Chapter 8 Chapter 1: Gun Eight

In March of the eighth year of Emperor Xi. Ying Wuyi, the guardian envoy of Tianqi City, submitted a letter suggesting that the emperor pass on the vermilion lacquer edict to restore the "Eleven Tax Laws" enacted by Emperor Wu.The princes of the Eastern Continent, those who have fiefs above the marquis, have to pay 10% of the 10% of the annual tax of the silk valley collected by the emperor as the special clan tax. The princes were shocked, and the memorials flew to the imperial capital like snowflakes. The red armored cavalry from the country held up the banner of the imperial capital's Shao Fuqing, and went straight to the princes to collect royal taxes.Ao Taiquan, the Duke of Chun, had a fierce personality, and he led 30,000 wind and tiger cavalry to defend Dangyang Valley, resisting the envoys who left the country to collect taxes.

In April, Li Guogong Qingqi 3,000 men went northward, beheaded Ao Taiquan in a night battle, and surrendered Chunguo as a marquis.Ao Taiquan's youngest son was sent to Tianqi to be imprisoned, and his ten-year-old nephew Ao Zhirun came to the throne.The government and the public lamented that the princes who were loyal and diligent to the king went to another family. Taxes flowed continuously into Li Guogong Ying Wuyi's hands, and Yuezhou was famined. That year, King Xie Yulie was twelve years old. Nanhuai City is located in Wanzhou in the south, with a long spring and autumn, warm and pleasant.

Himeno lay in the garden with his back against the rockery, and turned a page under the shade of a tree.He is reading.Although Ji Qianzheng didn't say it directly, the study room was only for Chang Ye.So Ji Ye didn't step in for half a step. Ji Qian was wearing a loose robe, passed behind the flower stand, and looked at the eldest son in confusion through the lattice full of grape vines.He always felt that the eldest son had a lonely personality, and he was always unwilling to teach him to read, and he didn't even want him to practice too high in martial arts.But recently my son is not as diligent in practicing guns as before, but he likes to read books. Every time he goes out quietly, he always comes back with some books from the bookstore.

At first Ji Qianzheng thought he was just envious of his younger brother's study.Although he didn't want to teach himself, he didn't mind his eldest son learning by himself, thinking that if he tried to learn that he couldn't learn without a teacher, he would quit in the face of difficulties.But as soon as Ji Ye picked up the book, he held it for half a year.He didn't talk to people very much, except for playing wild outside, when he was at home he was either practicing guns or reading books, as if he was left literate and right martial arts.It's a pity that Ji Ye doesn't read such classics as "Jiuyuan General" and "Commentary to Five Classics". Ji Qianzheng occasionally flips through his pile of books, and they are full of "Roses", "The History of the Battle of the Four Governors", "The Shocking Unofficial history anecdotes such as "The Complete Legend of the Dragon".Facing these books, Ji Qianzheng almost wanted to cover his eyes, feeling that his eyes would be dirty just by looking at them.

"Eldest son, have breakfast." The maid shouted from a distance, turned around and left.Everyone in the house is a little afraid of this indifferent eldest son, not to mention that no one knows that the eldest son can't be loved, and the servants treat him casually. Ji Ye had long been used to it, and his brows didn't move, he just read the book without listening. Ji Qianzheng frowned, and the fire in his heart flared up again.But he didn't have time to reprimand Ji Ye, the lord of the country wanted to recruit soldiers recently, and Ji Qian was rushing to visit Gongqing while he was hunting in the morning.If he could get a letter of recommendation, it would be easy for Chang Ye to become an official.The revival of the Ji family that Ji Qian had been waiting for was no longer a dream.

He snorted heavily, turned his head and went out. It wasn't until he finished turning over the remaining pages that Ji Ye tucked the book in his arms and walked into the front hall without saying a word.Chang Ye crossed his legs and was drinking tea leisurely in front of the table. There was only leftovers in the dishes on the table. Before Ji Ye could sit down, Chang Ye suddenly waved his hand, "Withdraw." "The eldest son hasn't..." The maid hesitated. "The sage teaches, there are rules for every move, every thread, every thread. When to eat and when to withdraw, there are rules. Our Ji family is a gentry, so we have the rules of the gentry," Chang Ye tried his best to put on a serious appearance, " Is it time to eat now?"

The maid cleaned up her hands and feet briskly, and Ji Ye stood at the door, looking at them without saying a word.When the maid picked up the plates and turned back, she met his eyes, couldn't help shaking her hands, and the plates shattered on the floor. "What did you do? You clumsy thing!" Chang Ye shouted loudly and jumped up from the table, his silk trousers were full of leftover soup and water. Ji Ye looked at the bouncing Chang Ye and the frightened maid, turned around quietly and went out, looked up and saw the sky was all blue, and in the white clouds, a kite as bright as fire was flying high with two long tails.

He watched quietly, then suddenly started to run, swiftly crossing the stone pier by the door.Chang Ye squinted his eyes and saw his brother's back flashed by a half-open wall and disappeared. "Hey, hey, are you stupid! Don't use brute force, it will fall down if you pull it brute force!" The girl was wearing a light blue skirt, sitting on the undulating branch with dangling legs, slender like a sparrow with blue feathers.She pursed her mouth and yelled at the children who were pulling the strings of the kite, raising her eyebrows in a look of anger. On a piece of grass-green flat ground, the three children pulled hard, but the huge kite was not easy to maneuver.Even a slight change in the wind direction in the sky would make it trembling and about to fall downside down. The three children scrambled to pull it, but no one would let the other.

"Stupid!" Yu Ran finally couldn't help but jumped down. She landed lightly on the ground, went up and grabbed the kite string in her hands, "Idiot, idiot, idiot, no Ji Ye can fly it yet." The three boys surrounded her, watching her raise her hands high, trot with the kite, and lightly dodge left and right on the grass.Yuren is like the son of the wind, no matter how the wind direction changes, the kite will fly steadily higher and higher in Yuran's hands.The string in Yuran's hand was almost finished, and the strong wind in the sky blew on the big kite, making her so light that she seemed to be flying into the air.

"I'll pull you." A fat boy hesitated for a long time, wiped his hands on the front of his shirt, and stretched out to pull Yuran. "I don't want you to pull!" Yu Ran knocked off his hand with a "slap", she rolled her eyes, "You squat down." The boy crouched down.Yu Ran suddenly jumped up and stepped lightly on his shoulder.When the wind picked up, Yu Ran was drawn up lightly, and everyone's eyes followed her blue skirt in the sky.She stood almost a foot high, so high that she surpassed the top of the wall of Ji's mansion. "Jimo! Jiye! Come out to fly a kite!" Her voice was crisp and clear, as if echoing between heaven and earth.

Responding to her voice, Ji Ye fled from the top of the wall like an eagle, and ran over without a word.The boys seemed a little afraid of him, and backed away involuntarily, and Ji Ye took the line from Yu Ran.He galloped across the grass, and the children ran after him. Himeno had finished unwinding the last thread, leaving only one end of thread in his hand.He tied the end of the thread to a stone and threw it there. He flattened himself and lay on a tree branch, staring at the blue sky in a daze.The red kite was up and down in the sky, and his eyes were chasing the kite. "Jiye," Yuran called him from under the tree, "go to the Confucian Temple? Let's go to the Confucian Temple today. The shop over there is selling a lot of small things, all of which are shipped from the river network by the chamber of commerce. You must have never thought of it." of." "I don't want to go, we don't have money to buy anyway," Ji Ye shook his head, "I heard that He Luo can't make a few things in his life, bring them here? Was it the warriors from the chamber of commerce who snatched them?" "It's not about robbing you, nor are we going to rob you." Yu Ran pursed her lips.It was inconvenient for her to climb the tree wearing a skirt, and she couldn't reach Ji Ye, so she picked up the next year's pine cones from under the tree and threw him. Himeno didn't care about the pine cones that hit him, "I still want to read." "Reading and reading, we have been reading for many days. I have read books with you for so many days, you should accompany me to play!" Yu was full of anger. Ji Ye hesitated for a moment, then pointed to the other three boys, "I don't want to go to the Confucian Temple, let them go with you." Yu Ran rolled her eyes towards the sky, "I don't bring idiots with me." "Who's the fool?" a boy muttered. Yu Ran stared fiercely, "You can't even fly a kite, are you an idiot?" "Look, look! The kite is down!" cried another boy. Yu Ran jumped up and ran over holding her skirt, the children chased after her.Ji Ye hesitated for a moment, but still followed. The string of the firebird kite was pulled in the hands of the airy young man, he squinted at the angry Yuran and the three boys, and said in a lazy tone, "My family bought all of this place. Don't go in and out casually." "Is it okay to fly a kite?" A boy was also angry. His family is a merchant, although it is not such a wealthy family, but there are a few joint ventures, usually very arrogant.But he knew the second son of the Ji family, and he heard his father talk about this big family that was originally an imperial capital. Chang Ye's aristocratic aura, which was different from that of a businessman, made him a little ashamed, and he couldn't raise his voice. "Do you know the name of this house?" Chang Ye pointed to the house behind him, "It's called 'Du Yi Dong', and it's a place to study quietly. If you make such a fuss, how can others read the books of sages? A kite is a trivial matter." Yu Ran suddenly took a step and pushed him on the shoulder, "Hey! Are you looking for faults? You still talk about studying, how is your appearance different from those who collect money in the street? It's amazing to buy it?" The boys suddenly regained their spirits and surrounded Chang Yeban, "What do you want?" Chang Ye suddenly felt embarrassed, he really had never seen the arrogance of this kind of street kid, nor did he expect that this feathered girl who was like edelweiss when she first came to Nanhuai could also become aggressive. "I asked them to fly kites here, how about it?" Ji Ye's low voice suddenly sounded from behind, "I don't like reading, I like flying kites!" "I knew you would jump out a long time ago! Father said that he was not allowed to associate with their family!" Chang Ye pointed at his brother's nose. "What do you do if you come and go? Now let's talk about kite flying." "I told you about the kite!" "Hey! So overbearing? You belong to this family, and he also belongs to this family. You mean what you say?" Yu Ran leaned in front of Chang Ye, her skin was milky white under the sun, slightly woody When the fragrance came, Chang Ye's face was a little red. He came out to make trouble, most of which was to see this girl on the wall. "This is our family business." Chang Ye was very upset that she was speaking for Ji Ye in this way, and he took a step forward to push Yu Ran aside. Yu Ran showed a wary look, and knocked Chang Ye's hand off. Except for people she knew very well, the thing she hated the most was being touched by others. Ji Ye stepped in front of her, stopped Yu Ran behind, and grabbed Chang Ye's hand, "Do you dare to touch her?" "Hmph!" Yu Ran lay behind Ji Ye and made a face at Chang Ye. Chang Ye's hand seemed to be clamped, he became ashamed and angry, and pointed at Ji Ye's face, "Why do you protect her, what are you with her? Shameless, do you think others value you more?" Ji Ye was stunned and took a step back. "Sneaking in with the traitor's family and still dare to come out and talk? Everything in this place, this house, and here is not yours, but your father's. What ability do you have to speak for her? I hope that someone will accept your favor and marry us in the future Young Master Ji?" Chang Ye was proud of his hidden viciousness. "She..." Ji Ye's expression suddenly changed, he held Yu Ran's hand tightly, and took a step back, "She is mine! So what?" Everyone was stunned, Yu Ran was caught by him, blood was pouring on her face, the eyes of the boys all fell on her face, she finally couldn't bear this kind of scene, and beat Ji Ye hard hand, "Who's yours?" She turned around and ran away without looking back.Several boys also chased after them. "Hahahahahaha..." After being stunned for a while, Chang Ye burst out laughing, and ran away stumbling while laughing. Himeno stood there, silently looking at his hand that was knocked down. Ji Qianzheng finally asked to use the bamboo whip passed down from his family. He was not a violent father, but after hearing Chang Ye's report, the reverence for the old man that had subsided began to trouble Ji's Patriarch again.He felt that the eldest son was simply an ominous person. The bamboo whip beat Ji Ye's back repeatedly, accompanied by Ji Qianzheng's scolding: "Do you know who they are? It is a misfortune for my Ji family to raise you! If our Ji family dies in the future After me, it must be your sin..." Himeno leaned against the table motionless, staring at his father quietly.His eyes didn't look like resentment or fear, but more like disdain, cold and emotionless. The furious Ji Qian beat for an hour, and ordered everyone to leave, leaving only Ji Ye in the front hall. The cold moon, the breeze, and the silence, just like that night a long time ago, Ji Ye sat quietly on the roof with his legs crossed. "Jimo, Jiye..." It seemed that someone was calling him behind his back. After hesitating for a long time, Ji Ye still looked back, and those deep rose red eyes were actually behind him again. "Someone... beat you..." Yu Ran was surprised to see the bloodstains on Ji Ye's face from the bamboo whip. "It doesn't matter," Ji Ye pushed away Yu Ran's hand touching his face, "It will be fine in a few days, why are you here?" "I... just came out to play." Yu Ran was embarrassed to say that she ran out to see Ji Ye.Just as she guessed, Himeno was sitting on the roof where they met for the first time.She moved her butt, wondering if she should sit closer to Ji Ye, but Ji Ye didn't move at all, and she was embarrassed, so she puffed her cheeks and sulked. "I'm sorry, it's my fault." Yu Ran froze for a moment. "Don't talk to me anymore, I'm not what you think, I'm actually useless... I know I have nothing, Chang Ye is right," Ji Ye said in a low voice, "I can read and write, It's what you taught me." "What are you talking about?" Yu Ran became annoyed, this was the first time she felt that Ji Ye would be such a mother-in-law sometimes. After hesitating for a while, Ji Ye whispered: "I'm sorry... I didn't mean to say that... I just said it accidentally..." "It's nothing," Yu Ran said, "you and I can go to the lake to see the colorful boats." "It's late at night, and the colorful boats have no lights." "Then it's okay to look at the lake." "It's a bit cold at night," Himeno said, "You'd better go back to bed early." "I don't feel cold." "But... I'm a little sleepy, I want to go to sleep." Ji Ye stood up. Yu Ran's patience finally ran out.The little girl jumped up angrily, pointed at Ji Ye's nose and said, "Why are you so stingy? You just ignored me when I ran away, and I sneaked out to see you at night!" Himeno looked at Yuran with his dark and deep eyes and pouted. Finally, Yu Ran gave in under Ji Ye's gaze, she took Ra Ji Ye's hand and said, "Okay, I'm yours, it's alright, it's yours." Ji Ye stared blankly at Yu Ran, as if he didn't respond at all. "Is this all right?" Yu Ran became anxious, "What exactly do you want?" "I'm all yours, what else do you want? You are the stupidest, the meanest, the most rude, and you humiliate me in public, you trampled my butterfly kite, and you lost the one I like. That hairpin, you ate all the dates we stole by yourself...you...but I still ran out to see you in the middle of the night, if my grandfather found out, I would be scolded! You treat me like this ?" Yu Ran felt wronged, "You are a fool, a donkey, a thick and stupid firewood!" She flailed her arms, jumped up on the roof, and fell, almost crushing the tiles. But no matter how she made noise, shouted, or waved her arms, Ji Ye didn't speak.The child looked at her quietly, starlight reflected in his dark eyes. Yu Ran also calmed down in the end, the two faced each other silently, for some reason, looking at him, Yu Ran had the urge to cry. Himeno didn't mention that embarrassment again, and the next twenty years passed like a flash of water. Until the sixth year of Daxie Shenwu, King Yulie sat at a banquet in the wind of Taiqing Pavilion and told this story to Taifu Xie, one of the "Eight Pillar Kingdoms of Xiechu". The emperor looked into the distance with his cup in his hand, "That was the first time in my life that I knew that in this vast world, there could be something that only belonged to me and not Chang Ye. I didn't fall asleep that night, the sun When I got up, I made up my mind. I don’t want to be my brother’s lieutenant, I want to do my own thing. If Yuran will stand with me, then the gods in the sky may not only favor Chang Ye, I want this world There are more and more things that belong to me, and I will never follow other people's horses. I will never follow others' horses!" Tai Tuo pondered for a long time, and said with a wry smile: "Can this word be passed down?" The emperor smiled, "What does the Tai Tuo think?" The Tai Tuo thought for a long time, "It's just the eight characters: respectable and fearful, horrific and terrifying." King Yulie nodded, "Since it is such a rare and hateful remark, then the Taifu will record it for me and pass it down in Qingshi." When Taifu Xie passed away, this transcript was made public.The official historian entered the "Notes on the Daily Life of Emperor Yulie". At that time, it was the reign of Emperor Jingde Ji Changye.The emperor was furious after reading the manuscript, and beheaded seventeen historians within three months.However, the 18th chief historian still included this passage in the "Notes on the Daily Life of Emperor Yulie" and submitted it. "Isn't Aiqing afraid of death?" King Jingde asked Chang Shi. "It's fair to say that the official historian only takes the truth and records it," Chang Shi said, "The late emperor and your majesty are brothers. Your majesty knows better than his ministers what kind of person the late emperor was. Your majesty knows the truth of this passage. Your majesty knows the truth." How long can I live? But for generations, historians have written like gold and iron, without leaking or lying, and the family traditions of generations cannot be destroyed in the hands of the minister. If the minister does not change, your majesty will kill the minister." Emperor Jingde was silent for a long time, stretched out his hand to make a gesture of a knife, slashed the historian's neck falsely, and then left with his hands behind his back.The last passage was printed together with other manuscripts of King Yulie, and it was openly displayed on the bookshelf of the Ancient Mirror Palace. "His residual power is fierce!" Many years later, Emperor Jingde said to the official historian, "You are not wrong. He told me this on purpose. He has been like this since he was very young, angry and unwilling, Treat people coldly, but who would know that such a person can eventually rule the world?" No one will know, because he always lowers his head, so no one can see the loneliness in his eyes. At this moment, on the distant Zhongzhou plateau, the silent cavalry marched forward under the banner of leopards. A full moon loomed among the banners, and the ten-year-old boy lifted the leather curtain to block the wind and watched the moonlight silently.The old female slave hurried up and closed the curtain, "Your Majesty, the weather is still cold and you are not in good health, so don't be caught by the cold." "No," the young man smiled, his face pale, "So the moon in the Eastern Land is the same as that in our grassland. It's really the same." The female slave laughed together, "Oh, how could the moon be different? The Pantar God only created one moon for us." "Just the same," the young man said in a low voice, "this way, we can always see the same moon with our parents." The creaking sound of the wheels crushing the ground swallowed his words, the post road was dusty, the third person in destiny was walking a long road of thousands of miles, from the country of grasslands to Nanhuai City in Xiatang.