Super System in the Early Tang Dynasty

The day before Qingming Festival, the misty rain had already moistened the earth, and the greenery had begun to emerge. The fine rain and gentle wind made the whole world seem shrouded in mist, and the grime of the previous year began to be washed away at this time!

Li Xingzhi didn't go to the city. Lighting fires wasn't allowed today; it was the Cold Food Festival, a festival that had disappeared in later generations, catching Li Xingzhi completely off guard. He had originally planned to reach level ten today; he always felt that level ten would bring him new surprises from the system!

Looking at the distant mountains shrouded in mist and smelling the vitality of the earth brought by the drizzle, Li Xingzhi's somewhat depressed mood suddenly improved.

The front courtyard suddenly became lively, disrupting the tranquility. Kui Dalang and Tu Dalang arrived as if by prior arrangement, bringing sliced ​​braised dishes and sausages, adding a touch of life to the otherwise quiet and somewhat desolate courtyard, and making Li Xingzhi's heart flutter!

"Li Dalang, your courtyard is hard to find!" Tu Dalang's rough voice came, which made Li Xingzhi feel more at ease. "Why haven't you come to see me all this time? Do you look down on me now that you're living in a wealthy household?" Tu Dalang was not shy at all.

He hadn't visited his old friends for a while, which was really inexcusable, considering how much they had helped him; their friendship was undeniable. "Hehe," Li Xingzhi chuckled somewhat awkwardly, "I've been busy moving lately." Being busy was one aspect, but more importantly, having lived in high-rise apartments like those in his later life, the emotional bonds between people had become distant. Even in this world, Li Xingzhi often acted in ways similar to those of his later self.

“That’s even more inappropriate,” said Wei Da-hu, who usually had a big smile on his face. “You moved without even saying goodbye to your old friends!” Wei Da-lang didn’t realize that they had stopped calling Li Xing-zhi by his nickname since they entered the house. It wasn’t just that Li Xing-zhi was now the head of the Li family, but more importantly, the change in Li Xing-zhi’s entire demeanor made them subconsciously dare not underestimate him.

"Haha! Since Li Dalang didn't invite us, Wei Dalang and I had no choice but to swallow our pride and come to his door!"

Hearing this, Li Xingzhi felt even more ashamed. These words made it sound as if he had forgotten his old friends now that he had become successful! "Brothers, please don't say such things anymore. It was my fault. These words have really embarrassed me!" He said in a way that was neither classical nor vernacular. If Master Shi were here, he would definitely frown. However, the two men were rough and knew what Li Xingzhi looked like, so they didn't care.

"In that case, Li Dalang will have to accept the punishment!"

"I accept the punishment, I accept the punishment! There will be plenty of food and drink tonight!"

"You just need to take care of the wine, we've brought the food!" Tu Dalang said, pulling a large cloth bag from his pocket. As soon as he opened it, a fragrant aroma wafted out—it contained several large, sliced ​​intestines! "Kui Dalang, aren't you going to take your food out? Are you planning to take it home to eat?"

"Hey! I'm not as stingy as you!" Wei Dalang opened a large bag, inside which were several smaller bags. He opened them one by one, revealing several large sesame meat patties, some braised dishes, and finally, a large bag of beef in the largest cloth bag. In the Tang Dynasty, getting beef was no easy feat! However, if you had a little money and connections, getting some beef wasn't impossible. As the saying goes, "Where there's a will, there's a way." If a cow suffered some mishap, becoming lame or dying, you couldn't simply forbid people from eating it! Even so, ordinary people didn't dare to flaunt beef in public, and the government mostly turned a blind eye.

"How come I didn't know about such a good thing? Could it be from that 'Cowherd's family' again?" Before Kui Dalang could speak, he muttered to himself, "That bastard! He didn't even call me when he had something good!" Tu Dalang shouted loudly.

With two boisterous men making such a racket, the courtyard wasn't so deserted after all!

Kui Dalang appeared honest and forthright, but behind that long beard lay the face of a repressed, lecherous old man. Kui Dalang didn't utter a single word, nor did he argue. He sat on the couch, leaning back against the armrest, munching on a small piece of beef—utterly content! Li Xingzhi couldn't help but feel that Kui Dalang at this moment was more bourgeois than any of the so-called "petit bourgeois" of later generations. If he had a pot of wine with him, even the emperor might want to trade places with him!

Li Xingzhi was stunned by what he saw, but Tu Dalang started yelling loudly. Even Wei Dalang, who was not loyal, leaned against a stool and started eating, leaving Li Xingzhi dumbfounded, as his master was still standing there!

This commotion, however, dispelled the awkwardness that had arisen from not seeing each other for many days, and the relationship between the group seemed to have become even closer. It's unclear whether the two of them had arranged it on purpose!

"Hey—where's Gou Dan'er?" Kui Dalang asked, who was sitting comfortably. Gou Dan'er was always inseparable from Li Xingzhi.

"Dog Egg is still reading in the study!" Li Xingzhi replied.

"Studying is good!" Kui Dalang could no longer contain his smile. After all, he had always adored Little Dog Egg, admiring his intelligence. "Who knows, maybe one day we'll have a top scholar among our people!"

"Hehe, I don't know if he's a top scholar or not, but he can't be called Little Dog Egg anymore!" Li Xingzhi explained in detail about his trip to Wangjia Village.

"You murderous scoundrel!" Tu Dalang nearly slammed his fist on the table, his voice shaking the room. Kui Dalang already knew something about it, but his face was also grim.

At this moment, Erlang arrived. Having received instruction from Master Shi, his clothes were neat, a sachet tied around his waist, and he respectfully bowed to the two men, looking quite like a little adult. "Greetings, uncles!" he said. However, his childish voice betrayed him; he was just a little kid. If the fujoshi (female fans of BL) from later generations were here, they would surely rush over and pinch Erlang's chubby cheeks, exclaiming, "What a cute little boy!" Li Xingzhi was stunned. Although it had only been a few days, and Erlang had learned a lot from Master Shi, he was never usually this proper. Now, he did seem to be taking on some serious manners.

"Tsk tsk, which family's top scholar has come here!" Tu Dalang started teasing Erlang again, but this time he didn't pinch Xiaogou Dan's face like before. Wei Dahuzi, standing next to him, also looked at Erlang with a smile on his face.

Li Xingzhi wasn't about to let the two of them tease Erlang like that. "I've recently acquired several jars of fine wine!" Sure enough, the two of them strained their ears, ready to hear what he had to say. Seeing that Li Xingzhi wasn't making any moves, they started shouting, "Hurry up and get some fine wine to entertain him!" "Go, go!" Wei Dalang said, stuffing some more beef into his mouth.

Li Xingzhi went into the inner room, and soon came out carrying two jars of strong liquor.

At this moment, Erlang was sitting on the couch, looking rather dainty. The two strange uncles next to him started teasing the little boy, making Erlang blush and shift his body from side to side, seemingly quite uncomfortable.

"Erlang, look, you have to sit like this to be comfortable!" Tu Dalang, that wicked uncle, is teaching the children bad things again.

"But, but the Master said, sit upright." Erlang was clearly not used to their teasing. After all, he had only been studying for a few days and did not know how to conduct himself in society. He was still somewhat introverted.

When Tu Dalang saw the wine Li Xingzhi was holding, his eyes lit up, and he snatched it away without hesitation. At that moment, servants brought over small bowls, each about the size of a child's palm. Looking at the bowls, the two complained incessantly, "Li Dalang, this isn't fair! Are you afraid we'll drink all your wine?" Tu Dalang was the first to object! Li Xingzhi simply smiled, "You'll know after you drink it!" Although the small bowls weren't much, the thin walls meant they held a little over an ounce.

Li Xingzhi poured wine for the two men first, then poured one for himself. By this time, the two roughnecks couldn't wait any longer. Tu Dalang grabbed the small bowl, opened his mouth wide, and poured the entire bowl of wine into his mouth. Li Xingzhi didn't stop him, watching the spectacle with amusement. The more reserved Kui Dalang, meanwhile, stared wide-eyed at Tu Dalang.

Just as Tu Dalang poured a bowl of wine into his mouth, his face suddenly turned red, and he spat it out with a "poof!" followed by a violent cough.

As expected, he wasn't disappointed! Li Xingzhi was prepared; at that moment, a servant beside him handed him a handkerchief. Tu Dalang took it and vigorously wiped his mouth. "You little brat, you've really made me lose face today!" Tu Dalang said, somewhat exasperated.

At this moment, Wei Dalang, who seemed to have seen it all, picked up his wine bowl and began to drink. Even though he was prepared, his face still turned bright red. "What strong wine!" After swallowing all the wine, Wei Dalang turned to Li Xingzhi and asked, "What kind of wine is this? I've never heard of it before?"

"Of course you haven't heard of it, otherwise what would I need a system for?" Li Xingzhi thought to himself as he said, "This liquor is called 'Shaodaozi'!"

"What a fine spirit! It's really refreshing!" Tu Dalang, who had already come to her senses, lit up when she heard the name of the wine. When she took a sip, it felt like fire going down her throat! In the Tang Dynasty, where chivalrous heroes roamed freely, the spirit immediately captured the hearts of the two of them.

Seeing that Wei Dalang was already quite tipsy from drinking without saying a word, Li Xingzhi said, "Drink slowly, there's still plenty of wine left. When you go back, each of you take a jar."

"Big Brother is being stingy. I think three jars per person would be enough!" Although Big Brother was already tipsy, Li Xingzhi became quite animated when talking about the wine.

"No, I don't have much this time either, at most two jars."

At this moment, Tu Dalang ran out to smooth things over, saying, "Two jars it is, Kui Dalang is too greedy!" Then he said to the servant next to him, "Two jars of good wine for each person, go and prepare them."

The servants had no idea where the wine was, so Li Xingzhi came to their rescue, saying, "Don't worry, I'll get it for you after you finish drinking!"

For Li Xingzhi, this wine only costs one copper coin per jar, and the system has a considerable stock. Taking a few jars will quickly replenish the supply. The reason for the limited quantity isn't stinginess, but rather that things too easily obtained are not valued. Another important factor is that Li Xingzhi doesn't like frequently buying things from the system. Some things in the system are simply too outrageous; having too many would be difficult to explain and could easily cause trouble. Of course, he'll still do what needs to be done; he can't throw the baby out with the bathwater, can he?

The meal was over, leaving only leftovers and a mess of dishes. The two of them were slumped over the table, unable to get up.