Tang Dynasty Swordsman

Page 114

After Li Ji changed his socks, Cui Ju let him in and thanked Cui Guangyuan. Cui Guangyuan remained lying on the couch and nodded slightly to Li Ji: "Presumably, Cui Qi has already informed the guards. In that case... my dear son-in-law, there is no need for such formalities."

He said "no need for formalities," but deliberately mentioned "son-in-law." Li Ji wasn't stupid; how could he not understand? He immediately knelt down and said, "Mount Tai above, your son-in-law is deeply grateful for your kindness."

Cui Guangyuan smiled slightly and ordered Cui Ju, "Come over and greet your brother-in-law." Cui Ju was somewhat amused and exasperated—he had just been asked to treat him as an elder brother and had performed a grand ceremony, and now he was being treated as his brother-in-law... He had no choice but to reluctantly come over and bow to Li Ji.

Then Cui Guangyuan instructed, "My dear son-in-law, after you return, please send the marriage certificate as soon as possible."

According to the "Household and Marriage Law," marital relationships could be established in two ways: first, the man would present a marriage proposal, and the woman would reciprocate with a marriage declaration; second, the man would send betrothal gifts, which the woman would accept. However, officials and scholars generally preferred the former method (although betrothal gifts were often unavoidable), partly because it conformed to the traditional "Six Rites," and partly because—

Cultured people, of course, will write a few lines before doing anything; only illiterate bumpkins come up and offer money and silk.

However, when Cui Guangyuan ordered Li Ji to send the marriage proposal letter immediately, Li Ji frowned and did not respond immediately. In fact, he was considering the choice of a matchmaker, but Cui Guangyuan misunderstood.

Then he smiled and said, "My son-in-law is only a sixth-rank official, and his salary is limited. In addition, rice is expensive in Chang'an, so there is no need to prepare any betrothal gifts. A token amount will suffice. In addition..." He instructed Cui Ju, "First, transfer that villa in Pingkang Ward to your brother-in-law."

Li Ji was taken aback and quickly waved his hand, saying, "Your Majesty is too kind. I can't possibly offer much in betrothal gifts, so how can I possibly accept such a generous dowry?"

Cui Guangyuan said, “I know your home is in Guanghua Ward, only two courtyards deep, which is really cramped, and you also have a concubine… Now that you have recognized Cui Qi, how can my daughter of the Boling Cui family live in such a humble abode when she gets married? My dear son-in-law, you don’t need to refuse. You can take that separate courtyard and more than twenty servants to help you prepare for the wedding. This is not my daughter’s dowry; the dowry is something else.”

Li Ji thought to himself, "I never thought that getting a wife could make me rich... But such a big house, I'm afraid I can afford to support her, even if I can afford to take care of her!"

Although the marriage was essentially settled, it lacked legal validity as a marriage certificate hadn't been issued. Li Ji was uneasy about not being able to formally welcome Cui Qi into his family. To put it bluntly, if Cui Guangyuan were to die shortly after he left, would it be possible to hold a wedding during his father's mourning period?

Looking at Cui Ju's expression, he was clearly very unhappy about acknowledging Cui Qi as his sister and himself as his brother-in-law. Therefore, if Cui Guangyuan were to pass away, and he were to temporarily assume the position of head of the family—the real head of the family being his brother Cui Gou—it wouldn't be entirely impossible for him to break his promise and become rich by going back on his word.

We need to get the marriage certificate done as soon as possible, so that at least we'll have room to file a lawsuit later.

So he no longer insisted on leaving his home, hastily bid farewell to Cui Guangyuan and his son, and rode straight home. Qingluan greeted him, and although her own brows and eyes were full of joy, she still instinctively noticed that her husband's expression was very different from usual—he seemed unusually excited, yet also unusually nervous. She asked, "Why did Master Cui summon you, sir?"

Li Ji was considering how to speak to Qingluan when he turned around and looked at her, and couldn't help but ask in surprise: "What's wrong at home again?"

Before Qingluan could answer, the cook ran over and kowtowed to Li Ji, saying, "My lord, it's a joyous occasion!"

"What happy event?"

"My lady was feeling unwell just now, so I asked the doctor from this ward to examine her—it's a sign of pregnancy!"

Li Ji was stunned for a moment before realizing what "pregnancy pulse" meant. He immediately grabbed Qingluan's wrist: "You're pregnant? Are you sure?"

Qingluan lowered her head shyly and said, "That's what the doctor said... Now that you're an official, could you please invite a royal physician for a follow-up examination?"

Li Ji recalled that he had been feeling down lately and had indeed been more intimate with Qingluan... If neither of them had any hidden ailments, then frankly, it was like using a cannon to kill a mosquito. He hurriedly said, "I will invite the imperial physician to my home tomorrow..." Then he thought that this might be a good opportunity to bring it up.

Li Ji knew that Qingluan had always wanted a child. Having spent so much time together, he had a general idea of ​​what worries and expectations the concubine held in her heart. Wasn't this woman worried that if she had no children, he might mistreat her or even throw her out after he married his principal wife? Now that his marriage was settled and she was pregnant, it was a double blessing. He could finally put his mind at ease.

Upon further reflection, something was amiss. If the imperial physician were to come tomorrow and it turned out to be a false alarm—Li Ji wasn't really comfortable with the level of an ordinary doctor—wouldn't it be a double blow to Qingluan if I were to marry a second wife? While I do love Cui Qi, Qingluan has been with me for so long, I can't be too biased towards one over the other.

So he immediately ordered someone to bring horses—"I'll go fetch the imperial physician right now!"

The Imperial Medical Bureau was subordinate to the Court of Imperial Sacrifices, and its chief official, the Imperial Physician, was only a seventh-rank official. Most of the physicians under him were not part of the official ranks. Even so, in principle, a mid-level official of the sixth rank would not be able to easily persuade him to come. Fortunately, Li Ji was in a key department of the Northern Imperial Guard and had a very good reputation, so the Imperial Physician dared not refuse him and quickly sent a physician with experience in pregnancy testing to accompany Li Ji on his house calls.

To be honest, Li Ji himself didn't know who to turn to if he didn't directly plead with the Imperial Physician. The Imperial Physician Bureau employed four types of doctors: physicians, acupuncturists, massage therapists, and sorcerers… If he mistakenly invited an acupuncturist or massage therapist, it would likely be useless; and if he inadvertently invited a sorcerer, they might even kill him…

The imperial physician took Qingluan's pulse, inquired about her recent health and any discomfort, and then turned to congratulate Li Ji: "Great news, Second Master, your wife is indeed pregnant."

That's half the battle won, so Li Ji hurriedly ordered Qingluan to fetch five hundred coins to thank the imperial physician, and then saw her out the door. Turning back, he dared to tell Qingluan the truth: "Today is truly a double celebration."

"What else is there for my lord to do?"

"To be honest, I have already arranged a marriage, and I need to ask someone to issue the marriage certificate."

Chapter Twenty, Tenfold Profit

To be honest, Qingluan was originally worried all the time that her husband would one day officially get married...

She couldn't stop it. Marriage is a major life event that no one can escape, and given her status, there was absolutely no way she could become the principal wife—according to the "Household and Marriage Law," "anyone who takes a concubine or a guest's daughter as a wife, or a maid as a concubine, shall be sentenced to one and a half years of penal servitude." Even if Zou Qingluan were the principal wife, without sufficient reason, she couldn't stop her husband from taking a concubine, let alone prevent the principal wife from entering the household by using a concubine as a pretext.

However, it is precisely because it cannot be stopped that we are especially worried.

Fortunately, she had just received a pregnancy test today, which meant she would likely have someone to rely on for the rest of her life. Li Ji's suggestion that she wanted to get married at this time was indeed less of a shock to Qingluan. Although she was still somewhat unhappy, which dampened her joy at being pregnant, she still managed to force a smile: "In that case, congratulations, sir. May I ask which family's young lady she is?"

Li Ji bluntly stated: "It's the same person who came disguised as a man the previous two times..."

Qingluan was secretly startled, thinking to herself, "My premonition was right after all; that raccoon spirit really is having an affair with my husband!" She hurriedly asked, "Just who is she?"

I thought to myself, if our status and social standing are not a good match, even if it angers my husband, I must speak kindly and persuade him to stop me.

"To be honest, she was going to see the daughter of that Master Cui today."

Qingluan was speechless. The Cui family of Boling was a prestigious clan, renowned throughout the land. It was said that even the imperial family dared to refuse marriage proposals from them. Therefore, for her young master to marry a woman of the Cui family would bring great honor to the clan. Moreover, she knew that "Lord Cui"—he held the official position of Junior Guardian of the Crown Prince, wore a purple robe and a gold fish-shaped pouch, and was a direct descendant of a prominent branch of the Boling Cui family, not some distant branch that had separated hundreds of years ago. Such a marriage was something others would beg for; how could they possibly turn it down?

However, I couldn't help but ask, "Since she's from a prominent family, how could Master Cui allow her to come out dressed as a man?" I thought such a large family should have strict rules and noble traditions...

Li Ji casually replied, "She is naturally active, and Lord Cui loves her so he doesn't strictly forbid it... Besides, this place is more open than other places, and it's not uncommon for women to dress as men."

It was indeed not uncommon, but that was before the Tianbao Rebellion, when Chang'an was a bustling city, and even young ladies from noble families couldn't resist going out shopping often, so they often wore men's clothing for convenience. In recent years, however, this situation has become extremely rare.

He then asked Qingluan, "Do you know how to write this marriage certificate?"

In his previous life, Li Ji studied history and the customs of various dynasties, but he was still completely clueless about the Tang Dynasty. The Tang Dynasty was unlike any other dynasty in his timeline, heavily influenced by foreign cultures, leading to significant communication and integration between the Han and non-Han peoples—frankly, Li Ji wasn't opposed to this kind of ethnic fusion. Having been here for seven years, Li Ji had gradually gained a general understanding of contemporary customs, but when it came to marriage rites… he had never inquired about them before, and his original body's memories also lacked this knowledge.

All he knew was that marriage required a marriage contract and a matchmaker.

Fortunately, Qingluan knew quite a bit about this, and immediately explained it to Li Ji in detail—the matter was quite complicated, and it wasn't as simple as just finding a matchmaker.

While commoners often don't have the luxury of elaborate wedding ceremonies, Li Ji was, after all, an official, and the woman's family was of even higher status. Even if they wanted to save money, they probably couldn't skip too many procedures.

Therefore, according to etiquette, after the marriage was agreed upon, the first thing to do was to consult the oracle and then determine the date for sending the marriage certificate—which is equivalent to registering the marriage at the civil affairs bureau and getting a marriage certificate in later generations. Although many people still consider holding a wedding ceremony to formally establish the marital relationship, more particular families would also choose an auspicious day to get the certificate.

The matchmaker plays a crucial role in this process. Although Cui Guangyuan has already agreed to the marriage and may be able to skip the first step, the matchmaker's name will still be recorded in the marriage agreement and is indispensable. As for delivering the marriage agreement, the matchmaker does not need to be present. Instead, two talented and handsome young men from the family—preferably with official positions—must be selected to act as messengers and deputy messengers, and the betrothal gifts will be sent to the bride's family together.

The third step is to choose an auspicious day for the wedding.

Li Ji frowned, thinking to himself, "This is troublesome. I have no relatives in Chang'an..."

The closest relationship was naturally with Li Qiyun. To be honest, given his caliber, he was the most suitable person to approach the Cui family. However, Li Qiyun had already taken up a post elsewhere, and neither his son Li Laopeng nor his nephew Li Moyan were commoners. Li Ji originally considered that he needed a matchmaker and could ask Ma Sui for help. The only civil official he could ask for help from was Ma Xunmei.

But nowadays, not only do we need matchmakers, but also messengers and deputy messengers. I know quite a few high-ranking officials, but I can't think of anyone I can actually ask in this short time.

He unconsciously stroked his beard, frowning and remaining silent.

Qingluan understood her meaning, and lowered her voice to suggest, "Since you know a certain noble person, why not ask for their help?"

Upon hearing this, Li Ji suddenly understood and couldn't resist hugging Qingluan and giving her a kiss. He then ran to his study, wrote a note, and had the old gatekeeper deliver it to Li Shi.

That night, Li Shi visited, and upon meeting him, he smiled and asked, "Has Changwei finally decided to get married?" He then inquired, "May I ask which family's daughter she is?"

"Daughter of Cui Guangyuan".

Li Shi frowned: "I know Cui Guangyuan, he has two sons and two daughters... but aren't his two daughters already married? Does Changwei intend to marry a widow? I've never heard of any of them having lost their husbands..."

Li Ji replied, "Your Highness, please don't make wild guesses. To tell you the truth, it was the Cui Qi that Your Highness met the other day..." He then recounted to Li Shi how Cui Guangyuan had summoned him and how he had recognized Cui Qi as his daughter.

Li Shi stroked his beard and pondered for a long time before asking, "Changwei, is it true or false that you said Cui Qi is Cui Guangyuan's illegitimate daughter?"

Li Ji smiled and said, "I don't care if it's true or not, I just care that I have a wife to marry."

Li Shi curled his lip: "That's true... Regardless of whether it was a spur-of-the-moment decision or just to curry favor with me through you, Cui Guangyuan's days are numbered anyway. But... I've seen Cui Qigu, and he's not handsome at all. Does Changwei only like women with such slender figures?"

Li Ji said solemnly, "Your Highness, everyone is attracted to beauty, but I love true feelings."

Li Shi chuckled and patted Li Ji on the shoulder: "Not bad, marrying a wife for virtue and taking a concubine for beauty—that's something you, Li Changwei, would do." He then waved his hand and said, "I can't be the matchmaker, but I can ask someone to help you."

He paused for a moment, then said, "You should get married as soon as possible so that you can settle down and focus on the matters within the palace."

Upon hearing this, Li Ji frowned: "Could there be some unforeseen event in the Forbidden City?"

Li Shi's expression darkened: "The sage's body is growing weaker day by day..."

----------

The matchmaker chosen by Li Shi for Li Ji was Yang Wan, a secretary in the Imperial Secretariat.

Grand Secretary Yang was highly respected and had a good impression of Li Ji because of his rescue of Wei Hao. Li Qiyun had even considered marrying Grand Secretary Yang's daughter to Li Ji before. There was no need for any trouble; he would simply act as a matchmaker, and Grand Secretary Yang would have no reason to refuse.

The marriage certificate was originally to be written by the groom's parents, but Li Ji was not only orphaned, but also had no elder relatives in the capital. Therefore, Grand Secretary Yang took on this important task and wrote it in a meticulous and neat small regular script in the style of Chu Suiliang on a gold-painted red paper:

"Yang Wan, Imperial Secretary and Compiler of the National History, writes: My junior, Li Ji, Chief Secretary of the valiant Army, is of marriageable age but unmarried. I have heard of the virtuous and graceful third daughter of Chengxian, who possesses all four virtues. I wish to seek her hand in marriage. I respectfully request her through my matchmaker, Mr. Yang. If you do not grant my request, I await your kind decision."

After the book was completed, it was handed over to Li Zuan, the secretary, and Li Zhen, the assistant director of the Ministry of War's Carriage Department, along with appropriate betrothal gifts, and sent to the Cui residence with horses in front and carriages behind, accompanied by music and fanfare.

Li Zuan and Li Zhen were brothers, the former just over thirty and the latter only a year younger, yet they were already holding important positions such as Secretary and Assistant Secretary, making them among the most promising young talents in the capital. However, they were not from the Zhao County Li clan—currently, there were very few Zhao County Li officials in the capital, with Li Ji himself holding the highest rank—but rather from the Longxi Li clan. Their father was Li Mian, the Inspector of Shannan West Circuit, and a great-grandson of Prince Zheng Hui, Li Yuanyi.

In other words, these two were actually distant relatives of the imperial clan.

Because a suitable envoy could not be found among the Li clan of Zhao County, Li Shi simply changed his name to the Li clan of Longxi—although the former originated from the Zhao general Li Mu and the latter from the Qin general Li Xin, but… going back another five hundred years, they might still be from the same family. Moreover, Emperor Xianzu Li Xi and Emperor Yizu Li Tianxi of the Tang Dynasty were both buried in Guang'a, Zhao County, so there were rumors among the people that the Li Tang imperial family was not actually of the Longxi lineage (this can be basically concluded), but originated from Zhao County, or even from a commoner surname in Guang'a.

In short, those with the same surname can be considered family, and it's believed that the Cui family won't dwell on such a trivial matter. It would be much more respectable to properly hire two sixth-rank officials as messengers than to bring in two commoners from the Zhao County Li clan (such as Li Laopeng and Li Guayan).

The betrothal gifts were not very generous, including brocade, plain silk, coins, pigs and sheep, noodles, fruits and vegetables, soy sauce and vinegar, etc., which cost less than six thousand coins in total. Well, if it were during the prosperous Tianbao era, it would probably have cost five hundred coins.

The letter and gifts were delivered to the Cui residence. Cui Ju, acting on behalf of Cui Guangyuan, wrote a reply, saying:

“The Junior Guardian of the Crown Prince, Cui Guangyuan, writes: My third daughter is still young and has not yet mastered etiquette. The magistrate of Chengxian is currently unmarried and, considering the possibility of a good match, wishes to entrust her to your assistance. I respectfully entrust this matter to Yang Wan, the Secretary of the Imperial Secretariat and Compiler of the National History, and dare not disobey.”

Then they loaded more than ten carts full of valuables and sent them back to the Li residence.

Li Ji first unfolded the marriage proposal and read it, thinking to himself that it was all platitudes—he had spent the last few days inquiring about marriage customs and etiquette, making sure he hadn't studied them thoroughly—it was clear that Cui Ju's intentions were insincere, but he couldn't disobey his father's orders, so he was just giving a perfunctory answer. Take, for example, those four words, "still young and just past her prime"...

Li Ji had calculated that Cui Qi's mother became pregnant in the 27th year of the Kaiyuan era, so Cui Qi would be born no later than the 28th year. The little girl was 23 years old this year—only one year younger than him. According to custom, girls would have their coming-of-age ceremony at the age of 15, so it had been almost 10 years since then!

Looking at Cui's dowry, the first thing was a contract that transferred the Pingkangfang villa and its twenty-three male and female servants to Li Ji—which was ultimately included in the dowry. As for the other silks and coins, Qingluan roughly estimated that they were worth more than 50,000 coins!

Li Ji hosted a banquet to thank the Li brothers, and naturally sent someone to invite Yang Wan as well. However, Yang Wan declined, citing busy official duties—presumably because he had little to say to the three younger men, and thus this Grand Secretary Yang, who never liked crowds, simply avoided the event. When Li Ji returned home after the banquet, he found Qingluan's hands still trembling.

"As expected of a wealthy and powerful family! Not only is the dowry tens of thousands of coins, but they also offer a separate residence as a gift. It's like paying one time and getting ten times the benefit!" Qingluan couldn't help but worry about her husband. "With such a noble lady entering the family, how will your husband control her? Don't let a hen crowing at dawn..."

Li Ji understood her worries and immediately put his arm around Qingluan, laughing, "Don't worry, no matter how noble the Cui family is, with me here, she would never dare to mistreat you."

Qingluan thought to herself, "I wish I had been more polite to Miss Cui the last two times she came..."

Just then, Kang Lian's voice came from outside the door: "Young master, there is...a guest who requests an audience."

"who?"

Upon going outside, they saw Kang Lian standing in the courtyard with a burly man. When Li Ji came out, the burly man bowed deeply and said, "I am grateful to Chief Secretary Li for saving this young Kang and preventing the Kang family line from dying out."

Upon closer inspection, it was indeed Yuan Jing'an, the Overlord of Yuan. Li Ji's initial impression of Yuan Jing'an was quite good—although he was a civil official, he held a military post in reality and naturally liked those burly, strong men who looked like they could fight—but later, when Yuan Jing'an claimed to have entered the "Inspection Hall" and even brought up Li Fuguo's name to intimidate people, he became disgusted; however, considering that Yuan Jing'an had taken the initiative to ask him for help on behalf of the Kang family, all past grievances could be forgiven.

So he smiled and waved his hand, "Get up. You didn't come here just to thank me, did you?"

Kang Lian has been under your household for several months now, and you're only arriving now?

Yuan Jing'an stood up and smiled somewhat awkwardly: "To be honest, I came here to ask Chief Secretary Li for a meal." He then patted his chest: "I am well-versed in all kinds of etiquette, including weddings and funerals. I heard that Chief Secretary Li is about to get married, so I came to offer my assistance."

Upon hearing this, Li Ji frowned slightly: "Doesn't the censorate pay you a salary?"

Yuan Jing'an said with a wry smile, "How could I, a lowly person, be paid for wandering the streets and alleys inquiring about matters concerning you, sir? I only receive a few coins as a reward occasionally, which is hardly enough to make a living..."

With Kang Lian explaining, Li Ji finally understood that although the "Inspection Hall" had a notorious reputation, it was actually a makeshift operation with an extremely simple structure. The people in charge were called "Inspectors," and there were only six or seven of them, who had no official rank or grade and were still outside the official ranks. Li Fuguo used them to house the relatives of his wives and concubines. As for those who investigated the private affairs of officials and commoners, such as Yuan Jing'an, there were about a hundred of them, all of whom were idle men from the streets and had no official positions; they were essentially temporary workers.

The "Inspection Office" naturally had funding, but most of it went into the pockets of the "inspectors." As for the subordinates, they would only receive a reward of five or ten coins after they uncovered some intelligence and reported it. They would only be rewarded more if they extorted money from relevant officials and the people and made a fortune.

Unfortunately, Yuan Jing'an still had a conscience and refused to excessively harm the innocent. He would only inquire about trivial matters and give perfunctory answers, simply to maintain his reputation and ensure that no one in the neighborhood dared to mess with him. Therefore, he was truly so poor that he had nothing to eat!

Previously, the Kang family would occasionally provide some assistance out of consideration for their shared neighborhood, but now that avenue has been severed...

Li Ji truly regretted that Yuan Jing'an, with his muscular physique, had not received proper guidance. Moreover, he saw that the man was honest and kind at heart. Therefore, after thinking for a moment, he said, "If you are willing to leave the Chashi Hall, you can work for me." Clearly, the so-called "work" was not just about helping with this wedding.

Yuan Jing'an immediately bowed deeply: "If I could get Li Changshi's help, who would bother going to the censor's office again!"

Chapter Twenty-One, Follow Me

In the middle of the third month of the lunar calendar (Jianchen month), Guo Ziyi returned to Chang'an to receive the imperial edict. At that time, Emperor Li Heng was unwell and had not summoned his ministers for more than half a month, causing some rumors in the court. Therefore, Guo Ziyi requested, "This old minister has received the order and will die in the field. If I cannot see Your Majesty, I will die with my eyes open!"

Li Heng then summoned Guo Ziyi to the Hall of Longevity, lay on his sickbed, held his hand, and said, "I entrust the affairs of Hedong entirely to you."

After Guo Ziyi left the palace, all the officials came to inquire about his health. Ziyi said, "His Majesty is indeed not in good health. Seeing him makes one sad and weep..." The implication was: Don't worry, the emperor is still alive.

Not long after Guo Ziyi's departure, Li Fuguo claimed to have obtained an imperial edict from Li Heng, appointing Tao Rui, the Minister of Agriculture, as the Prefect of Jingzhao, and dismissing Xiao Hua from his position as Chancellor. It is said that Li Fuguo had been slandering Xiao Hua for more than a day. Li Heng, who was ill and unable to think clearly, was finally annoyed by Li Fuguo and said, "You may have your way. However, Xiao Hua is loyal and honest. Even if he is not made Chancellor, he should not be demoted to a remote post."

Therefore, Xiao Hua was dismissed from his post as Minister of Rites, and Yuan Zai was appointed as Chancellor and then transferred to the Council of State Affairs as Prime Minister.

After hearing about these things, Li Ji instinctively felt that the old eunuch was making preparations... But what were the Empress's faction's plans? Since it involved the palace, he couldn't find out anything.

Everyone knew that the emperor's days were numbered... But unexpectedly, the following month was the fourth month of the lunar calendar, on the day of Jia Yin, Li Heng was still hiding when suddenly it was reported that the retired emperor Li Longji in the western palace had passed away!

After Li Longji was moved to the Taiji Palace in the Western Palace, he was like a prisoner. Not only could he no longer contact officials, but the Taiji Palace was also in disrepair, so there were not many places for him to wander around. As a result, he spent his days either leaning on his cane and sighing or holding Yang Guifei's relics and weeping... He eventually passed away at the age of seventy-eight.

Of course, there was no concept of a "joyful funeral" in the royal family. According to etiquette, the emperor should personally go to the Taiji Palace to lead the officials in mourning the passing of the retired emperor. However, Li Heng was unable to rise at all, so he simply moved his throne from the Daming Palace to the Taiji Hall of the Taiji Palace, representing his presence, while he himself offered condolences in the Eastern Palace. Led by the prime ministers, the officials all knelt and bowed in the Taiji Hall to express their grief. It is said that more than four hundred officials, following the customs of the Hu people, wept with their faces shaved, and some even cut off their own ears with knives.

Ultimately, the old tiger still wielded considerable power; after more than forty years as emperor, no one dared to underestimate him. Li Ji vaguely felt that Li Heng's use of Li Fuguo to imprison his own father in the Western Palace was, in fact, a helpless and unavoidable act... Ultimately, kinship is kinship, and politics is politics, and politics often cannot be based on kinship.

He had already moved into his residence in Pingkangfang and wanted to return the old house to Li Shi, but Li Shi refused and simply rented it out. Originally, when discussing the wedding date with the Cui family, Li Ji wanted it to be as soon as possible—he feared Cui Guangyuan might die—but Cui Ju seemed to be intentionally or unintentionally delaying it. Meanwhile, a fortune teller was consulted, and it was determined that there was no auspicious time in February or March, so they simply postponed it until April. They were busily preparing wedding supplies and inviting guests, but unexpectedly, Cui Guangyuan continued to hold on, while Li Longji died first…