Chapter 21: Surrender is a habit

The day of the chapter is naturally lively, and Chang’an City will be guarded by the Golden Tiger from today to the 15th. There are countless people on the upper Dragon Slope offering sacrifices to their ancestors. From a distance, the candles on the slope are spectacular, connecting with the stars. Perhaps this is the closest distance between heaven and man.

Yun Ye has always viewed everything in the Tang Dynasty from the perspective of an outsider, placing himself in the position of a prophet, as if he were traveling through a very real and very long historical drama, knowing the death of Li Er, knowing the death of the empress, and knowing the inevitable end of Li Chenggan, so he has no sense of awe for the royal family.

Now, the dream has come true, and the characters in the play suddenly threaten him, which makes Yun Ye at a loss. He blames himself for knowing that Li Er and his wife are not easy to deal with, but he still provokes them. What is the difference between this and swatting a fly on a tiger’s head? If you insist that there is a difference, it is that he is not swatting a tiger, but two tyrannosaurus rexes.

Lao Cheng was right. If you want to be part of the world, you have to act like it. If you don’t, sooner or later you’ll suffer, and suffer greatly. That’s so insightful. Lao Cheng, with his rough face and thick head, is the real wise man.

Old Granny was very reluctant to give up her current life, which was both prestigious and brought honor to her ancestors. Who would give up such a good life? Yun Ye understood that as long as he gave up his dignity and pride, he could please Empress Dowager Changsun with his own personality and become a loyal subject of the Tang Dynasty. This happy life would continue forever, and it was not impossible to be even happier.

Insist on your dignity? Insist on your pride? These things don’t exist in feudal society. The system of the family world is destined to have someone standing above you forever, yelling and screaming. Unless you kill him. Whether in history or in fiction, Li Er is a well-known protagonist, and his reputation as the emperor of all time is not for nothing. To rebel against him is pure boredom.

It was quiet in the garden, only the rustling of the wind blowing the dry leaves. There was no moon in the sky, and the curtain-like sky was studded with jewels, twinkling and blinking, as if winking at you. It can’t be taken down! It’s millions of light years away. Every thirty days, on the first day of the month, the moon turns its dark buttocks to the earth and flatters the sun with a cheeky face. Should I flatter that golden phoenix? Although my grandmother said that the phoenix was extremely beautiful, Yun Ye didn’t want to lower his head. Having come to this familiar yet strange world, the only thing I can possess is my own spirit. Mao Zedong once said that people need to have a little spirit. Following his teachings, Yun Ye wants to keep his spiritual world from being occupied by feudalism. Yun Ye’s mind is running wild.

Xiaoya was struggling to carry a large cloak and slipped in through the Moon Gate. She had been watching from outside the gate for a long time, and her brother was sitting on the swing frame, lost in thought. Grandma wouldn’t let her go in and disturb him. Her brother was shivering from the cold, not knowing what he had done wrong and being punished by Grandma. She secretly took her brother’s cloak and brought it to him, hoping that Grandma wouldn’t see it. That’s what the little girl thought.

Yun Ye did not notice Xiaoya, but was immersed in a terrible scene of his own thoughts. Fang Xiaoru, on the other hand, stuck to his principles. When faced with the threat of the Ming emperor Zhu Di to execute his entire family, he said firmly, “What if you execute my entire family?” He was firm in his convictions and stood his ground, so more than 1,300 people followed him to the afterlife. Is this the price you have to pay for sticking to your pride and your will?

Xiaoya couldn’t reach his shoulders, so she put the cloak over Yun Ye’s legs. She didn’t know that her little action completely ruined Yun Ye’s self-confidence that he had just built up. It was a brain-dead act to bet the whole family. Not to mention the whole family, it was unforgivable to bet even one hair of Xiaoya. If you want to be a coward, just be a coward. It’s okay to pretend to be a turtle for Xiaoya.

He wrapped the little girl in his arms and held her close. The worries in his heart were long gone, and the brother and sister sat on the swing and rocked gently.

“Did you do something wrong, brother?”

“Brother, you did something wrong. You made something unimportant seem more important than the sky. It doesn’t matter now. The annoying thing is gone. Hold me tight. Let’s swing on the swing.”

Hearing the laughter, the old woman’s tight heart relaxed, and Xiaoye finally crossed the threshold of her heart. She clasped her hands together and prayed to the Buddha, praying that Xiaoye would never have to suffer like this again.

The midnight bell tolled, and the third year of the Zhenguan reign had arrived.

Yun Ye decided to compromise, to compromise with the damn feudal dynasty, although he enjoyed his life. In later generations, there was not much dignity, but once in the Tang Dynasty, dignity became extremely important. No wonder it is said that a Chinese person is a dragon, and three people become worms. He has a personal experience.

Drinking from big bowls and eating big chunks of meat, this is the style of the old Cheng family. The sun had just risen and the banquet was in full swing. A bearded man with three sons accompanied Yun Ye, Cheng Chumo, Cheng Chuliang, and Cheng Chubi, who were 18, 15, and 14 years old respectively, to pay New Year’s visits in the morning. The flat porcelain bowl was filled with three lees and gulped down with a single gulp. A mouthful of wine was exhaled, and a piece of braised pork the size of an inch was stuffed into his mouth and swallowed without chewing.

“You’re just worrying about nothing. I told you to make more good wine, but you refused. The emperor is taking care of the victims, so why are you so nervous? Now there’s only sorghum syrup left in the house, and it’s just unlucky to think about it.” Old Cheng scolded Yun Ye while drinking.

“Uncle, that white wine is extremely food-intensive. It takes three pounds of grain to make a pound of wine. You know, my nephew is gambling with his life on a word from my master. If there is a locust plague next year, maybe saving a little grain can save a life.

“The Empress wants to teach you herself. You’re a big shot, everyone in the palace knows about it, and they’re all talking about it. If it weren’t for His Majesty’s firm and decisive order not to talk too much, officials would have already submitted a petition against you. How is it? Once you become an official, you’re in the eye of the storm. How does it feel to be fried in oil?” Old Cheng’s tone was gloating.

“What does my nephew have to do with it? It’s the Empress who wants to discipline me, not me who asked for it. The Yun family is too small to withstand the turmoil.” He got angry when he mentioned this.

“What? You’re shaking? The Empress is the mother of the country. She thinks highly of you and is afraid that you will go astray and ruin a good genius. That’s why she wants to personally discipline you. You should be grateful for this opportunity. There are many geniuses and oddballs in the world. Why do you have this opportunity and others have to live in a straw hut and eat bran and drink water? The country has never had such a good thing happen to you. Don’t you thank me for it? Why are you here eating and drinking with me? Put away your high-and-mighty airs and go to school. Whatever the empress says is right. Is it right or wrong? Do you understand?

Yun Ye discovered that as long as anyone surrenders once, it will slowly become a habit. Last night, he talked to his grandmother about his disagreement, but today, when Lao Cheng scolded him and forced him to surrender, he didn’t have the slightest resistance in his heart. Yun Ye knew that he was not born to do great things, so he would just muddle through in this big feudal family for the time being.