Article 32: The Rights of the Imperial Family
Yun Ye has always hoped to live like a pig.
In the past, marriage, childbirth, and buying a house had consumed all his time and energy, and his grand ambitions from childhood were crushed by the wheels of life. Now that he has reset his life, he can't find his goal. The appearance of his relatives rekindled his passion for struggle, and with eight sisters to marry off, his eyes are gleaming like copper coins. Chang'an, after all, is a home waiting for him, whether it's cold or warm, Yun Ye is eager to throw himself into its arms, willing to pay any price. Yun Ye was confused, wasn't he always trying to escape this kind of life burden? How did he become so spirited when he took on the responsibility? Is the meaning of life really just about continuing life, maintaining relationships, sending off the elderly, finding food for the young, and then being buried in the ground by future generations? Becoming a ghost in the next dimension to watch later generations repeat this cycle? Occasionally, there are one or two people who forget this responsibility, perhaps tired of it, finding all sorts of excuses to escape, either for glory, like Yi Ya cooking his son, or for ideals, like Zhao Wang starving his father to death. Or for justice, like Liu Bang dividing the soup. Yun Ye is not that kind of superior person, as long as the enemy puts a knife to his wife and children's necks, he will do whatever it takes, absolutely no conditions. So he can't become a famous person, a superior person, and naturally won't be remembered by history, just like the majority of people in the crowd, otherwise Chinese history wouldn't have lasted for five thousand years. The more abnormal you are, the more likely you are to be remembered by history, this is the truth, just like on the internet, the most popular ones are always the most abnormal. Ants that follow rules and conventions won't get anyone's attention, but ants with hats are different, they have transcended the concept of ants, and being remembered by ant history becomes a necessity.
Yun Yan, although a unique ant, decided to conform to the masses and become one of them. So he trained hard like everyone else in the army camp, imitating their words and actions, studying classical literature, and practicing calligraphy with a brush pen. At this time, Yun Yan was extremely grateful to that Taiwanese boss with a strong personality, who had helped him develop his skills in reading and writing traditional Chinese characters, even though they were slightly different from those of the Tang Dynasty. This was enough for Yun Yan, as Cheng Chu Mo didn't know as many characters as he did.
On an autumn day, the rain would start and never stop, the air was damp and chilly, and the blanket was cold and icy without any warmth. Yun Yan really couldn't understand why, despite having a spacious city to live in, Lao Cheng insisted on camping outside the city walls and forbade anyone from entering the city. Even if they retreated a step, more than 10,000 soldiers could at least build simple barracks, which would be better than living in damp tents. But Lao Cheng was unmoved, preferring to stay in his own tent, massaging his sore knees and cursing the weather, rather than giving that order.
"Without the emperor's order, no fort can be built, this is a taboo for generals and also a taboo for Your Majesty." It was still good that my brother was telling me quietly, Cheng Chu told Yun Ye the reason why he couldn't build a house. Yun Ye had almost forgotten that he was in the most prosperous period of the feudal dynasty. Usually in Chang'an, Old Cheng could do whatever he wanted without anyone bothering him, but once he became a general, the strict military law was like a sharp sword hanging over his head, and if he disobeyed slightly, beheading would not be hesitated.
I'm going to see my potato, who dares to stop me?
Something strange happened, Yun Ye had just walked to the edge of the thatched hut when two tin men holding steel knives blocked his way and asked for a token. Yun Ye was stunned, what token do I need to show for my own things? Just as he was about to get angry, the tin man's eyes flashed with cold light, as if they were about to chop him down. Yun Ye wisely shut his mouth and turned around to leave and ask Old Cheng for an explanation. Li Chengqian walked out of the pavilion, apparently this guy had nothing better to do. He hurriedly cupped his hands in greeting, Li Chengqian smiled and returned the courtesy, not like Yun Ye's perfunctory gesture, but standing upright, with both hands clasped together, his body leaning forward fifteen degrees, his etiquette was flawless.
"Brother Yun, are you here to see the auspicious sign? Please come this way." He said, stretching out his hand to invite the guest. The two men with swords inserted them into their scabbards and stood by the railing like two stone statues. Yun Ye walked in foolishly, always feeling that the Crown Prince's actions just now should have been done by himself, when did he become a guest?
Li Chengqian seemed to see Yun Ye's confusion and explained as he walked: "The precious treasure presented by Brother Yun has been designated by the Emperor as the first auspicious sign of our Great Tang, demonstrating that our Great Tang is under the protection of Heaven and is the orthodox ruler of the world. This is why the auspicious sign has appeared, and Brother Yun's contribution will be recorded in history, a joyous occasion indeed." Yun Ye's first reaction was to see Li Chengqian's face superimposed on the face of a government official who would tell him that he only had usage rights but not property rights when handling his housing registration in the future.
"The prince is too polite, it's an honor for me to make a contribution to the great Tang Dynasty." After saying this, Yun Ye felt like a Japanese person, being abused and then praising the comfort of the abuser. The glory of feudalism has finally shone on himself.
The conversation with Li Chengqian was extremely pleasant, his words always cut to the most emotional side of your heart, and when combined with his handsome face, soothing voice, and natural gestures, it's a perfect embodiment of royal education. It makes you feel that not dedicating potatoes to the royal family is almost a heinous crime, and you'd also offer up your property without regret afterwards. If I had this skill, I would have been a damn manager long ago, why bother backpacking through mountains and fields to find foreigners? And then being transported to the Tang Dynasty to be trained as a special soldier?
Alright, Yun Ye has surrendered, and the potatoes should be presented to the imperial family. All treasures in the world should be offered to the great, brilliant, and almighty King of Kings, Li Er.
"Has the time come to harvest?" Li Chengqian asked, pointing at the yellowing potato leaves, snapping Yunyan out of his passionate daydreams about devoting himself to the great Tang Dynasty. Wiping away the saliva that was about to drip from his mouth, he carefully thought back to the growth period of potatoes and found that it was indeed almost time for harvest. He said to Li Chengqian: "The growth period of potatoes is roughly five months, now it's already four and a half months, it has reached the harvesting conditions. I really don't know how long potatoes take to grow in the Tang Dynasty, why don't we dig one up and take a look?" In fact, he was dying to eat roasted potatoes, so he persuaded Li Chengqian to dig some up and take a few back to roast and eat.
Li Chengqian sternly rejected Yun Ye's malicious intentions, claiming that he must wait until the potatoes are fully ripe before harvesting. This made Yun Ye extremely disheartened, as something that clearly belonged to him was not only forbidden from being approached, but also couldn't be eaten even when it had matured - what a feudal era without human rights!
