The Demon-Slaying Grandmaster

Chapter 142 This is what you call a family with two dukes
Several days passed, and even on the Lantern Festival, Jia Rong did not dare to rest, and continued to serve at the Palace Guard Office.

It's clear this kid was really scared after being beaten this time.

However, this also implicated Jia Lian, who was not yet married, and he had no choice but to stay with Jia Rong at the Palace Guard.

Even last night, Jia Lian was still thinking about whether he should ask Li Jingxiao to go on the expedition with the army.
Jia Lian is already managing the Rongguo Mansion's external affairs. Despite his young age, he has already traveled to many places.

In the original novel, he even took Lin Daiyu back to Yangzhou for a funeral, a trip that lasted for almost half a year.

Not only did they handle Lin Ruhai's funeral perfectly, but they also safely and smoothly brought the wealth accumulated by the Lin family over generations, along with Lin Daiyu, back to the Rongguo Mansion.

Furthermore, his father, Jia She, colluded with generals in border towns such as Datong and Xuanfu to smuggle goods across the border and sell them to the Tatars.

Jia Lian had to personally travel to Datong and Xuanfu several times.

Even on horseback, it would take six or seven hundred li to get to Datong or Xuanfu.

It's clear that while this kid is a complete playboy, he's not entirely useless.

It could even be said that he was far more capable than most of the powerful and wealthy scions of later generations.

The thought of going to the battlefield and possibly fighting is just too much.

One wrong move and he could get hurt, or even die on the battlefield, so Jia Lian chickened out.

As for Jia Rong, Jia Lian could only pray in his heart that his nephew wouldn't be taken to the front lines by Li Jingxiao.

If you just stay in Shanhaiguan or Liaodong Town to help with logistics, there is no danger.

They also don't need to march with the main army.

Not only is there no danger, but you also don't have to suffer much.

If the front lines win a battle, they will also receive some credit.

In the Palace Guard Office, no one has dared to underestimate Jia Rong and Jia Lian these past few days.

Li Jingxiao even had his fiancée's nephew whipped 10 times by someone coming to his door.

If anyone else dares to slack off, make mistakes, or even try to steal food, weapons, warhorses, or other supplies...

If discovered, Li Jingxiao will definitely kill someone as a sacrifice.

Of course, Li Jingxiao didn't usually manage the Palace Guards, but he was in charge of the specific training of the 1 cavalrymen.

But if anyone is injured, they can get medicine by going to the Palace Guard office the next day.

Therefore, Li Jingxiao didn't need to ask too many questions; he only needed to chat with the wounded soldiers for a few minutes.

That gives you a general idea of ​​the level of a 1-strong cavalry unit.

Those cavalrymen who had been treated by him personally experienced the power of the elixir and had a very high level of respect for him as their commander.

Moreover, since Li Jingxiao has no shortage of elixirs, soldiers who are wounded on the battlefield will not have to worry about dying from festering wounds.

In ancient times, relatively few soldiers died directly on the battlefield during battles between two armies.

Most of them died from infected wounds.

For this reason alone, Li Jingxiao could gain the unanimous support of 1 cavalrymen.

Not to mention, after Li Jingxiao became the deputy commander, he would have an extra pig every noon and evening to satisfy his cravings.

The top ten in mounted combat and mounted archery training will be rewarded with 10 taels of silver per month.

The 11th to 50th place will receive a reward of 5 taels of silver.

51 to 100, reward: 3 taels of silver.

101 to 300, reward: 1 taels of silver.

The rest would also receive the same amount of money, but only 500 coins, and would be responsible for cleaning the stables and washing the horses the following month.

Although it was quite tiring, the food was better. 500 coins could be used to buy grain, which was more than enough to feed one or two more people.

Over the course of several months, while these thousand men may not have pledged allegiance to Li Jingxiao, at least none of them disobeyed any of his orders.

That's enough.

After spending the entire day counting and organizing the grain and military supplies, Jia Lian was so tired that his back and neck ached.

Not to mention that Jia Rong was already injured.

His pale face and the way he grimaced in pain as he walked, aggravating the wound on his back, truly sent chills down the spines of the court officials and soldiers.

When the news reached the palace, the Emperor Emeritus and the Emperor could not suppress their smiles.

Moreover, noble sons like Niu Zhanpeng, Liu Wei, and Hou Liang, who had some connections with Li Jingxiao, began to hesitate again when they wanted to ask Li Jingxiao to take them on the expedition.

What if Li Jingxiao is truly a cold-hearted and ruthless person, and I disobey military orders or make a mistake?

He might use it in front of the entire army as a warning to the soldiers and officers.

Five days later, Li Jingxiao, seeing that the wedding was tomorrow, welcomed Yuan Chun into his family.

Jia Rong really hasn't taken the Sanhua Yulu Pills at all, and I'm starting to feel sorry for the kid.

That's why Zhao Junming, the bodyguard beside Jia Rong, gave him a pill when Jia Rong was checking in.

This immediately moved Jia Rong to tears.

The resentment he had harbored for the past five days had not only completely disappeared, but he had also turned his hatred towards his own father, Jia Zhen.

Jia Zhen really went too far.

Jia Rong knew he had made a mistake, and he accepted being beaten.

Of course, you can't deny it either.

Faced with power, even a spoiled young master like him couldn't help but back down.

But Li Jingxiao had already been told that all he needed to do was suffer for a few days and put on a show for the Palace Guards and the generals.

But it's been five days already, and Jia Zhen not only hasn't given me the Three-Flower Jade Dew Pill, but last night he even said that since I've been in pain for four days, the injury will heal itself in a few more days.

There's no need to waste a single miracle drug.

It would be strange if the son didn't feel sad and indignant when these words came from his own father.

If you encounter someone who's stubborn and inflexible, you might get stuck in a rut.

On the contrary, Li Jingxiao, seeing that his injuries had not yet healed, took the initiative to have someone send him the Three-Flower Jade Dew Pill.

Instead of resentment, Jia Rong now felt that although Li Jingxiao had been whipped 10 times, he still cared about his nephew.

At least he's much better than his biological father, Jia Zhen.

After taking the pill, a cool sensation ran down his back, and within just a dozen seconds, the whip wound, which had already scabbed over, was 90% healed.

It's like recovering 30 points of health, but I'm still not fully recovered.

It is clear that Jia Rong's injuries were not as minor as they appeared.

Who knows, the wound on this kid's back might have already started to get infected. If it drags on for a few more days, he might start to get a fever, and then it would get out of control.

When Li Jingxiao found out, he felt a little embarrassed.

They also sent some tonics such as ginseng, deer antler, and saffron to Jia Rong at Ningguo Mansion.

This immediately made Jia Rong extremely grateful.

The next morning, on the eighteenth day of the first lunar month, was the day Yuan Chun got married.

Before dawn, this boy got up and ran to the Rongguo Mansion to run errands for Jia Zhu and Jia Lian.

When the Rongguo Mansion married off its daughters, it was by imperial decree from the retired emperor and the emperor himself; let alone the nobles of the capital.

Anyone who had a marriage alliance or a relationship with the Jia family, even those from Jinling City, would rush to the capital on horseback as soon as possible.

Early in the morning, the Ning and Rong mansions were bustling with people.

Seeing Jia Rong lively and energetic, Jia Zhu, Jia Lian, the Wang brothers, and other young people of the same age and generation immediately realized that the boy must have taken Li Jingxiao's elixir. In an instant, their gazes towards the boy changed from schadenfreude to envy, and even jealousy.

Jia Rong wasn't stupid to begin with, and it wasn't long before he realized that he was suddenly more popular with the young guests than his second uncle, Lian.

After waiting for the Wang brothers, they jokingly asked how his injuries had healed so quickly.

Jia Rong then realized that she seemed to have become the envy of these people.

The hardships he had endured these past few days were immediately transformed into the fact that he was doing it to cooperate with his uncle, Li Jingxiao, by bearing humiliation and upholding military discipline.

Not only was it without fault, but it also brought merit.

Thinking about it this way, Jia Rong straightened his back.

His voice also became three degrees louder.

Unfortunately, Jia Rong wasn't the main character today. The group of people only flattered the young man a few times before focusing all their attention on Yuan Chun's marriage.

Li Jingxiao had been married once before, so marrying Yuan Chun this time was much easier.

The so-called "morning welcome and evening procession" means that the bride would leave home at 9:00 AM to lead the wedding procession to the Rongguo Mansion to pick up the bride.

After making a fuss and having a drink at the bride's house, it's usually afternoon by the time the bride is taken back to the husband's home.

The wedding ceremony took place at dusk, followed by a wedding banquet.

When the wedding procession arrived at Rongguo Mansion, some servants and children had already spotted the procession and ran back to report.

Li Jingxiao was not a proper scholar, and he had absolutely no connection with scholars.

There were actually very few civil officials who were on good terms with the Jia family.

They were mostly unsuccessful civil officials with low-ranking positions.

So surprisingly, no one made things difficult for him by composing a poem to urge him to get ready for the wedding, which made Li Jingxiao, who had prepared several poems in the past few days, feel a little regretful.

However, the Jia family has a lot of relatives.

There were eight branches in the capital, and twelve branches in Nanjing.

Although not many of their relatives came from Jinling, since the wedding was brought forward, those who could come had to ride horses at breakneck speed and only arrived a day or two before the wedding.

Even though there were far fewer people, the Jia family still had too many relatives by marriage and old connections.

Just recognizing people was giving Li Jingxiao a huge headache.

Only then did Li Jingxiao truly realize the true value of a family that held the titles of Duke of two states.

The two founding generals, along with the two second-generation successors, also had considerable military achievements. It would not be an exaggeration to say that their disciples, family friends, and relatives were all over the court and the country.

The presence of the four kings, eight dukes, and sixteen marquises was either a personal visit from the head of the family or a visit from the heir to offer congratulations.

For a moment, Li Jingxiao even thought that it would actually be a good thing for the Ning and Rong families if the third and fourth generations were either useless or became Taoist priests.

Otherwise, the fact that the Jia family held immense military power for three generations would actually be a disaster.

Not only the emperor couldn't stand it, but even the officials and nobles who had long-standing friendships with the Jia family felt that the Jia family was blocking their path to advancement.

Thinking about it this way, perhaps the Jia family's decision to pursue the imperial examination system wasn't because they didn't know their position was crooked, but because they had no other choice.

But then I thought about it again. The Duke of Yingguo, the Duke of Weiguo, and the Duke of Dingguo in the Ming Dynasty also held power for generations, but they only aligned themselves with the emperor and listened to him wholeheartedly. They all lived well for generations.

If we look at it this way, it seems that the Jia family has indeed gone astray again.

Fortunately, Li Jingxiao is getting married today, and to some extent, the arrival of the new son-in-law is the biggest benefit.

Even if someone makes things difficult for her, it's only when she's being escorted out of her room by her married sister-in-law or young girls who haven't grown up yet that they make things difficult for her.

After a lively discussion, around 3 p.m., the bride was finally taken out of the house.

Yuan Chun, dressed in a phoenix coronet and embroidered robe, sat in a large sedan chair carried by twelve men, with a procession of ten miles of red bridal makeup following behind – it was no less impressive.

Given the Rongguo Mansion's status as the founding duke, it was quite normal for their daughter to be carried in an eight-bearer sedan chair when she got married.

However, marriage always brings a higher level of treatment, let alone when it is a marriage bestowed by the emperor or the retired emperor.

That's why a sedan chair with twelve bearers was used.

As for the dowry, each load and pole was lacquered in vermilion and gilded, shimmering with brilliance.

The people carrying the loads were all dressed in festive new clothes.

The room is fully equipped with beds, tables, furniture, chests, bedding, and all daily necessities.

It can be said that all items, whether useful or not, were given away as part of the dowry.

Even though the Jia family was extremely extravagant, they still put in a lot of effort to prepare these dowries.

They even sought help from the Imperial Household Department and numerous imperial merchants both inside and outside the capital to finally assemble a true ten-mile-long red bridal procession before the Lantern Festival.

This is what a truly wealthy and powerful family looks like.

Compared to when Qin Keqing got married, this was many times more glamorous.

To ensure the entire procession carrying the dowry left the Rongguo Mansion, they deliberately took a detour, traveling from the west of the city all the way to the east, before finally entering the Marquis's residence.

Even so, when Yuan Chun's twelve-bearer sedan chair entered the west courtyard of the Marquis's mansion, there were still some people from the Rongguo Mansion carrying her dowry who had only just left the Rongguo Mansion.

Along the way, with gongs and drums, the procession circled the outer perimeter of the imperial city, and almost everyone in the inner city of the capital saw the wedding procession and the incredibly generous dowry.

Moreover, whether it was the Embroidered Uniform Guard, the Five Cities Garrison, or the three shifts of yamen runners from Shuntian Prefecture, they all went out into the streets to maintain order.

Riding on his tall horse, Li Jingxiao would encounter someone of high status every ten meters or so, who would bow and congratulate him.

Li Jingxiao could only greet them with a smile this time, and his face remained stiff all afternoon.

By the time Yuan Chun was helped into the Marquis's mansion by Bao Qin and You Erjie, it was already dark.

However, both the east and west sections of the Marquis's mansion were decorated with lanterns and colorful decorations.

The neighbors all hung up the colorful lanterns they had hung up for the Lantern Festival again.

Even the banquet tables had to be set up in the front yards of six neighboring houses to properly accommodate the guests who came to offer their congratulations.

Fortunately, Li Jingxiao had the foresight to inform Dai Quan and Xia Shouzhong in advance.

The two chief eunuchs not only went to the wedding banquet themselves, but also sent some stewards from the Imperial Household Department to help.

Otherwise, with only the servants and stewards in Li Jingxiao's household, it would have been impossible to properly entertain 99 tables of guests.

Moreover, those qualified to enter the main hall and watch the newlyweds perform the wedding ceremony were at least of the third rank.

Even the dukes and marquises had to take a backseat this time, giving their places to Prince Zhongshun, who represented the emperor to offer congratulations, and his two sons-in-law.

There were also princes of different surnames residing in the capital, namely Prince Mu Shi of Dongping and Prince Shui Rong of Beijing.

Mu Shi was a middle-aged man in his forties, while Shui Rong looked to be in his early twenties, but he was handsome and appeared kind and refined.

It makes people feel good at first glance.

However, Li Jingxiao had never been interested in these princes of different surnames, or even princes of the royal family.

They all seem to have it all, but if you think about it, being a prince isn't that easy.

Especially since he was a king of a different surname.

The emperor and the retired emperor must have been wary of the four kings of different surnames, just like they were thieves.

Therefore, Li Jingxiao did not really like a king who was not of the same surname.

Of course, today is a joyous wedding day, and people are coming to offer their congratulations, so it's natural not to embarrass them.

However, everyone present was shrewd, and they could all tell that Li Jingxiao was only being polite to Shui Rong and Mu Shi.

It doesn't imply any closeness.

(End of this chapter)