"Mr. Zhao, I'm afraid I will forget my words later..."
In a certain large tent, a young boy's immature voice suddenly sounded.
"It's okay, I'm here."
It was the voice of a young man, gentle and steady, calm and unfazed.
"Um."
The air was quiet for a while.
"Mr. Zhao."
The young man couldn't help but call out again.
"Um?"
The tone was hesitant, "What if...I mean what if, if I temporarily forget a certain link or do it poorly, will it make your and Mr. Gu's success fall short?"
The young man's voice gradually became lower.
"Sir, it's not that I didn't listen to your words and memorize them carefully and prepare them carefully. I know the process document that Mr. Sir gave me before, and I know it by heart. It's just that he just revised the new links that he gave me. I'm a little unsure... I'm afraid of the impact.
Thank you sir."
The young man chuckled.
"Nothing, don't think too much about it. Later, I will be very close to Your Majesty and follow you the whole way. I will remind Your Majesty. Moreover, some negligence will not be a problem, as long as the two most important rituals are done. And that's it.
…”
"And what, sir!"
"Moreover, all etiquette is just a formality. The most important thing is your heart. Your Majesty's sincerity will lead to success."
"Sincerely... Sir, I understand."
This is a large and quiet tent, with a young man in dragon robe and a young Confucian scholar inside. In addition, there is a simple and tall water clock in the center.
At this moment, no one spoke in the tent, it was extremely quiet, only the ticking of the water clock could be heard.
A reminder of the passage of time.
At this time, the young man in the dragon robe nodded, with a determined look on his face, and said nothing.
The young man and the young Confucian scholar stood beside the water clock, facing each other in silence.
I don't know what I'm waiting for.
The clothes the two of them wore today were different from those in the past.
The young man wears a bright yellow satin embroidered cloud and dragon court robe, with the upper and lower skirts connected, arrow sleeves... The overall bright yellow satin has two bright yellow hanging belts on the left and right. At the same time, he wears a court dress crown on his head.
The dress is meticulous, solemn and luxurious.
The young Confucian scholar wears a snow-white sacrificial robe embroidered with cloud patterns, his hair is elegantly tied up, and he has a fair and thin face and a pair of sharp sword eyes.
The temperament is clean, elegant and gentle.
At this time, there were only two people in the big tent.
Tick tock...tick tock...
The sound of water drops seemed to be infinitely amplified in my ears.
At a certain moment, Zhao Rong turned his head and whispered:
"You must remember the two things I asked you not long ago."
The little emperor was stunned, nodded vigorously, and repeated with his fingers:
"Remember, Mr. Zhao. The first thing is that before I climb to the top of the Mountain of Moon Sacrifice and prepare to repay heaven, I have to personally put a golden scroll into the hole of the thunder tree in the center of the mountain.
"
He paused and thought for a moment, and then said: "Well, it must be completed before two quarters noon, and then quickly go to the Temple of Heaven to avoid the coming thunder, and then start to complete the final ceremony at the Temple of Heaven."
Zhao Rong nodded gently, "Shan."
Li Wangque smiled, and after being encouraged, he said in a high-spirited tone:
"The second thing is to be done after the first thing."
"When I went to the Temple of Heaven to offer sacrifices, there were eleven bronze ritual vessels at the edge of the Temple of Heaven, including five bronze beans, five bronze censers, and a bronze tripod incense burner."
"The bronze beans are filled with five kinds of seasonings: sour, bitter, sweet, pungent, and salty. The bronze beans are filled with millet, yellow rice, barley, rice, and soybeans, which are grains that mean abundance. As for the bronze tripod incense burner, it is on the left most
edge."
The young man spoke clearly and repeated the arrangement of this trustworthy gentleman:
"The penultimate process of the sacrifice at the Temple of Heaven is over. I will personally throw these bronze ritual vessels, together with the food enshrined in them, into the moon pool next to them to complete the final ceremony of the Zen ceremony."
Zhao Rong smiled slightly, squinted his eyes and nodded, and asked: "Is there anything else, such as...the bronze tripod incense burner at the edge?"
"Sir, I remember what you said... Is the shape of this copper tripod incense burner simple and unsophisticated? It is round in shape, black with purple in color, and is no more than one foot high and wide, in the shape of a tripod with two ears.
Style, right? It also has a furnace cover on the top, I remember it, I could recognize it at the time."
Zhao Rong lowered his eyes and nodded.
He smiled again: "And..."
The little emperor Li Wangque said seriously:
"Sir, you also said that whether this copper tripod incense burner should be thrown into the moon pool together with other bronzes, I want to decide based on the timing. If there is any strange scene at the Zen ceremony before this last step, then I will
Push this cauldron to the Moon Altar; and if there is no abnormal movement in the whole process of enshrining Zen, then I will not push it and leave this cauldron in its place, while other bronze ritual vessels will be pushed towards it as this time.
The end of the Zen Ceremony."
The young man spoke every word, and he knew the instructions of this close gentleman by heart.
Regarding Mr. Zhao's instructions and arrangements, no matter how strange they were, he did not doubt or ask any questions and obeyed them obediently.
At this time, the young man in dragon robe looked at the young Confucian scholar with hope, hoping for praise and encouragement from this most respected gentleman.
"Sir, am I right? I should say every word."
Zhao Rong didn't say anything when he heard this, and looked at the innocent and childish face in front of him.
He pursed his lower lip and nodded: "Not bad."
The little emperor was overjoyed and raised his hand to adjust his heavy crown. Before the solemn ceremony that was about to begin, he seemed to relax a lot by being able to chat with the gentleman he liked for a while.
The air inside the tent became quiet again.
Only the sound of dripping water fell in their ears.
Just like the countdown, it is getting closer and closer to a certain predetermined time.
Zhao Rong tilted his head and looked at the young man in dragon robe who affectionately called him Mr. for a while.
One breath, two breaths...
At a certain moment, he opened his mouth and closed it again.
Keep a straight face.
This was repeated twice.
Li Wangque seemed to have noticed something unusual. He raised his head and looked at it curiously.
"One more..."
Zhao Rong still spoke.
"Whether the incense burner will be thrown into the lake in the end, you first... take a look at my face when the time comes..."
As he finished speaking, the young Confucian scholar looked away, no longer looking at the young man in dragon robe.
Li Wangque, who was taking care of his hair, was slightly stunned.
Do you act based on Mr. Zhao’s face? Well, he’s good at this! For example, he’s the best at reading the faces of Queen Mother and Sister Doujiao...
The young man nodded quickly, "Oh."
Zhao Rong kept a straight face and said nothing.
"gentlemen."
Li Wangque stared at the water clock for a while, then suddenly called out tentatively.
Zhao Rong said nothing and stared at the time on the water clock.
It's approaching the fourth quarter of the year.
Li Wangque couldn't help but said, "Sir, I want you to be my husband. I went to ask my mother, but my mother said that she mentioned this to you, but you didn't allow it."
Zhao Rong calmly looked at the tall water clock.
Li Wangque plucked up the courage and said: "I thought that maybe the queen mother asked too early. At that time, the husband had just come to Dali and didn't know Wangque. Of course he wouldn't agree casually... So I thought about it and asked again.
Are you willing to accept students now?"
Zhao Rong turned around, looked at him and said seriously:
"I still have unfinished studies, and my talents and knowledge are limited. It is difficult for me to accept this honor. After today's ceremony, I will return to the academy."
He paused, looked at the young man's expressionless face, and said solemnly:
"Your Majesty is the Emperor of Dali and the king of the world. He has many teachers who are better than me to teach him. The Queen Mother can also arrange famous teachers for your majesty...why bother with me."
Li Wangque said anxiously: "Sir, are you leaving today? Can't you stay in Dali for a few more days...Sir, what about Fairy Su? She can't let you stay either."
"I have my own arrangements."
"Sir, I don't want other gentlemen, or they can have them, but not without you."
The young man reached out to hold the sleeve of this close Confucian scholar.
Zhao Rong raised his hand, pressed down the hand of the young emperor of Dali, and frowned: "Why?"
"Because sir is different from other people. He won't take anything from me. I can feel it, and... I just feel that you are close to me, sir, and I feel safe. I don't know why. With my mother...
I don’t have much of this feeling, I just feel at ease and feel that my husband... can protect me and my mother."
Li Wangque raised his head and looked at Zhao Rong.
The latter pursed his lips.
Sometimes the young man's admiration and admiration are so unreasonable.
Whether you like someone or not is pure.
This is also something that Zhao Rong finds difficult and unbearable.
He faced his true feelings, he already had many bonds that were difficult to break away from, and he didn't want to be too involved, and he was still linked to the most dangerous imperial power in the world.
"Hey, Young Master Zhao is going to be a father. The little emperor has just lost his father and feels insecure, so Young Master Zhao has stepped in to fill the shoes. You still say you don't have the intention?"
The sword spirit of Xinhu Bell suddenly joked, it was very strange to see this guy encounter this.
So he smiled again:
"Orphans and widowed mothers, orphaned and widowed mothers, now the orphans have conquered half of the battles and have half of their feet in other people's homes. Mr. Zhao has worked hard, but the only thing missing is the widowed mother. Take more care of her and soothe her loneliness after being widowed.
Heart."
"Tsk, I will support you as your wife. This should be something that most men with the word "righteousness" in their heads do not hesitate to do. They even flock to them and covet them in their dreams. Isn't Mr. Zhao beautiful?"
I love you, you big-headed devil.
Zhao Rong ignored it and didn't want to stay in Dali and become the 'Prime Minister of Zhao', although the Dugu clan and the young emperor would definitely be happy to...well, I'm talking about a serious prime minister.
Zhao Rong frowned and suddenly took a step back.
Stay away from the young man in dragon robe.
Because in the sight of his eyes that could look at Qi, after the little emperor finished speaking these admiring words, the rich imperial dragon Qi above the young man's head suddenly violently surged.
It seemed that he was getting close to Zhao Rong, was attracted by him, and was sweeping towards him.
Zhao Rong had a vague feeling that as long as he looked inward a little and looked deeply into the evil dragons and dragon carps of the Heart Abyss, he would be able to pour a lot of this dragon energy into the Heart Abyss pond and lake.
Eat this magical dragon energy that belongs only to the emperor of the world!
At this time, the young Confucian scholar took a step back slightly.
You can't do this.
The emperor's dragon energy is very important to Li Wangque, how can he 'eat' it?
On the side, Li Wangque looked at the young Confucian scholar's movements and thought it was some kind of rejection. He lowered his hands and lowered his head slightly.
Zhao Rong was about to open his mouth, but he paused without explaining, and instead said:
"Your Majesty was born into an imperial family and should not have such feelings towards outsiders... towards anyone."
Li Wangque shook his head, "The emperor's family is also a mortal. They are afraid of cold and heat, and there are things they can't do. Just like that day when the emperor's uncle wanted to intimidate him... Just like Mr. Zhao is leaving today, how can I keep him?
It is better to be born in an ordinary family, then my mother and I will not be so tired, and I can go with my husband."
Zhao Rong did not answer, looked him in the eyes and said:
"I am harmless and useless to this Dali situation. Although my status is noble in your eyes, I am still an outsider in this Dali. Your mother knows this, so I will leave as soon as I leave without any need to hold me back."
"And you and your mother will stay here. You are the emperor of Dali, this is your territory, and there are your people. Just like what I said to you in front of the flower garden that day, and just like holding that hand, you
To protect anything, you can only rely on yourself, otherwise others will cut off their hands and hand them to you."
Hearing this, the Dragon Brand boy turned a little pale.
His body was swaying a little, as if the crown he was wearing was too heavy and too high.
Zhao Rong said calmly: "Don't worry about the outcome of the Zen Ceremony after I leave today. No matter what, it won't be too bad."
Speaking of this, he smiled and said, "Well, with Mr. Meng from our academy here, we can guarantee that this ceremony will be ordinary and silent at best. Your mother wants to hold this ceremony for you because she wants you to have
Even if you can't achieve the prestige and popular support of the late emperor, it doesn't matter, you are still the king of Dali, but there will be more gossip, and the young master is suspicious of the country, so you don't need to belittle yourself."
Li Wangque listened intently, looked at Zhao Rong intently, and nodded vigorously, "Yes!"
The young Confucian scholar suddenly took a step forward.
The crimson imperial aura that was rejected by him dispersed and made way for a way.
The young Confucian scholar walked up to the young man in dragon robe and looked directly into his stunned eyes:
"Li Wangque, I have nothing to give you as part of my farewell. I only have one word for you."
"Tolerate."
"Be patient until you grow up, be patient until your will is as strong as a mountain, be patient until you master the four emperor arts of emperor, king, domineering, and powerful, be patient until rebellious ministers grow old and die, be patient until thieves reveal their flaws..."
"Before this, doing too much will lead to many mistakes. Finally, let me tell you about Li Mingyi. I can't see through him, but one thing is that he is also very tolerant. Well, except for bullying you as an elder, this kind of person
, either a vulgar warrior who disdains the imperial power, or a big thief waiting for an opportunity, a country thief."
Zhao Rong lowered his eyes slightly, "I reminded your mother about this big thief, but she didn't know if she heard it, or did she think I was slandering her? Ha... But she should be vigilant, but your mother is still cooperating with Li Mingyi
, I want to use him to get rid of Zhou Dufu in the west..."
"Actually, I think Zhou Dufu is more suitable for cooperation than Li Mingyi. They are both martial artists, but this old martial artist looks more genuine. Well, it is true that Zhou Dufu disobeyed you mother and son. Although I don't know the reason, it may be related to
The death of the late emperor..."
"Of course, these are just my personal opinions. You can refer to them for reference. The emperor never has to obey anyone, even the most trusted teacher or the closest elder..."
"No." Li Wangque raised his head and rushed to say: "I believe Mr. Zhao!"
Zhao Rong glanced at his firm and serious expression, did not answer, but finally said seriously: "So, from now on, you have to keep an eye on Li Mingyi for your mother to prevent her from being careless. As for your mother, there may be something to hide, but
I should be sincere to you..."
The young man in dragon robe nodded silently.
It seemed like everything had been said.
There was silence in the big tent again.
The young Confucian scholar turned his head and suddenly raised his hand to help the young man in dragon robe support the cumbersome and heavy imperial crown on his head.
Focus on straightening him up.
The young man smiled suddenly, stopped moving his head randomly, did not look at him, and looked straight ahead.
Tick tock...tick tock...
Amidst the sound of water dripping, a moment that determines the fate of the country is finally coming.
In the tent, the young Confucian scholar and the dragon robe all calmed their expressions and faced the door.
The next moment, the faint bell sounded as expected.
The young emperor in dragon robe is in front, and the young Confucian scholar in a dress as white as snow is behind.
The two of them walked straight forward.
He reached out and pushed open the curtains covered with layers of ornate cloth.
Suddenly.
A burst of dazzling morning light hit them, and noises from all directions drowned the two of them like a tide.
Crash-!!
In the wasteland at the foot of Jiyue Mountain, hundreds of thousands of people gathered, ready to go.
At this time, countless eyes, mixed with expectation and awe, fell on the young Emperor Dali and a Confucian scholar in white who came out of the central tent.
The fourth quarter of the Mao hour has arrived, and the ceremony of enshrining Zen begins.