Chapter 554 A prosperous age of singing and dancing
Chapter 556 A prosperous age of singing and dancing
"What day is tomorrow?"
"Your Highness, it is the second day of August."
After hearing this answer, Xue Bai turned around and saw that the person answering the question was a somewhat unfamiliar eunuch.
"August?" Xue Bai asked: "Isn't it November?"
The eunuch was stunned for a moment when he heard this, lowered his head, and replied in a panicked tone: "My slave... I don't remember."
Xue Bai did not embarrass him and said: "Go down."
"Here."
Ever since Li Cong changed the year to November, no matter how others didn't mention it, Xue Bai didn't take it seriously anyway. He usually calculated time according to the original calendar, and the same was true for people around him.
But in name, the court is still using the calendar changed by Li Cong, and today is the first day of August.
Of course Xue Bai planned to abolish the messy calendar formulated by Li Cong, but this matter seemed simple, but many people opposed it. They believed that Xue Bai's move was disrespectful to the saint, and could even be said to be a denial of the saint.
For example, if the prime minister is quite right, except for Du Youlin, the other four people do not support it.
Yan Zhenqing's attitude is that the calendar established by the saints can be abolished, but the time is not right now; Wei Jiansu and Li Xian insist that retaining the system of saints is the filial piety and duty of the prince who oversees the country; Li Mi's attitude is more
It's subtle. He didn't want to be the prime minister in the first place. He was forced to become an official and was opposed to many of Xue Bai's decisions.
Therefore, in this matter, Xue Bai issued the edict, but the Zhengshitang refused to implement it, so there was no follow-up. It can be seen that he, the prince who oversees the country, did not do whatever he wanted, but was actually quite constrained.
Fortunately, no matter which calendar it is, tomorrow is a double day, so there is no need to go to court. Xue Bai plans to pay a private visit incognito to see the performance organized by Du Wulang.
Yan Yan seemed to be feeling a little uncomfortable these days. Xue Bai asked Li Tengkong to come and take a look, but Yan Yan refused, saying that she was just sleepy and wanted to sleep more, so she refused to go with him.
Early the next morning, Xue Bai changed into casual clothes and left the palace, but met Li Xian at the palace gate who came to see him.
"Where are you going, Your Highness?"
"Some personal matters."
"I have something to report." Li Xian bowed and said, "I heard that Du Qi, the son of Du Youlin, held a performance outside the city today. It was quite loud and included a dancing horse holding a cup. I dare to ask, but why?
Celebrate Tianchang Festival?”
Xue Bai said: "It must not be the case. Tianchang Festival is on the fifth day of August and today is the second day of August."
Li Xian said: "Since Your Highness still remembers that Tianchang Festival falls on the fifth day of August, how can you allow Du Qi to act like this? How is this move different from insulting the Supreme Emperor?!"
"I misunderstood." Xue Bai said: "The Liyuan and the Jiaofang have been abolished. This performance is for the actors to make a living on their own. It is not a celebration held by the imperial court. The date chosen is all spontaneously done by the people. It cannot be due to the birthday of the Supreme Emperor.
On the fifth day of the Lunar New Year, people are not allowed to sing and dance on the second day of the Lunar New Year?"
Li Xian choked at these words, and then his face became more serious.
He took a step forward to show that he no longer talked about clichés, but said a few words from the bottom of his heart.
"It is because I believe in Your Highness that I dare to come and persuade you. The world is already suspicious of Your Highness. At this time, Your Highness should show filial piety to the saint and the Supreme Emperor. How can you do the opposite?"
Xue Bai then asked: "Why did Mr. Li teach me?"
"Why not move the show to the fifth day of August?"
"I just said that this is not organized by the imperial court. And the time has been set long ago, so why not change it temporarily?"
"Is there anything that the imperial court cannot interfere with? Can't your Highness tell the difference between the light and the serious?" Li Xian said: "It is the spontaneous celebrations held by the people for the Supreme Emperor that can show the prosperity of the Tang Dynasty. Wouldn't it be better? If Your Highness is really in trouble,
Let it be held for three consecutive days and extend it to Tianchang Festival."
"If the imperial court interferes, will there be rewards for musicians and actors?" Xue Bai asked.
The imperial court has no reason to let people work for nothing, otherwise it will damage the prestige of the imperial court if word spreads.
Li Xian nodded.
Xue Bai then asked: "If this is the case, what is the difference from before? What is the purpose of the imperial court to reduce expenditures?"
"Isn't this deliberately not held on Tianchang Festival?"
"If the people are really grateful for the kindness of the Supreme Emperor, how can they forget his birthday?"
Xue Bai knew that Du Wulang didn't consider that much when choosing a date, or he simply didn't care where Li Longji was born.
After hearing these words that were contrary to filial piety and loyalty, Li Xian was silent for a moment, his expression a little shocked.
"The Emperor held the Tianchang Festival to celebrate his birthday, and the saints changed the year to show their achievements. Apart from burdening the people, what effect did these have? The people just hope that there will be no pain of war, no heavy taxes, and a peaceful and good life. Don't
You’re fooling yourself, people don’t care about Tianchang Festival, this ‘5th day of August’ is not Tianchang Festival at all, the weather is cold, and it’s already November.”
"Your Highness!"
Li Xian was shocked and couldn't agree with Xue Bai's remarks. He wanted to say that the Supreme Emperor single-handedly created the prosperous age of Kaiyuan and made great contributions to the people.
However, Xue Bai said: "'If you want to make rice and grain cheap, there is no better way than to chase Li Xian.' These are the words of the people of Chang'an to persuade you to stay. Two or three years ago, there was a heavy rain in Guanzhong. You felt sorry for the people and spoke out to the emperor many times.
, was demoted from Chang'an. Do you really not understand whether the people are grateful to the Supreme Emperor and whether the saint's calendar is in line with the farming season?"
With this sentence, Li Xian could no longer say the words of accusation that he was about to blurt out.
Xue Bai sighed slightly, helped Li Xian tighten the cloak with his own hands, and then raised his head to look at the sky.
Today is a cloudy day, the weather is not good, the clouds are very low, but it is better than no rain or snow.
"It's likely to snow in two days."
Li Xian then raised his head and looked at the sky. A gust of cold wind blew, forcing him to admit that it was indeed November now.
Just imagine, if three days later, there is heavy snowfall, but Chang'an City is still celebrating Tianchang Festival, thinking that it is the fifth day of August, isn't it another kind of ridicule?
Feeling a tap on his palm, Li Xian turned around and saw Xue Bai putting a bill in his hand.
The material of this ticket is ordinary, just ordinary bamboo paper, but the craftsmanship is very good. The printed patterns are quite complicated and difficult to imitate.
As for the content written above, it is difficult to describe it in an elegant manner. It is nothing more than a large-scale performance outside Chang'an City, and people are invited to watch it.
Li Xian looked at the date on it again, and it was written at noon on the second day of November.
He couldn't help but lament that the people still did not recognize the calendar changed by the saint.
~~
It was nearly noon, and a performance was about to begin outside Chunming Gate.
Except for Wannian County who sent out government officials to maintain order, there really was no official involvement. To put it bluntly, it was the same nature as street entertainment, but on a larger scale and at a higher level.
Li Xian walked out of Chunming Gate and looked around. He saw a huge stage set up next to the official road. There was a shed in front of the stage and there were seats in the shed. Tickets were required to enter.
But if you don’t have a ticket, you can also stand outside and watch, or go to the city wall, or go to the plateau not far away to watch the excitement.
Walking further, he suddenly saw a banner hanging on the stage, which read: "Spring wine in Cui Lou, shrimp in the toad mausoleum, all young people in Chang'an share the same love."
This was supposed to be a poem, and he could understand it, but at first glance, he didn't know what it meant to hang this poem high above the stage, and he was thinking about it in his heart.
During the process, he checked the tickets and sat down quite close to the stage. Looking around, he saw many boards set up around the stage with the names of various businesses written on them. There were also many vendors on the boards.
They sell everything from expensive things like calligraphy, paintings and jade articles to cheap things like cloth hats and straw sandals.
There was actually a wooden menu placed in front of his seat. When he picked it up and looked at it, he saw the words "Fengweilou" written on the top.
At this time, a young man dressed elegantly came over and said with a smile: "Mr. Sir, can you order some food? Eat while watching the show, how pleasant it is."
Li Xian was indeed hungry, so he ordered stir-fried haggis, crispy peanuts, and crispy shreds mixed with vinegar.
"Do you want another pot of wine, Lang Guan?" The boy asked again, "This performance is sponsored by Xiabaoling Liquor House. Their Lang Guanqing, Apoqing, and Cuilouchun are all good wines."
"Sponsorship? What does it mean?"
"Just to pay for it, among the many businesses, Xiabaoling Liquor Shop is the largest, so its name is written in the most conspicuous place. The tens of thousands of people who came to watch the performance today only drank its wine, and other wine merchants were not allowed to come.
Sell."
In the past, Li Xian only drank royal banquet wines like Fushuichun, but today he had no choice but to order a pot of Langguanqing.
After all, it's a bit more expensive than in Chang'an City, but considering the performance, it's still fair.
The food arrived soon after, and a small table was placed in front of his seat. Although the place was cramped, it had a unique flavor. As for the crispy shreds mixed with vinegar, Li Xian didn't know what it was at first, but now he knows
It turned out to be pig ears.
He didn't eat pork before, but he tried it today and it tasted good.
When the performance started, there was a ventriloquist first. As soon as the actor came on the stage, he thanked all the merchants who had provided money.
Li Xian looked at it and roughly understood Du Wulang's method of leading the opera singers to take care of their own profits and losses. After all, the ticket price was not much, and the bulk had to rely on these companies.
He couldn't help but sigh, Du Youlin didn't seem very smart, but he didn't expect to have such a clever son.
Every performance on the stage can arouse people's cheers. After all, most of them were performed in the palace in the past, which naturally amazed the unexperienced people.
Li Xian had something on his mind, but his eyes wandered around, looking for Du Wulang. What he was more concerned about was wanting to see where Xue Bai was, but there were so many people and the scene was chaotic that he could never find it.
Not long after the first performance started, a person walked through the aisle and accidentally touched the small table in front of Li Xian. He turned around and saw that it was Li Xian and was stunned.
"Dare I ask, but Mr. Li?"
Li Xian looked up and saw that he was a handsome man in his thirties, with elegant eyebrows and an extraordinary demeanor, so he nodded.
"Yes, do you recognize me?"
"I've heard for a long time that Mr. Li is famous and his student's surname is Yang..."
At this time, the second performance had already begun. After the warm-up, it was Aunt Gongsun who took the stage and led her disciples in the sword dance. The atmosphere suddenly became lively and the audience cheered.
Li Xian only heard that the man's surname was Yang, but he could not hear his name clearly for a while. Instead, he heard the people behind him asking Yang Sheng to sit down with dissatisfaction.
Yang Sheng held a ticket in his hand and looked at it, but he asked the person next to Li Xian: "Sorry to bother you, can I change places with you?"
Now that the man knew that Li Xian was the prime minister, he couldn't sit still. He took the ticket from Yang Sheng and walked away.
Li Xian looked along the figure of the man and saw the consort Yang Hui sitting not far away.
Yang Hui was accompanied by a thin man dressed in men's clothing, with his face covered. He was most likely his outhouse.
Li Xian came alone and didn't care who was sitting next to him. After Yang Sheng sat down, he watched the performance and commented a few words from time to time. He was very knowledgeable and had a lot of witty remarks. Li Xian listened with interest and was impressed by him.
The better.
After the conversation got more in-depth, Li Xian discovered that Yang Sheng was very insightful about the way of governing the country, especially about wealth. He couldn't help but be impressed, so he ordered some more dishes to go with the wine, and added two pots of Lang Guanqing, along with him.
drink.
~~
Behind the shed, a second floor was built with private rooms.
Xue Bai was looking at Yang Hui through a telescope in the private room.
"Is that the ticket you gave away too?" Du Wulang came over and asked, "You actually invited Yang Hui to come."
Including the tickets for Li Xian, Xue Bai gave them away as gifts. As for himself, he stayed in this private room anyway.
"No." Xue Bai said: "I gave some votes to Li Yuetu, and she must have given them to Yang Hui."
"Hey, you actually still have a relationship with her?"
"how?"
Du Wulang hesitated to speak. When he glanced at Yang Yuyao beside Xue Bai, he swallowed what he originally wanted to say and said: "After all, she is the daughter of the loyal king. It would be better to have less contact with her."
"I know."
Du Wulang quickly changed the subject and said: "Is this performance okay? I did this job, but many censors accused me. They said that I gave away the dance music at the palace banquet.
Husband, I see, this is disrespectful, you can protect me."
"Don't worry, I have my own sense of discretion."
"That's good. I'm going. You should be careful and don't let anyone bump into you."
Seeing that Du Wulang was finally gone, Yang Yuyao leaned into Xue Bai's arms and said, "Are you so afraid of being bumped into? Are you really pretending that other people don't know our relationship? Humph, you are covering your ears and stealing the bell."
"That's not what he's talking about." Xue Bai said, "I'll let you meet someone later."
"who?"
Yang Yuyao had already made a guess and was about to ask questions when she heard a change of music on the stage and announced that the next performance was "White Snake".
She quickly picked up the telescope and looked at the stage, scanning every actor's face intently.
However, it was not as she had guessed which role Yang Yuhuan played, and she was a little disappointed. But she still watched the performance and felt that both the music and the dance were better than any other performance she had seen before.
"White Snake" is much more beautiful.
It wasn't until the performance came to an end and the cheers shook the sky that Yang Yuyao suddenly came back to her senses and wiped the tears that had fallen unconsciously on her face.
Xue Bai also reached out and wiped her cheek.
"If Yuhuan were still in Chang'an, she would definitely want to watch this performance." Yang Yuyao sighed.
"She must also want to play dominoes with you again."
After hearing this, Yang Yuyao burst into tears and laughed. She pushed Xue Bai and said, "You are the only one who is smart."
While they were talking, someone outside suddenly said: "Mr. Lang, someone is here."
"Let her in."
Yang Yuyao looked back and saw a woman wearing a bamboo hat approaching. She was stunned and couldn't help but stood up and hugged her. The tears that she had just stopped couldn't help but flow down again.
"You're so heartless, I thought you really left and flew away."
"Who has no conscience? I didn't lie to you."
After a while, Yang Yuyao calmed down and took a closer look at Yang Yuhuan in front of her. She could not help but feel jealous again of that alluring face.
She also discovered that Yang Yuhuan, whom she hadn't seen for a long time, was younger and more beautiful, or more lively, with a smile hidden in her eyes.
"You have no conscience, I'm afraid you have forgotten that you still have my sister."
"How could I forget? Did you hear that the lyrics of the play between Green Snake and White Snake have been changed?" Yang Yuhuan said, "Do you know that I didn't write it for you?"
Yang Yuyao wiped away her tears. She just smiled and said, "Okay, I knew it was you who arranged it."
"Okay?"
Yang Yuhuan showed a proud look, and pointed to various places on the stage, saying one by one which ones were her work.
The joy of meeting lasted for a long time. The three people in the private room drank some wine and stayed there watching the performance.
Maybe Yang Yuyao wanted to ask if the rumors about her and Xue Bai were true since Yang Yuhuan was still in Chang'an, but she didn't ask in the end.
Yang Yuhuan also deliberately did not show his closeness to Xue Bai. He sat next to Yang Yuyao, separated from Xue Bai.
But after drinking two bottles of wine, everyone was a little drunk. After adding wine, she unconsciously sat on the other side of Xue Bai.
When the horse dance began, Yang Yuhuan became more and more drunk, with a blush on her fair cheeks and bleary eyes.
She took off her shoes, put her feet on the seat, curled up, and leaned in Xue Bai's arms.
The fragrant wind entered his nose and he felt the soft body pressing against his own. Xue Bai was a little worried about Yang Yuyao's reaction, but he did not move and let Yang Yuhuan lean against him.
After a while, on the other side, Yang Yuyao also leaned her head over and rested her head on his shoulder.
Xue Bai became more and more afraid to move. He sat there quietly and looked ahead. He saw hundreds of dancing horses on stage, dancing to the music, which was a spectacular scene.
This time, the dancing horse holds the cup in honor of no one person, but towards everyone. They also know that this is their new parents.
The palace dance music of the past has entered the eyes of ordinary people.
Sitting there, Xue Bai seemed to feel that the prosperous age of the Tang Dynasty was still there.
~~
"The dancing horse holding the cup is still spectacular."
In the audience, Li Xian couldn't help but sigh.
"This is the first time for students to see this scene. It's shocking beyond words." Yang Sheng said.
Li Xian changed the subject and said: "It's a pity that every time the Emperor watched this dance, he didn't realize that people's livelihood was difficult and that the people were embarrassed and burdened with heavy taxes."
"With all due respect to students, more than 130 years after the founding of the Tang Dynasty, fields were annexed and the tax system collapsed. It was not as cold as a day, and it was definitely not the fault of the Supreme Emperor alone. As for Hu Ni's rebellion, it was also due to the country's long-term malpractice.
The root cause lies not only in the Supreme Emperor's false belief in Anlu Mountain."
"This statement is quite novel." Li Xian stroked his beard and said, "Tell me more about it."
"How about the student invites Mr. Li to drink another glass of wine?"
"good."
The performance was over by now, and it was almost evening. Yang Sheng invited Li Xian back to the city to have a drink and continue the conversation. Li Xian happily agreed.
They entered the city from Chunming Gate and found a secluded tavern to drink. They talked about taxes from the Emperor's dancing horse, and from mediocrity to tax reform.
A long time ago, regarding tax reform, Xue Bai once mentioned the concept of two tax laws, which was looked upon with disdain by some courtiers, and Li Heng, who was still the prince at the time, also appreciated it very much.
Li Chu also promised Xue Bai on this matter that one day he would be able to show off his talents and he would definitely implement it.
In recent years, chaos has continued and power and positions have been unstable. Everyone knows that this is not a good opportunity for restructuring, and the reform of tax laws has not yet begun.
In short, Li Xian had heard of Xue Bai's Two Taxes Law before, but when he heard Yang Sheng talk about it today, it was completely different. Yang Sheng was more insightful, thought more meticulously, and was better at wealth management.
Tao, talking eloquently, made Li Xian's expression change again and again.
"Wizard!"
In the end, Li Xian was full of praise.
He was a little drunk and became much more heroic. He patted Yang Sheng on the shoulder hard and kept saying: "If I want to recommend you to the court as an official, I must recommend you!"
"Li Gong is very complimentary, but I'm afraid I won't be able to serve as an official."
"Why?"
"I have killed people and officials."
"What happened?"
"Li Dajian, the magistrate of Shenwu County, once insulted a student, saying that 'a scholar can be killed but not humiliated'. Later, with the help of a nobleman, the student captured Li Dajian and tortured him to death by mistake. At this time, the student was involved in a dispute with the court and was accused.
.”
Li Xian then asked: "What is the dispute?"
"The noble man the student just mentioned is the third son of the Supreme Emperor, who was once the crown prince of the Tang Dynasty..."
"Loyal King?!"
Li Xian was startled. He sobered up and realized that it was no wonder Yang Sheng knew so much about tax reform, or that it was precisely because of his understanding that he fell in the eyes of King Zhong.
After all, Li Heng did appreciate the tax law proposed by Xue Bai back then, but Xue Bai didn't rely on him, so he naturally wanted to choose another high-ranking person and recruit more good people.
Rationally speaking, Li Xian should naturally stay away from such a person. The further away, the less trouble there will be.
But he really appreciated the other person's talent, so he asked again: "You can't hide it from me. Are you deliberately getting close to me today? But you have already figured it out. You want to abandon the dispute for power and position, and have no distractions in the future and contribute to the country?"
"Students also pay attention to six words in dealing with people, 'a favor must be repaid and a debt must be repaid.' The loyal king has treated me with great kindness, and I will never betray him. Today I went out to the city to watch a performance, and I got the peace between the prince of the prison country and the emperor's favorite concubine.
The clues. Because Li Gong is an upright man and a minister of the clan, he cannot bear to hide it from others. If he wants to be killed or beheaded, he must do as he pleases."
Yang Sheng's talent is unparalleled, but his words clearly show that he has a narrow-minded temperament, will retaliate for his anger, and is very aggressive.
Being able to tell the truth about this kind of thing seems to be indifferent and reckless, but in fact, he is sure that Li Xian will not kill him.
When he saw Li Xian for the first time today, he was surprised at first, because according to his information, it would be Xue Bai and Yang Yuyao. But soon, he understood Li Xian's identity and personality, so he deliberately approached...
~~
The next day was another single day, and Xue Bai held the court meeting without hesitation early in the morning.
But after the court meeting, leaving the prime minister and ministers to discuss matters, he yawned several times.
"I have something to report."
Li Xian was the first to speak, but what he said surprised his colleagues. He actually proposed that Li Congding's calendar should be abolished and the original calendar restored.
In addition, Xue Bai asked him to recommend a candidate for Jing Zhaoyin. He said that he sensed this trust and did not dare to neglect. After thinking for days, he already had a candidate.
"Oh? Who?"
"Your Highness must know about this person." Li Xian said: "Hedong Salt and Iron Envoy, Yang Wan."