Love Affairs in Chang'an - Chapter 269

Chapter 269 Send the God of Plague, Welcome the God of Death
Time passed quickly. In the blink of an eye, more than ten days had passed since the Nine-Nine Double Suns. The heavy fruits of the golden autumn had already been stored in the warehouse. For the people, the busiest days of the year had already passed. Next, he could rest and prepare for the winter.

This land of Xiangzhou was truly blessed this year. Not only did he wipe out the water ghost and discover the Mausoleum of Emperor Yang, but he also received an unprecedented harvest. In addition, the Imperial Court’s grand sacrifice ceremony was held here for more than ten days in a row, attracting countless tourists. Xiangyang, a port city, became a famous tourist city. Whether it was the yamen or the merchants, they all made a lot of money.

Everything went smoothly. It was all good news. Logically speaking, Qin Mubai and Li Ke should be happy. However, in the past two days, the two of them were a little distracted.

The reason was precisely because of Crown Prince Li Chengqian.

At first glance, Li Chengqian behaved in a proper manner, neither particularly outstanding nor showing any major flaws.

However, after staying for a few days, Li Chengqian’s fox tail was exposed. Perhaps it was because he suddenly felt that leaving the capital without control was more free, so he was unscrupulous!

As a result, his “evil habits” were exposed in a single glance.

First of all, he is playful and has no intention of getting down to business. The Emperor sent him here to hold a sacrifice at Emperor Yang’s Mausoleum. Although it was a scene, he was still representing the Emperor and the Imperial Court. It was not complicated to burn incense every day to say a few words of sacrifice that day. However, Li Chengqian found it troublesome. He had never set foot on the small island except for the first three or four days when he had gone there. Helplessly, Li Daozong, Li Ke, and the others had no choice but to work for him.

Originally, this was nothing, after all, it was just a small matter. However, since he was nest in Xingyuan, he didn’t do anything good, so it was hard to say whether to laugh or cry.

It turned out that his virtue was better than Li You’s.

Good wine, good gambling, good lust, good fun, he has all these problems. Moreover, that didn’t seem to be a “problem” as simple as that. It could be said that it was a sick ointment, almost abnormal!

Others are good bars, at most, they are drunk and dreamy every day. Li Chengqian was not like that. He imitated Shang Zhou and built a wine pond. Ask his subordinates to buy him a thousand jin of good wine and pour it into it. Whenever you’re in the mood, scoop up a ladle and drink it. Moreover, he also used this wine to soak the medicinal ingredients for bathing. After bathing, the bathing water was rewarded to the servants to drink. He had to drink it in front of him with tears of gratitude, and if he was unhappy, he would be whipped.

Others were easy to gamble on, but most gambled on money. Li Chengqian didn’t gamble. Money seemed to have lost its appeal to him-he gambled with people! Every gambler would bring a wife and concubine. It was too ugly. And then everyone makes a bet. Those who lost would have to watch their own women being humiliated in public by the Ying family’s men in front of them. Sometimes when Li Chengqian was in a good mood, or when the loser had a good relationship with him, he would appoint a maidservant to take the place of his wife and concubine.

As a result, the Crown Prince Xingyuan quickly became a wasteland of wine and meat!

However, Li Chengqian never took part in such gambling. He only liked to watch the show. It wasn’t because he wasn’t lustful. Earlier, when he had just reached the age of fifteen or sixteen, his reputation as a lustful person had long since disappeared. Tired of playing with the maids of the Eastern Palace and his own concubines, he used this kind of “gambling” method to play with other people’s wives and concubines. He had even dug through the walls of the Eastern Palace and brought a few fox friends and dog friends to the Western Market to go whoring. It was common for him to stay away all night. After a few years, he was tired of all this, and now, he had changed to something that made people angry-child molestation!

When they first came to Xiangyang, they hadn’t noticed that Li Chengqian was probably the one who hid his “secret treasure” very well. Later, he was exposed. He was accompanied by both the Crown Princess and a “fake Crown Princess”. That was a child molestation given to him by Zhang Tianci, the Marquis of Shengnan in Jiangzhou. Li Chengqian addressed him as “Heartfelt”.

This little boy’s red lips and white teeth were as white as snow. He dressed beautifully, and he really looked like a peerless beauty. If others didn’t know, they could really take it as a lie. Li Chengqian brought several concubines from Chang’an, but they were all decorations. ‘”Satisfied” Yeye’s private room, on the contrary, let the Crown Princess and the others guard the room alone.

When it comes to fun, Li You is nothing compared to Li Chengqian. Li You’s death was nothing more than a cockfight, a stroll of an eagle, and a gamble on hunting and gambling. Li Chengqian was tired of playing with these things. He has an inconceivable hobby-the Turkic wind.

When Li Chengqian had fun, he would take off the yellow robe of Gun Mian, put on the Turkic right sleeve made of sheep’s leather, and tie his hair into strands of whips or bun like a Turkic. After that, Li Chengqian personally took the lead in dancing wildly and dancing the Turkic Hu Branch Dance while the kabuki masters preached about Hu Le.

With the sound of drums, Liao Liang flew around. An acrobat who performs all kinds of acrobatics; The woman who had lost on the gambling table was stripped naked and thrown into the crowd dancing wildly, crying and screaming in panic, or playing wildly for fun.

Every day, this kind of carnival that destroyed morality and ethics was staged in the Crown Prince’s Xingyuan. Li Chengqian’s joyful nerves gradually became more numb and tired under the stimulation of these sounds. So he came up with a new trick-ordering his men to split up into two groups, one to play the army of the Great Tang and the other to play the warriors of the Turks. In the battle between the two groups of people, the ones who won would be rewarded with wine and women, and the ones who lost would be thrown into the wine pool, and they would only be salvaged after they were drunk to death. It was not uncommon for Li Chengqian to punish anyone who did not fight with all his might with “treason”-cutting off his ears, chopping off his fingers, and humiliating his wife and daughter.

In such a battle, it was common for people to bleed and become crippled.

…

Qin Mubai was in charge of the Crown Prince’s garrison. Although Li Chengqian intended to conceal this from him, he knew that he was worried because he couldn’t put up a fire on paper. Now, he finally understood what it meant to say, “A hundred smells are worth a hundred glances.” A man cannot be seen by appearances. Looking at Li Chengqian, he was usually like a gentleman. He didn’t expect that his personal morals would be so bad. It wasn’t an exaggeration to describe him as “appalling”.

Such a person was truly not worthy of being called a Monarch. It was not surprising that the Imperial Court had criticized the Emperor for having the intention to cripple the Emperor!

Li Chengqian was unfettered in Xiang Zhou, and even Li Daozong was unwilling or powerless to dissuade him, so he was happy and almost didn’t want to return to Chang’an. Every day, as long as Li Ke sent people to send money and things for him to play, the Crown Prince would often close the door and he would not go out to play. However, passers-by were often shocked by the strange sounds of music, screams, lechers, and wails coming from the Crown Prince’s mansion, causing their hearts to tremble.

Gradually, the crown prince’s bad name began to spread in xiangyang, the people were quite shocked, but also disappointed in the crown prince.

When Qin Mubai and Li Ke saw this, they felt annoyed in their hearts. When they mentioned the words Li Chengqian or the Crown Prince, their faces would turn ashen. They managed to establish a good reputation in Xiang Prefecture with great difficulty. It was as if with the arrival of the Crown Prince, they were going down with the day. In the eyes of the people, the royal family and the imperial court were naturally one. If the Crown Prince was unethical, the people would inevitably be disappointed in the royal family and the government.

Now, the two of them were eager for the Crown Prince to scram sooner and stay away from Xiangyang. As for persuading the Crown Prince to restrain himself … it’s fine. There are so many officials in Taidong, and they still need an authoritative royal uncle like Li Daozong nearby. These people are powerless. How can Li Ke and Qin Mubai do anything? How can the Crown Prince buy their debts?

Just like that, Qin Mubai and Li Ke were so close to praying to Li Chengqian, the god of plague, that they could only burn incense and worship Buddha at home. They quickly left. After all, it was finally the end of the sacrifice. Li Chengqian patiently went to the Mausoleum of Yang Emperor to participate in the sacrifice ceremony for the last time, claiming that he was still unsatisfied and wanted to stay in Xiangyang for a few more days, causing Li Ke and Qin Mubai to break out in cold sweat. Fortunately, Dao Sect Li came out to speak, saying that Empress Zhangsun’s sacrificial day was approaching, so the Crown Prince had to return to the court earlier to offer sacrifices to his mother at Zhaoling Mausoleum.

Even if Li Chengqian had a hundred unwillingness to accept this excuse, he had no choice but to obey the Li Daoist Sect’s promise and return to the court three days later.

At this time, Yin Yang, who had gone to Chang’an to escort Princess Gaoyang back, reported that he had safely sent the Princess and Prince Qi into the palace. Only then did Li Ke and Qin Mubai feel relieved. In their hearts, they only wished for Li Chengqian to leave early so that they could live a peaceful life.

In the past two days, Wu Meiniang finally managed to figure out the semicolon of the Qin Immortal Pavilion and officially opened it. Because of Qin Immortal Pavilion’s great reputation in Chang’an, it attracted many people’s attention and curiosity. On the opening day, many wealthy gentlemen came to hunt for novelty.

Because of the experience and the convenience of doing business in Xiangzhou, Xiangyang Qin Immortal Pavilion’s property was also bigger, so this semicolon was even more magnificent than Chang’an’s. The wine was a first-class wine made by Qin Xianyu, and the dishes were palace dishes or Chang’an famous dishes that were full of characteristics and imperial noble aura. To people far away from the capital, all of these were filled with mysteries, and they had great gimmicks and attractions.

As a result, the moment Xiangyang Qin Immortal Pavilion opened, business was exceptionally booming and praised like a tide. In Xiangyang Beigang City, Qin Xiange Restaurant, which stood out from the crowd, consumed several times more wine than ordinary restaurants, but it was still unable to stop the wealthy businessmen who were fighting for fame and fortune and enjoying luxury from coming in to enjoy and squander it.

A few days later, Wu Meiniang saw that everything was on the right track, but Qin Mubai was invited. She asked him to invite the Crown Prince, Li Daozong, King Wu, and the officials of Xiangyang to the banquet. The name he used, of course, was not to celebrate the opening of the Qin Immortal Pavilion, but to give the Crown Prince a farewell party in the name of the Prefecture Governor’s Manor and the Military Manor.

Qin Mubai was naturally willing to help Wu Meiniang, as if he was helping himself. However, when he mentioned going to the Crown Prince Xingyuan, his heart was stuck. Helplessly, he had no choice but to brave it out. Anyway, this fellow will be gone in two days, and he won’t be bothered to see anything from now on!

Perhaps Qin Mubai was lucky, or Li Chengqian was tired of playing. Today, when Qin Mubai arrived at the Crown Prince’s Xingyuan, this place was quiet. Everyone was packing their belongings and counting the carriages and horses, preparing for the Crown Prince’s departure. Li Chengqian was lying on the couch in the hall, drinking tea and hammering his shoulders, listening to the music. Several beauties danced in the hall.

Hearing Qin Mubai’s arrival, Li Chengqian sat up and had his clothes tidied before asking him to enter.

“Haha, General Qin is here. Sit down, there’s no need to be too polite.” Li Chengqian smiled and invited Qin Mubai to sit down, ordering someone to serve him tea.

“The Crown Prince is so elegant today.” Qin Mubai said casually and prepared to cut to the chase.

At this moment, Li Chengqian interrupted him, “Does General Qin mean singing and dancing? What do you think of the beautiful lady dancing in this hall?”

Qin Mubai casually glanced at the beautiful dancers. They were all beautiful and graceful. One of the leading dancers was a fifteen or sixteen-year-old girl, who was exceptionally coquettish. Her face was like a full moon and her eyes were like cold stars. Her face was pink with jade teeth and peach cheeks, and she was extremely beautiful. Her dancing posture was also quite outstanding. Her wide-sleeved, long-shu, lotus-like steps were so light that it was like flowing clouds and flowing water.

“Very good. Your Highness the Crown Prince has a good eye.” Qin Mubai casually praised and prepared to say something.

“Haha! General Qin also has a good eye!” Li Chengqian interrupted Qin Mubai again and beckoned for the beauty to sit beside her. He stroked her waist and said, “Congratulations, General Qin is praising you. Do you hear me? Go and toast General Qin.”

“Satisfied?”

Qin Mubai suddenly felt a chill run down his spine-it turned out that this “beauty” was Li Chengqian’s official child molestation!

In an instant, Qin Mubai felt goosebumps on his body!

The “beauty” answered with satisfaction. She lifted a glass of wine and walked to Qin Mubai’s side to kneel down. She said with all sorts of charm, “General Qin is a great hero. A hero should drink a lot of wine.”

Qin Mubai really wanted to strangle this human demon in front of him to death. He raised his hand and felt his hands tremble. He didn’t dare to touch the skin of this human demon. He carefully took the wine cup and drank it as if he was dead.

“Thank you for the wine, Your Highness! Your Highness, I have something to ask of you. May I know if it is convenient for Your Highness to hear it now?”

“Oh, you guys should disperse first!” Only then did Li Chengqian summon the dancers. Before leaving, Satisfaction ignored the presence of others and pouted at Li Chengqian, almost causing Qin Mubai to spit out the overnight meal.

“General, if you need anything, please tell me.” Li Chengqian finally looked at Qin Mubai and asked.

Qin Mubai forced out a dry smile and cupped his hands, “Your Highness is leaving for the capital soon. This lowly official was ordered by Your Highness King Wu to specially invite His Highness the Crown Prince to the Qin Immortal Pavilion for a banquet. The Secretariat Manor and the Military Manor will send His Highness off together.”

“Oh, I really have to trouble you guys. I will definitely kiss you.” Li Chengqian nodded his head with a smile and asked curiously, “Wu Meiniang is really capable. Did you build the semicolon of the Qin Immortal Pavilion so quickly?”

“Yes, it has been open for three days.” Qin Mubai replied.

“Then why didn’t you inform Yu Gu earlier? It would be easier for him to go and support him!” Li Chengqian smiled and said, “The Qin Immortal Pavilion is a famous place in Chang’an. I have visited it before, but I haven’t been there for a long time. Alright, I can visit Xiangyang once. By the way, General Qin, how is your marriage with Gaoyang going?”

Qin Mubai did not expect Li Chengqian to suddenly say this. He thought for a moment and said, “It’s still too early. Everything is up to His Majesty the Emperor.”

“Why aren’t you all relying on Father Emperor?” Li Chengqian smiled and said, “I think the two of you are close to each other. You should get married as soon as possible. There’s no need to take those discussions to heart. If you have the heart, then I will report it to my father and help you get married as soon as possible. I’m happy to be a matchmaker. What do you think?”

“This … Thank you, Your Highness, for your kindness.” Qin Mubai knew that Li Chengqian had always wanted to rope him in, and now it was just a small trick of his, so he shrugged off, “Right now, this lowly official and the princess are separated. When this lowly official took over the Xiangzhou Military Manor, the military affairs were busy.” Gaoyang is still young, so there’s no harm in waiting a while longer. Originally, His Majesty the Emperor had arranged for this as well. When the time is ripe, I will be transferred back to Chang’an and put on the wedding agenda. ”

“Oh, so Father Emperor has already made arrangements, then Gu doesn’t have to worry about anything.” Li Chengqian seemed a little disappointed and nodded thoughtfully. “General Qin, although I have never had a deep friendship with you, I have always valued your virtue and talent very much.” In front of Daoist Priest, if someone hadn’t secretly helped him in the Jiangzhou case, Gu and Emperor Uncle Jiang Xia would probably not have appeared at the sacrifice ceremony in Xiang Zhou now. I have been thinking of repaying you for this kindness. Tell me, General Qin, do you have anything you want in mind, or do you have an official position in mind? ”

“This … back then, this lowly official only acted impartially and obediently. As for whether he helped the Crown Prince or not, even this lowly official does not know much about it. His Highness is indeed unable to say anything about this return.” Qin Mubai smiled and said, “As for gold, silver, wealth, and official beauty, I don’t seem to be in short supply. Thank you, Your Highness, for your kind intentions. If I have any requests in the future, how about coming to pay respects to the Crown Prince? I really don’t have any needs right now.”

“Haha, General Qin has no desire to scrupulously abide by morality. Not bad, not bad, just like your father, the Duke of Wings, General Qin Shubao.” Li Chengqian smiled and said, “Actually, with the background and talent of a general, a small fourth-grade Xiangzhou commandant, is too inferior.” According to Gu, many generals of the current dynasty, their talent is not out of the right of the general. How about I promote you alone and let you be a general of the Golden Cow Guard or the Thousand Bull Guard? If not, it’s not too much to come to my Eastern Palace to be the commander-in-chief of the Sixth Commander of the Eastern Palace, or to be the Great General of the Left Guard. Former Duke Huo, Zuo Wei general Chai Shao, died of illness not long ago. The position of General Zuo Wei had always been vacant. Not long ago, Father Emperor asked me to propose a candidate. General Qin, aren’t you suitable? If you are willing, after returning to the court alone, you should report it to your father and ask him to promote you, a young genius. ”

Qin Mubai couldn’t help but inhale a breath of cold air. General Zuo Wei? Li Chengqian really speaks like a child’s play. The Left and Right Guards were always the leaders of the Twelve Guards of the Tang Dynasty. The Left and Right Guards were also the leaders of the Twelve Guards. The Twelve Guards of the Great Tang had more than 600,000 soldiers, and they had taken over 800,000 soldiers during the war. Sixty percent of them were concentrated in the pass, especially between Chang’an and Luoyang. As for the left and right guards, they were in charge of commanding these soldiers and horses to defend the capital and impeach the Great Tang Empire!

In other words, the left and right guards accounted for 60% of the total Tang army, nearly three to four hundred thousand men. The left and right Great General Wei were the two pillars of the Great Tang Empire that protected and guaranteed the imperial power of the Great Tang Empire and the Imperial Court.

“Are you kidding me? I have only just stepped into the official career for less than two years and have never gone to war. Can I become the Great General of Zuo Wei? Do you, Li Chengqian, treat military and national affairs as a joke? Could it be that Li Shimin and the Manchu Dynasty’s civil and military affairs are the same?” Qin Mubai really wanted to curse out this call, but fortunately, enduring patience was still acceptable, so he endured it.

“Your Highness, General Zuo Wei, I’m afraid even my father is incompetent. This lowly official thinks to himself that he is indeed lacking in seniority and ability.” Qin Mubai said modestly and cautiously, “Your Highness the Crown Prince’s kindness really made me feel terrified and grateful.” But this lowly official … it’s better to be a commandant of the Xiangzhou Prefecture at ease for the time being. After all, this is an official position that His Majesty has tailored for me. I also feel that this position is more suitable for my current situation. As for the future, I naturally hope that His Highness the Crown Prince can help me. This lowly official is loyal to His Majesty and serves the Imperial Court. Of course, he is also loyal to the Crown Prince and serves the Crown Prince, isn’t he? ”

Qin Mubai’s words were clever, deliberately placing the Crown Prince and the Emperor’s positions together. The implication is that you don’t have to try to recruit me like this. I, Qin Mubai, am a member of the Emperor and an official of the Imperial Court. I was originally standing with you, so why bother?

Li Chengqian, of course, wasn’t stupid and immediately understood the meaning behind Qin Mubai’s words. However, Li Chengqian couldn’t find anything wrong with his words, but he was unwilling to accept it. He just didn’t know how to continue lobbying. Li Chengqian himself felt that this Crown Prince was better than King Wu, right? Isn’t it a hundred times better for you to follow me than to talk to him? However, Qin Mubai only moved the Emperor out to justify his position, and never talked about Li Ke. This made him feel very troublesome, and he didn’t have any words for a moment.

Qin Mubai thought to himself, even if I don’t step down as an official and become a peddler, I won’t be hanging out with a fellow like you. In the future, you will be crippled sooner or later. I will definitely be unlucky with you. Moreover, seeing your horrible abnormal behavior every day will sooner or later make me sick to death!

Seeing that Qin Mubai kept his mouth shut, Li Chengqian didn’t have a good way to win him over, so he could only stop for now. The two of them gossiped again. Qin Mubai claimed that there was still military affairs and left early.

After leaving the Crown Prince Xingyuan, Qin Mubai felt his body lighten and let out a long sigh of relief. However, when he thought of how satisfied the human demon was, he felt as if he had made a trip to this place. His body was stained with dirt, and a layer of goosebumps suddenly appeared on his skin. He especially wanted to take a bath.

Three days later, Li Ke and Qin Mubai led the officials from all over Xiangzhou to wrap up the Qin Immortal Pavilion and bid farewell to the Crown Prince and the King of Jiangxia.

Of course, the banquet was exceptionally lively and scenery. The huge wine shop was filled with colorful fragrance. The waiter and the auditorium, who were dressed in men’s robes and beard robes, became a beautiful scene. Just like these rare dishes and delicacies, the Xiangzhou officials who had never seen the Qin Immortal Pavilion were greatly enlightened.

From today onwards, the Qin Immortal Pavilion will also be destined to become a bright spot in Xiangyang, becoming the focus of people’s hearsay. In the future, it would be easier to do business.

After eating and drinking enough, the Crown Prince and the Jiang Xia King drove together and left Xiangyang for Chang’an.

Qin Mubai and Li Ke immediately felt relaxed and clapped their hands in celebration-“Plague God, finally left!”

Unfortunately, Jiang Xia King, Li Daozong, a kind and funny elder, had been tainted with “plague energy” along with the Crown Prince. During his ten days in Xiangyang, he only enjoyed fishing except for sightseeing. Both Qin Mubai and Li Ke felt that they had not treated him well. He had no choice but to make up for it when he had the chance in the future.

Less than two days after the Crown Prince left, a world-shocking piece of news came from Dengzhou, which was close to Xiangzhou. It frightened Qin Mubai and Li Ke so much that their hearts jumped out!

–Dengzhou Governor, Qi King Li You, recruits troops and raises flags to rebel in Dengzhou!

Moreover, he also announced that the Duke of Xiang Province and Commandant Qin Mubai were collaborating with him!

When they received the news, Qin Mubai and Li Ke were leisurely drinking and listening to music in the courtyard of the Qin Immortal Pavilion, enjoying a rare relaxation. The fast horse directly sent this “heavy pound bomb” to the tavern, instantly detonating the fear and anger of Qin Mubai and Li Ke, almost flattening the entire Qin Immortal Pavilion!

“Bastard! How is this possible! Call that trash Yin Yang to see this king!” Li Ke roared angrily, scaring the cups on the table to the point that they almost jumped up.

Qin Mubai also wanted to roar like him to vent his emotions, but at least he calmed down and said, “Your Highness, shouldn’t we go back to the Governor’s Manor now?”

“Then what are you waiting for!”

Li Ke came back to his senses. Qin Xian Pavilion did not seem to be a suitable place to take care of official business. With a stroke of his sleeve, he left angrily.

Qin Mubai followed closely behind, her brows furrowed as she took a deep breath. The biggest trouble in history had descended … She had just sent the Plague God away before she could relax for a moment. This time, there was a god of death that would cause countless heads to land on the ground!