For a traditional old aristocratic clan like the Xiao family, opening an ancestral hall is not a simple matter.
Such a large family, even if it is just a branch of the Xiao family in Lingnan, it has a history of more than a hundred years. It has spread in Lingnan for more than a hundred years, and there are probably more than a few people with the surname "Xiao" on their foreheads. There are hundreds or thousands of people, and if you add some people who are not named Xiao, but have been integrated into the Xiao family through marriage and other methods for more than a hundred years, it will be even more.
Although with the increasing development of modern society, the influence of this traditional clan style is gradually fading, after all, Lingnan is the south, and the traditions of local clans are still deeply rooted. Within the Xiao family, those who are qualified to enter the genealogy and participate in clan meetings , there are three to five hundred people with names and surnames.
To hold a clan meeting in the ancestral hall, one must first calculate the auspicious days of the zodiac, and then inform the clan members and set a date for the clan meeting. The Xiao family has properties in several cities in Lingnan, so it is naturally impossible for all members to stay in one place and hold a clan meeting. , it would take time just to notify everyone and then free up time for everyone to rush back to the old house and ancestral hall.
And this sect meeting is not only held for one day.
Even though this sect meeting was held temporarily, some processes and steps have been streamlined again and again, but in total, the first few days were to set up the colorful shed, and then the official sect meeting was held. The first day was to open the ancestral hall to worship ancestors, and then there were continuous The lights are kept bright all day and night, and the family's running water mat is laid out. After that comes the clan meeting, plus the clan’s elders’ council. In addition, there are many tedious things. Don't say anything else, just say the same thing, to burn incense, bathe and fast, and invite the learned elders of the clan to come forward and bring incense, ink and brushes that have been enshrined in the ancestral hall. Then during the clan meeting, he will be responsible for taking notes and will The Xiao family made a record of the process, beginning and end of this sect meeting - almost like the emperor's daily life record.
Of course, the learned elders in the clan who were responsible for making the sect's records would also have to pay a fee for polishing the records.
As for the details of handling other tedious things, there are more.
…
The clan has been very busy these days, people are jumping on their backs and their horses are in full swing. But Miss Xiao Queer was full of sorrow.
This girl Xiao Queer is none other than the fat little girl who offended Chen Xiao and was punished by Mr. Xiao to shut up and think about her past mistakes.
Speaking of the name of this girl Xiao Queer, there is an anecdote.
Whenever a traditional family like this has a new member, they always ask their ancestors to give them a name. When a child is born, the parents have no right to name it.
But it was said that eighteen years ago, when this little girl was born from her mother's womb, someone in the family hurriedly ran to tell Mr. Xiao the good news, and at the same time asked Mr. Xiao to decide on a name.
Originally, if it was a boy, then the name must be calculated according to the seniority specified in the family tree. For example, several cousins of Xiao Queer's generation were named Xiao Cangshan, Xiao Cangyu, Xiao Cangluo, etc. It's from the generation with the character "Cang".
But men have this kind of treatment, but giving birth to a girl does not have this kind of treatment. This kind of traditional family naturally has the bad habit of favoring boys over girls. When a girl is born, her name does not matter what generation she is from. After the baby is born, he reports it to the old man at home, and the old man gives it a name, even if it is called Spring Flower, Qiuxiang, etc. No matter how tacky it is, that's all. If it were called something like a golden lock and a silver ring, you would have to hold your nose and recognize it.
As a result, on the day when this girl Xiao Queer was born, the person who announced the good news ran to the back house and happened to catch up with Mr. Xiao and several elders of the Xiao family playing mahjong together.
At that time, the old man was making a pair of uniforms, hanging a single rooster. After the person who announced the good news came in, the old man just happened to touch the cards. As a result, he was in the red village. , did not listen carefully to the words of the person standing at the door announcing the good news, and then said: "Yaoji, Yaoji, this is it!!"
It turned out that the servant who announced the good news was also a brainless 250. Hearing this, he did not dare to ask any more questions. He lost face and hurried back to reply, saying that the old man had decided on the name and that the little girl would be called Yaoji.
As a result, Xiao Queer's parents almost fainted after hearing this!
Xiao Que'er was so angry that her mother had just given birth to a baby. She lay on the bed and cried, wiping away her tears while mourning for her girl. Isn't it? A girl's name is Yaoji. Will she still need to meet people in the future
But when Old Mrs. Xiao is in the Xiao family, he is definitely the Supreme Emperor who speaks the truth! The old man was so majestic that no one even dared to fart when they saw him! Who dares to hum a single word of the name that the old man Jinkou Jingyu decided on
Xiao Que'er's father deserves to be caught up with him. He is also a well-known useless and good-for-nothing guy in the clan. He is also a weak and honest man who is bullied on weekdays. He is not very knowledgeable about affairs. Anyone with a discerning eye can see this. There was a mistake. The old man is also a knowledgeable person, and he would not deliberately name someone like this without any reason to disgust people. But this honest father didn't know how to behave. The midwife didn't even give her a red envelope even though she was busy with her for a long time. She just kept saying thank you verbally, without anything tangible. It's already a little uncomfortable.
The person who recorded the name from the clan's ancestral hall did not receive a dime in writing fees, so he deliberately pretended to be stupid and directly recorded the name "Xiao Yaoji" in the family tree.
Then once the genealogy is delivered to the ancestral hall and three pillars of incense are burned, it is a done deal and the ship is done! It means that this name has been told to the ancestors and cannot be changed easily!
Originally, Xiao Que'er's father was not an important figure in the clan, and the child was a girl, so he was not taken seriously.
When Mr. Xiao knew about this, it was already three days later. As a result, the old man stayed by himself for a while and felt that what he was doing was a bit confusing. A good girl with such a name will be ridiculed for the rest of her life, right
The old man is also a person with a good face, and he is easily embarrassed to admit that he was confused at the time. Fortunately, not long after the incident, a year later, when the ancestral hall was reopened and the sect meeting was held, I found an opportunity to change the little girl's name.
Well, with a chicken, isn't it just a little sparrow
Come on, let's just change our name to Xiaoque'er. This name sounds quite cute and cute.
Just like that, this girl Xiao got a bird name from then on...
Although the couple is still a little reluctant, knowing the genealogy is no longer a trivial matter. Since the old man is willing to change the genealogy, it is already a great rare thing. As for the name... Queer, just Queer, it is better than Yaoji. A hundred times.
Besides, it’s quite scary to think about it afterwards.
Fortunately, the old man touched a piece of Yaoji. If he had touched something like a fortune-making whiteboard or something like that...
Think about it, a young girl who is as beautiful as a flower spends her whole life with a name like "Xiao Facai" or "Xiao Baiban". How terrifying is that? !
Picking a bad name will make people laugh at you forever.
Fortunately it was a blessing in disguise.
When the old man thought about it carefully later, he felt that what he did was a bit unethical. He was careless and almost harmed a little girl for the rest of her life. Later, he looked at this little girl Xiao Queer in a different light.
Xiao Que'er's parents endured this small loss without saying a word, which made the old man feel quite happy. Although they were not direct relatives of the eldest son, they still knew how to take care of the old man's face and were honest people.
From then on, Xiao Queer's family had good luck. First, his father was promoted out of guilt and asked him to do some financial work in the Xiao family's own property. As a result, the financial work was meticulous and cumbersome, but it was just right for this good gentleman with a somewhat cowardly temperament. He doesn't have any anger in his temper, but he is thoughtful, willing to spend some hard work to study, and careful enough, and he has done extremely well in a few years.
Later, he became more and more appreciated by the old man. He was first in charge of the finance of an industry, and then gradually got promoted. As a person who was not a direct descendant of the eldest brother, he actually sat in the position of deputy financial manager of the Xiao family. It's also an odd number.
In the circle of core managers of the Xiao family, he can also be ranked among the top ten people.
As for Miss Xiao Que'er, she lived up to her name. After she grew up, she turned out to be a cute and somewhat naughty little Que'er. The old man was already very guilty of this girl, and later he took more care of Xiao Nizi. As a result, Xiao Nizi became favored by the ancestor of the Xiao family, and even outshone many of his direct descendants. .
On weekdays, even if they occasionally get into some small troubles, if it were other children, they would have to take advantage of the family. But as long as Little Que'er hugs Old Mrs. Xiao's neck, twists her waist and calls "Old Madam, ancestor" a few times, most of the time, You can escape punishment.
For a time, he became the little overlord of the clan.
There is only one bad thing. Her parents are both weak-tempered. It is inevitable that they are not strict enough in educating their children and lose some discipline. Coupled with the old lady's pampering, the little girl becomes a little spoiled as she gets older. It means that although he is not a bad person by nature, he has also caused a lot of troubles in a small way.
However, Xiao Queer's family is a sideline, but they have gained the appreciation of the old man. Xiao's father has even taken the position of the second financial figure in the family, and it is inevitable that many people will hate him. This time, Mrs. Xiao suddenly brought Chen Xiao back, which vaguely affected the distribution of some interests in the family, and issued strict orders not to harass Chen Xiao.
Others didn't dare to move, so under the instigation of some thoughtful people, Xiao Que'er, a girl with no scheming ideas, was encouraged to break into the inner house and provoke Chen Xiao. Anyway, this girl usually occupies so much of the ancestor's favor, so many people would like to see her suffer a little.
Xiao Queer was punished to shut up and think about his mistakes. After copying the family rules dozens of times, he refused to write them down again.
She was locked up in her own house for a few days, and her meals were specially brought in every day. She just heard that there was a sect meeting outside, which was very lively. There were lion dances, embroidery balls, etc., there were also flower drum troupes, and there were The troupe invited by the stage is singing opera... I heard that the colorful buildings are as bright as the others, the corners of the stage are as charming as the others, and the good guys in the lion dance are as strong as the others.
More and more of this news reached Xiao Que'er's ears as the person who delivered meals every day. How could she, a young girl, be able to sit in the house
My heart would have flown to the lively places in the town outside.
After ten days of sitting behind closed doors and thinking about my mistakes, I couldn't stand it any longer on the seventh day.
The little girl herself had a feeling that she had been spoiled by the old man in recent years, and she didn't know what the world was like. She even secretly disobeyed the old man's order and secretly called Xiao Qing to inform Chen Xiao of what happened to the wild boy at home.
What she had in mind was: Sister Xiao Qing had firmly resisted this marriage. In the Xiao family, everyone knows that the most favored by the ancestors is Sister Xiao Qing. She has been beautiful since childhood, is extremely smart, and has the best talent in martial arts. The old man simply regarded her as a pearl in his palm.
As long as it's something Xiao Qing asks for, the old man has been right about everything over the years.
Moreover, even if it was about marriage and Sister Xiao Qing ran away from home in a rage, the old man did not send anyone to catch her back, but just let it go.
Now secretly tell Sister Xiao Qing the news, and Sister Xiao Qing will definitely come back. With Sister Xiao Qing's aloof temper and her determination to refuse to obey, I'm afraid she will break that hateful boy's legs as soon as they meet! It can be regarded as revenge for this girl!
Poor Xiao Que'er didn't know that Xiao Qing really refused to get married until she died.
But now... I'm afraid, if Chen Xiao really nods and agrees to marry her, it might be too late for Miss Xiao Qing to nod! Let alone breaking Chen Xiao's legs, Xiao Qing would want to break the legs of anyone who dared to harm Chen Xiao!
How could Xiao Que'er know about these things
She sat on the seventh day and couldn't bear it anymore. After seeking death for a long time, she finally emboldened herself: She had gotten into trouble in the past, and when the old man wanted to hit the board, he would hold it high and gently. If you fall behind, you are never willing to really punish yourself. What's more, this time it was just a few words with that boy. He didn't even get a scratch on his oily skin, but two leopards died on his own. After all, this girl suffered a big loss.
Even if he's been locked up for seven days, that's about it... If he sneaks out to have some fun, even if the old man finds out, he'll probably laugh it off as usual.
After gathering up her courage, Miss Xiao Queer decided to quit.
This was not the first time she had enjoyed the punishment of shutting up and thinking about her past. She was quite good at escaping. After the person who delivered lunch left, she calculated the time until the person who delivered dinner arrived in the evening. After a few hours, I secretly opened the window, climbed over the wall, and ran out. I was very familiar with the roads.
But she didn't know that all her actions were seen by those who were interested. As soon as she left the house, someone reported to the old man on the back. The position of Xiao Que'er's father is really enviable. If Xiao Que'er can be quietly ruined this time, so that she will not be so favored in front of the old man in the future, it will be considered as satisfying the wishes of many people.
Therefore, when Xiao Queer has been behind closed doors for these days, someone has been secretly watching her. Everyone knows her temperament and knows that with Xiao Que'er's style, she will never be imprisoned for ten days honestly. As expected, it is rare to be able to endure it until the seventh day this time.
Not to mention that there was someone behind the scenes who went to report the situation immediately, but that Miss Xiao Queer escaped. She originally wanted to bring bad luck to Chen Xiao again, but after thinking about it, she finally didn't dare.
Sister Xiao Qing is coming back anyway. When Sister Xiao Qing comes back, kick that bastard to death! Hum!
Xiao Que'er sneaked out of the Xiao family's house and quickly ran to the town.
This town is also called "Xiao Family Town", and almost one-third of the people in the town have the surname Xiao.
Xiao Que'er ran to the town and immediately felt the excitement that was different from usual.
Rows of colorful platforms and pavilions have been set up in the square of the town, and under the tents tied with red ribbons and colorful hydrangeas, the young lion dancers are rehearsing, with the gongs and drums clanging, and the lions jumping up and down. It attracted many half-sized children to watch and laugh.
On several color platforms, some young men who practiced martial arts from the Xiao family became childlike and played some martial arts competitions there. Three or five of them used the color platform as a martial arts arena, and put pairs of children on it to practice. Play ping-pong-pong, and imagine yourself to be a great hero. There are several generations more vendors walking along the streets than usual, and there are street-facing shops on both sides of the street, with all kinds of delicious snacks on display. There are flavors from all over the world.
Xiao Que'er has been greedy since she was a child, otherwise she wouldn't have gained weight. As soon as I saw the delicious food, I couldn't walk. I took out the small purse I carried with me and took out a few bills. I quickly made several colorful small paper bags and filled them with various snacks. There were some vegetable meatballs with oily residue, Mahua powder, and candied sugar balls. I hugged a lot of them and walked slowly down the street, my eyes constantly looking back and forth.
Finally, I jumped to the end of the street and couldn't help but spend money to buy a big fried golden chicken drumstick - it is said to taste better than any KFC in the city. After taking a few bites, I walked back satisfied. Returning to the square, I stopped for a while to watch the competition between the "heroes" on the "ring".
Most of the people playing here are children from outside the Xiao family, and Xiao Queer is an authentic member of the Xiao family. He practices authentic Xiao family Kung Fu. After watching it for a while, he looks down on these grassroots practitioners. "Copycat version" Xiaojiaquan, I was eager to try it, I wanted to go up and show off my skills, but I couldn't bear to eat a third of the chicken leg in my hand. My eyes were wandering around, looking around to see if I met anything familiar. The playmate of the Xiao family just happened to be able to call over and act as a follower for him first, helping him hold things, so that he could have his hands free to go up and have a good time.
Looking at it like this, Xiao Que'er was suddenly stunned. He forgot to bite the chicken drumstick next to his mouth, and stared at a figure flashing from the alley in the corner of the square with his eyes wide.
"Sister Xiao Qing?!"
When Xiao Que'er saw it, he was so surprised that he didn't even want the chicken legs. He threw them away and quickly chased after him.
At the entrance of the alley, a figure was walking in with brisk steps. Who could it be if it wasn't Xiao Qing? !
It's just that Xiao Qing at this moment makes Xiao Que'er look a little surprised!
In the past, when she was at home, Sister Xiao Qing always wore her training clothes all year round.
What now? In front of her was Xiao Qing, with her straight long hair flowing like a waterfall, and her facial features were still as delicate and charming, but her feet were no longer the cloth shoes used for practicing martial arts, but the shoes that seemed to be worn by those city people on TV. Very high little leather boots, wrapped around the slender calves, extremely sexy (of course, Xiao Que'er doesn't know the word sexy, she just instinctively thinks it looks good.), a pleated skirt, and a matching upper body A very cute and bright lavender short-sleeved coat, lined with a light yellow sexy camisole, and a layer of crystal-like color on her lips.
The Xiao Qing in front of her now is ten times more beautiful than those beautiful female stars in the movie!
What made Xiao Que'er stare the most were the sparkling crystal pendants around Xiao Qing's neck and wrist, as well as the large sailboat-shaped leather bag slung on her left arm. Naturally, Xiao Queer didn't recognize the "LV" trademark. —If I were here instead of champagne, I'm afraid that a pair of eyes would have turned into heart shapes and rushed towards me, while shouting "LV!! It's still a limited edition~!!"
Xiao Que'er chased her for a few steps and ran into the alley. Xiao Qing in front stopped and stood there, looking at her with a half-smile expression on her face.
Xiao Que'er didn't think much, and walked over quickly, with a face full of joy. After a few steps, she almost fell into the other person's arms, and shouted in surprise: "Sister Xiao Qing, you are back!!"
As soon as the other party heard Xiao Que'er's words, a strange color flashed in his eyes that were more fascinating than Qiushui, and then a smile appeared on his face, and his tone was very calm: "What did you call me?"
"Ah!" Xiao Queer immediately covered her mouth, then stuck out her tongue and said with a smile: "Ah, I almost forgot, I can't call you Sister Xiao Qing at home, I have to call you Aunt Xiao Jiu."
In fact, although Xiao Que'er and Xiao Qing are not much different in age, they are one generation apart. According to the genealogy, Xiao Qing's seniority should be the same generation as Xiao Que'er's parents. It's just that she calls her "aunt" in public, but in private everyone calls her sister or sister.
After hearing this, the other party just nodded casually, his eyes showing a hint of smile.
Xiao Que'er, this stupid girl, was still ignorant. She just held "Xiao Qing's" hand and shook it affectionately: "You are back! I was so angry with that boy... Ah, Sister Xiao Qing, You have become so beautiful now! The clothes you are wearing are more beautiful than the people in the movie! Yi? Will my feet hurt when I walk on these shoes with such high heels? Ah, and you smell so good. Yo! Is it like my fourth uncle’s wife in the city who wears perfume? It seems to be called some kind of fragrance or something?"
"Xiao Qing" smiled lightly and nodded: "Yes, it's Chanel."
There was a hint of kindness in her eyes, and she reached out to touch the head of this round-faced little girl with a cute smile.
Xiao Queer sighed: "Why don't you go home even though you're back?"
Before the other party could speak, Xiao Queer had already figured out the answer cleverly! She patted her thigh: "Ah! That's right! Are you afraid that if you go back, the old man will force you to marry that hateful boy? Humph! I don't know where the old man picked up that boy named Chen! Just because of him , the toad also wants to eat swan meat! This time you are back, we will find an opportunity to punish him severely! Let him be proud again! Hum!"
Xiao Queer finished talking, but found that Xiao Qing had no words. She raised her head and saw a pensive expression on "Xiao Qing's" face, as if she was thinking about something.
Xiao Que'er was suddenly startled and worried for no reason: "Yi? What's wrong with you, Sister Xiao Qing? You... you didn't give in, did you? Ah! God! You didn't really give in to the old man and planned to kill him Are you marrying that wild boy named Chen Xiao?!"
When Xiao Queer said the words "that wild boy named Chen Xiao", the "Xiao Qing" in front of him suddenly shook his hand, as if he had been burned by something, and his face suddenly changed, and he was surprised. Staring at Xiao Queer: "You, what did you say!! Chen, Chen Xiao?!"
Seeing the other party's reaction, Xiao Que'er was relieved: "Yeah! Ah, I'm too worried. Judging from your appearance, you must be unwilling. Haha~! Let's go back together and make fun of that hateful person. Guy, okay?!"
"Xiao Qing"'s fingers were trembling: "You, you said, Chen Xiao is here now, right now..."
"It's in the inner house." Xiao Queer sighed: "The old lady gave an order not to allow anyone to disturb him. I really don't know why this guy tricked the old lady into doting on him so much!"
"Xiao Qing" took a deep breath, as if trying to calm herself down. When she looked at Xiao Que'er again, a hint of cunning flashed across her face, and with a gorgeous smile, she gently pulled Xiao Que'er. Que'er's hand: "Well, let's go take a sneak peek at that kid, okay?"
"Okay! Let's go together!" Xiao Que'er clapped her hands and laughed: "That boy is not a good guy! He came here to marry you, but he brought a girl with him! Huh! The two of them were hooking up when they came. They're holding hands! It makes people angry when they see it! Huh, even if you don't marry him, a guy like him would have the opportunity to marry someone like his sister, how dare he have other thoughts! Let's kick him out together !!”
"What?!"
"Xiao Qing" was holding Xiao Que'er's hand and was about to leave. Suddenly, when she heard this, her expression changed: "You said... Chen Xiao brought another girl with him?"
After all, Xiao Que'er was a young girl with no experience between men and women. She didn't hear the sourness at all, and she didn't realize that a jealous boss had been upset in front of him. He said nonchalantly: "Yes! Bring it! He married a girl and lives in the same yard with him! It’s so annoying! Let’s go kick him hard together!”
"...Okay!" "Xiao Qing's" face suddenly became full of annoyance, her teeth were itching with anger, and she gritted her teeth: "Let's kick him together! Kick this kid to death!!"