Chapter 233 Quchi Birthday Banquet (Part 2)

Cui Qiao's wife is not an ordinary person. She is the daughter of Emperor Li Longji, Li Chengqi, and was named the lord of Xiangyi County. She is the owner of the farm that Li Qing'an seized in Xiangyi County.

Mrs. Cui's name is Li Shuangfeng. She did not marry Cui Qiao at first, but remarried Cui Qiao after her husband died and gave birth to a pair of daughters, Cui Yanyan and Cui Liuliu.

Perhaps because of inheriting her father's genes, Mrs. Cui is very fat and petite, which makes people worry about whether her bones can hold so much meat. She sat on the couch like a meaty slut. Her father passed away in the first year of Tianbao. Her father's death meant that her backstage collapsed and no one supported her. So last year her husband was relieved of the prime minister, and she had no choice.

She was originally a very arrogant woman, but this year she became very low-key and much more restrained than before. She was a typical person who bullies the weak and fears the strong. Although Li Qing'an impeached her husband and stepped down, she hated her, but at the same time, the person she feared the most was Li Qing'an.

Mingyue and her daughter Cui Yanyan have a very good relationship. As a mother, she is also very familiar with Mingyue, but now it is different from the past. In the past, Mingyue was a child and a junior, and she could warn her younger generation as an elder. Now Mingyue is Li Qing'an's fiancée. No one in Chang'an knows that her eyes are very poisonous. At first glance, she saw Mingyue's invitations were unique, and they were red and yellow. It was a private post by the imperial concubine, which made her both jealous and envious.

"Mingyue, you are really a girl who has changed so much, you are getting more and more beautiful."

Mingyue Yingying bowed to her and said, "Thank you Aunt Cui for your praise. Where are Yanyan and Liu Liu? Are they here?"

"They are all here, in the side hall! They are not like you, who promised a good husband and could sit in the main hall before they get married."

Mrs. Cui's tone was full of sour smell. Her eldest daughter Yanyan promised her husband's disciple, Liu Feng, the county magistrate of Shuangliu County in Bashu, got married at the end of the year. The only thing her prospective son-in-law could do was the qualification of Jinshi, but so what about Jinshi? Can he compare with Li Qing'an's Anxi Jiedushi?

Mingyue smiled and sat down next to her. Mrs. Cui's fat body barely moved to the side.

At this time, more and more people in the main hall were buzzing. For the court ministers, this large-scale non-official celebration was an excellent social opportunity, which could bring harmony in love, contact friendships, and clearly compare the strength between various factions.

At present, after Li Heng's princeling disappeared, a situation of three-legged power appeared in the court. Li Dang, Zhang Dang, Yang Dang, and Li Dang were the original Prime Minister's Party. Since Yang Guozhong's rise, Li Linfu's sphere of influence has been attacked and abandoned, which has been reduced a lot. His Prime Minister's Party has also been renamed Li Dang. In addition to Li Linfu's physical condition, many people are not optimistic about Li Linfu, and they have more or less the idea of ​​joining the young Yang Dang.

Although Yang Guozhong was severely hit by Li Qing'an last year, the popularity and upward momentum of Yang Guozhong could not be changed, and it could only be regarded as a counterattack of the princelings' return.

Li Linfu has arrived. He is talking to Chen Xilie and several important officials in the court about several recent major events.

"Gao Xianzhi wrote a letter to impeach Yizhou Prefect Cui Yuan to neglect military affairs and local support was not strong, which led to his slow training. You have heard about it!"

The person who spoke was Chen Xilie. He was the junior minister of the Zuoxiang School and was also in charge of the Ministry of Rites. Gao Xianzhi had a good personal relationship with him. Gao Xianzhi not only wrote a letter to impeach Cui Yuan, but also wrote a letter to ask him to provide support. Therefore, Chen Xilie was very indignant in this matter, but this also exposed a subtle psychological change of his life. Li Linfu was old and his health was getting worse. Can he inherit Li Linfu's mantle? Therefore, he began to establish his own power intentionally or unintentionally. Gao Xianzhi was the first person he considered. Today he took this opportunity to tell the story of Gao Xianzhi's impeachment of Cui Yuan. To a large extent, he wanted to test Li Linfu's attitude in this matter. If Li Linfu was not very interested in this matter, he would intervene.

After saying that, he glanced at Li Linfu from the corner of his eyes to see how he reacted?

Li Linfu's health is indeed bad. His excessive labor in government affairs a few years ago made him overdraw his health. Now he is a serious illness. He had just recovered from a serious illness yesterday. He couldn't think of it today, but the birthday of the imperial concubine was extraordinary. He had to force his weak body to come. At this moment, he was slowly drinking tea. He seemed to have not heard Chen Xilie's words, but no one noticed it. Li Linfu's eyes fell on the King of Liang Liheng not far away. He sat alone in the corner, and everyone was hiding from him like a plague god. Li Linfu had not seen Li Heng for a year, and his temples were gray.

He sighed in his heart. He fought with Li Heng so hard that year, but in the end, he made Yang Guozhong a waste of money. Li Linfu looked at his son Li Jin again and gave him a wink.

Li Gong understood and immediately brought a glass of wine and walked towards Li Heng. At this time, Wang Gong, who was beside him, saw that Li Linfu did not respond, smiled and said, "The Prime Minister may be more concerned about the matter of Broke Ye!"

"I'm not very worried about the Battle of Broken Leaf."

Li Linfu took back his thoughts and spoke. His voice was very low and hoarse, full of fatigue from recovering from the first recovery of the serious illness. He slowly said: "With Li Qing'an in charge, he is familiar with the situation, and there will be no suspense to recover the broken leaves. I am very worried about Nanzhao."

Speaking of this, Li Linfu glanced at Chen Xilie. A bright color like an awl flashed in his godless gaze, as if he had seen through Chen Xilie's selfishness. Chen Xilie felt guilty and couldn't help but lower his head. Li Linfu snorted in his heart and continued: "The issue of Nanzhao is not only related to the safety of the southwest border, but also involves the infiltration of Bashu by Tubo. The land of Yizhou is fertile for thousands of miles. If it is occupied by Tubo, it will be the misfortune of our entire Han nationality. I will not be ambiguous at this point. Tomorrow I will discuss this matter with the emperor. If Jiannan lacks military strength, we can transfer the troops of the five Lingnan prefectures to Shu. In any case, there are logistics and food. If Cui Yuan is negligent, he will be dismissed immediately."

Speaking of the last sentence, Li Linfu's voice became stern and his tone increased a few degrees. Even Zhang Yun, who was not far away, heard it. He smiled and nodded to Li Linfu, expressed his appreciation for his opinions, and continued to talk to several literati about improving the style of writing.

Yang Guozhong had not come yet, and his Yang Party members were surrounded by Wei Jiansu and Cui Qiao. Wei Jiansu was the Minister of Personnel. No matter where he was, there would be no fewer people who curry favor with him. It can be said that Wei Jiansu surrendered to Yang Guozhong was a painful self-rescue action of the Wei family. The consequence of following the princeling was Wei Huan. Wei Tao was demoted, and the Wei family suffered another heavy blow. When facing the survival of the family, the Wei family finally accepted Wei Jiansu's alternative performance. The effect of joining the Yang Party was obvious. Wei Huan was demoted before he was in a hot position. Wei Jiansu was demoted. Not only did Wei Jiansu become a powerful minister of the Ministry of Personnel, but he was also a prime minister for a year and was still stable. The Wei family had the hope of revival.

Compared to Wei Jiansu's support from his family, Cui Qiao was much more miserable. He was despised by the family because he married the daughter of the royal family. In addition, he was dismissed from his post as prime minister last year and demoted to Yizhou as the prefect. This year, he returned to Boling to worship his ancestors and was treated coldly. Except for a few side-family boys who wanted to come to Yizhou to find a job, the Cui family almost ignored him, which made him both embarrassed and regretful. This time he rushed back to celebrate the birthday of the imperial concubine, and at the same time he also wanted to find a way to see if he could return to the center of the court.

Wei Jiansu was one of the flatterers he wanted to flatter. He happened to be happy with Wei Jiansu. Before the banquet was held, he kept toasting Wei Jiansu, which made Wei Jiansu quite impatient. Everyone greeted Wei Jiansu and left Cui Qiao cold beside him. Cui Qiao was extremely bored, so he looked at his wife, but unexpectedly he saw Dugu Mingyue sitting with his wife at a glance. He was stunned. It wasn't right! Didn't his wife sit with Xu Heng's wife? Why did he change seats? But Mrs. Xu sat somewhere else.

Of course he knew that Dugu Mingyue was Li Qing'an's fiancée. To some extent, she represented Li Qing'an's attitude. Could it be that Li Qing'an wanted to reconcile with him Cui Qiao? It is impossible. If Cui Qiao was still the prime minister, there might be such a possibility, but now he is just a small governor of Xiazhou. How could Li Qing'an think of him?

Could it be that Dugu Mingyue doesn't understand these things? Perhaps that's the case. When Cui Qiao thought about it, he suddenly realized that Dugu Mingyue came for Jiang Wuyi's engagement. It must be like this. She will be Li Qing'an's wife in the future. She can't ignore Jiang Wuyi's engagement. Cui Qiao couldn't help but sigh that Dugu Mingyue is worthy of being a lady from a famous family. If Li Qing'an is not easy to come forward, she came forward to solve the problem. It's like this!

As Cui Qiao guessed, the reason why Dugu Mingyue changed seats and sat with Mrs. Cui was indeed for Wuyi's engagement. Her sister did not like Wuyi because of emotional influence, but Mingyue could not do whatever she wanted like her sister.

She will be Li Qing'an's wife, and it is her unshirkable responsibility to protect her husband's reputation. Wuyi followed Li Qing'an before the marriage contract was resolved. If the matter spread, not only Wuyi would be criticized by the world, but Li Qing'an's reputation would also be damaged. Of course, she would not write a letter to ask Li Qing'an to send Wuyi away, but instead she would find a way to terminate the marriage contract between Wuyi and the Cui family so that Wuyi could follow Li Qing'an with justification.

She and Mrs. Cui had been chatting for a while, and they were all homely things. She could not say anything about Wuyi's engagement, and she had to implicitly remind Mrs. Cui.

"Madam, a few days ago, the envoy Li sent someone to send some local products in Anxi, which contained dozens of jars of the best Jiaohe wine. I know that Uncle Cui likes Jiaohe wine the most, and I will send it tomorrow."

Mrs. Cui was so happy that she laughed. The best Jiaohe wines were all tributes, and they could not be bought on the market. Although she was the county lord, she was not her turn to her after her father passed away. Li Qing'an was the governor of Anxi, so of course she would send this tribute and good wine to her family. Mingyue was willing to give her this kind of good wine, which of course made her overjoyed.

"Then thank you Mingyue!"

She felt a little embarrassed to be favored by others, so she thought about how to reciprocate. At this time, Mingyue smiled and said, "The Cui family is the number one gang in the Tang Dynasty. I also know that the Cui family is extremely strict, but some things that are too strict will become pedantic, which will make the world feel unkind. What does Mrs. Cui think?"

Mrs. Cui has never had any affection for the Cui family. She has married Cui Qiao for nearly twenty years. She has never participated in the priests of the Cui family, and she has never returned to Boling Sect with her husband. The Cui family members look down on her, and she looks down on the Cui family even more. After hearing Mingyue's words, she said, "Only they themselves talk about the Cui family's rules, and they have been arrogant for hundreds of years. In the end, aren't they still ministers? They can start a dynasty and build a dynasty with the ability!"

Mingyue poked a little and said with a smile: "Actually, I think every household should have rules. This is unquestionable, but some rules should be in line with the times. For example, women remarry. Many men hope that women can stay widowed for life, but they do not consider women's pain at all. However, our Tang Dynasty is much more tolerant. After the death of a husband, women can remarry. This has become a consensus between the Tang Dynasty from royal families to common people. However, the Cui family sticks to the old-fashioned concepts. Even the few who have not passed the family will not let go. Just because there is a marriage contract, it will bind others for the rest of their lives. I am a bit unkind."

Mrs. Cui herself remarried Cui Qiao when her husband died. Mingyue's words were in her heart, but she also understood what Mingyue said. Isn't it Cui Ming, the dead son born to her husband's ex-wife? She also understood Mingyue's purpose of changing positions. Cui Ming's hopeless family followed Li Qing'an, so Mingyue wanted to terminate the engagement.

Mrs. Cui's thoughts changed very quickly. Now Li Qing'an is the governor of Anxi and a magistrate. If her husband can reconcile with him, it will be beneficial to her husband's future. Mrs. Cui's mentality is quite similar to that of an island country in later generations. After being beaten to the point of being beaten, she will become obedient and obey her orders. Not only did Mrs. Cui not think about seeking revenge on Li Qing'an, but instead thought about how to reconcile with Li Qing'an.

"I understand what Mingyue means. Actually, I have asked the master to terminate this engagement several times. People have been dead for almost ten years, and why are they still tied up with a wife who has not passed the door? The key is that the old woman in the family is stinging the rules of the Cui family. But don't worry, she can't live long. She fell ill and has not recovered. At most, a few months, I promise you that when she dies, I will immediately ask the master to terminate this engagement."

Mrs. Cui gritted her teeth with hatred for her mother-in-law. Her daughter's marriage was not done because of Mrs. Cui's opposition. When she died, she immediately let her daughter get married, regardless of the nonsense that she was not suitable for mourning.

Mingyue received this affirmative reply and felt relieved. She wanted to say a few words to sympathize with Mrs. Cui, but she saw that Mrs. Cui gritted her teeth, and this idea was dispelled.

At this moment, the eunuch at the gate shouted: "His Majesty the Emperor is here! The Imperial Concubine is here!"

The hall suddenly became quiet, and the dancers retreated one after another. The court officials and their wives stood up. After a moment, teams of palace maids and eunuchs walked in, followed by a brigade of guards walking in with golden spears. Finally, the Emperor of Tang Li Longji and the Concubine Yang Yuhuan appeared at the door of the hall surrounded by a large group of palace maids and eunuchs. Li Longji was wearing a normal uniform and a veil hat. He walked vigorously, and his face was filled with a rare spirit and glory, as if some kind of joy had fallen from the sky and enveloped him.

However, Yang Guifei was dressed in a beautiful and beautiful state, wearing a bright yellow eight-piece three-meter long skirt, with a long and narrow look around her arms, her steps were light, and her body was filled with pendants.

Behind them were a large group of Yang family members. The three Yang sisters were all dressed up and followed Yang Yuhuan, while Li Longji was surrounded by Gao Lishi and Yang Guozhong. Gao Lishi was as calm as usual and unmoved, while Yang Guozhong bowed his waist and whispered to Li Longji from time to time, his eyes full of complimentary expressions.

Li Longji's attitude made the civil and military officials in the hall look at each other, which is clearly a support for Yang Guozhong.

Li Longji and his party walked through the hall, and the ministers bowed and bowed: "See Your Majesty, and meet the Empress!"

The ladies also bowed together, with a variety of postures and spectacularity.

Li Longji walked into the main seat with Yang Guifei, while the Yang sisters sat on the side seat next to him. Yang Guozhong sat back to his seat, right behind Li Linfu. As soon as he sat down, Li Linfu turned his head and asked, "Shangshu Yang, what happened?"

Li Linfu knows Li Longji very well. Li Longji is so energetic today that something must have happened.

In front of Li Linfu, Yang Guozhong did not dare to be arrogant. He immediately said respectfully: "Report to Prime Minister Li, the emperor received a quick report on the road. What is it? The emperor refused to say it."

The people around were excited. Did the news come from Sailye? At this time, Li Longji couldn't help but feel excited, stood up and waved his hand and said, "Dear everyone, please be quiet!"

The hall immediately became quiet. Li Longji glanced at everyone and laughed loudly, "Today I asked the concubine what is the best gift I got this year?"

This sentence made everyone's neck stretch, but they were a little confused. This should be the last thing to say every year, and it is a final show. Why did you say it in advance this year?

"I still remember that the most popular gift of the imperial concubine was the Snow-Yang Niang, and last year it was the colorful pearl necklace of King Yongxian. What would it be this year? This year there were King Qing's ice jade flute, An Lushan's flying silk horse, Li Xiangguo's Thousand Cups Undrunk Blanket, and Yang Shangshu's White Jade Beauty Carvings. These are rare treasures. I thought the best gift this year would be selected from the middle. It was not until I and the imperial concubine were walking halfway through the road that the imperial concubine finally decided. Do you want to know what this mysterious gift is?"

The hall was quiet, and almost everyone dared not breathe, for fear of missing the news, and everyone's curiosity was raised. What exactly was it?

At this time, Mrs. Cui whispered to Mingyue and said, "The news I suddenly got on the road is that it was Japan's gift of some rare treasures!"

Mingyue smiled. She didn't care much about what it was, and it had nothing to do with her. She looked at Yang Guifei, and her heart suddenly jumped. Yang Guifei nodded and smiled slightly at her.

"What exactly is it?" Li Longji poured a glass of wine and said with a smile: "Everyone is full of wine, please raise your glass!"

Everyone poured a glass of wine and raised the glass. Li Longji whispered: "On the road, I received an Anxi Feige Express, telling everyone good news. The Anxi Jiedushi Li Qing'an has recovered the Broken Leaf for the Tang Dynasty. This is the best gift for the imperial concubine this year."

The hall was stunned for a moment, and the cheers suddenly echoed, and cheers resounded throughout the hall. Li Longji was excited and raised his glass and shouted: "For our victory, I drank this cup!"

"For victory!" The hall shouted, and everyone drank the wine.

After the cheers were slightly calm, Yang Guifei stood up and said aloud: "Although this is news of the victory of the Tang army, it also makes me happy. According to convention, I also want to pay a gift. Miss Mingyue, please come out!"

Everyone looked at Dugu Mingyue with a blushing look. Mingyue's face was flushed. She slowly stood up. In the public eye, she walked to the center of the hall. She gave a gift: "See Your Majesty! See the Empress!"

There were many people talking about Dugu Mingyue, Li Qing'an's fiancée, but this was the first time I saw her. She was so icy and jade-like skin, as fine as fat, and as beautiful as the moon and as ashamed of the flowers. Every move was like Ban Ji's successor, and Xie Ting's expression was like a snowy look. And when she stood with the beautiful concubine in the world, she didn't feel inferior at all.

There was a burst of praise in the hall. It turned out that there was such a beautiful woman in the Tang Dynasty. Zhao Xuming, who was sitting in the back row, was angry and hated. He slapped the wine glass on the table heavily, feeling extremely painful, while Li Chu, the King of Guangping in front, felt sad. He felt that he had no time to regret it. He had a chance to get the moon, but he missed it.

Li Longji's eyes lit up, and he was secretly amazed in his heart. It's a pity that such a beautiful woman!

Yang Guifei felt pity in her heart, and she said to Mingyue softly: "Li Qing'an gave me such a generous gift. I want to give him a gift, but he is far away in Anxi, so I have to keep this gift on you."

"The queen loves her, I dare not take it!"

Concubine Yang smiled gently and said to the ministers loudly: "I have obtained the consent of the emperor and officially appointed Dugu Mingyue as the wife of Gaochang County. From now on, Miss Mingyue will be the sister of my palace."

There was a burst of exclamation in the hall, and the women envied Mingyue for getting the third-rank imperial edict at a young age, while the men only hated that their wife was not the sister of the imperial concubine.

Mingyue was moved and hurriedly bowed deeply, "Mingyue thanked Your Majesty for your kindness! Thank you Empress for your kindness!"

Li Longji stroked his beard and laughed. Li Qingan lived up to his expectations and took down the broken leaves for him. He had to do this favorable posture. Yang Guifei waved to Mingyue and smiled sweetly and said, "Mingyue, come here, sit by my side today."
Chapter completed!