Everyone loves Huo Qubing

The arrow hit the porcelain wall, leaving a "clang".

"Haha, you missed again!" Chen Yan smiled and picked up the arrow handle that Cao Xiang popped out of the throwing pot.Marquis Pingyang was unlucky tonight, and missed three arrows in a row.

"Look at me." Wei Chang hugged the wine jar, holding an arrow in one hand, and jumped lightly.

"The wine is mine!" Chen Yan snatched the wine jar from the chief guard.

"Today, I'm unlucky in eight lifetimes, losing to a little girl." Su Wu sat on the ground and complained.

"It's up to you to decide to play throwing pots." I chuckled.Chen Yan doesn't have any other interests on weekdays, she only pays special attention to these miscellaneous games. When I was in Zhan Shifu, I had already lost to her many times.

"Sister Chen, don't worry, there's still a round left to go here." Zhang He stretched out his hand and twisted a feathered arrow from his quiver.

"Wait a minute." Chen Yan took a piece of brocade silk and flitted proudly before Zhang He's eyes, "My sister, I have heard about Mr. Zhang's martial arts for a long time. Ordinary throwing pots will not trouble you. If you throw your eyes blindfolded—— "

"Just be fooled, my brother is not afraid." Zhang Anshi poked his head out from behind Xuanlang with an arrow in his mouth. He and Li Ling were not very interested in the results of the pot throwing, but they kept chasing the son of a bitch with his cousin Yangshi. Run around the garden.

As soon as the emperor entered the courtyard, he saw the feathered arrow in Zhang He's hand "swish" past his eyes, and with a "ding dong", it fell steadily into the pot.

"What are you playing, and you have to play blindfolded?"

"Father, we are playing throwing pots." Yang Shi smiled and ran towards the emperor.

"Oh? How about the results of the Yangshi battle?"

Hearing the emperor asking about the results of the battle, Zhang Anshi quickly snatched the wine jar from Chen Yan's hands, and stuffed it into the arms of Zhang He who was busy pulling the blindfolded brocade.

Yang Shi shook his head: "Brother Jingsheng voted for me."

"Father, I'm hungry." Cousin Zhuyi, who had been watching the battle with her chin in her hand, came over, hugged the emperor's arm, and acted like a baby in a childish voice.

"Just know how to eat." The emperor picked up Zhuyi, scraped the tip of her little nose affectionately, turned and told the eunuch, "The banquet is about to begin, take the children to their seats."

In February of the first year of Sanyuan, Gui Chou, his cousin Liu Ju fell to the ground in Yilan Palace.To celebrate the birth of the prince, the emperor held a small banquet to entertain Wei's relatives and friends on the Shangsi Festival. Princess Pingyang and Marquis Ruyin, Princess Nangong and Marquis Zhang, Gongsun Shi, Su Shi, Chen Zhang, Zhang Tang and Li Jiao all attended .

"Who is Qu Bing acquainted with in Taixue?" A few days before the small banquet, the emperor asked me.

I thought for a while and stretched out three fingers: "Marquis Pingyang, Su Wu, Zhang He."

The next day, an invitation was sent to Ting Wei Zhang Tang's house.Soon, the emperor heard from nowhere that Zhang He's younger brother Zhang Anshi and Li Ling were good friends, and he added an invitation to Li Jiao, the grand master who stayed in Li's mansion.

Inside and outside the Qilin Hall, lights are lit everywhere, and in the spring night, hundreds of flowers bloom silently under the shadow of the lights.

"Qing'er, be gentle." The aunt carefully handed the candle package to the second uncle.

"Don't worry, sister, I know how to hold a child."

"My husband got the emperor's son, Wei Qing looks more happy than you, the emperor's father." Princess Pingyang teased the emperor.

As soon as the words fell, the second uncle's face turned red, but he was not willing to return the candle bag to the auntie.

I lay down on the wine table next to my mother, buried myself in my arms, and stared at the movement of the table with my eyes.The little prince, who had just confinement, lay in the arms of his second uncle and fell asleep soundly, as if turning a blind eye to the noise of the outside world, just like his cousin Mrs. Wei back then.

"Come here, Qubing, and sit here." Perhaps seeing through my loneliness, the emperor patted the empty seat next to him.When I was seated, I glanced at the side seat out of the corner of my eye, and Cao Xiang was frowning silently.

"Father, I want to sit next to my brother too." Chief Wei begged.

"Come here." The emperor waved to his cousin.

Chief Wei squeezed happily to my side, and dug out a spoonful of white stuff from the cup in front of him.

"Bah bah, what is this? Why is it so tasteless?" Chief Wei curled his lips.I dug a spoonful and tasted it, and it really only tasted like chopped green onion and a touch of salt.

"This dish is called tofu nao, a new dish sent to your mother by the Lord of Huainan." Princess Pingyang tasted it unhurriedly.

"I want to eat spicy food." I looked at the table full of steamed and boiled dishes and complained in a low voice.

"Don't think about it," the emperor poked my eyebrows with his chopsticks, "The light dishes specially prepared by the chef tonight, firstly, your aunt is still nourishing her body, and secondly, those little ones can't eat strong tastes."

I shrink my head silently.

After a while of toasting, the emperor motioned for everyone to be quiet.

"Jiazi Day of this month is the grand conferment ceremony for my husband. At that time, Ju'er will be promoted to the emperor's son. Everyone here tonight, especially these children, will be the pillars of my big man's humerus in the future. Please take care of me." After speaking, he patted me heavily on the shoulder.

Being forced to sit in the same place and not allowed to get up, there was a dark and spectacular scene in front of them. Everyone left the seat and knelt down: "It is the duty of a minister to serve the king. The ministers must do their best to live up to the trust of the king."

"Xiang'er is graduating soon." Seeing that Marquis Pingyang had been taciturn, the emperor picked a topic during the meeting, "What do you plan to do after graduation? Join the army or go into politics?"

Cao Xiang looked at her mother, Princess Pingyang, and hesitated for a moment.

"Return to Your Majesty, the Eldest Princess asked the minister to return to the feudal country."

"Oh?" The emperor raised his eyebrows, "Isn't it good to stay in the capital? I still count on the Cao family to continue their military exploits."

Cao Xiang glanced at his mother again: "The eldest princess said that I am the only child of the Cao family in Pingyang. If I join the army, if something happens to me, she will not be able to live."

Princess Pingyang smiled embarrassingly: "For my mother, thanks to Xiang'er remembering clearly."

"Look, Xiang'er," the emperor said emotionally, "You always complain that your mother doesn't love you, and seeing her love you so much makes me feel jealous."

I nodded to express my agreement. Apart from finding Marquis Ruyin for Cao Xiang as a stepfather, Princess Pingyang is quite concerned about her son's food and clothing. In my opinion, the young master is indeed a bit of a blessing. blessing.

The night was dark and the lights were dim, the second uncle carried the sleeping Mrs. Wei on his back, and left with Su Jia.

Looking at his back, I poured down the whole bottle of royal wine in my hand.When I was young, my second uncle also walked a long way with me on his back, and fragments of distant and fragmented memories appeared in my mind. I don’t remember exactly where he carried me back then.

In a daze, I felt my forehead hit the wine table with a muffled "boom", but there was no pain.I tried to move my body, trying to get up from the wine table, but to no avail.

I seemed to hear the exclamation of Chief Wei, and the eager voice of my mother, who asked me nervously if I wanted to go back to Zhan Shifu with Chen Zhang.I really wanted to reply "No, I want to go back to the Wei Mansion", but my mind was already in a mess, and I couldn't even make up a complete sentence.

The world was spinning, and a very familiar voice sounded above my head, shaking my ears.

"The child is already drunk to the point of unconsciousness. Maoling is far away. Don't bother him. Stay in the palace overnight."

***

"Slow down, both of you, and wait for us."

I was riding on Huoyun's back, and I was driving side by side with Su Wu, Cao Xiang and Zhang He were chasing behind, and the group of people left the carriage carrying luggage by a long distance.

"Who told you not to put on stirrups?" Su Wu smiled triumphantly.

"What is this?" The Son of Heaven stared at the pendant beside Huoyun.

"Your Majesty, this is Marden. With this installed, children who are not tall enough can get on and off the mount freely. If it can be widely used, the height limit for Qimen Army recruits can be relaxed." The second uncle introduced.

"Is this something good? I'll try it." The emperor said while stepping on the horse to climb up.

"Your Majesty be careful—"

As soon as the advice came out, there was only a "click", how could those small wooden sticks withstand the strength of an adult, the emperor stepped on the ground and fell directly backwards into the second uncle's arms.

"Look, Zhongqing," the emperor blushed, and dragged the second uncle's hard-working Ma Deng, who was trampled into two scraps by him, and said angrily, "The wood is so unsafe, it will slip and crack when it gets wet. I have to find a weapon master to make some fine iron for my nephew."

Just when I had almost forgotten about this incident, several pairs of improved iron boards with semicircular designs covered with fine carvings were sent to the Weifu.With a swipe of the emperor's pen, the name I finally came up with, "Ma Deng", was changed to "Stirrup" by him.

The new iron stirrup was taken away by Su Wu the next day, and the remaining second uncle took it to Jianzhang Palace and handed it to "Jianzhang Xiaohuangmen" Gongsun Ao to continue to study and popularize.So Cao Xiang invited everyone to participate in his graduation tour today—going out of Hangu Pass to the Weihan Ancient Road for an outing. Along the way, Su Wu and I were able to leave others behind. The role of the stirrups is immeasurable.

Although the second uncle helped to pay the ransom, Gongsun Ao still lost his military rank and was demoted to a commoner.However, the former general Gongsun was always holding back his breath, and he was still in charge of recruiting soldiers and buying horses. Qi previously lost troops.

The post-sealing ceremony on Jiazi Day was presided over by the volunteer master father Yan, with the assistance of Gongsun Hong, Mei Gao and Dongfang Shuo.It was the first time in my life that I stood in the majestic front hall to participate in the ceremony of the Han Dynasty. It has been almost ten years since I followed my uncle to Beijing.

When my aunt, dressed in a red-bottomed black collar and golden phoenix embroidered gown, was led by a waiter holding a censer, and stepped into the splendid main hall of the front hall, her radiant temperament and quiet smile, in my eyes, were absolutely gorgeous. Press down on the old queen on the altar in front.

Suddenly there is an open river beach in front of you, the river is surging, and it is difficult to see the edge at a glance. I think this is the bend of the Yellow River, not far from Hangu Pass.From here, cross the Yellow River and go north, you can enter the territory of Hedong County.At that time, the father Yan went west to Hangu Pass for the first time to enter Beijing. He should have met his second uncle who was crossing the north of the river and was going back to the east of the river to buy horses.

Everyone took the reins and strolled along the river beach, admiring the magnificent scene in front of them.

There is little rain in spring and summer this year, and the water level of the Yellow River is slightly lower than in previous years. Finally, there is no major flood in the Kanto region.However, the northern border still continued its unrest.There was a severe drought on the grassland of the Xiongnu. Half a month ago, the military minister Shanyu sent troops into the two counties of Dai and Yanmen to retaliate by burning, killing and looting. After massacring the city, he walked away.The second uncle was ordered to go to the north that night, and hurriedly dispatched [-] cavalry to chase out Yanmen, and Li Xi hurried out of Daijun.

Uncle Su and Aunt Su came to Wei Mansion to pick up Er Jinniang, who vomited dizzily every day, and Mrs. Wei, who was mischievous and mischievous, back to Su Mansion in the south of the city, and asked me if I would like to live with them.But I think the answer is obvious, because the next day I was given various reasons by His Majesty to stay in the palace.

I stared at the receipt Ye Tingdian gave me.

"Hey, you miscalculated, here, open five hours more every day." I corrected the other party by pointing to the time of entering the palace.

"That's right." Ye Tingling glanced at the receipt I handed him under his nose, and continued to lower his head to make calculations.

I really can't think of where the five hours are extra, except for the repair of the leak in the roof of Chengming side hall, I had to spend the night in a small couch outside the emperor's bedroom.Although the couch was small, I slept soundly. I had no dreams for several days, until it was three poles high in the sun and I was woken up by an eunuch named Chuntuo.

"Does sleeping time count?" I'm not a guard with a knife standing guard at the door.

"Even the bathing time counts." The other party threw me an inexplicable sentence angrily.

***

Galloping along the Yellow River all the way, at dusk, the group finally got out of Guanzhong and entered Sanmenxia Town in Hongnong County.According to legend, when Dayu was controlling the water, he dug a dragon gate to open a pillar, forming a triple gate of man, ghost and god in this section of the Yellow River, so it is called Sanmen Gorge.This place is rich in gold mines, surrounded by mountains and rivers, inhabited by many birds, and has outstanding people. It is said that Lao Tzu wrote the Tao Te Ching here.

The small town is small, so I found an inn at random, booked a room, and went downstairs to eat, but I didn't expect that there were already two acquaintances sitting in the hall.

"Are you scared?" The beauty in the light blue Hu suit smiled coquettishly, "Cousin, do I look good in this outfit?"

"Wow!" Cao Xiang lamented, clutching her forehead and making a movement of falling backwards.

The person in front of him is small and exquisite, but he wears a single bun and has a small sapphire crown on himself. However, apart from the man's clothes, the small cherry mouth and a pair of big watery and bright eyes make his true gender Sell ​​clean. "He" was accompanied by a tall man dressed as a maid, but raised his head, his lips were red and his teeth were white. Who is it if it's not Princess Wei's maid?

"Chang—sister, I'm really scared by you." Su Wusheng swallowed the word "princess".

"It's amazing," Wei Zhang laughed wildly with his hands on his hips, "I followed all the way secretly, why did you just run in front, and no one found me!"

The cousin looks like this, and I suddenly see her running all the way in front of me, and my aunt is wearing a queen's costume, chasing after her cousin, saying "Wei Zhang, you are now the eldest princess, you must pay attention to your image when you speak and do things" .

"This is not the place you should come to. Rest here tonight and go back to me tomorrow morning." Cao Xiang said fiercely with a gloomy face.

Wei Zhang waved his hand boldly: "Brother Xiang, don't worry, this place is far away from Chang'an City, I disguise myself as a man, no one will recognize me."

"Cousin, how did you get out of Hangu Pass?" I asked curiously.

"I know where you are going. The customs clearance paperwork has already been done." Chief Wei shook out a roll of silk paper.

Cao Xiang frowned: "How did you explain to your parents?"

"I sneaked out." Chief Wei frowned and pouted, and sat cross-legged at the dining table, "They are all focused on my young brother now, how can they control me."