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Before the dragon boat race, firecrackers are set off, gongs and drums are beaten, and a children's choir performs, first reciting Chu Ci to commemorate Qu Yuan, and then singing the Dragon Boat Festival song.

A team of herders also came, but they did not participate in the competition, they just came to celebrate. The herders are afraid of water, so they all signed up for the horse race, but no one dared to sign up for the dragon boat race.

They sang and danced, distributed candies and dried fruits to people around them, and turned a dragon boat race into a carnival.

The choir is now the most popular entertainment in Youzhou. The army has also formed a choir that specializes in singing passionate military songs. Some of the songs have lyrics written by the Queen Mother and are very popular among the soldiers.

Youzhou strictly prohibited brothels and gambling houses, but the court was very supportive of traditional entertainment activities such as opera, shadow puppetry, juggling, and drum books.

The largest opera theater in Youzhou City was funded by the Queen Mother.

In addition, the imperial court also supported multi-person sports such as polo, cuju, chuiwan, and ice skating, and even built a huge sports stadium in the imperial city area, where every inch of land was valuable.

Unlike the royal venue in Chang'an, which was only open to the rich and powerful, the stadium was open to all the people and only a very low ticket price was required to enter and watch.

In the past, there were always some playboys who regretted that such a beautiful place as Youzhou did not have any courtesans in its brothels. What a pity!

But after living in Youzhou for a long time, they found that many entertainments were more interesting than visiting brothels and more exciting than gambling.

There is no young man who doesn't like Cuju and polo. Almost all of them have joined a team, and there are various competitions held in sports venues every day.

The spiritual life of young people was satisfied in another way, and there was not so much opposition to the absence of brothels.

Besides, the dragon boat race is a legal gambling activity supported by the imperial court, and the people can place bets on the dragon boat team they support.

Dong Su and Ling Moxiao also placed bets, but in order not to affect the mood of the players of each team, the teams they bet on were not made public.

Ling Moxiao couldn't help but be curious and quietly asked Dong Su: "Which team did you bet on, madam?"

Dong Su showed him the jade card she had obtained. One jade card was worth one thousand taels of silver, the maximum amount of the bet, and the winning rate of each team was different.

Half of the silver won by each team was given to the government, and the other half was given as a bonus to the team.

She turned the jade token over, and Ling Moxiao saw "Academy of Agricultural Sciences". He hurried to look at the dragon boat of the Academy of Agricultural Sciences. There was no difference between the dragon boats except for the color, and the main thing to look at was the team members.

It turned out that the members of this team were obviously older than those of other teams, and the one who was steering the ship and beating the drum was an old man with a half-white beard.

Ling Moxiao was very surprised and asked Dong Su in a low voice: "Madam, why do you think they will win?"

Dong Su smiled and said, "I just heard that few people bet on the Agricultural Science Academy, and I was afraid that they would be disappointed if they didn't get any prize in the end, so I placed the bet."

Ling Moxiao immediately laughed and said, "Maybe they have no chance of winning at the beginning, but if my lady bets on them, then they will definitely win!"

Dong Su was shocked: "Your Majesty, please don't interfere with the competition! We have already agreed that sports competitions must be fair and just, and no one can interfere!"

Ling Moxiao said hurriedly: "How could I do such a petty thing! I mean, my lady, if you place a bet, good luck will come to this team."

Dong Su was speechless for a while. Well, even though Japan has been destroyed, he still regards me as a god.

I wish I really had this ability!

Ling Moxiao was betting on the Mo Men team. It was said that they used Mo Men's technology to improve the dragon boat, making it faster.

My grandfather also placed a bet, and very generously bet one thousand taels, on the Henan Chamber of Commerce because one of the team members was from Guangzhou.

Grandpa himself is also one of the presidents of the Henan Chamber of Commerce, mainly responsible for the export of tea, cotton and linen from Yizhou, as well as lotus root powder and duck eggs from Guangzhou.

Grandpa said with a smile that he would not take the money if he won, he would donate it to the Chamber of Commerce and take it back to Gwangju to build roads and bridges. If he lost, he would just treat it as a reward for the children and would not feel bad.

Dong Su glanced at the members of the Henan Central Chamber of Commerce. They were all strong young men over 18 years old. Only his grandfather would call them "kids".

Mr. Shen and Mrs. Jiang both joined in the fun and placed bets. It was truly a national entertainment! Even Mrs. Jiang, who was so stingy, was willing to place bets.

It is said that since the imperial court supported legal gambling activities in such sports events, the number of people donating incense money to temples and Taoist temples has decreased significantly.

Soon the singing and dancing performance was over, the war drums sounded again, the leader of the imperial guards fired red smoke bombs into the sky, the trumpet sounded, and the thirty-two teams and thirty-two dragon boats looked like thirty-two dragons.

Amid the sound of drums and cheers, it was launched across the water like an arrow.

As expected, the Mo Men's dragon boat took the lead and soon left the other teams behind. Ling Moxiao stood up excitedly, as excited as all the spectators.

He was just about to jump up like Dabao. The funny thing was that just when everyone was sure that Momen would win the championship, the dragon boat seemed to suddenly lose weight when turning, and tilted to the left.

Amid the nervous shouts of the people on the shore, just as it was unexpected that he took the lead, the boat capsized again unexpectedly.

Li Nianyu and his fellow disciples from the Mo Sect were not far from the Royal Viewing Platform. Dong Su watched Li Nianyu jump up and down anxiously, and shouted in a loud voice:

"I said we can't reduce the weight of the keel. If we go too fast, it will be unstable when turning!"

His junior fellow student bluntly retorted: "You clearly said that dragon boat racing is all about speed."

Other junior students came to smooth things over: "Well, we should be brave enough to try again. We can revise it again next year."

……

Dong Su, Xiao Man, Sister A Yuan, Sister Damai and the others watched as all the members of the Mo Men team were rescued to the shore without exception. Then they looked at each other and smiled with their hands behind their backs.

Grandpa laughed the loudest, the dark horse limped in the middle of the race, so it’s time for our Henan Chamber of Commerce to win the championship!

Ling Moxiao sat back in his seat silently and said to Dong Su: "My one thousand taels are just a waste."

Dong Su smiled with curved eyebrows, pointing at the cheering people on both sides of the river: "Your Majesty, the sound of the silver falling into the water is really beautiful!"

Ling Moxiao liked to hear this, rubbing his chin and smiling: "Sharing happiness with the people, this is what a prosperous era should be like!"

The outcome of the dragon boat race was once again unexpected, but Ling Moxiao was the only one who was not surprised, because it turned out that the Academy of Agricultural Sciences won the championship.

A group of young and strong men cannot beat the oldest team.

The Henan Central Chamber of Commerce that Grandpa supported won eighth place. Grandpa was very excited and told Dong Su on the spot that he was leaving first to treat the children of the Henan Central Chamber of Commerce to a meal.

We didn’t make it into the top three, but we were in the top ten and showed our faces to the whole city. The people in the city all remembered the Henan Central Chamber of Commerce, and my grandfather was very satisfied.

Shen Linzhong hurriedly told Dongsu not to worry, he would accompany grandpa the whole time.

Ling Moxiao personally presented trophies to the top three teams and invited them to attend the palace banquet tonight. A newspaper also came to interview them, so the situation of the dragon boat race in the capital would naturally be spread across the country.

Dong Su took the two thousand taels of gambling silver sent by the Ministry of Revenue and felt that after this incident, Ling Moxiao was more convinced that she was a man of her word.

She then awarded two thousand taels of silver to the Academy of Agricultural Sciences, asking them to increase the cultivation of high-yield wheat varieties. The wheat varieties of the Academy of Agricultural Sciences had high yields and were not prone to disease, but unfortunately the quantity was too small.

Apart from the people of Youzhou, it is only available to the provincial capitals that suffered from natural disasters in the previous year. Other provincial capitals cannot buy it even if they pay a high price.

Sister Ayuan also received two thousand taels. She simply supported Mo Xiujing. The Academy of Agricultural Sciences was under the jurisdiction of Sinong, which meant it was under the management of Mo Xiujing.

Sister Ayuan sent the money to the orphanage. Other relatives and friends did not win the prize, especially Mrs. Jiang, who looked unhappy the whole time and kept muttering.

The second aunt was afraid that Jiang would embarrass Dong Su in front of the ladies, so she stayed with Jiang during the dinner, fearing that she would complain in front of the other ladies.

The grand and lively occasion of the Dragon Boat Festival made the people of the whole city talk about it for more than half a month. The fragrance of realgar, mugwort and rice dumplings in the city also lasted for half a month.

As newspapers are sent to all parts of the country, the grand event of the Dragon Boat Festival will be discussed nationwide and will be replaced by the Mid-Autumn Festival.

In the second half of May in Youzhou City, people began to discuss the wedding of Marquis Yi'an and Ms. Chen. Since the capital was moved, weddings of nobles were often held.

Especially when the Queen was pregnant with the little prince, all the powerful and aristocratic families seemed to be competing for an auspicious day to marry off their daughters.

During that period, the people of Youzhou City could see the grand ceremony of distributing dowries every day, and would also rush to the gate of the mansion where the wedding was held to grab the lucky money.

But the liveliness and the people's enthusiasm at those weddings were naturally not as great as the wedding in May, not just because of the identities of Marquis Yi'an and Lady Chen.

For some native people of Youzhou, they are still teammates who once worked and fought together.

Which refugee back then had not received a bowl of porridge from Lady Chen? Which refugee had not defended Youzhou City with Lord Shen?

They also repaired river embankments, reclaimed wasteland, built roads, and established naval bases together... They ate from the same pot and slept on a big bunk bed.

Therefore, their status in the hearts of the people is completely different from those of the dignitaries who moved the capital from Chang'an.

After the fifteenth day, many people lined up to give gifts to the Shen residence. Some brought live chickens and sheep, some brought a basket of eggs, a basket of vegetables, and a few live fish.

He covered them all with red cloth, saying that it was a token of his appreciation for the kindness he had received from Lady Official Chen and Lord Shen in the past.

The Shen family came from the villa to the Shen Mansion to prepare for the wedding.

Shen's father and Jiang had no experience in entertaining the rich and powerful, but they were very experienced in entertaining ordinary people, especially when they came to bless their son and brought gifts.

No matter who the visitor is or how big or small the gift is, they will be invited in for tea. The people are very conscious and will not stay for dinner no matter how much they are forced to stay.

At most, I'll eat two pieces of cake. They just come to give me a gift to express their gratitude.

The chambers of commerce, especially maritime merchants, gave expensive gifts as if they were afraid of falling behind others.

At first, Shen Linzhong didn't dare to accept such a valuable gift. What if he accepted it and it was considered corruption? He felt like a bad royal relative in a play.

Although he is the most authentic royal relative, the queen's brother and the prince's uncle.

But Shen Linzhong never thought of using this identity to abuse his power, and he was even afraid that he might not do well enough and bring shame to his sister.

He went to Mo Xiujing to discuss what to do about the issue of accepting gifts.

He couldn't just reject the gifts, that would be against the rules. But the gifts from the merchants were too expensive, so he roughly estimated that the wedding would be held.

The gift he received was worth at least 10 million taels of silver! What kind of astronomical figure is this? It's enough to cover the navy's annual budget. How could he dare to accept it!

Mo Xiujin taught him calmly: "Regarding the matter of accepting gifts, the Queen has already set an example. You just need to follow her example."

"Maritime merchants are rich. You are not only the queen's brother, but also the Marquis of Yi'an who has military merits, and you are also a naval admiral. Just based on this status."

"Any merchant from the Maritime Merchants Guild, or any merchant who wants to join the Maritime Merchants Guild, will give you a valuable gift."

"Why not? If you don't accept it, won't it be a bargain for these sea merchants? Are you just afraid that the officials will report your extravagant wedding and suspect you of taking bribes?"

"After the wedding, you can just donate all the money."

“Both profit and reputation are gained.”

He also carefully advised Shen Linzhong not to donate to the various departments of the court, because otherwise the officials would not thank him and would think he was stupid.

They will only think that you are guilty, so you donated the silver. Anyway, it was all given by the sea merchants, and they will not thank you at all.

You should donate to the institutions under the command of the Queen, and donate in a high-profile manner, such as donating to medical schools or opening clinics in remote provincial capitals.

Donated to Wanshu Pavilion to open a primary school, donated to female officials, and sent supplies to the state capital that was hit by disaster last year.

Donating to welfare institutions can feed more widows and orphans. It can even be donated to veterans' unions to provide some retirement funds for disabled and elderly veterans.

Or you can donate it to Yizhou to build roads for your hometown.

If you donate to the various departments of the imperial court, some officials will be greedy, mock you, and refuse to accept your kindness.

But if you donate to these institutions, the people will only remember your kindness. In the future, if any censor reports that you, Marquis Yian, have accepted bribes, the people will stand up for you.

Shen Linzhong suddenly realized that he believed Chen Luoxue would fully support him in donating money. He was no longer nervous and accepted gifts and entertained guests.

Some imperial censors had been keeping an eye on this grand wedding for a long time. They had already ground the ink and spread out the paper, waiting to submit a report to the emperor, complaining about issues such as Marquis Yi'an's wedding being too extravagant and accepting expensive gifts from merchants.

As a result, the memorial had just been written and had not yet been sent to the emperor's desk, but during the morning court session, Marquis Yi'an himself told the emperor that every gift he received at the wedding would be donated to various organizations.

The emperor laughed happily in the court, and repeatedly praised Marquis Yi'an for his dedication to the country and the people, saying that he was worthy of being the queen's brother. The gifts he received were never kept in the warehouse, but used for the people's livelihood.

Breaking the rules of the Ministry of Rites, Marquis Yi'an was awarded a wedding with ceremonial specifications that only princes enjoy.

The imperial censors could only quietly put the memorials in their sleeves and burn them when they got home.

The nobles who moved from Chang'an were jealous and crazy. The emperor had killed most of his own brothers, but he gave such high honors to his wife's brother.

Of course, they were more mocking Shen Linzhong, saying that he was from a farming family, was petty-minded and timid.

He didn't even dare to accept the gifts at the wedding, but gave them away. It was good for him, because he gained a good reputation by giving gifts, but what about these powerful people?

In the future, when holding a wedding, not only will it cost a huge amount of money, but do we have to follow his example and donate the gifts we receive?

Even though the Shen family has a queen and Marquis Yian, they still don't understand the rules of the powerful and wealthy.

Even though they cursed in private, they still had to pick out expensive gifts to send to the Shen Mansion.

The Chen family members also cursed inwardly, thinking that those properties should have belonged to Chen Luoxue, and any bit that slipped through Chen Luoxue's fingers would be enough for the Chen family to squander.

As a result, Marquis Yi'an donated all of it without even consulting the other party. Isn't this a foolish act?

Unfortunately, no matter how harshly they cursed in private, the Shen brothers and sisters had no intention of learning their rules.

Dong Su even thought of the frustrated faces of the powerful and was reminded of the title of a book in his previous life: 'I like the way you can't stand me but can't get rid of me'.