After getting Zhang Yue's approval, Zhang Shi and Yang asked Mrs. Zhuang to go to the Wu family for matchmaking.

Madam Zhuang did not visit the Wu family this time, but the guarantor Ouyang Xiu's door to discuss submitting a post.

In the Song Dynasty, two posts were generally required to propose marriage.

In the first post, the man should write down the names and official positions of the three generations of his family members, as well as other information such as residence and property, and ask the matchmaker to deliver it to his door.

The first writing is relatively simple and is called "draft post". If the woman is interested in the marriage, she will exchange posts and draft a post with similar content as the man and send it back.

The second 'detailed post' is more formal, introducing family background, etc. in more detail, which is the official post.

At this point, the two families are considered engaged.

Getting engaged is not much different from getting married.

Mrs. Zhuang wears a bonnet on her head and a purple lining. This outfit is the best matchmaker outfit in Bianjing.

Mrs. Zhuang arrived at Ouyang Xiu's house. Ouyang Xiu's wife, Mrs. Xue, had also heard of Mrs. Zhuang's reputation. She was not feeling well, so she asked Ouyang Fa and his eldest daughter-in-law, Mrs. Wu, to see her.

Mrs. Zhuang first expressed the Zhang family's intention to marry to the Wu family.

Of course Wu was overjoyed in her heart, but she couldn't help but look dull on her face.

The family tradition of the Wu family is such that Li Taijun fell in love with Wu Chong and married into the Wu family, so the marriages of his daughters were never taboo and were discussed.

When the Zhang family didn't send a matchmaker before, Mrs. Wu couldn't help but worry about this and that for her sister. Now Zhang Yue is taking the second provincial exam and wonders if he will be distracted because of so many matchmakers coming to propose marriage.

Now that the other party has invited Mrs. Zhuang, a famous matchmaker in Bianjing, to come to his door, it shows that Zhang Yue really understands in his heart that this young man is a top-notch person in everything he does and knows what it means to give him a peach and give him a jade in return.

Wu was overjoyed immediately, but she still had to show off her airs and style outside the home.

Ouyang Fa was about to agree, but Mrs. Wu said: "I said before that I would make a decision after winning the Jinshi, but I also said that I would wait until after the palace examination, so Mrs. Zhuang came to the door, which surprised me. I really didn’t expect that.”

"After all, I am a foreigner. Although I and my mother-in-law are in Bianjing, I haven't been back for a long time. It is even more inconvenient to go out and ask my mother what she wants. Mrs. Zhuang should come to the house herself."

Ouyang Fa was speechless when he heard this. His wife went back to her parents' house every now and then. He didn't dare to say anything, so he even lied to outsiders in front of him.

Mrs. Zhuang looked at Mrs. Wu and smiled slightly: "Originally, I was familiar with the Wu family, so I didn't dare to let Mrs. Wu bother. But who knows that Mrs. Wu is the most considerate to Li Taijun. When I married Ouyang's house, I didn't dare to worry about it. That dowry covers a whole street, so I come to ask you to say something."

Mrs. Wu was elated when she heard this and said with a smile: "There is no dowry paving a street. It's all just hearsay. Besides, these are just for outsiders to see. They are not worth a lot of money. In reality, just pick a box and it will be enough."

Mrs. Zhuang shook her fan and covered her mouth with a smile: "I know, I know, a box is worth a mountain of gold and silver."

At this point, Mrs. Zhuang changed her subject and said: "But having said that, several ladies from the Wu family married into the prime minister's family, and all of them are destined to be very lucky, and they are born to enjoy this great wealth.

.”

"Our Zhang family husband is a little more humble than some of my uncles. Fortunately, he will soon be a Jinshi. There is a saying in Bianjing that 'a son is a Jinshi and a woman marries a scholar-bureaucrat'."

Ouyang Fa finally couldn't help but said: "Actually, when I first got engaged to my wife, my father had just returned to the imperial court after being demoted to Chuzhou. When I offered him the betrothal, I was in a dilemma and couldn't come up with much as a betrothal gift."

Mrs. Wu frowned when she heard this. Ouyang Fa noticed that Mr. Wu's expression was wrong and immediately said: "Thanks to Mount Tai for not giving up and marrying my wife to me, life is better now, and it will not be too late to enjoy this wealth in the future."

Well."

Wu's face looked better after hearing what Ouyang Fa said.

"Exactly. Exactly."

Mrs. Zhuang smiled in agreement and said that the first time she came to visit her, she was asking for directions. She didn't say too much, but made an appointment to come back in two days.

After Mrs. Zhuang left, Mrs. Wu looked at Ouyang Fa and asked, "What did you mean just now? Are you preventing the Zhang family from giving my sister a betrothal gift?"

Ouyang Fa screamed and said: "Madam, I don't mean that. You also know that Sanlang comes from a poor family. How can he get such a large betrothal gift? I say this to avoid embarrassment to others."

"Then we can't let my seventeenth family lower its status. The matchmaker hasn't spoken yet, but you said it first. Is it your Ouyang family's married daughter or my Wu family's married daughter?"

Ouyang Fa dared not say anything when he heard this, but he smiled and said: "Yes, this is your Wu family's marriage, but Sanlang is also my uncle. Besides, Sanlang and I are family friends after all, and the marriage between the Zhang and Wu families is harmonious.

, isn’t this something that both my wife and I would like to see come to fruition?”

Wu said: "We sisters all married with great honors, so we cannot treat my sister lightly."

Ouyang Fa saw Wu's tone change and smiled and said: "Now and then, I have seen Shiqi very reasonable... Of course, madam, you are even more considerate."

Ouyang Fa wiped his sweat and peeked at Wu's face, and continued: "Didn't Mrs. Caizhuang just say that she is a Jinshi girl marrying a scholar-bureaucrat? When Lao Taishan was in love, he was not even a scholar-bureaucrat, but now

Woolen cloth?"

Wu said: "So what if he is a Jinshi? Our Wu family has very few Jinshis. Besides, who can keep him thinking about today's success?"

Ouyang laughed and said: "How can Sanlang be an ordinary Jinshi? The first rank of Jinshi is the second, third, fourth, fifth, and fifth grades. The first class has the same origin."

"Not only did Sanlang come second in the provincial examination, but he is also very likely to be selected as the top official in the palace examination. In this way, after three to five years of local experience, he can be transferred back to the capital to serve. There is hope for him to become a public minister in the future."

Wu was somewhat moved when she heard this.

"Not to mention, Sanlang is only seventeen years old. If there are no mistakes in his official career, there will always be at least thirty years. Not to mention your Wu family, my Ouyang family can also be entrusted to him to take care of us. When it comes to our two families,

It doesn’t matter how prosperous the status is, as long as it doesn’t decline or become ruined.”

"In other words, one is a fifty-year-old Xiangjia Jinshi, the other is a fifty-year-old Toujia Jinshi, the other is a seventeen-year-old Xiangjia Jinshi, and the other is a seventeen-year-old Toujia Jinshi. How do others judge them?"

Wujia Jinshi also said that Xiangjia is not Mojia. It means that this Jiajinshi often produces prime ministers. Of course, this is also a flattering statement. Mojia does not sound good after all.

After hearing Ouyang Fa's words, Mrs. Wu's expression was greatly relieved, but she still said harshly: "So I don't have vision, do you have vision?"

Ouyang laughed and said: "Where, where, after all, Lao Taishan is the most discerning."

"How to say?"

Ouyang Fa said: "Not to mention how many weak-minded people are among the first-level Jinshi, even if there is such a person in front of me, if there is no marriage contract, it may not be our family's turn. At that time, Wang Wenzhenggong (Prime Minister Wang Zeng) was born in a poor family.

When he won the first prize at the age of 18, both Xianggong Li (Li Hang) and Xianggong Lu (Lv Mengzheng) sent people to ask the matchmaker to marry him to their daughter. In the end, Wang Wenzheng did not agree to Xianggong Lu, but married Xianggong Li's daughter. What do you think?

How does Taishan look at this?"

Wu couldn't help but smile and said: "That's all, that's all. I see you playing with antiques on weekdays, but you still have some sense. But I thought, I can't just let San Lang marry Qi Qi for nothing, there are still rules.

, otherwise it will be a joke to other officials in Bianjing. Otherwise, the married woman from my Wu family will not be able to hold her head high in her husband's family."

Ouyang Fa shook his head and said: "No wonder people from outside the state don't like to get married to the Bianjing official family like you. There are always tests and tests, and there are too many rules. But I think it's okay to get married like this between big families.

But Sanlang is from the Han clan, so let’s just go as high as possible, whatever is convenient for us.”

"This Sanlang is not a person who does not know the importance of things. Otherwise, he would not have bothered to start the marriage as soon as possible. If you make things difficult for him, he will not need to delay the marriage for two years with all the unprepared words. When the time comes, he will

You can wait, but you can't wait until you are seventeen."

"How dare he treat my sister like this?" Wu said angrily.

Seeing that he was about to be smashed, Ouyang Fa quickly said: "Madam, with Shi Qi's temper, are you still afraid of being bullied?"

"I'm afraid that things will change over time. You see, the people who propose marriage to Sanlang's family are all officials and families with little foundation. But which of the two prime ministers in Bianjing has no girl to marry? The reason why he doesn't move now is because of the past of your Wu family.

In terms of love, if it is too late..."

Upon hearing this, Wu was mostly convinced by Ouyang Fa and finally stopped refuting.

Ouyang Fa felt very happy. He had never been so proud in front of Wu in his life.

However, when Ouyang Fa saw that he was good, he immediately stopped and said: "As long as Sanlang gets married, you and the married sisters will only be more beautiful and face-to-face. There is no reason why you can't hold your head high in your husband's family."

"As an uncle, I also follow my wife to take advantage of her."

Wu smiled slightly and said: "You and Sanlang are friends, why do you need me to take advantage of you? But what you said makes sense, so what do you think of Sanlang's brother and sister-in-law? Are they powerful people?"

Ouyang laughed and said: "My brother is a very loyal person, and my nephew is also a handsome man. As for my sister-in-law, I don't know, but I heard that she also came from a wealthy merchant family and would never be stingy. I heard Sanlang mention it many times that his family was poor and weak.

His sister-in-law borrowed money from her natal family to support her studies, so she seemed to be a very knowledgeable woman. Besides, when Sanlang got married, he had to separate the family. His brother and sister-in-law were not from official backgrounds, so how could they handle him?

My elder brother also passed away a long time ago. Besides, how much property can a poor family like the Zhang family have? I don’t think it’s difficult to get along with the relationship between the sisters-in-law. If Shi Qi is gone, she will be the housewife. If you want Shi Qi to show off and marry her, then what?

Who comes to see it?"

When Wu heard this, she felt a huge pain in her heart. Her three younger sisters married into wealthy families, all of them were mother-in-law and daughter-in-law, and their sisters-in-law didn't get along well. The fifteenth mother was considered to be the most skillful and calculating among the sisters, so she married into the Wen family.

Years later, I have lost my temper now.

As for the Wu family, the two daughters-in-law are not having a good time now. Although Li Taijun is old, he still refuses to let go of his power as housekeeper, and even beats the two daughters-in-law from time to time.

Therefore, when she first learned about the marriage between Seventeen Niang and Zhang Yue, she was really relieved. Her sister had the toughest temper among the sisters, how could she hold back her anger.

"Fortunately, there are not many poor relatives in Bianjing who want our support." Wu said to herself.

Then Wu said again: "I told you a long time ago that I want to get acquainted with Mr. Zhang Dalang. This will make it easier to communicate. Can you do it?"

"Why not," Ouyang said with a smile, "didn't we know each other at the birthday banquet that day? But I am also worried about our friendship, so I will come to visit another day. Now I have also inquired about Mr. Zhang Dalang who has not made any plans since he arrived in Bianjing.

It's an errand. Although Sanlang has never asked me to do it before, I plan to ask dad to take care of it."

Wu smiled in reward and said, "You finally take my matter to heart."

Ouyang laughed and said: "How dare I not do my best for my wife's affairs? But since Sanlang was accepted, he immediately asked Mrs. Zhuang to come to our house to propose marriage. You Wu family must not choose anyone based on the rules. Since we are all sensible people.

, just reciprocate, if you make a step, I will make a step, and if I take a step forward, you will take a step further. If you set rules for others today, there is no guarantee that they will set rules for you in the future."

When Wu came here, she was completely convinced by Ouyang Fa, but she still insisted: "Then the Zhang family must be respected anyway. I don't ask for anything, but I still have to try my best, and I still have to have the dignity that I deserve."

Ouyang Fa pretended to be displeased and said: "You still care about Shi Qi marrying in a disgraceful and dishonorable way. Isn't this embarrassing others? I know you have heard that San Lang's uncle's family is rich. But I was born that day.

Yan can see clearly that Sanlang and his uncle really don't get along, so why do you have to embarrass Sanlang and lower his head?"

"Besides, among Sanlang, there are many places for Jinshi to spend money. Going to the Qionglin Banquet and collecting money later are all huge expenses. In the past, many poor Jinshi borrowed money from others or even pawned it to bookstores.
To be continued...