Gou was a member of the imperial family in the late Ming Dynasty

Chapter 1175 Flower Boat
A new table was opened and Xie Guangwei and his friends were invited to sit down.

Xie Guangwei felt very uneasy and nervous during this meal, but he had to pretend to be relaxed to cooperate with Zhu Minlan. However, he could not hide the uneasiness in his heart, which made people feel uncomfortable.

After finally finishing the meal, Xie Guangwei was just breathing a sigh of relief, but one of his friends suddenly suggested that since it was still early, why not go to the Qinhuai River to take a stroll, find a flower boat to cruise the river, drink tea and listen to music, etc. When Xie Guangwei heard this, he trembled in his heart, and was about to refuse, but Zhu Minlan spoke first.

"I've always heard that the Ten Miles of Qinhuai River is world-famous and it's a good place to go. This is my first time in Jinling. Is it really as the rumors say?"

"Haha! Of course!" A young man nodded with a smile, waving a folding fan in his hand: "The Qinhuai River is ruthless, but it also spreads its spring scenery to Jinling! The beauty of the Qinhuai River is famous all over the world, but the most beautiful thing about the Qinhuai River is more than this. If you miss the beauty of the Qinhuai River when you first come to Jinling, it will be a great regret in your life!"

"Yes, that's right! It's the time when the Qinhuai lights are first lit. We are boating on the river, listening to the sounds of stringed instruments, elegant music, and appreciating the beautiful scenery. This is a joy in the world." Another young man shook his head and said.

"In that case, let's go together!" Zhu Minlan asked with a smile.

"Let's go together!" Several young people laughed and greeted warmly. Although Xie Guangwei had a smile on his face, he was about to cry in his heart. He never expected that this would happen. He originally thought that after the meal, he would find a chance to leave with Zhu Minlan, and apologize to his brother-in-law when there were no outsiders around. But he didn't expect that he and his friends would go on a flower boat and drink flower wine.

This would be fine on normal days, but today the situation is not right! There is also a Ming prince present. If I take the prince to such a place in private, what will happen if it gets out? Besides, I have always been well-behaved in front of my sister and brother-in-law, and I have covered it up very well. I didn't expect to encounter this incident unexpectedly. If my brother-in-law misunderstands that I am so dissolute and not studying hard in Jinling but singing every night, won't I be miserable?
Thinking of this, Xie Guangwei secretly looked towards Zhu Minlan, and saw Zhu Minlan nodded at him with a smile. Seeing this, Xie Guangwei secretly groaned in his heart, but he could not stop it, so he could only bite the bullet and agree with a few words.

In this case, everyone ended the Zuixianlou event, and when they got outside, the young man who suggested taking a flower boat asked everyone to go towards the Qinhuai River. They walked and talked along the way, and the atmosphere was harmonious and lively. Taking this opportunity, Xie Guangwei deliberately walked behind and approached Zhu Minlan and whispered, "Brother-in-law..."

"Let's go! This is the Qinhuai River, right? Are all those boats on the river flower boats?" Before Xie Guangwei could explain, Zhu Minlan interrupted him, took two quick steps, pointed at the boats coming and going on the river not far away, and asked with a smile.

"That's right, but there are differences between flower boats. Please see, brother Wang, although these small boats are also flower boats, they can only carry a few people, and there is not much fun on the boats. It's nothing more than two or three people drinking and chatting on the river and listening to some songs. But those big ships and building ships are different, especially the best ones, which are as luxurious as the best restaurants. Not only can you listen to music, but you can also dance and even sleep on them at night." Someone said with a smile, and everyone laughed and nodded. Zhu Minlan also smiled with a yearning look. Xie Guangwei forced a smile, but he was uneasy in his heart.

When they arrived at the dock, the young man who suggested the flower boat tour waved and called someone over, and said a few words to the other person. The man nodded repeatedly, smiled and bowed, then ran out. A moment later, a medium-sized flower boat slowly approached the dock.

"That was the Qinhuai River agent. Just tell him what kind of boat you want and he will help you get it." Seeing that Zhu Minlan was curious about this, another young man explained with a smile.

"The dentist still does this?"

"Why not?" The young man said with a smile, "This business has existed in Qinhuai for hundreds of years. These brokers specialize in this business. Besides, there are so many flower boats on the Qinhuai River. It would be inconvenient without these brokers to coordinate."

"That's true..." Zhu Minlan nodded slightly. At this time, the flower boat brought by the broker docked at the pier. The young man who wanted the boat asked everyone to get on board. Everyone walked onto the boat one by one from the gangway. When it was Zhu Minlan's turn, Zhu Minlan strode onto the boat, and behind him were Xie Guangwei and Wang Xin.

Among the people Zhu Minlan brought, only Wang Xin boarded the flower boat with him. As for the others, Zhu Minlan originally planned to let them go back by themselves. However, Wang Xin considered that if there was any accident on the flower boat, after all, Zhu Minlan's identity was different, he did not dare to be careless, so he did not let everyone return, but asked them to find two small boats to follow their flower boat. When the flower boat where Zhu Minlan was was cleared, the gangplank was removed and gradually left the dock, the small boat followed behind. The flower boat they boarded was not the largest, but it was not small. In particular, the decoration on the boat was very different from that of ordinary fishing boats. The cabin was very beautifully decorated, and the home furnishings inside were also fully equipped. If you were not sitting inside and could see the rippling river water from left to right, it would be like being in a private room of a good restaurant.

Everyone sat down in turn, and soon a woman came forward. The young men explained a few familiar things to each other, and soon servants brought tea, fruit plates, snacks and other things. Then a woman about 28 years old came in with a pipa, bowed to everyone first, then sat down on the embroidered stool, and lightly played the pipa with both hands. A melodious song immediately flowed out from her fingers.

It must be said that this woman's skills were really good. She played the pipa very well, which reminded Zhu Minlan of Bai Juyi's "Pipa Song", which said: "The sounds of the pipa are mixed and chaotic, and the big and small pearls fall on the jade plate." The description is absolutely correct.

After playing for a while, the woman began to sing in a humming voice. No one knew what she was singing, and Zhu Minlan couldn't understand the soft Wu dialect, but the melodious tune and the echoing oriole sound made people intoxicated.

Everyone listened to the music attentively and did not speak for a while. After a while, as the woman's fingers gently plucked the pipa, the music gradually faded, and the singing voice gradually became faint, and the song finally ended. Everyone applauded, and the woman stood up and bowed, then continued to sit down. At this time, two more women came, holding string instruments and other instruments in their hands, and sat down on the left and right of the first woman and played at the same time. The tune played this time was different from the previous one, and it seemed much more cheerful and gentle. Everyone enjoyed the beautiful music and chatted at the same time.

While everyone was chatting, Zhu Minlan listened to the music and gradually focused his attention on their conversation. Just now in the restaurant, Xie Guangwei introduced these friends to Zhu Minlan. The oldest of Xie Guangwei's three friends was just twenty years old, and the youngest was only seventeen. They were about the same age as Xie Guangwei, and they were all students of Nanjing Imperial College.

In the two capitals of the Ming Dynasty, Nanjing, like the capital, had six ministries and the Imperial College. Many scholars in Jiangnan studied in the Imperial College, including nobles and children of aristocratic families. Xie Guangwei was also among them.

Although the Xie family of Yongping Marquis fell into decline shortly after the founding of the country, and was also stripped of its title by Emperor Taizu because of its involvement in the Lan Yu case, and the first generation of Yongping Marquis was convicted and killed for this, after all, Yongping Marquis was the maiden family of the Princess of Jin, so Zhu Yuanzhang eventually showed leniency and drove his brothers and descendants out of the capital and moved them to Guizhou.

In the following two hundred years, although the Yongping Marquis' lineage lost its title, it still had a hereditary military position and continued to exist as the commander of the local garrison. But no one expected that this noble family, which had been stripped of its title in the Taizu period, would have a chance to turn things around. After the emperor chose the Xie family's daughter as the crown princess, the court restored the title of Yongping Marquis, and the Xie family once again returned to the noble group.

Xie Jikai, Marquis of Yongping, was a down-to-earth man who managed his household in a strict manner. Both his eldest son and his second son, including the current Crown Princess, were people of good character. Such a family was rare among the nobles.

Xie Guangwei is the youngest son of Marquis Yongping. When the Crown Princess married into the Eastern Palace, Xie Guangwei was still very young. The Xie family restored its title because of the Crown Princess, and suddenly it was different from before. Xie Guangwei and his two elder brothers grew up in a different environment, so he seemed more eccentric.

Two years ago, the Crown Princess gave birth to a grandson. The Emperor was overjoyed and bestowed many favors on the Xie family. Xie Guangwei, who had followed his father to the capital to express gratitude, also gained some benefits. Zhu Minlan paid a special visit to him at that time, and during the conversation, asked him about his plans for the future. After all, he was his brother-in-law. The eldest of his two elder brothers would inherit the family business and title, the second had already joined the army for training, and the youngest was still a half-grown child. Seeing that he was quite clever, Zhu Minlan still had to take care of the Crown Princess's family.

At that time, Xie Guangwei said that he planned to study in the Imperial Academy. Zhu Minlan was very happy to hear that and felt that it was a good future for his brother-in-law to study in the Imperial Academy.

However, Xie Guangwei wanted to go to the Nanjing Imperial College instead of the Beijing Imperial College. He also said that his Xie family had never returned since they moved from Nanjing to Guizhou after being convicted. He planned to stay in the Nanjing Imperial College for a few years and take a look at what Jinling looked like.

At that time, Zhu Minlan did not care about it. He just thought it was the mood of a young man. Besides, compared with the Imperial College in Beijing, the Imperial College in Nanjing is not inferior at all. You must know that the south is where many literati emerged, and Nanjing is the center of Southern Zhili. In terms of literary atmosphere, the Imperial College in Nanjing is better than the Imperial College in Beijing. When his uncle Xu Xiancheng was studying abroad, he attended classes in the Nanjing Imperial College for some time. Since Xie Guangwei wanted to go to the Nanjing Imperial College, there was naturally no problem. So under Zhu Minlan's arrangement, Xie Guangwei went to Nanjing to study smoothly, but no one expected to meet Zhu Minlan in such an occasion today.

(End of this chapter)