Zhu Ming rode back to the city, it was already dark, but he was not afraid of the city gate closing.

From today until the end of the Lantern Festival, the gates of Tokyo will be open. There is no curfew in the city, and you can stay up all night – Tokyo has a curfew, but it is postponed until the second half of the night, and citizens are allowed to play as much as they want in the first half of the night.

When night falls, the lights shine brightly.

Lanterns from all over the country, start trying out the lanterns today. Especially around the imperial city, there are large Aoshan lanterns, which are offered by the state capitals of various places.

"I've also seen lantern festivals in Saigo County, and compared to Tokyo, it's really a rural place." Bai Sheng sighed from the bottom of his heart, he really had a long understanding at the moment.

Shi Biao was so shocked that he couldn't speak, and he looked at everything with his mouth half-open all the way.

Zhu Ming led the horse forward, his eyes reflected the lights of the city, but in his mind were the stretching shacks on both sides of the Cao River.

The impact of the two is too strong!

Sticking to the south wall of the inner city, that piece is full of hooked fence tiles, tonight looks particularly lively.

Many tiles do not need to pay tickets, you can watch performances when you go in, mainly rely on the booth fees in the venue to make money, and the vendors rent booths to sell various goods, and the nature of operation is more like a large comprehensive shopping mall.

But during the Lantern Festival, the highlight is not in Washer, but in front of the Xuande Building. The wide royal street, set up a stage four or five hundred meters long, from the outside of the imperial city to the inner city wall, Kaifeng citizens can stand on both sides of the royal street to watch the performance.

Tomorrow is the Lantern Festival, and tonight has begun.

Both sides of the royal street have been crowded, densely packed with people, and those who can't squeeze in can only go to other streets to watch the lights.

"Little athlete, little athlete!"

The audience suddenly shouted wildly, "Little Athlete" is a big star recorded in "Tokyo Menghualu".

I saw a young man wearing a short dress, turning his head to the center of the stage, accompanied by several other stars.

After a fight, the little athlete suddenly breathed fire, and the firelight was divided into different colors.

Then I saw him turn and bow his head, take a deep breath, and breathe out flames again. A pill floated in the flames, constantly spinning in the air, as if practicing the pill with samadhi true fire. And this flame lasted for more than half a minute, and no one else in Tokyo City could match.

"Good!"

Countless spectators applauded.

Even Zhu Ming forgot about the bad things for the time being and applauded with everyone.

"Li Waining, Li Waining ......"

On the stage next door, there were also big stars on the stage, and they seemed to be even more powerful, and the audience squeezed in that direction.

Zhu Ming couldn't squeeze through, so they could only look at it from a distance, and there seemed to be fireworks faintly.

Li Waining is a puppeteer, who is good at using medicinal puppets, that is, using gunpowder to drive dolls.

The whole royal street, with different programs, is crowded with people, and it is fascinating.

Zhu Ming couldn't help but sigh: "Just look here, it is really Fengheng Yuda and prosperous!" ”

In the crowd, there were also many people in exotic costumes.

Chen Dong pointed not far away: "Those are all envoys from the Liao Kingdom, and next to them are envoys from Goryeo." Every New Year's Day, delegations from various countries come to Beijing to participate in the Yuan Meeting. In the Yuan meeting, the envoys congratulated him, and only the envoys of Liao and Goryeo could get a banquet, and the envoys of the rest of the countries acted on their own. On the second day, the envoys went to Xiangguo Temple to burn incense and worship the Buddha. On the third day, the envoys went to the South Imperial Garden to shoot arrows. The envoys of the Liao State liked to shoot crossbows, and the warriors of the Great Song Dynasty used bows and arrows. If the warriors of the Great Song Dynasty hit the bull's-eye, the officials will have a heavy reward, and then they will ride horses and parade through the streets for the people to pursue. ”

Zhu Ming asked: "Isn't the relationship between the Great Song Dynasty and the Liao Kingdom getting worse day by day?" ”

Chen Dong said: "But the two countries have always had envoys coming and going, and the Aoshan lantern in front of the Xuande Building is often lit up in advance for the envoys of the Liao State. It was lit until the Lantern Festival, so that the envoys of the Liao State could have more than half a month of lanterns to see. ”

"Where are those messengers?" Zhu Ming pointed farther away.

Hou Xuan said: "The envoy from Khotan from the Western Regions. ”

"I've heard that." Zhu Ming nodded.

In Khotan, in the area of Hotan, Xinjiang.

Then there are the Arabs, the Great Eclipse. These guys don't come very often, and many times, they are Arab businessmen in disguise, and the main purpose is to come to Tokyo to sell goods at a high price.

Southeast Asian envoys such as Sriwijaya and Sriwijaya often came, often offering elephants, rhinoceros, peacocks, parrots, and the like. As a result, there were more and more animals in Tokyo, with dozens of elephants alone, and the Emperor of the Great Song Dynasty opened the Royal Zoo in Yujin Garden outside the city.

Foreign envoys also offered Kunlun slaves.

The Kunlun slaves offered by the Three Buddhas are estimated to be indigenous to Southeast Asia. But the Kunlun slave offered by the big food merchant is very likely to be a real black slave.

Zhu Ming watched the performance for a while, so he went to eat and drink with his friends.

On the way, I also came across a blue hat selling goods at a stall, and just looking at the pattern on the hat, I knew that it was a Jew living in Tokyo.

……

The emperor was not idle tonight, and went to the Wuyue Temple in the imperial chariot, and the attendants all wore big hats, and there were flowers on the hats. The palace guards were wearing red brocade group lion shirts, the gold-plated Heavenly King belt, and Zhu Ming's Heavenly King armor belt, and the golden gourd in his hand had several heavy bones.

The military attache of the Praetorian Guard and the sergeant in front of the palace were also dressed in festive and exaggerated manners, dressed like generals on the stage.

The emperor's attachés were holding all kinds of gadgets, such as golden chairs, spittoons, jugs, fruit bowls, and so on. These are the emperor's royal belongings, no matter where they go, they are spitting, and ordinary spittoons are not used to it.

The palm fan behind the emperor has a handle made of glass and jade, and there is a wick in the glass that can be lit.

It is the lantern that opens the way in front of it, which is wrapped in the best red gauze and decorated with jewels. There are 400 such lanterns, all of which are lit with the finest white candles.

All kinds of things, either gold or jade, and the rest are also gems and pearls.

It reflects four words: luxury and luxury!

Before the construction of the stage of the Royal Street, Song Huizong sat on the imperial chariot, came out of the Xuande Building, and gathered the civil and military officials waiting there, and the huge team headed south.

"Look at the driver!"

With the shouts of the guards, the three lieutenants opened the way and marched forward.

Passers-by dodged along the way, and in an instant no one dared to speak, and the noisy streets became dead silent. In the words of the original text of "Tokyo Menghualu", it is "the blood of those who have a loud voice", and those golden gourd guards are not decorations.

First passed by the Jiucheng Palace, where there is the Jiuding cast by Song Huizong.

In the early years of the Northern Song Dynasty, there was a shortage of money, and many edicts were issued to prohibit the outflow of copper coins. At the end of the Northern Song Dynasty, there was a shortage of money that affected people's livelihood, and Cai Jing had to mint large copper coins.

But Song Huizong melted the copper coins and bronze utensils, and cast Jiuding to show his destiny, and Jiuding was later snatched away by Jin Bing.

Next door to the Jiucheng Palace, where Jiuding is placed, is the Yingxiang Pool for tonight's banquet.

The pond is full of willows, there are water lilies in the pond, pavilions and pavilions, and the scenery is elegant.

Under the reflection of 400 imperial lanterns and many lanterns, Yingxiang Pond at night is as bright as day. The lights are reflected in the pool water, reflecting each other, and it is very beautiful.

Song Huizong sat on the golden chair, the music played, and the ministers congratulated.

Music, auspicious.

Bai Shizhong, the secretary of the Ministry of Rites, who had just been demoted to the third official, took the list and began to read: "Jingdong Road presents a white tiger and beast, which has been sent to Yujin Garden......"

Every time a kind of auspiciousness is recited, the civil and military officials congratulate one after another.

Reading and reading, Bai Shizhong said: "Lizhou Road into the immortal grain, corn, sweet potatoes each 100 catties!" ”

Hearing the word "immortal", Song Huizong came to his senses and asked, "What is corn sweet potato?" It can be called fairy food. ”

Bai Shizhong said: "Peng Xi, the transfer envoy of Lizhou Road, said that there are strangers looking for immortals overseas, and when they meet an immortal, they are given corn and sweet potatoes, which can yield several stones per mu. And regardless of the land, barren mountainous land can also be cultivated. ”

Song Huizong didn't pay attention to the yield per mu, and only asked: "Can immortal grain have miraculous effects?" ”

Bai Shizhong replied, "I don't know. ”

Liu Zhengfu left the table and handed over: "The official family, if you can really produce a few stones per mu and can be cultivated in barren land, these two things can benefit the world." Your Majesty has worked hard, my great Song Dynasty is unparalleled, Fengheng and Yuda are in the four seas, and now there is fairy food, which is really the favor of the immortals! ”

As a result, the ministers rushed to congratulate each other, and they all said that the emperor had the mandate of heaven.

Song Huizong suddenly became happy, and said: "Summoning the Lizhou Road transfer envoy, let him send a stranger to Beijing, and I will ask about the overseas immortals." ”

Then, the Ministry of Rites continued to recite auspicious rui, with a variety of contents, even including folk women giving birth to quadruplets.

After Xiangrui finished finishing, the waiter began to bring wine and food.

There are also troupes staging miscellaneous dramas, and the monarchs and ministers cooperate to share the grand occasion.

After the two miscellaneous performances, the royal lyricists of Dasheng Mansion began to write poems praising virtue.

Song Huizong personally commented, ranked the top few, and the reward ranged from tens to hundreds.

……

Zhu Ming was half drunk and rode back to the inn outside the city, but no one came to check him for drunk driving.

Bai Sheng and Shi Biao lay on the floor, they were tired from walking today, and they fell asleep when they lay down, and the snoring made it difficult for Zhu Ming to sleep.

Roll over and get out of bed and light the fuel lamp.

Zhu Ming pulled out the sword and began to wipe it, and after wiping the sword, he went to wipe the iron spear and iron mace.

He went to the window with his shovel in his hand, pushed it open and looked out. Although the outside of the city is not as prosperous as the inside of the city, it is also full of lanterns, a gust of night wind blows, and the smell of burning coal.

The trees near Tokyo have long been insufficient to support the city's firewood.

Households, even officials, use coal to make fires for cooking.

Only the royal family and the top magnates burn high-priced charcoal, which was shipped from far and wide.

From the time crossing to the present, Zhu Ming has been clamoring for rebellion, but the previous willingness to rebel was not as strong as today.

This is Tokyo, the capital of the Great Song Dynasty, and it already looks like this.

How miserable should the people everywhere be?

Zhu Ming originally planned to launch an uprising after Jingkang, but now he wanted to advance it.

When should I get it forward?

Wait for Fang La to rebel, or the Song army was defeated in Liao?

Anyway, it's not now, the elite of the Western Army is still there, and the rebel army can't bear it in the early days.

Feeling indignant in his heart, Zhu Ming waved an iron shovel in the room, and there was a buzzing sound in the dark.

Shi Biao slept very hard, but Bai Sheng was woken up, opened his eyes and looked, and continued to sleep.

Only Zhu Ming is still there and going crazy alone!

(End of chapter)