On the wedding day, I was broken off, so I remarried his uncle

The imperial court's reply was delivered to Prefect Li not long after.

After receiving the letter of approval from the court, Magistrate Li turned around twice in joy.

After his excited heart has cooled down, he will call his confidant.

Li Zhifu handed the memorial he had just received to the other party, "The memorial I submitted a few days ago has been approved by His Majesty. I think this matter cannot be delayed. We don't have much time to prepare. I will send someone to post a notice at the city gate!"

After reading the memorial, Lin Chengen was also very happy. With the emperor's approval, they would not have to be so timid in their actions.

He put away the letter and said with a smile, "Your Excellency, there is no rush to post the notice. The most urgent task is to get all the wealthy people in the city to participate, and the more people participate, the better."

Li Zhifu nodded in agreement: "Sir, you are right. If this dragon boat race can get the full support of the gentry in the city, it will be twice as effective with half the effort."

He hesitated for a moment and said, "I will ask Changqing to send invitations to the wealthy families in the city. Sir, come with me to the Food House tonight to persuade them to participate in this matter."

Lin Chengen looked solemn and said in a deep voice: "My Lord, please don't do this. I think this is not the right time to invite everyone. My Lord, you can select those new dignitaries in the city whose families want to make further progress in the city. Then they will be obedient!"

"Your Excellency only needs to take advantage of the fact that these families want to become famous in the city, and then agree to let them hang flags on their dragon boats. In this way, after this competition, not only the people in the city, but also those who come from other places to join in the fun will know that there is such a family in the city. Your Excellency, why should you worry that they will not be tempted?"

"As long as someone is willing to go first, those families who are still waiting will join in without any need for adults to persuade them!"

"My Lord, just let them fight each other then!"

Li Zhifu was delighted by his trusted staff's words. He stroked his beard happily, patted the other party on the shoulder, and said with a smile: "Sir, you are very talented, this is a good idea!"

In this way, in handling this matter, he did not need to pay any price or make any promises, and he could take the initiative and lead these gentry to fight each other.

And he just needs to sit back and reap the benefits!

Lin Chengen said modestly: "I was also inspired by the paper manuscript you gave me. Your Excellency, this boy is of great use!"

Li Zhifu nodded in agreement, "The child is still young and has to prepare for the college entrance examination. Try not to involve him in this matter!"

Lin Chengen felt a little regretful. He had originally wanted to win this person over. With such a talent around, his plan would surely be more successful.

But since the adults said so, he had no choice but to agree and put such thoughts aside for the time being.

The master and servant discussed it and selected a list of guests to be invited to the banquet in the evening.

After finalizing the list of guests to be invited to the banquet, Magistrate Li immediately asked Chang Qing to take his invitation to invite them.

After Chang Qing took the order and left, Li Zhifu took out several manuscripts that Chen Yunyou had given him, pointed to one of the suggestions and said, "Sir, do you think this method is feasible?"

Lin Cheng'en looked in the direction of Li Zhifu's finger and was startled to see the words "sponsorship fee" clearly listed above, with an explanation of it listed below.

"This word is new, but how should I put it? It's very appropriate!" He couldn't help but shake his head and laugh, "I don't know what's going on in this gentleman's mind. He actually uses some strange words!"

But it is surprisingly straightforward and easy to understand.

The corners of Li Zhifu's lips could not help but curl up, "Sir, do you think this method is feasible?"

Lin Chengen nodded affirmatively, "Use sponsorship to attract more merchants in the city to participate in the event."

"They may not have enough financial resources to compete with those powerful families, but if they can put their own efforts into such events, they will definitely attract more funds. In this way, it will also benefit adults."

"Even for these small merchants in the city, this is also an opportunity to promote their products!"

"You can select some distinctive shops as sponsors, and then you can reward the top winners in the dragon boat race with these products."

The more he spoke, the more excited Lin Chengen became. "My Lord, this is a win-win situation for both of us. I am willing to go to various shops in the city to discuss cooperation!"

Li Zhifu became more and more energetic as he listened. He laughed heartily and said, "Okay, this way, we can mobilize all the people in the city who can be mobilized. This matter will be handed over to you, sir."

Lin Chengen bowed respectfully and said, "I will definitely fulfill your mission!"

That night, Magistrate Li invited most of the wealthy families in the city to the Shiwei Building.

After three rounds of wine and five dishes, Li Zhifu said to everyone: "The drought is severe now, and we should not indulge the people in entertainment. However, the consumption sentiment of the people in the city is low, and it will be detrimental to the development of the city in the long run."

"In order to change the decadent atmosphere in the city, I have decided to hold the dragon boat race as in the past, and at the same time allow each family to form a team with their own funds."

The heads of the families were shocked when they heard this. If they formed a team under the name of their family, wouldn't they become famous invisibly?

A middle-aged family head who was a little younger asked with bright eyes: "I dare to ask you, sir, if we form a team under our own name to compete, can we carve our own logo on the dragon boat?"

Li Zhifu nodded with a smile, "This dragon boat is built entirely by you. You can carve your own mark on the dragon boat or hang your own flag. Not only that, the winning team will also receive generous rewards."

After hearing this, everyone was deeply excited.

These people have money, but their fame is far less than that of others in the city. If they want to make further progress in the capital, now is the perfect opportunity!

All the family heads expressed their intention that their families would definitely participate.

Some of the more thoughtful ones have already started thinking about where to go to catch the dragon boat first.

Li Zhifu was quite satisfied with the reactions of the crowd. He continued, "I am very pleased that you are willing to contribute to the restoration of the city."

"Don't worry, I have not only invited you to this event, I have also invited the respected Buddhist temples to participate. When the time comes, I will ask them to set up a prayer area by the Yun Lake to facilitate the people to pray for rain and blessings."

After hearing this, all the family heads were delighted.

Most of the people in the city believe in Buddhism. Considering the severe drought now, people have to tighten their belts, but they still want to go to the temple to worship. This shows their admiration for Buddhism.

Your Excellency's move will surely attract more ordinary people. In this way, they only need to build a strong team to become famous in the hearts of the people without any effort.

When the heads of each family thought that their own flag would be far ahead of all the families, they felt their hearts burning with excitement.

After the meal, the heads of the families sent Magistrate Li away without any time to exchange pleasantries. They just nodded to each other and hurried home.

After returning home, they summoned the household manager overnight to inquire about the situation of the dragon boat at home.

Find out what is usable quickly and find a craftsman to re-carve it tomorrow.

If the materials were unusable or not available at home, he would order the steward to find craftsmen and purchase wood overnight, and the action must be quick!