Traveling through Du He, Li Chengqian's rebellion begins

Baihua Tower, in the lobby on the first floor.

A group of scholars wearing white and blue robes, although they did not know each other, they were fellow scholars and could chat and laugh together.

"Have you heard that the court has invited 'Drinking Scholar' Wang Ji to be the judge for this Mid-Autumn Poetry Festival?"

"What! They actually invited such a great talent out of retirement!"

The Wang Ji mentioned by this group of scholars was named Wugong and Donggaozi.

He has a carefree temperament and is a drunkard.

During the Wude period, when he was working in the Menxia Province, he was given a dou of wine every day, so he got the nickname "Doujiu Scholar".

Although Wang Ji is not very famous in history books, his nephew is a well-known poet.

Wang Bo!

This poet, the first of the Four Great Talents of the Early Tang Dynasty, is known as the best parallel prose in the world for his "Preface to the Pavilion of Prince Teng".

"The scholar who drank wine had high sentiments and great spirit, and was unrivalled at the time. His work "Wild Ambition" was even more famous throughout the world."

After a young scholar wearing a round-necked green robe with cloud patterns finished speaking, he stood up excitedly and recited.

"Looking at the east hill at dusk, I wander around without knowing where to go."

"Every tree is in autumn colours, every mountain is in sunset."

"The shepherd drives the calves back, and the hunting horses are led back."

"We looked at each other without knowing each other, and I sang a long song while thinking of picking wild vegetables."

The people in the audience listened to him recite quietly, and then burst into applause.

"it is good!"

"Brother, you are very knowledgeable!"

When the young scholar heard the cheers from the audience, a hint of pride appeared on his face, and the corners of his mouth couldn't help but curl up.

The cultural atmosphere in Chang'an is still good. There are a lot of like-minded and very supportive people.

Unlike in Liangzhou, only a few close friends can praise each other, and the common people don’t know how to appreciate it at all.

After he sat down, another big-nosed young man wearing a white robe and a fu hat also stood up and showed off his skills.

"In addition to his masterpiece "Wild Ambition", the Drunken Scholar also wrote "Happy Encounter with Mr. Wang on an Autumn Night", which is also good."

"After finishing the weeds in the north field, I return from harvesting millet in the east field."

"We meet in the full autumn moon, and the fireflies fly at night."

When he finished reciting, the people present once again responded with enthusiastic applause.

The big-nosed young man also tilted his head slightly, with an expression that looked wildly handsome and awesome.

Baihua Tower, which is full of literati and poets, has become more elegant and refined.

Not only Baihua Tower, but other places in Chang'an City are the same.

The Mid-Autumn Poetry Festival had not yet begun, but the city of Chang'an was already bustling with activity.

In this strong atmosphere, ordinary people who were originally indifferent also began to pay attention to this poetry reading.

...

Two days passed in a flash.

In Hibiscus Garden.

The venue for the poetry gathering near Qujiang Lake.

The outermost area.

Countless people filled the spacious venue, and at a glance, it was crowded with heads, with some even numbering over ten thousand people.

In front of the people, a large group of guards wearing armor and holding spears with serious faces separated the people.

Prevent them from rushing into the inner field and affecting the order on the scene.

The people, who had been waiting for a long time, began to talk about it when they saw that the poetry meeting had not yet begun.

A middle-aged man with a dark complexion said impatiently.

"Why hasn't the poetry competition started yet? It's already late noon, and the poetry competition will last for another three hours. I'm afraid it will be dark by the end of it."

Another middle-aged man with a mole at the corner of his mouth glanced at him and explained, shaking his head.

"You didn't read the notice, did you? The court specially scheduled the poetry meeting to start in the afternoon. After the poetry meeting, Your Majesty and the people will enjoy the moon together."

"Besides, the King of Wei is providing free food to everyone tonight. Why are you in such a hurry?"

Hearing his words, the faces of the people around him changed slightly, and they asked hurriedly.

"We have one too?"

The middle-aged man with a mole on the corner of his mouth said, "Nonsense, why would I come here if there's nothing to eat?"

"I heard that the King of Wei prepared food and meat for everyone, so I brought my whole family here."

wow~

When the people heard his words, they were instantly excited.

Such a golden opportunity must not be missed.

"No, I'm going to go back now and bring all the old and young in my family here!"

"I have to go back and bring my mother here too!"

"I'm going back too..."

When the people heard the good news, they were anxious and squeezed out.

Some confused people saw so many people walking out and asked out of curiosity.

After learning that there would be free meals tonight, more people joined in on the journey back.

They wanted to call everyone in the family over and have a good meal.

Infield.

There are thousands of desks on the spacious lawn, on which are placed the four treasures of the study, such as pens, ink, paper, and inkstones.

Thousands of people participating in the poetry reading were sitting cross-legged on cushions in front of the desk.

They have a huge age difference; the older one has graying beard, while the younger one still has a childish look.

Except for a few people, most people looked nervous under the watchful eyes of the crowd.

front.

Three stands of different heights were built near Qujiang Lake.

The left stand was ten feet high, where Li Tai and four people in charge of scoring sat.

Looking at so many scholars and common people participating, Li Tai's chubby face was full of pride.

He followed Fang Yiai's advice and provided free meals to the people tonight.

After tomorrow, the people of Chang'an will surely praise his virtue.

The stand on the right was 15 feet high, where third-rank officials such as Changsun Wuji, Fang Xuanling and Li Jing sat.

They were all dressed in official uniforms, their expressions were rather calm, and they did not talk to each other.

In the middle was a two-meter-high stand, where Li Shimin, Prince of Jin Li Zhi, Princesses Li Lizhi and Li Yi, and several favored concubines sat.

Li Chengqian did not come with them because he had to take over Li Shimin's duty in the palace.

Li Shimin was very excited when he saw the group of handsome scholars below and the countless onlookers around him.

He turned to look at Li Lizhi, who was pale but in good spirits with a bright smile on her face.

"Lizhi, this Mid-Autumn Poetry Festival you organized is so grand!"

“How many people are attending this poetry reading?”

Li Lizhi said with a little less energy: "Father, according to the wooden signs issued, there are a total of 1569 people participating, including 1500 civilian scholars and 69 officials."

In order to ensure fairness in scoring, wooden number plates were randomly distributed to contestants on site without leaving their names.

Of course, if the levels of poetry writing vary greatly, it doesn’t matter much even if you know who wrote the poem.

Because after these poems are scored on the spot, the Ministry of Rites will have to review them again when they return.

If the teacher who grades the papers is found to have cheated, the consequences can be serious.

Hearing that so many scholars had participated, Li Shimin said happily: "The heroes of the world are within my grasp!"

After expressing his feelings, Li Shimin said in a gentle voice: "Lizhi, thank you for your hard work in organizing this grand poetry gathering for your father."

Princess Gaoyang was unhappy when she heard what Li Shimin said.

She said coquettishly, "Father, we have made a lot of efforts for this poetry gathering. You can't just praise Sister Lizhi."

"That's right, Father is partial."

"My children have also put a lot of thought into this poetry gathering and racked their brains for it."

Princess Qinghe, Princess Baling and others all pouted and expressed dissatisfaction.

"Hahaha, you all have contributed and worked hard."

Looking at his daughters acting coquettishly, Li Shimin laughed.