At 5 p.m., Guo Shao returned to the Xu'en Palace. The eunuch on duty, Wang Zhong, bowed and placed a booklet in front of him, and opened it for him. On it were the names of several women written by Guo Shao himself. They were the concubines he ordered to sleep with him in turn.
He thought for a moment about who it was last night, and then pointed at Zhou Xian's name one by one.
Yes. Wang Zhong walked backwards and left the study in Xu'en Hall.
There were countless beauties in the palace, and Guo Shao also had several concubines, but he felt as if he were single. Whether in this small Xu'en Hall or in the emperor's main hall, the Wansui Hall, concubines were usually sent here temporarily to stay for a night or a few days, and they had their own residences.
Because the emperor wanted to treat everyone equally, favoring only one woman would cause extreme conflicts. The woman who was favored alone would block everyone's way and become the target of public criticism. It was hard to predict what would happen. It was not good for someone to live with Guo Shao for a long time. It was uncomfortable to have sex with other women under the nose of that concubine.
The entire imperial city, even the harem inside Xuanyou Gate, is almost a government office. However, the emperors of all dynasties have always had their reasons for running such a structure, not human feelings, but various desires.
Guo Shao walked to the cabinet and took out a few glass bottles. Then he opened a booklet and drew a simple table.
He carefully placed several ropes of cotton and linen on a wooden plate and placed a ruler next to it. Then he stood up, took a red candle from the copper lampstand, and lit the ropes together.
With a snap, an hourglass was turned upside down. The end filled with sand became the upper end, and fine sand began to flow in the transparent glass bottle. While Guo Shao was waiting, listening to the fine sound, he seemed to feel the time passing leisurely.
After a long time, except for one hemp rope, all the other ropes burned out one after another, and only one rope burned a short section, and it did not go out. Guo Shao glanced at the length on the ruler and picked up a pen to write it down on paper.
After soaking the hemp rope with water, the burning speed can be slowed down. As for why, Guo Shao didn't know, but he found out through experiments that this hemp rope can be used as a matchlock for a matchlock gun.
The fire guns used by the Zhou army in the early stage used charcoal to light the fuse, which might be equivalent to the matchlock gun. According to the report sent by the Qianying Military Office to Shenhuodu to observe the actual combat, the actual combat effect was worse than Guo Shao imagined. First, the failure rate was too high, and it often failed to fire when firing volleys in battle. The main reason was that the ignition was too troublesome and unstable. Second, the accuracy was extremely poor. It was not convenient to aim with one hand. Although volleys could compensate for the accuracy, they still could not hit people if they missed. If the projectile was tilted upward, it would fly into the sky. If it was tilted downward, it would hit the ground directly, and there would be no effect. Volleys also require accuracy.
Moreover, the copper fire gun is more difficult to use as a mace than a special close combat weapon. At first glance, the fire gun can be used for both long-range and short-range combat, but in fact, it is useless for neither. Guo Shao changed his mind and decided to specialize in weapons.
So he planned to try to figure out the matchlock gun because he knew it was better than the matchlock gun. Of course, the flintlock gun was the best black powder weapon, but he felt that neither he nor the craftsmen in the military department could make it; at least the principle of the matchlock gun was relatively simple to think about, which was to use a mechanism to drive the matchlock to ignite the gunpowder.
Guo Shao firmly believed that hot weapons warfare was the direction of development of war. No matter whether it was useful now or not, it would definitely be useful in the future.
"I pay my respects to Your Majesty," a gentle voice said.
Guo Shao turned around and saw Zhou Xian kneeling at the door, looking down at the ground.
Ehuang, come over here and sit with me, Guo Shao said.
Zhou Xian walked over and said softly, "Thank you, Your Majesty, for letting me sit down." Then he sat on the stool next to him dignifiedly, looking at the various sundries on the table with curiosity.
Guo Shao asked: Are you used to living here
Zhou Xian nodded slowly and said: Very good.
Guo Shao's eyes swept through her hair, her black hair and white skin were very distinct. His voice became gentler: The palace might be boring, what is Ehuang doing recently
Zhou Xian said: The Dragon Boat Festival is approaching, and the people in the Ministry of Internal Affairs know that I am good at dancing, so they want me to dance at the banquet. It just so happens that the previous Yuyi Nichang dance has been arranged, and I am busy rehearsing the dance every day.
They didn't ask you if you were willing to dance for Guo Shaodao.
Zhou Xian immediately raised her head and looked at him, pursed her red lips, and said: I am willing to dance for Your Majesty.
Guo Shao couldn't help but think that there was more than one person watching at the banquet, and it might be a humiliation for Zhou Xian to dance with such an identity.
He immediately said: Don't dance at the Dragon Boat Festival banquet, I will tell Wang Zhong later.
Your Majesty, I often danced in the court of Southern Tang, Zhou Xian said softly.
Guo Shaodao: It’s a little different here.
Zhou Xian's voice became lower and lower. "Since I have entered the Great Zhou, I have become Your Majesty's property and I have no complaints."
Guo Shao looked at her face and said: I can't bear to let you feel humiliated.
His Majesty Zhou Xian couldn't help but look up, his expression was somewhat moved. After a moment, she looked at him with bright eyes, and said, "I will dance for your majesty now, and dance for you to see." After that, she covered her lips with her fingers and smiled, "No one is forcing me now, I am willing to do this."
Guo Shao immediately sat up straight and looked at her expectantly.
Zhou Xian stood up and turned around briskly, her skirt fluttering. She chuckled and said: It’s okay to just wear this dress.
Seeing her happy, Guo Shao couldn't help but think of his previous thoughts: This imperial harem is actually a place where countless people satisfy their own desires. When the First Emperor built the Afang Palace, it had already laid the foundation for this kind of place. The emperor used his powerful power to waste a lot of resources, occupying countless women and forcing them to submit. But Guo Shao felt that in fact, changing his attitude could still achieve his goal.
After all, people are still people, not objects that can be possessed. Men in the world always think they can do everything, and demand women to be faithful to them in order to possess them completely; in fact, they are just like the king of Southern Tang, who would lose everything if he was defeated in the war.
In the small study room of Xu'en Hall, there was no sound of stringed instruments, and the quiet time was like a stream without separators. But when Zhou Xian started dancing, his dancing was like silent music, and the exquisite dance and coordinated posture made people involuntarily fall into an atmosphere like music.
The long sleeves fluttered with the movements, with tiny patterns on them, but Guo Shao had an illusion that the dress was white like clouds and he was in the Moon Palace and saw fairies in the sky.
She was graceful and elegant, but occasionally she would glance at him, her eyes flickering in her smile, making Guo Shao feel as if the world had entered a period of peace and harmony, and everything was beautiful. Her flexible and graceful waist, her chest rising and falling as she moved, but without the pure and innocent state of the six senses, made Guo Shao's impulse rise secretly in the fragrance and beauty.
Zhou Xian was like a flower blooming in spring, lively and beautiful. As she danced, her bright eyes, willow-like eyebrows, and soft red lips flashed before Guo Shao's eyes from time to time. Among the wood, furniture, and books, she was like a bright butterfly flying in the spring light.
But Guo Shao was as dull as ever, sitting steadily in the chair, with the rough and messy things he had just been fiddling with placed next to him.
But he watched very attentively. When Zhou Xian finished dancing, he clapped his hands and praised excitedly: "The dance is beautiful, and the dancers are even more beautiful. I have never seen such a beautiful dance."
Your Majesty, do you really feel good? Zhou Xian panted softly and walked closer.
Guo Shao nodded vigorously in agreement.
Zhou Xian said softly: "I haven't prepared anything today. If I can play music and change my clothes, I can perform better. Your Majesty, do you understand music?"
Guo Shao looked embarrassed and shook his head helplessly. In this life, he knew nothing except archery; in his previous life, he knew nothing except high scores in exam subjects. Sometimes, even he himself felt that he was a very stupid person.
Zhou Xian said: "If your majesty is interested, I will teach you." She smiled and said, "When your majesty plays music, I will dance for you, isn't it nice?"
Guo Shao thought that he would be interested only after he had firmly established his throne and recovered the Sixteen Prefectures of Youyun. But Zhou Xian was in a good mood, so he said: "I will learn it when I have free time. However, I was born a warrior, so I am afraid that I will learn the delicate work slowly."
Zhou Xian said softly: It doesn’t matter, I will teach Your Majesty slowly.
Guo Shao took the opportunity to grab her hand, which was smooth and soft. Zhou Xian's arm trembled slightly, but she naturally did not pull her hand away, and a blush appeared on her face. He gently pulled and put his arm around her waist. Zhou Xian cried out softly, and her body softened and sat in Guo Shao's arms.
He immediately smelled a refreshing fragrance, mixed with a pleasant smell unique to women. His palm slowly moved up from Zhou Xian's waist, and Zhou Xian's face became redder, because she was still a little tired from dancing just now, and the breath from her mouth and nose blew on Guo Shao's face.
The two of them were very close, Zhou Xian boldly looked at Guo Shao's face, stretched out her slightly trembling jade hand, and placed it on his cheek. Guo Shao looked at her expression carefully, felt her initiative to stretch out her hand, and at this time he could no longer feel that Zhou Xian was forced to give in.
Guo Shao then picked her up horizontally, and Zhou Xian quickly hugged his neck, fearing that she would fall. Guo Shao held her in his arms and strode out of the study, walked straight to the convenient bedroom, and then put her on the bed.
The bed here is similar to the beds in the houses, relatively small, with a layer of yarn mosquito net inside and thick opaque silk outside. When the two of them got into the bed, they immediately seemed to be isolated from the outside world. Zhou Xian whispered: Now there are only two people left, your majesty and I.
After hearing this, Guo Shao also comforted her kindly: No one else knows about our private affairs, so Ehuang should relax.