novelhk Chapter 308: Spring Blossom Banquet
Chapter 308: Spring Blossom Banquet
Zhao Fangyu followed behind, and the maids behind him filed up to the path on the right where fallen petals were scattered.
She was wearing a dress with large hydrangea sleeves in the pattern of Hai Tianxia, a bodice with a pattern of flowers and birds underneath, and a thirty-two-tattered ivory and persimmon skirt. On her head was a gold and jade lotus crown made of thin silk, and on her ears were two gourds with mutton-fat jade lotus flowers that swayed in the wind.
The ladies who had met Zhao Fangyu had naturally heard about Zhao Fangyu's appearance. Among those who came to the banquet today, there were inevitably some young girls who had never seen Zhao Fangyu. Now, they were so shocked when they looked at him that they were speechless.
"The princess is so beautiful..."
A tender voice of an unknown little girl came from the crowd, and the eldest princess and a group of ladies all laughed. Indeed, Zhao Fangyu was really good-looking, and it was pleasing to the eye even just to look at him.
The princess waved at her with a smile on her face: "Come quickly, you are the master of the house, you can't ask me to replace you."
"It's a great honor for you to create such a wonderful place. Don't let an idle person like me waste your creative ideas."
Zhao Fangyu took the opportunity to step forward, holding hands with the princess and said, "There is no clever idea here. It's just a small banquet in our own yard."
This is no small banquet. How many people came from the capital today? There was a long queue of carriages in front of the palace!
The ladies who were familiar with Zhao Fangyu or the eldest lady gathered in groups of three or four, looking at Zhao Fangyu standing in front of the door and speaking modestly with a smile.
Zhao Fangyu led a group of people along the path of fallen flowers, chatting and laughing.
May and June are the time when lotus flowers are in full bloom and the sun is very hot. When ordinary people hold banquets, they must think of ways to cool down. But there is no need for that here in Zhao Fangyu's place, as the grass and trees are lush and the ground is full of flowers.
If you want the layers of crabapple flowers on both sides of the road to bloom at this time, you will need to spend a lot of money to hire a professional gardener to take care of them.
It looks like a sea of flowers, but in fact it is all splendor created by the accumulation of silver.
Along the way, in the mountain view rooms, small corridors, and even under the bamboo curtains hanging under the windows, there were two small five-bat jade pendants.
A winding, clear stream meanders by the side, with the sound of trickling water, which repeatedly splashes on the riverside stones of Zhaoxi Pavilion nearby. The sound of water is clear to be summer, but just looking at it once can dispel a trace of dryness.
A small pavilion was built by the water next to Zhaoxi Pavilion, and the stream water was led into the pavilion. The stream water was drawn up by bamboo tubes and slowly flowed down along the stone table. The turquoise bamboo tubes were placed in a staggered manner for drawing water. The transparent water drew a short arc in the air, and before splashing, it fell into the waterway and flowed along the waterway.
There is no better place than here to have Qushui Liushang.
"Girls, you can have some fun here after you eat. We have backgammon pieces, date-grinding musical instruments, and everything else you need."
The place was damp and it was not convenient to leave musical instruments here, so Zhao Fangyu led everyone inside.
The little girl was naturally more interested in the Linxi Pavilion with flowers all over the sky. Before the banquet, she had already made an appointment to grind dates and play backgammon with three or five friends, and she also wanted to have some sisters who were good at playing musical instruments to play music with her...
Everyone followed Zhao Fangyu and walked forward a few steps. The road was not long, but the scenery was beautiful. There were many flower windows on the walls, which were translucent and elegant, revealing all kinds of different flowers inside. Every place was beautiful and exquisite, with oil-painted walls and bluestone roads. It had the gentleness of Jiangnan and the flavor of Beijing.
Passing through a moon-shaped gate, you will find the real Garden of Flowers.
There were countless flowers and countless rare treasures. Even the weeping jasmine that the eldest princess had marveled at before was just an ordinary flower among these countless rare treasures and plants.
The little girls, who had just thought the little pavilion was wonderful, could not take their eyes off the flowers for a moment. Not only the little girls, but even the knowledgeable ladies had never seen so many such special and exotic flowers gathered in one place.
The princess held the small brocade fan in her hand and lightly hit Zhao Fangyu's shoulder, her tone was filled with sourness: "You little monkey, how many things are you hiding from me?"
Zhao Fangyu smiled and led the princess to her seat: "These are just vulgar things. How can a person like Aunt be infected by these vulgar things?"
The eldest princess was particularly confident: "Not bad, give me two basins."
When the princess saw something she particularly liked, she said with a strong sense of justice: "Two basins!"
Zhao Fangyu shook his head and whispered, "Aunt, what's the point of flowers? I'll give you two bottles of jasmine oil when the time comes."
Without waiting for the princess to understand what jasmine oil was, Zhao Fangyu said no more and slowly struck the small bell on the table. The sound was pleasant and light. Over there, two teams of maids wearing ginger half-sleeves and green tops appeared.
The first few people came with nothing in their hands and with smiles on their faces. As soon as they arrived at the garden, they took the initiative to stand next to their customers and lead them to their seats.
The little maid following behind him came over with cups, plates and bowls.
These maids who were in charge of guiding people were the saleswomen from the fourteen states. These ladies themselves might not recognize every single person at the banquet, so everyone felt at ease when they came to guide people.
The ladies selling jewelry and flour medicine had heard and seen these ladies many times on weekdays. Each of them had her own regular customers, so it was most appropriate for them to guide the ladies at this time. Some ladies who did not like to go to the Fourteen States also had maids from the palace to guide them. Everyone sat in the sea of flowers, surrounded by countless fresh flowers and treasures, which was dazzling.
"Over the years, I have been grateful to you for taking care of our business in the Fourteen States. There are many things I would like to say, but they are annoying, so I will not say more here."
"There are naturally many kinds of flowers in the banquet. It's a pity that these hundreds of flowers are just ordinary things after all. However, they are the result of my painstaking efforts to cultivate them in the Fourteen States over the years. Today, I bring them out for you to see. It is also a blessing for these flowers to be appreciated by you ladies."
After hearing this, the dazzled little girls couldn't help but look up, they saw Zhao Fangyu and the eldest princess sitting side by side at the top. The eldest princess had a big red camellia on her head with red petals and gold pistil. The red didn't mean it was red from top to bottom, but there were a few white spots on the petals, as if there were a few snowflakes floating on it.
The eldest princess looks elegant and dignified, with extremely dignified appearance, her hair like clouds. Her thick black hair matches the bowl-sized red camellia with falling snow, making her beautiful but not coquettish, like a fairy concubine.
Seeing that Zhao Fangyu had taken the lead in picking a camellia and putting it on the eldest princess's bun, the little girls could not help themselves. Under Zhao Fangyu's persuasion, they nimbly slipped into the flowers like the fairies in the Queen Mother's Yaochi Festival.
Maids came in and out, and food and water were gradually served. The eldest princess held Zhao Fangyu's hand and began the banquet: "This is her first time to host such a large banquet. If there are any mistakes, please forgive me. Young people always need experience."
Zhao Fangyu continued with the princess' words. Everyone present was either a smart person or a fool. No one would jump out at this moment and say, "I won't take responsibility for it."
After the banquet, dishes were usually served in a flow. Three tea masters were invited to the hall. In the past, they were the most difficult tea masters to invite in the capital. Now all three of them were sitting in the hall. The high and low tea soups were dazzling, and there was no noise, but they created a scene with their bodies.
For a banquet of beauties, everything from the environment to the food and drinks, even the plates served, are very particular.
The thin-bodied lotus leaf plate with a sky-blue glaze has a fresh lotus leaf in the middle, and today's dishes are placed on the lotus leaf...
The ladies knew at a glance that these porcelains were of great value and that the cost of this banquet would not be less than a thousand taels.
Even in a wealthy family, some people couldn't help but feel that Zhao Fangyu was too wasteful.
Some people from noble families were so disgusted that they didn't even move their chopsticks.
Zhao Fangyu pretended not to see it and turned around to listen to the eldest princess talking about the reconstruction of Qianjin Tower.
"It was a good shop, but it caught fire for no reason. It's a pity that there is still no result."
Speaking of this, the eldest princess was filled with rage. She pointed at the culprit who was nowhere to be found and cursed him with all her heart.
"What a black-hearted scumbag, don't let me catch you, don't let me catch you, hehe..."
The princess hadn't finished her words, but her words had already made it clear that Zhao Fangyu, the culprit, sat on the ground and agreed without changing his expression: "It is indeed not a gentleman's behavior to cut off someone's financial resources for no reason."
The eldest princess could no longer fan herself with her fan, and she kept hitting the tabletop with it, obviously very angry.
"Don't worry, auntie. The Royal Guards are investigating. They will eventually find out."
The sweet lychee thirst-quenching water was icy and immediately extinguished the eldest princess's anger.
"Today, many ladies are here, so Aunt and I can take a look. Now we are going to rebuild the building. If there are any parts that were not to your liking, we should correct them together."
The princess's long eyelashes trembled quickly, knowing that Zhao Fangyu was using her as a scapegoat, but after all, this business was built with Zhao Fangyu. The money earned from Qianjinlou was her own, and she could get half of the profit for free from the joint venture shop. There was no reason for her to refuse the money that was delivered to her door.
The Princess and Zhao Fangyu sang the same tune, and the ladies below all knew what they were talking about.
Some people prick up their ears and concentrate, while others shake their heads and sip their tea with disdain. In short, beauty is in the eye of the beholder and right and wrong lies in people's hearts.
Zhao Fangyu sat at the top, taking in everything. He was not moved at all and said slowly:
"The fragrant dew is expensive and difficult to transport. There are always not enough fresh flowers locally. I cannot ask the local people to abandon their fertile land to grow flowers for me."
"Flowers are like people. They can grow anywhere, in mountains, rivers and streams. There is no reason for them to compete with the people for profits."
These two sentences hit the nail on the head. Those who originally thought that Zhao Fangyu was extravagant agreed with him after hearing this: "That's the truth. We must not compete with the people for profit."
The corners of Zhao Fangyu's lips curled up slightly, his eyes were extremely clear and upright: "That's right, the people are the foundation of the country. Only when the people live and work in peace and contentment, and Daliang is peaceful and prosperous, can we live a good life."
The princess smiled and pretended to pinch Zhao Fangyu: "How did you give birth to such a talkative mouth? Tomorrow my child doesn't need to look for a teacher, he can just worship you directly."
The eldest princess was just joking. Everyone present knew that her so-called child was a boy. How could he become Zhao Fangyu's disciple?
But those who have daughters at home can't help but have some thoughts.
"If you ask me to do business, I can do anything, but as for teaching and educating people, I am still far from it."
The princess shook her head and raised her chin slightly: "Humility."
The two chatted for a long time, but didn't talk about business, which made them feel anxious.
"Speaking of which, has the business that the princess wanted to start before been successful?"
Zhao Fangyu raised her eyes and looked at the person who was speaking. The man was not much older than Zhao Fangyu, with almond eyes and rosy cheeks. His clothes were not extremely gorgeous, but they were brand new. He wore two golden combs on the left and right sides of his head, with a pair of golden plates with auspicious clouds and lychees in the middle, and golden and jade melon and fruit earrings on both sides. He looked at her with sparkling eyes.
Zhao Fangyu looked at the person and immediately understood that this was the friend of her sister-in-law Mei Xunyin.
"The goods are all ready-made, but the Cui family has already done this business."
Zhao Fangyu's voice was indifferent. One of the ladies lost her temper and asked hurriedly, "So now, there should be no shortage of people?"
After saying that, he lowered his head and smiled, as if he was embarrassed: "When I heard the news a few days ago, I counted all the silver in the dowry."
Everyone was not fools and thought that these were all arranged by Zhao Fangyu. However, there was no disguise on Zhao Fangyu's face and he remained calm.
"We need to think about this matter carefully. After all, I was involved in this matter, and I don't want others to use my name to exploit the tenants."
"The Cui family of Qinghe and my family are old friends. Besides, with them around, there will be no one in Qinghe who will pretend to obey and secretly force tenant farmers to give up their crops and grow flowers just to make money."
Zhao Fangyu's eyes slowly moved around the faces of everyone present. His tone was gentle, and he spoke of the worst-case scenario, but no one felt offended.
"The Cui family of Qinghe is very famous in the local area. If not for this, Fang Yu would never feel at ease. Planting flowers is not restricted to any place, whether it is an open space at home or in the mountains and forests. If you put in the effort to cultivate them, you can get more flowers. If you don't spend the effort, you can just pick them directly on the mountain road and exchange them for silver to give the people an extra meal of meat."
The eldest princess sat on the side and watched, looking at Zhao Fangyu's rosy lips opening and closing, she beautified the business partnership into a good deed, so that the people would have an unexpected fortune to supplement their household expenses.
The people live and work in peace and contentment, and Daliang is peaceful and prosperous. These twelve words are like a golden medal of immunity from death. Who dares to say that this business is not legitimate?
There is no better business than this. It is elegant, makes money, wins the hearts of the people, and is also a great help to the husband and son who are officials at home.
Even for a local prominent family like the Cui family, even their servants and maids would be praised by people when they walk on the street!
Where else can you find a more respectable and affordable deal than this?
Never again!
Zhao Fangyu then brought out the highlight of the day.