Chapter 20: Yueguogong Mansion
Yang Jian did not say anything, but just kept a sullen face. He did not care about the Crown Princess chosen by the Queen, but he cared about the Crown Prince's filial piety, and obedience is filial piety.

Dugu Jialuo said coldly: "You favored Ayun, so that the former Crown Princess had no dignity in the East Palace and was treated like a pig. She was not sick, but died suddenly. It must be you two who caused her death."

Yang Yong was speechless. Seeing this, Dugu Jialuo became even more disappointed. She turned to the emperor and cried, "While I am still here, you will bully your brothers after I die. I always think that there is no legitimate heir in the East Palace. After we two live forever, our legitimate sons and grandsons will have to bow down to Ayun'er. How much pain is this!"

Yang Yong kowtowed repeatedly and said, "How dare I bully my brothers? I dare not, I beg you to take back your words."

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After leaving the palace, Li Jiancheng went straight to the Mansion of Duke Yue. The place in front of the gate was much busier than that of Duke Tang's Mansion. Everyone was there to visit Duke Yue. The wide open space from the outer gate to the main gate was packed with people. Some people of lower status had to wait outside the Wutou Gate.

Li Jiancheng only waited for a while, and the steward of the Duke's Mansion came out in a hurry. He ordered the strong servants in the mansion to move the horse away and feed it carefully, and then bowed and said: "I am late, and I have troubled Mr. Li to wait for a long time. Please come in."

Seeing the usually arrogant steward being so humble, he knew that this young man must be a nobleman. He silently made way for a wide path and Li Jiancheng smiled and bowed to thank them.

After entering the mansion, Yang Jishan was walking towards him. As soon as he saw him, he shouted, "The lynx you sent was very wild. It bit my brindled dog last night."

Li Jiancheng laughed and said, "How can we lock them up together if they haven't been trained yet? Are you crazy?"

"Hey, I didn't have time last night, so I told the people below to lock up and feed him. Unexpectedly, he was a fool, so I sent him to the other house to farm."

After sending the steward away, Yang Jishan said, "Just now I sent someone to your house to invite you to play football, but I heard that you went to the palace?"

Without waiting for Li Jiancheng to answer, he pulled him to the side yard and said, "You came just in time. The banquet hasn't started yet. We are playing football in the side yard."

The so-called Jiju is also known as polo, which became popular during the Wei and Jin Dynasties and is still loved by men today, second only to hunting outside the city.

The mansion of the Duke of Yue was very large. At first, it was of the same size as that of the Duke of Tang. But seven or eight years ago, it was expanded and now occupies almost half of the block. The mansion was magnificent and luxurious, just like a smaller imperial palace.

Not only was it large, but there were also many servants and maids coming and going. I remembered that Yang Jishan once told them that there were thousands of servants in the house, and there were also thousands of prostitutes and maids dressed in silk and brocade in the backyard, which was enough to show how rich the family was.

Moreover, it is said that he is already low-key in the sky, and his villas in various overseas places are even more luxurious and gorgeous. They are always demolished in the morning and rebuilt in the evening, and the construction and renovation never stop in pursuit of novelty.

The side yard is a horse farm, which is roughly rectangular in shape with a circumference of one thousand steps. It is surrounded by low walls on three sides. Only a row of high platforms with roofs and screens on the sides are built on the north side, which serve as viewing seats.

This venue is not something that ordinary noble families can afford. The ground was compacted and flattened inch by inch with loess to ensure that the horses would not trample on the dust and affect the view when running. Then oil was poured repeatedly on the ground to make it as smooth as a whetstone and as bright as a mirror.

There are two teams of knights on the field, wearing different forehead bands, holding baseball sticks that are several feet long and have crescent-shaped tips. They ride on horses and compete to hit the ball, with the winner being determined by corner kick.

The colorful ball is about the size of an adult's fist. It is made of light and tough wood, hollowed out in the middle, painted on the outside, and carved. Today's ball is carved with a unicorn stepping on a bead.

There is a small door on each side, and the door is carved with red paintings. Once you pass through it, your round is over.

There were flags erected on the periphery. One point was worth one move and one flag was added. One move was worth one move and one flag was removed. Li Jiancheng and Yang Jishan came to the sidelines. Yang Jishan explained the situation of the game with great interest and also praised the goal he had just scored.

Li Jiancheng's attention was soon attracted by a tall rider, who was wearing a dark narrow-sleeved robe, black boots, a turban on his head, holding the reins in his left hand and a crescent-shaped baton in his right hand.

He rode his maroon BMW with all four hooves in the air. While riding at full speed, he turned around and hit the ball back, and scored with one effortless strike. More than ten riders behind him sighed and reined in their horses.

The crowd watching cheered. The man glanced at everyone with a calm look, then put on a bright smile. After a moment, his eyes fell on Li Jiancheng. He waved and called a friend, who came over on horseback.

The two men jumped off their horses and said to Yang Jishan, "Qilang, go and win the last ball for me."

Yang Jishan laughed and was about to pull Li Jiancheng to the stage, but was stopped by Li Jiancheng, who said, "You go by yourself. I want to talk to Li Dalang who dared to say that the Duke of Qi only owes death."

Upon hearing this, Yang Jishan said, "Then big brother, please do not treat my distinguished guest with disrespect."

After saying this, Yang Jishan winked at Li Jiancheng and left. The competition continued and soon became noisy again.

Li Jiancheng bowed to the man and said, "I haven't seen you for a long time, brother. Why are you teasing me like this?"

Yang Xuangan had been able to play since he was young. He was more than ten years older than the others and was considered the big brother. Therefore, when they were young, they were all willing to play with him. They learned dog fighting, eagle training, chess, hunting and so on from him.

Yang Xuangan stepped forward, embraced Li Jiancheng, shook him and said, "It feels like three years since we last met. Jiancheng has changed a lot and has become a good husband. Some time ago, everyone in the capital was laughing at you, but now their jaws are dropping."

"The one who is laughing the happiest is probably my elder brother." Li Jiancheng said with a smile, "A man who has been away for three days is looked at with new eyes. Why are you so late in seeing things, elder brother?"

Yang Xuangan pretended to bow in shame, and after a while of laughter, he introduced him, "This is Li Mi, the Duke of Pushan. He and the previous Duke of Pushan were in charge of the state in other places a few years ago, and he seldom returned to the capital. You probably don't have any impression of him."

Li Jiancheng bowed and said, "I am honored to meet you, brother. Although I have rarely seen you, I have often heard that you are well-educated, especially good at the art of war. You can recite the whole text word for word, and you are invincible in deduction and debate."

Li Mi had a sharp-angled forehead and clear black and white pupils, but he was dark and short, and looked somewhat frail. Standing next to the strong and bearded Yang Xuangan, he looked more like a servant than a friend.

Li Mi replied, "Talking about military affairs on paper is not worth mentioning. You are far inferior to Dalang."

The two men exchanged pleasantries for a while, and Yang Xuangan asked Li Jiancheng if he wanted to go on stage and play for a while. Li Jiancheng had important matters to attend to today, and Yang Yue was a rather harsh person, so naturally he did not want to go to see him in a dishonorable manner, so as not to mess up his work.

After getting the answer, the three of them walked towards the banquet hall. On the way, Yang Xuangan and Li Mi had a pleasant conversation. Only at this time, Li Mi looked a little bit high-spirited, but next to Yang Xuangan, he was still firmly suppressed.

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(End of this chapter)