The Grand Ceremony wasn’t finished—only half completed. What remained was entirely Li Er’s solo performance time. After worshipping heaven came worshipping ancestors. After worshipping ancestors came worshipping those spirits who had died in battle.

The monks had built a magnificent temple on the banks of the Qu River. Eminent monks from all over the world gathered here, offering sacrifices to the spirits of the universal world amid swirling incense smoke.

The usually fragrant shadows of ladies and poetry-composing scholars along the Qu River banks had all vanished without a trace, leaving only an ocean of red kasayas. Sanskrit chants and Buddhist hymns filled heaven and earth. Five-colored rice was poured into the water as if it cost nothing. Those plump carp in the Qu River immediately became honored guests.

“Ten million coins to cast this monastery—yet who knows whether the spirits of the world have found peace?” Zhangsun Chong folded his fan, pointed at that Great Mercy and Peace Temple, drained the wine in his cup, then muttered to himself, “If those spirits of my subordinates who died in battle find liberation, what does it matter if I kowtow for three days and nights?”

Li Tai’s leg was somewhat lame—his old man had beaten him, nothing to do with anyone else. Today, hearing that Zhangsun Chong was hosting guests on the Qu River, he dragged his battered bottom and insisted on coming even if it killed him. This banquet had a name—the Young Heroes’ Banquet. No matter how you looked at it, he counted as a young hero. How could he not come?

The host of the banquet was Li Chengqian. Zhangsun Chong was actually just an errand boy. Crown Prince couldn’t openly invite people to a banquet, so he had to borrow Zhangsun Chong’s name.

Young men of princely and noble families had all come. Yun Ye heard there would be unrivaled songs and dances, sumptuous wine and feasts, and unclothed beauties, so under Cheng Chumo’s pulling and tugging, he half-reluctantly, half-willingly boarded the boat.

“Ah, Brother Huairen, your complexion is so good—could it be blessings brought by the Grand Ceremony?” Li Tai’s revenge list didn’t include Li Huairen, but there had been a small error. One hornet hadn’t pursued Li Yuanzhang but instead left a mark on his face. Even today, half his face was still swollen high.

“Bad luck! Your elder brother merely suffered collateral damage. Yesterday I went to Han Gui’s house, preparing to smash it to pieces to vent the fury in my heart. After arriving, I discovered his servants and maids had all run away. Only his old mother, wife, and young son remained. I couldn’t bear to ravage them, so I just smashed the stone lion guarding his gate with one hammer blow and came back. Your elder brother’s magnanimity is pretty good, right?”

Yun Ye raised his thumb in praise. The Han Family’s mistress was no simple woman. These days she had just stayed home waiting for enemies from the past to come seek revenge. She had specifically sent all servants and maids away. When enemies came to the door, she would bring the whole family, old and young, to greet them with smiling faces, allowing beating and scolding without talking back. Even if ancestral tablets were smashed, her expression wouldn’t change. This way, as long as there was no grudge of killing one’s father or stealing one’s wife, they would feel compassion and let past grievances pass, giving her children some room to maneuver.

People like Li Huairen had fallen for this. By rights, he had nearly lost his life—a couple more hornets would have been fatal. Yet under that woman’s entreaties, he had just smashed a stone lion and withdrawn his troops. This had to be called an anomaly. The Han Family still had hope for the future.

“Oh my, Qing Que, why do you walk with such difficulty? Could there be some unspeakable ailment?” Yun Ye kindly helped Li Tai brush off the reed catkins stuck to his bottom. Amid his screams of pain, Yun Ye’s spirit received enormous satisfaction.

“Damn it! Can’t you be a bit more magnanimous? You suffer a little loss and won’t let anyone off.” Li Chengqian supported his younger brother, placed a soft cushion on his seat, then turned back to reason with Yun Ye.

Li Ke, holding a teacup and drinking tea, said to Li Chengqian, “Elder Brother, there’s a reason for this. His battered bottom is self-inflicted, so today’s tribulation is deserved. We two were scolded by Father Emperor for no reason at all and knelt in Changchun Hall for two hours. Your knees don’t hurt anymore? How come mine are still aching faintly? We’re all blood brothers—if we suffer misfortune, we suffer misfortune. No big deal. The problem is, the one who suffered most deeply was probably Yun Ye himself, right? If he hadn’t been gambling with the Grand Emperor that night, even jumping into the Yellow River couldn’t have cleared his name. So venting anger is natural. Look—I’m not the least bit surprised.”

The brothers’ soft whispers didn’t interfere with those dandies holding wine cups or teacups. On the shore, there were all kinds of bald heads to amuse themselves with. Who had interest in listening to others’ whispered conversations?

“This monk is truly strange. The top of his forehead has a sunken pit. Could it be that after taking a heavy hammer blow, this guy still didn’t die? Buddhism is indeed profound and mysterious. Admirable, admirable.”

“See that fellow rowing a boat on shore? Good heavens—an iron boat! Rowing on land is actually real. But couldn’t he just walk on two legs? Must he pole a boat on land?”

“Don’t be foolish. That’s an ascetic monk. They say using methods to torment the body can lead to Buddhahood—a common cultivation practice. Brother Du, a sunken forehead is said to be a sign of an accomplished high monk who cultivated successfully. Must not blaspheme.”

The dandies didn’t let a single small boat shuttling past their pleasure boat escape. Fruit pits, dates, dried fruits, candied fruits, and pastries were continuously thrown down. Those eminent monks were indeed eminent monks—completely indifferent to these things, quite displaying the meaning of allowing spit to dry on one’s face. Only the bitter misery on their faces grew ever thicker.

Buddhism’s position was unfavorable. Under the Li Tang, they suffered unprecedented suppression. With great difficulty, they had hoped for a ray of light, but it was shattered to pieces by Sun Simiao’s reputation as “Buddha of Ten Thousand Families.” Xuanzang still didn’t know when he could return. This Water and Land Dharma Assembly was a showcase for them to display their abilities. Eminent monks from all over Great Tang flooded into Chang’an precisely to contribute their efforts to the Water and Land Dharma Assembly.

There were many old monks, which was precisely Buddhism’s sorrow, indicating no successors. Great Tang managed ordination certificates very strictly. Privately shaving heads was a serious crime. Officials had long coveted temple property with drooling mouths. As soon as prohibitions were violated, severe crackdowns immediately followed. Sometimes officials would bribe others to pretend to be destitute and helpless people, going to temples to plead for ordination. If the abbot couldn’t withstand the entreaties and ordained them, planning to supplement the certificate afterward—who would have thought officials would come, and the ordained person would immediately cry for help, saying the temple forced him to be ordained? The result was self-evident. Among those monks sent to mines for hard labor were many former eminent monks. Once struggle began, there was no retreat.

After Zhangsun Chong mourned for a while, he was attracted by the large group of women He Shao brought, especially several women with long swords on their backs in tight clothing, which made his heart unbearably itchy. Gongsun Daniang had entered the palace—couldn’t see her anymore. Who knew which nook and cranny the Emperor had hidden her in? These Gongsun Fourteenths and Fifteenths surely wouldn’t have big shots coming to snatch them, right? Rubbing his hands, hunching his body, he scurried to the second floor…

He Shao had only said two sentences when he saw a youth wearing a purple-gold crown angrily pointing at the cabin door, meaning “get out.” Chai Lingwu, eldest son of Princess Pingyang, had always been extremely sensitive about status. He Shao had only preserved his title by using his family’s connections, so seeing He Shao at the gathering of heroes felt as uncomfortable as swallowing a fly.

The worldly-wise He Shao showed not the slightest displeasure. Bowing and scraping, he said, “Young Master, I merely came to send these singing courtesans to entertain you noble gentlemen. I have no intention of staying long. I’ll leave now, leave now.”

After speaking, he performed a deep bow, turned, and left the cabin. Just as he stepped out the door, he saw Yun Ye looking at him with a smile that wasn’t quite a smile. His old face reddened. Grabbing Yun Ye’s arm, he walked to the side and said, “Don’t laugh at your brother. This time I received great grace from Duke Qiao. Yielding somewhat to his eldest son is proper. Don’t make trouble—that foolish child isn’t enough for you to handle in one scoop. You and I on the grasslands—Duke Qiao also took good care of us. If not for the monk’s sake, then for Buddha’s—just pretend you didn’t see.” That He Shao could navigate Chang’an City’s turbulent waters like a fish naturally had his survival methods. This time, so many dignitaries had fallen to dust. That the He Family, with a merchant’s essential nature, could avoid this storm was truly rare.

“You’ve already told me not to meddle, so why would I make trouble? But I heard you’ve recently been buying up large amounts of Chang’an property. What are you planning—to build a second Xinghua Ward? Don’t fatten the pig too much. Like my family’s Hanhan—now even walking is difficult. Not many good days left to live. If not for considering Xiao Ya’s feelings, I would have long since slaughtered it for meat. You’re almost there too. Let me tell you, the Yun Family won’t touch this business of yours. I need to avoid you when walking.”

Only now did He Shao become anxious, repeatedly asking why. Wasn’t wealth better the more you had? How could there be a problem?

“You’re also a rarely shrewd person. You know the court’s current view of merchants, right? As business grows larger and larger, commercial taxes now account for thirty percent of total treasury revenue. This is different from before—before, they accounted for at most thirty percent of Chang’an’s. I heard that Wei Zheng, Yu Shinan, and Liu Zhenghui are all pondering how to regulate commercial taxes. Be careful of being held up as an example.”

He Shao’s fat face immediately lost all color. His spread was too large—how could he pull it back in such a short time? Wanting to chop off his tail in one stroke was too painful. He could only sigh deeply, waiting for Yun Ye to give him advice.

“Duke Qiao is doing well now. Now without military position, he stays home behind closed doors. You have close dealings with his former subordinates—you should go find him to give you advice. Just look at his son’s attitude toward you and you’ll know. His family also doesn’t want to be entangled with you much. Yet you still foolishly climb the pole upward, not knowing whether you’re alive or dead. Making money without end, right?”

Between the lines, he explained things to him. After all, they had counted as brothers before. These past few years, silver had covered his eyes so he couldn’t see the situation clearly. Just his family’s mansion alone was built more luxuriously than a prince’s mansion. Heard he was still planning to expand outward.

Patting Old He’s shoulder, he entered the cabin. Inside, the dancing had already begun.

Zhangsun Chong’s invitation words were indeed correct. Inside, the singing courtesans indeed wore very little—bellies and backs bare outside, wearing gauze garments as they twisted about inside. Couldn’t see their legs, but the gourd-like outline of their hips, appearing and disappearing, made one’s blood boil.

Don’t look at Chai Lingwu’s young age—he was clearly already an old hand in flower groves. Just look at the singing courtesan pouring wine for him, her face flushed like peach blossoms, and you knew this guy’s hands under the table weren’t behaving.

Touching salted fish with his hands without washing them, then grabbing chicken legs—this kid was too uncouth. Yun Ye moved his own table toward the window to avoid accidentally grabbing food from his table later.