Super System in the Early Tang Dynasty

Dragon Boat Festival is the worst day ever!

On the fifth day of the fifth lunar month, the yang energy rises while the yin energy declines. Insects breed and multiply, the five poisonous creatures emerge, plagues spread, and evil and wicked people hold sway!

People at that time kept medicines on hand, hanging mugwort on high, inserting calamus swords at the door, wearing pomegranate flowers on their bodies, and taking realgar orally. They also wrapped five-colored silk threads into strands and hung them on treetops, in front of doors, in courtyards, or tied them to their bodies to protect themselves and bring good fortune. These were called "longevity threads" or "life-extending threads".

On the rooftop in front of the hall, a bright and clear mirror should be placed to ward off evil spirits.

On this day, the entire city of Tanzhou was shrouded in smoke, and laughter filled the air—daughters returned gracefully, and children played games with grass. Only the pungent smell of realgar and the smoke from mugwort lingered.

Following the trend, the main gate of the Li family mansion was decorated with artemisia argyi woven into human shapes and a large bunch of garlic. Cattail leaves were trimmed into sword shapes and inserted upside down in front of the gate. Long, colorful silk threads were also wrapped together and fluttered in the wind!

The Li family members all used a soup made from mugwort, realgar, and other ingredients to scrub their bodies until they were bright red and soak in it for a good bath before emerging from the room, their faces flushed.

Li Xingzhi and his companions ate some zongzi (sticky rice dumplings), pu wine, and maltose, then each carried a small stack of small zongzi and prepared to go out.

Just then, a servant came to report that Magistrate Cui had sent someone to deliver zongzi (sticky rice dumplings).

Looking at the small, angular rice dumplings, Li Xingzhi suddenly remembered that he still had to deliver gifts to people. Just as he was about to say something, Scholar Wang stepped forward. It turned out that he had already instructed several servants to deliver gifts to Wei Dalang, Tu Dalang, and Magistrate Cui.

Seeing this, Li Xingzhi did not linger any longer. He simply had his servants pack up the zongzi and other things, while he and his entourage headed in a grand procession towards the Xiaoxiang River!

As soon as we left the city, we could already hear the deafening sound of gongs and drums!

The Dragon Boat Festival is most spectacular in Hubei province!

When Li Xingzhi and his party arrived at the riverbank, countless families had already erected colorful pavilions and tents, stretching along both banks as far as the eye could see! Inside the pavilions and tents, men and women in their finest attire were crowded together, waiting to watch the race of thousands of boats!

Several large red flags were planted at the riverbank. Li Xingzhi stood on a bamboo house adorned with colorful silk threads. Looking up, he could vaguely see a trophy archway in the distance, which, according to the people around him, marked the finish line of the competition.

They stood upstairs and didn't wait long before they saw a lot of people playing music near the big flag. Then, many boats came out of the water—flat boats with painted tails; some were simpler, probably bought by several families pooling their money; while the brightly colored ones with their heads and tails swaying were probably made by wealthy families.

Li Xingzhi overheard the people around him gossiping about which boat belonged to which family and which craftsman made it, and some even boasted to others about which boat belonged to them and how so. He could only look on with envy at Erlang's presence.

Li Xingzhi also felt a little regretful—he couldn't participate in such a grand event!

Before long, hundreds of dragon boats appeared floating on the river, all colorful and of different shapes, lined up in a row, which was truly spectacular!

"Boom-thump-thump-"

The sound of drums resounded, echoing across both banks of the Yangtze River, and could be heard clearly even inside the city of Tanzhou.

At this moment, the noisy sounds from both sides of the river seemed to have heard the order and quieted down, with everyone looking towards the place where the red flag was waving.

As soon as the third drumbeat sounded and the red flag was raised, long boats leaped out and glided forward on the somewhat crowded river surface like flashes of light!

Thousands of boats raced forward, and in an instant, the sounds of silk and bamboo instruments filled the air on both banks. Shouts rose and fell in waves, one after another, as the strong men on the boats rowed in unison.

On the river, the sounds of drums beating at the bow, boatmen's chants at the stern, and oars striking the water echoed the shouts from both banks!

Instantly, the mountains shook, the river surged, and everything in the world became excited and went wild!

Those on the river beat their drums even more powerfully, while those on the riverbanks shouted at the top of their lungs, as if trying to take this world from one peak of madness to another!

Even Wang Erlang's little face under his yellow tiger hat turned bright red with excitement, and he joined the crowd, shouting in his childish voice.

Li Xingzhi, no longer the outcast he used to be, seemed to have been driven to madness by the earth-shattering shouts, joining in the screams of those around him. The servants beside him, without any restraint, shouted at the top of their lungs!

Only then did Li Xingzhi begin to subtly integrate into this world; the corner of the glorious Tang Dynasty, hidden in the few strokes of historians' pens, began to reveal itself before him...

As the drumbeats grew increasingly rapid, two dragon boats surged ahead, heading straight for the trophy. Finally, with a resounding clang of the gong, both boats simultaneously seized the trophy, propelled forward by their momentum…

Li Xingzhi no longer cared about how the outcome would be decided; after shouting for several quarters of an hour, his voice was already hoarse and his mouth was dry.

As the music ended and the crowd dispersed, the dragon boat race came to a close with the sound of the gong. Only the victors remained jubilant, while the others strolled back in small groups, chatting about the day's events, eagerly awaiting tomorrow's race.

Li Xingzhi started walking back through the crowd, but suddenly remembered that he hadn't thrown the zongzi into the river yet. He looked at the group of people, all of whom were carrying a string of zongzi, smiled to himself, and then went back to the riverbank to throw the zongzi into the river.

He watched the string of rice dumplings in front of him slowly sink into the clear, churning river water. Only then did he remember those forgotten people and the original purpose of leaving the rice dumplings. A strange feeling welled up in his heart.

In this moment of racing boats and cheering crowds, it seems that everyone has forgotten the original meaning of the Dragon Boat Festival, forgotten Qu Yuan who drowned himself in the river with a grievance, and Wu Zixu who died with resentment. What should have been a time of silence and mourning has become a joyous festival!

He gazed at the endless river, wondering when the injustice done to those two men would be redressed!

Li Xingzhi was not one to wallow in melancholy, and hearing the laughter of the people around him, his initial sadness vanished—life is often full of helplessness, and one should always look forward.

Contentment brings happiness!

"Ouch—" Li Xingzhi was lost in thought when he suddenly heard Erlang shout, only to see a little beggar bump into Erlang.

The little beggar got up and tried to run away, but Li Xingzhi grabbed him. Ignoring the little beggar's cries, he directly asked Erlang, "Did you lose anything?" It's no wonder Li Xingzhi was so sensitive; it's a trick that thieves in TV dramas often use.

Erlang patted his clothes and said, "I didn't lose anything." As he spoke, he took out a few copper coins and gave them to the little beggar. Perhaps he was reminded of something from the past and felt sorry for him.

Seeing this, Li Xingzhi finally let the little beggar go.

However, for some reason, he had a vague feeling that something was wrong, but after thinking about it, he couldn't figure it out and just thought it was just worrying unnecessarily!

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It's too late—

I'll just write one chapter today. I spent more than three hours writing during evening self-study, and only managed to write a little over two thousand words. My brain is completely numb.

I've been debating whether it's better to quickly move to the northern region or stick to the original plan.

However, I now have some ideas in mind.

Going to the North right away isn't suitable; it's best to make things clear first.

Things have been a bit quiet lately, but there should be a climax in the next couple of days!

I've lost several favorites, why is that...?

If you have any opinions, please tell me.