Long live Emperor Wu!

Chapter 75 It really doesn’t look like it

Li Shan quickly put down his chopsticks, stood up and saluted:
"Father, I am rude to you. There really aren't that many government affairs these days. I just slept lightly at night and didn't sleep well."

The emperor's expression softened a lot. He himself was restless and couldn't sleep well, so he comforted him and said:
"If that doesn't work, let the imperial doctor give you a prescription for sleeping."

"Yes." Li Shan bowed in response, turned around and returned to his seat, picked up his chopsticks and glanced at the dishes on the table, still a little confused.

Princess Jinyang saw that her brother was really haggard and pitiful. Ever since he became the prince, the green shadow under his eyes had not gone away.

She finally plucked up the courage and said:

"Father...can you let me come back to live with you? I want to see him often. Next year I will leave the palace to build a mansion, so I will see him less often in the future."

The emperor was stunned for a moment after hearing this, as if he did not expect that his daughter would leave him so soon.After a while, his eyes flashed with gentle light and he sighed:

"Time flies so fast..."

He looked into the void, seemingly lost in memories. After a while, he put down his chopsticks, wiped his mouth with a handkerchief, and said:

"As I get older, I always think of things from my youth... When I was young, there were so many people around me and it was so bustling. I never knew what loneliness was. What about now?..."

As he spoke, he paused again, glanced around the hall, looked at the two children beside him, and then thought of Li Chengqian and Li Tai who were far away.He said rather sadly:
"Since the death of your mother, I always feel that there are fewer and fewer people around me. The old guys in the court are all dead and old, and there are not many familiar faces anymore. Return to the harem...get close to each other. There are fewer and fewer people..."

The emperor's character has always been cheerful. When he is happy, everyone will be happy with him. When he is angry, everyone will feel scared. Even when he cries sadly, he feels happy and happy.

To put it bluntly, his temperament has nothing to do with "hypocrisy".

But now, he has white hair on his temples and a depressed expression. When he says these words, there is a sense of sadness that a hero is dying and the autumn wind is rustling, which makes people feel heartbroken.

The legend of the Tang Dynasty, the Mingjun and the Holy Lord that everyone admired, and the Tian Khan Li Shimin who was surrendered by all the barbarians, how could he be the one that makes people feel sad?

Li Shan looked at his Aye, tears filled his eyes, but he didn't know what to say to comfort him.

Wu Rou said softly:
"Your Majesty... do you want to hold a lively banquet?"

The emperor made a "ho" sound from his throat, his tired and depressed eyebrows lifted a little more, and he said:
"That's because I see you having fun. Wouldn't it make you feel even more lonely?"

He turned to look at Li Shan and said:
"Anyway, the palace is empty and is often cleaned. You can live there if you want. Just don't leave the East Palace empty during the day, lest the courtiers say that I am too arbitrary and do not think deeply."

Li Shan breathed a sigh of relief and bowed his head in response. Princess Jinyang was also very happy.

……

……

Perhaps the emperor was really lonely. For several days, he met with courtiers at the Wude Hall. He even called those who had retired from official duties and were retiring at home. When they had free time, they would reminisce about the past and chat.

Wude Hall was very lively in those days, and the emperor was in a much better mood.Later, we didn't know why we were chatting, so we decided to find a palace to hang up the portraits of several heroes who followed him in establishing the Tang Dynasty.

After the decree was issued, Yan Liben, the general's master craftsman, was invited to go to various mansions to draw drawings for 24 heroes.

Yan Liben himself came from the Prince of Qin's Palace, so he knew all the deceased people, so he painted them based on his memory.

Half a year later, the 24 Heroes Pictures were hung in the Lingyan Pavilion in the inner garden of the Tai Chi Palace. There were specialized people to take care of them and make them available for viewing at any time.

On this day, Concubine Wei took more than 20 concubines from the harem to Lingyan Pavilion to view the paintings.

As soon as you enter the door, you will see a mural on the front door. There is an inscription written by the emperor himself, summarizing the achievements and character of several heroes and praising them.

Once inside, the hanging paintings are as tall as half a person. They are hung on three levels facing north. From the outside to the inside, they are arranged according to the degree of merit, and the further inside they are, the more important they are.

Together with His Majesty's favorite pictures of horses and the murals of galloping clouds, the Lingyan Pavilion is majestic, solemn and sacred.

In such a sacred atmosphere, Wu Rou followed Xu Hui and Xu Chongrong and looked at the extraordinary portraits one by one. Looking at the detailed legendary deeds and dazzling achievements under the portraits, her heart couldn't help but surge.

She couldn't help but murmured:
"If only I had such a chance, it would be great to hang here."

Although the two dozen concubines were discussing, their voices were very low. Wu Rou's emotional sigh was so clear that almost everyone heard it.

They all turned their heads and glanced at her.

Concubine Wei smiled, looked at her and said:
"You are ambitious, but as a woman, don't even think about it. Even the queen is not here, let alone the others."

Since Concubine Yin De was reduced to a concubine, Concubine Yan Xian was promoted to Concubine De.

Concubine Yan De stood in front of a row of portraits of military commanders and read the names on them:
"Qu Tutong, Yuchi Jingde, Li Jing, Liu Hongji... If I were a man, maybe I could have a place here.

It’s a pity that it’s not women’s turn to lead troops in war…”

Concubine Wei glanced at her gracefully, seemingly dissatisfied, and said slowly:
"When I talk about Queen Wende, just talk about yourself... The queen has assisted His Majesty in his great achievements. No matter whether he is in the front court or in the harem, he is convinced by everyone. How can you compare with her?"

Wu Rou always felt that Concubine Wei and Concubine Yan De had some grudge, but she never had any evidence, just a feeling.

Now it is really confirmed...

She stood behind Xu Hui, keeping her eyes on the two of them, secretly leaned closer behind Xu Hui, and whispered:

"Mother, what should I do? Do you want me to give you some advice?" Xu Hui didn't move anywhere, she just raised her lips and replied in a low voice:
"Whatever I advise, it's all done with dignity and no quarrels will arise."

Sure enough, Concubine Yan De turned around. Although she was not as tall as Concubine Wei, she had a free and easy heroic spirit. She looked at Concubine Wei and said with a smile:

"I didn't say I was better than the Queen. Seeing how anxious you are... I'm not dreaming."

She sighed deeply and said:

"We also followed His Majesty step by step, and we also contributed, but we did well and became the fourth concubine, not the officials of the previous dynasty. If we were men, maybe we could become generals and prime ministers. "

Concubine Wei stopped talking. Everyone looked at the magnificent deeds on the wall and fell silent.

Concubine Wei said softly:
"I am satisfied...because I met the Queen and Your Majesty. I have also used what I have learned in my life, contributed to the establishment of the Tang Dynasty, and made contributions, but it will not be recorded in the annals of history, and future generations will not know it. That’s all. But it’s better than living a life of doing nothing.”

When Concubine Yan De heard this, she was mocking her, looked at her and said:
"Sister Wei Fei has always been generous and open-minded, otherwise she would not be so highly regarded by His Majesty."

When Concubine Wei heard this, she smiled generously and said:

"Okay, I know it's not easy for you. A man of literature can still give advice to His Majesty in the harem and have poems passed down to the world. You are a man of martial arts. Unless there are not enough men on the battlefield, it will not be your turn to perform. . The regret in your heart is naturally heavier than mine."

After hearing this, Concubine Yan De's eyes flickered and she seemed to be very touched. She was about to cry almost immediately. Her plump red lips were pursed in one place, and she stubbornly swallowed back her tears. She pointed at the portrait on the wall and spoke in a humorous way. Said in a naughty tone:

"To be honest, this portrait looks pretty good, but it doesn't really look like it."

As soon as these words came out, all the concubines laughed, and Concubine Yang Shu said to her with a smile;

"Only you dare to say this. If Master Yan knew your comment, he would probably jump with anger."

"Did I say something wrong?" Concubine Yan De asked, her eyes scanning the crowd, trying to find someone who agreed with her.

But in this harem, there are many people with outstanding literary talents, such as Wei Guifei, Xu Chongrong... who are either good at poetry or painting. Their tastes must not be the same as hers.

She was the only concubine in the harem who practiced martial arts, and the rest were too timid to speak.

She glanced around and finally picked out Wu Rou, the conspicuous one, and said:
"Wu Cai Ren, you are so brave. Honestly, do you think your painting doesn't look like it?"

Wu Rouxin said that her title of "Mei" was simply a lifelong shame. Concubine Yan De had gone through a lot of choices and finally singled out the uneducated one.

Wu Rou thought so, but she stretched her neck obediently, glanced at the wall, nodded and said:

"...I recognize Liu Hongji, Duke of Kui. He doesn't have that much beard. He really doesn't look like him."

That really doesn't look like...

The crowd burst into laughter again.

Xu Chongrong turned around and laughed at her, with a hint of teasing on his dull brows, and said:

"Ox chewing peonies, the most important thing about human figures is their spiritual resemblance. Having both spirit and form is a masterpiece, and having form but no spirit is inferior."

Wu Rou lowered her head and smiled, whispering:

"Your Majesty is just laughing at me. Go ahead and laugh at Concubine Yan De."

……

……

In October, many people in the palace fell ill.

At first, several palace attendants on duty fell ill, and even His Majesty was short of useful people.Wu Rou followed him and worked as a pen and ink official for several days.

Then, two young princesses died, including the daughter of Wang Jieyu, who had a grudge against Wu Rou.

Originally, these were nothing. After all, they had never seen each other and had no feelings. After hearing this, Wu Rou felt regretful at most. She should live her life as usual.

In the past, when similar situations occurred in the palace, it had its own procedures for isolation, diagnosis and treatment to prevent infection.

But... Princess Jinyang, who had always suffered from asthma, also became ill.

In the bedroom of Wude Hall, the emperor stood by Princess Jinyang's bedside and carefully asked the imperial doctor:
"How is it? Is it infected?"

The imperial doctor seemed to have a cold sweat on his head, but he forced himself to remain calm, bowed and said:

"Yes……"

The emperor's heart skipped a beat, and he said with luck:

"Let's see if the diagnosis and treatment were wrong. No one who is sick can enter my Wude Palace!"

The imperial doctor lowered his head even more. He wanted to answer directly, but he swayed and obediently went to diagnose and treat again before saying:

"Indeed, the others may be sick, but they don't show it. Princess Jinyang is weak, so the symptoms show up. Your Majesty, please arrange for the princess to move to another place. The Imperial Medical Office will do its best to diagnose and treat her."

(End of this chapter)