The four words of Si Chen have been extinct in the Tang Dynasty for more than ten years. Compared with the countless officials who kowtowed to their lives when Empress Wu was first in charge of political affairs, now officials who are accustomed to seeing this scene have given up making a big fuss about this point. After all, those seniors who counted the stars in Lingnan because of their advice are the best examples, and those who have died down have entered the political hall, which is undoubtedly the best sign.

Due to the stability of the northwest, Pei Xingjian, who was originally in Liangzhou, returned to Luoyang. When he entered the city, he coincidentally ran into another person---- it was Liu Renliang, who had just retired from the seat left behind in Chang'an, and was now gray-haired!

The two famous Confucian generals glanced at each other, and at the same time, a sense of vicissitudes arose in the value of the East Palace Seal. After greeting and greeting, Pei Xingjian proposed to go for a drink together after finishing official business after entering the city. This happened to fall into Liu Renliang's arms, so he immediately agreed happily.

The joint return of Pei Xingjian and Liu Renliang immediately caused a commotion under the Zhongshu Sect, and many officials inevitably whispered about whether the two would re-enter the political hall after admiring the demeanor of their predecessors. After all, when Pei and Liu left Luoyang to take office, they all carried the title of prime minister. When he saw Li Xian personally coming from the East Palace to accompany the two of them to talk, this kind of discussion spread even more, and it became a fact that everyone firmly believed.

The group of prime ministers in the political hall have endless complaints, and they have heard a lot on weekdays. His Royal Highness, who is often picky, shouldn't refuse to use this kind of skilled labor, right?

Li Xian completely ignored all kinds of eyes and discussions, greeted the two hard-working old acquaintances with a smile, and invited the two to go to his house for a drink in the evening. As a result, I saw Liu Renliang's strange face. Just when he felt strange, Pei Xingjian smiled bitterly and spoke.

"Gong Liu and I haven't seen the value of the East Palace Seal for a long time, and we still want to invite him for a drink. Unexpectedly, His Highness thought of going with us. I've been thinking about the wine at His Royal Highness's house for a long time, but I'd better go and bother it another day! ”

When people said so, Li Xian was not easy to force, so he immediately said that he would comfort the heroes another day, and then let the two leave. Looking at the backs of Pei and Liu in the distance, he remembered that he had just seen Liu Renliang's gray hair, and Pei Xing's temples were frosty white. Thinking about the white hair that the maids plucked from their heads when they got up early to comb their hair these days, I couldn't help but feel that time was like a white horse.

However, the two men, who he thought were old, jumped on their horses with great skill after leaving the palace. For the people of the Tang Dynasty, never taking a car when they can ride a horse has become a kind of insistence deeply imprinted in their bones, especially Liu Renliang and Pei Xingjian, the two Confucian generals who once galloped across the field, and the kind of work of riding in a car is naturally not suitable for them.

"Liu Gong. This time it will inevitably be pestered. Why don't you take off this eye-catching coat and find a place to sit casually? Of course, Liu Renliang knew what the entanglement that Pei Xingjian was referring to, so he immediately nodded and agreed. After taking the servants to a secluded place, changing into official robes and putting on civilian clothes, he sent most of them away, leaving only two loyal family members with him. And Pei Xingjian was even more supportive, and he simply sent everyone home. The two looked at each other and smiled, and found a secluded wine shop on the edge of Luoshui and plunged in.

After this drink, the two chatted for an hour and a half, from business to private affairs. From the past to the present, it is inevitable to sigh in the end. After these decades, Datang is no longer the scene of the past, although it is not as good as the Zhenguan period, but in general it is still a prosperous atmosphere. However. Both of them are very characters. They all saw the crisis behind the calm surface.

"Keep the covenant if you go back thirty years. Will you still criticize the aftermath? ”

Liu Gong said with a smile, at this time and at that time, I was still young and vigorous, and I had not yet realized the deep meaning of His Majesty. Now that I think about it, if it weren't for the fact that Captain Changsun was too powerful and self-dedicated, maybe His Majesty would not have killed them all. The past has passed, and although I still disagree with Empress Taishang as a woman, I have at least learned to be silent when I should be silent. ”

"If people know that Pei Xingjian, who was bold in the past, would also say such frustrating words, I'm afraid that some people will be disappointed!" Liu Renliang shook his head helplessly, and then laughed self-deprecatingly, "When I offended Li Yifu, I also thought that one day I would take revenge, but once I became the prime minister, I knew the importance of this choice of advance and retreat. I'm old, and I'm not going to go back to the political hall to mix the muddy water when I come back this time, and there are more capable people in the horizontal and vertical places, and it's an eyesore for me to go in. ”

The two former Confucian generals looked at me for a while, laughed at the same time, toasted each other, and then drank it all. Next, the two gossiped for a while before leaving. Sure enough, when they parted ways and returned to their door, they all had a headache when they learned that many guests had come to visit.