roccoschili Chapter 1710 The Greed of the Aristocrats
Chapter 1710 The Greed of the Aristocrats
Chapter 1710 The Greed of the Aristocrats
The autumn wind is rustling in Guanzhong and the grass is withered, but the willows in the south of the Yangtze River are still drizzled, but the thin raindrops are blowing with the wind, without the sweltering heat of summer, adding a bit of coolness and comfort...
The drizzle hits the slender leaves of the purple bamboo forest in the "Golden Bamboo Garden", rustling, the bamboo forest is swaying in the misty rain, the river outside the fence is gurgling, and the simple and heavy wooden buildings hidden by the bamboo forest are elegant and elegant. There is a bit of dustiness in it.
"Wang Xie Yuan Xiao" Jiang Zuo is romantic, but up to now, only Lanling Xiao's thriving is outstanding, enough to look down on Jiang Zuo's gentry, and look down on Wu Jun's overseas Chinese.
On the clean floor above the main hall, there are several elderly people sitting opposite each other. A low table is placed in the center, and several people sit on the ground. A small stove on the side of the short table boils mountain spring water and pours it into a teapot. , the emerald green tea leaves were rolled up and down by the boiling water, and a fragrance as light as orchids came out.
The fragrance of tea in the hall is faint, the drizzle outside the house, the air is moist and cool, several old men with bright heads and white beards, wide robes and belts, look like famous officials...
A letter was quietly placed on the low table, and the white-haired and childlike old man sitting in the north stroked his beard and said calmly: "What do you guys think of Lao Qi's letter?"
The rest of the old men didn't speak out when they heard the words, they just kept their heads down and sipped the tea soup...
After waiting for a while, I was not surprised to see that everyone was silent. It seemed that these were normal phenomena, so I looked at an old man sitting beside me with a rickety body, and asked softly: "Eight Uncle, what do you mean?"
"Eighth Uncle" squirmed his mouth, pursed his teethless lips, and said weakly, "Me? I'm old and confused, you just have to make up your mind."
The old man is helpless, you are indeed old and out of shape, but who dares to say that you are confused?
Those who think you are stupid, you are really stupid...
To grow old and not die is to be a thief, and it is probably referring to the Xiao Cen who once served as a captain in the Sui Dynasty...
But he is old and senior, and he likes to pretend to be crazy, what can you do with him?
Don't look at the nice words at this time, "you can just make up your mind", but if the idea you come up with in the end is not what he wants, it's easy to yell and swear based on your seniority, and it's a common thing to hit people on the head with a cane. They are all in their seventies and eighties. Although they are not senior, who wants to be knocked on the head by him?
The sound of rain beating on bamboo leaves could be heard outside the window, and the hall was silent for a while...
The red-faced old man on the right hand side said: "Fourth brother, you are the eldest brother of Lao Qi. Although you are not a direct relative, you are the patriarch of our Lanling Xiao Clan. If you come up with a charter, Lao Qi will not obey it." .”
The old man sitting in the chair of the real quilt is Xiao Jing, the patriarch of the Xiao Clan right now.
This person is the great-great-grandson of Xiao Yan, Emperor Wu of Liang, the fourth son of Xiao Kui, Emperor Ming of Xiliang, and the only surviving elder brother of Song Guogong Xiao Yu.
And the old man who "is not old enough to die is a thief" is the younger brother of Xiao Kui, Emperor Ming of the Later Liang Dynasty, and Xiao Cen, the eighth son of Emperor Xuan of the Later Liang Dynasty.
In terms of seniority, he can be regarded as the ancestor of the Xiao clan...
The Xiao family in Lanling has been a famous family since they lived in the south of the Yangtze River, and it became even more prosperous after entering the Southern and Northern Dynasties.Since Qi Gaodi Xiao Daocheng established the country with the dictatorship of Qi Dynasty and Song Dynasty, for nearly 200 years, the Xiao family of Lanling has always dominated the south of the Yangtze River and dominated the south of the Yangtze River.
It was only after Emperor Wu of Liang Xiao Yan "replaced Qi to build Liang", the evidence in the south of the Yangtze River was constantly changing and turbulent.
Since ancient times, the position of patriarch has always been held by the eldest son's direct branch, with the exception of Gaimo.
Xiao Tong, the prince of Emperor Wu of Liang, died early before succeeding to the throne, and was canonized as "Prince Zhaoming". However, Emperor Wu of Liang did not make Xiao Huan, the son of Xiao Tong, the "grandson of the emperor", but passed the throne to his third son , "Prince Zhaoming" Xiao Tong's same mother and younger brother Xiao Gang.Later, the "Hou Jing Rebellion" broke out, Emperor Wu of Liang was starved to death, and Xiao Gang succeeded him as Emperor Jianwen of Xiliang.
It's just that the good times don't last long, and it's not easy to be a puppet emperor. Two years later, Hou Jing killed him and forced Xiao Gang's younger brother Xiao Yi to become emperor...
When the Western Wei Dynasty captured Jiangling, killed Liang Yuan Emperor Xiao Yi, and established Zhaoming Prince Xiao Tong's third son Xiao Xie as emperor, the Liang Dynasty regime finally returned to Zhengshuo, and once again returned to the line of Zhaoming Prince.
"Prince Zhaoming" Xiao Tong's eldest son, Xiao Huan, died without heirs, and his land, Xiao Yu, also had no heirs. The family tree was handed down to Xiao Tong's third son, Xiao Xie, who became Emperor Xuandi of Xiliang Zhongzong.His eldest son Xiao Yi died early, his second son died young, and the throne was passed on to his third son Xiao Kui.
In the ninth year of Emperor Kaihuang's reign, Xiao Cong, the son of Xiao Kui, was brought to Chang'an by Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty and died.
This branch of the direct lineage was passed down to Xiao Cong's younger brother Xiao Jing...
Although Xiao Yu was conferred the title of Song Guogong, and the official worshiped as Shangshu Youpushe, but he was definitely not the leader in the family. No matter how noble his status was, he had to be ranked after Xiao Jing when offering sacrifices.
It's just that Xiao Jing's health has been deteriorating in recent years, and he has gradually handed over major family affairs such as sacrifices to Xiao Yu. One is that he is really lacking in energy, and the other is that he hopes to use Xiao Yu's official title to improve Xiao's status in the south of the Yangtze River. Influence.
But in the end, the position of the patriarch still has to be passed on to his own son, there is nothing wrong with Xiao Yu...
Like the Xiao family in Lanling, the power of the patriarch of a famous family that has been passed down endlessly is by no means inferior to that of the emperor to the people. , In the family, one must also bow one's head.
Xiao Jing is not only the elder brother, but also the head of the clan, Xiao Yu would never dare not to listen to his words, of course, it is another matter to obey the positive and the negative...
Another person said about this matter: "The letter said that we should restrain ourselves and cut off the way of smuggling overseas. It is really easy to say. His old seven is popular in Chang'an, and his drink is spicy. As he became successful, his son even married a princess. Naturally, he is different from our country bumpkins... It is okay for him to lose the profits of smuggling, but if we lose these benefits, our family will be tens of thousands of people. What do you eat and drink?"
Xiao Jing said with a sullen face, "Then before the rise of maritime trade, did your family drink the northwest wind?"
In the seventh year of Kaihuang, Xiao Jing, his elder brother Xiao Cong, the empress of Xiliang, his younger brother Xiao Yu, and other Xiliang clans and officials were taken to Chang'an.After entering the Sui Dynasty, Xiao Jing successively served as a doctor in the imperial court, and a royal official in Shangyi.He is headstrong and impulsive by nature, but thanks to the protection of his younger sister, who married Yang Guang as his concubine, the Xiao family did not make things difficult for him.Later, he followed Xiao Yu into the Tang Dynasty. During the reign of Wude, he was the servant of the Huangmen, and was transferred to the secretary and supervisor.
He, who has a headstrong personality and has seen court battles, naturally cannot listen to such nonsense.
He did not like Xiao Yu's cautious character, but he also knew that Xiao Yu's words and deeds were all for the sake of the family, even if it was wrong, the intention was good, how could he let others slander him?
That person was blushing at what he said, but he didn't dare to refute, so he could only drink tea with his head down to cover up his embarrassment...
Xiao Jing was about to speak when he heard the "foolish old" Xiao Cen beside him sigh quietly, and said with his toothless mouth: "It's easy to go from frugality to extravagance, but it's hard to go from extravagance to frugality... old man Si, you are right to protect Lao Qi. This family relies on Lao Qi in many places. But as the patriarch, you have to think more about everyone. If you are used to rich clothes and fine food, who can turn back and eat chaff and swallow vegetables What about me? I am old and I am about to die, but if I see my children and grandchildren go back to the old days of digging in the soil and collecting a few rents every year, I am afraid that I will not be able to rest in peace when I die..."
The flesh on Xiao Jing's cheeks trembled, and he was speechless for a while.
You keep saying that you are going to die of old age, but why don't you really die?
It's really uncomfortable to have such an ancestor on top of your head, you can't beat it...
Xiao Jing complained in her heart, but had to agree with Xiao Cen's words.
The huge profits from sea trade in the past few years have made the whole family almost crazy. Even if what Xiao Yu said in the letter may still be hit by Fang Jun, who can really let go of such huge profits and return to the past to collect a few stones of grain The day when you have to fight big and fight small?
Farming and reading heirlooms sounds very elegant and beautiful, but there is still no money...
If he wants to maintain such a large family, it is impossible to rely solely on the output of the land, and the meager profits of the shops cannot be compared with Haimao. Even if he wants to stop now, these people in the family will definitely not allow him to stop. This old man will be the first to stand up.
What's more, he never thought of stopping...
"Wealth and wealth are sought in danger. This is true. Our Lanling Xiao family has long been the leader of the Jiangnan gentry since we lived in the south of the Yangtze River. Our status and respect have a deep foundation. Even the emperor has to follow us and expect us to donate food and money to help him fight. To win Goguryeo? But the warning of the seventh brother should not be taken lightly, it is better to prepare early."
Xiao Jing said in a deep voice.
He didn't think much of what Xiao Yu said in his heart, but since Fang Xuanling was about to go south, it would be great if he could get through Fang Xuanling's relationship.
(End of this chapter)