ring finger.
This is a simple silver ring with tiny gold-thread acacia patterns inlaid on the surface, and his and Zhou Yi's names engraved on the inner circle.
Wanqi Xia's eyes also fell on it, "This ring... is it a pair with the one on Madam Lei's hand?"
"yes."
Lei Li smiled with a hint of boasting, raised his hand, and on his slender ring finger, the simple silver ring sparkled.
"My wife said we got married too hastily, so she made these rings and proposed to me... He got down on one knee and I was shocked."
"He held up the ring and asked me if I was willing to continue to love him and be with him. I naturally agreed, so he put the silver ring on my finger and I put it on his finger."
"Why this finger?"
He briefly kept the question in suspense, then quickly said, "My wife said this finger is called the Nameless Finger. After I put on the ring and became his, it got a name."
"Mine is called Zhou Yi Finger, and his is naturally called Lei Li Finger."
“…”
Zhou Yi blushed a little.
There was a lot of water in these words, but to be precise it was pretty much the same. However, Zhou Yi felt a little embarrassed and ashamed to say it so sweetly in front of his two superiors, Wanqi Xia and Xiang Chong.
After he did this that year, Lei Li showed off in the village for several days.
Because they were the trendsetters of the village, the villagers followed their example after they found out. Couples put rings on each other and put each other's names on their fingers.
Moreover, wealthy people don’t wear gold or jade, but instead learn to wear a simple silver ring, and praise it for being low-key, beautiful, and convenient for doing things.
Zhou Yi was embarrassed for a long time at that time. He ran away to live in the county town with Lei Li, intending not to return to the village until the storm died down. But who would have thought that Lei Li would start showing off to the people in the county town again...
Finally, Meng Luo and Mei Yuqing put on their wedding rings, and Meng Yao and Yuger also put on theirs.
There is no need to say anything about the couple Lei Jingsheng and Qingzhi. Lei Jingsheng always follows the lead of her brother. She was the first one to learn how to wear a wedding ring, and it was even included in her comic strip.
Fortunately, only a few people read the comic strip, and it was not widely circulated, so it did not trigger a wedding ring craze.
In the Dayou Dynasty, rings were just a simple decoration and were not linked to marriage or love.
It only has specific symbolic meanings at certain times. For example, the big thumb ring worn on the thumbs of high-ranking officials and dignitaries expresses power and status.
But Emperor Wanqi Xia, who was at the pinnacle of power, seemed to be lost in thought after hearing Lei Li's words. Zhou Yi suddenly sensed the coming of a wedding ring craze.
...Should he talk to Lei Li about opening a jewelry store specializing in selling couple rings, designing a few silver rings in advance and making a batch of ready-made goods to make a fortune?
wrong.
He was just as obsessed with making money as Lei Li, wanting to do business as soon as he saw a business opportunity...
Zhou Yi was distracted for a few seconds, and when he came back to his senses, he found that things seemed to be heading in a strange direction.
Wanqi Xia didn't pursue the fact that they always teased him, but instead started asking about their relationship history: how they met, how they got together, how they adjusted after marriage, and who admitted their mistakes first when they had a conflict...
Well, that's too gossipy, right?
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