Jinting Han people

Chapter 52 Yuanfu and Marriage (4k)

In the first month of the eighth year of Taikang (287 AD), Liu Xian, who was fifteen years old, officially came of age.

For scholars of the time, the coming-of-age ceremony was perhaps the most important ritual in their lives. It signified the arrival of adulthood, the wearing of the crown, and the beginning of independence and self-respect, a commitment to standing tall and upright, a fresh start in life. The Chinese dress and hat were inseparable, indispensable for a scholar. The ancient saying, "A gentleman dies, but his crown remains," captures this very principle.

The Crown Prince is coming of age, so the Anle Mansion naturally attaches great importance to this matter.

Liu Yao visited all the neighbors, whether it was the Guangwu Marquis Mansion or the Guiming Marquis Mansion, and invited them to watch the ceremony. Chen Shou also used his connections to pull together several good friends who were still active in the capital. Together with the newly appointed Luoyang magistrate Man Fen (grandson of Man Chong) and the Imperial College Ji Shao (son of Ji Kang), this coming-of-age ceremony was finally not too shabby.

The process of coming of age is very traditional. The ancestral tablets are set up in front of the ancestral temple. Guests are then invited in, the host offers sacrifices, and then the young man is crowned three times.

The first crowning is a Zibu crown, which means the crowned person is self-reliant and can participate in politics.
The second time the crown is added is with a leather cap, which means the person wearing the cap is brave and capable of protecting the country and the people.
The third time of crowning is to add a juebian, which means that the person being crowned is well versed in etiquette and can offer sacrifices to ancestors.

The person who presided over the ceremony was, of course, Chen Shou. As a teacher, he attached great importance to this coming-of-age ceremony. Not only did he put on the red court robe that he had not used for many years, but he also repeatedly reminded Liu Xian the night before: "Don't be timid, and don't be arrogant. A gentleman's coming-of-age ceremony is about moderation..."

But when Liu Xian knelt before him, bowing his head and waiting for him to crown him, Chen Shou found that his hands were trembling slightly, a little timid, and a little anxious...

Fortunately, he quickly concealed it and tied the crown and belt for Liu Xian with great satisfaction. Then he watched proudly as his disciple stood up and showed his demeanor to the guests.

The guests immediately burst into praise.

"Young master is handsome and talented. The country has gained a new pillar!" Shangshu Lang Wang Chong said with a smile.

"If my uncle (Ruan Xian) could see this day, I wonder how happy he would be." Ji Shao, the chief academician of the Imperial College, also spoke in a gentle voice.

"No wonder Duke Juancheng is so eager to recruit him as his son-in-law. If it were me, I would be eager too!" Luoyang Ling Man Fen touched his fat chin, and his round face looked extremely festive.

"..."

The praise from these people may have been merely polite, but the atmosphere was genuinely lively and joyful. Even strangers, in this lively atmosphere, were inevitably moved by the miracle of life thriving.

Liu Xian, meanwhile, was deeply moved by this coming-of-age ceremony. Now fifteen years old, over seven feet tall, with a calm expression and sharp brows, he possessed no trace of childishness. He truly deserved the praise of the guests.

And with the blessings of others, he felt a sense of relief: his long childhood was finally over, and from now on, he would be an independent person and would begin to make decisions for his own destiny.

With this in mind, at the subsequent banquet, Liu Xian thanked the guests one by one and returned the gifts. However, when he was pouring wine in front of Guangwu Marquis Zhang Hua, Zhang Hua suddenly asked:

"When will Huai Chong get married?"

Liu Xian was stunned. Looking at Zhang Hua's teasing expression, he answered truthfully, "On the second day of the second month."

"Unfortunately, I was busy and couldn't attend," Zhang Hua said with a smile, raising his glass. "I'd like to congratulate Huai Chong in advance on his great happiness."

"How dare you, how dare you..."

During the greeting, this sentence suddenly woke Liu Xian up. He was not yet completely independent.

For people at that time, only by getting married and starting a family could they be truly independent.

Fortunately, he is not far from getting married, so he can think about this problem immediately:
"Cao Shangrou, A Luo, what kind of girl is she?"

After the coming-of-age ceremony, he immediately thought:
"Is she pretty? Is she virtuous? Is she well-educated?"

He couldn't help but think about it. Although the marriage was already decided, it had all been orchestrated from beginning to end by Duke Juancheng and Duke Xiaoruan, and he had yet to meet the girl. But with the promise of a coming-of-age ceremony, Liu Xian would soon marry her. And within the Anle Mansion, a courtyard had been specially cleared out as a new home for the bride.

……

When he was staring at the sky in a daze, Xi An would tease him and say, "Hey, Bi Ji, you also have to have moments of trance while reading!"

Liu Xian smiled at his friend and said, "I'm not a plant, how could I not have a trance?"

"What are you thinking about?" Zhang Gu asked from the side.

Without Liu Xian needing to reply, Xi An said, "Of course he's thinking about his future wife." He then complained, "Once he gets married, he'll ignore us two retainers and forget about us."

This was a joke, but Zhang Gu had no sense of humor. He retorted, "Chinu, don't say such things. Bi Ji is a man who will do great things. He will definitely be a great man in the future."

Since their lord, Liu Xian, had yet to hold a position, these two young retainers remained idle in the Anle Mansion. They accompanied him daily, their fate deeply binding them together, their prosperity and adversity all sharing. Now that Liu Xian's wedding was approaching, they could vaguely sense that a turning point in their own lives was approaching.

Liu Xian laughed heartily upon hearing this. He recalled the memories of the three of them playing together as children. He put his arms around his two companions' shoulders and vowed to them, "Don't worry, I won't let you down."

After the three of them joked for a while, Zhang Gu said, "There are only ten days left before Bi Ji's wedding."

"Yeah." Liu Xian's heart was in turmoil.

"It is said that she is the most beautiful girl in Jianchun Pavilion." Xi An whispered the news he had heard from somewhere.

…………

Meanwhile, on the other side of Luoyang City, at Jianchun Pavilion and the Duke of Juancheng's residence, Shang Rou couldn't fall asleep. "Father, what kind of person is Liu Xian?"

"Again." Duke Juancheng smiled, put down the scroll in his hand, and turned to look at her. She had asked the same question countless times.

"He is a young man of excellent character and talent." This was the only thing Juancheng Gong would reply each time. This old man, renowned for his literary talent, never said much, lest any unhelpful preconceived notions cloud his daughter's judgment.

Cao Shangrou lived up to her name, a bright and sunny woman. Later, she accompanied Liu Xian until his death as Empress Zhaomu. At this moment, she was still just an innocent girl.

She is two months younger than Liu Xian, but she is well developed, with fair skin, a well-proportioned figure, an oval face, a pair of pure almond eyes, and plump, watery lips. She is indeed a rare beauty.

Shang Rou hid her intelligence behind a veneer of innocence. She understood from a young age how offensive it was to see someone so clever constantly flaunt their intelligence. That's why she was so endearing.

Unlike Liu Xian's childhood, Shang Rou was very pampered, and because of this, she also knew how to love others. When the marriage was decided, her mother Qin stopped the Duke of Juancheng and said, "I heard that Duke Anle's family education is not good. If you marry A Luo to him, won't it harm her?"

Cao Zhi, Duke of Juancheng, replied, "I have my eye on Liu Huai Chong. If A Luo were to marry him, she wouldn't be marrying Duke Anle."

The parents were deadlocked, neither of them able to convince the other, so they finally asked Shangrou for her opinion. Shangrou thought about it and said, "How does he compare to adults?"

Cao Zhi laughed and said, "He is ten times more talented than me."

Shang Rou nodded and said, "Then I'm not afraid of any hardship I have to endure."

The marriage was settled.

However, as the wedding date approached, some unexpected events occurred in the Duke of Juancheng's mansion. His health deteriorated. He often suffered from shortness of breath in the winter, became inexplicably afraid of the cold, and sometimes even slept for six or seven hours without waking up. This made the Duke of Juancheng attach greater importance to this wedding.

His wife complained to him, "Raising a daughter is such a pain. Now that she's at her most adorable, I have to give her away."

Seeing her upset, Duke Juancheng couldn't help but find it a little funny. Every time he heard such complaints, he couldn't help but burst out laughing. His wife would righteously ask, "What's so funny?", which made it even funnier.

"As his biological father, don't you feel sad?"

"Of course it's sad and lonely." said Juancheng Gong.

There's no denying this. As his youngest daughter, Cao Zhi has showered Shang Rou with the utmost care, a love that has remained constant for over a decade. Who could understand better than him the thought of giving this precious jewel to someone else? But people are independent, and parting is inevitable. In three or four years, he, too, will pass away. Entrusting his daughter to someone truly worthy is the truest form of love.

Therefore, he saw things clearly and said to his wife: "Everyone has his own destiny. We just need to do our best."

"About the wedding..." Some time ago, Qin had been thinking about making the wedding more lavish. After all, she was marrying into the Duke of Juancheng's mansion, and she could invite many of the dignitaries in the capital. But no matter how hard she tried, the Duke of Juancheng refused to agree.

"Don't bother. Although the Anle Mansion is nominally a good match for us, they haven't really integrated into this social circle. If we hold an overly lavish wedding, it will be bad for A'Luo's future."

As for why it was not good, Duke Juancheng didn't elaborate: if it was too grand, it would make the Anle Mansion feel that they were the weaker party, which would be detrimental to their acceptance of the bride and the relationship between the couple. Duke Juancheng considered all aspects in this way.

"However, we can save some money in A'Luo's dowry." Duke Juancheng finally came up with an idea. "The Anle Mansion has been suppressed for years, and the family is probably not wealthy. Huai Chong will enter the official career in the future, and he will inevitably need money. We can give it to A'Luo first and use it in emergencies later."

It was a sum of money, but Duke Juancheng had taken out nearly all of his family's savings. A full one thousand horseshoe gold coins, packed into three chests, were hidden among Shang Rou's four carts of dowry, but not listed in the dowry inventory. It could be said to be Shang Rou's personal stash. This sum was equivalent to Duke Juancheng's family's accumulation over the past five years, a considerable sum even among the most powerful people in Luoyang. When Duke Juancheng told Shang Rou about this, he warned her, "Remember, this gold should only be used when your husband is in dire straits."

Shang Rou tilted her head, looking as if she understood something but not quite.

On the day of his wedding, Liu Xiantian woke up before dawn and began to do his homework as usual, but he was a little absent-minded. As soon as he turned around, he could see the ink carriage parked in the courtyard, reminding him that today was a very important day.

After finally finishing his homework, he managed to calm down. Meanwhile, everyone inside and outside the mansion was already busy preparing for the wedding.

The bride's dowry had already arrived, fifteen boxes full. The maids who accompanied the bride had already prepared the wedding bed and the wedding room overnight. As they cleaned the courtyard, they kept looking Liu Xian up and down. Most of the guests had arrived, and Liu Xian was dragged into the house by his aunt Fei Xiu to change into his wedding attire. It was an extremely loose crimson gown with a black edge. When he walked out of the room, everyone's eyes lit up. Elders like Zhu Fu, Lai Fu, and A Chun all congratulated him, saying, "I'm so lucky!"

"Where did this handsome young man come from?"

"If I could see your wedding, I would die without regrets."

"Young Master, your marriage must last forever."

Amid everyone's warm blessings, Liu Xian's anxieties were all gone. He no longer felt burdened, but instead felt a power from within, prompting him to believe that he could achieve happiness. In this way, he embarked on the journey to welcome his bride.

He set out at noon, with Xi'an and Zhang Gu following slightly behind him, one on his left and one on his right. In front of him were about twenty servants playing music and scattering flowers, and behind him followed an ink carriage carrying the bride and two richly decorated carriages.

They walked from the east to the west of the city for about an hour before finally seeing the Juancheng Mansion. A bright red bonfire was already lit at the entrance, and eight large red lanterns hung high under the eaves, emitting a hazy glow.

"The groom is here--" The servant of Juancheng Mansion saw it and shouted loudly in front of the door. The tone was like a dog barking in the distance.

Then, Cao Shangrou quietly emerged, supported by her mother's hand. She wore a crimson wedding dress with a phoenix pattern and held a round fan, obscuring her face from the public. But the moment their eyes met, they subconsciously glanced at each other, their eyes meeting briefly before they hurriedly separated.

"What a beautiful girl!" Liu Xian pretended not to look away, but in reality, his heart was pounding. He wanted to look back, but felt it would be impolite, so he forced himself to hold back. Then, the Duke of Juancheng stepped forward and offered Liu Xian some blessings and heartfelt advice, but Liu Xian's mind was filled with the image of his bride, and he was completely distracted, only nodding in agreement on the surface.

Then he said goodbye to his father-in-law and his family, and rode his horse to take his bride home.

The people around were noisily giving instructions to Liu Xian and his group, but Liu Xian was a little absent-minded. He could sense that the bride's eyes were staring at him from behind the black veil of the ink carriage. For a moment, he was a little afraid to relax. He tried to straighten his chest and maintain the most perfect image.

But he soon laughed at his own thoughts: What? This is the person I'm going to spend my life with, what's the point of pretending? The real me can't be concealed, and happiness can't be achieved by being respectable.

So he relaxed again, turned around and smiled at Mo Che, and then waved to the passers-by.

Finally, the group arrived back at the Anle Mansion. The groom dismounted, the bride alighted from the carriage, and the two bridesmaids stood side by side before washing their hands together in front of the hall. Then, they sat down in the main hall, ate from the same jar, and drank from the same cup. From that moment on, the couple was officially united, committed to sharing joys and sorrows.

The next step was to receive the guests, seniors, fellow villagers, and friends, and everyone had a meal together. The waiters were also very happy to find a place to stand and eat.

During this time, the bride and groom were busy toasting their acquaintances and had no chance to chat with each other.

When the banquet was over, the guests had left, and the servants had tactfully withdrawn, only Liu Xian, Shang Rou, and a candle flame were left in the hall.

Liu Xian looked at Cao Cao's great-granddaughter and said, "A'Luo, from today on, you and I are husband and wife. I hope we can grow old together and be united in love forever."

Shang Rou looked at Liu Xian, her oval face flushed. Perhaps because she was drunk or just shy, she didn't know. She softly replied, "I'm not talented, but I wish to grow old with you, my husband, and spend the rest of our lives together."

Looking at his newlywed wife's face, Liu Xian's hands trembled slightly. He took out the phoenix-patterned peony jade hairpin left by his mother from his arms and gently stroked her soft black hair...

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(End of this chapter)