Qin Official

"Drunk and seduced, after tonight, I, Liu Ji, will be completely different."

Holding a wine cup in his hand, Liu Ji, who had changed from a big beard to a short beard, was very proud. Today was his big day. Friends from all over the country came after hearing the news. Liu Ji was so loyal that he had to receive them one by one. The sun was still at noon. When he drank, his face turned red.

Father Liu Taigong passed by the house. Normally, he would have rushed in and cursed him, but today, he just pouted and ignored Liu Ji.

His widowed elder sister-in-law and second brother Liu Xi, who had always looked down on Liu Ji in the past, had smiles on their faces today, helping to prepare for the wedding banquet, although they had to curse in secret for marrying their good daughter to Liu Ji. The Lu family is really blind!

Then his mother, Liu Lao, came in and advised Liu Ji: "Ji'er, don't drink any more. You have to go to welcome the bride when you are unconscious!"

"Isn't it still early?"

Liu Ji comforted his grey-haired mother, who was over sixty years old: "Besides, my person to marry me hasn't arrived yet!"

"You, if you get this beautiful wife, you should live a good life and don't mess around like before." Liu Lao said sincerely, but thinking of Liu Ji's good marriage, she couldn't help but smile.

I thought that my son would be single until old age, or that he would one day bring back Widow Cao, who had an affair with him, or Wang Lao and Wu Fu who opened a wine shop, but who would have expected that he would marry a good woman!

She initially speculated that the girl from that family must be ugly, so she was willing to marry Liu Ji, but people from Pei County said that Lu Gong's eldest daughter was very beautiful, and even the county magistrate wanted to ask her to be his concubine...

This is really the blessing of the Liu family’s ancestors! Liu Lao didn't think it was her son's fault, but could only attribute it to ghosts and gods.

Although Liu Ji was dissolute, he knew what was right in his heart, so he drank the cup upside down and kept the bottom line. He did not drink until he was unconscious like he did in the Sishui Pavilion or in Wang Lao's and Wu Fu's two wine shops.

He has business to do tonight! Thinking of this, Liu Ji felt happy.

Sitting in his yard warming himself by the fire to sober up, Liu Ji recalled how the marriage was negotiated, and it really seemed like a dream...

His bride's name is Lu Pheasant, and her father is Lu Gong. Lu Gong has four children: the eldest son Lu Ze, the second son Lu Shizhi, the third daughter Lu Pheasant, and a younger daughter who is only ten years old, Liu Jixian. I don't care what her name is.

Lu Gong was from Shanfu County, which was a neighboring county to the west of Pei County and belonged to Dang County.

The Lu family was also a well-known figure in Shan's father. Just because his eldest son Lu Ze was a knight in Shan's father and provoked his enemies, the family moved to Pei County to avoid trouble.

The reason why he moved to Peixian County was that Lu Gong was friends with the magistrate of Peixian County, who was also from Liangdi.

Three months ago, after the Lu family moved and selected a mansion, they held a banquet. Lu Gong was a famous person in the neighboring county and an old friend of the county magistrate, so the leading figures in Pei County came to the scene. The county magistrate asked Xiao He to preside over the reception. The seats were arranged according to the amount of gifts. Those with more gifts were seated, those with less gifts were seated. Those with less than one thousand were seated outside the lobby.

Liu Ji was at Surabaya Pavilion at the time. Hearing about this incident, he also went to join in the fun.

He excitedly came to Lu Gong's new house and saw the amount of gifts given by the guests written down on the list one by one. He also heard the receptionist singing loudly about how much the gifts were and how high the seats were. Liu Ji touched his empty robe. He had mostly converted his monthly salary into money, and then bought wine to have a drink with friends. He didn't have a penny at the moment.

But Liu Ji was Liu Ji. He swaggered towards the gate of Lu Mansion, snorted in his nose, and sang loudly: "Liu Ji, the director of the Pavilion of Surabaya, congratulates you with ten thousand dollars!"

Then, ignoring the stunned clerk, he went straight to the lobby and sat down in a good seat.

For a time, all the guests in the hall in front of the door looked at each other in confusion. Lu Gong was also shocked. He got up from the hall and personally greeted Liu Ji, wanting to see who this distinguished guest was.

In Peixian County, if you are a mediocre person, you can earn about two thousand yuan a year. A small official has to live with ninety-six kilograms of rice a year, which is only around three thousand copper coins. The magistrate of Pei County has a rank of 600 shi and a monthly salary of more than 1,000 qian.

Therefore, during weddings and funerals, monetary etiquette is generally based on hundreds of coins. If the gift exceeds one thousand, it is a gift to welcome guests. The gifts are worth tens of thousands of dollars, which is already the number of exchanges between county officials and ministers. Such things rarely happen in the small place of Peixian County.

Xiao He knew that Liu Ji's family was not able to afford tens of thousands of dollars, so he smoothed things over for him and said, "Mr. Lu, Liu Ji likes to talk big words and achieves little success. Don't take it seriously."

But Lu Gong didn't think it was strange, smiled and said nothing, and observed Liu Jilai carefully.

This old man had a skill: when he met someone, he saw that Liu Jilong was accurate and had a long face, a high nose and a wide face. He had a good appearance, but... his beard was a little short.

But then Lu Gong clicked his tongue with regret and said to himself: "It's a pity that a beautiful beard is missing. Otherwise, it would be really expensive!"

In Lu Gong's eyes, Liu Ji's originally good appearance seemed to have been forcibly affected by some sudden luck and was greatly compromised, but he was still the best among the people Lu Gong had ever seen.

Facial appearance is only the first impression, which may not be accurate. Lu Gong returned to the main seat and began to observe Liu Ji's words and deeds.

However, Liu Ji falsely reported the gift and sat down at the table, but showed no sign of remorse or anxiety. During the banquet, he was in a calm mood, making fun of the guests and bossing around, as if he was a host. Lu Gong was secretly amazed and gave this person a label of "daring".

Just this is not enough for Mr. Lu to marry a daughter. Unexpectedly, Lu Gong's eldest son Lu Ze actually knew Liu Ji, took the initiative to go over, and had some words with him. Both of them had been rangers, so they could make friends, and they had a good conversation.

Lu Ze took the opportunity to change his clothes and told his father that although Liu Jiqiong was just a small pavilion chief, he had many friends in Peixian County and was famous for his righteousness and wealth. He was familiar with various officials and had contacts with the powerful Yong Chi and Wang Ling. Not to be underestimated.

Their family came here to avoid disaster and wanted to establish a foothold in Peixian County. They couldn't just rely on Peiling, who was also an outsider. They also needed a local hero to rely on.

But if it is too strong, the Lu family will become dependent on it, so it is necessary to choose a stock that is not prominent at the moment, but can be a potential figure in the future...

"Has father forgotten that Waihuang Zhang'er was poor at first, but later became a powerful man in the country?"

In Lu Ze's view, although Wei was dead, Qin's rule here was just superficial. Except for the three officials who chanted Qin's laws every day, the local powerful still had the final say on things underneath...

Lu Gong understood this, and after the banquet, he and his eldest son summoned Liu Ji and proposed to marry his daughter.

Such an outrageous thing was thrown at him, and with Liu Ji's shabby character, of course he agreed immediately!

The woman who comes to my door will sleep in vain if she doesn’t sleep! I heard that Duke Lu’s eldest daughter was only twenty, but she was much smarter than the old and beady Widow Cao!

Although Lu Gong married his daughter very easily, the subsequent etiquette of asking her name, adopting her, etc. took three months. Under the control of the Lu family, Liu Ji ended his single life. Everyone knew that it was Liu Ji who had taken over the Lu family...

…

Liu Ji didn't care. Seeing that the sun was about to set, he called for the guests to enter. Fan Kuai was killing pigs and dogs in the backyard to prepare meat. His friends Lu Wan and others also came to help arrange the wedding. Liu Ji's social circle has seen results today. People come from all over the country. The small Liu house is so busy that the yard can't be crowded and the cases are placed on the street.

The wedding time was in the evening, and the woman went to the house bought by Lu Gong in Fengyi first, so as to save Liu Ji from going to Peixian County to welcome the bride. However, Xiao He, the person who presided over the wedding, did not come for a long time, which made Liu Ji anxious...

He waited and saw no one, but he didn't panic. He just found a good friend, Ren Ao, the soldier of Peixian County, and said to him: "If Jun Xiao doesn't arrive in a while, you can come in for my lord..."

While he was talking, Xiao He's carriage stopped outside the house.

Liu Ji and the others hurriedly went up to meet him, only to see Xiao He's face covered with dust and frost. He looked like he was in a hurry.

Xiao He got out of the car, shook his clothes and flicked his crown, and said calmly: "There was something going on in the county last night, so I came late. Don't blame Liu Ji."

"Don't you dare blame me? Mr. Xiao, the hot water is ready. Please go inside to take a shower and change clothes."

Liu Ji warmly welcomed Xiao He into his home. Xiao He being able to come was already a great honor to him.

But the other guest Liu Ji invited was nowhere to be seen.

He looked behind Xiao He and asked curiously: "Where is Cao's jailer? Didn't he come with Xiao's officials?"

Xiao He thought of what Cao Shen said to him when he said goodbye, and said: "He has something to do and can't come."

Liu Ji didn't respect Cao Shen as much as Xiao He did, and he cursed: "Today is Xiu Mu, what can happen? Xia Houying, Ren Ao, and Xiao Liju are all here, isn't this old Cao? It’s too disrespectful.”

Xiao He just wanted to find out the matter, so he said truthfully: "Brother Cao was recruited by the governor of Jiaodong County and is going to Jiaodong County to become a county official."

"County official? High promotion!" Liu Ji shouted exaggeratedly, but there was no envy in his heart. He had been to Xianyang. After walking around, he found that his home was still the best.

Xiao He smiled and said: "Liu Ji may know this county guard."

"I know?"

Liu Ji laughed loudly, thinking that the serious Xiao He would finally tell a joke: "Yes, of course I know him. Not only do I know the Sishui County Governor, but I even know His Majesty the Emperor. It's a pity that they don't know me!"

Xiao He did not find it funny and said solemnly: "This Jiaodong County Governor was one of the three heroes who conquered the Xiongnu. Last year, after the corvee from Peixian County returned from service, he talked about his deeds."

Liu Ji's smile froze on his face.

"Could it be...General Wei?"

Xiao He said: "It is the young master who created Wei Jun. After he heard about your deeds in Peixian County, he found it very interesting and asked the retainers to come with me. I wish you a happy wedding and a gift of thousands of dollars!"

"Ten thousand... ten thousand dollars..."

Xiao He saw Liu Ji's eyes were blank and patted him: "Liu Ji, are you listening?"

"I have nothing to do, nothing to do..."

Liu Ji acted as if nothing had happened. He laughed loudly and said that the Jiaodong County Sheriff gave him a gift for a little guy like him. It was really a great honor!

But when he turned around, Liu Ji was almost scared out of his mind! All the previous pride was gone! The beautiful appearance of the bride under the candlelight was no longer in his mind, and only the image of the black-faced Qin official facing him at the top of the outer yellow city was left in his mind! He put on the Heguan and became a high official. If he wanted to kill Liu Ji, it would be like slaying an ant!

Lu Wan couldn't help but ask: "Brother Ji, why are you looking pale? Is there something wrong?"

"I...I have abdominal pain."

Liu Ji was so anxious that he held his stomach and said he wanted to go to the toilet. He asked his brothers to take Xiao He in first. When he got into the smelly toilet and touched his short beard under his chin, Liu Ji yelled:

"Your mother, my maid, Nai Gong had to bear the pain of shaving off his beard to hide from that black man. Why was he still found? Could it be that he has some magic that can see thousands of miles away? He also gave a gift of thousands of dollars, this I want to scare Naigong to death!"