The emperor would rather have a

Chapter 111: Wedding Reception (4K)

Late April.

Li Yi temporarily put aside his attention on attacking Shu... because he was preparing to go to Daming Mansion to pick up his bride.

Although the wedding date was set for the eighth day of May, the round trip to Daming Prefecture was four or five hundred miles, so it would take at least half a month.

After all, we are going to welcome the bride, not just to get on the road, so we can't go faster even if we want to.

After some preparation, Li Yi left Tokyo with his carriage and entourage, and headed for Daming Prefecture in a grand manner... This was his third trip in a year, and it had only been three months since his last trip to Hebei.

Since the person he was marrying was the daughter of King Wei, and the marriage was personally granted by the emperor, and Li Yi now had a very high status.

In order to show off the grandeur, there were nearly two hundred attendants accompanying him, including more than one hundred personal guards, and all the ceremonial items such as banners, plaques, and gongs were available.

Perhaps it was because most of the military generals of this era held multiple honorary titles, such as Inspector General and Commander of the Militia, so the ceremonial objects they received were very confusing and complicated.

They were used by both civil officials and military generals, and they did not pay any attention to the strictness of etiquette, and looked completely out of place.

However, in the context of the chaotic Five Dynasties period, the emperors were all born as military men and had been fighting wars year after year. It seemed meaningless to worry about these formal things... As long as the necessary configurations were complete, it didn't matter what else happened.

This trip involved complicated etiquette and formalities, which Li Yi had no idea what to make of, and no one in his family understood these rules.

Fortunately, Empress Fu was quite understanding and specially sent officials from the Ministry of Rites to assist... After all, it was her own sister's marriage, and she was the one who arranged it personally, so as an elder sister, she must have taken it very seriously.

But no matter what, it saved Li Yi a lot of trouble.

Otherwise, he would have to figure it out on his own, which would be a small problem, and he might even end up making a fool of himself.

After rushing all the way, the wedding procession finally arrived at Weizhou City five days later.

Li Yi and his party did not go directly to the Prince of Wei's Palace, but planned to rest temporarily at an inn outside Weizhou City.

The King of Wei was of high status, and marrying his daughter was not something that could be done by simply going to his house to pick her up. According to the official from the Ministry of Rites, one would have to stay in Weizhou for at least two days before returning to Tokyo.

Getting married is indeed very energy-consuming. Even in later times when transportation and communications are convenient and communications are developed, people can drive hundreds of kilometers back and forth in a day and arrange many things with just a phone call, but the preparations for getting married are still troublesome.

Not to mention this era... Fortunately, Fu Er Niang is worth Li Yi's trouble. He is not afraid of paying any price as long as the rewards are generous enough.

……

The residence of Prince Wei.

At this time, the courtyard was decorated with lights and there was a festive atmosphere. Silk and flowers were hung on the archways of the gates of various places in the courtyard, and maids and servants were busy shuttling back and forth.

The relatives of the Fu family gathered in the inner house to discuss the arrangements for sending the bride.

However, although it was called a discussion, in reality, Fu Yanqing had the final say. His first wife, Zhang, the mother of Fu's two daughters, died early, and his second wife, Yang, had no say.

Fu Yanqing sat at the top and glanced at his family members below.

His eldest son, Fu Zhaoxin, was his only adult son. He had already married and had children. His daughter-in-law, Wang, sat next to him with her young daughter.

The second son Fu Zhaoyuan and the youngest son Fu Zhaoshou sat upright, but their eyes were rolling around, and they were obviously absent-minded, probably thinking about the excitement outside and wanted to go out and play.

In addition, there was also Fu Yanqing's second wife, Yang, who was sitting next to him.

Fu Yanqing coughed lightly before speaking, "Darling, when my second sister is getting married, please go to Tokyo to see her off. Please go to the emperor and the empress on my father's behalf. And while you're there, please pay Daming Prefecture's spring taxes to the court, so we don't have to make another trip later."

Fu Zhaoxin hurriedly said, "Yes, father."

The Jiedushi in various places usually served as the Zhidu, Yingtianshi, etc., and combined the local military, civil, financial and political power in one person. They needed to regularly send people to escort taxes to the national treasury.

Although local warlords have been separatist since the late Tang Dynasty and the Five Dynasties, the imperial court was often unable to collect money.

But things are different now. From the Later Jin Dynasty to the present, the strength of the central imperial guards has gradually crushed the local vassal states, and the military governors in various places naturally have no choice but to obey.

Moreover, as the emperor's father-in-law, Fu Yanqing must set an example in these matters.

After explaining some official business, Fu Yanqing turned the topic back to marriage:
"Brother Yi'er's betrothal gift was so generous last time, so we can't be stingy with the dowry... In addition to the gold and silver mentioned earlier, we should also include the deed to the 1,000 acres of farmland awarded by the late emperor on the outskirts of Kaifeng."

After saying that, Fu Yanqing hesitated for a moment, then added, "Oh, and about that house in Tokyo... Dalang took the key with him when he went to send the bride off, and gave it to your second sister when we get to Tokyo. Anyway, my family can't live there for the time being."

He originally wanted to say that he would take the house deed with him, but he changed his mind halfway and just said that he would give the key to Fu Erniang, meaning that he could let her live there instead of giving it to her.

The mansion was the residence of Liu Zhu, the prefect of Kaifeng during the Later Han Dynasty. After Liu Zhu was executed by Guo Wei, he was given the mansion as a reward to Fu Yanqing.

Judging from the location and value alone, it is definitely a top-tier luxury house and can easily be sold for tens of thousands of coins.

Of course, Fu Yanqing was not just reluctant to part with the house. The main reason was that the house had a certain symbolic meaning, and he did not dare to give it away casually.

Besides, if he were to retire to Tokyo in the future, he would definitely need a place to live...

"I understand, son." After hearing his father's explanation, Fu Zhaoxin responded again.

At this time, Yang, who was sitting next to Fu Yanqing, chuckled and said, "A Lang usually nags Er Niang, but in his heart, she is the one he loves the most."

Fu Yanqing stroked his beard and said calmly, "I only have two legitimate daughters. The eldest is too opinionated and it's not my place to worry about her. On the contrary, the second sister seems to be very naughty, but in fact she is very weak-willed. As a father, I naturally have to support her. How can I lose face on the dowry?"

He was sincere in what he said. The older people get, the more they miss the past. Fu Yanqing had a deep relationship with his first wife. Although she had passed away for more than ten years, the son and two daughters she left behind meant a lot to him.

As for concubines' sons and daughters... they are naturally inferior to them.

Fu Zhaoxin's wife, Wang, replied in a flattering tone, "Uncle has prepared so much dowry for Second Sister. When Second Sister marries, she will have the confidence. With uncle's support, Brother Yi will definitely not dare to bully Second Sister."

Just then, Fu Liumei suddenly came in jumping.

Fu Yanqing frowned slightly upon seeing this: "You're acting like a three-year-old all day long, how can you be so disrespectful?"

Fu Liumei was suddenly startled and stood there at a loss as to what to do.

Yang quickly tried to smooth things over and asked, "Sixth Mother, didn't I ask you to stay with Second Mother? Why are you here?"

Before Fu Liumei could answer, Fu Erniang's voice rang out from behind her: "Sixth sister came here with me."

As they were talking, Fu Erniang walked in with a hint of sadness in her eyes.

On the day the betrothal gifts arrived, she had secretly hoped to get married quickly, but when the day finally arrived, she suddenly felt a wave of melancholy. The thought of leaving home, heading to an unfamiliar place where everything was strange and unknown, and where her father and family would no longer be around, nearly brought Fu Erniang to tears.

But she was too old to cry in front of her family, so she could only hold back her tears and say, "I used to be ignorant and always disobeyed you, and even did some ridiculous things. I hope you won't blame me."

Fu Yanqing rarely saw his daughter like this, and he felt a little uncomfortable, but as a warrior who had fought his way out of troubled times, he naturally would not act fussy.

He coughed lightly and said, "I'm glad you understand. After getting married, you should control your temper and stop being so playful like before."

"Ah Lang, why are you talking about this when you have nothing to do?"

Yang rolled her eyes at Fu Yanqing and smiled, comforting Fu Erniang, "The Queen has found a good match for you, Erniang. That Yi Ge'er is a general in the Imperial Guards. He holds a high position of power at a young age. It wouldn't be a disgrace to you if you married him."

She hesitated for a moment and whispered, "Don't blame me for being nosy. Brother Yi'er's parents and brothers are all gone. I heard that he took his uncle to live with him to support him, but he is still far from his parents."

"To put it bluntly, my second sister has gone to the Li family. As long as you take care of your husband, who can still control you?"

After Yang's words of comfort, Fu Erniang felt much better. Nowadays, many women have never seen what their future husbands look like before getting married, let alone understanding his temperament.

Fortunately, she had not only met Li Yi twice, but his appearance and personality were also quite to her liking... Thinking of the scene of their last separation, Fu Erniang couldn't help but feel her face flushed and her sad mood was immediately dispelled.

However, Fu Liumei who was standing by suddenly burst into tears.

Fu Erniang came back to her senses, not knowing whether to laugh or cry, "Sixth sister, what's wrong with you? I'm not crying, why are you crying?"

But then Fu Liumei sobbed, "If my second sister gets married, there will be no one to play with me... I'll be left alone at home... Daddy will definitely only scold me from now on... Woo woo."

Fu Erniang said angrily, "I don't think you're worried that no one will play with you. You're worried that no one will speak up for you when Daddy scolds you again, right?"

"No, no, that's not the case..."

Fu Liumei wiped away her tears and said aggrievedly, "I really can't bear to leave my sister... Humph, my sister has gone to Tokyo. My brother-in-law will prepare a lot of fun things for you, and the Queen can also play with you."

After saying that, she hugged Fu Erniang's waist and begged, "Sister, I'm going to Tokyo to see my bride off. Can you please let me go with you... Okay?"

"Nonsense!"

Fu Yanqing, who was sitting at the head of the table, scolded her, "Your sister is getting married, why are you accompanying her? Stay home and learn needlework. I'll help you find a family to marry into in the next two years, so you don't have to make me angry at home..."

With Fu Liumei's trick, the sad atmosphere was much lighter, and the family sat down and talked for a while.

After a while, a steward came outside the door to announce that the wedding procession was about to arrive at Weizhou City.

Fu Yanqing immediately ordered his eldest son, "Dalang, take your men out of the city to meet him immediately."

……

After staying in Weizhou City for two days, Li Yi finally took Fu Er Niang away from the Prince of Wei's Mansion.

To be honest, he was still a little dizzy when he left. He didn't see Fu Er Niang from beginning to end. He just followed the procedure step by step and ran back and forth between the post station and Prince Wei's Mansion several times.

He was like a robot, at the mercy of the officials of the Ministry of Rites. He did whatever they told him to do, and he finally breathed a sigh of relief on the day he left.

Li Yi felt that it was enough to get married once... because it was really too painful.

Compared to the time they came, the return journey was slower, and the number of accompanying personnel and vehicles doubled... There were more vehicles transporting the dowry, people from the Fu family escorting the bride, and Fu Zhaoxin's men escorting taxes.

Li Yi was originally shocked when he saw the scale of the wedding procession, especially since he didn't know at first that most of the wealth and goods carried by those carts were taxes to be paid to the court.

He also lamented that the betrothal gift he gave was already very generous, but he did not expect that the dowry given by the King of Wei was far beyond his imagination.

As expected of the respected King of Wei, his family background is really damn rich!
However, when Li Yi was chatting with Fu Zhaoxin on the way, he learned that Fu Zhaoxin had to pay the taxes of Daming Prefecture to the court on the way. Li Yi then realized that he was overthinking.

However, even so, the dowry given by the King of Wei was considered generous. Together with the one thousand acres of farmland on the outskirts of Kaifeng, the total value was no less than the betrothal gift given by Li Yi.

Of course, these were all Fu Erniang's dowry, and Li Yi was not planning to use them. He had to support his own wife, so was it really necessary for a general of the imperial guards to spend his wife's money?

By the end of April.

The wedding procession crossed the Yellow River and marched towards Tokyo in a grand manner.

Li Yi rode a horse side by side with Fu Zhaoxin, wearing a brocade robe embroidered with gold edges. From time to time, he looked back at the luxuriously decorated wedding car.

On the day Fu Er Niang was picked up, she wore a floral dress and a veil hat, and got into the wedding car surrounded by maids.

Then Li Yi never saw her get off... When they passed the post station to rest along the way, Fu Er Niang would definitely get off the car.

However, the maids around her were watching her closely, and with her elder brother-in-law Fu Zhaoxin accompanying her to send off the bride, Li Yi really had no chance to have any contact with her.

In fact, Li Yi was also thinking: he and Fu Erniang had only met twice. Although she should have liked him, it was absolutely nonsense to say that there was a deep emotional foundation between them.

Although Li Yi had been in love many times in his previous life, this was the first time he got married in this life.

What should marriage be like?
Li Yi couldn't explain it...but he was sure of one thing, that compared to the excitement of love at first sight, the love that grows over time was more reliable.

In later generations, how many of the so-called free love relationships, where people love to death, can finally grow old together?
If you think about it carefully, the relationship introduced by your friends is called a self-dating, and the relationship introduced by your family is called a blind date. There is not much difference between the two. However, many people call the former love, while the latter is sneered at.

It's pure pretentiousness... If you insist on saying that those who go on blind dates are the leftovers, then Li Yi feels that he has definitely found a treasure by going on a blind date with Fu Er Niang.

"Brother Yi, what are you looking at?" Fu Zhaoxin, who was riding a horse side by side with Li Yi, chuckled.

Perhaps because the two parties were about to get married, the way he addressed Li Yi became more familiar. Before, he would call him by his military rank, but now he just called him Brother Yi.

Li Yi quickly retracted his gaze and said awkwardly, "Nothing, just taking a look..."

Fu Zhaoxin glanced back at the direction Li Yi was looking at, and immediately understood, but he did not point it out. He then chatted with Li Yi about the war to attack Shu.

The large group of people moved very slowly. After crossing the Yellow River, they walked for another two days before arriving at Chenqiaoyi outside Tokyo.

The wedding procession rested at the post station for one night and set off again early the next morning.

It was not until the beginning of May that we finally arrived outside Chenqiao Gate.

(End of this chapter)