"The gates of heaven have opened, and all the civil and military officials have entered the palace to congratulate the new emperor—"
The golden morning light that broke through the gaps in the clouds pushed along the sacrificial platform to the Taiji Palace. As the flags standing all around fluttered, the eunuch shouted loudly, and below the altar, a large crowd of civil and military officials stood up, divided into two lines, and walked up the stone steps of the Taiji Palace one after another along the left and right sides of the altar.
A team of palace guards were on patrol. The leading general saw Lu Liangsheng standing far away in a black robe. He straightened his back quickly, waved his hand to let his subordinates wait where they were, and then trotted over quickly, cupping his hands.
"Yu Wenzhi pays homage to the Imperial Master."
Looking at the emperor leading all the officials into the Taiji Palace, Lu Liangsheng retracted his gaze and turned his head to look at the generals who bowed and kowtowed, "Lift your face."
The man said, "Yes." He lowered his hand, pressed the hilt of the knife and stood up. He looked exactly like the palace guard Yang Jian had seen on the night he passed away. When he saw the imperial teacher talking to him, his face showed some excitement and he rubbed his hands together.
"Your Majesty and all the officials have entered the Taiji Palace. The Imperial Master may also come to watch the ceremony."
"That's a matter for the court, so it's inconvenient for me to go."
Lu Liangsheng smiled, turned his head and looked over at the Taiji Palace. He reached out from his sleeve and took out a piece of jade with a red tassel, and handed it to Yu Wenzhi who was standing beside him: "Give it to His Majesty for me as a gift for His Majesty's ascension to the throne."
The latter bowed down and carefully took the jade pendant in front of him with both hands. His eyes followed the direction of the Taiji Palace that the Imperial Master was looking at, and he whispered, "Imperial Master, you are of a noble status. His Majesty always mentions you. If you go now, you may even be used by the court, and you will be more valued than the arrogant Duke Yue."
"Is Duke Yue usually very arrogant?"
Lu Liangsheng had never thought of entering the court to serve as an official. He just wanted to be a good imperial teacher. As for Yang Su mentioned by Yu Wenzhi, he became a little curious. In his past contacts, the Duke of Yue was not as arrogant as this person described.
I think it should be relatively harsh on the people below.
While thinking about it, Yu Wenzhi turned his head and looked around. Seeing that no one was paying attention to this place, he leaned forward slightly and said in a low voice:
"It's ok that Duke Yue is arrogant in the past, but today, at the ceremony, Duke Yue actually personally handed the imperial seal to His Majesty. This was Fu Baolang's job. Moreover, he waved his hand to let all officials kneel down, and then he stood at the head and knelt down. If Duke Yue had not been a loyal minister of two dynasties and the uncle of His Majesty, those founding civil and military generals might have fought with him..."
On the other side, Lu Liangsheng frowned slightly and raised his hand to tell the man to shut up.
"Don't mention this matter in front of His Majesty from now on. His Majesty knows what Duke Yue is like. He has made great contributions and is a veteran of two dynasties. It is normal for him to be a little arrogant. What's more, he is His Majesty's uncle. Handing His Majesty the imperial seal is an elder handing over power to the younger generation. You are not allowed to make random guesses like this!"
Yu Wenhuaji was so frightened that his face turned pale. He lowered his head and cupped his hands: "Yes, the national teacher reminded me that Huaji's words were nonsense and told me not to take them seriously."
"Well, let's leave it at that. I will give the jade pendant to His Majesty, and I will tell you that I have something to do in Qixia Mountain."
He had also watched the ceremony and handed the jade pendant containing magical power to Yang Guang in order to suppress the possibility of the evil spirit in his body being rekindled. After sending Yu Wenzhi away, Lu Liangsheng cast a spell and shrunk the distance all the way back to Wanshou Temple. He called the Taoist priest and his master to prepare to leave Chang'an and return to his hometown in Qixia Mountain.
When the Toad Taoist priest, who was wearing short gowns, heard that they were leaving, he laughed excitedly, folded the recliner and threw it into the bookshelf, then ran to the small wardrobe while laughing, rummaging through the clothes for the trip, and turned to look at his disciple who was also packing his luggage.
"When I think of Mount Qixia, I think of the food your mother... cooked, hahahaha... slurp~~"
Master is becoming more and more lazy...
Lu Liangsheng's mouth twitched twice, he took off the Qilin cloak on his body, folded it and put it on the bookshelf on the other side, and called Qi You who was pulling the Yuelong Sword, "Stop making trouble, go and see if Lao Sun is okay, it's time to set off."
"Ah... um~ah..."
Amidst Yue Long's low moans and roars, Qi You let out an "oh" and pushed the sword back into the sheath with a snap. Yue Long finally let out a long moan before being hung on the bookshelf limply, twitching there in a daze.
Downstairs in the attic, the old donkey heard the noise and sensed a different tone. He let out a neigh with his long mouth, swung his bald tail, and rushed to a small room under the eaves. He ran to the door of the hall with the reins in his mouth, raised his hooves and jumped back and forth, turning around excitedly as he watched his owner carrying the bookshelf downstairs.
Lu Liangsheng patted its head, threw the scholar onto the donkey's back, and a voice from the Toad Taoist priest came from the window above: "Liangsheng, accept your master!"
A black shadow jumped down from the windowsill dragging a small wardrobe. Lu Liangsheng quickly waved a light blue magic light, and steadily caught the Toad Taoist and the small wardrobe that fell down with him and put them on the donkey's back.
"Master, there's no need to be so excited." Lu Liangsheng took the small wardrobe and put it on the upper level of the compartment. The Toad Taoist standing on the donkey's back shook his head, jumped to the Yuelong Sword, tied a rope around his plump waist, and snorted.
"Master, I miss the food your mother cooked for me... I'm tired of eating the food your little Taoist cooks for me."
"Hey, hey, old Toad, this is what you said, don't yell for me to cook on the way!"
The Taoist priest came out with a big bag on his back, following Qi You. He wiped his mustache, took out a few talismans for traveling and handed them to Lu Liangsheng. He was probably eager to go home, because after all, the bag contained mostly gifts for Xiao Xian, which could not be bought in Fushui County.
Qi You on the side didn't want to leave. He hesitated for a moment, stared at Lu Liangsheng quietly for a while, then rolled up black smoke and turned into a brush, which flew into the scholar's hand and was put into his sleeve.
After everything was packed up, Lu Liangsheng lightly raised his sleeves, and the open door slammed shut, and a seal character of the word "imperial" flashed in the air.
After completing the last step, he pulled the old donkey slowly to the mountain gate, instructed the soldiers on both sides, and went to the lotus pond. He called the old dragon and told him about his itinerary, saying that he might go into seclusion in Qixia Mountain for a while.
"Master Lu, the road is long and the sky is high. I can't help you in time, but if you need me, I will do my best to come!"
"Well, you should practice well here and protect the people of the two rivers!"
After saying that, Lu Liangsheng raised his hand and bowed, thanking the old dragon opposite him who had transformed into a human form. After seeing him off, he walked towards the busy street. Amid the noise, he squeezed through the crowd and disappeared in the south.
…
Imperial City, Taiji Palace.
The grand ceremony was over. Yang Guang, dressed in a dragon robe, sat on the dragon throne, listening to the soft and soothing music of stringed instruments and chimes played by the musicians beside him. He looked around wearily, but did not see the familiar figure among the ministers who were congratulating and chatting, and he sighed slightly.
'I think I am as good as my father...'
This was not a serious occasion for court meetings, so naturally after the ceremony all the ministers would be entertained in a banquet to show the harmonious atmosphere of joy among the monarch and his ministers. Dugu Qieluo, who was already the empress dowager, was sitting on the side of the dragon throne. Seeing the emperor looking outside from time to time, she understood what he was thinking, shook the golden cross on her head, turned around and smiled.
"Your Majesty is now the ruler of a country. You must learn not to show your emotions. Don't let your facial expressions show so that the ministers below can guess what the emperor is thinking... In addition, the imperial teacher is different from the court officials. He has no official position, but he can be close to your Majesty. After the banquet, if your Majesty is not tired, it won't be too late to go to the Wanshou Temple."
"That's what my mother taught me."
Yang Guang nodded, took a deep breath, smiled, picked up the cup and chatted with the ministers who stood up to toast him. When he finished drinking, a figure in the side hall walked to the golden steps with weapons under his armour and whispered, "Your Majesty."
"Lord Yuwen, have you finished your inspection?"
The emperor put down his wine glass, looked at his mother beside him and said nothing. He waved her to walk up a flight of stairs and said, "You have been with me for many years and have made great contributions. You will have a seat in this palace in the future. Go down and rest for a while. In the evening, follow me out of the palace and go to Wanshou Temple to meet the imperial master."
"Your Majesty, I am here to tell you about this."
Yu Wenzhi carefully took out a jade pendant from his bosom, held it in both hands and raised it to the level of his head: "This is a gift from the Imperial Master to your Majesty, and..."
Over there, Yang Guang took the jade pendant from a eunuch and looked through it. When he heard that there was more to say, he felt a little uneasy and asked quickly, "What else? Tell me everything in one breath!"
"Yes... Also, the Imperial Master said he would be away for a while."
Yu Wenzhi's voice was not loud, but Yang Su, who was sitting at the head of the court, heard it. He put down his cup and stood up, walked to the golden steps and stood still, shouting, "Why did you let Master Lu leave?!"
Not far away, Yuwen Tuo, the Grand Tutor of the Eastern Palace, also hurried over.
"My master is gone?"
When the general named Yu Wenzhi saw the emperor, the Duke of Yue, and the Grand Tutor standing in front of him, he was so frightened that his legs trembled and he knelt down directly in front of Yang Guang.
"Your Majesty, the Imperial Master asked me to give this jade pendant to Your Majesty, saying that he would return to Mount Qixia, and then... he left, and did not allow me to ask any other questions."
Gone... Back to Qixia Mountain...
Yang Guang got anxious and walked out with his robe lifted up. Dugu Jialuo, who was sitting over there, was so frightened that she stopped him and asked him the reason but still refused to let him leave.
"He is just one person. Besides, the Imperial Master will be back soon. Your Majesty, why should you abandon the ministers and leave?"
"Mother, that is why I want to do this, to show that I love talents."
Yang Guang made up an excuse and asked his personal eunuch to prepare the horses. He went to the side hall to change his clothes and headed straight for the palace gate and the long street with a few palace guards with high martial arts skills. Street scenes flew past his sight. When they got out of the south of Chang'an City, there were undulating mountains and merchants and travelers coming and going on the official road. There was no trace of Lu Liangsheng.
"drive!!"
Yang Guang didn't care, he shouted loudly, cracked the whip, and continued to gallop along the official road. The population gradually became sparse. As if he had some sense, he pulled the reins, stopped his horse on a gently sloping dirt road, and shouted with all his might towards the rolling mountains in the distance.
"Mr. Lu—"
"Mr. Lu—"
The screaming startled several birds, which flew away in panic. The sound echoed all over the mountains and spread to the distant foothills. The ringing of copper bells stopped. The scholar walking on the mountain path stopped and looked back in the direction of Chang'an.
I vaguely seemed to see the emperor riding on horseback.
In the spots of sunlight shining through the gaps in the woods, Lu Liangsheng turned around and continued to stride forward with the old donkey. On the gentle slope, Yang Guang looked at the withered and yellow mountains and was about to leave with a lost heart. Suddenly, a voice that only he could hear floated from afar.
"Your Majesty, please govern the country well. I have to go back to Mount Qixia for some business. When I come back, I believe that our Great Sui will be more prosperous."
Hearing what was whispering in his ear, Yang Guang came to his senses and urged his horse forward again.
"Mr. Lu, I will never lose face for my father. I will make the world prosperous and wait for you to come back!!"
The sonorous and powerful sound spread among the mountains. The woods swayed gently in the wind. Several startled birds flew through the young emperor's field of vision and cried in the sky.