At this moment, Liu Hongji also saw the old man, and immediately walked forward to meet him. He stood with his hands on his heart, took a step forward, raised his fists to the level of his eyebrows, bowed twice, and then extended his arms to the level of his eyebrows.
Withdrawing the touch of his forehead, he bowed a third time and said: "Junior Hongji pays homage to Shibo!" Finally, he touched his heart with his hand, took a step back, and looked at the other person's face. (Note 9)
The person who came here had a straight face and straight body. He first accepted his big bow, then put his hands on his heart, hugged his chest, bowed slightly, and replied with a smile: "I have been looking forward to your arrival every day since I was ordered to collect food.
, I will take care of you and return home safely, so that you can give an account to your father. I didn’t expect that you would be late!”
"My nephew is thinking that during this Eastern Expedition, the army will definitely lack good horses, so he went to the outside of the Great Wall. I was delayed for a while on the way. I hope that I will forgive you!" Liu Hongji smiled and added in a low voice.
"It's great that you can come, why bother to take the risk of going to the bitter cold place outside the Great Wall!" Li Yuan reached out and patted Liu Hongji on the shoulder, sighing: "When we parted, you only reached my forehead, but now you are much taller than me.
There are many. The right way is that new branches sprout from the side of an old tree, and the rotation of old and new branches is the way of heaven. It is impossible not to be convinced. Who is the strong man who came with you? Can you introduce me to him?" (Note 10)
"It's a friend my nephew made on the road. His surname is Li Mingxu and his given name is Zhongjian." Liu Hongji replied with a smile, turned around and waved to Li Xu, and ordered in a low voice: "Zhongjian, please see Mr. Tang as soon as possible."
Li Xu had long deduced from the exchange of greetings between Liu Hongji and the old man that this person must be Tang Gong Li Yuan. Only people who were one generation higher than Liu Hongji would bow to each other, and only the other party was qualified to use the bow.
Ping Yi, who is one level lower than Da Yi, is even worse. However, since he was a child, he has never seen such a prominent official, so he was flustered for a moment. He didn't know how to meet each other without being rude, so he had to stay in a daze.
Standing aside.
Hearing Liu Hongji's call at this moment, Li Xu knew that he could not hide, so he stepped forward and bowed, saying: "Li Zhongjian has met Mr. Tang in the upper valley. I wish Mr. Tang good health!"
Tang Gong Li Yuan turned sideways and clasped his fists in return. Then he looked Li Xu up and down and asked with a smile: "Are you from the Li family in Shanggu? Do you have any connection with General Han Fei?"
"Going back to Tang Gong, according to the top genealogy, the younger generation should be the 24th generation great-great-grandson of the Flying General." Li Xu thought for a while and replied in a low voice. His voice sounded a little hoarse due to his excessive nervousness, and there was a faint faint feeling on his forehead.
Sweating profusely.
"Wrong, wrong!" Tang Gong Li Yuan smiled and shook his head.
Hearing this, everyone looked at each other in shock. Just as they didn't know where the mistake was, they heard Li Yuan laugh and add: "Boy, you shouldn't come to see me with ordinary courtesy. You and I are from the same clan. According to seniority, you and Jiancheng,
All people should be brothers!"
"Don't pay your respects to Shibo yet!" Liu Hongji gave Li Xu a hard push on the back and ordered.
At this time, even a fool could hear the closeness in Li Yuan's words. Li Xu smiled awkwardly, took a step forward, and met Li Yuan again with the courtesy of a junior like Liu Hongji, and apologized:
"This junior is so confused that he doesn't know that an elder from the same clan is standing in front of him. I hope Shi Bo will forgive me!"
Li Yuan no longer avoided this time. He stood up straight and accepted this great gift. He bowed and bowed in return, and said with a smile: "You don't know that we are from the same clan, so what's the crime? Since you are the nephew of the younger generation, from now on,
If you need anything, just tell me!"
"Shibo has something to say, how dare I disrespect my order!" Li Xu bowed again and thanked the senior for taking care of him. The two smiled and recounted a few lines of genealogy, and soon made it clear about each other's seniority. According to the genealogy, Tang Gong Li Yuan is the seventh-generation grandson of the former Liang Emperor Li Hao, and the Liang Emperor Li Hao is the sixteenth-generation direct descendant of Li Guang. Therefore, Li Yuan is the twenty-second generation descendant of Li Guang. When it was built, the people of the world were two Thirteenth generation, exactly the same generation as Li Xu.
After narrating the genealogy, Li Yuan was greatly relieved. He took Li Xu's hand and asked with a smile: "I never thought that since the Han Dynasty, my descendants of the Li family would be able to reproduce such a superb shot. Which hero did you learn from? Can you talk to me about it?" Tell me?"
"This junior learned archery randomly and was taught by three or four people!" Li Xu smiled sarcastically and replied in a low voice. In an instant, he changed from a commoner to a junior of Tang Gong Li Yuan, which made him feel very uncomfortable. Adaptation. From head to toe, every pore on my body feels numb, and my legs feel as heavy as lead.
"The first person to teach the younger generation the art of archery is surnamed Sun, taboo Anzu!" Thinking of Sun Jiu, who treated him like his own nephew, Li Xu felt a warmth surge in his heart. In a hurry, he didn't notice that Li Yuan, Jiancheng Er The people's brows furrowed slightly, obviously this name had given them a great shock.
"The second person to teach the juniors the art of archery is a hero from the Xi tribe, named Asilan. The third teacher is a coppersmith who lives outside the Great Wall from the south of the Yangtze River. His surname is Wang, and he has never told the juniors his name. It's not easy for juniors to ask questions!" Li Xu looked at Tang Gong's inquiring eyes and added nonchalantly. He didn't know the name of the coppersmith master who taught him the most about martial arts. Anyone who heard this topic would think it was a big joke. .
"If your surname is Wang, you must come from the Wang family in the south of the Yangtze River. You are from a well-known family, no wonder you can reproduce the magical skills of your ancestors!" Li Yuan smiled and summarized for the other party. Just now he frowned when he heard the three words "Sun Anzu" and whispered quietly It flattened out.
"Tang Gong has given you the prize. It was just the second round of arrow competition, and the junior has already lost to the second young master!" Li Xu shook his head and answered modestly.
This sentence made Li Yuan shake his head, "Don't be too modest. I was here first and has been watching you from a distance. After the first round of shooting, Shimin has already lost. If he knew himself, how could he dare to follow you?" Better than the second round!”
Although it is the family tradition of the Li family to suppress oneself and promote others, this sentence is too modest. Not only did Li Xu dare not even say Jiancheng, Shimin and Wan'er raised their heads with dissatisfaction on their faces. Especially Li Shimin, who was young. He was very competitive, and his eyes were blazing with anger. If the person making this judgment was not his father, I guess the little guy would have rushed to argue with him.
"You are dissatisfied, aren't you?" Li Yuan looked at Shimin's face and asked with a smile.
"My son is convinced after losing in the third round. This jade should belong to brother Zhongjian." Li Shimin ran to Jiancheng, picked up the jade as a bet, and replied loudly. "In the second round, brother Zhongjian intended to give in, and my son also knew it. I lost. But in the first round, he and I both hit the target..."
"We each have a draw and a win, so it should be a draw!" Li Xu quickly waved his hands, saying that he did not dare to accept the beautiful jade that Li Shimin lost to him. Before he finished speaking, he heard Tang Gong say again: "But on the surface, it is true. You go and take it. Bring me the target and let my father tell you why you lost in the first round!"
Before Li Shimin could take action, a servant ran up and carried the target back for him. Li Yuan lovingly touched his son's forehead, bowed down, pointed at the arrow hole on the target, and asked in a low voice: "In the first round, you shoot the arrow.
I aimed forward for about three breaths, but Zhongjian raised his hand and shot immediately. I don't know if my father is right or not?"
"That's true!" Li Shimin thought for a moment and replied in a low voice.
"If the two armies meet and you two are enemies, what will be the result of this shot?" Li Yuan asked Shimin with a smile.
Li Shimin's little face immediately turned red, and after hesitating for a moment, he finally admitted that his father was right, nodded, and said in a voice as thin as a gnat: "My arrow hasn't even been shot yet, Brother Zhong Jian has already taken my arrow with one arrow."
life!"
As soon as these words came out, Li Xu was also surprised. When he learned to shoot, he was taught by others and shot by himself. If he couldn't do it, he would practice hard. He never thought about the meaning of "drawing the bow and shooting". Listen.
After reading Li Yuan's teachings to his son, I realized that there are so many ways in it. Thinking of this, I couldn't help but steal a few glances at Mr. Tang. The more I looked at him, the more I felt that this man had a treacherous mind.
"The second arrow, your arrow was blown away by the wind after it was released, and Zhongjian looked up at the branches before raising the bow!" Li Yuan continued to summarize with a smile.
"No wonder Brother Zhongjian's arrows are not affected by the wind!" Li Shimin suddenly realized and added happily. The expression of frustration on his face because he was judged to have failed disappeared in an instant, and was replaced by surprise after hearing the news.
"The situation on the battlefield is ever-changing, and any slight mistake can be fatal!" Li Yuan is a very qualified father, who is good at teaching his studious son. He pointed to the arrows still on the target and ordered with a smile: "You put the two arrows
If you pull them all out, you will know how far apart their shooting skills are from Zhong Jian!"
Li Shimin followed his father's order and stretched out his hand to pull out the arrow. The arrow he missed missed the target with a slight pull. Li Xu finally hit the target with the arrow, but he pulled it again and again, shaking it again, until the tip of the arrow was broken.
, so I reluctantly pulled it out.
"If we are one hundred and twenty steps away, both of us are wearing heavy armor. If you shoot this arrow, it will only scratch Zhong Jian's itch. But Zhong Jian's arrow will be enough to knock you off your horse!"
"Son, learn from me!" Li Shimin stood up and bowed respectfully to his father. Then he held the jade in both hands and raised it in front of Li Xu: "Brother Zhongjian's shooting skills are much better than mine. I am convinced that I lost!"
"
"I am older than you, and my natural strength is greater than yours. I don't understand the other details myself. So, we are still a draw!" Li Xu replied with a smile, still refusing to accept the lottery offered by the other party.
While the two parties were exchanging their thanks, Liu Hongji, who was standing nearby and watching the excitement, suddenly clapped his hands and interjected loudly, "In my opinion, the one who really deserves this jade should be Mr. Tang!"
Everyone looked sideways when they heard the sound, and then heard Liu Hongji add with a smile: "The people of the world don't know the principle and can't do it, so they will naturally be considered defeated. Zhongjian can do it but don't know the reason, so he can't be considered to have won the game. On the contrary, Shibo
These words have greatly benefited the younger generation. Therefore, of course this jade should belong to Shibo. In the future, when our archery skills surpass Shibo, it will not be too late to win it back!"
After hearing this, everyone applauded. Li Shimin immediately brought the beautiful jade and presented it to his father. Before Tang Gong could refuse, he heard Liu Hongji say with a smile: "Back then, my father mentioned the incident of Shibo shooting the peacock's eye with an arrow.
The younger generation thought it was just a rumor, but after listening to Shibo’s talk about arrows today, I am sure it is true!"
One sentence attracted everyone's attention again. Li Waner was the most impatient and immediately pulled Liu Hongji's sleeve and asked him to tell his father's story. Liu Hongji glanced at Li Yuan and saw that he was not displeased.
With a smile on his face, he said: "That's the story of Shibo going to his aunt's house to propose marriage twenty-eight years ago..."
At that time, Dou Yi's family, a prominent family in the Sui Dynasty, had hundreds of young men coming to choose their son-in-law. Each of them came from a wealthy and prestigious family, and his family background and character were among the best. In order to show that he was fair, Dou Yi ordered two people to carry him.
Fan the peacock screen and go to the yard, ask the young men to shoot arrows at the peacocks, and agree that the one with the best archery skills will be his son-in-law. As soon as he finished speaking, Li Yuan stepped out from the crowd and fired two arrows in a row, each of which hit the peacock once. The young men thought they were inferior.
, did not dare to shoot again. So, Li Dou and his family became friends of Qin and Jin.
"That happened many years ago!" Tang Gong Li Yuan listened to his own youthful past as if listening to other people's legends. The cunning old man Dou, the colorful screen, all the young men in their prime like the nephews and nephews in front of him.
Was it sixteen or seventeen? I don’t seem to remember. I vaguely remember that when I raised my bow, there was a ray of concern behind the window screen in the distance...
That Yingying glance is enough to make him go through all the troubles in the world. (To be continued)
