Yang Fan and the others stopped and turned to look at the entrance of the alley. There was a banquet set up along the wall in the alley. Although there weren't many guests yet, there were already some people. Some of the elderly guests from the Xiuwen Workshop didn't need to help out. They were sitting under the canopy eating dried fruits, drinking water, and chatting. Seeing that the alley was crowded, the rider immediately slowed down.
Yang Fan fixed his eyes on the person sitting on the horse. It was the Fengchen Guards' Commander Di Guangyuan, the son of the current Prime Minister Di Renjie. Apart from Ye Huli, whose position was higher than Di Guangyuan's, who was still standing on the stairs, Yang Fan and the others all turned around and went down the stairs. Once the horse stopped in front of the stairs, Yang Fan cupped his hands and smiled, "Brother Di, why are you in such a hurry? It's still early, are you afraid that you won't be able to enjoy the wedding wine?"
Di Guangyuan dismounted from the horse and looked a little embarrassed. He coughed twice and said, "Erlang, I still have something to do, so I can't attend your wedding banquet today. That's why … I rushed here first to congratulate you. Erlang, please don't blame me."
"Oh?"
Wei Yong, Li Dayin, and the others looked at each other and understood. Yang Fan had been close to the Wu Clan recently and had even rejected Di Renjie's invitation. They had also heard about this. They were pure soldiers and didn't care who the Emperor or the Crown Prince was. Therefore, as long as they had a good relationship with Yang Fan, they didn't need to worry about anything else.
However, Di Guangyuan was different. Although his father was loyal to Wu Zetian, he didn't have a good impression of the Wu Clan. There was a clear separation between them and they never contacted each other. Since Yang Fan had sided with the Wu Clan, it meant that he had drawn a clear line with Di Renjie. Di Guangyuan was Di Renjie's son, so how could he attend his wedding?
As soon as Di Guangyuan revealed an awkward expression, everyone understood his dilemma. Yang Fan naturally knew why Di Guangyuan was in a difficult situation. Being misunderstood by an elder that he respected, Yang Fan was also very sad. However, some things couldn't be made known to everyone. Moreover, the more Di Renjie misunderstood him, the more the Wu Clan would trust him. This secret couldn't be revealed.
Yang Fan forced a smile. He saw Di Guangyuan was holding the horse's reins with one hand, as if he was going to leave after saying a few words, and did not even want to enter the door. Thereupon he said, "Xiao Di is getting married, Brother Di is able to take time out of your busy schedule to come and congratulate me, Xiao Di is very grateful. Since Brother Di has official duties, you should naturally prioritize national affairs. There is no reason for me to blame you. "
Di Guangyuan blushed with shame. He reached into his pocket and took out a scroll painting. He said to Yang Fan, "My father heard that Erlang is getting married, so he specially made a painting as a congratulatory gift. Erlang, please don't think it's despicable!"
Di Renjie was born in an official's family. He was brimming with talent and was well-versed in both literature and martial arts. He was known as the "Pearl of the Meandering River, the Treasure of the Southeast" by the people of his time. He was also very good at reciting poems, painting, and playing the zither. However, other than the occasional imperial banquets and the emperor's order to compose poems, he rarely wrote poems, and no one had heard of him painting.
At this time, when they heard that Prime Minister Di had specially made a painting for him to congratulate him on his wedding, Wei Yong and the rest were extremely envious. This was a present from the current Prime Minister Di, and it was a painting personally made by Prime Minister Di. No amount of money could buy this kind of sincerity. From this, it seemed that the rumors were not true. Prime Minister Di did not seem to dislike Yang Fan.
Lu Yan and Gao Chu hurried forward and helped Yang Fan to open the scroll painting. The scroll painting slowly unfolded. Everyone looked at it and saw that it was a five feet long horizontal scroll. On it was the "Three Friends of Winter". There was a pine tree, a bamboo cluster, and a plum tree. The brush strokes were smooth and experienced, and the density of the strokes was very appropriate.
Di Guangyuan smiled and said, "Erlang, do you know the meaning of this painting that my father gave you?"
Yang Fan's eyes flickered slightly, and he said, "The evergreen pine and cypress means longevity. The bamboo gives birth to bamboo shoots (grandchildren), and the red plum bears seeds (sons). It means having many children and many grandchildren. Hehe, this is the meaning of having many blessings and longevity, and having many children and grandchildren. I, Yang, cannot thank Prime Minister enough for your kindness. I, Yang, will definitely treasure this painting well! "
Di Guangyuan saw that he was intentionally avoiding his father's intention of giving him the painting, and could only laugh bitterly, and said, "Erlang's wedding, I, your brother, do not have any presentable gift. I, your brother, like to shoot and hunt, and have several fine horses at home. Erlang, you have ridden this horse before, do you still remember it? "
"I rode it before?"
Yang Fan only frowned and thought for a moment, and immediately remembered. It was not that he still remembered this horse, but because he had only ridden the Di family's horse once. At that time, the Di family's third son, Di Guangzhao, was blinded by greed, and wanted to follow Fu Youyi to the palace to persuade him to enter. Yang Fan had ridden the Di family's fast horse, and together with Di Guangyuan, they rushed to the Meridian Gate and tied him up.
Yang Fan said in surprise, "Ah! I remember, could it be that this horse is … "
Di Guangyuan said with deep meaning, "That's right, it is this horse! At that time, thanks to Erlang riding this horse, my third brother did not fall into the mud, unable to extricate himself! As the saying goes, 'A fine horse for a warrior, a treasured sword for a hero'. Now, I, your brother, will give this fine horse to my second brother as a wedding gift. I, Di, still have important matters to attend to, and cannot stay for long. I will take my leave now! "
Di Guangyuan cupped his hands towards Yang Fan and several other military colleagues, and then turned around and walked towards the alley. Yang Fan slowly took two steps forward, and gently stroked the horse's mane. Looking at Di Guangyuan's back, he let out a deep sigh, "This Brother Di, has really put in a lot of effort!"
…
In the afternoon, the number of guests in the Yang mansion gradually increased. Tao Mei and San Jieer, the two little maids, ran inside and out. They ran until their hair was in a mess and they were sweating profusely. However, the two of them were beaming with joy. Their own family's Ah Lang had so much face, and so many guests of high status came to visit, so naturally they felt honored.
After another two hours, Xue Rengui's son, Xue Na, the Right Guard Zhonglang General, and Li Zhan, the former Prime Minister Li Yifu's son, the North Gate Imperial Guard Zhonglang General, also came one after another. At this time, among the imperial guards who competed with him at the White Horse Temple, other than Huseluo who was still in Chang 'an and had not gone to the capital, and Di Guangyuan who came from afar, only Left Guard Guo Yi, Wang Tongjiao did not come.
Wang Tongjiao was a direct descendant of the Wang family of Taiyuan, one of the five families and seven wangs. Since Yang Fan was very close to the Wu family, he would definitely not come again. Yang Fan was already mentally prepared for this.
The bride had not arrived, so the banquet had not begun. There were only preserved fruits, cheese, and drinking water on the table. Everyone sat and chatted, laughing and laughing, so it was quite lively.
Seeing the sun setting in the west, Maqiao and Chu Kuangge led a few people with some preserved fruits and sealed red envelopes to bribe the servants who guarded the gate. The people who went to the yamen to apply for the night pass also came back. Yang Fan then apologized to the guests who had already arrived, and asked Chu Kuangge to receive these guests on his behalf. Then he went with Maqiao and the others from the Xiuwen Workshop to escort the bride.
Lu Yan and Gao Chu liked the liveliness, so they insisted on going together. Ye Huli, Xue Na, Li Zhan, and the others were already in their thirties, so their temperaments were much calmer than the two of them. Seeing that the two of them were in high spirits, they did not stop them, and only smiled as they watched them go out the door.
Xiao Man's "maiden home" was temporarily set up in Wan 'er's mother's house. Xiaoman had several properties in the capital, but she didn't have a house of her own. The Imperial Palace couldn't be her maiden home, so she needed to find a place outside to receive the bridegroom. Shangguan Wan 'er arranged this place in her mother's house.
Her mother was Madame Zheng. After Wan 'er was favored by Wu Zetian and promoted to an important position, Madame Zheng no longer worked as a maid in the palace. Wan' er bought a mansion for her in Jishan Workshop, and Madame Zheng now lived in this mansion. She usually lived in seclusion and kept a low profile.
Wan 'er arranged Xiao Man's wedding place in her own house, which was also her painstaking effort. The man she loved was about to get married, but the bride was not her. Not only was it not her, but she also had to arrange the wedding for the bride. How could she endure this? Now, she arranged for Xiao Man to stay in her own house and watched her wedding carriage leave with her own eyes. She had the right to pretend that it was her own and comfort herself.
At this moment, the usually quiet Zheng mansion was also abnormally lively. Gao Ying, Lan Yiqing, and a group of unmarried girls who were good friends with Xiao Man all asked for leave today and rushed to the Zheng mansion to see Xiao Man off. With so many girls gathered together, one could imagine how lively the Zheng mansion was.
Xiao Man was dressing up in her temporary boudoir. The people in charge of dressing her were two very old palace maids. It was said that the maids in charge of dressing up the emperor, the crown prince, and the crown princess on important occasions were the disciples taught by the two of them.
In front of these two highly respected old maids, what else could Xiao Man do but be at their mercy? Xiao Man had been dressing up since early in the morning. She didn't eat much for breakfast. Not long after, the two old women directed seven or eight palace maids to strip her naked and throw her into a steaming bathtub.
She bathed from morning to noon. The hot water was changed more than ten times, and all kinds of secret bath medicines used in the palace were changed more than ten times. When she was finally allowed to climb out of the tub, her body was as clean as a freshly peeled egg. Her body was as red as a cooked prawn. Even though Xiao Man had always been strong, at this time, she was also "weak when the maids helped her up."
Poor Xiao Man was tortured until she didn't even have the strength to eat. At noon, she only had half a bowl of porridge before another round of torture began. She sat on the brocade stool and did not leave for the entire afternoon. Under the instructions of the two old women, her hair was coiled up again and again, and then untied again and again, until the hairstyle made the two old female officials reveal a trace of a satisfied smile.
Xiao Man's scalp was very tight. She felt that her eyebrows were slightly hanging up because of the tightness of her scalp. Her skin was too tight, and it was difficult for her to smile.
Then, her delicate little face suffered again. Xiao Man was born beautiful, and she usually dressed as a man, so she rarely wore makeup. At this time, there was a dazzling lineup of all kinds of cosmetics on the dressing table. Many of them were things she had never seen before and didn't know what they were used for.
When the two very picky old maids finally nodded and let go of the torture on her face, the four palace maids changed her hairpins and ceremonial clothes under the command of the old maids.
She was wearing an indigo-colored wide-sleeved dress with flower hairpins, which had twelve layers. If it weren't for the help of the four palace maids, Xiaoman really wouldn't be able to wear it alone. Finally, she put on a blue wide-sleeved dress and tied a red wedding ribbon before she was pushed in front of the two old female officials.
The two maids sat side by side on the couch and shook their heads in dissatisfaction. They said, "No, it's not neat enough. Take it off and dress again!"
Hearing this, Xiao Man almost burst into tears. She had never hoped as much as now that Yang Fan would come quickly, ride his white horse, and save her from the fire …
…
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