Today in Shangyuan, the Emperor and Empress were watching the lanterns on the city gate tower. The pressure under the palace was self-evident. The Commander of the Imperial Guards was tense. Suddenly, a subordinate ran over and reported that someone wanted to leave the palace.
When the Commander of the Imperial Guards heard that someone wanted to leave the palace, he frowned. Who was this master? Did he think that the palace was his own back garden? How could he treat the safety of the Forbidden Palace as a joke? But after hearing the person's name, the Commander of the Imperial Guards frowned even more. He was stunned for a moment, then turned around and personally opened the door for that person.
Mu Mingtang followed Hsieh Hyun-chen out of the palace. She saw the layers of sentries around her and lamented that the Emperor was indeed an extremely cautious person. She could see his style of doing things just by looking at how strict the checks were.
Mu Mingtang quietly looked around. Hsieh Hyun-chen noticed Mu Mingtang's movements. As he walked, he pointed to the sentries on both sides and explained to Mu Mingtang, "These are the Imperial Guards. They are all flag officers in the army. They are incorporated into the Beiwei Army and serve in front of the Emperor. They don't belong to any branch and only listen to the Emperor's orders. That's why they are called the Imperial Guards. They usually guard the palace and are in charge of etiquette and guarding during celebrations. Just like today, they are in charge of the Emperor's safety. "
Mu Mingtang didn't quite understand. She asked, "The Emperor is on the city gate tower right now. Can they let people in and out of the city gate?"
"Of course not. There are no restrictions in the three days of Shangyuan, but the restrictions must be locked as usual. At this time, the palace gate is already locked. Besides, they still have to protect the Emperor. "
Thus, Mu Mingtang listened to Hsieh Hyun-chen talk about how strict the restrictions were and how no one could enter or leave. She also had someone open the palace gate and led her out.
Mu Mingtang clicked her tongue in disdain in her heart.
It was too sinful to have privilege.
After Hsieh Hyun-chen left the palace, many people were nervous. When he came out, he had already brought a large group of guards. Now that the Emperor had spoken, the Imperial Guards actually allocated another group of guards to him. Right now, they were walking on the streets with armor paving the way in a grandiose manner. It was truly extremely arrogant.
Mu Mingtang blended into the crowd and was quickly infected by the festive atmosphere. They excitedly looked at the lights. Today, the streets were lit up with lanterns. The shops on both sides of the street also hung up colorful lanterns. It was very lively. In addition to the lights, the hawkers on the street were not to be outdone. They used all kinds of novel tricks to attract customers. Mu Mingtang had only walked a short distance when he stopped several times to look at the stalls curiously.
Mu Mingtang saw another family of sugar figurines along the way. He excitedly tugged at Hsieh Hyun-chen. "Look, sugar figurines! I haven't even taken a bite of the candy figurine. Let's buy another one. "
It would have been better if she did not mention it. When she did, Hsieh Hyun-chen coldly snorted and said, "You haven't even taken a bite. You gave it away."
Mu Mingtang found it funny. He forcefully pulled Hsieh Hyun-chen to the side. "Alright, I shouldn't have done that. I'll treat you this time. Is that okay?"
Hsieh Hyun-chen half-heartedly followed them. A group of Imperial Guards followed behind Prince An and Princess An. Their stiff armor was already out of place with their surroundings. Now that they were holding colorful trinkets in their hands, the scene became even more strange. They watched as Hsieh Hyun-chen and the Princess went to buy the sugar figurines. They looked at each other and saw a trace of suspicion.
What was Prince An trying to do? Was he trying to create a diversion or was he trying to blind them?
Mu Mingtang did not care about the group of big men behind her. She and Hsieh Hyun-chen surrounded the sugar figurine stall and excitedly chose the patterns of the sugar figurines. Mu Mingtang's zodiac was monkey. However, she had already bought a monkey earlier. Mu Mingtang did not want another monkey. She looked for a while and turned to ask Hsieh Hyun-chen. "Your zodiac is dragon?"
"Yes." Hsieh Hyun-chen nodded. He and Mu Mingtang were four years apart. One of the zodiac signs was dragon and the other was monkey.
Mu Mingtang suddenly came to a realization. "Oh." She said, "Chen Long, no wonder your name is Xuan Chen. You've even thought about this. "
Hsieh Hyun-chen heard and just shook his head indifferently. "Who knows. Maybe my father saw that I was born in the year of the dragon so he named me Chen. If that's the case, then it's similar to your Tang. "
Mu Mingtang silently shook her head. She knew her father very well. Hsieh Hyun-chen's name was definitely a coincidence. However, her name was really something her father thought of.
Mu Mingtang was inspired and quickly said to the stall owner, "I want a dragon figurine." After she finished speaking, she turned to look at Hsieh Hyun-chen. "What about you?"
Hsieh Hyun-chen thought for a while and also said, "Then I want a Haitang figurine."
Mu Mingtang was surprised. "You can make this?"
Hsieh Hyun-chen looked at the stall owner. "Can't I?"
Although his tone was calm, the look in his eyes was enough to scare people. The stall owner did not dare to say no. He hurriedly nodded. "Yes, yes."
Hsieh Hyun-chen nodded with satisfaction and answered Mu Mingtang's question. "You see, you can make it."
After Hsieh Hyun-chen finished speaking, he raised his eyebrows and looked at the stall owner. "Don't just make a flower to fool me. It must look like a real Haitang figurine."
The stall owner was so scared that he did not know how to speak. He only knew how to nod. In his nervousness, the stall owner was actually quick-witted. He knew that he should make Mu Mingtang's first. Mu Mingtang was the first to get the sugar figurine. She looked at the transparent and shiny dragon figurine in front of her and sighed. "It's so well made. I can't bear to eat it."
At this time, Hsieh Hyun-chen also got his Haitang flower. He looked at the sugar figurine in front of him and turned it around twice. He looked at the stall owner with suspicion. "Are you really not fooling me?"
"Langjun, I am innocent. I really did make Haitang figurine."
Mu Mingtang stood next to him. He had already bitten off the dragon's whiskers. When he heard Hsieh Hyun-chen's words, he replied, "Yes, that is Haitang figurine."
Hsieh Hyun-chen lowered his head and stared at the Haitang figurine made of sugar. His expression became more and more confused. Was there really a difference? Why couldn't he see it?
After the two of them got their things, they signaled the imperial guards behind them to pay. The owner of the candy figurine stall received a large sum of money and immediately beamed with joy.
Although the beautiful Langjun was hard to please, he was very generous with his rewards. The income they earned from this single order was more than the stall owner's night.
Mu Mingtang held the sugar figurine and walked for a while. He elbowed Hsieh Hyun-chen next to him and asked, "What is that?"
Hsieh Hyun-chen looked up and saw that someone was performing illusions. There was a potted tree behind the man. The tree was covered with colorful lights. He kept shouting to the people around him to attract people. Then, he muttered something. After a while, fruits grew out of the branches.
Mu Mingtang was confused and asked Hsieh Hyun-chen, "How did he do it?"
"I don't know." Hsieh Hyun-chen also looked for a while and answered truthfully. Mu Mingtang glanced at him helplessly. "You said you were not outdated. Look, you also don't know what is popular now."
Hsieh Hyun-chen was speechless this time. He really did seem to be outdated. He didn't understand the new tricks in Tokyo. Hsieh Hyun-chen thought about it and agreed. The Tokyo he remembered was before he was 15 years old. After he was forced to join the army at the age of 15, he was either busy fighting wars or usurping the throne. He didn't pay attention to the entertainment in the capital.
The dried branches in the winter attracted many people. After the stall owner had attracted enough attention, he finally changed the topic and started to recommend his own medicinal plasters to the onlookers. Mu Mingtang understood and faintly felt disillusioned.
So it was to buy medicinal plasters.
Both of them were speechless and tacitly continued to walk forward.
They walked and stopped and unknowingly walked for a long time. During this time, the walk was much longer than usual, but Mu Mingtang didn't feel tired. It was even more relaxing than listening to the Empress Dowager talk in the palace.
Her interest didn't decrease. When she passed by a lantern riddle stall, she suddenly became interested in guessing the riddles. Mu Mingtang took a fancy to a beautiful palace lantern. The workmanship was very elegant, but she could only take it away if she guessed the riddle correctly.
Mu Mingtang could only stop thinking. Hsieh Hyun-chen walked behind Mu Mingtang and glanced at the lantern. "If you like it, then buy it. Why bother thinking?"
What kind of words were these? Mu Mingtang glared at Hsieh Hyun-chen and said, "No. If we can't guess it, then we'll look like idiots."
Mu Mingtang's tone was like a private school teacher lecturing a good-for-nothing student who didn't work hard. Hsieh Hyun-chen blinked and glanced at the lantern again. He sighed helplessly and said, "Alright."
As he spoke, he gave the lantern stall's shopkeeper an answer. The shopkeeper was shocked and puzzled. He stared blankly for a moment before hurriedly coming out to get the lantern for Hsieh Hyun-chen.
Hsieh Hyun-chen casually stuffed the palace lantern into Mu Mingtang's hands. Mu Mingtang was shocked by this development. She stared blankly and turned her head to look at Hsieh Hyun-chen in disbelief. "You knew?"
"I just guessed."
Mu Mingtang was stunned for a moment. She sadly realized that she had been abandoned. The companions she thought were not companions. She was the only idiot present.
Mu Mingtang was incomparably sad and angry. In the end, she vented her anger on Hsieh Hyun-chen. "Since you guessed it, why did you say you wanted to buy it?"
"I really did plan to buy it directly. Later, you said you wanted to guess the riddles, so I took a look."
Unexpectedly, Mu Mingtang heard this and became even angrier. She angrily glared at Hsieh Hyun-chen and said, "Shut up. I don't want to hear it."
Hsieh Hyun-chen felt very wronged. Although he practiced martial arts in the army and was famous for his fighting strength, he himself did not have the patience to recite the wind and play the moon. However, he was also taught by a private tutor from a young age. His foundation in literature was not bad.
It was just that he was not famous.
If he wanted to blame someone, he could only blame his appearance for being too handsome and his martial arts for being too abrupt.
Mu Mingtang was carefree. Wherever she went, there were people carrying things and accompanying beautiful women. Mu Mingtang's shopping experience was very pleasant. However, on the other hand, the Imperial Guards behind her did not have a pleasant experience.
They swayed back and forth between relaxation and vigilance, constantly trying to figure out what Prince An wanted to do. It was not until one night had passed that each of them carried things of various sizes in their hands. All of them were the elite Imperial Guards of the army. Finally, they could confirm that Prince An came out to accompany the Princess to shop and win the favor of women.
It was a truth that was filled with despair and anger.
Mu Mingtang was hungry from shopping. She saw someone buying chestnuts on the side of the road. She pulled Hsieh Hyun-chen's sleeve and did not say anything. Hsieh Hyun-chen understood. The two of them were crossing the street. At this time, a cart suddenly passed by behind them. For some reason, the axle of the cart had a problem and it directly crashed into a stall on the side. The goods scattered on the ground and blocked the entire road.
The force of the collision was so great that the lanterns on the railings fell. The lanterns were made of paper. When the lanterns were lit, they immediately caught fire.
Immediately, the surrounding area was filled with the sound of putting out the fire. Because the city was densely populated, fires occurred frequently. Every household had water, and every neighborhood had a special well to put out the fire. It was just one lantern. With so many people watching, it was quickly put out.
This small fire was not a problem. On the contrary, it caused a huge commotion. After the cart and the stall collided, the road was blocked. It happened to block the Imperial Guards behind Hsieh Hyun-chen and Mu Mingtang. After that, the crowd shouted that there was a fire. Many people ran out, but there were also many people who came to put out the fire with water. The scene was very chaotic.
No matter how powerful the Imperial Guards were, they did not have wings. There were too many people during the Lantern Festival. It was so crowded that not even a drop of water could trickle through. The leader of the Imperial Guards watched helplessly as Prince An and Princess An were blocked by the crowd. When they rushed over, they could not see them anymore.
The Imperial Guards' expressions immediately changed.
In fact, if Mu Mingtang heard the Imperial Guards' thoughts, she would definitely cry out that she was innocent. This time, they were really just here to shop. They did not have any other plans. Even the sudden congestion on the streets just now was not caused by them.
She just did not know if the Imperial Guards and the Emperor would believe her.
When Mu Mingtang and Hsieh Hyun-chen noticed that the cart brushed past them and directly hit the roadside stall, they knew that something was wrong. The lantern behind them was on fire. Many people ran out. The stall selling chestnuts saw that something was wrong and hurriedly shouted in their ears, "There's a fire. Run!"
Hsieh Hyun-chen and Mu Mingtang were pushed out by the crowd. Just like that, they left the line of sight of the Imperial Guards.
When they finally reached a more spacious area, they had already merged into another street. The chestnut vendor wiped the sweat on his forehead and sighed as if he had just survived a disaster, "Fortunately, we ran out. Fortunately, it was just a false alarm."
The vendor said with a simple smile. He looked at Mu Mingtang and Hsieh Hyun-chen innocently, "One who survives a great disaster is bound to have good fortune later. Husband and wife, you wanted to buy chestnuts just now, right? This little one has an affinity with you. How about this, no matter how much you buy, this little one will give you a 30% discount. "
Hsieh Hyun-chen looked at the vendor with an inexplicable smile. Mu Mingtang did not panic at all. He even sighed in his heart.
How naive. Mu Mingtang guessed that they had been targeted for a long time. Perhaps these people had already been tempted when they were in Xuande Square.
After all, Hsieh Hyun-chen and Mu Mingtang came directly from the palace. Even an ignorant child could guess that they were either rich or noble.
It must have been hard for them to follow them all the way. Perhaps these people were certain that Hsieh Hyun-chen's identity was not low and that he was indeed a member of the imperial family. That was why they decided to make a move. Even more unfortunately, Hsieh Hyun-chen's beautiful and innocent appearance probably gave them the wrong idea. They actually made the decision to lead the Imperial Guards away and leave Hsieh Hyun-chen and Mu Mingtang alone.
Mu Mingtang felt a little pity for the person in front of him. Did they think that the group of burly Imperial Guards was there to protect Hsieh Hyun-chen?
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