On the wedding day, my wife was abnormal

On the right side of the carriage, a young knight in a long orange-yellow brocade dress as bright as the autumn sun was riding a snow-white, hairless, and extremely majestic Western Region BMW, parallel to the carriage.

She is tall and has a slender waist, but she exudes an amazing sense of strength. Her long black hair is combed into round and full buns on both sides of her head, like ingots, and fixed with exquisite small hairpins made of red gold and inlaid with pigeon blood rubies. A few playful strands of hair hang down in front of her smooth forehead, adding a bit of agility.

She has a pretty face, picturesque features, and especially a pair of almond-shaped eyes, which are clear and bright, and look radiant like a mountain spring. She has the brightness and vitality unique to a girl, but also a hint of long-honed heroic spirit.

It was Lin Zhen’s personal female bodyguard - Cheng Xuan!

She controlled the reins with one hand and casually placed the other hand on the hilt of the exquisitely gilded dagger hanging from her waist. The hilt had a sharkskin sheath inlaid with tiny sapphires. Her posture seemed casual, but her eyes were like the most alert falcon, scanning the surroundings sharply.

The sunlight shone on the orange hem of her skirt, and the flapping skylark embroidered with gold thread seemed to come alive, shining brightly, forming a sharp contrast with the solemn and murderous guards in black armor around her, yet strangely blending into one.

Inside the carriage, Lin Zhen did not sit upright, but leaned on a soft couch covered with thick white tiger skin and with a backrest inlaid with warm white jade.

He was wearing a black dragon-patterned uniform, and a thin cloak of the same color with dark gold cloud patterns. His posture seemed lazy, but there was a barely perceptible trace of solemnity between his brows.

He slightly lifted the brocade curtain embroidered with cloud patterns in gold thread on one side of the car window. His eyes were calm and deep, like an ancient well, as he looked at the street scenes of the capital city that he had not seen for more than a year.

The carriage drove out of Chongrenfang, where the palace was located, and turned into Zhuque Street, a wide and straight street wide enough for eight carriages to run side by side.

The streets on both sides are no longer the same as they were a year ago!

The originally low, dilapidated and uneven brick and wood houses have been replaced by a large number of neat and magnificent buildings!

The most eye-catching is the "Xinghuafang" renovation project, which is located on the west side of Zhuque Street, covers a very large area and has now been completely completed!

All I saw was a rolling, neatly planned row of five-story brick and tile buildings rising from the ground!

The walls are all built with solid blue-gray bricks, the brick joints are as fine as threads, and the wall surface is flat and smooth like a mirror, reflecting a calm and heavy luster in the sun.

Each floor has large and bright windows inlaid with the clearest and most transparent glazed windows of the time (although not the glass of later generations, it is already top-level craftsmanship). Sunlight pours into the room unhindered, dispelling the darkness and dampness of the old shacks.

The roof is covered with neat dark-colored tiles, and the eaves are slightly raised. Although it is not as well-carved and painted as the royal palace, it has a simple, majestic, solid and practical beauty. It is like a silent guard, guarding the peace in the neighborhood.

Between the buildings is a wide and smooth bluestone road, with newly transplanted locust trees and willow trees planted on both sides. Although they are new trees, their branches are upright, and their green leaves are just beginning to sprout, showing vitality.

Under the trees, there are polished stone benches and tables for people to rest. The square is also dotted with several small and exquisite flower beds, planted with roses, crabapples and other seasonal flowers, colorful and vibrant, adding a bit of vitality and warmth to this neat building.

What is even more amazing is the rich atmosphere of life in the square!

At noon, colorful clothes and bedding were hung out to dry on the windowsills and carefully designed balconies of every household, like colorful flags fluttering in the breeze.

Many homes have pots of vibrantly blooming flowers or lush green onions and garlic on their windowsills, a vibrant atmosphere of everyday life. The streets within the neighborhood are clean and tidy, with no garbage or sewage, only a few fallen leaves.

Several children wearing clean cloth clothes and with rosy cheeks were chasing and playing in the small square in the center of the town, kicking balls woven from rattan and making clear and pleasant laughter like silver bells.

Several women, dressed simply but cleanly, sat on stone benches under the shade of trees, doing needlework and chatting about family matters, their faces filled with satisfied and peaceful smiles.

Not far away, there were a few old men with white hair and beards sitting together, playing chess, with a steaming earthenware teapot beside them. They looked leisurely and contented, enjoying their retirement.

The air is filled with the aroma of food, the fragrance of flowers and plants, and the vitality of children playing, forming a vivid and harmonious picture of "living and working in peace and contentment".

"Prince, look, Xinghuafang has been completely built! It's so spectacular!" Chengxuan's clear voice came from outside the car window, like an oriole singing out of a valley, with undisguised excitement and amazement.

She rode a white horse, parallel to the carriage, and leaned forward, her almond-shaped eyes glinting and greedily scanning the new residential area, her mouth slightly open.

"Five stories! All solid brick and tile! And such large glazed windows! Oh my god! The light! Such grandeur! Brighter than some of the side courtyards in our palace! And so solid!"

She danced with excitement and almost jumped off the horse, but fortunately she was an excellent rider and managed to keep her balance.

Lin Zhen's lips curled up into a faint smile, his eyes still calm: "Yes, I see. The Ministry of Industry has lived up to expectations this time, and the efficiency is acceptable."

"It's more than acceptable!" Cheng Xuan's voice was as cheerful as a stream. "You don't know, my prince, but this Xinghuafang is now the place that the people of the capital envy the most! Most of the people who live here are poor families who used to live in shacks, leaking in the winter and raining in the summer, as well as the families of soldiers who fought for their country! The court only charges a very small rent, and they can live in such a good house! There is a clean sweet water well! There are special public toilets (dry toilets) that are cleaned every day! There are also special garbage trucks that come every day to collect garbage! There is a government-run Huimin Medical Clinic and Elementary School at the entrance of the square! Medical treatment is cheap, and children can go to school without tuition! The people all say that this is a great grace from His Majesty and the court! It is a real housing project! It is a living Bodhisattva descending to the earth!"

Her little face was flushed and her tone was excited, as if the credit was hers.

"Oh?" Lin Zhen's eyes flickered slightly. He lowered the brocade curtain and looked out the window at the excited Cheng Xuan. "Is that what the people said?"

"Yes! Absolutely true!" Cheng Xuan nodded vigorously, her ponytail swaying with it, her face filled with pride. "After I came back, I even sneaked in to take a look! The man in the fangzheng was a retired veteran with a broken arm. His surname was Wang. He told everyone that it was the court that sympathized with poor people like them, and it was Your Majesty's wisdom that allowed them, the peasants, to live in houses like heaven! And the widows of the military households, when they mentioned the court, were filled with gratitude, saying that they could finally let their children grow up in clean and bright houses, and no longer have to suffer from the cold and hunger, or worry about being crushed to death if the house collapsed! Prince, listen! Please listen!"

She suddenly pricked up her ears and pointed excitedly in the direction of the entrance.

The carriage happened to pass slowly by the entrance of Xinghuafang.

Above the tall gate, there is a plaque with the words "Xinghuafang" written in gold on a black background. The brushstrokes are powerful and the style is extraordinary.

The small square in front of the square was crowded with people and very lively.

Several men wearing coarse clothes but washed clean and with ruddy faces were surrounding a peddler pushing a wheelbarrow filled with bright red candied haws.

A burly man took a bite of a candied haws. The sour-sweet taste of the hawthorn made him squint his eyes. He smiled vaguely at his companion, "Hey! Old Li, I heard your kid is in elementary school. The teacher praised his handwriting? He even said he'd recommend him to the government school?"

"Hehe, that's right!" The man called Old Li, his dark face full of wrinkles, smiled like a blooming chrysanthemum. "The teacher said this kid is smart! Better than his father! If the court hadn't established this elementary school and waived the tuition, our kid wouldn't have had the chance to touch a book! We have to thank Your Majesty! Thank you to the court! Thank you to the regent prince and the prince!"

His voice was loud and full of gratitude.

"Yes, yes!" another man in a short coat chimed in. He was a bricklayer in the workshop. "We used to live in that shabby shack. It leaked in the winter and the rain in the summer. The children shivered with cold, and my wife lived in fear every day. Now it's great! This brick house is sturdy and bright! It's warm in winter and cool in summer! My wife says she wakes up laughing in her dreams! Life is promising now!"

"Haha! Who says it isn't!" An old man selling vegetables nearby came over and stroked his gray beard and laughed, "Thanks to the fire. We used to carry our loads through the streets, exposed to the wind and sun. Now we have special market stalls in the alleys, sheltered from the wind and rain! Our lives are getting better and better! It's all thanks to Your Majesty and the court!" Everyone laughed heartily, full of hope for life and longing for the future.