Chang'an ancient meaning

In late spring, the city of Luoyang is weary of birds and butterflies, and its soft silk reaches the ground.Qunfang seemed to know that there was not much to come, so they all desperately exuded a rich fragrance of flowers, the warm wind blowing against their faces, like sweet wine.When those who participated in the insignificant number wanted to retain more fragrance, they put up green tents surrounded by fine bamboos on the peonies and roses in their yards in vain, and covered them with green oilcloth, so as to prevent the flowers from being exposed to the sun due to the hot weather. Withers too quickly.

Xue Chongjian rode a horse all the way out from his home. On the road, he could see teenagers in spring clothes with high skirts, playing cuju and fighting cocks everywhere.There are also goshawks fluttering their wings from time to time on the royal mansions and noble houses, and the sound of chirping goes straight to the sky. It means that the people who are ready to hunt are adjusting the eagles and dogs.Xue Chongjian flicked his horsewhip cheerfully and said with a smile: "On such a good day, my cousin doesn't know what to do in the house!" Shi Chun, who followed him, said with a smile: "Didn't you say that King Shouchun is not very healthy?" Xue Chongjian Sighing regretfully, he said, "I really hope he gets better soon, so we can go hunting together! Yesterday Wu Chongxun beat a white fox and used it to show off to me."

Xue Chongjian is 12 years old this year. There are many disciples who are proficient in riding and archery in Princess Taiping's house. Xue Chongjian learns martial arts with them and has made great progress in martial arts. Don't worry about letting him go hunting with a group of friends and attendants.

Late spring and early summer are a good time to go hunting. The weather is not too hot during the day and not too cold for camping at night.Xue Chongjian originally planned to go hunting with Li Chengqi to the Nanshan paddock farther away, so he specially asked the emperor for an order.He knew that although Li Chengqi didn't like shooting and killing, it was a rare opportunity to get out of the imprisoned palace to see the scenery of Linquan.When the time came, Li Chengqi was sick and didn't go out for several days. When he went to see him, he didn't look like he was sick. He only said that he had a sore throat and asked Xue Chongjian to play by himself.Xue Chongjian felt that it would be unjust to abandon his cousin when he was sick, so he forced himself to wait for Li Chengqi to recover from his illness.

Xue Chongjian came to the Shouchun King's Courtyard of the Five Kings' House, where Li Longji was also playing chess with his elder brother. Li Chengqi held the black, and Li Longji held the white. When it was time to fight in the middle game, they sat cross-legged with each other, their expressions focused and silent. In other words, the golden duck aroma diffuser on the table exhales a faint azuki fragrance.In such a quiet atmosphere, Xue Chongjian, who suddenly came in from the busy city, was still a little dazed in his ears. He planned to call out "cousin" loudly, but he couldn't help but stop.Li Longji heard the sound when the maid opened the bead curtain, and said with a smile: "The flower slave is here." Li Chengqi also raised his head, but he just smiled gently at Xue Chongjian and remained silent.

Li Chengqi is 15 years old this year, and the childishness between his brows has gradually faded away, and his handsome face is as delicate as if it was carved out of suet jade.At this time at home, I didn’t wear my headdress because I thought it was too hot. I only wore a small trabecular crown, a green Luochun shirt, and no gold and jade belt around my waist. Qing Sudi is like a willow, with such a calm and elegant demeanor, it looks more and more like the emperor's heir Li Dan.

Seeing that his cousin didn't even say hello to him, Xue Chongjian felt a little unhappy, so he still smiled and leaned over to him, first glanced at his face, and said: "Are you cured? The medicine my mother sent Can you eat it?" Li Chengqi smiled apologetically, and his expression was a little embarrassed. Li Longji knew that Li Chengqi's throat was at a critical moment recently, so he was embarrassed to go out, but he didn't say it. Let me raise it." Xue Chongjian held Li Chengqi's shoulder and said, "Is your throat red and swollen? Let me see!" Li Chengqi avoided it with a smile, took his hand and said, "Don't make a fuss." The voice was really faint Hoarse tiredness.

Li Longji looked at the chessboard, and suddenly said: "I know!" He hurriedly clicked a move, his move was as Li Chengqi expected, and he chased a move without thinking, Li Longji said "ah" softly , He frowned slightly and meditated again.Seeing that the two of them were only playing chess by themselves, Xue Chongjian felt a little depressed for some reason, and said: "Let me tell you something new. I was in the palace yesterday, and I saw grandma raising a cat!"

Sure enough, both Li Longji and Li Chengqi raised their heads in surprise. Everyone knew that the Emperor hated cats the most because Concubine Xiao Shu cursed before her death, and no one in the palace dared to keep cats for decades.Seeing that they finally came back to their senses from the square-inch chessboard, Xue Chongjian was a little proud, and said, "It's true, I saw the eunuch next to Grandma training a cat and putting the cat and a parrot in the same cage." If the cat attacked the parrot, he would take it out and beat it with a bamboo whip. Later, when the cat saw the parrot, it was so frightened that it shrank in the corner of the cage, and the parrot, like a villain, pecked at it cat."

Li Longji frowned and said, "What kind of business is this?" Xue Chongjian said, "I asked that man, and he said that when the training is finished, grandma will show it to all the officials when she goes to court, so that they can see it, and the parrot can also surrender. cat."

Li Longji and Li Chengqi have been on the cusp of the storm with their father for several years. When the emperor abolished Li, he almost came back from the life and death line. He was far more sensitive about the affairs of the court than Xue Chongjian. After a while, Li Longji couldn't hold back and said urgently: "Brother, do you want to make King Wei the crown prince?" Although Li Chengqi was extremely worried about his father, he frowned and stopped him and said, "Don't talk nonsense."

Xue Chongjian also understood immediately, and asked in surprise, "Grandma compares the Wu family with a parrot, and uncle with a cat?"

Li Chengqi thought that the emperor had long wanted to change Wu Chengsi as the prince, but he hadn't done so until now, but because of the protection of his father by the loyal and upright ministers headed by Li Zhaode and Di Renjie outside, and also because of Li's Yuyu's fifty-year history popular support.The Empress Dowager pecked the cat with a parrot, apparently to create momentum for Wu Chengsi to establish the crown prince, to show that the Wu family is God's will.Once my father loses his status as the heir of the emperor, he is afraid that he will become a fish on the anvil for the kings of the Wu family.He was anxious in his heart, although he said to Xue Chongjian: "Don't talk nonsense." His expression couldn't help bringing out sadness.

Xue Chongjian pouted and said in a low voice: "Grandma is really eccentric, is there anyone closer than a son in the world..." He suddenly rolled his eyes and said: "Yes!" He pulled Li Chengqi and Li Longji closer, and laughed softly Said: "I saw it yesterday, and the cat looks normal. It's very easy to find out ten or eight similar ones. I'll get one and train it to be more aggressive. When Grandma wants her cat Take it forward, and quietly change it for her..."

Before he finished speaking, Li Chengqi was startled, and hurriedly said: "Absolutely not!" He was frightened by Xue Chongjian's sneaky idea, grabbed Xue Chongjian's hand and said: "Huanu, this is an important matter for the court, not us. You can manage it, you are not allowed to mess around, do you hear me?" Xue Chongjian knew that Li Chengqi was always cautious, so it was surprising that he didn't object, and said with a smile, "Okay, I understand." Li Chengqi said a few words just now, and he could hear himself The voice was hoarse, very unusual, and I felt it was unpleasant, so I was embarrassed to say more, so I only held Xue Chongjian's shoulder and sighed softly.

Xue Chongjian was thinking about something, and played for a while, and heard that Li Chengqi still didn't want to go hunting with him, so that's all. Before returning, Li Longji looked at Li Chengqi and didn't pay attention, pulled Xue Chongjian and whispered: "Why did you bring the cat into the house?" Palace?" Xue Chongjian laughed and said, "My mother always gives grandma powder and jewelry, I made a box and put the cat in it." Li Longji was very hopeful that he would succeed, and said: "Be careful, Don't be seen through." Seeing Li Chengqi coming, he quickly raised his head, and said to Li Chengqi, "I told him, let him stop thinking about that." Li Chengqi nodded, although he was a little worried, in front of the palace history I can't say anything more in front of her, but only ask: "Be obedient."

After a few days, it was the Shuo Ri Dynasty again, and the emperor specially delivered an edict to order the five brothers of Shouchun County Prince to also participate.With the lesson from the incident three years ago, Li Chengqi and the others went to court half an hour earlier to avoid the congregation of people on the Tianjin Bridge.They waited outside Zetianmen for a moment, only to see the Wu brothers, Wu Chengsi, Wu Sansi and others coming together, all of them were full of spring breeze and looked happy, Li Chengqi bowed and said: "Uncle Shengchang." Li Longji frowned, but also held back They lowered their necks in displeasure, as a salute. If they want to live under the sky of Dazhou, they must learn to be patient.

Wu Chengsi patted Li Chengqi on the shoulder and said with a smile: "Fengnu, do you know why the Supreme has invited you here today?" Li Chengqi resisted the discomfort on his shoulders and said in a low voice, "I don't know." With a smile, he laughed again and said, "Let's go, we'll find out soon." As they walked side by side, they heard the shrill voice of the servants in front of the hall echoing in the vast square in front of Zetian Gate: "Wu Chengsi, King of Wei, Wu Chengsi, King of Liang, think twice!" , Shouchun King Wu Chengqi (1) entered the pilgrimage—”

As usual, in the court hall, there were rains, droughts and floods in various places, and the emperor said: "Recently, a strange thing happened in my palace. A parrot is not afraid of cats, and it lives in a cage with cats, calmly. I am very surprised , Bring the court today to show off to all the nobles." Two eunuchs walked out from behind the court hall, one of them was holding a large wooden cage, and a parrot inside was quacking: "Your Majesty's ten thousand years! Your Majesty's ten thousand years!" The other In his arms was a black cat.

Many ministers in the court also heard about this matter. Wu Chengsi cast a look over, and the crown prince Sheren Yan Chaoyin immediately came out and said loudly: "Parrots are also intelligent birds. Cats are also cruel beasts. Those who are afraid have nothing to do." A ninja has nothing to do with his fear. Suppression of blood belongs to the old, so it is not as good. Today, the saints rule the world, and the people who are full of strong beams are willing to be ministers and concubines. Those who are under the siege are willing to be ministers and concubines. I really think that benefits can not be subdued. Hui, benevolence can subdue no benevolence, this parrot is not afraid of cats, and it is also a proof of the extreme peace."

A group of ministers under the Wu clan didn't allow him to say all the good things, and they all came out to congratulate. Li Longji saw the flattery and flattery of this group of people, his heart was cold, and he wanted to plug his ears.The emperor smiled faintly, stopped the crowd, and nodded slightly to the servant. The servant set up a tall flower stand in the hall and placed the wooden cage on it so that the ministers standing in the back row could see it.They opened the cage door carefully, and sent the cat in. The servant pursed his lips and howled, and the parrot called: "Your Majesty, ten thousand years!" Suddenly, it flapped its wings and grabbed the cat.

For a while, all the ministers stretched their necks and widened their eyes, whether they were pretending to be sweet or really curious. Only Li Chengqi knew the result and didn't want to witness it with his own eyes, so he slowly raised the wat board higher to cover his sight.Suddenly, the cat yelled impatiently, "Meow!", and raised its paw to slap the attacking parrot away.The servant was stunned for a moment, then raised his head and glanced at the emperor secretly, and hurriedly whistled again, the parrot had been trained long ago, it jumped twice in the cage, and then jumped at the cat.The black cat was lying quietly in a corner of the cage, with a pair of blue eyes with a cold light, when it watched the parrot fly in front of it, it suddenly kicked its legs and jumped up, pressing the bird under its paws.

Someone among the ministers let out a low exclamation, and hurriedly covered his mouth again. Only then did the cat become aggressive like a tiger, biting the parrot in its mouth, and hitting the bird's head against the cage. He slapped it with his paw again, causing the green feathers in the cage to fly wildly.The parrot couldn't die for a while, fluttering its wings, it first screamed and screamed: "Your Majesty, ten thousand years! Your Majesty, ten thousand years!" I guess I just learned this sentence.It was the first time that the four characters were uttered in such an ugly voice in the court, and everyone felt a kind of creepiness of God's will in the funny.

The emperor was clinging to the golden armrest of the throne with both hands. She leaned forward, as if she wanted to stand up, but she couldn't use her legs, and her arms and bones were sore.She hadn't seriously looked at a cat for more than twenty years, and those cold pupils like glass beads made her feel a little palpitation inexplicably.

Li Zhaode couldn't tell what he was thinking, and he didn't bother to guess why the cat suddenly showed such power, and he didn't want to match this matter with God's will.He looked up at the high empress from a distance, and the two golden flower spots behind the crown flickered twice, and Li Zhaode knew that it was the twitching of the corners of the emperor's mouth caused by the emperor's efforts to restrain himself.Across the hazy light and shadow of the jade, he seemed to be able to see the resentful, tired and helpless eyes of an old woman.He felt pity for the emperor suddenly.

Wu Chengsi and Wu Sansi were stunned for a while, and then their faces turned purple, and they shouted: "Don't take it out yet!" When the frightened housekeepers hurriedly opened the cage, they grabbed the cat several times before taking it out of the cat's mouth. The parrot was pulled out, and it was dying to see that it could not survive.

Li Longji stood behind his second elder brother Li Chengyi, who was tall and strong, holding the wat board upright, and peeked out of the corners of his eyes at the warrior kings standing in the front row, seeing that their faces were all the same as pig livers, his heart ached. I was so happy that I just wanted to laugh a few times, and it would be best to dance a Huxuan dance with Kucha Le to celebrate, so I had to lower my head and endure it, gritting my teeth until my cheeks were sore.The flustered footsteps of the waiter in the palace heart brought a gust of wind, and a few green feathers were blown to Li Longji's feet. He held back a smile and stepped on it quietly.

After the court was over, a group of ministers filed out and dared to talk to each other after passing through Zetianmen. Li Longji couldn't help laughing when he saw the back of King Wei and King Liang riding away in a hurry. Li Chengyi was also very happy and said with a smile: "It must be Emperor Taizong who is alive today, so happy!" Li Longji hugged the saddle and laughed so hard that his stomach ached, and said, "It's all good things done by Hua slaves..." Li Chengqi, who had just led the horse, heard them so unscrupulously. Joking, worried and anxious, suddenly turned around and shouted: "Shut up!"

Both Li Chengyi and Li Longji were stunned. The eldest brother used to be gentle and elegant. In the past few years, they moved away. Li Chengqi taught them almost all of their reading and piano. Big anger.Li Longji immediately understood that he was afraid that the emperor would know about this matter, and hurriedly said: "Brother, I made a slip of the tongue, and I will not tell others." Li Chengqi was even more annoyed, and said angrily: "You have no proof, how dare you marry me indiscriminately?" Disaster for people!"

He only hated himself because his voice was inconvenient, so he didn't give Xue Chongjian a few words to let him know that the matter was serious.But the matter was not implemented, after all, there was still a glimmer of hope in my heart, I wished I could go to Princess Taiping's mansion immediately, and ask him: "But you messed up?" I only hope that Xue Chongjian blinked in surprise and asked him: "What's the matter?" Then I can breathe a little sigh of relief.He hurriedly went to untie the rein, but he failed to untie it a few times in anxiety, or let someone help him. As soon as he got on the horse, he swung the whip and beat the horse. The horse ran a few steps away, and heard the sound of hooves behind him. After catching up, Li Longji asked, "Is elder brother going to my aunt's house?"

Li Chengqi was startled, and then he realized that he was so anxious that his mind was confused, and he rushed to the next court, which made the emperor doubt Xue Chongjian even more, so he pulled the reins hard, sighed depressedly, shook his head and said, "Go back to the mansion."

Although Princess Taiping did not go to the court, someone told him about everything in the court, and he could hear the servant describe vividly how the cat transformed itself like a god, how it bit the parrot until its wings withered, how embarrassing the martial kings were in the court, and how the emperor got angry .She suddenly remembered that she saw the cat at home a few days ago, she didn't pay attention to it at the time, but now it was a pair of two, and there was a bang in her ear, and she hurriedly turned to look for Xue Chongjian, and saw him pretending to be writing at the side, his eyes kept sneaking here, The corners of his mouth were full of cunning and proud smiles, and he couldn't help being anxious and angry, wishing he could step forward and grab him up and beat him up.She took a breath, and finally said calmly as usual: "Understood, animals are impermanent, how can you do it right, pass on the word, and anyone in the palace who dares to mention this matter will be killed immediately."

The author has something to say: (1): After Wu Zetian ascended the throne, he changed his son Li Dan's name to Wulun, and Li Chengqi's brothers all changed to Wu's surname. Of course, Li Tang was restored and changed back.In order to prevent them from changing the account book all day long, I still use the name Li Chengqi.