Volume 1 Princess Taiping Grows Up Chapter 8: Become a Disciple
For Li Yuechen now , there is always an awkward feeling in his heart.
Before coming to this era, the most common comments I had seen about the Tang Dynasty were about its tolerance and openness.
However, the specific extent of this openness cannot be judged from simple text.
But only when you really come to this world, you can really understand it.
The Tang Dynasty was a very open society. For wealthy and powerful families, it was normal for men to keep female lovers and for women to keep male lovers. Even male-male and female-female relationships were not uncommon.
However, to historians, such things were just some romantic affairs that were not worth recording and were very common.
If you don't have the time to care about these things, it would be more interesting to gossip about royal news.
The Jiaofang was established during Emperor Gaozu's Wude reign , but it has now been roughly divided into two parts.
Some of them live in the palace and belong to the court band. Their beauty is not inferior to that of the concubines in the harem.
The other part is under the jurisdiction of the Taichang Temple and is the official prostitute, that is, the one who now sits next to the ministers and serves wine.
These are basically the wives, daughters, and family members of criminals or prisoners of enemy countries, etc. Generally speaking, they must be proficient in one of the four arts, chess, calligraphy, and painting, as well as music and dance.
Not only do you have to drink and smile, but you also have to treat guests with kindness.
Looking at those official prostitutes giggling in the arms of ministers, Li Yuechen felt a little uncomfortable.
Beneath the charming smiles of these women, different emotions are reflected.
There is the bitterness and sadness that comes after complaining about fate, and there is also the joy and debauchery that comes after giving up on oneself.
Although she lamented about the feudal society, it was not something she could solve, so she stopped watching the excitement below and instead reached out and grabbed a piece of Hu pancake and started eating it with the mutton.
The drinking orders that followed seemed to have nothing to do with her, and she just devoured the food in her hands.
After eating a Hu pancake and a piece of mutton, I was almost full.
She habitually picked up the crumbs that fell on the table and put them into her mouth to eat.
This is because of what my grandfather taught me when I was a child in my previous life. My old-fashioned grandfather not only required that food not be wasted, but even if it fell on the ground, it had to be rinsed with water before being eaten.
She still kept this habit when she grew up.
Now that I have reached this age, although I am trying to change my past life habits, my attention is not on this aspect now, so I do it subconsciously.
Seeing the princess picking up the crumbs on the table and putting them in her mouth, some of the ministers below were stunned for a moment.
Li Zhi also turned his head to take a look, and his expression suddenly turned a little ugly.
As a royal princess, it is indeed a bit embarrassing to do this on such an occasion, as if she is not well fed on a normal day.
It was not easy to lecture him directly in front of so many ministers, so he reminded him, "Chen'er, if you want to eat more, just order some more."
Li Yuechen shook his head subconsciously: "Chen'er is full, but I don't want to waste it. Every meal should be appreciated as it is not easy to come by!"
As soon as these words were spoken, Li Zhi immediately raised his eyebrows.
Wu Zetian, who also felt a little embarrassed just now, lowered her head and looked over with a little surprise.
"Hahaha……"
Li Zhi suddenly burst into laughter, which scared Li Yuechen. After he came to his senses, he turned his head to look over with a puzzled look on his face.
The ministers and several princes below also raised their heads, wondering why he was suddenly laughing.
"Well, well said!" Li Zhi laughed and lowered his head and said, "Did Lord Xu hear what the princess said?"
The person closest to Xu Jingzong, except for the crown prince and several other princes, raised his hand and saluted, saying, "Your Majesty, the princess just said that every bowl of porridge and every meal should be cherished! I heard it!"
Li Yuechen, who was sitting next to Wu Zetian, felt a little confused and almost slapped himself. Why was he saying this for no reason?
I have only heard this before when I was in school, and I think it was a textbook, but now I only remember this sentence. If Li Zhi asks me if I have any other questions, how should I answer?
And why ask Xu Jingzong when there are so many people to ask?
Although she was still young and didn't know much about what was going on in the court, she was very familiar with Xu Jingzong's name.
This was a super boss who was very trusted by Li Zhi and Wu Zetian. You know, normal officials were not allowed to ride horses after entering the palace gate when going to court, they had to walk.
However, there were two people who could ride in a carriage all the way to the Ministry of Internal Affairs! One was Li Ji, and the other was him!
As for official positions, he was the Minister of the Secretariat, and was also the Grand Master of Imperial Households, the Junior Tutor of the Crown Prince, and the third rank official in the Eastern and Western Secretariats. He also had the job of supervising the national history.
If he added such a sentence in the history book, I wonder if the original author of that text in the future will feel that he is living in my shadow... Li Yuechen thought so in his heart.
But at this time, no one cared what she was thinking. Li Zhi seemed to be in a very good mood. He lowered his head and asked in front of all the ministers: "Why do you say that, Chen'er?"
As soon as Li Zhi said this, all the ministers and princes below stared at him.
Li Yuechen felt a little embarrassed. She blinked her cute big eyes and thought about how to answer.
In such occasions, not only must one answer in a way that does not embarrass the emperor, but one must also not go too far, otherwise one might be regarded as a monster.
After thinking quickly, she stood up and saluted, trying her best to put on a serious expression.
"Chen'er has recently read the history of the country and learned that after each drought, locust disaster, and other disasters, the food supply has been greatly reduced, and many people cannot eat enough. Therefore, my daughter believes that we should cherish food on a daily basis and not waste it..."
She didn't say anything profound. After all, a little girl of only three or four years old should not act too excessively.
However, precisely because of this, these words did not arouse much suspicion. Instead, they made Li Zhi and Wu Zetian smile with relief.
"Your Majesty, the princess is kind and benevolent, which is a blessing to the Tang Dynasty!" Xu Jingzong praised very appropriately.
As soon as he spoke, the other ministers followed suit, praising the princess for her understanding, saying that the Tang Dynasty was auspicious, etc.
Li Yuechen, who was listening, felt so embarrassed that he almost rolled his eyes.
But in the end he didn't do anything, he just raised his hand to wipe the biscuit crumbs from the corner of his mouth.
Seeing that the following had become the same style as the Kuakua group, Li Zhi was in a good mood: "Chen'er's words are very reasonable and should be promoted. Do you want any reward?"
Li Yuechen almost opened her mouth to ask for the two sisters to be released, but she stopped talking before she could say it.
It doesn't matter if I say it now, but if I bring it up in front of all the ministers, and if Li Zhi is unwilling, it might be seen as coercion!
Thinking of this, he blinked his big black eyes and smiled: "I want to talk about it after I get back."
“Hahahaha…Okay!” Li Zhi nodded in agreement, then stroked his beard, raised his glass and said, “My dear ministers, what the princess said today is truly a blessing for the Tang Dynasty. Let’s drink together!”
Seeing the ministers below starting to eat and drink again, Li Yuechen breathed a sigh of relief, thinking that he had finally fooled them.
…
After the celebration banquet, Li Zhi left Liu Rengui alone and called him to the Purple Palace.
Li Zhi and Wu Zetian sat on the dragon throne, and Liu Rengui knelt below in a standard posture.
"My dear Liu, you have made great contributions in pacifying Goguryeo this time. I plan to appoint you as the Pacifier of Liaodong Road and work with My dear Xue to rectify the counties of Andong Protectorate. What do you think, Lord Liu?" Li Zhi asked casually.
Liu Rengui, who was kneeling below, was silent for two seconds, then raised his hand and saluted, saying: "Your Majesty, I am nearly seventy years old, and my health has not been very good in recent years. Please allow me to retire and rest well!"
Li Zhi and Wu Zetian above looked at each other, then smiled at each other silently.
Then he turned around and said, "Lord Liu, some time ago Chen'er told me that he wanted to learn martial arts. The Queen said that Lord Liu is proficient in both civil and military affairs. Since you want to retire now, why don't you take this opportunity to become Chen'er's master? You can cultivate yourself while also exercising."
Liu Rengui was a little stunned and looked up.
What caught my eye was the smiling faces of Li Zhi and Wu Zetian, which gave me the feeling that they were smiling but with a dagger hidden behind.
He finally realized that if he didn't agree to this, he would forget about retiring and would probably have to work in the Andong Protectorate.
So he bowed his head and saluted: "It is my honor to teach the princess martial arts, but martial arts is boring and easy to get injured..."
"It's okay. If Chen'er can't stand it anymore, he will come back naturally!" Li Zhi interrupted him directly.
Liu Rengui lowered his head and curled his lips. It seemed that he couldn't escape this mission.
But it doesn't matter if you think about it. Anyway, a little girl probably can't stand the boredom of practicing martial arts, and she probably won't be able to persist in it for a few days.
If she gives up by then, it will have nothing to do with me anymore.
Thinking of this, he bowed his head and said, "In this case, I will do my best to teach the princess!"
…
On the other side, Li Yuechen ran to the Clothing Bureau and came to the Clothing Department.
I accidentally said something today that might be recorded in history books, and maybe it would make Li Zhi and Wu Zetian feel that they have grown up.
Li Yuechen felt that she couldn't do this and she had to take some practical actions to tell them both that she hadn't grown up yet and was still a good baby and a caring little cotton-padded jacket for her parents.
I guess they have become resistant to all the cute and silly behavior over the years , so they have to think of new ways.
The Clothing Department is the place in charge of palace clothing and jewelry. It is the royal tailoring agency for the palace. The most skilled tailors in the entire Tang Dynasty are all here.
Seeing Li Yuechen coming with Eunuch Fu, a tailor in his forties trotted up to them and saluted.
"Greetings, Your Highness!"
"No need to be polite!"
Li Yuechen waved her hand: "Si Yi, I want you to help me make a dress. Can you take me to see the existing fabrics?"
"Yes, Your Highness, please follow me!"
Following Si Yi into the warehouse, Li Yuechen began to select.
I did buy a pair of dinosaur pajamas in my previous life, but people of this era probably don’t know what a dinosaur is.
But it doesn’t matter, a bear will do, as long as it can create that cute feeling.
In fact, there are only three elements in total for this thing. The first is that it must be a loose fit, the second is the ears, and the third is the eyes.
The one-piece is easy to say, as the tailoring skills of this era are not bad. As for the ears, the key is to add a piece of pink fabric in the front to make it look like a lining, and make the ears look rounder.
As for the eyes... you can only find two small oval wooden pieces and draw them yourself.
Although Li Yuechen doesn't know much about drawing, it is still quite easy for him to draw two cartoon little eyes.
Li Yuechen walked around in the warehouse. In this era, there were definitely no fabrics like those in later generations. But it didn't matter. He could just use real fur instead.
The key is that the abdominal part can be spliced on with ordinary white cloth.
After finding a good material, he asked for paper and pen, drew a front and side view, and handed it to Si Yi: "Do you understand?"
Si Yi looked at it and nodded: "Yes, I can do it, but Your Highness, these eyes..."
"After drawing it with a small piece of wood, just use fish glue to stick it on." Li Yuechen replied, "I will go back and draw it tonight, and ask Eunuch Fu to deliver it tomorrow."
“Yes!”
Of course there were no zippers in that era, so the only option was to use the buckles on Tang suits instead.
I discussed it with Si Yi and if we hurry up, it can be done before noon tomorrow.
Li Yuechen nodded, then turned and left with Eunuch Fu.
After leaving, Li Yuechen turned around and warned: "Don't tell Grandpa and Mom about what happened today. I will wear it in front of them tomorrow!"
Eunuch Fu seemed a little confused, but he thought it was not a big deal and it was normal for children to like playing, so he replied respectfully: "Yes!"
It wasn't long after I returned to Chengxiang Palace that Zhang Chengxin came over and said, "Your Highness, the Saint has summoned you. Come with me to Zichen Palace."
"Okay!" Li Yuechen agreed in a cute little voice and followed Zhang Chengxin to the Zichen Palace.
After entering the hall, I saw Liu Rengui kneeling respectfully beside me, while Li Zhi and Wu Zetian were sitting on the dragon throne.
Li Yuechen opened his arms and ran over: "Grandpa, Mom!"
Li Zhi and Wu Zetian were no longer surprised by the princess's refusal to honor others, but who could blame them for liking her?
When the other sons came to meet them, they would always bow respectfully first, but Li Yuechen would usually throw himself directly into their arms, completely ignoring the complicated rules.
Because she knew very well that physical contact could bring people closer together, and the infighting within the royal family was largely due to the fact that the etiquette was too complicated.
Li Yuechen has always hated the term "treat each other with respect" because she feels that this term should not be used between husband and wife or between parents and children.
Every time he saw the couple, Li Yuechen would grab them and play with them, or crawl all over them.
Of course, she was very careful about her manners and never made them feel annoyed, always stopping at the right time.
This approach also made Li Zhi and Wu Zetian particularly like her, and they were very tolerant of many rules of etiquette.
"Okay, Chen'er, stop making trouble."
Wu Zetian, the old lady, rarely used a serious expression on her face: "Don't you want to learn martial arts? Why don't you meet the master?"
"yes!"
Li Yuechen agreed, came to Liu Rengui, bowed with both hands and saluted: "Li Yuechen greets Master!"
"Ouch!" Liu Rengui stood up quickly, "I don't deserve such a great gift from the princess!"
Li Zhi, who was sitting on the top, smiled and waved his hands: "No problem, even if I am a princess of the Tang Dynasty, I should respect my teacher."
