Chapter 52 Changes
Although many people came, not everyone could watch the ceremony. Most of them feasted in the front hall, and only the closest relatives or in-laws could go to the back hall to attend the coming-of-age ceremony.

Li Jiancheng stood at the farthest point, watching Xiao Chanyan picking up her clothes and shoes. These were clothes that girls wore when they were little, and they were specially made in large sizes. Now they looked particularly delicate and cute. She smiled and bowed to the guests, then knelt down and waited.

Duke Xiao Cong of Ju stood up to start the ceremony and solemnly thanked the guests who came to attend.

Crown Princess Xiao washed her hands, walked up to Xiao Chanyan, knelt down, put on her hairpin, and chanted aloud: "On this auspicious day of the month, I will wear your first clothes. I will abandon your childish ambitions and cultivate your virtues. I wish you a long and healthy life and great happiness."

Her sisters from the same clan came forward and symbolically consecrated her.

Xiao Chanyan got up and went back to the east room to change into a light-colored and simple skirt, symbolizing that she had grown from a girl to a young girl. She came out and showed it to the guests, friends and relatives, and then kowtowed to her parents.

Sitting facing east again, the Crown Princess washed her hands and put them back in place, removing the hairpin and hairpin: "It is an auspicious month and a good day, so I will dress you properly, respect your dignity, be virtuous and prudent, may you live a long life, and receive blessings forever."

He changed his clothes three times, and finally wore a formal dress with wide sleeves and a crown on his head. The Crown Princess brought him a libation: "The sweet wine is rich, and I commend you with praise. I bow and accept the libation, and it will bring you good luck, and I hope you will live a long and healthy life."

Xiao Chanyan bowed, took the sweet wine, knelt on the ground and sprinkled the wine on the ground, performing the full ritual of offering wine. Then she lightly touched her lips to indicate that she had finished drinking. The official offered her rice, and she ate a little symbolically after taking it.

……

When a girl is betrothed, she is given a hairpin ceremony.

The Li family's gifts filled ten carts, many of which were heirlooms. As the saying goes, if a family has a daughter, hundreds of families will want her, let alone the prince's wife's family. This was to inform other noble families that the noble daughter of the Xiao family was already taken and they should not covet her.

The Xiao family accepted these calmly, which proved that this matter was true. In the future, these things would be used as dowry, and together with the dowry prepared by Xiao, they would be returned to the Li family and become the private property of the clan wife.

Li Jiancheng was also in the Chanding Temple and donated a large sum of money to light lamps and offer sacrifices to Buddha in the name of Miss Xiao, which became a good story in the capital.

He was not as devout as Yang Jian. The abbots of Chanding Temple were indeed eminent monks, but he did not believe in blessings in the afterlife. He mainly relied on them to influence too many people, from the emperor to the peddlers. Without this kind of support, his efforts would be ineffective.

There is no difference between feasting everywhere and offering alms to monks and Taoists, both are for the purpose of gaining help in what you do.

At the end of the second year of Renshou, the emperor's illness recurred. He promoted Liu Shu to be the Minister of Personnel. Yang Su was forced to go home to recuperate, while the deposed crown prince and the deposed King of Shu frequently submitted petitions, requesting to be allowed to guard the queen's tomb.

This made the emperor quite pleased, and he finally rewarded his two sons with some dignity, giving each of them twenty palace maids. The deposed crown prince was okay, as he at least still had concubines. But for the deposed King of Shu, it was like a blessing after a long drought, as he only had two fierce-looking maids by his side.

The King of Han also often presented auspicious treasures to the emperor, and the emperor often praised him for his filial piety, but he turned a blind eye to the prince's filial piety.

However, Yang Guang's position was also consolidated through the two victories. He did not anxiously seek solutions as before, but infiltrated the court officials step by step.

The emperor was old and addicted to wine, sex and pleasure, and his control over the court was not as strong as in previous years. Even local officials could see this.

.........

In front of Canxia Tower, Shen Guang led a man and said, "Brother Zhang, don't worry. My husband is sincere. Hearing that you have returned from the Western Regions, he has booked a banquet in advance and is waiting to welcome you back." The man smiled bitterly and said, "Brother Shen, I am just a horse breeder. How can I be worthy of this? Forget it. You can just offer the two precious horses for me."

"That won't do. I have admired Brother Zhang for a long time. How can I not meet him?" Li Jiancheng came out and said with a smile, "Brother, if you want to serve the court, whether you want to work in the imperial horse department or in Hualiu Pasture, I can help you, as long as you are willing to come and sit with me today."

"I am a lowly person. How can I deserve to be treated like this by you, my lord?"

"Brother, you have real talent and knowledge, and your horse-hunting skills are unrivaled in the world. I am willing to come to see you, so how can I not treat you with great hospitality?"

Zhang Wansui was so excited that he didn't know what to say. He could only bow his hands and shed tears.

This man was originally a horse thief in Mobei, but he did not plunder gold and silver nor rob civilians. He would do whatever it took to get a good horse. Later, he was driven to the Western Regions by other horse bandits, but he could not change his obsession with horses.

With such dedication, he has acquired a lot of skills. As long as it is a horse, he can tell the quality of it and how to tame it to fully stimulate its potential with just one glance.

Because of this ability, he was hailed as the Horse Emperor in the Western Regions of Mobei. From then on, he was called Zhang Wansui and became famous in the Western Regions.

But he felt uncomfortable in a foreign land, so he decided to return to the Sui Dynasty. He wanted to enter the officialdom with his own ability, settle down and build a career to bring honor to his family. Unfortunately, he left, and the dignitaries only wanted to keep him to raise horses for their own families.

With his ability, he would not be short of money from horse appraisal and sales, so naturally he was unwilling to do that. As for himself, he could only be a clerk since he had no family background. Even if he made achievements in horse breeding, he would be a high-ranking official. It would be difficult for him to even become a ninth-rank official if he worked so hard.

Just at this time, he heard people talking about the deeds of Mr. Li from the Duke of Tang's Mansion, so he thought of giving it a try. He got to know Shen Guang through a good horse, but he didn't expect to be treated so grandly.

Li Jiancheng took Zhang Wansui's hand and went upstairs. After introducing him to everyone, he placed him in the seat of the guest of honor. This was a courtesy he had never received before, after all, he came from such a background.

Young nobles were often arrogant and looked down on Zhang Wansui, but fortunately, Zhang Wansui had real talent and knowledge, and faced tough questions and difficult problems with an attitude that made them feel that he had some ability, no wonder he was treated with courtesy by Jiancheng.

They were also accustomed to Li Jiancheng's willingness to help and promote capable people, even those of humble origins, and he introduced many people to serve in the Eastern Palace. Many people speculated that this was done on the orders of the crown prince.

No matter what Li Jiancheng did, he could never forget his uncle. Among the people he made friends with, he would give money, fine clothes, good food and drink to the lower-ranking ones, and would lead the middle-ranking and higher-ranking ones to serve in the Eastern Palace. Of course, the prerequisite was that he would keep them if possible, but if not, he would also try to establish a good relationship with them.

It was still quite taboo to make friends with all kinds of people, and it was absolutely impossible not to involve Yang Guang. Now it is so good, I can make a name for myself while making good friends, and no one in the court dares to say anything.

Yang Guang did not take it seriously at first, but since he was a talented person, of course there was a time for him to shine. Li Jiancheng solved many difficult problems for Yang Guang, so Yang Guang was delighted and rewarded Li Jiancheng with more than a dozen wine shops, including this Canxia Tower.

Li Jiancheng didn't know when the property of Prince Guangping Yang Xiong was transferred to Yang Guang, but it did not stop him from accepting it with pleasure, as it was what he deserved.

…………

(End of this chapter)