Tang Dynasty Swordsman.

Who would have thought that Chang'an City could recover to such a state in just half a year—whether it could compare to the peak of the Kaiyuan and Tianbao eras, he didn't know. As soon as he arrived at the city gate, he was forced to stand in a long queue. Not only were there many commoners and scholars in front of him, but there were also several caravans with hundreds of cattle, horses, and even camels.

It is estimated that the rebellion made it difficult for Western merchants to enter the two capitals. Now that the two capitals have been restored, those who were forced to stay in the border areas have come in droves. Li Ji saw many foreigners with high noses and deep eyes and strange clothes in the caravan, and even some black people!

Of course, he's not an African man; he's probably from South India.

After finally passing through the official gate and entering the city, they saw that many of the houses that had been burned down had been completely renovated and stood side by side with walls, stretching as far as the eye could see. The streets were teeming with people, shoulder to shoulder, and nearly 40% of them were dressed in fine silks and satins. There were also many horse-drawn carriages and oxcarts, and even though the roads were wide, traffic jams were frequent, forcing servants to step forward and exchange identities to decide who should give way first.

Although it was a neighborhood system, the streets were lined only with neighborhood walls, without shops—theoretically, there were shops within the neighborhoods, but their doors generally faced inwards—but colorful lanterns often hung from the walls, adding a touch of brightness to the entire street. Li Ji could imagine that when night fell and the neighborhood gates were just closing, but before everyone had settled down, the streets would be ablaze with lights, like a sky full of stars, almost comparable to the light pollution of a modern city center…

So ancient cities could be this prosperous? Apart from the different clothing and the fact that oxcarts and horse-drawn carriages instead of cars and motorcycles were used on the roads, they were almost no different from those of later times!

Li Ji couldn't help but feel a surge of affection for the Tang Dynasty, even a sense of pride in having transmigrated to be a Tang person... A thought suddenly flashed through his mind: How could such a magnificent city, such a prosperous place, be destroyed by war again? Could I contribute my efforts to at least maintain this scene?

He certainly knew, and had witnessed firsthand along his journey, that the villages and remote towns of that era were extremely poor and backward, incomparable to those of later generations. It was likely that the very essence of the Tang Dynasty was concentrated in Chang'an, the western capital—and perhaps also Luoyang, the eastern capital—where even the lowest-ranking citizens probably lived better lives than farmers in the countryside. This prosperity of one or two giant cities was a result of the ruling class's exploitation of the entire nation.

Even so, with such a magnificent sight before them, who could bear to destroy it? Even if distributing the wealth of Chang'an could feed more people in the countryside, they themselves might not truly be willing, emotionally speaking...

Although he had traveled to many bustling cities in his later years and had seen a lot, Li Ji still couldn't help but look around and admire the scenery after entering Chang'an. Perhaps in the eyes of the people of Chang'an, this was just another country bumpkin... He walked all the way from Anhua Gate to Tongyi Ward before he could calm his mind. Seeing the majestic high walls of the imperial city in the distance, he began to wonder: Where should I go?

He currently holds no official position or power, merely a nominal seventh-rank official. Logically, despite the vastness of Chang'an, there's only one place he could go: the Ministry of War's Military Department—to register and wait in line for a substantive appointment. Of course, that's absurd. Li Heng has already granted countless nominal civil and military positions in Lingwu, Pengyuan, and Fengxiang; the queue would probably stretch for seven or eight miles. Who knows when it will be his turn!

He could only turn to Li Chu and ask him to pull some strings. As for his ambition of transferring to a clerical position, Li Chu would have to point him in the right direction. The problem was, where was Li Chu? Was he in the palace or at the Sixteenth Prince's residence? With Li Bi gone, he could no longer easily enter and leave the palace. As for the Sixteenth Prince's residence, in the vast city of Chang'an, he only knew it was in the northeast, but its exact location was unclear…

Especially after Li Bi's reminder, Li Ji realized that he had many enemies both inside and outside the court. If his whereabouts were exposed and he was still unable to contact Li Chu, he might be framed or even directly hunted down—even if Li Fuguo didn't have the guts, Yu Chaoen probably did.

Therefore, it is necessary to plan carefully before taking action in order to succeed.

Looking up, he saw that it was past noon and felt a pang of hunger in his stomach. He had some dry rations in his pack, but now that he was in Chang'an, there was no reason for him to eat dry bread and pickled vegetables again.

Shops in Chang'an, including taverns and restaurants, are mainly concentrated in the East and West Markets. Although each neighborhood has one or two, newcomers might not be able to find them. Li Ji had passed through Chang'an briefly the last time and was unfamiliar with the roads and streets. He had only heard of two neighborhoods from Lao Jing and others:

First is Chongrenfang, which is said to have many inns. If you can't find a way around today, you'll be forced to stay there for the night. Second is Pingkangfang... This place must be very expensive for drinking and carousing, so it's not worth going there just to fill your stomach.

Then I can only try my luck at the East and West Markets. Although I am currently in the western half of the city, which is theoretically closer to the West Market, I need to go to the Sixteen Princes' Residence after dinner. It seems that the Sixteen Princes' Residence is in the northeast of Chang'an City, so I might as well head to the East Market first.

So he found a man on the street who looked like a local and asked for directions and directions. The man initially looked slightly disdainful, but when he heard that Li Ji was speaking proper Mandarin—perhaps with a slight Dongdu accent—he immediately became enthusiastic. He then pointed out, "Guest, you can go east from the north of Tongyi Ward. After passing Tonghua Ward, you will reach Zhuque Avenue. Continue east, passing through Kaihua, Chongyi, and Xuanyang Wards, and you will arrive."

According to the introduction, it seemed to be not far away, but in reality, Li Ji mounted his horse and walked for a full hour before he saw the East Market wall and more than three to five times more flags than elsewhere—his stomach was almost empty.

Therefore, upon entering the shop, he didn't bother with any selection; seeing wine flags fluttering, he immediately spurred his horse onward. A shopkeeper inside saw this and quickly came out to greet him.

Li Ji wasn't wearing a robe, just white, but even if he wore a turban and a green robe, he probably wouldn't be any more respected. Along the way, he'd seen countless people in blue and green robes walking with their hands behind their backs, and even several in red robes—but the officials in red robes were either on horseback or in carriages, none of them on foot. The innkeeper's beaming smile as he greeted him at the door was entirely due to his years of experience; he could tell from afar that this customer's mount wasn't a drudge.

Those who can ride such fine steeds are either officials or wealthy.

So he came out, grabbed the reins, and with a fawning smile, introduced his shop, his words flowing endlessly. Anyway, bragging is free, and from his words, it was as if this tavern was the most famous in Chang'an, if not the best in the whole city, then the best in the East Market.

Li Ji naturally didn't believe it—if it really was one of the top taverns in Chang'an, he wouldn't dare go in; who knew how high the prices would be?—but after hearing the waiter rattle off a long list of wine names, such as Fuping Shidongchun, Jiannan Shaochun, Xishiqiang, and Xinfengjiu… he couldn't help but drool a little. Especially since the waiter also said that his backyard was piled high with the finest hay, which he could feed the horses for free.

Li Ji dismounted, picked up his bundle, and handed the reins to the shopkeeper. The shopkeeper quickly called out to the shop, then led the horse to the back. Li Ji stepped into the shop, and another shopkeeper rushed over, bowing deeply, and invited him upstairs.

Looking around, Li Ji found the shop's furnishings to be fairly tidy, though not particularly luxurious, which put him at ease. Since leaving Luoyang, he had mostly stayed in inns and eaten free government meals. Although the accommodations weren't high-class, fine wine and delicacies were hard to come by in those rural areas, so he hadn't spent much money. He had originally intended to leave some money for Li Bi, but Li Bi flatly refused, saying, "I'm in the mountains; I have nowhere to spend money. What use is it for me? But you're returning to Chang'an; your future is uncertain, so it's good for you to have some money to fall back on."

So I had 2,500 left out of the 3,000 coins. I had never heard that rice was expensive in Chang'an, so I didn't care at first. But when I entered the city and saw the magnificent scenery... How could prices not be high in such a beautiful and developed place (at this point in time)? If I really went into a high-class tavern, I might only dare to order a small dish and a big bowl of white rice to fill my stomach. That would be so embarrassing.

The tavern had two floors, and the waiter gestured for Li Ji to go upstairs—firstly, because the upstairs had better lighting and a wider view, and naturally, the prices were higher; secondly… it was past lunchtime, and there weren't many customers. Just as Li Ji was about to take a step, he suddenly heard a cold snort behind him: "This is all the evil done by that Cui Qi!"

Chapter 40, Not Really the Same

Li Ji had just entered the tavern and hadn't even gone upstairs when he suddenly heard someone behind him cursing, "This is all the evil done by that Cui Qi!" He was startled.

He thought to himself, "That little girl is so mysterious. What a coincidence! Could she have run into someone she knows? And judging from her words, she seems to harbor a lot of resentment and hatred towards Cui Qi. Who could it be? Could it be someone from Cui Guangyuan's household?"

He immediately turned his head and saw two civil officials in green robes sitting in a cubicle near the door, but the bamboo curtain was not drawn. Upon closer inspection, he naturally did not recognize them. The two civil officials also noticed Li Ji, and one of them hurriedly waved his hand: "You must be careful with your words." He then stood up and lowered the curtain.

Li Ji immediately stepped forward—of course, he wouldn't just barge in to ask, but simply entered the adjacent cubicle. The waiter was still calling out from behind, "Sir, the upstairs is brighter and more airy..." Li Ji just waved his hand, then took off his boots and sat down.

He deliberately lingered, first taking off his left boot and gently placing it down, then his right boot and gently placing it down as well. He turned and sat down at the table, then gently placed the bundle he was carrying beside him, even pretending to tidy it up. In reality, he was eavesdropping on the conversation next door, and also delaying the waiter from coming over to ask what they wanted to order.

His hearing was excellent, and although the two civil officials lowered their voices slightly, he could hear most of what they were saying. He then realized that they were not talking about the little girl Cui Qi, but another person with the same name.

The waiter approached and asked, but Li Ji was too lazy to order carefully. He simply asked, "How much does a meal cost here?" The waiter smiled and said, "It depends on what you want to eat, sir. It can be fifty or a hundred, or even a banquet costing two or three hundred, my family can provide it."

Li Ji thought to himself, "This is so expensive... but I can still barely afford it." He then said, "Bring two meat dishes, one vegetable dish, as well as wine and rice, within a hundred coins. You decide."

The shop assistant left as instructed, and Li Ji listened intently once more.

It was only later that they learned that the person the two were referring to was not "Cui Qi" but "Cui Qi," who came from the prestigious Boling Cui clan—indeed, he was a relative of Cui Guangyuan—and was currently serving as the Censor-in-Chief and Vice Minister of the Ministry of Revenue.

Several years ago, when the rebel army captured Chang'an, Cui Qi was serving as the magistrate of Fengxian County and was forced to open the city gates and join the rebels. When Chang'an fell into chaos, Cui Guangyuan fled west. Upon hearing this, Cui Qi knew that the rebels' power would not last long, so he burned the Yan state's official documents, recruited righteous troops, and rose up in rebellion. At that time, Xue Jingxian had not yet marched east to recapture Fengxian, so the rebel army attacked, and Cui Qi suffered a major defeat. He had no choice but to abandon the city and flee to Lingwu, where he was subsequently given an important position by Li Heng.

After the recapture of Chang'an, Li Heng appointed Cui Qi as the Master of Ceremonies, in charge of arranging the Emperor's return to the capital. Cui Qi then took it upon himself to bring all the officials who had fallen into the hands of the rebels to the Hanyuan Hall, where they were made to kowtow and plead guilty, bareheaded and barefoot. After the recapture of Dongjing, hundreds of people, including Chen Xilie, were brought to Chang'an, and he carried out the same plan again.

Furthermore, Cui Qi submitted a memorial requesting that all officials who had once joined the rebels, regardless of rank, be executed.

Therefore, the two civil officials cursed, one of them saying: "When the former marshal entered Luoyang, he clearly ordered that everyone be pardoned. Chen Gong did not flee with An Qingxu, which in itself shows his attitude. He was forced by circumstances and did not sincerely follow the rebels. At most, he will not be employed again. How can he be sentenced to death?"

Another person said, "Lord Liang has already submitted a memorial refuting Cui Qi's words and will divide those who surrendered to the rebels into six categories for punishment. Since that's the case, why do you still curse every day and refuse to stop?"

Li Xian, the Grand Secretary and Duke of Liang, opposed Cui Qi's opinion, arguing: "When the rebels captured the two capitals, the Emperor made a southern tour, and people fled to save their lives. These people are all Your Majesty's relatives or descendants of meritorious officials. To execute them all for treason would be contrary to the principle of benevolence and leniency. Moreover, Hebei is not yet pacified, and many officials have fallen into the hands of the rebels. If we are lenient, we can open a path for them to reform; if we execute them all, we will only strengthen their loyalty to the rebels..." In the end, he persuaded Li Heng to deal with them separately. Li Qijun, the Palace Attendant Censor, was appointed as the judge to handle the case. According to the law, the eighteen people with the most serious crimes were executed, the next most serious were punished with one hundred strokes of the cane, and those with the next few crimes were either exiled or demoted.

"However, Lord Chen could not escape death in the end, and Lord Daxi was beheaded on a lone willow. Although the order was determined by Judge Li, wasn't the root cause the evil deeds of Cui Qi?!"

When the first dish was served, Li Ji finally understood the gist of the matter—though he couldn't immediately place the specific names. He couldn't help but chuckle to himself: "Different stances, different motives..."

Cui Qi's thoughts are easy to understand. He had once surrendered to the rebels, a stain that could probably never be erased. Therefore, he had to severely punish those among his peers who had not followed him or Cui Guangyuan in actively surrendering, preferably killing them all, in order to demonstrate his loyalty to the king and to use the blood of those people to cover up the filth on his body.

Li Xian said, "Many officials have fallen into the hands of the traitors. If we are lenient towards them, we can open up a path for them to start anew; if we execute them all, we will only strengthen their loyalty to the traitors." This statement makes a lot of sense. However, when it comes to other officials who oppose Cui Qi's proposals, such as the two low-ranking civil officials next door, their words may not be entirely out of public interest.

Chen (Chen Xilie) was a prime minister who was eventually given death by imperial decree; Da Xi (Da Xixun) was the Minister of Personnel and also presided over the imperial examinations—it seems that the two guys next door were his students—and was eventually beheaded. The officials in office felt a sense of shared sorrow over this.

Because no one could guarantee that if they fell into the hands of the rebels, they wouldn't be cowardly enough to surrender to the enemy in order to survive. In the end, most people couldn't become Zhang Xun, let alone Yan Gaoqing. It was supposed to be a temporary measure, but they would still be killed upon their return. Even if they reached a high position of the third rank, they still couldn't escape death... Cui Qi, you are truly ruthless! You are trying to destroy the foundation of us scholars!

"How can such a cruel person be allowed to remain as Censor-in-Chief? We must jointly impeach him and remove him from office!"

Since it had nothing to do with Cui Qi, Li Ji listened for a while and roughly understood the inside story, so he stopped paying attention to it. Moreover, the food and drinks had been served one after another. They looked quite ordinary, consisting of a plate of steamed pork dipped in bean sauce, half a roasted chicken with golden skin, a dish of tender gourd with two slices of dried bamboo shoots, and indeed two meat dishes and one vegetable dish.

Li Ji couldn't help but think to himself, "Prices are really high in the capital. Elsewhere, these dishes would cost at most fifty coins, but here they cost me a hundred..."

The waiter didn't serve the main course first, but brought over a bottle of wine and said to Li Ji with a fawning smile, "This is our shop's treasured Fuping Shidongchun wine. If you want to taste it, you'll have to pay extra."

What's the price?

"Twenty coins a bowl."

Li Ji immediately glared at him: "How can you sell it by the bowl?!" Although Shi Dongchun was a fine wine, not everyone could afford to drink it, but he had heard that a bottle of this size would cost at most fifty coins. Now you dare to sell it by the bowl and even take the opportunity to raise the price. Isn't that a bit too greedy?

The shopkeeper hurriedly explained, "Xi'an has only recently been restored, and good wine is not easy to come by. It is only because our shop still has some in its cellar that you can get some. If you go to other shops, they will only have some newly brewed village wine. Even if you have a hundred or a thousand coins, you probably won't be able to get a sip of fine wine."

Li Ji had no choice, and his mouth was indeed dry, so he waved his hand and said, "Pour me a bowl first so I can try it."

The waiter removed the cork, and a strong aroma of wine immediately wafted out. A gasp of surprise came from the next room. Li Ji picked up the wine bowl, swirled it slightly to check the color, and then brought it to his lips, taking a small sip.

The sound of the curtain being lifted was heard, followed by the reproachful voice of a green-robed civil official from the next shop: "Since the shop has such fine wine, why didn't you bring some for us...?"

Before he could finish speaking, Li Ji slammed the wine bowl down on the table with a loud bang and shouted angrily, "This wine isn't genuine!"

The shopkeeper immediately became agitated: "Sir, don't talk nonsense. How could our wine not be genuine?"

Li Ji glanced at him sideways and asked coldly, "Do you think I've never eaten real Shi Dong Chun?"

He remembered his first time drinking wine after transmigrating to this world. It was at the temporary residence in Ding'an, where Li Heng, along with three princes including Li Jiao and Li Huang, came to entertain Li Bi with roasted pears. The wine served then was this so-called "Fuping Shidongchun," which tasted somewhat similar to what he had just drunk, but its quality in terms of sweetness, sourness, and body was vastly different. Surely the royal family wouldn't drink fake wine? Then the wine here must be fake.

Moreover, upon hearing the neighbor's question, he immediately understood what was going on. It was precisely because the wine was not genuine that he dared not offer it to the officials in office. Only by dressing as a commoner, perhaps appearing travel-worn and having come from afar, could the shopkeeper bring out the fake wine in an attempt to deceive them.

It's fine if your wine is bad, but it's going too far to cheat people with fake wine; it's fine if you cheat everyone, but you deliberately bypassed those two civil officials and came to cheat me alone—that's just unacceptable!

The shopkeeper still insisted, "Sir, you are joking. This is genuine Fuping Shidongchun liquor, absolutely no fakes. Could it be that the liquor you ate before was counterfeit?"

Li Ji became enraged and immediately splashed most of the remaining wine from the bowl onto the waiter's face: "Call your master here to talk!"

The waiter hurriedly retreated, but ultimately couldn't avoid it. He wiped his face, raised his eyebrows, and glared angrily: "Sir, are you here just to cause trouble? If you don't like my Shi Dong Chun, you don't have to eat it. No one is forcing you. However, whether you ate that bowl or spilled it, it will be on your tab!"

Li Ji slammed his hand on the table: "You cheat people with fake wine and still dare to ask for money? I won't give you a single penny, what can you do about it? Quickly call your master out to talk!"

The shopkeeper snorted and first apologized to the official who had asked the question: "Please sit down, sir. We will not disturb your enjoyment." Then he called out loudly: "Come on, seize this troublemaker and hand him over to the thugs!"

A man who had been dozing in the corner jumped up at the sound. Li Ji glanced at him and saw that the man was quite tall, with broad shoulders and a thick back. His sleeves were rolled up high, revealing his muscular arms—he looked like a guard or thug in the shop. Then the man rushed forward and put his hand on Li Ji's shoulder.

Li Jihun didn't care. He immediately slumped his shoulder slightly to dissipate the force, then reached out with his right hand and, with lightning speed, grabbed the man's neck. With a flick of his wrist, he slammed the man's head, as big as a bamboo basket, onto the table. With a "crack," one of the table legs split open, followed by the man's pig-like screams.

The shopkeeper panicked and tried to flee with the wine bottle in his hand, shouting, "Go find the scoundrels! Go find the scoundrels!" Li Ji didn't want to deal with the scoundrels either—after all, even a powerful dragon can't suppress a local snake, especially since he was hungry—but he was consumed by anger and refused to let the matter rest. He shouted back, "Go! Go! Watch me kill this scoundrel!"

With a "whoosh," the curtain was pulled back shut, and the green-robed civil official who had come out to ask questions retreated back into his own room.

In the midst of the chaos, a clattering sound was heard on the stairs, and then a person looking down asked, "What's all this commotion about?"

The shop assistant looked up, quickly bowed deeply, and said, "Sixth Master, a thief is causing trouble in our shop, and has unintentionally disturbed you..."

Li Ji looked in the direction the man was speaking and saw a scholar in white robes, probably in his twenties, with sharp eyebrows, bright eyes, and a short beard; he was quite handsome. He asked, "Are you the owner of this shop? How dare you cheat your customers with fake wine?!"

Liu Lang frowned: "Is that so?" He lifted his clothes, hurried down the stairs, and came to Li Ji. The shopkeeper repeatedly explained that this was indeed the shop's treasured Fuping Shi Dong Chun tea, how could it be fake? Liu Lang picked up the bowl from the table, turned it to the side and handed it to him: "Pour it over, I'll eat."

Helpless, the waiter poured out half a bowl of wine, which Liu Lang drank in one gulp. He then smacked his lips, savoring the taste, before smiling broadly at Li Ji: "You're mistaken, sir. Although this wine is a bit aged, it is indeed Shi Dong Chun..."

Just as Li Ji was about to retort, Liu Lang turned to the shopkeeper, his expression instantly changing, and shouted, "However, why was it diluted with 30% water?!"

The shop assistant looked flustered: "I...I knew it...I didn't know..."

In truth, he knew perfectly well what was going on; otherwise, he would have definitely tried to sell the wine to the two civil officials next door as well. When Li Ji said the wine was fake, not Shi Dong Chun, the shopkeeper still had some grounds to argue—who said that just because it's been stored for a long time and diluted with water, it's not genuine Shi Dong Chun? Even if the case went all the way to the capital prefecture, they wouldn't be entirely in the wrong. However, when Liu Lang tasted it in one gulp and even discerned how much water had been added, he dared not be stubborn anymore and could only claim ignorance.

Liu Lang threw the wine bowl at the waiter—though not with much force—and yelled, “You must have stolen some and then diluted it with water to deceive the customers—get out of here!”

He then turned around and bowed to Li Ji, saying, "I am not the owner of this place, but I have a past relationship with the owner. What happened just now was indeed the shop's fault, and I apologize to you on behalf of the shop owner. Please release this person first. I... I have some really good wine upstairs and would like to host a few drinks for you to express my apologies—please grant me permission."

As he spoke, he bowed deeply to the ground.

When Li Ji first arrived in Chang'an, he was alone and hungry. He didn't want to make a big fuss. Seeing that the other party was very polite and sincere, he went with the flow and let go of the big man.

The burly man covered his head and scurried away. The sixth man immediately bowed again and introduced himself, saying, "I am Li Ji of Zhao County. May I ask your name, sir…?"

Li Ji couldn't help but feel a little embarrassed: "I...I'm also called Li Ji...Zhao County..."

Chapter 41, Chaos Has Begun

Zhao County has now reverted to its old name, Zhao Prefecture, but this so-called old name dates back to the Northern Qi Dynasty at the earliest. During the Qin Dynasty, the area was divided between Julu County and Hengshan County. During the Han Dynasty, it was Changshan County (the name was changed from Hengshan to Changshan to avoid the taboo of Emperor Wen of Han, Liu Heng). From the Jian'an period at the end of the Han Dynasty until now, it was mostly called either Zhao State or Zhao County.

Therefore, the Li family of the East, one of the five surnames and seven prominent families, is usually referred to as the "Li family of Zhao County" or the "Li family of Pingji" when it comes to their ancestral home – because their ancestral home is Pingji County, the seat of Zhao County.

Of course, as a powerful and influential family that had existed for hundreds of years, it was bound to have a large population and many branches, which led to the migration of its descendants. Therefore, after entering the Tang Dynasty, the family was divided into six branches, including the Pingji branch of the Southern Ancestor, the Eastern Ancestor, and the Western Ancestor, as well as the Liaodong branch, the Jiangxia branch, and the Hanzhong branch.

In fact, only the Pingji branch is the true Zhao County Li clan. Although claiming the ancestor as Zhao general and Lord Wu'an Li Mu may not be reliable, they can at least trace their lineage back to Li Kai, the Minister of Agriculture and Imperial Censor of the Western Jin Dynasty. The other three branches gradually attached themselves to the clan during the chaos of the Northern and Southern Dynasties and were not officially recognized until the Tang Dynasty.

Therefore, Emperor Gaozong of Tang explicitly stated in his edict banning marriage that it concerned “the descendants of Li Kai and others from Zhao County, Jin”, which is why Li Bi said it had nothing to do with them… “We are from the Liaodong branch.”