Man Tang Huacai

Chapter 542 Recalling Yangzhou

Guangling County, Yangzhou.

When Chang'an and Luoyang began to decline due to a rebellion, there was a popular saying among the people, "Yangzhou is the most prosperous place in the world, and Yizhou is the second most prosperous place due to its rich resources.

A few months ago, Guangjun Governor Li He was transferred to be the Transport Commissioner of Henan Province. Now the new governor is still a member of the Tang royal family, the descendant of Li Yuanyi, the thirteenth son of Emperor Gaozu of Tang, and the successor of Li Xiyan, the Prince of Zheng.

Li Xiyan was already over sixty years old at the time, and he served as an official as a member of the royal family, hoping to govern the local area well and revive the Tang Dynasty.

However, not long after he took office, he received a command from the saint to offer treasures.

There have been frequent wars in the past two years, and the people have been borne heavy taxes. The emperor did not keep his promise to reduce taxes and levies when he ascended the throne, and he kept filling the treasury. Li Xiyan was disgusted and blamed the eunuch Dou Wenyang.

The matter of offering tribute had not yet been completed. In March, the court issued a strict decree that the people could not celebrate the Lantern Festival in the old calendar, which made Li Xiyan even more troubled.

It should be noted that Yangzhou is the most lively place for night markets in the world. As early as the Tianbao period, Li Longji once asked his subjects where the Lantern Festival was best held. He thought the answer would be Chang'an, but someone replied, "The lights and candles are gorgeous, there are a variety of performances, the men and women compete for beauty, and the women are dyed with makeup. There is no place better than Guangling in the world."

It was only when Li Xiyan arrived in Yangzhou that he realized that this city had no curfew. While other places were stagnant and depressed due to the An-Shi Rebellion, Yangzhou took the opportunity to become the only city in the Tang Dynasty that did not have a curfew.

To facilitate their business, merchants broke the restrictions between the city and the market and opened the doors of shops along the street toward the long street. Vendors set up stalls on the street day and night.

Every night, millions of lights on the streets illuminate the bright moon, and beautiful prostitutes on the tall buildings flaunt their red sleeves.

Under such circumstances, how could Li Xiyan prohibit the people from setting off lanterns on the Lantern Festival in the lunar calendar?

Yongwang Li Lin saved him from this worry by launching a rebellion, which prevented the emperor in Chang'an from paying attention to Yangzhou anymore.

But Li Xiyan's troubles did not end there. On the one hand, he was worried about the danger of the country, and on the other hand, he was afraid that Li Lin would come down the river to attack Yangzhou. He was worried and could not sleep or eat all day long.

It was in this context that he received a message.

"Prince Yong? Has he arrived in Yangzhou? Is he sending troops to attack?!"

Li Xiyan almost jumped up and immediately ordered the city gates to be closed to keep out the enemy.

But the gatekeeper who came to report the news hurriedly said: "No, no, Prince Yong came to Yangzhou alone to play."

"How is it possible?"

Li Xiyan didn't believe it at all. In his eyes, Xue Bai held great power and coveted the throne. Such a ferocious character must be planning to seize power by taking advantage of Prince Yong's rebellion. He would either march to Chang'an or return to Fanyang to lead his own troops. It was impossible for him to come to Yangzhou.

"What about others?"

"Gone."

"What exactly happened? Tell me quickly."

"I was guarding the city gate when I heard someone calling Li Bai's name, so I looked over there and saw Li Bai talking to his friend. He introduced a young man beside him and called him the King of Yong."

Li Xiyan knew it was a scam as soon as he heard it, and shook his head and said, "You dare to make a random report based on hearsay, why don't you leave now?"

He knew that when the retired emperor visited Shu, someone had dared to impersonate him. From then on, the scam of impersonating powerful people became popular. How could a small soldier at the city gate know Li Bai?

Soon, he put the matter behind him and continued to worry about state affairs. Thinking of King Yong, he became even more worried.

The next day is the Lantern Festival in the lunar calendar.

The news came that Prince Yong's rebels had marched north and met the imperial army in Dengzhou. As a result, the war would obviously not spread to Yangzhou, and the people of Yangzhou were relieved. It was also a festive occasion, so they naturally wanted to celebrate.

It was only dusk, but the main streets of Yangzhou, from the Wansui Bridge in the south to the Zuofang Bridge in the north, were already ablaze with lights and crowded with people. As night fell, more lanterns were lit.

When a full moon appears in the sky, the beautiful scenery of the Twenty-Four Bridges is illuminated by moonlight and lights.

Li Xiyan was worried. He was concerned about a fire and was even more concerned about someone reporting the trouble to the imperial court. So he personally led some yamen runners to inspect the city.

Unlike the East and West Markets of Chang'an, or the South and North Markets of Luoyang, Yangzhou City was divided into large and small markets, both located in the central part of the city, which shows the prosperity of its merchants.

Because there are many large and small rivers passing through the city, such as Zhuohe River, Hangou River, Guanhe River, etc., there are many black-sailed boats and bridges, and it has the style of a Jiangnan water town.

Li Xiyan had to cross a Kaiming Bridge to get to the city. Before he reached the bridge, he saw that the road ahead was blocked by traffic.

People gathered by the river or stood on the bridge, craning their necks to look desperately at a pleasure boat on the Guan River. Some carried their children on their shoulders, while others climbed up the stone pillars beside the bridge.

The railings of the tall buildings along the river were also filled with beautiful prostitutes and guests, some holding lanterns, some waving handkerchiefs, cheering and jumping for joy.

"Why are you crowding here? What if a stampede happens?" Li Xiyan frowned and ordered the bailiffs to disperse the crowd.

He didn't want to squeeze into the crowd, so he turned around and tried to leave.

At this moment, a line of poetry came into his ears.

"The lights on the night bridge are connected to the Milky Way, and the masts of the boats on the water are close to the bullfighting."

Li Xiyan stopped and looked back, only to see people singing the poem. However, in the dim light, he could not tell who wrote the poem.

He then stopped a spectator and asked, "Who is writing poetry?"

"In the water... No, on the boat, Li Bai and Prince Yong exchanged poems on the black-sailed boat!"

"Was that Li Bai's poem just now?"

Li Xiyan was very surprised and thought that if the poem was written by Li Bai, it meant that the person had really come.

It seems that there was a liar who pretended to be King Yong and deceived Li Bai. No, that's not right. Li Bai had exchanged poems with King Yong at Lantian Posthouse in his early years. How could he not recognize him?

"No, it's Prince Yong's turn."

"You mean, the poem just now was written by King Yong?"

Li Xiyan then let go of his hand, pushed through the crowd and walked forward.

"Give way, give way."

In this bustling night market, people didn't care whether he was a royal family member or a prefect. They crowded together to prevent him from passing and clapped and cheered from time to time.

Finally, the sparkling water of Guan River came into his sight, and he heard the clear conversation.

"If that's the case, Sanlang, I'll have to get out my old poems."

Li Xiyan pushed forward again and his hat fell to the ground. He could not find it in the chaos. A scholar next to him scolded him for being rude and having no manners at all.

Fortunately, the black-sailed boat also caught his eye.

A handsome figure stood at the bow, looking up and drinking wine, then poured the wine in the pot into the river, and said with a sigh: "If Master Meng could see you, he would be delighted."

Following this line, he chanted aloud: "My old friend left the Yellow Crane Tower and went to Yangzhou in the fireworks of March."

Li Xiyan squinted his eyes and saw that the man was actually Li Bai.

He squeezed another step forward and looked intently, and saw that there was another young man beside Li Bai, with a straight figure, a dignified bearing, and an air of grace.

Who was the person who could compete with Li Bai in poetry and force him to be unable to compose new poems for the time being and could only respond with old poems?
"Hahaha."

Li Bai finished reciting the poem and waved his sleeves. The melancholy feeling of missing his old friend disappeared. He laughed and said, "You have to drink this cup of wine anyway. I toast to you on behalf of Master Meng."

"Li Bai, don't play dirty tricks. I'm not even inferior to you in poetry."

Xue Bai didn't know how many cups he had been forced to drink and was already a little tipsy, but Li Bai still made him drink another cup.

After drinking this cup, his body began to sway with the boat, and the bright moon in the water seemed to sway with him.

The poetic sentiment was also shaken out.

"But are there any more poems?"

"besides."

"Okay, come on!"

For a moment, the spectators on the bridge cheered and the beauties on the upper floors danced to add to the fun.

Xue Bai took a look inside the black tent, then looked at the moon in the water. He raised his empty cup and began to recite.

"Mrs. Xiao's face is too thin to hold back tears, and Peach Leaf's eyebrows are too sharp to hold back sorrow."

"One third of the world is bright on moonlit nights, and two thirds of the scoundrels are in Yangzhou."

The originally noisy scene suddenly became quiet.

It is not difficult to make Yangzhou lively tonight, but what is difficult is the quietness at this moment.

"it is good!"

After a moment's silence, there was thunderous applause.

A light breeze blew by, bringing with it a whiff of fragrance. The beautiful prostitutes on the high buildings threw down their handkerchiefs, which fluttered lightly in the air. Unfortunately, none of them landed on the black-sailed boat, but one of them landed on Li Xiyan's head.

He then realized that the black-sailed boat was still drifting slowly downstream, so he hurried after it.

On the boat, Xue Bai was in high spirits and kept urging Li Bai to drink. Before Li Bai put down his glass, he had already recited another poem.

"Ten miles of long streets and market halls, watching the gods from the moonlit bridge."

"A man is only fit to die in Yangzhou, the light of Chanzhi Mountain is a good place for a grave."

Li Bai drank the wine in the glass, laughed and said, "I am the banished immortal", and simply picked up the wine pot and drank from it.

Xue Bai laughed loudly, and then sang another song, one after another.

"The downtrodden man walks in the rivers and lakes with wine in his hand, and the slender waist of Chu is light in his hand."

"Ten years of dreaming in Yangzhou, earning a reputation as a fickle brothel owner."

~~
When Xue Bai woke up, he felt very dizzy.

When he was with Li Bai, he always drank a little more, beyond his own alcohol tolerance. He probably drank four or five cups last night, which was considered an improvement.

Sitting up on the couch, he could smell a faint fragrance and observed the room.

Spring comes earlier in the south than in the north. Even the sunlight shining through the window panes is full of vitality. Through the beaded curtain, I can see many newspapers and storybooks. There are calligraphy and paintings hanging on the wall. The beautiful handwriting is Yan Yan's.

This is the house he bought in Yangzhou, and it was the home where he let Yan Yan take refuge during the war in the north.

He felt very comfortable and lay down again.

The door opened with a creaky sound, and someone came in carrying a bowl of hangover soup. It was Qinglan.

For two years, Xue Bai had not been able to spend time with her. When they met these two days, it was a time when they were feeling more receptive than a new marriage, so the hangover soup was left aside and not drunk. The two of them flirted with each other and ended up getting even drunker.

"My dear, my wife is a little angry."

"Ok?"

The day before yesterday, Xue Bai and Yan Yan met each other. They were both very happy and did not seem to be angry at all.

"Is it because I was drunk last night?" "I don't know." Qinglan said, "We woke up in the morning, but after waiting for a long time, my husband didn't wake up, so my wife came to the yard angrily."

Xue Bai then stood up and walked towards the yard.

This house is quite large, and the gardens here are not as square and symmetrical as those in the north. Southern gardens pay attention to taking advantage of the terrain and creating a sense of winding paths leading to secluded places.

After passing two bamboo gardens, Xue Bai got lost.

When he walked along the pond to a fork in the road, he was hesitating which way to go. Suddenly, a small stone fell from the bushes nearby and landed on the path with a "thump".

Xue Bai looked into the flowers and saw a woman in a colorful skirt running away in a panic.

That was Yong'er, the maidservant beside Yan Yan. She saw him from the pavilion and felt anxious for him, so she had to remind him.

Yong'er led the way in this way and finally looked back. Seeing Xue Bai catching up, he ran into the back garden. Yan Yan was practicing Tai Chi there, muttering "big fool" and so on.

"Madam, the husband is coming."

Yan Yan turned around and saw Xue Bai, but ignored him, waved Yong'er away, and scolded her, "Look how anxious you are", and then continued boxing on her own.

After two years, she no longer looked as frail as before, but had grown into a graceful girl with a healthy blush on her cheeks.

Xue Bai walked forward and stood beside her naturally. He performed a set of boxing moves with her, while he made fun of himself for getting lost just now and making fun of his own embarrassment.

Yan Yan just snorted.

"Are you angry? I was fine when I accompanied you to the Lantern Festival last night."

"You were obviously drinking with Li Taibai, but you said you were accompanying me to visit the Lantern Festival. Li Taibai was trying to coax the Zong family's wife with soft words, and he is more sensible than you."

Xue Bai laughed when he heard this and said, "I was too ignorant. I apologize to you."

Yan Yan glanced at him, turned her head, and said, "You have offended me for more than one thing."

"Okay, eat something and settle the bill with me one by one."

After hearing this, Yan Yan pursed her lips slightly as if she wanted to laugh, but she held it back.

The two of them sat in the garden and Yong'er served them tea and snacks.

Yan Yan picked up a piece of osmanthus cake and took a small bite, enjoying the lingering fragrance. She turned around and saw Xue Bai was not eating but staring at her.

She then stepped lightly on his foot.

"See what I do?"

"It's been a long time since we last met. Look at how you've changed." Xue Bai withdrew his gaze, seeming a little embarrassed.

Yan Yan clapped her hands and said, "Okay, now I'm going to settle accounts with you, one by one. Let me ask you, what's the meaning of the poem 'earned the reputation of being fickle in the brothel'? I haven't seen you for two years, and you already have such a great reputation in the brothel?"

It turned out that this poem caused all her dissatisfaction over the past two years to burst out.

Xue Bai was a little drunk when he wrote the poem last night, and his thoughts were not thorough.

He touched his nose and replied, "This poem was actually written from Li Bai's perspective."

This way, it is appropriate.

Yan Yan then forgave him and said, "Let me ask you again, you said you wanted us to come to Yangzhou to escape the war, why did you send me here, but Teng Kongzi and the others were able to stay with you?"

"That was an accident. I was busy suppressing the riots in the past two years and I didn't see her often."

"It seems like you really want to see them more often?" Yan Yan continued, "When I got married, my husband's name was 'Xue Bai', but later he changed his name to 'Li Qian'. Everyone in the world knew about this, but I was the last one to know."

She didn't look fierce, and her voice was quite soft, but the expression in her bright eyes was very serious.

"As your wife, you don't tell me anything. Is it because I am not trustworthy?"

Xue Bai said: "Because you are still young, I don't want you to be involved in these troubles."

"Huh, I'm young, but how many years older are you than me?" Yan Yan refused to accept and complained, "You act like an old-fashioned person all day long. Don't think I didn't see you jumping up and down like a branch when you walk. How childish."

"Okay." Xue Bai did not avoid these questions. He met her gaze and said, "From now on, I will not hide anything from you. I will discuss it with you."

"So are you really the son of Prince Ying?"

Xue Bai smiled bitterly. There was little point in talking about these things now, and it was rather risky.

Yan Yan wanted to embarrass him on purpose, so she smiled smugly and stopped asking questions. She changed the subject and asked, "Do you like older women?"

"what?"

"Everyone in the market is saying that you and Yang Guifei are having an affair..."

At this moment, Qinglan hurried over and said, "My dear, there is a guest who wants to see you. It is the Guangling governor who is here."

Xue Bai then stood up and said, "I'll go see him."

~~
In terms of seniority, Li Xiyan is Li Longji's uncle, so when Xue Bai meets him, he should treat him with respect as a junior.

But Li Xiyan just waved his hand and told him not to be polite. It was unclear whether he did not recognize Xue Bai's status as a royal family member or was not interested in these red tape. He asked directly, "Why did you come to Yangzhou?"

"I sent my family to Yangzhou to avoid the war. Now that the war is over, I have time, so I came to pick them up in person." Xue Bai responded frankly.

"The war in the north is over, but the war in the south has started again." Li Xiyan asked: "Li Lin said that you sent someone to contact him and agreed to start a rebellion. Is it true?"

"If I wanted to rebel, why would I come to Yangzhou alone?" Xue Bai said, "If the saint ordered me to return to the capital, I would leave immediately; if he ordered me to resign, I would hand over the seal of the Grand Marshal of the Army. I have done everything I can. My loyalty is known to all, but people still doubt me. Believe it or not."

Before this, Li Xiyan was also convinced that Xue Bai wanted to usurp the throne, but now he saw with his own eyes that Xue Bai really abandoned everything and went to Yangzhou. Would a person with ulterior motives and a guilty conscience do this?

He had to admit that Xue Bai was a loyal minister of the Tang Dynasty.

"I believe you." Li Xiyan then sighed, "The current crown prince is your brother. If you can sincerely assist him, you can become a wise king, and become a good story of brotherly love and mutual understanding between the monarch and his subjects, which will be passed down through the ages. Don't even think about other inappropriate things. As long as you abide by your duties, the misunderstandings of the world about you will be eliminated sooner or later."

Xue Bai was impatient to listen to him and replied, "I have no intention of being in the officialdom now. I just hope to put down my worldly affairs and travel around the world."

"The country is in need of people, especially young and talented royal family members like you. Don't underestimate yourself." Li Xiyan pretended to persuade him.

Xue Bai pretended to have no intention of fighting, but in fact, if Li Cong really dared to remove him from his position, he would definitely not let Li Cong have an easy time.

Li Xiyan came to test Xue Bai today. He didn't think Xue Bai really came to Yangzhou just to pick someone up, so he asked, "Are you worried that Li Lin will go down the river and occupy Yangzhou?"

"I heard that the imperial court has sent a royal army to quell the rebellion, and I believe a great victory will be achieved soon."

Xue Bai acted as if it had nothing to do with him, as if he didn't care about anything since he was suspected.

As he was speaking, he saw a servant hurriedly coming to the outside of the hall and gestured to him to indicate that he had an urgent letter to deliver.

Seeing this, Xue Bai had a guess in his mind. He did not read the urgent letter in front of Li Xiyan, but calmly sent the servant away.

After talking for about another quarter of an hour, Li Xiyan's people came hurriedly.

"Governor, urgent news from Dengzhou!"

"What's the matter?"

When Li Xiyan heard urgent news instead of good news, he had a bad feeling in his heart.

Sure enough, his men stepped forward quickly and whispered in his ear, "The king's army was defeated. The rebels defeated Cui Yuan's main force and are now heading straight for Shangzhou."

Li Xiyan was very surprised, turned to look at Xue Bai, then said goodbye and left.

Xue Bai watched him go away, then called the servant over, took the urgent letter and opened it, and saw that it was indeed from Dengzhou.

His information was more detailed. He knew that Cui Yuan still wanted to surrender and was not prepared for war. He was suddenly attacked by Ji Guangchen, a general under Li Lin, and had to retreat in a hurry.

Ji Guangchen led his troops to catch up, but Cui Yuan's side was quickly defeated because both the commander and the military supervisor fled.

As a result, the defenses of the Wuguan Road, which was originally difficult to attack, were destroyed, and Chang'an was shocked.

This situation is exactly the same as when Li Longji forced Geshu Han to go out of Tongguan to fight. It can be seen that the court has not learned any lesson at all. As the saying goes, "future generations will mourn it but will not learn from it."

After reading the intelligence, Xue Bai picked up his pen and wrote a letter to Du Jin, who was still in Chang'an. He sent someone to deliver it on the fastest horse, and then turned around to look for Yan Yan.

As soon as he walked out of the back ceremonial gate, he saw Yan Yan sneaking back on tiptoe, and he caught her red-handed.

"Eavesdropping on me talking to someone?"

"I'm curious." Yan Yan said, "I'm also concerned about national affairs."

"Don't allow me to do that next time." Xue Bai said, "I will tell you what I can tell you."

"Okay." This time it was Yan Yan who did something wrong, so she quickly changed the subject and said, "I thought you came here because you expected that Prince Yong would go down the river and pacify him."

Xue Bai asked: "Can I pacify him alone?"

"Didn't you want to take advantage of this opportunity to control Jiang Huai?" Yan Yan blinked and said mischievously, "Now your plan has failed?"

Xue Bai shook his head and said, "I really missed you, so I came to pick you up."

He was still thinking about the current situation and blurted out this sentence casually.

Yan Yan was stunned for a moment, then suddenly calmed down. She fiddled with her skirt with her fingers for a while before she snorted in dissatisfaction.

"I do not believe."

"I promised you." Xue Bai said.

Yan Yan asked: "Do you remember everything you promised me?"

Xue Bai had long thought of what he had told Yan Yan before, that they would consummate their marriage after the rebellion was quelled.

He was worried that her body couldn't stand it, so he secretly observed her for a while. Then, she caught his gaze again, so he looked away again.

He was obviously old and experienced, but the strange thing was that every time he looked into Yan Yan's bright and clear eyes, he always felt a little embarrassed for some reason.

"I'm asking you something."

"I remember." Xue Bai replied, but he was a little worried that Yan Yan didn't remember.

He then tried to hold her soft hand. She did not dodge. Instead, she glanced at him and then lowered her eyes, revealing the shyness of a young girl.

This was a gesture she had never taken before. The ignorant little girl back then had now grown up...

Yangzhou that night added a touch of poetry to Xue Bai.

He saw that the girl's shy face was filled with tears, her peach-leaf brows were tightly furrowed, and she was so beautiful.

The moonlight was so bright that if the moonlit night in the world was divided into three parts, he felt that all three parts would belong to Yangzhou.

(End of this chapter)