Man Tang Huacai

Chapter 389 People on a Boat

As soon as August comes, it seems that the entire city of Chang'an is busy celebrating the saint's birthday.

But Li Longji himself was a little unhappy. He was already sixty-seven years old. On this so-called "Long Live" day, his fear of death only deepened.

He used to study Taoism and alchemy with Sima Chengzhen, the "Baiyunzi". Sima Chengzhen lived to become an immortal at the age of ninety-six. Li Longji always believed that he should at least live longer than Sima Chengzhen, so he accepted the nun and became a monk. "Xuan Jingzi" Li Hanguang was the master. A few years ago, Li Hanguang did a Qi check for him and said that his body was ten years younger than his actual age. Unfortunately, not long after, Li Hanguang requested to return to the mountain on the grounds that the scriptures from Maoshan were scattered.

These efforts did not prevent him from aging. In fact, his energy was much less than before. He just pretended to be diligent, which made Li Hanguang mistakenly think that he was still full of energy.

Of course, emperors also have this kind of pretense. Emperors are the least free people.

Especially in the past few days, Feng Changqing's memorial was delivered, detailing the battle between Anxi and the black-clad Dashi, and the news that was originally unbelievable to Li Longji was confirmed.

After Gao Xianzhi went back on his word and destroyed the Shi Kingdom, the prince of the Shi Kingdom contacted Zhuhu and the black-clothed Dashi to prepare to attack the four towns of Anxi. Gao Xianzhi decided to use offense as defense and led 30,000 troops to attack Dashi. After three months of trekking, he arrived at Talos City and began to besiege it.

Talas City is the second largest city in the Stone Kingdom, and Samarkand, not far from it, is where Dashi's troops are stationed. After learning about the Tang army, Dashi immediately organized an army of 100,000 to support Talas City. The two sides fought a decisive battle on the Talos River. After five days of confrontation, Da Shiren paid heavily to bribe the Ge Luolu tribe in the Tang army. Ge Luolu suddenly rebelled and attacked front and back with Da Shi's army, leading to Gao Xianzhi's defeat.

On the other hand, Feng Changqing also described the war situation in detail, which was not as brutal as the impeachment of some officials in the four towns of Anxi.

"It was urgent. Li Siye rushed to guard Baishi. The road was narrow, and he and his horsemen filed forward. Huiba Khan returned with troops, and the road was blocked with supplies and wages. Siye attacked fiercely with his hands and stilts, killing dozens of servants and horses, and the prisoners were horrified. Let's go, the army will have to return..."

A young eunuch hurried over and reported, "Superintendent, the fireworks have begun to be transported into the city."

"There will always be times when you are in a bad mood." Gao Lishi leaned over and picked up the memorial on the ground, glanced at it quickly, and did not make a fuss, but said in a calm voice: "It's because the saint is in a bad mood, not because the situation is bad. Wait. When the saint is in a good mood, everything will get better."

"saint."

After saying this, he also felt that he seemed a little faint and tried hard to make a wiser decision, but the tiredness made him hate from the bottom of his heart to deal with this complicated government affairs immediately.

This level of defeat would not cause the Anxi Army to lose its ability to control the Western Region.

Seeing that Yuan Siyi did not confide in him, Gao Lishi sighed: "Let's wait until the saint wakes up."

When the last palace lady left the hall, he suddenly threw the memorial in his hand out.

However, Ge Luolu's rebellion revealed that the Tang Dynasty's deterrence against Zhuhu was diminishing. What needs to be alerted is that after Absi defected, he defected to Ge Luolu.

Continuing to look down, Feng Changqing mentioned the soldiers who made meritorious service in this battle.

When all the disguises are taken off, this is just an old man who is nearly seventy years old.

"Why do I feel everything is so bad after coming back from Lishan?"

Gao Lishi shook his head slightly, indicating with his eyes that the saint was not in a good mood.

Li Longji shook his head and said, "Let's take it away first and discuss it after the Qianqiu Festival."

Thinking of this, Li Longji was not very angry with Gao Xianzhi, but he had to consider rewards and punishments, as well as the strategic changes towards the Western Regions and Tubo after this battle, which gave him a headache.

"As usual." Li Longji murmured: "I dreamed of Sima Chengzhen. He warned me that I must stay in seclusion for two days before my birthday and not see any foreign ministers."

Gao Lishi was tall and strong, but it was strange that he could walk through the hall without making a sound. When he arrived at the imperial couch, he saw Li Longji sitting in a slumped posture, his gray hair uncombed and messy.

Li Longji deeply agrees with this sentence. He is the emperor, and everything in the world will naturally be affected by his mood.

"Do not."

"I have something important to report to the saint." Yuan Siyi said, "Can I disturb the saint?"

The hall was quiet for a long time, but someone came in quietly, it was Gao Lishi.

Yuan Siyi nodded and did not ask Li Shi to share the responsibility, maybe because she did not trust him.

However, from early morning to afternoon, the sun was tilted to the west, dragging the shadows of the trees on the ground very long, and the saint never got up.

"Everyone get out!"

Gao Lishi hesitated for a moment and asked, "What about the Qianqiu Festival?"

Gao Lishi was resting in the side room of the side hall. He was sleeping lightly and woke up when he heard the slightest movement.

When the saint woke up, it was Yuan Siyi's turn to serve, so he naturally did not need to participate in this matter. Without a word of excuse, he had stayed out of it.

The 30,000 people led by Gao Xianzhi were composed of 8,000 Tang troops and more than 23,000 Geluolu troops and Bahanna troops. The betrayal of the Geluolu army triggered the surrender and defeat of part of the Bakhna army, which constituted the biggest loss in this battle. After the defeat, Gao Xianzhi returned to Anxi with nearly 4,000 Tang troops.

"Therefore, I can't live without you."

Li Longji suddenly felt a headache, closed his eyes, and shouted all the palace people out.

Thinking further, Ge Luolu has always been controlled by the Uighurs. Although the Uighurs did not betray the Tang Dynasty, they failed to control Ge Luolu in a timely and effective manner, and there was a faint trend of alienation.

~~

On the fourth day of August, it was Yuan Siyi's turn to take up his post in the palace. As soon as the morning drum sounded, he rushed to Xingqing Palace.

It was rare that he became so angry, not just because of defeat, but because the feeling of losing control occasionally surfaced.

It was dawn, Chang'an City had just woken up from its slumber, and everyone's movements seemed slow. Only Yuan Siyi showed anxiety inadvertently. He turned over and dismounted before the horse stopped, dropped the riding whip and stepped into the newly opened palace door.

"Back to the saint, Xue Bai is asking for an audience outside the palace, saying that he has something important to do. Is this old slave going to drive him away?"

It would be a good decision to deal with it calmly after the holidays.

"Send more people to keep an eye on it."

"Why did you come so early?"

"The saint wants to summon some important ministers to discuss matters?" Gao Lishi put the memorial back on the imperial desk and prepared to comb Li Longji's hair.

Gao Lishi said: "Sage, Mingjun through the ages, how many storms have you never seen? Now we are encountering ordinary problems, so we can solve them with ordinary methods."

The two have worked together for many years and have a great understanding. In the past, Yuan Siyi knew what to do with just one look. But today, he actually took a few steps and said, "It's really an urgent matter, it's of great importance."

Yuan Siyi frowned and hesitated whether to try to wake up the saint. After thinking for a while, he asked, "Where is Chen Xuanli?"

"General Chen seems not to be in the palace today."

"I asked where he is?!"

"This slave deserves to die, I don't know."

In a short time, there will be a curfew in Chang'an again, thinking that tomorrow will be the Qianqiu Festival. Yuan Siyi finally gritted his teeth, entered the apse, and said cautiously through the guards: "Saint?"

After calling twice in succession, there was movement on the imperial couch. Li Longji asked lightly: "What's the matter?"

"I dare not disturb the saint, but the matter is so important." Yuan Siyi considered it and said slowly: "I suspect that Xue Bai is using fireworks to assassinate the saint."

He did not immediately throw out his doubts about Xue Bai's life experience. In the absence of sufficient evidence, the matter was very taboo and would not benefit him.

So, he tried his best to tell the whole story so that it had nothing to do with him.

"Yang Xuan, the son of the Right Prime Minister, was a classmate of Xue Bai. He went to the fireworks workshop two days ago. One of his followers accidentally saw arrow clusters mixed in the raw materials of the fireworks and reported the matter to the Minister of Internal Affairs. The old slave dare not imagine what would happen if What will happen if those arrow clusters and fireworks are shot at people? The old slave is ignorant, but the safety of the saint is the most important thing."

Li Longji sat up on the royal couch, meditated cross-legged, closed his eyes and listened. Finally, he asked: "What do you want to do with it?"

"I dare you to cancel the fireworks ceremony and investigate the matter in detail." After Yuan Siyi finished speaking, he added, "I don't want to ruin the saint's elegance. This matter... is really risky."

To his surprise, the saint seemed very calm after hearing such a major conspiracy.

"There will be no curfew in Chang'an for the three days of the Lantern Festival. The ministers are always worried about fires and thefts. They don't understand the meaning of having fun with the people." Li Longji said slowly: "The fireworks ceremony cannot be cancelled."

"But……"

"Tomorrow night, I will go up to the Calyx Tower to watch the fireworks. Now that this matter has been announced to the public, it cannot be changed." Li Longji said: "You take my order and investigate secretly."

Secret investigation is obviously more difficult, which means that he can only conduct investigation without affecting the smooth progress of the fireworks ceremony. There are too many constraints.

Yuan Siyi wanted to persuade him again, but he faintly heard the sound of drums coming from the palace wall. The evening drums had already begun to sound, and the saint had already made up his mind. He had no more time, so he had to accept the decree.

There was something strange in his heart. Could it be that the saint didn't care about his own safety?

Then, he thought of what the saint said, "Climb the calyx tower to watch the fireworks." He immediately understood that the saint would not stand under a dangerous wall.

In this way, as long as it was confirmed that Xue Bai really wanted to use fireworks to assassinate him, he would have accomplished a great feat.

~~

The fifth day of August is the Qianqiu Festival.

The morning light had just entered Chang'an City, and someone had already discovered that a big red carpet had been laid out in the large square in front of Xingqing Palace.

Preparations for the ceremony can only be carried out until noon, because the Qianqiu Festival is different from the Shangyuan Festival in that many performances are performed during the day.

The musicians had already set up various musical instruments downstairs in Huaxe, adjusting them, and the sound of silk and bamboo gradually began to play. The big song they played and sang repeatedly was called "Qianqiu Music", also known as "Long Live Qianqiu". It was specially composed by the Jiaofang for the saint's birthday.

The sound of this music spread throughout Chang'an, making people immersed in the beautiful expectations of the saint.

Li Longji had already gotten up. After two days of rest, he deliberately avoided worrying about state affairs. His energy improved a lot. At this time, he was sitting in front of the bronze mirror, combing his hair with the palace concubine.

Gong'e's slender fingers often smeared the black beans from a porcelain bottle, smeared it on the comb, and then gently combed Li Longji's white hair, and the white hair was gradually dyed black. This process took a lot of time, but the effect was excellent. The black-haired Li Longji indeed looked more than ten years younger.

After that, the palace maid picked some grease with a jade chopstick and carefully applied it on his wrinkles... When the imperial robe was draped on Li Longji's shoulders, the image of a majestic and romantic emperor appeared in the Xingqing Hall again.

"Haha."

Li Longji looked at the mirror and laughed heartily.

He seemed to have regained the wisdom and determination of his prime, and his originally chaotic thoughts had also opened up. Even his handling of the generals of the four towns of Anxi after the defeat of Talos became much clearer.

Although he still loves Gao Xianzhi, the defeated coach must deal with it. He can call Gao Xianzhi back to the court and replace Anxi Jiedushi with Wang Zhengjian. Wang Zhengjian's achievements are mediocre. In this way, Gao Xianzhi will be sent to Anxi again in the future. opportunity to save the situation;

Feng Changqing can be appointed as the deputy envoy of the four towns and the marching commander. He has assisted Gao Xianzhi for many years and is familiar with the four towns of Anxi. He can help Wang Zhengjian stabilize the situation and reassure the soldiers of Anxi;

Li Siye received a reward to show that the emperor still supported the Anxi army;

In addition, An Sishun, the governor of Hexi and Shuofang Jiedu, was strictly ordered to put down the Absi rebellion as soon as possible and severely deter those Tibetan chiefs who dared to betray the Tang Dynasty.

As Gao Lishi said, what matters is the emperor's mood. As long as he is in a good mood, everything else can be improved by his mood.

"Get started."

The time came soon, and Li Longji got up and headed to the Huacalyx Tower with the aura of dominating the world. Numerous Jinwu guards led the holy driver, and the four armies of Beiya were displayed, raising flags, and wearing golden armor, which added to his endless momentum.

In front of the Calyx Tower, three hundred girls were lining up.

Each of them is only fifteen years old, all tall, short, fat and thin, and as beautiful as a flower. The first dance to be performed upon the saint's arrival is the "Song of Colorful Feather Clothes".

This song was originally danced by Yang Yuhuan, but it would not be appropriate to have the imperial concubine dance it in person for the officials to see every year at the royal banquet. Later, it was changed to dance by Zhang Yunrong and Xie Aman. The two daughters have grown older in recent years. They were all twenty years old, so they changed into a large dance group like this.

Every year, the three hundred girls are replaced. The saint gets older every year, and the girls who dance for him are fifteen years old every year.

"pretty!"

Even the well-informed Yang Guozhong couldn't help but sigh after seeing it. He called Yuan Zai, poured a glass of wine with his own hands and handed it to him to show his respect.

"You're a flower and bird messenger, you've done a great job, very well."

"They are all cultivated by the right prime minister."

Yuan Zai pretended to be flattered and agreed, but he didn't think so in his heart.

While he was drinking, he looked to the other side and saw Xue Bai toasting in the direction of the saint. He took a sip, said something to the person next to him, stood up and left the calyx building, and looked at the shape of his mouth. It’s “I have to arrange the fireworks.”

Yuan Zai thought to himself that as long as Xue Bai was around, he would never be able to steal his limelight.

~~

Xue Bai wore a red robe at a young age, making him a very dazzling presence among the children of a poor family. People simply couldn't believe that someone could reach such a high position in such a short time.

But today, he is not conspicuous, because there are many emperors and grandsons who are born as high-ranking officials in red robes, and even purple robes are not uncommon.

King Li Chu of Guangping, King Li Tan of Jianning, King Li Chenghong of Guangwu, King Li Chengcai of Dunhuang, King Li Yan of Xinping... Xue Bai was just standing chatting with these people, looking very harmonious.

He was not incompatible with these emperors and nobles because of his humble slave origin.

Walking down the calyx building, the girls in front of them happened to throw up their long sleeves and straighten their slender upper bodies at the same time, creating an indescribable grand scene. In the past, it was hard to know where to look when six or seven beauties stood together, let alone three hundred people. Xue Bai shook his head, avoided his eyes, and walked towards the palace gate. Along the way, you can see various performers waiting for the show.

The floats, land boats, walking ropes, maruken swords, acrobatics, horns, and hundreds of plays, these shows are obviously enough to keep the imperial banquet going until night, when it is his turn to firework.

No, there is also the most grand performance - horse dancing.

Li Longji ordered people to teach 400 dancing horses, and they danced downstairs in Huaxe every Qianqiu Festival. That was the climax of the royal banquet in previous years, but the horses have not entered the venue yet. In addition, before the horse dance, there are performances by elephants and rhinos.

"Xue Lang!"

Suddenly someone called out, a clear voice. Xue Bai turned around and saw Li Twelve Niang holding the sword again.

He stopped, waited for her to come forward, and asked, "You also want to dance with the sword today."

"Well, the master has recovered from his illness and she is leading the dance. Why doesn't Xue Lang watch from the calyx building and come to where we, the actors and acrobats, stay?"

"I'm the same as you." Xue Bai smiled.

He remembered that at the wedding banquet when Li Heng married Zhang Ting, he and Gongsun Aunt and others were sitting together. At that time, he did not want to be a minister, and what he wanted in his mind was to get rid of the status of being regarded as an actor. Now I can see clearly, who is more noble than who?

Li Twelve Niang was very puzzled and asked: "How are you the same as me?"

"You performed the sword dance first, and then watched me perform the fireworks."

"Okay."

While talking, the sound of argument came from the palace gate.

Xue Bai didn't even look over there and walked over directly.

At the palace gate, the carriage transporting fireworks was indeed blocked, but the argument was not fierce. Although I could hear the guards' orders, the words that responded to them were words that made me feel that my aura was very weak just by hearing the voice.

"I am entering the palace for the first time, so I don't understand these things. Please forgive me. But I have a talisman and I was ordered to enter the palace to set off fireworks."

"Items entering the palace must be inspected and disassembled!"

"Ah? Fireworks break when they are opened. That's what it is. If I send a roasted chicken to the palace, it's not appropriate to take it apart, right? The opened chicken may still be edible, but the opened fireworks must be set off. It won’t work.”

"I don't care about this, I just follow orders!"

"This is really..."

Du Wulang was talking and his mouth was dry. He scratched his head and saw Xue Bai coming out of the palace. He quickly waved his hand and said, "We can't enter the palace here."

Xue Bai didn't have a good way to deal with this, but he just stepped forward and said to the guards: "We also understand your difficulties. You are all doing things for the saints. If it is difficult to decide this matter, how about asking for instructions?"

"Wait!"

"it is good."

On the palace wall not far away, Yuan Siyi was watching this scene with squinted eyes.

He didn't expect that Xue Bai and Du Wulang could be so polite when they encountered difficulties when doing things for the saint. There was really no fire at all. Without fire, those fireworks would naturally not light up.

"Superintendent, Xue Bai suggested asking for instructions. I don't know who should come forward?"

"Fu Chulin, please go there."

"Here."

Fu Chulin looked at Xue Bai's polite appearance from the palace wall, but in her heart she thought of the five men she sent out and never came back, and secretly cursed this ruthless and treacherous sycophant for being so pretentious.

He deliberately made a circle and rushed to the palace gate. He asked from a distance: "What happened? Ah! It's Xue Lang here, but who is making things difficult for you?"

"I dare not say it is embarrassing." Xue Bai said: "We want to enter the palace to set up fireworks, but according to the rules of the palace, we have to dismantle them. But if we dismantle them, the fireworks cannot be set off."

"I see." Fu Chulin said with a smile: "It's so difficult to take it apart and put it back together again? It's a trivial matter."

"I can't pretend to go back."

"Here, Mr. Xue, please forgive me for my limited knowledge and my inability to understand why it cannot be put back together after being dismantled."

"..."

Time passed little by little, a high platform had been erected in front of the calyx building, and the figure of the rope walker had appeared in the air.

Yuan Siyi watched the performance from a distance for a while, then lowered his head to see that Xue Bai and others were still talking to Fu Tilin in a leisurely manner.

It was clearly running out of time to arrange the fireworks.

Yuan Siyi couldn't help but wonder, how could a traitor who wanted to assassinate someone be so calm in the face of this situation?

He finally became a little shaken and suspected that he had guessed wrong.

He wasn't trying to stop the fireworks from entering the palace. Since the saint had taken precautions and was safe, and had decreed that the fireworks ceremony should go on as scheduled, he did not dare to actually block the fireworks outside the palace gate. The reason why Xue Bai was deliberately embarrassed was just to test his attitude.

"Superintendent. Xue Bai said that if it is too late, he will be too late. When the sage asks, he can only tell the truth."

"No rush, just wait a while."

Yuan Siyi thought for a moment and then ordered: "Go and tell him that the saint has canceled the fireworks ceremony."

"This……"

"go."

"Here."

Yuan Siyi continued to stare and saw the eunuch hurried to the palace gate and conveyed those words.

After Xue Bai heard this, his reaction was very dull. He raised his head and looked around, and then looked in his direction.

After watching for a while, Xue Bai raised his hand and waved. Yuan Siyi frowned and finally decided to show up in person.

~~

"Supervisor Yuan is here."

When Xue Bai saw Yuan Siyi, he showed a puzzled expression for a moment and said in greeting: "Just now I thought it was 'unwarranted', but Supervisor Yuan actually came in person. It seems that the saint has indeed canceled the fireworks ceremony... It's rude. "

He said the last three words to the imperial guards. After that, he greeted Du Wulang and left.

"Xue Lang." Yuan Siyi called him and said, "You would rather leave than take apart the fireworks. But what's the secret?"

"Hidden secret?"

Xue Bai raised his eyebrows slightly.

This movement is extremely subtle and cannot be observed by ordinary people.

However, Yuan Siyi was a master at observing faces and once again confirmed Xue Bai's suspicion that he wanted to assassinate him. This was enough for him to test. He got the answer he wanted. He won the first game of the confrontation.

Next, you can let them into the palace, keep an eye on where they place the fireworks, and find a more precise way to expose them.

A smile broke out on Yuan Siyi's face and she said: "I'm joking, you have to be more careful about things in the palace. Fireworks can't be dismantled, so I tried Xue Lang, don't worry about it."

"Don't dare."

"Then please."

Yuan Siyi turned around and was about to walk away.

"Superintendent Yuan." Xue Bai stopped him and said, "The Superintendent just said something hidden, and there is indeed something hidden."

"what for?"

Yuan Siyi was surprised and stopped, wondering what Xue Bai was doing, trying to dispel his doubts.

Xue Bai said: "Can I talk to Superintendent Yuan alone."

"please."

With doubts, Yuan Siyi led Xue Bai up the palace wall and stopped at a deserted crenellation.

From here, you can watch the performance on the other side of the calyx building. Xue Bai seemed to be attracted by the performance. He stood silently for a while, but then slowly asked: "Can I trust Superintendent Yuan?"

Yuan Siyi said: "It depends on what it is."

"Can I trust Superintendent Yuan's loyalty to the saint?"

"That's natural."

"What if the saint is in danger and there will be a new king in the world?" Xue Bai said, "At that time, can I still trust your loyalty to the saint?"

Yuan Siyi's face hardened because of the first half of his sentence, and she said word by word: "My loyalty to the saint cannot be doubted in the slightest!"

"Okay." Xue Bai said: "Then I will risk my life and my family to tell the eunuch...I am being held hostage, and someone wants to use me to assassinate the saint."

"what?"

Yuan Siyi did not expect to hear such a sentence, and was shocked.

He was stunned for a while and without having time to think about it, he immediately asked the question he was most concerned about at the moment.

"Who?"

~~

Back in late July, in the Jinchenggou cemetery, three men sat talking under the moonlight.

"I told you that you don't believe me." Li Xiu said: "The person I serve now is my grandfather's enemy in the past, but he has always been kind to the officers and soldiers of Longyou."

"Who?"

Li Xiu raised his fist to the east and said slowly but forcefully: "The prince of the dynasty."

Wang Lan's expression suddenly changed, and he remembered what happened when he followed Huangfu Weiming into the court.

He is a calm person, but at this moment he could not hide his excitement and asked: "What does the prince want to do?"

"The saint is old and dim. If this continues, the country will be in great trouble." Li Xiu sighed, and said casually and naturally: "The prince wants to help the country."

"Okay." Wang Nannan responded decisively without hesitation.

But Li Xiu asked: "The general is deeply favored by the king, so he is so straightforward, and he doesn't realize that he has let down the saint?"

"The saint was unparalleled in his youth. He once saved the Tang Dynasty from fire and water, killed the Wei family and destroyed the Wu family. Now we are just imitating the hero and supporting the Ming Dynasty. How can we be worthy of it?"

Li Xiu saw that Wang was rarely so heroic and knew that he was a trustworthy person, so he revealed the next secret.

"Presumably, General Wang also knows Xue Bai's name, right?"

Wang Nan said: "I know it."

"After Wang Jieshuai's accident, Xue Lang also put aside his prejudices and joined hands with the prince to help the country."

"Great." Li Sheng's eyes lit up.

Li Xiu took out a blood letter from his arms and said: "If the two generals are willing to work together for great things, please write down your names here tonight and promise to keep the matter secret, or you can take my head. "

Wang Nan and Li Sheng looked at each other and took out their daggers. They cut their fingers and wrote their names in a flash.

There are many people in Longyou who tend to be in the East Palace.

After the name was written, Li Xiu put away the blood letter, raised the wine bag, and said: "Okay, from now on we will be brothers who live and die together, and share weal and woe."

(End of this chapter)