novelSusiti Chapter 104 Wu Song's Wedding, Celebrated Throughout Jizhou
Chapter 104 Wu Song's Wedding, Celebrated Throughout Jizhou
The prefect of Yunzhou received the Jianghu Daily and Wang Lun's letter, and this time he dared not be stingy anymore.
However, he couldn't produce 200,000 guan all at once, so he could only give 100,000 guan and 10,000 shi of grain, which were then escorted to Jeju.
No sooner had the money and provisions been sent out than the imperial court sent word that the entire world already knew about this "Jianghu Daily."
He was so frightened that he collapsed to the ground, knowing that the imperial court would not let him go. After much deliberation, he jumped off the city wall of Yunzhou and committed suicide.
The people of Yunzhou cheered with joy when they saw the corrupt official commit suicide.
Some even considered organizing all the people to defect to Jeju Island and seek the protection of Liangshan.
Yunzhou was in complete chaos.
Meanwhile, neighboring Jeju Island was filled with celebration and joy. The streets and alleys were decorated with lanterns and colorful decorations, and the people were all dressed up as if it were New Year's Day.
The Liangshan Flying Tiger Army held a grand banquet in ten restaurants throughout the city. People who were tired from walking around could enter and eat and drink for free without paying a penny.
All expenses were paid by Liangshan.
These restaurants were all owned by corrupt merchants from Jizhou and the Zhu Family Manor. After being taken over by Liangshan, they were managed by people sent by Liangshan.
The soldiers guarding the walls and gates of Jeju City were also carefully selected by Wang Lun. They had to be tall, handsome, and all clad in armor, wielding iron spears, and looking like fierce and powerful men.
This is a public image project, and we cannot afford to be careless in the slightest.
With only three days until the wedding, Chao Gai, Li Ying, and Luan Tingyu from various counties personally returned to congratulate Wu Song, and Du Qian, Song Wan, Tang Long, and others from Liangshan also came to Jizhou.
The people in the city also sent congratulatory gifts according to their own financial means.
In front of the Jeju Prefectural Government Office, chickens, fish, sheep, melons, fruits, and vegetables were piled up like a small mountain, all representing the people's good wishes.
Wang Lun and the other leaders were overjoyed, as these gifts were sufficient proof that Liangshan's governance of Jizhou was effective.
After celebrating for several days, April 20th finally arrived.
Wu Song was dressed in a grand manner, wearing a crimson robe with colorful satin and gold thread embroidered with white crane patterns on the cuffs, a black gauze turban, a leather belt, and black leather boots.
His magnificent and solemn attire further accentuated Wu Song's heroic spirit.
During the Song Dynasty, wedding attire typically featured red for the groom and green for the bride, conveying a sense of solemnity and elegance. Wang Lun spared no expense, selecting only the finest gold ornaments and jewels for their clothing, with each piece receiving final approval from him.
In order to ensure the success of the wedding, Wang Lun sent people to search through all the warehouses in Liangshan before finally settling on the two sets of wedding attire that are currently in use.
Gongsun Sheng chose noon as the auspicious time.
Before noon, the leaders of Liangshan had already gathered together, commenting on Wu Song's attire.
Wang Lun was also in the crowd, drinking and chatting with the leaders.
Just then, Zhao Si came to report from outside the door that Zhang Shuye had arrived.
Wang Lun and Wu Song immediately went out to greet them. They saw Zhang Shuye standing at the door with several attendants, carrying several boxes of gifts, dressed in official robes, and smiling.
"Minister Zhang, how have you been?" Wang Lun bowed with clasped hands.
Zhang Shuye laughed and said, "I am no longer a vice minister. Because I failed to suppress your Liangshan heroes, I was demoted to the prefect of Haizhou by Grand Commandant Gao. I am grateful for the Emperor's kindness in appointing me as the prefect of Yunzhou. From now on, we will be neighbors."
He did not mention that the emperor had appointed him concurrently as the prefect of Jizhou.
Wang Lun laughed and said, "We were the ones who caused Prefect Zhang to be demoted, but now that we're neighbors, we can get closer."
Zhang Shuye then offered his congratulations to Wu Song, saying, "His Majesty was very pleased to hear of Wu Song's wedding and specially ordered me to bring a small gift on behalf of the court to congratulate Wu Song when I took office in Yunzhou."
Upon hearing that it was arranged by the government, Wang Lun and Wu Song were overjoyed and quickly expressed their gratitude, naturally accepting the corresponding gifts.
Wang Lun led Zhang Shuye inside.
Zhang Shuye was very approachable and quickly became one of the leaders.
When he encountered Huyan Zhuo, Guan Sheng, and others, he didn't forget to make a few jokes with them.
"Oh, General Huyan has gotten fat. Is the food at Liangshan better than at the imperial court?"
"General Guan, it's been over a month since we last met, and you look even more energetic."
Guan Sheng had no other choice, after all, he had also taken the initiative to invite Zhang Shuye to join Liangshan.
Hu Yanzhuo, however, felt that Zhang Shuye was mocking him, and his face turned bright red.
As noon approached, Lu Zhishen loudly proclaimed, "The time has come; please, groom, come and fetch your bride!"
Originally, Wu Song and Hu Sanniang lived in the government office. However, in order to complete the groom's wedding ceremony, Hu Sanniang was sent to an inn in the west of the city last night after she was dressed up.
Wu Song, riding the Snow-Treading Black Steed borrowed from Huyan Zhuo, walked ahead, looking radiant.
The Liangshan leaders, all dressed in new clothes, rode tall horses, and carried baskets, following behind Wu Song.
The people on the street cheered and applauded.
Some bolder people even blocked the road demanding wedding candy.
Wang Lun and other leaders then threw out the wedding candies and money from their baskets, which were then scrambled up by the people.
After a lively journey, we finally arrived at the inn.
Hu Cheng and the others were already waiting at the entrance of the inn. Wu Song personally gave Hu Cheng a big red cloth-wrapped lucky bag, which was also filled with lucky money.
Amidst the commotion caused by the leaders, Hu Sanniang slowly emerged, supported by Qiao'er and Yulan.
Hu Sanniang was already tall and beautiful, and when dressed in her finest attire, she looked like a fairy descended from heaven.
She wore a straight-collared, front-opening short blouse, over which she wore a light green overcoat, and a pleated skirt, paired with a shawl with a gold pendant at the end. She wore a Song dynasty crown, inlaid with jewels that gleamed, exuding wealth and nobility.
Upon seeing the bride, Wu Song was overjoyed.
Wu Song carried Hu Sanniang onto the bridal sedan chair, while he rode his horse to protect the side of the sedan chair. The group then passed through Jizhou City and returned to the government office.
Along the way, Wang Lun and others scattered countless candies and money for the wedding.
Upon arriving at the government office, Lu Zhishen, Gongsun Sheng, and others led the way at the entrance, and the crowd then surrounded the bride and groom as they entered the main hall.
As previously agreed, the three people to sit in the main hall were Hu Taigong, Wang Lun, and Wu Dalang.
Lu Zhishen, in a loud voice, roared from the side, "Bowing to Heaven and Earth!"
Wu Song and Hu Sanniang then bowed to heaven and earth.
"Bowing to the chieftain and his parents."
The two then turned around and bowed to Wang Lun, Hu Taigong, and Wu Dalang.
"Husband and wife bow to each other."
After the two finished bowing to each other, Lu Zhishen called out loudly, "Send them to the bridal chamber."
The leaders cheered even more, crowding around the bride and groom as they entered the bridal chamber. Before the ceremony was over, a boy and a girl, who had been borrowed from the city, were brought in.
Upon seeing the bride and groom enter, two children, one on each side, scattered two baskets of red dates onto the new bed, symbolizing the wish for many children.
Only then were the bride and groom allowed to sit on the edge of the bed.
Lu Zhishen roared again, "Husband and wife should drink the nuptial wine together!"
Two children brought over a wine pot and cups, and Wu Song and Hu Sanniang drank the nuptial wine.
Lu Zhishen laughed and said, "The ceremony is complete! Please begin the wedding night!"
Wu Song and Hu Sanniang were already overwhelmed by all the rules, so when they heard Lu Zhishen's words, Wu Song was taken aback: "You're watching?"
Wang Lun laughed and said, "Wu Song has never been with a woman before, so we can watch and give him some pointers."
The leaders burst into laughter and started making a ruckus.
Hu Sanniang was already blushing with embarrassment.
Wu Song then realized it was a joke, and feigned anger, saying, "I'll get you all drunk later."
Wang Lun said, "It's better to get us drunk tomorrow, you still have things to do later."
Wu Song was taken aback and asked, "What is it?"
The leaders burst into laughter, and only then did Wu Song realize what was happening.
After a while of commotion, Wang Lun and Lu Zhishen pushed and shoved the leaders away from the bridal chamber.