A Good Landlord in the Tang Dynasty: Starting from the Village Chief

Chapter 137: No Makeup

Xiao Shisan got up early.
Today is a happy day in his life. He got up before dawn, washed his hair, trimmed his messy beard, and put on new clothes and new shoes.

By the time he had finished packing, it was already dawn.

He arrived at the inner courtyard door early and waited, but Li Yi did not get up yet.

Li Yi cooked a superb dish last night, which was deer penis, deer treasure, deer tendon, deer tail, deer tongue, deer ears, deer heart, deer blood, wild rooster eggs, wild boar penis, wild boar treasure, and codonopsis and wolfberry.

This dish is really hard.
Anyway, Li Yi wanted to go to bed early at night.
As a result, he kept on carrying the burden, and had no choice but to call Ji Lingyi. Finally, Ji Lingyi could not bear it anymore and begged for mercy, so Li Yi went to find Yu Shu.

The fight lasted until midnight, and they were completely defeated.

If you delay sleeping at night, you will naturally not be able to get up in the morning.

When I woke up, it was already noon.

Li Yi was actually full of vigor and vitality again. If the woman from Afu's family hadn't reported that Xiao Shisanlang had been waiting outside, Li Yi would have wanted to imitate the King of Western Chu and have another Chu-Han War.

Ji and Yu Shu couldn't get up, so they called the maid Hongxiao to help them change clothes and wash up.

"Are Sister Sujun and Sister Yushu sick?"

"Just a little uncomfortable."

When Li Yi arrived at the second gate, Xiao Shisan immediately stood up and said, "A Lang,"

"Why are you in such a hurry? I haven't had breakfast yet."

Xiao Shisan was very anxious. Although he had waited for thirteen years, he still wanted to bring the person back as soon as possible.

Li Yi pulled him to the kitchen,

"What's there to eat?"

"I cooked millet porridge and steamed cakes,"

Li Yiran asked him to make some Suzaku soup. The simple Suzaku soup was actually just boiling water with eggs. He took the freshly boiled water and poured it into the bowl first to heat the bowl.

Then beat a few fresh eggs in a bowl, stir them with a spoon, add a little pepper, brown sugar and salt, then pour in boiling water, and a bowl of smooth Suzaku soup is ready.

The egg drops are tender and the soup is delicious.

For the people of that era, this soup was very nutritious. Even many malnourished children and women could regulate their bodies well by drinking this Zhuque soup. Therefore, this Zhuque soup was also regarded as a medicine.

Xiao Shisan ate very quickly.

He finished a bowl of porridge and a few steamed buns in just a few gulps, and even the freshly made egg drop soup, which he blew on while drinking.

"When I woke up this morning, I found two purple and blue marks on my thigh. Ah Lang's palm lightning is truly amazing. If we hadn't sparred yesterday, I'm afraid he would have electrocuted me to death."

Li Yi ate slowly and methodically.
"That's impossible. Although the Five Thunders Law is powerful, it's not that strong. Besides, I've only just started practicing. At most, I can shock and paralyze people. According to my master, his master's master once practiced the Five Thunders Law to such an incredible level that a single palm thunder could kill someone from twenty or thirty steps away."

Xiao Shisan was shocked. He believed that Li Yi's ancestor had this ability, and even thought that Li Yi should be able to kill him with a palm thunder.

Before, he thought that Li Yi was a talented and kind person, but he didn't quite believe in the Five Thunders Righteousness Method, or thought it might not be very powerful. But after experiencing it himself, he completely changed his mind.

He now wants to worship Li Yi as his master like Li Erlang.
It’s a pity that Li Yi confiscated Li Erlang last night, so it’s not something that can be easily spread.

After drinking the Suzaku soup with pepper, you will feel warm all over.

Li Yi finally took Xiao Shisan out.
He did not go to find Sun Fujia, but went directly to the Imperial City Taichang Temple.
The Jiaofangsi is under the Taichang Temple. He had asked his senior brother for a note yesterday, and today he came directly to find a music assistant named Dou Jin.

In any era, it is easier to get things done if you have connections in the court, and the Tang Dynasty was a society based on personal relationships.

Xielülang was only a minor official of the eighth rank in the Taichang Temple, but this Xielülang was very young, in his early twenties, and was a member of the Dou family. This was just the starting position for him to enter the officialdom.

After he took the note from Li Yi, he was very warm and polite to County Magistrate Li, who was personally greeted by the Imperial Censor Sun Fujia.

For him, redeeming the freedom of a prostitute from the music troupe was very simple. He simply called an old official and asked him to do the job.

"I've also long heard of County Master Li's name. It's rare to see you. Let's have a cup of tea and sit down."

It's hard to refuse such kindness.

Li Yi then drank tea with him in his public house. The Xielülang was in charge of music. During major sacrifices, court greetings and other ceremonies, the Xielülang was required to supervise the performance.

Those who hold this position are generally talented musicians who are proficient in music, can coordinate the rhythm of various instruments, and know how to compose music lyrics and poetry to music.

Li Yi didn't know whether Dou Jin was proficient in music, but he was definitely good at socializing. He pulled Li Yi to drink a pot of tea, but they seemed to have become close friends. His natural enthusiasm was amazing.

quickly,

The old official under him completed all the procedures.

"Thank you for your help, Brother Dou,"

"Why be so polite? If you ever fancy a prostitute or musician from the Jiaofangsi again, just tell me and I'll get it for you."

In the words of Dou Xielülang, this is not a big deal.

The official prostitutes of the Jiaofangsi and the musicians of the Taichang Temple were basically lowly people who were sentenced to death for crimes. Those who were engaged in music, singing and dancing were all official slaves, and many of them were even passed down from generation to generation.

Emperor Li Yuan also publicly stated that these people had been enslaved for many generations, which was a pity. Therefore, if their families could redeem them, the court would graciously allow it.

Even those who took advantage of the transition from the end of the Sui Dynasty to escape, or even took advantage of the chaos to pretend to be good citizens, or were appointed to official positions, were no longer pursued.

Yu Youniang was also confiscated during the previous dynasty because of her father's crime, so Li Yuan certainly would not deliberately pursue the previous crimes.

Say goodbye to Dou Jin, take the deregistration documents,
Then return to Pingkangfangzhongqu and find Yu Youniang's fake mother.
The fake mother read the document and although she was reluctant to give up this cash cow, she had no choice but to let the person go.

Yu Youniang had been in the Jiaofang for ten years, learning the art for three years and performing for seven years. In the end, she took nothing away.

Xiao Shisan brought her a new set of clothes, a silver hairpin, an ox horn comb, and a pair of new shoes.

Yu Youniang washed off her makeup,
She took off her gorgeous silks and jewelry,
She changed into the skirt that Xiao Shisan prepared for her.
He left the courtyard in Zhongqu without looking back.
Xiao Shisan carried her onto the horse, and led the horse with a happy look on his face.
Li Yi ate a lot of dog food and was happy that the couple's persistence finally paid off.
Although he paid for 200,000 coins, Li Yi felt it was not a loss as Xiao Shisan stayed as his retainer.

Back to Li Yi's house,
Ji also specially prepared a pot of fire.

"Fire can drive away evil spirits. Stepping over this pot of fire can also drive away bad luck. All the bad luck and misfortune of the past will be left behind.
Crossing the fire basin means rebirth from the ashes, a brand new beginning!"

Yu Youyu stepped over the brazier, took a long breath, and expressed her gratitude to Li Yi and Ji Lingyi, as well as to Xiao Shisan.

"This will be your home from now on."

She gained the status of a good man and was no longer a prostitute in the music brothel, and the ten years of humiliation were left behind.

Ji watched Xiao Shisan and Yu Youniang hugging each other and secretly wiped away her tears.

Li Yi walked over and took her hand.

Place a piece of paper in her hands.

"This is?"

"Release the document. From now on, you are no longer a slave, you are a beloved."

"slave,"

"You don't have to call yourself a slave anymore,"

A thin piece of paper, stamped with the red seal of the government, symbolizes freedom and the transition from humble status to virtue.

Li Yi also waved to Yu Shu who was standing beside him.
"Yours too,"

Another release document was handed out,

The Silla maid didn't expect that there would be a share for her, and she cried with joy.

One of them was a palace slave rewarded by Li Yuan for a criminal woman in the Ye Ting Palace, and the other was a Silla maid given by Wang Dalang. He had been with them for so long that he had already developed feelings for them.

As for his women, Li Yi must make an arrangement for them.
"After Shi Niang gets married, I will discuss with her and give you a status as concubines."

The Silla maid was so excited that she couldn't speak.
Although these Silla maids were very expensive, they were still slaves no matter how valuable they were. They could be resold or given away by their masters at any time.

Becoming a good man means at least you don’t have to worry about being sold again.

And if she could get the consent of the first wife and be taken as a concubine, her status would be even higher and more secure. If she could give birth to a child in the future, she would be able to rest assured.

Ji bit her lips tightly and said nothing, but her eyes revealed infinite affection.

"Okay, I can't stand seeing women cry, just laugh."

Li Yi arranged Xiao Shisan and Yu Youniang to live in the East Courtyard. From then on, Xiao Shisan was Li Yi's retainer, mainly serving as his personal bodyguard, while Yu Youniang served as the housekeeper of the inner courtyard.

Ji Lingyi and Jin Yusu, who had been released and successfully reserved the position of concubine, were still working as an accountant in the accounting office and a cashier in the warehouse.

The wedding is coming soon.

Li Yi also started writing invitations, sending people to buy items needed for the wedding, and decorating the bridal chamber.

He even took some time out from his busy schedule to inspect the East and West Markets while making purchases. He rented three shops on each side. The rent was not expensive. The shops he rented were not big.

One was selling soy products, such as bean curd sheets, natto, pickled tofu, fermented black beans, thousand sheets of vegetarian chicken, etc. He marched directly into Chang'an, opened a shop in each of the two cities, and served the hundreds of thousands of people in Chang'an city.

The other shops are used to sell persimmon wine and soap.

He has already started arranging to purchase persimmons from various parts of the countryside. Li Cunli has been officially promoted to shopkeeper and now leads people to purchase persimmons and purchase large jars.

Persimmon wine is also easy to make, and the initial preparation is simpler. Buy the persimmons, crush them, and seal them in a jar for fermentation.

After a month of fermentation, the wine can be distilled.

Soap can now be slowly trial-produced. It is very simple anyway. Buy pig pancreas lard, wood ash, shells and salt from the butcher's market. After processing, pour them into a mold, dry them in the shade for a few days, then remove them from the mold and saponify them for a month or so.

The preliminary work for persimmon wine and soap can be done.
Optimize while doing it,
For example, different molds for soap, subsequent packaging, different new formulas, etc., the packaging of persimmon wine, whether to use jars, gourds or bottles, what kind of promotion to use,
These can be done slowly.

Time passed by day by day in such a tense and busy manner.

In the blink of an eye, it was September 25th.

Tomorrow is the day of the wedding. Luo San, Luo Er, Liu Heizi, Sanniang and others all came to Chang'an a day in advance to help.

Dong Xiucai, Feng Xiangzuo, Wang Xiangzhang, Guo Cunzheng and others also agreed to come to Chang'an early tomorrow morning.

Li Yi inspected the house that had been decorated festively.
The kitchen has also prepared all kinds of ingredients, and the pigs, sheep, chickens and ducks have been slaughtered in advance.

Ji smiled and said, "Everything is ready. We just need Alang to bring Shi Niang back tomorrow."

A brand new blue cloth tent has been set up in the southwest corner of the inner courtyard of the house. From the Eastern Han Dynasty to the early Tang Dynasty, newlyweds held their weddings in a blue tent, and this blue tent had to be set up on a lucky spot in the southwest corner.

This Qinglu is also the bridal chamber for the newlyweds. Tomorrow, Li Yi and Du Shiniang will spend their wedding night here.

Fortunately, the weather is not too cold now, and there is a tent shed ready in the tent. In addition, the bed and wool felt mat are also ready.

Li Yi couldn't wait any longer.

(End of this chapter)