Tang Dynasty Xie Lu Lang

Chapter 338 Too Lazy to Inspect the Romantic Scenery

As a servant in the Jingzhao Prefecture, Yuan Jie was far more efficient than the commoners in the marketplace.

After both parties reached a consensus and finalized the plan that day, the relevant contracts and documents for the residential land were delivered directly to his home. From now on, the dozen or so acres of residential land in Pingkangfang became his property. As for how the Yuan family would pay for the residential land, that was none of his concern.

Zhang Dai, true to his word, handed over Yuanfu's IOU, thus putting the matter to rest.

As for the subsequent petition, that's another matter entirely. Damn it, I bought the same plot of land, and I got ripped off and paid so much more money! Can't I complain? Even the Tang Dynasty has a market supervision bureau; they can't be so hypocritical and cheat people!

Now that the land has been acquired, it's time to prepare for building the new house. Thanks to Li Linfu's proactive attitude, the existing buildings on the land have been mostly cleared away. Zhang Dai only needs to finalize the building plan, and he can recruit workers, prepare materials, and start construction at any time.

However, since he plans to use this land for other purposes later, Zhang Dai is not in a hurry for the time being. He just wants to be able to start construction on the villa within this year.

Although he wasn't in a hurry, the thought of soon owning a villa in Pingkangfang, and even more so of snatching food from Li Linfu's mouth, still made Zhang Dai feel quite pleased. So on his way to work, he made a special detour to Pingkangfang to take a look at his residence.

Last night, the family stayed in Pingkangfang. Through their efforts from last night to this morning, they have built a fence around the house and set up several tents on the original small drill ground, guarding the area day and night.

Yesterday, Zhang Dai warned Li Linfu not to use magic tricks, and this was not out of petty suspicion. Leaving aside the fact that Zhang Dai had already experienced a case of witchcraft and murder, even in later generations, people had to be extremely careful when breaking ground for their houses, wary of neighbors or even strangers trying to sabotage them.

Standing on this plot of land, Zhang Dai couldn't help but conceive of the layout for his house. The plot was less than twenty acres in size, not enough to create any elaborate or varied gardens. Beyond meeting the most basic living needs, the only option was to make the house as comfortable and livable as possible.

"What a pity, it would have been great if we had taken over the entire mansion!"

Looking at Li Linfu's house, which was much larger than his own, Zhang Dai couldn't help but sigh inwardly.

People are always greedy and never satisfied. He was already far beyond his expectations to be able to acquire this piece of land without spending a penny, but now that the house hasn't even been built yet, he can't help but want to swallow up his neighbor's house.

Of course, this is also because the other party is Li Linfu. The two families will be neighbors in the future, so they'll have to sleep with one eye open, lest they be buried alive without even realizing it. Li Linfu was probably furious, which is why he didn't come to supervise the construction today. If he were here, he'd probably be thinking to himself that this kid is using all my ideas!
What are you doing here, Brother?

Zhang Dai was deep in thought, lost in the intrigues of the inner palace, when he suddenly heard someone shouting in the street outside. When he looked up, he was astonished to see Princess Li Yu of Yunyang County passing by in a carriage. The young girl, wearing a lotus crown and still dressed as a nun, was looking at him from the carriage, her bright, beautiful eyes full of curiosity.

“Being in charge of the two palaces every day, the travel back and forth is too time-consuming, so I bought a piece of land here and wanted to build a villa to rest in.”

Since the courtyard wall had long been demolished, Zhang Dai went directly north, leaped over the ruins, and greeted the county magistrate with a smile across the street canal.

Upon hearing this, the Princess of Yunyang smiled and said, "Brother, you mentioned your illness earlier. My family has some vacant houses and courtyards. Why not lend them to you? If you also enjoy the pleasures of Northern opera, buying property here would be just right!"

Upon hearing this, Zhang Dai blushed and quickly waved his hand, saying, "Ordinary people may find pleasure in sensual pleasures, but I am weary of this life. When I am on duty, my ears are filled with music and my eyes are filled with beautiful sights. I long for a break and a moment of leisure, so why would I be on duty to enjoy the pleasures of the world?"

“My brother recently said that he saw my brother at the Ci'en Temple theater, where the theater was packed with people and surrounded by a group of entertainers. It seems that he was lying.”

After hearing this, the Princess of Yunyang looked directly at Zhang Dai and smiled.

The county princess's beautiful eyes were clear and bright, but Zhang Dai felt somewhat embarrassed by her gaze and quickly changed the subject, asking, "What brings the county princess to the ward?"

“I came to visit my cousin, Princess Yongmu, to help decorate the hall. On my way back, I happened to see my elder brother and stopped the car to ask him something.”

The county magistrate of Yunyang raised his hand and pointed to the west, but did not continue the previous topic.

The residents of Pingkangfang were all wealthy and noble. Princess Yongmu, daughter of Emperor Xuanzong, also lived here. Her husband, Wang Yao, came from the Langya Wang clan and was the uncle of Wang Qian, who passed the imperial examination with Zhang Dai in the fifteenth year of the Kaiyuan era.

Upon hearing that the county magistrate of Yunyang was going home, Zhang Dai had Ding Qing bring his horse over from the other side. He then took a running start and leaped across the nearly ten-foot-wide ditch. He then smiled and said to the county magistrate, "I was also heading to the music hall, so I thought it would be convenient for the county magistrate to accompany me."

Seeing his lively and carefree demeanor, Princess Yunyang smiled and then instructed the coachman to drive slowly. Through the carriage curtain, she asked Zhang Dai with anticipation, "The Shangsi Festival is coming up, and there should be a banquet in Qujiang. Will you be attending, brother? Will there be any new songs or performances?" With the festival approaching, the continuous rain had finally stopped. Hearing the princess's question, Zhang Dai replied with a smile, "I'm still waiting for the temple's arrangements, but I suppose I will be going. If I don't have to be on duty, then I can go privately. As for the music and dance performances at the banquet, I'll have someone send them to the prince's residence for the princess to see."

The two chatted casually along the way, and soon arrived at Anxingfang. Zhang Dai first escorted the county princess and her entourage to the gate of the Prince's residence.

Before returning home, the Princess of Yunyang suddenly remembered something and leaned out of the carriage to say to Zhang Dai, "I have an official in my household who works at the Directorate of Works. Will you be at the Music Bureau later? I'll have someone inquire and, if it's convenient, introduce him to you. He can assist you with the construction of your house."

"Then thank you very much, Your Highness!"

Zhang Dai was delighted upon hearing this. Although he was not in a hurry to build a house, he naturally trusted the person recommended by the Princess of Yunyang.

Seeing that the carriage was about to set off again, he quickly said, "The printing house has several newly compiled Taoist books that are about to be printed. Will the county magistrate be home tomorrow? May I bring them to your residence for her to proofread?"

Previously, the magistrate of Yunyang County had entrusted 500,000 strings of cash to Zhang Dai, which provided him with great convenience. Instead of returning the money directly, he used it to invest in businesses and distributed dividends quarterly.

The Pure Land Temple and its affiliated printing shop were part of their collaborative business, which is why Zhang Dai asked this question, though more importantly, he was just making conversation.

"That would be great! I'd like to change the font used for this engraving..."

When it came to these mundane affairs, the Princess of Yunyang was also very interested, and she leaned against the carriage window to discuss them with Zhang Dai.

As the two were chatting, one in the carriage and the other on horseback, a clear, melodious bell suddenly rang out from inside the house. Soon after, a young man in fine clothes rode up to the gate. Upon seeing this, he immediately said with a smile, "Why don't you two talk inside while I and my servants go out first? Jia Changxin from the chicken farm has just trained a cage of fighting cocks and is about to give them away. If they are all taken by others, which of you will replace one for me?"

The visitor was none other than the Prince of Hedong. Hearing her brother's teasing, even the usually poised and generous Princess Yunyang couldn't help but feel a little embarrassed. She raised her hand and gently waved to Zhang Dai, then gestured for the coachman to enter the house.

The Prince of Hedong had long since finished his mourning period and was no longer the grief-stricken and frail figure he had been during the funeral. Perhaps influenced by his sister, his attitude towards Zhang Dai was not as distant as that of most other members of the imperial clan; he remained relatively friendly.

After the county princess entered the house, the Prince of Hedong rode out on his horse, looking Zhang Dai up and down as he said with a smile, "Although I am unrestrained, my family's etiquette is all based on my sister. Zhang Dai, you have quite the nerve to let her speak so openly in the street without any regard for propriety."

But if I want things to be more harmonious, working on my sister alone won't be enough. Those unpleasant fellows from Uncle Ning's and Uncle Xue's families often embarrass me, which is very infuriating. Zhang Dai, if you can help me regain face, I'll naturally give you face in return!

No matter how close the relationship between people is, it is inevitable that the first generation will be close, the second generation will be distant, and after the third generation, they will be like strangers. The Prince of Hedong was not very popular among the royal family, for a simple reason: he was living too comfortably.

Several years after the death of the Prince of Qi, he left behind a vast empire, but only one son, the Prince of Hedong. The Prince of Hedong essentially squandered his fortune alone, with no elders to discipline him.

In contrast, the other members of the imperial family suffered far more miserably. This specifically refers to the sons of the Prince of Ning, the Prince of Xue, and the Prince of Bin.

Although these young men were born into wealth and privilege, they paled in comparison to the King of Hedong. Not only had the old man not yet amassed any wealth, but he also had so many brothers waiting to divide his inheritance.

The Prince of Hedong was originally uneducated and incompetent. After finally getting through the mourning period, he naturally wanted to indulge in a great deal of pleasure. He enjoyed fine horses and beautiful women, cockfighting and dog racing, and for a time he seemed to be sweeping away the clan. With his inexhaustible wealth, he directly overshadowed the other members of the clan.

In the past, the more famous members of the royal family, such as the Prince of Ruyang, were naturally outshone and defeated when faced with the golden and radiant Dharma body of the Prince of Hedong. Naturally, they couldn't help but harbor resentment towards the Prince of Hedong, and there were many rivalries between them.

Zhang Dai was still hoping to make the Prince of Hedong his brother-in-law, so upon hearing this, he smiled and said, "If Your Majesty wishes to compete with all the people of the world, I am too weak to assist you. But if it is merely a game of competition with the young princes of the imperial clan, I believe that such a person can be easily defeated!"

"A true man should be this bold and magnanimous!"

The Prince of Hedong didn't really intend to drag Zhang Dai along for anything. Upon hearing this, he laughed loudly, waved his hand, and his followers, dressed in fine clothes and riding spirited horses, galloped away. The golden bells hanging from the horses' necks jingled rapidly, their clear ringing filling the long street with the sound of galloping hooves—a truly impressive sight.

Zhang Dai watched the entourage of the Prince of Hedong hurry away, and sighed inwardly. He then composed himself and headed to the Music Official's Courtyard in the same neighborhood.

(End of this chapter)