Chapter 206 Master Xuanzang (asking for monthly ticket)

Arranging a marriage is only the first step, and there is a lot of preparation work to be done afterwards.

The first is Nacai, which is one of the “six rituals” of the Tang Dynasty wedding.

If a man wants to marry a woman, his family must first send a matchmaker to the woman's home to propose marriage and give gifts to propose marriage.

After getting the acceptance, the matchmaker will be asked to formally present the "selection gift" to the girl's family.

After the initial discussion, if the woman is interested, the man will send a matchmaker to formally propose to the woman's family and bring certain gifts, so it is called "Nacai".

According to Zhou Li, the gifts of marriage were generally classified according to one's status. The emperor used fragrant wine, the princes used jade, the dukes used lambs, the officials used geese, the scholars used pheasants, and the common people only used cloth.

Later, it evolved into using live geese as a gift when proposing marriage, and offering the bride price was also the beginning of the entire marriage procedure.

Li Xiang specially asked his teacher Xiao Yu to be the matchmaker, and Old Xiao happily carried a wild goose by the neck and ran to the Pei family to propose marriage.

In fact, it's just a process. The young people are in love with each other and the emperor has already granted their marriage. Who can object?

After the betrothal ceremony, the next step is to ask for the bride’s name, which is the second of the six rituals.

"When asking about a girl's name, one should go home to divine whether it is good or bad.", "When asking about a girl's name, one should go home to divine whether it is good or bad."

The man entrusts a matchmaker to bring the name and birthday of the man to be married to, as well as gifts and gift books, and go to the woman's house to inquire about the name and birthday of the girl to be married.

The man uses this to divine in the ancestral temple to obtain a good or bad omen for the marriage, and can get married if it is auspicious.

After asking for the name, the next step is to accept the marriage proposal, which is the third of the six ceremonies.

Naji is a ritual in which the man asks for the woman's name, matches her horoscope, informs the woman of the auspicious omen for marriage, and gives her a gift to express his intention to get engaged.

These two steps are actually a process.

The Grand Historian gave a favorable verdict without any hesitation.

Li Xiang always felt that this step was unnecessary. After all, he was a time-tested materialist fighter. If these horoscopes were useful, would there still be incompetent rulers?

After this, it is time to pay the betrothal gift.

Na Zheng, the fourth of the Six Rites, is also known as Na Bi, Da Pin and Guo Da Li. It is an ancient Han marriage custom popular in many areas, in which the man's family sends a betrothal gift to the woman's family.

Kong Yingda's commentary on the Book of Rites: The Ceremony of Marriage for Scholars states: "Na Zheng means paying the betrothal gift. Zheng means completion. Paying the betrothal gift first can complete the marriage."

After this ceremony, the marriage contract is completely established. The emphasis of the betrothal ceremony is on form rather than quantity. The completion of the betrothal ceremony marks the end of the engagement stage and is one of the main signs of the establishment of marriage.

In fact, the popular term is bride price. After simplification, the man only needs to send a wooden comb, two hair ropes, and a few feet of shoe cloth; the woman can return a pair of handmade wax-soled cloth shoes and a handkerchief.

Of course, after liberation, with the changes of the times and the development of the economy, the gifts given to each other also changed.

As for what has changed...

On the 20th day of the first lunar month, everything is ready and the wedding ceremony begins.

The so-called asking for a date is the fifth of the six rites, commonly known as sending a date or proposing a date. The man's family chooses a good date for the wedding, writes the man and woman's birth dates on red paper, and the matchmaker takes it to the woman's family to discuss the wedding date with the host of the woman's family.

The date was set by Yuan Tiangang, and it was set on February 11th.

In fact, Li Shimin was not in a hurry, otherwise that day would have been an auspicious day.

Li Xiang also asked in passing whether Yuan Tiangang had ever been to Wu Shigui's house to have his fortune told. As a result, Yuan Tiangang said that he had no connection with the Wu family.

Could it be that the person surnamed Wu changed the history? Li Xiang scratched his head. According to BYD's moral principles, it should be about the same.

In fact, there are obviously a lot of bugs in this matter. Is he really that cool that he can't tell whether it's a man or a woman?
He can't even tell whether a man or a woman is male, let alone tell a person's fortune or face...

After everything was finalized, the last step left was to welcome the bride.

Li Xiang is now in high spirits, as he is celebrating the good news. After all, getting married is like a small achievement.

Thinking of this, Li Xiang felt very uncomfortable.

Alas, I will never be able to take part in the imperial examination in this lifetime, and can only make up for the regret through the small success in the bridal chamber.

When they arrived at the restaurant, his brothers were also teasing him.

Although we have known the relationship between Li Xiang, Pei Xueqing and Feng Yingying for a long time, it has finally been confirmed and we still have to make some jokes about it.

"Brother, are you happy about your engagement?" Li Jingren asked with a wink.

As a result, Li Xiang's words made Li Jingren fall into autism.

"How is your relationship with Ashina Yun?"

Seeing that Li Jingren was withdrawn, Li Xiang reached out and patted his shoulder, smiling and said, "Actually, engagement is just like that. There's nothing to be happy about."

"Really? I don't believe it." Wei Daijia spoke in an authentic Luyu accent.

"Do you think I'm attracted to Sister Pei's beauty just like you are attracted to Li Xueyi?" Li Xiang put his hands behind his back, looking like a master: "In fact, you don't know, I'm actually a little face-blind, which means I can't tell who is pretty and who is not. Sister Pei attracts me more because of her inner beauty. You should also learn from me as your brother. As the saying goes, beauty lies in the bones, not in the skin. You should pay more attention to a woman's inner beauty, not her appearance."

"Brother is indeed brother..." The young men were in awe and really believed Li Xiang's nonsense.

Li Xiang strolled all the way to the small house where Li Shu and others were, and pushed the door open.

The moment Pei Xueqing saw Li Xiang coming in, two suspicious red clouds appeared on her cheeks.

"Hey, two aunts, Sister Pei, you are all here?" Li Xiang waved his paw to greet them.

Li Su once again made a weird "yo yo yo" expression: "Yo yo yo, you're already engaged, and you still have to call me Sister Pei? Do you still have to call me Sister on your wedding night?"

"Look at what you said. Don't you also call my uncle 'Dear Brother'?" Li Xiang showed a look of disgust.

Tsk, with your hot-tempered personality, do you really think you are Shi Xiangyun?

Hearing Li Xiang's words, Li Su was embarrassed. He pointed at him and asked angrily, "Where did you hear that?"

"You shouted like that a few days ago, and I overheard it." Li Xiang spread his hands.

Li Su took a deep breath and decided not to argue with him.

"Where is Sister Baoer?" Li Xiang walked up to Pei Xueqing and asked.

The fragrance on Pei Xueqing's body was so pleasant that the little elephant was somewhat intoxicated by it.

"She feels a little uncomfortable today and is lying at home." Pei Xueqing's earlobes turned red when she heard Li Xiang sniffling, but she also said generously: "If Dalang has anything for me to tell you, I will tell Baoer when I get back."

"Oh, it's okay, I just asked." Li Xiang said.

Pei Xueqing took a sachet from the table and handed it to Li Xiang.

"This is the sachet I made. Dalang, take a look. Do you like it?" Li Xiang took it. The sachet was embroidered with a phoenix spreading its wings as if about to fly, and above the phoenix's head was a sun.

He put it to his nose and sniffed it, and smelled the scent of medicinal herbs.

"It's very good. Please help me tie it on." Li Xiang handed the sachet back to Pei Xueqing.

Pei Xueqing took the sachet and gently tied it around Li Xiang's waist.

"Look..." Li Su was whispering to Li Lizhi nearby, using the words he learned from Li Xiang: "Just now I heard him outside saying 'I don't know how beautiful my wife is', and now look at him, tut tut..."

Li Xiang was still a little dizzy when leaving the restaurant.

You have a fiancée now?
As a result, he had only taken a few steps in the courtyard of Lizheng Hall when he was hit on the back of his head by two balls of snow.

Looking back, they saw the angry Li Tai and Li Zhi.

"You say!" The two uncles came over together and each grabbed one of his arms.

"Am I still not your good second uncle!" Li Tai said angrily.

"Am I still your good uncle?" Li Zhi was also very unhappy.

Li Xiang scratched his head and asked, "What's going on between you two?"

"Yeah, what's wrong?" He was really confused.

"Let me ask you, why for such a big matter as hiring a matchmaker, why don't you look for us two, but instead look for that old...old man Xiao Yu?" Li Zhi asked with a cry.

Li Xiang looked at Li Zhi suspiciously. He did not answer his question but changed the subject. He lowered his head and looked up at Li Zhi: "Uncle Yao, were you going to say 'Lao Deng' just now?"

"I'm not, I didn't, don't talk nonsense!" Li Zhi quickly denied it three times.

"Really?" Li Xiang obviously didn't want to let him go: "Why did I hear your tone was not right just now?"

"Stop talking nonsense!" Li Zhi blushed, "I know you don't take us two uncles seriously! This is your lifelong event!"

"Definitely next time, definitely next time..." Li Xiang said quickly.

"next time?"

Li Tai looked at him and asked, "Do you still want the wedding to be better and better?"
"You don't need these ceremonies to take a concubine. The daughter of the Pei family is your principal wife, so it is so formal!"

"Oh." Li Xiang realized that he had said something wrong. He suddenly pointed behind them and said, "Aung?"

After hearing Li Xiang's words, Li Tai and Li Zhi turned around at the same time, and the strength of their grip on Li Xiang's arm loosened a little.

While the two of them were turning around, Li Xiang ran away.

The two men realized that they had been cheated and chased after him, but they were no match for Li Xiang, who had studied in South Korea, and were beaten by him.

The two had no choice but to sit back and wait.

However, they did not wait for Li Xiang to come, but instead waited for Master Xuanzang who returned from the Western Regions.

When passing through Khotan last year, Xuanzang submitted a petition to Emperor Li Shimin for the sole purpose of explaining to the court why he had violated the ban and sneaked out of the country. Emperor Li Shimin issued an imperial decree, allowing him to return to the country and saying that he would not be held accountable for his past.

However, it was quite a coincidence that when Xuanzang was in the Western Regions, he met a caravan from the Tang Dynasty. Based on the principle that they were all fellow villagers, he followed the caravan and returned to the Tang Dynasty with mutual care.

Historically, Xuanzang entered Chang'an on the 25th day of the first lunar month, but because he followed a caravan and his speed was a little faster, he arrived a few days earlier.

On the day he returned to Chang'an, Li Shimin learned the news of Xuanzang's return. He immediately issued an edict to invite Xuanzang into the palace and met him in the Liangyi Hall.

Li Xiang also received this notice. He didn't know much about Xuanzang, but of course he knew Tang Monk, who was created based on Master Xuanzang, very well.

Some parts of Journey to the West are not different, after all, Xuanzang's real surname is Chen.

After arriving at the Liangyi Hall, Li Xiang recognized Master Xuanzang at first sight.

There is no other reason. After all, Master Xuanzang's temperament is like a firefly in the dark night.

He was very dark, which was consistent with the image of a man who had been on the move for many years, but his figure was unexpectedly strong; but his eyes were bright and lively.

Come to think of it, if Master Xuanzang only knew Buddhism but not martial arts, how could he possibly influence the robbers on the road?

The Tang royal family did not worship Buddhism at this time, and the same was true for Li Shimin.

Old Li is more sober. Although the Guanlong Group does not exist, the people who are classified as the "Guanlong Group" do believe in Buddhism.

This is the case with Yang Jian's family. For example, Yang Jian's name was Naloyana, and Naloyana was a Buddhist figure.

In order to maintain balance, Lao Li promoted Taoism politically, and for the sake of national stability, he suppressed both. This is a classic balancing act of an emperor.

During the reign of Emperor Li Zhi, people began to lean towards Taoism in terms of faith.

In order to attack the Li family and elevate the status of Buddhism, Wu Zetian allowed Buddhism to develop disorderly.

During the reign of Li Longji, the royal family and important officials of the court no longer believed in Buddhism and began to fully embrace Taoism.

If we really want to talk about worshipping Buddhism, it all started with that bastard Li Heng.

During the reign of Emperor Xianzong Li Chun, the worship of Buddhism reached its peak, and the whole government went to great lengths to welcome the Buddha's bones. Han Yu's "A letter to the emperor was submitted in the morning, and I was demoted to Chaozhou, a journey of eight thousand miles in the evening" was born against this background.

——Of course, Old Li, that is, Li Xiang’s great-grandfather Li Yuan, was still a devout believer in Buddhism. He gave his eldest son the name Bishamon, which sounds very similar to Buddhism.

The reason why Lao Li was eager to summon Xuanzang was not because he was very interested in Buddhist scriptures, but because he was very interested in the countries that Xuanzang passed through along the way.

When they entered the hall, Xuanzang was telling Li Shimin about the customs and culture of the Western Regions.

"The country of Kapisa is more than 4,000 li in circumference, with snow-capped mountains to the north and black ridges on the three sides. The capital of the country is more than 10 li in circumference. It is good for growing wheat and has many fruit trees. It also produces fine horses and tulips. Many exotic goods are gathered in this country. In the mountains northeast of the royal city, there is a stone statue of a standing Buddha, 140 to 50 feet high, shining with golden color and decorated with brilliant jewels."

The so-called Kapisa Kingdom is the present-day Afghanistan region.

The impact of the Tang Dynasty's withdrawal from the Western Regions and Central Asia was a devastating disaster. After that, the thousands of miles of Buddhist kingdom in the Western Regions had been assimilated into a pool of green stagnant water.

Li Xiang did not interrupt, but just sat on the side and listened quietly, verifying it with what he had learned from geography in his previous life and his experiences abroad.

Old Li was listening to the song with rapt attention and seemed quite fascinated.

However, his fascination was different from the fascination of the later divine maggots for Amei. He just wanted to send a few generals to have a friendly exchange and ask why your country built the palace on my land.

Alas, what a reasonable emperor he is! He even knows how to use courtesy before force.

Li Xiang always felt that Xuanzang's trip was not only for Buddhism, but also to draw some maps for the Tang Dynasty.

As he expected, at the end of his speech, Xuanzang took out a map from his sleeve.

(I’m so sleepy… I’ll take a nap first. I’ve already made up for the chapter I owed yesterday)
(End of this chapter)