After an autumn rain, the weather became a bit chilly.
Li Mao, the gatekeeper of the East City Gate, walked down the city gate, but instead of riding his horse home as usual, he changed out of his official robes, put on homely clothes, and rode his horse out of the city.
There were many pedestrians on the road, but as we got further and further away from the city gate, the number of people not only did not decrease but also increased. The hustle and bustle ahead was like a grass market with constant hawking sounds.
"Why is there a grass market here? It's not far or close to the city, not to mention there is a grass market three miles to the west."
There were quite a few passers-by who asked questions, both curious and puzzled.
"There is no Maoyuan Mountain Tomb three miles to the west." Someone explained.
These words surprised the passerby even more.
Not only was there a grass market, it was also in front of a tomb!
Are living people now so unafraid of the dead?
Before he was surprised, he heard crying and mournful cries from the side.
He turned around and saw an older man beating his chest and crying loudly in front of a fenced tomb over there.
"Going to the grave?" he couldn't help but said in a daze.
"No, another one who is dumbfounded by the words." The waiter setting up a stall next to him said with a familiar look on his face.
Reading words?
The passerby turned to look at the crying man again, and saw that the crying man was wearing a long robe and was obviously dressed as a scholar.
"Sir, I have good pens, inks, paper and inkstones here, and a newly-cut five-person copybook, but I personally cut it from the tombstone..." Seeing that the passers-by were looking at them seriously, the waiter greeted them loudly, "... follow them from here.
The way other people turn it over is different."
The passers-by still didn’t understand, and others nearby stopped doing it.
"…. Stop bragging. Now that the tombstone is surrounded and guarded, no one is allowed to get close to it. How did you remove it…"
"...You can't compare to this. My third uncle's grandson's aunt's son's brother-in-law works as an errand in Taiping Residence and asked for permission from his employer..."
“…..Pull your mother’s balls…”
Seeing the scolding coming, the passers-by became more and more confused. They forgot to urge their horses and looked at the old scholar over there who was still beating his chest.
"...I have lived for such a long time, studied the best of many schools, and boasted that I have achieved success in calligraphy. But when I heard that everyone said that the second running script in the world came out after Lanting, I still don't accept it..." The old scholar was crying all the time.
explain.
However, these words are nothing new to the people around them. Not only do they hear it every day, but they also say it themselves, and they all just look at the tombstones, mesmerized.
But there are also many spectators who never tire of the gaffes of these scholars and literati.
"Then are you crying because you feel ashamed of yourself?" someone asked.
"It's natural to feel ashamed of oneself, but I cried because I felt sad when I saw it." The old scholar said with tears, "The most sincere feeling is that I lament the impermanence of the world and feel sad and angry. My heart is in the book. The book is the human soul. It is a book but not a book. It is
Words are not words.”
A lot of people watching this crazy talk have heard it, some are laughing and some are confused.
As soon as the old scholar here finished speaking, a scholar sitting on the floor over there clapped his hands and jumped up with a sound.
"I understand, I understand." He shouted loudly, dancing with joy, "It's a book but not a book, it's a word but not a word. It's really wonderful to forget both hands and palms."
After he said that, he laughed and stumbled away.
The onlookers shook their heads.
"Another enlightenment."
"Maybe another one went crazy."
Everyone was talking a lot.
Li Mao stepped aside, looked at the scholar who was running away like crazy, and stepped forward hesitantly.
"Don't come near, don't come near." Two tombkeepers yelled in front of the tomb.
Li Mao stopped and someone recognized him.
"General Li, are you also obsessed with this word?" shouted a waiter at the stall.
The sound of General Li made everyone around him look over. As a gate officer, although most of the businessmen coming in and out did not recognize him, they looked familiar to him, and they were all surprised for a moment.
"It turns out that General Li also likes this."
"..If you don't want to be a general, why don't you become a scholar?"
"What kind of future is there to be a general? The future is to be a serious military official..."
"I'm probably not here to read the words. I'm probably here to smell the wine."
"Now the tomb is surrounded by these scholars. Not to mention smelling the smell of alcohol, even making loud noises here makes them dissatisfied..."
"These scholars are also annoying. If you can let them read, why can't others smell the wine?"
"Haha, Liu Si, you want to use the money to sell wine here."
There was a lot of discussion and noise at the scene. Li Mao was a little embarrassed and turned around and left. When he returned home on horseback, he was called over by his father.
As the bastard in the family, he has a bad temper and is not as eloquent as his other brothers. He cannot play in the outfield. As for craftsmanship, the secret recipe of Li's fireworks can only be passed down to the eldest son, so he can't be a laborer.
.
Therefore, it is difficult to achieve high or low. Fortunately, his father found an opportunity to donate some money to help him find a career in the military. He also wanted to make the family more reliable, but at present, it seems impossible to expect him to make any achievements.
"I heard that you often go to the workshop?" Father Li said straight to the point with a stern face, "You also mixed the formula privately. What do you want to do?"
"I, I just want to try..." Li Mao hesitated and said.
"Try? What are you trying?" Li's father yelled, taking a few pictures, "Since I have become your general, I will be your general wholeheartedly. Are you able to take care of the workshop's affairs?"
"Father, do you still remember the fireworks that day at Maoyuan Mountain? But they were much better than the ones at our house. My child just wanted to..." Li Mao said hurriedly.
Li's father looked at him coldly, and Li Mao's words were muted.
"You really have enough to think about." He said, "How many times have I told you that you don't need to think too much about family matters. Just think about how to get promoted. It has been many years since I was promoted earlier than you."
I have been promoted, and those who are younger than you have also been promoted. Is it possible that you, the only one, will be a gatekeeper for the rest of your life?"
Li Mao lowered his head and stopped talking, letting his father scold him.
"You have thought of this, don't we all think of it?" Li's father said again, looking at Li Mao with a hint of warning, "You have to do your duty as a human being."
Just as Li Maocai was about to lower his head and answer, he felt the ground shake, and at the same time there was a violent noise and commotion not far away. People inside the house hurriedly came out and looked to the west, and saw thick smoke rising over a house.
That is the direction of the Li family's warehouse.
"Oops."
The expressions of Father Li and Li Mao changed.
"You don't have to think about how to get promoted." Father Li looked at Li Mao, his face livid, "Think about how to apologize!"
The din of gongs and drums in the streets shocked the entire capital.
Gao Lingbo, who had just returned home, was also shocked.
"Is it on fire?" he asked, looking up and seeing thick black smoke rising from the west.
As if he was worried about something, he stood in the courtyard and stopped walking.
"Don't worry, sir, our place won't be burned," Qin Sui said hurriedly.
Gao Lingbo squinted his eyes.
"The fire started so suddenly, I'm afraid your majesty, queen mother and ladies will be frightened," he said.
Gao Lingbo's idea was right. There was a fire in the capital and he was quickly reported to the palace.
The emperor, who had just finished his political duties and was about to take a break, was startled and stood up again.
It is not uncommon for the capital to catch fire, but it is fatal every time. The last time a concubine in a family burned down half a street in order to hide a few coins was not long ago.
"Your Majesty, don't worry. We have been rescued. There are not many casualties." The servants said hurriedly.
The emperor didn't believe what they said. The fire hadn't been extinguished yet, so he didn't know what the casualties were. These servants were getting more and more stupid and couldn't comfort anyone.
He simply walked out of the palace and went to the highest palace in the palace to look into the city. He saw that the Queen Mother and her concubines were also there.
"I heard it was the Li family's fireworks that exploded?" the Queen Mother asked.
Naturally, the people from the Imperial City Department had already asked for information, and there was nothing to hide. The emperor nodded.
"I told you that those things were not good, how could you keep them at home? How many people would have been killed," the Queen Mother said repeatedly, clasping her hands and chanting Buddha's name.
"I didn't leave it at home in the past." The emperor said, "The soldiers and horses from the five cities are investigating what exactly happened."
"The crime must be punished," the Queen Mother said.
The emperor nodded.
Everyone stopped talking and looked outside the city. Fortunately, the fire gradually subsided and the smoke became lighter. At this time, more detailed information was also reported.
"It's an urgent matter. I brought him in to report. His Majesty the Queen answered everything in detail." said the man from the Imperial City Department, pointing to the officials from the Five Cities Soldiers and Horses Department who were following him.
No one is allowed to enter the harem unless summoned.
The emperor nodded.
"..The Li family said they were very careful in the past and their shops were all outside the city. Today, a member of the family was unscrupulous and illegally purchased ingredients. The family confronted them and questioned them. As a result, they blew themselves up and ignited the piles of wood, paper and other items in the family store before burning them.
Get up, the boy has been tied up and is about to be punished," the official said.
Just as he was talking, the King of Jin'an County hurried over there with his servants.
"What happened to your Majesty?" he asked hurriedly.
"Wei Lang." Seeing him hurriedly reaching out to hold him, the Queen Mother whispered, "The Ai family is about to send someone to call you..."
As soon as these words came out, the expression of Prince Jin'an changed. Before he could turn his head, there were screams from behind, and the sharp cries of children also rang out. Along with the screams of the palace people, half of the palace was torn apart.
.
Everyone was stunned, and Prince Jin'an ran back.
"It's the little princess!" A concubine immediately recognized her child's voice and ran after her, regardless of her indecency.
The official who was replying was naturally stunned. It was the person from the Imperial City Department who came to his senses first. How could he reveal the affairs of the harem to others? He quickly pulled the official away and left.
You can be curious about other things, but the officials were not curious at all about the harem. When they came to their senses, they immediately turned around, but it was still a step too late. A palace official ran towards him in a panic, holding two little princesses in his arms.
Weeping loudly, one of them seemed to have fainted, the palace people screamed and cried, and there was a strange scream behind them, and a pair of raised hands could be seen through the gap between the running people.
That is the former second prince and now Prince Qing, who has not appeared in public for two years.
The official thought blankly, looking at the figure getting closer and closer, with a plump body, a grinning mouth and a face shining in the sun.
"….The princess fainted from fright…"
"….My dear, my dear, I want to find my dear..."
"...Shuning, Shuning, what's wrong with you?"
"...Call the imperial doctor quickly, call the imperial doctor quickly..."
Prince Jin'an passed through the noisy screams and cries and stood next to Prince Qing, who was dancing more and more excitedly because of the crowd.
"Hurry and hold him down!"
The Queen Mother's voice came from the front.
"Tie him up! Tie him up!"
Prince Jin'an looked up and saw the Queen Mother who was shocked and unable to conceal her anger, and the Emperor who finally cast his concerned eyes on the princess who was being hugged by the concubines. He closed his eyes slightly, turned around and hugged her hard.
King Qing still wanted to run.
The unprecedented force pinned Prince Qing to the spot. The sudden pain of being restrained and squeezing made Prince Qing scream loudly.
"Don't be afraid, sixth brother, I won't let others humiliate you."
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Two updates today, sorry for keeping everyone waiting. (To be continued)
