The Leisurely Life of the Prince of the Tang Dynasty

Chapter 72: Can Talk From Dusk to Dawn

Li Yuan murmured to himself: "Fortunately, I abdicated early."

Xiaofu came over and said, "Your Highness, a letter from Jingyang."

Li Chengqian opened the letter and found a layer of sealing wax inside. This was a safety device. If the letter had been opened by someone, the dissolved sealing wax would leave traces. If the temperature was too high when dissolved with fire, the paper would be burned. This kind of paper was unique to Jingyang.

The texture and thickness are also unique, so the confidentiality is very reliable.

Li Chengqian tore off the wax seal and read the contents of the letter. Murong Shun had been in Sifang Pavilion for a month. Because Jingyang needed to stock up, the matter that was originally planned half a month ago had been delayed until now.

"Brother, please go and do what you need. I will play chess with you."

“Hahaha!” Li Yuan stroked his beard and laughed, “Lizhi, if you lose too much, don’t cry.”

"Humph, grandpa, don't underestimate your granddaughter."

After that, Li Lizhi played chess with her grandfather, while Li Chengqian walked into the East Palace next door with the letter.

The Crown Prince of the Eastern Palace has been a sensible child since he was young, and he is humble and polite.

Recently, the Crown Prince of the Eastern Palace has become more diligent and has gradually begun to participate in state affairs.

In the eyes of some people, the crown prince of the East Palace is a poor child. He shoulders the position of crown prince and has to set an example in many things.

Set a good example for your younger brothers and sisters, do not be partial to others, and do not be influenced by external things.

Even the toys that the Crown Prince of the Eastern Palace made in his spare time were taken away by the Emperor.

That is the toy that is now becoming popular in Chang'an at a very strange speed, the Rubik's Cube.

The Crown Prince had never been to the palace in Mount Li, nor had he ever enjoyed the hot springs in winter.

It is rumored that there are many books in the East Palace now, and the prince does not even have any toys to entertain himself.

He would not often get together with a few good friends to drink, because he had to teach his younger brothers and sisters in the Eastern Palace. The Crown Prince of the Eastern Palace was too busy to have time to make friends.

Near December of the seventh year of Zhenguan, Murong Shun was taken by Shangguan Yi to the second floor of an inn. The room on the second floor was very small.

There is a white cloth in front of me, stretching across the room.

Murong Shun and Shangguan Yi stood in front of the white cloth and looked at it carefully. Two figures could be seen through the light.

Shangguan Yi said: "Murong Shun is here."

The figure on the other side of the white cloth nodded. The figure sat on a chair, and another person could be seen standing next to him in the sunny direction.

"Murong Shun, from now on, we are your benefactors."

There was a voice coming from the other side of the white cloth, a woman's voice.

Murong Shun bowed and said, "What do you want, my Lord?"

Murong Shun was well trained by Shangguan Yi, and his speech and manners became more like those of a Guanzhong person.

"After noon, an envoy from the Ministry of Rites will invite you to the Honglu Temple to meet the Duke of Zhao and the Crown Prince, and your status as the King of Tuyuhun will be restored."

Murong Shun said in a daze: "I don't want to go back. Why does the Heavenly Khan want me to go back to Tuyuhun?"

"You can also stay in Chang'an City forever." The woman's voice came again.

"I am willing to stay in Chang'an City forever."

"Well, from now on, everything you do must be in accordance with your Excellency's request."

"Yes!" Murong Shun bowed.

"You said you are willing to accept the title of King of Tuyuhun and accept Fuyun's succession, but you need to stay in Chang'an City to study for the rest of your life. Now the northern grasslands, Mobei and the Turks are in a period of confrontation. You can go out of the border as a Tang envoy..."

Listening to the nobleman's instructions, Murong Shun wrote them down one by one.

After saying that, the two figures behind the white cloth left the room from another direction. From beginning to end, only one woman was speaking, while the other one remained silent.

Murong Shun had been waiting in this room. At noon, footsteps were heard from outside the room. A group of officials stood at the door and asked, "Murong Shun?"

He saluted and said, "It is me."

"Honglu Temple, please go there."

"Here."

The nobleman was right. These people came as soon as noon arrived. As long as they were not executed at noon, everything was acceptable to Murong Shun.

Tian Khan was a benevolent emperor. Even though the Tuyuhun king died, he still left his son behind.

Inside the Honglu Temple, a group of officials were eating tea eggs.

It was snowing heavily outside, and the snowflakes kept falling, making the originally quiet imperial city even quieter at this moment.

Li Chengqian came over in a hurry and said, "Don't be polite, everyone. The East Palace has quite a lot of tea eggs."

"Thank you, Your Highness."

A group of clerks expressed their gratitude.

Chang Sun Wuji sat in the upper seat and said, "Your Highness, please don't do this again in the future."

Li Chengqian handed one over and said, "Uncle, do you want to eat one too?"

"Alas..." Changsun Wuji warned, "Just allow it this time."

"Thank you for your understanding, uncle." Li Chengqian exhaled into his hands, and then rubbed his hands and ears that were about to freeze.

There was a stove right next to me. I warmed my hands first, and then used my warm hands to warm my ears.

Li Chengqian said, "Winter is here. Gao Yang and Zhi Nu both caught a cold. When I asked them to take medicine, they always ran away. Dong Gong really chased them all the way to feed them medicine."

Zhang Sun Wuji closed his eyes and said in a deep voice: "Your Highness the Crown Prince should also pay attention to the temperature."

"This is the time of your life when you are at your strongest. Besides, you have been exercising, so you shouldn't catch a cold so easily."

Changsun Wuji nodded slowly, "It's true that I haven't been sick for a long time."

"Morning jogging is actually a very good lifestyle habit. Uncle can also try it."

"Ah."

"Huh? Our new Tuyuhun King hasn't arrived yet."

After hearing the Crown Prince's question, someone immediately passed the message. The official outside the door hurried into the Honglu Temple. There was still a lot of snow on his body. He said, "People are coming."

Li Chengqian said with an unhappy look: "The East Palace was delayed for a while because of the affairs of his younger brother and sister, but I didn't expect that the Tuyuhun King would come even later. How unreasonable."

Li Baiyao put away the memorials and imperial edicts one by one. Today, the Ministry of Rites and the Honglu Temple were going to meet the new Khan of Tuyuhun.

Murong Shun was now wearing a set of cloth clothes unique to the Tang people and Tang boots. He bowed humbly to every official who passed by.

Murong Shun was led all the way to the Honglu Temple. He stood in front of the door and hesitated for a long time. He closed his eyes, took a deep breath of cold air, exhaled, and mustered up the courage to enter this Honglu Temple that looked like a bloody mouth.

Murong Shun felt that if he walked in here, his dignity and confidence as a human being would be eaten away by them, even if it meant taking out his heart, liver, spleen and lungs and giving them to them to let them know that his heart was not black.

In fact, the atmosphere in the Honglu Temple was very good. More than ten officials sat here and could chat and laugh happily, for example, talking about which family had a new baby this winter, which family got a new wife, and which family's widow finally got married.

These things are what people talk about with great relish.

Li Baiyao saw someone coming, he handed over the decree with both hands and said: "This is the decree of the Heavenly Khan. You will inherit the title of King of Tuyuhun and from now on be the western shield of the Tang Dynasty, guard Guanzhong, and obey the orders of the Heavenly Khan."

Murong Shun took the decree with both hands and said loudly: "Thank you, Khan." Also handed over to the new Tuyuhun Khan were the original Tuyuhun royal seal and the official letters of successive Tuyuhun kings.

The three words "Murong Shun" were added under the names of the ancestors of Tuyuhun.

Tian Khan was a benevolent emperor and a very responsible emperor. He even personally carried out the affairs of Tuyuhun's ancestors.

This emperor is so kind, how could he not make other countries submit to him?

Murong Shun still held the imperial edict in both hands.

Logically speaking, after completing this step, Murong Shun could go back happily and become a new Khan of Tuyuhun, and later become a vassal of the Tang Dynasty. In wars, he would rush to the front as cannon fodder, or follow behind and pick up heads.

"I have one more thing to ask of you."

Hearing this, Li Baiyao looked a little more unhappy, and many people in the Honglu Temple stopped talking.

Murong Shun said in a clear voice: "I am willing to succeed my father Khan and become the new Khan of Tuyuhun, and be the king of Tuyuhun, but I do not want to return to Tuyuhun."

The civil servants of the Tang Dynasty were not easy to mess with, and a disobedient new Khan soon attracted hostility.

Someone slammed the table and said, "What do you mean? If you don't go to Tuyuhun, where else do you want to go?"

Murong Shun closed his eyes, his body still trembling slightly, and said in a loud voice: "I studied in the Sifang Pavilion in Chang'an. I know the spirit of the Heavenly Khan and the majesty of the Tang Dynasty. Tuyuhun is like an ant. How dare it compete with the Tang Dynasty? Please help me govern Tuyuhun."

Changsun Wuji put down the pen in his hand, looked at the other party with a serious expression, and said: "Do you know that you are disobeying the order?"

Hearing the low voice of the Duke of Zhao, Murong Shun's figure trembled a little. He thought about the words in his mind, and finally remembered what Shangguan Yi and the nobles had taught him. He said again: "It is my duty as a filial minister, and I must shoulder the title of Tuyuhun Khan. I did not disobey the order."

"I am a Tuyuhun, not a Tang person. This world needs someone to sing praises to the Heavenly Khan."

"The Khan of Heaven doesn't need your praises."

Changsun Wuji refuted again.

"Some words spoken by a Tuyuhun person are more useful than those spoken by a Tang person!"

Murong Shun had used up all his courage to say these words, and he was trembling even as he stood there.

Li Baiyao placed the recorded conversation in front of Duke Zhao and whispered, "How should this matter be resolved?"

Zhang Sun Wuji narrowed his eyes and stared at Murong Shun, and said slowly: "Who taught you to say these words?"

Murong Shun swallowed hard and said, "No one taught me."

"you are lying!"

Changsun Wuji's tone became even colder.

Murong Shun suddenly knelt on the ground and prostrated himself, saying, "Please, don't let me go back to Tuyuhun. The Tuyuhun people will know that I have served the Heavenly Khan. Even if I go back, the remaining members of the tribe will kill me."

Changsun Wuji suddenly looked at the prince sitting beside him.

Cheng Qian was sitting by the stove, leaning against the wall with his hands in his pockets, his eyes closed, and his breathing was steady. He had fallen asleep without knowing when.

Then, Changsun Wuji pushed the stove to the side to avoid burning the corners of the prince's clothes or his wide sleeves.

Li Baiyao whispered, "Duke Zhao, since he has agreed to inherit the Khan's throne, it doesn't count as disobeying the order."

Looking at Murong Shun kneeling on the ground and trembling, Li Baiyao said again: "It doesn't seem like he's lying. He's just afraid of death."

Changsun Wuji shook his head in disappointment. He was disappointed that Fu Yun could have such a son.

Understanding what Duke Zhao meant, Li Baiyao said loudly, "Go to the Chang'an Inn and wait for us to discuss it."

"Here."

Murong Shun walked out of the Honglu Temple trembling with fear.

It was still snowing outside. Shangguan Yi was waiting at the gate of the imperial city. "How is it going?"

Murong Shun kept walking and replied, "According to your request, I have told you everything."

Shangguan Yi patted him on the back and said with a smile: "Very good, you will be able to live more like a human being in the future, at least more like a human being than you are now."

"Thank you, my Lord..." Murong Shun looked around, not knowing where to bow.

Shangguan Yi said to him: "People should live a meaningful life. Do you think your life is valuable?"

Murong Shun shook his head.

Shangguan Yi whispered in his ear: "From now on, your value lies in doing things. If you do things that are useful to the Tang Dynasty, you will have the value of living. As long as you have value, everyone will respect you. If you have value, no one will bully you anymore."

Murong Shun nodded heavily and said, "Well, I want to live a meaningful life."

Shangguan Yi walked in front and said with a smile: "What's so good about Tuyuhun? Once you go back, your life will be like that."

Murong Shun said: "I want to gain their respect, live a valuable life, and live like a human being."

In the Honglu Temple, when Li Chengqian woke up, there were still many people discussing things here.

After looking around, someone asked, "What should we do?"

"Yeah, it's just causing more trouble."

……

Beside him, Li Baiyao nodded every time Changsun Wuji spoke.

After saying this, seeing that his nephew beside him had woken up, Changsun Wuji asked seriously, "Didn't you get enough rest last night?"

Li Chengqian said: "I have learned a skill."

"What ability?"

"I can tell stories from dusk till dawn."

Chang Sun Wuji smiled and said, "So Your Highness has been telling stories all night?"

Li Chengqian stood up and patted his clothes. When the stove was burning, some ashes fell on his clothes. After patting them off carefully and shaking them off, he felt much more energetic.

"I can't help it. My younger brothers and sisters are too energetic. If I don't tell them stories to kill their energy, they won't want to sleep at all. I need to add some physical education classes in the future."

The officials in the hall also looked at the prince. The prince of the Eastern Palace seemed to have grown much taller.

It feels like I was a child yesterday and now I have grown so tall overnight.

Chang Sun Wuji packed up the files in front of him, held them in his hands and said, "Let's go."

Li Chengqian blinked innocently and asked, "Where are you going?"

"Something has changed. Go see His Majesty."

Li Baiyao led the officials from the Ministry of Rites and the Honglu Temple and stood in front of the official residence to bid farewell to the Crown Prince and Duke Zhao.

The uncle and nephew walked in the wind and snow, and their steps were not fast.

It’s just that the wind and snow were very strong today, and it didn’t take long before the two of them disappeared from view.

Li Chengqian said with his hands in his pockets and his neck hunched in the cold wind, "Uncle, let me get it."

Zhang Sun Wuji handed a portion of the files to his nephew and said, "The road is slippery, walk slowly."

(End of this chapter)