The Moon Over Tang Dynasty

 Chapter 7 The crowd was surging and I was surprised to see the distinguished guest

During the Sui and Tang Dynasties, Buddhism flourished, and there were many temples in Chang'an City. There were quite a few famous temples, but the most popular one was undoubtedly the Daci'en Temple located in Jinchangfang in the southeast corner. It is in an excellent location, facing the clear water of Qujiang River in the south and the walls of the Ming Dynasty Palace in the north. In addition, the temple is neat and tidy, the forest and spring are quiet, the incense is strong, and the status is outstanding. Not to mention Chang'an, there are few temples in the world that can match it. However, just five years ago, this famous temple was just a dilapidated old temple. The current emperor was still a prince at the time. He was mindful of the kindness of his late mother, the eldest grandson of the empress, and decided to rebuild a temple for his mother. He chose this place to build a large-scale construction project. The construction was completed in October of that year. It is beautiful...

 In the slightly shaking carriage, Liuli couldn't help but nod her head as she listened to her aunt's introduction to the origin of Da Ci'en Temple. The An family all believe in Buddhism, and their aunt Shi naturally knows the origins of the Great Ci'en Temple very well. However, when she mentioned the current abbot of the Great Ci'en Temple, Liuli couldn't help but open her mouth in shock, "Master Xuanzang?"

The aunt looked at her strangely, "Of course it's Master Xuanzang! You didn't know? The Master was specially invited to Chang'an by the Holy Father five years ago. The ceremony of entering the temple and enthroning the throne made a sensation in Chang'an, which was rare in ancient times. Now the Master is in Chang'an The purpose of building a pagoda is to enshrine the Buddha’s relics!”

Liuli's face was full of embarrassment, she lowered her head and said nothing, thinking: I'm really crazy. Tang Seng naturally returned to Chang'an to translate the scriptures. Could it be that he really lived a happy life in the West with Sun Wukong and Zhu Bajie from now on?

The aunt smiled and patted her hand and said, "Mom, don't be ashamed. You have been locked up at home for several years, and no one has told you these things. How could you know this? Today, my aunt will take you to have a good life. This big The scenery of Ci'en Temple is also very good, there are more than a dozen courtyards, and you can also go to the theater..." Liuli even secretly wondered: Did she hear it correctly? Are there any opera singers in the temple?

Just as he was talking, the car gradually stopped. Liuli didn't think anything of it, but the Shi family and the Kang family were surprised. They have been offering incense all year round, so they naturally knew that this place should be some distance away from the temple gate. Kang said, "Go down and have a look." After saying that, he lifted the curtain and jumped out of the donkey cart. He came back not long after, with a gloomy expression on his face: "The Haojia family learned that today the queen's mother, Mrs. Liu, is offering incense. No idlers are allowed to enter the temple. Many people are already waiting outside. Should we wait or turn around?"

The aunt frowned, but I still remember that Shiro had ordered it. Today, I will wait until the afternoon to return again. After thinking about it, "I remember there is a wine restaurant nearby, and the elegant room is very neat.

No one else had any objections. The car changed direction slightly and stopped after traveling for a while.

Liuli followed her aunt out of the car and saw an extremely exquisitely built restaurant. There was a wine flag waving outside the window on the second floor. The words were actually shining with silver, and she didn’t know what kind of paint they were painted on. She looked around a few more times, but her aunt had already walked through the door first. The first floor was already fifty to sixty percent full, and the waiter greeted her enthusiastically, "Ladies, may I ask..."

My aunt said, "I want the largest private room."

The waiter from Chang'an was naturally discerning. Knowing that he had met the wealthy Hu merchant family, he hurriedly said hello and led a few people to a private room by the window on the second floor. The private room is extremely spacious, with blue seats, desks, tables and other items. There are calligraphy and paintings on the walls, and it is very elegantly decorated.

The aunt took a breath and turned to ask Liuli, "What do you want to drink?" Liuli knew that women at this time were very particular about "drinking". They drank peaches in spring and cheese in summer. It was a pity that these pure natural drinks She has no love for environmentally friendly drinks, and it will probably take her the next life to drink another Coke... She sighed inwardly, and smiled: "But it's up to my aunt to make the decision."

Qiniang said, "Auntie, since we are here, it is natural to drink five-color drinks." My aunt also laughed, "Qiniang is right." She turned around and asked the waiter for a set of five-color drinks.

After a while, the waiter brought a plate of five drinks. The five honeysuckle-patterned silver cups were filled with five colors of syrup: green, white, yellow, red, and black. They were very beautiful. Her aunt asked Liuli to choose first, but Liuli couldn't resist, so she had to take the cup of green syrup closest to her. Seeing that they had finished choosing, they all started to sip. Then they took a sip, and it still had a strange sweet and sour taste. The taste seems a little astringent and has a special aroma.

Qiniang smiled and said, "The cup I chose is made from hibiscus leaves. It's perfect to drink in spring." Liuli hurriedly took another sip and found that it smelled like green leaves. She could only nod and smile, "Sure enough, in this way."

Qiniang raised her own black liquor again and said, "This plum drink is sweet and sour but the most refreshing."

My aunt also laughed and said, "I don't like these smelly ones, just buttermilk." It turns out that the white drink in this five-color drink is the buttermilk that Chang'an people drink the most on weekdays. It tastes like very thin yogurt, but it is Not too sweet.

Everyone was chatting and laughing, and after more than two quarters of an hour, they saw more and more cars and horses under the wine shop, and there were constant footsteps on the stairs. I guess they were all people waiting to offer incense. Fortunately, they were separated by private rooms, so it was quiet. . After finishing the five-color drink, my aunt ordered another set of five-color drink. It is said that like the five-color drink, it was also made by a senior monk in the previous dynasty. Probably because there are too many guests, the five-spice drink has not been served for a long time. Just when Liuli was bored with waiting, she heard the waiter's voice coming from outside, "Madam, please take a seat downstairs. I'm really sorry, the private rooms upstairs are all full." A clear female voice said immediately, "My madam With your status, how can you sit with the common people downstairs?" The waiter hurriedly explained and apologized, and then heard a slightly gravelly voice say, "Mom, what do you think?"

When Liuli heard this voice, her heart moved, and she felt that it seemed very familiar. She couldn't help but listen carefully, and heard an old voice saying, "It's so crowded outside, it's impossible to go home now, Erlang and Liu Niang You are so young, wouldn't you be bored waiting in the car?" The soft voice sighed, "What should I do?"

　　A charming face with long eyebrows and thin eyebrows suddenly flashed in Liuli's mind - wasn't it the lady who ordered peony and valerian that day? It seems that she is the fifth lady of Helan's house. Did she bring children and elderly people to offer incense?

She thought for a while, then turned around and smiled at her aunt, "It's a coincidence. The lady outside seems to be an old customer Liuli met at Ruyi Jiaval yesterday. She probably brought her mother and children here today. There is no place to stay for those who make incense." After hearing this, Aunt Shi said hurriedly, "If that's the case, we still have room here. If they don't dislike it, why not invite them in?"

Liuli smiled and pushed the door open. Sure enough, she saw the noble lady she met yesterday standing at the top of the stairs. She was accompanied by a very wealthy old woman, followed by a little girl of four or five years old and a boy of ten. Liuli walked over and saluted with a smile, "I've met Madam."

The lady was startled, looked at Liuli carefully, and said suddenly, "Are you the lady who painted peonies yesterday?"

Liuli smiled and nodded, "Today I will burn incense with my aunt and sisters-in-law. If Madam doesn't mind, our private room is quite spacious."

The lady hurriedly looked at the old woman. The old woman's hair was snow-white, her back was straight, her features were majestic, and her eyes were extremely sharp. She glanced up and down at Liuli, and Liuli's heart suddenly shivered. But the old woman laughed, her smile was kind, completely different from the shrewd and majestic look she had just now, "Young lady, I have the audacity to bother you because of your kindness."

Liuli breathed a sigh of relief and ushered them into the private room with a smile. Shi and others had to stand up to greet each other. It turned out that the old woman's surname was Yang, and the noble lady's surname was Wu. Liuli secretly laughed in her heart. It turned out that it was from Helan's house. Mrs. Wu is not the fifth aunt of the Helan family. After paying a little attention, she noticed that the two ladies were very noble in their speech and behavior, and the two little children also advanced and retreated in a moderate manner. The little girl was as if they were carved from pink and jade, and the little boy was also surprisingly handsome. I couldn't help but secretly marvel.

Aunt Shi and others were well-informed, so they naturally realized that they were not ordinary people, so they couldn't help but become a little reserved in their speech. Fortunately, Mrs. Yang was very talkative, and within a few words she talked about the popular fabric patterns and jewelry styles. The Shi family members are the best at talking about these things, and they gradually became lively with each other.

After a while, the waiter also brought the five-spice drink. Shi naturally asked the guests to drink first. Mrs. Wu smiled at her son and said, "Minzhi, thank you ladies."

 Minzhi? Liuli's heart was shocked, Helan... Minzhi? The lady's surname is Wu, and the old lady's surname happens to be Yang. Could it be that the little boy in front of her is the famous He Lan Minzhi? And Mrs. Yang and Mrs. Wu are Wu Zetian’s mother and sister?

Liuli felt her heart pounding wildly, and her heart was filled with the panic of seeing history coming at her face. She lowered her head and took a deep breath to calm down her emotions. She couldn't help but glance at Helan Minzhi, and felt No matter what, I can't believe that this young boy with beautiful features and calm demeanor will turn into a notorious maniac in the future. It would be even more outrageous to say that he has an affair with Mrs. Yang...

She turned her head while she was thinking, and a burst of noise suddenly came from outside. Looking from the window, she saw a long line of people coming from the direction outside the square on the avenue, heading towards the direction of Daci'en Temple. Two people came in front of them. A carriage was set up, followed by three groups of knights, then four groups of six-person honor guards, and then an extremely gorgeous cart. It seemed that it should be Mrs. Liu's lover, and she was carrying a good posture. The original pedestrians, carriages and horses on the road had all been pushed aside, and those who took a step back were scolded and driven away.

When this battle fell into everyone's eyes, Shi's Kang family naturally sighed in admiration, Qiniang's face was full of curiosity, Mrs. Wu's eyes showed a hint of anger, but Liuli let out a long sigh in her heart: This Liu family was born in a famous family, and married The daughter of the super wealthy Taiyuan Wang family is now a mother-in-law, and the eldest prince raised in her name has just been established as the prince. He is as rich as flowers and brocade, and fire is cooking oil. But who would have thought that, In just two years, this lady and her queen daughter would end up in such a tragic end?

She was lost in silence, and suddenly she felt someone's gaze falling on her. She raised her head and met Mrs. Yang's bright eyes. Her smile was full of meaning: "Such a boundless majesty, everyone can look at it with admiration, envy, or jealousy. Why is there pity in the little lady’s eyes?”

 (End of this chapter)