On the day of the ambush in August, the weather in Chang'an City was still as hot as steamed buns in a steamer.
Rich families luxuriously knocked a few ice cubes saved from last winter from the ice cellar, put them into sour plum soup and drank it in one gulp, keeping the ice from head to stomach to get a short-term coolness.
The common people are not so lucky. They are still sweating profusely walking on the streets of Chang'an, busy working for their own livelihood.
On the day of the ambush, the wife of Duke Du Zhenglun of Xiangyang County booked Qujiang Garden and invited the ladies of Chang'an City to visit the garden to escape the summer heat. By the way, they gathered the ladies together to chat about the recent gossip in Chang'an City and criticize their husbands and husbands.
Children.
The sun is shining and women are having a meeting.
Cui, the wife of Li Siwen, the second son of the British Duke, was also invited to attend the meeting happily.
Ms. Li Cui did not go to the meeting empty-handed, but was well prepared. She brought dozens of small porcelain bottles, which were filled with facial masks made by her son Li Qinzai.
After getting her son's secret recipe, Li Cui ran to the village outside the city without stopping, and resolutely selected an open space and built two simple handicraft workshops on the ground.
Raw materials are continuously fed into the workshop, and bottles of finished products are produced. Facial masks have no technical content at all. The raw materials are ground into powder, and the lotus root powder is mixed into it.
Mrs. Li Cui was extremely satisfied. The only thing she was not satisfied with was the name of the mask.
The facial mask sounds like the urine of an animal, and there is no poetry or elegance at all.
Mrs. Li Cui was born in an aristocratic family, so she naturally read poetry and books intensively. She could not expect her son to be named, so Mrs. Li Cui personally changed the name of the facial mask.
She wrote the three words "Zhu Yan Gao" in small regular script with a brush, and ordered the craftsmen to burn the porcelain vase overnight, and burn the three words she inscribed on the porcelain vase.
The name is very fantasy. If it were in an online novel, this thing would probably appear at an auction in the world of cultivation, and it would be at the level of hors d'oeuvres. Anyone who knows anything knows that the real treasure is behind...
Mrs. Li Cui brought dozens of bottles of beauty cream and looked down at the ladies at a gathering of ladies in Chang'an.
The status of a British duke is the first among the powerful circles of Chang'an, except for royal family members.
So Li Cui took the C position without hesitation.
While the ladies were chatting in small groups, Mrs. Li Cui ordered her servants to place dozens of porcelain vases on the table, which immediately attracted the attention of all the ladies.
"My son Qinzai created it, it's called 'Yan-Zhuan Cream'. Long-term application can keep youth forever. I have personally tried it with Zhuanmei Cardamom. Come closer and take a look at my face. Is it any different from before?"<
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The ladies came closer and exclaimed.
It has to be said that after Li Cui applied the mask, it was somewhat effective. The wrinkles were much lighter than before, and the skin on her face looked quite supple.
The curative effect speaks for itself. After the ladies were stunned, the scene immediately became heated.
Facing the anxious and even crazy looks of all the ladies, Mrs. Li Cui said proudly: "I only used it for three days, and the skin on my face became much firmer and smoother. If I can keep using it for a month or a year, you will too."
Just like me, my appearance will always stay at this age."
Like a proud peacock, Mrs. Li Cui glanced at her and said calmly: "You are all noble ladies. No matter how affectionate you are with your husband, it is inevitable that the doggy man will go out to look for flowers. Just because we think our youth has passed away and we are old and yellow.
If you use the beauty cream created by my son, hum..."
The eyes of the ladies are getting brighter and brighter.
Everyone here is the head wife of a high-ranking and powerful family. Although the head wife has the status, she often gets the least favor from her husband. No matter at home or outside, there are countless young and charming bitches who are eager to take away the favor of men at any time.
.
If there really is a beauty cream that can last forever, then...
The ladies are going crazy.
"I want it! I want as much as I want!" the head wife of Xiangyang County Lord, the host of the garden party, said excitedly.
The other ladies suddenly came to their senses and excitedly surrounded Ms. Li Cui.
Mrs. Li Cui said calmly: "My workshop doesn't make much. Today, everyone will be given a bottle. You can take it home and try it. If you think what I said is true, please support me in the future."
Dozens of bottles of beauty cream were sold out in an instant.
Early the next morning, ladies of all sizes in Chang'an City suddenly and inexplicably took the initiative to visit the British government.
Some of them came by themselves in carriages, and some of them invited their husbands to accompany them.
After the ladies entered the Li family's door, they left their husbands alone and went straight into the Li family's backyard.
It didn't take long for the ladies to say goodbye and leave with happy faces.
In the city of Chang'an, something called "Zhuyan Cream" quietly emerged in the circle of noble ladies, and gradually became popular throughout the city. Even the Tai Chi Palace heard about it.
On a quiet and hot afternoon, a eunuch from the Ministry of Internal Affairs walked into the Tai Chi Palace holding a bottle of beauty cream in both hands and presented it to Empress Wu.
…………
Qingzhou, Qinghe Cui family.
The Cui family is one of the seven clans and five surnames in the world.
The Qinghe Cui family's clan is located in Wucheng County. During the Western Han Dynasty, Wucheng County was subordinate to Qinghe County, so everyone called it "Qinghe Cui family". This family has a history of thousands of years and is an authentic aristocratic family.
Dynasties changed, time passed, and the Cui clan in Qinghe reproduced for thousands of years, so there were many branches in these thousands of years. For example, "Qinghe big house", "Qinghe small house", "Qinghe Qingzhou house" and so on.
Cui Linqian is the owner of Cui’s Qingzhou House.
Cui Linqian is a descendant of Cui Ji, the prefect of Mount Tai during the Northern and Southern Dynasties. After Cui Ji moved to Qingzhou to become an official, the Qingzhou Cui family lineage was passed down.
As the current head of the Cui family in Qingzhou, Cui Linqian's official position is not very big. He is the governor of Qingzhou Prefecture, and also has the false title of "Duzhi Shilang".
People from aristocratic families, even contemporary family heads, may not be able to become high officials in the court. There are many reasons why.
After Li Zhi ascended the throne, he deeply felt the threat of the aristocratic family to the imperial power. From the beginning of his ascension to the throne, he deliberately suppressed and weakened the power of the aristocratic family, and would not rashly re-employ the children of the aristocratic family.
However, the relationship between the imperial court and the aristocratic family is very complicated. It must be defended and utilized. The two often compete with each other, which has resulted in the delicate balance situation today.
Li Zhi probably doesn't have a good image in the eyes of the aristocratic family. Anyway, he just likes the way you can't stand me and can't kill me.
Cui Linqian is the head of a powerful family. No matter how small his position is, others don't dare to look down upon him. Not only do they not dare to look down upon him, they also want to hold him high.
About four years ago, Cui Linqian made a marriage arrangement with the British Duke Li family of Chang'an.
Cui Linqian's youngest daughter Cui Jie is betrothed to Li Qinzai, the fifth young master of the British government.
In the year of the engagement, Li Qinzai was sixteen and Cui Jie was fourteen.
The two of them were too young at that time and were undoubtedly unable to get married.
During the Tang Dynasty, there were many knowledgeable people in both the government and the public. They knew that women should not get married too early.
The bodies of women aged thirteen or fourteen are not mature and cannot bear the pain of childbirth. If early marriage becomes common, it will inevitably have a negative impact on the population policy of the Tang Dynasty.
Therefore, whether in the royal court or among the people, there is usually an unwritten rule that a woman must wait until she is twenty-eight years old before getting married.
It doesn’t matter if you’re a man, I’ll let you into the bridal chamber even if you’re eight years old.
The marriage between Li and Cui was settled, and the elders of both parties originally agreed that they would officially get married two years later.
However, something unexpected happened, and in the second year after the marriage was arranged, Cui Linqian's first wife and Cui Jie's mother died of illness.
In ancient times, when a direct elder passed away, the children must observe filial piety. This is an ironclad rule.
The filial piety period usually lasts for three years. During these three years, children are not allowed to dance or play music at home, they are not allowed to drink or have sex, or they are not allowed to hold happy events.
As a result, the marriage between Li Qinzai and Cui Jie was delayed. Both the Li family and the Cui family were waiting for Cui Jie to complete the three-year period of filial piety.
To this day, Cui Jie has fulfilled her filial piety period.
In other words, the marriage between the Li family and the Cui family should be put on the agenda.