Seeing that Li Jingyun was really frightened, those elder brothers and sisters came over to console her. "We saw it, we saw it. Isn't that the magic of Taoist Gong Wenlin? It's as wonderful as ever!"
Li Jingyun's heart, which had almost jumped out, finally settled down.
Outside, the world was covered in white snow. Several plum blossoms were in full bloom against the snow, adding a touch of color to the dark night, making it extremely gorgeous.
This dinner would last until dawn the next day. The entire royal family of the Li clan gathered together to observe the custom of staying up late on New Year's Eve. It was very lively. At first, there were still some rules, but after the magic show, the younger generations basically relaxed.
A while ago, several princes like Li Zhen, Li Zhi, and Li Shen were chasing and playing around. Several little princesses were huddled in their mothers' arms with their eyes half - closed. It was hard to tell if they were asleep or not.
Later, most of them gathered in front of the elders.
It was Li Jingyun who started. "Father and Mother, Happy New Year! May everything go as you wish! May you both be healthy and live a long life!"
"Good!"
After Li Jingyun finished speaking, several people cheered for her.
Princess Gaoyang laughed. "Why are you all so quick to respond? Did you make an agreement with Hongxuan? Or did she pay you?"
"She hired us all!" Li Zhi immediately shouted.
Li Jingyun didn't refute. She just smiled and continued on her own. "It's Chinese New Year today. Do we get lucky money?"
"Yes, yes, yes. We've prepared it long ago!" Li Shimin laughed. Immediately, Wang De presented the pre - prepared money.
It was wrapped in very delicate red envelopes with gold and silver threads on them, looking extremely luxurious.
It was obvious that in recent years, especially in the past six months, the tax revenue of the Tang Dynasty had been very good, and the earnings were substantial.
As soon as the topic of lucky money came up, the other younger generations also got excited. They quickly grabbed the elders around them. Prince Li Daozong of Jiangxia and Prince Li Xiaogong of Hejian were surrounded.
The banquet, which was already lively, became even more bustling.
"Uncle Wang! Shouldn't you give us some lucky money? You've had quite a lot of income recently!"
"Yes, yes! Uncle Wang! On this happy occasion, shouldn't you show something?"
"Uncle Wang, it's already this day. Don't be so stingy. Could it be that your wife really has the final say in your family?"
Surrounded by a group of people, these two were really annoyed.
They quickly took out red envelopes from their pockets and distributed them one by one, for fear of missing anyone.
In such matters, people never worried about getting less but rather about inequality.
Other aunts, aunts on the mother's side, uncles, and uncles on the father's side were not spared either. They all gave red envelopes.
It didn't matter how much money was in the envelopes. It was all about the thought and the fun.
After getting the money, Li Jingyun was pulled over by her elder sister Li Lizhi. She huddled in her sister's arms. Looking at her sister's warm smile, her prominent belly, and her brother - in - law who took good care of her sister, she couldn't help but smile. That rascal Li You secretly replaced Li Jingyun's milk tea with wine. After drinking half a cup, Li Jingyun was so drowsy that she was almost asleep.
The laughter and voices around her gradually faded away, and the light of the lamps in front of her slowly went out. Li Jingyun fell asleep soundly in Li Lizhi's arms.
She slept until early the next morning.
She woke up very early, just a quarter past the second hour of the day. It was still dark, and there were a few scattered stars twinkling on the horizon.
She stood up sleepily. The eunuch Feng quickly came over to support her and moved a chair for her to sit on. "Princess, shall we go back to the back hall to sleep or sit here for a while?"
"Let me take a break, Feng." Li Jingyun yawned and rubbed her eyes. She didn't know when her elder sister Li Lizhi had left. She was now in her mother's arms. Some of the uncles were already drunk. Some were lying on the ground, and some were lying on the tables... Some were still chatting energetically.
Some of the younger brothers and sisters had gone back to sleep, but the ladies didn't seem affected at all. They were still coping with the situation effortlessly.
"Awake? Did you sleep well?"
Empress Zhangsun lovingly tucked a stray hair behind Li Jingyun's ear and said with a smile.
Li Jingyun nodded like a pecking chick. She hugged Empress Zhangsun's waist and acted coquettishly. "Mother, can you hold Hongxuan like this to sleep from now on? It's really comfortable."
"You're really good at taking advantage of the situation. You rely on Mother's love for you and say whatever you want."
Li Ke, who was half - drunk, pointed at Li Jingyun and shouted. Under normal circumstances, he would never have said such a thing.
"Why not?!"
Li Jingyun put her hands on her hips and said.
Then she sneezed. The eunuch Feng quickly handed over a cloak. Empress Zhangsun put it on Li Jingyun and tapped her on the tip of the nose. "Put on your clothes first. If you catch a cold later, you'll have to take medicine."
"Okay."
Li Jingyun pouted and obediently let Empress Zhangsun dress her.
When the time was about right, the banquet finally ended. Those who were still a bit sober went home. Those who couldn't go home temporarily stayed in the palace. The palaces for political discussions in the palace were not connected to the harem. By adding a few more stoves and beds, it was completely possible to provide a place for people to rest.
These were all old traditions of the imperial palace.
Yesterday was like a night of revelry in the Tang Dynasty.
But just a few days later, before the New Year had completely passed, Zhenzhu Tongsi Jijin came with a large number of sheep as agreed to exchange for the sweaters agreed upon with the Tang Dynasty.
After several months, when Li Jingyun saw Zhenzhu Tongsi Jijin again, she found that he had become very old. He could no longer straighten his back. It seemed that a gust of wind could blow him down. His hair and beard were all white.
The production of sweaters in the Tang Dynasty had indeed increased a lot. It wasn't a big deal to provide them to the other side.
"I, the foreign official Zhenzhu Tongsi Jijin, pay my respects to the respected Heavenly Khan of the Tang Dynasty, the Crown Prince, and Princess Chengyang."
He was much more humble and submissive than the last time he came.
"Get up. I've read your memorial. You've brought 5,721 sheep and 2,155 cows, right?" Li Shimin said.
Although he looked calm on the surface, he was extremely happy inside.
According to the information from within the Turkic tribes, the Turkic people had suffered a heavy snowfall, which had led to internal strife. It had taken Khan Tung Yabgu a great deal of effort to stabilize his rule.
However, the division of the Turkic tribes was just around the corner.
The most interesting thing was that both Tung Yabgu's uncle and Tung Yabgu himself hoped to continue the sweater trade with the Tang Dynasty.
Since the military strength of the Turkic tribes had declined, this opportunity that had come to them couldn't be wasted.
"Exactly. Please, Heavenly Khan, make a holy decision."
"Approved!" Li Shimin waved his hand and directly approved it.
After that, Su Gui and Li Jingyun got to work. They paid the money and packed the sweaters. As for the thousands of sheep, a small half were rewarded to the various nobles, and the rest flowed into the market and were transported to other parts of the Tang Dynasty.
Thanks to the Turkic people, during this period in the Tang Dynasty, even ordinary people could see mutton on their dinner tables every day. Occasionally, they could also eat pork for a change.