The younger brother of the First Emperor

Chapter 214: The joys and sorrows of the world

On the streets of Linzi, Ying Chengjiao rode a white horse and slowly followed in a carriage drawn by four horses. This was considered as traveling with the princess.

It is considered disrespectful for unmarried men and women to ride in the same carriage.

Around the horse and carriage were two hundred beautiful palace maids who were less than twenty years old.

This beautiful moving landscape is unique even in the bustling and magnificent city of Linzi.

Those who are selected to be maids in the palace can all be called beauties in terms of appearance.

"Cheng Jiao." Zhao Xuanlang shouted loudly, kicked the horse's belly lightly and came to Ying Cheng Jiao, who was also riding a white horse.

The sturdy boy who looked like a teenager looked at the beauties surrounding him, his fat face full of reluctance:

"It's so boring to parade around like this. I'll go and have fun by myself."

Ying Chengjiao waved his hand, called out, and came closer, saying with a smile:
"Ever since Wei Mouzi left, you have been unhappy.

"At the beginning of the new year, we should forget all the troubles of the past and go out and have fun with Gongming."

He shook his head and was about to explain.

Zhao Xuanlang grabbed Hu and brought him in front of him, and the two of them rode on the same horse:
"Go!"

Before he finished his words, the horse's hooves began to accelerate.

"Master, Master, Master..."

The figures of the two men and the horse have disappeared, but the sound of huhu can still be clearly heard.

Ying Chengjiao gently pulled the reins to stop his mount, which was about to run after its kind, and laughed when he heard the sound:

"You're really good at shouting."

The Seven Princesses' convoy continued to move slowly.

Ying Chengjiao was sitting on a tall white horse. When the Seventh Princess Tian Yan chatted with him, he would accompany her in conversation. When they were not chatting, he would look around.

On the streets, many women have decorations on their heads.

Either it is a precious crystal jade, or it is a popular flower and wooden hairpin.

Noble men wear fine clothes and wear swords at their waists.

The hair can be let down to show elegance, or tied up and crowned to show modesty and gentlemanliness.

The lowly... Ying Chengjiao didn't see any lowly people along the way. It seemed that everyone in Linzi City was rich.

Colorful lanterns are hung high on the tall buildings on both sides.

There is a beautiful woman leaning against the window with a faint smile and lowered eyes.

At the end of the twelfth lunar month, holding a feather fan against my chest, with the feathers sinking into my arms, I feel that people are not as good as the fan.

There was a talented man standing on the eaves in a sky-blue silk robe.

Holding the flute in hand and placing it to his lips, the melodious sound flies into the sky, calling the birds to fly in the air above and attracting cheers from the guests below.

The sounds of hawking, blacksmithing, laughter, groaning, pipa, guzheng... countless sounds are mixed together but not noisy.

It's like a pot of stew without a recipe, but it naturally exudes a joyful aroma as soon as the lid is opened.

"Does Yingzi feel a little bored?" Seventh Princess Tian Yan looked at the blurry figure of Ying Chengjiao through the curtains of the carriage and asked softly.

At this time, Ying Chengjiao was looking at the beauties in the brothel on the side waving their sleeves with pure admiration, and listening to the sweet voices of these beauties who were working hard for a living.

Several beauties noticed the princess's convoy, saw Ying Chengjiao riding his horse beside the carriage, and met Ying Chengjiao's gaze.

Not only did they not avoid it, but their blue, red or green long sleeves shook even more.

The most daring among them first held Ba Liang of sin with both hands to attract Ying Chengjiao's attention. Then he bit his lower lip with his upper teeth, gave a seductive look, and jumped vigorously, shaking like a shaking mountain.

Ying Chengjiao criticized these good girls with a stern look without saying a word.

The young man was so eager to save people that he forgot everything else and didn't hear the words of the princess beside him at all.

The Seventh Princess, who had not received a response for a long time, gritted her teeth and winked at her personal maid.

Xuanyi covered her mouth and laughed.

Our princess is naturally spoiled, but she dares not show any of it in public, and her every move is like that of a noble lady.

Whenever something out of the ordinary happens, I have to do it myself.

After Tian Yan's warning by scratching her, Xuan Yi approached the car window with a smile on her face, gently lifted a corner, looked out at Yingzi, and saw that Yingzi's eyes were high on the right.

What are you looking at? He is so absorbed in it that he doesn't even answer the princess's question... Xuanyi thought, and pulled the curtain wider, looking in the direction where Yingzi was looking.

Xuanyi's smile froze.

The old maid angrily lowered the curtain, her face flushed with shame, and she gnashed her teeth and said:

"You are immoral! You have no sense of shame! What kind of gentleman are you? Pah, pah, pah!"

After cursing a few times under her breath, Xuanyi told the princess everything she had seen.

The seventh princess, Tian Yan, looked at the shy face of her personal maid and said half-believingly:
"This... maybe you saw it wrong? Yingzi doesn't look like a person who is impatient... Besides, he is only eleven years old, which is only ten years old according to the Qin calendar..."

Xuanyi swore that she was not mistaken, and asked the princess:

"How about ten years old? Among the princes of Qi, is there any one who is still a boy at ten years old?"

Tian Yan was choked and couldn't speak.

She touched the corner of the car curtain with her fingers and wanted to lift it up to take a look for herself.

After hesitating for a long time, he still didn't dare.

This is disrespectful.

While the Seventh Princess was struggling with her conscience, a gentle voice came in from outside the window:

"Princess, you haven't spoken for a long time. Are you tired? How about returning to the palace?"

Tian Yan's face tightened and she was unhappy.

In order to go shopping with Yingzi, she even turned down the family banquet, and she had to go back to the palace after just a short walk!
In a rage, the Seventh Princess Tian Yan gritted her teeth, looked at her personal maid viciously, and said in a hateful voice:

"You're talking about him!"

She couldn't bring herself to say it, it was disrespectful.

The old maid received the nod, leaned against the car window with an unhappy look on her face, and shouted a little loudly:
"The princess just spoke, but Yingzi didn't hear it!"

"Oh?" The man's voice outside the window was still tepid: "It should be that I was too engrossed in enjoying the scenery just now, and my ears fell asleep for a while. This is my fault."

“Sleepy…” The old maid came close to the Seventh Princess, rolled her eyes, and muttered softly: “He is quite good at sweet talk.”

Tian Yan thought Yingzi's words were very pleasant to the ear and the performance of the personal maid was even more interesting. She was about to chuckle.

Before he could even raise his lips, he heard another voice coming from the window:
“I thought the New Year in Xianyang was grand and there was nothing like it in the world.

"I didn't expect that the New Year's celebration in Linzi would be much more grand than that in Xianyang. I was so absorbed in the grand scene that I didn't hear the princess' voice."

Xuanyi's eyes curved:
"He said that our Qi New Year is more beautiful than the Qin New Year."

Tian Yan glared at the maid:
“I understand!
"I'm grown up now, don't always coax me like you did when you were a kid!"

The Seventh Princess pointed her finger at Xuanyi's brow and taught her:
"Have you forgotten all about the words that Ying Zi praised Qi?"

Turning her head toward the window, the girl gritted her teeth:
"Ask him! What was he looking at just now!"

"Wei!" Xuanyi looked like she shared a common hatred for the enemy and lay down on the bed again: "Yingzi was so engrossed in what he was looking at just now."

"Look at Linzi's magnificent scenery." The male voice responded.

This time, without Tian Yan's reminder, Xuan Yi knew what to ask. The old palace maid asked questions thoroughly:
"What exactly are you looking at?"

"Look at the beauties in the brothel." The man's voice was as indifferent as ever.

The two girls were no longer indifferent.

Tian Yan and Xuan Yi, the master and servant, stared at each other with wide eyes, having the same thought in their minds - he dared to admit it!

"Yingzi's behavior is ungentlemanly!" Xuanyi felt sorry for the princess. She lifted half of the curtain, revealing an unhappy face and shouted.

Ying Chengjiao looked at the charming old palace maid and was immediately stunned:
"A gentleman...can't he look at a beautiful woman?"

"Of course not..." Xuanyi stopped talking halfway through her words.

She suddenly thought that no matter which doctrine or country recognized a gentleman, there was no saying that he could not look at beautiful women.

As the saying goes, don't listen to what is inappropriate and don't look at what is inappropriate.

It means don't look at things that are not in accordance with etiquette, and don't listen to sounds that are not in accordance with etiquette.

The beauties in brothels were recruiting patrons, which was completely in line with the etiquette and laws of the State of Qi.

Not only is it okay to watch and listen, it’s simply too good to be true!

The old maid stood in front of the car window in a daze for a while, then realized she was in the wrong and lowered her head: "Of course you can watch.

"My daughter's words were rude, please punish her, Yingzi."

Ying Chengjiao waved his hand and generously forgave Xuanyi. After all, this palace maid was so pretty.

Xuanyi thanked her and lowered the car curtain.

Soon, the voice of the seventh princess Tian Yan was heard:

“Yingzi is obsessed with those bitches.

"But none of these two hundred palace maids are pleasing to Ying Zi's eyes?

"Are those cheap girls more beautiful than the maids of Qi?"

Ying Chengjiao looked at the beauty in another brothel from afar, and while sighing that the entertainment industry in Qi State was really developed, he responded:
“Of course the maids are more beautiful.

"But the palace maids all belong to the King of Qi. How could I be so rude as to look down upon them?"

[The beauty is definitely the palace maid beauty, but the beauty upstairs is wearing less...]
"Yingzi is so honest and pays so much attention to etiquette. He is indeed worthy of being a world-famous gentleman." Tian Yan praised through the car curtain.

Ying Chengjiao accepted it calmly.

He has not studied the theory of yin and yang, and does not understand the weird talk.

Ying Chengjiao had dinner before leaving the Jixia Academy.

This time he accompanied the Seventh Princess shopping, and when they were about to set out, the sun was already setting.

After the convoy had been traveling for more than half an hour, the sun had completely set and night had fallen.

Darkness descended from the sky and was about to swallow up the earth.

The color just came over and gently touched Linzi.

Linzi was extremely sensitive and had an immediate and huge reaction.

Lamps of various shapes, mostly animal-shaped, lit up, as if they had been discussed beforehand.

Dragons soar in the sky, fish dive into the deep sea, tigers roar in the mountains, deer roam across the plains...

Looking up, you will see thousands of bright lights shining brightly.

The yellow light reflected on the face.

Although it lacks the vitality of the sun, it has the same warmth.

Looking down from the sky, it was all dark.

There was only one fire burning - that was Linzi.

Light can retain brightness but cannot drive away darkness.

The repressed emotions in the hearts of Linzi people were aroused by the darkness and were gradually released under the cover of night.

The sound of the pipa from the roadside building became increasingly intense.

The man playing the pipa took off his robe, held the pipa, and plucked, wiped, hooked and picked the pipa with his five fingers in a circle.

The clanging sound is like golden swords and iron horses, marching across mountains and rivers!

"Congratulations to our great Qi! The New Year is here!"

In the wine shop, someone held up a jade pot and echoed the romantic man loudly:
“The sound is intense but not chaotic, and the words are steady but not out of tune.

“This sound, this person, this feeling, this scene, should all be made clear!”

The beauties on the street looked around with charming eyes and took off the sachets from their waists and held them in their hands.

There was a faint fragrance floating in the air, I didn't know if it was the scent of the sachet or the scent of a woman.

Some beauties would be left with empty hands after walking a few steps, while some beauties would put the jewelry back around their waists when they got home.

Beat drums and gongs, play various instruments and sing.

Celebrate the New Year, drive away evil spirits, and worship the eight gods...

Activities followed one after another, and the pot of stew that had been brewing during the day was now boiling, with firewood being added fiercely from underneath.

The cauldron is boiling with raging fire; Linzi is a city that never sleeps.

The seventh princess, Tian Yan, finally relaxed a little at this moment.

The girl lifted a corner of the carriage curtain and asked the boy on horseback to drive his horse closer. She pointed at the wooden decorations hanging in front of every house on the street and asked with a smile:

"Do you know what that wooden ornament is?"

In the darkness of the night, Ying Chengjiao was unable to see the small object that far away due to the obstruction of the two hundred palace maids, so he shook his head:
"Cheng Jiao is a man of limited talent and learning, so he doesn't know."

Tian Yan was a little surprised. Yingzi didn’t even know about the door god?

Then there was joy.

In the past, it was Ying Chengjiao who taught her, and today it was finally her turn to teach Ying Chengjiao a lesson.

The girl smiled and said crisply:

"This is peach wood, carved with two door gods - Shen (shen, a body), Tu (shu, a first tone), and Yu Lei (lv, a fourth tone).

"It is recorded in the Classic of Mountains and Seas that above the East China Sea there is a sacred mountain called Dushuo.

"On Mount Dushuo, there is a huge peach tree that reaches up to the sky.

"The branches of this peach tree extend outward, blocking out the sun.

“On the northeasternmost branch, there is a ghost gate, which is the gateway for ghosts to enter and exit.

"The two gate gods guarding the Ghost Gate are Shentu and Yulei.

“Every New Year, every household would carve two door gods out of peach wood and hang them in front of the door.

"If a ghost comes, once they see the two gate gods, they won't dare to enter and will be scared away immediately."

Ying Chengjiao nodded, clasped his fists, and said sincerely:
"Teachable."

He had heard of Shentu and Yulei, the two door gods, but this was the first time he heard such a detailed explanation.

These two items were not hung during the Qin New Year.

The boy turned his neck and looked around.

really.

Whether it is a shop or a house, there are two peach wood door gods hanging in front of every household.

"If Yingzi feels bored, just go and visit by yourself." Tian Yan sighed reluctantly, "If I were traveling alone, I wouldn't have to go through so much trouble and could enjoy the fun of visiting the garden. But if you want to travel with Yingzi, you have to abide by these etiquettes..."

Ying Chengjiao glanced at the lost girl.

The girl's fair and pretty face and her unconsciously pouting red lips made the boy feel pity for her.

The young man shifted his gaze, cutting off the lustful thoughts.

As long as they are nobles, they will stand against him sooner or later, not to mention the royal family of Qi, a great noble family.

The boy admitted that he was lustful.

But there are so many beautiful women, why do you have to provoke those who are in trouble?
Being servile and flattering will not affect his popularity in the Jixia Academy, so he just needs to be prepared.

The boy thought it over and refocused his eyes.

I saw a house with nothing hanging in front of the door, which looked out of place compared to the surrounding doors.

Ying Chengjiao was a little surprised, and pointed at the door and asked the Seventh Princess:
"Princess, why doesn't that family have a door god?"

Tian Yan looked carefully, and her beautiful face trembled slightly.

She did not answer, but a trace of sadness appeared on her face. She ordered the convoy to change its route and drive to the front of that house.

Get off the carriage, walk to the house without a door god, and knock gently on the door.

A haggard woman opened the door to greet them.

When he saw Tian Yan wearing luxurious clothes and saw the grand scene outside, he hurriedly bowed his head and knelt down.

She didn't know who was coming, she only knew it was a noble person.

The girl helped the woman up and tried to calm her down.

"Why don't you have a door god in your house?" the girl asked, her voice trembling.

"If my man dies in the army, the door god will scare him so much that he won't dare go home." The woman's face showed only the fear of seeing the noble man, but not the sadness of losing her husband.

She seemed used to it.

There is no understanding of human sorrows and joys.

(End of this chapter)