In the middle of the night, Prince An's Mansion was still brightly lit, and between the large and small courtyards, there were soldiers patrolling back and forth from time to time.
Li Ye is holding the official seal of Chang'an Mansion Shao Yin, closing his eyes to sense.
After a long time, he opened his eyes, put down the official seal, and sighed in his heart: "The luck of the fourth-rank official position can't even allow me to be promoted to the fifth level of Qi training. From now on, the luck needed to break through the realm is really increasing. gone."
He got up and came to the window, looked at the night view of the palace with his hands behind his back, and said in his heart: "The luck of the fourth-rank official position is just to improve my cultivation level of the fourth level of Qi training to the later stage. It takes extra luck."
He was thinking about these things when Song Jiao came over suddenly and told her something about Tsing Yi Yamen.
Tsing Yi Yamen is the intelligence agency established by Song Jiao.
"Today we accepted two monks from the fourth level of qi training. They are the highest in this batch, but their salary is correspondingly the highest." Song Jiao stood beside Li Ye and said, "The money you allocated to me earlier, although still worth There are quite a few left, but judging from the current momentum, I’m afraid it won’t take long.”
Li Ye nodded and said: "The Wangfu's shops in Chang'an City, and the properties outside the city are about to collect money. I will transfer money to you after a while... How many people are there in the Tsingyi Yamen now? ?”
Song Jiao replied, "Thirty-six."
Li Ye was slightly puzzled: "That's all?"
Song Jiao gave Li Ye a white look: "I would rather be short than excessive. The person I want must first cultivate Qi, and secondly test the character and talent. I will never want people who are like chickens and dogs, or people who are just pretending to be numbers."
Li Ye nodded. Since they are all qi training monks, it is not surprising that the price is high. From Song Jiao's perspective, of course they will select capable people. This is from the fact that they can find the place where Lu Yan's golden house hides her. , we can see some clues.
Thinking of this, Li Ye couldn't help but look at Song Jiao, it's okay not to look at it, but when he looked at it seriously, he couldn't help but his heart moved.
Under the influence of the dragon energy, Li Ye saw the dark red aura floating above Song Jiao's head, which had a faint tendency to gather towards him—it was Song Jiao's original destiny.
The eight hundred armored soldiers in the royal residence were of low cultivation, and the airflow representing the fate of one's life was mostly white, while the airflow above Song Jiao's head turned out to be black and red, and it was too high to know how many levels.
Not only that, around the Xuanchi airflow, there are many small airflows faintly, forming a "sea of clouds" converging on the Xuanchi airflow, forming the tendency of stars and the moon to the Xuanchi airflow.
Li Ye's eyes froze, and based on his understanding of luck, it's not hard to imagine that those small air currents should be the luck of other monks in the Tsingyi Yamen she leads, and now they are gathering towards her.
It's just that Song Jiao doesn't have dragon energy in her body, so she can't really absorb these lucks and transform them into the power of her cultivation, and those lucks don't really integrate into her original destiny, but just surround her. This shows that the monks in Tsingyi Yamen Although he obeys her, he is not completely loyal to her.
Thinking of this, Li Ye's heart suddenly brightened.
Most of the warriors of the royal family have low cultivation bases, average talents, and mediocre luck. They are quite high, and if they can make them loyal to him, they will surely be able to further improve their cultivation.
However, it is too difficult for Jianghu monks and desperadoes to ask their true allegiance.
After Li Ye realized this, he was not discouraged. Instead, he turned his attention to Song Jiao's original destiny. Those dark and red auras tended to gather towards him, but they did not completely converge. It means that Song Jiao has become loyal to him, but not enough.
"Song Jiao originally belonged to my father, and she came back to Chang'an to avenge her father, but after getting along with her, it wouldn't be surprising if she became somewhat loyal to me." Li Ye thought so.
Ever since Li Ye met Song Jiao, first killed Li Guanshu, then assassinated Kang Chengxun, and now "surrendered" Lu Yan, Song Jiao must have admired Li Ye's mind and intelligence, and Li Ye is now a fourth-rank official. There are also Wang Duo and others as partisans, and their influence cannot be underestimated.
Isn't it because of these reasons that Song Jiao would be loyal to Li Xian back then
"She was able to serve her father back then, so she may also serve me now, it just depends on whether there is such an opportunity." Li Ye thought so.
Li Ye was quite envious of Song Jiao's natal luck. After all, it was the mysterious aura, and even Lu Yan's natal luck would not be better than her. You know, in terms of the status of a court official, Lu Yan is Wei Baoheng The second person in the dynasty.
"Her cultivation is probably higher than I expected. Whether it was dealing with Li Guanshu or Kang Chengxun before, she may have concealed her strength. In addition, she is a disciple of Bailu Cave, and she has a good heart and wrist. It makes sense to have a dark and red aura... but it is still scary enough." Li Ye thought silently, and he instinctively felt that if Song Jiao could be truly loyal to him, it would surely make Song Jiao truly loyal to him. His cultivation has raised a big step!
"Why are you staring at me all the time?" Song Jiao felt dizzy as soon as she asked this sentence, and she felt a little dizzy, and she couldn't stand upright. She took a few steps back while holding her forehead, and her face turned pale.
Li Ye quickly looked away, and reached out to help Song Jiao: "Are you okay?"
"You... you drugged yourself in this room? You... what are you going to do to me?" Song Jiao stood still in a daze, and immediately looked at Li with vigilance. Ye, with that guarded look, seemed to have regarded Li Ye as a hooligan.
Li Ye blushed secretly, but it was hard to explain, seeing Song Jiao escape from his "claw", he could only smile awkwardly: "You think too much."
Fortunately, Song Jiao quickly recovered her clarity. If not, she might have made a move. She gave Li Ye a strange look, and instinctively felt that she couldn't stay here any longer: "I'm fine, let's go... .. .”
When she went out, she muttered: "You little pervert, why do I feel dizzy when I look at me? Could it be that he has practiced charms such as fascination? But how can a man practice that thing!"
Li Ye watched Song Jiao walk away, opened his mouth, but couldn't speak.
Gathering his mind, Li Ye continued to think about the issue of cultivation. Song Jiao's situation gave him a lot of inspiration, and he gradually realized: "Everyone has his own destiny, and everyone's luck is different. The power of luck is greater, and it is more effective in improving my cultivation... It seems that it is time to recruit a group of real talents, which will not only improve my cultivation, but also improve my future career. Useful."
Right now, Li Ye and Lu Yan are seeking to overthrow Wei Baoheng. This is a big move. No one knows whether there will be dangers in the future, whether there will be fierce battles. extremely useful.
In addition, the world is about to be in chaos. Li Ye's plan is to go out of the town, look for opportunities to fight the world, and seek real dragon achievements. Of course, it won't work without real talents to assist. The so-called counselors are like rain, and good generals are like clouds. It also needs talents in various fields.
Fortunately, Li Ye was born again, and he has heard of those talents who shined under the command of the princes after the chaos in Huangchao.
Li Ye pondered: "Right now, there are quite a few talents near Chang'an, but most of them are in a good situation. I dare to ask them to join me. Even if I am a prince, it is unlikely, but a few of them are not in a good situation. , but you can try one or two... ”
Thinking of this, Li Ye ordered someone to call Song Jiao.
...
Queqi Bridge is located in Xuanpingfang, Dongcheng. It is a lively place for people to come and go. Even at dusk, it is still full of traffic. On the street at the west end of Queqi Bridge, there is a painting and calligraphy stall, and a young scholar is sitting behind the painting and calligraphy stall reading a book.
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It is said to be a calligraphy and painting booth, but a layer of gray cloth four feet long and three feet wide is spread on the ground, and a few calligraphy and paintings are placed on the cloth. It was clean and tidy. The sallow and emaciated scholar reads seriously and does not greet passers-by.
Such a calligraphy and painting stall, of course, don't hope that there will be many transactions, and although the calligraphy and paintings look good, they are not from the hands of everyone, and the really rich customers will not take a second look.
Seeing that the setting sun was about to set, the ordinary-looking scholar raised his head, looked at the still neat calligraphy and painting stalls, sighed sadly, and his stomach groaned twice at this time, which made the sorrowful look in his eyes even worse. thicker.
Rolling up the gray cloth, the scholar tucked it under his arm, left the Queqi Bridge, and bought two buns at a bun shop not far away with the remaining two cents. It was steamed stuffed buns, but the steamed stuffed buns in this era were actually not stuffed, but the young scholar obviously didn't care about it, it was hot anyway, he bent down and took a big bite, the cheeks of the princes in the crowd puffed up, quite satisfied.
"For telling you to steal, I'll beat you to death, you mother-born bastard, if you don't learn well at such a young age, why don't you die!"
As soon as the scholar took a bite of the steamed stuffed bun, he saw a middle-aged man chasing and beating a child not far away. The man was dressed luxuriously, while the child was dressed in rags. He was about six or seven years old, with half of his exposed arms as thin as bones. Chai, like a little beggar, tried to dodge with his head in his arms, but he fell to the ground and was kicked and punched by the middle-aged man.
The scholar's complexion changed, he didn't care about eating the buns, he rushed up to grab the middle-aged man, and persuaded him nicely, "She's just a child, she won't be able to take such a heavy hand from you!"
The middle-aged man's anger remained undiminished, he looked the scholar up and down, and let out a cold snort of disdain: "Where did the poor scholar come from, and dare to meddle in the uncle's business? Get out!"
The young scholar helped the child up, blocked her behind, and said to the middle-aged man: "You are rich in clothing and food, and she can't eat enough. Even if she stole some food from your house, you can just curse a few times. How can a gentleman be so rash?" Hurt someone?"
"I'll fuck you! You poor scholar from other places, don't pretend to be a good person like me. In my opinion, you are not a good person. Is this little beggar stealing things, is it your instigation? From a small place Bastard, that's how low!" The middle-aged man heard that the scholar's accent was not from Chang'an, and immediately felt superior, straightened his waist, looked even more domineering, rolled up his sleeves, and wanted to beat the scholar together .
No matter how good-tempered the prince was, he would still be angry. He took out the document to prove his identity, and said angrily: "I am a tribute scholar from the imperial court, how dare you touch me?!"
There are two types of examinees for imperial tribute exams, one is a student, and the other is a village tribute. As long as one of these two identities is present, one is a serious scholar. It is not something ordinary people can offend, otherwise they will be held accountable by the government .
The middle-aged man was startled, stretched his neck to look, and saw that the document in the scholar's hand was not fake, so he didn't want to continue clamoring, but he still flicked his sleeves and snorted coldly: "What country Gongshi?" Son, you’re just a countryman, I don’t think you can pass the Jinshi exam!”
Having said that, the middle-aged man left.
The scholar was upset, but he had no other choice. He sighed in his heart, turned around and squatted down, looking at the six or seven-year-old girl in front of him. She still had the crumbs of the steamed pancakes in her hand. Seeing the middle-aged man leave, she was stuffing it into her mouth, but the crumbs were too little, not enough to eat in one bite.
The girl was dirty all over, and her face was full of stains, but her big eyes were exceptionally bright, like jewels. Although she was beaten, her arms were bruised and purple, but she did not shed tears. She seemed extremely stubborn, but she Because of her stubbornness, the action of stuffing steamed cake crumbs into her mouth was extremely pitiful.
The scholar sighed, thinking what kind of world this is, he handed the bun in his hand to the girl, and said softly, "Here, here you are."
The girl glanced at the scholar, hesitated for a while, but couldn't bear the temptation of the aroma, took the buns and stuffed them into her mouth with all her might, stuffing her mouth full from time to time, and quickly finished one. Because she ate too fast, she choked heavily, and the scholar felt even more distressed. While persuading her to slow down, he rubbed her back and handed the girl the other bun that he had bitten into.
Among the endless crowd, the scholar squatting quietly in front of the girl seemed to have forgotten his sorrow at this moment.
Looking at the steamed stuffed bun in front of her, the girl shook her head vigorously. There was still unswallowed steamed stuffed bun in her mouth, and her pronunciation was vague: "I'm full."
"A bun, how can I be full, eat it." The scholar smiled purely, and the setting sun shone on his shoulders and melted into his smile. The girl looked at her motionless, hesitated for a while, and took the bag slowly. Baozi, pull it open, and hand the bigger half to the scholar: "Together."
The scholar was stunned, looking at the serious and pure eyes of the girl, at this moment his heart felt as if there were ten thousand ants crawling in his heart, he was very sore, it took a long time before he took the half of the bun.
"Why are you here alone? What about your family?"
"Myself."
The scholar was silent. He raised his head and glanced at the direction of the setting sun. In the noisy crowd, even in the city of Chang'an, where the city is full of pearls and households, beggars cannot be eradicated. Young beggars, he murmured: , self-cultivation, family harmony, governance of the country, and peace of the world, my generation of scholars, read the books of sages, received the teachings of the sages, cultivated the body, but faced with such a world, how do we go about peace?"
The scholar panicked.
"Would you like to come with me?" The scholar asked the girl. As soon as he said this, he laughed at himself when he thought of his situation. Live a good life... But if I have a bite to eat, I will not miss you."
The girl looked at the scholar with wide eyes and blinked, as if she felt that the scholar in front of her was a little strange and unusual. She suddenly asked a question that stunned the scholar: "Can you teach me how to read? ?"
Literacy.
The scholar was stunned for a long time.
This beggar-like girl actually asked such a question at this moment.
Shouldn't she be more concerned about whether she will have enough to eat in the future
"Yes. As long as you want, I can teach you the characters I know and the books I have read." The scholar nodded firmly. At this moment, he seemed to see a foot of morning light shining into his chest.
"Then I'll go with you!"
The sallow-faced and muscular scholars in plain clothes and linen clothes pulled the skinny girl in ragged clothes and walked along the crowd on the street under the setting sun.
From time to time, they came to a remote inn.
The inn is small, dilapidated, and business is not good.
This is where scholars live. The Tang Gongju, once a year, the scholar has failed for three consecutive years, but he has not left, he will be admitted to the Jinshi. His hometown is far away from Chang'an City, and the commuting by boat and vehicle is a huge waste, and he can't afford to delay the time on the road, so like many scholars, he finds a cheap place to live and prepare for the exam.
"Mr. Li, it's time to settle your food money." The scholar walked into the inn and was stopped by the shopkeeper.
The scholar who was pulling the girl said strangely: "I just saved the money a month ago, and didn't I tell you that I will pay for the food with my work?"
The shopkeeper said indifferently: "You don't know how to work at all, and you don't look at it. How many plates have you broken in just how long? Are these free? Your usual money is not enough to lose money. How can I pay you?" rent and food money?"
The scholar gritted his teeth: "How much do I have to pay?"
"After all, you still owe two strings of money."
"How come there are so many? I only eat one meal at your place a day, and it's all leftovers..."
"What leftovers are cold! What are you talking about? You mean that the store has treated you badly? I kindly took you in, gave you food and shelter, but you say such things, do you still have a conscience?"
"But I worked..."
"Are you working? You are clearly smashing the shop!"
"..."
The scholar was so angry that his internal organs were on fire, he knew very well that the inn was clearly trying to blackmail him.
But he really ran out of money, not a single penny.
He is in Chang'an City, with no relatives, no one to turn to for help.
He glanced back at the girl, her eyes were wide open, full of doubts.
Seeing that pure stream of eyes, the scholar's heart softened.
He turned to face the shopkeeper, and said in a low voice, "My... I'm really short of money. I promise, I won't smash the dishes again in the future. After working for so long, I'm already familiar with it. Please forgive me One or two..."
"It's not negotiable!" The shopkeeper waved his hand, "Give me the money, or leave!"
The muscles on the scholar's face twitched.
At this time, thunder suddenly fell outside the door.
...
After a while, the scholar carried the bookcase on his back, hugged the quilt, pulled the girl, walked out of the inn, and walked onto the cold street. The heavy rain came unexpectedly, and the sound of dripping rain was like the mockery of the world. .
In a small pavilion not far from Queqi Bridge, the scholar put down the bookcase and spread the quilt on a small area in the pavilion that was not exposed to wind and rain, and let the girl rest.
The girl was very sensible, and without saying a word, she stuffed herself into the quilt.
At this time, when the sun is shining, although it is still very hot, but in the wind and rain, it is already quite cold, not to mention it is still at night.
The girl showed a pair of obsidian eyes, looking at the scholar standing in front of the rain curtain with his hands behind his back, without blinking.
The scholar was full of desolation, he didn't even know what to think about.
When life is difficult, do you think about how to get the next meal, or where is your ideal
There is no next meal, and no ideal.
Nothing at all.
no way no money.
After a long time, the sound of rain grew louder and thunder burst.
The scholar went back to the girl and knelt down. Seeing that her eyes were still open, he couldn't help asking: "Now we have nowhere to go, you...follow me, maybe it will be better than you alone." Had a great time... ”
The scholar didn't go on, because the girl's eyes showed a moment of sadness and fear, as if she knew he was going to abandon her.
"Tomorrow I will go to a shop and work as a clerk. I know "Nine Chapters of Arithmetic", at least I can make a living." The scholar changed his mouth. God knows how painful it is for him to change his mouth under the pressure of life. It's not easy, isn't that a betrayal of one's life creed, "Even if I don't take the tribute exam, I won't let us both starve to death!"
The girl didn't speak, but there were crystal clear tears in those clear eyes.
"Go to sleep, everything will be fine tomorrow." The scholar showed a relieved smile.
Scholars of my generation, read the books of sages and sages, and receive the teachings of sages, what do they do
Govern the country and bring peace to the world
To help the country, save the times, and seek the well-being of the people all over the world
If you can't even save the little girl in front of you, how can you talk about saving the people in the world
An unspeakable emotion suddenly arose in the scholar's heart. He stood up, turned around abruptly, stood facing the heavy rain with his hands behind his hands, and looked up at the sky.
At this moment, this Confucian scholar suddenly felt awe-inspiring.
He took a step towards the torrential rain.
There was a flash of lightning in the sky.
Immediately afterwards, the thunder fell to the ground.
The scholar took a step down and was refreshed for a while, a sea of energy suddenly appeared on the dantian.
One step to practice Qi!
...
"Unexpectedly, at this point, Ye Yu was able to witness with his own eyes that Confucian scholars have achieved success in enlightenment, and they have achieved Qi training in one step."
A person was wearing a black robe and holding an umbrella, walking from Queqi Bridge.
With one step, he walked from Queqi Bridge to the small pavilion.
He took the umbrella and handed it to the purple-robed woman behind him, then bowed his hands to the scholar: "Young Master Li, it's a pleasure to meet you."
This person is Li Ye.
Following behind him was Song Jiao.
The scholar was taken aback leisurely: "Who is your Excellency that you actually recognize me?"
Li Ye smiled and said, "Young Master Li Zhen, why don't you recognize me?"
Li Zhen, failed after repeated trials. After the Huangchao Rebellion, he took refuge in Zhu Wen, the Taizu of the Later Liang Dynasty, also known as Zhu Quanzhong. .
This is one of the talents Li Ye is looking for.
Li Zhen was even more puzzled: "Your Excellency?"
Song Jiao said at the right time: "This is King An of the Imperial Dynasty, Shao Yin of Chang'an Mansion."
"His Royal Highness King An?" Li Zhen was taken aback, showing disbelief.
Li Ye's fame and deeds have already spread throughout Chang'an City, and Li Zhen has also heard of it.
"Greetings to His Royal Highness King An!" Li Zhen quickly saluted.
"Mr. Li, why be so polite, please hurry up." Li Ye helped Li Zhen up, without saying any gossip, and said directly: "Mr. Li is outstanding in talent and brilliant in writing. I have read your articles before, and I admire them very much. It's really a fate to meet you today, why not move to the palace, and urgently need to talk with the young master by candlelight at night, so as to see the young master's demeanor!"
Scholars who went to Chang'an City to participate in the tribute examination, in addition to studying, they used literature to make friends and wrote many articles. The outstanding ones among them would be widely circulated in Chang'an City. Li Ye said that he had read Li Zhen's articles ,That's what I mean.
Li Zhen did not expect that his article would be read by the prince of the dynasty and the dignified fourth-rank officials, and he was so highly evaluated. He was immediately flattered, and was greatly moved by Li Ye's sincere invitation. He was so cold that he quickly agreed to Li Ye's invitation.
"This girl..."
"Oh, her name is Rui Mengmeng."