Now I really have to marry the princess.

Wu Shihuo grabbed Ernan and symbolically slapped her twice on the buttocks before inviting Yang Zhengdao into the incense room.

Yang Zhengdao had no idea that he would meet Wu Shihuo here, let alone that the little girl he met in the apricot grove was the future empress.

All I can say is that there's some merit to this door-based deduction.

Yang Zhengdao clasped his hands in a fist salute and said with a smile, "I didn't expect to meet the Grand Commander here."

Wu Shihuo bowed slightly: "I came here to wait for Immortal Sun, to ask him to come down the mountain and examine the Emperor Emeritus's pulse again so that I can go to Lizhou with peace of mind."

It turned out to be the case.

Wu Shihuo was a merchant by origin, and because he funded Li Yuan's uprising in Taiyuan, he can be considered a founding hero of the Tang Dynasty.

However, he had previously been close to Prince Qi, Li Yuanji, and after the Xuanwu Gate Incident, he inevitably faced exclusion from the court. Li Yuan then became his talisman for survival.

In this respect, he and Yang Zhengdao shared a similar plight.

At this time, Samurai was over fifty years old, and his hair was already somewhat gray.

Yang Zhengdao recalled that in history, Wu Shihuo passed away in the ninth year of the Zhenguan era, not long after Li Yuan's death.

Historical records describe the deep bond between the emperor and his ministers; Wu Shihuo fell ill with grief upon learning of Li Yuan's death.

This statement is obviously an embellishment; it's more accurate to say that the person fell ill from worry.

What he was worried about was Li Er's suspicion.

Yang Zhengdao had always had such concerns.

If Li Yuan, the powerful patron, is destined to die in the ninth year of the Zhenguan era, then Li Chengqian, the new patron, must be established before then.

Of course, one could also prepare to undermine Li Zhi's efforts and wait for Li Chengqian and Li Tai to suffer heavy losses.

But in that case, they would have to endure the entire Zhenguan era, waiting until Li Zhi became the crown prince, or even until Li Er died.

Yang Zhengdao couldn't wait any longer, having been trapped in Chang'an for over a decade.

Therefore, writing poems for Li Lizhi was merely a way to maintain appearances in front of Li Er and to ensure Li Yuan's longevity; it was simply a form of insurance.

What's really important is to get closer to Li Chengqian and consolidate his position as crown prince.

Now that he has met a fellow samurai named Go, he should naturally take the opportunity to strike up a conversation.

Yang Zhengdao immediately praised Wu Shihuo, saying, "The Grand Commander and the Emperor Emeritus are on good terms, and I am here today for the same reason."

Samurai nodded and smiled, "The Emperor Emeritus also praised the young master for his filial piety and purity. Some time ago, it was entirely thanks to the young master's medicine that the Emperor Emeritus was able to live in peace."

The ensuing conversation was quite pleasant.

After all, college students have studied geography, and he could speak eloquently about the local customs and culture of Sichuan.

Finally, Yang Zhengdao steered the conversation toward the tea of ​​Lizhou.

One possibility is that the tea business could be used to establish a connection between Samurai Go and the Crown Prince.

Secondly, they could leverage the influence of Grand Commander Wu Shihuo to promote tea gardens in Sichuan ahead of time.

After all, tea trees need to be planted for three to five years before they can produce tea.

In Yang Zhengdao's memory, the Tea Horse Road started in Sichuan.

If we start promoting tea gardens in Sichuan now, we can open up the tea-horse trade after we destroy Tuyuhun in the ninth year of Zhenguan.

Yang Zhengdao's suggestion caught Wu Shihuo's eye.

He had considered getting closer to Li Chengqian, but he lacked a reason and opportunity not to arouse Li Er's suspicion.

As the two were engrossed in their conversation, Yang Zhengdao suddenly noticed that Ernan was hiding by the door, peeking out with her small head and blinking her big eyes, eavesdropping.

Looking at Ernan's fair and lovely little face, he felt it was such a pity.

Such an innocent and naive little girl, years later, will be taken advantage of by Li Er, that old ox.

If Li Chengqian had successfully ascended the throne, she would probably have been sent to Ganye Temple in the prime of her life to live a life of quiet contemplation and Buddhist practice.

Just then, Wu Shihuo also saw Ernan. After apologizing to Yang Zhengdao, he glared at Ernan.

Ernan shrank her neck, then said sweetly, "Father, Brother Zhengdao said he would write me a poem."

Upon hearing this, Yang Zhengdao smiled. The child was indeed honest and straightforward. He hadn't expected her to remember his casual remark!

Just as Wu Shihu was about to reprimand Ernan, Yang Zhengdao stopped him.

Yang Zhengdao smiled and asked Ernan to prepare paper and ink, while he pondered which poem to choose from the Complete Tang Poems.

Ernan was overjoyed and even clumsily ground ink for Yang Zhengdao.

This adorable appearance made Yang Zhengdao feel even more guilty.

Little Ernan, you may lose your throne.

Yang Zhengdao sighed softly and decided to modify a few words of Bai Juyi's poem, which would also fulfill his current mood.

Once he had an idea, he picked up his brush, dipped it in ink, and with flowing strokes, composed a quatrain.

The red apricot blossoms at Louguan every year, but how many times a year do we actually see them?

Now, old friends are hard to find again; next spring, different flowers will bloom.

Ernan was overjoyed when she saw the poem.

The poem she saw at Da'an Palace was nice, but she didn't quite understand it. This poem, however, used simple words and expressed itself directly, and she could understand it.

Perhaps many years later, when she sees this poem again, she will have a different feeling.

To Yang Zhengdao's surprise, after a moment of contemplation, Wu Shihuo bowed deeply to him and even changed his form of address.

"My long-standing knot has been untied by your words, young friend Yang. I have learned a great deal."

this!?

Yang Zhengdao then realized that Wu Shihuo had misunderstood.

That's right, Samurai Go was indeed mistaken.

He believed that Yang Zhengdao was using the poem he wrote for Ernan to give him advice.

When old friends leave, new flowers bloom; when old mountains collapse, new branches grow.

This is to make him give up his illusions and quickly find a new backer.

Living in constant fear only brings more sorrow; working diligently only makes one a part of the past.

Don't wait until "old friends are hard to find again," because then "next spring will bring different flowers."

The unease that had been building up in his heart for years was finally dispelled by a poem by Yang Zhengdao. As Wu Shihuo stood up, his cloudy eyes suddenly brightened.

Indeed, the same poem can be interpreted in different ways by different people.

Yang Zhengdao also stayed in the incense room at Louguantai, waiting for Sun Simiao to return from Zhongnan Mountain at the beginning of the month.

After all, he must have a suitable reason for coming here.

Asking the immortal Sun to go to Da'an Palace to inquire about Ping An's pulse was a sufficient and natural reason.

Yang Zhengdao didn't have to wait long; the next day, Sun Simiao returned to Louguantai from Zhongnan Mountain.

Upon hearing the purpose of Yang Zhengdao and Wu Shihuo's visit, Sun Simiao immediately decided to return to Chang'an with them.

Samurai Go also did not expect things to go so smoothly.

But Yang Zhengdao knew that this "immortal" Sun was probably afraid of trouble and wanted to get this matter over with as soon as possible so that he could focus on studying the "microorganisms" that Yang Zhengdao had mentioned.

Yang Zhengdao was still deeply moved as he watched the white-haired and white-bearded Immortal Sun ride alongside them.

He is truly a centenarian, a celestial being on earth.

Just after the group left Louguantai, a tall and handsome young Taoist priest appeared behind Yuan Tiangang.

This man was none other than Li Chunfeng, the Assistant Director of the Imperial Observatory.

He bowed deeply to Yuan Tiangang and said, "Thank you very much, Uncle-Master!"

Yuan Tiangang snorted coldly: "You are trying to tamper with destiny, and you almost dragged me into this mess."

Li Chunfeng gave an awkward smile: "The matter is already settled, and we were merely going with the flow. He is a man outside of destiny, so naturally he can bear the consequences of altering destiny."

"Is the Sage truly no longer going to concern himself with this matter?"

"Uncle-Master, there's no need to worry. My master made a pact with the Sage before he passed away."