White tea legend

Chapter 257 The Imperial Concubine's Bath
An Xiaoshan never expected that a dance would completely change his destiny. His life would reach its peak and also go to destruction.

However, even though he knew the ending would not be good, An Xiaoshan would not regret it. On this day, he danced for the saint and the concubine at a banquet in Chang'an of the Li Dynasty.

He just spun and danced to his heart's content in the gaze of everyone. The joy he felt from dancing and being looked up to by everyone made him feel as if he had reached the pinnacle of his life.

As he spun, he said to his mother in his heart: "Mom, I will be a son that makes you and Dad proud!"

……

Under the shadow of the glorious years of the Li Dynasty, An Xiaoshan was born into a world of light and darkness. His mother was a Turkic wizard named Ashida, who had eyes that could see the future. His father was a Kangguo merchant who traveled thousands of miles with exotic spices and gems, giving Xiaoshan a unique mixed-race appearance.

Xiaoshan never remembered his father's warmth, because his father passed away when he was very young. What he was left with was not only half of his foreign blood, but also a foggy past. Ashde never remarried, and she poured all her love and expectations into this little life. She often said to An Xiaoshan: "You are the son of light, and your destiny is brighter than the stars in the sky."

However, fate did not seem to allow An Xiaoshan to live such a dull life. When he was ten years old, a sudden turmoil forced him and his mother to flee their hometown and live in another place.

Just when the mother and son were about to fall into the abyss of despair, a general named An Yanyan appeared. He was a Sogdian, brave and good at fighting, with fiery passion and deep eyes. Seeing the orphans and widows were pitiful and helpless, he gave them a new home, a new identity, and a new future.

From then on, An Xiaoshan had a "father". An Yanyan taught him how to ride a horse and shoot arrows, how to run as fast as the wind on the grassland; he also invited the best teachers to teach him how to read and write, and how to learn history and military tactics. An Xiaoshan learned quickly, and he was eager to use knowledge to change his destiny and get rid of the past shrouded in fog.

As he grew older, An Xiaoshan's talent began to show. He was not only proficient in martial arts, but also had a keen insight into politics. He learned to navigate the powerful and learned to use his mind to win the support and trust of others. Finally, An Xiaoshan came to Chang'an City. An Xiaoshan stood in front of the mirror, looking at his face that mixed Eastern and Western features, and his chubby body, his eyes exuded the sharpness of a wolf...

During the prosperous Li Dynasty, the Concubine was the most favored concubine of the Saint. Her brother served as the Prime Minister of the Li Dynasty, second only to the Prime Minister. The huge Li Dynasty was the world of the Saint, and also the world of the Concubine's brother and sister.

By getting close to the Yang brothers and sisters and gaining their trust, one can get close to the saint and pave the way for his future plans.

The imperial concubine was a dance lover, and her colorful feather dance amazed the court and the public. In order to attract the imperial concubine's attention, An Xiaoshan thought of the Huxuan dance. This dance originated from his hometown, full of exotic style, passionate and mysterious, just like his unique identity. He believed that such a performance would definitely capture the imperial concubine's heart.

So An Xiaoshan secretly practiced the Huxuan dance, and he practiced every gesture and every rotation in the dance to perfection. His dancing posture was vigorous and graceful, and seemed to silently tell his turbulent thoughts and his infinite longing for the future.

While An Xiaoshan was practicing the Hu Xuan dance, he was also managing his interpersonal relationships. He first made friends with Prime Minister Yang, and then got the opportunity to dance the Hu Xuan dance in front of the imperial concubine.

In front of the imperial concubine, the music started and An Xiaoshan began his performance. Each of his movements was as natural as flowing water, and each spin was accompanied by the whistling of the wind. His dance contained strength and tenderness, with both the vastness and grandeur of the grassland and the prosperity and tenderness of Chang'an. The imperial concubine was deeply attracted by him, as if she was brought into a dreamlike exotic world.

The imperial concubine's eyes flashed with surprise. She had never seen such a charming dance before. This Hu Xuan dance not only brightened her eyes, but also touched her heart. Even though this was a fat man weighing two or three hundred pounds, his flexible dancing skills still captured the imperial concubine's heart.

After the performance, the Royal Concubine summoned An Xiaoshan to her side. She gently asked about his background and experience, and praised his dance. An Xiaoshan's humble and witty answers won the Royal Concubine's favor. He frankly stated his ambitions and loyalty to the Great Li Dynasty, and expressed his determination to be loyal to the Saint and the Royal Concubine.

The imperial concubine was moved by An Xiaoshan's talent and sincerity and decided to recommend him to the emperor. She said: "Xiaoshan, you are not only a good dancer, but also a loyal person. The emperor will definitely appreciate you."

In this way, with the introduction of the imperial concubine, An Xiaoshan was able to meet the emperor.

On that moonlit night, the palace held a grand banquet. Under the arrangement of the imperial concubine, An Xiaoshan put on the Hu clothing that his mother had made for him. The clothing was embroidered with exquisite patterns and shone with an exotic light. He took a deep breath, walked slowly into the banquet hall, walked up to the saint, and began to spin and dance.

Inside the Xingqing Palace, under the magnificent lights, a game of power was quietly unfolding.

With the introduction of the imperial concubine, An Xiaoshan successfully captured the heart of the saint with his charming Huxuan dance and unique exotic style. An Xiaoshan's ambition began to unfold.

When the saint rewarded him for his good dancing, An Xiaoshan knelt before the saint and made a bold request, saying earnestly: "Your Majesty, you are the sun and moon in my heart, and the guide of my soul. I am willing to be your adopted son, share your worries and solve your problems, and protect this land for you."

The sudden request made the saint silent for a moment. He admired An Xiaoshan's intelligence and courage, but he was also wary of the ambition and tactics of this mixed-race Hu man. But the beautiful concubine next to him cast a pleading look at him.

The imperial concubine said, "Your Majesty, look, he is so cute because he is so chubby! Your Majesty, I am very sorry that I have not been able to give birth to a child for you. If I could have such a cute child, it would make up for my regret."

Yeah, what bad intentions could a fat person have?

The saint looked at An Xiaoshan, who was kneeling on the ground like a ball, and smiled. He slowly said, "Xiaoshan, I have seen your loyalty. But becoming my adopted son is not a trivial matter. I want the imperial concubine to adopt you as my adopted son. What do you think?"

An Xiaoshan was not disappointed, but was delighted. He knew this was a great opportunity for him to get closer to the core of power. He immediately kowtowed to express his gratitude: "Your Majesty is virtuous and kind. Being able to become your adopted son is a blessing that Xiaoshan has cultivated for several lifetimes."

The imperial concubine smiled and nodded. She saw An Xiaoshan's sincerity and potential. From that day on, An Xiaoshan became the imperial concubine's adopted son. His status in the palace rose rapidly and he became the focus of everyone's attention.

When the imperial concubine had An Xiaoshan, she also experienced the joy of being a mother and took good care of An Xiaoshan.

In a blink of an eye, it was An Xiaoshan’s birthday, and the imperial concubine even held a third-day bathing ceremony for him.

The third day baptism was originally a baptism performed on the third day after the birth of a newborn baby, with the intention of praying for blessings and warding off disasters for the baby.

At that time, An Xiaoshan was already an adult, older than the imperial concubine, so it was not impossible for him to be the imperial concubine's father, but he rushed to cooperate with the imperial concubine's game just to make her smile.

The imperial concubine is giving An Xiaoshan a bath!
It is unknown which nosy palace servant intentionally reported this news to the Saint.

The saint left his government affairs behind, called Gao Lishi and ran to the imperial concubine's bedroom.

When the sage arrived, he was stunned for a moment, then burst into laughter. An Xiaoshan was undressed by the palace maids, wrapped in a large brocade swaddling cloth and placed in a cradle, while the imperial concubine laughed and simulated the scene of taking care of a baby.

On a whim, the imperial concubine wanted to experience the fun of raising children among the common people. In order to further deepen his relationship with the royal family, An Xiaoshan was willing to put aside his dignity and cooperate with the imperial concubine.

When the saint saw this scene, he not only did not stop it, but laughed out loud, happy to see it happen. He not only indulged and doted on the imperial concubine, but also loved the fat man An Xiaoshan.

Since then, An Xiaoshan has been able to come and go more freely in Xingqing Palace. Rumors about him and the imperial concubine are spreading everywhere, but the emperor doesn't care and others can do nothing about it, they can only gossip about him behind their backs.

Even during lunch break, An Xiaoshan slept directly in the imperial concubine's bedroom.

The fat man was lying on the large chaise longue, his body taking up the entire chaise longue. He had a satisfied and peaceful expression on his face, with the corners of his mouth slightly raised, as if he was having a beautiful dream. His stomach rose and fell regularly with his breathing, like a calm ocean. Everything around him seemed exceptionally quiet, with only the fat man's snoring echoing in the air.

The imperial concubine stood in front of the imperial concubine couch, staring at the fat man An Xiaoshan lying on the couch.

Gradually, the smile on the imperial concubine's face froze, and a transparent figure walked out of the imperial concubine's body. The figure soon changed from transparent to concrete, wearing a black robe that was eerie and strange. It was Ruiyu.

As soon as Ruiyu left the imperial concubine's body, the imperial concubine collapsed to the ground. She took a long time to come back to her senses. She looked at the fat man on the bed with an expression of disgust on her face.

At this moment, she heard the whispering voices of the palace maids outside the door, all criticizing her ambiguous relationship with An Xiaoshan. The voices were subtle, but enough to penetrate the quiet afternoon and float into the imperial concubine's eardrums.

"I heard that the imperial concubine summoned An Xiaoshan again last night, and the two of them took a stroll under the moon, which is rare in the palace."

"Not only that, An Xiaoshan is often presented with soup made by the imperial concubine herself. This kind of favor is extraordinary."

On the ground, the imperial concubine's face was a mess of confusion. She shouted at Ruiyu resentfully: "Why do you treat me like this? Do you want to tarnish my innocent reputation with such a dirty thing?"

"The Imperial Concubine still has a clean reputation?" Ruiyu looked down at the Imperial Concubine lying on the ground and found it ridiculous. "In the vast Li Dynasty, even in the history books of later generations, who doesn't know that you, Yang Guifei, served two husbands, and they were a pair of father and son?"

"I didn't want to marry the Prince of Shou. We are just a couple who are unhappy with each other. The Saint is the one I admire. What's wrong with loving someone? Just because this person is my ex-husband's father, I can't love her?"

Ruiyu looked at the imperial concubine lying on the ground. This woman was extremely beautiful, but she was just a pretty face and her brain didn't seem to be working very well.

"Love? As a woman of the royal family, you are thinking about love all the time? How can a royal family member talk about such a luxurious thing as love? If you want to love, you should love someone with a pure heart. What's there to love about an old pervert like that? Have you forgotten that when you were spending the summer in Huaqing Palace, he was attracted to you when you were still his daughter-in-law, but he was heartless to you because your face was disfigured?"

Every word Ruiyu said was like a needle piercing the imperial concubine's heart.

Because the imperial concubine's body had been occupied by Ruiyu for a long time, once Ruiyu left, her body would be extremely weak. At this moment, Ruiyu's words stimulated her to the point that she was sweating profusely and trembling even more.

Ruiyu saw this, shook her head, sighed and said: "For men and women in this world, love is such a heavy thing, how can everyone bear it? If you insist on pursuing it, I am afraid that one day you will pay a painful price."

The imperial concubine shuddered and looked up at Ruiyu. He was wearing a black robe, with an eerie smile and an evil look in his eyes. However, there was a hint of pity underneath the evil.

"Since I have chosen this path, I will not regret it even if thousands of people criticize me."

Ruiyu nodded: "You are quite courageous. Okay, I will help you stay with your lover and stay together forever. Then you should lend me your body so that I can use it to exert my evil power!"

……

Bai Cha and Ao Qian have been unable to find the whereabouts of Long San Taizi, so Bai Cha temporarily returns to the "Gu Yu Lin" tea shop to reunite with Lu Yu. Ao Qian continues to search for Long San Taizi's whereabouts.

Seeing his master and his mistress both coming to Chang'an, Zhuo Laosan plucked up the courage to tell his master and his mistress what was in his heart.

I saw Zhuo Laosan kneeling in front of Lu Yu and Bai Cha, stammering and looking quite embarrassed.

After Lu Yu and Bai Cha asked him repeatedly, he finally said that he liked Lady Yao Si, but because of the incompatibility of their social status, he did not dare to propose to the Yao family.

"Si Niang is definitely not someone who despises the poor and loves the rich. Since she invited you to come to Chang'an to open a tea shop, you should know her intentions."

"As the ancients said, you should get married first and then start a business. You two lovers will eventually get married. Maybe the business of 'Gu Yulin' can become bigger?"

With the encouragement from the two masters, Zhuo Lao San was greatly encouraged, so he knelt down and kowtowed: "In this case, Lao San asks Master and Master's wife to make the decision for Lao San."

The Zhuo family was far away in Tianzhu, and Zhuo Laosan's parents were an honest pair of farmers who could not read or write and had little money. If they wanted to marry into a eunuch family like the Yao family, this could only be done by Lu Yu and Bai Cha.

Madam Yao Si has always had feelings for Zhuo Lao San, and Zhang is a woman with no opinion of her own, so she can just listen to what Madam Yao Si likes.

Bai Cha previously had a mansion in the suburbs of Chang'an, which he gave to Zhuo Lao San and Yao Si Niangzi as a wedding house. Seeing that the wedding was about to take place, Yao Ziling and Yao Ziyuan jumped out again, posing as brothers and asking for a high betrothal gift.

Zhuo Lao San presented all his earnings from running the tea shop to his two brothers, but they were still not satisfied. This made Yao Si Niangzi so angry that she wanted to sever her sibling relationship with her two brothers.

The two elder brothers were very confident at this time, saying: "It has always been the same to marry a wife, not just in the Li Dynasty. If you, Zhuo Lao San, can't afford to marry a wife, then get out of here. If you want to cheat our sister into marrying you without money, we will sue you to Jingzhao Prefecture!"