Chapter 24 Guangyun Lake

Although it was still some distance away from the venue of the event, the road was already crowded with people.

Li Xuan and the other two had no choice but to ride their horses across the fields by the roadside.

Changlepo is located nine miles east of Chang'an City.

At three quarters past three in the morning, Li Xuan, Pei Huang and Pei Zhou arrived at Changlepo.

The sky was clear and the lake water contrasted with the blue sky, while the misty waves reflected the light of the water.

People from Chang'an city and the surrounding villages gathered here as if it were a festival.

The area around the lake was already crowded with people, and it was difficult for people to squeeze in, let alone ride horses.

Some places in Tanxi are not crowded, but they are surrounded by slaves. It is obvious that they are the territories occupied by dignitaries, and the common people dare not provoke them.

There was a clear class distinction in the Tang Dynasty, with a huge gap between the untouchables and the good people.

Among the good citizens, there was a huge gap between the nobles and the common people.

There is no place in Tandong either.

In front of Wangchun Tower, they were surrounded by the Yulin Army.

Li Xuan could vaguely see the blurry figures on the Wangchun Tower. They were Li Longji and the civil and military ministers. They were chatting and laughing while watching the ceremony...

"I'm late……"

The lake was too far away to be seen clearly.

All you can see is hundreds of boats with sails set, drifting on the vast lake.

There was also the deafening sound of the 羯鼓.

"Qilang, Si Niang is there, let's go over there too."

Following the direction Pei Zhou pointed, Li Xuan saw Li Yuying.

They don’t worry about not having a spot to watch the extravaganza.

Those aristocratic families that Li Xuan is familiar with would certainly be happy to watch the event with him.

"Seventh brother, come here quickly."

After Li Xuan arrived at the nobles' area, Li Yuying waved to Li Xuan immediately.

Although Li Xuan scolded Li Yuying that day, Li Yuying forgot about it the next night.

It's just like that between brothers and sisters.

What's more, at the flower-viewing competition that day, Li Yuying used the poem "Appreciating Peonies" written for her by Li Xuan, paired with her peonies, and received all the praise.

Even the colorful famous flowers are not as good as the saying "Only the peony is the true national beauty, and the capital is moved when it blooms."

This morning, when Li Xuan was still practicing martial arts, Li Yuying asked Li Xuan to come and watch the event, but Li Xuan had an appointment with Pei Huang and Pei Zhou, so Li Yuying came first.

And in the area where Li Yuying was, there was not only her, but also Jiang Yueyao who came to the Left Prime Minister's Mansion that day, and some other men and women.

Jiang Yueyao was a thoughtful person and knew that Li Linfu and Li Shizhi had been arguing recently. He must have sent her away for this reason that day.

So she was very scared when she saw Li Xuan again. Like a frightened deer, she leaned towards a woman in white with a cold face.

"excuse me!"

Li Xuan came to this excellent location and greeted the group of men and women politely.

This time, she did not spoil the fun by keeping Li Yuying away from Li Linfu's relatives.

The noble girls in Chang'an now all know about Li Xuan's deeds. He is a member of the aristocratic family, a royal family, the son of a prime minister, and a poet. Now he has been promoted to a fifth-rank official and is preparing to go to the frontier as a general.

The combination of so many identities makes the girls feel excited.

The ladies were always bold and unrestrained. They immediately surrounded Li Xuan, chattering and asking him questions. Some even asked him to write a poem. Some even told him not to go to the border because it was very dangerous.

Li Yuying did not help Li Xuan to pull these men and women away.

It made him regret coming to Li Yuying.

If I had known earlier, I would have gone to another position.

Only Pei Huang and Pei Zhou were laughing secretly, and the men and women ignored them completely.

"My ladies, the great event is about to begin. We can start writing poetry after it is over. You have been surrounding me all the time, and I have no time to think. Poetry must be written according to the occasion."

In desperation, Li Xuan could only speak to the aristocratic girls around him.

"Hehe, okay..."

"A word is settled!"

The young ladies clapped their hands one after another. They were afraid that Li Xuan would hate them, so they dared not disturb Li Xuan from watching the event.

A group of men and women came to the side, secretly glancing at Li Xuan and talking in whispers, with laughter like silver bells being heard from time to time.

"Who is that lady in white?"

After Li Xuan was relieved, he came to Pei Huang and asked him.

He was referring to the woman next to Jiang Yueyao who had a cold face and a temperament like a snow lotus.

Just now, only the woman in white and Jiang Yueyao did not come close to him. Jiang Yueyao was afraid of him, while the woman in white was indifferent.

"She is Li Linfu's eighth daughter. She is a female Taoist priest and she even gave herself a Taoist name, something like Tengkong."

Pei Huang happened to know this girl. He chuckled and replied to Li Xuan.

The female Taoist priests of the Tang Dynasty all understand.

Especially during the Kaiyuan and Tianbao years, the trend of women entering Taoist temples was prevalent, including princesses and daughters of ordinary people. And those female nuns, through practice, pursued freedom and unfettered life. Their unruly and romantic indulgence were almost the same as prostitutes.

"pity!"

Li Xuan shook his head imperceptibly.

Pei Huang thought Li Xuan felt sorry that Li Tengkong was a female Taoist priest.

Pei Zhou, who was even smarter, thought that Li Xuan felt sorry for Li Tengkong because she was the daughter of the treacherous prime minister Li Linfu.

"The boat is moving, the boat is moving."

Li Yuying, the most lively one, only liked new things. She had been looking at the water and suddenly jumped up and shouted.

Following Li Yuying's voice, Li Xuan saw the boats on the pond gradually approaching.

"Long live, long live!"

"Long live! Long live..."

The Yulin Army shouted first, followed by the people of Chang'an, whose voices shook the sky.

The event officially begins!
Displaying goods from all over the world for Li Longji in Wangchun Tower.

Everyone saw that at the front of each ship there was a three-meter-high wooden sign.

The wooden sign indicated where the ship came from and what was inside.

"Seventh Brother, what's on that ship?"

Li Yuying didn't recognize some of the words, so she kept asking Li Xuan questions.

Li Xuan stood aside, patiently explaining to Li Yuying.

The other men and women unconsciously came forward.

The ships of Guangling County had the most abundant products, including lacquerware, brocade, mirrors, bronzeware, and even delicacies from the mountains and the sea...

On the boats of Danyang County, Jingkou silk and Jingkou satin were piled up...

On the boats of Jinling County, there are exquisite porcelains and silk embroidery... On the boats of Kuaiji County, there are countless fine silk, celadon, Wu silk, Luo, and crimson embroidery...

The Nanhai County ship was filled with tortoise shells, pearls, ivory, and agarwood...

On the boats of Yuzhang County, wine vessels, tea kettles, teacups, and tea bowls were arranged...

The boats in Xuancheng County were loaded with coptis root, rice paper, brushes, and hollow bluestone...

The Shi'an County ship displays emerald bird feathers, banana and ramie cloth, boa constrictor gallbladder, jadeite...

On the Wujun boat, Jiangnan specialty embroidery and square-patterned silk were neatly arranged...

There was rice on the boats, such as the three-broken glutinous rice from Wu County, the tribute rice from Guangling County, and so on.

The boatmen are all dressed in the style of the Jiangnan water villages, with bamboo hats, straw sandals, and wide-sleeved clothes.

……

One after another, hundreds of ships stretched for miles, showing the world the Tang Dynasty's harvest and the gifts of the earth.

The birds in the sky seemed to be attracted as well, flying around above the boats, making the exhibition even more fitting.

“How many ships does this take?”

"Wow... so many treasures. I've seen that thing in a book. It's ivory."

"So this is what things in the South look like."

"Wow... those lacquerwares are so beautiful. I heard that you can buy them in the East Market in the future."

"The silk and satin from Jiangnan are so exquisite, I wish I could touch them."

The people of Chang'an had never seen such a spectacular scene, and they cheered and applauded.

You can't usually see ships in Chang'an, let alone see so many masts.

Pei Huang beside him jumped up and screamed.

Li Xuan was overwhelmed by the dazzling prosperity of the Tang Dynasty. He felt that the trip was worthwhile, but at the same time, he could not help feeling a little melancholy.

The drums of Yuyang shook the earth, startling the dancers in their colorful costumes...

There are only ten years left.

This makes this grand event like an elegy for the Tang Dynasty.

Standing on the Wangchun Tower, Li Longji saw the picturesque landscape and felt the satisfaction of being the king over the world.

Li Linfu standing next to him smiled as usual. He had already consolidated his power. This was his era.

Neither Li Shizhi nor the crown prince could stop his scheme.

At this time, Cui Chengfu, the county magistrate of Shan, appeared on the scene.

He appeared on ship No. 1, wearing a green shirt with a crotch cut off and a brocade half-sleeve, half of his arm exposed, and a red headband on his head.

"Dong dong..."

Cui Chengfu also had an exquisite 羯鼓 hanging around his waist.

As Cui Chengfu struck the 羯鼓 with two mallets, hundreds of young and beautiful women in brightly colored clothes appeared on the bow of each ship.

"A treasure was found in the wilds of Hongnong. A treasure was found in Hongnong! There were many boats and cars in the pond, and there were many bronze wares in Yangzhou. Sanlang sat in the hall, watching and singing the song "A Treasure"..."

Under the rapid and loud sound of the 羯鼓, Cui Chengfu sang a ballad specially adapted for Li Longji.

All the women sang in unison.

At the same time, on the ships, the sounds of pipa, Qiang flute, huqin and other miscellaneous music rang out to welcome the audience.

Ordinary people were completely immersed in the cheers.

“It was a refreshing feeling, just like being in the Fengshan ceremony at Mount Tai.”

Li Longji was very pleased and he said to Gao Lishi beside him.

"Wei Jian has the talent to be a prime minister!"

Li Longji openly hinted to Li Linfu and Li Shizhi who were standing beside him.

Li Shizhi was calm, but Li Linfu's expression changed slightly.

Wei Jian's wife was Jiang Jiao's daughter, and he was the son-in-law of Li Linfu's uncle.

Originally, Wei Jian should have been close to Li Linfu.

However, Wei Jian's sister married the crown prince Li Heng. Wei Jian believed that the crown prince would ascend to the throne sooner or later, so he deliberately distanced himself from Li Linfu.

Now that Li Longji had said this, Li Linfu became jealous of Wei Jian.

He thought that if he got the chance, he would kill Wei Jian.

"It is said that Yao and Shun were ancient sages. In my opinion, our dynasty is far more prosperous than the era of Yao and Shun. The sages created the world, and the monarchs of all dynasties were not as talented as the sages."

No matter what Li Linfu was thinking, he always spoke sweet words.

"This is a joint achievement of me and you all!"

Li Longji spread his arms, as if embracing all the boats in the pond.

"Li Shi, order the court musicians to enjoy the festival with the people and perform this grand event together."

Li Longji saw the people on both sides of the strait cheering, and gave instructions to Gao Lishi again.

Gao Lishi said yes and went to make arrangements.

Soon, court musicians boarded empty boats and divided into dozens of areas around the lake, performing different music.

The beautiful music never loses its rhythm and makes the audience linger.

The people's applause never stopped, from the time Li Xuan arrived until dusk.

When the party was about to end, Wei Jian rowed his boat to the Wangchun Tower and once again presented the hundred-tooth plate of food.

When Wei Jian climbed up to Wangchun Tower, he presented generous gifts to the prime minister and ministers.

However, the gifts he prepared for the left and right prime ministers were exactly the same, which made Li Linfu resent Wei Jian even more.

After seeing enough, Li Longji returned to the banquet hall of Wangchun Tower.

Wei Jian introduced the formation of this pond in front of the emperor and civil and military officials.

"Your Majesty, please give this pond a name!"

Finally, Wei Jian bowed to Li Longji.

"This pond transports goods from all over the world to the city of Chang'an. East and west are Guang, and north and south are Yun. I named it Guangyun Pond!"

"Your Majesty, Holy Might!"

As soon as Li Longji finished speaking, all the civil and military officials applauded.

Li Longji watched the ceremony for a whole day. Perhaps he was tired or he missed Madam Yuhuan, so he ordered his carriage to return to the palace.

Seeing that the people were still cheering, Li Longji ordered the musicians to continue playing and return home after dark.

The Yulin Army guards returned to Wangchun Tower.

The officials and their carriages also left one after another.

Before leaving, the ministers congratulated Wei Jian one after another. Everyone knew that Wei Jian would be promoted.

But no one noticed that Li Linfu looked at Wei Jian meaningfully before he left...

(End of this chapter)