Mid-Autumn Festival in August, the sun is getting westward.
Crown Princess Chang sat in front of the dowry. The maid carefully painted her eyebrows, inserted a plum blossom hairpin and a lotus flower into her hair, and did not make any other decorations.
"Is there any news from Mr. Song Liansong, the doctor of praise?"
The Crown Princess asked.
The maid Su Xiu responded softly: "Back to the Crown Princess, Mr. Song's children and grandchildren are all in Jinling. Today is a full moon night. I think I am here to enjoy family happiness, so I won't come to the East Palace."
The Crown Princess stood up and smiled lightly: "Whether you are coming or not, you must be prepared. There are also the Crown Prince's guests and the Crown Prince Yu De. Some of them have not brought their families to stay in the capital. On this Mid-Autumn Festival night, it is better to spend it in the East Palace." Less sentimental and desolate.”
Su Xiu said yes.
The Crown Princess thought of something and said softly: "The Crown Prince asked before entering the palace that someone should be sent to the Mu Mansion at dusk to pick up a man named Gu Zhengchen to come to the East Palace to admire the moon. Su Xiu, do you know who this person is? Why has this palace never I’ve heard of it.”
Su Xiu shook her head in confusion: "I have never heard of it."
The Crown Princess shook her head and didn't think much. She just felt that the Crown Prince valued her: "In the past three years, this is the first time that the Crown Prince has asked someone who must be invited to go to Mu Mansion."
Su Xiu agreed and arranged for the eunuch of the East Palace to see the time and invite him.
Mu Mansion.
Gu Zhengchen pretended to be shocked: "You said Zhu Dalang is the prince?"
Mu Ying nodded solemnly: "You were really bold in the past few days. If the prince hadn't been generous and didn't blame you, you wouldn't have been able to chop off ten heads."
"That middle-aged man, could it be him?"
Gu Zhengchen asked uneasily.
Mu Ying cupped her hands and faced north: "That's Your Majesty."
Gu Zhengchen took a deep breath, sat in the chair, lowered his head and said nothing. He really didn't know how to pretend to be the same. He had already guessed the identities of Zhu Biao and Zhu Yuanzhang, and the shock had long passed...
"Common Governor Mu, is there anyone in the official office at this time?"
Gu Zhengchen stood up and asked.
Mu Ying was a little wary: "What are you going to do?"
Gu Zhengchen had a grimace on his face: "What else can I do? Naturally, I would go to the Ministry of Civil Affairs to apply for official credentials and be appointed as the county magistrate of Jurong..."
Mu Ying couldn't believe it: "You, you actually want to run away?"
Gu Zhengchen waved his hand: "Based on my status, staying in Jinling is just a deserter. Going to Jurong is progress. How can I escape? No, I have to leave immediately. Gu Cheng, pack your luggage..."
Mu Ying coughed, looked at Gu Zhengchen who was about to run away, and said softly: "The prince invites you to be a guest in the East Palace. Your Majesty agrees. If you don't go, you will have violated the holy will and disobeyed the prince. Let alone run away." If you go to Jurong, even if you run back to Teng County, you will still be captured and brought back to be punished."
Gu Zhengchen turned around speechlessly.
Mu Ying said with a smile: "How many people are eager to have a relationship with the East Palace and become the prince's guest. You are afraid. It's late. Get ready to go to the Mid-Autumn Festival banquet. Remember, be careful what you say and don't offend. The prince's guests and the prince's instructions must not offend the prince or the prince's concubine..."
Gu Zhengchen had no choice but to go to the west wing to prepare.
At dusk, the eunuch of the East Palace came to invite him.
Gu Zhengchen got on the carriage.
The East Palace is located on the east side of the imperial palace and is also known as the Spring Harmony Palace.
Entering from Donghua Gate, you will see Wenhua Hall to the west and Chunhe Gate to the north. Entering Chunhe Gate, you will find Chunhe Palace.
The eunuch led Gu Zhengchen into a courtyard with several branches of green bamboo and the fragrance of osmanthus.
The long corridor and wide pavilion provide a broad view.
Five or six people were already seated in the pavilion, and the maids brought moon cakes and fruits to them.
The eunuch arranged: "The prince is still in the palace and needs to come back later. Please leave a message and let Mr. Gu do whatever you want without restraint."
Gu Zhengchen thanked him, then walked towards the pavilion and saluted everyone who looked at him: "Gu Zhengchen has met all of you gentlemen."
Everyone saluted and looked at each other.
Gu Zhengchen took a piece of moon cake under everyone's astonished eyes, walked to the darkness of the corridor, and enjoyed it by himself.
Liang Zhen, the guest of the prince, rubbed his eyes and said to the guests of the prince, Qin Yong, Lu Deming, Zhang Chang and others: "Who is that person? He is so bold! How dare you touch the moon cake before the prince arrives? How can you be such a rude person? Come to the East Palace!"
Qin Yong squinted his eyes and saw, yes, this guy actually ate the moon cake. Your sister, do you understand the rules and etiquette? The host is sitting down, but you, a guest, use your chopsticks first. How is that appropriate? !
Zhang Chang said sarcastically: "These must be people from the countryside. You also know that many of the talents selected by the imperial court come from the mountains and fields, and they are used to being wild and arrogant."
Lu Deming nodded repeatedly: "This is the only way to explain this person's vulgar behavior! However, this kind of person cannot stay in the East Palace. Your Majesty said, teach the prince to be virtuous. How can such a person be virtuous when he is with the prince? teach?"
"Yes."
Everyone shouted in unison.
Gu Zhengchen naturally heard what these people said. After all, he didn't avoid saying it, but he just didn't care. The prince said it was casual, so just be casual. After all, it was dark today. Looking at this table of melon and fruit mooncakes, I guess the prince didn't prepare anything else to eat.
The mooncakes at this time in the Ming Dynasty were not very delicious. They were just pine nut cakes or pretzel cakes with just the following fillings: pine nuts, walnut kernels, and melon seeds. If you like it sweet, add some sugar. If you like it spicy, add some pork. Oil goes in.
For example, in later generations, there were various types of mooncakes. There were no mooncakes in Ming Dynasty, either without packaging one piece or five hundred. At this time, gifts were not given during the festival, and mooncakes were not given as gifts...
During the Mid-Autumn Festival, people offer cakes to the moon as a symbol of reunion.
To put it bluntly, mooncakes in the early Ming Dynasty were more of an offering, and eating them was secondary. If you want to pursue the taste, you have to wait for decades...
At this moment, a man wearing a hat on his head walked over from a distance. After passing by Gu Zhengchen, he took two steps back, raised his head and looked at Gu Zhengchen, and asked in a deep voice: "Who are you?"
Gu Zhengchen raised his head, swallowed the mooncake in his mouth, stood up and saluted: "Gu Zhengchen, may I ask who you are sir?"
"You don't even know me, how did you come to the East Palace? Nan Shiqing, as a master of the East Palace, you are so negligent and neglectful, regardless of the safety of the prince. I will make a final report to Your Majesty and severely punish you and others!"
The man in the coir raincoat shouted loudly.
When Nan Shiqing heard the commotion, he quickly ran over to explain: "Mr. Li, this person is a guest invited by the prince, and we are not being negligent."
Li Xiyan raised her hand and pushed up the coir raincoat, revealing a somewhat old face, staring at Gu Zhengchen, cupping her hands and saying, "Li Xiyan, the guest of the Prince of the East Palace."
Gu Zhengchen stared: "I've admired you for a long time, I've admired you for a long time."
Li Xiyan waved her sleeves and passed by without giving Gu Zhengchen any face. When Liang Zhen and others saw Li Xiyan coming, they all stood up and saluted.
Gu Zhengchen sat back and didn't mind Li Xiyan's rigidity and dignity at all.
Not only does this guy not give him his own face, he doesn't even give him the face of Lao Zhu. He is the teacher of all the princes. Not only Zhu Biao, but also Zhu Lao Er, Lao San, Lao Si and others have to respectfully call "Mr. Li" when they come together.
Especially the second eldest child, Zhu Xiang, was punished corporally by Li Xiyan with a ruler because he was not paying attention to the class. He was hit not on the palm of his hand but on his forehead. Even though Zhu Yuanzhang was distressed and wanted to kill Li Xiyan, Queen Ma said: "How can you use the standards of Yao and Shun to teach your son, but it will make you lose your temper?"
Just like that, Li Xiyan took the class photo and waved the ruler.
Even the vassal king dared to punish him corporally, but Gu Zhengchen didn't dare to hold a grudge.
A full moon rises in the east, and the sky and earth begin to become clear.
While Li Xiyan, Liang Zhen and others were admiring the moon, a sharp voice came from the distance: "The prince has arrived."
On the corridor, Prince Zhu Biao came gracefully.
When a eunuch saw Gu Zhengchen standing in front, he quickly stepped forward and pulled Li Xiyan and others behind, and everyone saluted in unison.
Zhu Biaoxu raised his right hand and said calmly: "On Mid-Autumn Festival, admiring the moon comes first, so these etiquettes are not required. Zhou Zong, take out the osmanthus wine given by your majesty and distribute it to Mr. Li and everyone."
"Thank you, Your Highness."
Everyone stood up.
Zhu Biao saw Gu Zhengchen behind Lu Deming and said with a smile: "Mr. Gu, why hide in the back? How about sitting next to me alone?"
As soon as this statement came out, everyone was surprised.
Liang Zhen couldn't believe that the prince did not greet Mr. Li Xiyan or himself first, but instead went to greet someone he had never heard of.
Who is he, and why can he sit next to the prince?
Qin Yong, Zhang Chang and others were even more unconvinced.
Lu Deming gritted his teeth, stood up and said, "Your Highness, how virtuous and capable is this person? Can he be on the side of Your Highness?"
Just as Zhu Biao was about to speak, Gu Zhengchen came out and said first, "Your Highness, what this person said is absolutely true. I have no virtue and incompetence, how can I be on your Highness's side?"
Zhu Dalang, don't bring hatred to me. Don't you see that these people are already trying to kill me?
"Mr. Gu is talented and has a great talent. He sits next to me so that he can talk freely about the past and the present. Don't refuse. Everyone is seated. It's time to eat and drink."
Zhu Biao insisted and gave Gu Zhengchen a wink.
It's you who got the knife. It's all your fault. You asked me to expand my breasts, ask me to do sit-ups, and push-ups. Do you know that because of you, I have to exercise in addition to studying, and my life is hard now... …
Liang Zhen looked at Gu Zhengchen who was walking to the side of the prince and sat on the right side of the prince. His face was ashen and he roared in his heart: This position should belong to me!
Zhu Biao looked at Li Xiyan on his left: "Mr. Li, today is the Mid-Autumn Festival, do you want to recite poems and compose poems, or discuss the ways of governing the country?"
Li Xiyan glanced at Gu Zhengchen, who was reaching for the fruits, and took off the coir raincoat: "During the Mid-Autumn Festival, we should talk about poems and songs to leave beautiful chapters. But when I met Mr. Gu today, I wanted to ask for advice on how to govern the country."
Liang Zhen took a step closer: "Yes, when can't we write poems and songs? We should talk about the way of governing the country to gain our knowledge. You think so, Mr. Gu, uh, you, you..."
Gu Zhengchen took a bite of watermelon. Well, this is not bad, very sweet.
Zhu Biao looked at Gu Zhengchen: "Guest Liang is asking you."
Gu Zhengchen shook his head and said bluntly: "I'm just an official, so I don't know how to govern the country. You guys can talk freely, but don't watch me eat melons."
"You, you are so rude!"
Liang Zhen was a little angry.
This is the East Palace Moon Viewing, not a melon-eating party. You don’t care about the occasion.
Zhu Biao was in a happy mood and looked at Gu Zhengchen with admiration in his eyes. Such a true-hearted person is rare around him. Look at these guests and judges. They are either too strict, too old-fashioned, or too cautious to laugh...
