Li Xuanba was lazy for several days as soon as he returned home.
He knew he had a lot to do.
For example, after receiving so much money from Yang Guang, he could implement his own money-making plan.
But Li Xuanba lay on the bed, and no matter how Li Shimin shook him, he kept reciting "Spring sleep does not know the dawn", and refused to leave the bed.
In recent days, he ate and slept, and even read while lying on the couch, wishing he could live forever with the bed.
Li Yuan and Madam Dou felt sorry for Li Xuanba because he had been seriously ill and had to travel a long distance, so they indulged Li Xuanba's laziness.
Only Li Shimin persisted in trying to pull his brother out of bed.
Li Xuanba covered his ears. "I don't want to listen," said the second brother.
Li Shimin said, "I'm going to play with Silang from the Changsun family. Are you really not coming?"
Li Xuanba turned over and said, "No. You guys just play archery and Cuju. I'm tired."
Li Shimin failed to dig Li Xuanba out of the bed again today, and could only sigh and go out to play by himself.
Li Xuanba yawned, fetched a book from the bedside, put a cushion on his back, moved his upper body up, and read leisurely.
After watching for a while, he heard rustling sounds at the door and thought his second brother had come back. When he looked closely, he saw that it was Li Zhiyun peeking at the door.
"Xiaowu, what's the matter?" Li Xuanba put down the book.
Li Zhiyun moved his short legs, swiftly kicked off his small cloth shoes, and crawled to Li Xuanba's side: "Third brother, Xiaowu wants to hear a story!"
Li Xuanba sighed: "Okay, what do you want to hear today?"
Li Zhiyun asked: "Did Calabash Boy save Weng Weng?"
Li Xuanba said: "This...where was I talking about before?"
Li Xuanba thought about it and continued to tell Li Zhiyun the unlucky story of the Calabash Brothers who saved their grandfather, but were caught every time they went.
When Li Xuanba was telling a story to Li Shimin, Li Zhiyun, who was brought by Aunt Wan to play with them, overheard it accidentally. Encouraged by Aunt Wan, Li Zhiyun came to listen to the story of Li Xuanba, who was squatting in the house and refused to go out.
After coming here a few times, Li Zhiyun found that the third brother only had a cold facial expression, but was actually very gentle and easy to talk to, so he became completely attached to Li Xuanba.
Seeing that storytelling was so effective, Li Xuanba slapped his head and tried to use stories to lure Li Yuanji, and bring the young Li Yuanji to his and his second brother's side. Maybe he could help his mother change Li Yuanji's character.
Then Li Xuanba was chased and beaten by the three-year-old kid with a wooden sword.
In order to protect Li Zhiyun, he attracted fire, but was no faster than the three-year-old kid, and got a big bruise on his arm.
Because both Madam Dugu and Li Yuan doted on the child, Li Yuanji was only reprimanded, and Li Xuanba's treasury made money again. Li Xuanba felt that it was not a loss, so he did not intend to make a fuss.
But when Li Shimin came back from playing with his new friend Changsun Silang and learned about this, he took advantage of his parents' inattention and beat Li Yuanji severely, and put him in solitary confinement for several days.
Li Xuanba failed to "conquer" his fourth brother again. Li Yuanji hated him and Li Shimin even more.
He comforted himself, hoping that as his mother said, he would work harder when his fourth brother grew up a little, no longer acted on instinct, and learned to respect his older brothers.
If there is no result after all efforts, his conscience will not hurt.
This is called "exemption from liability".
Li Xuanba and Li Zhiyun told stories for a while and deliberately stopped at the point where Wu Wa was also captured. What happened next will be revealed in the next episode.
Nothing is more interesting than a fragment.
Li Zhiyun was a little unhappy. But he had the same temper as his biological mother, so when he was unhappy, he just lowered his head and gently nudged Li Xuanba with his head, like a little dog.
Li Xuanba patted the little dog's head and said, "If you can finish tracing a large character, I will tell you the story of Liu Wa."
Li Zhiyun pouted: "It's just a big character. I can trace it quickly. Mother said that you, my third brother, should also write. Have you finished your calligraphy today?"
Li Xuanba was silent.
You are a three-year-old child who is not only articulate and logical, but also urges your brother to do his homework? Aren't you too smart? Does our Li family only produce precocious geniuses?
"Okay, let's go together." Li Xuanba sighed and slowly crawled under the bed.
Li Zhiyun crawled under the bed behind Li Xuanba, like a half-grown dog followed by a small puppy: "Third brother, you have such a great teacher like Mr. Yu, you must work hard."
Li Xuanba sighed: "Okay, okay, don't rush me."
After climbing down from the bed, Li Zhiyun skillfully and diligently helped Li Xuanba grind ink.
Since he learned to write, he has been obsessed with writing well. Although his wrist is weak and he cannot practice writing well, he still tries to trace the red characters by drawing every day.
Compared with his peers, Li Xuanba's regular script is quite beautiful.
Li Xuanba never considered himself a genius. He looked like a genius only because he relied on the logic and perseverance of an adult to do utilitarian things that could yield results if he persisted.
For example, practicing calligraphy.
He knew that calligraphy was the "face" of the literati of this era. Although he probably could not become a calligrapher, as long as he practiced hard from a young age, it would not be a problem for him to practice beautiful brush calligraphy.
Since the Wei and Jin Dynasties, regular script has gradually developed and is now one of the most popular fonts. It reached its peak in the Tang Dynasty.
Li Xuanba's calligraphy cannot actually be considered the currently popular regular script imitating the Wei stele, but rather has some running script strokes.
Although he has never practiced calligraphy in modern times, his cursive pen calligraphy is very beautiful. Hard pen calligraphy and brush calligraphy are very different, but the structure of the characters can be applied to each other. He used to write cursive calligraphy, and now he can't help but lean towards cursive calligraphy when writing with a brush.
Of course, as Li Xuanba's regular script progressed, it tended towards running script, mainly because running script can be written faster.
The first time Li Xuanba wrote cursive script was when he was helping his second brother, who was punished for being naughty, to copy the "Book of Filial Piety".
For this kind of punishment of copying, you just need to do it perfunctorily, there is no need to write very well.
Unexpectedly, after seeing Li Xuanba's calligraphy, Mrs. Dou asked for calligraphy copies of many famous regular script calligraphers in the court for Li Xuanba to learn. Li Xuanba copied these calligraphy copies once a day, and then wrote a regular script in his own "elegant style" according to his own habits.
After Li Xuanba became Yu Shinan's disciple for calligraphy, Yu Shinan saw Li Xuanba's calligraphy and coincidentally taught Li Xuanba in the same way that Madam Dou had taught him.
Li Zhiyun has an innate love for beautiful calligraphy.
After he was brought up by his biological mother and became familiar with Li Xuanba, he loved to urge Li Xuanba to finish his calligraphy homework and lay on the low table to watch Li Xuanba write.
No one is saintly, and no one is free from vanity. Li Xuanba felt very happy when he saw his brother's admiring eyes, and his annoyance from practicing calligraphy was soothed.
Now he deliberately "slacked off" every day, waiting for Li Zhiyun to urge him to practice calligraphy. After he finished writing, Li Xuanba held Li Zhiyun's hand and taught him to paint the calligraphy in red.
Mrs. Dou and Aunt Wan came to see them one after another, and left with kind smiles on their faces, without disturbing the two children from practicing calligraphy.
Only Li Yuan felt a little melancholy: "It's time for Silang to practice calligraphy."
Madam Dou said, "Silang is very well behaved in front of you, maybe you can teach him calligraphy in person?"
Li Yuan thought about Li Yuanji's restless look, and even before he started teaching Li Yuanji, he already had a headache: "Let Bishamon teach, it can also enhance the brotherhood."
Madam Dou advised, "Da Lang has been granted a palace official position by His Majesty and needs to be on duty every day. He really has no time. Besides, Da Lang will spend a lot of time with Si Lang in the future, but Lang Jun will not spend much time with Si Lang. Si Lang is naughty, but Lang Jun can control Si Lang."
Although Li Yuanji was naughty, he was also smart and knew who could be bullied and who could not be bullied.
For example, after Li Shimin beat Li Yuanji several times, Li Yuanji would secretly spit at Li Shimin behind his back, but he did not dare to be arrogant in front of Li Shimin.
But as soon as Li Xuanba got close to Li Yuanji, Li Yuanji would severely bully this sickly brother who could not beat him.
Mrs. Dou guessed that Silang always bullied Sanlang, and Erlang beat Silang too hard, so Silang wanted to "avenge" Sanlang, who looked very similar to Erlang.
Li Yuan was very tall, and the title of "father" was exaggerated by the servants who served Li Yuanji. Li Yuanji was very obedient in front of Li Yuan.
Because old lady Dugu stopped her, Madam Dou could not teach Li Yuanji personally.
Now that Li Yuan is on vacation at home, Mrs. Dou wants Li Yuan to take care of the situation.
After Mrs. Dou's repeated persuasion, Li Yuan finally overcame his fear of teaching a naughty child and gritted his teeth to discipline Li Yuanji.
Li Yuanji was beaten almost every day after that.
Old Lady Dugu was very distressed. But her son finally came home to educate his children, and she couldn't discourage him. She could only complain that Lady Dou couldn't stop Li Yuan.
Mrs. Dou smiled apologetically and kept saying that she was useless and could not persuade her husband, so she just passed it off.
When Li Shimin heard that his father beat Li Yuanji once a day, he was so happy that he didn't even go out to play.
Li Xuanba was practicing calligraphy, and he took over the "work" that Li Xuanba would do later. He held Li Zhiyun's hand and taught Li Zhiyun how to trace the characters.
"That's great! I've told the queen a long time ago that if we beat Li Yuanji a few more times, he will behave himself." Li Shimin said excitedly.
Li Zhiyun shrank his head and said, "Xiaowu is very good, don't beat him."
Li Shimin said, "I know you are a good boy, don't be afraid. Do you think I am the kind of person who would beat up his younger brother?"
Li Zhiyun looked at Li Xuanba.
Li Xuan said domineeringly: "Yes, he is."
Li Zhiyun's head shrank again.
Li Shimin laughed and scolded: "Ah Xuan, are you looking for a beating?"
Li Xuan said domineeringly: "Look, he just beats up his brother randomly."
Li Zhiyun whispered, "Second brother, don't bully third brother. If you bully third brother, I will complain to mother."
Li Shimin was speechless: "You really listened to his nonsense. Ah Xuan, explain quickly, be careful that Xiao Wu really thinks I am bullying you."
Li Xuanba laughed: "Xiaowu, I was just teasing you. Second brother is very good and won't bully his younger brother. Your second brother is very good at fighting. If anyone bullies you in the future, you can ask your second brother to help you fight back."
Li Shimin said: "That's absolutely no problem."
Li Zhiyun nodded: "Okay."
Li Yuan walked away from the window and touched his chest.
After he was hurt by Li Yuanji, he would always come here to see his other three younger sons.
After he was cured, he could teach Li Yuanji to read and write again.
Ten days passed in this leisurely manner.
During this period, Li Yuan and Mrs. Dou took Li Shimin to visit Changsun's family. The two sides compared their horoscopes and formally agreed to this verbal marriage.
When Changsun Xiaoniang was six years old, she and Li Shimin would exchange engagement letters and enter into a marriage contract.
Because Changsun Xiaoniang was still young, Li Shimin did not see her. He just often went to play with Changsun Wuji, and learned archery and Turkic from Changsun Sheng.
Li Xuanba did not follow.
Firstly, he was lazy, and secondly, he felt it was inappropriate for him to join in while his second brother was looking for his future wife.
Later, when Li Shimin went to Changsun Mansion to play, Li Xuanba would push him whenever he could.
He believed that although Chang Sun Xiao Niang was still young, Mrs. Gao would definitely take the little Chang Sun Xiao Niang to a place where Li Shimin could not see and secretly observe Li Shimin.
Although a three-year-old child cannot be said to be in love, being able to get familiar with the other person and have more favor in advance, and developing from childhood sweethearts to newlyweds is always better than a blind marriage.
In just ten days, Li Shimin had become completely familiar with Zhangsun Wuji.
Changsun Wuji never mentioned Li Shimin's age again. An eleven-year-old boy could actually have so much fun playing with a seven-year-old child that he even forgot about his old friend.
Li Xuanba really didn't know how to comment on this incident. He wrote it down in his diary and later used it as material for "The Romance of Sui and Tang Dynasties".
Ten days later, when Li Yuan and Zhangsun Sheng were preparing to return to their respective posts to continue working, the emperor's edict arrived.
Li Yuan was summoned to the court, while Changsun Sheng was allowed to rest at home for a while.
Now the Turks were very well behaved, and the emperor planned to stay in Luoyang for a while longer, so he did not need Chang Sun Sheng's protection, and so he generously gave Chang Sun Sheng some more vacation time.
Changsun Sheng was not young anymore, and had been exposed to the wind and sand in Turkic for many years. Under the persuasion of Crown Prince Yang Zhao, Yang Guang issued an edict to Changsun Sheng, asking him to take good care of his health.
Yang Guang had already planned his path to becoming a powerful ruler.
He first had to conquer Goguryeo. After Goguryeo surrendered, he would complete the unfinished business of the previous emperor and conquer the Turks.
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Chang Sun Sheng was the one who knew the Turks best, and Yang Guang hoped that Chang Sun Sheng would be able to serve him when he conquered the Turks.
Changsun Sheng had been busy all his life, and now he finally had time to spend with his family and educate his children, and he was very happy. He specially asked his eldest son Changsun Anye, who had neglected his discipline, to take leave and go home, and watched Changsun Anye study and practice martial arts again every day.
Changsun Sheng had four sons. His eldest son, Changsun Xingbu, died two years ago in the rebellion of Yang Liang, the King of Han. As a result, Changsun Xingbu's brother was awarded the title of Yingyang Langjiang. Changsun Anye was born to his first wife. Changsun Wuji was born to Gao, his second wife.
When Changsun Sheng's first wife was still alive, she spoiled her son Changsun Anye because he was her only son. Changsun Sheng also spent a lot of time in the frontier and was unable to teach his son.
Now that he had some free time, he discovered that his son had turned into a drunken dandy, and he was so angry that he almost fainted.
When his elder brother Changsun Chi learned about this, he wrote a letter to mock him.
Changsun Sheng's first wife always said in her letters that Changsun Anye was very good. As the successor, Gao Shi did not dare to discipline or offend Changsun Anye, and often told Changsun Sheng that everything was fine at home.
Changsun Chi couldn't stand Changsun Anye. But Changsun Sheng had only Changsun Anye as his legitimate son for many years, and he missed his deceased first wife, so he always thought that although Changsun Anye had some dandy habits, they were very common among the second generation of nobles and were nothing.
Now Chang Sun Sheng couldn't stand this "nothing" dandy son anymore.
Li Xuanba heard this "joke" from Li Shimin.
Although Changsun Anye was also Li Shimin's elder brother-in-law, Li Shimin seemed to be particularly interested in watching his elder brother-in-law being beaten. He often went to watch the fun and even fanned the flames.
Li Xuanba couldn't help but cover his face: "Aren't you afraid that he will hate you?"
Li Shimin opened his innocent eyes and said, "How is it possible? I am just a child!"
How could I, Li Shimin, a seven-year-old child, have any bad intentions?
"Okay." Li Xuanba didn't take it seriously. In the end, Changsun Anye would just rebel again and be exiled. It wasn't his second brother who would suffer.
"It's time to get moving." Seeing that his father had actually obtained the position of Junior Eunuch of the Palace a few years earlier than in the original history, Li Xuanba felt that his butterfly wings seemed to be working again, and his lazy heart caused by spring sleepiness was slightly cheered up.
If you don't cheer up, your sister will get married.
Thinking of his sister getting married, Li Xuanba couldn't help feeling a little annoyed.
Li Shimin no longer went out to play. Besides the fact that he had lost the novelty of going to Changsun's Mansion to play, it was also because his third sister was about to get married and he was in a bad mood.
The two children were sulking because of their sister's marriage. When Madam Dou noticed this, she asked Li Sanniang, who was embroidering dowry at home, to take Li Shimin and Li Xuanba out for some fresh air.
Li Sanniang was so happy that tears were about to flow out.
She was locked up in the yard and not allowed to go out. She was almost suffocating!
"Erlang, Sanlang, where do you want to go play? Sister will play with you to your heart's content!" Li Sanniang hugged her two younger brothers one by one, expressing her gratitude.
Li Shimin said: "Listen to Ah Xuan. Ah Xuan is finally going to start his money-making plan."
Li Xuan said domineeringly: "Sister, accompany me to the bookstore's workshop that prints Buddhist scriptures. I want to print some other books."
Li Sanniang led her two younger brothers to the carriage and asked, "What are you printing? Did you get a new Buddhist scripture from His Majesty?"
Li Xuanba shook his head and said, "Print the Confucian classics."
Li Sanniang was surprised: "Sanlang, the Confucian classics cannot be printed. The Confucian classics must be copied!"
Li Xuan said: "Now the world is stable and prosperous, and there are more and more scholars. I have consulted Mr. Gao and Mr. Yuwen, and they agreed to print their own annotated Confucian classics and sell them to poor scholars at a low price to revitalize Confucianism."
Li Xuanba smiled at Li Sanniang and said, "My elder brother will definitely make friends with the aristocratic families in the future. My second brother and I should not associate too much with the scholars from the aristocratic families, so as not to divide my elder brother's network and cause his dissatisfaction. I heard from His Majesty that this year there will be an additional 'Jinshi' examination for selecting scholars. In the future, I want to follow the path of a 'Jinshi' and become an official."
Li Shimin added: "I can fight the Turks and earn a title in the future, but Ah Xuan will definitely not be able to go to the battlefield. It is better to take the exam and become an official yourself than to rely on others for support. If a scholar from a poor family wants to become an official, in addition to joining a high-ranking aristocratic family, he should also follow the path chosen by Ah Xuan. So Ah Xuan wants to accumulate connections among scholars from poor families in advance."
After listening carefully, Li Sanniang sighed and said, "You are too precocious. You think too much and too far ahead."
Li Shimin puffed out his chest and said proudly: "Ah Xuan and I have both accompanied the emperor on his southern tour, so of course we are very powerful!"
Li Sanniang smiled and said, "That's true. But Ah Xuan, now the officials in the court look down on scholars from poor families, and the nobles are unwilling to make friends with scholars from poor families. As a son of the Duke of Tang, if you get too close to scholars from poor families, you will be despised."
Li Xuan said domineeringly: "I know. Now in the court, being an official through a shadow is respected. After passing the Mingjing exam and becoming an official in the court, you are inferior to others."
Not only does the current imperial examination require recommendation from an official of the fifth rank or above to be eligible to take the examination, but those who take the examination also suffer from discrimination.
In the Tang Dynasty, the aristocratic families still looked down on officials who had been promoted through the imperial examinations.
"But I just want to take the exam and compete with other scholars in the world." An expression appeared on Li Xuanba's face that even his twin brothers couldn't understand. "I just want to take the exam once."
Li Sanniang looked at Li Xuanba's expression. Although she didn't understand, she felt sad for no reason.
She immediately said, "If Sanlang wants to take the exam, just take it! Scholars from poor families are not necessarily inferior to scholars from rich families. It would be such a joy for Sanlang to compare his knowledge with scholars from poor families all over the world! Sister supports you!"
Li Shimin also said: "Brother also supports you, Xuan can do whatever he wants!"
Li Xuanba nodded: "Yes."
Li Sanniang said, "Let's go and print the Confucian classics and sell them now! If we can't sell them, I'll give you some extra money! My dowry is very generous!"
Li Xuanba laughed: "How can I use my sister's dowry? Don't worry, sister, among the Confucian scholars, Mr. Gao and Mr. Yuwen are very famous. It is impossible that no one will buy the Four Books and Five Classics with their annotations. Besides, I don't only sell the Four Books and Five Classics. I also want to sell some novels and stories."
Li Shimin said proudly: "Sister, you don't know how good Xuan is at telling stories. His storybooks must be selling well!"
Li Sanniang said, "Sanlang can print whatever he wants! We will share the profits, and the losses will be my fault! You can't shirk it, it's settled!"
Li Xuanba and Li Shimin looked at each other. Under the "intimidation" of Li Sanniang's eyes, they had no choice but to bow and thank her: "Thank you, sister."
Li Sanniang smiled and said, "That's right! You should rely on your sister more!"
She ruffled the braids of Li Xuanba and Li Shimin, and then helped them tie them up again.
"Let's go! Let's go print a new book!"
"Uh/ok!"
The three siblings came to the woodblock printing workshop behind the Xishi Bookstore and met Chai Shao who had been waiting there.
Chai Shao: Smirk.
The smiles on Li Shimin and Li Xuanba's faces disappeared at the same time.
Li Shimin's eyes were dead: "I remember that before marriage, men and women cannot meet each other?"
Li Xuanba dead eyes: "I remember that too."
Chai Shao immediately said: "It was just a chance encounter, a chance encounter!"
He rubbed his hands together and said, "Since we have met by chance, shall I be your bodyguard?"
"Hey, Chai Beishen, could you please not laugh so... so indecently?" A chubby young man walked out from the side.
Li Shimin and Li Xuanba were surprised and wanted to bow immediately.
The young man waved his hand to stop him: "I followed Sichang to see my cousin's bookstore. My cousin won't reject me, will he?"
Li Shimin and Li Xuanba both showed bitter faces: "I dare not, welcome cousin."
Cousin? Li Sanniang pondered for a while, sizing up the young man's figure, and suddenly said, "Could it be..."
She glared at Chai Shao through Li, then bowed slowly and said, "How are you, cousin?"
This young man was none other than Crown Prince Yang Zhao.
Yang Zhao said gently, "Hello, cousin."
Li Shimin was a generous man. After being frightened, he became at ease when he saw that his cousin the Crown Prince was still as gentle and easy to get along with as usual.
"Cousin, weren't you in Tokyo? Why are you back?" Li Shimin asked curiously.
Yang Zhao winked at Li Xuanba and said, "You'll have to ask your brother about that."
Li Xuanba pointed at himself: "Me."
Yang Zhao smiled but said nothing.
Li Xuanba's eyes widened. Did he tell the crown prince not to hesitate and come back immediately if Yang Guang asked him to return to Daxing?
Wait, didn't this happen in July? It's only April now!
Could it be that before July, Yang Guang had asked Yang Zhao to return to Daxing, but Yang Zhao said he wanted to stay in Luoyang for a while longer, so Yang Guang let Yang Zhao stay for another three months?
This is indeed very likely.
Yang Zhao said, "My father asked me to return to Daxing, and I thought it would be a good opportunity to come back to attend Sichang's wedding, so I came back. Lord Gao and Lord Yuwen also asked for leave from my father when they heard that you wanted to print the Confucian classics. They should be back in a few days."
Li Shimin was surprised and said, "Ah? The two teachers are coming back too? This is terrible, Ah Xuan, I am in trouble!"
Li Shimin immediately showed a sad face.
Yang Zhao was curious: "Erlang, what's wrong with you? Are you not happy that the teacher is back?"
Li Xuanba sighed deeply. Although his tone was very sad, he couldn't suppress the smile on his face. "Well, before my second brother and I returned to Daxing, our teacher assigned us a lot of homework. After my second brother came back, he met a new friend, Changsun Silang, and he played outside every day. His homework was..."
Li Xuanba spread his hands and shrugged: "Cousin, you know."
"Ah!" Li Shimin held his head and shook it hard, "It's over, it's over, I'm done!"
Yang Zhao looked at Li Shimin, who was in a state of despair, and then at Li Xuanba, who was smiling gloatingly, and couldn't help but said, "Okay, I understand. Erlang, cough, I'm sorry."
Duke Gao and Duke Yuwen were very strict, and Li Erlang was in a miserable situation.