Li Yijie flew into a rage and said, "Cheng Jiaxuan, don't make slanderous accusations against me! You know best in your heart what kind of shameful things you have done. I am giving you face by concealing it in front of Noble Consort Yun; otherwise, I would have dragged you out and beaten you to death a long time ago. Let me be clear, this is your warning to me, and now I am returning it to you. Don't refuse a toast only to be forced to drink a forfeit … "He wanted to say that when Cheng Jiaxuan was carrying out his mission, he used the Afterimage Sword to indiscriminately slaughter innocent people on various mountaintops.
Xuan Shuang coughed and coldly said, "Li Yijie, who do you think you are to bully a girl in public? To put it bluntly, you are just working for our family. If you don't want to teach me, fine, I don't want to learn from you even more. You can resign. In any case, you are not His Majesty's Shaotutor, and my mother didn't pay you any extra salary! "
Li Yijie anxiously said, "Who said I don't want to teach you? No matter how many martial arts a master has, if the disciple refuses to learn, how can you force them into his head? "Xuan Shuang said," If you can't force them into his head, just say so. It's your incompetence. Don't make things difficult for Xiao Xuan. "
Only then did Li Yijie understand. Cheng Jiaxuan had been bullied by him outside, so he was unwilling to accept it. Now that he had returned to the Palace, he was like a fish back in water. He must have said a lot of bad things about him to Xuan Shuang. Xuan Shuang had always spoiled him. No matter whether he was right or wrong, he would always support him. He himself had become the bad guy baring his fangs and brandishing his claws. He sighed and said, "Noble Consort Yun, regarding Xiao Xuan's actions, I don't think you know about it. Originally, I wanted to report it to you, but now it seems that perhaps there is no need. "
Lu Qian laughed and said, "Don't, Brother Li, don't keep it in your heart. If you don't spit it out, you won't be happy! Tell us, and we'll help you solve it. "
Li Yijie knew that Lu Qian's words were nothing more than adding fuel to the fire, but at least it gave him a bit of arrogance. Just as he was about to speak, Shen Shiyun interrupted, "Minister Li, ben gong originally didn't want to talk about this matter. Since you took the initiative to bring it up, let's talk about it clearly. Let me ask you first. I heard that you've intentionally restricted Xiao Xuan's freedom and forced her to follow you from morning to night. She's not allowed to leave even half a step. Even when they were eating and sleeping, you had to watch over them? Hmph, you're treating her like a criminal. Who gave you the right to do that? "
Cheng Jiaxuan hurriedly took the opportunity to cry out, "That's right. If it weren't for Li Yijie looking for trouble, this servant wouldn't have delayed niangniang's mission. He himself is clumsy, so he wants everyone to accompany him in his incompetence. Only then will he feel at ease. "
Li Yijie was at a disadvantage to answer after this sentence, but if he delayed for too long, it would only make him look more guilty. He had no choice but to respond, "That's right, but there's a reason for that …"
Shen Shiyun didn't allow him to finish and coldly interrupted, "That's enough. It's enough that you're willing to admit it. There's no need to quibble. Minister Li, it seems that ben gong has indulged you too much and allowed you to have your own freedom for so many years. That's why you're so arrogant and condescending. Xiao Xuan may have a thousand faults, but she's still ben gong's maidservant. You treating her like this is disregarding my face. As the saying goes, even if you hit a dog, you should … "
Xuan Shuang interrupted, "It should be said that this Li Yijie even dared to touch niangniang's people. He doesn't put you in his eyes. He's simply too daring and guilty of the most heinous crimes!"
Li Yijie gritted his teeth and forced himself to be humble, "This servant is saying that niangniang handles matters fairly. You shouldn't just listen to Cheng Jiaxuan's one-sided words and make rash decisions. This servant … refuses to accept it. "
Lu Qian smiled and said, "It's not too one-sided. I was there at the time and saw it with my own eyes. Xiao Xuan's words are correct. I can testify for her."
Li Yijie's mind buzzed. He didn't want to pay attention to how many harsh words these people could say. He was secretly puzzled. Why was it that every time he was with Shen Shiyun, the people around her would try their best to belittle him? And they were all paired up, such as Luo Jin and Hu Wei in the past, or Xuan Shuang and Cheng Jiaxuan now. Lu Qian, on the other hand, was always changing sides. No matter which side he stood on, he didn't need to be included.
But where did this hostility come from? In his memory, he had never done anything to let them down. "Did you kill their entire family or dig up their ancestral graves?" Not only did he not do either, but on the contrary, they always greeted him with a smile. They were as friendly as they could be. It was simply inexplicable.
His eyes were fixed on the stage. The performers had already put on heavy makeup and began to sing. He didn't know when the play started, nor did he know what they were singing. He couldn't make out a single line of the play. But from the looks of it, it seemed to be a martial arts play on the battlefield.
The older performer had a big beard stuck on his face. His hands were trembling as he sang passionately. His voice was hoarse, and the drums next to him were playing in unison. To Li Yijie, it was like playing the lute to a cow. Unfortunately, he was that old cow who didn't understand.
He sat there absent-mindedly for a long time. Suddenly, he heard a eunuch report, "Tang Shaoshi has arrived …" He immediately turned his head and saw a group of eunuchs and several officials in front of them. They were all clustered around a young official wearing a high-ranking official's uniform and a black gauze hat.
With just a glance, Li Yijie recognized that it was Tang Yuancheng. Right now he was smiling modestly and said, "Today lowly official was reading a travelogue written by Mr. Lin Chuan. It was related to the way of being a person. My heart was touched and I wrote a calligraphy piece. I was in a trance and did not notice. If it were not for Xiao Rongzi's announcement, I would have missed Prince Fu's birthday celebration. I am really guilty. "
Several other officials laughed and said, "Tang Shaoshi was so engrossed in reading that he forgot to eat" and so on. While they were talking, Tang Yuancheng arrived in front of him. Li Yijie felt that Tang Yuancheng's appearance and speech were poles apart from the past. His entire body was filled with the aura of an official. His every movement was filled with an air of nobility. He couldn't be mentioned in the same breath as the refined, elegant, refined and courteous scholar he first met.
He remembered that Tang Yuancheng's family was poor when he was young. He studied diligently since he was a child. He wholeheartedly wanted to become a high-ranking official. At that time, he didn't have any desire for fame or fortune. He only wanted to support his elderly grandmother. Later on, he really did become the Zhuangyuan. Because of Shen Shiyun's recommendation, and because Shunzhi made an exception to promote him, he directly became the Chancellor of the Hanlin Academy. Later on, he was promoted step by step. Now he was teaching the Xuan Shuang, and had become the Crown Prince's Shaoshi in advance.
As soon as he became an official, even his natural disposition became arrogant. He could not help but sigh inwardly that the times created people, and the environment changed people. Since ancient times, it had always been this way. But he wanted to break this custom. Tang Yuancheng was one of the few brothers in the Palace who treated him sincerely. He wanted to restore the closeness of the past. Taking the initiative to leave his seat, he stepped forward to greet Tang Yuancheng, "Yuancheng, you are here. Come and sit down."
Cheng Jiaxuan reprimanded him, "You have no manners! Tang Shaoshi's official position is above yours. You don't call him Tang Daren, but you call him by his name. You are blindly trying to worm your way into being friends with him. In the end, do you understand the order of seniority? Quickly apologize! "
Tang Yuancheng smiled and said, "The difference in the appellation is not enough to convict people. Actually, I must thank Miss Cheng for being considerate in all aspects. I haven't seen Lord Li for many days, presumably you have been running around outside and have been exhausted. It was a momentary slip of the tongue. Why don't we overlook it?
Li Yijie did not expect that after not having interacted with Tang Yuancheng for a long time, he also knew how to speak in a bureaucratic manner. Although his words were more pleasant than those of the Xuan Shuang and the others, the general contempt in his voice did not diminish in the slightest. He said in his heart, "You don't want to talk about old times with me, do you think I have to step forward to curry favor with you?" His temper flared up, he did not want to pay any more attention to him.
Tang Yuancheng said, "Daren, Subordinate Officer had better go and sit with Noble Consort Yun and Lord Baylor Ling and the others. Please excuse me for the time being, please don't blame me." The several officials snickered and said, "Who doesn't know that Tang Shaoshi was personally promoted by Noble Consort Yun? One day without seeing him is like three years." Tang Yuancheng tactfully responded with several sentences, and then he also went to the banquet table and sat next to the Xuan Shuang. Li Yijie was separated by him by another seat, he also sat further away from Shen Shiyun.
As soon as the Xuan Shuang and Cheng Jiaxuan saw Tang Yuancheng's arrival, they were even more excited. The Xuan Shuang laughed and said, "Er, Niang, actually it's not that son is stupid, Tang Shaoshi instructed me to study literature, I have remembered everything. If you don't believe me, a few days ago he taught me the 'Lie Zi Wen'? I have more or less understood the 'Tang Wen', why don't I explain it to you now? " Shen Shiyun said, "Tang Shaoshi reports to me every day about your study progress, how could it be that Bengong doesn't know? Not bad, you have indeed learned very well. "
Tang Yuancheng said, "Lord Baylor Ling is the Great Qing's future Crown Prince, his talent, knowledge, and intelligence are all far superior to Subordinate Officer's, his future achievements will be immeasurable. If you listen to Subordinate Officer's advice, don't fight over personal feelings, you'd better watch the big play on the stage, don't waste this rare opportunity to watch. I heard this opera troupe is quite famous in the capital, ordinary people want to invite them, but they can't. Now that I've heard their singing, it is indeed not bad. "
The Xuan Shuang was greatly proud of himself. "But the martial art Li Shifu taught me," he said, "I have studied hard for several months, but I still did not make any progress."
"Lord Baylor," Tang Yuancheng said, "Perhaps a ruler has its shortcomings and an inch has its strong points, or perhaps you were born to have achievements in the field of literature. In addition to studying martial arts, talent is also indispensable. For example, Subordinate Officer, although I often want to practice martial arts to protect my body, I am not born to do so. People say that there are three hundred and sixty professions, and every profession has its own master. Lord Baylor, there is no need to be too stubborn, if this path is blocked, you can find another way. Subordinate Officer will always help Lord achieve great things. Of course, Lord Li's martial art is very good, Subordinate Officer sincerely admires you, but perhaps I am not good at teaching disciples. "
Li Yijie humphed in his heart and said inwardly, "You really know how to talk, don't offend anyone?"
The Xuan Shuang signaled with his eyes, Cheng Jiaxuan understood and said, "Tang Shaoshi, no matter how deep the gold is buried, it will still be difficult to hide its brilliance. If you work hard, you can even take the position of Junior Tutor to the Crown Prince. We have confidence in you, you can definitely do it. " "Miss Cheng is making fun of me," Tang Yuancheng said, "Subordinate Officer can write some Chinese characters, or casually paint some prose, I can still make do with it. Speaking of martial art, I just said that I know nothing about it, I am not qualified to be Lord Baylor Ling's Shifu. "
"Don't worry," Cheng Jiaxuan said with a laugh, "Let me tell you this, Tang Shaoshi, no matter how well you teach, it won't be much different from the current situation, you can do whatever you want. Perhaps letting Lord Baylor relax a bit and explore on his own will have a different effect. " What he meant was that the martial art Li Yijie taught was not much different from that taught by someone who did not know any martial art.
Tang Yuancheng laughed and said, "Thank you very much for Miss Cheng's praise, but Subordinate Officer is a dutiful person. If you say that, aren't you asking me to steal Minister Li's rice bowl and make us enemies?" Cheng Jiaxuan said, "What are you afraid of? If he can't do it well, why won't others do it well? There is only one golden rice bowl, whoever can snatch it will depend on their own ability. "
Tang Yuancheng said, "Snatching a rice bowl, if it is not for the sake of one's profession, it will be difficult to feel at ease. It would be better to let nature take its course, to let it belong to whoever it belongs to." He gestured toward the stage and said, "Everybody has their own strong points. Just like when people sing opera, they rely on their own ability to earn a living, not everybody has the ability to snatch it. Others are working hard to perform, but we are quarreling in front of the stage, not only it will hinder the artistic conception, it will also spoil other people's elegance and beauty. Come, come, come, it's more important to watch the show, I guarantee that everybody will forget all your worries. "
Cheng Jiaxuan laughed and said, "When did you learn so much about opera singing? If you don't want to be the Crown Prince's Shaoshi in the future, don't tell me you want to change your profession and join an opera troupe? Hmm, you are so handsome, you should be a little lead actress who pinches her voice and sings coloratura. "
Li Yijie turned his head toward the stage, but he heard the deafening sound of gongs and drums, but he did not know what was going on. Below the stage, however, there was a burst of applause. His mood was gloomy, he did not even have the mood to follow the crowd. He stood on the stage in a daze, pretending to be blind. With great difficulty he waited until everybody stood in front of the stage, saluted the curtain call, and stepped down from the stage one by one. He expected that the show had finally come to an end, and then the audience would disperse one after another. However, there was another row of envoys who lined up on the stage, each one holding a tray to present the birthday gift. After each tray was inspected by a special person, it was announced in a loud and clear voice.
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