The ninth day of September, Double Ninth Festival.

The Double Ninth Festival is a very important festival. It is the day when the Nine Nines return to their true nature and the Yuan Dynasty begins. In ancient times, the autumn harvest was held to worship heaven on this day. In the Han Dynasty, there was the custom of climbing in autumn, wearing dogwood, eating bait, and drinking chrysanthemum wine, which has been passed down.

to date.

Before dawn, Gu Qing ordered the housekeeper to prepare the carriage and leave the city.

Chang'an is more than eighty miles away from Lishan. Since Li Longji took Concubine Yang to the Lishan Palace every year to spend the winter, the road from Chang'an to Lishan was built wide and smooth. After Gu Qing took a carriage out of the city, he found that there were many cars and horses on the road.

The carriages of many dignitaries and courtiers were also on the road. Many dignitaries with titles were neatly guarded and their flags were flying. Gu Qing's carriage was mediocre and simple, and it looked very awkward among the queues of many luxury carriages, like a duck among a group of swans.

Suddenly scurried to the right.

Gu Qing sat in the carriage and yawned profusely. His naturally unhappy face looked even more unhappy at this moment. What would a person who looked unhappy look like if he was really unhappy? Gu Qing looked like that at the moment.

Customs must be respected. Gu Qing still respects customs as long as he doesn't bother with them. But before dawn, he would run dozens of miles out of the city and climb mountains just to drink a few glasses of chrysanthemum wine and talk about it.

Gu Qing felt that the official polite words were really unnecessary.

Feeling angry, Gu Qing sat alone in the carriage, feeling the urge to rush out and beat anyone he saw.

The coachman was from his own family, and it was considered an official establishment. Gu Qing usually worked during the day, and after returning home at night, he would close the door behind him after eating. The servants in the family were quite in awe of this new master, mainly because every time Gu Qing

He had an unhappy face when he appeared in everyone's sight. When the servants saw his expression, they unconsciously began to reflect on what they had done wrong. Over time, Gu Qing established prestige in the mansion without saying a word.

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The coachman drove the car very steadily, and it was obvious that he was an experienced driver. He and Gu Qing were the only two people on the carriage. The coachman was so scared that he did not dare to say a word, and was concentrating on raising his whip and looking ahead.

When daybreak was about to break, a carriage sped out from beside it. It looked like it was preparing to overtake without double flashing. The driver was a little nervous, for fear of getting scratched, so he hurriedly turned the horse's head a little. The carriage suddenly jolted a little. Gu Qing was still angry when he got up.

He went over and raised the car curtain in dissatisfaction.

As soon as he opened the car curtain, he heard a rather familiar voice calling: "Is this the driver of Zuowei Gu Changshi?"

Gu Qing looked around and saw that the person about to overtake the car next to him was actually Yan Zhenqing. The curtain of the carriage was opened, and Du Fu was sitting inside.

Gu Qing smiled and held his hands towards Yan Zhenqing: "Yan Yushi, it's been a long time."

He then handed over to Du Fu, who was looking rather reserved in the carriage: "Brother Zimei, long time no see."

Gu Qing's mood was obviously much better now that he had acquaintances, and these two were also historical celebrities. Gu Qing thought that he should build a relationship, get some paintings of Yan Zhenqing's calligraphy, cheat some of Du Fu's poems, and keep them at home as heirlooms to be passed down to future generations.

——If Gu Qing’s virtues can produce descendants.

Gu Qing patted the wall of the carriage vigorously, ordered the coachman to stop, then quickly got out of the carriage and jumped into Yan Zhenqing's carriage.

After entering the carriage, Gu Qing greeted Du Fu very familiarly: "Brother Zimei, squeeze in. The back is very empty and there are big seats..."

Du Fu smiled and moved back to make a clear space.

Yan Zhenqing's carriage also looked very simple and narrow. After all, he was a censor in the palace, and his private life could not be too luxurious, otherwise he would not have the confidence to impeach others in court.

Yan Zhenqing is in her forties, considered an elder to Gu Qing, and Du Fu is also in his thirties. Gu Qing is the youngest among the three, so he should be called the elder, but Gu Qing doesn't like to recognize his elders indiscriminately, so when he first met Du Fu

So he preemptively called him brother Zimei, and for Yan Zhenqing, out of respect for a loyal minister, Gu Qing always addressed him by his official title.

Yan Zhenqing and Du Fu didn't take it seriously. Instead, they felt that Gu Qing had a free and easy temperament, so they happily discussed friendship with him as their equal.

Yan Zhenqing pointed at Du Fu and said with a smile: "After Zimei wrote the "Ode to the Great Gift", he is now waiting for His Majesty's appointment in Jixian Hall. I really appreciate Zimei's poetic talent. Today, His Royal Highness the Prince is hosting a banquet. I brought him to see him.

world."

Du Fu smiled shyly and said, "Thank you very much, Censor Yan, for your kindness."

After sitting in the carriage and chatting for a while, Gu Qing smiled at Du Fu and said, "Brother Zimei, Brother Yu happened to get acquainted with Brother Taibai when he was in Shuzhou. Brother Taibai also lived in my house for a while."

Du Fu's eyes lit up, and Gu Qing instantly saw the excitement in his eyes.

"Brother Taibai? Really Brother Taibai? He actually traveled to Shuzhou?" Du Fu said excitedly.

Gu Qing smiled and saw that Du Fu was Li Bai's biggest fan. His admiration for Li Bai was clearly recorded in official history. According to legend, in the early years of Tianbao, after Li Bai resigned from the palace to serve as an imperial edict, he met Du Fu in Chang'an.

Du Fu became a fanatical fanatic at that time, and he simply obeyed Li Bai's orders. His demented fan attitude made even Li Bai confused.

Li Bai also had a identity as a Taoist priest who was obsessed with refining elixirs to become immortals. He had also made many elixirs himself, so under Li Bai's deception, Du Fu also took a lot of so-called elixirs. Not only that, Li Bai was a man with deep bones.

The innocent and romantic poet also persuaded Du Fu to go overseas with him to find immortals, find fairy grass, and refine elixirs. As a crazy fan who had lost his mind, Du Fu readily agreed.

The two set out on their journey, and met another poet Gao Shi on the way, the same Gao Shi who wrote "Don't worry about the road without friends." The three of them traveled together with Li Bai as the leader. For a whole year, the three of them traveled the landscape of the Tang Dynasty.

, from spring to autumn, a lot of money was spent on the search, and not a single hair on the immortal’s armpits was found.

Later, Du Fu, a little fanboy, finally couldn't bear the pain of traveling, so he suddenly woke up halfway and realized that his behavior of chasing stars was really irrational. He decided to chase stars from now on, but he must chase stars rationally and not be stupid anymore. In the end, Du Fu

He and Gao Shi quit their journey to seek immortality and quit.

This is a real anecdote. Gu Qing can even guess how Li Bai deceived the two of them. He probably got Du Fu and Gao Shi drunk, and then categorically said that there were immortals overseas. Du Fu and Gao Shi were in a daze.

So he agreed, and every night during the journey he wanted to go back on his word. Li Bai continued to get them drunk and continued to fool them, and the two of them continued to agree in a daze...

"Brother Zimei, why did you agree to go overseas to search for immortals with Brother Taibai back then?" Gu Qing's eyes flashed with gossip, maybe it would be another excellent material.

Du Fu was stunned for a moment, then smiled bitterly and waved his hands repeatedly: "Don't mention it, don't mention it. The three of us have been searching for immortals for a year but to no avail. It seems that we have not practiced enough and have not had the opportunity to meet the immortals."

Yan Zhenqing stroked his beard and listened with a smile, and then said with a smile: "Li Taibai's high poetic talent and true temperament are the only things I have seen in my life. Unfortunately, Taibai was too aloof and noble, but he was as innocent as a child in terms of human relations and sophistication. He was eventually dismissed by the court."

No, with his talents and a little bit of worldly sophistication, he might have achieved some success in the court."

Gu Qing smiled and said: "The world always needs all kinds of people. Brother Taibai is straightforward and naive. I think this is exactly his advantage. There is nothing wrong with his character, except that he is not suitable for being an official. What the world lacks is not being an official.

He is a person with true temperament."

Du Fu's eyes lit up and he raised his hands to Gu Qing: "Brother Taibai, if he hears these words, he will make this worthy brother his lifelong confidant."

…………

The carriage quickly arrived at the foot of Lishan Mountain.

Gu Qing and the others got off the carriage and had no choice but to walk up the mountain, which could be regarded as climbing up the mountain to celebrate the Double Ninth Festival.

At the foot of the mountain, eunuchs were already waiting at the entrance to check the identities of the invited courtiers. After checking, the eunuchs presented a dogwood tree with both hands. The powerful courtiers inserted the dogwood tree diagonally on the temples of their crowns and hats. Legend has it that the dogwood tree has

The effect of avoiding evil and seeking good fortune has been a custom as early as the Han Dynasty.

Gu Qing, Yan Zhenqing and Du Fu walked up the mountain together. The courtiers who were familiar with each other along the way greeted each other. Gu Qing followed Yan Zhenqing and became familiar with the courtiers. I heard that the young man next to Yan Zhenqing was the one who was quite popular in Chang'an City recently.

The courtiers were surprised and admired the talented scholar Gu Qing for a long time. Some courtiers who were obsessed with poetry even took the initiative to come and make friends with him. Gu Qing suddenly became a protagonist-like existence.

After being polite for a while, Gu Qing consciously kept a low profile, deliberately lowering his head and rarely greeting others.

When the prince hosted a banquet, Gu Qing still had to be a little bit cautious. The only protagonist in today's occasion was the prince. Gu Qing couldn't overwhelm the guest or steal the prince's limelight. It would be too uneconomical for the prince to worry about such a trivial matter.

It was quite hard to walk up the mountain from the foot of the mountain. After walking for nearly two hours, the dignitaries and courtiers finally reached the mountainside.

Prince Li Heng had already ordered people to build a temporary climbing platform on the mountainside. The climbing platform was covered with a red carpet and filled with low-leg tables. Wine and food were prepared on the table, and a beautiful kabuki actor was kneeling beside each table.

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This is also the habit of banquets for powerful people. Kabuki not only performs songs and dances in front of the guests, but also kneels beside the guests during the intermission of the song and dance, pours wine and dishes for the guests. Chats softly with the guests, and encounters some unscrupulous people.

Guests may even secretly extend their hands and give them a slap.

Of course, Kabuki accompaniment is not necessarily a standard feature for wealthy families. Some powerful people don't like this, so they don't have this service at home. To put it bluntly, it depends on whether the host is lustful or not.

After Gu Qing and the three people arrived at the high platform, a eunuch led the three of them to sit down. A beautiful dancer also sat at Gu Qing's table. Seeing Gu Qing sit down, the dancer smiled shyly at him, knelt down and saluted him, and then

Gu Qing poured a full cup of chrysanthemum wine.

As the host, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince has not yet arrived, the guests gathered together in twos and threes and started chatting.

On Gu Qing's left were Yan Zhenqing and Du Fu, and on his right was an unknown young civil servant, about 20 years old. The civil servant was very polite and took the initiative to greet Gu Qing. After introducing each other, Gu Qing found out that this young civil servant was a Hanlin official.

Now he is enshrined in the East Palace, and his name is Li Mi. According to popular understanding, this person named Li Mi is actually an adviser to the Prince of the East Palace.

Gu Qing blinked his eyes. He had vaguely heard of Li Mi when he was in history class in his previous life, but his impression was very weak. However, those who can leave their names in history books are all great people. Gu Qing chatted with Li Mi in a very humble manner.

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When literati get together, they usually talk about poems, songs and romantic affairs. As for whether they are talking about poems, poems, poems and romance, it depends on whether the literati gathered together are serious or not. If a group of serious literati sneaks in

If you buy something that is not serious, your style of painting will be biased.

Yan Zhenqing was the oldest and looked like an elder. Most of the time he listened to what Gu Qing and Li Mi said, while he stroked his beard and smiled without saying a word.

Du Fu was relatively introverted by nature, especially when he attended the prince's banquet for the first time, Du Fu was even more nervous. Gu Qing secretly compared him with Li Bai and found that Du Fu was still quite enthusiastic about being an official. Because he was so enthusiastic, he became more worried about gains and losses.

There was something unnaturally formal about speaking and curtsying.

Gu Qing and Li Bi were very relaxed, and they were chatting enthusiastically. Li Bi would turn his head from time to time and chat and laugh in a low voice with the maiko who was accompanying him. It was obvious that Li Bi was a romantic figure, and he didn't know what he said in the maiko's ear.

What kind of flirtatious words were there made the dancer cover her mouth and snicker, and she even punched Li Mi a few times with her little fists.

Gu Qing looked at Li Mi's coquettish look and wanted to advise the maiko not to engage in such vain coquettish behavior. Many of the samurai standing behind were holding gourds. If they wanted to fight, they would hit them. They would take away the samurai's hand.

The pumpkin blasting hammer is refreshing.

As for the maiko accompanying Gu Qing, Gu Qing basically ignored her except for nodding and politely greeting her at the beginning. The maiko tried to take the initiative to chat with him, but Gu Qing dismissed her without a hint of saltiness.

, had no choice but to pour wine for Gu Qing in aggrieved silence.

The banquets held by the powerful are not only for drinking and having fun, nor are they just for the purpose of getting acquainted with interpersonal relationships. They also have another characteristic, that is, they are a ladder for those with lower status to climb up. Many people with low official positions but outstanding eloquence often work in

He spoke loudly at the banquet of the powerful, and was noticed by the powerful, leaving a deep impression and paving the way for future promotions.
To be continued...