Chapter 115: The Grand Gathering of Gentlemen and Ladies – City Tournament

The sixth day of the sixth lunar month in the second year of the Tianbao era of the Great Tang Dynasty finally arrived.

Guanzhong had been suffering from a drought for over two months. If it did not rain soon, the autumn harvest would face severe problems. Even setting aside the harvest, the water supply for the millions of people and the vast number of livestock in Chang'an City was already becoming precarious.

Many wells in Chang'an had already run dry, and people had to be hired to dig deeper into the earth.

Quite a few people linked this situation to Han Chaozong’s efforts in diverting the漕 (Cao) Canal and Wei Jian’s canal construction, believing they must have offended the Dragon King, leading to the great drought in Guanzhong.

However, such nonsensical talk could only be whispered among the commoners in the markets; no one dared to speak of it before Li Longji. After all, only recently, Li Longji had ascended the Wangchun Pavilion with great interest to personally witness the fruits of Wei Jian’s labor. It was rumored that Wei Jian might even be promoted as a result, moving closer to a position in the cabinet.

Therefore, the people of Chang'an ostensibly pinned their hopes on the market fair held on the sixth day of the sixth month.

The market fairs in Chang'an were frequent and always incredibly lively, drawing tens or even hundreds of thousands of spectators, which was why they were also known as the "Great Gathering of Scholars and Maidens." This particular fair, besides the competition for the glass market, had another important purpose: to pray for rain from the various Dragon Kings.

Early in the morning, just as the dawn bells rang, Ye Chang left the inn where he was staying and headed toward the intersection of Zhuqu Avenue and the cross-street between Yanxing and Yanping Gates.

"Why so early? Didn't we stay in the city?" asked Shanzhi, yawning.

"We have to wait for someone," Ye Chang replied.

Because they had to be early today, the two of them had entered the city yesterday. During that time, Ye Chang had been acting stealthily, and Shanzhi had no idea what he was doing. Although he saw Ye Chang sending several chivalrous wanderers scurrying about, he still did not understand his true intent.

But soon, Shanzhi discovered who Ye Chang was waiting for.

Little Chongniang, accompanied only by a few Daoist nuns and wearing the new summer dress Ye Chang had prepared for her, appeared with a charming smile, meeting him at the intersection of Guangde Ward and the West Market.

The young girl was quite excited, chattering incessantly. The monk, finding the conversation to be mere trifles, had long since grown impatient, but Ye Chang listened with a constant smile, nodding or shaking his head from time to time, occasionally showing surprise or delight. It was clear that he was not pretending; he truly enjoyed hearing the young girl talk about these small matters.

"You stayed in Guangde Ward last night? That’s right, you should stay in Guangde Ward. The Great Master Sun Simiao lived in Guangde Ward back in his day. I saved some money last year, intending to buy this old house and build a Medicine King Temple. When you come to the capital in the future, you can stay directly there, instead of going to those chaotic inns..."

After the young girl muttered for a long time, this sudden remark left Shanzhi stunned.

What did this mean? The little girl wanted to buy a house and build a temple for Ye Eleven? Why was there no little nun buying a house and building a temple for him? He was clearly more valiant and imposing than Ye Eleven! The monk felt a sense of sorrow and indignation in his heart.

Ye Chang, however, felt a warmth rise within him. This young girl, from the cold and willful child he first met to the one who now knew how to care for others, truly gave him a sense of accomplishment. In the legends of his dream of immortals, he had met the Medicine King Sun Simiao; Luo Shouyi, a Daoist at the Medicine King Temple on Mt. Fufu, had once wanted to recognize him as a junior master, though Ye Chang had modestly declined, becoming only a lay junior brother to Luo Shouyi.

"Why aren't you saying anything?" Seeing Ye Chang didn't respond, Chongniang asked in surprise.

"I’m just so touched that I don't know what to say for a moment..." Ye Chang laughed.

"Really?" Chongniang was overjoyed, and her earlier disappointment turned into pure happiness.

"Naturally, it is true..."

The two walked and chatted as if no one else were around. Following them, Shi Shanzhi finally couldn't take it anymore and said indignantly, "Ye Eleven, are you planning to just walk all the way to Chaotian Street like this?"

"What's wrong with walking?" Chongniang was displeased. When she was talking to Ye Chang, when was it the turn of this smelly monk to interrupt?

"He's a man, so it doesn't matter, but you are a delicate young lady. Aren't you tired?"

"I'm not tired, and it's none of your business!" Chongniang gave him a fierce glare.

Ye Chang laughed heartily, which only deepened the monk's sense of grievance.

However, Shanzhi was right; they could not walk across several wards to the fairgrounds. Ye Chang had long been prepared, and a rented carriage was already waiting. He and Chongniang boarded, and the monk squeezed in as well. With the addition of the Daoist nuns accompanying Chongniang, the carriage was packed to the brim. Ye Chang dared not neglect the two nuns, as he suspected at least one of them had been sent by Li Longji.

The carriage was not the closed, oil-papered type, but an open one with a huge parasol fixed to the top. In the height of summer, the sun rose early. The spot where Chongniang sat was initially not shaded, so Ye Chang switched places with her. Seeing him sweating slightly in the sunlight, she smiled.

"What are you smiling at?" Ye Chang asked, puzzled.

"Nothing..." Chongniang thought of Ye Chang’s words from earlier and silently whispered, "So touched that I don't know what to say for a moment..."

She was particularly sensitive to the concern of others, and it was precisely this kind of care, revealed inadvertently by Ye Chang, that moved her the most.

"So many people!"

After all, Chongniang was still a young girl. Being with Ye Chang made her feel unconstrained, free from the suffocating atmosphere of the Imperial Palace, and her natural, youthful self emerged. When she saw the flowing crowds on the street, she couldn't help but exclaim.

"Indeed, there are many people!" Ye Chang was also quite startled.

From the West Market and from every ward along the way, thousands upon thousands of people surged out, all with one destination: Zhuqu Avenue.

The city guards from the watchtowers, the soldiers from the Southern Office, and the bailiffs from the Jingzhao Prefecture were all sweating profusely, running back and forth, shouting at those who tried to push against the young ladies in the chaos, punching and kicking those who dared to fish in troubled waters, and occasionally having to round up little children who were crying and separated from their parents. Even though they were working tirelessly, they couldn't keep up with the sheer number of people, and mishaps occurred from time to time.

As more and more people hit the streets, even the Magistrate of Wannian County, Ji Wen, had to come out personally to maintain order. When he reached Zhuqu Avenue, he saw the ill-tempered Huo Xianqi across the way, also so busy that his cap was askew.

The two exchanged a look and sighed simultaneously, yet their eyes glinted with golden light. It was indeed gold—the two counties under the Jingzhao Prefecture were working so diligently not for free. The West and East Markets had combined to provide 1,500 strings of cash—one and a half million coins—to cover the expenses of maintaining order. They had learned this from the ball games; ever since the ball market began paying for event security, the two counties had tasted the benefits. For any large-scale public event, a fee was now required, ranging from a hundred to over a thousand strings of cash, just like today.

"The reported figure was too low; it's a hard day's work," Huo Xianqi said half-jokingly.

"Indeed," Ji Wen replied simply.

Then he noticed Huo Xianqi's gaze stiffen. Following that gaze, Ji Wen looked back and saw Ye Chang arriving with a girl in a carriage shaded by a single parasol.

When he saw the girl, Ji Wen felt a jolt: It was the Twenty-Ninth Lady!

When Ye Chang had been planning the West Market, the Twenty-Ninth Lady had been by his side, so Ji Wen recognized her. But he dared not reveal her identity; after all, this concerned the secrets of the inner palace and the reputation of a royal princess. Unless he was tired of living, he would never blabber about it. He looked at Huo Xianqi, knowing that due to the incident outside Chunming Gate, Ye Chang and Huo were on very bad terms. Would this guy fly into a rage upon seeing Ye Chang? If he did, and offended the Twenty-Ninth Princess in the process, he would inevitably suffer for it.

Ji Wen had no intention of warning Huo Xianqi; on the contrary, he was looking forward to seeing him make a fool of himself. In reality, both he and Huo Xianqi shared Li Linfu as their true patron, but there was also competition between them. They had little affection for one another.

"That fellow Ye Eleven... why is he back, and coming to join in this mess!" Ji Wen muttered to himself.

These words sounded particularly grating to Huo Xianqi’s ears. However, he was not Zhang Ju; he lacked the confidence to find trouble with Ye Chang, so he merely snorted without saying anything.

"There really are so many people, more than when I used to sneak out to watch the ball games!"

Ye Chang didn't know that his aura of attracting trouble had nearly caused a scene again. Hearing the little princess say this, he teased, "So you aren't exactly a quiet one, sneaking out to watch ball games."

"Naturally, I had to sneak out to watch, otherwise how would I award them the gold medals?" Chongniang stuck out her tongue.

"So you often sneak out of the palace?"

"Not often, I have many other things to do."

Ye Chang didn't pry into what she did in the palace; that would be taboo. His attention was caught by a sugar figurine stall by the road. He jumped down, ran to the stall to buy one, and handed it to Chongniang in the carriage.

This wasn't the first time he had bought her a sugar figurine, but Chongniang looked at him with dissatisfaction: "I'm not a child, I don't need such things..."

If it were Xiang'er, she would have happily taken it and eaten it with delight. Ye Chang smiled: "You are a child!"

The two stared at each other for a moment until Chongniang finally yielded, taking the figurine and hopping off the carriage with a wobble: "Then I'll walk too!"

They dismissed the carriage. Despite her claims, Chongniang was licking the sugar figurine absent-mindedly. The surroundings were bustling. Although they had arrived early, at least several hundred people had arrived even earlier.

On Chaotian Street—that is, Zhuqu Avenue—no one dared to do anything, but along the east and west streets, endless rows of awnings had been set up. Various stalls vying for space had already been laid out, and they were selling far more than just sugar figurines.

However, surprisingly, the colorful viewing towers on both sides had not yet been erected. In previous fairs, these towers were built a day or even several days in advance, but this time, neither the West nor the East Market had them yet.

More and more people gathered in the streets. Although this cross-street was not as wide as the 150-meter-wide Zhuqu Avenue, it was still 50 meters wide—almost like a small plaza. So, despite the crowds, the road was not yet blocked.

These people had all come upon hearing the news, only to find awnings instead of the expected colorful towers, and they couldn't help but discuss it.

"Yes, why aren't there any towers? I asked around, and everyone says the towers are the most eye-catching part of the fair. Whichever market makes the most exquisite and beautiful tower attracts the most tourists, and the competition is often just a battle for popularity." Chongniang licked the sugar figurine with her pink tongue, looked up, and asked, "Eleven-Lang, why do you think they haven't built the towers yet?"

"I don't know about the East Market, but for the West Market, I understand. They built a tower that can be assembled temporarily," Ye Chang said with a smile.

"Assembled temporarily?"

"It's a very simple thing; you'll see in a moment."

With Ye Chang's reassurance, Chongniang was no longer anxious. More importantly, wandering the stalls on both sides of the street with him was an interesting experience in itself. Normally, the Southern Office would not allow vendors to set up shop here, but today was an exception—the so-called "Golden Guard does not forbid" rule applied.

However, other onlookers didn't necessarily have such patience. If they wanted to shop, why not go to the regular markets? What was the point of being here? After a while, some restlessness began to stir among the crowd.

"What kind of trick is this? Both the West and East Markets are doing the same thing!" Hearing the increasingly loud grumbling, Ji Wen and Huo Xianqi grew anxious. Huo Xianqi complained, putting the West Market first: "Lord Ji, we must send someone to urge them. If this crowd becomes dissatisfied and starts a riot, it’s not something you or I can afford to handle."

"That is natural. There will be no major problems on my side," Ji Wen replied calmly.

He didn't know what his side was planning, but he was certain that since Ye Chang was here, the ruffians from the West Market would appear as well. Ye Chang would not let them cause a scene, and as long as the ruffians didn't riot, the common people would at most just grumble a bit. He had no intention of being ordered around by Huo Xianqi.

Seeing that his bait wasn't taken, Huo Xianqi cursed silently. He didn't dare to be as arrogant as Ji Wen, so he had already sent men back to urge the builders.

"Ah, they're here! They're here! People are coming from that side!"

Just then, a commotion arose in the east. The crowd parted, and a team of men marched forward with high spirits. Shouldering burdens and carrying loads, along with several large carts, they brought over countless wooden components.

"What's going on? They're starting to build the towers now? Is there even enough time?" Chongniang, also looking over, asked Ye Chang in surprise.

Seeing the people from the east arrive with such strange equipment, the crowd flocked toward the east, and in the blink of an eye, Ye Chang and Chongniang’s view was blocked.

Ye Chang withdrew his gaze and smiled dismissively. It seemed the East Market had planted quite a few people around Hu Yuanxiang; they had truly learned the techniques he had taught him!

"It's quite easy. Do you remember the Lu Ban wooden toy I sent you? It’s just like that—pre-made modular parts that are assembled on-site. With enough skilled hands, they can build the tower in at most an hour," Ye Chang explained to Chongniang.

"So this was your idea again, Eleven-Lang?" Chongniang understood immediately.