Zhu Changxiao's version of the Sui Dynasty

Yang Guang thought it was reasonable, so he approved the matter and ordered Yuwenshu and Du Yan to buy Dushan jade and Huangshi inkstone.

Since Xiao Jun was the newly welcomed princess and had a tight schedule to return to the capital, King Jin turned around and left, and Yu Wenshu and Du Yan immediately got up and went to Wancheng for a tour.

The streets of Wancheng are very lively. Teahouses, restaurants, restaurants, banks, and various gatehouses line the streets. People pass by, trading with each other, and the bustle is endless. Du Yan saw a gatehouse from a distance. It had a wide entrance hall and red painted pillars. There was a plaque on it that read"Baoguang Pavilion." The scholars who came in and out of Baoguang Pavilion were all playing with stones. Du Yan said:"General Yuwen, this is This shop must be for buying and selling jewelry and jade."

"Go in and take a look."

Yu Wenshu and Du Yan entered Baoguang Pavilion. The boss of the shop took a look at the clothes of these two people and knew that they must be people with a good background. He quickly bowed his hands and said:"Two guests, are you playing with calligraphy and painting of strange stones, or miscellaneous jade articles?"

"I'm waiting for the best Dushan jade"

"Oops, you two are here."The boss ordered the waiter, while bringing tea and water, and asked Yuwen、Du Yan asked to sit aside.

A waiter brought out a wooden box. The shop owner lifted the wooden cover and revealed a jade cabbage:"This cabbage has green leaves and white flesh. It is exquisitely carved and is worth one hundred taels of silver."

Yu Wenshu looked at the cabbage and said, Shaked his head. The shopkeeper winked at the boy, who turned around and returned to the warehouse.

Not long after, the boy brought out a treasure. When he opened the wooden box, a finely carved jade locust appeared before his eyes. The locust's forewings were narrow, its hind wings were wide, and it retreated high and looked lifelike.

"You two can be objective. This grasshopper is a masterpiece of hollow carving. It is carved from a complete piece of Dushan Jade."

"How much?

The shop owner stretched out his fingers and said,"The asking price is five hundred taels of silver." Yu

Wenshu crossed his fingers and thought, although this is a treasure with exquisite carvings, locusts are not auspicious things after all, so he asked:"Is there any auspicious ornament?""

"There is... there is... there is really one"

"Come and take a look."

The shop owner winked at the young man again. After waiting for a short time, the young man brought out a rectangular wooden box. The shop owner took off the lid of the box, revealing a whole jade Ruyi.

"Sir, it depends on whether you know the goods or not. This Ruyi has jade as clear as water, flawless white jade, and fine hollow carvings, which is unique in the world."

Yu Wenshu looked at it and nodded frequently. The boss came closer and said,"I heard that the master who made Ruyi has been recruited into the palace. Wancheng can't find another craftsman who can do it. Du Yan asked:"

How much silver does this jade Ruyi cost?""

"To tell you the truth, this Ruyi not only sells jade, but also sells the craftsman's craftsmanship. The asking price is one thousand taels of silver, and I won't sell it for a penny less."

"good. Yu Wenshu said:"I want this Ruyi, but I don't have a thousand taels with me. You can keep it for me. I will send someone to get it later.""

"Don't worry, sir, this is yours."The shopkeeper was very happy, grinning from ear to ear.

Yu Wenshu asked again:"I heard that Wancheng is rich in yellow stone inkstones. I wonder if you have any in stock here."

The store owner said:"To be honest with you, ordinary yellow stone inkstones can be sold, but high-quality yellow stone inkstones are not easy to get."

"Why?"

"Huangshi inkstone is one of the five most famous inkstones in the world. Huangshi inkstone is divided into five types: purple stone, bluestone, turquoise stone, ink stone and phoenix eye stone. If you want to get top quality, phoenix eye stone is the only one. There are dots in this phoenix eye stone, which are bright and picturesque and vary in size. They look like eyes, with eyes and beads. Some have pupils in the middle and halos on the outer layer, which are called phoenix eyes."

Du Yan heard what the store said was magical and asked:"Where can I buy this phoenix eye stone?"

"When it comes to the best Fengyan inkstone, it has to be in the north of Wancheng. There is a scholar named Zhuge Ying in Queens Valley. He is a famous scholar with ancient and modern knowledge. The year before last, Zhuge Ying used his house in Wancheng to buy a house. The treasure inkstone is called Luomei Fengyan Inkstone! Priceless, rare in ancient and modern times"

"oh……"

"The Luomei Fengyan Inkstone is estimated to be worth ten thousand taels of silver. If there is no ten thousand taels of silver, it would be best for the guest not to see Zhuge Ying."

After hearing this, Yuwenshu and Du Yan felt that such a treasure was extraordinary and not an ordinary inkstone. The more curious they were, the more they wanted to see that precious inkstone. Yuwenshu paid the store one hundred taels of silver as a deposit, and the two People then thought about how to get Zhuge Ying's precious inkstone.

Yu Wenshu and Du Yan returned to the post house and ordered people to bring money to buy the selected jade Ruyi. At this time, Yang Guang was chatting with Xiao Jun in the room. ,"Two generals, what did you gain from going to the city?"

"Reporting back to King Jin, all the gifts have been prepared. Now there is only one treasure left."

"What baby?"

"Fallen Plum Phoenix Eye Inkstone"

"What kind of rare inkstone is this?"

Yuwen Shuzuo bowed and said:"Reporting to Your Highness, this is an inkstone made of phoenix eye stone. Because of its unique material and rare style, it is worth ten thousand taels of silver."

"Where is the baby now?" Yang Guang asked

"I heard that it was in the hands of a master named Zhuge Ying in the Queen's Valley in the north of Wancheng."

Although Yang Guang didn't recognize Zhuge Ying, he heard that it was an inkstone kept privately by the people. Although he was very interested, he was afraid that it would not reach his father's heart. He asked again:"No matter how good it is, it is just an inkstone. Father will like it." What?"

Yu Wenshu said with a bit of a sly smile:"If your majesty thinks it is extravagant, your highness will say it is just an inkstone. If your majesty thinks it is ordinary, your highness will say it is made of the rare phoenix eye stone. No matter what, this is a treasure"

"Um. Yang Guang nodded:"Tomorrow's trip, I will go to the Queen's Valley after receiving the order.""

"obey."

At dawn the next day, the team escorting Jin Wang Yang Guang left the north gate of Wancheng and went straight to the Queen's Valley. Along the way, the mountain scenery was beautiful and the flowers and plants were luxuriant. Along the way, they saw three large characters carved on a rock at the far end."Queen's Valley".

Xiao Jun was sitting in the chariot and looking through the window. He felt that the name of Queen's Valley was somewhat meaningful, so he asked Zhang Heng, the chief clerk who was accompanying him on the side of the chariot:"Does the chief know what this place is?" Named Queen Valley?"

"It was said that Queen Yin Lihua of Emperor Guangwu Liu Xiu of the Eastern Han Dynasty died here. Later generations named this place Queen's Valley to commemorate Yin Lihua."

"I heard the royal brothers say that to become an official, you should be like Zhi Jinwu, and to marry a wife, you should marry Yin Lihua."

"Yes, it is said that Yin Lihua has the virtue of motherly etiquette and is highly respected by the people, so she is highly respected by future generations."

Xiao Jun looked at the rocks around him, imagining the legend of Yin Lihua from time to time. He opened the curtains and said to Zhang Heng:"If this place is the Queen's Valley, there must be an ancestral hall to commemorate Yin Lihua. If you see her, I will pay her a visit. Ichiban"

"obey. Zhang

Heng urged his horse to go forward for a while, caught up with the guide who was walking in front of the team, and asked:"Do you know if there are any ancestral temples in the Queen's Valley?""

"There is no temple in this remote mountainous area, but there is an ancestral hall dedicated to Yin Lihua. Zhang

Heng was overjoyed,"It's just as the princess expected. When you arrive, you must stop the queue. The princess wants to pay homage to the ancestral hall.""

After walking not far, the guide urged his horse to see Xiao Jun's chariot. He bowed and said,"I would like to inform the princess that the Queen's Shrine has arrived."

Xiao Jun opened the curtain and got off the carriage. Yang Guang, Su Wei, Yu Wenshu and others also got off their horses. Yang Guang asked:"Where do you want to go, my beloved concubine?"

"I heard that there is a shrine to the Queen in the Queen’s Valley, and I want to pay my respects."

"That’s fine, I will accompany you. Yang Guang turned to Yu Wenshu and Du Yan and said,"You two should quickly find out where Zhuge Ying lives.""

"obey."

The Queen's Temple has long been in ruins. The earth-and-stone ancestral hall is somewhat skewed. The two wooden doors are also in decay. Spiders have made webs in the temple and dust has accumulated thickly.

Xiao Jun raised his head and looked around, looking at the devastation of the Queen's Temple. Yang Guang said:"As soon as I fell into the imperial court, I admired Yin Lihua very much. I am here today to clean up the temple and offer sacrifices.""

"The king just orders a few soldiers to clean it up, why does my concubine need to take action?"

"No, my sincerity is beyond words, so I’d better do it myself."

Zhang Heng looked around the ancestral hall and saw a broom in the corner. He picked up the broom, flicked the dust and handed it over. Xiao Jun took the broom and swept away the cobwebs and dust. Gradually, a broken statue came into view..

The golden paint on the statue has gradually faded, and the clay sculpture has been somewhat damaged,"This must be Yin Lihua.""

Yang Guang nodded:"Yes, for thousands of years, Yinlihua's mother has been respected by the world, her virtue has convinced everyone, and she is respected by future generations."

Zhang Heng brought in the prepared incense. Xiao Jun lit a stick of incense, took a few steps back, lifted up her long skirt, and knelt down on her knees:"Xiao Jun, the princess of the Sui and Jin Dynasties, paid homage to Yin Lihua, the empress of Emperor Guangwu of the Han Dynasty. I pray that the virtues of the Yin Empress will last forever and bless everyone in the world. Yang

Guang also lifted up his robe and knelt down, clasped his hands and bowed:"If the empress has a spirit in heaven, Xiao Jun will be honored as the empress one day." As soon as these words came out, Xiao Jun was startled. He turned around and whispered:"Your Highness, please don't talk nonsense. If it is spread that Your Highness has such ambitions, others will be wary of him." Yang

Guang looked back and saw that Zhang Heng was the only one behind him. He said to Xiao Jun:"Don't worry, my beloved concubine, I keep my ambition in my heart and never reveal it.""

Xiao Jun looked at Yang Guang's still somewhat immature face and worried that talking more would be useless, so he stood up and walked out of the Queen's Temple. Yang Guang waited with Xiao Jun outside the ancestral hall for a while, when Yu Wenshu came over in a hurry and bowed. :"I would like to report to Your Highness that the general has already inquired about Zhuge Ying's residence from the front.

Yang Guang said to Xiao Jun:"My beloved concubine will go with me to see the Fang Baoyan.""

Xiao Jun was also very curious about the"Luomei Phoenix Eye Inkstone" and readily agreed to accompany him.