The bad emperor of Tang Dynasty

Coming out of Shengping Princess Mansion early in the morning, Guo Nuan took the school boy Afu to drive the carriage to Waiguo City.

Although the princess mansion is located in the outskirts, the surrounding environment is not remote, and it is only five or six miles away from the imperial city wall.Compared with the bustling and crowded workshops in the imperial city, the countryside in the countryside is beautiful, and the manors are scattered in the low valleys among the mountains.

Of course, those who can have this kind of living environment are nothing more than some high-ranking officials who serve as officials in the imperial court, or those low-key aristocratic families, and some explosively wealthy households who have done a large number of commercial businesses in just a dozen years.

Guo Nuan accidentally opened the curtain of the carriage when the carriage was driving on the willow stone slab road, and saw row upon row of large manors scattered side by side on the roadside.

It is expected to be the house of some important minister in the court, or the residence of Wang Qing's nobles.Ah Fu heard Guo Nuan's thoughts, but he didn't take it seriously. He immediately pouted and told Guo Nuan that the mansions he just saw were just upstarts from various places who came to Chang'an to make a fortune in tea, silk and sea salt business. .

At any rate, Ah Fu has also been in a school for several years and read the Four Books and Five Classics. Just like the values ​​of ordinary scholars, the concept of ranking high and low in the ranks of scholars, farmers, businessmen and commerce is deeply rooted.

Even if those businessmen accidentally made a fortune out of luck and had tens of thousands of taels of silver in their families, they could not set off their humble background. Even a poor official from a dilapidated family would still look arrogant when he met a rich businessman with gorgeous clothes face to face.

But Guo Nuan didn't care when he heard these words, but he cared about another idea.Just passing by a magnificent manor, the plaque "Fang Mansion" hanging high in front of the mansion was just printed in front of his eyes.Knowing that Fang's family was the private residence of the largest tea merchant in Luoyang two years ago, Guo Nuan's eyes lit up, vaguely, Guo Nuan, who was short of money and going crazy, had some plans to make money, but For a while, I haven't formed a set of detailed strategies in my mind.

Maybe in the future, I have to think about finding a reasonable reason to visit Fangfu, to see if I can make some connections, and maybe I can solve some of my lack of funds.Guo Nuan's mind was turbulent for a while, and he made up his mind, and he clapped twice, and his heart relaxed a lot.

Shaking his head, Guo Nuan stopped wasting his mind on the Wang family's ideas, and decided to tell Ah Fu to drive quickly, and was going to go to Mingyuequ next to the Baishui River embankment. He heard that the drinks there were very good, especially It is a wine produced in Liangzhou.

Bypassing the Tianjin Bridge and crossing Changheng Street, it took Guo Nuan and the others half an hour to finally arrive at Mingyuequ.

Mingyuequ is a small city in the outskirts. Generally, there are more floating population here. It is nothing more than the flow of people who pass through Mingyuequ when entering and leaving Chang'an City.The staff is mixed, there are all kinds of people, but most of them are honest farmers, farmers who carry loads of mountain goods, vegetables and fruits into the city, hunters, and some caravan grooms.

Guo Nuan likes to go to the alleys of the market, mainly to search for some common and cheap snacks, or to drink a few glasses of wine in the tavern, just to pass the time in his spare time.

Stepping into a tavern located by the Qingshui River, it was the time when the imperial city opened early in the morning. The tavern was already full of seven or eight diners.

Sniffing the smell of spirits in the air, Guo Nuan seemed a little excited, her eyes flickered, and she subconsciously licked her lips.These days, Guo Nuan didn't go out much, just stayed in the mansion honestly, the wine bug in her stomach was very hungry.

However, Shengping didn't mean to restrict the son-in-law Guo Nuan. The guards in the mansion, except for occasionally going to the courtyard wall of Guo Nuan's residence as usual, did not go in to make things difficult for the two masters. Everything seemed peaceful and peaceful, so Guo Nuan's personal life There is freedom.

As for meeting Shengping on the first day of entering the mansion, besides, during the four or five days, apart from looking at the gate of the mansion from time to time, a few luxuriously decorated carriages would rush out in the morning and come back at night.

During the period, I saw the woman Shengping, and she entered the mansion surrounded by servants like stars and moons. Guo Nuan never talked to her again. It seemed that Shengping also forgot that there was a concubine in the mansion.

Since Shengping has no intention of talking to Guo Nuan, he is also happy to be at leisure, and has an attitude of not getting in touch with Shengping.

Yesterday I saw the fox-like Eunuch Huang greeting Guo Nuan, and Guo Nuan, who was exercising by the artificial lake in the morning, also graciously responded to this acquaintance.

In addition, when I went to the woodshed to borrow a few bundles of firewood, I happened to meet the princess nurse, and she gave her a white look, which was still the same as the days before. The angry nurse's plump cheeks trembled, and finally mentioned Regarding the next month's rent, the two threatened each other, but nothing major happened these days, as if Guo Nuan's life in the mansion was gradually integrated.

He found a clean place to sit down everywhere, ignoring the noisy noise of diners, Guo Nuan asked the shopkeeper to order two dishes of fennel beans, a pot of green bamboo leaves, a cage of steamed buns with leeks, and a plate of roast beef. Ah Fu, who was already hungry, opened his stomach and ate.

In the Princess Mansion, the two lived a very poor life. Compared with the well-clothed Guo Mansion, the living conditions were a lot shorter.

"How can you say that there is no son-in-law who is so downcast..."

Guo Nuan grabbed a big steamer bun with one hand, swallowed it whole, hiccupped, and spoke inarticulately to Ah Fu who was chewing beef with his head down, with a rather dissatisfied expression.

"Oh, young master, just bear with it. We live a life of being dependent on others. How can they show us a good face? Yesterday I went to the kitchen to borrow firewood, and I ran back and forth four times. The cook kept pretending Zuo couldn't hear it, saying that there was no firewood in the kitchen, you had to borrow it yourself and sold the cheap concubine's face to get a few bundles of firewood, otherwise you would have to eat raw rice for dinner that day."

Ah Fu seemed to be used to being submissive, and after complaining, he stopped talking and aimed at the plate of beef on the table, biting fiercely like a hungry wolf.After all, it seems that Ah Fu is also very displeased with the servants in the princess mansion who behaved as mean as their master.

"Hey, have you heard? Due to the lack of food and supplies in Shuofang, Marshal Guo personally led 10,000+ soldiers in Shuofang [-] to cultivate rice and wheat in the Hezhong area..."

The three middle-aged men who looked like businessmen gathered next to each other were chatting about gossip at this time, and Guo Nuan's ears were sharp, just hearing this sentence, he couldn't help being interested.

"Ah Fu, has the war in Shuofang tightened up recently? Even the court's supply of military rations is not enough? Do you have to force my father, the Generalissimo, to take the lead in planting food himself?"

Guo Nuan frowned, gently placed the bamboo on the edge of the table, raised her head and asked Ah Fu.

Ah Fu nodded, stopped eating, and replied:

"Yeah, counting the days, the master hasn't returned to Chang'an for more than a year. Last year, the Jiedu envoy went to the palace as usual, in order to report to the emperor on the border military affairs. At that time, the master was unable to leave his hometown and did not return to Chang'an. , I heard that the battle situation in Shuofang is not very good, Tubo has been sending troops to harass the border, both armies have lost a lot of soldiers, and the Turks are watching fiercely, and when the fighting is fierce, the army will consume a lot of rations."

"Can't there be a pause at the border? The imperial court should find a way to transfer troops from various places? Such a stalemate is very detrimental to the stability of the border."

Guo Nuan was a little puzzled.

Ah Fu wiped his mouth and said carelessly:

"How can it be? In the last two months, news came from the border that Tubo has broken through the two prefectures of Ganzhou and Suzhou, and plundered them wantonly, but the people there have suffered. In the end, the imperial court sent an envoy The regiment went to Tubo to negotiate a peace, paid more than 100 million taels of silver and a large batch of grain, and was brutally slaughtered, so that such jackals retreated contentedly."

After a pause, Ah Fu's face turned red, and he seemed a little excited. Like Guo Nuan drinking, he grabbed the jug and poured a few mouthfuls of white wine. The pungent smell made him cough. :

"I heard that the Qiang people in the southwest are also very dishonest. Relying on the protection of Tubo, they have gradually become more courageous. Several elders of the tribe have always urged the Qiang king to rebel against the Celestial Dynasty, and they also plan to unite with Tubo who live on the plateau. the meaning of."

Ah Fu seemed to be more than satisfied, grabbed a piece of beef, dipped it into the sauce plate, dipped it in the seasoning, then swallowed it whole, and continued:

"Ah, just in the face of national crisis, these Jiedu Envoys still have their minds to fight each other. Either Tonghua Jiedu Zhou Zhiguang killed the Shanzhou Supervising Army, or Chengdu Yin and Xichuan Jiedu Marching Sima clamored for the imperial court to allocate money for military expenses. When there was less hair, they secretly fanned the private army to riot and show their face to the court. When it came to the critical moment, the Jiedu envoys from all over the country were asked to send troops under their jurisdiction to send troops to support the frontier. "

"It seems that the central court's ability to control Jiedushi is very weak. If this continues, accidents will happen sooner or later, and the land may be divided."

Guo Nuan's brows faintly revealed a sense of worry, which twisted into a deep Sichuan shape.

"There is no way around this. Since An Lushan and Shi Siming rebelled for seven or eight years, although they were finally wiped out, the imperial court was also severely weakened and has been extremely weak and barren. In addition, the Jiedu envoys from all over the country The hidden dangers have not been eliminated. The military regions and the imperial courts in various places seem to be in harmony with each other, and it is only a temporary calm. It is not like our master Guo Dashuai. A Jiedushi who is looking for rebellion is not the same thing."

Although Ah Fu was young, he seemed to have a deep understanding of politics, and what he said was very insightful, and Guo Nuan nodded in agreement after hearing it.

While thinking quietly, suddenly a palm behind Guo Nuan was placed on Guo Nuan's shoulder. The sudden move made Guo Nuan's shoulder tremble subconsciously.

"Hehe, young master, you are being polite. You don't mind sitting at the same table."

Guo Nuan, who was sitting on the bench, turned around and looked up. He was a young man in a scarlet robe, probably about 20 years old, with small eyes, very standard Mongolian eyes, and a pancake face. , saluted him very politely at this time.

Obviously, the surrounding area was full of diners, and the young man couldn't find a vacant seat, so he wanted to borrow a seat at Guo Nuan's table for breakfast.

Isn't this the handsome guy in the Korean drama that was often broadcast on TV in the previous life? A typical Korean face.

Guo Nuan took a closer look, and was a little surprised. The Korean spoke a very standard Central Plains official dialect, which made Guo Nuan and Ah Fu very interested.

"Anyway, there are seats at this table, and if it's empty, it's empty. Sit down, you don't have to be polite, my lord."

Guo Nuan waved her hand, signaling him to sit down, poured a cup of green bamboo leaves naturally, and handed it to the young man.

"Hey~ Not bad, it is indeed the signature wine of this hotel, and the taste is more mellow than other wines."

The young man was not polite, he reached out to take the wine glass, smiled, drained the wine from his neck, and said something casually.

"Excuse me, are you Korean?"

Guo Nuan tentatively asked the young man sitting next to him.

"Eh? Which country is South Korea?"

The young man was a little puzzled, and looked at Guo Nuan suspiciously, while Ah Fu was also taken aback: "Yes, I have never heard of Korea."

Guo Nuan smiled mischievously, and patted his forehead again and again before he came back to his senses.It is still the Tang Dynasty, and on the Korean peninsula, the word Korea has not yet been used.

"I'm wrong, it's Goryeo. Look at your appearance, you don't look like a person from Tang Dynasty. You're from Goguryeo, right?"

Faced with Guo Nuan's question, the young man clarified his thoughts, suddenly realized, and said with a smile:

"No, this is the Park family of Chenhan, named Pu Shangxuan. The family lives in the south of the Daedong River on the Korean Peninsula. The Goguryeo people you mentioned live in the north of our Silla."

However, Guo Nuan did not guess wrong. Silla and Goguryeo were tribal countries along the Korean peninsula at the same time. They were the predecessors of the two countries that later evolved into South Korea and North Korea. Emotional Silla was the predecessor of South Korea.

"Oh, it's a pleasure to meet you. This is Guo Nuan, the sixth son of Guo Ziyi, the king of Fenyang."

At this time, Guo Nuan did not mention the title of Prince Consort of Shengping. He felt that this title was a bit humiliating, so he deliberately avoided it.

"This is my personal book boy, Ah Fu." After introducing the book boy, Ah Fu and the young man looked at each other politely and nodded, as a greeting.

"Brother Shangxuan speaks fluent Central Plains mandarin, it seems that the old man has been in Datang for a while." Guo Nuan asked with doubts.

"Well, what Brother Guo said is true. It has been three years since I came down to Tang Dynasty. I have been studying here at the Imperial College for the purpose of learning Tang culture."

Pu Shangxuan was not unfamiliar, so Guo Nuan quickly chatted with him, and the two became brothers after a while.

It turned out that Park Sang-hyun came to Chang'an with the envoys sent by the Silla royal family three years ago.At that time, the Anshi Rebellion was coming to an end, Pu Shangxuan yearned for the culture of the Tang Dynasty very much, and planned to go to the Central Plains with his uncle when he was seven years old, but he didn't expect that Anshi broke out, and the trip would take another year.

Later, the uncle of the Silla aristocrat accepted the order of the Silla regime. As an ambassador, he led a mission from Incheon Bay on the west coast, sailed directly to China, entered Henan from the Shandong Peninsula, and arrived at Chang'an. He stayed for three years and now lives in the reception. The foreign envoy's Honglu Temple guest house, Pu Shangxuan, as an overseas student, usually studies Chinese culture in the Imperial College.

In recent years, the Dahe nation of the Japanese country has been eyeing Silla on the Korean peninsula. The weak Silla relied on the protection of the Tang Dynasty to achieve a little stability. Young people from all over the world came to Tang to study and exchange, and Pu Shangxuan was one of the foreign students.