Zhang Mansion
Pei Zi Yun looked around. It was almost autumn, and he noticed that the walls of the Zhang mansion were made of green bricks. Inside, there were many flowers and trees. Although it was just a commoner's house, it was a magnificent sight to behold.
Today was the day of Shen Wan Lin and Zhang Ping's wedding. Red lanterns were hung at the entrance, and the entire place was bustling with activity. Carriages filled the streets. Those with high status drove their carriages in, while those with low status alighted from their carriages.
Inside, there were more than ten people welcoming the guests. A member of the Zhang family was welcoming the guests. However, this person was welcoming the guests with invitations. They were people of high status and had connections with the Zhang family, and were seated at the VIP seats.
Other than these, there were also guests who came along for the wedding. As long as they paid a single copper coin, they could enter the mansion and enjoy the banquet. There were only four dishes on the table, and the guests could eat as they pleased. Of course, nobody would be so rude.
Pei Zi Yun stepped forward and handed over the gift box as well as the money. The receptionist looked at him and saw that the gift box was filled with five taels of silver, and ten taels of silver in cash. He then smiled and said, "Young Master, please enter."
A servant led Pei Zi Yun inside. The scenery inside changed once again. There were rows upon rows of houses, with locust trees, elms, willows and poplars planted all around. It was a grand sight.
Ancient mansions were separated into two layers. Some of the more elaborate ones even had three layers.
Pei Zi Yun watched as the servant led him to a reed shed. He then laughed to himself, "Now that I've brought the money, I can finally get close to the banquet."
It was very lively at this point. Everywhere was a sign of happiness. The servants were all dressed in red, and it was a festive occasion. As soon as they sat down, the servant excused himself and left. Soon after, a serving maid served tea. There were dried longans, red dates, peanuts and melon seeds on the table.
Pei Zi Yun picked up some melon seeds and looked around. The servants were all smiling as they welcomed the guests in. Everyone was talking about Shen Wan Lin's wedding.
"Say, this Shen Wan Lin is really lucky. Her uncle is from the Meng family, and her husband is from the Zhang family. I've heard that Zhang Ping loves her very much."
"You don't know this, but Shen Wan Lin is the daughter of the Shen family. It's just that both her parents have passed away, and her uncle inherited the family business. Her only brother is nowhere to be found."
"It's good that she marries out. If she marries out, the Shen family will fall into the hands of the Meng family."
One of the men who knew some inside information had a sarcastic look on his face, as if he had a grudge against the Meng family. A middle-aged man beside him had an anxious look on his face as he pulled him back and bowed, "My apologies. My friend was drunk and spoke carelessly. Please forgive him."
Hearing the conversation around him, Pei Zi Yun did not seem to mind at all. He then looked at the thinnest banquet in the distance. There were the most people there. Shen Wan Lin's brother, Shen Zhen, was probably among the crowd.
Pei Zi Yun swept his gaze across the crowd and saw many people with cold expressions on their faces. It seemed like many people were here to watch the fight. He then thought to himself, 'The waters are getting muddier and muddier.'
It was said that even in a world without martial arts, there would still be gangs. In a world with martial arts, even the government would find it difficult to completely eliminate the people of Jianghu who possessed such power. Therefore, all kinds of gangs were formed, and they had all kinds of sources of income. In fact, for thousands of years, the Jianghu had become fixed, forming a kind of ecology.
Just like how Pei Zi Yun's Slow River County had the Black Wind Bandits, there were more than ten powers that had formed in this county, controlling the underworld businesses.
Under normal circumstances, when the dynasty was founded, it would clear out the underworld. After that, the underworld would start to flourish once more. Don't expect these people of Jianghu to have good foresight. Now that they were fighting amongst themselves, how many of these cold-looking men were actually spies from other gangs?
Pei Zi Yun looked around, but did not see the bamboo hat assassin. Pei Zi Yun smiled. He knew that Shen Zhen would definitely come. After his parents passed away, he loved his sister dearly. Today was his sister's wedding day, and he would definitely come. It was just that because of the grudge between them, he had hidden himself well, and Pei Zi Yun could not find him.
The problem was that Shen Zhen did not know how ruthless his uncle was. This was a trap. In the memories of his previous life, this was the time when they broke up.
"The bride is here." A high-pitched female voice broke the commotion. The originally lively crowd quietened down for a moment. Following which, the people outside the banquet hall all rushed forward to watch the wedding.
A matchmaker was at the door. She was the one who had shouted earlier. Seeing the crowd rush forward, the servants of the Zhang Mansion all used their bodies to make way for the crowd.
As the crowd squeezed, some children squeezed out from under the servants and squeezed outside to watch the wedding.
At this point, the sounds of music could be heard. The sound of trumpets and bamboo flutes could be heard, and firecrackers could be heard. The wedding procession stopped at the door. The bridegroom with a large red flower jumped down from his horse. A madam stepped forward to open the red curtains of the sedan. The bridesmaids helped the bride down from the sedan.
At this point, a serving maid carried a porcelain vase and handed it to the bride. The bride took the vase and held it in her arms. Inside the vase were grains and gold and silver. This signified that after the wedding, they would have a bountiful harvest.
The bridesmaids and the madam supported the bride as she walked. Another two servants laid a red carpet in front of the bride, so that her feet would not touch the ground. She then straddled the saddle of the horse and walked past the brazier. This way, she would be able to get rid of bad luck before she could enter the mansion. After which, she would be welcomed into the inner courtyard. She would then have to pay her respects to her parents and the heavens.
The bridegroom held a red caltrop in front of him, while the bride held onto the end of the caltrop. At this point, a man rushed out from the crowd and shouted, "Shen Wan Lin, how could you marry Zhang Ping? Do you still remember our vows of eternal love?"
This was a clean and fair looking man. He stood in front of the bride and groom who were about to enter the house and shouted loudly.
"What?" Everyone present gasped in shock.
"Hey, Shen Wan is really something. She hasn't even married into the Zhang family and she's already made a cuckold out of the Zhang family. The bridegroom's red wedding hat, why does it feel like it's green?" Some people didn't seem to care about the situation, and started discussing loudly.
The bridegroom was overjoyed. When he saw this, he heard the discussions around him. His expression changed, and his face flushed red, "You, you!"
He then shouted, "Who are you? If you dare to spout nonsense, don't even think of leaving today."
Hearing these words, the man's expression changed. He then laughed coldly, "It was this woman who betrayed me first. Since you're heartless, don't blame me for being unjust."
The man said as he raised a silver hairpin and a book of poems. He then said loudly, "You should be familiar with this hairpin and the book of poems. These are the tokens of love between me and her."
As he said this, he stepped forward and looked at the bride, Shen Wan Lin. He then shouted loudly, "Do you still remember when we parted at the Cold Light Temple? You promised to marry me. But why did you change your mind so suddenly? How can you live up to our promise? Do you still remember that night when we were together?"
"Enough, you adulterous couple." Zhang Ping looked at the silver hairpin and his face turned ashen. His breathing quickened, and his neck turned red. He then raised his hand and slapped the bride.
"Pa!" The bride who was supporting the bride fell to the ground. The bridesmaids who were supporting the bride retracted their hands as though they had been bitten by a poisonous snake. Their faces were filled with disdain.
The bride had been slapped, and her face was red and swollen. However, she did not remove her scarf. Instead, she crawled forward and cried out, "Everything he said was a lie. I've never seen this man before, and I've never gone to the Cold Light Temple for a date."
Hearing these words, the man threw his head back and laughed out loud. He then took a few steps back and said angrily, "Now that you've married into the Zhang family, and have wealth and splendor, you don't want to have anything to do with me. Do you still remember your favorite poem? Do you want me to recite it?"
Hearing these words, Zhang Ping's eyes turned red. Shen Wan Lin loved poems the most. He then shouted out in anger, "You bitch, I've loved you so much."
Shen Wan Lin cried out loudly, "I didn't. Zhang Ping, you have to believe me. I'm innocent. I was framed."
The man stepped forward, "Come with me. Your fiancé doesn't even love you. I love you."
He then pulled Shen Wan Lin away.
The commotion caused the elders who were waiting for the bride and groom to come out. The leader of the group was a middle aged man, dressed in a grey robe. It was Meng Luo Gong. When he saw the commotion, his expression changed, "You … How are you …"
Suddenly, he clenched his teeth and shouted, "Men, beat this pair of cheating bitches to death."
"Ai!" He then heard the old man beside him sigh, "It's a pity that the Shen family has been passed down for three generations. Who would've thought that something like this would happen to this generation."
Although he was sighing, it was the Shen family and the Zhang family who were sighing. Nobody sympathized with the couple.
At this point, more than ten burly men rushed out, all of them wielding sticks as thick as their arms. They rushed forward to beat up the bride and the man who had barged in, killing them on the spot.
"Ai!" A loud sigh could be heard as a shadow emerged from the crowd. When everyone looked over, they saw that it was an unfamiliar man with a large beard. They didn't recognize him. The man stepped forward to support the bride, "Sister, are you alright?"
"Brother, of course I'm alright." The sweet voice of a woman rang out, as a dagger pierced towards Shen Zhen. Although Shen Zhen wasn't prepared for it, the moment the dagger appeared, he instinctively dodged it.
"Pu!"
The dagger pierced through his shoulder. The woman pulled out her dagger and stabbed him again. Shen Zhen groaned and took several steps back. He was panting, his face contorted in pain.
"Brother, how's my dagger technique?" The woman smiled as she asked.
"Ah!" Shen Zhen screamed out, as he struck out with his palm. "Pa!" The bride's red veil flew off, revealing a woman. It wasn't Shen Wan Lin. At this point, the woman held a dagger in her hands. There was blood dripping from the dagger, and the blood had turned green.
"Good plan."
Shen Zhen's eyes were bloodshot, as he pulled out his dagger from his waist.
At this point, more than twenty men rushed out from the crowd and formed a formation. They didn't attack, but instead stopped. Their eyes gleamed as they raised their right arms. At that point, the entire courtyard was filled with a cold light.
"Murder!" In that instant, the crowd was in chaos as everyone started to run for their lives.
"Everyone, don't look. Get out." Even though there were a few people who dared to watch the commotion, they felt that someone was chasing them away. Unknowingly, a bailiff appeared and shouted at the crowd, "Everyone disperse. The officials are arresting the bandits. Anyone who obstructs us will be dealt with according to the law."
"Who are you? Really." One of the people who was being shoved was extremely unhappy. When he turned around and saw that it was the bailiff, he was frightened out of his wits. He hurriedly retreated.
The servants who were originally blocking the way pushed the crowd away. In the blink of an eye, more than half of the crowd had dispersed.
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