The sword is like water, Wu Yan beats the snow, and the delicate hand breaks the new orange.
——Excerpt from "Youth's Journey: The Sword is Like Water" by Zhou Bangyan (Song Dynasty)
…
With the arrest of Jinwu Guards Cui Han, Niu Zhao and others, the arrest operation in Chang'an came to an end for the time being. There were still some spies on the list that did not attract Suzong's attention. After discussion with Fang Shuliu and Bai Fu, they decided not to alert the snake and handed these people over.
Secretly monitored by the Chang'an branch of the Tang clan led by Tang Kui.
Fang Shuliu and Bai Fu's "Fox Hunting Action" were greatly commended by Suzong, and they were rewarded with a large amount of money and silk. Bai Fu was promoted to another rank, and was named Hanlin to await imperial edicts. From then on, he had the power to travel within the forbidden area.
At the same time, two major events also occurred in the Li Tang royal family.
On March 2, King Li Chu of Chu was granted the title of King. On March 6, Concubine Zhang Shu of Jin was granted the title of Queen. The government and the public were shocked.
The civil and military officials in the DPRK thought that Li Chu would be crowned prince in this ceremony for his unparalleled military exploits in regaining the two capitals. Unexpectedly, something unexpected happened. Although King Chu and King Cheng both had the title of prince, they actually surrendered secretly.
Half grid.
Concubine Zhang Shu was promoted to Concubine Shu from Zhang Liangdi not long ago, but she did not expect to be crowned queen so soon. It can be seen that His Majesty has no more favors for her.
…
After having a drink that night, Fang Shuliu said to Bai Fu: "I didn't expect that the biggest beneficiary of Gongsun's assassination of His Majesty would be Concubine Shu?"
Bai Fu smiled lightly and said: "Master Fang, based on your previous inferences, it seems that the whole matter is finally clear."
…
Early that morning, Princess Qingluan was very happy and came to the Bashu Guild Hall early in the morning to wake up Bai Fu.
Bai Fu was arrested for several days and nights, and was quite exhausted. When he was awakened by Princess Qingluan, his face looked tired. His black hair, as smooth as cashmere, was casually pulled into a long bun, looking chic and elegant.
Bai Fu complained: "Your Highness, why are you so anxious? It's not too late for me to have a peaceful sleep."
Princess Qingluan smiled and said: "Father heard that you can understand martial arts from the paintings, so he gave us a gold medal. With this gold medal, we can enter Zuozangku and Linde Hall and appreciate the treasures inside.
Calligraphy and painting by famous artists of all dynasties."
Bai Fu was stunned for a moment, then he cupped his hands and said with a smile, "Thank you, Your Highness, for your kind words for me."
Princess Qingluan's beautiful eyes were looking forward to it, she returned the gift with her hands and said with a smile: "We are all children of the world, why should we say thank you!"
The two looked at each other, laughed loudly as they recalled the past. Their hearty laughter filled their hearts with warmth.
…
After washing up, Bai Fu walked downstairs slowly and came floating up. He was dressed in white clothes, with a light fur belt, a clear and handsome face, eyebrows shaped like swords, slanting into the temples. A pair of eyes as bright as stars, showing a touch of loneliness.
Even though they are all so familiar, Princess Qingluan still feels like a deer in her heart for no reason.
The two got on their horses and walked hand in hand on the wide road of Danfengmen Street. The rising sun covered them with golden light.
Danfeng Gate is the south gate of the Daming Palace. It is more than twenty feet long from east to west and seven or eight feet wide from north to south. There are five doorways under the city tower. With all kinds of dignity and atmosphere, it is undoubtedly the "No. 1 Gate in the World".
The two of them passed through the Jianfu Gate on the west side of Danfeng Gate, and from here they entered the Daming Palace. Princess Qingluan personally led the way, and the imperial gold medal was in hand, allowing Bai Fu to proceed unimpeded.
When they arrived at Xia Ma Bridge, they dismounted and walked more than 200 feet across the imperial bridge to Longwei Road. Longwei Road is three parallel steps, more than 20 feet long.
Climbing the long Dragon's Tail Road, the majestic Hanyuan Hall suddenly appears in front of you as the sun rises. "Looking up at the Jade Seat, it's as if you're in the sky."
Hanyuan Hall is the seat of the great dynasty, Yuan Zheng, and the dynasty is held here during the winter solstice.
Bai Fu had previously entered the palace with hundreds of officials to attend court, without squinting and not daring to look around. This was the first time he admired this magnificent palace.
Hanyuan Hall is located at the southern edge of Longshouyuan, located on the ridge of the city. Here, "the south is as close as one's finger, and the city can be seen overlooking it."
The Hanyuan Hall is majestic and majestic, with a width of more than ten rooms. It is a single-story hall with double eaves on the roof. Left and right corridors stretch out on both sides. The corridor turns south and goes up diagonally, connecting Xiangluan and Qifeng on the high platform in front of it.
In the second pavilion, "the luan is flying on the left and the phoenix is perching on the right, and the two towers are raised up to form wings".
The two pavilions are about fifty feet apart from the east and west, forming a concave plane with the main hall, enclosing an open space of about two hundred feet in front of the main hall, and the momentum is extremely magnificent.
Go north through the Xuanzheng Gate and arrive at the Xuanzheng Hall. The palace is wide and this is where the Chang Dynasty was. Then go north through the Zichen Gate and you arrive at the Zichen Hall. This is where the Japanese Dynasty is and the palace is relatively small.
To the north of the Zichen Hall is the vast back palace and forest garden, with the sparkling Taiye Pool in the center and the Penglai Mountain in the middle.
On the hilly land between the west bank of Taiye Lake and the west wall of Daming Palace, there is the Linde Hall. The Linde Hall is composed of four halls: the front and middle halls are single-story single-eaves veranda roofs, the back hall and the barrier
The sun pavilion is a two-story, single-eaves resting on the top of the mountain.
The Linde Hall, a combination of four halls, is actually built on a large two-story stone pedestal. The halls are staggered at different heights, and the scene is grand and magnificent. There is a square high platform at the front, back, left and right of the pedestal, with a single-story Xieshan mountain on the platform.
The two small halls, Yuyi Tower and Jie Lin Tower, and the east and west pavilions are connected to the upper floors of the middle and back halls by arc-shaped flying bridges respectively, reflecting the majesty and magnificence of the main hall.
Linde Hall is the place where the emperor gave banquets to ministers and envoys from various countries. Because it is adjacent to the West Wall, it is convenient for ministers to evacuate without disturbing the main palace complex and rear palace of the Ming Dynasty. Therefore, the royal family often holds polo, Cuju, and song and dance banquets here.
and other activities.
Princess Qingluan told Bai Fu that the master craftsman who designed and built the Daming Palace was Zhongshu Ling Yan Liben, who drew "The Picture of the Chariot", "The Six Horses of Zhaoling" and "The Picture of Heroes of Lingyan Pavilion".
The supervisor was Liang Xiaoren, the agricultural minister in charge of agriculture.
After Bai Fu listened, he became more and more interested.
Yan Liben inherited his family education and also learned from Zhang Sengyao, Zheng Fashi, etc., and formed his own school. He promoted the "exquisite and beautiful" paintings since the Wei and Jin Dynasties into the Tang Dynasty paintings that were "revitalized and refined". Yan Liben was good at painting.
Taoism, Buddhism, figures, landscapes, and pommel horses. He is especially good at depicting the personalities of historical figures through painting. He is known as "all six methods are available". His paintings have strong and powerful lines, lifelike expressions, elegant and calm colors, and more detailed brushstrokes than Gu Kaizhi's characters.
The expression and image are lifelike and expressive.
His works are highly praised by the world. His paintings such as "The True Face of Taizong", "Eighteen Scholars of the Qin Mansion", "Twenty-Four Heroes of Lingyan Pavilion", etc. were listed as "divine works" by the people of the time and praised as "paintings".
Deification".
However, at that time, the officialdom believed that Yan Liben was a villain who gained promotion by relying on the "little trick", and often compared him with the famous military general Jiang Ke. Colleagues ridiculed that Yan Liben had no military exploits and only achieved high status by building palaces and painting.
He cannot be compared with Jiang Ke, the left prime minister. Therefore, people at that time had a ridicule that "the left prime minister Xuanwei desert, the right prime minister is famous for his paintings".
Taifu Xu once told Bai Fu a story about Yan Liben:
At that time, Emperor Taizong often invited Yan Liben to the palace to paint because he admired his painting skills. In the late spring of one year, Taizong led his scribes to go boating and saw strange birds wandering on the lake. He became very interested and ordered the courtiers present to write poems and praise him on the spot.
Yan Liben was ordered to come to the palace to paint to promote elegance. The eunuchs immediately shouted to the shore: "Send the painter Yan Liben to the Jade Pond in Qingyuan to meet the emperor!"
According to palace rules, when a painter enters the palace, he must lie down on the ground and look up at the emperor while painting.
At this time, Yan Liben was assigned to the title of doctor, and he was the chief official of the Ministry of Civil Affairs, Cao, who was in charge of the matter of conferring titles. Although he was an official of the imperial court, he had to act according to the rules. Yan Liben came running after the order, regardless of the fact that he was sweating profusely, and immediately
Lean over and paint.
While sweating profusely, he looked up and saw that in addition to the grace of Emperor Taizong, there was also the disdain in the eyes of a group of attendants and scribes. At this moment, Yan Liben's face was filled with shame and humiliation.
Back home, Yan Liben was depressed and resentful. He admonished his sons: "I have read a lot of books since I was a child, and I am definitely not inferior to my colleagues in terms of poems and essays. Now, even though I hold a senior official position, I am good at painting."
And being called a 'painter' means being called around like a humble servant.
What a shame!
You must take this warning seriously and do not practice this 'little trick'."
Bai Fu told this story to Princess Qingluan. Princess Qingluan listened with great interest and said, "I didn't expect that the Daming Palace has such allusions. It's so interesting."