The word "民" in the memorial document is not trustworthy, because the people at the top don't know who this "民" actually represents.

The "people" of this era are generally illiterate. So if a government decree is said to be beneficial to the people, improve people's livelihood, make decisions for the people, etc., who benefits? Is it the people who actually work hard every day, or the people who write memorials?

The so-called elite class of official documents?

Gu Qing is a young man who came from a barren mountain village. He knows better than anyone else the hardships faced by the "people" and knows better than anyone whether the "public opinion" mentioned by officials is the local officials' own demands or the real decisions for the people.

Outside the capital of the Tang Dynasty, nearly 100,000 homeless refugees gathered in just a few months. This in itself was a shame for being an official.

What's funny is that no one in Chang'an City, from the emperor to the officials, thought it was a shame. It was just the misfortune of strangers. They were intoxicated in wine singing and dancing, and used the misfortune of the refugees as a talking point. Even Li Heng

Relief was given up.

The only person who really works hard to raise food for these refugees is Gu Qing.

Everything you give will be rewarded.

Gu Qing was getting married today. He knelt down by the roadside and respectfully presented meager and shabby gifts. The refugees, who had nothing, gave Gu Qing everything they could as congratulatory gifts.

After experiencing misunderstandings, scorn, and accusations, today Gu Qing finally got the reward he deserved.

An old iron hairpin, a concentric knot made of withered grass and rags, and a pile of fresh wild vegetables collected from the mountains, these are all the refugees have.

Being scolded and misunderstood by the refugees, Gu Qing has always tolerated it and never made any response to the refugees' misunderstandings. However, Gu Qing is not a saint, and he is a little sad in his heart. To this day, those refugees with hungry and ashamed faces are kneeling and worshiping.

In front of him, Gu Qing was relieved of all his grievances and sorrows in an instant.

The path you are determined to take in this life is not wrong and you should not waver.

"Han Jie, send people to all the butcher shops in Chang'an City to buy meat. All kinds of meat are transported to the outside of the city and stewed in big pots. Today is my wedding, so I invite the people to have a meat feast." Gu Qing ordered in a very good mood.

Han Jie's cheeks twitched slightly. There were at least 80,000 or 90,000 refugees outside the city. Each bite of meat cost an astronomical figure. As soon as the prince opened his mouth, thousands of dollars were gone.

As the refugees thanked him profusely, Fang Guan's face became increasingly ugly. He looked up at the sky and then at Gu Qing, with an expression that looked like he wanted to eat Gu Qing alive.

Gu Qing also realized that too much time was wasted, so he wisely ordered the wedding chariot to continue moving forward. The refugees knelt in the dust and respectfully watched Gu Qing's chariot leave.

The old iron hairpin replaced the palace flower and was stuck on the brim of the hat. Gu Qing sat in the chariot, stretched out his hand to stroke the iron hairpin on his hat, and raised the corner of his mouth slightly.

"People's hearts..." Gu Qing murmured to himself.

People's hearts are actually very simple. It's like making friends between young children. If you are good to me, I will be good to you.

It's just that when people grow up, the purity of their hearts is occupied by too many interests and grievances, and gradually becomes less pure. Therefore, in the eyes of many officials, "people's hearts" are the most complicated things in the world.

Is it complicated? You have land to cultivate, food to eat, squatting in the corner of a simple farmhouse counting the autumn harvest with your fingers, and there is hope for the future. Who would think of overthrowing you?

Rulers throughout the ages have had so many self-righteous definitions of people's hearts. In fact, the four words "not hungry" refer to people's hearts.

It was already dawn, and there were more and more people on the streets of Chang'an City. Everyone stood on both sides of the road, admiringly watching Gu Qing's chariot passing by. Especially the tall and burly soldiers of Mo Daoying who cleared the way for Gu Qing.

The wedding added a bit of chilling atmosphere, which surprised and surprised the people.

The whole city was in a state of excitement today for Gu Qing's wedding.

Half an hour later, the wedding carriage finally arrived in front of Zhang's mansion.

The front door of Zhang Mansion is decorated with lanterns and colorful decorations. Under the two oversized red lanterns on the lintel, a scarlet carpet stretches from the open space in front of the door to the front hall of the mansion.

Fang Guan finally came into use, and the Minister of Rites personally served as the celebrant for the prince's wedding, even though the groom was not very cooperative in the rehearsals these days.

Fang Guan stood beside the chariot with tears in his eyes... This damn wedding process was already half way through. If he persisted a little longer, it would be over. He secretly swore that he would not pay tribute to the prince next time. He would love so-and-so.

The family members and servants of the Zhang Mansion were already waiting outside the gate of the mansion. Seeing Gu Qing's chariot approaching, the family members burst into laughter, timidly stepped aside, pointed at the chariot and whispered excitedly.

Fang Guan stood beside the chariot, raised his voice and sang a promise: "Wei magpie has a nest, and Wei dove lives in it. When his son returns, he will be guarded by a hundred liang -"

After many rehearsals, Gu Qing knew that it was time for him to appear, so he stepped out of the carriage. Duan Wuji, Li Siye, Liu Hongbo and others dressed up to act as groomsmen stopped in front of Gu Qing, and then... Duan Wuji obediently said

Hold your head with your hands.

According to weekly rites, the marriage of a man and a woman is a very solemn event and should not be noisy. After both parties pay homage to their ancestors and elders, they will take the woman back to the man's home and the family banquet will be completed.

It was only after the Sui and Tang Dynasties that many ethnic minority customs were introduced to China, so weddings gradually included some impromptu programs. For example, the groom not only acted as the best man, but also received a beating from the bride's family members.

The stick used by the woman's family members is a wooden stick wrapped heavily in colorful silk. It is relatively soft and does not hurt too much when hit on the body. This ceremony is called "Sister-in-law", which basically means that my daughter has been married off by you, and you must treat her well.

She respects her, and giving you a beating from your mother's family's stick is considered a show of intimidation.

The groom is the protagonist, so of course he cannot be beaten. The only one who gets beaten is the groomsmen.

Duan Wuji and others had long been prepared to be beaten. Except for Duan Wuji, Li Siye and Liu Hongbo were all military generals. Not to mention colorful silk sticks, they would not frown even if they were slashed with swords. So the two of them took the lead and swaggered.

He walked forward on the ground without even blocking.

The female members of the Zhang family were frightened by the tall, burly and ferocious-looking Li Siye. A group of seven aunts and eight aunts held sticks, and no one dared to take action for a long time.

Li Siye became impatient, bent down and pointed at his head, saying: "Come, say hello over here, harder."

This sentence was full of provocation, just like the prelude to a fight between street gangs. The female relatives were even more frightened and trembling. No one dared to take action, but kept retreating.

Li Siye had no choice but to turn around and show a helpless expression towards Gu Qing.

Gu Qing was furious. This killer had secretly sent out Mo Dao Camp today, and he had seriously provoked the woman at this moment. Did this guy deliberately come to ruin the situation?

Ignoring the fact that he was wearing Jifu, Gu Qing stepped forward and kicked Li Siye hard on the butt. Li Siye didn't move at all, just looking at him in shock and confusion.

"Get out of here without stopping!" Gu Qing said this with a smile on his face.

With a smooth pull, he grabbed Duan Wuji, who was watching the excitement, and said, "You go and get beaten."

After speaking, he pushed Duan Wuji forward. Duan Wuji staggered a few steps and happened to fall into the crowd of female relatives.

Duan Wuji was born thin and quiet, with a typical scholar appearance. Regardless of his physique or appearance, he looked much easier to bully than Li Siye, the killer.

Before he could recover, the female family members rained down clubs on his head and body. Duan Wuji was shocked and hurriedly squatted down with his head in his hands. Compared with Li Siye's treatment, Duan Wuji felt a huge psychological gap at this moment and couldn't help resisting.

He said in a voice: "My mother is a maid! Why?"

Li Siye and Liu Hongbo in the back were amused. Li Siye grinned widely and said with a smile: "So the scholar is incapable of doing anything. You bully him and you are not a good man. If you want to beat him, come to me."

The two men stepped forward to protect Duan Wuji in the middle. The female relatives were so frightened that they did not dare to continue the beating. They threw away the sticks and turned around and dispersed.

Fang Guan stood beside the chariot in despair, with a dull look on his face, and his cheeks occasionally twitched.

What happened to a good wedding by this prince... The solemn and solemn wedding ceremony of Zhou Dynasty was messed up. The wedding ceremony presided over by the Minister of Etiquette has become like this. I am afraid it will be the laughing stock for hundreds of years.

Destroy it, hurry up, you are tired...

The process of "becoming a son-in-law" was barely passed. Under Fang Guan's guidance, Gu Qing was surrounded and walked into the gate of Zhang Mansion, stepped on the soft red carpet, and walked to the front hall.

Fang Guan probably had a break-the-pot mentality and sang congratulatory messages at the top of his voice. As for whether Gu Qing followed the process meticulously... I won't force it, just end this damn day as soon as possible.

The next step was to pay homage to the woman's elder. Zhang Jiuzhang was sitting in the high hall with a red face and a smile. Zhang Zheng and his wife sat beside him in a low-key manner. Gu Qing knelt down to worship the elder.

Zhang Jiuzhang winked at Gu Qing, and then said solemnly like an elder: "Gu Qing, Huaiyu is the apple of my Zhang family's eye. From now on, I will marry you. Husband and wife should respect and love each other and stay together for a lifetime. You

Even though you are a prince, you should not show any disrespect to your married wife..."

Gu Qingwei obeyed the order and sighed secretly in his heart.

How dare you be disrespectful? How can you be disrespectful? Your daughter can probably crush me to death with a little finger. Well, I am a good apprentice trained by my biological parents. I seriously doubt that they made a good chess move many years ago.

Next, Zhang Zheng also put on some airs and taught a few words. They were mostly threats and provocations, expressed in a more elegant way, which would not sound good when translated into vernacular. For example, if you bully my daughter, I will break your legs.

Something like that, very warm and touching.

After paying homage to the elders, Gu Qing, surrounded by the woman's relatives and groomsmen, went to the attic in the backyard where Zhang Huaiyu lived alone. According to the rules, he should write a poem to encourage her to make up.

Poems to encourage weddings are a necessary part of weddings. Of course, they are limited to families above the middle class. It is impossible for illiterate people to write poems to encourage weddings. At most, the person who likes it can plagiarize one temporarily and it will be considered as a formality.

As a great talent who was once famous in Chang'an, Gu Qing certainly couldn't plagiarize other people's makeup-inducing poems, at least not too obviously.

At this time, there was a crowd of people downstairs in the attic, and the bridesmaids of both men and women were all staring at Gu Qing.

The attic wooden door in front of Gu Qing was closed tightly, and a familiar figure loomed by the attic window, as if it was secretly watching him through the window.

Amid the urging of the female family members, Gu Qing finally "composed" a poem urging her to make up.

"I don't know what night it is, so I urge the balcony to get closer to the mirror. Who knows that hibiscus grows in the water and blooms in the bronze mirror."

After reading it, there was a burst of admiration from everyone around.

Gu Qing's face showed no emotion, even a little embarrassed. I wrote it, not copied it. If you don't believe me, call the original author to confront you.

After I finished reciting the poem, the wooden door of the attic opened with a creak.

Zhang Huaiyu, who was wearing a red Jifu and covering his head, was helped out by Zhang Huaijin and several maids.

Gu Qing's eyes suddenly had the only light.

Many years ago, that chic woman in white clothes beat the snow, sitting on the roof drinking alone, that woman who stayed in Shiqiao Village and always resolved dangers for herself, that woman, no matter good or evil, black or white, was always there for him silently.

The woman behind him quietly paved all the way for him.

This woman finally became his first wife today.

Everyone in the world envied Zhang Huaiyu's good luck. She was married to the most powerful man in the world by a matchmaker, but only Gu Qing knew that he was the one who was truly lucky. How lucky he was to be able to marry such a woman in this life.

The female relatives gathered around Zhang Huaiyu and walked up to Gu Qing. Zhang Huaiyu was covered with a hijab and could not see her appearance, but Gu Qing knew that under the hijab, there must be a pair of gentle eyes that were full of his.

After welcoming the bride, according to the etiquette, she has to go to the Zhang family ancestral hall to worship the Zhang family ancestors, which can be regarded as introducing the good son-in-law to the Zhang family ancestors.

Everyone came to the ancestral hall. The elders of the Zhang family had been waiting here for a long time. Zhang Jiuzhang and Zhang Zheng stood in front of the ancestral hall with serious expressions. Gu Qing and Zhang Huaiyu knelt down to the ancestral hall side by side according to the rules.

Finally, Fang Guan finally appeared again and unfolded the imperial edict. Everyone knelt down and worshiped. Fang Guan read out the imperial edict in a melodious tone. He appointed Zhang Huaiyu as the royal concubine of Shuzhou County, and conferred the title of Zhang Zheng, Zhang Huaiyu's father, as the doctor of Yinqing Guanglu.

He was given a bag of goldfish, and was promoted to the governor of Liangzhou. He was also given several valuable gifts such as a thousand taels of green gold, a thousand pieces of silk, a mink cloak, mountain ginseng, and pearls.

When everyone heard the imperial edict, they couldn't help but secretly dumbfounded. These holy family members were so gracious that they were already at the top of human ministers.

After receiving the order, Gu Qing and others finally helped Zhang Huaiyu onto the carriage and took him back to his house amidst the noise of the crowd.

Zhang Jiuzhang and Zhang Zheng walked out of the mansion and watched the burly soldiers of Modao Camp escort the chariot away. At this point, the personal welcome process was over, and the Gu family's wedding banquet was next.

In ancient times, "marriage" was called "twilight", which means that the wedding ceremony officially started at dusk. However, the marriage etiquette of the rich and powerful was too complicated and had to start at dusk and last all day.

After the chariot picked up Zhang Huaiyu, the journey was still splendid. It was already noon when we returned to Gu's house. Zhang Huaiyu was helped back to the backyard by his female family members to rest for a while. Duan Wuji was ordered to stand in front of the gate to greet the guests. Gu Qing took the opportunity to find a remote place to make amends.

A sleep.

After sleeping for more than an hour, in the afternoon, guests began to arrive, and Gu Qing had to dress up again.

Gu Qing's marriage was a big event. Although the civil and military officials of the entire dynasty couldn't tell who would win or lose among the monarchs, they could not offend Gu Qing after all. So today, courtiers from Chang'an City came to visit one after another. Some of them were not invited at all and Gu Qing had never heard of them.

Officials also came.
Chapter completed!