Ming Dynasty Detective 1546

Chapter 189 Joy falls from heaven
In the Ming Dynasty, betrothal was part of the "Six Rites" ceremony, specifically the betrothal ceremony. The core members of the ceremony were the parents and grandparents of both parties, and the matchmaker was also required to attend.

As for relatives and friends, immediate family members often attend, and very close friends can participate, but the number is usually limited to less than ten people.

Yan Shifan, however, wished he could bring all the members of the Yixin Society except Zhao Wenhua and have another team-building event.

Compared to Haiyue's calm and peaceful demeanor, Yan Shifan was very enthusiastic about organizing gatherings for members to connect and build relationships.

He has indeed made a great contribution to the cohesion of Yixin Society.

However, the betrothal ceremony is different from other weddings; less familiar relatives and friends are generally not invited and are reserved for the formal wedding.

So apart from Haiyue, Hairui, and Lin Daqin, who readily accepted the invitation, and Zhao Wenhua, who shamelessly insisted on coming along, everyone else declined.

"Xia was a famous talented woman in the capital. Not only did she come from a prestigious family, with her ancestors holding high-ranking positions in the Six Ministries, but she also had a strong family tradition of learning. In her childhood, she studied 'Admonitions for Women' and 'Biographies of Exemplary Women,' and was exceptionally skilled in needlework. As she grew up, she became familiar with 'Zizhi Tongjian,' and possessed the ability to understand people's hearts, grasp the general trend, and plan for the overall situation!"

"Such a talented young lady, who is not of this world, has been sought after by countless families since childhood. Matchmakers have worn down the threshold of the Xia residence. However, before the marriage, Xia Shi described herself as 'only perching on the parasol tree,' rejecting many playboy sons. But this time, she took a liking to Brother Donglou at first sight... Ha! Good eye!"

"It seems Madam Ouyang put a lot of effort into this marriage."

The one who could provide such accurate information, and with such a sarcastic tone, was none other than Zhao Wenhua, the "know-it-all" who sat at the bottom of the Yixinhui (a secret society).

Hai Rui and Lin Daqin listened with admiration, and were genuinely happy for Yan Shifan. They had long seen that their classmate was impetuous, and it would be a blessing if he could have a well-educated and courteous wife to restrain him.

Haiyue gleaned a lot of subtext from this.

Generally speaking, emphasizing that one's ancestors produced high-ranking officials indicates that the family has declined. Otherwise, one can simply say that one's grandfather, father, uncles held important positions, and that one's brothers and relatives passed the imperial examinations. There is no need to trace back to decades or even centuries ago.

After all, Yan Song's family was so poor that he wore tattered clothes to the banquet, but if you really look at his ancestors a hundred years ago, they were wealthy officials.

This suggests that the wife came from an ordinary family background, but she was likely known as a member of the "pure stream" (a term referring to a group of upright and honest individuals) and had a good reputation among scholars.

Haiyue nodded secretly, thinking that given Yan Song's current immense power, it was a very appropriate choice for his son to marry such a wife.

Yan Shifan didn't think too much about it. Dressed in all red, he was beaming with joy as he mounted his horse.

This trip is to formally present betrothal gifts to the woman's family. "The betrothal gifts are presented first, and then the marriage is completed."

Even though Yan Song was usually poor, he couldn't let his only son's wedding be meager, so he prepared a full dowry.

The three carts were full. The first cart contained a load of betrothal cakes, symbolizing a perfect union. Seafood, including black moss, abalone, and dried oysters, was served in eight different ways. The three sacrificial animals were two pairs of chickens, two males and two females, and five catties of pork.

The second cart contains auspicious symbols: four kinds of fruits, including dried longan, dried lychee, peanuts, and walnuts, to pray for prosperous descendants; tea and sesame seeds, to symbolize unwavering commitment; coconuts from Hainan, to symbolize having both father and son; and ceremonial items, such as a box containing lotus seeds, lilies, dragon and phoenix candles, and a bushel of rice including glutinous rice and sugar.

The third cart was filled with genuine silver. According to the betrothal gifts for officials in that era, a second-rank minister like Yan Song, who was also a Grand Secretary, would typically receive betrothal gifts of around five hundred to one thousand taels of silver. However, the Yan family was poor and could only manage to scrape together two hundred taels.

This is actually commendable, because the custom of "generous dowry" has long existed in the Jiangnan region. The groom's betrothal gifts are already generous enough, and the bride's dowry must surpass that of the groom. For example, wealthy families in Shaoxing often spend "five or seven hundred taels of gold" to marry off their daughters, which is about two thousand to two thousand eight hundred taels of silver. That is what is called a ten-mile-long red dowry and a grand wedding.

This naturally drew criticism from the literati, who had always valued a simple life, yet they continued to compare themselves to others while criticizing it.

After all, the state of mind of being content with a simple life is something that most people lack; most people care about face and the dignity and status of their new family couple.

Yan Song experienced many ups and downs in his life, and his mindset was indeed different. Yan Shifan, on the other hand, was indifferent. He was the kind of person who could get away with anything by having an extramarital affair, so why would he care about such things?

Feeling that three cartloads of betrothal gifts were more than enough, he sat imposingly on his tall horse, followed by Haiyue and her entourage, heading towards the Xia family.

The Xia family lived in Jing'er Hutong, located in the Dashilan area of ​​Xicheng District. Although it was within the inner city, it was a relatively remote street, and officials and wealthy families in the capital generally did not live here.

Unfortunately, not far from the alley entrance, a commotion arose ahead, as two trucks, one to the east and one to the west, appeared at opposite ends of the alley.

The oxcarts carrying grain creaked and groaned, piled high with sacks, while the donkey carts carrying firewood were stacked high with bundles of firewood, almost obscuring the driver's figure.

As a result, the two vehicles collided head-on, neither giving way to the other. The rope of the firewood cart snapped, and bundles of firewood rolled all over the ground. Several sacks of grain were also torn, and golden grains were scattered all over the street.

"Oh dear! Chai!"

"My rice! My rice!"

The shouts attracted onlookers. Some kind people helped pick up the items, but many others used their clothes as bags and stuffed things into them, quickly blocking the street.

The matchmaker, who was in charge of the betrothal gifts, squeezed through the crowd and then squeezed back out, sweating profusely. She smiled obsequiously at Yan Shifan and said, "Young Master Yan, it might be difficult to clear the way in front for a while. Let's enter from the alleyway on the north side!"

Yan Shifan frowned, feeling a bit unlucky, but glancing at the crowd ahead, he could only wave his hand: "Hurry up, don't be late!" "Yes! Yes!"

The matchmaker shared this concern and quickly directed the burly men to clear the way, leading the entire procession to turn in the other direction.

The others didn't care, but Haiyue's gaze fell on the group of vendors blocking the road. She suddenly turned her head and looked at a teahouse behind her, frowning.

Taking advantage of the chaos, he whispered a few words of advice to Hai Rui, dismounted, and quietly blended into the crowd.

He quickly arrived at the window on the second floor of the teahouse, touched the still-warm teacup on the table, and said in a deep voice, "Wenfu! Come out!"

A burly figure appeared, and Lu Bing's helpless voice rang out: "Mingwei, how could you see through it at a glance?"

"Can't you Imperial Guards find a different observation point? It's always the teahouse..."

Haiyue turned to look at him, made a sarcastic remark, and then said seriously, "Were the vendors arguing at the alley entrance your men? Are you trying to stop Donglou from collecting taxes?"

Lu Bing paused for a moment, then said in a low voice, "Mingwei, you and Yan Shifan are very close. Knowing some things might actually make things harder for you to handle..."

Haiyue's expression changed immediately: "Is there a problem with the bride?"

"Exactly!"

Lu Bing sighed, knowing he couldn't hide it any longer: "Based on your previous suggestion, Mingwei, we redeployed the personnel monitoring Yun Shao and Chu Rou to investigate the 'Female Bat.' I personally led the investigation and made a startling discovery: Xia Qingwu is very suspicious!"

"Xia Qingwu?"

Haiyue's eyes showed a solemn expression.

Xia Qingwu is clearly the maiden name of the Xia family woman that Yan Shifan is now going to marry. Not to mention his friends, even Yan Shifan himself would not know her maiden name unless he deliberately inquired with her family.

Lu Bing revealed this now to increase the credibility of his claim: "This woman's name is Xia Qingwu. This real name comes from the case records of Shuntian Prefecture seven years ago. When she was nine years old, she was abducted by a kidnapper but was later rescued! Guess who else appears in this kidnapping case file?"

Hai Yue's mind raced, and she immediately asked, "The Hidden Cloud Society?"

"Not bad!"

Lu Bing clapped his hands and laughed, "Back then, Yunyin Society wasn't called 'Yunyin Society,' it was called 'Jinghua Pavilion.' I confirmed this with Jiao Bai in the Imperial Prison. 'Jinghua Pavilion,' 'Yunmeng Society,' 'Yimeng Pavilion,' and 'Shenqi Tower' were all names that this group of illusionists used when performing in various places."

Haiyue said, "This interaction alone cannot prove anything."

Lu Bingdao said, "That's impossible, but when we continued our investigation, we discovered that there were not just one missing girl, but nine. In the end, only two girls, including Xia Qingwu, returned!"

"These two girls have now grown up and become famous talented women in the capital. Although their families are not wealthy, they have an excellent reputation. Their virtuousness is known far and wide. A virtuous wife is a must-have, and such women are naturally favored by powerful and wealthy young men!"

“Through the slightest clues, we discovered that it seems there is a group of people pulling the strings behind the scenes! And the fact that Yan Shifan is getting married is also due to the influence of that group!”

“Initially, we knew that ‘Female Earth Bat’ consisted of two women, and combined with the fact that ‘Fake Sun Rat’ consisted of two sisters, we assumed that ‘Female Earth Bat’ must also be two women who appeared together. Therefore, Yun Shao and Chu Rou, who rescued Dong Lou in the kidnapping case, were highly suspicious!”

Haiyue understood what he meant and continued, "But what if these two people were only together at the moment they became 'female bats,' and then went their separate ways afterward?"

Lu Bing said in a deep voice: "For example, Xia Qingwu, who is about to become Yan Shifan's legal wife and the daughter-in-law of Grand Secretary Yan? Heh, we have been on guard against her and focused all our attention on the outer quarters. If the legal wife is a major enemy, then we will be completely schemed against and killed by Li Yuanshe!"

Hearing this, Haiyue understood why Lu Bing had ordered people to block the road: "Wenfu only confirmed this situation not long ago, and hasn't had time to provide specific evidence yet, has he?"

"Yes! I was too late!"

Lu Bing sighed, "If I had known earlier, I would have stopped it much sooner. Right now, the Embroidered Uniform Guard is still in the stage of having no concrete evidence, and the Yan family is already engaged. I don't know what to do..."

"Just tell the person involved!"

Haiyue said without hesitation, "Donglou has always been able to distinguish right from wrong when it comes to matters of principle. Come with me!"

Once the two rejoined the crowd, they approached Yan Shifan from the left and right, respectively, and informed him of the current situation.

Under Lu Bing's slightly uneasy gaze, worried that the other party didn't believe him at all, Yan Shifan's eyes widened, and he suddenly revealed an expression of great joy: "I can capture one of the Twenty-Eight Constellations of Liyuan Society, is this really true?"

(End of this chapter)