The city of Luoyang was extremely prosperous at that time. Wherever people can go, is there any place more luxurious than Luoyang?
Luoyang City is six miles wide from east to west and nine miles long from north to south. It has four main streets and twelve gates around the city. It is crowded with people and horses and carriages everywhere. General Meng and I entered the city through the Middle East Gate and led our horses.
In order not to attract attention, we all dressed up as ordinary people, but General Meng's gestures, although deliberately concealed, still showed a domineering energy from time to time, which made me feel a little nervous walking beside him. I know,
He didn't do that on purpose, it was just natural, because this is not our territory.
We walked south from Tongtuo Street. We just found out that the Hejie Houfu is located in a corner under the city wall inside Guangyang Gate.
Guangyang Gate is a city gate in the southwest corner of Luoyang City. It is also the smallest and dignified houfu among the twelve gates. It is arranged in such a narrow place, which shows the status of this lord in the eyes of the emperor.
In fact, after the capital was moved, most of the princes and princes had moved to Chang'an. Only this small prince's palace was left. I don't know if it was unable to move. In the huge city of Luoyang, it turned out to be the most important.
a place of power
Why are we here? Why not on an island?
Because the king is not on the island now either
General Ji and I accompanied the king all the way, and returned to Mo Island three days later. Everyone was very happy. My wife complained about the king behind his back, but when I saw those jars of pickled mustards, it goes without saying that I felt warm and happy in my heart.
General Meng and the others have completed all the finishing work according to my arrangements before leaving. General Su's canoe has been completed. We should then plan when to set off. But at this time, the Han envoy arrived.
When the Han envoys arrived, Liu Bang didn't want to let us go, even if we just lived on an island far away from the mainland.
All etiquette and politeness are as boring as procedures, but they are essential. However, in the coexistence of humility and arrogance of the Han envoy, everything that should be known to the king has been explained. The Han envoy also specifically pointed out that there are five thousand Han
The army is stationed in Gaomi, which is only two horse whips away. Whether it is a threat or something is self-evident.
So the king decided to go ashore with his envoys
Time was running out, so he didn’t explain too much about what happened after his death. He gave me a sword that would never leave my body, and of course, his daughter.
The king did not let the three generals accompany him, but only took "my" father Tian En and another servant with him, and set off with the Han envoy. Moreover, he stopped the impulsiveness of General Ji, General Meng and General Su with a look.
At this time, if I dare to propose boarding the ship and leaving the island immediately, it would be unwise. They will definitely tear me apart. Even if I am already Tian Wang’s son-in-law, it will not be much better.
The Houjie Mansion is a decent place. There is a guard at the door, and even the vendors passing by will avoid it. General Meng and I observed it from a distance for a while, and decided to take action at night.
During the day, we spent time in a wine shop close to Xiaoyuanmen. It was only separated from the Marquis Mansion by a vertical street, but it was quite lively. The upstairs and downstairs were full, and the sound of guessing and giving orders was endless.
, there was also an old man and a young girl playing the piano and singing upstairs, which attracted bursts of cheers.
General Meng and I sat upstairs. We ordered a few dishes, cut a pound of beef, and ordered two pounds of white wine. We sat by the window. From here, we could see the stone lions in front of the gate of the Houfu from a distance.
General Meng was sipping wine, tapping his fingers on the table, and even shaking his head. He seemed to be attracted to the woman singing. I wanted to slap him in the face with the tin plate at hand without even looking at what was happening.
when
But that woman is indeed attractive, her appearance is comparable to Xiaoyue, but her body is a little thin and her lips are a little light. What kind of song is she singing? It's very nice:
Pretty enemies, at the end of the world
Where the green poplar can tie the horse
Sitting under the south window, several pairs of gentle breezes believed in him
Who can teach me how to draw when my eyebrows are pale? Shou Yanyan is shy and wears pomegranate flowers (Note)
Brother's voice was melodious and caring, which caused a round of applause. "One more!" General Meng shouted.
The old man tuned the strings and plucked them for a while. As soon as the strings fell, the woman sang again:
The wind was blowing and the rain was blowing, so I tossed and turned and couldn't sleep.
Annoyance and hurt embrace, tears flutter away
The autumn cicadas are noisy, the cold crickets are chirping, and the drizzle is hitting the banana trees (Note)
After the song ended, General Meng shouted loudly and it was getting dark outside.
Outside the Houjie Houfu, we stopped in a dark place. On one side was a tall and gloomy city wall, and the silhouette of the military academy patrolling at the top of the city could be vaguely seen. On the other side was the courtyard of the Houfu. The wall was one foot high. General Meng listened attentively.
Listen, I jumped up and stood on the wall. I invited General Meng to come with me this time because I took a fancy to his flying skills.
After a while, he flew out of the yard and said, "I didn't see anything. There was only an old woman sitting in the back hall chanting sutras." It seemed that I had to ask directly.
The two military officers were standing upright with long guns in their hands. When I looked closer, I realized that they were taking a nap against the wall of the doorway. We made a sound, and they immediately came over on alert and pointed their guns at us.
"Master, may I ask... is Mr. Liu here?" General Meng stretched out his hand and, like a magic trick, he held two pieces of white silver in his hand.
"What do you want from our Butler Liu?" one person asked, and then lowered his voice and said, "Every night, my butler goes to Zhaiquan Town outside Ximenwai." There was mystery in his words.
We paid the money, retreated, turned the corner, and immediately jumped on the horse.
Zhaiquan Town is one mile northwest of Luoyang City. It has the atmosphere of a city, with a courtyard with red lights and a plaque hanging on the door: Green Jade Treasure Village
Potbellied wealthy businessmen, arrogant officials, and strong men who left their hometowns for business all come in and out of this door. This is undoubtedly a brothel.
There was a horse tied under the willow in front of the door, and four servants in soap clothes were squatting there playing dice. I hid in the corner of a blue brick house. As soon as the time passed, I saw the four servants put away the dice and stood up.
A person walked out of the Green Jade Manor
The man was of medium height, wearing a blue silk robe. He called someone from the door, and someone among the four people immediately led the horse. Based on my feeling, I immediately appeared in front of him.
At this time, I was wearing a short coat with patches on my shoulders and straw sandals on my feet. He was surprised and asked me, "What's the matter?"
I looked up at him and gasped, he looked exactly like Tian Wang! Unconsciously, there was an air of awe in his words:
"Liu, General Manager Liu, I, my brother and sister have left their hometown and are living in poverty. I heard that General Manager Liu has a bodhisattva-like heart and is willing to do charity. Please keep us brothers and sisters."
"Where did you come from? Brother and sister? Why are you alone?"
"Going back to the housekeeper, I live in Junkou. Due to the famine, I took my little sister to Luoyang to make a living. My little sister is renting a house now. Please take pity on the housekeeper."
It must have been my mouthful of a little girl, which made his curiosity arouse for a moment, and with his entourage beside him, he said, "Are you far away?"
“Not far, not far, just in front”
In front of a small courtyard, Butler Liu dismounted his horse. The servants were waiting outside the courtyard. I led him to push open the wooden door of the thatched cottage. Under the not-so-bright light, an old man and a young woman were sitting there.
It was the father and daughter who sang during the day
But Butler Liu was stunned, "Why is there such an old man..." Before he could say anything, he saw the door flash behind him, and General Meng took action like a ghost, tapping on the back of his neck. Butler Liu softened and fell to Meng.
the general's arms
I hurried out of the yard and said respectfully to the four servants, "Uh, uh, Mr. Liu said that he will stay here tonight and asked you to go back and find a place to have fun on your own." As he said this, he held another hand in his hand.