A husband found in the village? I bought a regent for a penny!

The first quarter of noon is the auspicious time of the day, and everyone gathers near the offering table.

The atmosphere immediately became solemn.

Jiang Mingyuan silently gestured for Gu Xixi to follow him.

He led Gu Xixi to the row behind the clan elders, to the far west side, and gestured for her to stand there and not move.

Gu Xixi nodded, watching Jiang Mingyuan walk two rows back, find a place to stand, and smile at her.

Gradually, everyone found their place.

After watching for a while, Gu Xixi understood why Jiang Mingyuan had made her stand there.

The clan elders stood at the front, representing the entire clan to offer incense and libations, and to pay homage to Heaven and Earth.

The row behind the clan elders is where the people in charge sit.

Since the east is the place of honor, and Gu Xixi is the youngest and lowest in seniority, she should naturally stand at the far west end.

Further on, they are generally arranged according to seniority, with those of lower seniority appearing further back.

There are exceptions, namely ranking by contribution to the family.

For example, the middle-aged man that Gu Xixi had met before, who could sit on equal footing with several of the elders in the clan.

Among them, some have many connections and extensive networks, and are the most well-informed.

Someone owns a small fleet of vehicles; anyone who needs to haul goods has to ask him for help.

Jiang Mingyuan's position at the front is probably for the same reason.

Gu Xixi thought to herself that the Gu family must value his status as a Juren (a successful candidate in the imperial examinations), even if he was just a descendant of a different surname.

During the Daye Dynasty, anyone who passed the provincial examination had the opportunity to enter officialdom. If they could obtain a recommendation from a superior, they could directly enter officialdom, starting from the ninth rank or above.

At the same time, those who passed the imperial examinations were also qualified to participate in political discussions and decision-making and management of local affairs.

Therefore, in the eyes of ordinary people, Jiang Mingyuan can at least be considered a half-official.

Fortunately, the ceremony was not complicated and ended after about half an incense stick had burned.

The surroundings suddenly became lively again.

Gu Xixi found the Qian couple watching the ceremony in the crowd. After exchanging a few words, someone came to invite them to take their seats.

As honored guests today, Mr. and Mrs. Qian naturally had to sit at the head table.

At the main table were also clan elders and several people in charge.

According to past practice, clan elders and leaders need to take this opportunity to communicate important clan matters.

As they sat down, the clan elder smiled and called to Jiang Mingyuan, "Mingyuan, you've grown up now. Come sit over here; we'd like to hear your thoughts."

"There's an empty seat next to Xixi, you can sit there."

Jiang Mingyuan responded and sat down next to Gu Xixi. The two smiled at each other.

Gu Xixi looked down at the wood grain on the table and couldn't help but feel emotional. As young people, she and Jiang Mingyuan were only able to sit here because they were useful to the Gu family.

She couldn't help but think of her father's experience at the clan gathering he had attended years ago.

Forget about sitting at the main table, they couldn't even get a seat at the first round of banquets.

So Gu Bapi attended a few clan gatherings when he was young, but gradually became unwilling to go.

Looking back now, Gu Bapi earned the nickname "skin-stripper" because he was always stingy and frugal, using any money he had to build houses and buy land, ultimately enjoying nothing himself.

Who knows if it wasn't because of some kind of stimulus?

"What are you thinking about?" The man's voice was clear and cool, echoing softly in my ear.

Gu Xixi glanced sideways and noticed that Jiang Mingyuan wasn't looking at her, but was speaking to her in a low voice.

Gu Xixi glanced at the people sitting at the head of the table and wondered if Jiang Mingyuan was being considerate of them.

Jiang Mingyuan spoke up again, "The wine we're going to drink later is homemade sorghum wine from Uncle Wu's family; it's very potent."

"If you can't avoid it, just lick it a little, that'll do."

He calmly lowered his eyes, looking composed. The others at the table couldn't hear him and had no idea that he was whispering to Gu Xixi.

Gu Xixi suddenly realized, thinking to herself, "What a kind person!"

So she replied in a small voice, "Understood, thank you."

The first round of banquets began.

There were six cold dishes and six hot dishes on the table, mainly meat, and the staple food was soft flatbread made from the new seasonal wheat.

In addition, each table has a jar of sorghum liquor.

Someone broke the mud seal and poured wine, one wine bowl for each person.

As the newly appointed person in charge, Gu Xixi naturally received a bowl of food.

The clan elder stood up to offer a toast, and everyone else followed suit.

After the toast was finished, the sorghum in the bowl was also drunk in one gulp.

As everyone tilted their heads back to drink, Gu Xixi also pretended to bring her wine bowl to her lips.

Suddenly, a hand reached out from the side, took her wine bowl, and handed her an empty bowl that smelled of wine.

In the blink of an eye, and with Jiang Mingyuan's wide sleeves covering him, he was not discovered.

The two hadn't discussed it beforehand; Jiang Mingyuan's idea was impromptu, but fortunately, Gu Xixi reacted quickly enough.

As Gu Xixi sat down, she couldn't help but glance at the person next to her with a smile.

"I never would have thought that a top student and a scholar could be so witty and cunning."

"You're so skilled at it, you must do this kind of thing quite often."

"A top student?" Jiang Mingyuan, true to his reputation as a top student, quickly grasped the meaning of the word and smiled, "In Boss Gu's eyes, are all scholars bookworms?"

Gu Xixi chuckled, "It's not that bad."

Because she happened to know a scholar who was extremely cunning, sharp-tongued, and capable of setting traps for others at any time...

During the meal, the topic naturally turned to millet cultivation.

Gu Xixi inevitably had to explain the arrangement of pesticides and fertilizers.

The people in charge discussed how much the final yield per acre would be increased and started doing the math on the spot.

The results of the accounting were, of course, very satisfactory to them.

However, each of them had their own assessment of how much they actually believed in Gu Xixi's words.

Gu Xixi didn't want to delve into their thoughts, and just joked with everyone, knowing that the facts would speak for themselves in the end.

During this time, people from other tables came over to toast Gu Xixi.

All the probes revolved around the word "millet".

Gu Xixi responded to each question, but refused to drink another drop of wine, only saying with a smile, "I can't hold my liquor. I already had a bowl with everyone."

"I came with Uncle Qian and Aunt Qian today, otherwise I should have drunk with everyone to my heart's content."

The clan elders also stepped forward and said that no one was allowed to force Gu Xixi to drink alcohol.

Everyone saw that she was an unmarried young woman who hadn't brought her family with her, and it would indeed be inconvenient if she were drunk.

So they just laughed it off.

When the second round of banquets began, Gu Xixi, Lao Qian, and Aunt Qian bid farewell to the Gu family.

Just moments before, Old Qian was smiling as he bowed to the head of the Gu family to say goodbye.

When the Gu family turned back, Old Qian staggered and fell headfirst onto the little donkey.

Gu Xixi was shocked. "Uncle Qian, are you alright?!"

Aunt Qian was much calmer. She grabbed Old Qian and threw him onto the cart floor.

"He's been drinking for ages!"

"Don't be fooled by his seemingly fine demeanor just now; he was just putting on a brave face. The moment anyone leaves, he'll immediately reveal his true colors!"

Looking at Old Qian, who was lying stiffly on the car floor as if he were dead, Gu Xixi clicked her tongue and said, "I have to say, Uncle Qian has a skill in that regard."

Inside the venue, the clan elder walked up to Jiang Mingyuan and asked, "What do you think of Xixi?"