xymnovel Chapter 113: Chang'an City
Chapter 113: Chang'an City
A month later.
Su Wen and his large group arrived at the Mingde Gate of Chang'an. Looking at the magnificent building in front of them and the flow of people entering and leaving the city on both sides, they were impressed.
Su Wen was deeply impressed by the sight of Chang'an, even though he had never entered the city.
Xu Ge looked at Su Wen and asked, "By the way, Master, where are we going to stay later?"
Before Su Wen could speak, Cui Lingyu said, "Come and stay at my residence!"
Upon hearing this, Cui Bi hurriedly reminded her, "No, Miss! You and Su Langjun are not married yet. If the Censorate finds out that you are living together before marriage, they will use it as an excuse to make trouble!"
Cui Bi continued muttering, "Besides, who lives together before marriage? If word got out, wouldn't the master and young lady's reputations be known throughout Chang'an!"
Upon hearing Cui Bi's words, Cui Lingyu looked at Cui Bi and was about to speak when Su Wen said, "It's alright, Xu Ge and I will stay at the tavern for a few days and take a look around the East and West Markets of Chang'an!"
Seeing that Cui Lingyu was somewhat disappointed, Cui Bi smiled and replied, "Miss, you can go and discuss with the master about having Young Master Su and Young Master Xu stay in Huaide Lane in the West Market of Chang'an County for the time being. We have a house there, have you forgotten?"
After thinking for a moment, Cui Lingyu said, "That's right, it's a good thing Xiao Bi reminded me, otherwise I would have forgotten. I bought a house in Huai De Fang before, but no one has lived there yet!"
After saying that, Cui Lingyu looked at Su Wen and said, "Su Lang, you should go and stay at that house in Huaide Lane for now. That house is in my name, so you don't have to discuss it with my master!"
Upon hearing this, Su Wen looked at Xu Ge, who nodded and muttered, "Master, I think it's okay. The main problem is that we really don't have much money. Your wages for the year are almost gone!"
Su Wen had entrusted Xu Ge with managing the money all along, mainly because Xu Ge previously held the official position of elder, but after leaving Luoyang, he lost his official position and salary.
Su Wen didn't want him to keep asking his family for money. After all, Su Wen was his mentor, so Su Wen handed over all his salary to Xu Ge to manage, so that Xu Ge would have money when he needed it.
Secondly, Su Wen was, after all, a time traveler. He had eaten and seen all sorts of things. In ancient times, he couldn't spend this money at all, since the government provided food and lodging!
"Then thank you very much, Lingyu!"
Cui Lingyu smiled and lowered the carriage curtain. Inside the carriage, Cui Bi playfully said, "Poor Miss, it'll be quite a journey to see Young Master Su from now on!"
Mingde Gate has five gates. The two outermost gates are for pedestrians, the two innermost gates are for carriages, and the central gate is for the emperor and the royal family. It is not much different from the regulations in Luoyang.
Entering the city gate was even more breathtaking. The Vermilion Bird Avenue, more than a hundred paces wide from east to west, resembled a large passenger plane runway, which was extremely impressive.
The ground was paved with three colors of bricks: blue, white, and yellow, and the paving was excellent, just like a cement road.
After Su Wen first escorted Cui Lingyu and Cui Bi to the Cui residence in Shengye Ward, Wannian County, he saw that Cui Lingyu and Cui Bi had returned home. Cui Lingyu then found a servant to take Su Wen and Xu Ge to Huaide Ward, Chang'an County.
Upon arriving at Huaide Lane, Su Wen learned that it would take at least an hour to get from there to Shengye Lane. No wonder Cui Bi had jokingly said that it would be quite a journey; now it seemed that it was indeed true!
Su Wen first took a good bath and changed into a clean set of clothes, then rested at home while waiting for the emperor's summons.
Upon entering the city, Su Wen had already handed the memorial to Xu Ge, who then submitted it to the Ministry of Rites. Moreover, Xu Ge's father was the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Rites.
These matters are all left to Xu Ge, who can also go home and meet his father.
In the late afternoon, the eunuch arrived at Su Wen's door and summoned Su Wen to enter the palace with him. Su Wen then ordered that twenty or thirty boxes of gold ingots be brought along as well.
Without the Emperor's order, Su Wen dared not rashly hand over these things to the Ministry of Revenue. Otherwise, if the Ministry of Revenue directly accepted such a large sum of money without the Emperor's approval, it would be an overstepping of authority, which would not be good for either Su Wen or the Ministry of Revenue.
Of course, Su Wen had a little scheme up his sleeve here!
This was what Qin Zhan taught him before his death, and it was also a reminder that Cui Lingyu gave Su Wen many times along the way.
Cui Lingyu is a man of both literary and martial talents, and his political acumen far surpasses that of Su Wen by several levels. If Su Wen is a level nine political expert, then Cui Lingyu is a level ninety master, or rather, the maximum level of one hundred.
At the end of Zhuque Avenue is the south main gate of the imperial city, also known as Zhuque Gate, which is not much different from Mingde Gate.
Entering the Vermilion Bird Gate, one enters the main street of Chengtian Gate. Every twenty steps on both sides, there are imperial guards in armor, who are responsible for guarding the streets. These are the Imperial Guards of the Tang Dynasty.
After walking for about fifteen minutes, we arrived at Chengtian Gate. Chengtian Gate was slightly inferior to the Zhuque Gate and Mingde Gate in front of it, with only three gates. From here on, commoners were no longer allowed to enter.
The Imperial Guards here are the most numerous, with nearly a battalion of them on guard duty alone.
All people and items passing through will be subject to strict inspection and body searches to prevent the smuggling of weapons.
Passing through this door, you enter the heart of Chang'an, the core area of the Tang Dynasty.
The Taiji Hall was not far ahead, and as Su Wen got closer and closer to it, he was deeply shocked by the sight.
The Taiji Hall sits atop a three-tiered white marble base. The hall spans eleven bays and features a double-eaved hip roof of the highest grade. The densely packed brackets at the eaves resemble a roc spreading its wings to take flight. The pavilions on either side of the main hall resemble two gate towers, forming a heavenly gate and placing the main body of the Taiji Hall at the center, showcasing the majesty and grandeur of royal architecture.
The eunuchs entered the hall first to announce the arrival, while Su Wenze, a group of eunuchs, and the imperial guards waited at the bottom of the steps.
Before long, a eunuch at the top of the steps announced, "Summon Imperial Envoy Su Wen to the palace!"
Su Wen then slowly walked up the steps, while the other eunuchs and imperial guards carried the boxes up to the hall together.
When Su Wen entered the hall, he saw the Emperor Li Longji sitting on the dragon throne, reviewing memorials.
Su Wen bowed and said, "Your humble servant Su Wen greets Your Majesty!"
A eunuch standing nearby whispered, "Imperial Envoy Su, in the Taiji Hall you must address the Emperor or His Majesty!"
Su Wen was about to speak when the Sage said, "There's no need to be so formal and serious. I originally intended to summon you to Xingqing Palace, but after careful consideration, I realized you've never been to Taiji Hall before. Therefore, I'd like you to come to Taiji Hall first to familiarize yourself with it, and then I'll call you to Xingqing Palace later!"
Su Wen hurriedly bowed and replied.
After all the imperial guards had piled twenty or thirty boxes on the main hall, the emperor closed the memorial, then looked at Su Wen and pointed, asking, "Su Wen, what are these boxes?"
Su Wen bowed and said, "Your Majesty, these boxes contain money that Yi Tian, also known as Zhang Xizhou, the Prefect of Shazhou, has raised over the years through underhanded means such as the flower shop and Diyejia!"
The sage sneered, "How much is there?"