After the whole family was swept away, I lay down flat

Chapter 1144 Onlookers
The 128 loads of Hai family's dowry were carried out from the Hai family's gate, and they walked straight east along the alley, turned into Zhengyangmen Street, entered Zhengyangmen in a grand manner, then turned east, walked along the avenue under the inner city wall, passed the Sanguan Temple, walked along the Yuhe South Bridge to the street across the river, then turned north and went to the Jin family mansion in Nanxunfang.

The roads were all along the capital's most prosperous areas. After entering the inner city, they passed through neighborhoods where many officials and wealthy people lived. The Hai family's delivery of the dowry was so grand that it naturally attracted many people to watch and talk.

Passersby were amazed at the imperial edict of the previous emperor granting marriage, the bricks and tiles that symbolized the dowry and property, and the dozen or so loads of colorful, high-quality gold and brocade fabrics. As for what was in the dozens of tightly sealed boxes tied with red silk, everyone was curious and couldn't help but use their imagination.

"I heard that it was the Empress Dowager's nephew who got married, and it was also a marriage granted by the late Emperor."

"With such a rich dowry, who would believe that she is the granddaughter of a fifth-rank official?! Can a fifth-rank official be the same as another fifth-rank official? Maybe she is from a noble family. Even if her official position is not high, her wealth is beyond the reach of ordinary people. That's why they are willing to give so many good things to their granddaughter."

"It is said that they are from the northwest, a small family, and a military family. They were able to come to Beijing to serve as an official because they were appreciated by the cabinet minister. They don't seem to be a wealthy family with a good background."

"It's just a rumor. Look at the size of the dowry. Can you believe that it's something a small family with no background can have when marrying off their granddaughter? Last month, the Zhang family married off their daughter, but they were not as wealthy as his family. Could it be that the Zhang family is worse than the small family from the northwest?!"

"The Northwest is not as poor as you think. Don't the big merchants in Beijing always go to the Northwest to sell jade, gemstones, spices, glass and so on to Beijing? Take a look at the Luo family's business. A glass bowl costs more than ten taels of silver. A whole set of glass tea sets will cost more than a hundred taels. This is just the most common and roughest style! And those spices and gems are also very expensive. These are all from the Northwest. There are so many good things there. Do you really think the Northwest is poor? It's just that the officials in Beijing can't stand the soldiers in the Northwest, so they deliberately use these words to belittle them."

"The Northwest is indeed rich. Otherwise, if the imperial court refused to allocate enough money and food to the Northwest Border Army in the past few years, how could the Northwest be able to support itself and feed the army to fight the Hu people for more than ten years?!"

"You're going to die! How dare you say anything!"

The topic turned to a more sensitive topic. Many people turned to look at the guy who was talking nonsense. He was wearing silk clothes and had a greasy face. He looked like a commoner. Maybe he had heard some inside information. But even if he knew the inside information, what would it matter? The court did not pay enough food and wages to the Northwest Frontier Army. Is this a glorious thing? The court did not dare to make it public!

What's more, the Zhou family, the commander of the Northwest Frontier Army, has gained power again. They have a Grand Empress Dowager and are about to produce another Empress. The merits of supporting the emperor, suppressing the rebellion, and saving the emperor... plus the Zhou family's original merits of defending the country, their merits are outstanding. The new emperor favors and values ​​them very much. Who dares to offend them? ! The court would like to pretend that the things in the past never happened, and live in peace with the northwest from now on. This person is so tactless to bring up the old things again. He is either malicious or a fool who doesn't know how to live or die. If you get too close to him, it will be troublesome if the government misunderstands that you are in the same group! Many people moved away from the man in silk clothes. Even his friend who came with him moved a few steps to the side. The latter was still unaware and was still proudly expressing his views: "The soldiers in the northwest are very good at doing business. I heard that the master of the family that sent the dowry today is a capable man who manages the finances of the northwest border army. He is very good at making money. That's why he was noticed by the elders and promoted to the capital. With such a grandfather, how could the bride's dowry be shabby?! If it was really an ordinary small family, the empress dowager in the palace would never agree to let her nephew marry such a daughter-in-law!"

The people around him thought that this man was bold in his words, but at the same time they also felt that he seemed to know a lot of inside information. They wanted to stay away from him, but they were reluctant to listen to him speak, and they were very conflicted for a while.

But the Hai family's dowry delivery team would not stop because of the entanglement of passers-by. Before the silk-clothed man finished his speech, the last dowry of the Hai family had passed in front of them and disappeared at the end of the road soon after. Many people came to watch the fun, and seeing that the silk-clothed man did not say more gossip, they all chased after the dowry and stopped surrounding him.

By the time the man in silk clothes came to his senses from the intoxication of being noticed and admired, there was no one left around him, even his friends had disappeared.

The passers-by who were watching could only watch the excitement and had no idea what was in the Hai family's dowry. What they discussed in private was just some gossips they had heard from others. But when the dowry was delivered to the Jin family's mansion and laid out in the main courtyard to be shown to the groom's relatives, friends and guests, almost all the boxes and cages would be opened and the items inside would be exposed in broad daylight. The richness of the Hai family's dowry was no longer a secret.

The groom, Jin Jiashu, brought his friends who were invited to help, the people from Jiyuan, as well as many royal relatives and nobles who lived nearby who came to watch the excitement, and the palace maids and messengers sent by Empress Dowager Xu from the palace, all of them showed shocked expressions when they saw the dowry sent by the Hai family.

Some people were amazed at the land, shops and houses that came as dowry, some were shocked that the Hai family had preserved so many gemstones and jade materials from the Western Regions, some were curious to know how many kinds of spices the Hai family's daughter brought as dowry, and some were impressed by the dozen boxes of books: "Although the Hai family was born as a military household and all the men in the family served in the military, the nature of this scholarly family remains. Ordinary scholarly families may not be willing to give their daughters so many books as dowry, but the Hai family is willing to do so. This young master Jin is really lucky to marry such a lady with a generous dowry."

Some people were discussing secretly: "No wonder the Empress Dowager knew that the late Emperor had arranged for her nephew to marry the granddaughter of a fifth-rank official, and she did not object. She summoned people to the palace in the first month of the year and was very friendly and gave many rewards. It turns out that the granddaughter of a fifth-rank official has such a generous dowry! Even if Master Jin married the daughter of a duke or marquis, she might not be so rich. For such a practical marriage, why bother to choose a family background?! The Jin family was originally just a small family in the countryside, and it was a great blessing for their ancestors to be able to marry into the royal family. If he still wants a virtuous wife with a noble family background and a generous dowry, then he is too greedy! It is better to be like this, with both face and substance..."

Some people also beat their chests and stamped their feet in private: "I thought the Hai family was just a poor family from a remote border area when I first saw them. I never thought they were so wealthy! If I had known this, I should have informed my elders and arranged a marriage with them. I wouldn't have ended up like this now, marrying a poor daughter of a noble family. It sounds respectable, but in fact the dowry is meager, the connections are few, and there is nothing good about it..."