Chapter 602: Nanlin Goes North and the Golden Hairpin Gathers (Part 2)
A ray of setting sun spreads across the water, half of the river is rustling and half of the river is red.
The Sanchahe Wharf in Jinling overlooks the beautiful Qinhuai River in the south and the majestic Yangtze River in the north. It is not only a prosperous commercial area, but also a scenic spot in the city of Jinling.
However, no matter how beautiful the scenery is, after looking at it for two hours in a row, you will inevitably get a little bored.
Especially a local like Xue Ke.
He changed his sitting position, stuck his head out of the car, squinted at the riverside, and saw that Wang's servants were still waiting at the dock, and he couldn't help feeling a little jealous.
He waited in the carriage for two hours, while Wang Ren wasted the entire afternoon upstairs!
Thinking back to the morning when he had visited Wang Ren with generous gifts, but was only greeted with a few perfunctory words by Wang Ren before being turned away, how could Xue Ke not feel sad?
Back then, who didn't know that the four families of Jia, Shi, Wang and Xue were integrated into one, forming the white jade pillars that support the sky and the purple gold beams that support the sea of Jinling City?
How many people knew about the Jinling Sun family at that time?
Who would have thought that in just a dozen or twenty years, things would change and people would be no longer the same...
"Brother, when will General Sun arrive?"
As he was sighing, he suddenly heard a tender voice with a hint of hope and laziness coming from behind him. Xue Ke couldn't help but turn around and rolled his eyes, scolding unhappily: "I told you not to come a long time ago, but now you're impatient again?"
Inside the double-wheeled carriage, a pretty girl with sleepy eyes was stretching her slender figure. Who else could it be but Xue Baoqin?
Because she had been hearing the name Sun Shaozong all the time in her ears recently and she couldn't keep herself quiet, she begged her brother to come to the pier to see what was going on.
But after waiting for a long time and still not seeing anyone, she couldn't help but take a short nap in the car. It was not until she heard Xue Ke sighing that she woke up from her dream.
Being scolded by her brother, she giggled, rubbed her eyes and said in a tender voice: "I'm just curious, I heard that General Sun is ten feet tall, his mouth is as big as a bamboo hat, and he has a blood-red eye on his forehead. He will kill people as soon as he opens his eyes..."
"Pah, pah, pah!"
As she continued to talk, Xue Ke spat several times, not knowing whether to laugh or cry: "You remember the words of those fools so clearly, how could you forget that I met Lord Sun before? Although he is strong, he is not even ten feet tall? What about the bloodshot eyes? It's even more..."
"uncle!"
As he was talking, he suddenly heard the driver in front of him say anxiously, "General Sun must have arrived!"
Xue Ke didn't bother to argue with the girl anymore. He quickly lifted the curtain and jumped off the carriage.
Looking up, I saw an official ship slowly approaching the shore, with two apricot-yellow flags fluttering in the wind, with the words "imperial order - Huguang Recruiting Envoy" written on them in large letters.
There’s no way you can go wrong with that!
Xue Ke hurriedly ordered his attendants to hold the gifts, and strictly ordered Baoqin to stay in the carriage and not move. Only then did he pull himself together and head towards the bow of the ship.
Who would have thought that before he got close, so many officials and gentry came out from all directions, some holding gifts and some holding letters of introduction, and the dock was filled with people.
"I am Hu Liuyi, the garrison commander of Jinling. My brother is the same age as General Sun!"
"My father once followed the old man to conquer Mobei!"
"I am Ai Shiyu, the Jinling magistrate, and I am here on behalf of Lord Jia, the prefect of Shuntian Prefecture..."
"I am Gao Guangxiui of Jinling, and I have a valuable gift for you!"
"My daughter is only 28 years old and has a beautiful appearance. She has always admired the general's power and is willing to be his concubine..."
There were all kinds of appearances, which made Xue Ke dumbfounded.
Although he knew that Sun Shaozong would be highly valued when he returned to Beijing this time, he never expected that Sun Shaozong would become so popular even when he was still halfway through his journey.
There must be a reason for this!
Could it be that I have been busy with household chores and inadvertently closed my eyes and ears and missed some important news?
It was difficult to squeeze to the front, and Xue Ke was considering finding someone he knew to ask why Sun Shaozong was so popular.
Suddenly someone shouted loudly behind me:
"The son of Lord Wang, the inspector of nine provinces, is here!"
"Get out of the way! Don't block my son and General Sun from reminiscing about the past!"
Nowadays, in Jiangnan, even if the stories of "Jia Bu Jia, Afang Shi, and Fengnian Xue" were piled up and measured, they would not be as effective as the title of "King of Jiangnan"!
Therefore, after just these two sentences, a path was immediately made clear in front of them like the tide receding. Some of those who were weak-backed and thick-skinned did not forget to lean their shoulders and put on a fawning look, hoping to leave some impression on Wang Yanei.
Only Xue Ke did not advance but retreated, smiling and stepped forward to greet him, bowing and saying, "I didn't expect that Brother Wang would also come to greet Brother Sun."
Wang Ren came down from a restaurant not far away, riding a tall horse, and was heading towards the dock without looking around. Suddenly, he heard the two calls of "brother", and felt somewhat displeased.
But the two families are indeed related, so it can't be said that they are marrying above their station.
So he immediately raised his chin arrogantly and replied calmly: "It turns out to be the second son of the Xue family."
This discussion started with Xue Pan.
After saying that, he was too lazy to pay attention to Xue Ke anymore. He tapped the horse's belly lightly, and the majestic horse, which was completely black except for its four snow-white hooves, started to trot towards the official ship.
Although he hit a snag, Xue Ke had already expected this, so he just followed the horse with a smile and walked through the crowd together.
By this time, the official ship had also received the news.
Then a tall and strong man walked out of the cabin door, bowed his hands and made a roundabout salute at the bow, and said respectfully: "This is the first time in my life that I have returned to my hometown in Nanjing. I didn't expect to disturb so many relatives and friends. I am really very nervous. If there is any impoliteness, please forgive me."
Although everyone present basically believed that he was willing to show up because Wang Ren was there - but he gave enough face to everyone by saying these few polite words without distinguishing between high and low status.
As a result, voices of "I don't deserve it" and "your words are too harsh" were heard all around.
At this moment, the boatman had already set up the gangplank. Sun Shaozong walked to the dock in a few steps, and Wang Ren also hurriedly dismounted to greet him.
"Yanei."
"Jiro."
When the two of them were face to face, Wang Ren immediately asked, "What? I haven't seen you for a few years, so I can't call you my brother?!"
Although he was nitpicking, his words were clearly filled with eagerness.
Sun Shaozong couldn't help but feel sad in his heart. It was true that they hadn't seen each other for several years, but at that time, the Sun family had not yet recovered, so when had Wang Ren ever looked him in the eye ?
If he dared to call him "brother" at that time, he would probably be spit on by the servants of the Wang family!
However, times have changed, and pursuing these trivial matters now will only cause trouble.
So he smiled and said respectfully, "Isn't it because I see my brother is full of nobility that I can't open my mouth for a while?"
"Haha... no matter how noble you are, I'm afraid it can't stop your evil spirit!"
Wang Ren laughed loudly and put his hands behind his back: "Let's go, I have prepared a banquet at home, just waiting for Erlang and I to get drunk!"
Seeing Wang Yanei's courtesy, everyone around was extremely envious and wished they could take his place.
Unexpectedly, Sun Shaozong did not obey the order happily. Instead, he shook his head and said, "Please wait for a moment, brother."
As he spoke, he bowed again and asked in a clear voice, "I wonder if Taoyuan Town has sent anyone?"
This Taoyuan Town is where the Southern Branch of the Sun Family is located.
But someone in the crowd immediately responded: "Sun Shaoxu from Taoyuan Town is here!"
Sun Shaozong looked in the direction of the voice and saw a path opened up in the crowd, allowing a thin middle-aged man to pass through.
The middle-aged man was about to step forward to greet Sun Shaozong, but Sun Shaozong had already strode forward, bent one leg and pressed his brocade robe to the ground, and said excitedly: "I didn't expect that it was Third Brother who came in person. I was a little negligent just now, please forgive me!"
The middle-aged man obviously had not expected that he would greet him so solemnly, and was so flustered that he kept saying "this is unacceptable", but forgot to step forward to support him.
"How can I not be one?"
But Sun Shaozong bowed his head and said respectfully: "My brother and I were down and out in Beijing. If it weren't for you brothers who often sent people north to help us, how could we be here today?"
In fact, as a time traveler, he only absorbed bits and pieces of the original owner's memories, so it was difficult for him to appreciate much of the help given to the Southern Sect back then.
But this did not prevent him from expressing this touching feeling.
This hard work really produced immediate results. Sun Shaoxu's eyes turned red with emotion and people around him were filled with admiration.
" Thirteenth brother, get up quickly, get up quickly!"
Sun Shaoxu was so moved that he finally remembered to help Sun Shaozong up. He stepped forward, grabbed his steel and iron arms, and pulled him up with all his strength.
However, when Sun Shaozong rose up, Sun Shaoxu suddenly changed color, stepped back a few steps, and cried out in surprise: "Thirteenth brother, you... your eyes?!"
At the same time, there was an uproar all around.
It turned out that Sun Shaozong had a blood-red eye in the middle of his forehead without him noticing!
