The morning light is like a cardamom girl, even if you just look at it, you will feel happy.
At this moment, even if he was bathed in the morning light, Li Zhigang was always frowning in front of the mirror.
The long attendant who was standing next to him, bowing and waiting, blocked his breathing.
My husband has been standing in front of the mirror since dawn. He has changed his clothes many times and struggled for a long time, but he still has a bad look on his face and is getting more and more irritable.
"Have I lost weight?"
Li Zhigang looked at the old official uniform on his body, his eyes full of anger.
When you see the emperor, you can't dress like a bridegroom. You have to be dignified and dignified. But you also can't be too deliberately poor, as that will look artificial.
Therefore, I can only wear this kind of old and stale clothes, but for some reason, this official uniform made last year and worn only a few times in total is extremely ill-fitting and looks very bloated.
As he muttered like this, the attendant next to him lowered his head in fear, and could only say secretly in his heart.
"Sir, it's not that you have lost weight. It's that your waist is not as straight as it used to be. Haven't you noticed that your shoulders have begun to slant and your back has arched?"
"Bring me the bullfighting uniform!" After looking at himself in the mirror for a while, Li Zhigang suddenly shouted loudly.
That was the ceremonial dress that the emperor gave him as an exceptional reward before he left the capital as an imperial envoy. It was second only to the python robe worn by the duke.
Bullfighting is not a bull, but a majestic creature that is similar to a python and a bit like a snake. In short, in mythology, it is one of the derivative transformations of the dragon.
The gorgeous bullfight uniform was quickly draped on Li Zhigang. He tied a jade belt around his waist by himself, and then continued to look at himself in the mirror.
Suddenly, he understood why he was so dissatisfied with himself.
Because, he is really a bit old.
He has reached the age where he can call himself an old man, and his face has wrinkles, bags under his eyes, and dense lines at the corners of his eyes.
There are countless white hairs on his beard and temples.
He slowly stretched out his hand, carefully trying to hide the white hair among the black hair, but suddenly discovered that the oily black hair when he touched it had now become a little dry and jerky.
"Bring me hair oil..." Li Zhigang said tremblingly.
"yes!"
Chang Sui turned around and brought the hair oil over, and Li Zhigang couldn't wait to rub it on his head, hoping to make his decayed hair glow with life again.
"I can't grow old!" Li Zhigang thought to himself, "I just climbed up and I haven't become the first minister of the Ming Dynasty. How can I grow old? I haven't stepped on those who once looked down on me, and I haven't let them down yet.
How can I grow old if I bow my head and get drunk before I can take charge of the world and be in high spirits?"
"I can't grow old. The Emperor is still young. I will accompany him for many years. If I get old, the Emperor won't use me! If I get old, I won't be able to fight against those young people. How can I get old?"
"master!"
Suddenly, Chang Sui, who had been silent next to him, said with anxiety, "You are going to have a face-to-face meeting today, and the oil on your hair is scented with jasmine flowers!"
Suddenly, Li Zhigang's hand stopped.
When you meet the emperor, you cannot smell bad.
Otherwise it would be disrespectful!
Li Zhigang looked at the sky outside blankly, "It's still early, is it enough to wash up?"
"Enough! There is still an hour before you enter the palace!" Chang Sui said.
"Bring water!" Li Zhigang reluctantly put down the hair oil in his hand and looked at himself in the mirror with oily hair and pink face...
"If you end the affairs of the king and the world, will everything happen in vain?"
He smiled mockingly to himself, and then, under the service of his servant, he washed the oil off his head.
After wiping with a towel, the dry hair became even more scattered, and the white hair became more shocking.
"After all, you are old and you can't escape it!"
Li Zhigang smiled self-deprecatingly and said to Chang Sui, "Bring over that old official uniform and the black gauze hat!"
"yes!"
~~
After burning the incense, Li Zhigang changed his clothes.
Maybe it's because the color of his robe is dark, so he looks a bit old in the mirror.
"Hey!" He sighed in his heart. Although he was unwilling to do so, he could only accept this reality.
Others only saw that he did whatever it took to get promoted, but they didn't see his efforts at all. For more than half a year in the four provinces of Jiangnan, he only slept for two hours a day. He had to do everything by himself, think twice before doing anything, and cooperate with the local officials and gentry.
They competed with each other with wits and strength, and even pretended to be snakes with the high officials in the court.
tired!
So tired!
At this moment, another senior attendant came in and said in a low voice, "Sir, Duke Cao Guo came to the door and said that he would like to invite you to the palace with him!"
"Oh?" Li Zhigang perked up and quickly straightened his stiff back.
~~
In the Li family's concierge, Li Jinglong stood in front of the window, admiring the beautiful scenery in the garden.
"He comes from a wealthy family after all!" Li Jinglong looked at the scenery in the garden and thought to himself, "This house looks ordinary on the outside, but in fact there is something wonderful inside. Just this garden alone requires three to five gardeners to take care of it every year...
..”
Thinking about it, his eyes wandered around, looking at Su's garden, and he sighed in his heart, "Even my home is not so elegant!"
Suddenly, Li Zhigang's figure appeared in the corridor of the garden.
"How capable I am of being a low-ranking official. Lord Lao Cao, please come here in person!" Li Zhigang smiled and cupped his hands from a distance.
"Budang, you are entering the palace today to meet the Holy Spirit. I thought we were on the way, so I came uninvited!" Li Jinglong laughed and said, "Long Live Lord moved from Qianqing Palace to Lezhizhai, which belongs to the palace.
In the Houting, even if you are here for an audience, there are many rules, so you can only wait in front. As for me, I am also a guard of the inner court, so it will be more convenient to take you in!"
Li Zhigang leaned over and said, "Cao Guogong was so kind and gracious that I will never forget it!"
"It's a joke to say this!" Li Jinglong said with a smile, "In the future, if we get along for a long time, you will know Li's temperament. If you like someone you admire, I will treat him as a brother. But if you don't like him,
I don’t even want to say anything to someone I don’t like!”
Then he added, "It's getting late. We have to enter the palace early. What if Long live the Lord gets up early?"
"Please!" Li Zhigang said hurriedly.
"Let's go!" Li Jinglong smiled.
When the two of them walked outside the courtyard, Li Jinglong was stunned when he saw Li Zhigang's carriage and horse.
His carriage, owned by Cao Guogong, has two horses. They are both strong, with shiny coats and slender thighs.
On Li Zhigang's carriage, there was only one draft horse with no energy.
Li Zhigang noticed Li Jinglong's eyes and said with a smile, "I'll make you laugh!"
Horses are something that money may not be able to buy, especially good horses and good war horses.
Horses are not only strategic materials, but also symbols of identity and status.
"I seem to have a few good horses in the stables at home!" Li Jinglong thought for a while, "I will ask someone to send you some horses later!"
"Don't dare!" Li Zhigang said hurriedly.
"A good horse goes with a good official!" Li Jinglong said with a smile, "Bu Tang, you are the face of Long Live Lord now. How can you do it without a good horse? If you are afraid of criticism, then you can give it to me at a discount and treat it as if I sold it to you.
!”
Then he smiled and said, "If you really give it, then I can only take the money and treat you to a drink!"
"Hahaha!" Li Zhigang laughed, feeling in his heart that this Duke Cao Guo was really an interesting person. He actually had a vague feeling that he was sorry to meet him so late.
"Take my car, hurry up!" Li Jinglong pulled Li Zhigang into the carriage and said.
The two entered the carriage and sat down facing each other.
Suddenly, looking at Li Jinglong's burly body and his energetic eyes, Li Zhigang actually felt ashamed of himself. Li Jinglong should not be much younger than him, but he looked like he was in his early thirties, and his movements were full of vitality.
.
And he, Li Zhigang, is already very old and lacks energy!
"I didn't take a closer look yesterday, but today I found that you also have gray hair," Li Jinglong said with a smile.
"It can't be compared to Cao Guozheng's time!"
"I have one too!" Li Jinglong said, lifting his temples and smiling, "Time is not forgiving!" He said, sighing, "But compared to Bu Tang, your white hair was born for the country.
Li’s case is nothing more than wasted years, so let’s make a judgment!”
"My father-in-law is too self-effacing..."
As Li Zhigang spoke, his eyes suddenly blurred.
But it was Li Jinglong who stretched out his hand and flicked his temples.
He was in a daze when Li Jinglong continued, "You have white hair because you have worked hard for the country, why bother hiding it!" As he said, he patted his shoulder and smiled, "Such gorgeous hair? Such meritorious service! Such white hair,
Just like the scars from hundreds of battles, these are all for the country and the people, for the country and the country!"