On the opening day, when the people woke up in the morning, they heard the grand and melodious bell from all directions.

So the wife pushed the man, the adult dragged the child, and urged continuously: "Get up quickly, get up quickly, today is the opening ceremony of Zhengqing Wenqitang, go and see the excitement." ”

For a while, adults and children hurriedly put on new clothes that they were usually reluctant to wear, hastily washed their faces, and rushed out of the door together.

The streets and alleys have long been full of people, gongs and drums.

At the main intersections of Lifang District of Luoyang City, one hundred and ten cauldrons were erected, the pots were filled with water, and the firewood at the bottom of the pots was blazing, dazzling.

The fire-burner lifted his shirt to wipe his sweat and added wood to the fire.

The village chef recruited from the nearby prefecture and county, with a shiny face, quickly cut the meat and vegetables, and threw them into the pot together with the oil, salt, sauce and vinegar.

Gradually, the soup boiled away, and the aroma was fragrant.

The poor and beggars sniffled, chopsticks in hand, and waited in long queues to distribute steamed buns and broth, shouted by the soldiers.

The impatient and mischievous have already knocked on the edge of the bowl with chopsticks and shouted: "Hurry up, hurry up, why is it so slow?" I didn't eat last night, and I'm dying of hunger. ”

Some soldiers reprimanded: "Her Royal Highness Princess Taiping is gracious and auspicious, and the people of Luoyang are feasted, so you can have a good eye and are not allowed to make trouble, so as not to disturb the big day, otherwise you will be punished in prison." ”

On the other hand, in the Lifang area, there is a lively and festive atmosphere.

The crowds are crowded, the alleys are full, the orchestral music is endless.

Merchants sit on Jia, sons and grandsons, ink scholars, big men and girls, old and young, men and women, dressed in all kinds of new clothes, you squeeze me, I squeeze you, from all corners, all roads, hula hula flock to the central water pavilion.

On the wide streets, traffic becomes extremely congested and almost impassable.

After the government soldiers and the Praetorian Guards who maintained order ran forward and backwards, it didn't work to shout loudly, and they didn't dare to do anything, because Her Royal Highness the princess had already given a death order: on the day of the festivities, no beatings were allowed, and no accidents were allowed.

As soon as the decree came out, the responsibility was heavier than Mount Tai.

The sergeants had to work hard, and the gentleman did not move his hands, and before that, each soldier was given ten taels of silver.

This is a treatment that has never been done in previous years, and I can repay the favor of Her Royal Highness the princess without doubling my work.

As soon as noon arrived, the bells and drums rang out in unison, and the band played universal music, and for a while, the sonorous sound permeated the blue sky, and the majestic music resounded back and forth in the central water pavilion.

In front of the Wenqitang Courtyard in the Zhengqing Dynasty, hundreds of civil and military officials were dressed in brand-new court clothes, and they had already stood in shifts according to the size of their ranks, with civil officials on the left and military attaches on the right, waiting for the ceremony to be announced.

The abbot of the ceremony read out the congratulatory edict of the imperial court, and Princess Taiping, Li Zhi and his wife had already stood on the stone steps outside the courtyard with a smile on their faces, and only Afifa was honored among the foreign envoys.

After the edict was completed, a capable chamberlain walked to Longwei Road, let go of the leather whip in his hand, rounded his arm, "Horn, horn, horn", the whip sounded three times, and then shouted at the top of his voice: "The prince has arrived——"

The crown prince Li Xian appeared from an official sedan chair, and the internal officials, internal envoys, and guards rushed over from all directions.

After accepting the worship of the internal officials, the prince walked towards the princess Taiping and her party surrounded by everyone.

"Sister, let's say, today is the day of great joy in Zhengqing Wenqitang, whatever you say, the imperial brother will promise you." Li Xian said to Taiping with a smile.

"My sister can't speak at will, if Mr. Li doesn't ask for it, let's skip this procedure!" Princess Taiping smiled.

Li Zhi smiled and said: "Everything here is the order of Her Royal Highness the Princess!" ”

At the beginning of the celebration, gongs were sounded, artillery battles were fired, red lanterns opened the way, and the sound was blown.

Then, Li Xian personally picked up the red silk plaque, and the song and dance instrument performance began immediately.

For half an hour, the generals had another wonderful archery competition, and Li Zhi turned sideways and asked Xiang Taiping: "Is it necessary to be so grand?" ”

Taiping Wan'er smiled: "It is said that this is the first time in hundreds of years that a royal princess has publicly held a commercial celebration, all of which was promised by the emperor, do you still want to delay the grace of the saint?" ”

At the same time, Shangyang Palace, Zhenguan Palace, and the second entrance to a certain hall, Wu Zetian looked at the Lifang District through the window lattice.

The peak of the third-level master who appeared with Li Xian in the Wenqitang Annexe last night was bowing down and saying: "These are the specifics, except for the different tones, not a word. ”

Wu Zetian slowly turned around, frowned and asked, "Then Li Zhengwen didn't notice your discernment?" ”

The third-level master replied: "His own realm does not match the rumors, he is a small realm compared to me, and he is far from reaching the Great Perfection!" ”

"I'm listening to the news, and those who are in the same realm as you can't hold up three moves and two styles under him."

"It's not surprising, often people with excellent talents have the ability to kill instantaneously, especially his body infused with foreign mana energy, the infusion of energy itself is an additional blessing, if that old Taoist was a cultivator back then, that kind of blessing only needs a wisp, and it can instantly increase his strength by at least ten times!"

"So, he won't be a Grandmaster Realm?"

"No way! And I tested him when I left last night, if his realm is higher than mine, the wisp of murderous insight that he secretly passed over will cause him to take the initiative to defend, but he doesn't seem to be aware of this! ”

Wu Zetian rubbed his eyes, yawned and said, "I didn't rest well last night, and I was awakened by a nightmare, and it was a bad omen!" ”

She turned around, sat down slowly on the seat, pointed to the rattan chair opposite the person, and sighed: "I didn't expect this son to have such luck, and the legendary pill can also be encountered, what do you think about this matter?" Is what Li Zhengwen said credible? ”

"It's hard to say! However, his explanations were reasonable and in line with the common sense of the cultivation world. What's more, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince is an ordinary physique, and he doesn't know much about the cultivation world, Li Zhi can make up a reason to cover up the past, but this person didn't do that, but interpreted it very sincerely, and answered His Highness's questions truthfully, without any adulteration! ”

"Huh-" Wu Zetian took a long breath, "As far as I know, Li Zhengwen has some personal relationships with the crown prince and the prince, and they have dined together many times, so it stands to reason that he shouldn't be so respectful, right?" ”

"Could it be because of the prince's threatening words before?"

"I asked you, why did you ask me about me?"

The third-level master didn't seem to have much fear of Wu Zetian, and replied with a smile:

According to the summary of information from all sides, there are two obvious things about this person, one is business and family, and the other is that this person is a bit stupid and loyal. One is very easy to understand, but it is a bit interesting to be foolish, only a piece of foolish loyalty, can do his best, otherwise, at his age, so cultivated, how can he be willing to run around for the emperor? Moreover, what he did in the south, especially in Guangzhou City, was completely out of the maintenance of the reputation of the imperial court, and afterwards he took the initiative to withdraw from the next government affairs and resettle, and it seemed that he was very taboo about participating in political affairs! ”

"Not necessarily! Foolish loyalty is not loyalty at all, for a long time, there are many people who understand foolish loyalty as loyalty, thinking that the king calls the minister to die, and the minister has to die, and the minister is disloyal. What is even more tragic is that there are some people who mistake this view for Confucius, which is really a big misunderstanding. Master Confucius can't defend himself, so I'll say a few words for him. ”

Wu Zetian paused slightly, took a sip of tea, and then continued, "The loyalty mentioned in the Analects is not absolute obedience, but seeking truth from facts, being objective and fair, doing our best, and being honest and not deceiving. If the monarch is incorrect, it can be offended and refuted. As you said, Li Zhengwen is very young and has a very high cultivation, how can such a person be unprincipled and faithful to someone? The word foolish loyalty is inaccurate, there is no loyalty at all, only foolishness remains, do you think fools can have as talented and intelligent as Li Zhengwen? ”

If he didn't give such an explanation, why did he carry out the emperor's order so thoroughly? There is also the selfless dedication of the new gunpowder, if the formula is still in his hands, and it is exchanged for a city that is rich and surplus, why bother to do any commercial development! ”

"This person is not only extremely high in cultivation and extremely wise, but also a little fox. If he is not willing to take risks, where did Shang Fangjian and the royal lord come from? Where did the identity of the righteous son of the Ming Wangfu come from? There will be no later first-class loyal kings! Just because he just wants to honestly follow the steps, inherit the title and take root in Chang'an City, there is another important point, his status as a cultivator needs to be officially recognized! ”

"If it is as the Queen Mother said, does the emperor also have a clear understanding?"

"That's inevitable, most of my cognition is guided by the emperor, and he understands this truth better than me!"

"Since Li Zhi did it intentionally, why does the emperor still trust him so much?"

"Because he has no one available, because Li Zhengwen has cultivation, because the emperor has grasped the psychology of this person's eagerness to show loyalty! Just as the ministers invited him to Mount Tai to practice Zen this time, the emperor knew well that the mastermind behind the scenes could hide nothing from him. ”

"So, why did the emperor suddenly show kindness to the Queen Mother?"

"Maybe it's because of the sudden epiphany that people are dying, or maybe it's the decisive heart to turn the conspiracy into a yang conspiracy, I originally thought I knew him well, but in this way, I subverted all previous inferences!"

"In this case, isn't it caused by Lee's hand? Do you want me to capture him as a warning to some people? ”

"Humph! You may not be able to catch Li Zhengwen, and you have thought about the consequences of your rash actions? ”

"What are the consequences?"

"As far as the imperial court is concerned, as far as I know, some of the economic development plans he has planned, as well as many technological transformations, once realized, will greatly enhance the national strength of our Tang Dynasty; As far as the cultivation world is concerned, this person has been infused with external forces on the way to the west, and the cultivation body is not enough to be fully accepted, and you may be sure that there is no hidden sect force behind this person; As far as the Li royal family is concerned, he holds the Shang Fang sword in his hand, and if it can be used in the future, it can greatly limit the resistance of the vassal forces surnamed Li. As long as we can get any of these three things and become a reality, it will be much more beneficial than getting thousands of troops and a country's territory, so why should we stop him early? ”

"Having said that, this person knows that the Queen Mother and the Emperor have been fighting openly and secretly for a long time, and without passing the Queen Mother's decree, he gave the emperor pills without authorization, which is already a big rebellion!"

"Great rebellion? Don't forget whose world is still right now! The emperor will not die for a day, Datang has always been surnamed Li, could it be that he crossed the emperor who was not alive and took refuge in me directly, I can still rest assured that this kind of person's heart can be recruited? ”

"But you can't always ignore it, because he's already starting to embarrass the Queen Mother!"

"Why do I call it a little fox? Haven't you thought of the usefulness of the Yishou Pill and Zhuyan Pill he gifted? ”

"The Queen Mother is ......"

"He has borrowed two things, morally blocking my future accountability, at least not in the near future! And you have also said it just now, and I also believe that what this person said is true, and you look at this matter from my position, do you need a person with a back-and-forth in the future, or a person with a heart for Akagi? ”

"Don't your subordinates dare to make such an assumption!"

"So I think that this person will either be loyal or traitorous, and there will be no middle orientation! If you want to win him, one word, wait! ”