On a ranch in southern Xiazhou, a brown horse was galloping across the grass like lightning. The girl on the horse was wearing a tight short coat, which made her legs look even stronger and longer. She was a good rider, her body moved up and down in a coordinated manner, and the bumps on the horse's back made the upper part of her coat look like it was wrapped in jelly. The horse ran so fast that the horse team protecting her couldn't keep up and had to follow closely behind.
Li Yueji faced the direct sunlight, she didn't care about getting tanned, she was holding her breath and going crazy. Sweat flowed down from under her round hat, and on her yellow and smooth skin, the sweat beads were shining like gems.
The oncoming wind was like a huge pressure pressing on her face and eyes, and her sore eyes could no longer shed tears.
How I wish I could be like this horse and run freely between heaven and earth.
At this moment, a horse caught up with Li Yueji. The big man named Ge Ge on the horse shouted a few times and finally made Li Yueji slow down.
Brother Li Yueji's voice was a little choked.
Brother Ling said: The princess cannot go to the Central Plains. I heard from Uncle Fei Ting that women in the Central Plains can only stay in a courtyard and cannot go out for their entire lives. How is this different from being in prison
Li Yueji's expression was gloomy, and her bright complexion seemed to have suddenly lost some color. But her expression was stern, and she bit her lip and said: I can't go with you.
Why is Brother Ling so anxious
Li Yueji said: Brother Lu said that if we go north, we have to pass through the Yong'an Jiezhenfuzhou of the Zhou people. Even if we escape the scouts of the Zhou people, there are people from the Liao country to the north. Brother Lu is not afraid of ferocious wild beasts, but the most terrifying thing in the world is not beasts, but people.
She added: My father and Uncle Mo Zang have agreed to the marriage. If my father cannot hand over the person, it will bring disaster to our clan.
Brother Ling said: Princess Yueji has decided to marry to the Central Plains.
Li Yueji raised her head and said: From now on, Yueji is dead and only the daughter of the Dangxiang tribe can be left. If you really can't stand it, at most you will die in the Central Plains, and it won't be the fault of us Dangxiang people.
Brother Lu's face flushed with shame, and he said in a deep voice: Princess Yueji is innocent, don't let that dog emperor take advantage of you, why don't you
Li Yueji's originally gloomy expression suddenly turned into anger and shame. She said angrily: "Who do you think I am?" and then she rode away on her horse.
Brother Ling hurriedly chased after him, apologizing and saying: Brother Ling will not leave the princess, I will follow you to Lingzhou
Li Yueji ignored her and said after a moment: The Han official Lu Duosun was staring at you that day and he knew you a long time ago.
Brother Ling said: I will pretend to be a guard. If anyone harms the princess, Brother Ling will be the first to protect her.
Everything was carried out step by step and was irreversible. The imperial edict and the golden book and golden seal that conferred Li Yueji as the virtuous concubine of the Great Zhou were first sent to Xiazhou. This was something that both sides had agreed on. At the same time, there was also a large amount of wealth and betrothal gifts, including countless gold, silver, tea, silk, and jewelry.
The Dingnan Army selected two thousand war horses from various ranches, and sent Mo Zang as the chief envoy to escort Li Yueji to Lingzhou.
The etiquette of the royal family conferring the title of consort was different from that of a common marriage, and it was conferred before the meeting. Guo Shao was in the border of Lingzhou, so he could only do things expediently.
Wei Renpu asked Feng Jiye, the commander of Lingzhou, to arrange a banquet and invited leaders of all ethnic groups to attend, so that the marriage between the royal family and the Dangxiang would have an impact in the northwest.
When Guo Shao heard in the palace that Li Yueji's troops were approaching Lingzhou and had brought two thousand fine war horses, he was very happy and immediately sent Wei Renpu and Wang Zhang, the left wing general of the Huben Army, to meet them and receive the war horses.
All the generals entered the hall to pay their respects to Guo Shao, and congratulated him with joy on their faces.
Yang Biao's legs and feet have also recovered, but his face was still stern when he joked, as if he couldn't laugh.
As for the so-called Dangxiang beauty Li Yueji, Guo Shao actually didn't have much expectation. He didn't really believe how beautiful she was.
Guo Shao had personally seen the Tangut Mo Zang. He wore a tall cone hat, and the baldness on his head was really obvious. Guo Shao did not think baldness was good-looking, whether from the perspective of ancient people or modern people. The Mo Zang had yellow teeth and dark skin, as if he had not washed it. It is said that Mo Zang was a noble, so you can imagine what ordinary Tangut people looked like.
However, Guo Shao didn't mind. Her significance lay not in her looks but in her status.
Lingzhou is the most border city of the Great Zhou Dynasty. It focuses on military affairs and is built very roughly, even worse than Xiazhou. The wind is also very strong. Li Yueji has seen the rammed earth city wall in the carriage. The scene on the field is somewhat similar to that of Xiazhou, with many soldiers riding horses.
After a short stay outside Lingzhou City, Li Yueji and her attendants separated from the main group and followed the Zhou people into the city.
The team walked in the city for a while and then stopped again. Mei Zang said outside the car: The Emperor of the Great Zhou Dynasty has summoned us to the temporary palace, so please get off the car, Princess.
Li Yueji got off the carriage with a deathly pale face and stiff hands and feet. How she felt was perhaps not important, as the important things had already been done: exchanging wealth and horses, and forming an alliance through marriage.
She would not feel very good if a stranger from a different race suddenly became her man without any resistance.
At this moment, she suddenly heard a shout, followed by a loud roar. Li Yueji, who was in a low spirit, was startled. She looked in the direction of the sound and saw two rows of soldiers in front of the door stepping forward in unison and raising their spears.
Li Yueji was immediately surprised. She had seen many guards, but she had never seen such a guard. The two teams were tall and strong, almost the same height. They held their heads high, their clothes and cloaks were very neat and clean, and they stood straight.
Uncle Mo Zang in front looked back at her, and the two looked at each other in surprise. No wonder Uncle Mo Zang insisted on marriage at all costs. Judging from the military discipline and momentum of the two teams, the Zhou army was not weak.
Mo Zang handed over his sword in front of the door. A Han general searched him and said, "Please come in." But he ignored Li Yueji. Mo Zang reminded her in Tangut dialect, "Today is just a summons. I will go in with the princess. From now on, I can't be with the princess. You must remember that the princess is a woman of our Tangut tribe."
The two were led into a rammed earth tile house courtyard. The low building was not as tall as the Xiazhou Palace, but there were many guards inside and the etiquette was very complicated. Someone had come to inquire twice.
Later, a voice was heard saying: Announce, Concubine Li is here to see the emperor.
After all the hassles, Yue Ji became nervous. The two entered a large room facing north and south, with people standing on both sides. In the middle, sitting on a chair next to the wooden coffee table, sat a young man in martial arts uniform.
This person is the Emperor of Zhou
He was not wearing a dragon robe, but there were elderly officials standing respectfully on both sides. Li Yueji could feel his status from the scene.
At first glance, Li Yueji found that the Zhou emperor was not what she had imagined. He looked very young, with a regular face and features that were not offensive, tall and strong, and looked strong and powerful. In addition, the way he was dressed made him look like a soldier.
However, the Zhou emperor was very different from the young men of the Dangxiang. He was not at all as bold and casual as the young men of the Dangxiang.
Mei Zang stepped aside and let Li Yueji come forward to pay her respects first.
Li Yueji walked forward, put one hand under her chest, and bowed. She didn't want to say anything, but looked up at Guo Shao with some curiosity.
Guo Shao seemed to be seldom looked at directly like this, and he also looked over in surprise and astonishment, and the two of them stared at each other silently.
Guo Shao's skin was a little rough, but his hair was neatly combed, his clothes were clean and neat, and he sat very straight. His eyes were bright, and he gradually smiled. He turned to the civil servant Lu Duosun standing beside him and said: Li Yiyin's daughter is really pretty. Even if she were in Tokyo, she would be considered a beauty.
Li Yueji's face suddenly turned red, but she couldn't be angry because he was praising her after all, but she also felt that she was not used to being praised like this.
At this time, Guo Shao stopped smiling and asked: "Do you understand Chinese?"
Li Yueji spoke in fluent Chinese: There are many Han people in Xiazhou, of course I can understand you.
Guo Shao's face suddenly showed embarrassment. Li Yueji saw it and her face turned red.
Guo Shao said solemnly: From now on, the imperial Guo family and the Xiazhou Li family are relatives. I wish the border to be peaceful and the people to be harmonious. He also said to Mo Zang, when you go back, tell the King of Xiping that the King of Xiping is loyal to the country and defends the land. I am very pleased and ask him to take care of his health.
Mo Zang hurriedly said: "Your Majesty, may you live forever. The commander-in-chief will never forget your majesty's great grace."
Guo Shao nodded.
Mo Zang bowed again and said: "Your Majesty, I have just arrived in Lingzhou today, and everything is not yet settled. Please allow Concubine Li to have a rest, bathe and change clothes before coming to see Your Majesty."
The etiquette on both sides was very different, and the other party was the emperor, so the customs of the Dangxiang people were not acceptable. For example, they would test the husband and cause him a lot of trouble, and have him walk from her parents' home and carry his wife on his back to show that he was strong. However, according to the customs of the Dangxiang people, the bride's family could not let the husband's family take the bride in casually. At least they had to act as if they were reluctant to let the bride go and that she had a high status, lest she be looked down upon after she got married.
That's what I meant by "no hiding". He couldn't just send Li Yueji here and hand her over to the Zhou people. At least the Zhou people had to make some pomp and show their sincerity. It would be best if the emperor came in person to take Li Yueji back.
After hearing this, Guo Shao said: “Okay, I will ask Deputy Envoy Wei to prepare a grand banquet, and I will send a carriage to welcome Concubine Li another day.”
Mei Zang hesitated to speak, and finally bowed and said: Your Majesty is the emperor, but according to the etiquette of the Tanguts, the husband must at least go to pick up the bride in person.
At this time, a minister said: You also know that the emperor is the emperor, how can the etiquette of the Tanguts be more important than the righteousness between the emperor and his subjects